Volume One: The Game of the Manipulator Chapter Fifty-Two: The True Identity of the Kuya People

Mortal World, Su Yu Star.

Fifty years after Qin Shuang and the others stepped into the teleportation array, all the cultivators on Su Yu Star had departed. In their minds, after being gone for fifty years, no matter how many thousands or tens of thousands more they waited, Qin Shuang and the others would never return.

Unlike them, the seventy-five Kuya warriors assigned by the three Kuya elders to remain by Qin Shuang’s side continued to wait in place. And that wait lasted over three hundred years!

Over three centuries—even for the Kuya, whose lifespans far exceeded those of ordinary mortals—many of them had reached the end of their days. These seventy-five warriors had, in effect, spent their lives guarding the teleportation array.

More than three hundred years ago, after all the masters of the three cultivator sects left Su Yu Star with Qin Shuang, the remaining Kuya and cultivators lived in relative peace. While minor conflicts still occurred, there was no longer the need to fight to the death.

Three hundred years is a long time, even for the long-lived Kuya. Living in the desert, food scarcity was their greatest challenge. Over these centuries, thirty of the original seventy-five Kuya warriors died for various reasons.

Qin Si deeply admired the Kuya for their unwavering diligence in carrying out orders, though in his eyes, their persistence seemed rather foolish.

Qin Shuang had not forgotten the promise made to Lei Shan. With Qin Si present, they could traverse freely between the mortal world, the celestial and demon realms, and finding the Kuya’s homeland would be no difficult task.

Yet seeing the forty-five survivors, Qin Shuang's heart grew heavy. She had once promised the three elders that she would return everyone home alive, but in the end, thirty-six had died. Those who remained, living in the desert for centuries, were now not far from death themselves.

“I’m sorry. I’ve come back too late.”

Qin Shuang and Qin Si stood before the forty-five Kuya. Eyes long since clouded with age suddenly flickered with life as their bodies trembled.

Three centuries had passed; no one could know what these people felt in their hearts. For them, three hundred years was a lifetime. To guard the teleportation array for a lifetime, upholding a hope as faint as this—most would call it foolishness.

“Master Qin!”

At last, one Kuya called out in a trembling voice. The remaining forty-five fell to their knees and wept bitterly. They had obeyed and executed their orders, but to wait for over three hundred years—such a long, lonely vigil—could only breed endless grievance and pain, feelings that could not be put into words...

“I’m sorry,” Qin Shuang said, filled with sorrow. Lei Shan and the others had died, but in some ways, these steadfast survivors were even more pitiable. Qin Shuang blamed himself for everything that had happened.

“Shuang, what’s done is done. No one could have foreseen this. Didn’t you promise Lei Shan to help them return home? If we can bring them back, that will be the best compensation we can offer.”

Kuya Headquarters.

Qin Shuang placed the bodies of Lei Shan and the others in the temple courtyard. Even after three hundred years, seeing Lei Shan’s corpse brought a pang of sadness.

“I’m sorry, Elders. I promised to bring them all back alive and unharmed…”

The three elders gazed silently at the bodies, their expressions unchanged.

“Senior, there is no need for self-reproach. When we entrusted them to you, their lives were yours to command. How many you could return is no longer important,” Gan Ming said, instructing others to bury the bodies with honor. None of the elders held any resentment toward Qin Shuang.

“Senior… that place…” Third Elder Xiao Qing asked awkwardly.

The Infinite Continent! The phrase echoed in Qin Shuang’s mind.

“The other side of the array is indeed a land of abundance, just as Ruan Lingyu described—a place with plentiful food, rich resources, and brimming spiritual energy…” Thinking back on the Infinite Continent, Qin Shuang knew that, were it not for the fact that the local spiritual energy could not be absorbed, it truly would be an ideal place.

“It’s just… that place is not suitable for you, nor for anyone here.” On the Infinite Continent, reaching the Tribulation stage in millions of years was an extraordinary feat, while on Su Yu Star, as long as one’s aptitude was not too poor, achieving Tribulation in two to three thousand years was possible.

Plentiful spiritual energy that could not be absorbed was no different than having none at all.

“Eh—” Suddenly, Qin Si, who had been standing quietly behind Qin Shuang, let out a soft exclamation, his eyes glittering with golden light as he stared behind the three elders. The elders were forced back several steps by his aura.

“How interesting.”

A smile played at Qin Si’s lips. With the strength of an upper celestial deity at his peak, he had discovered something intriguing—a few secret rooms deep beneath the temple, one of which contained something quite fascinating.

Qin Si’s figure vanished in an instant and, before anyone could react, reappeared holding a golden scroll. At the sight of the scroll, the three elders’ faces turned pale with terror, and they rushed toward Qin Si.

With a muffled boom, the outcome was inevitable. Out of consideration for their age, Qin Si had shown mercy—compared to Qin Shuang, for whom killing them would have been as easy as crushing ants.

“Put down our secret scripture!”

The three elders’ eyes were bloodshot as they threw themselves at Qin Si once more. At the same time, a deep bell sounded within the temple. All the Kuya, young and old, dropped what they were doing and rushed inside; this was their most urgent summons.

“There’s no need to panic, Elders. This is my brother, and he’s here to help you!” The turn of events had caught Qin Shuang off guard. With a surge of immortal power, the Kuya outside the temple halted, as did the three elders within, forced to glare at Qin Si with reddened eyes, unable to advance.

Qin Si, in his status, could not be bothered to control mere mortals; only Qin Shuang could do so, lest chaos erupt further.

“So that’s how it is—interesting!” Qin Si unfurled the golden scroll, and instantly, a pillar of golden light shot skyward, blowing the temple to pieces. Fortunately, Qin Shuang had shielded everyone; otherwise, the scroll’s energy could easily have killed many Kuya on the spot.

Even Qin Si nodded admiringly at the contents, his smile widening.

He did not realize that this display had utterly subdued the three elders. Where moments before they had been prepared to fight to the death, now their gazes shone with fanaticism and even a hint of pleading. Even Qin Shuang was surprised by the extent of their change.

***

Divine World, Mist City.

“Uncle Ye Qu, I have some free time now. Let’s continue talking about your Dinosaur Realm!” A clear, lively voice rang out at Ye Qu’s residence. His expression shifted slightly—this little ancestor, Hei Tong, had recently developed an obsession with learning about the lower realms, and as someone she knew well, Ye Qu was her first victim.

No sooner had she spoken than Hei Tong arrived, striking in her elegance and renowned as one of the beauties of Mist City. Unfortunately, her temperament did not match her lovely appearance.

“Last time, I told you about the power structure of the Dinosaur Realm and the hierarchy among the dinosaurs. Today, I’ll explain how human strength is categorized there.” Ye Qu gave a helpless smile and began to speak.

“Humans in the Dinosaur Realm are much like those in the Celestial, Demon, and Monster Realms—there are mortals and immortals. However, there are no demon cultivators; all humans cultivate as immortals…”

He spoke for half an hour, slowly falling into reminiscence. “But among the humans of the Dinosaur Realm, there was a unique group. They were not particularly strong at birth, nor did they cultivate quickly. Yet the further they progressed, the stronger they became. Especially after reaching the Seventh-level Immortal Emperor stage, their power could surpass even the Tyrannosaurus, the Seventh-level Demon Emperor. In fact, they were the strongest beings in the Dinosaur Realm!”

“There were such people? Who were they?” Hei Tong exclaimed in surprise. She knew well the might of the Tyrannosaurus; even the most powerful divine beasts of the Celestial, Demon, and Monster Realms were no match.

And yet, there existed humans stronger than the Tyrannosaurus—a whole race of them.

“These people have vanished from the Dinosaur Realm. Our Tyrannosaurus clan plotted to eliminate them. Although they became powerful at the Immortal Emperor stage, their mortal cultivation period was far too long. Their mortal kin were cast into a spatial rift and wiped out, and the remaining strong were gradually hunted down by us. From then on, the Tyrannosaurus became the true rulers of the Dinosaur Realm.”

“They called themselves the Kuya. Any Kuya above Seventh-level Immortal Emperor was known as a Super Kuya. The strongest beings in the Dinosaur Realm were not the Tyrannosaurus, but the Super Kuya.”

Ye Qu spoke quietly, eyes half-closed. By the time he was born, the Kuya had already been wiped out. He knew of this mighty race only from legend.

(To be continued)