The Imperial Isolation Chambers, located deep beneath Constellation City, were silent. They were shielded by ancient formations designed to hold captured Golden Immortals, making them the most secure, resource-rich cultivation retreat in the entire Nine Heavens. Lin Tian, officially a prisoner, sat enthroned in the central chamber, the surrounding air thick with pure Primal Saint Energy funneled to him by his loyal puppet, Lord Xing.
Lin Tian initiated the final, violent phase of his adaptation. He channeled his Divine Nascent Soul, drawing the concentrated Primal Saint Blood he had acquired in Chapter 46 and forcing it to fuse with his Perfect Immortal Body. The energy was immensely volatile, tearing at his spiritual structure, but the Heaven-Shaking Soul Transformation Sutra provided a perfect anchor. He bypassed Golden Immortal Stages 2, 3, and 4 in a single, sustained week of intense absorption.
[System Notification: Saint Blood Fusion Complete. Host energy structure is now perfectly adapted to Tier 3. Cultivation Status: Golden Immortal Stage 5 (Advanced).]
Lin Tian smiled internally. He had achieved stability. Now, it was time to activate the Cosmic Flaw Detector-the power that would allow him to conquer the very laws of the universe. He focused his newly stabilized Saint Energy and merged it with the Dao of Entropy he had mastered in Chapter 47.
The fusion was immediate. Lin Tian's vision exploded, shifting from a view of material reality to one of pure conceptual logic. He wasn't seeing walls or people; he was seeing the invisible, shimmering equations that governed their existence.
[System Notification: Cosmic Flaw Detector Unlocked! Allows Host to scan the foundational Dao structure of any Tier 3 entity, artifact, or territory for vulnerabilities. Tier 3 Strategic Supremacy Gained.]
Lin Tian immediately tested the new power, aiming it at the very heart of the Seven-Star Assembly structure above him. He was looking for a vulnerability that went beyond politics-a flaw in their foundational Dao.
[Target: Seven-Star Assembly (Political Structure). Foundational Law: Dao of Balance (Compromise). Flaw Detected: Reliance on Unspoken Treaty.]
Lin Tian realized the entire government was an illusion held together by a spiritual contract enforced by a hidden, ancestral array-the Grand Assembly Formation. The weakness was structural: the formation was built to enforce a static political balance, making it utterly incapable of dealing with a rapid, chaotic change in power.
He then scanned the ruling entity itself: Lord Xing. His puppet was already loyal, but Lin Tian needed to confirm the durability of his own control.
[Target: Lord Xing (Golden Immortal Stage 7). Status: Vow of Silent Servitude (100% stable). Flaw: Grief-Bound Time Dao. Vulnerability: Absolute.]
Lin Tian confirmed his leverage. The Dao of Time flaw was Lord Xing's eternal weakness, ensuring his permanent, devoted servitude for the promise of its perfection.
Satisfied with the political infrastructure, Lin Tian cast his Cosmic Flaw Detector wider, aiming at the most guarded structure in Constellation City: the silent, dark floating temple above the capital-the home of the true, unmoving ancient power of the Lower Heavens.
[Target: The Temple of the Quiet Dawn. Foundational Law: Dao of Slumber (Stagnation). Flaw Detected: Chronic Primal Saint Energy Leakage.]
Lin Tian realized that the true apex martial power of the Lower Heavens wasn't Lord Xing; it was a figure in that temple, a being of immense antiquity who was actively suppressing their own power to maintain a pseudo-eternal sleep. The leakage indicated that the suppression was imperfect.
Lin Tian focused the Cosmic Flaw Detector on the source of the leakage.
[Source: Ancient Elder (Identified as Sovereign Mu). Cultivation: Dao Emperor Stage 1 (Sealed). Status: Incomplete Stagnation. Danger Level: COSMIC.]
The discovery sent a chilling current through Lin Tian's Divine Nascent Soul. A Dao Emperor! That was a Tier 3 Apex Power, far above the Golden Immortal realm, a being capable of wielding the fundamental laws of this realm. This Elder was suppressing their power to maintain peace, but the slightest disturbance could awaken them.
A sealed Dao Emperor, Lin Tian mused, his mind racing. The Seven-Star Assembly's true power structure is a lie. Their stability depends entirely on an ancient being remaining asleep.
Lin Tian instantly formulated his next move. He could not fight a sealed Dao Emperor, but he could use the fear of its awakening to achieve total submission from the Seven-Star Assembly.
He channeled a single, flawless, terrifying thought to his puppet, Lord Xing. Lord Xing. I have discovered the truth of the Quiet Dawn Temple. Your true ruler sleeps. You will now leak a specific, fabricated political scandal designed to frame the leaders of the two remaining politically powerful houses-House Feng and House Shi-of attempting to destabilize the Temple of the Quiet Dawn to seize its ancient power.
Your goal is absolute. Eliminate House Feng and House Shi before the next sun cycle. Failure means I awaken the Emperor.
Lord Xing's spiritual response was immediate, utter terror and obedience. The existence of a sealed Dao Emperor was the one secret that ruled the Lower Heavens, and the fear of awakening it was absolute.
Lin Tian settled back into his meditation. He had turned his Golden Cage into the central intelligence hub of the Nine Heavens. The political purge was about to begin, and his path to conquering the Dao of Time was closer than ever.