Essence Devouring Art

The Nine Great Heavenly Domains of Hongyuan.

The structure of each Celestial Domain was different, as was its layout.

The Chaotic Star Celestial Domain was a vast universe.

Countless star seas, galaxies, Grotto Heaven Blessed Lands, and minor worlds dotted its expanse, all coexisting in the same space-time—a unique feature among the Nine Great Celestial Domains.

The other Heavens outside the Chaotic Star Celestial Domain, however...

...were ruled by a rigid hierarchy. The Celestial Domains were structured like a ladder of worlds, and only by breaking through the shackles of the Mortal Realm and ascending step by step could one reach the supreme Juntian.

The few Celestial Domains allied with the Celestial Court even had the restriction of Celestial Thunder tribulations; only those who passed a Celestial Tribulation could ascend to the Upper Realm.

In such a system...

...one’s birth was especially important.

Some were born directly in Juntian, basking in the fortune of the Great Dao and enjoying the best resources, allowing them to advance by leaps and bounds.

Others had to claw their way up from the Mortal Realm, surviving countless life-and-death trials just to earn the right to what people of the Upper Realm considered an ordinary life.

Profound Yellow Celestial Domain, Central Jun Tian.

Within the territory of the Dayan Imperial Dynasty.

Just outside the capital of a vassal state.

The peak of a Divine Mountain had been flattened into a vast White Jade Square. In its center stood three Heaven-Reaching Celestial Steles, their powerful, draconic auras piercing the sea of clouds, wreathed in a torrential, blazing battle intent.

Beneath the three Celestial Steles...

...a crowd of thousands, like ants from a distance, had gathered. Each person radiated a magnificent, captivating aura; they were all Celestial Prides and brilliant talents from every corner of the realm.

The reason they had all converged here...

...was not for some contest of heroes, but simply to make a name for themselves—or rather, to measure their own achievements against others.

The three Celestial Steles in the center of the square...

...were known as the All Heavens Venerable Steles. They could be found in all the major settlements of the Human Race throughout the Nine Heavens of Primordial Chaos.

Their origins were lost to time.

It was said that the complete All Heavens Stele was a damaged, peak-tier Emperor’s Artifact from a bygone era.

Its main function now...

...was to measure the achievements of the Hongyuan Heavenly Realms’ Celestial Prides within the same cultivation realm. Each Celestial Domain had its own ranking, and those who reached the top would have their names spread throughout the world, becoming an All Heavens Venerable of their realm.

This particular All Heavens Stele...

...measured achievements in the Dharma Realm.

The three Celestial Steles were divided into...

...King Grade, Saint Grade, and Emperor Grade.

Of the three, the Emperor Grade stele garnered the most attention.

Only those with an Emperor Grade Dao Foundation were qualified to compete for the title of All Heavens Venerable of their realm.

At the same time...

...the divisions on the Emperor Grade stele were the most detailed and strict.

The first to Nine Steps formed the first section of the Celestial Stele.

Reaching the top of this section meant one could be called a king among their peers.

The tenth step to the Twenty-four Heavens formed the second section.

Reaching the top of this section earned one the title of Emperor’s Son.

From the twenty-fifth layer to the Thirty-Three Heavens was the final section.

To reach the peak of the Thirty-Three Heavens...

...that was to be a true All Heavens Venerable, a Daoist Level figure with the potential for Attainment Dao.

BOOM!

"MOOO—ROOOAR—"

The Celestial Stele shook as the cries of a dragon and an elephant merged.

Before the King Grade Dharma Aspect All Heavens Stele...

...a Sword Cultivator with a cold aura unleashed a sword strike. The All Heavens Stele erupted in a magnificent, multicolored light as images of Ancient Celestial Dragons and Holy Elephants roared through the sea of clouds, continuously climbing and charging toward the top of the stele.

Finally...

...nine dragons and nine elephants appeared, and all nine sections of the Celestial Stele lit up.

The names of the top ten cultivators with Nine Steps King Grade Dharma Aspects wavered. Then, the faintest imprint was pushed off, replaced by the origin and venerable name of the new person at the peak—

"Immortal Realm, Lin Jingshuang."

After his venerable name was branded onto the stele...

...the cold, black-robed Swordsman showed no pride. His world-weary eyes glanced at the nearby Saint Grade stele and then at the Emperor Grade stele, which symbolized the highest honor in all the Heavens.

Then, he let out a resigned sigh.

He turned and walked away, a desolate figure.

Although the King Grade Dharma Aspect Celestial Stele didn’t attract much attention, the sudden appearance of a powerhouse who reached its peak still caused quite a stir.

After all...

...in such a vast Celestial Domain...

...with its countless cultivators...

...only ten people were qualified to reach the top and have their names known throughout the domain. Even if it was only the King Grade, that was enough to be considered a dragon among men, an unattainable height for countless others.

"The Immortal Realm? I think that’s a Lower Realm belonging to the Jade Permanence Celestial Dynasty. Its cultivation ceiling is the Dharma Realm. Only a Child of Fortune from that world is qualified to skip the next few realms and ascend directly to Profound Yellow Juntian."

"To come from a lower, barren world and still surpass his peers in Juntian to reach the peak of the King Grade is truly remarkable."

"I can sense the aura of several Rebirth-like transformations in his sword aspect. His Comprehension is terrifying, but unfortunately, the foundation he built before the Dharma Realm was too poor..."

"If he had been born in Juntian, he might have reached the Saint Grade when he formed his Dharma Aspect."

The Swordsman from the Lower Realm reaching the peak...

...sparked a great deal of discussion and commotion. Most lamented his circumstances with regret, while a small few were condescending and disdainful, filled with a sense of superiority.

The path of cultivation was cruel.

This was the very definition of it.

Perhaps you were a peerless genius in a small pond, looking down on all the heroes of your world.

But when you arrived on a grander stage...

...you would discover...

...that people like you were everywhere, and those stronger than you were as numerous as the clouds.

Without truly world-conquering talent...

...your only fate was to slowly fade into mediocrity.

’If I had taken a single wrong step back then, I might also be trapped in some Lower Realm, wasting my years with nothing to show for it.’

In the crowd.

Wuchen’s Herculean frame was shrouded in a breath-concealing black robe. The chiseled, resolute face under his hood no longer showed the caution he had in the Dragon Mud Cave Heaven; instead, it was filled with domineering confidence.

He watched the desolate back of the departing Swordsman.

A wave of emotion washed over him.

The image of the benefactor who had changed his life eighteen years ago surfaced in his mind, his teachings still echoing in his ears—

"Having a worse fate than others isn’t tragic. What’s tragic is lacking the heart to strive and advance.

For the weak, every breath is a mistake.

For the strong, even cruelty is a mark of greatness.

You have an unyielding spirit in your chest, an unwillingness to live a muddled, mediocre life, and a bit of worldly cunning.

But that is far from enough.

At best, it will let you escape mediocrity and achieve some minor success. If you want to erase the gap between you and those born into nobility, to become a true lord at the apex who can make the heavens and earth tremble...

...you must learn from nature—

...endure the cold when you lie dormant, and fight for the spring when you rise.

Only by Taming One’s Own Heart and being unscrupulous can you forge true gold in lightning and fire..."

Under the starry sky that night...

...in a dilapidated courtyard, a shivering Little Mudman listened to the towering figure’s teachings, committing every word to heart.

It was not a fleeting passion.

The life lessons taught by a powerhouse who had the ability to change his destiny were surely not some grand, empty principles from a book.

Even if they were too cruel and cold-blooded...

...the Little Mudman, who had grown up in the mire at the bottom of society, understood.

The World Law had always been this way.

If you started with less than others...

...then your only choice was to adapt to the cruel laws and seize every opportunity to climb, by any means necessary.

If he had been content with his situation, blaming fate and others...

...eighteen years ago...

...all he would have received was a pittance of silver.

If he had been hesitant, cowardly, and self-deprecating...

...he would never have been able to snatch that petal of the Fortune Golden Lotus, let alone enter the great courtyards of the town’s elite.

If he had been self-righteously aloof and shortsighted...

...after the truth of the Dragon Mud Cave Heaven was revealed, he would have ended up just like his peers from the bottom rungs of Dragon Gate Town who had no background and weak fortune.

Looked down upon by the great households...

...he would have been relegated to a Lower Realm to waste away his years.

If he hadn’t been ruthless, groveling and scheming...

...it would have been impossible for him to go from a mere chore-hand in the Spirit Beast Garden to a respected Dharma True Inheritance of the Qiong Wu Emperor Sect, a Martial Arts Sacred Land in the Profound Yellow Celestial Domain, all in just eighteen years.

’Master...’

A hint of worry appeared in Wuchen’s eyes.

He was no fool.

After entering Profound Yellow Heaven, he had conducted extensive investigations and learned of the terrifying karmic ties behind the Dragon Mud Cave Heaven.

As for the identity of that benefactor whose name he didn’t even know, back when the Celestial Thunder from the Divine Wilderness shook all the Heavens eighteen years ago...

...he had already formed a guess.

He hoped it was his master.

But at the same time, he hoped it wasn’t.

Those two words—mutual destruction.

For eighteen years, they had been a heavy, indelible shadow hanging over his heart.

Hooo~

He let out a slow, heavy breath.

Wuchen clenched his heavy fists, his gaze turning cold as it passed over the crowd and landed on the three sections and thirty-three layers of the Emperor Grade All Heavens Stele.

Up to the twenty-fourth layer...

...at the top of each layer, a single, dazzlingly brilliant name looked down upon the countless world-conquering Celestial Prides of Profound Yellow—

Mo Chen!

The moment he saw that name...

...a strange hostility welled up inside Wuchen, and not just because of his master’s instructions that night eighteen years ago.

It was also because of the Golden Lotus Pool!

He would never forget it as long as he lived.

He was being stomped into the mud, covered in blood, desperately protecting the single flower petal in his arms.

And that so-called Funeral Star...

...was holding nine whole Golden Lotuses.

The boy had stepped on his head in the mud as he passed by, then turned back and said to him:

"Sorry, are you okay? I didn’t see you there."

His apology seemed sincere.

He even offered to help him up.

But in that moment...

...Wuchen felt no warmth, only a painful lump choking his throat.

He slapped Mo Chen’s hand away.

He clutched the blood-stained petal tightly.

He said nothing.

Limping...

...and covered in foul-smelling filth...

...he left the Golden Lotus Pool alone, under the pitying gazes of the small town’s residents on the shore.

Behind him...

...in stark contrast...

...was Mo Chen, the center of everyone’s attention, joking and bickering with the big shots of the town.

That day...

...Wuchen truly and completely understood what his master had said—

’The weak have only tragedy in their lives, without a shred of dignity to speak of.’

...just how cruel and real it was.

It was also on that day...

...that he crushed the last of his laughable, pathetic self-respect and began his unscrupulous climb to the top.

All for the day...

...when he could stomp that little bastard from Stinging Dragon Lane under his foot, look down on him, and ask:

"Are you okay?"

"Tsk~"

As Wuchen’s emotions churned, a mocking voice sounded from within his Dantian:

"Give it a rest. He’s the champion of the Twenty-four Heavens, a top-tier Emperor’s Son Level figure. Right now, all you can do is run for your life."

Wuchen’s expression was indifferent, as if he were used to it. He sent his consciousness into his Dantian and saw a black, broken blade with only a single section of its body remaining.

The broken blade was lightless, like an abyss.

It was plain and unadorned.

Yet it radiated a soul-stealing, utterly ominous aura of the Netherworld Purgatory, like a Sword of Death forged in Eternal Hell.

Atop the broken blade...

...sat a nonchalant creature with its legs crossed. Its glossy black fur shone, and it looked like a cross between a wolf and a dog.

"The Twenty-four Heavens, huh?"

Wuchen’s consciousness bypassed the large wolf-dog and looked at the three Emperor Grade Dharma Aspects and the layers of celestial domains within his Dantian.

His Dharma Aspects were strange.

Although his Main Path was the Horizontal Refining Fist Dao, all three of his aspects were at the twentieth step of the Emperor Grade.

But they were cut off after the twentieth step.

He had neither the complete Twenty-four Heavens nor the Thirty-Three Heavens Illusion.

Furthermore...

...within the foundational layers of his celestial domains, faint wisps of Saint Grade purple qi remained, as if they had been upgraded from Saint Grade—an incredible feat.

"Stupid dog, how many more Dao Stones do I need to increase my potential to that of a Thirty-Third Layer Daoist Child?"

Wuchen retracted his gaze.

He asked the large, black-furred wolf-dog on the broken blade unceremoniously.

"You brat, show some respect to this emperor!" The large, black-furred wolf-dog’s fur stood on end, and it jumped up in anger when it heard Wuchen call it a stupid dog again.

"Hah, don’t put on airs. You’re just the Artifact Spirit of a broken blade."

Wuchen knew the wolf-dog was all bark and no bite, so he showed it no respect and snorted coldly.

"You screwed me over last time. I almost died in that deathtrap. I haven’t settled that score with you yet."

"Ahem, that was an accident! Who could’ve known a Fierce God would appear in that treasure land?"

The black-furred wolf-dog cleared its throat and said seriously:

"Above the Twenty-four Heavens is Daoist Level potential. If you want to defy the heavens and change your fate, the number of Dao Stones required for each step will double from the previous one.

You used twenty Dao Stones to reach the twentieth step.

You can do the math yourself to figure out how many you’ll need."