Paragon of Sin

Three days had passed since Wei Wuyin's return. The deceased were expertly handled, and news of the event was explained away as an unfortunate accident with a Void Gate malfunction. While there were some individuals who were suspicious, there was no proof to suggest otherwise. Furthermore, the floating conspiracy theories involved the Ascendant Emperor of Neo-Dawn, a subject not one wanted to touch.

The luxurious compensation to the deceased had also brought great relief to these grieving families. This was especially the case for those families of the Null Disciples who worked near the Void Gate. A few of these families were relocated, given protection by the Myriad Monarch Sect, and directly regarded with more importance than others.

This shocked individuals, but it only showed that the sect was taking full responsibility for this incident. It highlighted their ability to handle matters in the most thorough fashion. The overall opinion of the Myriad Monarch Sect had even improved as a result.

Wei Wuyin and Su Mei were standing in the central hall of his Sky Palace. She was currently detailing her report on the measures taken place, including the various compensations given to the family of those who died. Su Mei had always been vastly superior in handling tasks, far better than Wei Wuyin at handling these matters.

Wei Wuyin calmly listened, approving of her actions. To those who died without families, they were investigated to understand the cause. If they had grudges left unfinished, they would be sealed. Due to the common event of familial eradication, there were a few that had no more than a few friends in life. These individuals, as their proxy, Su Mei had already dispatched individuals to seek out revenge.

"That is all, Lord Wei." Finishing, Su Mei bowed her head slightly.

Wei Wuyin understood her, wryly smiling as a result. While he was reluctant to inform others of what happened, he had never kept answers from Su Mei. While he hadn't divulged everything about himself to her, and she was tactful in not even wondering about certain matters, this concerned his life.

He explained, "I've ascended to the Soul Idol Phase."

Su Mei's eyes brightened. She was shocked, unable to tell. Usually, those at the Soul Idol Phases would ripple with a strong spiritual aura indicating their stance. It was this spiritual aura that caused Xiang Ling to ensnare the minds of those lower-realmed cultivators with ease when she first revealed herself on the Myriad Yore Continent. She couldn't tell Wei Wuyin's cultivation base at all, shocking her.

He continued, "The way I did so was a little abnormal. As you know, the Soul Pulse Rings become larger the greater the Manifested Spirit Energy required to grow one's Soul Idol. The greater the foundation, the more difficult the trial. When I challenged the tribulation, the Soul Pulse Rings exceeded the starfield, sending me far, far away."

"..." Su Mei's pure black eyes betrayed her shock and surprise. She had challenged the Soul Idol Astral Tribulation too, understanding that it would shift one to the next ring as long as one sought to continue. It was invisible to others, but she started on the ground and exceeded the Ninth Level of the Sky Layer of the Myriad Monarch Main Planet, sending her out of the planet's atmospheric protection. Fortunately it was only for a mere moment.

She had returned after experiencing the Chill of the Dark Void, feeling as if she had almost embraced death.

To exceed the starfield, didn't that mean he was sent far, far away?! She couldn't imagine the level of foundation required for that.

"I traversed through the starfield, this one, the next, the next, and the next. I was brought countless miles away by the last Soul Pulse Ring. I had to use a simplified version of an art I'm currently developing, trying to create an instantaneous Void Gate to conjure a Void Portal at any location. I used that to bring me back. If I hadn't, the Chill of the Dark Void there would've taken my life.

"The deaths of those individuals were due to the Chill of the Dark Void that I inadvertently brought back, far stronger than our own. That's what happened." After saying this, he lowered his eyelids in thought.

Su Mei's heart was quaking in shock, still reeling from the fact that Wei Wuyin was sent across starfields. STARFIELDS! She had a lot of other questions, but she felt it was all unnecessary. She swiftly regained her composure, "As long as you're okay, Lord Wei."

Wei Wuyin snapped out of his thoughts and warmly smiled, "As long as I'm okay." They exchanged glances, a momentary silence formed that produced an interesting atmosphere.

Su Mei lowered her gaze, "If there's nothing else."

Wei Wuyin chuckled lightly, "You can go; handle the rest of your matters." He saw Su Mei lightly nod before leaving, watching her departing figure with a fleeting haze in his eyes. When she finally escaped his view, his eyes lifted to the ceiling.

A faint ardent glow burned within his silver irises, suffused with astonishing spiritual strength. As he progressed in his cultivation, he became more exposed to the various mysteries of this world. He had gained some answers along the way, but the questions continued to pile forth. When will there be a time when he could understand all these thoughts plaguing his thoughts?

With his newfound strength, he could see more with the Eye of Truth, perceiving the world trend a little more clearly. He now felt as if this starfield was at the precipice of ruin and slaughter. He didn't know how or why, but he knew that it was traveling towards that direction.

Tens of trillions of lives slowly and unknowingly traversing towards a horrid fate. He wasn't certain if it had to do with his exposure to those devastated starfields or that starfield with the gargantuan Solar Star with that mysterious ring encircling it, but a foreboding sensation continued to batter his thoughts since.

While Wei Wuyin wasn't certain if it was due to that or an entirely different reason, he still could 'see' its approach. But he had no idea how to handle such an event. Could he even become strong enough to resist in time to prevent the starfield's ruin? A fate that might end with the destruction of their starfield?

"..." Wei Wuyin stayed silent for an entire hour, simply standing in place in contemplation.

"One step at a time. Plan ahead, but never forget to look down and steadily take each step." He recalled the words of his older brother, knowing that far-reaching plans often caused individuals to forget the process. He was facing his own calamity, unable to spare the extra time to focus on those other issues. He could only prepare for it, but remain focused on his own improvement of strength—individual and group.

Even if this starfield was destroyed, he would still etch out a way of survival for himself and those he sought to protect.

"I have to handle a few matters, then have Tuo Bihan organize the Gateway Door Entry. There's still something I need from there, and it might elevate my strength, even solve a few of these mysteries plaguing me. First, I'll leave for the Alchemic Association, see what they want. With all their scheming, I'm quite curious." He took a deep breath as he started to make plans, including how to further cultivate his strength.

He had forged Nine-Ringed Soul Idols, but that was only the 'typical' limit. A Soul Idol still contained an extremely high amount of unrefined Manifested Spirit Energy and Soul Pulse Ring Fragments within themselves that can be used to advance further. It was this very power that allowed Tuo Bihan to jump from the Six-Ringed Soul Idol to the Nine-Ringed Soul Idol. He always had the latent power to do so, and those alchemical products extracted such potential.

The Spiritual World Ascension Elixir was an eighth-grade elixir that can be taken three times max to refine the latent energies and fragments within a Soul Idol, bringing out greater potential by formulating three Soul Idol Rings. These rings could be weaker or as strong as normal rings, depending on the quality of the elixir. If low-quality, it would be weaker, while high-quality would be equal, and peak-quality having even greater strength than normal.

There was a Ninth-Grade Variant called the Soul Deity Invoker Elixir. It was named after its seemingly divine properties, allowing one to exceed the natural limits of a Soul Idol, and only worked on a naturally formed Nine-Ringed Soul Idol. Furthermore, the amount of unrefined Manifested Spirit Energy and Soul Pulse Ring Fragments of a Nine-Ringed Soul Idol was far, far greater than the others. All this unrefined potential would be refined into a single ring, the Tenth Soul Ring.

His eyes couldn't help but glow with an excited radiance. If he could forge a Ten-Ringed Soul Idol, with all four of his Astral Souls combined, he couldn't fathom the level of strength he would reach. This would give him absolute certainty in traveling inside the unknown realm environment of the Gateway Door.

He calmly recalled the materials needed to concoct this elixir, once more realizing he only had very limited attempts. There was a unique material, Soul Ash of the Divine Jade, that he only had six of, meaning he had six tries. And that was after scouring for it for years from various markets, offering obscene prices. If there was more, it simply wasn't in the hands of anyone knowledgeable of its value.

He decided to concoct this heaven-defying product.

If he succeeded...