"AGHH—!"
The scream died in Li Chen's throat as he collapsed. This wasn't the bone-shaking pain of the Dragon Physique; this was a thousand times worse. It felt as if his very soul—the core of his existence—was being pulled into thirty different directions by giant, invisible hooks.
Rip. Tear. Shatter.
Li Chen slammed into the ground, coughing up a mouthful of thick, golden-black blood. His vision blurred, and the world began to spin. The memories of 30 lives weren't just data; they were heavy, spiritual anchors, and his current mortal soul was far too small to hold them all.
[Warning! Warning!]
[Host's Soul Strength is insufficient to withstand 30 Innate Talents simultaneously.]
[Protocol Error: Potential Soul Collapse detected.]
"S-system..." Li Chen gasped, his fingers clawing into the dirt. "Stop... it..."
[Emergency Protocol Activated: Soul Partitioning.]
[Current Soul Capacity: 5/30 Talents.]
[Please select 5 Initial Talents to stabilize the Soul immediately, or face total erasure!]
Li Chen lay on the floor, his chest heaving. The pain was receding slightly, but he could feel his consciousness fading. He had to choose. He couldn't pick everything anymore
[Ding! Emergency Selection: System is automatically selecting the 5 most compatible Innate Talents to stabilize the Host's Soul...]
[Selection Completed. Initiating Soul-Stabilization...]
In an instant, the agonizing pressure in his mind vanished. The sensation of his soul being shredded was replaced by a cool, starlight-infused calm.
Li Chen lay flat on his back, staring up at the sky, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. He lifted a trembling hand, looking at his palm. It was stained with the golden-black blood he had just coughed up—a grim reminder of how close he had come to a 31st death.
"I can't believe it..." he wheezed, a self-deprecating smirk tugging at his lips. "I almost died because of my own greed. Thirty lives of experience, and I still tried to swallow the whole ocean in one gulp."
...
"Something is off..." he whispered, his breath hitching. "In every other life, I felt a tether, a safety net. But now? It's gone."
"If I die now… is there no 32nd transmigration? Is this my last chance?"
The realization struck Li Chen like a physical blow, colder than any blade that had pierced his heart in the past. In his previous thirty lives, death had been a familiar, albeit agonizing, reset button. But this time, the air felt different—heavy with finality.
"Is this the reason the System appeared in this life?" he whispered, his voice trembling as he looked at the silent void around him. "Is it because I get no second chance?"
The thought of dying was second nature to him now, but the idea of dying for good sent a bone-chilling shiver through his marrow. He was walking a tightrope over an abyss with no safety net.
He took a jagged breath and forced the fear down, burying it under layers of thirty lifetimes of spite. "Well then, I guess I have to make the best of it. System! Show me the tools for my final run!"
[System Display: Initial Innate Talents Integrated]
Peerless Swordsmanship: The absolute muscle memory and intent of the Sword Saint. Your blade is an extension of your soul.
Alchemist Master: Near-flawless control over pill refinement below tier 9. Failures are rare, but never impossible.
Genius Array Master: Instant comprehension of all formations. You can see the 'veins' of the world to create or destroy barriers.
Lord of Beasts: As a True Dragon, you are the Sovereign of all monsters. You possess the innate authority to suppress, tame, and command any beast.
Dual Cultivation: Optimized energy transfer and breakthrough speed through... 'harmonious' interaction with a partner.
Li Chen's eyes scanned the list with growing excitement until they hit the final line. His face went from pale to a deep, vein-popping purple in seconds.
"Dual Cultivation?! You've got to be kidding me?!" Li Chen's voice cracked as he screamed at the floating blue screen.
"You wasted a talent slot for that?!"
In anger, he screamed,
"Give me my talent slot back, System! Don't you dare play dead on me now!"
[System Notification: Host is advised to check the local time.]
[Suggestion: Begin 'Spiritual Root' selection immediately to avoid further delays]
Li Chen's jaw dropped. "You... you're just going to ignore me? You're going to ignore the fact that you gave me a 'Death Trap' talent after I've been stabbed fifty times?!"
The System remained silent, the text for Spiritual Root Selection pulsing with an urgent golden light. It was as if the machine was telling him: Complain all you want, hehe
Li Chen let out a long, frustrated hiss, steam literally curling from his nostrils. "Fine! Keep your cursed talent!
[Ding! Initiating Spiritual Root Selection...]
[Processing...
[Ding! Scanning Host's current physical vessel...]
[Detection Complete: Host's new body possesses a top-notch Spiritual Root.]
[Type: Four-Element Spiritual Root (Fire, Water, Earth, Wind).]
Li Chen froze, his hand still raised to punch the interface in anger. He slowly looked down at his own chest, his crimson eyes widening.
"Four elements?" he whispered, his voice cracking. "This half-dead, tattered body... actually has a Four-Element Root?"
In the many worlds he had traversed, a single "Rare" element (like Lightning or Ice and the invincible void root) made you a genius. A "Dual" element made you a genius. But four? In most sects, that was considered a God-Tier Foundation.
Yet, there was a catch—the "Curse of the Poly-Root." To most cultivators, having four elements was a death sentence for their progress. It required four times the resources, four times the meditation, and four times the luck to break through a single bottleneck. Most geniuses with this root died of old age before they ever reached the Core Formation stage.
But Li Chen wasn't "most geniuses."
To him, more roots didn't mean more work; it meant more Power.
Li Chen stood frozen as the golden energy from the System flooded his meridians. Unlike the bone-shattering agony of the True Dragon Physique, this sensation was incredibly refreshing—like a cool spring rain washing over a parched desert.
[Ding! Spiritual Root Refinement: 100% Complete.]
[Upgrade Successful: Host has received the 7-Attribute Spiritual Root!]
Li Chen's jaw dropped as he felt seven distinct elemental flows—Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, Ice, and Wood—circulating in perfect harmony within his dantian.
"The 7-Attribute Root..." he whispered, his voice full of awe. "A legend... a myth. People in my past lives debated for centuries if this truly existed.
In the history of the 3,000 Worlds, the 4-Attribute was considered the "once in a millenia prodigy," but the Seven Attributes were not merely elements—they were their higher evolutions. Fire that could burn like a star. Water that flowed like a boundless sea. Lightning that split the heavens. Ice that froze time itself. Wood that pulsed with endless vitality. Earth that bore the weight of mountains. Wind that whispered across the void.
Li Chen felt a wave of overwhelming joy wash over him. In the Three Thousand Worlds of the Heavenly Dao Star Fields, his starting point was already far beyond his peers.
Li Chen felt a surge of fierce confidence rise within him. This wasn't guaranteed invincibility—but it was a foundation powerful enough to shake an era.
A dark, predatory smile curled his lips. He wasn't just a transmigrator anymore; he was a cosmic disaster waiting to happen.
"System," he whispered, his crimson eyes gleaming with greed and anticipation. "Let's have the last draw, shall we? Don't leave the job half-finished."
[Ding! Final Selection Protocol: Soul-Bonded Artifact.]
[Scanning the treasury of the Host's previous 30 incarnations...]
[Note: It is bound to your soul and grows alongside you. Ordinary means cannot sever it, and its fate is intertwined with your own.]
"Don't keep me waiting," he hissed. "Show me the goods!"