In the vast world of cultivation, there exist two distinct methods to attain a complete law. The first, often referred to as the "old way," requires an individual to create a complete law from scratch through sheer talent, perseverance, and an understanding of the mysteries of the universe. This method is incredibly challenging, and only a handful of extraordinarily gifted cultivators throughout history have succeeded in achieving it. Such individuals are celebrated as paragons of cultivation, their names etched into the annals of history.
The second method relies on the benevolence—or, perhaps, the whim—of the heavens themselves. Upon reaching the realm of true immortality, where one transcends the limitations of mortality, the world may choose to bestow a complete law upon the cultivator. While this path seems more accessible, it comes with its own set of caveats. Accepting such a gift binds the individual to the will of the world. In times of great crisis, they are compelled to act in accordance with the world's demands, even at great personal cost. Despite this obligation, the practical difference between the two methods diminishes when viewed from a broader perspective. Suppose a calamity so devastating were to arise that the world needed the intervention of rank ten beings. In that case, the very fabric of the cultivation world might already be at risk of destruction. In such scenarios, whether one's immortality was achieved through independent effort or the world's assistance becomes largely irrelevant.
However, there is one significant difference. Those who accept the world's assistance are confined to their home world for an astronomical period—several quintillion years—before they are permitted to explore other worlds and seek their own path. This restriction ensures that the world retains their power and protection for an extended duration. Only after fulfilling this prolonged obligation are they granted the freedom to venture beyond and pursue higher truths.
In most cases, regardless of the method of attainment, the presence of true immortals—beings who possess complete laws—benefits the world immensely. While mortal cultivators can sometimes burden the world's resources, true immortals are inherently harmonious. Their mastery of complete laws ensures that their existence only strengthens the world, with no negative repercussions.
...
Wu Jian was deeply immersed, her mind entirely focused on the profound truths being unveiled to her by the will of the world. Her thoughts revolved around the gift she had just received.
"The complete law of Death by 99 Cuts with a Frozen Sword," Wu Jian repeated in her mind, trying to grasp its intricacies. A flicker of emotion crossed her face as she realized the nature of the law. "It's an offensive complete law! How fortunate I am!" she thought excitedly. While it wasn't the most powerful law one could receive, it was still a remarkable boon, surpassing the average offerings bestowed upon most true immortals. For this, she felt a mixture of relief and gratitude.
Her joy, however, was short-lived. As she was reveling in her newfound status, a sudden and overwhelming sensation overtook her. It felt as though her mind was being encased in ice, her thoughts slowing to a crawl. A chilling lethargy seeped into her consciousness, making her feel cold, disoriented, and unbearably sleepy.
"Damn it!" she muttered under her breath, barely holding on to her consciousness. Fighting the encroaching frost that threatened to overtake her mind, Wu Jian summoned the external willpower she had collected over the years, drawing upon reserves she had painstakingly prepared in advance and using it to sustain her thoughts outside the confines of her nearly frozen mind.
Mere moments after she enacted this desperate measure, her body succumbed entirely. Her mind completely froze, and she plunged into a deep coma. Her last act, however, proved effective. By utilizing the stored willpower outside her physical form, she managed to retain limited control over her body.
"My mind... it froze!" she realized with mounting horror as her disembodied willpower began piecing together what had happened. "Clearly, I failed to contain the complete law granted to me by the will of heaven. My mental strength wasn't sufficient, and the law's cold attribute overwhelmed me!"
This realization sent a shiver of fear through her fragmented consciousness. The final phase of receiving a complete law was supposed to proceed smoothly. However, cases like hers—where the recipient lacked the necessary mental fortitude—could result in severe backlash.
"Most transcendents being realm cultivators possess the required mental strength to handle this phase. Why didn't I?" Wu Jian wondered, wracked with confusion and frustration. There was no time to dwell on the mystery. Her situation was dire, and she had precious little willpower remaining.
"With this amount of willpower left," she thought grimly, "I won't be able to stay conscious for long."
Desperation clawed at her as she began searching for solutions. She knew she needed to act swiftly, or her journey to true immortality would come to an abrupt and tragic end.
Wu Jian had saved a substantial reserve of willpower over the years, but she knew that without her mind to replenish and produce more, no amount of savings could last forever. With her mind frozen by the backlash of the complete law, she was left with a harrowing truth: once her willpower ran out, she would lose consciousness entirely. In such a state, her body would fall into dormancy until the ice encasing her mind melted—something that might take billions of years or, in the worst-case scenario, never happen at all.
She dared not attempt to calculate the time it would take for her mind to recover, as doing so would further deplete her already dwindling willpower. She needed to conserve every last shred of it. "There's no way I can solve this problem with my current willpower," she thought grimly. "Even if my mind were intact, I might still fail after millions of years of calculations. Instead of wasting what little I have left on an impossible task, I should focus on finding a way to regenerate my willpower to buy myself time."
Her resolve hardened. Reaching for a storage ring, she carefully infused her willpower into it. She didn't dare risk placing the willpower back into her frozen mind, fearing that it, too, might freeze and become unusable.
Officially, Wu Jian was now a rank 10 cultivator—a true immortal. However, she didn't dare cast any spells derived from her complete law, knowing that her current condition made using such power far too dangerous. Against transcendent beings, she could still triumph effortlessly, overpowering them with a mere flick of her finger without relying on her complete law. But against other true immortals, she was in no position to fight; she would lose without question.
"If I regenerate willpower using an artificial mind, the newly created will would slowly diverge from my original self," she thought, frowning. "After a few thousand years, the difference could grow significant enough to compromise me. Similarly, if I use someone else's mind to regenerate willpower, it would gradually alter my essence as well. The safest option is to create an incarnation—a version of myself as close to my original body as possible. That way, the generated willpower would remain consistent with my own."
This plan, though risky, was the most practical. Without wasting time, Wu Jian began designing the incarnation. It would need to be nearly identical to her main body to avoid future complications. Additionally, the incarnation had to be powerful, with a cultivation base at the peak of the transcendent being realm.
Before her ascension to true immortality, creating such a high-level incarnation would have been an arduous task, likely impossible to achieve quickly. But now, as a true immortal, the process was much more manageable. To expedite matters, she decided to leverage her position as a member of the prestigious Infinite Dao Sect.
One of the benefits of belonging to a sect of such magnitude was the ability to request loans and assistance whenever needed. Wu Jian reached out to the sect, which promptly verified her status as a true immortal and approved her request for resources. With their support, she received billions of immortal jades—a fortune that would be unthinkable for most cultivators.
Armed with this wealth, Wu Jian poured all her focus into creating her incarnation. Over the course of a million years, she worked tirelessly, channeling her remaining willpower into the process. The incarnation, supported by vast resources and crafted with meticulous care, steadily grew stronger. By the end of this period, it had reached the peak of the transcendent being realm—an achievement that would normally take many millions of years for most cultivators.
During these million years, Wu Jian consumed roughly 40% of her remaining willpower. Though the expenditure was significant, she was relieved that the effort had paid off. Her incarnation was finally complete.
Once it was ready, Wu Jian transferred all of her memories to the incarnation. The process was painstakingly delicate, but she succeeded in ensuring that the incarnation was fully synchronized with her original self. With this new vessel, she could finally generate willpower using its mind. Though the speed of regeneration was slower than what her original mind could achieve, it was enough to give her a fighting chance.
With her willpower now replenishable, Wu Jian turned her attention back to the real challenge: finding a permanent solution to her frozen mind and the unstable complete law that had caused this crisis.