1: Star cores fall from the sky, and waste is reborn.

When Chaos was yet undivided, a star core was born in the void. It was shaped like a peck, enveloped by Grandmist Purple Qi, with three thousand Laws contained within—it was the chaos origin of the Universe. After countless epochs, the star core suddenly shattered, its fragments falling into the endless Void Realm, evolving into seven Realms: the Human Realm, Immortal Realm, Divine Realm, Dark Realm, Creation Realm, Netherworld, and God-Position Realm. The power of the shattered core nourished all things, but it also planted the seeds of disaster—Cultivators of the seven Realms all Cultivate by absorbing the lingering remnants of the shattered core, which gave birth to a Realm system that connected the heavens.

In Qingshi Town of the Human Realm, the bronze bell of the Lin Family ancestral hall was already rusted. In the third year since the thirty-seventh Patriarch, Lin Xingnan, went into seclusion to attempt a Breakthrough to the Gang Qi Realm, a nameless grave appeared in the mass grave west of town—when the corpse of the old servant, Uncle Liu, was dragged away by wild dogs, no one cared about the teenager curled up in the woodshed.

Lin Yang, seventeen years old, the only grandson of the Patriarch, was the laughingstock of all Qingshi Town. His three Yin Meridians were blocked, and his acupoints were congenitally defective. After sixteen years of bitter Cultivation, he remained stuck at the first level of the Acquired Realm, having only opened three main acupoints. Even a ten-year-old child from a collateral branch could bully him at will. His parents were missing, his grandfather was in seclusion with his life or death unknown, and after the Grand Elder, Lin Hongfeng, took power, even the monthly Medicinal Pill ration necessary for his Cultivation was withheld. He lived worse than a stray dog.

"Trash!" "A disgrace to the Lin Family!" These words were like poison-tipped needles that had pricked him for seventeen years. Until that day, a purple-gold stream of light fell from beyond the sky, slamming into the center of the Training Grounds. When the teenager was blown away by the shockwave, he saw a fist-sized gray-gold core embedded into the back of his neck, and those mysterious star patterns were crawling toward his Sea of Consciousness along the wound.

He did not know that this chaos star core was the Origin key that the seven Realms had been fighting over for ten thousand years. He knew even less that from the moment the star core embedded itself into his flesh, the Chaos Swallowing Heaven Art, carved into the void, had already hacked out a Heaven-Defying path for him—

Acquired Realm (twelve levels), requires opening twelve main acupoints to guide Qi for Body Tempering. Ordinary Martial Artists open one acupoint every three years, but he could swallow demon cores and open all twelve in a single night;

Xiantian Realm (ten levels), requires condensing True Qi into Protective Aura. Early Stage (levels 1-3) forms the dantian core, Mid Stage (levels 4-6) transforms into Protective Aura, High Stage (levels 7-9) completes the dantian core. Ordinary people need a hundred years of bitter Cultivation, but he could swallow divine weapons and devour Spiritual Veins, his True Essence condensation far exceeding those of the same level;

Gang Qi Realm (four stages), releases Protective Aura to injure enemies. Early Stage condenses Qi into blades, Mid Stage uses Protective Aura for protection, High Stage has Protective Aura take form, Peak Stage can control Qi to fly; this Realm is already the pinnacle of the secular world;

Spirit Sea Realm (three stages), True Essence turns into liquid to form a sea. Minor Achievement sees the initial appearance of the Spirit Sea, Mid Achievement has all acupoints resonate, Major Achievement has the Spirit Sea surging; this is the threshold for stepping into the extraordinary;

Further up is the legendary Star Lord Realm (four stages) that can draw upon the power of the stars: Star Disciple senses Star Power, Star General wields star techniques, Star Lord condenses the star core, Star Venerable travels through the Great Void. As for the higher Realms of the Divine Realm and Immortal Realm, they were already beyond the cognition of Cultivators in the Human Realm.

When Lin Yang opened his eyes from his coma, the chaos star core in his Sea of Consciousness was slowly rotating. In those flowing star patterns, the slaughter of the seven Realms was reflected, as well as countless stunning figures—the cold Saintess of a Sect, the naive twin sisters, the charming enemy Sect Master...

The bronze bell in the ancestral hall suddenly tolled, startling the cold crows under the eaves. The teenager clenched his bleeding fist, and leaking from between his fingers was a fierce light capable of swallowing the heavens. The balance of the seven Realms was about to be broken, and the center of this storm was this abandoned young master of the Family whom everyone looked down upon.

The rotted wooden window lattice rattled in the evening wind, and the moonlight leaking in cast web-like cracks on the bed board. When Lin Yang abruptly opened his eyes, the dull pain in the back of his neck was still wandering through his nerve endings, and the metallic, bloody scent drifted out from his collar, choking him into a violent cough.

"Cough... cough..." He struggled to sit up, only to find that his left arm had no strength at all. Fragments of the scene at the Training Grounds three days ago flooded back—Lin Dongping's sneer with a few followers (that guy had just broken through to the seventh level of the Acquired Realm and was showing off the pale white Protective Aura he had condensed), his fist like a stone roller smashing into his side, and the final purple-gold stream of light that tore through the dusk, as well as the burning pain that hit the top of his head.

"Trash is trash. Even when knocked unconscious by a rock, he still takes up the medicinal field of the ancestral hall!" "I heard the Grand Elder has already spoken; once he wakes up, he will be expelled from the inner courtyard and sent to guard the graveyard at the back mountain!" Two servants sneered outside the window, and as their footsteps faded away, they even kicked over the urine bucket at the corner of the wall.

Lin Yang bit his lower lip hard, only suppressing the sob in his throat when he tasted blood. It had been seventeen years. Ever since his parents disappeared while exploring a Secret Realm and his grandfather went into seclusion to attempt a Breakthrough to the Gang Qi Realm, his days in the Lin Family had become a slow torture. On the wooden cabinet at the corner of the bed, that chipped coarse porcelain bowl was still in its original place. Three days ago, Uncle Liu had brought him this bowl of rice porridge, only to run into Lin Dongping urinating in front of his bed. The old servant had hunched his back and rushed up to stop him, only to be kicked in the chest by that bastard; the crisp sound of breaking ribs could be heard clearly through the window paper.

"Young Master... endure... just endure this period and it will be fine..." Uncle Liu had coughed up blood foam as he shoved the warm rice porridge into his hands. "This old slave hid... hid half a piece of cured meat in..."

Lin Yang didn't hear the rest of the words; he had already been in too much pain to be conscious. The next time he received news of Uncle Liu, it was his corpse being thrown into the mass grave at the back mountain the next morning—it was said that he wasn't even given a thin coffin, just wrapped in a straw mat and dragged apart by wild dogs.

"Lin Dongping..." Lin Yang's knuckles turned white, his nails digging deep into the cracks of the bed board. "And that old thing, Lin Hongfeng..."

He sat up straight abruptly, the old wound at his waist causing intense pain, which instead made his chaotic mind a bit clearer. Must become stronger! This thought was like a red-hot branding iron, searing deep into his Sea of Consciousness. He trembled as he sat cross-legged, his fingertips pressing against his Dantian in his lower abdomen, and began to circulate the Crimson Sun Art that he already knew by heart.

The weak Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi seeped slowly into his Meridians like gossamer. The Family's Cultivation Technique emphasized guiding fire into the body, using Yang Qi to temper the muscles and bones, but he was born with three Yin Meridians; every time he circulated it, it felt like swallowing a branding iron, and his Meridians burned with pain. Seventeen years of bitter Cultivation had only barely opened three acupoints, not even reaching the standard of the second level of the Acquired Realm.

"Hum—"

Just as the Spiritual Qi was about to reach the Dantian, a tremor suddenly came from deep within his Sea of Consciousness. Lin Yang felt his consciousness pulled by a great force, and the dilapidated room before his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by an endless void. Dark purple nebulae slowly swirled in the distance, and the trajectories of stars being born and dying carved mysterious patterns in the void.

And at the center of this chaotic Universe, a fist-sized core was suspended. It was an indescribable gray-gold throughout, with light patterns like living creatures flowing on its surface, sometimes turning into rotating galaxies, sometimes condensing into surging magma. Just by gazing at it, Lin Yang felt his Soul trembling, as if he were facing the Origin that created all things.

"Is this... the meteorite that hit me?" Memories flooded back like a tide. Three days ago, that purple-gold stream of light fell onto the Training Grounds, the explosion of the shockwave blew away half of the Training Grounds, and this core was embedded in the wound on the back of his neck, yet now it appeared in his Sea of Consciousness.

The star core seemed to sense his intent and suddenly trembled slightly. Countless streams of golden light erupted from within the core, sweeping through the entire Sea of Consciousness like a breached flood. The golden light condensed into ancient seal characters in the void; these characters seemed to contain the ultimate truths of heaven and earth, automatically drilling into Lin Yang's mind.

Chaos Swallowing Heaven Art!

The four large characters exploded in his consciousness, followed by a complete Cultivation Technique. It was completely different from the Crimson Sun Art; it did not emphasize guiding Qi for tempering, but rather using oneself as a cauldron to swallow all energy in the world—Spiritual Qi, essence, and even Magic Treasures or Medicinal Pills could all be turned into his own use!

"This... is this real?" Lin Yang's heart began to beat wildly. He subconsciously touched the star core with his intent, and the moment they made contact, an indescribable, pure energy poured in along the torrent of his consciousness!

That was a chaos origin a hundred times richer than Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, carrying a gentle yet overbearing aura. Wherever it passed, his blocked Meridians were like parched land nourished by spring rain, instantly stretching open. The three acupoints were like sponges that had long been waiting for sweet rain, frantically swallowing this energy, emitting a faint humming sound. The Chaos Swallowing Heaven Art was actually operating automatically!

Lin Yang clearly felt that the True Essence in his Dantian, which had originally been as weak as a candlelight, was now surging at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Late Stage of the second level of the Acquired Realm!

Peak of the second level of the Acquired Realm!

Early Stage of the third level of the Acquired Realm!

The energy was still pouring in endlessly. The True Essence in his Dantian had already condensed into substance, like a rolling sea of clouds. When the energy accumulated to the critical point, Lin Yang felt a soft sound come from within his body, as if an invisible thin film had been completely torn apart.

"Boom!"

In just five breaths of time, he had actually broken through three levels in a row, directly stepping into the third level of the Acquired Realm!

Lin Yang opened his eyes abruptly, a shocking brilliance erupting from them. He subconsciously clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within his body; this power was several times stronger than before, and a faint gray-gold halo could even be seen circulating on his fist—that was the unique sign of Chaos True Essence.

The moonlight outside the window happened to shine on his fist, reflecting the fire burning in the teenager's eyes. He looked down at the wound on the back of his neck; it had already scabbed and fallen off, leaving only a faint gold star pattern mark, covered by his collar, emitting a warmth that was almost imperceptible.

"Uncle Liu," Lin Yang whispered, his voice filled with unprecedented firmness, "Wait for me."

The night wind passed through the window lattice, bringing the shouting from the distant Training Grounds. Lin Dongping was showing off his newly broken-through seventh level Acquired Realm Cultivation, drawing a chorus of flattery. A cold arc hooked at the corner of Lin Yang's mouth as he slowly got out of bed.

From now on, the Lin Family's good-for-nothing would no longer be a presence that anyone could bully. The chaos star core in his Sea of Consciousness rotated gently, as if predicting a legend that belonged to him.