Opening the Heavenly Gate

At this moment, Su Fan was undergoing a transformation.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the single Soul Aperture that had originally existed had split into nine Soul Apertures.

The nine Soul Apertures were interconnected.

With the original central Soul Aperture as their core, they revolved around it.

That central Soul Aperture trembled without cease.

Outside.

The Ancestral Aperture between Su Fan's brows shone brilliantly.

Soul Power continuously poured into it.

Soul Power resonated with spiritual power.

At that moment, Su Fan's aura underwent a sudden transformation.

His essence, energy, and spirit became one; he became one with heaven and earth.

Unknowingly, the power of heaven and earth began to move because of him.

Yet rather than draw upon the power of heaven and earth for anything, he instead followed its natural course.

The positions of the Apertures within his body shifted on their own, and the circulation of Soul Power became smoother and more natural.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the positions of the nine great Soul Apertures also quietly changed.

Boom!

As the Ancestral Aperture and the central Soul Aperture completely resonated with each other, even merging into one, a peculiar space was quietly opened between Su Fan's brows.

Electrolux clicked his tongue in amazement.

"His own essence, energy, and spirit have merged with the power of heaven and earth, actually nurturing a unique treasure."

Sensing that aura, Electrolux's expression alternated between solemnity and ease.

It was proceeding very smoothly.

"This is something similar to a martial soul."

Because it resembled a martial soul and followed the laws of heaven and earth, it was being nurtured exceptionally smoothly.

But this was not a martial soul.

The Gate of All Wonders—profound beyond comprehension.

The Ancestral Aperture between Su Fan's brows manifested, transforming into a vertical eye.

Within the Sea of Consciousness, the central Soul Aperture evolved into a gate.

Beyond that gate lay the outside world observed by the vertical eye.

Within the vertical eye, a gate drifted up and down.

The two merged together.

The gate was the vertical eye, and the vertical eye was the gate.

Su Fan slowly opened his eyes.

Nothing changed in what he saw. He still viewed the world through his two eyes.

As for the vertical eye between his brows, it viewed the world through spiritual perception.

Wherever his gaze reached, all falsehoods were stripped away.

A gate opened in the depths of his spirit, allowing him to perceive the mysteries of the world's operation.

As Su Fan carefully experienced the effects of this Heavenly Eye—or rather, this Heavenly Gate—great joy welled up within him.

It was joy that came from the depths of his heart.

Through the Heavenly Gate, he seemed to see how the world operated.

"Do not stare for too long. The laws of the world are vast and boundless. With your current foundation, immersing yourself in them will only cause you to lose your way."

Electrolux reminded him at the right moment, allowing Su Fan to experience the Heavenly Gate's mysteries without falling into the danger of being assimilated by heaven and earth.

Su Fan came to his senses and let out a breath.

Although Electrolux had pulled him back, it had truly been dangerous just now.

A trace of lingering fear flashed through his eyes.

Just now, he had felt as though he had perceived the mysteries behind the workings of heaven and earth.

But in truth, he had understood nothing.

There had simply been too much.

It was like—

Showing calculus to a poor student who had not even mastered middle-school mathematics.

Yes, every single work on calculus was laid out before him.

All the answers were right there.

Go on, look.

The Heavenly Gate closed, and Su Fan panted heavily.

At that moment, the door to the room opened as well.

Seeing Su Fan in such a weakened state, Director Chi immediately handed him a pill.

"Take it. It'll replenish your body."

Su Fan did not hesitate. He took a pill and put it directly into his mouth.

Only then did he realize just how weak his body was.

He did not even have the strength to open his mouth and say thank you.

He circulated his Soul Power and digested the medicinal energy.

Three days later.

His body had recovered quickly, and Su Fan was once again able to move and cultivate normally.

Three days earlier, he had merged the central Soul Aperture with the Ancestral Aperture, thoroughly taking the first step toward matching Soul Apertures with bodily Apertures.

Over the next three days, he resonated with another eight Apertures.

With nine Apertures in resonance, his Soul Power naturally advanced as well, reaching level forty-eight.

"Resonating with thirty-six Apertures should be the limit before the fifth ring."

Su Fan calculated silently.

Based on experience, the limit before the sixth ring was 108 Apertures, while before the seventh ring, it should be the resonance of the Heavenly Circuit Aperture.

"Very good. I'll reach completion at the threshold of the seventh ring."

A smile flashed in Su Fan's eyes.

The seventh ring was an important dividing line for Soul Masters.

Training grounds.

Su Fan formed his right hand into a claw.

Flames surged forth.

Boom!

Crimson flames gathered in his palm, taking the shape of a wolf's claw.

Satisfaction flashed through Su Fan's eyes.

He had finally succeeded.

Numerous patterns flickered within the Aperture in his right palm.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, a Soul Aperture shone brilliantly, radiating crimson light.

Body and soul resonated together, reproducing this relatively complete Crimson Flame Claw.

Condensing the crimson flames in his hand into shape, Su Fan looked toward a massive boulder ahead and swung fiercely.

Boom!

A claw mark two and a half feet deep appeared on the boulder, its surroundings charred black.

"The power is decent."

Su Fan revealed a satisfied expression.

Not far away, Chi Yuheng stood in silence.

Chi Yuheng was Director Chi's son and was also a member of the Dou Ling Team.

He had originally been the vice-captain, but not anymore. The vice-captain was now Guzhu Jian, the former captain, while Su Fan had become the new captain.

That was right. A reserve member had become captain.

But after witnessing Su Fan's extraordinary abilities, he had no way to object.

His Diamond Shield would not be able to withstand the damage from that Crimson Flame Claw at all.

Chi Yuheng was now level forty-nine and had been stuck there for half a year.

He was very close to breaking through to level fifty.

Yet he had no confidence that he could block Su Fan's claw.

"You didn't use Imprint just now?"

"I didn't."

Receiving Su Fan's affirmative answer, Chi Yuheng fell silent.

"If I learned your Aperture Method too, could I achieve what you did?"

"It would be very difficult."

Su Fan honestly explained the difficulty involved.

First, an Aperture needed to form a space of its own. At least for now, Su Fan had no way to let anyone besides himself cultivate the Aperture Method while also refining an Aperture into a separate space.

Unless they were confident they could inscribe a complex Core Array within a tiny Aperture.

If an Aperture did not form its own space, then there would be far too little room for a Soul Master to inscribe a Core Array.

It was impractical.

As for Soul Apertures, they were even more difficult.

Not to mention that one also had to comprehend the artistic conception within a soul skill and integrate it into the Soul Aperture.

Su Fan himself had relied on his martial soul to complete these steps. Others could not do the same.

This still required a process of comprehension.

Soul Masters accustomed to foolproof operation found it difficult to truly comprehend anything.

Although the answer was cruel, Chi Yuheng still intended to continue cultivating.

This Aperture Method was certainly not bad.

Even if it only helped with Soul Power circulation, that would still be good.

Having successfully replicated the Crimson Flame Claw, Su Fan was in a good mood and continued experimenting.

He unleashed the Crimson Flame Claw again and again, and the sensation was more direct than when he used Simulation to cast it.

He could more clearly sense the minute flaws in his execution.

Those were not truly flaws, but incompatibilities.

The template of a soul ring's soul skill was perfect.

Yet there would always be some incompatibility between a soul skill and its Soul Master.

That portion was what the Soul Master needed to cultivate and correct personally.

Once those gaps were filled, a soul skill's power and flexibility in a Soul Master's hands would undergo a qualitative transformation.

Casting the Crimson Flame Claw over and over, Su Fan adjusted the details of his Soul Power circulation.

The Core Array within his Aperture was also fine-tuned.

Time passed unnoticed.

In the blink of an eye, ten months had gone by.