Imperial Scepter

Ping'an County is empty.

The headless man drove the flock of sheep, his steps like lotus blossoms, getting closer and closer to Gaojia Village.

He looked down over the entire Ping'an County. Although he had no head, it was as if an invisible gaze was carefully searching for something.

That gaze was deep and ancient, as if it could penetrate the skin, see through the souls of all beings, and understand the joys and sorrows deep within people's hearts.

Sudden.

The headless man's steps suddenly stopped.

He raised his hand and waved his sleeve.

An ancient stone, about the size of a walnut, floats in the palm of your hand. Its surface is covered with patterns like runes of the Great Dao, shimmering with mysterious light and causing the heavens and earth to hum.

A light flick of the fingertip!

The stone transformed into an invisible stream of light, tearing through the void barrier and shooting straight towards the high purity in the forest.

No one could detect it!

The stream of light instantly penetrated into the highly pure dantian!

Gao Chun felt as if a thunderbolt had exploded inside his body.

"ah--!"

A heart-wrenching scream pierced through the throat, causing the fallen leaves in the forest to flutter and scatter.

He instinctively sat cross-legged, his pupils suddenly shrinking to pinpoints, his muscles tensing like cast iron, and every inch of his skin twitching violently.

It felt as if his meridians were being brutally pierced by a red-hot iron bar, and the excruciating pain of being torn apart inch by inch spread along his nerves, causing him to clench his teeth and bleed from the corner of his mouth.

The bones emitted a series of cracking sounds, as if they were about to break apart inch by inch at any moment.

His skin suddenly turned bright red like a branding iron, and scalding sweat poured down, evaporating into white mist on the ground.

The hellish torment strangely kept him conscious to the extreme.

Every bit of pain is clearly imprinted in my mind.

Each tearing sensation in his meridians felt terrifyingly real, as if it were about to crush his soul completely.

I don't know how much time passed.

Perhaps it's the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Perhaps half an hour.

The excruciating pain within Gao Chun's body suddenly stopped.

Immediately afterwards, an unimaginably powerful mysterious force suddenly erupted from the depths of his dantian!

The torn meridians were forcibly widened, repaired, and reinforced by this force, becoming as tough as the black iron of the heavens.

The fragile bones were repeatedly tempered and polished under the impact of the force, as if they were forged from diamond, and every inch of them exuded a heavy aura.

Within the dried flesh and blood, a vast power surged forth, like a dormant volcano awakening, carrying a world-destroying force.

Deep within his dantian, a seed the size of a grain of rice quietly began to grow.

Five dazzling rays of light—red, blue, yellow, green, and purple—surrounded the seed.

Sometimes it is as gentle and warm as a precious jade, and sometimes it bursts forth like a splendid cloud, illuminating the entire dantian with unparalleled clarity.

The seeds are growing at a rate visible to the naked eye.

In the blink of an eye.

It grew to the size of a walnut, hovering in the center of the dantian, emanating a powerful yet obscure aura.

This aura was released.

The primordial energy between heaven and earth seemed to have been summoned by some mysterious force.

Like a surging tide, it rushed wildly into Gao Chun's body, and then flowed continuously into the five-colored Dao seed along the resilient meridians.

A visible vortex of profound energy formed in the forest, with Gao Chun sitting cross-legged at its center.

The leaves rustled, and the grass and trees trembled slightly, as if paying homage to this unprecedented seed of Tao.

At this moment, Gao Chun's pain had completely subsided.

Instead, it brings an ultimate sense of comfort, like rain after a long drought.

Every pore on his body opened up, greedily absorbing the profound energy between heaven and earth.

He could clearly feel that with each absorption of profound energy, the light of the Dao Seed shone brighter.

His physical body, soul, and meridians were all rapidly strengthening under the nourishment of the Dao Seed.

......

In the dense forest not far away.

Gao Changhe hid behind a tree, his eyes fixed on Gao Chun, who was sitting cross-legged in the woods.

Half an hour ago, he quietly arrived here and set up a protective formation to isolate this area from the outside world.

He knew better than anyone that his son had a special constitution and extraordinary bloodline, and the process of his birth of the Dao seed was no small matter. He absolutely could not allow others to pry into it, lest it increase the variables.

When Gao Changhe saw Gao Chun convulsing and bulging veins from the excruciating pain, he clenched his fists tightly in his sleeves, his knuckles turning white and almost breaking.

He desperately wanted to rush forward and take on this heart-wrenching pain for his son.

But he knew even better that no one else could take the place of the seed of the Dao in the process of its birth.

He could only suppress his worries and watch helplessly as his son struggled and transformed in pain.

Until the profound energy between heaven and earth suddenly boiled, surging wildly towards the high-purity dantian like weary birds returning to their nests.

He was so excited that his whole body trembled uncontrollably.

High purity, finally the Dao seed has been condensed!

But this extreme joy was barely on his face before he forcibly suppressed it.

In an instant, he regained his calm and collected demeanor, all the turmoil in his eyes vanishing.

He couldn't lose his composure in front of his son, and he certainly couldn't ruin his image as a mysterious and unfathomable father!

"call--"

Gao Chun suddenly opened his eyes.

Two beams of five-colored light shot out from the bottom of his eyes.

He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, which contained faint black impurities.

Those were the chronic illnesses and waste that had accumulated in his body over the years, and now they were all expelled from his body.

At this moment, he has been completely transformed.

His skin had a healthy bronze hue, with a subtle, flowing glow.

His eyes were sharp as a hawk's, adding a touch of shrewdness beyond his years.

He spotted the figure behind the tree immediately.

Years of pent-up resentment, unwillingness, ecstasy, and relief instantly coalesced into a torrent that overwhelmed all reason.

He suddenly stood up and strode towards Gao Changhe, his footsteps crunching through the fallen leaves.

His chest heaved violently, and scalding tears welled up uncontrollably, blurring his vision, but they could not hide the transformed sharpness in his eyes.

"Dad!"

His voice was choked with emotion, yet it contained immense power.

"Our son has finally given birth to the seed of enlightenment! You no longer need to worry about me!"

He had kept these words to himself for many years.

In recent years, I have been constantly ridiculed with terms like "useless" and "counterfeit," and countless strange looks have pierced me like needles.

Now, the seed of the Dao has been born.

Finally, I can stand tall and tell everyone: I am Gao Chun, not a loser! Not a counterfeit!

As Gao Changhe watched his son run towards him, he could no longer contain his joy, and his fingertips went slightly numb.

Despite suppressing his surging emotions, he casually reached out and gently patted Gao Chun's shoulder.

"Okay, very good."

Just two words, yet they carried a heavy weight, containing all his satisfaction, pride, and excitement.

Gao Changhe's gaze was intense, instantly locking onto the five-colored light in Gao Chun's eyes. He deliberately kept his voice steady and asked, "What color Dao Seed did you give birth to?"

"Five colors".

Gao Chun grinned, his smile brimming with childlike pride.

"What?!"

Gao Changhe suddenly fell silent, his composure crumbling instantly, replaced by utter shock and disbelief. His voice cracked: "Five colors? You...you're not mistaken, are you?"

Before he could finish speaking, he didn't even wait for Gao Chun's response.

With a flick of his wrist, a crystal-clear measuring stone appeared in his palm, and almost trembling, he pressed it hard against Gao Chun's dantian!

boom!

In an instant, dazzling light shot into the sky from the measuring stone!

Five colors—red, blue, yellow, green, and purple—light up simultaneously, like five pillars of light piercing through heaven and earth, intertwining and flowing endlessly on the measuring stone.

The light was so intense that it seemed to have the potential to break through the formation and tear apart the sky!

Gao Changhe felt a sudden boom in his mind, his pupils shrank to pinpoints, his mouth opened slightly, his eyes filled with shock, and his whole body trembled!

Five-Colored Dao Seeds!

This is an unprecedented miracle on the entire cultivation planet!

He snapped back to his senses and hurriedly composed himself.

Turning to look at Gao Chun, he saw that the kid was still completely oblivious and couldn't help but laugh.

That rascal, he knows nothing, he's just lucky!

We should explain the wonders of the Five-Colored Dao Seeds to him.

Gao Changhe composed himself, took a deep breath, and looked at Gao Chun with a solemn expression.

"Since ancient times, Dao seeds have been divided into single-color, dual-color, tri-color, and quad-color varieties. As for five-color varieties... they have never appeared on our cultivation planet!"

He deliberately slowed his speech, his voice deep and powerful, each word like a thunderclap: "The more colors of the Dao Seed, the better the aptitude, the faster the cultivation speed, and the more types of techniques one can cultivate!"

Seeing Gao Chun listening attentively, his expectations grew even stronger!

He continued in a deep voice, "Spells are divided into five categories—attack, defense, control, assassination, and support!"

"Red Dao Seeds can only cultivate offensive spells and become warriors."

Yellow-type cultivators can only practice defensive spells and become tanks.

Blue Dao Seeds can only cultivate control spells and become mages;

Green Dao Seeds can only cultivate auxiliary spells and become auxiliary;

The purple Dao Seed can only cultivate assassin techniques and become an assassin!

A dual-colored Dao seed can cultivate two types of Dao, a tri-colored seed can cultivate three types of Dao, and so on!

Gao Changhe's voice trembled uncontrollably, each word piercing Gao Chun's heart.

"Your five-colored Dao Seed means you can cultivate five types of techniques simultaneously!"

"You will become a well-rounded, all-around Xuan master with no weaknesses; your future combat power will be limitless!"

boom!

These words struck Gao Chun like a thunderbolt!

His blood boiled instantly, and he clenched his fists in excitement!

They can sweep away thousands of troops with offensive spells, be indestructible with defensive spells, achieve unexpected victories with control spells, survive desperate situations with assassin spells, and benefit others with support spells!

Such all-around strength even startled him!

Gao Chun suddenly looked up, his eyes blazing with fury!

This turbulent cultivation world is destined to be swept by a colossal wave that will engulf the heavens because of him!