The Legend of the Great Desolation: I Am the Fortress

Chapter 386 The Third Wonderful Use of the Enlightenment Pearl
"This Dao Lord is too monstrous and too insane."

A red-haired man suddenly appeared in a pavilion on the first floor of the Tower of Inquiry.

The red-haired man, dressed in a dark blue robe, exuded a chilling aura as he gazed at the black-robed youth sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed inside the tower.
"He's been immersed in the trials left by his master for nearly two hundred thousand years, yet he still actively draws in illusions and deliberately immerses himself in them. If this Tower of Inquiry hadn't been created by his master at great cost before his death, I'm afraid..."

The red-haired man shook his head slightly, but there was a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

"His mental strength is immense, comparable to some Eternal Emperors, and his Dao Heart is also formidable..."

"Although he is no longer at the World Realm, the fact that the Dao Lord of Life and Death has reached this level is still an extremely extraordinary and monstrous talent in this universe. The treasures left by the master are not a waste even if they are bestowed upon such a monstrous talent."

His master was a powerful figure who ruled over a region, and every treasure he left behind was extremely precious.

Now, with each piece taken out, there is one less available, so every single one must be treated with utmost care.

"However, if you want to obtain the master's treasure, you must at least reach the top of the tower and pass the 108 illusionary trials left by the master."

"But Daojun has now completely passed through the Seven Emotions and Six Desires Illusion Array, and has even passed three of the remaining four trials. The final hurdle is probably only a matter of time."

Before his death, his master, the Cloud Sovereign, forged this Tower of Inquiry, which contained a total of 108 illusionary arrays.

The first 104 levels of the illusion array are generally related to the seven emotions and six desires of cultivators.

This creates cycle after cycle, and with each cycle, the power of the illusion increases by a level.

After the 104th level, each illusion becomes an incredibly real 'world', filled with the seven emotions and six desires, and the cycle of reincarnation, just like a cultivator who has emerged from the mortal realm will experience the tribulations of inner demons.

The illusions left behind by the Cloud Sovereign in the last four levels were a headache even for Sovereigns of the same level.

"Huh? This is it?"

Suddenly, the red-haired man revealed a look of curiosity, "This special technique that combines mental power, divine power, and magical power is becoming increasingly powerful. The way this technique operates... and the spacetime principles it contains..."

The red-haired man was also quite surprised. He had only heard the Cloud Sovereign mention this method once before, and he had also seen the black-robed Daoist Lord use it a few times in the past two hundred thousand years.

But only now has the terrifying power displayed by this secret technique made the red-haired man take it seriously.

……

Two hundred thousand years may not be much for an ordinary cultivator.

It happened in the blink of an eye.

But for Lei Zhan himself, it has been an incredibly long time.

In this period of time, enough things have changed.

"call."

Lei Zhan sat cross-legged inside the Tower of Inquiry, slowly exhaling a breath of stale air, and then quietly opened his eyes.

The illusion that made the surroundings seem like the real world had completely shattered, revealing the vast and empty halls around them.

On the walls at the edge of the hall, one could still see faint circles of light in the void, which were almost completely hidden by the layers of arrays and restrictions on the tower walls.

"The fourth move of the Origin Heart Scripture is even more powerful than before. According to the standards of Heart Sword Technique, it is already at the second stage. It took me nearly 60,000 years to create it completely."

Lei Zhan revealed a faint smile, and was quite satisfied.

The enhancement of his Dao heart greatly helped him, leading to his rapid improvement in the "Origin Heart Scripture".

Having endured the trials of illusions time and again, Lei Zhan also created the second and third forms of this method.

In Lei Zhan's vision, the "Origin Heart Scripture" he created, once mastered, would be a peerless technique comparable to that of the Heart Sword Emperor.

However, compared to the Heart Sword Technique, Lei Zhan directly omits the first seven moves.

The first move of the Origin Heart Manual, "Heart of Time and Space," is comparable to the eighth move of the Heart Sword Technique.

The second move, "The Heart of Seeking the Way," is comparable to the ninth move of the Heart Sword Technique.

The third move, "Seven Emotions and Six Desires," is comparable to the tenth move of the Heart Sword Technique.

The fourth move he has now comprehended, 'Master of the Heart', surpasses the power of the tenth move of the Heart Sword Technique and has reached a new level!
“Like the Heart Sword Technique created by the Heart Sword Emperor, the eighth to tenth forms are the first stage! Most people with talent in the Heart Sword Technique are at this level, and it is very difficult to learn higher levels.” Lei Zhan thought to himself.

"The eleventh and twelfth forms are the second stage. It is said that practitioners at this stage will experience a surge in strength due to the Heart Sword Technique, but in any era, only a handful of people can master them..."

The Heart Sword Technique was divided into five stages by the Heart Sword Emperor.

The thirteenth and fourteenth forms are the third stage.

Even after countless years, according to records, only one great power has reached this level since the Heart Sword Emperor.

As for the name of that powerful being, that remains a complete mystery!
According to records, reaching this level will result in a fundamental leap in strength. The increase in strength from the Heart Sword Technique is even more astonishing than when Lei Zhan uses the 'Cosmic Treasure' Frost Moon!

And the fifteenth move! That is the final stage! Countless years have passed, and only the Heart Sword Emperor has comprehended it! With a single move, a sword technique that is clearly relatively weak, it is incredibly close to the Dominator's level...

Lei Zhan recalled some records about the Heart Sword Technique in Mangya, his eyes shining brightly.

The seven emotions and six desires are the best way to temper one's Dao heart. After experiencing the trials of the seven emotions and six desires time and time again, one's Dao heart grows stronger and stronger.

Although a significant increase in strength cannot be seen in the short term, it will undoubtedly be extremely beneficial to future cultivation.

"What a pity," Lei Zhan suddenly sighed.

"The Enlightenment Pearl has accumulated energy over 100,000 years, and when it is used all at once, its effect on cultivation is so great."

"The two deductions were: one allowed me to directly deduce the cycle of time and space from nothing to the third level, and the other allowed me to create the fourth form of the Origin Heart Classic."

"If we want to continue the deduction, and with the previous accumulation, it will probably take more than 60,000 years before we can conduct the next deduction."

Time flies when you're immersed in the trials left by the Cloud Lord.

Two hundred thousand years have also allowed Lei Zhan to rediscover new and wonderful uses for the Enlightenment Pearl.

That is 'deduction'!
The deduction from nothing to something, whether it is the deduction of 'Tao' or the deduction of methods and secret techniques!
Initially, the Enlightenment Pearl accumulates energy every five years, which helps Lei Zhan achieve a sudden enlightenment.

Every thousand years can help to generate a profound enlightenment or to deduce the secret techniques of creation.

But all of this requires building up another foundation.

If one hasn't accumulated enough knowledge in a particular area, even if one has an epiphany, it's difficult to achieve significant improvement.

After all, enlightenment is based on accumulated knowledge and experience, and one is still some distance from a breakthrough. Once one has an enlightenment and fully understands it, one can directly break through.

But the prediction that occurs once every 100,000 years is even more incredible.

Lei Zhan had only recently broken through to the second-step Dao Lord level, and had absolutely no clue how to break through to the third-step Dao Lord level. For example, the foundation of the ultimate Dao of Time and Space is the Five Forms of Time and Space.

Each major breakthrough requires the Five Elements of Time and Space to reach a new level and perfectly merge with each other to form an even more powerful ultimate path before entering the next level.

However, the first deduction of the Enlightenment Pearl directly allowed Lei Zhan to completely deduce the 'time-space cycle' in the ultimate time-space path to the third level.

It's not a breakthrough, but a deduction from nothing to something!
It should be understood that the ultimate path of the like-minded is far too vast. Yet it is the most heaven-defying and powerful path in the entire chaotic universe.

It encompasses all of space and time; it is the end of all space and time.

However, the Enlightenment Pearl, having accumulated energy over 100,000 years, can push one of its paths to a new level.

This kind of deduction is different from the one that occurred when he was weak and still in the Three Realms, and suddenly attained enlightenment with the help of the Enlightenment Pearl.

Before the Dao Lord of Life and Death, the paths cultivated by cultivators were all traceable, and they were able to comprehend the Heavenly Dao of the Chaotic World and the origin of the Chaotic Universe. They simply followed the scripture.

To become a Dao Lord of Life and Death is equivalent to forging a path from nothing to something.

Just like practicing calligraphy, when one seeks enlightenment before the Lord of Life and Death, one uses a transparent white sheet of paper to trace the characters.

Now, however, it is about writing it yourself, and even creating a font that has never been seen before from scratch.

The difficulty involved is naturally incomparable to that of the past.

“Before entering the Tower of Inquiry, the golden characters exposed on the bluestone left a message: the closer you get to the top of the tower, the more benefits you will receive,” Lei Zhan muttered to himself.

"The final four levels of the Tower of Inquiry each present a significant increase in difficulty, and the final level is likely to be extremely terrifying."

Lei Zhan stood up, feeling quite at ease.

"Now that I have comprehended the fourth form of the Origin Heart Scripture, according to the Heart Sword Emperor's classification of the Dao Heart, it should be at the second level. I'm afraid I still have a long way to go to achieve the perfection of the Dao Heart."

"Hoo." Lei Zhan stepped forward, heading towards the vortex radiating golden light in the distance.

"The final test will be to see what treasures the Cloud Sovereign has left for me."

……

Just as Lei Zhan was about to complete the test left by the Cloud Lord.

Within the inner realm, a turbulent wave surged through the chaotic void.

A young man in white sat quietly on a large rock, with some food and drink floating in front of him.

"Nearly two hundred thousand years have passed, and the master still hasn't emerged from the test of the powerful?" The white-robed youth devoured the fragrant chunks of meat, his gaze occasionally sweeping over the golden figure sitting cross-legged in the distance.

The white-robed youth had a youthful face, but the aura emanating from him was quite astonishing; he was clearly a Dao Lord of Life and Death.

"Now, I, Yifeng, have benefited from the test of that array master and have broken through to the first step of Dao Lord. Even Wuming, who entered the inner domain later, is about to break through..."

Daoist Yifeng shook his head and sighed.

If he hadn't been able to sense that his master was still in this land of origin, still undergoing the trials left behind by this mysterious Heart Power Emperor, he probably would have already left the inner domain.

"boom!"

Just then, a surging aura suddenly soared into the sky. This aura was powerful and vast, high above, and completely different from the World Realm level.

“The aura of a Dao Lord.” Dao Lord Yifeng suddenly smiled. “With such a terrifying fluctuation descending, Wuming’s comprehension of the Dao over the past two hundred thousand years must be extraordinary. It’s not in vain that I’ve spent so much effort protecting him.”

Breaking through from the World Realm to the Dao Lord, the divine body is restructured, and the aura naturally becomes unrestrained and bursts forth freely.

However, Dao Lord Yifeng was a heaven-defying Dao Lord who broke through by combining multiple strongest paths. He was most skilled in the Dao of Arrays and had long ago set up restrictions around him to block the transmission of the Dao Lord's aura.

"Rumble~~~~"

A dense vortex of chaotic power began to appear in the surrounding void, and a large amount of chaotic power gathered, forming a vortex with Yifeng Daojun at the center.

A large amount of chaotic power was continuously transmitted and directly flowed into Daoist Yifeng's cave treasure, where it was eventually absorbed.

Surrounded by a massive vortex formed by terrifying chaotic power, Daoist Yifeng lost his appetite and with a wave of his hand, put away the food and drink in front of him.

"If our master sees us after breaking through to the next level, he'll probably be quite shocked!"

As Daoist Yifeng gazed at the figure in the distance, he could almost see the black-robed youth sitting cross-legged atop the tower.

……

In the world of illusion.

"Fake, it's all fake!"

“I had already tried my best to immerse myself in this illusionary world, and even actively tried to activate the power of the illusion.”

Lei Zhan, seated high on the imperial throne, looked down at the countless people kneeling before him. He reigned supreme, and countless people submitted to him.

And on the imperial throne, nestled beside him, were several stunningly beautiful women…

Lei Zhan's gaze slowly swept over the area, but he silently closed his eyes.

"Unfortunately, the improvement of my Dao heart still allows me to sense... that all of this is an illusion."

"Illusion, everything is ultimately just illusion."

Boom~~~
Instantly, the world changed color.

In an instant, the world around them shattered completely.

All that Lei Zhan had experienced vanished in an instant.

Lei Zhan understood this very well.

His Dao heart has made a new breakthrough. The illusion that was originally very real to him and very difficult to resist is now easily resisted.

If his Dao heart is still in the first stage, this final illusion might actually cause him to completely fall into depravity.

"This test left by the Cloud Sovereign is no longer of any use to me."

Lei Zhan shook his head slightly, and everything before him returned to reality.

……

(End of this chapter)