Chapter 270 – Body Modification and the Eye of the Starry Sky

“Sickle Moon’s bloodline seems… somewhat extraordinary.”

Mu Yuan pondered.

He had gained deep understanding of many of his generals. When Isloria underwent epic physical examinations and experiments, he often observed from the sidelines, providing assistance.

In terms of understanding epic lifeforms, Mu Someone prided himself on being stronger than most Great Lords.

In his eyes, the giant wolf that Sickle Moon had transformed into, now radiating an aura like divine radiance, seemed more noble than the Frost Dragon, Xiliu the Red Dragon, and the Water Mirror Dragon.

This was intuition.

It was also a judgment formed through observation and analysis.

「Moon Coronet Giant Wolf: Sickle Moon can transform into a giant wolf blessed and protected by the Moon God. In the Moon Coronet Giant Wolf state, Sickle Moon’s basic three attributes are greatly enhanced, and she gains advanced skills such as ‘Treading the Moon’, ‘Moonlight Trails’, and ‘Lunar Power’. When the Moon Coronet Giant Wolf is under moonlight, she possesses nearly inexhaustible power.」

「Note: The duration of the Moon Coronet Giant Wolf is fixed and is not affected by her own energy reserves. After the power of the Moon Coronet transformation is exhausted, it will naturally recover over time.」

The silver giant wolf shrouded in divine radiance was massive in size, no less than the fully transformed forms of Xiliu and Sario, and even larger than Tiff by about one and a half times.

But when she dashed and leaped, her movements were exceptionally agile and nimble, showing no sign of being a colossal creature.

Suddenly,

The massive Moon Coronet Giant Wolf’s speed surged again, increasing more than tenfold in an instant. As she galloped on all fours, she left behind streaks of silver afterimages. Even in this burst of speed, her maneuvers remained fluid, often defying inertia with sharp turns.

At one moment, the silvery giant wolf leaped high, treading in mid-air as if stepping on a moonlit water surface, creating ripples.

She ran through the air as if on solid ground, seemingly aiming to reach the height of the bright moon, then threw her head back and let out a long, resonant howl that echoed across countless valleys.

“So fast.”

Even faster than Xiliu’s top flying speed. It was important to note that Xiliu was a full major rank higher than Sickle Moon, and her flight wasn’t solely reliant on wings; it was also driven by energy and magical power. Yet, she was still slower, her flight mode seemingly lagging behind by more than a step.

Sickle Moon, treading the moon and leaving long trails of phantom light, seemed to have significant consumption.

She soon descended to the ground, let out a few “aowu” sounds, and her body gradually shrank. The silvery fur receded, restoring her to a girl with only the characteristics of a large tail and wolf ears, otherwise no different from a human.

She was still crouched on all fours, her tail wagging back and forth. The light armor she wore was completely undamaged, showing no sign that Sickle Moon had just enlarged countless times and transformed into a colossal creature.

This alone showed that Sickle Moon’s transformation was more advanced than Xiliu’s.

When Xiliu transformed into a dragon, she would completely shred the clothes she was wearing. Because of this, Xiliu had to use her own dragon scales, fused with a large amount of materials, to create a set of dragon scale armor that could change size along with her transformation.

This avoided the embarrassment of clothes bursting.

“Putting aside other aspects, Sickle Moon’s transformation is indeed more advanced than Xiliu’s, offering greater enhancements. The boost to her three attributes alone is second only to Uta’s ‘Flesh Shackles’ and Dolai’s ‘Limitless Devour · Extreme State’. However, Sickle Moon’s transformation also temporarily awakens several advanced skills, which she uses without any unfamiliarity.”

“Of course, correspondingly, Sickle Moon’s transformation has much greater restrictions than Xiliu’s dragon transformation.”

Xiliu could freely switch between human, draconian, and dragon forms anytime, anywhere.

Sickle Moon’s transformation wasn’t difficult either, but according to the description, her transformation duration was relatively short, and recovery wasn’t fast.

This was already quite good.

If the Tianyuan Territory only had one, two, or three generals, then it would need ultimate moves that could be used frequently, without side effects or long cooldowns, to deal with various enemies.

But the Tianyuan Territory had numerous generals. Those possessing super-strong burst power, capable of delivering a decisive blow at critical moments, better met the territory’s needs.

Uta was this type of strong individual.

Sickle Moon was similar.

“Sickle Moon’s rank is a bit low; she only broke through to the Third-Order Warlord Tier a short while ago. However, her combat power can be considered the top among T2. In her giant wolf form, she is stronger than the lower-ranked individuals in T1.”

Mu Yuan was quite satisfied. When they went to Blue Star, Sickle Moon would also be capable of leading a team independently.

Both in terms of combat power and daily conversational ability – although Sickle Moon wasn’t great at cultural studies, she was at least a normal person. Her ability to chat and converse was still much more normal than many young generals lacking life experience.

Just as Mu Yuan thought this, he saw…

Sickle Moon was still on all fours, lying on the ground like a wolf.

Daisy walked up to her and crouched down. “Why aren’t you standing up? Don’t tell me you can’t stand up.”

“It seems I really can’t stand up… I don’t know how to walk on two legs anymore.”

Sickle Moon looked up, on the verge of tears.

She tried to push her upper body up, lifting her front limbs and pushing with her hind limbs. However, she was like a dog trying to stand on its hind legs; her front limbs wobbled, she couldn’t maintain balance, and she fell with a thud.

Her chin hit the floor, and she didn’t even want to push her front limbs up anymore. She just lay there listlessly.

Although she often fought on all fours before, that didn’t mean she liked to walk and eat in this posture!

“Help me, Xixi!”

“Don’t panic. You probably traced your bloodline back to its source, enhancing your combat instincts, which in turn caused some minor changes in your living habits. You just need to practice more to adapt.”

“Aowu~!”

After all, Daisy was a top student with high scores in cultural studies; she could more or less guess the reason.

Mu Yuan’s view was similar.

Evolution also had no side effects that would cause the evolved to transform towards the most perfect form. Probably, the ‘Evolution Miracle’ considered Sickle Moon’s perfect form to be the four-legged posture, hence this outcome.

This wasn’t a big problem either; she just needed more practice.

However, at this stage, Sickle Moon couldn’t be sent to Blue Star – having wolf ears and a big tail could be explained away as cosplay or wearing special equipment, or having a special class.

Nowadays on Blue Star, having a tail swaying behind one wasn’t as eye-catching as a few months ago. You could see a fair number of them on the streets.

Some were real tails, some were attached tails.

But walking on all fours was still… emmmmm…

He certainly wouldn’t let Sickle Moon go out on missions like this.

…

Red Robe, Rakshasa, Niu Si, and two newly promoted Polar Star Arrows successively reported to the company on Blue Star.

In the eyes of the company employees, these were naturally strong reinforcements sent by the headquarters.

The headquarters really was a large corporation.

With the support of this batch of generals, Sophia was able to form three or four transport teams, shuttling back and forth within White Cloud Province and the neighboring provinces.

Second Team: Rakshasa sat on the roof of an off-road vehicle, as stable as a rock embedded in the vehicle. He gazed into the distance; any monster that entered his line of sight wouldn’t live more than three seconds.

“This big shot is a bit unconventional, but the sense of security he gives is really maxed out.”

The driving master sighed like this.

Third Team: Red Robe sat in the back seat of a certain vehicle, intently fiddling with the tablet in her hands.

“Big shot, there seems to be a situation ahead.”

“Got it, got it.”

She was just at a critical point in this drama!

Let me see who’s disturbing me! (ーー)

Most of the time, the transport teams weren’t ambushed by players either; they only needed to deal with some stray monsters.

With strong individuals providing protection, the teams could transport goods across cities relatively smoothly.

The procurement speed had significantly improved.

However, it was still far from the peace period. Procurement was also limited to White Cloud Province and the surrounding provinces, without going to more distant places. The transportation time and cost would be too high that way.

“Buy as much as you can, but remember, safety first.”

“Also, prepare the equipment and supplies on this list as soon as possible.”

Mu Yuan instructed Sophia.

Currently, the Soul Crystal reserves weren’t low. Far from being able to convert the Soul Crystals in hand into troops to accompany him before the world fusion, Lord Mu considered purchasing more strategic supplies.

After all, after Blue Star fused, players like them would no longer be able to circulate supplies through the Blue Star world.

He could still send generals to Stone Ridge Town for purchases, but some rare items were difficult to buy there, or couldn’t be bought in large quantities.

For example, Calamity-Inducing Demon Flowers, high-grade construction materials, Miracle Blueprints, etc.

At the same time, Isloria finally ended her ‘seclusion’.

…

Isloria had long met the application criteria for evolution. The Human Race Evolution Points in Mu Yuan’s hands were also relatively ample now.

However,

A while ago, she postponed her evolution arrangement twice in a row. In the last couple of days, she even applied for leave, secluding herself in the Intermediate Mage Tower, no one knew what she was tinkering with.

Until today.

“I thought you didn’t want to evolve anymore.”

“How could that be, Lord? This kind of baptism that elevates one’s life level is something I dream of. But precisely because the opportunity for baptism is so precious, I have to be fully prepared before proceeding.”

“Lord, aren’t you also thinking about utilizing the Evolution Miracle more comprehensively?”

In the mental link, Isloria’s pleasant voice came through.

What she said seemed reasonable, but what did it have to do with you staying shut in the Intermediate Mage Tower for two or three whole days without going out?

Nor did I see you go to the Gladiator Arena to set up a new evolution ritual array.

Mu Yuan looked at her with disdain.

Could it be that Isloria had been infected by Red Robe’s slacking syndrome?

Shaking his head, Mu Yuan walked to the reception platform of the Intermediate Mage Tower. As the platform rose like an elevator, he arrived in front of this Outstanding-grade building.

“Ding~ Lord Card.”Welcome, Respected Lord.””

The Mage Tower’s intelligent voice echoed, and the door hissed open slowly.

Instantly, billowing white mist gushed out from the doorway, as if the entire Mage Tower was smoking.

Mu Yuan waved his hand, summoning a gust of wind to sweep the thick white mist outside.

The white mist immediately thinned, vaguely revealing the somewhat crowded instruments and equipment inside. Originally, the lower level of the Intermediate Mage Tower was the most spacious living area, but now Isloria had renovated it, merging it with the research area on the middle level to form a more expansive mage laboratory.

Upon entering, Mu Yuan could see various potions and materials scattered haphazardly, with many bottles and jars rolling on the floor, creating a scene of utter chaos.

“Should I raise Isloria’s rent?”

Just as he thought this, he saw Isloria walking out from a side room.

The girl was wearing slippers and a loose white lab coat. The lab coat only reached her knees, and the sleeves were rolled up. On her exposed calves, arms, and neck, clear blue engravings were visible, with energy seemingly flowing through them. At first glance, it looked like worms wriggling.

She was the spitting image of a cultist!

Mu Yuan recalled his first meeting with Isloria.

Back then, she was having a friendly spar with Dolai. When she went all out, strange patterns would crawl all over her body. And now… the patterns on her body seemed even more unsettling than before.

“How did you end up like this? Weren’t the previous physical issues all resolved?”

“Hmm, the previous ones are fine. These are recent additions.”

Isloria’s tone was still excited. She couldn’t help but recount her feat. “I’ve had many ideas before, like if our energy recovery speed isn’t fast enough, why not install a few more energy circuits inside our bodies.”

“And if our energy reserves aren’t sufficient, then just dig out a few more reservoirs.”

“And attacks… the condensation of spells requires following certain rules and steps. So, can we also engrave these steps onto our bodies? Simply put, it’s treating our human bodies as equipment, forging and modifying them.”

“Not long ago, we obtained that batch of equipment from the Eye of Divine Radiance, and we had already collected enough epic data before. I thought the timing was ripe. So, I started conducting modification experiments on myself.”

Isloria pointed behind her.

“I’ve operated on myself before too; it was troublesome. But the conditions are really different now. Not only do we have so many advanced devices, but I can also use my Starlight Avatar to perform surgery on myself. It’s convenient, efficient, and safe.”

“See, in just two and a half days, I completed this masterpiece of mine.”

She brushed her hair aside, and Mu Yuan finally saw two protrusions on the back of her neck, resembling external interfaces, or a bit like two tumors.

He estimated that there were many more ‘modification points’ in places hidden by her clothes.

Regarding Isloria’s ‘personal interests’, he opened his mouth, wanting to say something but hesitating, and could only say in the end, “As long as you like it.”

However,

“Are you sure this modification of yours is timely and safe?”

Actually, just listening to Isloria describe her modification process was somewhat horrifying.

She controlled two avatars to perform surgery on various parts of her body – sometimes cutting skin, sometimes injecting special potions, sometimes using a small knife as a pen to carve patterns… Naturally, she remained fully conscious throughout the process.

This girl was more than just tough.

Isloria was indeed quite obsessed with experiments, but her pursuit of power wasn’t this exaggerated, was it? Isloria didn’t seem like a girl who would become neither human nor ghost just for power.

Well, if she had no choice, she might, but now she had options. She wasn’t desperately in need of power either.

“My modification is indeed not mature or very safe, which is why it requires continuous experimentation and improvement. And using my own body for experiments provides the most precise feedback. For example, the circuit in the left kidney is sending waves of pain now, clearly this circuit needs improvement. The other experimental sites are also…”

As she spoke, she grew more excited.

“Normally, this kind of experimental improvement would require a lot of time and effort, and might even leave irreversible physical defects, but…”

“Isn’t there still your Evolution Miracle, Lord!”

Her voice rose, filled with fervor. “Since the evolution baptism can eliminate physical defects, of course I have to modify my body as much as possible before evolving, so as not to waste this precious evolution opportunity.”

“This way, I can collect experimental data, improve the modification system, enjoy the pleasure of modification, and gain enhancement without lasting harm – isn’t that triple the happiness?”

“If the evolution baptism could also compensate for the shortcomings in my modifications, that would be even more wonderful! Of course, I won’t ask for the last part; slowly perfecting my modification system is also a kind of happiness.”

After listening, Lord Mu fell into thought.

It seemed, perhaps, probably, that what Isloria said made sense.

It made perfect sense!

Using the evolution opportunity to eliminate the hidden dangers left by self-modification – wasn’t this just milking the power of evolution?

It was an additional application of the power of evolution.

He originally thought Isloria was deranged, but now he could only admire, “As expected of you.”

He admired both her ingenious idea and her decisiveness and ruthlessness towards herself.

At this moment, Isloria finally acted like a normal girl, proudly raising her neck. The twisted runes on her neck shimmered with a faint light.

“Of course, I’m just that amazing!”

“Following this line of thought, perfect modification is just around the corner. The future pillar of human body modification studies will definitely be me, Isloria.”

“Hohohohoho—”

As long as you’re happy.

Lord Mu felt a bit weary. He opened his panel and took a look. His territory indeed had many talents and numerous strong individuals, but the ones who could truly be considered reliable… besides the Undead General, there seemed to be no second one.

…

At Isloria’s request, the Evolution Grounds were not chosen at the Gladiator Arena, but right inside the Intermediate Mage Tower.

Mu Someone personally took action and, together with Isloria, cleaned up Area A of the Mage Tower, setting up an evolution platform there.

The platform was somewhat different from before, more like an upright CT scanner.

The evolver would enter it.

Moreover,

Everything was ready; the moment of evolution had arrived.

「Consume 20,886 Human Race Evolution Points to evolve ‘Hero · Isloria’?」

「Yes!」

As expected, Isloria’s evolution consumption exceeded the standard value, though the excess wasn’t large.

“Compared to the base consumption for Epic Two-Star evolution, the extra consumption is indeed not large, but over 800 Evolution Points is not a small amount either; it could evolve several Outstanding-tier troops.”

This showed that Isloria’s current physical hidden dangers were still quite significant.

If measures weren’t taken to suppress and eliminate them, she might drop dead someday.

In the blink of an eye, the Evolution Miracle descended.

Isloria, standing inside the platform, radiated white light from head to toe. The white light quickly became dazzling, transforming into a pillar of light that shot into the sky.

Under the white light, her body rapidly transformed.

Tangible and intangible hidden dangers were being eliminated.

The blue engravings were fading away.

Around Isloria, the monitoring instruments specifically arranged according to her physical condition were recording her bodily changes bit by bit.

The instruments might not be able to record all the changes, but for Isloria, recording more or less was still a gain.

For the parts that couldn’t be recorded, she could just improve upon them next time.

Isloria’s evolution time was much longer than Sickle Moon’s.

It lasted a full 8 minutes and 43.56 seconds before ending.

「Ding!」

「Prompt: Your hero ‘Isloria’ has advanced in grade, stepping into the Epic Two-Star tier, and has awakened the Epic talent ‘Starry Sky Eye’.」

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(End of Chapter)