Archean Eon Art c1-766
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“This is Chaos?” Meng Chuan looked outside the tunnel. He had heard that there were Chaos creatures in the Chaos beyond the universe.
Outside the colorful time tunnel was darkness. Light occasionally flashed, and the spacetime layer was beyond bizarre.
“That’s right. One needs to have the strength of an Eighth Tribulation Eminence to travel long distances in the Chaos,” said Daolord Evodia. “For example, those Chaos creatures only move around the region they were born in. If they go too far, they will be lost and unable to return. Even if they have avatars and can sense the direction, spacetime is chaotic in the Chaos. It’s useless to advance in a direction.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly.
“Only by mastering the complete spacetime law can one travel through spacetime and head to many mysterious places. They can also head to other universes,” Daolord Evodia said.
“How many universes are there in the endless spacetime?” asked Meng Chuan curiously.
“That’s unknown.” Daolord Evodia shook his head. “This is a mystery! Even an Eighth Tribulation Eminence can only travel a very small portion of the endless spacetime. It’s very rare for them to pass by 100-plus universes. I’ve only explored 15 universes in my life, but I’ve heard of over 10,000 universes.”
“Over 10,000?” Meng Chuan was astonished.
“The endless spacetime will naturally give birth to universes. Eternal existences can casually create universes. Even Eighth Tribulation Eminences and the strongest powerhouses can open up universes. Furthermore, a universe also has moments of destruction. Therefore, the number of universes is uncertain. In fact, they are constantly changing,” said Daolord Evodia. “The number of known universes is more than 10,000. However, endless spacetime is too large. How many Eighth Tribulation Eminences can we see in our lives? Only Eternal existences can know all the secrets of endless spacetime.”
“Eternal existences?” Meng Chuan asked the question in his mind. “Daolord, is the master you mentioned an Eternal existence?”
Daolord Evodia turned to look at Meng Chuan. He smiled and nodded slightly. “That’s right. An Eternal existence stands at the highest point in the endless spacetime. They look down on all living beings and all the universes. They are truly omnipotent.”
“Omnipotent?” asked Meng Chuan. To make an Eighth Tribulation Eminence say that one was omnipotent?
“An Eternal existence is much stronger than an Eighth Tribulation Eminence.” Daolord Evodia sighed. “You should know that Tribulation Eminences experience tribulations one after another, each harder than the one before. The Eighth Tribulation realm to the Eternal realm is like a chasm. Many Eighth Tribulation Eminences have long given up.”
Meng Chuan fell into deep thought.
“Imperial Lords can reach the Tribulation realm after attaining a perfected body or experiencing an Essence Soul breakthrough. Newly-advanced Tribulation Eminences can typically reach the Second Tribulation realm easily. It’s slightly difficult to reach the Third Tribulation realm, but it’s even harder to reach the Fourth Tribulation realm,” said Daolord Evodia. “Typically, only one in ten can reach the Fifth Tribulation realm from the Fourth Tribulation realm! There are typically only one in 200 Fifth Tribulation Eminences that can advance to the Sixth Tribulation realm! Only one in thousands can reach the Sixth Tribulation realm from the Fifth Tribulation realm.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly. It was very difficult to reach the Seventh Tribulation realm. Seventh Tribulation Eminences generally had much longer lifespans than Sixth Tribulation Eminences, but there were only less than 30 Seventh Tribulation Eminences in this era.
“As for the Seventh Tribulation realm to the Eighth Tribulation realm? Even if our home universe has a very rich heritage, only one Eighth Tribulation Eminence appears out of tens of thousands of Seventh Tribulation Eminences,” said Daolord Evodia with a sigh. “As for the Eighth Tribulation realm to the Eternal realm? I’m afraid not even one Eternal will appear out of millions of Eighth Tribulation Eminences. I don’t know how many living beings there are in the endless spacetime… Even after so many years, only a few Eternal Eminences have been born.”
“Not even one in millions of Eighth Tribulation Eminences produces one?” Meng Chuan was somewhat dazed. It’s that exaggerated?
“Eighth Tribulation Eminences are very rare as well,” said Daolord Evodia. “It takes us a long time to encounter one while roaming the Chaos. We are actually quite lonely; most of the time, we sleep for millions or even hundreds of millions of years.”
Meng Chuan thought about it and agreed.
The distance between universes was too great. Daolord Evodia had only explored 15 universes to date. Exploring a universe didn’t mean that one could see all the Eighth Tribulation Eminences that had been born in that particular universe’s history.
Some of those Eighth Tribulation Eminences roamed beyond their universes, some died, and some crossed this period of time and chose to appear in a temporal node a billion years in the future. Therefore, it wasn’t easy for an Eighth Tribulation Eminence to encounter another Eighth Tribulation Eminence.
It was indeed lonely.
“It’s very rare to meet an Eighth Tribulation Eminence, but it’s even harder to meet an Eternal existence,” said Daolord Evodia wistfully. “Therefore, I’m very lucky to be Master’s in-name disciple. It’s also a great opportunity for you; you have to grasp it.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly.
“Master has cultivated to the Eternal realm. The Dao of Painting, the Dao of the Sword… He is omniscient in many paths.” Daolord Evodia sighed. “Just by looking at my 19 paintings, he was inspired and created that six-stroke painting. To comprehend this painting mystic technique, the threshold is actually extremely high. Firstly, one has to be at the Seventh Tribulation realm and grasp an Origins law to comprehend it. Secondly, one has to have extraordinary perception. Thirdly—and most importantly—one has to have a pair of eyes that can paint worlds.”
A pair of eyes that can paint worlds? Meng Chuan fell into deep thought.
“Master created this mystic technique by using the Dao of Painting to deconstruct all things.” Daolord Evodia continued, “If you want to gain insights into it, you first need to spend a long period of time using the art of painting to deconstruct all things. Only with this pair of eyes can you have a chance of learning this technique.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly. He understood.
In fact, his past cultivation involved painting worlds. In fact, the Essence Soul formulation he created was the Painting World. He condensed a painting Essence Soul that reflected everything in the world.
He had already embarked on this path. As for the six-stroke runic seal, it was an extremely high achievement on this path. Only by accumulating enough insights on this path and having high perceptivity could he learn this formulation.
“Cultivators travel through the endless spacetime on rugged paths. There’s no such thing as undue favoritism,” said Daolord Evodia. “Eternal existences have extremely high requirements when choosing disciples. For example, you have to comprehend the Painting Dao mystic technique first before passing the test at Dry Origin Mountain. Only then will you be an in-name disciple.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly.
“In fact, it’s not bad to reach the Eighth Tribulation realm.” Daolord Evodia looked at the outside world. His speed in the spacetime tunnel was terrifying. Every moment, he traversed seemingly countless universes. “Although Eighth Tribulation Eminences have differences in strength, once one reaches the Eighth Tribulation realm, they will grasp the spacetime law. They will have all sorts of means. It’s very difficult to kill them at the same level.”
“It’s very difficult to kill?” Meng Chuan couldn’t help but say, “Our home universe has many Eighth Tribulation Eminences’ corpses.”
“Eighth Tribulation Eminences control spacetime. Even a drop of blood, a strand of hair, or even a book they personally wrote can
be used as a mark to be reborn,” said Daolord Evodia. “Therefore, unless the strength difference between Eighth Tribulation Eminences is ridiculously great, they are unkillable.”
“What do you mean by ridiculously great?” asked Meng Chuan.
“Eighth Tribulation Eminences are also divided into the strong and weak. They can barely be divided into ordinary Eighth Tribulation Eminences, top Eighth Tribulation Eminences, and peak Eighth Tribulation Eminences,” said Daolord Evodia. “A peak Eighth Tribulation Eminence has truly reached their limits. Many of their means are already close to the Eternal realm. For example, they can open up or destroy a universe. It’s the case that if a living being below the Eternal realm hears their names, they can use this to revive. Any book that records their names can also be used for revival.”
“They can live just by remembering them?” Meng Chuan found it unbelievable.
“Therefore, only when Eternals make a move and destroy all traces of their existence in the endless spacetime such that the Eight Tribulation Eminence no longer exists in the memories of all living beings will they truly die,” said Daolord Evodia. “This is the limit of the Eighth Tribulation realm. Our home universe’s Dragon Ancestor is at this level. This is also why our home universe is famous everywhere.”
Meng Chuan was shocked.
It was no wonder that generations of Seventh Tribulation Eminences in his home universe knew very little about Eighth Tribulation Eminences. They didn’t know which Eighth Tribulation Eminences existed in history, but they vaguely believed that Dragon Ancestor was the strongest. No faction had ever refuted this claim.
“Only a peak Eighth Tribulation Eminence can kill an ordinary Eighth Tribulation Eminence,” said Daolord Evodia. “As long as one becomes a top Eighth Tribulation Eminence, their means will be even more brilliant. A peak Eighth Tribulation Eminence won’t be able to do anything to them. In our home universe, the famous Fiend Mountain owner and Eternal Tower owner are all top Eighth Tribulation Eminences. As for me…”
Meng Chuan looked at him curiously.
“I’ve only cultivated for a short period of time, and my perception is lacking. I’m still only an ordinary Eighth Tribulation Eminence.” Daolord Evodia sighed. “I’m really ashamed.”
Daolord Evodia is only an ordinary Eighth Tribulation Eminence? From the looks of it, it’s very difficult for an Eighth Tribulation Eminence to improve.
“Of course, I’m lucky to be Master’s disciple. I’ll only die of old age; it’s impossible for me to be killed.” Daolord Evodia smiled as he glanced at Meng Chuan. “Even if I die completely and all traces of me in the endless spacetime are wiped away, Master will be able to retrieve me from the spacetime.”
Meng Chuan was shocked when he heard that. He can live despite that?
“It’s impossible to be killed once you are a disciple of an Eternal existence. This is also why many Eighth Tribulation Eminences are envious of us,” said Daolord Evodia as he looked into the distance. “Therefore, you have to pass the Dry Origin Mountain test.”
Chapter 721 - Eighth Tribulation Realm's Lifespan
Whoosh!
Meng Chuan and Daolord Evodia continued advancing through the distorted spacetime tunnel.
I’m getting further and further away from my home universe. Through his connection with his homeworld’s true body, Meng Chuan could sense that they were going further and further away. It was so far that it was difficult for him to estimate the distance. He only knew that it would be impossible for him to travel so far with his Seventh Tribulation strength, even if he traveled for ten billion years or even a trillion years.
“Daolord,” said Meng Chuan. “How much longer until we reach Dry Origin Mountain?”
“About an hour,” Daolord Evodia said. “Only by becoming Master’s disciple can I activate a spacetime tunnel that leads to Dry Origin Mountain, allowing me to arrive in slightly over an hour. If I weren’t Master’s disciple, I would need at least 300,000 years to reach Dry Origin Mountain from our home universe.”
“At least 300,000 years?” Meng Chuan was shocked. An Eighth Tribulation Eminence needs 300,000 years just to travel there?
How many years was a Seventh Tribulation Eminence’s lifespan?
“Therefore, the Chaos is just too vast. It’s not easy to travel,” said Daolord Evodia. “We can only explore the nearby universes. It’s already impressive if we can explore dozens of universes. As for distant universes? There’s no way to explore them at all. This is because the journey will take too long. Time for Eighth Tribulation Eminences is very precious. After all, our lifespans are limited.”
Meng Chuan asked curiously, “How long can an Eighth Tribulation Eminence live?”
“An Eighth Tribulation Eminence’s lifespan doesn’t have a clear fixed number; it depends on one’s willpower,” explained Daolord Evodia. “Time is terrifying. Over time, one’s willpower will wear down and weaken.”
Meng Chuan fell into deep thought. The mind was like a mirror, one that needed to be wiped often.
“If it were just 200,000 to 300,000 years, one would have a goal in their cultivation. If they worked hard and advanced, their willpower would naturally improve. But even so, the closer they are to the Eighth Tribulation realm’s threshold, the harder it is for their willpower to improve,” said Daolord Evodia. “After reaching the Eighth Tribulation realm, it’s extremely difficult for one’s willpower to improve by even a tiny bit. Furthermore, one will discover that there’s no hope of ever reaching the Eternal realm. The difference is too great! Lastly, the lonely and comfortable days will gradually corrode one’s willpower.”
“It’s fine for a short period of time. But over long periods, one’s willpower will decline instead of advancing,” said Daolord Evodia. “When that happens, an Essence Soul Eighth Tribulation Eminence’s willpower will regress, and their Essence Soul World will become weak. Once they are unable to withstand the laws of spacetime, their Essence Soul World will collapse… and they will die.”
“It’s the same for Physical Body Tribulation Eminences. As they cultivate, their bodies become stronger, making them powerful in all sorts of aspects. But once their willpower regresses, they won’t be able to control an Eighth Tribulation body. Instead, their consciousness will be completely crushed by their powerful bodies, turning them into corpses. Power that exceeds one’s willpower brings about destruction,” Daolord Evodia said.
Meng Chuan fell silent.
One’s willpower was like a blade. It needed constant tempering to be sharp. After a long period of peace, the blade would rust.
“For example, those Chaos creatures,” Daolord Evodia said. “They are rather special lifeforms. Their Life Cores are eternal, but their power comes from their innate talents. Their minds are too weak. After a long period of time, their consciousness will eventually decay and collapse. In the end, their Life Cores will give birth to new consciousness.
“An Eighth Tribulation Eminence’s consciousness won’t decay and collapse. But as long as it falls to the point of being unable to withstand their Essence Soul and body, they will die,” said Daolord Evodia. “Therefore, the lifespan of an Eighth Tribulation Eminence is uncertain. It depends purely on one’s willpower. In the face of endless time, no Eighth Tribulation Eminence can ensure that their willpower never regresses.
“That’s why Eternal existences are very mighty,” Daolord Evodia said. “Not only have they reached the apex of power, but their willpower has also reached the Eternal level.”
Meng Chuan nodded in understanding.
“Therefore, most Eighth Tribulation Eminences are in a deep slumber most of the time,” said Daolord Evodia with a smile. “This is because sleeping is the slowest when it comes to corroding one’s mind and will.”
Sleeping was another way to extend one’s lifespan.
Meng Chuan listened. He learned many secrets about Eighth Tribulation Eminences from Daolord Evodia. Eighth Tribulation Eminences typically couldn’t be bothe
red to tell Seventh Tribulation Eminences too much about these secrets. It was only because Meng Chuan had grasped the six-stroke runic seal mystic technique and obtained the opportunity to become an Eternal existence’s in-name disciple that Daolord Evodia thought so highly of him.
“Daolord,” asked Meng Chuan, “I know that there are three thresholds for the Eighth Tribulation realm in the Essence Soul lineage. The first threshold is the spacetime law, the second one is willpower, and the third threshold is the Tribulation Transcendence. Information regarding the Tribulation Transcendence can’t be found in my home universe. Do you know about it, Daolord?”
“Don’t ask, and don’t search,” Daolord Evodia said.
Meng Chuan was slightly stunned.
“Regarding the Essence Soul Eighth Heavenly Tribulation… I can only tell you that knowing about it in advance doesn’t give you any help. Instead, it will mess up your mental state. Therefore, the best way is not to investigate. When you are strong enough and have enough willpower, you can transcend the tribulation easily.”
“Thank you for your guidance, Daolord.” Meng Chuan fell into deep thought.
Since he knew that it was harmful and useless, there was no need to investigate. He had to grasp the laws of spacetime and have his willpower reach the Essence Soul Eighth Tribulation realm’s threshold.
Whoosh~
As he advanced, they got closer and closer to Dry Origin Mountain.
“Dry Origin Mountain was created by Master to test cultivators,” Daolord Evodia said. “Normally, there are no cultivators there. Only Senior Brother Thousand-Hands is in charge of guarding it.”
“Senior Brother Thousand-Hands?” Meng Chuan looked at Daolord Evodia.
“Senior Brother Thousand-Hands is one of Master’s three servants. All the in-name disciples and even his eight personal disciples have to respectfully address him as Senior Brother Thousand-Hands,” explained Daolord Evodia. “Master’s three servants aren’t ordinary cultivators. They are special existences that Master paid a huge price to create. They have remained alive ever since they were created. All of them are comparable to peak Eighth Tribulation Eminences.”