The Universe Boat was a colossal warship over a hundred million light-years long and tens of millions of light-years tall.
Its exterior was a hodgepodge of black and purple, and its hull was riddled with damage and cracks. Despite having endured ages beyond measure, the Universe Boat still retained a trace of vitality, constantly devouring the surrounding Chaos Airflow and even the Miniature Universes that occasionally drifted by. A tiny fraction of its immense energy escaped, creating a wondrous spectacle around the vessel as the Eight Lower Laws shimmered in harmony.
Shi Yan even suspected that if some super expert skilled in treasure refinement were to repair and reforge it, this incomparably ancient Supreme Treasure might be brought back into service.
"As expected of ...'s superpower. Even they need a Mechanical Flow Treasure operated by an entire elite legion."
By now, Shi Yan had arrived outside the Holy Sound Ship. He stood atop its bridge, gazing from afar at the enormous Universe Boat.
In sheer size, even a True God's Miniature Universe was larger than the Universe Boat. But in terms of imposing presence, even a Holy Land Universe paled beside it.
"Origin Continent..." Shi Yan murmured to himself, his blood surging. "I must break through the cycle of reincarnation!"
After gazing at it for a while, Shi Yan returned to the Holy Sound Ship and piloted it toward a massive crack in the Universe Boat's outer hull.
The crack stretched for dozens of kilometers and looked like a deep, secluded valley. Yet given the Universe Boat's immense size, it was nothing more than a tiny, inconspicuous wound.
Recalling the information he had about the Universe Boat, Shi Yan quickly mapped out a route to the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
The Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space was a famous region in the Universe Boat's Inner Domain. Sixteen towering pillars stood there, radiating endless Will Impacts without pause. The closer one got to the pillars, the faster time flowed. It was an ideal place for any expert to temper their will, so several renowned True Gods had taken up long-term residence there to do just that.
Shi Yan had no intention of cultivating there long-term for now, but he still wanted to see such a famous place for himself.
The Holy Sound Ship entered the shadowy crack and soon passed into the Universe Boat.
According to the map of the Universe Boat that Shi Yan currently possessed, there were more than ten cracks from which he could chart a route to the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
Naturally, he had chosen the closest crack, one that also led through relatively few dangerous areas.
The so-called "dangerous areas" in the Universe Boat's Inner Domain were mostly dangerous to Universe Masters. They posed little threat to True Gods, but the Supreme Treasures found there were generally Top-tier Supreme Treasures suited to True Gods, with only a handful of Peak Supreme Treasures.
As for Supreme True Treasures...
"Even in the Three Great Forbidden Lands, Supreme True Treasures only tend to appear near the edge of the core regions," Shi Yan thought with a frown as he piloted the Holy Sound Ship.
He had no maps of the core regions of the Three Great Forbidden Lands, so venturing there was bound to be extremely dangerous.
"But I have some advantage when it comes to Space-Time Control. As long as I'm careful, I should have a decent chance of exploring the core regions." Shi Yan weighed his strengths and weaknesses as he observed the outside world.
This was an ordinary stretch of the Universe Boat, a mountain range made of metal. Gale winds howled through the mountains. It seemed perfectly ordinary, but a Universe Venerable would be torn to shreds by the winds in just a few breaths.
Mixed in with the gale were tiny metal particles, each powerful enough to easily pierce an ordinary Universe Master's body.
Still, this area was only moderately dangerous by the standards of the Universe Boat's Inner Domain.
The metal particles packed a decent punch, but they could be detected in advance, and they weren't too dense. Any Universe Master with some ability could dodge them ahead of time, or use various methods to counter them if they couldn't.
Traveling through this area was tiring, but hardly anyone would perish here. And with a decent Palace-type Supreme Treasure, the journey became even easier.
After observing for about half a day, Shi Yan lost interest in these so-called "dangerous areas" in the Universe Boat's Inner Domain.
"Roar! Roar..."
Boundless pale mist tried to impede the Holy Sound Ship's flight. Dozens of bizarre birds made of ice circled nearby, each as powerful as an ordinary Universe Master, and they were trying to surround the ship.
But...
"Chaotic Space-Time!"
Across a hundred light-years, space and time warped. The cold and the strange birds alike were completely suppressed.
"True Gods and Universe Masters really are two different kinds of players." Shi Yan shook his head, then accelerated the Holy Sound Ship to ten thousand times the speed of light and quickly left this area, which had been rated "extremely dangerous." Then he piloted the ship into teleportation.
Even a True God who wasn't skilled in domains could rely on his Divine Body alone. Those puppet-like strange birds and the mere cold were no threat to him.
After seeing the dangers of the Universe Boat's Inner Domain for himself, Shi Yan finally had a clear understanding of his place in the Universe Ocean's pecking order.
The Holy Sound Ship began charging straight toward the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
At times it teleported, and at times it accelerated to tens of thousands of times the speed of light. Whenever it encountered other experts along the way, they all kept their distance after seeing its outrageous pace.
Five days later, the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space appeared in Shi Yan's sight.
A hazy mist surrounded the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space. Within the area veiled by the white mist, space was frozen, preventing experts from teleporting.
"Whoosh!"
Shi Yan appeared outside the Holy Sound Ship. With a flip of his hand, he drew his Palace Supreme Treasure back into his body, then accelerated toward the interior of the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
Maintaining a thousand times the speed of light, Shi Yan soon reached the inner region of the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
Unlike the outskirts, the inner region was free of mist. In other words, teleportation was possible here.
That was another major reason so many experts chose to cultivate here.
In the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space, sixteen Heaven-Reaching Demon Pillars connected heaven and earth, extending into the endless white mist at the edges. Intricate and profound Secret Patterns covered the pillars, whose full length no one knew.
Indeed, no one in the entire Universe Ocean had ever truly touched these sixteen Black-Veined Stone Pillars.
Their profound Secret Patterns and the advantage of Time Acceleration attracted many experts to cultivate here in seclusion. In the current era, three True Gods and nearly a hundred Universe Masters had settled here for long-term cultivation.
The three True Gods were Star Lord Beichi and Blood Orchid Ancestor of the First Reincarnation Era, and Rampaging Demon God of the Second Reincarnation Era.
Star Lord Beichi was a kindly soul. He simply stayed in the 2nd Stone Pillar Space, devoted to cultivating and studying the Secret Patterns on the Black-Veined Stone Pillars. Whenever he made a breakthrough, he would even give lectures to the Universe Masters.
Blood Orchid Ancestor, on the other hand, was utterly domineering. She occupied the 9th Stone Pillar Space alone. As a plant life-form, she attacked any other life-form that appeared within the range of her roots, which spread for hundreds of thousands of kilometers.
As for Rampaging Demon God, he had the strangest temperament of all. His moods were unpredictable, and he didn't cultivate in any fixed area. He also enjoyed changing his appearance to trick newcomers unfamiliar with him. If anyone accidentally angered him, he would attack without hesitation.
Of course, Rampaging Demon God still showed respect for Star Lord Beichi and Blood Orchid Ancestor's territories and wouldn't go looking for trouble in those places.
Nevertheless, any Universe Master who arrived here without enough information might lose his life.
But Shi Yan wasn't afraid of Rampaging Demon God.
"That Rampaging Demon God has mediocre combat strength. He's just relying on his divine armor's powerful defense. He can bully Universe Masters, at best."
Avoiding the 2nd and 9th Stone Pillar Spaces occupied by Star Lord Beichi and Blood Orchid Ancestor, Shi Yan casually chose the 15th Stone Pillar Space and flew toward the pillar.
"I wonder how far my will is from the Void Level," Shi Yan thought to himself.
Worried about drawing Rampaging Demon God's attention, most Universe Masters cultivating in the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space stayed in the 2nd Stone Pillar Space, under Star Lord Beichi's protection. Only a few confident Universe Masters, or True Gods who occasionally came by, cultivated near the other pillars.
Wave after wave of Will Impacts spread outward from the Black-Veined Stone Pillars, striking Shi Yan's soul as well.
But Shi Yan's will was now at the peak of the True God level. This feeble impact didn't even feel like a spring breeze brushing his face.
Massive boulders surrounded the towering Black-Veined Stone Pillars, revolving around them without end. Among them were some elegant, conspicuous buildings with black pointed roofs.
They corresponded to the spaces associated with the Universe Boat's unique "black," "green," and "silver" tokens. The black token was the most common of the three.
The three tokens seemed to be some kind of credentials recognized within the Universe Boat. With one in hand, the dangers in many regions of the Universe Boat would be greatly reduced, and the holder would also gain access to a dedicated Cultivation Space, such as those black-roofed buildings.
Furthermore, a Cultivation Space might contain unexpected treasures. Take the renowned Five Master Wuhun of the God Eye Race, for example. He had obtained his precious Mad Demon God-Extinguishing Armor in a black-token space.
That space had also contained a remarkably complete map of the Three Great Forbidden Lands. Aside from sparse records of the core regions, its coverage of the Inner Domain had been exceptionally detailed.
If Shi Yan didn't know where Master Wuhun was currently exploring, he might have been tempted to rob him.
As he drew closer to the Black-Veined Stone Pillars, the Will Impacts grew stronger. At a certain point, the impacts suddenly underwent a qualitative change.
"This is already an impact at the True God level. As for the Time Acceleration multiplier... it's twelve thousand times. The gap between a True God's will and an Eternal True God's really is outrageous." Shi Yan clicked his tongue in amazement.
From his memories, he knew that the Will Impacts emitted by the Black-Veined Stone Pillars peaked at the Eternal True God Limit, where the Time Acceleration exceeded six hundred thousand times.
"Let's keep going." After a brief sigh, Shi Yan continued flying deeper into the Black-Veined Stone Pillar Space.
Even back when he was a Universe Master, Shi Yan's will had already broken through to the True God level. This degree of Will Impact was still nowhere near his limit.
Twenty thousand times... fifty thousand times...
The deeper he went, the more violent the Will Impacts became. It was as if countless black-armored warriors were shouting battle cries in his ears, making his heart tremble.
Time accelerated more and more dramatically around him.
Eighty thousand times... eighty-five thousand times...
Gradually, he slowed down until, at ninety thousand times, Shi Yan finally stopped in mid-flight.
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