Chapter 49: I Will Rise Beyond Every Peak

Everything follows the path.

The Ancient Supreme was bestowing him with knowledge that was no doubt beyond his level.

Things he hadn’t even had an idea that they existed.

"I won’t bore you about paths, or how everything lined up so nicely that Domains existed in the first place."

Neo agreed with her.

Knowing too much wasn’t good if he couldn’t comprehend what he knew.

His rank was just too low.

Even if everything was laid bare, he didn’t have what it took to understand it.

It was like someone explaining to him how immortals cultivated.

Even if his head was opened and the knowledge was stuffed inside, he didn’t have the qualities of an immortal.

It was totally impossible for him to do anything with that knowledge.

"All of these things, you will discover yourself. It is only a matter of time."

She looked at the empty land around them.

"There are many Domains in the Expanse. And there are even more Worlds. Far more than you can imagine. Existence is wide and conceivably endless."

The Ancient Supreme sighed.

She was no doubt someone who had seen a lot.

She moved to stand before Neo.

She looked up into his eyes.

"Neo, I want something from you."

Whenever she became serious like this, Neo was always reminded of the fact that she was a supreme.

A being far beyond him in rank.

She placed a hand on his chest.

His heart raced.

This touch was a very soft one.

"I want you to rise to the very peak of the Expanse. No matter what you have to do."

She was the dignified Supreme now.

No longer the playful young woman he was getting used to.

"This will be the very first goal I task you with."

She breathed deeply.

Neo felt an unfamiliar seriousness from her.

"Neo, if you can’t even do this."

The palm on his chest was clenched into a fist.

"I told you about that thing within you. Possessing it has made you the target of beings far more terrifying than you can imagine."

She laughed.

There was no amusement in it.

It was a totally mirthless laugh.

"You can’t even imagine them, Neo. They are beyond comprehension. And they have made you their enemy."

Neo found her more terrifying with every moment that passed.

"Oh, Neo."

She shook her head, as she tsked.

"You have no idea what they will do to you. To your Clan. To the Immortal World."

She pushed him down.

An easy action despite her smaller size.

"Neo, if you can’t even rise to the very peak of the Expanse. You might as well lie down there forever."

She looked down at him.

All trace of any fondness was gone.

She looked at him, as if she was looking at a stranger.

This was a challenge.

"If you want, I will save you from witnessing the troubles that would come. It will be the last mercy from me. I will end you this very moment, if that is what you desire."

Neo felt that this was the greatest challenge of his life.

What the Ancient Supreme asked of him was something he couldn’t realistically guarantee.

He, an F-Rank cultivator, claiming he would reach the very peak of the Expanse.

The peak of how many Worlds was that?

How many Domains?

She had just told him about the Expanse, and how many Worlds and Domains it contained.

Far beyond his imagination.

To rise to the very peak of that.

That was the very first thing she tasked him with.

But Neo considered something.

The enormity of what she asked was no doubt beyond him.

But...

But if he didn’t even dare to dream.

What was the point of living.

What was the point of even cultivating in the first place.

He thought back to when he was first cast down to the mortal world.

He hadn’t given up.

He had set a goal.

Reach the peak of the mortal world.

Then, there came Devour.

His goal changed.

Become an immortal.

But was an immortal, all he wished to be?

Was that the end of his path?

His thoughts turned to Devour.

This was a bloodline beyond common sense.

If an immortal was all he dared to be?

If that was all he dared achieve, then he really could lie down here forever.

He stood up from the ground.

All traces of doubt had cleared from him.

He had found his answer from within.

His eyes held a new resolve.

He opened his mouth.

"I will rise to the very peak of the Expanse."

But he wasn’t done.

"I will rise to the very peak there is. I will rise beyond every peak there is."

The Ancient Supreme stared at him.

Neo matched her stare.

"Good."

She approved.

"Very good."

Neo knew he had gained something very important just now.

With a bloodline like Devour, if he didn’t even dare to declare this.

Then, he had failed himself.

*

After that episode with the Ancient Supreme.

She had left, and he hadn’t seen her since then.

It felt like he was the only one left in this world.

He, Devour, and the strange creatures that plagued everywhere.

He thought back to the declaration he had made.

Ever since that day, he had felt Devour become more in tune with him.

The bloodline seemed to be very pleased with him.

There was no change in the rate at which his essence recovered, or a sudden boost in the cultivation he gained.

There was none of that.

But Neo felt himself improve in a way he had never before.

The insights came in smoother.

His combat ability improved by leaps and bounds.

He felt like a swallow in the air.

His whole being had become light.

Unburdened.

He felt the flow of his existence become smoother than it had ever been.

If he could put a name on how he felt.

It would be liberated.

He felt like his talent had just increased.

This was an improvement at the most fundamental level.

Like the shattering of a natural limit.

Was this something a bloodline at the very peak of One-character could do?

Neo cut down the strange creatures faster and faster, with increasing efficiency.

Ever since he killed the first dragon, it felt like this world had received a new directive.

Dragons now appeared at any moment without warning.

They were all just as powerful as the first one he fought.

A while earlier, he had been set upon by two dragons.

It had not been an easy fight.

Fighting one was still something he struggled with.

Fighting two was a nightmare.

They had both chased him around, firing breath after breath.

There hadn’t given him any breathing space.

They chased in the air, and he ran on the ground.

He had been at a disadvantage from the very start.

All around him was open land.

There had been no place to hide.

Then, there were the strange creatures.

They had attacked him as he ran around, trying to save himself from the fate of being burnt alive.

He had to use the dragons’ breath to take care of most of them.

It had taken him a constant shift between running and attacking, before he could finally end both dragons.

It had been quite an exciting moment, despite how terrifying it felt.

Him trying not to get injured, escape being burnt, and finally killing the dragons.

It had been exhilarating.

He turned as he felt something behind him.

It seemed the Ancient Supreme had returned.