GDK 663: Omen Realm
The enormous quantity of mystical yin aura inside the Cauldron of Myriad Demon was condensed into a gaseous state before it gently flowed into Han Shuo through his mouth and nose.
The mystical yin aura gathered by the enormous Ninth Realm Mystical Yin Harvester all these years rapidly passed through the countless meridians from his head to toe before flowing into his demonic infant.
Following the Cauldron Spirit's instructions, Han Shuo opened up his soul and set his consciousness go blank. He stopped thinking about anything. Han Shuo had discovered some time ago that his demonic infant could work better if he didn't actively micromanage it. Therefore, after opening up his soul, Han Shuo merely performed every action with his subconscious mind and did not actively control them.
This was the most optimal state that would allow Han Shuo's demonic infant to operate at its fullest capacity. Needless to say, the Cauldron Spirit also played an important role at this moment. It gathered the mystical yin aura in the air, condensed the energy, and fed it to Han Shuo's demonic infant.
Han Shuo felt as though his consciousness was floating, fluttering in the breeze. Without him being fully aware, the demonic infant inside his body automatically assembled the enormous amount of mystical yin aura to replenish itself and converted it into demonic yuan before subsequently depositing it into each and every cell of his body.
Time passed rapidly and noiselessly. Han Shuo's consciousness was in a vacant state. Under the stimulation of demonic yuan, his body started to crackle and rattle. It was undergoing metamorphosis yet again. The same gradual process of transformation also began on the demonic infant inside his body. The demonic infant was no longer blurry and indistinct, but completely visible as a carbon-copy of Han Shuo.
While the metamorphosis continued, Han Shuo's consciousness suddenly trembled as a wave of disordered information surged into his consciousness.
Han Shuo was instantly awoken from that vacant and unthinking state. The piercing pain from the transformation overhauling his body and demonic infant immediately rushed to his head. He almost couldn't restrain himself from loudly howling in pain.
"I believe you should know that transformation is always accompanied by pain. Not only must you continue to endure this pain, but you must also carefully comprehend those things in your consciousness which the Exalted Demonlord left for you. Should your realm state fail to progress in tandem with the growing energy inside your body, it will be disadvantageous to you in the future," Cauldron Spirit transmitted to Han Shuo.
Han Shuo understood what was happening to him in an instant. The moment that his consciousness was awoken, he very clearly sensed the transformation happening to his body and demonic infant. He could feel that the enormous amount of mystical yin aura was still madly rushing into his body, flowing through his demonic infant, being converted into demonic yuan, and subsequently nourishing his body.
The immense amount of demonic yuan he gained by absorbing and converting those mystical yin aura could not just metamorphosize Han Shuo's physical body and demonic infant, but it could also assist Han Shuo in making a breakthrough to the next realm; with one prerequisite - Han Shuo's realm state had to be in coherence with the energy his body possessed.
This meant that Han Shuo had to carefully decipher and comprehend the Exalted Demonlord's understandings that were injected into his consciousness. He had to raise his realm state to the advanced degree his physical body and demonic infant required. Only then could he reap the benefits of these energies to the greatest extent. On the contrary, if too much energy was injected into him while his realm state was not sufficiently advanced to support the energy, it could backfire and cause him harm.
Having understood this, Han Shuo took the initiative to cut communication with the Cauldron Spirit, ignored the pain and transformation to his body and demonic infant, and placed his full attention on carefully comprehending the enigma that was inserted into his consciousness.
The knowledge that Gu Tian Xie the Exalted Demonlord had of demonic arts was many levels above that of Chu Cang Lan. They were absolutely different classes of existences.
The enigma that filled Han Shuo's consciousness was like a lump of violently warping cloud which contained not a word or letter. Han Shuo had to sense and observe the changes to the cloud in order to find the comprehension of demonhood that Gu Tian Xie the Exalted Demonlord left for him.
Initially, Han Shuo had absolutely no idea how he should proceed. He tried to sense everything inside the cloud using the energy of his consciousness but he quickly realized that this method was ineffective. However, Han Shuo wasn't feeling anxious at all as he knew that the transformation to his body and demonic infant definitely would not be complete within a short period of time. He calmly but fully focused his mind on unraveling the puzzle.
After an undetermined amount of time, Han Shuo tried opening up his soul and discarded all distracting thoughts. He sank into some kind of transcendental state. An abstruse connection was formed between him and that erratically twisting cloud.
A whirlwind of disordered thoughts shot from the cloud in all directions. Like needles cutting across his mind, they caused his consciousness immense pain and injury.
When the piercing pain struck his consciousness, the pain from his metamorphosing body and demonic infant simultaneously increased tenfold. Han Shuo nearly passed out from the pain.
While enduring and resisting the torment to his body and mind, Han Shuo started to reassemble his consciousness. He was astonished to discover that those jumbled-up thoughts that were launched all around his consciousness started to recombine rhythmically. His consciousness started to comprehend - something.
Han Shuo, whose face was twitching because of the immense pain, suddenly turned quiet and peaceful. He became as still as a boulder as he sat cross-legged. It was as though he had turned into stone.
Han Shuo's body burst with magnificent radiance all throughout the process.
After an undetermined amount of time, the extremely rich mystical yin aura inside the Cauldron of Myriad Demon started to grow thin and flowed into Han Shuo at a slower rate. After some more time, all the mystical yin aura within the Cauldron of Myriad Demon seemed to have been washed away by a burst of strong breeze and Han Shuo's body stopped glowing.
Han Shuo, who had remained completely still for who-knew-how-long, started moving his finger. Moments later, his eyebrows started to twitch, and finally he opened his eyes and woke up from that hypnotic state.
"Congratulations, master. You have directly broken through a whole realm!" the Cauldron Spirit's voice sounded in Han Shuo's consciousness.
Han Shuo's eyes were filled with blankness. He felt as though he had just awoken from a long, long dream and was unclear about his current condition. Han Shuo's eyebrows were furrowed and he started to slowly recall everything that happened to him.
Gradually, Han Shuo smoothened his brows. It was as though he had grabbed onto something and fallen into contemplation along that trail.
After some time, Han Shuo gently heaved a breath. He stood up from sitting cross-legged, stretched his body, clenched his fists, and sensed his transformation.
"Your body has metamorphosed yet again, and so has your demonic infant. You are now much more powerful than before!" Cauldron Spirit transmitted to Han Shuo's consciousness.
Without needing Cauldron Spirit's explanation, Han Shuo could sense his newfound power. The demonic yuan circulating throughout his body seemed to have transformed into a different state. They gradually flowed through his limbs and bones like tiny water streams. Every cell and bone in his body felt like they were brimming with boundless energy which could instantly gush out with one thought.
The demonic infant didn't seem to have transformed much. However, when Han Shuo carefully inspected it, he saw that the demonic infant, his fountainhead of energy, had turned from blurry to incomparably distinctive. It looked just like a newborn infant!
Han Shuo had yet to completely adapt to the sudden changes. There were significant changes that he couldn't fully familiarize himself with within a short period of time.
"Master, you have now attained the Omen Realm. I believe you should now know how to further cultivate in this realm!"
Han Shuo stared blankly for a moment and exclaimed, "Huh?"
"Carefully comprehend things that the Exalted Demonlord left in your consciousness, and you will understand," the Cauldron Spirit reminded.
When Han Shuo focused, he discovered that there was indeed some indescribable comprehension within his consciousness that he never had before. The next instance, Han Shuo suddenly recalled some of the insight about the Nine Changes realm which he gained in that wonderful state just moments ago.
"I got it! Haha, I have actually attained Omen realm! That Chu Cang Lan had painstakingly sought to break through the Nine Changes realm and attain Omen realm, but he never did manage to advance. I truly did not expect to simply cross that great barrier in one giant leap! They say that it is only in the Omen realm that one can ascend. Doesn't that mean I'm now a so-called god back on the world from whence we came?" upon returning to his senses, Han Shuo chortled with laughter and loudly cheered inside the Cauldron of Myriad Demon.
Of course, Han Shuo was excited. Back then, Chu Cang Lan had fought a monk and a Taoist priest precisely because he was trying to make a breakthrough in his stagnated cultivation and reach ascension. But in the end, Chu Cang Lan lost everything and instead of having to use Han Shuo, whom he captured as his lifeboat, what resulted was Han Shuo arriving in this parallel-universe.
It was as though the heavens had been foreordained all along. Han Shuo was now on a realm that even Chu Cang Lan did not have a chance to touch, surpassing him in strength. He had finally walked out from the shadows of Chu Cang Lan.
"I have just used up the mystical yin aura that the Ninth Realm Mystical Yin Harvester gathered all these years on you. I'm afraid that this place cannot be kept up for much longer," Cauldron Spirit suddenly said after Han Shuo gradually calmed down from the excitement.
"What do you mean?" Han Shuo was jolted.
"Everything here can be destroyed and must be destroyed. Otherwise, there will be a constant flow of experts coming to investigate. Right, those who came with you are probably just the scouting units. If this place doesn't get destroyed, more will continue to come and investigate after them. I have been maintaining this place for a long time and know their work ethics," Cauldron Spirit calmly explained.
Han Shuo was immediately enlightened by the Cauldron Spirit's words. He was indeed correct. The Ninth Realm Mystical Yin Harvester was a mysterious place. Many experts from high-level material planes had disappeared in this place without any apparent cause or reason. Surely, their interests in this place would do anything but subside.
Donna and the others ought to be the first batch of experts sent to probe this place. If they did not hear back from Donna, Kaiser, and the others, they would surely dispatch more experts. Even if Han Shuo were to destroy the only remaining interplanar transportation matrix on Profound Continent, they would just find their way by some other means, just as Olde had. The only surefire way was to destroy everything there and not leave a single vestige that could marvel them. Only then would those experts abandon further missions to probe this place, and Profound Continent would truly see peace, no longer interfered by experts from distant material planes.
"Luckily you have come over and made contact with me. In fact, the existence of this place is no longer necessary. With the two of us, we can rebuild anything here. And when you have sufficiently mighty strength, you can deploy anything and everything here, anywhere you'd like, with just your own power.
"However, before you come to possess that strength, you must conceal the fact that you cultivate in demonic arts as much as possible. That existence who battled the Exalted Demonlord is extremely mighty. If the person was to learn of your existence, you would surely be terminated. Even if that existence had yet to recover from its injuries, it could still kill you with a snap. Therefore, from now onwards, you better not reveal to anyone the fact that you practice demonic arts, lest that it finds out," the Cauldron Spirit reminded Han Shuo. It seemed very apprehensive of that expert who battled Gu Tian Xie the Exalted Demonlord.
After hearing those words, Han Shuo solemnly nodded, and said, "Understood. From now onwards, I will not perform demonic arts before others as much as possible. But if I were to use demonic arts, I will make sure my opponents don't live to tell anyone about it!"
"It's good that you understand. Additionally, now that your body has metamorphosed, you could use the energies of your two avatars to conceal the fact that your main body cultivates in demonic arts. You may give it a try."
Han Shuo was pleasantly surprised to hear that. He immediately experimented with moving the energy of his avatar of death. At the next instance, Han Shuo cried out in surprise, "You're right! It flows smoothly!"
Han Shuo sensed that the energy of death inside his skeletal staff avatar could circulate throughout his main body unimpeded. Han Shuo's aura transformed in the blink of an eye and his main body seemed to have turned into his avatar that cultivated in the energy of death. But Han Shuo clearly recognized that this energy all came from the skeletal staff inside his body and his main body had merely borrowed the energy inside the skeletal staff.
"You can use both energies of your two avatars. As long as you do not use demonic arts, no one will be able to tell that you cultivate in it. Also, that avatar you formed using that demonic weapon contains too many impure souls and even carries demonic aura. I will help you remove the negative energy and those weak deceased souls. Otherwise, it will affect your avatar's comprehension of the energy in this world!" Cauldron Spirit continued.
Han Shuo suddenly recalled that the Demonslayer Edge had absorbed some negative energy and deceased souls. After hearing Cauldron Spirit's reminder, Han Shuo suddenly realized the reason that his avatar of destruction couldn't make much progress in its cultivation of the edict of destruction could be because it contained too many impurities and the energy wasn't pure enough!
However, all that negative energy and those dead souls were also a form of energy. Han Shuo was rather reluctant to have them erased by Cauldron Spirit.
"Don't worry, the three spirit demons you refined could completely take over those energies. I will help you finish everything. With that, your spirit demon will grow, and your avatar won't have any hindrance in comprehending the energy it cultivates. Everyone's satisfied!" as though it could read Han Shuo's mind, Cauldron Spirit explained.
"That would be wonderful!" Han Shuo was overjoyed and he laughed out loud. He figured that with this Cauldron Spirit as his assistant, he could really save a great deal of effort.
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Hedonist's notes:
Translator: Hedonist
Editor: Emily