Chapter 674: Passed

At present, Li Pin wasn't capable of cultivating to the fourth level of the Primordial Supreme Technique. It was only by using the Great Dao Radiance to illuminate the Heavenly Prison World's rules that he was able to simulate the power of the fourth level based on the foundation of the third level.

Using an analogy, if the Primordial Supreme Technique's fourth levelrepresented perfect mastery over nuclear power technology, then Li Pin had only reached the level of nuclear fission, at best. He was still one technical level away from achieving nuclear fusion, which was necessary for constructing a cosmic framework.

As for truly simulating a cosmos, he was missing the controllable key component to fusion power—the True Spirit.

Translating this into mortal time, it might take three to five years for him to attain a breakthrough. It could also possibly take fifty years, or even two or three cycles of fifty years. For a mortal who had grown to the point of being able to study nuclear power, fifty years was essentially the entirety of their remaining lifespan.

For a cultivator, failing to condense a True Spirit for an entire lifetime was also a normal occurrence.

***

"I'm down to having just a hundred thousand Creation Gold Coins." Li Pin looked at the few remaining golden glows around him and sighed. "Creation Gold Coins are indeed useful. Having enough of them during cultivation truly feels like divine assistance. It's just that the consumption rate is too high."

Fortunately, he had managed to complete the simulation of the Primordial Supreme Technique's fourth level before exhausting all his Creation Gold Coins.

As he pondered, Li Pin lightly pointed his hand.

A force containing a faint singularity trait began to expand at his fingertip. Within it, matter, energy, time, and space grew simultaneously, just like the primal elements of earth, water, fire, and wind when the universe was first created.

Soon after, a miniature universe seemed to be taking shape.

However, before this miniature universe could fully condense, its internal structure became highly unstable and began collapsing inward.

"This is bad!"

Li Pin twisted rapidly as he dashed out of his small bamboo house at the fastest speed possible.

In the next moment, this force, though only a minuscule portion of his power used to simulate cosmic evolution, erupted with unimaginable terror. It resembled a failed and uncontrollable cosmic explosion. His small bamboo house, along with the surrounding ones, were instantly pulverized.

The surging shockwave did not dissipate but continued to spread, shaking the rules of the Heavenly Prison World. It seemed as though it might disrupt the world's operations and even tear a hole through it.

Fortunately, before the hole could form, Sasha appeared. A hint of delight seemed to gleam in her eyes as she looked at this force that was powerful enough to shake and disturb the Heavenly Prison World.

However, her hands moved without the slightest hesitation.

As she waved her hand lightly, layers of invisible ripples spread outward, swiftly neutralizing and dissipating the force that had destroyed the bamboo houses and was continuing to spread.

That wasn't all. The time and space in this area seemed to be reversing, rapidly rewinding. In no time, the surrounding ground and environment returned to their original state. Even Li Pin's bamboo house was restored to its original state as if nothing had ever happened.

Watching this scene, Li Pin felt a realization dawn upon him. "The Transcendent path..."

Sasha, like most intelligent lifeforms, had chosen to walk the Transcendent path. At this moment, she had likely already recorded data on this bamboo house and nearly every leaf, inch of soil, and wisp of breeze in the entire Heavenly Prison World. With this data, even if everything was destroyed, she could always effortlessly restore any area to its original state, as if nothing ever happened.

After neutralizing the energy shockwaves in this area, Sasha did not even bother to question the damage Li Pin had caused. She immediately inquired, "The fourth level of the Primordial Supreme Technique?"

Li Pin replied, "This is just a slight improvement. The true fourth levelof the Primordial Supreme Technique requires simulating a universe. Even in its simulated form, maintaining the operation of a universe necessitates the power of the True Spirit.

"Right now, I have not condensed a True Spirit. At best, I can only use my understanding and application of the rules to make a singularity explode into the embryonic form of a universe. It's an uncontrollable one that can expand but not contract."

Sasha immediately said, "No, simply reaching this point means you have already completed the cultivation of the fourth level of the Primordial Supreme Technique."

She looked at Li Pin and explained, "You should have noticed that all the Supreme, Highlord, and Transcendent Techniques left in the Inheritance Tower do not have their corresponding secret arts. For cultivators who have not yet condensed a True Spirit, how much time would it take to reach this step without the aid of secret arts? Even with Creation Gold Coins, this is almost an impossible task."

𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

She smiled faintly. "This is because the Black Abyss Highlord never intended for you all to cultivate a True Spirit within a mere eleven thousand one hundred and ten stellar years."

Li Pin was stunned. "He had never intended for us to cultivate a True Spirit within eleven thousand one hundred and ten stellar years?"

After a moment of confusion, he realized something. "Could it be that it is still possible to attain Supreme, Highlord, or Transcendent levels with first cultivating a True Spirit?"

Sasha did not answer Li Pin's question. Instead, she asked, "Do you know the Highlord's true purpose in creating this world?"

Li Pin pondered for a moment before giving this answer. "Is it the Abyssal Rift?"

"The Abyssal Rift is one part of it, but what's truly important is the Astral World," replied Sasha. "His Majesty wants to prove that cultivators can still attain Supreme status even in the absence of the Astral World."

"In the absence of the Astral World?"

Sasha nodded. "That's right. According to the Highlord's research, the reason the Ancient Astral World collapsed was due to excessive human interference with the Astral World, which serves as the high-dimensional core of the universe. We do not know the true purpose of the Ancient Astral World, but we can see that the current Astral World is the other side of the universe, maintaining the balance of cosmic creation and destruction."

She waved her hand, and a projection of a planet appeared in the air. It displayed the cycle of life on a planet.

Trees and soil grew and bore fruit, and humans consumed the fruit. After the humans died, their remains were buried in the earth, nourishing the trees. Water evaporated under the scorching sun to form clouds, which gathered into rain and eventually fell back to the land, forming flowing rivers.

Sasha explained, "A single planet must maintain a proper balance to function, let alone the vast universe. Existence, nothingness, life, and death are all parts of the cosmic cycle. However, countless beings, in their pursuit of immortality, integrated themselves into the Astral World, disrupting this balance. Eventually, the Astral World became overwhelmed and collapsed, leading to the destruction of the ancient era.

"Even today, many cultivators rise from the ruins of the ancient era, relying on its remnants to re-enter the Astral World. The Astral World has developed the power of the Eternal Oblivion to protect itself, but it cannot prevent the ascension of one Astral God after another. If this continues, one day, the catastrophe of the ancient era will return. This time around... it may not just be the Astral World that perishes, but the entire universe."

Li Pin listened to Sasha's words and felt that, although they made sense, there seemed to be some key component missing. Perhaps she did not know these missing pieces, or maybe she felt it unnecessary to explain them to him and simply skipped over them.

"The Highlord ultimately conducted this experiment to prove that even without the Astral World, without burdening it, one could still achieve the Supreme, reach Transcendent, and become a Highlord existence...." Sasha looked at Li Pin, curiosity in her eyes. "And you... have accomplished it."

"I am still far from the Supreme, the Transcendent, and the Highlord levels," Li Pin shared.

"I know, but at the very least, your success represents hope and proves that the Lord's theory is viable. That is enough," said Sasha, smiling faintly. "I have already sent a message to the Lord. He will return in a few stellar years to meet you in person."

Upon hearing this, Li Pin was slightly moved. "A few stellar years..."

He held off arguing with Sasha about whether he had taken a shortcut to complete the fourth level of the Primordial Supreme Technique. There was an even important matter on his mind.

"Since I have met the Highlord's requirements, does that mean I have completed the fourth level of the cultivation mission?" Li Pin asked, "Based on the time I took to complete the fourth level cultivation task..."

"You can receive one hundred million Creation Gold Coins."

Sasha knew what Li Pin wanted to ask and gave him a smile. "I can transfer it to you now. In the stellar years before the Lord arrives, you can continue on this path. Additionally, I will also give you the fifth level of the Primordial Supreme Technique, which is the latter half of the technique."

"Alright," Li Pin agreed without hesitation.

One million Creation Gold Coins could help him push his cultivation of the Supreme Secret Art to the entry level. One hundred million Creation Gold Coins was an astronomical amount. Even if he could not perfect a Supreme Secret Art, achieving mastery should not be an issue.

At this moment, he thought of something and asked, "The Primordial Supreme Technique has a complementary secret art, right? Could you give it to me as well?"

"Of course, there is. However, your talent lies in cultivation. Secret arts, which lean more toward combat, are unnecessary for you. You should focus on perfecting the fourth level of your cultivation," said Sasha.

Li Pin countered, "It's different. Although I have technically completed the fourth level of the Supreme Technique, I have not condensed my True Spirit. I cannot control or fully grasp the power of the fourth level. If I cannot even control my strength, how can I study the fifth level?

"Moreover, condensing the True Spirit is extremely important for cultivators. Does the Highlord not want to see whether I can condense a True Spirit without relying on the omnipresent Eternal Oblivion Force of the Astral World?"

"The restrictive rules of the Heavenly Prison World can replace the oppression of the Eternal Oblivion Force... though their nature is different," said Sasha.

She pondered the reasoning behind Li Pin's words.

After a while, she said, "I will consult the Lord on this matter. If he agrees, I will provide you with the complementary secret art of the Primordial Supreme Technique. It's just a few stellar years. It will be quick..."

At that moment, Sasha seemed to receive some message and suddenly paused before turning her gaze back to Li Pin. "Apologies, something unexpected has happened. The Lord is currently being pursued by the Supreme Council. To ensure the Heavenly Prison World remains undiscovered, his return will be delayed."

Li Pin was somewhat surprised upon hearing this, but he also found it reasonable. The Black Abyss Highlord had been capturing people so recklessly that no one would simply ignore it.

Previously, out of respect for his status as a Highlord, others had turned a blind eye to his actions. However, he had gone too far this time by breaking into the Humanity Sanctum and abducting people. The Supreme Council had no choice but to take action.

"I have already given you the latter half of the Primordial Supreme Technique and the Creation Gold Coins. Focus on your cultivation. When the Lord arrives, I will notify you immediately."

After saying this, Sasha hurriedly left, occupied with concealing the fluctuations of the Heavenly Prison World.