I am the Clone of a Death Row Inmate

Chapter 245: Chapter 210: Well-Connected Su Ze

Zhou Wenshan cleared his throat. ”This is just the strategy we planned beforehand. But with the Divine Dice’s unusual behavior this time, the trials and rules within may have changed, so you’ll have to be flexible.”

”Mr. Zhou,” Mr. Ya inquired, ”I’d like to ask about the six rounds of trials. What exactly do they involve?”

Everyone knew there were six rounds of trials, but no one was clear on the specific details.

Zhou Wenshan stroked his beard. ”Every time the Divine Dice opens, the trials are never exactly the same. However, they do follow a certain pattern.

”First, the six rounds of trials definitely get progressively harder. Second, trials that purely test raw power will certainly appear in the first three rounds. The latter three rounds generally test for talent—things like one’s affinity for evolutionary power and Evolutionary Material, the synergy of their skill combinations, combat intelligence, insight, and so on.

”After all, the purpose of the Divine Dice is to select the most talented individuals, not to see who’s the strongest fighter among those at the Butterfly Stage. This aligns with our theory about its ultimate goal: to choose a successor!”

”Choosing a successor?” Mr. Ya and the others looked bewildered.

Zhou Wenshan nodded. ”Again, this is only our theory. Those who pass the final trial and successfully emerge from the Divine Dice might receive a Bloodline Crystal as a reward. And within that Bloodline Crystal is a Divine Skill Prototype, which can be considered the legacy of a ’god’.

”So, from our perspective, the Divine Dice selecting the most exceptional geniuses and gifting them Bloodline Crystals seems very much like a way to find a successor for a deity—to choose an heir worthy of receiving a divine legacy.”

’So that’s how it is...’ The others finally understood.

Only Su Ze was lost in thought. ’Since I have the Divine Grace of Evolution, does that mean I’ve already received part of a divine legacy? If so, can I accept another one? Can I absorb a second Bloodline Crystal?’

...

After entering Lin Hua Country and undergoing a routine identity check, the plane took off again. It arrived at its destination by evening: a rather remote city in Lin Hua Country named Yeyuan City.

The city was near the border of Lin Hua Country, surrounded by vast, dense mountain forests that connected to ranges teeming with wild, exotic beasts.

However, the sections of forest within the country’s borders had long since been cleared by Lin Hua Country, so there were no high-level exotic beasts left.

And the Divine Dice itself was located in a valley within this very forest.

After the plane landed, Mr. Zhou contacted his counterparts in Lin Hua Country. After confirming that the Divine Dice had not yet activated, he checked everyone into a hotel in the city.

Early the next morning, the group had a quick breakfast before heading to the valley where the Divine Dice was located.

The mountain forest was lush with vegetation, but with no high-level exotic beasts to worry about, Su Ze and his group flew confidently overhead, soaring over one mountain peak after another.

From a great distance, Su Ze spotted the legendary Divine Dice. Seeing it in a photo was nothing compared to witnessing it with his own eyes.

The sheer impact was something a photograph could never replicate.

The Divine Dice was a massive cube, roughly 30 meters on each side, giving it a volume of 27,000 cubic meters. It was pure white and stood in the valley, reaching about the height of a 12-story building.

At this moment, the massive die was hovering a few meters off the ground. The twenty-one pips on its six faces radiated a black light, exuding an aura of mystery.

Staring directly at the black pips on the die felt as if one were gazing into black holes, threatening to suck one’s very soul inside.

Countless people had speculated on the origin of the Divine Dice. Generations of evolutionary scholars had come to study it. Some said it was a divine artifact, while others claimed it was a toy built by extraterrestrial beings...

But regardless of the theory, none had any convincing evidence to back it up.

As Su Ze and his group landed, they saw that others had already arrived before them.

People from Ancient An Country and Peninsula Country were already there.

Su Ze didn’t recognize anyone from Peninsula Country, but he spotted Yarlin among the Ancient An Country contingent. It was only natural for him to be here, given he was hailed as the number one genius of his generation in Ancient An Country and was already at the Butterfly Stage.

Among the six nations, Ancient An Country had the most slots this time. Of the initial ten Divine Dice slots distributed among the six, Ancient An Country had claimed three. They later secured two more by taking second place in the team event at the Six-Nation Top Academy Exchange Tournament.

That gave Ancient An Country a total of five slots.

Dongli, in comparison, had four slots. Peninsula Country, Great Desert Kingdom, and Luofan Country each had three, while Mu Country had two.

The five from Ancient An Country seemed particularly focused on Su Ze. As they conversed, their eyes would occasionally dart in his direction.

Shortly after, people from Luofan Country and Mu Country, two staunchly allied nations, arrived together.

The people from Luofan Country didn’t bother to conceal their hostility toward the Dongli group. A vicious light gleamed in their eyes, and Su Ze noticed one middle-aged man in particular staring at Mr. Ya with undisguised killing intent.

Mr. Ya’s expression, too, turned uncharacteristically grim, his eyes filled with hatred and a faint glimmer of anticipation.

”Who is he?” Su Ze whispered.

”His name is Firoz,” Mr. Ya said, his voice calm. ”In Luofan Country, he’s known as the Butterfly Stage expert most likely to reach the Saint-level. He’s also the father of Mosang and Moni.”

’Fat Mule? What a strange Luofan name... Wait, aren’t Mosang and Moni the brother and sister who destroyed Mr. Ya’s family? So this ”Fat Mule” is the father of Mr. Ya’s sworn enemies!’

’That makes him an enemy, too.’

’When it came to enemies, Su Ze’s policy had always been to find an opportunity and kill them outright. And what better opportunity was there than the Divine Dice?’

’You could kill inside the Divine Dice without facing any repercussions, and there would be no interference from the Saint-level experts of the outside world.’

”He looks like he wants to kill you,” Su Ze said. ”Once we’re inside the Divine Dice, let’s strike first. We’ll find a chance to take him out.”

”Alright!” Mr. Ya nodded. He was thinking the exact same thing.

Firoz wasn’t young, probably in his early fifties, but he was a true expert at the peak of the Butterfly Transformation Stage. The real deal—he had fully assimilated three vials of high-grade Tier-4 extract and could attempt to break through to the Saint-level at any moment.

The reason he hadn’t taken that step yet was likely a lack of confidence in his ability to evolve successfully, so he wanted to build a more solid foundation.

It was also possible he had been waiting specifically for the Divine Dice to open.

It would be difficult to find anyone at the Butterfly Stage stronger than him.

Therefore, among the three from Luofan Country, he was likely playing a role similar to Zhang Tai’s—responsible for protecting the other two young geniuses during the initial trials.

If Su Ze and Mr. Ya wanted to kill him, their best bet was to do it within the first three trials. Otherwise, the man might be eliminated or simply exit.

But judging by his expression, even if Su Ze and Mr. Ya didn’t make a move, he would actively seek them out for trouble.

Before long, the rest of the participants arrived, including a large contingent from Lin Hua Country.

For this opening of the Divine Dice, there were 63 slots in total. The six visiting nations accounted for only 20, while the host, Lin Hua Country, held 43.

As a result, Lin Hua Country had by far the largest group.

Suddenly, Su Ze’s pupils contracted. He saw several people in distinctive attire; some wore white robes trimmed with gold, while others were clad in white, gold-inlaid armor.

’That attire looks so familiar...’ They were from the Evolution Divine Teachings!

’Why are they here? They got slots too?’

Mr. Zhou’s voice echoed in his mind via Spiritual Power transmission: ”The Sovereign Country’s 43 slots aren’t all for its own people. Some are distributed to the major families and influential factions within Lin Hua Country. The Evolution Divine Teachings also get a few slots every time.”

Although Su Ze detested these phony zealots, upon reflection, he could understand the Sovereign Country’s reasoning.

After all, the Pope of the Evolution Divine Teachings was a legendary Saint-level expert, on par with the Sovereign of Lin Hua Country. And no matter how many evil deeds the Evolution Divine Teachings had committed, they at least pulled their weight in the fight against the exotic beasts.

Humanity was still at a disadvantage against the exotic beasts, so it was only natural for the Sovereign Country to try and win over an ally like the Evolution Divine Teachings.

Zhou Wenshan continued, ”It’s not just the Evolution Divine Teachings. Corporations like the Evolution Technology Group and the Life Pharmaceutical Company also receive one or two slots each time.

”So, even though the Sovereign Country has many slots, those 43 people come from various factions and aren’t a unified group. And while each of our six nations has few slots, we won’t necessarily be ganged up on and bullied by a united front from the Sovereign Country.”

If all 43 of the Sovereign Country’s slots were filled by official government-backed geniuses, they would certainly band together and exclude the six nations. But since they hailed from different factions and might even hold old grudges against one another, they, like the Trialists from the other six nations, were also split into smaller cliques.

By now, all 63 Trialists had arrived. Su Ze observed them and confirmed that they were mostly gathered in small groups of three to five.

The ones with fewer slots, like Evolution Technology Group and Life Pharmaceutical Company, only had two people each.

With four slots, Dongli Kingdom’s share was surprisingly not small; it was about average.

The largest group, however, numbered ten people—the official team from the Sovereign Country.

The 63 Trialists gathered around the massive Divine Dice, silently waiting for the entrance to appear.

Su Ze didn’t recognize any of the genius Trialists from the Sovereign Country, but just then, a young man from their ranks approached him.

”Hello, I’m Lin Luo of the Lin Family. My aunt has told me about you.” The young man smiled warmly and extended his hand.

As Su Ze shook his hand, he deduced his identity. He was a member of the Lin Family, the ”royal family” of Lin Hua Country. That meant the aunt he mentioned must be Lin Yutong, the woman who had once tried to recruit him.

”Ah, so you’re Mr. Lin. I’ve admired the Lin Family for a long time...” Su Ze exchanged a few pleasantries with him, drawing sideways glances from many onlookers.

They hadn’t expected some kid from Dongli Kingdom to have connections to the Lin Family—let alone for the Lin Family’s own prodigy, Lin Luo, to be the one to initiate the greeting.

But right after that, another young Trialist from the official Lin Hua Country team stepped forward, came to Su Ze’s side, and said with a hearty laugh:

”You must be Su Ze! A pleasure to finally meet you!”

”And you are?” Su Ze asked.

”My name is Wan Qizhi. My master was just talking about you the other day. He thinks very highly of you and told me I should learn from your example.”

Seeing Su Ze’s still-confused expression, Wan Qizhi lowered his voice. ”My master is Chen Suifeng.”

”Mr. Wan! So you’re Mr. Chen’s prized disciple! In that case, we’re practically family, haha...”

Su Ze gave Wan Qizhi an enthusiastic bear hug, making sure to pull the nearby Lin Luo into the group as well. ”We’re all brothers here. Once we’re inside the Divine Dice, we’ll have to look out for each other.”

”Of course, of course.”

The people from the other six nations, who either knew Su Ze or had heard of him, were all dumbfounded by this scene. They had only heard that this Su Ze fellow was talented; no one had ever mentioned he was this well-connected!