Chapter 868: Chapter 868

Everyone had a different understanding of breaking through the shackles of the inner spirit. Thus, whether it was a Sacred Monarch or a Heavenly Emperor, each individual's breakthrough experience might not apply to others. Li Pin was no exception.

He said calmly, "The Heavenly Fate Art represents the past. The moment I mastered it, I transcended the past. Next, I must break through the shackles of the Inner Spirit and surpass the present..."

To a certain extent, the Supreme-level secret art Endless Reincarnation had already indicated a path to breakthrough to the Heavenly Emperor. However, due to the existence of the Heavenly Fate Art, it no longer seemed applicable.

He had a hunch that when he truly comprehended the mystery of time and managed to surpass the present, his Heavenly Fate Art would no longer be limited to freezing the past; it would also freeze the present.

What did this mean? It meant that under the illumination of the Heavenly Fate Light, he would not only be able to observe and analyze, but he could also directly take action.

Originally, it was like hitting pause in the middle of combat. Now, he could not only pause time but even pre-cast his abilities. The moment the pause ended, the pre-activated skills would strike instantly, annihilating the target. At that level, facing him was like standing against a dimensional strike.

"Interesting," Li Pin remarked.

However, achieving this was by no means an easy task.

"Surpass the present...." Li Pin murmured these words, then let out a laugh. "I don't know what it means to surpass the present, but I do know what it means to surpass myself. As long as I break through my current limits, that would be a transcendence of self, and likewise, a transcendence of my current form. And surpassing the self..."

Even with the World Stabilizing Halberd and Six Paths Wheel, his combat strength was at most equal to an average Heavenly Emperor, perhaps even inferior to the top-tier ones. Compared to peak Heavenly Emperors like Wu Dang, Scorching World, and Jin'que, he was clearly a tier lower.

Therefore, the method to surpass himself appeared clearly before his eyes.

"Turn the impossible into possible. Defeat Jin'que. Transcend myself.... That simple."

He quietly sensed the changes within himself.

With a clear goal and direction, he found himself somewhat incompatible when reviewing others' insights about the path of time. It was as though his understanding of time was exclusive.

Moreover, treasures like the Sand of Time and Eternal Light now had significantly less effect on his cultivation. That was because, deep within his Inner Spirit, his understanding of time had become clear, no longer lost in confusion.

The advantage of this clarity was that it now made it difficult for time-based soul techniques to confuse him. The drawback was that he could also no longer use such inner spirit secret arts to deceive his own inner spirit into entering a hyper-sensory state toward time.

Take the Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapon, the Illusion Pagoda, for example. If he used the Pinnacle Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapon again to confuse his time perception, he would immediately realize it and wake up.

"It can be considered... entering a bottleneck-like metamorphosis phase. If I can't transform, I'll be stuck indefinitely. But if I break through..."

The vast sea lets the fish leap, the high sky lets the birds fly.

Li Pin smiled, slightly astonished. He hadn't expected he, too, would encounter such a thing as a bottleneck. Of course, that feeling only lasted a moment before he tossed it aside.

If he encountered a bottleneck, then he'd just break through it.

"Speaking of which, did I comprehend the path to mastering time so easily because of fortune's blessing, or was it my own doing?" He asked himself in earnest.

And the result was that there was no answer. Whether it was fortune's blessing or personal enlightenment, as long as it aided his cultivation, it was enough.

Not long after, Li Pin walked out of the cultivation chamber. As soon as he stepped out, the perceptive Zi Shuang came out to greet him. "Your Majesty."

"I've been in seclusion for twelve years, haven't I?" Li Pin asked. "The five factions still haven't launched a counterattack against the Myriad Astral God Court?"

"The Heavenly Emperors are still in discussion," Zi Shuang replied.

Still in discussion... thought Li Pin.

Back when he arrived, the five factions' Heavenly Emperors had already been discussing for years. Now, after twelve years of seclusion, they still hadn't concluded their deliberations.

Zi Shuang seemed to notice something from Li Pin's expression and quickly added, "These twelve years have been the peak period for all Heavenly Emperors. Moreover, another batch of Heavenly Emperors has joined the five factions. Currently, our side has over eighty Heavenly Emperors. If we include the Southern Astral Gate's Emperor Chang Sheng and others holding the line, our strength has tripled that of the Myriad Astral God Hall..."

"Uh..." Zi Shuang paused, then offered her guess, "Maybe they're waiting for these hurriedly arriving Heavenly Emperors, Sacred Monarchs, and Tyrants? Perhaps the five factions are holding back to ensure we strike with overwhelming force, enough to crush the enemy in one decisive blow?

"After all, the last failure of the five factions was because they underestimated their enemies and rushed into a counterattack, suffering heavy losses as a result. In some sense, this was them learning from past mistakes."

Li Pin shook his head, said nothing more, and walked out of the chamber.

Seeing that Li Pin seemed to have ended his seclusion, Zi Shuang hesitated to speak.

Sensing her hesitation, Li Pin asked, "Is there anything else?"

Zi Shuang immediately replied, "It's good news. A surprise awaits Your Majesty Origin! I hope you will like it."

Hearing this, Li Pin extended his senses and quickly noticed something, causing his footsteps to briefly pause.

A moment later, he nodded to Zi Shuang and, without needing her to lead the way, headed directly toward a side courtyard of the residence.

As Li Pin arrived outside the side courtyard, he saw a regal woman in palace attire standing gracefully, guiding two young Solar Flare Astral Gods as they sparred.

Sensing Li Pin's arrival, the palace-dressed woman was startled and immediately prepared to bow, but Li Pin waved his hand and turned his gaze to the two sparring Solar Flare Astral Gods. More precisely, one was feeding moves to the other.

And these two people... Li Pin knew them both.

One was Yan Qing, the former head of the Homo Sapien Alliance's office in the Yin Luo Galaxy. The other was none other than Li Yunyao, whom he hadn't seen in over a hundred years.

Li Yunyao, having inherited the Yin Luo Astral God's legacy, had already reached the peak of Solar Flare. However, her mastery of the Perfect Realm did not yet match her current cultivation level. At least when compared to Yan Qing, there was a noticeable gap.

However, while Yan Qing bore traces of the Eternal Oblivion Force, Li Yunyao, despite her weaker mastery, showed barely any traces of it. It seemed the others had protected her well.

While Li Pin was observing the two, they, too, finally noticed the presence of another person in the courtyard.

Immediately, Yan Qing hastily ended the spar and bowed deeply. "Your Majesty Origin."

Li Yunyao also turned her gaze back to Li Pin. She opened her mouth, wanting to speak, but didn't know how to address him.

"No need for formalities," Li Pin turned his gaze to the palace-dressed woman, Light of Revival, Qing Yu, and gave a slight nod. "You've been thoughtful."

Qing Yu knew what Li Pin was referring to. During the Eternal Oblivion Tsunami, Li Yunyao had barely been tainted by its power. This was abnormal, considering her Perfect State.

"It was what I should do," Qing Yu quickly replied, a hint of restraint in her tone.

Looking at her, Li Pin couldn't help but recall the scene when the Light of Revival first descended upon the Yin Luo Galaxy on behalf of the Homo Sapien Alliance.

Back then, she had been a lofty Cosmic Radiance, but now, even speaking to him casually seemed to leave her flustered. Fınd the newest release on nοvelfire.net

Palace Lord Qing Yu turned to Li Yunyao and said, "That's enough sparring for today, Yaoyao. You'll likely need time to digest things. We'll take our leave first."

She gave Li Pin another bow, then turned to leave with Yan Qing, making space for Li Pin and Yunyao, who had not met for a century.

"It's been a long time," Li Pin said.

"It really has," Li Yunyao responded.

Though in terms of their cultivation, such a span might only equate to one trip, one retreat, or one training session, in the scale of their lives... This was already a third of their entire lifetime.

"How have you been all this time?" Li Pin asked.

"Not bad. I spent the first few decades refining the Astral God Yin Luo's inheritance, absorbing every bit of it. It wasn't until the past ten years that I fully digested the legacy. With Sister Yan Qing's help, I adjusted quickly, and now... I've more or less adapted."

"Astral God Yin Luo's legacy..."

Li Pin thought of the changes the Light of the Ark had brought to all the civilizations in the Yin Luo Galaxy, and couldn't help but feel wistful. Back then, merely releasing his Astral energy had caused the lifeforms on numerous stars to mutate and led entire civilizations into new evolutions.

Gaia was one of these civilizations.

Even though Gaia absorbed only a minuscule portion of the Cosmic Radiance's energy, it still gave rise to countless demonic creatures. These demonic creatures had nearly led Gaia to extinction.

At that time, the Light of the Ark, who illuminated an entire cosmic river with his own power had seemed overwhelmingly mighty in Li Pin's eyes. But as time passed and his own power steadily grew, the aura of that Light of the Ark began to fade in comparison.

Now, a Cosmic Radiance was nothing in Li Pin's eyes. He could destroy it with a mere wave of his hand.

"It's a pity," Li Pin murmured.

The legacy of an Astral God limited future growth. Had he known the Light of the Ark was this weak, he would never have let Li Yunyao inherit that Cosmic Radiance's legacy.

Now, her future limit would be capped at the Cosmic Radiance Realm.

Li Yunyao, however, looked content. "It's not a pity. Without that inheritance, whether I could have even become an Astral God would've been uncertain."

He looked at the downcast Li Yunyao, as if wanting to say more, but when he sensed a trace of unfamiliarity, even restraint, he fell silent.

Yes. It was unfamiliarity, and distance.

From the moment Li Pin revealed his true identity, a rift had already formed between them in their once pure sibling bond. Now... to Li Yunyao, Li Pin, or rather, Divine Emperor Origin, was already countless realms apart from the big brother she once knew.

One was the doting elder brother who indulged her in the mundane world. The other was the Divine Emperor, Origin, who stood atop the Astral World. He was one whom even Cosmic Radiances, Tyrants, and Sacred Monarchs sought to curry favor with.

They were worlds apart. The gap was now so vast, it placed them in entirely different worlds.

Looking at her, in that moment, Li Pin vaguely saw a mark of law between them, something that transcended matter, energy, even emotion, and inner spirit. A barrier that could sever all things.

This trace... was known as time.