First Entry into the Extreme Refinement Tower
Before the Annihilation Abyss Star Palace, the setting sun was sinking into the sky above the Eternal Extreme Sacred Hall. The golden and purple light shone through the Wuji Barrier outside the temple and shone on Qin Yu and Wang Yuan, as if gilding their return with a faint glow.
Wang Yuan concealed his aura; though his face showed some fatigue, the fighting spirit and joy in his eyes were hard to hide. He stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said with sincere respect, "Senior Brother Qin, this time in the Spectral Ghost Cemetery, obtaining the Dark Spirit Ghost Flower was all thanks to your help. If it weren't for you breaking through the traps one after another and fighting against the woman in red and those strange beasts, I would never have been able to bring this flower back alive."
Qin Yu smiled calmly, his gaze as still as a calm lake, as if those life-or-death moments had never stirred any ripples in his heart. "No need to be polite, Senior Brother. We fight side by side; it's a matter of entrusting each other with our lives."
Wang Yuan nodded solemnly, his tone turning serious. "There are still three days until the opening of the Desolate Annihilation Secret Realm. I must devote all my energy to seclusion and refine the power of the Dark Spirit Ghost Flower, striving to reach the Severed Observation Realm · Initial Stage. Only then will I have a greater chance of victory in the realm."
Qin Yu slightly raised his hand, indicating that he didn't need to say anything more, "Then let's part ways here. We'll enter the Desolate Annihilation Secret Realm together again in three days."
Wang Yuan clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned around, and transformed into a phantom, disappearing into the depths of the Holy Temple. His figure vanished behind the Wuji Light Curtain. Qin Yu stood in place, his eyes slightly narrowed, his mind already contemplating the cultivation and planning for the next three days... The evening glow above the Holy Temple gradually receded, and the aura between heaven and earth seemed to be quietly accumulating power for the storm three days later.
Annihilation Abyss Star Palace, the cultivation platform, shrouded in layers of restrictions, resembled a still, isolated island, suspended in the endless sea of Limitless Evolving True Flow. Qin Yu flashed and appeared at the center of the platform, slowly sitting cross-legged. The surrounding space quieted down, and even the rhythm of the Evolving True Flow seemed to slow down for him.
His consciousness sank into his sea of consciousness. The boundless sea of consciousness was like a reflection of Star Abyss, with the Nine-Wheel True Evolution Dharma Wheel slowly rotating in its depths, reflecting every detail of his journey to the Spectral Ghost Cemetery. The third incomplete ancient map, replicated from Hong Xiuxiang's memories, trembled slightly in his sea of consciousness, the radiance between its lines exuding a mysterious guiding light; on the other side of the ancient map, a brand-new imprint floated, the inheritance bestowed by the phantom of the Stainless Realm — the Three Forms of Fate Construction, every ray of its radiance radiating supreme power to alter the structure of the world.
Qin Yu's mind stirred as he recalled his duel with the woman in red. A deep look flashed in his eyes—in that battle, if it weren't for the three logical components and defensive structural treasures he had purchased in the Radiant Heaven Imperial Capital —the Soul Lock Annihilation Imprisonment Abyss Ring, the Returning Realm Evolving Reflection Abyss Mirror, and the Realm-Sealing Causal Disc —he and Wang Yuan would never have escaped unscathed, let alone Annihilation their opponent.
He knew very well that these logical treasures were not merely external objects, but trump cards to shift the balance of life and death in dire straits. The Desolate Annihilation Secret Realm three days later was a gathering place for countless top experts from the Source of Epochless · Middle Layer, where risks and opportunities coexisted. Against opponents at the Only Book Realm or the Severed Observation Realm, he could still rely on his realm and skills to maneuver, but if he encountered an existence at the Severed Observation Realm · Supreme or even higher levels, his own cultivation level— Logic Realm Realm ·Elementary—would not be enough to completely contend with them. Only by relying on these treasures could he remain invincible in a perilous situation.
Deep within his sea of consciousness, the Limitless Evolving True Flow surged like a tide. He slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, his gaze growing colder. In the next three days, he not only needed to adjust his own condition to its peak, but also to purchase more such treasures to combine with the power of the Three Forms of Fate Construction, so that they could exert their Ultimate effect on the battlefield.
The entire Annihilation Abyss Star Palace remained silent, seemingly sensing an even larger storm that was quietly approaching.
Deep within the inner palace of the Annihilation Abyss Star Palace, Qin Yu sat cross-legged on a cyan-gold cultivation platform, with ripples of light, like water, emanating from the void around him.
He slowly closed his eyes and began to circulate the Limitless Yuan Absorption Art.
In an instant, the Limitless Evolving True Flow from all directions seemed to be drawn by some invisible siphon, transforming into countless pillars of starlight that converged from the endless void. Each stream of energy shimmered with a deep brilliance of interwoven black gold and rainbow colors, flowing so fast that it seemed to pierce through the barriers of space and time, directly piercing Qin Yu's brow and entering his sea of consciousness.
Within the sea of consciousness, the Nine Wheels of True Evolution Dharma Wheel slowly rotated, like nine eternal and indestructible divine wheels, reflecting each other. With each rotation, countless fine strands of Fate Soul light spilled out, decomposing, transforming, and refining the Limitless Evolving True Flow.
The Limitless Evolving True Flow was as if sucked into the gate of the Milky Way, with a roaring sound echoing in the sea of consciousness, forming magnificent pulses of light that flowed along the patterns of the True Evolution Dharma Wheel. The whole process was like an energy waterfall cascading across the universe— Ultimate spectacular and Ultimate shocking.
However, as time went by, Qin Yu's True Evolution Dharma Wheel became completely saturated, and the nine wheels of radiance reached their Limit. A dense layer of regular ripples appeared at the edge of his sea of consciousness, indicating that the absorption had reached its end.
He slowly opened his eyes, the radiance between his brows fading.
"... Still haven't broken through to the mid-stage of the Logic Realm Realm resonance."
Qin Yu murmured to himself, his tone calm, but a hint of contemplation and sharpness still shone in his eyes.
He didn't linger. He stood up, his robes fluttering, and he transformed into a streak of light, escaping from the Annihilation Abyss Star Palace.
At that moment, he had made up his mind.
Since simply absorbing knowledge is insufficient to advance one's cultivation level, then one should go to the Extreme Refinement Tower to temper Soul Seal and logical knowledge.
The Extreme Refinement Tower, one of the supreme cultivation holy sites of the Eternal Extreme Sacred Hall, is open only to core disciples.
From afar, it was a colossal black-gold tower piercing the sky. Its walls seemed to be forged from primordial chaos and Silent Origin stone from billions of years ago, and its surface was engraved with countless ancient and complex soul consciousness arrays. Each line pulsated slightly, as if an ancient god slept within it. The top of the tower was shrouded in a thick sea of clouds, and occasionally, streaks of light that resembled lightning would cleave down from the clouds, explode on the tower, and transform into a dazzling radiance.
As Qin Yu stepped onto the bluestone steps in front of the tower, the entire Extreme Refinement Tower seemed to sense his presence—deep within the tower walls, dark golden array patterns began to emerge, like countless ancient eyes opening, silently watching this newcomer.
At this moment, even the air seemed to freeze into a heavy sense of oppression, as if the rules of the entire space were firmly controlled by the tower's core, causing him to feel a trial pressure from the level of soul and logic even before he stepped in.
Before the tower gate, ripples of golden light suddenly appeared on the dark stone steps, spreading out layer by layer, like stars being cast into a lake.
Then, the void in front of the Extreme Refinement Tower was torn apart by a heavy force, and an old man with a snow-white beard and eyes like Star Abyss slowly stepped out, holding an ancient black and gold token in his hand.
His aura was silent, yet it was like an ancient, towering mountain, enveloping an area of hundreds of miles. It was a power that only the tower-guarding elders of the highest levels of the Eternal Extreme Sacred Hall possessed—even the chains of rules in the void trembled slightly beneath his feet.
The elder raised his eyes and his gaze fell on Qin Yu. In that instant, Qin Yu felt as if his soul, his aura, and even the Nine Wheels of True Evolution Dharma Wheel deep within his sea of consciousness had been completely seen through, as if all his secrets were exposed in those ancient eyes.
From the void behind the tower gate, a deep and resonant sound faintly emanated, like the breath of a giant beast or the heartbeat of heaven and earth, echoing the elder's gaze.
"Purple-Gold Eternal Pole Crystal Core... Qin Yu, Core Disciple of the Inner Sect, Star Abyss Hall, Eternal Extreme Sacred Hall."
The elder's voice boomed through the void like a great bell, yet it also carried an undeniable chill.
As soon as he finished speaking, he raised the black-gold token in his hand and gave it a slight tremor. The array patterns on the token instantly lit up, transforming into hundreds of light threads that shot straight into the sky and connected with the golden soul array at the top of the Extreme Refinement Tower.
The next moment, a giant projection of soul consciousness descended from the sky, enveloping Qin Yu's entire body, as if he were standing under an invisible mirror of judgment—within the light and shadow, all of Qin Yu's aura fluctuations were amplified, decomposed, and verified, leaving no room for any disguise or fabrication.
The tower-guarding elder narrowed his eyes, nodded slowly, and with a flick of his finger, the light and shadow suddenly shattered into countless golden fragments, which poured down like meteors and gathered on the stone steps in front of the tower to form a semi-transparent soul gate.
A golden light flowed across the surface of the Soul Gate, and ancient characters faintly appeared on it. "Soul Seal proven, ready for ultimate refinement."
The elder put away the token, his voice low yet carrying a rare solemnity. "Within the Extreme Refinement Tower, your Soul Seal and logical consciousness will be tempered by the purest fire of rules. The slightest loss of focus will result in the annihilation of both body and soul. Qin Yu, are you prepared?"
Qin Yu slightly cupped his hands, his gaze sharp as a blade. "Now that we're here, there's no turning back."
Having said that, he stepped into the Soul Gate, his figure engulfed by a burst of blazing golden light, disappearing into the first level of the Extreme Refinement Tower.
The moment Qin Yu stepped into the Soul Gate, the world around him suddenly exploded—there was no roar in his ears, but a tremor that pierced his bones, as if the entire world was collapsing in his sea of consciousness at the same time.
The next moment, he stood in a boundless void. The void was not dark, but composed of countless shattered galaxies—stars shattered into billions of light fragments, which were then pulled by an invisible "chain of logic," slowly rotating to form a vortex of starry sea with no visible boundaries.
In the center of the starry sea, a towering "pillar of soul fire" burns fiercely. Its flames are not monochromatic, but are interwoven with six mutually exclusive flames: gold, silver, black, azure, deep red, and serene white. Each wisp of flame is wrapped with countless ancient inscriptions and symbols of rules.
The heat emanating from the flames was enough to incinerate stars, yet it also carried a chilling coldness that seemed to freeze cause and effect.
A deep, emotionless voice echoed from the depths of the void—
"First Stage: Soul Refinement"
Countless transparent Soul Seal chains suddenly flew out from the sea of stars, coiling around Qin Yu like living things. They had no physical form, yet they could precisely lock onto every thought and every fluctuation of Fate Soul in his sea of consciousness.
The next moment, the void above the pillar of soul fire cracked open, and a "hammer of judgment" formed from pure rules slowly fell.
The hammer is engraved with ancient patterns representing the four realms. "Annihilation Origin, Logic Realm, Sole Book, and Severed Observation." Each gentle swing causes the rules of the void to vibrate, making spacetime appear as fine cracks as glass.
Boom--!
The first strike of the Judgment Hammer pierced through Qin Yu's soul barrier, causing the Nine Wheels of True Evolution Dharma Wheel within his sea of consciousness to tremble violently and emit a metallic roar.
The Soul Seal Chain tightened, pulling Qin Yu's will toward the Soul Fire Pillar. The flames instantly rushed into his sea of consciousness, transforming into countless tiny fire needles that precisely pierced every vein of his thoughts, forcibly tempering and eliminating impurities.
Under such an impact, even a cultivator at the Only Book Realm would have their soul completely incinerated.
But Qin Yu's gaze remained cold. He mobilized the brilliance of the Book of Fate Law - the Realm Severing Origin Brush, writing layers of logical runes in his sea of consciousness, synchronizing with the rotation rhythm of the True Evolution Dharma Wheel, and transforming the burning of the soul fire into the power to temper the soul.
With each insertion of the fire needle, he absorbed the purest essence of its rules, which he then channeled back into his own soul consciousness.
The second blow --
The ancient "Sole Book" rune on the Judgment Hammer lit up, and countless characters transformed into streams of light, becoming a fierce storm of soul consciousness, attempting to rewrite Qin Yu's memory structure and define him as a "low-level existence that can be erased."
Qin Yu snorted coldly, and the Three Forms of Fate Construction - Existence Erasure was quietly activated - instead of erasing others, it reversed the process and erased this "low-level definition", causing the rules of the Judgment Hammer to malfunction the moment they touched him.
A ring of emerald green light fragments burst forth in his sea of consciousness, as if time had briefly ceased to function and the rules had slowed down.
The third blow --
As the hammer of judgment fell, the pillar of soul fire suddenly transformed into a raging torrent of time, attempting to wash Qin Yu's soul consciousness back to its infant state.
Without hesitation, he instantly released the Time Flow Reversal, pulling the time threads in the opposite direction and sweeping the torrent into the source of the past, forcefully offsetting the impact. He even used this power of time to impact his True Evolution Dharma Wheel, causing its operating speed to increase dramatically.
With the final bombardment, the six-colored flames of the Soulfire Pillar suddenly contracted, condensing into a blazing "Soul Core" that silently floated in front of Qin Yu.
The voice rang out again:
"First stage passed -- Soul Consciousness Tempering Degree: Exceeds Limit."
The soul core transformed into a stream of light and entered Qin Yu's brow. He felt the True Evolution Dharma Wheel deep within his sea of consciousness becoming more rounded and solid, and the clarity of his soul consciousness increased by at least 30%.
The surrounding galaxy dimmed rapidly, and light fragments fell as his figure was swept into another golden soul gate, leading to the second level of the Extreme Refinement Tower.