Paragon of Sin

Chapter 1632 1625: The First Valkyrie of Mysticism

Void-Blank Space, between Sky Heart Galaxy and White Abyssal Galaxy.

Wei Wuyin stretched his legs and arms, then swung them until they fully relaxed. Unleashing that void-splitting slash was not easy even now. Fortunately, his last-minute preparation to store enough saber energy to rival that sage-slaying attack was enough to halt that hazy figure and grant Su Mei an opportunity.

If not for Wei Xiaotian's information regarding the threat and its objective, there was a strong chance that he wouldn't have been ready to halt that figure given the incredibly swift and unexpected event of its arrival. Before her warnings, he had developed a near-damning assumption the calamity would manifest as an unseen, vicious force only, and there would be no descent of an avatar like The World.

"I have to treat her to a good meal," Wei Wuyin remarked with a grin and a chuckle. He felt good. Really, really good.

While almost all of his plans and contingencies had remained unused, from alchemical products to various arts, spells, and methods, he was incredibly satisfied despite not using any of them to overcome this impending calamity.

Using his Celestial Eyes, he kept watch over Su Mei's Seed Tribulation Gate. The Mystic Ascendant Realm was an exceedingly profound realm that was renowned as the Realm of Ascension and relied on one's insights and progress on the unfathomable path of Mysticism.

In the vast world of cultivation, the Foundation Establishment Realm was referred to as the Realm of Preparation. Each step was made to establish one's journey into the way of cultivation, readying the body, mind, and soul to birth a Spirit of Cultivation.

The Qi Condensation Realm was regarded as the Realm of Accumulation. From the Qi Creation Phase to the Essence Qi Phase, each stage required an accumulation of essence and energy, including a proper understanding of its fundamental power, from the elements to yin, yang, yin-yang, and spirit. At this stage, the ever-present and relevant phrase across galaxies remained: "Cultivation is difficult."

Even in advanced galaxies such as the Treasured Vale Galaxy, there were countless cultivators who've been stopped by one stage or another at the Qi Condensation Realm for their entire life.

The last of the Mortal Realms, the Astral Core Realm, was the Realm of Assimilation. The process from start to finish revealed the truth of the Foundation Establishment Realm and Qi Condensation, which were all preparations to give birth to a Solar Star in cultivator form, the highest repression of the Mortal Dao and the enabler of many lifeforms.

Those at the Astral Core Realm assimilate, and then they emit; they assimilate the foundation of a Solar Star, the very blueprints during the Mortal Star Formation Tribulation, at the World Sea Phase as they slowly expand their reserves and transform their various energies to the appropriate intrinsic qualities of a Solar Star-Astral Force.

They assimilated mana as Sky Rulers. They assimilated Manifested Spirit Energy as they formed Soul Idols, which were remarkably similar to Star Souls. They assimilated space. They assimilated light. They assimilated gravity. They assimilated the qualities of everything and stable space. They assimilated the flow of time. Until finally, they create the various basics of a genuine Star Seed-a Star Core.

Each step was arduous, requiring not just cultivation but initial entry-level comprehensions of those various energies and the ability to properly assimilate them without failing, dying, or being crippled as a result. The difficulties of cultivation sprouted more intensely than ever before with each subsequent stage.

Wei Wuyin grew emotional as his mind circulated these thoughts that borderline induced nostalgia. He had cultivated for a little over a hundred years as a mortal and made great, world-defying strides in each stage alongside his family. Whether it was the time he was sent across the stars through rings of Manifested Spirit Energy, drawing his saber against an avatar of The World, seeing alternative versions of himself within the River of Time, or experiencing the Samsara of Stars of an unknown amount of years.

So many things he had happened during his journey that it was hard not to feel emotional.

"Master, are you ready to take that step?" Bai Xiu's soft voice resounded as a young girl about a foot in height emerged. She gave off the presence of a princess of a mortal kingdom, and her elegant looks contained a noble cuteness. The previous situation was far too tense for her liking, so she hid away in her cauldron until it was over. Only after Wei Wuyin had overcome this calamity did she feel comfortable enough to peek out and take a look. She could feel Wei Wuyin's wistful emotions immediately.

"Ready?" Wei Wuyin lay on a bed of body-hugging chaos mana, comfortably floating across the Dark Void, and orbiting Su Mei's Seed Tribulation Gate. "There's nothing else to do. If I wasn't ready, I don't know what else I could do."

With a tinge of bittersweet, Wei Wuyin laughingly chuckled through his nose. If there was a peak of the Mortal Realms, he hadn't just reached it, he surpassed it. Several times already these four Astral Soul troublemakers exceeded the limitations of the Mortal Realms, twisting tribulations or exploiting specific conditions.

Not even Little Defiant was innocent; If not for it devouring an incalculable amount of Solar Stars in the Samsara of Stars, how could it possibly exceed the Absolute-sized category and instate an entirely new category across all of creation-Defiant.

While his Astral Souls had split at the final stage of the Astral Core Realm, essentially defying the merging, and creating four Star Cores, with the maximum potential of each being the merged version of all four.

He had obtained a Belt of Mortal Virtue, reached the pinnacle of his Stellar-Paragon Physique that was blessed by the Mortal Dao and could unleash an Astral Idol, the genuine pinnacle of the Mortal Realms.

What else was there?

The ignorant might say grasping more World Heart Intents or such, but World Heart Intents was not a requirement of the Mortal Dao. And his Dao of Alchemy had already exceeded what he could refine; if Wei Wuyin obtained a Mystic-Heaven graded product, there was nothing to improve upon.

"..." Bai Xiu wasn't too familiar with Wei Wuyin's cultivation base but she thought with a contemplative pout that was simply adorable, and after a while, she could only smile with an understanding. Wei Wuyin could kill an Enlightened Sage with multiple Heavenly Treasures with just his saber. There genuinely wasn't anyone at his level that could do such a thing.

Before stepping upon the Mystic Ascendant Realm, Wei Wuyin had already dominated every stage within. Describing it as unprecedented would feel lacking! Moreover, he did so using only his cultivated powers. No Supreme Heavenly Treasure or external force such as a billion detonating fiery pellets. Just his saber and his spirits.

"Master...is incredible..." Bai Xiu absent-mindedly said once again. She just realized that Wei Wuyin wasn't just a mortal who could slay an Enlightened Sage but a Worldly Saint Alchemist who could concoct with speeds that would embarrass long-standing alchemists.

"Haha," Wei Wuyin felt great. All that was left was to ascend, and with his current momentum, he felt as if he was trekking the proper path of a paragon.

"..." The Heavenly War Spirit twisted as a mass of golden light. She had imbibed the soul of Sage Springfield and she was teeming with anticipation. However, her deadline was approaching and Wei Wuyin had made very little strides toward grasping the Law of War. To be fair, it had only been a few months, but who could blame her for feeling a little restless?

She was only placated by the grand memory of Wei Wuyin's declaration; he was going to start a war, and he was going to win. It was ludicrous to say such brazen things, yet when Wei Wuyin stated such things, it had to be taken seriously now. After all, he already possessed galaxy-controlling power. How frightening would he be if his power was unrestricted by the limitations of stability as a mortal, and could unleash world-defying power on the scale of an Ascended being.

Just the thought alone sent her shivers of anticipation. This wouldn't just be a small leap forward but a vast qualitative step to unmarked territory. The difference between Spiritual Arts and Minor Ascension Arts was indescribable to begin with, but that was only the beginning of the difference.

If one excluded Laws, those who've reached the Mystic Ascendant Realm could create true, habitable World Realms and Secret Realms, they could reverse time and death, and dominate galaxies or traverse beyond. Generally speaking, they were not remotely comparable.

Many of Wei Wuyin's powers were limited by his soul, such as his Minor Authorities and World Heart Intent. While some of those limitations were mitigated by the Stellar-Paragon Physique and various blessings of the great daos, there were certain things his soul simply could not handle.

The true power of Little Defiant, for example. With the Stellar-Paragon Physique, accepting its maximum infusion of solar energy was doable, but his soul's framework would undoubtedly explode. After all, his soul was uncultivated, and only due to various factors that subtly strengthened his soul, such as the Third Calamity's period of refinement, could he tap into a significant portion of its strength.

'The Magi inheritance,' Wei Wuyin couldn't help but have his mind drawn to that detail. The Celestial Eyes of Spiritual Divinity and the Everlore Eyes of Endlessness were both inheritances of the Magi. 'These silver eyes of mine. What is my lineage? Who is Fuxi really? What is he?'

Wei Wuyin was rife with questions since the very beginning, yet finding answers had been nigh impossible. He only caught glimpses of what Fuxi could do, not remotely who he was, and even the knowledge of the Magi was limited, only obtained from the viewpoint of a young Spartan like Wei Si.

Lifting both arms to his eyes, he knew that the Fourth Calamity was arriving soon. Moreover, he had just lost all his Karmic Luck Value. He couldn't resist the urge to curse beneath his breath. He had gone through so much to collect all of that. Despite the willingness to sacrifice it all for Su Mei's safety, it still felt frustrating to think about.

As for worrying about the potential backlash of that saber swing? He didn't. He just didn't.

If the heavens wanted him dead, he could only enjoy now, because tomorrow was never coming. Since he was still breathing comfortably now, he didn't have to worry about it later. And it was clear that that avatar had issues interfering with tribulations. If something like this occurred, then he would simply run into his gate. If that didn't work, then he would run faster somewhere else.

He relaxed with a breath of ease as he waited.

Soon, eighty-one hours eclipsed.

A whirling, swirling, and blaringly epic sound echoed across the Dark Void. The Seed Tribulation Gate thrummed with activity, releasing pulses of mystic energy that were visible to the naked eye, even if they were mere mortals as waves upon waves were left in the surrounding mana.

The process of the Seed Tribulation Gate typically required a cultivator to undergo a sequence of repeated testing and verifications of one's insight, gathering tiny steps of ascension in the form of Rune Ascension, and they would spend a minimum amount of time to transition their meridians, dantian, Sea of Consciousness, cells, and Star Core into the world of mysticism. If a cultivator could not succeed in a single one of nine, they would lose eight hundred years of life, and be vomited out by the gate in an incomplete state, the only remaining bit was the Astral Soul!

They would be considered failures!

The very first stage of the Mystic Ascendant Realm, the Mystic Star Phase! Those at this stage were often referred to as Exalted Ascenders. If selectively looked upon, this realm was lowly regarded despite the word 'Exalted', but if one took a step back and saw the whole picture, the word 'Ascender' contained extraordinary meaning!

This meaning was something that only demonic talents would dare strive for!

With an incomplete transition, what was seen as a failure by many societies, the entirety of the Mortal Realms was emulated in this single stage!

The Realm of Preparation, the Realm of Accumulation, and the Realm of Assimilation!

But what was all of this included? What else but Mysticism?!

And now, out of all the Ascendants, the first Valkyrie had finished her ascension! Normally, the transition would take a few dozen minutes or so at most, but Su Mei needed eighty-one hours!

When she exited the gate, her demeanor and bearing were transcendent as her aura surged with an unfathomable presence. When those limpid eyes of hers found Wei Wuyin, a hint of a smile formed.

Wei Wuyin stood upright with a bright smile, waving his hands as if welcoming his wife home. He didn't hold back as he opened his arms. He was about to take a step forward when Su Mei's figure blurred to even his Celestial Eyes, and he felt a soft yet strong body pressed against his own, two slender arms holding onto him with great strength, and her bodily warmth merging with his. When he felt her hectic breath on his chest as if born from lingering fear turned happiness, his eyes emitted a satisfied warmth.

He lightly kissed her forehead before holding her tighter.

Within the vast Dark Void between galaxies, a Stellar Paragon and a Stellar Rebel held each other with all their heart.