"At the very least, one needs a Material Defense Sovereign Artifact, or to reach Paragon, to survive in Spatial Turbulence. Or one could directly become a Chief Sovereign. No matter which one it is, none of them are easy."
Yet Simon still made up his mind that he would accomplish at least one of them and climb to the pinnacle of cultivation.
Having been fortunate enough to reincarnate in the Coiling Dragon World, and as a fervent fan of the Coiling Dragon novels, he would not disappoint the talent he had been given, no matter what.
Judging by his current progress, Simon possessed excellent talent in Fusion Laws. Coupled with his awareness of the need to fuse laws early on, if he kept this up, he might even have the makings of a Paragon.
"I can't slack off in the future either. On the path of cultivation, if you don't advance, you fall behind."
Simon knew very well that becoming a Lowgod was merely the beginning. The road ahead was still long.
He glanced back once more at the dazzling Spatial Turbulence at the edge of the plane. Simon no longer lingered. Driven by his fused divine power, he instantly shot southward.
With Simon's current speed, having fused more than half of the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow, he would probably need only a few days to cross the entire Rayast Continent at full speed.
In the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Simon crossed the Arctic Ice Plains and Icewind Canyon. His Divine Sense remained fully spread the entire way, but unfortunately, he found no underground cultivation chambers or anything similar.
He soon reached the region of the human empires. Simon suppressed his aura to the Saint Realm level, and while passing through the Charles Empire, he paid a visit to Anthony, whom he had met before.
Several decades had passed, yet Anthony still had not broken through that final bottleneck. However, seeing Simon return from secluded cultivation and even successfully advance to the Lowgod level, he was delighted for him. At the same time, his own determination to break through grew even stronger.
After the two caught up for a while, Simon bid farewell and continued toward the Gale Empire.
Even traveling at an ordinary pace while taking in the scenery and people along the way, Simon returned to the family after only a few days.
Seeing that the ancestral estate was exactly as it had been before he left, Simon finally set aside his needless worries.
Spreading out his Divine Sense, he located Patriarch Solo, who was still cultivating.
Simon landed directly outside the patriarch's room and transmitted, "Patriarch, I'm back."
Solo, who had been cultivating in seclusion, immediately ended his training in excitement upon hearing the transmission. He came before Simon and said, "You rascal, you were gone for quite a while this time. It's been over fifty years, hasn't it? Hahaha, it's good that you're back. Cultivation is important, but the family is important too."
"I missed you, Old Patriarch, and everyone in the family."
Laughing and chatting, Simon and Solo entered the study.
As soon as they sat down, Simon solemnly said to Solo, "Patriarch, I returned this time because I made a major breakthrough in cultivation. I wanted to tell you all the news."
Seeing Simon act so seriously, even the Old Patriarch, who had weathered countless storms, could not help becoming excited. "Could it be that you've broken through to..."
"Yes, Patriarch. While I was cultivating in seclusion at Icewind Canyon, inspiration suddenly struck one day, and I broke through to godhood in the Law of Wind."
As he spoke, Simon released the signature technique of a God-Level expert—the Godhead Domain. Feeling the utterly inescapable binding force, Solo laughed in sheer delight.
"Hahaha, wonderful! Wonderful! Our Herbert Family has finally produced a God-Level expert of our own! This is fantastic, Simon! Well done!"
Seeing how excited the patriarch was, Simon understood completely. After all, Solo valued the family even more than his own cultivation. Otherwise, he would not have guarded the family all this time and devoted himself to nurturing the younger generation.
Now that Simon had become a god, the Old Patriarch who had supported the family for over a thousand years could finally relax a little.
But Solo also understood that Simon, who had become a god before even reaching a hundred years old, was destined for a stage far beyond a small Material Plane. Perhaps only the legendary Supreme Planes were suitable for such an astonishing junior.
After calming down, Solo did not forget to tell Simon, "Edward, the founding emperor of our Gale Empire, is also a God-Level expert who cultivates the Law of Wind. I had already begun following him when he was still in the Saint Realm. Later, after he broke through to godhood, he founded the Gale Empire and granted the Northwest Province to our Herbert Family as a fief."
"When you have time in the future, I'll introduce you to him. Emperor Edward is currently in secluded cultivation and has not emerged for more than a hundred years. You definitely haven't met him."
"Alright, Patriarch. When everyone has time, please introduce us. I'm also very curious about the founding emperor of our empire."
"His Majesty is a very good person. Back then, he also promised that any of his followers, or the descendants of those followers, could unconditionally leave if they produced a God-Level expert and wished to do so. As for whether our Herbert Family will leave the Gale Empire then, that will depend on what you think, Simon."
"I don't really understand or care about such matters. I'll leave the decision entirely to you, Patriarch."
Simon neither understood nor had any interest in politics. Matters like these could simply be left to the patriarch.
This result was within Solo's expectations. After all, that was simply Simon's personality.
"Very well. I'll discuss it with the two elders. There's no rush anyway. Our family's territory is sufficient for now, so it won't be too late to decide after Emperor Edward emerges from seclusion."
Through their conversation, Simon learned from the patriarch that Second Elder Garrod and Third Elder Sanders had also left to travel ten years ago and would not return anytime soon.
Simon then asked about his parents. His father Darren, now more than a hundred years old, had reached the level of a Level 9 Warrior and was currently managing the family's various businesses in another province. His mother Iseline, who was the same age, was a Level 8 Mage of the Water Element and assisted Darren.
Both of them were fairly strong and not particularly old. Barring unforeseen circumstances, they could live for a long time yet.
Hearing that both his parents were doing well, Simon set aside his concerns and planned to visit them when he found the time.
Afterward, Simon discussed cultivation with the Old Patriarch.
He had long known that Solo also cultivated the Law of Wind, but what Solo had comprehended was the "Wind Movement Technique."
Simon did not know much about the Wind Movement Technique either. After all, he had yet to even begin comprehending that Profound Mystery. He could only share some experience from his own cultivation and suggest that Solo try comprehending the most fundamental Profound Mystery of Wind Element in the Law of Wind, to see whether drawing inferences from it might help with the Wind Movement Technique.
As for the common knowledge of becoming a god, Solo had already learned it from Edward long ago, so Simon did not need to concern himself with it.
After exchanging their cultivation insights, Simon returned to his residence.
As for the news that he had become a god, Patriarch Solo decided to keep it secret for the time being and not reveal it to too many people in the family.
Simon also felt that this was better. To ordinary family members who had not reached the Saint Realm, a God-Level expert was no different from a Saint Realm expert.
Moreover, Simon preferred peace and quiet. It was best to remain low-profile as he had before.
Family Seclusion Cultivation
Looking at his spotless courtyard, Simon knew that the patriarch had arranged for people to clean it regularly.
He entered the bedroom and lay down, enjoying this rare tranquility.
For once, he did not immediately enter a cultivation state. Instead, he recalled both his past and present lives. In his previous life, he had merely been an office worker who worked nine to five, doing the same repetitive things every day without passion or surprises.
Those dull days had been as bland as plain water.
It was only after he had accidentally come to the Coiling Dragon World, merged with Simon's memories and soul, and experienced the splendor of this world that he finally felt truly alive.
The impressions left behind by nearly thirty years of his previous life had already faded greatly, and he had long since adapted to his current life.
As for Blue Star, he would definitely return someday if he had the opportunity. If not, then so be it.
He would simply consider himself the butterfly dreamed of by Zhuang Zhou, or perhaps Zhuang Zhou dreamed of by the butterfly. Maybe the Simon of this world had also transmigrated to Blue Star and was experiencing a different kind of life.
After all, they were originally the same person, merely versions of himself in different times and spaces. There was no need to dwell on such things.
What mattered was that Simon could now feel with absolute clarity that he was alive. The surging divine power within his body, the vast soul force in his mind, the immense power capable of overturning mountains and seas with a wave of his hand, and his awareness of himself—all of it was so real.
"What is past cannot be pursued, but what lies ahead can still be sought. There is no meaning in obsessing over the past. Seizing the present and future is what matters most."
Simon rolled over and sat up, then once more immersed himself in the Ocean of Laws.
"The Profound Mystery of Wind Element is already close to completion. I'm also comprehending and fusing the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow, but the Profound Mystery of Wind Element has yet to resonate with the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow."
Simon could only feel helpless about this. He could only hope they would become compatible before the Speed Profound Truth reached completion. Otherwise, the path of fusion ahead would be difficult. After all, the Law of Wind had a full nine Profound Mysteries.
Thus, his Wind Element Divine Clone focused on deducing the Speed Profound Truth, while his Water Element Divine Clone focused on comprehending Mist Illusion and fusing it with Water Element Essence.
His true body continued fusing the Heterogeneous Laws of Water Element Essence and Wind Element, while also further refining his Domain Ultimate Technique—Ice Wind Space.
As Simon continued researching Ice Wind Space in greater depth, he discovered that the Law of Wind's most fundamental Profound Mystery of Wind Element was indeed not as simple as it appeared. At the very least, what he had comprehended from the Profound Mystery of Wind Element regarding the application of Spatial Binding was no less profound than the descriptions of the Wind Space Profound Mystery in the original work. Simon felt that with one further step, he would be able to begin comprehending this most mysterious high-level Profound Mystery of the Law of Wind.
Furthermore, Simon discovered traces of the other Profound Mysteries of the Law of Wind within the Profound Mystery of Wind Element. This was normal, as all nine great Profound Mysteries of the Law of Wind were inextricably linked to the most fundamental elemental Profound Mystery.
But Simon had his own plans for fusing Profound Mysteries, and he also needed to account for his identity as a Soul Mutation to maximize his strength.
At present, beginning to comprehend too many Profound Mysteries did not hold much meaning. The best approach was to fuse each one with those he had already comprehended as soon as he began it. Even if they could not be completely fused, they needed to be made compatible. Only then would there be a sliver of hope of becoming a Paragon in the end.
Otherwise, even a genius like Qinghuo had initially taken the wrong path. He blindly pursued becoming a Highgod and only later discovered the importance of fusing laws. As a result, he spent an incomparably long time, and in the end, he still had to rely on endless power of faith to complete his final breakthrough.
Simon believed that if Qinghuo had understood the importance of fusing Profound Mysteries early on, he should have been able to become a Paragon through his own efforts.
After all, Qinghuo had managed to cultivate to the level of an Ultimate Asura even in a place like Gabad Plane Prison.
If he had been in a Supreme Plane, so long as he had not fallen midway, he would most likely have been able to step into the Paragon realm by himself.
But everyone had their own opportunities. Other people's paths and experiences could serve only as references.
Simon had a clear plan for his own cultivation path, and everything was progressing in an orderly fashion.
Feeling the transformation and elevation brought about by every increase in strength, Simon fell deeply in love with this feeling.
Whenever he broke through a minor bottleneck, he could not help but smile. Whenever he remained trapped in a bottleneck for a long time without breaking through, his brows would furrow tightly.
Under the patriarch's arrangements, Simon cultivated without being disturbed.
Several more years passed. One day, Simon sensed that the family was unusually lively. He spread out his Divine Sense and discovered that the annual Wind God Festival had arrived once again.
Unlike previous years, both elders who had gone traveling had returned this year, and there were many children in the ancestral estate waiting to have their talents tested.
Over these years, Simon's Wind Element Divine Clone had comprehended and fused more than half of the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow, bringing them close to completion. At the same time, through a fortunate accident, he had successfully made the Profound Mystery of Wind Element compatible with both the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow.
This made Simon overjoyed. Once they became compatible, fusing them to completion was merely a matter of steady effort. As long as these three great Profound Mysteries could each be fused pairwise, there would be hope of completely fusing all three.
At that point, not only could he easily break through to Midgod, but the strength of his Wind Element Divine Clone, which fused three Profound Mysteries, would experience another massive surge.
Instead, Simon was no longer in such a rush. Since the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow had already been more than half fused, when their fusion temporarily stagnated, he could simply turn to deducing the fusion of the Profound Mystery of Wind Element with the Profound Mystery of Speed and Profound Mystery of Slow.
Over these years, Simon's main body had also made considerable progress in the fusion of Heterogeneous Profound Mysteries, though he was still far from fully fusing them to completion. After all, they were Profound Mysteries from different laws, and fusing them was exceptionally difficult.
Fortunately, the progress was merely slow, and he had not encountered any major bottlenecks. That was still good news.
The Laws of Water had not encountered any major obstacles, but they had not made much progress either. Mist Illusion needed to be comprehended while being fused with Water Element Essence. Even for a genius like Simon, this kind of painstaking work could only be done step by step.
After all, he was only a little over a hundred years old. His current achievements were already enough to make him proud.
Rising and stretching lazily, Simon temporarily ended his years of secluded cultivation and headed to the family's ancestral estate.
His father Darren and mother Iseline, who had arrived at the family estate long ago, were overjoyed when they spotted Simon among the crowd.
Under Patriarch Solo's instructions, neither of them had gone to disturb Simon. They had originally thought that they might still not see him during this year's Wind God Festival, but unexpectedly, they had good luck this time.
"Father, Mother, it's been a long time. Have you both been well? When I returned to the family several years ago, I originally intended to visit you when I had the chance. I didn't expect to become so immersed in cultivation that it was delayed."
Simon spoke with guilt.
Looking at their son, who had barely changed from decades ago, Darren and Iseline felt mixed emotions. "We're both doing very well. Your father successfully reached Level 9 Warrior a few years ago, and I've advanced to Level 8 Mage as well. Your cultivation is what matters most, son. You can visit us whenever you have time." Iseline looked at Simon affectionately and spoke gently.
Afterward, Simon and his parents found a place to sit and chat. The unfamiliarity brought by not seeing each other for so long vanished completely within a few exchanged words.
They had not seen each other for nearly seventy years. Simon, who had remained immersed in cultivation, felt as though not much time had passed, but his parents, who had concerned themselves with family affairs, had truly lived through those seventy years.
Looking at the most talented son in the family's history, they felt both happy and saddened.
Sometimes, they thought that perhaps having a son who was too outstanding was not entirely a good thing. After all, whose son disappeared for decades at a time without being seen?
But it was only a passing thought. As members of a great family like the Herbert Family, both of them had been taught from childhood that the family's interests outweighed everything else. Naturally, they understood that the stronger Simon became, the better.
As for how much they missed their son, they could only keep it in their hearts.
Before you continue