The vast expanse of the cosmos.
Lin Yuan’s mind and will returned.
Immediately, a tremendous change took place within him.
During the Ultimate Leap, Lin Yuan fell into the Heart Demon World and then broke free.
It seemed as though hundreds of thousands of cosmic epochs had passed inside, yet in the outside world, only a dozen or so breaths had gone by.
But within these mere dozen or so breaths, Lin Yuan’s physical body, soul, and even his internal world had expanded by an unknown magnitude.
“My physical body...” Lin Yuan looked at his hands.
At this moment, every drop of his blood brimmed with boundless power. Relying on raw physical strength alone—without tapping into any other laws or techniques—he could suppress a normal Path-Clearing realm expert.
Even Gu Li, the Strongest one of human civilization who specialized exclusively in raw physical power, would certainly not compare to Lin Yuan in terms of body strength.
It’s not that Gu Li’s path is lacking; rather, Lin Yuan’s foundation is simply too immense. He can accommodate an ocean-like quantity of Chaos Void source power, and even if only one-tenth of that is absorbed by his body, the resulting boost far surpasses the full benefit of a normal 11th-rank pinnacle breakthrough to the 12th rank.
Besides the Chaos Void source power, the mysterious gourd, the Mysterious Emperor Body, the Devil Jade Undying Body, and many other factors have elevated Lin Yuan’s physical body to an unimaginable level.
“The Mysterious Emperor Body.”
Now that his life essence has successfully metamorphosed and crossed into the 12th rank, the Mysterious Emperor Body technique he practiced has likewise reached a 12th-rank level on its own.
Exhale! Inhale! After running it briefly, Lin Yuan’s body strength increased by another notch, but then he ceased its operation.
There was no choice: the Mysterious Emperor Body demands terrifying resources. Even reaching 12th-rank perfection or 12th-rank Path-Clearing realm perfection is nowhere in sight within this universe.
“But I can obtain the resources needed to cultivate the Mysterious Emperor Body from the Guming Chaos Continent, perhaps?”
Lin Yuan pondered inwardly.
By the rules of this universe, no existence at the 12th rank can leave it. The most they can do is project an utterly insignificant avatar.
However, the universe’s rules do not restrict resources from outside coming in.
Lin Yuan can fully acquire numerous resources from the Guming Chaos Continent and bring them back for his true self to cultivate.
As for how to obtain all those resources? The simplest way would be to sell the Chaos realm treasure left behind by Cang Weiyang, a peak Dominance realm powerhouse.
A Chaos realm treasure, even with Lin Yuan now stepping into the 12th rank, cannot be activated anytime soon. Instead of letting it collect dust, why not convert it as quickly as possible into direct strength?
Given the value of a Chaos realm treasure, it will more than suffice for Lin Yuan to cultivate the Mysterious Emperor Body to Path-Clearing realm perfection.
“My soul is also at the peak of the Path-Clearing realm.”
Lin Yuan nodded slightly. One’s soul depends on both the physical body and the mind and will.
After the Ultimate Leap, now at the 12th rank, a rise in soul strength is unsurprising.
“My mental will... should be at least sixty million points.” Lin Yuan let out a small sigh.
Compared to the body and soul, improving one’s mental will is far more difficult, especially after reaching twenty million points in the mental will index.
During his 11th transmigration, Lin Yuan spent hundreds of years at the Immortal Realm’s core, observing and comprehending the very laws themselves, and his mental will index barely reached forty million.
A forty-million mental will index is already the peak of the Path-Clearing realm. Many Path-Clearing realm peak experts do not reach such towering mental will.
But a sixty-million mental will index? That might already be on par with a peak Dominance realm expert’s mental will.
To jump from forty million to sixty million mental will points is far beyond what a normal 11th-rank pinnacle would gain by breaking through to the 12th rank.
“The Heart Demon World I experienced drew its power source from the main branch of the River of Time, forming itself according to my own foundation.”
Lin Yuan thought quietly.
In that Heart Demon World, he did not know how many cosmic epochs he lived through—thousands or tens of thousands? A normal 11th-rank pinnacle would never face that sort of hellish-difficulty Heart Demon World. The only logical explanation is that, because Lin Yuan’s foundation was so strong, the difficulty of his Heart Demon World was drastically heightened.
Certainly, if the Heart Demon World is heightened in difficulty, overcoming it brings huge benefits, and that sixty-million mental will index is proof.
“No wonder they say that no matter how profound your foundation, there’s no guarantee of success in reaching the 12th rank. The other aspects might be easy, but the Heart Demon World’s challenge for each 11th rank differs. The stronger one’s foundation, the more difficult the Heart Demon World becomes.”
Lin Yuan reflected.
Before encountering the Heart Demon World, neither the backlash of the River of Time nor the backlash from the universe itself had any real impact on him. It was like a breeze—no threat at all.
Only when the Heart Demon World descended did Lin Yuan sense the true hardship.
In that Heart Demon World, brimming with countless calamities, Lin Yuan had no advantages beyond his memories—he was effectively an ordinary mortal. As time stretched on—hundreds or thousands of cosmic epochs—his memories even began to blur.
If not for the unprecedented spread of the martial evolution path, which served as Lin Yuan’s anchor to keep track of his true self, then even if he had eventually escaped the Heart Demon World, it would not have been so effortless.
“My internal universe.”
Lin Yuan’s consciousness shifted to his internal universe.
At this moment, his internal universe had expanded to 2.2 million light-years across.
Bear in mind, before the Ultimate Leap, Lin Yuan’s internal universe was only about 500,000 light-years in range.
From 500,000 light-years to 2.2 million light-years might seem like just a four- to five-fold increase. Yet in terms of actual mass, it’s dozens or even hundreds of times greater.
“After the Ultimate Leap, my internal universe keeps on expanding. Its final extreme size should be about eight million light-years across.”
Lin Yuan thought to himself.
A normal 12th-rank Path-Clearing realm expert’s internal universe eventually caps at somewhere between tens of thousands and a hundred thousand light-years, whereas Lin Yuan’s can reach eight million light-years.
“The internal universe of the Dominance realm is little more than that.”
Lin Yuan felt quite pleased. An eight-million-light-year internal universe is massive, even among Dominance realm existences.
And within this universe? If you combined all the internal universes of the various 12th-rank pinnacle beings, they still might not fill even one ten-thousandth of Lin Yuan’s.
“As for my current level... with my understanding of many laws, even though I’ve just entered the Path-Clearing realm, I’m already at its peak.”
Lin Yuan examined himself.
Of course, that pertains to his realm.
What about his combat strength?
Whether it’s his physical body, soul, internal universe, or mastery of laws, Lin Yuan stands far above a normal Path-Clearing realm cultivator.
Even though his life level has not yet attained the Dominance realm, Lin Yuan’s actual combat strength is in no way inferior to any Dominance realm expert.
A Path-Clearing realm at peak that can match the Dominance realm is exceptionally rare in the vast Chaos Void—normally limited to children or descendants of Great Saints or wonder-lifeforms endowed with a sliver of the Time bloodline.
Moreover, Lin Yuan has only just entered the Path-Clearing realm. In the next few centuries or millennia—his time of rapid growth—he might well stand shoulder to shoulder with the peak of the Dominance realm.
“My strength is being suppressed.” Lin Yuan gazed toward the cosmic sky.
Even though he now possesses power comparable to a Dominance realm expert, this universe is stifling him, so he can only exert strength at the pinnacle of the Path-Clearing realm.
Lin Yuan was unsurprised by this. According to the records from the Mysterious Emperor lineage, that is indeed how it works.
The Chaos Void nurtures countless universes, and each universe fosters countless lifeforms. But within such a universe, the highest limit is only the peak of the Path-Clearing realm.
Why is the maximum limit in a universe merely the peak of the Path-Clearing realm? It’s not that achieving the Dominance realm within a single cosmic epoch is impossible, but over the course of countless universes and countless epochs, did no unexpected situation ever occur?
Even if normal lifeforms can’t accomplish it, what about those reincarnated Chaos Great Saints? If they recovered even part of their memories, couldn’t they reach Dominance within one cosmic epoch?
In truth, the universe itself suppresses anything beyond the Path-Clearing realm’s peak—that is, the Dominance realm.
This is a limitation set by the greater environment; even reincarnated Chaos Great Saints must abide by it. If they want to display Dominance- or Chaos-level power, they must leave for the Chaos Void.
Of course, there is one way to break that restriction, which is by unleashing power at the Chaos Great Saint level within the universe. That level of force could shatter everything in the universe and bring about the universe’s Great Destruction, exceeding what the universe can suppress.
Yet that’s far too difficult. Even for Chaos Great Saints, recovering their Great Saint-level power in just one cosmic epoch is no trivial feat.
The might of a Chaos Great Saint does not only hinge on law comprehension; it also demands a mighty body and soul. Achieving this requires a virtually astronomical number of resources. Draining countless Chaos Continents would not suffice.
“Peak Path-Clearing realm strength is enough,” Lin Yuan mused for a moment, then nodded.
With his talent and methods, even if he can only employ the peak of the Path-Clearing realm, he can easily dominate all 12th-rank beings in this universe.
Any 12th-rank being bold enough to fight Lin Yuan would only meet total annihilation.
“Hmm? My gourd?”
Lin Yuan seemed to recall something. Lifting his right hand, he reached into the depths of space and time.
When he drew his hand back, a palm-sized mysterious gourd appeared in his grasp.
Lin Yuan had acquired this mysterious gourd as a spoil of war when he took command of the Milky Way Star Domain. It has extraordinary effects, able to break the internal world’s upper limits, and it can also break the body’s limits.
Even now, Lin Yuan has yet to hear of any similar item. Though the Chaos Void contains countless treasures and opportunities, those with similar abilities are all unimaginably rare, beyond the reach of even Chaos Venerables or Chaos Great Saints. But as for this mysterious gourd?
Its liquid is inexhaustible.
At least, to this day, Lin Yuan has not noticed any sign of it running dry.
After Lin Yuan completely absorbed the seven-colored liquid within, he learned the next step for the mysterious gourd requires that his internal world transform into an internal universe—that is, stepping into the 12th rank.
Before making his ultimate charge, Lin Yuan prepared for the worst: failing the breakthrough and dying completely, leaving not even the Gate of Myriad Realms salvageable.
Thus, he did not carry the gourd, instead hiding it deep within space-time.
Given Lin Yuan’s prowess in space-time manipulation, none of the 12th-rank experts in this universe could possibly locate the gourd.
After ten thousand years, if Lin Yuan failed to retrieve it, the spacetime seal tying down the gourd would loosen, and the gourd would carry Lin Yuan’s message of its own accord to the central region of human civilization.
In Lin Yuan’s plan, if he truly did fall, at least the mysterious gourd would remain with human civilization, continuing to serve a purpose.
But now...
Everything has gone smoothly.
Looking at the gourd in his hand, Lin Yuan found that, as soon as it made contact with his skin, the formerly gray-purple surface began to fade.
“It’s undergoing some sort of metamorphosis?”
Lin Yuan speculated inwardly, then placed the mysterious gourd inside his internal universe.
Judging by how fast the gray-purple hue was fading, it wouldn’t finish its transformation anytime soon.
All around the universe...
Countless 12th-rank beings closely monitored Lin Yuan’s breakthrough.
Lin Yuan’s stepping into the 12th rank had major implications for this universe’s future. No 12th-rank expert dared ignore it.
In particular, the Insect Race, the Tianyu Race, and various others that have long been mortal enemies of human civilization—ties of enmity that cannot be undone. Once Lin Yuan really attains the 12th rank, life will only get harder for them and their clans. They might have to hide away inside their ancestral weapons for ages to come.
“Milky Way Star Lord, please fail.”
“Yes, whatever you do, don’t reach the 12th rank.”
Many 12th-rank beings secretly hoped for such an outcome.
Yet in the next moment...
The aura belonging to the Milky Way Star Lord emerged again in the universe. Simultaneously, many 12th-rank entities sensed the karmic link of the Milky Way Star Lord.
All at once, they fell silent.
The Milky Way Star Lord’s aura and karmic link reappearing meant that he had succeeded in his breakthrough—he had safely reached the 12th rank.
If he had failed, his life essence and everything else would have been destroyed entirely, never to reform an aura or karmic link.
“The 12th rank.”
“The Milky Way Star Lord has stepped into the 12th rank.”
“It’s over. He was already able to overpower 12th-rank experts at the 11th rank. Now, with the leap in life essence and the massive expansion of his internal world, his power will far surpass what it once was.”
“Who can possibly stand against the Milky Way Star Lord now?”
“I’m going to contact human civilization and sue for peace with the Milky Way Star Lord.”
Countless 12th-rank powerhouses each reacted in their own way, but they were all acutely aware that, for the countless years left until the universe’s Great Destruction, the future of this cosmos hinges on the Milky Way Star Lord.
Even those as mighty as 12th-rank beings must bow to his will.
“That about settles it.”
Sensing the changes in himself, Lin Yuan took a single step in a particular direction.
The nine Strongest ones of human civilization had been safeguarding his breakthrough. Now that he’d reached the 12th rank, naturally he wished to meet with them straightaway.
Beneath the starry sky.
Xuanyuan, the Strongest one, and the other eight Strongest ones of human civilization were equally overjoyed.
They too sensed the karmic link of the Milky Way Star Lord.
Just as Xuanyuan and the eight others were brimming with excitement, a figure appeared nearby.
It was Lin Yuan.
“Milky Way Star Lord.”
Xia Qin, the Strongest one, looked at Lin Yuan. Right now, he could not sense any aura at all, as though no one stood before him—proof that Lin Yuan’s level had far outstripped his own.
“Milky Way Star Lord, you’ve reached the 12th rank?”
Xuanyuan, the Strongest one, also gazed intently at Lin Yuan. Though he was certain in his heart, he could not help asking.
Lin Yuan’s face was calm. With a faint smile, he said, “The light boat has already passed beyond countless peaks.”
...
20 chapters ahead on patreon: patreon.com/David_Lord
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