Six months had passed since the blood-soaked night when Zhao Fen and Elder Yan fell, their deaths a testament to Xun Wei's ruthless cunning. Ironbloom Valley's jagged cliffs loomed under a fractured sky, the Void Realm's crimson stars pulsing like wounds. Xun Wei, sixteen, stood alone in the Abyssal Hollow's shadows, his black robes clinging to a lean, youthful frame, his boyish face hardened by cultivation's toll. His serene expression masked a god-level soul, its divine power—stolen in his past life—suppressed to spare his fragile meridians, which strained at Immortal Shaping Stage Late. His Void Dantian churned, a vortex of crimson and golden qi, the Dual Path of Eternity anchoring his ascent at Core Formation Late, Harmony Stage Early, quadrupling his power. The righteous Light of Serenity cloaked his demonic Crimson Fang Technique, Blood Thorn, Soulfang Bind, Mindveil Clarity, Soulreap Grasp, Memory Extraction, Abyssal Leech, and Celestial Harmony Technique, his second foundation deceiving the Celestial Mandate and sect elders.
The Dual Path—forged in his past life as a D-grade cultivator—combined righteous and demonic qi, its stages guiding his path: Initiation (doubled power, Mortal Forging body—hardened bones, reinforced muscles, widened meridians), Fusion (tripled power, Spirit Tempering body—fortified meridians, reinforced dantian, soul-body link), Harmony (quadrupled power, Immortal Shaping body—Core Formation physique, Heavenstage meridians, near-Immortal resilience), and Transcendence (Sky Immortal power, Celestial Ascension body—Sky Immortal physique). At Harmony Early, his soul arts refined, his Immortal Shaping Late body—4x mortal resilience—held only 25% of his god-level power. Only at Celestial Ascension Stage Middle, far off, could he wield his divine soul's full might, rendering him overpowered, capable of soloing Immortal foes. His focus was revenge against the Mandate for its cosmic tyranny and strengthening his body through solo beast battles, each kill fueling Memory Extraction.
Xun Wei's cultivation skyrocketed where others stagnated. His god-level soul negated qi deviation, stabilizing the Dual Path's volatile synergy, amplifying qi absorption from kills. The Dual Path quadrupled power, bypassing traditional cultivation's limits, allowing Memory Extraction to steal skills instantly. Disciples like Hua Ling and Kai Ren, bound by mortal souls and single-path methods, crawled forward, their sect resources no match for Xun Wei's divine advantage. In six months, Hua Ling reached Foundation Middle, Kai Ren lingered at Foundation Middle, while Xun Wei's kills pushed him toward Harmony Middle, his body hardening with each battle.
Ironbloom Valley simmered with discord, Yan's heresy and Zhao Fen's death fracturing trust. Hua Ling, Foundation Middle, her Jade Blossom Technique blooming gently, trained beside Kai Ren, Foundation Middle, his Thundercoil Technique crackling. "The elders feud," Hua Ling whispered, wary. Kai Ren sneered, "Xun Wei's schemes stink of ambition." Elder Cang, Core Formation Late, his Starflow Technique casting constellations, eyed Xun Wei with distrust, while the First Elder, Heavenstage Middle, his Skyclad Vigil Technique clouded by grief, leaned on Xun Wei, a pawn in his web.
Xun Wei wove his schemes, whispering through disciples that Elder Cang ignored Yan's demonic taint, weakening his influence. He integrated Celestial Harmony and Abyssal Leech, birthing Harmonic Leech Pulse, a crimson-gold wave draining qi through air, cloaked in righteous qi. Testing it on a stone pillar, it crumbled, his meridians trembling, blood seeping, but his Immortal Shaping Late body held. Yan's memories (Chapter 6) hinted at a demonic shadow beyond the sect, a seed for vengeance.
A tremor shook the valley, demonic qi seeping from the Abyssal Hollow. Rogue Bloodfang Wolves, Foundation Late, their crimson eyes glowing, rampaged near the sect's borders, their hides marked with Yan's demonic runes. In the Hall of Eternal Roots, Elder Cang addressed Inner Disciples, his voice sharp. "Yan's taint breeds chaos," he rasped. "Xun Wei, lead a team to purge these beasts, or answer for Zhao Fen's fall." The First Elder nodded, grief-stricken. "Cleanse our shame," he rumbled.
Xun Wei bowed, his mind ice. He'd scheme to fight alone, his solo battles a crucible to strengthen his body. Leading Hua Ling, Kai Ren, and ten Outer Disciples into the Hollow, he slipped ahead, Phantom Wisp Technique cloaking him. Bloodfang Wolves lunged, claws tearing earth. Xun Wei's Harmonic Leech Pulse drained their qi, Blood Thorn piercing their hides, crimson vines coiling. He felled four, Memory Extraction seizing Feral Slash, a claw-based strike. His meridians cracked, blood pooling, his body screaming, but he stood firm, his ruthless will unbroken. A wolf's claw raked his chest, blood spraying, yet he countered, Light of Serenity stabilizing his qi, his solo victory a testament to his cunning and pain tolerance.
Hua Ling's Jade Blossom shielded a disciple, Kai Ren's Thundercoil downed a wolf, but Xun Wei's kills dwarfed theirs. "You court death alone," Kai Ren growled. Xun Wei's serene smile cut like a blade. "Death fears me." Three Outer Disciples fell, their screams echoing, but Xun Wei felt no remorse—sacrifice was power, as Zhao Lin's death in his past life proved, her husk drained by his Crimson Fang.
Deep in the Hollow, Xun Wei found a cracked altar, its runes matching Yan's sigils. A vision struck, his god-level soul flaring: a demonic figure, its voice a rumble, "The heretic rises." Another image—Zhao Lin, alive, silver robes shimmering with Mandate sigils, her qi vast. Xun Wei's eyes narrowed, void of kinship. In his past life, he killed her, her qi fueling his rise. If she lived, a Mandate pawn, she was an obstacle to crush. The vision hinted at a demonic lord tied to Yan, a distant threat his current strength couldn't face, a spark for revenge.
Returning, Xun Wei presented a wolf's demonic core to the First Elder. "Yan's taint lingers," he said, Light of Serenity radiating purity. "Elder Cang's negligence let it fester." The First Elder's eyes darkened, his trust in Cang faltering. "You serve well," he rumbled, granting access to the Ironbloom Codex, a repository of righteous techniques. Xun Wei planned to fuse a new technique with his Dual Path, strengthening his facade.
Elder Cang confronted him, his Starflow heavy. "Your schemes breed discord," he rasped. "Prove loyalty, or I'll expose you." Xun Wei bowed, his mask perfect, plotting Cang's ruin, perhaps framing him for demonic ties. His revenge against the Mandate burned, its laws a chain to shatter, his path to dominance paved with blood and cunning.
In his dorm, Xun Wei meditated, his Void Dantian a vortex. The Dual Path's body strengthening—Mortal Forging, Spirit Tempering, Immortal Shaping, Celestial Ascension—guided him. At Immortal Shaping Late, his body rivaled Heavenstage, but Celestial Ascension Middle would unleash his god-level soul, making him unstoppable. His god-level soul and Dual Path explained his edge: while Hua Ling and Kai Ren toiled, his divine soul absorbed qi effortlessly, his Dual Path quadrupling gains. Zhao Lin's vision lingered—a challenge, not guilt, her potential Mandate role a spur to his vengeance.
In the Void Realm's temple, divine waters rippled, a crimson ouroboros stirring. A golden-robed being hissed, "The heretic schemes, his soul defies."
An ancient voice, cold as iron, replied, "Laws cannot be broken; hosts wait. His kin may rise to judge him, or the laws will descend."
"Patience," the being intoned. "His web will choke him."