Chapter 571: Opening

Time passed swiftly.

A stellar year, equivalent to more than ten Gaia years, seemed to pass in the blink of an eye as Li Pin's cultivation advanced. The concept of time gradually lost its significance, fading away as if in a fleeting moment.

The older a person becomes, the longer the span of their years, and with it, the blurring of their perception of time.

Three years of a pandemic left a lasting imprint on students, marking an era of their youth. Yet for men in their thirties or forties, it passed almost unnoticed, with little more than a sigh of reflection.

***

Inside the training room, Li Pin opened his eyes, his expression calm.

"The True Spirit Realm... As expected, it's incredibly difficult," he murmured.

Absolute Control, the Perfect Realm, the True Spirit Realm, and beyond them, the Transcendent Realm of Omniscience and Omnipotence. These were the stages of cultivation that shape a practitioner's life.

The Perfect Realm could theoretically only be comprehended within the Astral World, where the omnipresent power of the Eternal Oblivion Force would erode and assist a person's understanding.

It was like learning to swim. No amount of theoretical knowledge on land could replace being thrown into the river. If one was lucky, a few splashes were enough to stay afloat.

As for those who failed to learn, they wouldn't have the chance to speak of it.

In comparison to the Perfect Realm, the True Spirit realm represented the limit of a sentient being's mastery over power.

It was also known as the Ultimate Realm, often linked to the domain of Cosmic Radiance.

Its nature mirrored that of the Perfect State and Astral Gods.

"Beings below the Legendary Realm are considered planetary lifeforms. Only beyond that do they ascend to cosmic lifeforms. However, there's no separate category for Astral World lifeforms between cosmic beings and Astral Gods. Only by attaining the Cosmic Radiance stage through the True Spirit Realm can one be recognized as an Ultimate Lifeform."

Li Pin recalled the manuals he had studied.

The Ultimate Lifeform represented the theoretical limit of existence within the universe. Transcendence, in some respects, also fell within the realm of the ultimate. However, just as the Legendary Realm spanned from Tier One to Six, Ultimate Lifeforms varied in power.

"The True Spirit transcends all illusions, piercing through the transformations of matter, energy, and mental spirit to glimpse one's true soul. It is the purest essence of life, the foundation of all things."

He reflected on the descriptions found in the manuals.

"Even those aligned with the Void faction perceive the world through the True Spirit. However, they discard everything beyond it, like mental spirit, inner spirit, energy, and matter. As a result, they remain unseen, and no method that relies on material, energetic, mental spirit, or inner spirit forces can harm them."

The True Spirit could reflect its surroundings, encompassing matter, energy, mental spirit, and even the inner spirit.

Within this range of reflection, any being whose thoughts or consciousness touched upon him, be it an idle notion or a fleeting idea, would establish a resonance, allowing him to perceive and sense their presence.

Some Cosmic Radiance Beings, having delved deeply into the mysteries of the True Spirit, instinctively shed the interference of matter, energy, mental spirit, and even their inner spirit, seeking a purer and more absolute existence. In doing so, they attained the ability to comprehend all and perceive everything.

In this state, even time and space became transparent before them.

Sometimes, they could glimpse fragments of the future, gaining prophetic insight and predicting events before they unfolded.

In some ways, this was almost like omniscience and omnipotence, though passive and limited only to information related to themselves.

𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

The True Spirit's influence was called "reflection" because Astral Gods who had mastered the Perfect Realm and possessed strong inner spirit power could perceive it.

To them, it felt like soft waves of radiant light seeping into their hearts, filling their consciousness.

Cosmic Radiance... Cosmic Radiance....

Li Pin thought.

The term Cosmic Radiance originated from this very phenomenon. It referred not only to the True Spirit's radiant presence but also to their power to spread influence across the cosmos.

"For a Cosmic Radiance being who has condensed the True Spirit, the thoughts of lower lifeforms become transparent as glass."

Li Pin marveled at the profundity of this realm, gaining a new appreciation for the greatness of Cosmic Radiance entities.

Thanks to this extraordinary realm, the Cosmic Radiance Beings could extend their power, which resonated with their True Spirit. This resonance allowed their True Spirit to perceive and understand, effortlessly achieving perfect control.

If the Brilliant Starshine and Eternal Solar Flare Realms signified perfect mastery over one's own power, then for a Cosmic Radiance being, everything within their sight fell under their dominion.

The gap between these realms was like the difference between a Legendary Being with no inner spirit and one who had mastered it.

"No wonder the Astral World bestows so many titles upon Cosmic Radiance Astral Gods. Besides Cosmic Radiance and Ultimate Lifeform, they are known as the Great Ones, Masters of Divine Powers, Perfected Beings, Grand Realm Masters, and more."

Li Pin gathered his thoughts, focused his mind, and pulled up his attribute panel.

[Energy: 60,000],

[Energy Level: 2.1],

[Perfect Realm: 340,000],

[Astral God: 80/100]

______________________________

[Eternal Light, Thunder God: 500/100],

[Eternal Light, Fleeting Gleam: 500/100],

[Eternal Light, Absolute Darkness: 500/100],

[Limit Break State: 390/100]

The attribute panel was straightforward. Skills and stats—everything was clear at a glance.

Though his rank wasn't high, his intense training during seclusion had brought his skills to proficiency. This partly made up for the gap in combat techniques compared to the Astral God's avatar.

As for the Limit Break State, a proficiency level of 390 meant the development of Stage Four Limit Break had reached ninety percent.

The Astral God's progress was similar. This indicated his chances of successfully ascending to an Astral God.

However, the eighty percent success rate wasn't entirely reliable. Integrating into the Astral World introduced many variables. Some of them might even lower his chances to below ten percent.

Then there was the concept of the Perfect Realm, representing the level of power he could fully control.

The slow progress over the years stemmed from his refusal to rely on Divine Items, which limited his ability to unleash greater combat strength.

Yet using such external tools held little real value.

The remaining aspects, Energy and Energy Level, were part of his overall Material and Energy attributes, representing both quantity and quality.

In a way, multiplying Energy by Energy Level reflected the foundational combat power of a Divine Being.

For instance, Yu Jianglong had an Energy of around 300,000. His Energy Level was slightly below the standard value of 1, sitting at approximately 0.8. However, his realm value barely reached 100,000 at best.

As a result, he couldn't fully unleash his potential, and his attack power was noticeably weaker. His only advantage lay in his deep foundation, allowing him to wear down opponents over time.

From qi and blood to primordial qi, then to mental spirit, mass, and magnetic field. These values are constantly shifting.

After mentally organizing his thoughts, Li Pin couldn't help but sigh. "Cultivation has never been a static process. Hopefully, this new attribute panel lasts long enough."

Additionally, due to [True Spirit: 0/100], he hadn't incorporated this realm into his stats yet. Once it was added, a fixed True Spirit attribute might appear. And once True Spirit manifested, a [Supreme: 0/100] attribute could very well follow.

Buzz! Buzz!

While Li Pin was sorting through his cultivation progress, his identity token suddenly vibrated. This was...

"The time has finally come."

He stood up and concluded his training.

After briefly tidying his appearance, he stepped out of his residence.

His squad was already waiting outside.

Fang Chunyang, Fang Zhiqian, Xu Anping, Lie Qingqing, Chaoyang, Chaoyu, and Shi Keqing.

Many others had also gathered beside them. Clearly, they were friends and family.

As Li Pin arrived, a strikingly elegant young woman kept stealing glances at him.

Sensing her gaze, Li Pin glanced at her briefly, his memory stirring vaguely.

Xu Qingcheng? Xu Anping's younger sister?

But he didn't care to engage further.

No need to waste energy on someone irrelevant.

"You all received the message, right? How's the preparation?" Li Pin asked.

"Everything's ready. Now we just need to see what awaits inside the Void Divine Treasure World," Fang Chunyang replied calmly.

"Let's go." Li Pin glanced at his identity token. "The Hall Master wants us to meet with the other ace teams, the ones with high expectations placed on them, before heading out."

"Twelve thousand pioneers... The Divine Treasury Gate will need to make hundreds of transfers. It's been ages since the Divine Treasury Hall hosted such an event," Fang Zhiqian remarked with a hint of nostalgia.

Li Pin stepped forward and activated the metal floor beneath him.

The ground quickly shifted and assembled into a sleek, flying vehicle.

Before pressing the launch command, Li Pin said, "Say your goodbyes."

The squad members nodded and exchanged words with those around them.

"I'll be back safely."

"Little Brother, have some faith in me."

"It's not my first time in a divine treasure world. Trust me, I'll return before you know it."

Everyone wore a smile.

As for the deep-seated worry that couldn't be erased... it was buried deep within their hearts.

Just then, a woman entered through the door.

Li Pin was slightly surprised. It was Xi Lin.

Due to her average performance in the Mara Divine Treasure World, she hadn't received a summons.

As a novice pioneer, she also lacked the qualifications to enter the Oblivion Divine Treasure. Yet, somehow, she had still come to the Divine Treasury Hall.

Sensing his gaze, she pursed her lips and said, "Hope you create another miracle, break through the Void World in the first or second early phases and show the other pioneers from different abysses what we, the Frostbound Star Abyss pioneers, are capable of."

Li Pin chuckled. "Appreciate the good wishes."

Xi Lin offered a final word of encouragement, "Good luck."

He gave a slight nod in return.

Seeing that his squad had finished their farewells, he spoke. "Strap in."

As he pressed the launch command, the vehicle shot forward like an arrow.

At that moment, Lie Qingqing couldn't hold back her excitement and shouted, "Void Divine Treasure World, here I come!"