Chapter 29: Sudden Epiphany
Tang Mu once again appeared on the first platform of the Star God Pagoda's Celestial Gallery. His heart was still beating loud and fast like a ceremonial rattle drum after narrowly escaping from the threats within the painting world.
I'm still too weak.
He sighed and shook his head.
He thought about that enormous golden lion with a body as tall and as massive as a bus. Judging from its majestic aura, it was a peak-rank-one metaphysical being that could crash him in seconds. Moreover, it wasn't hunting alone but with its pride of twenty-something lions.
How was he, who was only a pseudo-rank-one psionic, supposed to face off against such enemies? Was he supposed to put his interpersonal, or rather, his interspecies communication skills to the test and negotiate with it?
Tang Mu felt like he was a joke. He was as weak as an ant while in the painting world. Any enemy, including the pseudo-rank-one snakes, could give him a hard time. In fact, he might have died dozens of times today if he hadn't relied on the behavior of the herbivore herd to guard against the sneak attacks from the vipers.
Of course, he understood that he would always reap a large harvest when he went on an adventure in the painting world. On good days, he could even hunt dozens of beasts that Little Green could process into more than a hundred crystals of origin essence. But he also knew that all that was at the risk of his life.
The previous time, the peak-rank-one shadow serpent almost got him. This time, it was a pride headed by a peak-rank-one golden lion that almost ambushed him. What about next time? How long would he court death in the name of testing his luck?
I must get stronger. Tang Mu resolved.
I must break through to the level of a rank-one psionic before heading into the painting world seven days later. Only at that level will I have some leeway to guard against the attacks from those peak-rank-one metaphysical beings in the painting world.
Tang Mu's fighting spirit was overflowing as he stood there on the first platform of the Celestial Gallery. His resolve even grew stronger as he recalled how his parents had perished while fighting against the Vegroids.
He thought about his inability to get revenge against the aliens due to his powerlessness. And right then, his eyes seemed to blaze with fire while his blood boiled, clearly yearning for greater strength.
He was in a strange state, thinking about all his past experiences. And the more those memories of the past flashed through his mind, the faster his resolution to gain more power seemed to strengthen and solidify.
In that condition, his state of being went through a mysterious change. He gained clarity over his goals and desires until they became deeply ingrained within his heart.
Just then, a crack seemed to appear within his mind. He appeared to have achieved a sudden epiphany, and a familiar pinkish-orange whirlpool manifested three feet above his head.
It was obviously the same Galactic Chakra, the familiar 11th energy whirlpool in the twelve-chakra system, that he had always perceived with the help of the Star God Celestial Diagram.
But that time around, things were a bit different. The Galactic Chakra suddenly appeared without him trying to perceive it through meditation. What the hell was up with that?
Tang Mu's heart skipped a bit, and he broke out of his trance. Before he could make sense of the abnormality, the space beside him shimmered, and Little Green's adorable silhouette appeared.
She glanced at Tang Mu strangely and said with a solemn voice, "Listen carefully! It seems that something triggered your emotions and loosened your bottleneck."
"You're now on the cusp of fully unlocking your first chakra and breaking through to the rank-one level. So, hurry up and calm yourself down. Hold on to that feeling and breakthrough in a single push. Don't waste this chance."
Tang Mu's eyes flashed with understanding, and he didn't say any needless words. He suppressed his joy within his heart and hurriedly settled down on the almost incorporeal floor of the Celestial Gallery's first platform to meditate.
Little Green looked at him and nodded. She waved her hand, and a portal appeared above Tang Mu. It spewed dozens of red-tier origin essence crystals, followed by the seemingly incorporeal dark rune flickering with silver radiance along its edges.
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
The ejected items dropped toward Tang Mu before floating before his face.
Little Green smiled and spoke with urgency. "The 81 red-tier origin essence crystals are your harvests from your adventure tonight, while the source rune is from last time. They are crucial resources that will act as fuel for your breakthrough."
"Start by swallowing and absorbing two crystals and the source rune before attempting your breakthrough. If the energy is insufficient, you can ingest more crystals of the origin essence later during your breakthrough."
Tang Mu nodded again and did as instructed. He picked up two red crystals and the mysterious source rune before placing them in his mouth.
He closed his eyes and regulated his breathing to achieve the familiar breathing pattern of the Star God Celestial Manual. He followed the feelings from before and quickly perceived the clear cognitive image of the Galactic Chakra three feet above his head.
In the meantime, the origin essence crystals and the source rune had exploded into a wave of enigmatic force and knowledge. Next, a quake seemed to pass through Tang Mu's head as the knowledge and energy formed a torrent that rushed through some form of bizarre channels before finally bombarding the cognitive manifestation of the Galactic Chakra three feet above his head.
Thump! Thump!
Tang Mu felt more tremors continuously going through his mind. A sense of vertigo welled within him like a tide, throwing his thoughts into chaos.
Fortunately, he used all his strengthened resolve and willpower to resist the resulting discomfort. He maintained a deep state of meditation while allowing the energy to continue shelling against his Galactic Chakra.
More seconds passed, and the tremors eventually subsided. But surprisingly, the manifestation of Tang Mu's Galactic Chakra had not experienced any transformation. It was still the same seemingly incorporeal pinkish-orange whirlpool three feet above his head, meaning that his first breakthrough attempt had failed.
"Your first chakra is special, and the energy is not enough," Little Green reminded Tang Mu from the side. "Use six crystals of red-tier origin essence this time around. Let's see if they will unlock this tricky Galactic Chakra."
Tang Mu nodded and continued following Little Green's instructions. He swallowed six more red crystals, which oozed a torrent of energy that continued bombarding his Galactic Chakra like electromagnetic cannons.
Once again, the tremors rang out in his mind, causing him to experience discomforting dizziness. Eventually, the abnormality passed, but his Galactic Chakra had not changed, meaning his second breakthrough attempt had also failed.
Tang Mu didn't lose hope, though. He continued swallowing down even more crystals while letting the resulting energy bombard the cognitive image of his Galactic Chakra without taking any rest.
His head was spinning, sweat was trickling down his face, and he could feel a heaviness growing in his chest. But he persisted. He continued taking firm steps toward shattering his bottleneck by ingesting more crystals.
More minutes passed, and finally, after he swallowed a massive sum of 62 crystals of red-tier origin essence, an incredible change happened.
The unceasing barrages from the energy had finally produced a crack within the pinkish-orange whirlpool that was the Galactic Chakra. This fissure quickly expanded into miniature cobweb cracks that culminated in the eventual shattering of the previously elusive chakra vortex.
On cue, Tang Mu's physical embodiment established a mysterious connection with his esoteric quintessence, allowing a wave of energy to rush in from another plane of existence. His entire being trembled with immense joy as all his cells and other living characteristics underwent an extraordinary psionic energy baptism.
"HONG!"
At that same instant, another shocking seismic wave went through Tang Mu's head, jolting him to the soul. He blanked out for a moment, and the next instant, he found himself in a mysterious space brimming with pinkish-orange fog.
Tang Mu's senses immediately zeroed in on the shining object floating in the fog.
It was a colossal and glittering blood-red crystal with an enormous green eye incorporating an imposing vertical black slit as a pupil. The pinkish-orange haze and energy around it were more concentrated, causing it to appear like a red dwarf star floating in deep space.
"This should be the space within my Galactic Chakra. The crystal should be a manifestation of my awakened psionic superpower..." Such thoughts passed through Tang Mu's mind. But before he could make any more observations, he felt a flood of mysterious knowledge and psionic energy starting to rush into his actualized consciousness.
Another quake went through his thought center, and he blacked out immediately. He lost all senses and began the final process of absorbing mysterious knowledge and breaking through to the rank-one level.
-----
In the meantime, Little Green was carefully observing the changes Tang Mu was experiencing. She saw him slowly float up from the ground as the energy from the psionic dimension rushed into his body and strengthened his living characteristics.
The lucky guy was experiencing a much more significant psionic energy baptism that would push his strength and fitness to transcendental limits. His breakthrough had obviously been largely successful, and he was gradually forming a connection with his esoteric form while taking firm steps to become a rank-one metaphysical being.
Little Green's sharp senses had also noticed that Tang Mu's consciousness had left his body and arrived in the mysterious space of his unlocked Galactic Chakra. His soul was already in harmony with the true essence of the universe, and he was probably already receiving mystical knowledge that would allow him to use psionic superpowers after his breakthrough.
All this was normal to a being like her, who had lived for billions of years. But what was really surprising to her was the commotion the guy's breakthrough was causing in the outside world. She couldn't comprehend why a mere breakthrough of a mortal to rank one could cause a galactic-level starry phenomenon around the galaxy.
Could he have received some help from Lord Father?
Or is he so talented to the point of awakening a superpower that had shocked even the often-rigid will of the universe?
Little Green was looking forward to the results of the breakthrough.
She sighed, rejoicing in the fact that the lucky guy had gone through the breakthrough process within the Star God Pagoda. She could at least hide his location and prevent all those terrifying guys from tracking him down.
-----