Chapter 569: Unknown Domain (I)
Within the endless dark void, black gales howled as terrifying rule energy raged through the emptiness. Lin Zheyu floated motionlessly in the void with his eyes closed. Yet at the center of his brow, a golden eye had opened, radiating brilliant light through the darkness like a gleaming titanium-alloy dog eye.
From Lin Zheyu's perspective, the dark void was filled with countless luminous particles flashing in every imaginable color. They were chaotic and violent, with particles of different hues tangled together in a bewildering, turbulent mess.
"So these are the fundamental particles of energy?" Lin Zheyu murmured as he observed the violent energies surging through the void. "I never expected that after opening the spirit divine repository, I would awaken such a heaven-defying ability and directly perceive the fundamental particles that make up energy itself."
Viewed through the Heavenly Eye, the raging rules and energies were reduced to their most fundamental forms: energy particles and intricate rule patterns. Currently, within this endless void, the Heavenly Dao will of Lin Zheyu's world still held a slight advantage. Energy particles of demonic qi and rule patterns belonging to the demon realm were continuously pouring into this realm without end.
Lin Zheyu studied the energy particles and rule patterns that represented the two opposing worlds. "The contest between the wills of two worlds is truly profound."
The energy lake below, condensed from immense rule Dao resonance and vast quantities of energy, was the direct product of that struggle. With Lin Zheyu's strength, it would normally have been impossible for him to discern even the slightest truth hidden within this chaotic void. Only by relying on the Heavenly Eye at his brow could he see beyond appearances and glimpse the underlying essence. Unfortunately...
The rule energy within the void space was simply too violent and chaotic. The rule patterns and energy particles of the two worlds were hopelessly intertwined, constantly colliding, merging, and annihilating one another. Even after awakening the Heavenly Eye, Lin Zheyu still found it extremely difficult to glean any deeper mysteries from this mass of chaotic rule energy.
After testing some of the Heavenly Eye's abilities, Lin Zheyu finally remembered something important. "Right. Let's see if I can find the mark that old bastard planted on me."
If not for Fan Hongwei, Lin Zheyu would have left long ago to compete for the opportunities surrounding the rule fragments. Then again, blessings and misfortunes often came hand in hand. Had it not been for that old man, he never would have discovered the mysterious formation hidden deep beneath the violet-red lava within the demon realm. The secret treasure concealed there did not interest him much. What truly fascinated him was the technique used to perfectly integrate Immortal Dao formations and restrictions with yao demonic patterns.
As long as he could comprehend even a portion of it... No, he did not dare hope to fully understand it. Even grasping a small fraction of its principles would provide tremendous benefits for his future path in martial cultivation. Casting aside these distracting thoughts, he focused himself once more.
Lin Zheyu closed his eyes again and opened the golden Heavenly Eye at his brow. With a thought, the golden eye sank into his flesh and shifted its perspective inward toward his own body. Instantly, every detail of his physical form came under his perception and control. It was a strangely marvelous sensation, completely different from using spiritual sense for inner vision or observing himself through martial cultivation perception.
As he examined his body through the golden Heavenly Eye, Lin Zheyu felt as though every hidden secret had been laid bare before him. In the past, he had believed his understanding and control of his body had already reached near perfection. When it came to blood qi martial cultivation, even martial artists of the Shackles Realm might not possess a deeper grasp than he did.
After all, he had pushed his blood qi to the very brink of its limits and cultivated the extraordinary golden blood qi. Yet after thoroughly inspecting himself with the golden Heavenly Eye, he realized he had been somewhat like a frog at the bottom of a well, far more self-satisfied than he should have been.
"I didn't expect the golden Heavenly Eye to have benefits like this," Lin Zheyu said with pleasant surprise.
The golden Heavenly Eye seemed capable of seeing through the very essence of cells and blood qi itself, revealing subtle flaws and imperfections that had remained invisible during his normal cultivation.
Blood qi surged through his veins alongside the flow of blood, releasing strands of blood qi energy that continuously nourished and strengthened his already powerful physique. Countless cells, acupoints, meridians, and other structures combined to form his entire body. Viewed through the golden Heavenly Eye, a remarkable feeling arose within Lin Zheyu. It seemed to him that his entire body was like a self-contained world unto itself.
"In both my previous life and this one, there have always been theories that the human body is a miniature world unto itself, even a universe in its own right. I never expected that the perspective of the golden Heavenly Eye would actually provide some confirmation of that hypothesis," Lin Zheyu murmured softly as countless ideas flashed through his mind.
However, such matters were still far too distant for him. Although Lin Zheyu had just advanced to the Divine Repository realm and possessed combat strength comparable to that of a Golden Core realm cultivator, his actual cultivation realm was still equivalent to the Foundation Establishment realm. He would need to break free of at least seven shackles and step into the Nascent Soul realm before he was truly qualified to explore questions of this level.
Lin Zheyu's aura paused slightly as a serious expression appeared on his face. "Hm, this is... The unknown domain Senior Xia Ping spoke of, the one that theoretically exists beyond the Divine Repository realm!"
Using the golden Heavenly Eye, he examined his body inch by inch, searching for flaws and uncovering the deeper mysteries hidden within his physique. When his gaze turned toward the essence origin divine repository, the Heavenly Eye instantly took in the entire void space that lay beyond it.
Looking into the depths of the void space, Lin Zheyu vaguely sensed a vast expanse beyond it. That mysterious void was shrouded in mist. It could not be seen clearly, touched, or grasped. Even with the golden Heavenly Eye, he could only perceive its existence faintly.
Retracting his gaze from the essence origin divine repository, he turned to the essence and qi divine repository and discovered another immense void beyond its own void space. Then he examined the spirit divine repository and found the same phenomenon there as well.
"The unknown domain! Hahaha, I've found it!" Lin Zheyu abruptly opened his eyes, unable to contain his excitement.
Although he still had no idea what existed within that vast hidden void beyond the void spaces, nor how to open a path into it, Lin Zheyu was absolutely confident that he would eventually find a way to enter it.
It seems that reaching the unknown domain of the Divine Repository realm requires more than just an exceptionally solid foundation and the vast void spaces that emerge after opening the repositories. One must also awaken a divine ability similar to the golden Heavenly Eye. Only then is it possible to discover the hidden void that lies beyond those void spaces, Lin Zheyu pondered inwardly.
The difficulty of such a feat was truly staggering. Merely establishing a foundation as profound as Lin Zheyu's was already an almost impossible task. Awakening a divine ability as powerful as the golden Heavenly Eye was even more unimaginable.
After studying it carefully, Lin Zheyu gradually gained a rough understanding of how the golden Heavenly Eye had awakened. The conditions required were extraordinarily harsh. First, there was the immense golden energy within his body, his incredibly powerful physique, and the formidable martial cultivation perception that had evolved from it.
In addition, a trace of the mysterious energy generated by Origin Force had also played a role. It was only through the combined effect of all these factors that Lin Zheyu had managed to awaken such an astonishing ability.
A thought stirred in Lin Zheyu's mind as he muttered softly to himself, "The ancient martial esteemed families might have a slight chance of awakening similar spirit divine abilities."
The ancient martial esteemed families remained shrouded in mystery. The bloodline powers flowing through their veins bore similarities to his golden energy. Perhaps, through different methods, they could achieve something comparable. If only he could gain access to one of their libraries and browse their collections freely. Unfortunately, that was clearly unrealistic.
The members of these ancient, esteemed martial families placed tremendous importance on bloodlines. Even their marriages were generally limited to unions between esteemed families or within their own clans. Ordinary martial artists, no matter how extraordinary their talent, rarely became partners with members of these families. Even marrying into the family was almost unheard of. That alone showed just how insular and exclusive the three great ancient martial esteemed families truly were.
After investigating the unknown domain hidden beyond the divine repositories and realizing that no meaningful insights could be gained in the short term, Lin Zheyu stopped dwelling on it. Casting aside those thoughts, he resumed his search for the tracking mark that might be hidden somewhere within him.
He examined himself inch by inch. Every piece of flesh, every bone, every tendon, every layer of skin, every cell, and every drop of blood was scrutinized in meticulous detail.
Lin Zheyu was deeply shocked upon finding the mark. "Good heavens, it's actually hidden inside my sea of consciousness!"
After opening the spirit divine repository, the vast reserves of golden energy that had accumulated within his sea of consciousness had been completely exhausted, returning it to its former state. His golden soul form turned its gaze toward a location deep within the sea of consciousness. There, a formless cluster of energy lay hidden silently in an extremely remote corner of the sea of consciousness. It was colorless, emitted no energy fluctuations whatsoever, and was utterly undetectable.
Previously, Lin Zheyu had repeatedly scanned and inspected his sea of consciousness using both spiritual sense and martial cultivation perception, yet he had never discovered the slightest anomaly. Even after the sea of consciousness became filled with immense quantities of golden energy, he still found nothing unusual. Only today, after awakening the golden Heavenly Eye, had Lin Zheyu finally uncovered the hidden mark concealed within his sea of consciousness.
"That's right. When I first encountered that old bastard, I hadn't yet discovered how to draw golden energy into my sea of consciousness to serve as a defensive barrier. Back then, I relied on more than forty martial true intents to defend against soul attacks." Lin Zheyu pondered for a moment before a look of realization appeared in his eyes.
He had almost begun doubting the effectiveness of golden energy's protection against spiritual souls. No wonder he had repeatedly transformed between yao and human forms, practically replacing his body each time. On one occasion, he had even dug out his own heart to remove the tracking mark that Woo Yixuan had planted. Yet despite all that, he had never managed to shake off the mark left by Fan Hongwei. A mark planted within the sea of consciousness could not be removed unless one truly died and the sea of consciousness was shattered.
A cold smile curled across Lin Zheyu's lips as murderous intent surged within him. "To silently plant such a well-hidden tracking mark in my sea of consciousness... what a remarkable method."
The sea of consciousness was the dwelling place of the soul and the most important part of any cultivator. Countless secrets were hidden within it.
Reading a cultivator's soul is no easy feat. This mark probably doesn't possess such a function, Lin Zheyu thought to himself.
Still, a trace of concern lingered in his heart. He worried that the mark might reveal some of his secrets to Fan Hongwei. However, what was done was done. Worrying about it now would accomplish nothing. The most important thing was finding a way to remove the mark.
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