# Chapter 1986: Forge a Path to Survival
After carefully storing the Origin Stone Marrow Treasure Box, thirty Star Source Treasure Chests each containing ten billion Star Source Energy Blocks were soon delivered!
Jiangnan stuffed them all into the Alternate Dimension!
Now, Jiangnan held nine hundred billion Star Source Energy Blocks, almost a trillion!
Enough to exchange a wave of rations for the powerhouses back on Lan Xing if he made it home.
Wen Ge rubbed his hands together, forcing a dry smile onto his face:
(ʃƪᵒ̶̶̷̀ㅂ˂̶́) "Then about this Chu Ya..."
As he spoke, his gaze involuntarily fell upon Olivia.
Olivia's eyes dimmed, and her heart clenched.
Jiangnan's expression was flat: "Don't even think about Olivia. There's no way I'm handing her over to be Lady Venerable Man Ti's vessel."
Wen Ge sighed, his face full of difficulty.
"I know, but..."
Jiangnan said calmly, "No buts. No means no. Honestly, I don't know the internal situation of your Apocalypse Race."
"But using an outstanding junior of your clan as a vessel for a Star Devourer-ranked powerhouse? Do you think that's the right thing to do?"
"Maybe it can solve the immediate crisis and let Lady Venerable Man Ti take another step forward, but have you thought about the consequences?"
"How would the geniuses of your clan feel? And more than that, will your Apocalypse Race even dare to produce geniuses in the future after this?"
At this, even Wen Ge's expression grew unnatural.
He understood this point well enough without Jiangnan having to spell it out.
Jiangnan continued, "You're cutting off your own Apocalypse Race's future. What you're losing isn't just your clan's geniuses—it's their hearts as well."
"I understand that we're on the eve of the Sequence War and you need Lady Venerable Man Ti alive to uphold your image. But you shouldn't use your clan's genius as a vessel."
"If Olivia really becomes a sacrifice, your Apocalypse Race might have a stable present, but you'd be trading it for the potential of the future."
"Olivia has the confidence to surpass her ancestors. In the near future, she could become a top-tier powerhouse of the Apocalypse Race. But look at what you've given her, what you've asked her to do."
Wen Ge sighed, his expression pained:
(๑◔益◔ิ๑) "This was Lady Venerable Man Ti's idea. Of course I know it's wrong."
"But... I don't have the final say."
Jiangnan squinted: "She's gone senile. Have you gone senile too? 'When people grow old, they shouldn't hold power'—doesn't your Apocalypse Race understand this principle?"
"Ten Incense Beads are enough for Lady Venerable Man Ti to reincarnate once. It doesn't have to be Olivia. She can still live."
"If it absolutely has to be her, even if Lady Venerable Man Ti personally came to snatch her today, I'd still say just two words: Not giving! Get lost!"
Olivia stared blankly at Jiangnan, emotions churning and roaring in her heart.
(๑ᵒ̴̶̷̥́～ᵒ̴̶̷̣̥̀)
You... you treat me like this, how am I supposed to repay you?
An unprecedented sense of security enveloped Olivia.
She had never felt so at ease in her entire life.
Wen Ge gritted his teeth: (｡･ˇ益ˇ･｡:) "Then I'll go back and say I couldn't snatch her. There's not enough time. Lady Venerable Man Ti has to switch whether she wants to or not."
"I'll just take the scolding."
It was impossible for him to snatch Chu Ya back from Jiangnan's hands.
Jiangnan finally grinned, turning his gaze to Olivia.
(◕◔◡◔ิ) "What about you? What are your plans? Hey! Olivia? What are you spacing out for? Hey hey hey! What are you looking at?"
Olivia was staring blankly at him with an absent-minded, stupid look.
Jiangnan waved his hand in front of her eyes, but there was no reaction. He had to shake her back to her senses.
(˚‧º·(◦≥﹏≤◦)‧º·˚) "Ah—no, nothing, nothing!"
Olivia's face was red and practically steaming. She couldn't exactly tell Jiangnan she'd been lost in thought staring at a dark horse prince.
Jiangnan scratched his head: ୧(◕͡°～͡°) "I asked what you plan to do. Want to go with Wen Ge? But before Lady Venerable Man Ti reincarnates, going back to the Apocalypse Race is still risky."
"Maybe you should go find Yue Li. Black Street will protect you. You could also keep staying at Noah Manor—there's still quite a bit of rent left."
"And as Chu Ya, just that identity alone would make Black Street protect you to keep Lady Venerable Man Ti from succeeding."
Olivia: !!!
She lunged forward, grabbing Jiangnan's arm tightly.
(ɔᵒ̴̶̷～ᵒ̴̶̷(꒪﹏꒪٥) "C-Can't I just follow you? You're not going to abandon me, are you?"
Jiangnan pointed at his own nose:
ᕦ(°口°◕) "Follow me? Are you crazy? I don't even know if I can make it out of this Marketplace alive!"
"And I'm going home soon. You want to come die with me?"
Even if he could escape Xing Luo's grasp, a great battle still awaited him.
A final battle staking everything.
The road ahead was dancing on the edge of a knife. Even Jiangnan wasn't sure if he could survive.
When Olivia heard Jiangnan mention going home, her ears perked up.
"If I hadn't met you, I'd already be dead by now! You gave me my life! Wherever you go, I go!"
"Besides, without me, your genius beautiful girl early warning princess, wouldn't you die even faster? Can you handle it without me?"
Jiangnan rolled his eyes. Indeed, without Olivia's ability, high-dimensional strikes would be tough to deal with.
(◕･ˇ～ˇ･) "You're really not afraid of death?"
Olivia nodded vigorously:
(｡･ˇ◠ˇ･) "Not afraid, not afraid! If I die, it's on me. Won't blame you!"
Jiangnan sighed. "Then fine."
Olivia pumped her fist in excitement.
Nan Shen's hometown? Nice!
Wen Ge wiped his nose:
(͡°ก̀͡°) "Then I'm off. Sorry, but with the current situation, I really can't help much. I hope you can make it through."
Even as he said it, he truly couldn't see any hope of Jiangnan surviving.
If it were him in that position, it would be the same.
Jiangnan grinned:
(◕͡°͜ʖ͡°)✧ "Then I'll take your kind words."
Wen Ge turned to teleport back, but paused before leaving.
(๑͡°ࡇ͡°) "Can you tell me your real identity? Don't give me that Abyss Clan summoner rubbish again. Who are you trying to fool?"
Jiangnan smiled. "If I really make it home alive, you'll find out soon enough."
Wen Ge was speechless and directly teleported away, knowing that no matter how much he pressed, Jiangnan wouldn't tell him.
Jiangnan sat down on a stool, looking down at the Black Mark Assembly as it proceeded, his gaze flickering.
Indeed, how to charge back alive was the real problem.
"Early Warning Princess? Ready? Start the calculation."
As he spoke, Jiangnan's aura rose directly.
Olivia was startled. Calculation? What did that mean?
But the next moment, she froze. In the Whisper of the Divine that she foresaw, Jiangnan immediately began to act, trying to break out of the encirclement. Outside, Xing Luo responded instantly.
After being insta-killed, Jiangnan changed his approach and tried a different breakout method.
Olivia was stunned. Good heavens, he could even calculate like this?
Trying all possible methods to find the most suitable one?
But there were too many people present. Olivia had to deduce the movement trajectories of every atom.
Just a few tries, and her nose started bleeding.
She couldn't predict high-dimensional strikes directly, only the consequences and environmental changes they caused.
Jiangnan tilted his head. "How is it? Can you hold on?"
Olivia hastily wiped the blood from her nose, her expression serious:
(๑❛ั།◠།❛ั)و "This is nothing! Give me a bowl of chicken soup! Use me as much as you want!"
She had to calculate a way to survive!
Jiangnan didn't believe he was truly doomed. There had to be a way out left for him.
Under the Whisper of the Divine, even if it was only thirty seconds, it was like giving Jiangnan countless chances to restart and try again.
Try every method.
How could he break out of this dead end and go even further?
Force a path to survival through sheer trial and error.
...
While Jiangnan was trying breakout methods on his side, the blocked Star Path had yet to open.
Back on Lan Xing, thanks to Jiangnan's advance notice, Yang Jian had already arranged for everyone to prepare for battle.
Personnel had been dispatched to monitor the Star Chart at all times.
The moment the Laniakea Supercluster position lit up, it would mean the Star Path had opened and Holy Star was making its move.
At the same time, Karl and the others hadn't been idle either. They were discussing strategy inside the sightseeing sphere.
Karl ground his teeth: (✡°᷄皿°᷅) "Can this really work? Jing Lie is coming over. Taking Lan Xing is already a done deal."
"The problem is how we handle things when we go back. We've botched this so badly there's no way to report it properly. Punishment is unavoidable."
"We need to do something to make up for it."
Igor grinned: "It's definitely feasible. Even though we've lost the overall situation on Lan Xing now, don't forget—I still have a hidden agent among the humans."
"Never activated until now. If we don't use it in this battle, there won't be another chance."
"I've been preparing to deliver this backstab for over twenty years now."
"Don't be fooled by how strong the humans seem right now. If this stab lands, they'll be dead or crippled."
Cooper licked his lips, eager and ready:
(▼ヘ▼ꐦ) "Exactly! Should have stabbed them long ago. Why else have we been suffering this humiliation?"
Karl sneered: "Good, you know what to do. Go handle it."
But Igor's expression suddenly stiffened:
=͟͟͞͞(꒪ᗜ꒪‧̣̥̇) "Ah? I... I have to go alone? If I'm going to do it, I have to go back to Lan Xing. What if my tracks are discovered..."
Karl glared: "What? You want me to accompany you again? My horn hasn't even grown back yet."
"Just be careful and go yourself, won't you?"
Igor's forehead broke out in cold sweat. He turned to look at 07, Xiang Zhi, Vivian, and the others.
But each of them was looking up at the sky, whistling.
(*꒪ͦ³꒪ͦ)(⁰⁷꒪ั³꒪ั)(｡ˇ₃ˇ)
Cooper sneered: "Don't be afraid! I'll go with you. It's not some dragon's pool or tiger's den."
"Those contemptible bugs destroyed my main body, bullying us to this point. I don't want to miss a chance to stab them in the back."
Igor looked at Cooper and actually felt a bit moved.
It really had to be you! At least this way he'd have some sense of security.
"Fine! Let's go together then! 07! Follow!"
(･ˇ﹏ˇ･⁰⁷) "Ah? I... I'm scared! I can't do it! The two of you are enough. It's not like we're confronting them head-on, right? I..."
"If I say follow, then follow!"