https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-222-A-Trap-Understand-it-First-Before-Falling-for-It/12531870/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-224-The-Silent-Red-Kun-Star-Master/12531875/
Chapter 223: A Mental Transformation
Chapter 223: A Mental Transformation (End of Chapter)
Upon a lofty platform, several figures fixed their gazes upon Lin Yuan.
They were all Ninth Stage Evolvers, or to be more precise, embodiments of a fragment of consciousness from Ninth Stage Evolvers.
Simultaneously, their consciousness split into countless strands, overseeing countless virtual worlds and monitoring the enlightenment of numerous Evolvers.
The severed corpus before them contained countless evolutionary paths, some of which were so bizarre that they could affect the true bodies of those who ventured down those paths.
Thus, it was necessary to have Eighth Stage Extremes, or even Ninth Stage Evolvers, to keep a constant watch.
Should an Evolver stray down the wrong path and lose control, these Ninth Stage Evolvers could intervene.
By rights, this severed body of a deceased Beyonders should not have been made public so soon. There were many hidden dangers and traps within, and some talented Evolvers might fall into them.
Even with the isolation of the virtual world, the impact on the memories and minds of the physical bodies beyond was inevitable.
But they had no choice.
The one in possession of this severed corpus was not just the Human Civilization.
There were also other races, including several peak groups such as the Bug Race.
If the Beyonders did not do this and one of these peak groups gained control of this ultimate evolutionary path, it could result in the rise of another Beyonder, which would disrupt the balance of power.
A single Beyonder was capable of shattering the balance currently maintained by the several peak groups.
At that time, no one knew how much the Human Civilization Alliance would have to concede to restore a new balance.
"That little guy hasn't cultivated any of the enlightenment paths he's realized, even after all this time?"
The first man was perplexed. It had been a month or two, and basically, every other Evolver had begun cultivating one of the paths.
Once they started cultivating the enlightenment path, their auras would begin to transform, drawing closer to the essence of the severed corpus.
Yet Lin Yuan's aura remained unchanged, his strength still at the level of a First Stage Evolver.
"I know that kid."
"He's Chi Qiu's junior disciple. He entered the Seventh Stage before the age of a hundred and has remarkable talent."
A figure beside him spoke, his eyes also fixed on Lin Yuan.
"It's remarkable to enter the Seventh Stage before a hundred years of age without relying on physique or bloodline," another figure added.
Those who had become Ninth Stage Evolvers were also peerless geniuses in their youth, so they understood how challenging it was to reach the Seventh Stage by one's own efforts at such a young age.
Compared to the uniquely blessed special lives in the depths of the stars, humans were still too weak.
This weakness permeated every aspect.
Of course, the reason the Human Civilization had come so far was due to their numerical advantage. With such a vast population, it was inevitable that some monstrous talents would emerge to rival those special lives.
"A genius like this couldn't possibly fail to realize an evolutionary path. Perhaps he's sensed the hidden dangers and is unwilling to cultivate it?" the last figure speculated.
They did not doubt Lin Yuan's intellect, so they assumed he was simply unwilling to cultivate.
"If he's unwilling to cultivate, what's the point of staying here? Is he tempering his mental fortitude?"
"That's not a bad idea. A genius like him has lived too short a life and seen too little. Mental fortitude is often a weak point, so it's good to temper it."
"Indeed, that kid is actually able to resist cultivating the evolutionary paths he's realized."
The figures murmured to each other.
Once an Evolver realized an evolutionary path from the corpus, they would be irresistibly drawn to cultivate it, their minds subconsciously believing that this path would lead to a brilliant future.
This was one of the latent abilities of the corpus,
This ability had already been infinitely weakened,
and if they were facing the main body of the corpus instead of a projection within a virtual world,
even Ninth Stage Evolvers might not be able to control themselves.
Compared to the other Evolvers immersed in their cultivation,
Lin Yuan had a more challenging time. Once the others began cultivating, the mental pressure they experienced would lessen or even cease.
But Lin Yuan was constantly under mental and spiritual pressure.
The suppression wasn't enough; Lin Yuan also had to continuously realize more evolutionary paths, analyze and understand them, and integrate them into his martial arts evolutionary path.
"Da qian mu bi."
A string of murmurs resonated in Lin Yuan's ears, emanating from the severed corpus and echoing in his mind. Each word seemed to vibrate his soul.
Lin Yuan could feel his consciousness shaking, and it was this constant shaking that strengthened his mental fortitude.
This strengthening was slow, but at least he could perceive it.
Previously, Lin Yuan's mental fortitude had improved so gradually that he couldn't notice it at all. Being able to feel it now was already quite astonishing.
"Hmm?"
As time passed, Lin Yuan's mental fortitude seemed to break through some kind of shackle, and the murmurs in his ears suddenly disappeared.
"Did my mental fortitude just undergo a transformation?"
A smile appeared on Lin Yuan's face. Before, he had found it challenging to resist the mental suppression, but now it felt much easier.
The only possible explanation was a transformation in his mental fortitude.
"However, this mental suppression is constantly increasing in intensity. As long as I don't stop my enlightenment and start cultivating one of the evolutionary paths, the suppression will only get heavier."
"As if..."
Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes.
"...it's forcing me to cultivate a certain evolutionary path."
Lin Yuan thought to himself.
"But I won't."
Lin Yuan shook his head slightly.
During this period, he had realized and thoroughly analyzed 137 evolutionary paths, selecting only the insights into rules that were beneficial to him.
These 137 evolutionary paths had greatly improved his progress on the core space model, and he had realized three additional models.
His martial arts evolutionary path was also becoming more and more complete.
"Let's take a break."
After experiencing a mental transformation, Lin Yuan felt a sense of fatigue, so he disconnected his consciousness from the virtual world and returned to reality.
"Have the cosmic treasures arrived?"
Lin Yuan received a message and immediately got up.
Not long ago, Lin Yuan had purchased several cosmic treasures to stabilize his inner world.
The inner worlds created by Evolvers were not permanent, and they required continuous investment in the later stages.
This investment included some cosmic treasures, and certain special ones contained the origin power of a particular rule, which could be used to defend the inner world and perfect its rules.
The battles between Eighth Stage Evolvers mainly involved the clash of world forces. Without considering talent, secret techniques, rule insights, and other factors, whoever had a more abundant and powerful world force would have the advantage.
Lin Yuan walked out of the hall and looked up at the sky.
Soon,
A spaceship descended.
A staff member carrying a briefcase walked up to Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan took the briefcase and returned to the grand hall.
"Cosmic Treasures."
Lin Yuan had purchased three Cosmic Treasures—'Primordial Fire', 'Earth's Essence', and 'Formless Wind'. They were all eight-star Cosmic Treasures, and together they cost sixteen thousand units of universe crystals, averaging five to six thousand units each.
To put it into perspective, one unit of universe crystal was equivalent to one hundred million universe coins or one trillion civilization coins.
In other words, each Cosmic Treasure was worth fifty to sixty trillion civilization coins—a staggering amount that could buy an entire stellar system.
And it was only because of his Seventh-grade Citizen privileges that Lin Yuan was able to acquire these three Cosmic Treasures; a slightly lower citizen grade would not have been enough, even with wealth.
"I hope they don't disappoint," Lin Yuan said, looking at the three Cosmic Treasures before him. He had spent a quarter of his wealth to acquire them.
Swish!
With a thought, Lin Yuan brought his consciousness into his inner world, where the three Cosmic Treasures also appeared.
Crackle!
The glass bottles containing the treasures shattered.
First, the 'Primordial Fire' rose and formed a blazing sun in the sky, filling the entire world with warmth and light.
Then, the 'Earth's Essence' merged into the ground, adding a sense of solidity and thickness to the world.
Lastly, the 'Formless Wind' disappeared into the air, and gentle breezes began to blow.
"Not bad," Lin Yuan nodded in satisfaction. His once barren inner world now seemed to have come to life.
"The World Force has also increased significantly," he noted with a smile.
"Next time I come across suitable Cosmic Treasures, I'll buy them," Lin Yuan thought to himself. Not every Cosmic Treasure was compatible with one's inner world, and it depended on the specific circumstances of the individual's inner world. The three treasures he had chosen were perfectly suited to his.
Time passed.
In the blink of an eye, half a year went by.
During this period, Lin Yuan spent most of his time studying the severed corpus, enduring the mental and spiritual suppression, and analyzing the evolutionary paths within.
"One thousand three hundred and twenty-five core space models," Lin Yuan said with a pleased expression. Half a year ago, after his sixth shuttle trip, his understanding of core space models had stalled at just over one thousand two hundred. But in this short period, he had broken through and comprehended over a hundred more, and the evolutionary paths within the corpus had been immensely beneficial.
"In addition to the core space models, I've also gained insights into numerous core life models," Lin Yuan thought to himself. Each evolutionary path within the corpus was incredibly diverse, and every time he thoroughly analyzed one, he benefited greatly.
"Hmm?" Lin Yuan seemed to sense something. He disconnected his consciousness from the virtual world and turned his attention inward.
"Have I accumulated a strand of Boundary Breaking Source Power already?" Lin Yuan looked at the majestic Myriad Worlds Gate, and at this moment, the edges of the radiant gate were completely lit up.
This meant that he had accumulated a complete strand of Boundary Breaking Source Power, and he could attempt the seventh shuttle trip at any time.
"Let's wait a little longer," he decided. "Shuttling through worlds may not provide such excellent conditions for tempering my mental fortitude."
Lin Yuan pondered for a while and chose not to shuttle immediately. His mental fortitude index was not up to the standard required to reach the Eighth Stage, and even if he shuttled, the improvement to his strength would be limited, especially in terms of his comprehension of space rules. Without constantly analyzing the evolutionary paths within the corpus, it would be difficult for him to forcefully comprehend the subsequent core space models with his current Seventh Stage cultivation.
Even Lin Yuan felt the strain. It would be a case of twice the effort for half the result.
It would be better to pause the shuttling and focus entirely on tempering his mental fortitude, so he could reach the Eighth Stage sooner. The Boundary Breaking Source Power wouldn't go to waste; it would simply accumulate and wait for him to use it in the future.
Lin Yuan never lost sight of his goal—to become stronger. If shuttling made him stronger, he would shuttle. And now, pausing the shuttling to strengthen himself was the right choice.
Time passed.
Another two years went by in the blink of an eye.
During these two years, Lin Yuan focused most of his energy on tempering his mental fortitude, with the secondary goal of analyzing the evolutionary paths within the corpus.
As time went on, the mental suppression he experienced became stronger, affecting his efficiency in analyzing the evolutionary paths.
"Phew," Lin Yuan breathed a sigh of relief as he stopped observing the corpus in the sky. Only when he observed the corpus did he feel the mental suppression, and the longer he observed, the stronger it became. But when he stopped observing, the suppression disappeared.
"In these years, my mental fortitude has transformed three times," Lin Yuan thought to himself.
The first transformation was two years ago, the second a year and two months ago, and the third just a few days ago. With these three mental transformations, Lin Yuan felt that his mental fortitude index should have improved significantly.
"Let's check my current mental fortitude index," he said to himself. Lin Yuan disconnected his consciousness from the virtual world and returned to reality.
"I'll take a short break first," he decided.
The mental fortitude index was not static; it fluctuated with the evolver's state. Lin Yuan had just finished studying the corpus, and his mind was somewhat fatigued, which could lead to inaccuracies in the measurement. Only when he was in a mentally optimal state would the results be relatively accurate.
Half a day later, Lin Yuan had rested sufficiently, and all aspects had returned to their peak. He reconnected his consciousness to the virtual world and entered his personal space.
"Wisdom Goddess, I request to test my mental fortitude index," Lin Yuan said to the goddess.
An evolver's mental fortitude index was elusive and intangible, and it required one of the three goddesses to allocate a portion of their computational power to perform an accurate measurement.
"Honored Seventh-grade Citizen Lin Yuan, without using any physical or soul power, solely relying on your own mental fortitude, unleash your power and impact the surroundings," the Wisdom Goddess said in a solemn and cold voice.
Lin Yuan followed her instructions.
Rumbling!
A terrifying mental pressure spread in all directions.
After a while, the measurement was complete.
"What's the result?" Lin Yuan asked eagerly, his face filled with anticipation.
"Your mental fortitude index is 9,234," the goddess replied.
Joy filled Lin Yuan's heart.
(End of Chapter)
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