Swallow the starry sky, grind to become the strongest in the universe

Chapter 264 Earth-level mission issued; Chaos Realm transcends the top three opponents.

"Buzz—Ang—"

A series of meandering buzzing sounds echoed from Yu Duan's body.

If an unparalleled expert were to use a special secret method to observe and examine Yu Duan, they would be able to discover that Yu Duan's divine body is undergoing some kind of dramatic change.

The countless microscopic particles that make up the divine body are all undergoing transformation at the same time, opening up chaotic worlds inside. All kinds of primordial mysteries are transformed into fundamental strings, turning countless chaotic spaces into Sumeru worlds.

"The first level of the Chaotic Boundless Body merely evolves into chaotic spaces, and cannot even be called a true 'world'."

"The second Great Thousand Sumeru Form truly opens up a real world for every strand of divine body! With every gesture, the power of the Great Thousand Sumeru is unleashed!"

After this advance payment, Yu Duan's understanding of the Boundless Chaos Body directly jumped from the peak of the first level to the peak of the second level.

In terms of comprehension level, he has already barely reached the top of the Chaos Realm.

Going a step further involves a deeper study of the unified branch of the Boundless Original Great Dao.

The third level of the boundless chaotic body is called the monistic chaotic form.

"Master the first level, create something from nothing, and open up an endless chaotic space with the origin of the ten directions."

"The second level progresses from simple to complex, evolving countless realms of divine power from chaotic space..."

"The third level is to simplify complexity, unify everything, and collapse everything into a singularity!"

Yu Duan's eyes were half-closed, and the vertical pupil between his brows was slightly open, vaguely reflecting the phantom of an immeasurable world.

"The primordial chaos, the return of all things to oneness... It's too profound for me to comprehend in a short time."

Yu Duan had a sudden thought and glanced at the progress bar on the Book of Cause and Effect.

The cost of over 260 years of secluded cultivation may seem much shorter than the previous progress bar, but in reality, it will take even longer to fully recover.

"I already possess the greatest opportunity to cultivate the boundless, fundamental Dao and directly confront the complete Dao. The biggest problem hindering my speed of comprehension is that my mental will is not strong enough!"

Only when one's will transforms to the level of a God-King can one directly confront the fundamental Dao for an extended period of time.

Yu Duan's will has now reached the limit of the Chaos Realm, but he can only maintain his ability to face the Great Dao of Origin for a maximum of a hundred days, or at most two hundred days.

However, if one possesses the will of a god-king, even facing two or three hundred million days, the problem of 'cognitive pollution' will not arise.

"Let me see the treasures and traditions for cultivating willpower."

With a thought, Yu Duan sent a wisp of his will into the guest token.

After becoming a guest elder of the Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom, Yu Duan was able to purchase many more treasures and resources.

Similar to the commonly seen "Beast-Catching Diagram", here is a more effective and complete version of "Three Thousand Void Beast-Catching Diagram".

"Heart Thunder Prison Diagram?"

Yu Duan was eventually drawn to a special treasure called the "Heart Thunder Prison Diagram".

The Heart Thunder Prison is a special area within the 'Heavenly Pillar Realm,' the most precious land on the continent. It contains special 'solidified thunder' materials, which are extremely valuable primordial materials.

There are many treasure lands on the Origin Continent, but the Heavenly Pillar Realm is extremely special as the number one treasure land. It is the most crucial of the many treasure lands left by Yuan, and it is said to have the opportunity to transcend the God King.

However, this precious land is monopolized by two ancient kingdoms, and only the descendants of the two founders can enter it.

Of course, not everything is absolute.

According to some information that Yu Duan knew, Di Yuan had angered the progenitor of the Eastern Extreme Region.

Ultimately, it was the ancestor of the Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom who intervened and granted permission for Empress Fengdu, the most valued descendant of the ancestor of the Eastern Extreme Region, to enter the Heavenly Pillar Realm several times to explore and punish Di Yuan, thus quelling the turmoil.

"So that Heart Thunder Pearl was produced in this Heart Thunder Prison."

Within the Heart Thunder Prison, a large number of strange beasts live. After these beasts perish, they will generate a massive amount of Heart Thunder Pearls, which are completely worthless.

That's why the Heart Thunder Pearl is openly sold in various Flame Wind Guild Halls across the Origin Continent.

This Heart Thunder Prison Diagram was personally drawn by Emperor Ming, one of the emperors of the Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom.

Of course, what is sold publicly are all copies, and are worth around 3 merits.

"Bought it!"

With a thought, Yu Duan contacted Mohe and asked him to spend money to buy a Heart Thunder Prison Map, specifying the recipient as Hengjie Dasheng.

During these past few decades, Yu Duan himself had been in seclusion, and naturally had not reaped any credit.

As for the 100,000 yuan loan limit, Yu Duan had no intention of using it.

Because of the merit-based loans, they cannot refuse some of the tasks assigned by the Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom. Most of the guest retainers of the Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom become its employees for this reason, and have no freedom as proper guest retainers.

On the same day, the Heart Thunder Prison Diagram that Yu Duan had purchased was delivered to the Great Sage's Mansion in the Eternal Realm.

Deep within the mansion, in a secluded, quiet room.

"Boom!"

As Yu Duan unfurled the scroll, a deafening thunderclap echoed in his heart.

At this moment, Yu Duan's will seemed to enter a special place, where endless world-destroying thunder roared, turning the vast territory into scorched earth.

Those thunderbolts contained terrifying power, specifically designed to erode the will and spirit.

Even though it was just a replica, it still caused Yu Duan's will to experience unprecedented pain.

"It's not just pain, there's also...despair, a despair like facing divine retribution!"

What is divine retribution? It is when the supreme rules and the source world want to completely annihilate a person.

Even emperors, true ultimate realm beings, and even god emperors, seem like ants before this terrifying power of thunder.

Yu Duan prides himself on his strong will and unwavering composure.

Faced with such endless despair, even a constant state of mind begins to falter.

At this moment, Yu Duan felt as if he had been struck by endless tribulation lightning, and the intense pain that the Chaos Ruler could not bear swept over his soul.

"puff!"

After observing and comprehending the Heart Thunder Prison Diagram for less than half a minute, Yu Duan coughed up blood, his terrifying physical body cracked, his soul light dimmed to the extreme, and his mind and consciousness became clouded.

"This effect is countless times stronger than the mind-refining method in 'Endless Mind'."

Yu Duan's face was pale, ashen, and he forced himself to close his eyes to rest his mind, suppressing the exhaustion that came from his willpower.

There are no effective ways to recover from damage to the mind and will; only slow and gradual recuperation is possible.

After a period of silence of about a hundred days, Yu Duan finally recovered and began to study the Heart Thunder Prison Diagram once again.

Time slipped away quietly during the period of seclusion.

……

In the blink of an eye, several centuries have passed.

Thirty epochs have passed since Yu Duan transcended the cycle of reincarnation and returned to the Origin Continent.

On this day, Yu Duan, who was in seclusion, suddenly received a report from Duan Gan Hongcheng that Emperor Xuanming had come to visit.

Yu Duan had a sudden thought: "It's probably a prefecture-level task that has been issued."

A moment later, in the main hall of the mansion, Yu Duan met Di Xuanming.

"Brother Hengjie?"

When Di Xuanming saw Yu Duan's slightly pale face, he had a bad feeling: "You... did something go wrong in your cultivation?" Yu Duan chuckled: "Brother Xuanming, there's no need to worry. It's just that I pushed my mental will a little too far. It's not a serious injury."

After explaining, Yu Duan immediately asked, "Brother Xuanming, did you come here because of the issuance of a regional-level mission?"

Di Xuanming breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Not bad."

"The prefecture-level mission is divided into two parts. The first mission needs to be completed by myself and cannot be accomplished with the help of outsiders."

"That's not a big problem. Among the six first-class marquises of my Di Xuan lineage, although I am the youngest, my strength is second only to that Di Xuan Venerable."

"The second task will require the guest advisors to compete for it."

"The other five first-class marquises all have Chaos Realm Transcendent Guest Elders, or are able to invite Chaos Realm Transcendent Elders to assist them..."

Di Xuanming has been in the Chaos Realm for over two hundred years. His comprehension is barely close to the top of the Chaos Realm, but thanks to his Infinite Divine Body and many special methods, his actual combat strength far exceeds that of most peak Chaos Realm cultivators.

"Brother Xuanming, do you know the details of this second mission?"

Faced with Duan's question, Di Xuanming shook his head helplessly and said, "No one knows before the mission is issued."

"However, I do have some information about the Chaos Realm Transcendent beings that the other five First-Class Marquises can summon."

Of the five first-class marquises, three are guest ministers who have transcended the Chaos Realm.

The remaining two, one of whom married the daughter of a Chaos Realm Transcendence.

The last Emperor Xuanzun's mother was a Chaos Realm Transcendent, and an extremely ancient one at that.

Di Xuanming said solemnly, "Brother Hengjie, this Di Xuanzun's mother, Yun Qiong, is the personal disciple of the current ruling emperor, Di Fu. She has truly mastered the unique skill created by Di Fu, and has refined her physical body to an extremely terrifying level through the art of formations."

"My father once said that this Great Sage Yunqiong is among the top three of the 71 Chaos Realm Transcendent beings on the Origin Continent!"

The current ruling emperor, the emperor's husband!
This is a legendary figure. Difu once cultivated the Hunyuan Bloodline and used the power of the Hunyuan Bloodline to transform his life realm and achieve the ultimate life form.

However, later, this emperor realized that the Hunyuan bloodline route was not the right path, and then he made an exceptionally decisive decision to give up his cultivation in this life and choose to reincarnate and start over.

After reincarnation, the Emperor used array formations to refine his body, without relying on any resources, including the Hunyuan materials that had no side effects, and regained his position as Emperor.

Although he had not truly mastered the ultimate realm of the God King, Di Fu was far superior to the other emperors in that he did not rely on external forces, ranking third among the thirteen emperors, only behind Di Qing and Di Ming.

Di Xuanming recounted the detailed information about the five Chaos Realm Transcendence cultivators one by one.

"According to what Brother Xuanming said, this Great Sage Yunqiong has been suffering in the Chaos Realm, trying to use a lower realm to study the insights of a higher realm, and to hone her own comprehension, so as to become the second Emperor Consort in the future?"

Yu Duan was somewhat surprised; this path was not so easy to take.

Di Xuanming nodded earnestly and said, "Great Sage Yun Qiong's strength is extraordinary, Brother Hengjie, there is no need to compete with her."

"Besides, I am no match for Emperor Xuanzun. He should still be ranked first this time, and I can only be ranked second."

"However, as long as Brother Hengjie can suppress the two Chaos Realm Transcendents, he can rank fourth..."

"Then my final overall ranking must be at least third, so that I have the right to choose the treasures."

"Of course, if Brother Hengjie can help me win second place, then I will definitely reward Brother Hengjie handsomely, with a reward of no less than ten million!"

With countless merits, this was practically all the wealth that Di Xuanming could offer in a short period of time.

Upon hearing this, Yu Duan immediately replied, "Brother Xuanming, rest assured, I will do my utmost to help you achieve an even higher ranking."

……

Over the next few days, Yu Duan did not deliberately practice anything, but instead focused on self-reflection and sorting out his insights.

"The original strategy for finding the Dao has finally been perfected..."

Inside the cave, Yu Duan slowly opened his eyes, endless sword light weaving around him.

There are swords of destruction, swords of life, swords of thunder, swords of the world... and even swords of will.

In the end, all the sword lights converged into one, transforming into a single, astonishing sword light.

Ever since Yu Duan obtained the sword embryo from the Jin Dynasty, it has been gathering dust, mainly because he has never used it.

Now that his main focus is on the Boundless Origin Great Dao, and his main offensive technique is the "Simplified and Complex Nine Swords", he naturally needs to create the strongest sword move that suits him.

Therefore, Yu Duan incorporated his own understanding of the Boundless Great Dao and his comprehension of the Nine Swords of Simplicity and Complexity into the "Seeking the Dao Strategy" he created.

The three techniques that once sought the Dao—eternity, moment, and endlessness—were reorganized and unified by Yu Duan, transforming them into a single ultimate skill.

"The first level of the secret runes of the Primordial Embryo is an understanding of the top level of the Chaos Realm... It can be considered unique."

Yu Duan took out the sword embryo and integrated it into his own secret technique.

A moment later, the sword embryo completely transformed into a divine weapon of the Chaos level.

"Let's call it... Sword of Time."

Yu Duan was too lazy to come up with a name, so he just used the name "Sword of Time".

After perfecting the first form of the Seeking the Path Strategy, Yu Duan spent the next few days sitting cross-legged in meditation, emptying his mind and adjusting his state.

Four days later, Yu Duan saw Di Xuanming again.

"Brother Xuanming, what's going on...?"

Yu Duan looked at Di Xuanming, whose face was bruised and swollen, with slight surprise.

Di Xuanming grinned and said, "That bastard Di Xuanzun went too far, but he didn't suffer much either. He got a score of 96 on this mission, while I got 92. The difference between us isn't that big."

After explaining the cause of his injury, Di Xuanming solemnly said, "Brother Hengjie, the details of the second mission have been sent out."

"Within the territory of my Yanfeng Ancient Kingdom, there are many treasure lands that nurture rare treasures of heaven and earth. As long as the treasure lands are not damaged, rare treasures can be harvested every so often."

"Among the many rare treasures that are about to be born, there is one called the Three Thousand Star Tree."

“These three thousand star trees produce three thousand star fruits every twelve thousand nine hundred and sixty epochs.”

"There are only a hundred days left until these three thousand star trees mature, so His Majesty the Emperor has made the competition for the star fruits his mission."

"Ranked according to the number of Star Fruits obtained!"

“Brother Hengjie, if that Great Sage Yunqiong obtains the Star Fruit, there is no need to compete with her.”

"As long as I interfere with others, I can help Yunqiong Great Sage obtain more Star Fruits and also ensure my own ranking."

Di Xuanming told Duan about his plan.

Since it's based on rankings anyway, Yunqiong the Great Sage will definitely be at the top.

Since we can't win in this competition, let's lend a hand to Great Sage Yunqiong. Ideally, all three thousand Star Fruits should end up in Great Sage Yunqiong's hands, with everyone else tied for second place.

After Di Xuanming finished giving his instructions, Yu Duan prepared to set off.

Before leaving, Mohe smiled and said, "Master, should I make a move?"

Mohe's aura is becoming increasingly terrifying, and he could transform into a God-King at any moment. Ordinary God-Kings at the first level would only have one option in front of Mohe: to flee.

"No need. I've learned a bit about that Great Sage Yunqiong, and her physical body is indeed terrifyingly extraordinary."

"I'd also like to see whether my physical body is stronger, or that of this Great Sage Yunqiong?"

After Yu Duan finished speaking, he said, "Keep an eye on the house and wait for my return."

"Yes, Master!"

Immediately, Yu Duan set off, heading straight for the location of the three thousand star trees.

(End of this chapter)