Chapter 432: Ups and Downs

All the Legends were eager to return to seclusion and step into the true Heavenly Realm after gaining valuable insights. The others, however, lingered around Solar Radiance Sovereign, engaging in lighthearted conversation.

In the blink of an eye, Solar Radiance Sovereign had replaced Li Pin as the new focal point of the restructured Gaia Alliance, taking center stage.

As Solar Radiance Sovereign observed Li Pin, Long Xiang, his follower, also turned to look at Li Pin, a faint smile on his face. The smugness in that smile was obvious.

Li Pin simply smiled in response, not feeling offended. In fact, he felt somewhat reassured.

After the group left, Yuan Zhenchuan, Qiao Baishi, and the others approached Li Pin.

Yuan Zhenchuan said to the others, "Let me have a word with Hall Master Li privately."

He then walked up to Li Pin with an apologetic expression. "I'm sorry. This matter has caused quite a stir. Everyone assumed you would be the first chairman of the Gaia Alliance. But instead, things turned out like this, causing you such a major embarrassment.'"

Li Pin smiled, brushing it off. "It's nothing."

He knew what Yuan Zhenchuan had on his mind. "I've never cared about these things. In fact, I sincerely believe this is a good thing."

Yuan Zhenchuan was taken aback. "A good thing?"

Li Pin nodded. "Yeah, a good thing. This means they'll soon be able to clear the Gaia demonic creatures with their own strength and lead humanity back to its dominant position.

"It means I won't have to spend so much time dealing with the creatures or the trivial matters of the Gaia Alliance. I'll have more time and energy for my martial arts cultivation."

His tone grew thoughtful as he added, "So yes, I truly think this is a good thing."

Yuan Zhenchuan knew Li Pin and understood he wouldn't say this out of spite. If humanity weren't facing an existential threat, Li Pin might not have involved himself in the affairs of the human alliance.

With Solar Radiance Sovereign taking action and bringing a true Heavenly Realm cultivation system, the responsibility now fell onto Solar Radiance Sovereign's shoulders and not his.

Perhaps Li Pin wasn't as disappointed as he seemed.

Yuan Zhenchuan sighed. "But with that, convincing them to mobilize the entire world to collect Celestial Core Fragments and help you break through to beyond the Legendary realm... won't be easy now."

"Beyond the Legendary realm?" Li Pin smiled faintly. "What Legendary realm? It's just the Heavenly Realm."

Li Pin thought for a moment, and then added, "As for whether my breakthrough truly counts as becoming a Legend... I'm not sure."

"Let's take two paths," Yuan Zhenchuan said. "We can't put all our eggs in one basket."

"If the Martial God lineage is still intact, even if we fail in the competition one day and are knocked back to square one, at least we'll have the Martial God lineage, and you, a martial arts Legend. The Gaia human race, within the alliance formed by the Divine Dragon Empire, won't find itself in too difficult a position...."

Li Pin remarked regretfully, "That's not exactly conducive to unity."

He hadn't expected they would be forced to fall back to the side they had once needed to combat.

The struggle for legitimacy was truly a strange thing.

The ups and downs of life were nothing more than this.

"I'll convince Solar Radiance Sovereign," Yuan Zhenchuan continued. "He understands the risks of fully aligning with the Divine Dragon Empire, so he won't refuse to preserve the Martial God lineage."

He paused briefly and then added, "I even suspect that the Divine Dragon Empire itself won't place all its hopes on the Astral God successor candidates from the Astral Cultivators."

Li Pin couldn't help but think of the Holy Dragon Clan in the Peach Blossom Secret Domain.

The dark magic of the Holy Dragons was completely separate from the astral energy system. No one knew how many other systems like dark magic might exist.

After exchanging a few more words, Yuan Zhenchuan, filled with guilt, excused himself.

At the Gaia Alliance Conference, everyone had expected Li Pin to rise to power. Instead, Solar Radiance Sovereign had flipped the situation, emerging as the biggest winner and gaining the support of all the Legends.

He had brought benefits to them all.

Although these benefits were limited to the next thousand years, few considered what might happen after.

It was like someone who could theoretically live to one hundred and twenty years. If offered ten billion in exchange for dying at one hundred, ninety-nine percent of people would take it without hesitation. The faint hope that humanity might develop life-extending technology wouldn't change their decision.

Once Yuan Zhenchuan departed, Li Pin gazed at the now quiet Redrock Canyon, his eyes calm.

"It's a good thing," he murmured.

It wasn't that he didn't want to bear the responsibilities of a Supreme Expert. He had already done what he was meant to do, fulfilling the trust placed in him by Yuan Zhenchuan and the others.

However, since the Solar Radiance Sovereign was confident in his plans, these trivial matters could be left to them.

Li Pin could focus on his martial arts cultivation.

Just as Yuan Zhenchuan had said, it was unwise to put all eggs in one basket. As the saying goes, "two legs would offer more stability."

With that thought, Li Pin turned the Void Ring in his hand. In the next moment, the space around him thickened.

Though he had used the divine ring many times, each time still left him in awe. These divine relics were truly extraordinary.

However, he knew that the mysteries of these relics were entirely dependent on the power of the Astral God Yin Luo.

Strictly speaking, they were merely keys to accessing Yin Luo's divine powers. Once Astral God Yin Luo's power dissipated, these relics would fade into obscurity.

***

In the training room at Celestial Martial God Hall.

Li Pin's mind echoed with the cultivation methods from the Cosmic True Dragon Secret Art as he compared them to the techniques from the Peach Blossom Secret Domain.

As he made this comparison, gaps in his martial arts understanding gradually filled.

"All paths in cultivation ultimately lead to the same destination. Whether it's the Astral Cultivator system, the dark magic cultivation system, or my own Martial God path, they all eventually demand reaching the Atomic Domain—a fundamental field from which all matter is constructed.

"Only by touching the Atomic Domain and manipulating its changes and combinations can one fully explore the various forms of matter and energy."

And this kind of power... was infinite.

"They say the Martial Saint controls infinite mental spirit to govern limited qi and blood, but Vitality, Qi, and Spirit are one whole. Without a strong body, how can one bear a powerful mental spirit? The mortal body itself is a form of matter, and if one truly possesses infinite matter and energy...."

Li Pin speculated that such an existence would be no different from the vast, boundless universe itself.

After all, in many people's minds, the universe represents infinity. Humanity has never truly observed its boundaries.

"Legends are born when someone at the Heavenly Realm unfolds their will and astral energy, creating an Atomic Domain, Stars, and World under their control.

"Martial arts also rely on the Vitality, Qi, and Spirit to condense a Lifeform Force Field and a Celestial Magnetic Field to nurture a Natal Planet.

"One system leads to absolute control; the other integrates seamlessly into the body. The paths are essentially the same, just expressed differently."

Li Pin's gaze stayed fixed on the Cosmic True Dragon Secret Art, focusing on the key to achieving Legend.

The key lay in one's will and astral energy unfolding to form a personal domain, planet, or world, without collapse. This seemed far simpler than enduring Gaia's Celestial Force Field's tempering trials.

However, after a moment's reflection, he realized something.

"Wait a minute. If the Natal Planet I create is too fragile and cannot withstand Gaia's Celestial Force Field, the Celestial Breaker phase will fail. How is this different from a Heavenly Realm breakthrough into Legend, where they form their domain and world? One is simply safer, the other is a gamble."

The more Li Pin studied, the more he felt a profound sense of simplicity and unity in the vastness of it all.[1]

After a long while, he fully absorbed the Cosmic True Dragon Secret Art, and his understanding of the Celestial Breaker path to becoming the Supreme Expert became clearer.

"What comes after the Astral God realm, I don't know. But once a cultivator possesses their own Natal Planet, it represents a complete atomic force that belongs only to them.

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"From there, they use the atomic force of the Natal Planet, combined with the crucial medium of inner spirit, to move atomic forces across the entire universe, thereby..."

Li Pin paused, frowning slightly.

No,

the gap feels too vast.

Going from a cosmic level to the entire universe directly? A single planet attempting to manipulate the forces of the cosmos?

Li Pin organized his thoughts.

Perhaps... it requires several, even dozens of Natal Planets to form a stellar system? A constellation? Until the shape of the universe begins to take form? A small universe within the body?

He knew that in order to fully grasp these concepts, he would need cultivation techniques from the Legendary to Astral God stages. To obtain them, he could either contact the Divine Dragon Empire or... wait.

Wait for the Homo Sapien Alliance to arrive, and then he would naturally gain access.

At that moment, Li Pin seemed to sense something. He pondered for a moment before ending his meditation.

When he left the training room and arrived at his courtyard, dozens of people were already waiting outside.

Among them were Xing Ying, Xing Hui, Yue Ying, Shi Shihu, Xie Longcheng, and Lan Daoquan, leading the group. The others were High-Class Martial Gods who had refined skill crystals.

Upon seeing Li Pin, they all bowed in unison. "Greetings, Hall Master."

"What's going on?" Li Pin's gaze swept over Shi Shihu and the others. "I remember you all were out scouting perilous regions. Why are you here?"

The group exchanged glances.

Finally, Xing Ying, who was closest to Li Pin, stepped forward. "Hall Master, we already know about the Gaia Alliance. We will always support any decision you make."

Shi Shihu solemnly said, "Hall Master, we understand that you need sufficient cultivation materials, and even Celestial Core Fragments, to take that crucial step. Originally, you planned to rely on the Gaia Alliance's strength, utilizing the Master Astral Cultivators and Legends to search for this treasure. But... please believe us, we can help too!"

Xie Longcheng loudly said, "Everyone in the Celestial Martial God Hall is at your service, Hall Master. We will dedicate ourselves fully to your cause."

The other Martial Gods echoed in unison. "At your command, Hall Master."

Li Pin looked at them, momentarily taken aback.

When he first founded the Celestial Martial God Hall... he had done it for two reasons. Firstly, it was to have someone help him handle the trivial matters. Secondly... he wanted to leave something behind in this world.

Relying on them for help... wasn't a thought that had crossed his mind. He hadn't expected things to turn out like this.

His gaze passed over each of them. He saw only sincere, fervent, and respectful gazes, even tinged with indignation over how he had been treated by the Gaia Alliance.

In the end, he smiled. He didn't say anything dismissive like "It's unnecessary." Instead, he simply said, "Since you're so willing... I'll look forward to when you bring the Celestial Core Fragments I need."

1. Implies the more Li Pin learns, the more he recognizes that everything in the universe is simpler and more harmonious than it initially appears. ☜