City of Metal

"Whew!"

In the City of Metal, deep within the Universe Boat Core Region, the solitary Green-Robed Being suddenly rose to his feet.

He stared fixedly at the Bronze Octahedron before him, his entire body trembling. "He... that little fellow actually did it!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha..."

His hearty laughter echoed through the City of Metal, carrying a sense of relief.

"How many years has it been! The Three Saints Palace, which has slumbered through endless reincarnations, is finally going to see the light of day again... Founders, bless us! The Three Saints Palace... hasn't ended with me!" The Green-Robed Being's voice trembled, and he could barely contain his excitement.

He couldn't observe Shi Yan's inner world, but he could see the Beast God True Form lying quietly in the Book of Three Lives.

The radiance emanating from that True God Heart easily pierced through the gray glow.

Although he didn't know what Shi Yan had experienced, he understood perfectly well what this scene meant.

"Those born divine and sacred usually have flaws in their state of mind. Yet this little fellow has comprehended a Mortal Heart. He's destined to be best suited to the Three Saints Palace's cultivation methods. And he's so young, with such exceptional comprehension..." The Green-Robed Being gazed at Shi Yan, who sat cross-legged with his eyes closed inside the Book of Three Lives, and spoke softly. "A future great being, destined to far surpass me and stand alongside the most dazzling Founders in the history of the Three Saints Palace..."

The Green-Robed Being's eyes were filled with approval and hope.

The enormous beam sword radiated terrifying power, distorting space and time as it closed in.

Seeing Shi Yan standing motionless, dumbfounded, Future Self thought he had given up resisting.

A triumphant smile appeared on Future Self's face. "I've won this battle!"

"Founder!"

"Palace Master!"

Countless mortals wailed at the sight.

But in the next instant, Future Self's smile froze.

People all over the world stared wide-eyed.

For a moment, the entire world seemed to fall silent.

They couldn't believe what they were seeing.

Shi Yan had merely reached out his right hand and effortlessly caught the enormous beam sword.

It was as easy and casual as an adult catching a toy swung by a child.

"I didn't expect this. After my state of mind broke through, my will transformed along with it. The will of a Void True God..." Shi Yan sensed the transformation within himself, his expression utterly calm, as if catching Future Self's attack were nothing worth mentioning.

And that was exactly how it was. With his breakthrough in his state of mind, Shi Yan had completely recovered his own strength. With the Origin of this world aiding him, defeating Future Self was now effortless.

The enormous beam sword trembled in Shi Yan's grasp, trying to break free. But in the next instant, Shi Yan easily seized the Space-Time Origin power carried by the sword, and it immediately dissipated.

With no resonance from the world's Space-Time Origin, Future Self's strength was directly weakened by a large margin.

"You..." Future Self's face was full of shock and confusion. He seemed about to say something, but Shi Yan said indifferently, "There's nothing left for us to discuss. Future Self, return to your true form at once."

As he spoke, Shi Yan directly took control of the world's Origin and his own power.

This time, all Ten Origins were complete, with space and time at the center, commanding metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, light, and thunder.

A colossal grinding disc of terrifying power formed in the world's Origin Land, with Future Self at its very center.

"Crk, crk..."

The disc began to turn. Future Self stared fixedly at Shi Yan, but he couldn't resist the complete power of the world's Origin. He was ground into countless specks of light.

"..."

The countless specks of light from Future Self's dissolution all returned to Shi Yan's true form.

Deep in Shi Yan's consciousness, the patterns on the Beast God True Form's horns were completed with Future Self's return.

At the same time, as Future Self was defeated, time in this world seemed to come to a complete standstill.

Countless mortals froze in place. The formations operating throughout the world stopped, and even the world's Origin ceased to fluctuate.

"..."

Shi Yan sensed a strange power trying to move him out of this world.

"...I'm going back."

Shi Yan knew this meant the Strange Stone Book's trial was over, and that he had succeeded.

Yet at this moment, he felt no joy or sorrow. His eyes held only determination.

Through the world's Origin, Shi Yan took in the entire world.

His wife, sleeping in her grave.

The countless descendants and common folk who worshipped him.

And...

This entire Illusory World.

If he didn't do something now, then once Shi Yan left, this world, built upon his inner self, would completely collapse.

"Go to sleep for now. Once my cultivation is complete, you will all become real." Shi Yan spoke softly.

It was only a thought, a single sentence, but in this inner world, Shi Yan's thoughts were no different from the laws of creation.

An indistinct ripple spread throughout the entire world.

This world would slumber within Shi Yan's heart until the day he became powerful enough to bring this Heart World into reality.

"Whoosh!"

Having done all this, Shi Yan vanished from the world.

"You're awake... Then come here directly."

In the City of Metal, the Green-Robed Being watched Shi Yan slowly open his eyes within the Book of Three Lives. He then manipulated the Bronze Octahedron and teleported Shi Yan straight into the City of Metal.

The entire Divine Temple where Shi Yan had been before was actually inside the Supreme Treasure, the Maze Lock, contained within this Bronze Octahedron.

Therefore, as long as the Green-Robed Being wished, he could easily teleport someone out.

Of course, only those who had passed the trials of the Void Corridor and the Book of Three Lives could do so.

"Hm?"

The scenery around him abruptly changed.

Being transported from the Divine Temple to the City of Metal left Shi Yan momentarily stunned, but he soon noticed the Green-Robed Being before him.

"Senior, you are..."

A shimmer of light passed over Shi Yan, transforming him from his Beast God form into a human. He no longer looked like the silver-haired young man he had been while traveling through the Universe Ocean. Instead, he looked exactly as he had in that lifetime in his inner world.

But compared to before he entered the Book of Three Lives, Shi Yan had been completely remade.

Not only had his state of mind and will advanced, but after experiencing the dispersal and reunion of his Three Lives Bodies, he had also gained a deeper understanding of the Law of Time.

He felt that with just a little cultivation, his Path of Time would break through to the Ninth Order, perhaps even reaching the peak of the Ninth Order.

Combined with his Path of Space, which had already broken through to the Ninth Order, once the two paths joined, his Path of Space-Time would reach the Tenth Order, enough to rival Original Ancestor before he was suppressed.

Moreover, solving 7,011 boards of the Rhino Emperor Game had improved Shi Yan's comprehension. The benefits weren't immediately apparent, but they would subtly accrue over time.

All in all, although the Book of Three Lives trial had been difficult, the rewards for passing it were just as great.

"Ha ha ha... little fellow, I'm the former master of the Divine Temple where I put you through your trials." The Green-Robed Being was in an excellent mood. The more he looked at Shi Yan, the more pleased he was.

"So you're the master of the Space-Time Temple. I see."

Shi Yan wasn't surprised. Instead, he nodded as if it were only to be expected.

Although the Divine Temple had been rather strange, looking back, its purpose as a trial was fairly obvious, and it had clearly favored the Path of Space-Time.

Now that he had passed the trials and been transported here by the temple's master, it made perfect sense.

"May I ask what your purpose is, Senior? I'm still completely in the dark. I hope you can enlighten me." Shi Yan bowed to the Green-Robed Being before him.

"Don't rush, little fellow. Come with me. I'll explain as we go."

The Green-Robed Being turned and headed toward the center of the City of Metal. There stood a graceful Silver Metal Pavilion, two stories tall.

Shi Yan hurried after him, anticipation rising in his heart. "Could this be a legacy like the Duan Donghe Lineage?"

Seeing Shi Yan follow, the Green-Robed Being continued speaking as he walked. "First, I can tell you that I'm a disciple of the Three Saints Palace, one of the foremost lineages at the heart of the Universe Boat back then.

"You can probably tell that the Universe Boat bears signs of having been artificially crafted. That's exactly right. The Universe Boat is the remnant of the Ancient Civilization known as Wu Kingdom. And among the foremost lineages, my Three Saints Palace was the only one that wasn't part of Wu Kingdom's direct line..."

As he said this, the Green-Robed Being's tone seemed to grow angrier. He couldn't help snorting before continuing, "My Three Saints Palace didn't belong to Wu Kingdom. But in those days, the Wu Kingdom Lord was on good terms with the two Founders of our Three Saints Palace. When Wu Kingdom's lord faced a great disaster, he asked our Founders to come and help. But he didn't tell them the truth. Our Founders kindly went to his aid, only for the Three Saints Palace to be dragged down with Wu Kingdom and destroyed..."

As he spoke, the Green-Robed Being suddenly glanced back at Shi Yan, then corrected himself. "Well, almost destroyed... But I've wandered off topic. In short, after the Three Saints Palace was implicated by Wu Kingdom, we were forced to board the Universe Boat along with the remnants of Wu Kingdom and venture into the Universe Ocean... Hmph. Before we set out, we knew we were walking a path to certain death. We had no other choice, so we could only seek survival in the midst of death. In the end, as expected, the entire Universe Boat was wiped out."

At that point, the Green-Robed Being suddenly stopped and looked up at the sky. Shi Yan followed his gaze and saw a vast, overwhelming force suddenly descend, hovering faintly in midair.

It was the Origin Will of the Primal Universe.

Even in the deepest part of the Universe Boat, everything was still under its surveillance.

Shi Yan was very familiar with this will, after all, he had been born from the Primal Universe Origin.

The Origin Will was now staring fixedly at the Green-Robed Being, as if it would attack at the slightest provocation.

Facing the Origin Will, which seemed to possess boundless power, the Green-Robed Being merely scoffed. "Don't worry. Under the Supreme Rules, I know what I can and can't say in the Universe Ocean. You don't need to concern yourself with it."