Translator: CinderTL
Profound Yellow Great World.
For an entire year after returning from the False God Hall, Li Chunjun remained in the Profound Yellow Great World.
More precisely, he stayed within the Profound Yellow Grotto-Heaven within the Great World.
However, at this moment, he stood outside the Grotto-Heaven, quietly observing a figure in the Void using Mind Power to bear the Life Law and complete the transformation from the Primordial Spirit Realm to the Void Refinement Realm.
Surrounding this area, dozens of people watched the person attempting to break through to the Void Refinement Realm with tense anticipation, their eyes fixed intently.
When the figure finally merged completely with the Life Law, completing the final step of the transformation, the surrounding crowd erupted in joyous cries.
"Yes! Yes! Yes! This is wonderful! The Taixu Sword Sect lineage of the Azure Star Minor Realm has finally produced a Void Refining cultivator!"
"It's not the Taixu Sword Sect, it's the Void Sword Sect..."
"Void Refining! A lifespan of 129,600 years! Ruling over a Realm Region, commanding hundreds of thousands of Lesser Thousand Worlds and billions of living beings! If I could reach this stage someday, even if I died immediately afterward, I would have no regrets!"
The crowd erupted in a torrent of emotions.
Every face was etched with envy, joy, and...
Hope!
And the one who had brought this hope was Li Chunjun, standing at the forefront of the group.
It was precisely because of Li Chunjun's existence that nearly all of them had already cultivated into Primordial Spirit True Monarchs.
Moreover, they had achieved the Primordial Spirit Realm at an astonishingly rapid pace.
Among them, the most outstanding, Qi Qian Yu, had reached the level of a Nine Tribulation True Monarch in just over thirty years.
Such a rate of advancement was nothing short of miraculous.
In the past, even three hundred years would have been considered unprecedented for someone to transcend the Primordial Spirit True Monarch cultivation stage, let alone thirty years.
Furthermore, while cultivating into a Nine Tribulation True Monarch, Qi Qian Yu had also developed Mind Power, glimpsing the hope of reaching Void Refining.
As the figure in the Void completely ascended to the Void Refinement Realm, the ripples in the surrounding Void gradually dissipated, revealing a graceful silhouette in a long green dress.
Jiang Wanyu.
Sensing the life power that could be activated with a mere thought, Jiang Wanyu flashed to Li Chunjun's side.
"I did it," she said, her face radiant with joy.
"Yes, you did it," Li Chunjun replied with a warm smile, offering his sincere congratulations. "You've finally broken through to the Void Refinement Realm."
As he spoke, a gift materialized in his hand.
"Congratulations."
This wasn't a crucial Dao Artifact for Void Refinement, but rather...
A Cave Heaven World.
This Cave Heaven World contained numerous Dao Rhythm treasures and Heavenly Treasures related to the great dao of life. By exploring it, she could rapidly advance her understanding of the Life Law to higher levels. In times of need, she could even use this world as a foundation to forge a Dharma Aspect.
"I..." Jiang Wanyu looked at the gift Li Chunjun had presented, then shook her head. "The reason I was able to reach the Void Refining Realm so quickly is thanks to your tireless guidance over the past year. You even used the great dao of creation to simulate the myriad transformations of the great dao of life, allowing me to directly comprehend the Dao and grasp the profound mysteries of the Life Law. You've already helped me so much; I can't accept this gift."
"Since you know I can manipulate the great dao of creation to simulate the myriad transformations of the great dao of life, you must also realize that this little thing means nothing to me," Li Chunjun said calmly. "With my current abilities, I could easily gather vast quantities of Dao Rhythm treasures if I wanted to. I can even create Dao Rhythm items from nothing, simply through my comprehension of the Dao. Therefore, a Cave Heaven Treasure is insignificant to me."
He pushed the item forward. "Just accept it."
Jiang Wanyu glanced at Li Chunjun.
She recalled the sudden return a year ago of her legendary, almost mythical Junior Brother. Without any pretense of status or arrogance, he had meticulously guided her cultivation of the great dao of life. In just a year, she had completed the most crucial step on her cultivation path—advancing from the peak of the Primordial Spirit Realm to Void Refining!
Throughout that year, she had sensed Li Chunjun's earnestness and patience in teaching her. Yet...
She had also felt an ever-widening chasm between them, a distance as vast as a heavenly abyss.
Now that she had finally achieved Void Refining, she momentarily imagined that the gap between them had narrowed slightly.
It was as if they could return to their days on Flaming Phoenix Peak in the Azure Star Minor Realm, when she had guided his Qi Refining cultivation.
But when Li Chunjun presented her with this Cave Heaven Treasure and declared his ability to conjure Dao Rhythm treasures—items precious even to Void Refining cultivators—at will, she was jolted back to reality.
Her advancement to Void Refining had not bridged the gap between them.
The heavenly abyss remained.
It was a chasm she could never hope to cross, no matter how hard she tried.
Gazing at Li Chunjun...
Seizing the courage granted by her recent breakthrough, she blurted out, "Does accepting this gift mean I've repaid all my debts to you?"
"Why would you think that?"
Li Chunjun shook his head.
Jiang Wanyu's eyes lit up, and she was about to speak again, but Li Chunjun cut her off. "There are still so many people watching, waiting to congratulate you."
He smiled. "The best thing you can do now is accept their congratulations in front of everyone and share the joy of your Void Refinement breakthrough with them. Then... go find your parents."
The mention of her parents, beings of such profound significance, momentarily distracted Jiang Wanyu.
"Even though you've always said you didn't want to see them and have never visited them, I know deep down you still long to return to their side. To return as a Void Refinement cultivator, even if only to ask them if they regret abandoning you all those years ago," Li Chunjun said.
His words stirred a complex mix of emotions within Jiang Wanyu.
It had been sixty or seventy years since her parents abandoned her.
For her, who was only at the Core Formation Realm at the time, that was no short period.
Even viewed through the lens of her recent Primordial Spirit perspective, it was equivalent to three or four years in mortal terms.
To be abandoned by one's parents for three or four years...
How could there not be resentment in her heart?
Now that she had achieved Void Refining—a realm even her parents might not have reached—her success and fame naturally entitled her to return and flaunt her achievements before them, making them regret their past actions.
"Go now," Li Chunjun said, patting Jiang Wanyu's shoulder before giving her a gentle push. "Accept their congratulations, then go find them."
He stepped back, leaving her to face the Taixu Sword Sect disciples.
Jiang Wanyu was about to protest, but Li Chunjun's push had already brought her before the crowd.
As Li Chunjun retreated, Jiang Yuqiu, Jiang Yuliu, Jiang Yuxue, Qin Zhou, and the others, knowing their conversation was over, surged forward to greet her.
"Well done, Wanyu! You've truly exceeded our expectations."
"Void Refining! Thirty years ago, I couldn't have imagined anyone from Flaming Phoenix Peak ever reaching such a realm."
"Forget Void Refining! The Primordial Spirit Realm was my lifelong pursuit! Who would have dared dream that someone could become a Sixth Tribulation True Monarch in less than two centuries?"
"Our lineage was forced to flee to the Azure Star Minor Realm back then. Yet now, we've produced a Void Refining cultivator! What glory!"
The crowd swarmed around Jiang Wanyu, their faces beaming with joy, awe, and admiration.
Jiang Wanyu hastily responded to each congratulatory remark, accepting their well-wishes.
In a brief moment of respite, she glanced toward the direction Li Chunjun had retreated.
But at that moment...
Li Chunjun was nowhere to be seen.
Staring at the empty Void, Jiang Wanyu felt a faint realization dawn in her heart: their year of companionship...
...might well be the last time they would ever share such moments in this lifetime.
Though she had gradually come to this understanding as Li Chunjun's cultivation soared and his status grew ever more exalted, the actual arrival of this day left her with an indescribable sense of emptiness.
Jiang Yuqiu, standing nearby, quietly observed the scene.
She said nothing, but inwardly sighed.
The gap was too vast.
The difference in their levels of existence was simply too great.
Moreover...
For beings who had reached the level of Dao Venerable, family, close friends, and even Dao Companions no longer held the same significance.
Their sole pursuit was the truth of all things, the Cosmic Great Dao.
In such circumstances, even if Jiang Wanyu and Li Chunjun were to truly reach that stage, it might not necessarily bring her happiness.
Azure Star Minor Realm.
Li Chunjun had essentially made this Lesser Thousand World his personal domain.
Achieving this was no difficult feat for him.
However, despite carrying the realm with him, he rarely used his Divine Sense to probe its depths or guide its development.
As for descending a Divine Sense Avatar to appear outside the East Province capital and observe a specific person from afar—that was utterly unprecedented.
Yet he merely observed.
The woman appeared to be around thirty years old.
Yes, she was dressed as a married woman.
And...
She had a son and a daughter.
It was the weekend, and the family of four was strolling through the park.
The son was slightly older, around ten years old, while the daughter was only four or five, full of innocent charm.
Li Chunjun watched silently.
He even observed the refined-looking man whose gaze toward the woman was filled with love...
A hint of envy flickered across his expression.
Often, we believe some things will remain unchanged forever, but eventually, change comes.
The solemn promises we make in childhood inevitably fade into fond memories with the passage of time.
Tomorrow and misfortune—no one knows which will arrive first.
If the Azure Star Minor Realm hadn't been thrown into chaos by the arrival of cultivators...
If the collapse of order hadn't allowed lawless criminal organizations like the Jin Family to flourish...
If he had been able to grow up normally, attend university, graduate, and find a job, he might have...
But alas...
There are no such "ifs."
Li Chunjun averted his gaze.
Sensing something, he took a phantom step and vanished beyond the park.
At the exact moment of his disappearance, a woman braiding her daughter's hair glanced up in the direction Li Chunjun had been standing.
Gentle sunlight streamed through the gaps in the sycamore leaves, weaving a carpet of dappled gold across the lush green lawn.
Sunbeams danced like playful sprites, chasing each other across the armrests of the park bench.
Nothing was there.
Only the quiet beauty of time passing peacefully.
(End of the Chapter)
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