In the Coiling Dragon World, cultivation mainly relied on seclusion. But if one only cultivated in seclusion, breaking through was almost impossible. This was true even before reaching Saint-level. In many cases, it was easier to make a breakthrough while fighting for one's life.
That was why even the Radiant Church and other major powers had to let many of their core disciples go out and take risks, or even train in places with large numbers of magical beasts. Sean was highly gifted, but before reaching level seven, he had also gone out adventuring.
Now that he had reached Saint-level, his God-Eater Rat talent let him comprehend a Mystery directly. But Sean sought more than mere comprehension. He was trying to fuse Mysteries—at the very least, to fuse the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery innate to the God-Eater Rat with the most basic Mystery among the Darkness Element Mysteries: the Darkness Element Profound Mystery.
If he could fuse two Mysteries and reach the level of a mid-level god, then with the God-Eater Rat's abilities and his damaged Soul-Defense Sovereign Artifact, he would have at least the means to protect himself in the Higher Planes or Divine Planes.
"My lord, you're joking. My meager abilities wouldn't even withstand one of your attacks." Ram was startled again. Their recent clash had left him shaken to the core. Sean's strength was no weaker than that of the most powerful magical beast in the Dark Forest. If Ram fought someone like him, the slightest mistake could cost him his life.
"Don't worry. We'll only compare our Mysteries," Sean said. His strength didn't come from his Mysteries, but from his weapons and powerful body. As for the Mysteries themselves, even a Super Divine Beast like the God-Eater Rat needed time to grow.
It was like some of the special Commanders in the Higher Planes. Their mastery of Mysteries might barely reach Quintuple Fusion, or even less, yet their talents were so exceptional and their bodies so powerful that they far outclassed Commanders from ordinary races who were only one step away from becoming Paragons. Even the Overlords would choose them as their Emissaries first.
Of course, the strongest were still the Paragons, eternally unrivaled among the gods. But if a Super Divine Beast cultivated its Laws Mysteries to the Asura level and used Sovereign Artifacts to make up for its weaknesses, then even if it still couldn't defeat a Paragon, it would come infinitely close. Hamos, with his three-piece set of Sovereign Artifacts, was one such example, as was the God-Eater Rat that had fused five Mysteries.
Sean had kept Ram around so he could learn more about Mysteries by fighting him. Cultivation couldn't be done by shutting oneself away from the world; a little sparring could be beneficial. Ram's talent was only average, but he had lived long enough. After more than a hundred thousand years, his understanding of Mysteries was surely greater than Sean's current level.
"My lord, have you also cultivated the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery?" Ram asked.
"Yes." Sean nodded. "There are many magical beasts with the Darkness Attribute in the Dark Forest. Among the Saint-level magical beasts, are there others besides you who cultivate the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery?"
"Yes, though most cultivate the Darkness Element Profound Mystery. There's one magical beast who cultivates the Devour Profound Mystery," Ram replied.
"How do you know the names of these Mysteries?" Sean asked.
He was a transmigrator with the original novel in his mind, so it was no surprise that he knew the names of the Mysteries. But how did the locals, who were only Saint-level, know them?
"Lord Jinhuo told us," Ram said. "Lord Jinhuo is the guardian of the Material Plane on Zhongyuan Continent. He gives at least a little guidance to practically every Saint-level being. He told us the names of the various Laws Mysteries. I've even heard that the language of Zhongyuan Continent was passed down by him."
"The Plane Overseer? So that's how it is." Sean nodded.
Plane Overseers usually came from the Overlord armies of the Higher Planes. Those sent to the Material Planes might not be especially talented, but they still came from the Higher Planes and naturally had extensive knowledge. It wasn't strange for them to know the basics about the various Mysteries.
As for the Overseer teaching people and even guiding their cultivation, that probably depended on his personality.
"Yes, we're all very grateful to Lord Jinhuo." Ram paused, then said, "My lord, you must have reached Saint-level sometime in the last ten thousand years, right? Otherwise, Lord Jinhuo would have met you when he came by once every ten thousand years."
"Yes." Sean nodded. He could be considered to have reached Saint-level within the last ten thousand years. In the Coiling Dragon World, time was the most meaningless thing of all.
"Then Lord Jinhuo will be delighted when he discovers you next time. He'll surely teach you even more. Lord Jinhuo really likes exceptionally talented geniuses," Ram said enviously.
In Ram's eyes, Sean had reached this level in less than ten thousand years. There was a good chance he would become a god one day. Being able to stay by someone like him was a blessing.
"We'll see. Come, let's try our signature moves." Sean didn't dwell on it. As he spoke, four more clones suddenly appeared around him, all with identical auras. But when it came to controlling their auras, they seemed inferior to Ram's earlier.
"Of course, my lord." Ram could tell at a glance that Sean's Shadow Clone Profound Mystery was weaker than his own, yet Sean's strength had just been far beyond his. That could only mean Sean had also comprehended other Darkness Laws Mysteries and cultivated them to a high level. Now he was asking Ram to help him train so he could comprehend a second, or even a third, Mystery. He really was a genius.
In an instant, four tigers appeared around Ram once more. They let out furious roars and charged at the four "Seans" opposite them. Sean might be better at other Mysteries, but this was Ram's specialty.
Soon, the four men and four tigers clashed. Their bodies were composed purely of energy, so their combat strength was naturally far inferior to their real bodies and had little to do with the strength of their physical forms. Ram believed his understanding of the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery was superior, so he thought he would have the advantage in this kind of contest.
But as soon as they clashed, Ram realized that even though they were both only clones, he was no match for Sean in attack. After just a few exchanges, he was easily forced back.
"How is this possible?" Ram said, unable to understand. From their auras, Sean's grasp of the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery seemed quite ordinary—not even as good as Ram's had been tens of thousands of years ago. So why was his attack so much stronger?
"Good. Keep going." The four Seans' eyes lit up. As expected, even the slightest fusion of Mysteries greatly increased their power.
He had only just made a little progress toward the basics some time ago, but he had advanced faster than expected. Perhaps it was because he had only just begun to understand both Mysteries; the earlier one was in its development, the easier it was to fuse them.
Even though his understanding of the Shadow Clone Profound Mystery alone was still inferior to Ram's, the most basic fusion with the Darkness Element Profound Mystery had made him much stronger. He was now far more powerful than Ram.
Of course, the gap wasn't enormous. It would still be difficult to defeat Ram. But Sean wanted to grow through sparring like this, to comprehend Mysteries—and to fuse them.
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