In a side hall of the Southcloud Sacred Hall within the Blazing Fire City, Chunyu Weiyi and the Blazing Fire Marquis sat on opposite sides, each with a low table before them. Dongbo Xueying, still just a child, stood beside the Blazing Fire Marquis.
“Young Master Xueying,” Chunyu Weiyi said with a smile, “though I am the master of this Southcloud Sacred Hall in Blazing Fire City, I must make it clear beforehand. There are countless cultivation methods in this world, and even the Six Great Ancient Kingdoms have some incredibly powerful legacies circulating within our Southcloud Nation. While they are rare in Blazing Fire City, they can easily be found in the capital. Even for the same Void Path, the Six Great Ancient Kingdoms possess similar peerless techniques. I advise you to think carefully before deciding what to focus on. After all, cultivation demands immense effort, and it’s customary to specialize in one supreme art.”
“Brother Weiyi,” the Blazing Fire Marquis interjected with a chuckle, “Yingshan Xueying has awakened a Void Bloodline. I sensed it faintly when he briefly activated it in my presence—an ancient and unfathomable aura, a bloodline at the Cosmos God level. Haha! Xueying is a descendant of our Yingshan Clan, and the only source of such a Void Bloodline within him would be the Nation Lord himself. Even the Void-based peerless techniques of the Six Great Ancient Kingdoms pale in comparison to the *Twelve Forms of the Southcloud Sacred Art* for someone like him.”
“A Cosmos God-level bloodline?” Chunyu Weiyi gasped in astonishment.
In the Southcloud Nation, there were only four Cosmos Gods, each following a different path. A Void Bloodline could only come from the Nation Lord himself. Though the four great clans and the marquis families often intermarried—sometimes even with neighboring nations—the Void Bloodline of a Cosmos God remained unique to the Southcloud Nation Lord. Over countless generations, as long as one wasn’t among the ancient elders, most descendants of the marquis families today carried traces of this bloodline. However, it was usually so diluted that awakening it was nearly impossible.
Dongbo Xueying’s Cosmos God bloodline was equally thin, but his profound comprehension made awakening it trivial. Even without the bloodline, he was confident of reaching the pinnacle of the Chaos Realm, let alone with its aid.
“With the Nation Lord’s Void Bloodline, cultivating the *Twelve Forms of the Southcloud Sacred Art* would indeed yield twice the result with half the effort,” Chunyu Weiyi nodded. With a flip of his hand, he produced a black tome, which floated toward Dongbo Xueying and landed before him.
The book’s material was pitch-black, evoking in Dongbo Xueying the same sensation he once felt when observing the fundamental essence of the Void—the Black Mist Sphere.
“The complete volume?” The Blazing Fire Marquis raised an eyebrow. “That would cost a hundred thousand cosmos crystals, wouldn’t it?”
“Not necessary,” Chunyu Weiyi shook his head with a smile. “Young Master Xueying’s talent is extraordinary—born a Void God and awakening the Nation Lord’s Void Bloodline. He is fully qualified to study the complete *Twelve Forms of the Southcloud Sacred Art* for free. I merely need to file a simple report afterward.”
Dongbo Xueying understood. Having read numerous texts, he knew the Southcloud Sacred Sect’s rules for disseminating its techniques. As one of the Ten Great Sects of the Heart Realm Continent, the Southcloud Sacred Sect typically required disciples to master the first half of the *Twelve Forms* before granting access to the latter half upon reaching the Unity Realm—all for a fee. Why did sects strive to spread their techniques? To amass vast wealth in cosmos crystals. A complete set of the *Twelve Forms* cost a staggering hundred thousand crystals. With countless cultivators studying it—even those specializing in other arts dabbling in it—the accumulated wealth was enough to drive even Cosmos Gods mad with envy. The Southcloud Nation’s fortune was unparalleled, placing its ruler among the wealthiest Cosmos Gods on the continent. Many coveted this success, but creating a technique both easy to learn and immensely powerful was no small feat, let alone managing its widespread dissemination.
Exceptions existed, of course. Prodigies could request free instruction, as their mastery would only enhance the sect’s prestige. The conditions, however, were stringent. As a scion of a marquis family with unparalleled innate talent and the Nation Lord’s bloodline, Dongbo Xueying met them effortlessly.
*Swish.*
Dongbo Xueying opened the black tome. The moment he did, a radiant glow burst forth, flooding into his brow.
*Boom!*
His mind trembled as visions unfolded.
Amidst boundless chaos, where directions and time held no meaning, a slender figure stood. His mere presence exuded a pressure surpassing even the likes of the Realm Ancestor and the Witch Ancestor—only the boundless aura of the Sacred Master seemed slightly superior. The figure had a prominent nose and profound eyes before launching into a series of movements.
His entire body became a weapon—legs, elbows, back, head, palms, fists, fingers—every part unleashed terrifying strikes, growing increasingly profound and devastating.
With a single palm strike, distant stars, cultivators, and flying vessels were reduced to a painting, frozen in a single frame.
Then, a finger thrust forward.
*Boom!*
Everything shattered, revealing a glimpse of an even greater terror—akin to what Dongbo Xueying had once glimpsed through the Black Mist Aperture into the higher world.
The vision faded, the figure dissolving into streams of information that merged with Dongbo Xueying’s soul—the complete *Twelve Forms of the Southcloud Sacred Art*. Yet, an invisible restriction bound the knowledge; even if mastered, he could not teach it to others.
“Such a terrifying art,” Dongbo Xueying marveled. “A palm turns the world into a painting. A finger pierces the Void Prison, revealing a higher realm.” And this was merely the version the Nation Lord deigned to share. How unfathomable must his true power be? No wonder a sect founded by him alone ranked among the Ten Great Sects of the Heart Realm Continent.
In the hall, the Blazing Fire Marquis and Chunyu Weiyi chatted over wine, leaving Dongbo Xueying undisturbed as he absorbed the legacy.
*Haa.* Dongbo Xueying set the book down, his face alight with awe. This was a technique he would devote himself to mastering.
“Young Master Xueying,” Chunyu Weiyi said, “this is the only time you’ll witness the Nation Lord demonstrating the complete *Twelve Forms*. Cherish the memory.”
Dongbo Xueying nodded. “Master, I’ve heard the publicly disseminated version isn’t complete?”
“Correct,” Chunyu Weiyi confirmed. “What you saw was the full form. What you’ll learn is a simplified version—sufficient to reach the seventh-tier combat power in the Unity Realm and the ninth-tier in the Chaos Realm. It’s tailored for widespread teaching across the Heart Realm Continent—affordable and accessible.”
Dongbo Xueying understood. In his homeland, such heights were the pinnacle. Here, they were merely the basics of a simplified art.
“If you reach the fifth-tier in the Unity Realm,” Chunyu Weiyi added, “I can recommend you as an inner disciple. With some effort from your Yingshan Clan, you’ll gain access to the complete *Twelve Forms* in the capital. Many aspire to this, but how many can unleash eighth-tier power in the Unity Realm? Or tenth-tier in the Chaos Realm, rivaling newly ascended Cosmos Gods? Achieve that, and the Nation Lord himself may take you as a personal disciple, granting even greater secrets!”
Soon after, Dongbo Xueying and the Blazing Fire Marquis departed the Southcloud Sacred Hall for the marquis’ estate. The moment he returned to his residence, Dongbo Xueying immersed himself in studying the *Twelve Forms of the Southcloud Sacred Art*.
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