44: Let's work towards a breakthrough!

Stepping into that distorted spatial gate, Lin Yun felt as if he had crossed from the noisy mortal world into an eternally silent river of stars.

Beneath his feet was no longer solid ground, but the endless Void Realm, dotted with fine, shimmering dust.

Giant star fragments, like silent behemoths, drifted slowly in the distance. Some still bore the cratered marks of a planetary surface, while others looked like cold rock masses torn apart by some terrifying force, their cross-sections as smooth as mirrors, reflecting a dim starlight from an unknown source.

The air was filled with a strange energy—cold, pure, and vast. It was the most refined Star Power, which seeped through his pores into his body without active absorption, nourishing his Physical Body and Divine Soul.

Simultaneously, a more subtle force, surging like the tides, washed through this space. This was the Soul Power tide, which had a unique tempering and oppressive effect on the Divine Soul.

"A treasure land indeed!"

Lin Yun's heavy pupils rotated slowly of their own accord, greedily absorbing the Star Power here.

He felt the Bottleneck of his Pupil Technique showing signs of loosening in this place, and his Divine Soul felt waves of comfort.

He did not venture deep immediately but cautiously stopped near the entrance, sat cross-legged, fully operated his family's Cultivation Technique, the "Ancient Star God Scripture," and activated his heavy pupils to carefully perceive this Secret Realm.

Under the vision of his heavy pupils, this starry sky became clearer and more dangerous.

He saw countless fine spatial cracks, like black lightning, randomly appearing and vanishing in the Void Realm.

He saw some areas where the Star Power was so thick it wouldn't disperse, forming dangerous Star Power vortexes.

He also saw some dark regions emitting an eerie suction, as if they could swallow all light and Divine Soul perception.

"Dangers lurk everywhere, but so do Opportunities."

Lin Yun understood this in his heart.

He adjusted his breathing, brought himself to his Peak state, then chose a direction where the Star Power was relatively stable and the Soul Power tide fluctuations were stronger, cautiously drifting toward the depths of the Secret Realm.

His movement technique was extremely unique, as if he had merged into the starlight and shadows, silently weaving between the massive star remains and avoiding obvious danger zones.

His heavy pupils granted him unparalleled insight, often allowing him to discover hidden traps ahead of time.

After traveling for several hours, Lin Yun suddenly stopped. Ahead, on a massive star fragment as large as a continent, a strange "forest" was actually growing!

Those "trees" were composed entirely of some dark blue crystal, with liquid starlight flowing between their branches and leaves, emitting startling energy fluctuations.

"Starlight Crystal Tree!" A flash of surprise and joy crossed Lin Yun's eyes.

This was a Heaven And Earth Treasure that only existed in extreme starry environments. The "Starlight Liquid" it condensed was of immense benefit for tempering the Physical Body, nourishing the Divine Soul, and especially for enhancing the Pupil Technique!

However, the joy lasted only a moment before his heavy pupils immediately sent him a strong warning!

In the shadows of that crystal forest lurked dozens of blurred creatures composed entirely of pure Star Power and Divine Soul fragments!

They had no fixed form, appearing like distorted shadows and emitting cold, hungry mental waves.

"Star Fiends!"

Lin Yun's expression turned grave.

This was one of the common dangers in the Secret Realm, formed by the remnant Souls of experts who had fallen here mixed with violent Star Power. They possessed no reason, only the instinct to attack and devour the Souls and energy of all living beings.

These Star Fiends varied in strength, ranging from the Tongtian Realm to the Life Soul Realm. There were even legends of a Star Fiend King comparable to the Nirvana Realm existing in the heart of the Secret Realm.

Among the group before him, the leaders' auras had reached the first or second level of the Life Soul Realm!

They had clearly discovered Lin Yun, the uninvited guest. Silent shrieks exploded on the mental plane as dozens of distorted Star Fiends lunged like ghosts, swallowing even the light as they passed!

"Hmph!" Lin Yun snorted coldly, startled but not panicked. He had long expected that the Secret Realm would not let him obtain resources easily.

He formed hand seals, and starlight erupted from his heavy pupils! "Star-Imprisoning Realm!"

Buzz!

Centered on him, the Void Realm for a hundred feet around seemed to freeze instantly. Countless tiny specks of starlight emerged, forming a temporary barrier.

The speed of the charging Star Fiends suddenly stalled, as if they had fallen into a mire.

But this barrier clearly couldn't trap them for long, especially those few Life Soul Realm Star Fiends. Their distorted bodies struggled violently, seemingly on the verge of breaking through the restraint.

Lin Yun only needed this moment of delay!

His figure moved like lightning as he charged directly into the crystal forest, aiming for the King of Crystal Trees at the center—the tallest one, where the Starlight Liquid flowed like a small waterfall!

His actions completely enraged the Star Fiends. Especially the powerful ones, who let out silent roars, broke free from the barrier, and chased after him frantically.

Lin Yun ignored them, pushing his speed to the limit. His heavy pupils flickered constantly, predicting the attack trajectories of the Star Fiends and narrowly avoiding Star Power impacts and Soul tears that could freeze his Divine Soul.

Squelch!

A Star Fiend's claw swiped across his shoulder, taking a piece of flesh with it. The wound was instantly covered in a layer of icy blue star frost, attempting to corrode his life force.

Lin Yun let out a muffled groan. The "Ancient Star God Scripture" within him circulated rapidly, forcibly expelling the foreign Star Power. Under the nourishment of the Star Power, the wound healed quickly.

Finally, he reached the base of the King of Crystal Trees!

Without hesitation, he took out a pre-prepared jade bottle. With a wave of his finger, he cut into the trunk, guiding the nectar-like Starlight Liquid into the bottle.

At that very moment, the three fastest Life Soul Realm Star Fiends had already pounced behind him! Cold killing intent nearly froze his Soul!

A sharp light flashed in Lin Yun's eyes. He spun around abruptly and poured the freshly filled jade bottle into his mouth! "Gulp!" He swallowed more than half a bottle of the incredibly precious Starlight Liquid directly!

Boom—!!!

It was as if a star had detonated inside him! Terrifyingly pure Star Power exploded instantly, washing through his entire body! His skin was immediately covered in cracks, leaking blue starlight. He felt as if he were about to be blown apart from the inside out!

"Argh—!" The intense pain caused Lin Yun to let out a low growl, but his eyes remained incredibly crazed yet calm!

Using this explosive power, he thrust both hands forward! "Star Burst: Funeral!"

He actually blasted out the Starlight Liquid energy that he couldn't absorb in time—which was about to burst his body—mixed with his own cultivation base in an almost self-destructive manner!

Vroom!!!!

A beam of starlight, brilliant to the extreme and over ten meters in diameter, erupted from his palms like the roar of a prehistoric beast!

Wherever the light passed, the Void Realm distorted. Those lunging Star Fiends, whether in the Tongtian Realm or the Life Soul Realm, were struck by this violent energy containing the essence of the King of Crystal Trees. Like snow under the sun, they instantly emitted shrill shrieks, their forms twisting and melting before finally being utterly annihilated!

With one strike, more than half of the chasing Star Fiends were cleared out! Even the three Life Soul Realm Star Fiends were heavily wounded, their forms becoming illusory and unstable as they retreated in terror.

Lin Yun was not faring well either. Forcing such a massive amount of energy through him had caused the Meridians in his arms to snap inch by inch, and his internal organs suffered violent shocks. He spat out another large mouthful of blood, which shimmered with starlight.

But he couldn't afford to worry about his injuries. Seizing the moment while the other Star Fiends were deterred, he quickly filled another bottle of Starlight Liquid. Then, without hesitation, he turned around, burned his essence blood, and transformed into a streak of light, fleeing frantically out of the forest!

The remaining Star Fiends came to their senses and let out unwilling shrieks, but they didn't dare to easily pursue the aura that emitted the energy of the King of Crystal Trees, which filled them with fear.

After fleeing the range of the crystal forest and no longer sensing the Star Fiends' aura, Lin Yun finally dared to stop. He found a large crack in a star fragment and crawled inside, immediately setting up several concealment and defense Formations. No longer able to hold on, he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, his whole body wracked with pain.

But as he looked at the two jade bottles in his hand, nearly overflowing and emitting a dreamlike blue light, a difficult but satisfied smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"It was worth it!"

Refinement and Transformation

In the following days, Lin Yun stayed in that star fragment crack to heal his injuries and refine the Starlight Liquid.

He first cautiously dripped a drop of Starlight Liquid into his eyes.

A cool yet massive energy instantly surged into his heavy pupils. His pupils felt a piercing pain as if pricked by needles, yet it also brought an ultimate sense of comfort and clarity.

The world before him became more distinct. He could even vaguely see the fine lines of Law flowing in the Void Realm. Some sort of shackle deep within his heavy pupils was being pushed open bit by bit.

Afterward, he began to consume the Starlight Liquid orally, coordinating it with the "Ancient Star God Scripture" to repair his injuries and temper his Physical Body and Divine Soul.

Star Power was already an excellent energy for Body Tempering, and Starlight Liquid was its very essence.

His Physical Body became increasingly resilient through repeated cycles of breaking and repairing. His bones took on a faint star-blue hue, and his Meridians were widened, capable of holding more Star Power.

His Divine Soul received even greater benefits.

The day-and-night washing of the Soul Power tides, combined with the nourishment of the Starlight Liquid, caused his Divine Sense to continuously grow and condense.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, it was as if stars were being born and extinguished. His perception range expanded rapidly, and his control over his own power reached a whole new Realm.

Before he knew it, as the two bottles of Starlight Liquid were nearly exhausted, Lin Yun's injuries had long since healed. His cultivation base had naturally reached the Peak of the ninth level of the Tongtian Realm, only a hair's breadth away from the Life Soul Realm.

His heavy pupils had undergone significant changes. The pupils that originally rotated slowly now seemed to have nebulae flowing within their depths. As his gaze opened and closed, it carried a majesty that could see through falsehood and command the stars.

"It's time." Lin Yun felt the surging power within him and his restless Divine Soul, knowing the Opportunity to condense his Life Soul had arrived.

He left his hiding place and headed toward the core area of the Secret Realm, where the Soul Power tides were most turbulent.

Although it was more dangerous there, for someone like him who needed the extreme pressure of the Soul Power tides to condense a special Life Soul, it was the best choice.

The further in he went, the harsher the environment became.

Star storms swept through from time to time, spatial cracks were like treacherous vipers, and the hidden Star Fiends were even more cunning and powerful.

Relying on his transformed heavy pupils and more refined movement technique, Lin Yun navigated through without any major mishaps.

Finally, he reached his destination.

It was a magnificent sight beyond words.

Countless massive star remains circled a giant, slowly rotating dark vortex.

The center of the vortex was not absolute darkness but emitted an ultimate ghostly blue light, as if it were a cold Eye of the Universe.

Soul Power tides so vast they were suffocating were spewing out from that vortex eye like breath, forming visible Soul Power waves like tsunamis that spread in all directions!

Here, the Star Power actually became sparse, replaced by that omnipresent, terrifying Soul Pressure that was enough to crush the Divine Soul of an ordinary Life Soul Realm Cultivator!

Just by standing on the edge, Lin Yun felt his Divine Soul shake violently, as if it were about to be torn away by the tide and cast into that cold Eye of the Universe.

"This is the place!" Instead of fear, Lin Yun's eyes were filled with excitement.

He found a relatively stable star fragment that could withstand the impact of the Soul Power tides, sat cross-legged, focused his mind, and prepared for the most crucial Breakthrough!