Each of his avatars could comprehend Laws without interfering with the others. To outsiders, it seemed Li Yang was biting off more than he could chew, attempting to master multiple Laws simultaneously.
The Eternal Ancestor’s assessment wasn’t unfounded. Most World Trees could only gestate a single avatar, but a portion of them could create two, and some could even produce three.
As for the Time Law, Li Yang had begun to comprehend it after breaking through to the Star Lord Realm. Before, on the steps of the Path of Deities, he had witnessed Li Yang’s mastery of the Time Law improve dramatically in just over a decade, progress that could even rival his advancement in the Fire Element Law.
Thus, he had guessed that Li Yang likely possessed an avatar similar to a Time Divine Tree.
Meeting the Eternal Ancestor’s gaze, Li Yang stood stunned for a long moment. He didn’t dare hide the truth. "Teacher," he said, "I do currently have four Law avatars: a Fire Nether Divine Beast, a Time Divine Tree, a Thunder Star Beast, and a Sky-Fierce Flood Dragon. On top of that, I also have an ordinary octopus avatar."
Since the Eternal Ancestor already knew most of it, there was no point in hiding anything.
"Oh? Two Deity-level avatars, and two more at the World Realm level?" Hearing Li Yang’s words, the Eternal Ancestor was obviously a little surprised.
Seeing Li Yang’s tense expression, he smiled. "Li Yang, there’s no need to be nervous. The Cosmos is full of miracles; anything is possible. Having so many powerful avatars is a testament to your own ability. I won’t probe into the details."
Li Yang was indeed on edge. Even if his World Tree had mutated, this degree of mutation was just too extreme.
In truth, he had many other secrets, like the mysterious small sword in his mind.
But after hearing the Eternal Ancestor’s words, Li Yang paused. Then, he couldn’t help but shake his head.
’He’s right. What kind of being is the Eternal Ancestor? Even with all my avatars, why would he care?’
The Eternal Ancestor was one of the beings who stood at the very pinnacle of the Cosmos, capable of creating universes and life itself. It was likely that no one in the entire Cosmos could kill an Eternal Ancestor. Why would a being like that care about Li Yang’s avatars?
The very races his avatars belonged to—the Fire Nether Divine Beasts, the Sky-Fierce Flood Dragons, and so on—would have to tremble and submit before the Eternal Ancestor.
"Since you have so many avatars, there’s even less reason to linger in the Star Lord Realm. I suggest you choose to break through directly."
The Eternal Ancestor smiled at Li Yang, clearly in high spirits.
The ability to gestate so many avatars suggested Li Yang might have secrets beyond just a mutated World Tree. But everyone had their secrets; he didn’t feel the need to pry.
He only knew one thing: with so many avatars, if Li Yang fully matured, the Human Race would gain an incredibly formidable powerhouse!
And that was something he was very much looking forward to.
"The path of cultivation is about forging ahead fearlessly. The early bottlenecks are nothing. The truly critical ones are the bottleneck from Deity to Emperor, and even more so, from Emperor to Sovereign. Those are the most difficult to overcome."
The Eternal Ancestor continued, "Lingering in the early stages is completely unnecessary. The sooner you break through, the better it will be for overcoming the bottlenecks that come later."
"As for the opportunities available at the Star Lord Realm, don’t be reluctant to let them go. I will now grant you forty inheritance opportunities."
"Forty inheritance opportunities?" Hearing this, Li Yang’s eyes lit up.
He had a dozen or so inheritance opportunities left before, and after passing the fortieth step of the Path of Deities, he had gained another twenty-eight, bringing his total to just over forty.
Now, the Eternal Ancestor had given him another forty, just like that.
These forty inheritance opportunities were definitely comparable to some major fortuitous encounters!
"Thank you, Teacher," Li Yang said hastily.
"Mm. You’re comprehending many Laws, so more inheritance opportunities will help you cultivate faster," the Eternal Ancestor said. "Go and break through. Once you do, absorb Spiritual Power until you’ve accumulated enough to reach the Peak of World Realm. Come see me again before you leave the Sacred Palace."
"Yes." Li Yang nodded respectfully.
Leaving the palace, Li Yang headed for the Lianyun Mountain Range, his mind still reeling from the shock.
’I can’t believe Teacher knew so much about me,’ Li Yang marveled. He had thought his secrets were well-hidden, but it turned out nothing had escaped the Eternal Ancestor’s notice.
"That Eternal Ancestor... his power seems to have grown even stronger." Just then, Soul Ink’s voice suddenly spoke up.
"Soul Ink, for a minute there I thought you were gone," Li Yang said with a laugh upon hearing his voice.
Earlier, in the Eternal Ancestor’s presence, Soul Ink had indeed been as silent as the grave.
"You’re really afraid of our Human Race’s Ancestor Realm experts, aren’t you?"
At that moment, Li Yang thought to himself, ’That Soul Crystal is truly strange. Hiding inside it, could the Eternal Ancestor really have not noticed Soul Ink?’
He mused, ’Or maybe he did notice, but just didn’t say anything?’
All sorts of thoughts raced through his mind.
"Nonsense!"
Hearing Li Yang’s jab, Soul Ink rolled his eyes. "What are you talking about? What kind of being do you think I am? Even an Ancestor would have a hard time killing me."
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Li Yang pressed, "Then how did you fall in the first place? It couldn’t have been anyone but an Ancestor Realm expert."
He had already guessed that Soul Ink must have once been a Sovereign. To be able to kill a Sovereign—one who even possessed avatars—and reduce him to his current state was something only an Ancestor Realm expert, one of the beings at the very pinnacle of the Cosmos, could achieve.
Therefore, Soul Ink must have fallen at the hands of an Ancestor.
"Kid Li Yang, the Cosmos is vast. There’s a lot you don’t know," Soul Ink said coolly. "Creator Ancestors are terrifying, but some of the dangerous places in the Cosmos are even more terrifying than they are."
Hearing this, Li Yang grew even more confused. "You mean you fell in one of those dangerous places?"
An expert of Soul Ink’s caliber would disdain to lie. If he said he hadn’t died at the hands of an Ancestor Realm expert, then he probably hadn’t.
But if an Ancestor Realm expert wasn’t responsible, who could possibly kill a Sovereign like Soul Ink, especially one who had avatars?
’Could it really have been one of those dangerous places?’
Seeing the curious look on Li Yang’s face, Soul Ink was about to retort when his gaze suddenly flickered. He changed the subject. "Kid Li Yang, every time you break through to a new realm, your soul strengthens almost instantly, even reaching the peak for that realm’s level. You must have some kind of special trump card, don’t you?"
He had been with Li Yang all this time, so he was naturally aware of his situation and knew for a fact that Li Yang had secrets.
For example, the World Tree that could continuously gestate avatars—even Deity-level ones—was a testament to the sheer scale of the secrets Li Yang held!
What’s more, Li Yang’s soul could actually be cultivated and strengthened continuously!
The soul is the very essence of life. Nearly all geniuses possess powerful souls. In other words, the strength of a person’s soul largely determines the upper limit of their future growth.
But the soul is incredibly difficult to strengthen, yet Li Yang was an exception.
Soul Ink’s eyes darted about as he seemed to be lost in thought. After a long moment, he suddenly said, "In the future, if you can mature fully and attain a combat strength on par with the Sovereign Realm, I’ll present you with a massive fortuitous encounter!"
He recalled his own past, remembering how he had forcefully tried to claim ownership of that terrifying treasure, only to suffer a backlash that directly annihilated his soul. Even now, the memory sent a chill through him.
’That treasure was too terrifying! It was never something I could have claimed. The requirements it had for one’s soul were simply too demanding!’
"A massive fortuitous encounter?"
Hearing Soul Ink’s words, Li Yang was taken aback. "What kind of encounter?" he asked.
"A Supreme Saint Artifact!" Soul Ink replied directly, not bothering to hide it.
(Updates will resume tomorrow.)