At the center of the ruined valley, nothing remained of its former shape. Massive boulders lay scattered as if a god had crushed the land without mercy. The earth was split open by deep fissures, and the residual energy in the air still trembled unstably, as though heaven and earth had yet to accept what had just been born.
On a towering cliff thousands of kilometers away, several figures hid among the clouds. Not a single one of them dared to step even half a pace closer to the valley's center.
The pressure from moments ago still haunted their minds.
Power of that level was not something ordinary cultivators could hope to withstand.
At that moment, the air around the valley shook violently once again. A force descended from the heavens like a falling star.
"Retreat!"
Someone shouted instinctively.
All the figures withdrew at nearly the same instant.
Boom!!!
A deafening explosion erupted. Heaven and earth shook. An entire mountain range was crushed in the blink of an eye. It did not merely collapse. It was erased completely. Not even dust remained behind. Every trace of lingering aura from before was swept away by an invisible wave of heat.
All evidence of that person's existence was obliterated.
It was as if no one had ever been here.
A middle aged man stood at the edge of the cliff, his expression grave as his eyes stared into the empty void ahead.
"The aura of a Saint King…?"
He narrowed his eyes slightly, his heart trembling uncontrollably.
"No. It does not feel like someone who has just broken through to the Saint King realm."
The pressure he had felt earlier was still engraved deeply in his memory. It was heavy, stable, and complete, far more terrifying than the elders of the Jade Pool Sacred Land he had once encountered.
"Could it be… his body surpasses the sacred level itself?"
The question had no answer, yet it sent a chill down his spine.
Most of the people who came here were not here to see who had broken through.
They had come to witness the one whom the heavens themselves had tried to kill.
But now, it seemed the origin of everything had been wiped away without leaving behind even the faintest trace.
At the same time, tens of thousands of kilometers away in the sky, a single figure floated quietly among the clouds.
Zhang Wen.
Streams of water spiraled around his body before forming a fitted dark blue robe with natural ease. His breathing was calm and steady. Not the slightest aura leaked outward, making him appear no different from an ordinary man gazing at the sky.
Yet anyone who dared to look deeper would discover that the true pressure was compressed tightly within his body.
Zhang Wen's gaze settled coldly upon the interface floating before him.
[Name: Zhang Wen]
[Cultivation Level: Saint King Level 1]
[Special Body: Pure Water Sacred Body (Sacred Level), Phoenix Emperor Bloodline (Sacred Level)]
[Cultivation Technique: Ocean Origin (Sacred Level)]
[Combat Techniques: Water Devour (Saint Level), Water Clone (Saint Level), Roaring Water Dragon (Saint Level), Water Control (Saint Level), Water Transformation (Saint Level), Poison Mist (Saint Level), Rainstorm (Saint Level), Water Covenant (Saint Level)]
[Luck: White]
His foundation was several times more solid than the standards of this world. The power of the Phoenix Emperor Pill continued to overlap within his body. Not only did it cause no harm, it strengthened him continuously. The more he consumed, the more perfect the structure of his body became.
His gaze moved down another line.
Phoenix Emperor Bloodline.
It was a bloodline he had obtained after consuming a large number of Phoenix Emperor Pills. This bloodline granted him an even stronger regenerative ability. It also allowed him to control the power of fire at the same level as his control over water.
But that was not what interested him the most.
His eyes lowered to the final line.
Luck: White.
Zhang Wen let out a soft chuckle.
It seemed this world was not very pleased with his actions. His luck had dropped from red directly to white.
White luck meant no support, no assistance, and no protection. Heaven and earth would no longer bless him, though it had not yet reached the point of actively hunting him down.
He did not care.
To him, luck had never been something worth relying on.
Zhang Wen shifted his body, preparing to search for a suitable location to break through to the next realm. His foundation was already strong enough. He could move forward much farther in a short period of time.
At this moment, strength was what he needed most, both to uncover the answers to certain questions and to protect himself.
Just then, a voice sounded from within the spatial ring.
"Big brother…"
Zhang Lin's voice echoed through.
"Do you remember the black spatial ring you told me to keep on me at all times? It seems there are spirits of extremely powerful beings sealed inside it."
Zhang Wen's body stiffened slightly.
The black spatial ring.
A blurred image surfaced in his mind, yet no matter how hard he tried, the details remained hazy, as if someone had deliberately erased them from his memory.
He remembered only one thing.
That ring was extremely important.
It must never be lost.
It must never be removed.
It was important to Zhang Lin.
And it was important to himself as well.
Yet no matter how hard he tried, he could not recall it. It was as if something from the past had been sealed away. Still, he was certain of one thing. All the answers were likely hidden within the missing fragment of his memories.
Zhang Wen fell silent for a moment before asking in a serious tone,
"Then… whose souls are inside it?"
On the other end, Zhang Lin swallowed lightly before replying with equal gravity.
"There are three souls. They told me that they died in the Greater World, and only fragments of their souls managed to survive. But even they do not know how they ended up inside that ring."
Zhang Wen remained silent.
The wind flowed past his body. The faint turbulence of heaven and earth gradually faded, as if the entire world were waiting for the same answer he was.
"And who are they?" Zhang Wen asked. "Did you question them?"
His voice was calm, but inside, turmoil unlike anything before was surging violently.
On the other side of the spatial ring, Zhang Lin took a deep breath and began to speak slowly, as if recalling a scene that still lingered vividly in his mind.
"The three souls said… they were immortals from the Greater World."
With just that sentence, Zhang Wen's mind trembled.
Not Saints. Not Emperors. But existences that stood completely beyond the laws of this small world.
Zhang Lin continued,
"The first man said he was a rogue cultivator. No sect. No faction. Bound to no one."
"The second was a woman. She said she was the master of the Demon Pavilion."
"And the last woman said she was the master of the Heavenly Pavilion."
The words Demon Pavilion and Heavenly Pavilion caused Zhang Wen's eyes to narrow unconsciously. Those names echoed faintly within his mind, as if they once carried immense weight, yet no matter how he searched, he could not recall anything concrete.
"But now…"
Zhang Lin's voice lowered slightly.
"Only one soul remains. The man who claimed to be a rogue cultivator. The other two… have already left."
Zhang Wen frowned.
"Left?"
"Yes."
Zhang Lin nodded even though he knew the other side could not see him.
"After the three of them recovered somewhat and were speaking with me, Gu Lanyue suddenly appeared. I do not know where she came from, nor do I know what she may have seen. But it seemed she possessed some knowledge about the souls within the ring."
His voice was filled with lingering confusion.
"She invited all three souls to go with her. She said that using the power of the Gu clan, she could help them reconstruct physical bodies in the future, as well as provide cultivation guidance and vast resources."
Zhang Wen fell completely silent.
The words reconstructing a body for immortal-level souls were not something anyone would dare speak lightly. The bodies of immortals were extraordinarily special. Yet if it was the Gu clan from the Greater World, such a feat would not be surprising at all.
"The souls from the Demon Pavilion and the Heavenly Pavilion were tempted by that invitation," Zhang Lin continued. "They were extremely weak and desperately needed new bodies."
"Before leaving, both of them sincerely thanked me and offered to give me some cultivation techniques."
"But I did not accept them."
"Because of your words."
Zhang Lin's tone grew solemn.
"You once told me never to accept gifts from strangers. No matter how good something looks, if we do not know its origin and lack the strength to verify it ourselves, we should not take it. It may bring benefit or disaster. We cannot know the giver's true intent, but one thing is certain. It will form a karmic chain that binds us without us realizing it."
On the other side of the spatial ring, Zhang Wen went silent.
Those words… he remembered them.
Zhang Lin continued immediately.
"The soul from the Demon Pavilion nodded in understanding. She said I was cautious and that my reasoning was sound."
"But the one from the Heavenly Pavilion…"
Zhang Lin gave a small laugh.
"She said I was arrogant."
"She also said that even if I was someone blessed with fortune, luck was not everything."
Those words still echoed clearly in his mind.
"After that, the two of them left together with Gu Lanyue."
Zhang Lin paused briefly before continuing.
"Gu Lanyue turned back and invited the final soul once more, but that man rejected her immediately."
"He said he did not wish to be bound to any faction."
"In the end, Gu Lanyue bid farewell, leaving behind these words…"
Zhang Lin imitated her voice almost perfectly.
"If you are ever interested, you may contact me through Senior Brother Zhang Lin at any time."
Zhang Wen spoke at once.
"Do you regret it? They absorbed your power, yet you gained nothing in return."
Zhang Lin fell silent for a moment before answering.
"Not at all. I never intended to keep them with me in the first place. I also lacked the strength to negotiate with them. More importantly, I had nothing that could truly attract them."
"And honestly, they probably did not wish to gamble or place their fate on me either. If I were in their position, I would have chosen the same path they did. The Gu clan offered resources and promises. It was the safest choice."
He hesitated slightly.
"But… I do not know, Brother."
"Somehow, deep down, I feel relieved that they left."
"It feels… like I accomplished something."