[Chen Qingyan Was Dead? The Supreme Limitless Dharma Seal's Second Ability, Charging the [Spacetime Token]]

[Age 120]: [As you watched that familiar figure step into the Secret Realm, carrying an unfamiliar, powerful aura, the questions that had weighed on your heart for nearly a century almost burst from your lips.]

[You wanted to ask him what he had experienced over the years, who that "old acquaintance" in the east really was, and why his cultivation had recovered so quickly...]

[Yet before you could speak, an utterly abrupt sense of wrongness seized you.]

[Something was very wrong with Chen Qingyan's condition.]

[His figure seemed insubstantial, unlike a physical body, and the aura of [Rank] emanating from him was entirely different from that of the reincarnated Heavenly Venerable in your memories,]

[Even more... ethereal and unstable than his helpless state after undergoing Life Exchange in the [Fourth Simulation]!]

[Alarm bells rang in your heart. Almost instinctively, you activated the [Eye of Illusion] in an instant and fixed your gaze on him.]

[[Target]: Chen Qingyan]

[[Realm]: Foundation Establishment (possession)]

[[Traits]: ???]

[[Reincarnated True Lord] (purple)]

[[Chess Player] (purple—black)]

[[Ill-Fated Path] (black)]

[Evaluation]: [Having learned the truth of this era, he willingly went to his death to secure a Sliver of Vitality for someone. Now that his karmic debt to the Chen Family has been repaid, he has come in his already-dead body to deliver that Sliver of Vitality to someone!]

["!!!"]

[This evaluation exploded in your mind like a thunderbolt of crushing might!]

[Willingly went to his death... already-dead body... securing a Sliver of Vitality for someone!]

[Who that "someone" was went without saying!]

[You understood in an instant: your current circumstances were far from safe. In some sense, you were still trapped in a hopeless situation!]

[And Chen Qingyan had won you this "Sliver of Vitality" at the cost of his own complete annihilation!]

[For a moment, your thoughts tangled like hemp, and overwhelming shock and grief surged into your heart.]

[Not even a century had passed!]

[For someone with [Heaven-grade Qi Refining], whose lifespan could easily reach eight thousand years, a century was merely the snap of a finger—not even the length of a mortal's life!]

[What on earth had he encountered to make him choose this path with such absolute resolve?]

[You stood rooted to the spot, watching helplessly as that insubstantial figure calmly walked up to you.]

[His face held no expression, no reluctance to part, no tragic resolve in the face of death—only the relief of dust finally settling, and... a trust being placed in your hands.]

[He said nothing, merely raising his hand as the [Supreme Limitless Dharma Seal], which had saved you both from danger several times, appeared once more.]

[Unlike before, however, the seal's light was unusually gentle and subdued, as though awaiting its new master.]

[Chen Qingyan gave it a gentle push, and the seal slowly floated toward you. You instinctively reached out to receive it.]

[The instant your fingertips touched the seal—]

["Hum..."]

[An exceedingly faint sound rang out, as though something had shattered and dispersed completely.]

[Before you, Chen Qingyan's already-insubstantial figure, like a dying candle in the wind,]

[Vanished in an instant, dissolving into tiny motes of flowing light that dispersed completely into the Secret Realm's cold, clear air, leaving not a trace.]

[At the same time, a familiar message bearing the weight of a final farewell sounded directly in your Sea of Consciousness. It was Chen Qingyan's final voice:]

["Martial Uncle, I have now passed away. This [Era] is more difficult and darker than any before it... I did everything I could, but I could only keep you safe up to this point.]

[If you... if you truly are the [Otherworldly Demon] that Master spoke of..."]

[His voice paused slightly here, as though carrying his final hopes and blessings.]

["...May the road ahead of you be free of all obstacles!"]

[His words ended, their lingering echoes slowly fading into eternal silence.]

[You held the now-warm [Supreme Limitless Dharma Seal], feeling the close bond rapidly forming between it and you as an immense flood of complex information poured into your consciousness]

[—information about this [True Treasure]'s current condition and abilities.]

[You instantly understood that unlocking the [Supreme Limitless Dharma Seal]'s abilities was closely tied to its holder's major cultivation realm.]

[Each advancement into a new major realm would unlock a new power.]

[At present, it had unlocked two abilities:]

[1. [Rewind]: (unlocked at the Embryonic Breath Realm) Establishes a spacetime anchor, allowing a return against the flow of time. Remaining uses: 1. (Note: cannot directly affect Nascent Soul True Lords or higher beings.)]

[2. [Amplification]: (unlocked at the Qi Refining Realm) Passive effect.]

[Greatly increases your cultivation speed and Comprehension, while also amplifying and optimizing intangible aspects of your destiny, such as your Fate Pattern and Fortune, to a certain degree.]

[[Amplification]! To think it was this ability!]

[After learning the details of this ability, the despair and heaviness in your heart brought on by Chen Qingyan's sacrifice]

[Finally dissipated considerably, replaced by an indescribable surge of excitement and hope!]

[This ability was practically tailor-made for your present circumstances!]

[It perfectly resolved your greatest current predicament—]

[The despairingly long accumulation of cultivation required to break through the limits of the [Qi Refining Realm]!]

[If [Amplification]'s boost to cultivation speed stacked with your own [Blue Talent: Twice the Results with Half the Effort], just how terrifying would the effects become?]

[You hardly dared imagine it!]

[More importantly, it could actually amplify and optimize your Fate Pattern and Fortune!]

[This meant that the fate of having "no Fortune," which had plagued you through several lifetimes and made every step a struggle, had finally seen the first light of possible change!]

["Was this the Sliver of Vitality he won for me?" You tightened your grip on the seal, feeling the warm, gentle power flowing from it. Was it that final use of [Rewind]?]

[No, [Rewind] could not affect True Lords. It was more like a high-grade lifesaving talisman.]

[The true hope was probably this seemingly supportive ability that could, in fact, fundamentally improve your potential and luck—[Amplification]!]

[But where exactly did your hopeless predicament lie?]

[What else was there besides being watched by a True Lord? You still felt a trace of confusion.]

[Just then, as though answering your bewilderment, the entire secret realm suddenly began to tremble slightly!]

[Soft, pure light abruptly shone from the surrounding rock walls, the ground, and even the empty air. Incomparably pure energy of heaven and earth began to surge and gather like an awakening tide.]

[You knew that, after nearly a century of recuperation, the secret realm had finally finished replenishing its energy, reaching a level sufficient to support cultivation and possibly activate the [Spacetime Token] again.]

[You immediately checked the charging progress of the [Damaged Spacetime Token].]

[Thanks to the secret realm's natural energy recovery, as well as the [Ancient Relics] you had occasionally found over the past century (each providing only about one percent of its charge),]

[Its energy reserves had recovered to sixty percent.]

["Sixty percent..." You pondered for a moment, your gaze shifting between the two supreme treasures in your hands]

[—the [Supreme Limitless Dharma Seal] and the [Damaged Spacetime Token].]

[Chen Qingyan had sacrificed himself to deliver the key to breaking this deadlock: [Amplification].]

[The Secret Realm had finished recharging at just the right time, providing the possibility of activating the [Spacetime Token].]

[It all seemed to be driven by an invisible hand.]

[You hesitated no longer.]

[The situation before you was dark and uncertain. The message Chen Qingyan had delivered through his death meant that the danger far exceeded your imagination.]

[You needed more information, guidance from a higher level and a more reliable source!]

[You resolutely took out the ancient, unadorned [Damaged Spacetime Token] and sank your awareness into it,]

[Guiding the pure energy that had just replenished the secret realm, along with your own surging magical power at [Perfected Qi Refining], slowly into the token.]

["Hum—"]

[The [Spacetime Token] emitted its familiar hum once more, and the character for "time" on its surface began flickering with increasingly dazzling light.]

[You would once again attempt to connect with the sole source of hope in that anchored past—the lord of [Beyond Heaven], the [Supreme Dao Immortal Venerable], Lin Feng!]