The Interlude: Huaiyin Palace

Soft light enveloped Guen. By the time he opened his eyes, he was standing in a vast hall awash in red and gold, with jade-green clouds drifting through it. He suddenly realized he was standing on a ritual altar, inscribed with characters he couldn't read but somehow recognized at a glance as meaning "seven."

"Guen, welcome to Huaiyin Palace." The Headless Energy Body floated before him. A round glass dome sprouted from it, and inside the dome was a nimble, fishlike lifeform gazing at Guen. "I am Xingzhe, the Seventh Guide. Over the years, I've guided 113 lives, 95 of whom became my masters. I hope you'll do the same and become one of Huaiyin Palace's candidates."

Guen surveyed his surroundings. The entire hall was suffused with a barely perceptible power, yet once he noticed it, he could feel its boundless magnitude. And here, the Origin Will of the Original Universe was no longer watching over him. That meant anything could be said, any knowledge could be taught. There were no more taboos.

"Huaiyin Palace?"

Xingzhe led Guen onward along Yanhuang Avenue.

"The master of Huaiyin Palace is Lord Xingmang." Xingzhe spoke the name solemnly and reverently. "He can travel through the past and future of countless space-times. At one moment, a flash of inspiration struck him, and he built Huaiyin Palace to nurture those who came after him. Its purpose was to temper divine bodies through treasure refining, then refine Hunyuan Bloodlines, making them the most basic units of divine power, just like life genes. But later, he rejected this path. He believed that although it offered the prospect of becoming a World-class Hunyuan Lifeform, it was extremely vulnerable to corruption and demanded an exceptionally strong will. Still, he kept Huaiyin Palace.

"After all, though Lord Xingmang considered this