Chapter 115: Aslan's Wounds

Before the Ten-Person Group set out, many wanted to follow along—some to witness your revival of the Danxia Goddess, others more deeply to observe the state of her resurrection. Among these people, some could be refused, some were difficult to refuse, and some could not be refused at all. It was only when Bishop Anthony spoke, promising to soon release a promotional piece about the Danxia Painting Realm, that they finally let you go. Yet, secretly, quite a few still trailed behind.

Sang Sang said, “The Danxia Goddess’s condition is not good. Her karmic burden is too heavy; even her spiritual power should be used sparingly. She’s essentially an immortal mortal.”

Sena shook his head. “No, it’s actually a good thing. The temple’s research into karmic cause and effect far surpasses the understanding of spacetime backlash. Isn’t your secret technique of karmic transfer an example of this? As long as the Danxia Goddess’s karma is removed, although it won’t be a perfect resurrection, it will be very close. For many, this is far better than reincarnation or starting anew.”

“The key point is that you, at a star-level, can reverse a soul of the origin rank, and one whose soul has been severely depleted after tens of thousands of years of death. Though you haven’t restored her original star core, her comprehension of the laws remains intact. Reuniting her origin is only a matter of time.”

The Celestial Emperor suddenly asked, “Sang Sang’s resurrection technique is powerful. Could it attract covetous eyes? Like those soul-searching and law-stealing assassins—the Judgment Knights possess such forbidden arts.”

Boya and Sena exchanged glances, then nodded toward Sang Sang. “There’s no shortage of desperate people in this world, or the Mid Circle wouldn’t be so lively.”

Sena smiled reassuringly, “Don’t worry. You’re only at the fourth realm of spacetime now. True experts won’t offend the temple for such small gains. Those who want your laws now are people who haven’t unified their origin. After all, you’re star-level. They can at most hire folks at the profound rank who might ambush you when you’re alone. When someday you manage to condense the spacetime origin, you’ll face a real bloodbath.”

“Relying on others is no match for relying on yourself. Sang Sang, I’m off to train now.” The Celestial Emperor, provoked, disappeared with a scowl.

“I know. No risk, no opportunity,” Sang Sang said, having anticipated this situation when she first revealed her possession of spacetime laws. She felt no surprise nor worry; the temple’s protection was very useful at her current stage. Spacetime had told her that within the next thousand days she would face no life-threatening crises.

Sena added, “So, to reduce your rarity, this upcoming promotional piece about the Danxia Painting Realm will emphasize your hardships and efforts, exaggerate the injuries from your spacetime backlash, and portray the Danxia Goddess’s resurrection outcome less optimistically. Unfortunately, too many know about her soul depletion, so we can’t tamper with that.”

Sang Sang, not a seeker of empty fame, agreed with Sena’s plan. Since the AI nanny in her small world had continuously recorded multidimensional footage, she instructed Black Butterfly to send the recordings to Sena for editing.

Boya chuckled from the side. “Once the promotion starts, Rocky can help share some of the pressure. Back then, he declared whoever could perfectly resurrect the Danxia Goddess would be acknowledged as the master, and the Danxia Painting Realm would belong to them. Even grand cosmic masters wouldn’t bow before him in person. In the end, picky as he was, he failed to perfectly revive his beloved and instead fell at the feet of a star-level youngster under thirty. Those offended by him have a lot to say.”

Sena, holding the footage, was discussing editing plans online with the promotional team nearby. Sang Sang quietly asked, “Teacher Boya, what about Teacher Aslan?”

Boya was momentarily stunned by the question.

Just then, Sena, who was in the middle of a multidimensional video conference, stood up. “Send me your edits when done. I’ll go to the Danxia Painting Realm to urge them to complete the teleportation array soon. We’ll use it to return safely.”

After Sena left, Boya sighed and pulled a small golden figurine from his sleeve. He tapped it with his index finger, and it grew until it transformed into Aslan.

Aslan lay asleep with eyes closed.

Sang Sang’s expression grew peculiar.

Boya awkwardly explained, “He refuses to go out. I had no choice but to knock him out and bring him along.” Clearing his throat, he added, “Could you check if there’s any spacetime power in his sea of consciousness?”

“Spacetime power?” Sang Sang pondered. “Isn’t Teacher Aslan’s injury a curse?”

“They all say it’s a curse, but I don’t believe it,” Boya said seriously. “The Divine Court reported that Yuan Guang, the former Chief Holy Son who fought Alan in the Wei’an Secret Realm, fully recovered 150 years ago. A few months back, he revealed the secret of possessing spacetime power during a battle. It is said to have been bestowed by his family elders. Fortunately, confirmed reports show his elder who cultivated spacetime never unified the spacetime origin.”

Just as expected.

Sang Sang thought quietly, then placed her hand on Teacher Aslan’s forehead, probing his sea of consciousness with star energy for a thorough examination.

Aslan’s sea of consciousness was vast beyond measure. Sang Sang had thought her own was large, but compared to Aslan’s, it was like the difference between a galaxy and the entire universe. The sea stretched like an infinite starry sky, far beyond heavenly-grade limits. Liquid-like thought energy flowed, nearly filling the entire sea.

As expected, Sang Sang found the core of thought energy at the peak of heavenly grade, yet it couldn’t transform into a star core, for once formed, the star core would automatically dissolve into thought energy and laws.

Teacher Aslan seemed never to have given up. Every moment, even unconscious, his thought energy persistently infused laws to condense a star core.

At the instant the star core formed and dissolved, a sliver of star power transformed and vanished. Sang Sang wrapped her consciousness with spacetime power, attaching to that fragment, following it as it tore through space and time, entering a sealed spacetime segment. The entire segment was saturated with Aslan’s star power, and at its center, a massive mountain loomed.

That was the origin of force—the original star core form of Teacher Aslan.

Ultimate force, capable of controlling gravity.

The gravity near the mountain was too strong for Sang Sang to approach, so she examined the energy forming the spacetime segment at its edge.

The result shocked her.

Indeed, it was the past energy unique to the spacetime laws, very powerful but not enough to astonish her, for it was merely an uncontrolled energy, not unshakable.

What truly shocked Sang Sang was that through the spacetime eye, she sensed familiar aura fluctuations on this past energy.

Sang Sang knew few people at the temple, especially few master-level acquaintances whose auras she would remember. Besides Grandpa Anthony, there were only Sena, two teachers plus Cain, and three predecessors long dead in the Divine Tomb. Yet the aura fluctuations on this past energy belonged to someone she feared.

—Master Yuan Mo, a person who should not have appeared.

Master Yuan Mo never bestowed complete inheritance, only initiations. In the star law initiations Sang Sang received, Yuan Mo’s spacetime only began to merge. Someone able to cultivate spacetime to the fifth realm through this newly merged spacetime power must have comprehension ten or a hundred times that of her or the Celestial Emperor. Moreover, those who deepen their spacetime realm through other opportunities would also show changed aura fluctuations.

(End of this installment. Please remember to vote, dear sisters, after reading!)