St. Ancestral Mountain, Li Shuan Lake
Xue Hui and Silver stood atop the frozen surface of the lake, watching as a tremendous amount of water crashed down below, creating massive splashes and thunderous roars.
The waterfall's current was so powerful that anything caught beneath it would be crushed in an instant, including Demon Spiritualists below Silver Rank.
Deep in thought, Xue Hui pursed his lips, his eyes fixed on the rock wall concealed behind the raging waterfall.
He patted Silver, signaling him to unleash another blast of energy directly toward the falling water.
"RA-UL!"
BOOM!
WOOSH!
The blast disrupted the waterfall's flow, allowing Xue Hui to catch a glimpse of the inscription patterns hidden behind the cascading water.
After memorizing every detail, Xue Hui returned to his thoughts, mentally deciphering the inscription patterns while paying no attention to the world around him.
Beside him, Silver stood guard protectively. His task was to keep watch and drive away any demon beasts that dared to approach them.
Floating around Xue Hui were the Ten Whiskers Water-Attribute Needles, which he used to freeze the water beneath their feet.
Suddenly, a flash of realization crossed Xue Hui's eyes. He had finally found a way to break the inscription lock.
Without wasting another moment, he sent a voice transmission to Silver, explaining what he needed him to do.
After receiving the instructions, Silver planted his hooves firmly on the icy platform while Xue Hui took a deep breath to prepare himself.
With another tap to signal his companion, Silver unleashed a powerful blast of condensed energy toward the waterfall, disrupting its flow once again.
"RA-UL!"
BOOM!
WOOSH!
The moment an opening appeared, Xue Hui and Silver shot forward, positioning themselves directly beneath the waterfall.
With a flick of his sleeve, Xue Hui controlled the Ten Whiskers Water-Attribute Needles, creating a small dome of ice that enclosed both him and Silver.
BOOM!
SHOOOOOOOOOSH!
CREAK! CRACK!
The moment the ice dome formed, the water above them crashed down with tremendous force, causing cracks to spread rapidly across its surface.
Without wasting a second, Xue Hui swiftly manipulated the inscription patterns carved into the rock wall, breaking them apart one by one.
Meanwhile, Silver remained silent, allowing Xue Hui to concentrate on his task while keeping an eye on the cracks spreading across their icy shelter.
CREAK! CRACK! CREAK! CRACK!
"It's open!"
WOOSH!
The moment Silver sensed the rock wall sliding open, he immediately grabbed Xue Hui and pulled him inside.
A split second later, the water crashed down, shattering the ice dome into countless pieces.
"That was close," Xue Hui muttered with a chuckle as he stood up and dusted off his clothes.
"Ra-ul."
Silver stood beside him with a deadpan expression.
Looking around, Xue Hui found himself inside a spacious cave. At its center sat a corpse in a cross-legged position, its surroundings otherwise completely empty.
Approaching the corpse, Xue Hui picked up the scroll resting in its bone-dry hands and unfurled it.
The moment he saw its contents, all the excitement within him vanished faster than his enthusiasm whenever a demon beast ruined his plans.
"What a bummer. It's just a cultivation technique."
His shoulders slumped as his earlier enthusiasm disappeared.
"All those elaborate measures to protect this place, and all you left behind was the Heaven Lightning Kirin Cultivation Technique?"
Xue Hui complained, completely overlooking the fact that the Heaven Lightning Kirin Cultivation Technique was probably the only complete cultivation technique in Glory City powerful enough to allow someone to reach Legend Rank within ten short years.
Having been trapped inside the [CREATION ORIGIN ANCESTRAL MANUAL], Xue Hui had been exposed to an enormous number of supreme cultivation techniques.
As a result, he had become completely desensitized to any cultivation technique below the supreme level.
Little did he know that, in his previous life, this very cave had been discovered by a Demon Spiritualist named Du Ze.
Du Ze was a member of the severely declining Du Clan.
To finance his cultivation, he had no choice but to venture beyond the city walls in search of valuable resources that he could either use himself or sell for profit.
At the time, the head of the Du Family, Du Meng, had abdicated his position due to declining health and passed the mantle of leadership to Du Ze, the most promising member of the family.
Along with this responsibility, Du Meng had also entrusted him with the Du Family's treasured heirloom: the Kirin Crystal.
That very crystal was what allowed Du Ze to enter the cave and obtain the Heaven Lightning Kirin Cultivation Technique.
This fortunate encounter had changed his life, allowing him to reach Gold Rank as a Demon Spiritualist in a remarkably short period.
Unfortunately, Du Ze lacked both the time and resources necessary to advance further.
Like countless others, he eventually perished during the demon beast horde attack before he could reach Legend Rank.
Feeling dejected, Xue Hui placed the Heaven Lightning Kirin Cultivation Technique back into the corpse's hands.
'How could the Heaven Lightning Kirin Cultivation Technique possibly compare to my [Creation Origin Ancestral Canon]?'
Xue Hui shook his head in disappointment.
Sighing, he surveyed the cave in search of anything else that might interest him, only to find nothing.
"Now what?!"
He sighed in frustration and glanced at Silver, hoping his companion might have an idea.
The white donkey merely shrugged in response.
"Maybe I should try comprehending the power of law?" Xue Hui pondered.
During their battle in the treasure chamber, Xue Hui had come into close contact with the Law of Piercing contained within Guān Ning's nails. That encounter had allowed him to comprehend a small fragment of its natural law.
The power of law was much like an inscription pattern laid down by a supreme expert.
To comprehend a law was to understand the supreme expert's profound insights into the natural order.
According to Xue Hui's understanding, once someone fully comprehended a particular law, they would become its very personification.
This also meant that, for thousands of years, no one else had been able to comprehend the Law of Piercing because Guān Ning had still existed.
Now that she was gone, the fragments of the Law of Piercing had passed to the person with the deepest understanding of its power.
That person was Xue Hui.
Despite this opportunity, however, Xue Hui hesitated to fully comprehend the law.
He could sense that the power of law was deeply connected to the supreme expert who had originally wielded it.
Controlling that power was akin to placing himself within the grasp of that expert.
And Xue Hui hated that idea.
He was already dancing in the palm of the Origin God of Lights, the being who had created and passed down the [CREATION ORIGIN ANCESTRAL MANUAL].
To willingly place himself under the influence of another unknown supreme expert, someone whom Xue Hui considered inferior to the Origin God of Lights, felt utterly wrong.
His pride simply wouldn't allow it.
Sitting cross-legged, Xue Hui began contemplating what he should do with the fragments of law within him.
He remained deep in thought, his eyes closed as he ignored the world around him.
Silver sat beside him. Having been ordered by his master to keep Xue Hui safe, and judging the cave to be relatively secure, the white donkey decided to take the opportunity to nap.
Time passed, and the cave gradually darkened.
Apparently, whatever illuminated the cave was connected to the light outside. As the sun set and darkness descended upon the world, the cave grew dark as well.
That was when Xue Hui slowly opened his eyes, a flash of excitement glimmering within them.
"I know what to do! The answer is so simple!" Xue Hui exclaimed, his voice reverberating throughout the cave.
Without a second thought, Xue Hui abandoned the idea of comprehending the fragments of the Law of Piercing within him. He had already understood their structure and no longer needed to rely on them.
"Just like my cultivation technique, I'll create my own power of law!" Xue Hui declared, excitement surging through his heart. "I've already carved out my own path, so I might as well continue down it!"
The power of law he intended to create would undoubtedly be inferior to the existing ones at first.
However, Xue Hui was confident that as he grew stronger, his power of law would grow alongside him. And in the future, why should his own power remain inferior to that of the supreme experts?
Xue Hui smirked, setting his sights on surpassing the strength of those supreme beings.
Sitting cross-legged, he began attempting to create his own power of law within his soul realm.
It was neither spiritual energy nor heavenly energy.
It was an entirely different form of power, born from a profound understanding of the Law of All Existence, its Origin.
If any other expert attempted to comprehend the profundity of Origin, they would likely spend their entire lifetime gaining only the slightest trace of insight.
But Xue Hui was different.
Having read the scroll of the [CREATION ORIGIN ANCESTRAL MANUAL] and comprehended the truth behind the creation of all existence itself, his understanding of Origin had already reached an unprecedented level.
Xue Hui remained in a meditative state, his consciousness peering deep into his soul realm as he waited for something to emerge.
One hour.
Four hours.
Sixteen hours.
Xue Hui waited patiently, his mind focused entirely on his soul realm. Sweat soaked his clothes as fatigue gradually crept over him.
Despite this, he never allowed his concentration to waver.
"There it is!"
Sensing a tiny ripple, Xue Hui knitted his eyebrows together.
He immediately began reciting the first four chapters of the [Creation Origin Ancestral Canon], altering his cultivation path and establishing a connection with the power of natural law.
The moment the tiny ripple appeared, Xue Hui seized it, preventing it from dissipating.
One hour.
Two hours.
Three hours.
Like an angler struggling to reel in a powerful fish, Xue Hui fought to maintain control as the tiny ripple attempted to escape.
On the verge of exhaustion, he poured every ounce of his strength into controlling the ripple within his soul realm.
Slowly, a void-like sphere began to take shape, its center resembling a tiny hole in existence itself.
This is it! Xue Hui shouted inwardly.
The void gave him the same sensation he had experienced when reading the story of Creation Origin. It carried the same feeling as the Origin Tree and the Origin Gods.
Although it was minuscule compared to the vastness of the Origin Tree and the Origin Gods, the power it contained was unmistakable.
The void began circulating rapidly, gradually taking the shape of a sphere.
"Okay... Water or Piercing?" Xue Hui pondered, weighing the two laws he was most familiar with.
"Piercing it is!"
Having decided which Origin to create first, Xue Hui grasped the void and shaped it using his insights into the Law of Piercing.
The void gradually transformed into a sphere containing the Law of Piercing, reshaping its very nature until it became the Origin of Piercing.
"I DID IT-ARGH!"
Before Xue Hui could celebrate, a tearing sensation suddenly erupted within his soul realm.
The pain came without warning, and its intensity was overwhelming.
Blood burst from Xue Hui's mouth, eyes, and ears as his body convulsed violently before collapsing to the ground, completely motionless.
"RA-UL!"
Seeing Xue Hui collapse, Silver rushed to his side and anxiously checked his condition.
"I'm f-fine... Just... need... to... rest..." Xue Hui muttered weakly as his consciousness gradually faded.
Sixteen Hours Later
As Xue Hui began stirring in his sleep, he felt something gently tugging at his sleeve and shaking him.
Groaning, he slowly opened his eyes. At the same time, faint sounds gradually reached his ears.
Remembering what had happened before he lost consciousness, Xue Hui reached for a Nine Transformation Pill and tried to bring it to his mouth.
However, he soon discovered that he couldn't move his arm.
Fortunately, Silver noticed the pill. The white donkey carefully guided it and placed it into Xue Hui's mouth.
After swallowing the Nine Transformation Pill, Xue Hui closed his eyes once more and allowed its medicinal effects to take hold.
Another hour passed, and thanks to the pill, his body had fully recovered.
With some strength returning to him, Xue Hui pushed himself upright and took out a pitcher of water. He carefully poured some into his mouth, relieving the dryness in his throat.
After changing into a fresh set of clothes and thanking Silver for looking after him, Xue Hui sat down to examine his current condition.
His internal injuries had completely healed, but he grimaced when he discovered what had happened to his soul realm.
One-Star Bronze Rank.
His soul force had regressed all the way to One-Star Bronze Rank. All the progress he had made up to that point had seemingly vanished.
However, Xue Hui also noticed a purple sphere slowly revolving within his soul realm, emitting a faint trace of what appeared to be the power of law.
No.
Actually, that wasn't the power of law.
It was the power of Origin.
The Origin of Piercing.
Xue Hui had succeeded. He had created an entirely new form of power, something unique to him alone.
Although he couldn't help feeling disappointed when he considered his current strength, he let out a weary laugh.
It seems the price of creating such a power is exorbitant, he thought, already imagining how much effort he would need to invest to continue growing stronger.
As he continued examining the purple sphere, Xue Hui's eyes widened in surprise.
The orb possessed a soul realm of its own, one connected to his main soul realm.
At present, the purple orb contained only one point of soul force.
Curious, Xue Hui took out several bottles of Soul Enhancement Elixirs and began consuming them.
After a few hours, the soul force within the second soul realm had increased to sixty-seven, while his main soul realm showed no signs of improvement.
Taking out another batch of elixirs, Xue Hui continued cultivating. He steadily increased his soul force until two entire days had passed.
"Two-Star Bronze Rank," Xue Hui muttered as he stood up.
During his experiments, he had concluded that the violet sphere functioned as a second soul realm.
Only after the sphere's soul force caught up with that of his main soul realm did his cultivation begin to advance again.
This meant that his total soul force capacity had effectively doubled, even though his rank remained relatively low.
Furthermore, Xue Hui now required twice as many cultivation resources as before to achieve a breakthrough.
"It's like having soul force comparable to a Silver Rank Demon Spiritualist while still being at Bronze Rank," Xue Hui pondered.
He also discovered that the Liu-Jiaren had disappeared, leaving behind only a single sphere.
Summoning it, he watched as the sphere floated in front of him.
It resembled the Origin of Piercing, except that it was much larger than the Liu-Jiaren had been.
No, upon closer inspection, Xue Hui realized he could change its shape at will.
Curious, he tested this ability. The violet sphere expanded until it was larger than Xue Hui himself before shrinking to the size of a grape.
"Neat!" Xue Hui exclaimed with an excited grin.
He then sent the violet sphere hurtling toward the inscription lock at the cave entrance.
WOOSH!
CHING!
The purple sphere pierced the inscription lock with almost no resistance, completely destroying the formation.
Satisfied, Xue Hui summoned the sphere back to his side.
"Once I fully comprehend this Origin of Piercing, no defense will be powerful enough to stop me," he declared, his eyes glowing with renewed determination.
Although he had lost a considerable amount of cultivation progress, the end result had still provided a tremendous boost to his cultivation foundation.
Reaching Legend Rank wasn't enough for Xue Hui.
To protect Glory City, he needed to become an absolute powerhouse, someone capable of crushing an entire demon beast horde with a flick of his finger.
"The Power of Origin."
Xue Hui grinned.
With this newfound path, he was certain he could change the fate of Glory City.
"Silver, I think we can head back now," he said as he returned the cultivation technique to the corpse's hands.
Now that the inscription lock had been destroyed, it would be dangerous to leave the cave unsealed. A member of the Dark Guild might stumble upon it and discover the technique.
"Ra-ul," Silver answered, clearly eager to return home himself.
Relieved that the boy was safe, Silver followed Xue Hui as they headed out of the cave.
---
Divine Family Mansion
Chen Linlin sat cross-legged, practicing a breathing exercise her mother had taught her.
When she opened her eyes, her gaze landed on a scroll, and anticipation filled her expression.
It was a book about the Holy Orchid Institute.
In a few years, she and Xue Hui would enter the academy, beginning their journey as students and future protectors of Glory City.
---
Snow Wind Family Mansion
Leaning against a window, Ye Ziyun gazed outside, lost in thought as she replayed a scene from a month earlier.
She remembered sitting beside Xue Hui, gently wiping the sweat from his forehead as he tirelessly treated her mother's illness.
"Xue Hui..." she murmured.
---
Wind Dragon Family Mansion
Quiet sniffles echoed through one of the rooms.
Beneath several layers of blankets, Xiao Ning'er lay curled up, tears streaming down her cheeks.
The poor girl had just learned that she was to be married off to the young master of the Sacred Family, a boy notorious for his terrible behavior.
She didn't want to become his wife.
But she was powerless to resist.
Overwhelmed by despair, she suddenly remembered the little boy riding a funny-looking donkey.
Driven by desperation, Xiao Ning'er whispered a few words before exhaustion overcame her and she eventually fell asleep.
"Please save me..."
---
Heavenly Marks Family
A boy stood atop a tree branch, gazing at the distant sky with eyes filled with wonder.
"Lord Nie Li... That's what you'll all call me someday!" he declared, imagining himself becoming a Legend Rank Demon Spiritualist like Ye Mo.
---
St. Ancestral Mountain
Xue Hui summoned the violet sphere and transformed it into a platform. He and Silver stepped onto it as it lifted them into the air, carrying them gently through the sky.
Xue Hui gazed at the setting sun, admiring the soft rays that painted the sky in beautiful colors.
For a moment, he forgot about all the chaos destined to unfold in the future.
Just for that brief moment, Xue Hui allowed himself to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the world around him.
End of Chapter 35