I died young at the start, but I'm reincarnated with unlimited skill points!

The inner demon raised a finger.

"First question: What grade of spiritual root did you originally possess?"

Li Han's expression remained unchanged.

"Eighth rank."

"Eighth-grade spiritual root".

The little man repeated it, his tone carrying an extremely sarcastic and playful tone.

"So, my second question is, what grade of spiritual root do you currently possess?"

"First-class."

"A first-grade spiritual root."

The little man's smile deepened.

"From rank eight to rank one, that's a leap of seven major ranks, that's really great."

"So, here comes the third question."

The inner demon suddenly moved closer to Li Han, its voice becoming extremely shrill.

"From trash at the bottom of the cultivation world to the number one genius in the Southern Wilderness, is all of this... truly something you earned yourself?!"

silence.

In the white void, only the voice of that tiny figure echoed.

Li Han did not answer immediately.

Answer me!

The little man suddenly stood up.

"Who cleansed your marrow and bones, tempering your eighth-grade useless spiritual root step by step to the first grade?"

"Was that you?"

"No."

The little man's voice was as sharp as a knife.

"It's your teacher."

"It's that ancient remnant soul hidden in the ancient ring."

"He used his own primordial power to cleanse your meridians again and again."

"He taught you an ancient secret technique, showing you how to forcibly transform your spiritual root using external force."

"He was the one who guided you to find those rare and precious materials for refining spiritual roots."

"Without him, your spiritual root will forever remain at the eighth grade."

"You'll always be just a useless rogue cultivator from that remote little country in the far south, someone who might not even be able to break through to the Qi Refining stage!"

Li Han's lips were pressed into a thin line.

His fingers trembled slightly.

Because every word spoken by the inner demon is the truth!

……

Let's continue.

The tiny figure paced in the void, its voice unhurried and calm, as if interrogating a criminal.

"The Great Wilderness Secret Realm".

"How did you escape from being surrounded and attacked by six Foundation Establishment cultivators?"

"Is it your own skill?"

Li Han remained silent.

"It was your teacher who, in a moment of crisis, burned his own essence to unleash the full power of the peak Foundation Establishment stage for you."

"Altar Heritage".

"How did you manage to evade the prodigies' detection, infiltrate the depths of the main hall, and find the life-saving gate of the formation?"

"Did you figure that out yourself?"

Still, silence.

"It was your teacher who, relying on ancient memories, guided you step by step to the right spot of each key node in the formation."

"Without his guidance, you wouldn't even be able to get past the first barrier in the main hall."

"You will be torn to pieces like those ordinary rogue cultivators, leaving not even a trace."

The villain's voice grew increasingly shrill and harsh.

"Core Formation".

"How did you form your first-grade golden core?"

"Did you create this using a worthless eighth-grade spiritual root?!"

"No!"

"Your teacher first helped you refine your spiritual root to the first grade, and then personally taught you the Core Formation method within the Nascent Soul inheritance!"

"He has already deduced the entire process of this cultivation technique, from every step of its operation to every crucial point in the condensation of true essence!"

"You just did as instructed!"

The little man stopped and turned around, his dark little eyes fixed on Li Han.

"Your cultivation level was given to you by him."

"Your spiritual root was cultivated by him."

"He helped you inherit your legacy."

"He taught you how to form your golden core."

"You're alive today only because he shielded you from one deadly crisis after another!"

"He was the one who unleashed his full power for you when six people surrounded and killed you in the Great Wilderness Secret Realm."

"You were hunted down by various sects when you were at the Golden Core stage, but it was his Xuan Tian Ling Bao that covered up the secrets of heaven for you."

"even--"

The little man's voice suddenly lowered, becoming so low it sounded like a whisper.

"Even the heavenly tribulation just now."

"The final and most ferocious lightning bolt of the Six-Nine Heavenly Tribulation was also blocked by him by burning his last bit of primal power to protect you."

"Can you handle it yourself?"

"You can't handle it."

"Without him, you would have been struck by lightning and turned to ashes long ago."

In the white void, all was utterly silent.

Li Han stood there without saying a word, his expression completely changed.

His expression was no longer the coldness and disdain he had shown when faced with the tragic deaths of his loved ones and the temptations of lust.

Rather, it's something that surges up from the depths of the soul...

shake.

Because of the previous three challenges, he could respond with "I admit it."

He accepted the death of his loved one.

That was cause and effect, and he was powerless to change it.

He disdained the temptation of lust.

That's a low-level illusion, not worth mentioning.

He overcame the fear of death.

Having escaped death countless times, he had long since become indifferent to life and death.

But this time.

The inner demon is no longer asking what he has lost, nor what he is afraid of.

The inner demon asks: Is he worthy?

He, Li Han, stands at this height today.

A first-grade spiritual root, a first-grade golden core, about to step into the Nascent Soul stage.

How much of all this... is there...?

Did he earn it himself?

……

Aren't you going to answer?

The voice of the tiny man echoed in the void.

"Then I'll answer for you."

The answer is... no.

"Everything you, Li Han, have, comes from that remnant soul teacher from beginning to end."

"You are nothing more than a vessel chosen by him."

"A useless container for an eighth-grade spiritual root."

"He needs a young body to continue his lineage, and you just happened to find that ring."

That's all.

"You think you're the chosen one?"

"You think you're blessed with good fortune?"

The little man let out an extremely sharp sneer.

"Your luck is nothing more than the remnant soul of an ancient monster who has taken a liking to your usable body."

"Anyone who found that ring could have gotten to where you are today."

"It can even go further."

"Because others may not have an eighth-grade spiritual root."

"Others may not need the teacher to expend so much of their energy to refine them."

"Others may be able to withstand the tribulation on their own, without needing the teacher to burn their last bit of life to shield them from the lightning."

"And you, Li Han... you are not only not a genius."

"You are the worst of all the people who could be chosen."

"The most useless one."

Each word was like a merciless nail, precisely driven into the cracks in Li Han's heart.

Li Han's breathing began to quicken.

He wanted to refute it.

He opened his mouth, as if to say something was wrong.

I want to say that I also put in the effort.

I want to say that those life-or-death struggles in desperate situations, didn't I get through them all on my own?

But the words just wouldn't come out.

Because a voice echoed deep within his mind.

Those desperate situations...

If your teacher hadn't intervened at the crucial moment, would you really have survived?

A six-person ambush in the Great Wilderness Secret Realm.

The Golden Core stage cultivators were hunted down by various sects.

In every one of those so-called "escapes from death," wasn't it the teacher who covered for them from behind?

He felt like he was dancing on the edge of a knife.

But actually...

There was always a net beneath the tip of the knife.

That net was his teacher.

"Look at yourself now."

The tiny figure floated up to Li Han, so close it was almost touching his nose.

"You're shaking."

"You didn't tremble when you faced the tragic deaths of your parents."

"You did not tremble when faced with the remains of your beloved."

"You did not tremble when faced with thirty-six bolts of heavenly lightning."

"But now, I've only told you a few truths, and you're already shaking."

Do you know why?

The little man stretched out his finger and gently tapped Li Han's chest.

"Because you know it yourself."

You've always known that.

"You are nothing but a dwarf standing on the shoulders of giants."

"When the giant falls, you are nothing."

"And your giant..."

The little man's voice became extremely cold and eerie.

"When I shielded you from the heavenly lightning, I burned away the last bit of my essence."

"He's about to disappear."

"Or rather, he has vanished."

These words were like a knife, cleaving through Li Han's last line of defense.

"No……"

Li Han finally spoke.

His voice was hoarse, carrying a fear that welled up from the depths of his bones.

This fear is not the fear of death, but the fear of losing what one has to rely on.

The villain's voice coiled around me like a venomous snake.

"You can conquer death."

"You can let go of your loved ones."

"You can ignore beauty."

"But you can't face yourself without a teacher."

"Because without a teacher, you are nothing."

"A piece of trash with an eighth-grade spiritual root, an ant who might not even be able to break through to the Qi Refining stage."

"All your achievements, all your glory, all your legends in this life... are nothing but gifts from others."

"You... are not qualified to stand at this level."

"You don't deserve it at all!"

Li Han's knees began to buckle.

His true essence surged violently within his body, and the shattered fragments of his golden core began to tremble uncontrollably.

The scars on his Dao heart that he had painstakingly repaired over a hundred years were torn open again by his inner demons in the most cruel way.

No.

It's not about reopening old wounds.

The inner demon tore open a deep rift, the one he had never dared to face, hidden beneath all his scars.

Self-doubt.

He never dared to ask himself that question.

He used killing to evade, cultivation to escape, and repeated victories to numb himself.

But deep in his heart, in a corner he himself was unwilling to touch.

A venomous snake was always lurking there.

The name of that venomous snake is—

Self-denial!

P.S.: The ratings are out! Three chapters today! Please encourage me to update more, give me good reviews, and send me gifts, QAQ...