Martial Continent, Lower divide, Outlands, above the Eastern Wilderness.
The air tore apart as a figure rapidly zoomed through the sky. Who knew how many hundreds of thousands of kilometers he had travelled over as the silhouette suddenly descended.
The silhouette of the young man stopped, levitating over an old, dilapidated ruin. The ruined area was rather large and covered a span of a few kilometers as it rested on the lush wilderness near the Eight Trigrams mountains.
The land it inhabited was Starfall Valley. Or that was what the travelling cultivators called this place. Nevertheless, these ruins had never been discovered by the outside world as it laid in the depths of the Fog region, and it would probably remain so for a long time.
As the Spirit Qi in the environment was exceedingly thick, the entire valley that spanned a few thousand miles was covered in a fogy mist and had become a haven for Spirit beasts. The minimum strength at the edge of the valley at Seventh level of Qi Spirit realm.
No cultivator would be stupid enough to venture more than a mile into the valley, and if someone was, then their deaths were almost 99% guaranteed. Even if someone stupid enough was able to make it this deep with some luck, the ruins would remain undiscovered.
Aside from him who had the Endless God's Eyes, only a truly monstrous cultivator with overwhelming strength and spiritual sense would be able to notice it while it was hidden within its layers of formations.
It was rumored that within the depths of the valleys' region were existences with terrifying aura's above the Qi Spirit realm. This was the news that circulated in the outside world.
It was a mystery which many people treated as highly possible, yet he knew that this was the case as he felt those terrifying aura's daily.
Lars looked at the architectural structure in front of him. To any other cultivator, they would only see vast amounts of land covered in towering trees and overwhelming greenery.
To him however.... his eyes shone a blazing blue that seemed to pierce through space itself. Layers upon layers of concealment formations we're seen through instantly to reveal its true appearance.
Not only were there concealment formations, there were also multiple slaughter arrays, illusion arrays, killing formations and more.
It had to be said that even though this place was in ruins, the defense was beyond anyone's imagination. Even he found it astonishing at first.
"Let's test it out again…." His lips curled upward as his body flew forward at an astounding speed. The air above the ruins lit up as several formations were triggered when he entered the airspace.
The Mana Qi in the surroundings surged, and the fog stirred as multiple beams of colored lights shot forward.
The temperature of the surroundings underwent drastic changes as fireballs the size of boulders, ice spears and sword beams shot towards him. A thick killing intent also filled the air as the slaughter arrays activated, permeating spiritual distortions into the environment.
Multiple explosions resounded due to the clashing of various energies. Yet with a slight twist of his body, Lars expression remained unchanged as he nimbly and narrowly dodged every single attack sent in his direction.
His speed increased explosively as he breezed past the attacks before they could even harm the hem of his clothing. Instantly, he had already arrived before the ruins, leaving all the explosions far behind when a blue force field barrier appeared out of thin air, obstructing his path.
"…. Perfect timing".
He said in an ethereal voice, and two beams of blazing lights shot from his eyes. Like a knife through hot butter, they pierced right through the protective barrier, blowing up a hole in it.
Flying right through and landing on his feet, Lars looked up at the sky. A content smile stayed on his face as he watched the explosions in the air.
The barrier that had been torn open slowly mended itself back together and a few seconds later, the calm tranquility of the forest came back.
It was as if nothing had ever happened in the first place.
"No matter how many times I use it, I just can't get tired of heat vision".
Lars shook his head slightly as his smile slowly vanished. The performance of these ruin's arrays had greatly satisfied him.
Although it was already destroyed and deserted, the arrays were still functioning normally, and their power hadn't diminished by much.
Of course, this was only possible because of the Mana gathering array inscribed somewhere within the ruins. Due to the thickness of the Mana Qi that had already formed a fog in the valley, it was effortless for the arrays to convert it into power 24/7.
This was the only reason why the formations were still active.
Feeling relaxed, Lars turned and flew into the ruined city. Bypassing buildings and areas that had traps and dangerous rooms, he soon appeared near an old mansion.
Lars smiled.
This place had been his home for the past year. The dilapidated roofing and molted walls were nowhere to be found despite being old, as the mansion was clean and pristine.
Opening the door, he stepped into the large living area and found it exactly the way he left it a few days ago.
He rubbed his slightly sour nose as the empty room reminded him very much of those old coots with different and oddly bizarre behaviors back at the exiled region.
"I wonder what they are doing now?"
Lars rubbed his chin with a nostalgic feeling, then muttered.
".... Hmm, probably dropping someone into another pit of Moleclaws or refining their essences in a cauldron... Heh, most likely along those lines or something similar".
He shook his head and decided not to think about it further. After all, those old fellows had odd and eccentric personalities as well as some weird hobbies.
"Hmm, well, who am I to judge". After which, Lars walked up the stairs towards his room.
Unlike the living room, and the hallways, his room wasn't empty. Apart from some clothes arranged neatly in a corner, there was also some things elsewhere.
There were lush and expensive looking furniture as well as a warm, comfy mattress. Some books ranging from cultivation manuals to martial arts as well as others.
The room was rather large and there was a lot of open space despite the items within.
Walking towards the mattress, he jumped on it and took in the scent. There truly was no place like home.
After which, Lars sat upright on the bed. Placing his hands on his neck, he removed a small spherical pendant that was hung around it. A feeling of slight anticipation surged from his mind as he pulled his drawer open which contained a long scroll.
With a half black, half red color, it looked old and worn out and yet, it still weighed half a kilo.
"It's finally time!" Lars exhaled.
"After I raise my Cultivation, I will finally know the truth about my origins".
"Soul Records".
As he called out, a familiar scene played out. A row of well-written words appeared in his line of sight.
[Larson
Status: Healthy
Title: Soul Records Master
Cultivation: None
Race: Human/ ??????
Bloodline Gene Potential: Imperial Tier (71%)
Providence: 89 Points
Innate Talents: Endless God's Eyes, Grand Alcan Physique, Shadow Plane, Soul void transmission, Telekinetic Will.
Affiliated workers; Tian Long (Dao Blessed) (Providence: 1.1)
Soul Orbs: 123,245]
"Hehehe"
A funny thought appeared in Lars mind, causing him to involuntarily chuckle. If Tian Long could see his records, he would probably vomit blood and explode on the spot from Qi deviation.
He didn't need to look at anything else, just looking at the number of soul Orbs in Lars possession was enough to turn his eyes red.
"Whatever. Now to get started". As soon as he finished speaking, a black and white cauldron appeared in his hand.
A domineering herbal smell filled the room as wisps of smoke exuded out of the cauldron. This was the Ying Yang cauldron that one of his guardians had given to him back at the exiled region.
"Ol pill Bill did say this was an Advanced Grade Armament Cauldron. It's even superior quality too".
Lars nodded with a thoughtful look and a sigh.
His guardians were so good to him.
Connecting to the shadow plane, various ingredients appeared in a perfectly arranged format. There were numerous vials and bottles containing different substances within.
"God's Eyes, enhance". His dark blue eyes glowed for a moment, but turned into a silver color instead of its regular blue. Rather than dazzling blue beams, two silver gray fumes exuded out of his eyes and fell on the cauldrons body.
The temperature spiked higher in seconds as the cauldron started turning red from the heat.
Unperturbed, Lars continued to heat it up with his heat vision. His hands began its movements as he picked up a vial containing a sliver white liquid.
"Moon dew essence, 52 years old".
Turning it in with his right hand, his left wasn't idle as it picked up another material and dumped it slowly in the cauldron.
"Vermilion Sun drop".
"Admium Steel Metal".
"Rainfog flower".
"Ancient Essence Vore Panther Crystal".
His voice called out each ingredient in a leisurely tone, and yet his hands moved like lightning as he put in one ingredient after the other. His eyes still shot out silverish heat as he continued the refining process.
Presently, Lars wasn't seeing through normal human eyesight. Different colors of light filled his eyes, which flowed from one direction to another, moving free and unconstrained.
When he first saw the world using his God's eyes back in the Exiled region, this wonderful display had astonished him, while his guardians had explained that what he was seeing was probably the world's Mana Qi flow.
This in itself was astounding and had left them speechless for months.
At that time, he was just a normal, naive kid. It was later on, after grasping enough knowledge that he confirmed that this was not something any normal human could do. At least... That's what they told him.
With this ability, his ability to grasp alchemy and concoct pills, pellets, potions, and serums skyrocketed to an inhuman level.
If an experienced alchemist were present, they would surely tremble in shock before blacking out with their eyes rolling to the back of their heads.
This.... You could actually perform alchemy this way?
Leaving the fact that someone could refine such materials with their eyes in the stead of pill fire, what about those ingredients he had thrown into the cauldron?
Dear lord.
Leave that aside, how could someone throw such precious materials in there as if it were rubbish?
Less than 30 seconds after the refinement had started, Lars heat vision finally completed its work. A small smile appeared on his face as his eyes turned to their normal blue color.
Raising his hand, an invisible will seemed to move forward and reached into the cauldron. A rather large liquid drop flew out from it, restrained in the air.
An aromatic fragrance instantly engulfed the whole room.
"Haha haha! Ancient Essence grade Gene forging Serum, 100% purity, success". His smile became even more dazzling as a hearty laugh escaped his mouth.
Lars couldn't help it. On normal days, he wouldn't be even the slightest bit happy to refine Gene forging serums which could be created by any random Intermediate level alchemist. Far from it, actually.
He could forge those with ease and with a hundred percent purity too. However, concocting an Ancient grade Gene serum with Ancient Essence Qi without causing the grade to drop while still maintaining 100% purity was definitely something to boast about.
"With this, my journey on the road of cultivation can finally begin. Not to mention that, my foundation will be incomparable too".
Looking at the liquid drop that shone with a pristine light, he couldn't resist taking in a whiff.
His body trembled slightly in agitation. Nevertheless, he still calmed himself. With his Telekinetic Will, he controlled the large liquid drop and separated it into four vials.
"And now, for the final touch". A grin appeared on his face. With a thought, the liquid within a single vial glowed a sparkling white color as wisps of white energy flowed out from his palm.
A change appeared on his logs at that moment.
Soul Orbs: 123,245 >> 123,000
The glow ceased as two hundred and forty-five points of soul energy were extracted.
BOOM!
As expected, the serum within the vial underwent a considerable change. The purplish liquid changed into a radiant silver color.
The energy within it grew turbulent and an imposing aura suddenly spread throughout the room. The aura and energy within was at least several notches more powerful than what it was originally capable of.
"A Gene forging Serum made with ingredients above fifty years at the minimum and a Seventh stage Qi Spirit realm beast crystal with an Ancient grade bloodline essence Qi, not to mention infused with soul power. Hehehe, I wonder how marvelous the effect will be".
Lars chuckled lightly. He knew perfectly well that these pills had transcended what could be made by alchemists after the infusion of soul power.
Heck, judging by the materials he used to concoct it, it had already far surpassed the best gene forging pills out there. If Ol pill Bill were here to witness this, he would definitely cry out in anguish and scold him for wasting heavenly resources.
If he knew that he had actually gotten hold of and used a beast crystal containing an Ancient grade bloodline essence to create Gene forging pills for his foundation, only the heavens knew how strong Ol Bill's reaction would be.
"Nah! More like chase me around with a machete and reddened eyes like a mad bull".
Shuddering slightly, Lars shook his head to cast away such thoughts.
Unable to suppress his impatience any longer, he threw a pill into his mouth and sat down cross-legged on the mattress as he prepared for Gene Forging.
For mortals, the first step in shedding their weak and feeble bodies as well as throwing away their mortal status was to go through Gene refining.
Unlike animals and different creatures in the wild, human beings had weaker bodies innately and their constitution wasn't strong enough to give out large bursts of power. They had even less capabilities to absorb power or energy past a certain level, or the consequences would lead to crippling at best and explosion at worst.
So to overcome this predicament, strengthening the already present genes within the body was crucial and was considered the first step unto the path of a cultivator.
In doing so, the changes experienced within the body would be obvious. The physical traits such as strength, defense, vitality, stamina, agility, and body constitution would be enhanced, with increase in body defenses being minimal.
As for how strong the body would get, this would depend on how far Gene forging was carried out as well as the Essence used in tempering the body. When the body was physically strong enough, the second step would be to establish their dantian and incorporate Mana Qi into it.
The physical body would then have a faint natural reaction to the Mana Qi of heaven and earth, after which they would push forward, accumulate more and more Mana Qi until they break through to the Qi Spirit realm.
Then and only then can anyone be considered a true cultivator.
However, Lars was anything but a regular mortal.
Bam!
A strong surge of energy exploded within his stomach. The tremendous energy quickly spread in all directions as the serum performed its duties.
At first, Lars felt nothing, causing him to raise his eyebrows. Although the energy unleashed within him was enough to blow a Third stage Qi Spirit realm cultivator to bits in seconds and decimate a small area around as well, all he felt was a slight pop within his body.
It barely caused any waves at all. However, the dissolution of the pill was instantaneous, and the energy spread rapidly as it started acting on his cells.
Gene Forging was taking place.
He could feel it, something was coursing through his veins and bones, trying to strengthen it. However, it only lasted a few seconds before whatever feeling he grasped disappeared.
It vanished.... just like that. However, Lars wasn't the least bit surprised. He only felt a pang of disappointment within his heart, yet he knew there was nothing wrong.
".... Even with the Vore Panthers crystal, which contained Ancient grade Essence Qi, it didn't manage to strengthen my physical constitution a bit. My strength is the same as it was before".
The energy contained within a Seventh stage beast wasn't all that special to him. However, one containing Ancient grade Essence Qi was different.
Although he wasn't really expecting a strong reaction, he still expected to at least feel some kind of change within himself.
Ancient grade Essence Qi was rare, extremely rare.
It was even rarer than a ten-year-old child above the Qi Spirit realm in the Outlands.
It was only through extraordinary luck that he had managed to find one coincidentally today.
He had lost five points of Providence on this opportunity.
Yet even after forging it into a serum containing multiple rare ingredients and precious materials, it felt like a pebble getting thrown into an ocean.
"Could it be that my foundation can't be strengthened any further?"
He glanced at his logs, which were still open even now. However, he was surprised when he saw that the records had a slight change.
[Larson
Status: Healthy
Title: Soul Records Master
Cultivation: Gene forging 100% (Completion)
(Transcendent Grade Bloodline Essence Qi)
Race: Human/ ??????
Bloodline Gene Potential: Imperial Tier (71%)
Providence: 89 Points
Innate Talents: Endless God's Eyes, Grand Alcan Physique, Shadow Plane, Soul void transmission, Telekinetic Will.
Affiliated workers; Tian Long (Dao Blessed) (Providence: 1.1)
Soul Orbs: 123,000]
"Transcendent Grade?!"