318: Fifth Incarnation: Heavenly Physician (110)

"Of course, this path is treacherous, with a ten in ten chance of death! You will need to face the battles of numerous Dao Lords, even those ancient existences buried in the past and later revived, even the darlings of heaven and earth, and even the unfathomable dangers that may lurk behind the 'high-level traces'!"

"But, this is also your only chance to escape the fate of being a pawn, to truly dominate your own Dao path, and even... to change the final outcome of this world!"

"Now..." The fragment of Reincarnation in the Netherworld White Bone's palm swirled with a ghostly light, emitting an enticing aura. "Choose, Fellow Daoist."

The words echoed in the vast, dead silence of the Void Realm, awaiting the final answer.

There was no prolonged hesitation, no superfluous weighing of options.

While the Netherworld Dao Lord explained the cruel truth and the sliver of possibility within the 'Great Golden Age', while feeling the stirring resonance between himself and that fragment, while understanding that he was already a pawn in the game with no retreat... Xu Yuan's heart had already reached a decision.

Rather than struggle to survive in a fate destined to become a stepping stone for others, it was better to seize this only possible Opportunity to break the game, even if the path ahead meant certain death!

"I accept."

Xu Yuan's true spirit emitted a clear and firm fluctuation of intent. Three words, heavy as a thousand weights.

In the next moment, he hesitated no longer. Gathering his newly reshaped, still fragile true spirit, he transformed into a faint light and actively flew towards the dark, profound fragment of Reincarnation in the Netherworld White Bone's palm!

"Good."

The Netherworld White Bone's jawbone opened and closed slightly, emitting a soft sigh that seemed both relieved and liberated.

The bone hand holding the fragment gently pushed forward. The Reincarnation fragment, like a young swallow returning to its nest, transformed into a stream of light and instantly merged into Xu Yuan's true spirit!

"BOOM——!!!"

An indescribably vast and mighty power erupted violently from the depths of Xu Yuan's true spirit!

It was not a destructive impact, but a supreme stirring originating from the most fundamental essence of life and Soul—a sensation of Perfection and completion!

Deep within his true spirit, the "Samsara Imprint" that had existed since the beginning of his Reincarnation and Rebirth, yet had always remained obscure and incomplete, upon contacting this fragment of the same Origin, was like parched land receiving heavenly rain after eons, like twin stars separated for endless ages reuniting once more!

"Hum—!"

The incomplete core of the imprint and the fragment gifted by the Netherworld merged seamlessly, a perfect fit!

Countless supreme mysteries regarding "Reincarnation," fundamental Dao principles regarding "the indestructibility of the true spirit," ultimate laws regarding "the transformation of life and death" surged into the depths of Xu Yuan's consciousness like a bursting dam!

This information was not simply instilled; it was as if it had always belonged to him, merely being "reawakened" and "reintegrated" now!

An unprecedented Concept, perfect and complete, self-sustaining and cycling, imperishable through myriad calamities, arose from the deepest part of his true spirit!

It was as if he was no longer a "special individual" reliant on some external rule for Reincarnation, but rather... he himself was part of the rule of Reincarnation, a "manifestation fulcrum" of Reincarnation in the world!

The completed Samsara Imprint was no longer a simple "life-saving talisman"; it had transformed into a seed containing endless Reincarnation power, a credential truly qualified to wield the authority of "Reincarnation"!

"Ugh—!"

The overwhelming influx of information and Origin impact caused Xu Yuan's newly reshaped true spirit to feel a tearing sense of swelling pain and dizziness, as if it were about to scatter once more.

But at the same time, the solid, "rooted in the Origin," "eternally enduring" feeling brought by the completed imprint firmly anchored his consciousness, allowing him to maintain a sliver of clarity amidst the intense transformation.

"Hold on! Fuse the imprint, connect with the Origin of Reincarnation!"

The voice of the Netherworld White Bone sounded in time, carrying a trace of urgency.

His remaining power transformed into a layer of gentle ghostly light, enveloping Xu Yuan's violently fluctuating true spirit, helping to stabilize it.

Just as Xu Yuan was arduously digesting and adapting to this sudden Perfection and power—

Another anomaly occurred!

The completed Samsara Imprint seemed to have triggered some deeper mechanism, one even the Netherworld had not fully anticipated!

"Hum—!"

Brilliant, pitch-dark light erupted violently around Xu Yuan. This light did not diffuse outward but contracted and twisted inward, instantly forming a miniature, absolute dark singularity around him that seemed capable of devouring all light!

From the center of the singularity came an irresistible, vast pulling force originating from the depths of the Reincarnation Origin!

"This is... the completed Samsara Imprint, initiating its own connection...?!"

The Netherworld White Bone's remnant spirit uttered a doubtful whisper, its Soul flame flickering violently.

"To think...? It seems the variables produced by the combination of the 'high-level traces' on you and the complete Reincarnation imprint far exceed expectations... Go! Xu Yuan! Seize this Opportunity!"

Before the words faded, the dark singularity suddenly expanded, completely swallowing Xu Yuan's true spirit!

The heavens spun, the earth reversed; time and space were overturned!

Xu Yuan felt himself thrown into a turbulent river composed of countless bizarre, fragmented shards of time and space and scenes of Reincarnation!

He saw the birth and demise of countless living beings, the rise and fall of civilizations, the ignition and extinction of stars... everything, everything, cycled endlessly within the chains of life and death, cause and effect!

This was not simple traversal, but... traveling along the fundamental veins of Reincarnation, moving within the very depths of the Concept of "Reincarnation" itself!

An unknowable amount of time passed—perhaps an instant, perhaps an eternity.

All the light, shadows, and clamor abruptly faded away.

Xu Yuan "felt" himself land in a... strange place impossible to accurately describe with any language.

Here, there was no up or down, left or right, past or future.

There was only an endless, slowly flowing, dark "river" that resembled liquid time yet also solidified fate.

Within the river, countless minute points of light floated and sank. Each point of light seemed to represent a life trajectory, a tangle of Karma, or a fleeting glimpse of a world's birth and destruction.

And in the center of the "river," suspended, was a simple, primitive-looking gray stone platform, seemingly woven from the most fundamental Concepts of "existence" and "nothingness."

The stone platform was empty, yet it emanated a supreme majesty that transcended all things and governed all ends.

Was this... the Reincarnation space he entered after each death?

Or rather, was it the core hub of Reincarnation authority, connected to after the complete Reincarnation imprint was restored?

Xu Yuan's true spirit stood on the shore of this strange "river," feeling the vast Reincarnation power flowing around him and the profound ability brought by the completed imprint—the faint ability to "perceive" and even "slightly influence" certain threads of Karma and destiny. His heart was filled with awe and enlightenment.

"Settlement."

As Xu Yuan willed it, the next moment, the familiar illusory panel appeared.

[You were born into the Su Family of the Shangqing Dao Lineage. Endowed with exceptional talent and possessing an Innate Dao Body, you were accepted as a disciple by an Immortal Master of the Fruit Position. Your starting point was so high, your background so profound, your future so bright, it had already reached a height that countless Cultivators could only gaze upon from afar!]

[...]