Great Power Supreme Treasure

"Ah! If only you had a Deity. Then I could go out and have some fun too."

Yan Kuan ran his palm across the Trigram Treasure Box. As energy circulated through his hand, the Bagua Diagram on its surface intertwined into profound patterns of light, as though it were a carrier of Dao and reason.

The Golden Light previously scattered by the Trigram Treasure Box had taught him much about cultivation in this world and also let him understand its origins.

This Trigram Treasure Box was an inherited supreme treasure of a cultivation sect called the Trigram Esoteric Sect. However, with the arrival of the End of Dharma era, cultivators became increasingly scarce. Eventually, no one could open it, and the divine artifact concealed its brilliance, only awakening once more after Yan Kuan discovered it.

This magic treasure was a sentient Great Power Supreme Treasure. As the name implied, it was the natal spiritual treasure of a Great Ability expert at the Second Heaven of Immortal Platform. It had intertwined "Dao" and "reason," standing only one step away from a King's Divine Weapon—but the difference that single step made was heaven and earth.

The mortal cultivation path of the Shrouding the Heavens universe was divided into the Five Great Secret Realms: Wheel Sea, Dao Palace, Four Extremes, Transforming Dragon, and Immortal Platform. Once the first realm, Wheel Sea, was opened, Dao Patterns would intertwine within the Sea of Bitterness. Cultivators could use them as a foundation, supplementing them with precious materials to forge and nurture cultivation treasures.

Magic treasures in the cultivation world were likewise ranked in levels, most of them named after the realms their cultivators occupied. Once one reached the Immortal Platform realm, however, these treasures underwent significant transformations, especially at the Third Heaven of Immortal Platform, which brought a drastic change.

The Third Heaven of Immortal Platform was also called King. Severing Dao to become a King required one to be a peerless genius. Throughout cultivation history, many talented individuals had been stuck at this stage, unable to advance. Even Young Emperors had wasted years before this barrier.

Severing Dao to become a King would inevitably bring a Heavenly Tribulation. While a cultivator underwent transformation through the tribulation, their natal spiritual treasure could also be Baptized and transformed. Its spirituality gathered and achieved a Deity, becoming a King's Divine Weapon.

A King's Divine Weapon at its peak was like a Dao-Slaying King personally taking action. Once its spirituality had transformed into a Deity, the weapon gained consciousness almost equal to that of a true living being. Even without its master wielding it, it possessed boundless power.

Although some magic treasures below the level of a King's Divine Weapon were still quite powerful, they were generally far inferior to supreme treasures with Deities. After all, the latter was equivalent to a Guardian carried at one's side, making it absolutely crucial for young geniuses.

"Don't worry. Follow me, and sooner or later I'll raise you by another rank so you can have a conscious Deity of your own."

Yan Kuan quickly composed himself and drew the Trigram Treasure Box into his embrace, nurturing and communicating with it. Though a Great Power Supreme Treasure was inferior to a King's Divine Weapon, it was still an exceedingly rare treasure on Blue Star in this End of Dharma era. It could be considered his strongest trump card for now.

A Great Power Supreme Treasure intertwined "Dao" and "reason," nearly becoming a carrier of Dao itself. It could not only assist cultivation but also protect its owner. Even on the Big Dipper Ancient Star, only Divine Son-level figures from sacred lands possessed such trump cards to guard their Dao.

Yan Kuan was merely a weak nobody who had just opened his Sea of Bitterness. Having such a treasure in his possession was enough to make him laugh in his dreams. What right did he have to ask for more?

"Now that I think about it, my dantian seems somewhat unusual. According to the Golden Book Jade Scroll, I should count as having a special physique, right?"

Yan Kuan sank his consciousness into the qi sea of his dantian. Suddenly, his body shone brilliantly, and waves of sound like a roaring tsunami erupted from his dantian qi sea. Endless Divine Flame surged from his Sea of Bitterness, and the phenomenon of a sea of fire abruptly rose into the air. Had the Trigram Treasure Box not sealed off this place, the disturbance would likely have alerted the firefighters long ago.

"Damn, what kind of physique do I have? Could it be some kind of King Body? A Flame King Body?"

Yan Kuan hurriedly withdrew his consciousness and stabilized his Sea of Bitterness. In that fleeting glimpse, he saw the anomaly within his dantian: a crimson orb of light churned like blazing flames. Scorching divine power coursed through his body, leaving him feeling incomparably refreshed.

Based on what he knew about the Shrouding the Heavens universe, the Wheel Sea of an ordinary body should be black or green and extremely tiny when first opened. A situation like his could only indicate a special physique.

"This actually makes sense. I was born with an Empyrean Flame Seed, and the Empyrean Flame transformed my body, giving me extraordinary innate talent. Perhaps it happened to correspond with some physique in this world and thus underwent a transformation. That's how I gained my Fiery Golden Eyes."

As Yan Kuan pondered, divine power automatically flowed into his eyes. His originally black pupils instantly overflowed with bright golden-red flame light, just like the Fiery Golden Eyes from Journey to the West.

Yan Kuan had discovered this unusual phenomenon long ago. To keep his parents from worrying, he had always concealed it. Based on years of use, it seemed to be a special Innate Pupil Art, and for now, he could use it to distinguish truth from falsehood.

The Yan Family had risen rapidly over the past few years not only because he had guided his parents in opening channels between Hong Kong and the mainland, but also because his Divine Eye had played a major role.

"My innate talent shouldn't be bad. If I could open my Sea of Bitterness through cultivation alone in the End of Dharma era, then I should have considerable advantages in cultivating the Shrouding the Heavens Method. But the Burning Art is pretty good too."

Yan Kuan fell into deep thought. Through testing, he had basically confirmed that he possessed some kind of special physique. Such physiques had great advantages during the early stages of cultivation and fairly high potential. They could generally reach the Immortal Platform realm, and on the Big Dipper, they would be cultivation seedlings coveted by every sacred land.

What Yan Kuan was considering now was naturally not which faction to join, but which direction to take for his future cultivation path.

The technique he had initially cultivated was the "Flame Mantra: Foundation Forging Chapter," specifically derived by the Flame Emperor. Put simply, it was the prerequisite cultivation technique for the "Burning Art."

The "Burning Art" was a uniquely exceptional top-tier cultivation technique in the Great Thousand World. Flame Emperor Xiao Yan had relied on it to cheat his way upward, eventually achieving the realm of Grand Overlord of the Great Thousand World. Half of his success could be attributed to this technique.

According to the inheritance Yan Kuan had received, the Flame Emperor had speculated that the "Burning Art" should have been one of the Ten Primeval Dharma Bodies born in response to the Great Thousand World's tribulations. However, during the ancient calamity of the Ancient Evil Gods' invasion, its foundation had been destroyed, causing it to regress into the "Burning Art." Yet its Dao characteristics had remained unchanged.

The "Burning Art" represented the ultimate Dao of flame in the Great Thousand World. It could evolve without limit by devouring Heavenly Flames—special spiritual flames born between heaven and earth. Even after the Flame Emperor advanced to Grand Overlord, he had been unable to raise it to the point where it could no longer advance. Its potential was limitless.

However, this cultivation technique bore obvious traits of the Great Thousand World. Yan Kuan was unsure whether it could be cultivated in the Shrouding the Heavens universe. Moreover, its cultivation path seemed different from the Shrouding the Heavens Method. If he truly succeeded in cultivating it, would that count as opening a Dao of his own?

Opening a Dao of one's own in the Shrouding the Heavens universe was no joke. For powerful experts, it was an excellent thing, but for a weak nobody just beginning cultivation like him, it would be a colossal disaster. Even Severing Dao required enduring a tribulation. Opening a Dao of his own would surely bring heavenly phenomena as well. Could his scrawny arms and legs withstand that?