"Finally, I can enter seclusion in peace," Su Min murmured to herself, settling into the quiet chamber. After reaching the Golden Core stage, every step forward demanded long periods of closed door cultivation. Even with a lifespan of five hundred years, a Golden Core cultivator's time never felt like enough. She could only hope the children she had gathered would manage well under the peacock's guidance.
The peacock's strength was formidable, not just in raw power but also in her methods and intelligence. Su Min felt assured leaving the young disciples in her care. Over the past few decades, she had laid a solid foundation for them. The rest was up to their own efforts and fortunes. She had guided them onto the path, but she could not walk it for them.
"Time to begin. I wonder how much stronger I can become this time." With that thought, she slowly closed her eyes and immersed herself in that deep, peculiar state of cultivation. Even Golden Core experts needed frequent seclusion, though for her, it was not currently about improving her cultivation level. Under the heavy suppression of heaven and earth, she could not advance a single inch. This time was for consolidation and comprehension.
Only when the Golden Core Avenue opened could she continue her progress, aiming to eventually leave at the Nascent Soul stage. She had to be among the first wave to enter. Many of the opportunities there were one time only, and those who arrived late would find nothing left.
With her current strength, she could handle ordinary Golden Core cultivators, but against the true geniuses who would be emerging from seclusion, the outcome was uncertain. Her innate talent was not purely combat oriented, and she still lacked a true core cultivation scripture to tie all her abilities together.
"So much information," she gasped as a sudden flood of knowledge surged into her mind, sending a splitting pain through her skull. "This 'Path of Salvation'..."
Images and concepts of saving the suffering and pursuing the path of longevity swirled in her consciousness. Su Min gritted her teeth. As a Golden Core cultivator, her perception and information processing abilities were far beyond mortal limits, yet this influx was overwhelming.
Then, her spiritual sense was pulled into a strange, vast world. A colossal figure loomed before her, its serpentine body stretching endlessly into the misty clouds. She could only catch glimpses of its scale covered segments.
"Finally meeting you, Azure Dragon, leader of the Four Symbols."
The pressure it exuded was utterly different from the Vermilion Bird she had encountered before. This time, Su Min felt as if she were standing before heaven itself, a force as unstoppable and final as the last strike of her Nine Nine Heavenly Tribulation. It was no wonder her head had been pounding.
A sharp, burning pain shot through her arm, forcing her to one knee in her mental landscape. A intricate, dragon shaped mark briefly glowed on her skin before vanishing without a trace.
"An entry ticket to the Azure Dragon's legacy?" she realized.
The Four Symbols had each engraved their inheritances into the Heavenly Dao itself. While she had obtained the Vermilion Bird's complete legacy, including the Nanming Lihuo, the others required her to meet specific conditions to unlock their full power. This was why the Heavenly Dao Insight talent was so revered, but it had to be paired with immense effort. For the Azure Dragon's legacy, she needed to walk both the Path of Salvation and the Path of Longevity to a significant depth.
A new understanding settled within her.
[Four Symbols Rebirth — Dragon]
[Effect: Accelerates recovery from injuries and spiritual power depletion.]
As the power integrated into her body, Su Min frowned. "Another sustain based ability? This is... underwhelming." This acquired divine ability seemed mediocre, hardly worthy of the Azure Dragon's majestic title. But she understood this was just a key, a permit granting her the right to compete for the true legacy hidden within the Golden Core Avenue.
And her competitors would be the sealed experts from across the ages, not just the so called geniuses of this era, but the strongest of their times, blessed with peerless physiques and comprehension.
"Troublesome. I will need all the help I can get for this," she mused, thinking of Xie Yingying. Cultivation was not just about brute force, connections and backing mattered immensely. Those ancient sects had entire teams of elites supporting their chosen candidates. She, on the other hand, would be largely alone. Even the legacy of Xie Yingying's Heavenly Yin Sect was lost to history. The three divine beasts and the island's spirit creatures could not enter the Golden Core Avenue, and her fledgling sect would be lucky to produce anyone near the level of the five great sect leaders within a few centuries.
"Next up, you, Vermilion Bird." As the colossal presence of the Azure Dragon faded, a familiar, crimson figure descended into her consciousness, its aura far more welcoming. After all, she had already obtained the Vermilion Bird's complete legacy.
But another wave of information struck, another headache blooming behind her eyes. Vast, intricate knowledge of fire and rebirth flooded her mind.
"Vermilion Bird Holy Idol!!!"
A massive, fiery phantom materialized behind her spiritual form.
[Vermilion Bird Holy Idol]
① Incinerate All Things: Releases ultra-high-temperature compressed flames, reducing everything to ash.
② Blazing Lotus Domain: Rapidly raises the temperature in an area, greatly enhancing fire-attribute effects while suppressing others.
③ Self-Destructing Strike: Detonates the idol for massive AoE damage, but it cannot be summoned again for a while.
A surge of scorching, destructive energy erupted within her mental world.
"Now this is the real Vermilion Bird legacy. Finally, some serious firepower."
As the visions finally faded, Su Min opened her physical eyes to find her seclusion chamber charred black. Thankfully, her robes were made of high quality spirit cloth, or she would have been left naked once again.
With a heavy clang, she summoned her massive cauldron. A cultivator's combat strength relied not just on internal skills, but also on external treasures. Her current Yellow tier gear was no longer sufficient for the battles to come.
"I probably cannot forge Mystic tier high grade treasures yet, but mid grade should be manageable," she assessed.
She had stockpiled mountains of materials for this exact purpose. Her first and most important target was a new set of armor, the most complex piece to forge, but the one that offered the most comprehensive boost to a cultivator's survivability.
"Thank the heavens for the Golden Core Avenue's restrictions," she thought, "or I would be running for my life against those ancient geniuses."
The Great Dao Avenue had two key rules that were a godsend for her. Only Golden Core cultivators could enter, and they could only advance to Golden Core Perfection inside. Furthermore, no treasures above Mystic tier high grade were allowed. Without these restrictions, facing the heaven defying treasures of the ancient sects would be a hopeless endeavor.
"This ore nearly killed me to obtain," she muttered, waving her hand. A two meter long boulder of marble like stone appeared. It was White Nether Spirit Ore, a top tier material the current world could not produce naturally. Acquiring it had cost her three precious Grade 4 pills, months of grueling alchemy, and another batch of Golden Spirit Pills. Only a master alchemist of her caliber could have traded for it.
"With this as the base, I will forge myself a suit of armor worthy of the challenges ahead." More rare materials floated around her as crimson flames ignited in her palms.
"Nanming Lihuo—ignite!!!"
The temperature in the chamber skyrocketed. Her seclusion spot was a natural hollow within the Fusang Divine Tree. Though the tree was a wood attribute divine wonder, its proximity to the Golden Crow had infused it with vast fire energy, even traces of the Solar True Flame. It was perfect for forge work, but disastrous for the delicate control needed for alchemy.
For three years, the divine flames tirelessly refined the ore, melting away impurities until only a shimmering, silvery white liquid remained.
"Mold," Su Min commanded, her hands moving with fluid grace. The liquid obeyed her will, taking the shape of a sleek, form fitting set of moon white armor. Silver veined joints allowed for flexibility, and resilient spirit cloth was woven into key areas for mobility.
[White Cloud Heart Armor (Mystic-tier Mid-Grade)]
Unlike the impractical, skimpy "armor" often depicted for women in dramas, Su Min's creation was fully practical, designed for protection and movement, yet it was no less striking. The snow white plates contrasted sharply with her dark hair and eyes, and her high ponytail added a sharp, heroic flair to her silhouette.
"Not bad," she said, examining her work. "More coverage is always better." She smirked. She was not about to die for the sake of fashion.
"A decade in seclusion," she mused, stretching her limbs. "Just a blink for me, but half a lifetime for mortals."
She sensed that the settlement, now grown to over three hundred thousand people, was thriving. The island's vastness meant they still occupied only a tiny fraction of its land. Life was good here, a testament that when the rulers were not monsters, even basic fairness felt like paradise.
"Time to check on the outside world and those children." She soared out from the divine tree, a restricted zone that was fiercely guarded in the young Golden Crow's absence. Flying up to the hatchling's nest, she frowned. The egg had hatched, but the creature within was still small. "Why has not the little Golden Crow grown? Did your 'century' estimate miss something?"
The Azure Dragon guardian, coiled nearby and watching over the nest with an unblinking eye, turned his gaze to her. "Lady Su, are you... by chance, a 'Solar Sovereign Body'?"
"Huh?" Su Min blinked, caught off guard. "My constitution is 'Blazing Flame Body'. It is rare, but nowhere near the pinnacle of yang attributes."
"Strange. You carry the breath of the sun, a trait unique to Solar Sovereign Bodies. Yet you somehow have it." The dragon's voice was a low rumble. "That is why the young mistress's slumber will be much longer than I first estimated. Your presence accelerates her growth, but also deepens her hibernation."
"I see..." Su Min was not entirely surprised. Her status panel had long shown an unactivated 'Taiyang Qi' trait. When it would fully awaken, no one knew. But she was not in a hurry. Her next target was the Eastern Azure Wood, not the Fusang Tree itself, which would incinerate anyone but a Golden Crow who tried to claim it.
With nothing else to do at the nest, Su Min swooped down to inspect her sect's progress. The peacock, now in her human form, greeted her with a raised eyebrow.
"You did not self seal? I expected you to be in seclusion longer."
"No need. My lifespan is... unusually long," Su Min replied vaguely.
"Hmph. Your sect is coming along nicely," the peacock reported. "The newborns here have exceptional aptitudes thanks to the environment. I have also integrated many of the more docile spirit beasts into human society, since the Path of Divine Flames was originally intended for beasts. And surprisingly, you know Buddhist mantra techniques?" Shrines dedicated to Su Min had sprouted across the island, becoming her most stable source of faith. This was high quality worship from genuinely grateful settlers. Unlike distant gods, she actually delivered on divine protection. The spirit beasts involved, like the plow pulling oxen, also reaped benefits from the incense offerings.
"How are the children?" Su Min asked, getting to her main concern.
"Your eye for talent was sound," the peacock acknowledged. "All seven have reached the Qi Refining stage. Whether or not they can cross the 'Immortal Mortal Divide' and form their foundations now depends entirely on their own determination and fortune."
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Even Azure Dragon can detect her hidden "Solar Sovereign body". That's why I say that she and Yingying are the match made in heaven. LOL