As soon as Lan Xiaobu entered the cave, he keenly felt the presence of the Heart of the Universe and immediately plunged inside.
A myriad of law auras enveloped him, and in an instant, he fell into a frenzied state of comprehension. There seemed to be nothing else here—just the crystal-clear laws of heaven and earth.
The laws of the five elements, wind, thunder, ice, darkness, light, time, space, the netherworld, the divine path…
Whether he’d encountered them before or not, these laws were effortlessly grasped here, with no obstacles or confusion in comprehension.
As Lan Xiaobu clearly understood one law after another, his aura surged uncontrollably.
Divine spirit veins outside his cave cracked open, their dense divine energy entirely swept up by him.
Eventually, all of Sage Island could sense his cave wrapped in layer upon layer of profound heavenly laws.
The cultivators still lingering on Sage Island were drawn by these endless laws, gathering outside Lan Xiaobu’s cave. They could no longer feel the Heart of the Universe’s aura, but his location was shrouded in rich laws—clearly, it was the only place on Sage Island where the Heart’s presence remained, and so vividly at that.
Unfortunately, while they could sense these clear laws, they couldn’t comprehend them.
Everyone knew that to grasp these tangible laws, one had to enter the protective array around Lan Xiaobu’s cave. Once inside, they’d surely feel the laws. And seeing the dense, almost tangible heaven-and-earth vitality surrounding the cave, it was obvious that entering would cause their cultivation to soar.
But the native cultivators of Sage Island knew who resided in that cave. None dared to breach it. They could only watch enviously as the rich vitality and clear laws swirled.
Some cultivators nearing the end of their lifespans, desperate, risked everything to charge in and glimpse the Great Dao’s laws. They were doomed anyway—why not try for a breakthrough?
Yet not everyone was like Guang Ye Chang or Luo, capable of withstanding Lan Xiaobu’s lethal trapping array. Those who entered rarely lasted ten breaths before being reduced to blood mist.
Faced with such a brutal array, most cultivators gave up. Except for a few unwilling souls still probing with their divine sense, hoping to grasp the Heart’s laws, the majority drifted away—some even leaving Sage Island entirely.
Without the Heart of the Universe, who’d stay?
One year, ten years, a hundred years…
Another century passed, and the space around Lan Xiaobu’s cave abruptly split open, revealing a black void vortex. Above it, infinite laws flickered—vast rules from beyond the void.
His formidable aura continued to surge. Lan Xiaobu’s phantom primordial spirit appeared outside the vortex, his hands forming intricate, profound seals. The flickering laws melted away under his gestures.
The dozen or so quasi-sages and pseudo-sages still on Sage Island frantically memorised his hand seals, mimicking the techniques.
A pseudo-sage with a deep foundation laughed maniacally as his aura surged—he’d grasped a fragment of the laws’ Charm and was on the verge of breaking into the first-turn sage realm.
*Crack!* The void’s laws seemed unable to bear Lan Xiaobu’s methods. The vortex vanished, leaving a rift in its wake.
His phantom primordial spirit disappeared as well. Lan Xiaobu emerged from the cave, his aura surging powerfully. Yet he didn’t stabilise it, instead gazing wistfully into the distant void. The Heart of the Universe had fled. After he’d used it to comprehend the third-turn sage laws, it vanished. He’d tried to seize it, but all his efforts were in vain.
With a long sigh, Lan Xiaobu exhaled.
In two or three centuries on Sage Island, his gains had been immense—from a quasi-sage to a third-turn sage.
He knew his third-turn sage status was exceptional due to his mastery of laws. Unless someone else had comprehended the vast laws within the Heart of the Universe, no one could surpass his understanding of heaven and earth’s rules.
Upon reaching the third turn, his Eternal Life Realm expanded dramatically, its laws fully perfected. Lifeforms within it multiplied, and it birthed starry skies, voids, and tiny planets. The Sun Star grew more radiant, and with Lan Xiaobu’s will, it aligned with the realm’s laws, creating day-night cycles and monthly and yearly rotations.
“Big Brother…” a timid voice called, sensing his presence.
“You’ve reached eighth-rank divine beast?” Lan Xiaobu looked at the Chaos Unicorn in delight. Now an eighth-rank beast, its single horn had turned deep purple, exuding a potent divine beast aura that formed an imposing pressure. To Lan Xiaobu, it was manageable, but ordinary cultivators would likely buckle under such force.
Beyond the purple horn, its fur flowed like silk, faintly shimmering with divine beast energy.
“After the Eternal Life Realm’s laws perfected, my cultivation soared. I quickly broke through to seventh rank, then eighth,” the Chaos Unicorn said in a crisp voice.
With a sweep of his divine sense, Lan Xiaobu brought the unicorn to his side.
“From now on, stay out here. With your strength, there’s no need to hide in my Eternal Life Realm,” he said with a sigh.
He knew that if he hadn’t kept the unicorn in his realm, it would’ve reached eighth rank long ago. Had he not ascended to third-turn sage, it might still be lingering at seventh rank.
The Chaos Unicorn was valuable, but as a third-turn sage with an eighth-rank beast by his side, few would dare target it.
“Thank you, Big Brother!” The unicorn beamed, thrilled to be free. The Eternal Life Realm was vast but dull.
“Hmm, from now on, your name is Tai Chuan. You have an elder brother named Gu Dao—don’t bully him when you meet,” Lan Xiaobu said with a wistful tone.
Gu Dao was still with Luo Caisi, but Tai Chuan?
Overjoyed with its new name, the unicorn’s eyes eagerly explored this new world.
Lan Xiaobu’s divine sense swept outward. He longed to find Guang Ye Chang and Luo for a rematch. Those two had ganged up on him before, and though he hadn’t suffered a loss, it left a bad taste. Fortunately, they hadn’t disrupted the Heart of the Universe’s presence, or he’d have missed his chance to ascend to third-turn sage.
Sadly, despite multiple sweeps, he found no trace of them—they’d clearly left Sage Island long ago.
“Greetings, Senior,” several cultivators lingering outside his cave, sensing the laws, bowed as he appeared.
Lan Xiaobu glanced at the distant figure breaking through to first-turn sage and thought, *Lucky guy.* Using the ripple of his own third-turn breakthrough to grasp the laws and ascend—his future combat strength would be formidable.
Nodding to the group, he said, “Sage Island’s foundation is exhausted. The Heart of the Universe has fled, and this place will collapse. Everyone, leave.”
With that, he summoned the Reincarnation Pot, which streaked out of Sage Island as a shadow. His vast sage Charm retracted completely as he departed.
“Yes, Senior,” the cultivators replied after he left, snapping to their senses and rushing off Sage Island.
“Haha, I, Gu Ting, have reached this day! Haha…” The newly ascended first-turn sage on Sage Island laughed wildly.
He’d never dreamed of becoming a first-turn sage, let alone via heavenly laws. With his grasp of these laws, ascending to second turn wasn’t impossible, and his current strength already surpassed typical first-turn sages.
Then he recalled who’d enabled his breakthrough. Hurrying to Lan Xiaobu’s cave, he prepared to bow in thanks.
At that moment, a terrifying wave of destructive energy surged. Gu Ting fled in panic. The next instant, Sage Island disintegrated into rubble amid a deafening roar.
Staring at the exploding island, Gu Ting’s heart swelled with emotion. He’d been among the first to arrive, drawn by a profound aura that deepened comprehension. Later, he’d heard it was the Heart of the Universe and resolved to break through here—and he’d succeeded.
He didn’t know the senior who’d enabled this. If he did, he’d join him without hesitation.
…
When Lan Xiaobu first came to Sage Island, the Reincarnation Pot took one or two years to reach it. Now, it took just one or two days to return to Eternal Life Sage City.
With his cultivation soaring, distances in the Eternal Life Realm had shrunk limitlessly for him.
Arriving, he saw the protective array spanning ten thousand miles around Eternal Life Sage City gone. Outside, armies from a dozen holy courts were encamped. What was happening?
As Lan Xiaobu puzzled over this, a purple-robed man shot into the sky, landing outside the city.
