Chapter 45: Info About the Star God Pagoda

Little Green immediately took action. She waved her hand and sent Tang Mu's mist-like soul clone toward the floating pitch-back nine-petaled lotus. She nodded when she saw the clone vanish into the giant flower and started another series of hand movements.

"Prepare to pour a bit of your lifeblood on the Dark Origin Essence Imperial Lotus," she said without pausing her actions. She continued twisting her fingers as if casting spells and sent the 180 red-tier origin essences plus the 60 psionic crystals she had gotten from Tang Mu towards the lotus.

The massive lotus reacted as if it was sentient as the crystals reached its surface. Its nine petals exuded an intense wave of darkness that quickly engulfed all the crystals Little Green had sent toward it. They soon disappeared into the flower as the dark energy receded.

"It's time," Little Green announced, her expression turning solemn. "Pour some of your lifeblood onto the surface of the Dark Origin Essence Imperial Lotus. Ensure you don't touch its surface, as it can swallow your vitality and mental strength."

Tang Mu nodded and followed Little Green's instructions. He winced as he cut his wrist with a sharp knife he had just summoned from the Star Orb storage space. Then, ignoring the pain, he let the drops of his blood pour down on the petals of the massive lotus.

"Make sure you continue pouring the blood until I tell you otherwise," Little Green reminded him.

While speaking, her green eyes sparkled with mysterious symbols, and she started twisting and contorting her fingers with more vigor. She moved them through the air, bizarrely wringing them until she finally constructed a large star diagram comprising many enigmatic runes in the space above the platform.

"Stop pouring your blood and step back now," she commanded and paused for a second.

Tang Mu could sense the urgency in Little Green's voice. He stepped back immediately and covered his wound with his other hand. He then turned his gaze back to Little Green and saw her send the massive runic star diagram she had conjured into the lotus.

What followed was like a volatile chemical reaction.

Tang Mu watched with mouth agape as the lotus used its dark energy to engulf the massive runic star diagram before behaving strangely. It trembled intensively and let out rumbling sounds. Its petals also released waves of mist-like dark energy that spread outward before slowly contracting again to form a cylindrical pitch-black mist-like cocoon.

Everything turned quiet after that, and the cocoon remained hovering there above the first platform of the Celestial Gallery. It had settled down. But its surface was still flashing with numerous enigmatic runes.

Tang Mu glanced at the cocoon with a racing heart. He could feel that whatever was inside had an eerily close connection with him. It even felt like a part of his body mysteriously linked to him in some way. "What next?" He asked Little Green.

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"Now we wait," she replied. "The Dark Origin Essence Imperial Lotus needs about two hours to transform into your clone after engulfing your soul clone, lifeblood, and the energy we provided to it."

Tang Mu nodded while noting that his wound had already stopped bleeding. It was healing quickly due to his enhanced physique, which was already at rank one.

"Can I ask a few questions regarding the Star God Pagoda and the painting world as we wait?" He asked Little Green.

"Go ahead," Little Green said.

Tang Mu took a deep breath and inquired, "Can you tell me who set up the stuff in the Pagoda?"

Little Green's eyes turned melancholic on hearing the question. "There should be no harm in telling you since you have already awakened the Mentifery superpower. The person who created the Star God Pagoda and the painting worlds was the Lord Father. Many in the multiverse know him as Yhdall, one of the strongest star gods from the ancient era."

"So, the Star God Pagoda was actually created by a real deity!" Tang Mu exclaimed and glanced at Little Green with unconcealed surprise. "Can you tell me why he went out of his way to create all this?"

"The answer is simple," Little Green said with a sad sigh. "He created all this to look for an inheritor. Before he left, he gave me the gift of life and tasked me with managing the Pagoda until a destined and worthwhile person to inherit his legacy appeared."

"So, am I that inheritor?"

"Not exactly," Little Green answered. "You're already an apprentice and currently the only candidate in the running. But you must clear the painting world of the first platform and ascend to the next level before meeting the basic requirements of becoming a Star God legatee."

"Oh, so that's how it is!" Tang Mu's eyes sparkled with expectation. "How do I clear the painting world? Is it by hunting the beasts within?"

Little Green smiled mysteriously. "That's for you to find out."

"That's also okay," Tang Mu mumbled. "Where is the Lord Father now?"

Little Green sighed audibly again. "I don't know," she said bleakly. "He left a long time ago. I have never heard from him again."

"Do you know where he went?"

"I can't answer that until you inherit his legacy and grow strong enough. Those were his instructions before he left. I can't go against them."

"Then, it seems I can only get answers in the future," Tang Mu said and fell deep into thought. He could now make sense of a few things.

For instance, he discovered the lotus that could allow him to forge a clone in a cave full of psionic crystals. Yet, he soon learned that the clone he would condense would only feed on the psionic crystals.

The incident was like a set-up. Tang Mu felt that infiltrating the snake cavern had been a test for him, and the Dark Origin Essence Imperial Lotus, plus the few psionic crystals, were the rewards. Moreover, they were the required items to help him forge a clone and later sustain it.

It's indeed a legacy and a powerful one at that.

Most likely, the more I adventure into the painting world, the more tests I will encounter. Then, if I complete the trials, I should be able to get more rewards while moving closer to clearing the painting world on the first level.

Tang Mu's eyes sparkled with delight. He didn't choose to ask Little Green any other questions. Instead, he settled on the platform cross-legged and popped five more red-tier origin essence crystals into his mouth.

He regulated his breathing and entered a meditative state, hoping to recover his expended soul essence as soon as possible. He lost track of time and felt his condition improving until his keen spiritual sense detected a change near him.

Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes and noticed that the darkness surrounding the cocoon hovering before him was beginning to disappear. In its place was an outline of a human figure, which was becoming more distinct with the passing of every second. He smiled since the process of forging the clone was finally about to bear fruit.