Mysterious Emperor Universe.
Lin Yuan was preparing to leave. His journey into the Mysterious Emperor Universe had essentially come to an end.
Moments ago, the Mysterious Sovereign had personally gathered all the treasures and rare items from every region of the universe and handed them over to Lin Yuan.
There was no longer any need for Lin Yuan to search on his own.
Almost everything of value in the entire Mysterious Emperor Universe was now in Lin Yuan's possession.
Suddenlyâ
âHmm?â
Lin Yuanâs expression shifted slightly. The space-time before him rippled and twisted.
From within that warped space, numerous treasures tumbled out, floating in front of him.
âThese treasures?â
Lin Yuanâs pupils narrowed slightly.
There werenât many of themâonly about a dozenâbut the auras they gave off made his heart tremble.
âA Life Godstone?â
He looked at one crystalline stone.
It was only the size of a fist, incomparable to the nearly three-meter-tall Life Godstone he had previously acquired.
Yet, for some reason, the moment he laid eyes on this stone, he instinctively felt it was far more precious.
âThis isnât a Life Godstone. This is a Life Origin Stone!â
The thought rose in Lin Yuanâs mind.
Life Godstone.
Life Origin Stone.
Only one word apartâbut fundamentally different.
If, in the Sea of Lifeâthe chaotic voidâs mysterious realmâLife Godstones would occasionally fall from the sky, then the Life Origin Stone was the very foundation of the Sea of Life.
Their relationship was like child and parent.
As long as the parent exists, countless children can be born.
Because of this, Life Origin Stones had virtually never been seen in the chaotic void.
It was only because Lin Yuan had received intelligence from the Devil Jade Towerâs master that he recognized what this crystal truly was.
âThat Life Origin Star in this universe must have been formed from a small piece of Life Origin Stone. Only with the surrounding environmental rules could it birth Life Godstones⊠itâs like a miniature Sea of Life.â
Lin Yuan thought silently.
To nurture something as rare as a Life Godstoneâeven a Supreme Saint who could define rules would struggle to do so without external aid.
Otherwise, with so many Supreme Saints having existed throughout chaotic void history, if they all began cultivating Life Godstones, they wouldnât be so scarceâeven Chaos Great Saints could rarely obtain them.
So far, the only place Lin Yuan knew that could produce them was within the Mysterious Emperor Universe.
And the external force needed to nurture Life Godstones was the Life Origin Stone.
Howeverâ
To create an environment capable of birthing such stones, the Life Origin Stone had to fully merge with the universe and form the special laws of a Sea of Life.
At that point, the stone became inseparable from the universe.
Even someone like the Mysterious Sovereign who had created the universe wouldnât be able to extract the Life Origin Star and turn it back into a stone.
But this Life Origin Stone floating in front of Lin YuanâŠ
He stared at it as if beholding an endless supply of Life Godstones.
Beyond that, the other treasures that had dropped alongside it were also unimaginably rare.
Primordial Ore Crystal.
Ninth Heaven Thunder Core.
Soil of All Sources.
Each was no less precious than the Life Origin Stoneâartifacts that originated from mysterious places, even forming the very foundation of those lands.
These so-called mysterious places were all linked to thirteenth-rank beings.
Throughout countless eras, many Invincible Supreme Saints had emerged in the chaotic void. Though they had the power to force their way into such places, they didnât dare act recklesslyâ
They feared attracting the attention of the thirteenth-rank time-beings behind those places.
Even if that possibility was minuscule, none dared gamble. Unlike regular Supreme Saints, Invincible Supreme Saints understood just how terrifying time-beings truly were.
But the Mysterious Sovereign?
He had forcefully broken out of the time loop, and was fated to perish. Naturally, he didnât care whether thirteenth-rank time-beings noticed him.
So he dared to go to those mysterious places and demand tributes.
And the spirits of those places knew this. No matter how unwilling they were, as long as they feared a desperate battle with the Mysterious Sovereign, they could only grit their teeth and hand things over.
They were also unwilling to seek help from the time-beings behind them.
âYour MajestyâŠâ
Lin Yuan looked at the array of treasures before him, fully aware that they were gifts from the Mysterious Sovereign.
He had wondered what kind of âfriendsâ the Mysterious Sovereign had gone to visitânever expecting it would be those ancient, mysterious lands.
âWith these treasures, my inner universe should become even more complete.â
Lin Yuan gathered the dozen or so rare items and thought to himself.
These were the very treasures that formed the mysterious places of the chaotic void. Though on a smaller scale, they were identical in essence.
Lin Yuan instinctively felt they would benefit his inner universe. The thirteenth-rank inheritance, Infinite Void, aimed to transform oneâs inner universe into a colossal realm rivaling the chaotic void itself.
Since the chaotic void had such mysterious places, replicating them inside his own universe was surely a step in the right direction.
Especially the special laws those lands embodiedâthey could be pivotal for the inner universe.
Even if they had no direct effectâ
Just creating such environments in his universe would allow him to periodically harvest treasures that even Chaos Great Saints could only hope to encounter.
It would be a gold mine.
Noâan entire forest of gold mines.
Just as Lin Yuanâs thoughts driftedâ
He felt a subtle tremor within his soul, as if one of the evolution paths he had once cultivated had completely lost its final source.
âThe Mysterious Emperor evolution pathâŠâ
Lin Yuan fell silent. Though it wasnât his main path, he had studied it once.
When he first entered the Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm and spoke with the realm spirit, he had wondered why this path had never produced an ultimate being.
Given the realmâs inheritances, creating a twelfth-rank lifeform shouldnât have been too difficult. Even if it took several attempts, surely one wouldâve succeeded eventually.
But ever since the Mysterious Sovereign attempted the thirteenth rank, no twelfth-rank being had ever emerged from this path again.
Eventually, Lin Yuan had realizedâthe Mysterious Sovereign wasnât truly dead. As long as the final end of the path still existed, no one else could ascend through it.
And he had been right. Trapped in the time loop, the Mysterious Sovereign hadnât truly died.
In fact, throughout history, no perfected Chaos-stage being who attempted the thirteenth rank had ever truly diedâat most, they were lost in the loop.
But just nowâ
Lin Yuan sensed that the suppression had finally vanished. The Mysterious Emperor evolution path was now free to produce new ultimate beings.
And this wasnât something he sensed through causality. With the Mysterious Sovereignâs power, he couldâve easily blocked all causal ties. Not even Lin Yuan wouldâve been able to detect a trace.
âIf I ever reach the thirteenth rankâbecome a time-beingâIâll bring you back.â
Lin Yuan stood in silence for a while, then thought, âAnd Iâll bring your senior sister back with you.â
Thirteenth-rank lifeforms didnât need external artifacts to resurrect others. Any being who had ever existed in the chaotic voidâs timeline could be revived.
Though the Mysterious Sovereign perished by forcibly escaping the loop, he had once existed. Therefore, resurrection was possible.
With the power of a time-being, reviving someone who had died in the past was not difficult.
The Mysterious Sovereign had refused to forget his senior sister to break the loop because that kind of forgetting was absoluteâit erased all emotion.
Put simply, if he had ascended that way, even if his memories returned, his feelings would not. His senior sister would mean nothing to him. He would never bring her back.
Whoosh.
Lin Yuan stepped toward the entrance of the Mysterious Emperor Universeâand passed through.
Outside the universe.
Lin Yuanâs figure reappeared.
The surrounding Chaos Venerables looked at him with respect, though they werenât particularly surprised.
Others had also emerged from the universe earlier.
What they truly cared about was the fate of Hun Xiao and Yu Lin. As for Lin Yuan? Aside from the Eye of Ten Thousand Laws, no one else knew he had received the Mysterious Sovereignâs legacy.
No one could accurately guess what he had gained.
And with the Mysterious Sovereignâs appearance, it was assumed he had taken all the treasures for himself. Lin Yuan, a Chaos Great Saintâeven one on the verge of invincibilityâlikely came out empty-handed.
As for why Lin Yuan had survived while Hun Xiao and Yu Lin perished?
Ordinary Chaos Venerables might wonderâbut Chaos Great Saints and Supreme Saints understood perfectly. Those two had led the charge to destroy the Mysterious Emperor Lineage. The Mysterious Sovereign striking them down was only natural.
Lin Yuan?
He had never been involved in that. His entry into the universe was no different from any other Chaos Venerable. The Mysterious Sovereign hadnât targeted them at all.
âMilky Way Great Saint.â
Lin Yuan looked around and saw a nervous Chaos Venerable approachingâVenerable Shenfeng.
Before the universe had opened, this Venerable had tried to form an alliance with Lin Yuan to compete with others inside.
Lin Yuan had refused, and at the time, Shenfeng had been displeasedâthinking Lin Yuan lacked vision.
But after witnessing Lin Yuanâs strength outside the Mysterious Emperor Universeâcomparable to Heiyao and Dual-Source SaintsâVenerable Shenfeng had grown terrified.
He had immediately withdrawn from the competition and fled far away, terrified Lin Yuan would take revenge afterward.
Laterâ
Upon hearing of Lin Yuanâs feats within the universeâsubduing eight Chaos Great Saints alone, and even forcing someone like Dual-Source to submitâVenerable Shenfeng, who had already fled far from the area, didnât dare move again.
Had Lin Yuan merely been a regular Chaos Great Saint, he mightâve had a chance to escape.
But with Lin Yuan nearing invincibility among Chaos Saints, subduing others of his level was effortlessânever mind a mere Venerable like him.
Even if he ran, would it matter?
Realizing this, Shenfeng had swallowed his fear and returned to the universeâs edge.
âI was so blind before, to speak to you in that wayâŠâ
He produced his most prized possessions with a flip of his hand.
âI deserve whatever punishment you give. But please⊠have mercy.â
He had already accepted that he might lose this body. As long as he could lessen Lin Yuanâs wrath, it would be worth it.
âI know. You can go.â
Lin Yuan gave him a glance. Truthfully, he hadnât even spared this Venerable a thought.
âThank you, Saint!â
Overjoyed, Shenfeng left his treasures behind and retreated respectfully.
Lin Yuan glanced at the items. For him, they werenât muchâbut even crumbs were food.
He accepted them.
In the next momentâ
Lin Yuan vanished.
In a twisted space-timeâ
Lin Yuan stood, facing a massive eye.
âWell?â
âDid you gain anything decent this time?â
The Eye of Ten Thousand Laws looked at Lin Yuan casually.
It knew he had inherited the Mysterious Sovereignâs legacy, and likely encountered him in person after he broke free of the time loop.
Still, the Eye of Ten Thousand Laws wasnât particularly interested. Even Invincible Supreme Saints were nothing special in the eyes of such beings.
What it didnât knowâwas that the Mysterious Sovereign had left Lin Yuan a thirteenth-rank weapon.
With it, Lin Yuan could even pose a threat to these special entities.
âYesâ
Lin Yuan nodded, offering no further details.
âGood.â
The Eye nodded. âIâll send you back now.â
This void domain was an unknown distance from the Guming Chaos Continent. Even with Lin Yuanâs newfound strength, it wouldâve taken decadesâor longerâto return on his own.
âThank you.â
Lin Yuan replied.
Guming Chaos Continent.
Venerable Guming hesitated. He wasnât sure if he should visit Lin Yuan.
He had already heard of Lin Yuanâs featsâcrushing multiple Chaos Great Saints inside the Mysterious Emperor Universe. That alone made him want to pay his respects. But he didnât want to disturb him either.
âIt should be fine.â
After much thought, Venerable Guming decided to go.
After all, a Chaos Great Saint was currently residing on his continent. If he ignored that, it might be seen as disrespectful.
Though he had visited Lin Yuan many times before, this time was different. Now, Lin Yuan had fully revealed his status as a Great Saint.
Before longâ
Venerable Guming arrived outside the "Fragment World" of the Star Tear Realm.
âVenerable.â
The strongest of human civilizationâXuanyuan and Xia Qinâcame out to greet him.
Though Venerable Guming had always acted humbly toward Lin Yuan, Xuanyuan and the others never looked down on him. After all, he was still a Chaos Venerable.
âIâd like to request an audience with the Milky Way Great Saint.â
Venerable Guming stated his purpose.
âThe Milky Way⊠Great Saint?â
Xuanyuan and Xia Qin hadnât paid much attention at firstâVenerable Guming often came to visit Lin Yuan.
But then they froze.
What did he just call him?
Milky Way Great Saint?
Xuanyuan and Xia Qin were stunned.
...
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