Paragon of Sin

In Tuo Bihan's Sky Palace on the eighth-level of the Extreme Creation Mountain, Wei Wuyin was currently there. He stood in a large hall with several figures present. Since his 'incident' with his Sky Palace, he had to wait while it was being rebuilt entirely, so he decided to set-up shop at Tuo Bihan's residence.

It was largely unused as the old man often spent his days lounging down at the Martial King's Dao Palace or idling about elsewhere. Due to his old age and high cultivation base, he simply acted however he wanted and slept where he felt he should. This was how Wei Wuyin met him first.

He even lacked attendants for his Sky Palace, just like Wei Wuyin had. It was very rare for those of his or Tuo Bihan's level to avoid procuring workers to maintain the Sky Palace. But they both seemed to lack others constantly in their space.

In truth, this remained true even in the Scarlet Solaris Sect. Perhaps it was the tense atmosphere he grew up which caused assassinations to be at the forefront of his mind, but he didn't allow anyone but his lovers, trusted subordinates, family, and allies to enter his Sky Palace.

At the moment, Su Mei, Zuhei, and Hong Chunhua were standing before him. Su Mei and Zuhei had just returned from their missions, returning on his order. Due to the Grand Spirit Trials, he had recalled them.

As for Hong Chunhua, she was here for cultivation. The ambient environment of the eighth-level of the Sky Layer was highly conducive for cultivation. The thick astral essence and the various gathering, concentration, and purification formations could easily accelerate an individual's cultivation and foundation. He had declared that she would exceed all the Heavenly Kings in six months, he was not one to go against his word.

He fully intended to give her premium pills, elixirs, and paste for the full six months. Her talent and innate foundation would be entirely redefined. The fortunate thing was that, unlike Zuhei and Su Mei who needed the firmest foundation imaginable, Hong Chunhua simply needed a foundation that exceeded the others.

Wei Wuyin handled her matter first. "I've devised a regiment for you to cultivate during these six months, and I'll be providing all the resources. You simply need to be diligent and cultivate to your fullest."

Hong Chunhua nodded, her red lips moved slightly as if she wanted to speak up. But in the end, she stifled her words. Wei Wuyin noticed this and added, "The others are being taken care of separately, including those who decided to follow you. A total of seventy-three." He waved his hand, a storage ring appeared above his open palm. He sent it to her.

"There's a list in there. You'll find eighth-grade pills, elixirs, and paste within, all suitable for your cultivation. Don't be hasty, take your time absorbing each product to their utmost limits." Wei Wuyin was somewhat saddened that she had only reached the three-ring Soul Idol. While this was above average for this era, it meant her limit with the eighth-grade products was a Six-ring Soul Idol.

This meant that in terms of Soul Idol foundation, she wouldn't be beyond the strongest Heavenly King. He had to truly improve every aspect of her foundation to change her future. Even her Mortal State was merely at the 7th level.

She was stunned. '...Eighth-Grade?!' Before she could voice her confusion, Wei Wuyin dismissed her and sent her out towards the cultivation room. He didn't want to deal with her questions or confusion.

Zuhei and Su Mei were relatively calm. The former had received Astral Sea Pills by the bucketful to cultivate and Su Mei was always provided with the best resources Wei Wuyin had to offer. Despite that, she was still only at the Ninth Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm, the Qi Essence Phase. She had long since cultivated her Mana Essence, merging it with her Natal Soul for a Zenith Mortal State. However, she hadn't assailed the Astral Core Realm.

Why?

She had a gut-feeling of an ominous premonition whenever she thought about it. It was indistinct, but even Wei Wuyin said it was best to trust her instincts. She should wait until she was absolutely certain, the feeling vanishing. Therefore, she had, for the last few years, cultivated her Darklight Energies and Saber Intent to the limits.

She learned spells, arts, studied mana perception methods and arrays, advancing her knowledge in all aspects of cultivation. She wanted to fortify her cultivation foundation to the limit, then ascend. Unfortunately, her current body and Natal Soul was at its absolute limit. Her innate energies couldn't be reinforced, purified, or condensed further, and her cultivation was at its peak.

She had even comprehended an Intent of Light and Darkness. They were both high-level rare essences, the Solar Yang Light and Lunar Yin Darkness. They stemmed from the sun and the rare darkness that planetary satellites birthed in conjunction with each other, and they were very compatible. Her Divine Heart of Darklight Qi had thoroughly solidified.

Zuhei had been developing his foundation as well, his Astral Core was already two millimeters in size. This was absolutely monstrous, and while he was a Sky Ruler, it vastly surpassed any on his level. Furthermore, he had perceived the profundities of the Soul Idol, ready to assail it at any moment.

If it wasn't for Wei Wuyin's orders, he would've ascended and reached new heights.

"I've called both of you back because of the Grand Spirit Trials," Wei Wuyin said. He explained the details, wager, and challenges within the sect. From the beginning, Wei Wuyin never was going to rely on the disciples of the sect to secure victory. He was fully intending to have Zuhei claim victory in the contest, his claws and fangs.

While he could improve their cultivation bases, he had no reason to. Those young elites were given a chance and refused, and picking one of them out and wasting his resources on them was an unappealing option to him.

Zuhei's eyes brightened considerably. He was a cultivator that birthed Slaughter and Battle Intent, his species were said to have descended from the mythological Silver Wolf, Fenrir. The hunt, the fight, and the kill was in his blood. He had been cultivating quietly since he claimed his revenge, and Duke Zhao wasn't even enough to whet his appetite.

A bloodlust effused from his scarlet eyes.

"You'll take victory. As for you Su Mei, I think it's time for you to ascend. You've reached an absolute limit at your realm, and your comprehension of mana is sufficient to call forth the Sky-World Lightning Tribulation." Wei Wuyin found her comprehension to be terrifying. She was a frightening talent, far beyond him naturally in regards to cultivation. If it wasn't for his Celestial Eyes that can see the variations and aspects of mana, he didn't believe he could ascend so easily.

While his talent with alchemy was exceptional to the extreme, and his intelligence and comprehension were not low, he knew in his heart that he was a notch or two weaker than Su Mei. He had a sneaky suspicion that her cultivation base wouldn't be below his if she wasn't feeling apprehensive.

He didn't have anything solid for this assumption to stand on, but his heart felt it was the truth. The strange thing was that she didn't have any unique bloodline or physique, even her sea of consciousness and meridians were normal. To set a comparison, Qing Qiumu had a trifecta of talent that stemmed from her meridians(Essence), sea of consciousness(Mind), and physique(Physical). They were all wood-attributed and high-grade, allowing her to cultivate an unprecedented path as a Wood Cultivator.

Despite that, Su Mei seemed to not lose to her in any facet of natural talent. She gave birth to Darklight Energies, comprehended Light and Darkness Intents, both high-level, and Saber Intent. These were all cultivation achievements, and she was at Wei Wuyin's age. In fact, it didn't lose out to Long Chen, a Blessed. To add to this, she didn't rely on his Karmic Luck Value.

It was bizarre. It was incredibly bizarre.

Su Mei didn't question Wei Wuyin's orders. "Yes, Lord Wei." Her pure black eyes were radiant. Just staring at them could cause one to be lost in their light, a benefit of her cultivation method.

Wei Wuyin nodded, "Zuhei. Your aura has traces of a Soul Idol forming, you can ascend. I'll give you cultivation resources to ensure a nine-ring Soul Idol. You'll also cultivate the Bloodforging Mystic Method, it's a Bloodline cultivation method that can improve the physical constitution, improve one's bloodline, and bring about unique changes. It'll be beneficial to you in the long run."

This was the method he obtained from Yuan Longshi's memories, the complete version of the Bloodforging Mystic Method. It was the method used by the Bloodforge Emperor, a subordinate of Wu Yu, and likely revered Mystic Ascendant Realm cultivator. He had created the Bloodforge Continent and left his legacy within.

Wei Wuyin had taken nearly a year to excavate the method and using his comprehension of alchemy and the True Dragon Transmutation Method, he had to remove the inconsistencies within. Originally, this technique had a hidden trap within that caused it to only work on those who've been branded with a bloodline seal.

This seal was very minute, nearly impossible to notice, and was there at birth. It was left by the Bloodforge Emperor onto his descendants and relatives. If it wasn't for him thoroughly sweeping Yuan Longshi's memories, Wei Wuyun would have remained completely ignorant of this flaw. But having known about it, removing this limitation was simple.

With it removed, not only could he finally cultivate the method but so could Zuhei, someone who relied on his physical body and bloodline energies to cultivate and fight. As a beastman, his bloodline powers were thoroughly affected by his cultivation base and vice versa.

It was this very reason why Yuan Longshi advanced so swiftly and had such power at his age.

Wei Wuyin sent a strand of Alchemic Eden Force into Zuhei's glabella, the contents of the Bloodforging Mystic Method was branded in his mind. This startled Zuhei at first, not expecting Wei Wuyin to send a strand of astral force towards him, but he didn't react or resist. This was because the move was done by Wei Wuyin!

But what shocked Zuhei even more was the information that entered his mind, his scarlet eyes widened in disbelief and uncertainty. He had never heard of someone mentally branding a technique into another's mind before.

"Cultivate it well." Wei Wuyin passed a storage ring to Zuhei. He was his trump card for the Grand Spirit Trials. With his cultivation base, he should be unrivaled after his ascension. Even if he lost this challenge, he wouldn't fall prey to the Alchemist Association's scheme. They clearly wanted to give him a request, one he couldn't refuse. He didn't know what it was, but he felt it wasn't appropriate.

Regardless, he'll pay off the bet and move on.

When it was just him and Su Mei, he looked at her. Her body was slim yet fierce, her defined and toned musculature outlined accentuating her light armor. With hair and eyes as black as night but as radiant as the sun, she was becoming more exquisite. While she had always been pretty, she was reaching another level of alluring with a unique charm of her own.

When those clear black eyes met his silver eyes, he could feel her impassioned desire to improve and stand by his side. He gently smiled, a trace of warmth circulating endlessly in his heart. This girl…

"You ready?" He asked.

"Yes!" She replied.