As I agree to undergo the spiritual test, I prepare myself for what lies ahead. Yuiren, with a solemn expression, after a brief explanation, suddenly grabs my head and begins pouring her spiritual essence into my mind, attempting to enter my inner world. I open my mind and spiritual inner world as instructed, trying to maintain my focus and composure.
As her presence infiltrates my consciousness, I find myself in a surreal and ethereal illusory landscape within my own mind. It's a vast, open space, dominated by a massive pool of water that shimmers with the brilliance of thunder and fire. In the center of this island-like formation, there's a large jade floor, and on it, an imposing door. The door is adorned with ancient symbols written in the divine language:
" ********", the symbols seem to have been clawed down, as if someone, or rather, something hidden within my inner world, doesn't want to be discovered, "... To unlock the door of Divine Thunder and Fire you must *****... ".
Reading these cryptic words sends shivers down my spine, and I feel a profound connection to them, as if they are somehow related to my existence and purpose. But the last words "Cycle...Reincarnation...Yuiren...", have me worried. Why is Yuiren's name carved on a door hidden deep within my inner spiritual world?
Before I can contemplate further, an inexplicable force pushes Yuiren out. As this happens, something extraordinary occurs. My physical body outside of this inner world begins to be enveloped by lightning at an astonishing rate, far beyond what I had ever experienced. Simultaneously, flames emerge from my mouth, ears, and eyes, cauterizing the wounds that were caused by the previous sudden surges of lightning energy, seemingly burning and healing me at the same time.
Moments later, my Qi Condensation aura undergoes a rapid transformation. It fluctuates and changes at an increasing pace, cycling through realms like a whirlwind. My aura briefly reaches the intensity of a peak Golden Core realm, though it remains heavily condensed so that my actual realm level doesn't change.
I suddenly find myself gasping for breath, as the fire burns my body from the inside...
Lei, shocked and scared, finds herself screaming at Yuiren, as if she were a future widow about to lose her husband, "What have you done to him!? What have you done to Xu!?" seemingly shocking Yuiren more than the fiery display itself.
"Calm down, little one, he is undergoing what seems to be a type of body reconstruction." She says, while worried about me as well as Lei's current unpredictability.
"How long will he have to endure this pain?" she says, while I scream in agony, my body covered in both crackling lightning and a pool of blood that's being steamed by the divine flames from within.
"I- I don't... know..." are the last words I hear, before passing out from the pain.
Several hours later, inside the cave, I wake up covered in a pool of what seems to be my own blood, fire still lingering on the surface of my body while lightning dances through the air as it bounces off of my body, which seems to have been enhanced greatly by the multiple rapid cycles of burning and healing.
"What happened?" I ask both Lei and Yuiren, while being unable to open my eyes.
"You... don't remember?" Lei replies with a trembling voice.
"Your body suddenly burst into a pool of blood, lightning and flames. You seem to have undergone some sort of body reconstruction." Yuiren continues, "How do you feel? Can you open your eyes?" obvious worry in her voice.
"I- I don't remember... anything. I feel as if my body has been greatly empowered, but my eyes hurt badly, I can barely open them. Could you take a look?" I reply in a voice that I don't recognize as my own. My vocal cords must have been burned by the flames bursting from within.
"Let me clear the flames." Yuiren says, while summoning the water from within the cave to clear both the pool of blood and the flames on my body. She seems to be an extremely capable and cautious water cultivator, as blood contains a lot of water, it can only be manipulated by a very high and very specific type of water cultivation.
There are people known as blood cultivators, which have forsaken the further pursuit of water cultivation in order to learn blood manipulation, typically from demonic sects. One thing echoes in my mind, "Is Yuiren a blood cultivator?".
"Now, open your eyes, Xu.", she says as she extinguishes the flames.
I slowly open my eyes, revealing a pair of purple with a hint of glowing yellow, beast-like eyes, shocking Yuiren, to the point where her voice stutters and the words don't come out because of her excited yell, "Mnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"
"What is it?!" Lei, shouts worriedly, "What happened!? Why are you so scared!?". "Woah, Xu!", she exclaims with excitement, "Are you still human? You have beast-like eyes, beautiful ones too!" all the while Yuiren is shaken with a face of pure delight.
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"I think so?" I reply, a hint of worry in my voice, "Yuiren, are you ok?"
"Now I know... Mmh... Bngh..Bhah... haah...haah haaah haaaaaah!", she starts laughing maniacally, uncontrollable tears flowing down her cheeks.
"What!? What do you know!?" I ask, my face filled with more worry than before. "What happened?"
"Oh, silly you..." she responds, wiping the tears off her beautiful silky-white cheeks "Now I know why we've found each other's aura so familiar..."
"Master."
"M- Master!? What's gotten into you, Yuiren?", words leaving my mouth in confusion.
"Hold still, this will only hurt a second.", she says, and without giving me time to even think about what she wants to do, she hits my forehead with her finger, exuding a peculiar aura, while covered in a thick water coating. She then proceeds to say in excitement, "Master, I've finally found you!", unlocking hidden memories from deep within my mind.
This scene leaves Lei Zhao in complete bewilderment, as she is unable to comprehend what exactly is happening between us.
"I see, now I get it. I've been reincarnated again...", I say, a hint of enlightenment apparent on my newly glowing beast-like eyes.
"Yes, Master, we've finally been reunited. I've been waiting for you, as instructed. It's been 365 years since we've last met.", she reveals without hesitation in her voice, enlightening both myself and Lei Zhao.
"365 years? Reincarnated? Master?", Lei asks in confusion while looking at me with a hint of fear.
"Do not be scared, Little Lei, I'm the same Xu you've always known. Some of my memories have been awakened by our encounter with Yuiren.", I say with a slight smile.
"Come, my disciple, we have much to do." I tell Yuiren, while leaving the cave and entering a spiritual room, through a mystical illusory wall hidden behind flowing water, "You too, Lei."
"It is time for me to strengthen this body further so that it can accept at least half of the 365 years of my previous cultivation.", I say, my voice filled with renewed determination.
I sit down and begin to meditate, my new eyes, they have the clear appearance of a pair of draconic eyes with a hint of divinity, giving me new insight on the world and enhanced vision. My newly forged body emanating the power of that of a peak Golden Core realm cultivator, but this is not enough, not for the mission that lies ahead.
"Yuiren, I need your help, let us take residence within the sect for a while.", I say, knowing that the Long Zhou sect is my creation from my previous life, "I need to open the stash from the patriarch's room".
"Yes, Master. Come, I'll show you to your quarters, follow us, friend of my master.", she tells Lei Zhao, who is still confused at the current situation.
As we reach the sect, every sect disciple is curious and confused about the two strangers their current acting sect leader has brought on sect grounds, but knowing Yuiren's short temper, they don't dare ask. Reaching my quarters from my previous lifetime, I lay my eyes on the ornate box that's supposed to hold the key item to my advancement, "The Fruit of Life" a mythical fruit that cannot be found in this day and age in the land of Atris. This fruit enhances all body and spiritual power as well as nourishes meridians and helps body reconstruction and recovery.
This lightning ring I own is the key to opening the ornate box holding the fruit.
I found this ring not by accident, but by choice, guided by my previous encounter with Thunder Lord Kyiazo, the legendary Transcendent realm human that's long passed. The one human to pique my interest, my late teacher from 1854 years ago. It took me multiple lifetimes to finally find my way to this ring that resided in the mountainous area of Yong Ning, deep within the world of Atris, one of the many worlds I've reincarnated in over the years. Today marks my 635th awakening, across 75 unique lower worlds.
Right now, I am known as Xu Hao Ren, the future patriarch of the Hao Ren family, as per my family's agreement that my father will not take the leadership of the family because he wants to retire together with mother when grandpa Mun passes the torch.
My current friends are Mer Xia and Lei Zhao, the first being a righteous sword user that I am yet to meet since our last encounter 6 years ago. The single disciple from my past lives is Yuiren, a Jorōgumo, taken in specifically because of her special water abilities that helped with awakening my memory early in this current lifetime, so that I may begin my mission of revenge upon the "Gods of the Old World" that have cursed me to a life of man, forever.
In order to preserve myself and my power, I've chosen a cycle of reincarnation that can never be broken, known as the "God-Dragon Reincarnation Method", a self-developed technique that I've never passed onto anyone.
Those cowards banished me because they feared my power, knowing that their curse alone would not be strong enough to keep me from reclaiming my rightful place among the Gods.
"Alas, an immortal being such as myself has been forced into submission, for eons, by those lowly creatures, but today, today everything changes." I say, knowing well that both Yuiren and Lei Zhao would hear my words.
I put the ring in the socket of the ornate box, opening it with a clicking sound, and grab the fruit, hurriedly biting into it, consuming it all. Seconds later, as if it were a miracle, my body has reached the peak of Golden Core, a feat that took my current father, Huang Hao Ren, 50 years to achieve, while my mother has been stuck at the middle of said realm, since her 40's. They are regarded as the brightest humans currently, having reached Golden Core and stabilized the fastest. The only one with a higher level in the world of Atris, is Patriarch Mun, my current grandfather, sitting at the peak of Nascent Soul. He is currently the strongest human in this lower world, based on cultivation alone, since the last war and since Thunder Lord Kiyazo himself.
Looking at Lei, I tell her with a smile, revealing some information, so that I may clear up some confusion. "Every cultivation realm enhances human life by a good couple of years, during the era of my friend, Kiyazo, we both sat at the peak of Transcendence, which is why I knew the general location of the Ring of Thunder and its conditions to summon the Divine Thunderstrike manual and why I took the liberty to engrave this information into my spirit, so that I may pass it onto my next reincarnation cycle. "
She listens while pondering what to do with the information, but not before I reveal an even more confusing ultimatum.
"This time, this cycle, this life... it all ends here."