âYoung Master, you're awake?â
While Lin Yuan was deep in thought, a voice of surprise rang out beside him.
He looked up to see a hunched old man staring at him with unconcealed joy.
The old manâs hair was grizzled and messy, his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep, and he exuded a cold, venomous aura like a snake ready to strike.
But when he looked at Lin Yuan, all that malice vanishedâreplaced by genuine happiness.
âThird Uncle.â
Lin Yuan nodded to him.
In name, the hunchbacked old man was his father's old servantâthe Red Lotus Sect Masterâs loyal aide.
But in truth, the two had shared a bond like brothers. In private, they addressed each other as such, and Lin Yuan had always called him âThird Uncle.â
The reason Lin Yuan had escaped the imperial army's siege wasnât just because his father drew most of their attention.
It was also thanks to Third Uncle risking everything to rescue himâgoing so far as to serve as bait to lead away the pursuing soldiers.
Without Third Uncle, Lin Yuanâs original self would never have awakened.
âYoung Master, the Sect Master is dead.â
Third Uncleâs voice was low, eyes filled with grief.
âMm.â
Lin Yuan nodded, his expression growing heavy.
With the Red Lotus Sect Master dead, the imperial forcesâ full attention would now fall on him.
Even with Third Uncle's protection, surviving wouldnât be easy.
âBut with me here, you donât need to worry, Young Master.â
Third Uncle said solemnly, âEven if I die, Iâll die before you.â
âDonât say such unlucky things.â
Lin Yuan shook his head.
âWhatâs your plan now?â
Compared to his former self, Third Uncle was clearly far more experienced.
âI plan to take you to the Red Lotus Sectâs Yongzhou branch. It should still be safe for nowâbeyond the courtâs immediate reach.â
Third Uncle answered seriously.
âThe Yongzhou branch?â
Lin Yuan nodded slightly.
In his memories, the branch leader there had been fiercely loyal to his father.
Now that the Sect Master had fallen, the entire Red Lotus Sect was in turmoil.
Seeking refuge with the Yongzhou branch was a sound choice.
âThen get some rest for now, Young Master. Weâll leave as soon as night falls.â
With that, Third Uncle stood and leftâhe still needed to patrol the area and watch for enemies.
As the old man vanished from viewâ
Lin Yuan slowly rose to his feet.
And began examining himself.
âMartial Ancestor.â
âMartial Ancestor.â
âMartial Ancestor.â
Faint, almost imperceptible whispers echoed in his mind.
âThese voices... Theyâre from those cultivating the martial evolution path? Theyâve already formed stable âDao Beaconsâ to help me realize Iâm currently inside a time loop?â ĆаÎÖ ÎČĂĆ
Lin Yuanâs mind settled.
Without those faint whispers, many peak Chaos evolvers trapped in time loopsâstripped of their power and understanding of Dao lawsâwould risk complete disorientation.
Especially after the first loop ended and the second beganâonce memories of the first were erased, without external 'anchors' or âmarkers,â they would begin repeating the cycle endlessly.
But now, thanks to those whispering voices, Lin Yuan could confirm he was still in the first cycle.
With that certaintyâ
He turned his focus inward, diving into the depths of his mind.
In the empty void of his consciousness stood a vast and majestic Gate of Myriad Realms.
âAs expected, even a time loop canât sever my connection to the Gate of Myriad Realms.â
Lin Yuan breathed a silent sigh of relief.
Time loops isolated everything. Right now, the only method of connecting with lifeforms within a loop was through spreading one's evolution pathâlike the whispers he heard.
Other than that, no form of contact was possible.
But the Gate of Myriad Realms was clearly an exception.
Lin Yuan could still see it clearly in his mind.
Unlike the blurry voices, the gate remained sharp and unshaken.
It was as if it existed both inside and outside the loop, unchanged by either.
âLetâs see if I can still use boundary-breaking source energy.â
Lin Yuan began to test it.
Instantly, the Gate of Myriad Realms began to glow faintly.
Strands of mysterious energy began to flow, attempting to descend into this looped world.
âI can use it.â
Lin Yuan nodded, and once again the thought resurfaced.
Kill the Emperor of the Grand Feng Dynasty.
Boundary-breaking source energy was the only omnipotent force Lin Yuan had encountered.
In theory, it could achieve anything.
Even the complete destruction of a Time Being.
Of course, that depended on having enough of it.
With sufficient boundary-breaking source energy, not only could a Time Being be destroyed completelyâso could a Time Lord.
But that would take an ocean of powerâfar more than Lin Yuan currently possessed.
Even to fully destroy a single Time Being, what he had now was insufficient.
But this time, he wasnât trying to kill a Time Being.
Just a mortalâat most a Dao Master.
It shouldnât require too much.
Buzzâbuzzâbuzz. The Gate of Myriad Realms pulsed with energy, and soon a message appeared in Lin Yuanâs mind.
âFour million units of boundary-breaking source energy.â
Lin Yuanâs expression darkened.
âThat much?â
To kill one mere mortalâand it would cost this much?
âIs this mortal unusual? Or is it the time loopâs interference driving up the price?â
He pondered quickly.
All his accumulated boundary-breaking source energy so far barely surpassed four million.
That included harvesting vast amounts during a cosmic destruction event.
If not for that, it wouldâve taken him millionsâtens of millionsâof years to gather that much.
âBetter not.â
He decided not to waste his entire reserve just to kill the Grand Feng Emperor.
The power stored in the Gate of Myriad Realms was his ultimate trump cardâmeant for life-or-death situations.
As for this time loop?
Did he really need the Gate to escape it?
And even if he did, heâd only use it at the very last moment.
For now, Lin Yuan could see a path to victory through his own means.
âWith my foundation, my chances of breaking free from the time loop are far higher than other peak Rank Twelves.â
He had that confidence.
Boundary-breaking source energy was only a last resort.
Unless he truly couldnât break through, he wouldnât touch it.
For nowâ
He would attempt to shatter the loop with his own strength.
âRunes.â
With a thought, tiny runes began forming and weaving together before him.
This was the legacy of a Time Lord. Once cultivated to the final level, even within a time loop, these runes could be usedâpartially breaking the loopâs rules.
âTheyâre suppressed.â
Lin Yuan stared at the runes. He could feel the suppression on the Dao of Runes.
But he had expected that. Even Lord Tian Guang had warned him.
Reaching the fifth level of the rune legacy did allow their use inside time loopsâbut with many restrictions.
Still, compared to other Rank Twelve peaks who couldnât use any technique at all within the loop, having even limited access to rune power was like having cheat codes.
âThe future...â
Lin Yuan tried using the runes to glimpse future timelines within the loop.
Buzzâbuzzâbuzz. Countless runes intertwined and clashed. But due to the heavy suppression, Lin Yuan could barely see any visions.
Instead, he received fragmented informationâin the form of words.
Lines of illusory text began flashing before his eyes.
[At eighteen, you are hunted by the imperial court and flee into the mountains. Thanks to Third Uncleâs intervention, you barely survive.]
[One day later, you and Third Uncle set out for Yongzhou, hoping to join the local Red Lotus branch.]
[Half a month later, you reach Yongzhou safely.]
[The Yongzhou branch leader welcomes you warmly.]
[One month later, he colludes with the court to ambush you.]
[Third Uncle dies in battle. You escape.]
[One year later, you are killed by three Dao Masters.]
Line after line of text flashed by.
Lin Yuan saw one of his possible futures.
âThe Yongzhou branch leader betrayed us and joined the court?â
His brows furrowed. Third Uncle had trusted that man deeply, and his former self had thought well of him.
âThe Sect Masterâs death⊠the courtâs overwhelming power⊠I suppose it makes sense.â
Lin Yuan nodded after some thought.
Then continued to sift through timeline after timeline.
All in text form.
By the end of the day, he stopped, rubbing his brow.
Despite the loopâs suppression, he had viewed over a thousand timelines.
And finally found one most favorable to himself.
âFor now, the priority is becoming a Dao Seeker.â
Lin Yuan steadied his mind. In every timeline heâd seen, the stronger he was, the easier things became.
âDao Seeking begins with harnessing mind power to draw in the power of the worldâŠâ
He recalled the Red Lotus Sectâs Dao-seeking techniques.
In truth, the first step was nearly identical across all such methods.
For someone like Lin Yuan, becoming a Dao Seeker was almost trivial.
Boom!
As he released his mind power.
The surrounding power of the world slowly began to gather, flowing into his body.
In the distance...
Third Uncle was vigilantly scouting, examining every trace of disturbance.
Then suddenlyâ
He stiffened, turning sharply toward where Lin Yuan was resting.
Streams of worldly energy were gathering there, flowing rapidly inward.
âThis isâŠâ Third Uncle trembled, stunned.
âMind guiding the worldâs power... this is Dao Seeking?â
âYoung Master... Young Master has become a Dao Seeker?â
âSect Master, do you see this? The Young Master... heâs become a Dao Seeker.â Tears welled in his eyes.
...
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