"Huff, huff, huff... Finally got you. The difference in combat power without the Four Symbols inheritance is beyond what I imagined."
Gripping the object in her hand, Su Min took deep, heavy breaths. This thing was truly troublesome, and right now, she was genuinely weak. It had taken her over a month to finally capture it.
"The Five Divine Artifacts are gone, the Five Elements Holy Body is gone, and though the Four Symbols inheritance remains, without the support of the four great divine artifacts, it's practically useless."
Assessing her current condition, Su Min couldn't help but sigh. Her strength had truly diminished to less than a tenth of what it once was. What was even more troublesome was that she now felt somewhat lost in battle. After all, when you shatter and discard your original system entirely, anyone would feel disoriented.
So, at this moment, Su Min was both frustrated and helpless.
"Truly worthy of being the purified remnants of the Spirit Dao Body. These laws have condensed into their origin forms. I can absorb them directly—let's begin."
Gazing at the handful of law origins in her grasp, Su Min narrowed her eyes. Then, she sat cross-legged and began absorbing them gradually.
"Law origins... You've really gone all out. Any one of these, if released, would be enough to elevate a Divine Transformation cultivator to the Dao Comprehension stage."
Watching the origin energies, Xie Yingying couldn't hide her astonishment. Dao Comprehension, Unity, and Mahayana were known as the Upper Three Realms.
Breaking into them was incredibly difficult, yet a single law origin could propel a Divine Transformation cultivator straight into the Dao Comprehension stage. The items in Su Min's hands were enough to create five or six Dao Comprehension-stage cultivators.
"Having more Dao Comprehension-stage cultivators is useless. In fact, even Mahayana-stage cultivators or even Great Emperors, wouldn't make much difference. What I need is a being that exists only in legends."
Yao Xian'er paid no attention to those law origins. Given enough time, she could repeatedly break through her limits by severing herself, just like Tian Yang had. But clearly, there wasn't enough time for that now.
Her path required tens of thousands of years to unfold, but if she waited that long, it might already be too late. Besides, these law origins were essentially emergency resources, their usefulness to her was extremely limited.
Handing them over to Su Min now, if she could forge the Law Crucible, there was a chance she might reach that legendary level.
As for Dao Comprehension-stage cultivators? In Yao Xian'er's eyes, they were meaningless. Those stuck at the Divine Transformation stage could either break through on their own or simply perish when their lifespan ran out.
She wouldn't waste a single law origin on them.
"Right now, the time flow in this secret realm is over ten times faster than the outside world. She has plenty of time."
"You've comprehended the Law of Time?"
"Not at all. But this place is special. Honestly, just how monstrous is this girl? How did she reach this level?"
Even Yao Xian'er couldn't help but envy the Law of Time. It wasn't something just anyone could comprehend. According to her plans, she would need at least three lifetimes to grasp it.
After all, throughout recorded history, only Su Min and the Sinful Buddha had comprehended the Law of Time. The latter had relied on the Buddhist cycle of reincarnation, undergoing ten lifetimes before stepping onto that path.
As for Su Min... Yao Xian'er simply couldn't understand. She herself had tried many times to comprehend it, but each time, she faced the same frustrating limitation: insufficient lifespan.
She could only accumulate step by step, lingering in a so-called half-step Dao Comprehension stage, slowly building up her foundation—perhaps in the next life, she might succeed.
"Mmm."
Xie Yingying nodded silently. Not just Yao Xian'er, even she couldn't make sense of it. But understanding wasn't necessary. The two of them continued observing. Though the time flow inside was ten times faster, both were powerful cultivators.
As long as they focused, the passage of time would appear to slow before their eyes. It was somewhat similar to the Flash entering the Speed Force, though they didn't possess any such power. The reason they could do this was simple: their perception was sharp enough.
"Huff..."
After absorbing the law origins, Su Min slowly opened her eyes.
"Almost there. The Law Crucible really isn't easy to forge. The most troublesome part is my physique—a Mortal Body really isn't that convenient. I don't need to reach the pinnacle before returning to simplicity."
At this, Su Min couldn't help but chuckle wryly. She had fully absorbed these laws, but she hadn't refined them yet. Once refined, they would transform into pure energy, which was completely different from what she wanted—the Law Crucible.
Soon, as she moved, everything around her shifted once more. Su Min found herself in a brand-new domain—a scorching, molten expanse of lava, above which a fiery bird soared.
"Flame Law, Law of Destruction, and some others... Whatever. Let's do this."
Su Min frowned slightly but drew her weapon. At the same time, golden flames flickered around her, this was the unique law of the Golden Crow Clan, something she had obtained in the Tomb of the Puppet Emperor and kept with her ever since.
Normally, she wouldn't use it because it paled in comparison to the enhancements from the Five Elements Holy Body and the Nanming Lihuo. But this time, it was different, this was something entirely new.
BOOM!!!
In the next instant, she charged forward. This time, however, there was no game of hide-and-seek. Instead, the most primal battle unfolded—both sides fought relentlessly until the very end.
While Su Min struggled for the laws, time continued to flow.
In what felt like the blink of an eye, another thirty years passed.
Meanwhile, deep within the Dark Universe, a massive void trembled as a bloodied figure crawled out. The moment this figure appeared, the entire Dark Universe shuddered. Dark, dense energy erupted from its body.
"We greet the Immortal."
Countless figures gathered before it. If anyone from the Heavenly Continent were to witness this, they would be scared out of their wits.
Among these figures were at least twenty Mahayana-stage cultivators, some even at the peak of Mahayana. There were hundreds of Unity-stage cultivators, and countless Dao Comprehension-stage ones.
Yet now, all of them knelt humbly, prostrating before this being.
"Ten of us set out. Only I survived. Now is the perfect opportunity, the chosen ones of this universe have begun to emerge, but they haven't reached their peak. Not even a new Transcendence-stage cultivator has appeared."
Feeling the aura of the Dark Universe, the figure spat out a mouthful of blood. The endless chaos and violent storms had inflicted severe wounds upon it.
Ten had ventured forth, but only one had reached the destination. Yet the price was worth it, their long-cherished wish was about to be realized. Once he completed his mission and returned, he would immediately ascend to become a legendary Immortal King.
This passage was special, like a funnel. Going along with it wasn't too difficult, but coming back against it was another matter. Their world was like a lighthouse, guiding the way forward.
But reaching this world required groping through darkness. Even an Immortal could be swallowed by the void and chaos, just like him.
"Master, the beings of the Dark Continent have flourished. There are currently five Great Medicines there, ready for harvesting."
"Hahaha, good, very good. The few of you, take action immediately. Capture all of them. Once I absorb their soul origins, I'll recover to my peak within a century."
"Yes."
Hearing this, the expressions of several figures flickered. Even in his heavily injured state, the three peak Mahayana cultivators could sense the aura of death emanating from him. His current strength was comparable to the legendary Great Emperors. One step further, and he would become an Immortal. At this thought, excitement filled their faces.
Immortals were eternal, free, and unbound, the dream of countless cultivators. They had expected a weakened Immortal to descend, but never such a terrifying existence. Thus, everyone sprang into action, rushing from the core of the Dark Universe toward the Dark Continent. Those who had ascended through soul fusion were their true targets.
Unlike Su Min, these people had no moral restraints, they wouldn't hesitate to tear the continent apart to capture their prey.
"Huff... Cough..."
Watching them leave, the Immortal spat out several mouthfuls of black blood, his expression darkening. The stronger the being, the greater the cost to descend to a lower universe. Right now, he was severely wounded by Dao injuries. Without the protection of the Dark Matter in the Dark Universe, he would immediately face the terrifying Heavenly Tribulation.
The primary purpose of corrupting this starry sky was to use Dark Matter to disrupt the Heavenly Dao, preventing immediate detection by the tribulation.
"Heavenly Continent... This time, I will crush you all, shrouding the mortal world in endless darkness and terror."
As his voice, filled with destruction and malice, echoed, the entire world trembled.
Meanwhile, on the Heavenly Continent...
"They're coming—and this time, their strength is no joke. What kind of terrifying price did those bastards pay to descend here? We need to hurry."
Sensing the horrifying aura hidden in the depths of darkness, Yao Xian'er's pupils flickered. The thing she had feared most the thing that even made her feel a trace of dread, had happened.
A crippled Immortal? No. This aura wasn't from a crippled Immortal, it was from a true Immortal. For such an existence to traverse the void and arrive here, the cost must have been unimaginably steep.
This sent a shiver down Yao Xian'er's spine. Such a being was beyond her ability to handle.
If it had been like the previous era, with only crippled Immortals, this era had brought forth a true Immortal. The Great Five Elements Holy Body, the Great Desolate Saint Body, and the Spirit Dao Body all possessed the power to slay Immortals, but only crippled ones.
Those were beings in a special state between Transcendence and the Immortal Ascension Realm. They hadn't condensed the legendary Immortal Roots. In the Immortal World, they were still considered Immortals, but the lowest kind, barely above Transcendence-stage cultivators.
However, due to the unique nature of the Immortal World, they could live indefinitely. But don't underestimate them, even if they weren't true Immortals, given enough time, they could accumulate terrifying power.
These were the mortal enemies the Great Emperors of past eras had faced. But a true Immortal?
At this thought, Yao Xian'er's brow furrowed. The cost was too great. Those beings wouldn't willingly come here. In her era, only a handful of true Immortals had descended.
The Five Elements Emperor had once encountered one, a brutal war. Though the Five Elements Emperor had ultimately triumphed, the universe had been shattered.
It wasn't just chaos, it was devastation beyond description. Every superpower, every Dao Comprehension-stage and above cultivator, every Imperial Artifact—all had been destroyed. The entire universe's legacy had been reset to zero.
Otherwise, there wouldn't be only a dozen or so superpowers left today. And the current universe was nowhere near as strong as before.
So, they had to act, unlike back then.
"Now, it's up to you, the physique that even those beings fear. Don't disappoint me. And Tian Yang... You've sensed it too, haven't you?"
"Yes."
As Yao Xian'er spoke, a monk slowly materialized.
"How is she now?"
"She's at a critical stage. But we must prepare for the worst."
Yao Xian'er shook her head. Even if Su Min reached the Mahayana stage, she probably wouldn't be able to reach that level.
"It seems we'll need to form another expeditionary army. We can't let that thing recover so quickly. We must spare no expense, hunt down two or three Mahayana-stage cultivators on the Dark Continent. That'll buy us a few more centuries."
"Let's move. And this time, we must involve the Divine Beasts and the superpowers."
"Agreed."
Tian Yang nodded. Things had reached the worst possible scenario. Now, they had no choice but to act.