15: The theft of laws and the initial formation of the grotto-heaven
After this battle, Liu Qingtian completely abandoned all thoughts of relying on luck. External objects can be relied upon for a time, but not forever. Although the zang youming great halberd was strong, its Original Owner could recall it with a single thought, and the weapon itself was a double-edged sword.
Only by completely transforming the power of the Myriad Heavens and Myriad Realms into his own could he seize a chance for transcendence in this increasingly chaotic world.
His consciousness was focused like never before, no longer satisfied with passively absorbing energy and vague comprehension.
Those two "Void Imprints" became his key to higher levels. He submerged most of his tree soul power into them, moving beyond simple "sensing" and beginning a frenzied process of "analysis" and "theft"!
Targeting the Bone Abyss, he was no longer satisfied with merely absorbing the massive death origin.
His consciousness extended along the Imprints, like the finest roots, attempting to analyze the deeper Law structure that constituted the death origin—the inevitability of all things reaching their end, the final stillness of the Soul returning to silence, the stagnation and nothingness of time before death... This process was extremely perilous. The Death Laws of the Abyss were icy and exclusive, possessing the characteristic of eroding all vitality. Liu Qingtian's consciousness was several times nearly assimilated, frozen, and turned into a part of the Abyss's dead silence.
But relying on the balancing power of the Spiritual Ripple vortex and his profound understanding of the "Wither" Concept, he stabilized himself time and again, barely managing to strip away wisps of the purest Death Law fragments and integrate them into himself.
Similarly, regarding the Jade Dream Realm, he no longer only absorbed the gentle natural spirit essence. His consciousness probed the vibrant Sea of Laws, analyzing the primitive driving force of life germination, the miraculous creation of growth in all things, the interwoven changes between dreams and reality, and even the subtle balancing Laws contained within that near-infinite vitality, which prevented it from expanding uncontrollably... Although the natural spirit essence seemed gentle, the massive vitality it contained was equally dangerous. A slight mistake could cause his consciousness to be assimilated, sinking into endless illusions of vitality, causing his tree body to grow wildly out of control until collapse.
Liu Qingtian guarded his original intention, using the "Flourish" Concept as a guide, carefully stripping away the required Law fragments.
This direct Law theft was far more efficient than before, but the level of danger also rose exponentially.
His tree soul was like walking a tightrope over a bottomless abyss, constantly enduring the backlash and assimilation pressure from the Origin Laws of the two great worlds.
However, the harvest was also enormous.
The stolen Law fragments from the alien worlds verified, collided with, and fused with his comprehension of the Dao of Life and Death.
The natural Law patterns on his branches and root systems became increasingly complex and clear, as if the Great Dao were directly inscribed upon them.
His control over the Wither and Flourish Finger reached an entirely new Realm. With a single thought, a willow branch could tap out, causing a region to instantly experience a hundred years of desolation and weathering, or allowing a dead area to burst with vitality and rapid growth in an instant.
This was no longer a simple deprivation or bestowal of vitality, but rather touched upon the Law Domain governing the localized flow of time and the rise and fall of all things!
More importantly, under this high-intensity Law theft and Fusion, the "Wither and Flourish Grotto-Heaven," which had only been a prototype on his leaves, finally achieved a qualitative leap!
One willow leaf, located on a core branch and having absorbed the most Law fragments, saw its internal subtle spatial rift suddenly expand and stabilize, forming a genuine, minuscule space about the size of a fist!
Inside this space, there was no longer nothingness. One half was filled with pure, condensed Death Qi, a gray expanse that seemed like a forbidden zone for all life; the other half flowed with vigorous vitality, lush green, nurturing the possibility of creation.
The Qi of Life and Death were not completely isolated within this minuscule space; instead, they slowly circulated at the edges, achieving a dynamic balance, truly resembling a miniature Wither and Flourish Domain!
The willow leaf grotto-heaven was initially formed!
Although this grotto-heaven was still extremely small and unstable—unable to hold living creatures or even store physical objects, which would be instantly eroded by the Qi of Life and Death—it was a milestone! It proved that Liu Qingtian's path was correct! In the true sense, he had begun combining the stolen alien Laws with his own Dao, carving out a Divine Ability Space unique to himself!
Given time, as he stole more Laws and his comprehension of the Dao of Life and Death deepened, this willow leaf grotto-heaven would inevitably expand and stabilize, perhaps eventually evolving into a true Small World containing the Laws of Life and Death!
Just as Liu Qingtian was immersed in the joy of Law theft and the initial formation of the grotto-heaven, the zang youming great halberd also benefited greatly from the increasingly rich and profound Law Dao Rhyme surrounding him.
The newborn Halberd Spirit was no longer satisfied with merely absorbing scattered energy; it began instinctively imitating and approaching Liu Qingtian's Spiritual Ripple fluctuations that balanced life and death.
The purple-black luster of the halberd body became more restrained and profound, and the bloody light in the eyes of the Vicious Beast carving coiled around it lost some of its ferocity, replaced by an indescribable sense of agility and... contemplation?
It even began to attempt, extremely clumsily, to mobilize wisps of the Power of Annihilation, imitating the structure of Liu Qingtian's leaf grotto-heaven, seemingly wanting to carve out something within the halberd body. However, it clearly didn't know the method, only causing the halberd body to occasionally flash with unstable spatial ripples.
Liu Qingtian noticed its attempt and his heart stirred slightly. The speed at which this fierce halberd's sentience was growing was somewhat astonishing. But he did not interfere, merely continuing his Cultivation.
Time flowed rapidly during his frenzied Cultivation.
On this day, through the Imprints of the Jade Dream Realm, Liu Qingtian once again captured some extraordinary fragments of information.
These were not the scenes of war from before, but fragmented, seemingly desperate prayers and thoughts, originating from some... weak Planar Fragments that appeared to be rejected or "vomited" out by the Jade Dream Realm itself?
"...Salvation... Mother of Nature... why have you forsaken your people..."
"...The Dream Realm is shrinking... It is afraid..."
"...Those fragments... are the seeds of disaster... They have adhered to our world..."
"...There's no escape... Light of Purification..."
The information was chaotic and desperate. Liu Qingtian vaguely sensed that the Jade Dream Realm, in order to cope with some pressure—likely the threat behind the bronze great gate—was actively or passively stripping away some relatively weak or subsidiary planes contaminated by "alien objects" fragments, seeking self-preservation.
The fate of these stripped Planar Fragments was foreseeable: they would either be annihilated in the Void Realm, devoured by other worlds, or... become the targets of the "Cleaners."
Liu Qingtian was indifferent to this. The joys and sorrows of the Myriad Heavens and Myriad Realms were merely noise in the wind to him.
He even keenly realized that as the stripped Planar Fragments perished, they would dissipate large amounts of pure, yet unowned, Law Origin and energy!
For him, who was frantically stealing Laws, this was simply a windfall from heaven!
He immediately adjusted his strategy, concentrating most of his consciousness on the Imprints of the Jade Dream Realm, no longer content with stealing the Laws of the Dream Realm itself, but instead beginning to attempt... to capture and absorb the "unowned" nourishment dissipated when the stripped Planar Fragments perished!
This was undoubtedly another dangerous attempt, requiring extremely precise timing and control over the force. But Liu Qingtian did it without hesitation.
Streaks of weak yet pure Law Origin and energy, carrying the characteristics of different Small Worlds, were carefully guided and captured by him like meteors through the Imprints of the Jade Dream Realm, integrating into his own Spiritual Ripple vortex and the initially formed willow leaf grotto-heaven.
His power began to grow rapidly once more. The willow leaf grotto-heaven slowly expanded at a visible rate, and its internal space became increasingly stable.
However, he did not notice that while he was greedily absorbing this "unowned" nourishment, an extremely faint, almost imperceptible "Mark," carrying an ominous, sticky feeling, silently followed the Origin of a completely shattered Planar Fragment through the Imprints, staining the tip of one of his roots and attempting to spread toward the core of his tree soul.
That Mark belonged to the residual matter of a perished plane that had been "cleaned," and upon it... vaguely carried a trace of aura similar to, yet more obscure than, that of the "alien objects."
Danger was quietly drawing near.