Paragon of Sin

Slowly, the Elementus Domain regained a state of normalcy. The events of before were chaotic, disrupting economic developments, instilling fear and uncertainty, and caused an untold amount of resources to be expended. It wasn't just the True Element Sect that exhausted a large portion of their financial reserves, but various sects and clans had unleashed protective arrays to secure the safety of their forces. 

This hadn't changed until Zhang Ziyi and Han Yuhei issued a Domain-wide announcement. They explained away their drastic actions and subsequent events, revealing that it was solely due to welcoming a great figure that needed their help dealing with an issue. This figure had left, allowing them to bring down the barrier.

It didn't take long for that great figure's identity to leak. It was none other than their elusive Chosen, the rumored Grand Mortal Sovereign Alchemist himself, Wei Wuyin! This caused a brief uproar that shook the Elementus Domain. Many forces wanted to meet this character, form relations, verify details, but the True Element Sect had essentially kept his arrival under wraps while they lived in lingering fear. 

A lost opportunity, but if it needed the True Element Sect to unleash their most powerful cards, then it must've been serious. Unfortunately, the rest of the details was confidential, with only some other things, such as the Imperial Clan's arrival and Gong Lau's uncertain life and death spreading about.

The latter didn't take long for the Elementus Domain to confirm by probing the external clans. But shockingly, there was no news of the external clans being robbed or suffering any loss. It also seemed they were deliberately trying to keep Gong Lau's death an ambiguous piece of information to the outside world. 

There was far too much unconfirmed information spreading, producing all sorts of conspiracies amongst cultivators. There was even a theory circulating that Gong Lau had tried to kill Wei Wuyin with the external clans help. In return, Wei Wuyin's Alchemic Knight, Wu Yu, and the True Element Sect joined forces to deal with Gong Lau and had the external clans pay an absurd price, sending them into a financial spiral. This spiral was slowly becoming more and more evident as time passed. 

-----

A month after the Imperial Clan's departure, in that idyllic courtyard, within a large secluded room, Wei Wuyin sat cross-legged at its center with his cauldron before him. The edges of the wall were littered with saber light. The Divine Edge Suppression Spell was unleashed, restricting all projections of alchemical success and emissions of auras. 

Bai Lin laid comfortably behind Wei Wuyin, her eyes closed as she rested. It felt like forever since she could just relax like this, helping Wei Wuyin with his concoctions. It was times like this where she felt most at peace. 

Wei Wuyin's silver eyes focused intensely on the All-Elemental Eclipse Cauldron, the depths of his gaze contained the Alchemic Stars of Spiritual Transcendence. The entire room was isolated, filled to the brim with Utmost Purity Mist. At times, Wei Wuyin would execute a few hand-seals, sending bursts of alchemical eden force into the cauldron. A steady transition of changes occurred—a total of seven.

This entire process lasted five minutes. Suddenly, the Utmost Purity Mist rumbled as it thickened considerably. The All-Elemental Eclipse Cauldron exploded with various rays of light, signs of a phenomenon intending to project into the outside world. The walls grew abnormally active with the Divine Edge Suppression Spell, keeping the rays of light threatening to explode at bay, saber light eliminating any that dared to approach it. 

After a while, the beautiful rays of light ceased their violent escape attempt. Wei Wuyin reached out with his right hand, pulling back, and thirty-three objects shot out of the cauldron. They were like tiny-sized, azure-colored solar stars with their own orbiting belts. These orbiting belts were Transcendent Radiance Belts of the Alchemic Dao! They were signs of the merging of the Mortal and Mystic Daos touching borders, the sign of Transcendent-quality Mortal-rank products!

Wei Wuyin's eyes flashed with dense elation. Soon, he couldn't hold it in as he began to laugh triumphantly! "Yes! Haha! Yes, I did it!" There was a sense of tremendous accomplishment within his heart. 

He had succeeded in using the Thirty-Three Heavenly Method on transcendent-quality products! In the Ninestar Starfield, shortly before his Celestial Eyes overloaded on spiritual strength, he had successfully conducted the Earthly Nine Concoction Method on ninth-grade Astral World-Deluge Pill. 

During his time in the Eden Earth Sect, his master at the time insisted that only when the Earthly Nine Concoction Method could be performed with equal success on all products, that one could 'genuinely' be considered that grade of alchemist. His standards sounded outrageous, as most alchemists just hoped to successfully concoct and be consistent in producing non-impure products, but it instilled Wei Wuyin with an unshakeable belief in standards.

Later, when he learned of the Thirty-Three Heavenly Concoction Method, in his heart, he believed this became the new standard for mastery. If any alchemist knew this, their jaws might drop in disbelief and the insanity of it all. The fact that one had to successfully concoct thirty-three times in the same period of time as a single product was absolutely crazy. There was no denying it.

ᰍaꪧda ᱅o᱇ꫀl The only reason methods like these were created was solely due to mass producing low-quality, lower-grade products from the alchemist's skill. An Emperor Alchemist, those who could concoct eighth-grade products with acceptable success, would deploy this on fifth or sixth-grade products for the youngsters or a burst of profits.

Seeing the thirty-three Astral-World Deluge Pills, Wei Wuyin was truly satisfied.

"Does this make me a Transcendent Mortal Sovereign Alchemist? Or maybe a different name?" The happiness was unconcealable. He mused, "Maybe a Mortal Saint Alchemist?" 

Woosh! Woosh! 

Woosh! Woosh!

"Tch!" 

"Hehehe!"

"..."

"ROAR!" 

The four Astral Souls externalized, fighting once again to gobble the thirty-three pills in a fierce battle. Wei Wuyin rolled his eyes, laying on Bai Lin as these Astral Souls clashed in a playful manner. While the fighting was intense, it wasn't necessary, because the outcome was always the same. 

Eden's roots seized the most initially, only to be snatched by King and Ori after, and Kratos taking it all through shifting in and out of space. In the end, the three could only work together to seal its escape routes, pulling those pills out of its grasp. 

The intensity of this competition shook the room. In the end, they returned sullen, splitting the products equally, even splitting the last remaining product into equal pieces to ensure that outcome. They shared almost everything, and while they fought, there wasn't an ounce of selfish greed in any of their souls. 

Wei Wuyin shook his head. Since they wanted to have their fun and play, he didn't intervene. He just watched as he should, giving out soft warnings from time to time without any bias. It was a good period to relax his taut nerves from the concoction process. He felt at ease watching them move freely.

Bai Lin would also watch. The various zooming lights were amazing to observe, especially Ori who was like a nine-colored, ever-shifting ray of light as it energetically moved. 

When it was all finished, Wei Wuyin exhaled out a breath of anxiety. Over the last month, he had successfully concocted eighteen different transcendent-quality products. He had become frighteningly proficient at concocting these products, to the point that he found it impossible to make low-quality products, even during his first time successes. 

Unfortunately, he didn't acquire many useful new recipes from the True Element Sect. While they had their own alchemy department, it wasn't nearly as advanced as some gold-tier alchemist associations. 

It barely exceeded the King of Everlore's legacy left behind in the Everlore Starfield. Still, it was sufficient to increase his knowledge of alchemical spells and concoction methods by a little. 

Wei Wuyin softly touched his lower abdomen, "I've once again maximized my foundation." There was a slight amazement in his eyes, feeling the eighty-one-centimeter-sized Astral Cores to be his greatest limit. While refining numerous Astral World-Deluge Pills at the transcendent-quality had elevated the number of Mystic Runes in each of them.

Before, six Mystic Rune Seeds had settled themselves in his World Seas. He learned from Wu Yu that these Mystic Rune Seeds were typically developed during the Star Core Phase. At that time, cultivators would need to absorb and develop eighty-one Mystic Runes, comprehend the Mystic Dao insights held within, and then undergo their ascension to determine their Rune Ascension.

There seemed to be numerous requirements needed to reach this point, especially a strong enough physique. It was clear that if your physique wasn't strong enough, your insights couldn't be fully used, thus limiting your foundation or outright causing your failure.

If a cultivator comprehended insights into the Mystic Dao, sufficient enough to reach the 9th Rune Ascension, then they would fail if they, during their Mystic Ascension, tried to reach that level without the strong enough physical body to handle the infusion of such power. 

"All those at the Star Core Phase must refine eighty-one Mystic Rune Seeds, an already difficult task." Wei Wuyin remarked as he looked at the sixty-seven Mystic Rune Speeds in each of his World Seas. 

Those transcendent Astral-World Deluge Pills had rapidly infused his World Seas with Mystic Essence, forming Mystic Rune Seeds. This was a process that typically needed Starforce and a Star Core to begin. He had a massive head start due to these pills.

There were wisps of mystic properties lingering in his Astral Force, elevating its strength by a bit. He felt that a drastic change would occur if he obtained eighty-one in each World Sea. 

"One more," Wei Wuyin intended to do just that. Bai Lin opened her eyes, faint blazing embers expelled from her beak. She was just as ready to begin!