3: Five years later, five layers of sea of ​​consciousness were opened up in one day!

Time flew by, and five years passed in the blink of an eye.

Deep within Long Family Manor, under an ancient thousand-year-old pine tree, a child as exquisitely carved as jade was practicing a horse stance. He was Lin Tian, at the age of ten.

For these five years, the Long Family publicly announced that Lin Tian had awakened an A-Rank Talent, and used this as a reason to protect him meticulously. The outside world only knew that the Long Family had produced a Genius, but they did not know the true extent of this Genius’s abilities. Internally, the Long Family poured massive resources into him like a tide. Various Heaven And Earth Treasure for Body Refining were practically eaten by him like candy.

At the same time, Lin Tian never stopped signing in.

“Signed in at ‘Long Family Scripture Pavilion’, received reward: Divine-Grade Body Refining Cultivation Technique 《Myriad Dao Smelting Furnace Scripture》!”

“Signed in at ‘Long Family Martial Arts Arena’, received reward: Divine Weapon ‘Grand Luo Sword Embryo’ (Sealed)!”

“Signed in at ‘Long Family Herb Garden’, received reward: Sacred Medicine ‘Nine Revolutions Soul Revival Grass’!”

...Countless rewards, coupled with the unfathomable potential of the Pangu Body, allowed Lin Tian, at only five years old, to have his Physical Body Foundation polished to the maximum achievable for his age, even surpassing theoretical limits. His current vigorous Qi and blood would likely make even some adult Martial Artist feel inferior.

A tall building rises from the ground; the Foundation was already laid. Today marked the beginning of his journey to a higher level of Cultivation.

Inside an ancient Cultivation room, Lin Tian sat cross-legged, facing his grandfather, Long Zhanye, the chief instructor of the Long Family, renowned as a “living dictionary of Martial Dao.”

“Tian’er,” Long Zhanye said with a serious expression, holding an ancient beast-skin scroll, “On the path of Martial Dao, Body Refining is merely the Foundation. Once the Physical Body’s Qi and blood reach a certain level, one must begin to temper the spirit, open the Sea of Consciousness, and embark on the Dao of a ‘Mental Energy Master.’ This is the true stairway to becoming a powerful individual.”

He slowly unrolled the beast-skin scroll, on which four large characters, written in ancient pictographs, were displayed—Chaos Genesis Art》.

“This is our Long Family’s Legacy S-Class Mental Energy Cultivation Technique. Opening the Sea of Consciousness means cultivating five stable energy cores for your ethereal Mental Energy in specific areas of your brain. These five levels correspond to five critical brain regions. With each layer opened, your Mental Energy will experience a qualitative leap.”

Long Zhanye’s tone became exceptionally solemn. He extended a finger and pointed it towards Lin Tian’s glabella.

“The first layer, the pineal gland; the second layer, the hippocampus... all the way to the fifth layer, the prefrontal cortex. This process is perilous and lengthy, requiring sustained effort, and must never be rushed.”

He looked at his grandson’s clear eyes and said in a deep voice, “According to historical records of our Long Family, the fastest Genius to open the Sea of Consciousness was your Third Ancestor. He spent a full three years to successfully open the first layer of his Sea of Consciousness. So, don’t be impatient. First, sense the Qi, and take your time.”

Three years to open the first layer.

This was the most authoritative, seemingly insurmountable Cultivation benchmark left by the Long Family, an ancient Family standing at the pinnacle of Huaxia’s Martial Dao.

Long Zhanye meticulously explained the Cultivation Technique’s incantations and operational routes, clarifying every detail.

Lin Tian listened quietly, nodded, and then said to his grandfather, “Grandpa, I’ll try.”

After speaking, he closed his eyes.

“Hmm, good.” Long Zhanye nodded in satisfaction, stroking his beard. In his view, his grandson’s calm and unhurried demeanor, merely attempting to sense the Qi, was the proper mindset for Cultivating Mental Energy.

However, the next second, the smile on his face completely froze.

The moment Lin Tian began to circulate his Mental Energy according to the Cultivation Technique, his SSS-Class Mythical Gene, the Pangu Body, which had been dormant within him, roared to life like an awakened ancient beast!

Buzz—!

An invisible Mental Energy fluctuation suddenly erupted, centered on Lin Tian’s body! Inside the Cultivation room, the air seemed to turn into a viscous substance. Vast energy surged from the Void Realm, forming a visible energy vortex that furiously poured into Lin Tian’s glabella!

“What... what is this?!” Long Zhanye paled in shock, abruptly standing up.

How was this merely sensing the Qi? This was clearly already breaking through! And it was so overbearing, so unreasonable!

The moment the Cultivation Technique began to operate, the first layer of the Sea of Consciousness barrier, which was as solid as a rock before countless Geniuses, was as fragile as a thin sheet of paper before Lin Tian.

Pop!

A soft sound, like a bursting bubble.

Above Lin Tian’s head, a clear Mental Energy halo, representing the successful opening of the first layer of the Sea of Consciousness, suddenly appeared!

From closing his eyes to breaking through, the time taken was... less than ten breaths!

Long Zhanye’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Three years?

Third Ancestor, your record back then seems... a bit insufficient!

But this astonishing scene was merely the beginning.

The first layer of the Sea of Consciousness shattered without resistance. Immediately after, the surging Mental Energy storm showed no signs of stopping, carrying the momentum of opening up the world, and swept towards the second layer barrier with destructive force!

Pop!

Another soft sound, and the second layer of Mental Energy halo superimposed itself!

Pop! Pop! Pop!

The third layer!

The fourth layer!

The fifth layer!

Inside the Cultivation room, Long Zhanye was completely petrified. He watched with wide eyes as the halos above his grandson’s head lit up layer by layer, superimposing one upon another, finally forming five brilliant, perfectly round, and flawless Mental Energy halos, illuminating his small body like a Divine being!

One day!

No, not even one day!

From the start of Cultivation to opening the fifth layer of the Sea of Consciousness, reaching the theoretical Perfection of the apprentice stage, Lin Tian took less than an hour!

Long Zhanye was so shocked he was speechless, his mouth agape enough to fit an egg. He repeatedly rubbed his eyes, even using his Mental Energy to probe, and only after confirming the five layers of halos were real did he finally accept this fact that completely overturned his centuries of Martial Dao understanding.

After a long while, Lin Tian slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing through them.

He felt his brain was clearer than ever before, and the entire world looked different in his eyes. Every word of the Chaos Genesis Art》 that his grandfather had just explained was clearly etched in his mind, and he could even instantly deduce hundreds of different energy circulation changes.

Was this the anomaly after opening the fifth layer of the Sea of Consciousness (corresponding to the prefrontal cortex of the brain)? Photographic memory and extraordinary computational power!

“Cough cough...” Long Zhanye finally snapped out of his petrified state. He walked over to Lin Tian, looking at his grandson with complex emotions, and shook his head with a wry smile: “Your Talent... you’re practically a monster. It would be a waste of your brain not to become the top scorer in the global college entrance exam. How about I send you to be a study companion for that little princess of the Su Family?”

Lin Tian had no interest in being a study companion. He opened the long-unseen System interface, and a new sign-in location had already refreshed.

He pointed to a shimmering tower-shaped building on the System map and looked up at his grandfather, asking, “Grandpa, what is the ‘Dragon’s Nest Trial Tower’?”

Long Zhanye was taken aback by the question, then a hint of worry appeared on his face.

“That’s where the Family tests the strength of its core disciples. It’s full of dangers, all simulated exotic beasts made of energy. You... you’re only five years old, and your Mental Energy has just awakened. Going in now, I’m afraid you’ll suffer a setback.”

In his opinion, although Lin Tian possessed Heaven-Defying Talent, he was still young and had zero combat experience. Going to such a place would only lead to frustration.

But he looked at his grandson’s eyes, full of determination and curiosity, and eventually softened, sighing, “Alright, it’s good for you to gain some experience, to know the immensity of the world, and avoid becoming arrogant.”

He did not know that his “well-intentioned concern” was about to open an astonishing and unprecedented page in the history of the Long Family.