Chapter 675: The Strongest in the Three Realms

Shui Miao wished to approach with sincerity and completely transform Xuan Kong’er. Unexpectedly, a sudden inspiration struck him, reminding him of a reality he had previously overlooked.

The Wheel of Reincarnation was the supreme treasure for ending life and initiating rebirth.

Now, Zi Yun Qi could activate it. Could this mean that the Wheel of Reincarnation was driven by Zi Yun Qi?

This possibility was very high.

Xuan Kong’er had been born from the evil forces of the Demon World, naturally resistant to Zi Yun Qi. Therefore, it was impossible for him to utilize Zi Yun Qi to activate the Wheel of Reincarnation.

Thus, Xuan Kong’er had never uncovered the secrets of the Wheel.

Inspired by this realization, Shui Miao immediately channeled a massive surge of Zi Yun Qi from his realm into the Wheel of Reincarnation, observing its reaction. To his delight, the Wheel indeed spun faster, radiating vibrant energy and transmitting a wealth of information regarding its inner formations to Shui Miao.

“Shui Miao, how underhanded of you!” Xuan Kong’er’s eyes darted around as he suddenly shouted, “You keep preaching, yet you’re no better yourself! Do you think you’ve got me cornered now? Fine! If you’re so confident, then come at me!”

Uncertain about Shui Miao, Xuan Kong’er merely shouted without making a move.

“Wait… let me talk to you in a moment…”

Shui Miao was fully immersed in receiving the Wheel’s information, completely absorbed and oblivious to Xuan Kong’er.

“…”

To his shock, Shui Miao seemed to ignore him completely. Enraged, Xuan Kong’er muttered bitterly, “Just you wait!” before swiftly retreating to a safe distance while watching Shui Miao closely. At the same time, he began refining a new artifact—Evil Demon Tower.

Forging new artifacts was no challenge for Xuan Kong’er. He crafted a new artifact specifically targeting Shui Miao—the Evil Demon Tower.

As its name suggested, the Evil Demon Tower exuded sinister and demonic energy. It could trap Shui Miao, preventing escape, and gradually corrupt and taint him.

The Way of Reincarnation was a path of refining and reshaping souls.

All beings, lowly and fragile, needed growth and trials, hence the cycle of reincarnation.

During reincarnation, negative traits were purged while spiritual essence remained, allowing souls to grow stronger.

After several lifetimes of reincarnation, souls evolved—strong souls became even stronger, while weaker ones could be reborn, experiencing life anew, understanding its essence, and ultimately finding their true path.

After dozens of lifetimes, the strong thrived while the weak were sorted accordingly—excellent souls ascended to the Immortal Realm for further cultivation, while the weakest became beasts, malevolent spirits, or other forms.

For mortals, the Wheel of Reincarnation determined their Yin-Yang and Five Elements attributes based on their birth time, and their lifespans based on their good or evil deeds.

For immortals, the Wheel arranged various trials—major tribulations every five hundred years and minor ones every three hundred. Whether they survived depended on the karmic consequences of their deeds.

The Wheel of Reincarnation was essentially a supreme artifact that continuously refined the souls of beings across the Three Realms.

With it, the Three Realms maintained order, the cycle of life and death continued, and morality persisted.

The Wheel of Reincarnation was the origin of all.

It was also the sole artifact controlling the fate of all beings across the Three Realms.

Moreover, the Wheel contained countless profound and mysterious secrets of the universe.

Thanks to the infusion of Zi Yun Qi, Shui Miao suddenly understood many things.

“Whoosh!”

Suddenly, the Evil Demon Tower flew above Shui Miao.

“Shui Miao, hand over the Wheel of Reincarnation immediately, or else I’ll capture you,” Xuan Kong’er hesitated slightly. Shui Miao’s earlier words had affected him to some extent.

“Buzz!”

A loud hum echoed as Shui Miao summoned the massive Wheel of Reincarnation from his realm. As it rotated, a golden light flashed, and the Evil Demon Tower flew directly into Shui Miao’s hands. Examining the tower, Shui Miao calmly told the astonished Xuan Kong’er, “Xuan Kong’er, I have already mastered the Wheel of Reincarnation. It controls all beings across the Three Realms—including this artifact, every blade of grass, every speck of dust.”

Shui Miao spoke calmly, devoid of emotion.

It took Xuan Kong’er a while to recover. Staring at Shui Miao in disbelief, he shook his head repeatedly. “This is impossible! The Wheel of Reincarnation is extremely complex. I’ve tried for centuries without success. How could you control it so quickly? You must be deceiving me, or this is an illusion. It can’t be real!”

Xuan Kong’er was nearly hysterical.

Yet the evidence was undeniable.

Shui Miao gently shook his head. “Actually, the Wheel of Reincarnation wasn’t damaged. It had merely stopped rotating. Zi Yun Qi is the very source that drives it. I believe you’ve never attempted to use Zi Yun Qi, right?”

“Uh…”

“It was actually Zi Yun Qi!!”

Xuan Kong’er was overwhelmed with complex emotions. He never imagined that the Wheel of Reincarnation was powered by Zi Yun Qi. The reason it had stopped was such a simple and trivial reason—lack of Zi Yun Qi!

“Did I make such a basic mistake?”

“I’m such a fool, such a complete fool!”

“…”

Xuan Kong’er’s expression turned gloomy as he sank into a deep depression.

In reality, Shui Miao had not fully mastered the Wheel of Reincarnation.

The Wheel was extremely complex, and Shui Miao had only grasped one-tenth of it.

Earlier, he had merely used the Wheel’s power to extract the artifact spirit from the Evil Demon Tower, which was why capturing it had been effortless.

His earlier words were merely a strategy to completely undermine Xuan Kong’er’s arrogance.

Seeing Xuan Kong’er completely demoralized, like a defeated rooster, Shui Miao quickly explained, “Xuan Kong’er, the reason I spoke to you that way was because I genuinely wanted to befriend you. Those words had nothing to do with whether or not I had mastered the Wheel of Reincarnation. In fact, I only realized the principle of Zi Yun Qi and instantly refined the Wheel while we were speaking.”

“Enough! Now that you’ve won, do with me as you please…” Xuan Kong’er muttered dejectedly before suddenly smirking coldly at Shui Miao. “However, don’t celebrate too soon, Shui Miao. Your true enemy has yet to appear. I’ve always suspected that someone has been secretly manipulating everything, and I might even have been used by him.”

“Used even you? Could it be Buddha Tathagata?”

In the Three Realms, Shui Miao could think of no other powerful figures.

“Wrong. Buddha Tathagata isn’t the strongest figure in the Three Realms. There is a supreme being in the Immortal Realm who has always concealed his strength, pretending to be weak. Most immortals are unaware of his true power, but a few know—such as Buddha Tathagata himself, who knows this being and admits he cannot match him. That’s why the Buddhist Kingdom never expanded its influence across the entire Immortal Realm, and why it has hesitated to reclaim it. I didn’t know before, but now I finally understand. This person is extremely cunning and strategically brilliant.”

Shui Miao became increasingly confused as he listened.

“Hahaha… I won’t tell you. You’ve wronged me so badly—why would I help you fight your enemy?”

Xuan Kong’er shook his head with a faint smile, his spirits slightly lifted.

At that moment, Xuan Kong’er prepared to flee.

But unexpectedly, Shui Miao suddenly activated the artifact Soul Confusion Mirror, shining it directly onto Xuan Kong’er. “Xuan Kong’er, you must tell me this!”

Caught off guard, Xuan Kong’er was instantly plunged into a daze under the mirror’s influence.

Shui Miao sifted through Xuan Kong’er’s memories and quickly uncovered the truth. “Huh? It’s actually Laozi… It’s really him!?”

Despite his mental preparation, Shui Miao was still deeply shocked.