Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Based on pure sensing abilities, even elder apprentice brother could not compare to Lei Xiaoyu. This was not related to cultivation rank but because she had a near death experience back then that awakened a power in her bloodline. As such, she was probably the only one there who had sensed the change in Qin Yu's aura.

This made her hesitate. The reason was mentioned earlier. Furthermore, Qin Yu's aura was stable and she felt a strange sense of familiarity from it. It was also getting stronger as time went by. Nonetheless, she still did not know his identity.

He was a familiar stranger.

Lei Xiaoyu's hesitation now had no significance. She had no means to affect Qin Yu. The corpse spirit needed Qin Yu to be alive and grow stronger so that he could block the trap set by the ancient creatures for it.

Before this, it would not allow anyone to harm Qin Yu. Although it could not escape the altar, the corpse spirit within the innate spirit's corpse could impact the outside world.

While killing everyone here might be a challenge, protecting Qin Yu was a piece of cake.

Within the black altar with golden words, there was light. This light came from tiny scales on itself. It lay on the altar and looked like it was in a deep sleep, but its chest rose and fell as it breathed.

After the battle back then, almost every strong ancient creature had been killed. However, this thing appeared completely fine. It was also possible that this thing had recovered from all its injuries through many years.

If that was the case and it recovered after death, the powers of the innate spirit exceeded anyone's expectations.

Suddenly, its eyelids flung open. There was a calm look in its eyes and it appeared wise. Such deep eyes were hard to describe. It was as if it could see everything in the world.

However, despite opening its eyes, it did not seem to be fully awake. Its innocent gaze was like holes in a stone. It was still lifeless.

The reason was because the opening of its eyes was controlled by the corpse spirit in the corpse. Even if it was a spirit, it was a spirit that belonged to a corpse and it was equivalent to a dead thing. It could not be considered a soul.

It suddenly spoke, "He has probably discovered me."

After a pause, it said, "So what? He doesn't want to die; he can only continue on by my rules."

"He is very calm."

"Maybe he wants to give it a go. I don't think that is right." It paused again, "After he dies, I want his shell."

It thought for a while and nodded, "Sure."

Silence fell on the altar again.

Qin Yu and Stone Pagoda's guess was right. The dead innate spirit had given birth to a corpse spirit but there were actually two corpse spirits. The two corpse spirits had agreed that Qin Yu and the corpse of the innate spirit would be split equally between the two of them. It was a perfect plan!

……

Old Turtle stopped. He felt like he was a fully expanded balloon right now and he could burst at any moment.

He had done the preparations and he was now waiting to give in his all to live. Otherwise, he would self explode and die.

Stone Pagoda had stopped too. The only light in the dark world around him shone down on his scars. Yet, it made people feel lively. His internals were well recovered but his remaining injuries needed a while to heal.

These scars were a reminder for the people back then. Every scar was a life and he had to pay back everything for his scars to heal.

Qin Yu was still absorbing the endless flow of energy from the altar. It was not because he was hungrier than Old Turtle or Stone Pagoda but because the broken Rule System body required a large amount of energy to heal.

Actually, if not for the corpse of the innate spirit in the altar and corpse spirit cooperating with him, Qin Yu would have died.

Strictly speaking, the corpse spirit did save Qin Yu even if it might have other motives.

He had to express himself after receiving that favor, and Qin Yu felt that if he managed to have the last laugh, he would teach the corpse spirit a lesson and avoid suffering. He would ignore repayments. Qin Yu was not that generous and he would not leave hidden dangers for himself.

Buzz buzz -

A tiny vibration started from the bones and an invisible aura was released. Qin Yu felt like he was about to become integrated with the world, as though he was going to be a part of the heavens and earth.

Right at that moment, a deep sense of fatigue rushed from within and surrounded Qin Yu's consciousness. His eyes were about to close and he had to resist entering a deep sleep because he was so comfortable. It felt like he would never wake up if he closed his eyes.

Qin Yu had a feeling that if he really closed his eyes, he would integrate with the heavens and earth, becoming a part of it and disappearing forever. Becoming a part of the heavens and earth was terrifying.

His consciousness would be sucked in and it would disappear with the wind. However, the weird thing was that Qin Yu felt peaceful. He was not resistant and he felt slightly carefree and happy now.

Tiredness overcame him and he felt as though he had entered his mother's embrace. Just like that, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

……

Lei Xiaoyu realized that the aura of the man before the altar had changed! He suddenly appeared much lighter than before and it felt as though he had disappeared. He was like a shadow or some smoke that drifted in the air.

Her eyes widened. This man was getting more and more interesting and she could not figure things out. What was he trying to do? Furthermore, she had been intrigued by his constant changes, but she had a bad feeling this time.

It felt like he had disappeared completely and would never return. However, just as she stared at him, the man's aura suddenly changed again.

This time he felt like a bird that soared high up into the sky. When the bird passed through the crowds, it suddenly became a cold and hard rock that fell directly to the ground with a bang.

Dust rose from the ground and demon energy surged out.

Shoosh!

The man suddenly opened his eyes. His lips moved continuously but she could not hear his words clearly. Luckily, she had learnt lip reading before and she could make out a thing or two.

"Mother's embrace…what nonsense. I have never even met her, so how would I know what that feeling is like?

"But it is definitely not this."

Lei Xiaoyu was confused. What was he thinking? How could he think of his mother's embrace at this point? Had he gone mad? That would be a pity. After all, he looked good and his eyes were very pretty.

Cough cough. Damn it. A woman would not be able to avoid how looks were important in this world.

Integrating with the world was a scary thought. But it could only be viewed as the world acknowledging that he had the qualifications to be a part of the world.

This could be seen as the highest form of reward given to a living being. Not anyone could meet the qualifications set by nature.

In a more correct way of speaking, it was almost impossible for living beings in this time to obtain this kind of glory.

Qin Yu had obtained the acknowledgement of the world. This was mainly because he had cultivated and absorbed power from the innate being. Aside from that, the Rule System body and his True God Path also helped.

With these three points, Qin Yu was able to obtain a similar treatment to when innate spirits chose to destroy themselves and enter the heavens and earth.

It was a pity that Qin Yu did not appreciate this. Of course he would not! This was because Qin Yu was not someone who had lived long and been unrivaled. He was not a bored innate spirit in this world. He was just a cultivator who struggled and went through numerous trials to obtain all his achievements.

He had many things that he had not finished. Why would he be willing to merge with the heavens and earth? What glory? Get lost! I want to live my life.

Boom boom boom!

At that moment, many explosive sounds came from his body. These sounds were similar to thunder rumbling and every explosion was a cry from his blood, flesh and bones. His Rule System body was breaking apart and reforming within him.

His physical body was undergoing a massive transformation; every bone and muscle was strengthening. At the same time, there was a ringing sound in his mind as his consciousness entered a virtual space. Part of this was because of the explosions from his bones and muscles. The other part was a backlash on his soul because of the reconstruction of the Rule System body.

A burst of power flowed out like a torrent. It entered his soul and was immediately absorbed to trigger a rapid evolution of his body.

A God Mark mirage appeared in Qin Yu's consciousness. The moment that it descended, a vast galaxy appeared.

As his soul absorbed the backlash from the Rule System body, the galaxy grew clearer and more stable. There was an intriguing aura around it and it slowly started to turn.

Slowly transforming in silence, it was like an art piece that chrome to life. A galaxy God Mark…it was an evolving galaxy!

This was a realm that was mentioned only in legends. When his cultivation rank reached a very deep level, there would be an incredible transformation that he would undergo.

This finally happened in the world!

The Rule System body, Galaxy God Mark, and transformation of his soul… At this moment, Qin Yu's strength was increasing exponentially. He was getting stronger with every second.

This could be the most important moment in Qin Yu's life and he could not be interrupted. Otherwise, he would be pulled away from the perfect state he was in and the effects of this transformation would be disrupted.

At this point, a terrifying aura started to gather at the spot. A crushing pressure fell upon everyone.

Elder apprentice brother's face darkened and he looked up. His eyes narrowed and shock and disbelief filled them. It was very rare that such an expression crossed his face. The frightening aura he felt caused a strong reaction from his heart.

Nether Ye Xing and the Prince of Heavenly Palace were also taken aback. They stomped down and retreated backward quickly. As they looked up, their faces turned aghast. Like Lei Xiaoyu had suspected, they had all withheld their true strengths and they had been trying to use the crowd as test subjects for the altar.

However, they had been under the assumption that the altar's treasure would go to one of them. Yet the sudden burst in power seemed to mock them. They had thought too simply. The aura was crushing and it made them uncomfortable.

In a more accurate way, if they were hit by the aura…they would die!

The three top cultivators were all worried about their lives because of the aura. Many faces in the crowd were as white as a sheet and their eyes quivered with fear.

In the next moment, a deafening explosion erupted above their heads. Numerous large rocks fell down from the sky. The collision of every rock on the surface was enough to destroy cities and the sound caused hair to stand.

The three-headed giant tilted its head up and roared. As though it had sensed something, it turned and rushed towards the altar. Right at that moment, a massive rock smashed into it. The giant fell and kneeled down. Before it could stabilize itself, another rock smashed into it. Then a third, and a fourth…in the blink of an eye, the giant had been buried by the rocks!

Shoosh!

Elder apprentice brother flashed by and appeared beside Lei Xiaoyu. He created a barrier through the air to protect them. Rocks crashed onto the invisible barrier and the air twisted and shook violently from the impact. The two people within were almost hit.

However, not everyone was like elder apprentice brother. There were only a few who were strong enough to defend themselves against the rocks. Lots of shrieks could be heard as numerous cultivators were crushed. Blood pooled into a river and many were killed instantly.

If these were pure rocks, it would be virtually impossible for them to cause harm to these strong cultivators even if they were many times bigger. Unfortunately, these rocks were filled with a strange energy and it was hard for the cultivators to defend themselves against the impact!

The barrage of rocks rolled down on the cultivators. The screams and roars were deafening. When the dust finally settled, there was the pungent smell of blood in the air. All that was left were the pitiful moans of the injured.

Whoosh!

A strong gust of wind blew the clouds in the sky. Mist flowed and rolled out in the distance. This was when everyone realized that the thing that had blown apart was the peak of the massive mountain.

Now, they were all above the clouds and the terrifying aura was descending from somewhere higher.

Everyone looked up and saw a black spot that appeared above the clouds when the mist finally washed away. Slowly, some characteristics grew clearer. First, it appeared as a pupil. Then, the rest of it was revealed. It was a massive eye.

There was a cold but indifferent look in the eye. Looking down, the thing made everyone feel inferior to it. Pure fear swept through everyone and they held their breaths. A sense of doom filled them.

Roar!

A loud roar shook them awake. It felt like the sky was falling and everything else was instantly silenced. That single roar was like a tornado that vacuumed up everything in all directions. However, this was only what the crowd felt. They had only experienced a fraction of the roar's power.

Over ninety percent of the power was directed at the altar, on Qin Yu.

His guess was correct, the ancient creatures had indeed prepared something for if a corpse spirit was ever born. Right now, massive eye appeared above his head.

It wanted destruction. A complete destruction of Qin Yu's soul.

Stone Pagoda commanded, "Shadow of the Abyss, this is the time for you to show your powers. If you can help Master through this, you will always have a standing in Master's mind in the future!"

Old Turtle shivered with fear but his eyes suddenly flung open. He gritted his teeth and yelled in determination.

Go for it!

Idiot Stone Pagoda, you are completely right. As long as Qin Yu could survive this, no matter how good Stone Pagoda performed in the future, Old Turtle would be number one in Qin Yu's mind. No one else would be ever worthy enough to take his spot in the future. I will not die, I definitely will not. How strong is a single eye? I have two! Open your eye, I will devour you!

As such, in the next moment, the Abyss came!

A thick blanket of darkness burst forth from Qin Yu's body. It was like a bottomless pit.

So deep and cold!

This was the Shadow of the Abyss at its peak power. It was a power that belonged to the will of the abyss. Terrifying auras rushed out from the darkness and instantly caused the Lost Garden to shake.

Bam bam!

Large cracks appeared in the air. Although the Lost Garden was a sturdy small world created by the ancient creatures, it was still a part of the Vast Brightness World.

Right then, a tiny opening from the Abyss created polarizing powers that destabilized the world and instantly caused the Lost Garden to break apart.

Eyes widened, many ancient creatures stared up at the sky. They screamed in horror as the cracks appeared.

They could all feel everything that was happening. It was their destiny, their final destruction!

The Shadow of the Abyss twisted and turned into a large net-like structure. It seemed to have caught a large invisible object and it shifted immediately. A powerful suction force emerged from within the darkness and it seemed to be unable to withstand the forces of the shock as it crumbled apart.

Old Turtle's cry was sharp and piercing and he sounded like a strangled chicken. His cry was high pitched but it slowly weakened.

"He he…How dare a single eye try to…you aren't beautiful enough…"