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Chapter 357: Evolution of the Inner World
Chapter 357: Evolution of the Inner World (Subscription Requested)
"Finally... I've comprehended the rules of time."
Lin Yuan was full of vigor, having reached the ninth stage of life and comprehended the rules of time.
Never before in the vast main universe had such a precedent been set.
It was simply too difficult to achieve.
Even in the records of Moyu Tower and the Xuanhuang lineage, only legendary innate temporal beings or a minuscule number of wonderous beings were said to have accomplished this feat.
These temporal beings were mysterious entities capable of traversing countless timelines.
The pinnacle of a twelfth-stage cultivator's journey was to transcend and become one with the river of time.
"The rules of time," Lin Yuan murmured as he closed his eyes.
After comprehending the rules of time, there weren't any noticeable changes to Lin Yuan's physical body or soul.
However, he could now distinctly sense the vast river of time flowing all around him.
It was worth noting that even eleventh-stage cultivators couldn't perceive the river of time before comprehending its rules.
Lost in this mountain range, Lin Yuan had no idea how deep it went.
"I can now significantly slow down the flow of time around me," Lin Yuan thought to himself.
Before his breakthrough, he could slow down time to some extent, but it was negligible compared to what he could do now.
Now, Lin Yuan could decelerate the passage of time he experienced by thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of times.
While the outside world aged by hundreds of thousands of years, he would only experience a single year.
This was the primary method used by the powerful ancient gods in the depths of the universe to extend their lifespan.
A small number of ancient gods had the qualifications to challenge the ultimate stage, but they dared not attempt it for fear of failure.
So, they bided their time, using their ability to slow down time to pass one era after another.
Of course, to these ancient gods, the time they experienced might only be a few decades, but in the main universe, eons would have passed.
"Slowing down time is useless to me," Lin Yuan shook his head slightly.
He still had an abundance of lifespan left and saw no need to cling desperately to existence.
"The river of time?" Lin Yuan gazed upon the world before him, and in his hazy vision, he thought he glimpsed a majestic river flowing endlessly.
The most significant benefit of comprehending the rules of time was the ability to perceive oneself within the vast river of time.
Compared to his previous experience when Summer Solstice brought him to the 'shore' and freed him from the river's constraints, Lin Yuan now viewed the world from within the river of time itself.
The two perspectives were vastly different.
The depth and breadth he could perceive from his current viewpoint were far inferior to what he had witnessed before.
"My form within the river of time is too insignificant," Lin Yuan mused, shaking his head.
The stronger one's power, the larger their reflection in the river of time. Despite comprehending the rules of time, Lin Yuan was still only a ninth-stage being.
Even though the essence of his life could rival that of a tenth-stage being, he was still minuscule in the grand scheme of the river of time.
In the river of time, an ordinary eleventh-stage being would only be considered a 'small fish'. Those who had comprehended the rules of time were the 'big fish'.
As for Lin Yuan, despite his breakthrough, the essence of his life was still too weak, and he estimated that he would only be akin to a mayfly in the river.
"Earlier, when I was observing the river from the 'shore', I noticed a 'big fish' whose size covered half the riverbed. I wonder what level of eleventh-stage being that was?" Lin Yuan wondered.
Since he was now within the river of time, that being must have been an eleventh-stage cultivator as well.
However, its size covering half the riverbed indicated an incredibly powerful life essence.
"The shore?" Lin Yuan tried to look towards the shore but found it too blurry to make out any details. Beings within the river of time couldn't clearly perceive the shore.
"I now have the ability to leap out and briefly leave the river, but I won't," Lin Yuan decided, shaking his head slightly.
Beings who had comprehended the rules of time could, with all their might, briefly jump out of the river of time. However, in doing so, they would attract the attention of the Overlords standing on the shore.
Lin Yuan wasn't concerned about the nine Overlords of the human civilization, but there were other Overlords in this universe who held deep-seated malevolence towards human civilization.
"Swimming against the current?"
Lin Yuan turned his head to look into the distant past.
One by one, the shadows of beings who had died long ago appeared before him. The further back he looked, the more shadows came into view.
All of these beings had started at the sixth stage and above; Lin Yuan couldn't see the shadows of those below that level.
"In theory, I now have the ability to 'save' others," Lin Yuan thought.
However, theory was one thing, and his current strength and life essence were another. Even if he tried to 'save' a sixth-stage being, the backlash from the main universe and the river of time would instantly crush them both.
Not even an eleventh-stage cultivator could withstand the backlash of resurrecting a sixth-stage being. So far, only Overlords had the power to pluck fallen beings from the river of time and bring them back to life in the present timeline.
Overlords were too powerful; only the resurrection of an eleventh-stage being would give them pause, and even then, it had to be an exceptionally powerful one.
The river of time.
The shore.
The nine Overlords of human civilization stood there, one after the other.
Further away,
The Overlord Summer Solstice stood quietly, gazing down at the river's surface.
Suddenly,
The Overlord Summer Solstice's expression stirred slightly.
A faint disturbance in the depths of the river of time alerted him to a being trying to peer towards the shore.
Usually, such a disturbance meant that a being had comprehended the rules of time and realized they were but a 'fish' in the river, prompting them to try and glimpse the shore.
It was only natural for a being to occasionally appear and comprehend the rules of time.
The fact that the other Overlords didn't seem to pay any attention to this matter was proof enough.
But Summer Solstice had a hunch.
Could that little guy be the one who has comprehended the rules of time? Summer Solstice wondered, his anticipation building.
In the Galaxy Main Star, Lin Yuan sat with his legs crossed, sending a strand of his will into his inner world.
Buzz.
As the rule of time was fully comprehended, the inner world gained the support of the time rule, which stood alongside the space rule and other rules, collectively propping up his inner world.
Rumbling.
A peculiar transformation occurred within his inner world.
Lin Yuan's intuition told him that his inner world hadn't expanded in the slightest, nor had a new layer of space been added.
However, with the integration of the time rule, he vaguely felt that his inner world had become 'complete'.
It was as if his previous inner world had been 'incomplete' and had now finally been 'perfected' and become 'whole'.
"Is this what it means for my inner world to be 'independent'?" Lin Yuan mused, his expression thoughtful.
With the time and space rules, the spacetime within his inner world no longer relied on the Main Universe, and in a strict sense, his inner world existed on the same level as the Main Universe.
Both were worlds possessing spacetime.
The only difference was that the Main Universe was countless times larger than his inner world. But no matter how vast the difference, they were still both worlds.
Both were direct offspring of the Chaos Void.
"This is so wonderful. Is this what it means for my inner world to be independent?" Lin Yuan murmured to himself. At this moment, his inner world could completely block off the senses of the Main Universe.
It was worth noting that the Main Universe could sense everything within one's inner world.
Previously, when Lin Yuan had ended his journey through the Spirit Realm and comprehended dozens of universal powers, the origin of the universe in the Main Universe had hovered outside his inner world.
It was waiting for Lin Yuan to open up his inner world so that the dozens of universal powers could adapt to the Main Universe.
But now, Lin Yuan had a feeling that even if his inner world possessed something that the Main Universe craved, it wouldn't be sensed.
Because his inner world was now completely isolated from the Main Universe, both were 'independent' and complete.
"Although there doesn't seem to be any change in my battle power, I feel much 'freer'." Lin Yuan smiled.
To be precise, there hadn't been no change in his battle power. After comprehending the time rule, Lin Yuan's understanding of time had improved immeasurably.
Even if he couldn't defeat a tenth-stage Alpha being head-on, he could now play with them effortlessly thanks to his comprehension of the time rule.
For example, at this moment, Lin Yuan could use the time rule to cast a time cage. Even if those tenth-stage Alphas struggled with all their might, it would take them at least half an hour to break free.
Half an hour was more than enough time for things to go cold.
"Hmm?"
"After comprehending the rules of time, my inner world has both space and time, and the speed of its transformation is skyrocketing?" Lin Yuan's expression changed slightly.
The transition from the ninth stage to the tenth stage was a slow process, and according to Lin Yuan's own estimation, it would take about a hundred years to complete the transformation.
But now, Lin Yuan estimated that it would only take him sixty or seventy years.
"Comprehending the rules of time has this additional benefit?" Lin Yuan was pleased.
Although his foundation was strong enough that there wouldn't be any variables in his breakthrough to the tenth stage, the earlier he reached it, the better.
"Overlord Summer Solstice said that an independent inner world will receive an infusion from the origin of the Chaos Void during a major realm ascension, which will be a great opportunity."
Lin Yuan's expression was slightly expectant.
An infusion from the origin of the Chaos Void? Theoretically, this was a privilege only enjoyed by eleventh-stage beings challenging the ultimate stage.
Yet Lin Yuan was about to experience it as he ascended from the ninth stage to the tenth. If this got out, he wondered how many eleventh-stage beings would turn green with envy.
"Right."
"I should go see Overlord Summer Solstice."
Lin Yuan's thoughts converged as he immediately began to connect his consciousness to the virtual world.
Overlord Summer Solstice had instructed Lin Yuan to find him again if he could comprehend the rules of time at the ninth stage.
Lin Yuan had indeed comprehended the rules of time, and Summer Solstice had contributed significantly to this achievement by helping him break free from the river of time.
Without his assistance, Lin Yuan's comprehension would have been significantly delayed, perhaps even pushed back until the tenth stage.
Virtual World.
The personal world of an Overlord.
Overlord Summer Solstice sat majestically on his throne.
"Hmm?"
"Has that little guy come to see me?"
A slight tension crept into Summer Solstice's voice, a rare occurrence.
He wondered how Summer Solstice knew, but he answered honestly, "Yes."
"You've comprehended the rules of time." Summer Solstice's tone was unusually enthusiastic. "Good, good, good!"
(End of Chapter)
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