Chapter 57: Temporal Echo Technique! [Available Tomorrow at Noon!]

Chapter 57: Temporal Echo Technique! [Available Tomorrow at Noon!]

Jiang Zhe’s eyes widened. “The Mechanical Race is making such a grand gesture? This single Thunder Crystalline Matrix could forge ten Storm Origin Law prodigies?”

“Master,” Orianna replied, “ten prodigies? Most would struggle to ascend to Immortal. To the Mechanical Race, they’re just cannon fodder.”

“But if a Marquis Immortal accepts bribes, even minor aid to enemies could yield greater gains for them.”

“Besides, no one said the entire matrix goes to a single recipient.” Orianna gestured at the ten delicate crystal vials inside the metallic case.

“True,” Jiang Zhe nodded. He used his mental energy to lift a vial, siphoning a tenth of its liquid from the Thunder Crystalline Matrix’s core.

The substance smelled sharp, like fermented wine with a volatile edge. Pale purple and viscous, it shimmered with light particles that seemed to swirl like starlight when shaken.

He downed the dozen milliliters in one gulp.

Electric arcs seemed to bloom on his tongue, the sharpness piercing his Cerebral Domain while a tingling numbness spread through his body. Before he could swallow, the liquid vanished, dissolving into currents that surged through him. His body temperature rose, steam rising from his skin, yet he felt an indescribable comfort.

Suddenly, layers of veils lifted from his vision. The Storm Origin Law became clearer than ever before—doubts that had plagued him melted away like spring snow.

Relishing the sensation, he grabbed his Law Engraving Plate, ready to immerse himself in cultivation. But a wave of dizziness hit him. His consciousness blurred, and he barely activated the Dormant Dragon Technique before collapsing into sleep.

His mind drifted into the Dream Realm, memories once again veiled, beginning a new life.

Influenced by his recent Storm Origin Law insights, this time he became a special lifeform with innate affinity for Thunder Laws. Born at 50x Life Genome tier as a Realm Lord, he roamed like a mighty bear—until captured by a human Marquis-Level cultivator for a soul replacement ritual meant to empower their heir.

But Jiang Zhe’s sealed memories unlocked. His will surged, clashing with the intruder in a mutual annihilation.

The dream ended.

Jiang Zhe pushed himself off the sofa, his head throbbing faintly as he savored the lingering sensations. “Experiencing soul replacement firsthand? Fascinating.”

He rubbed his brow, sensing something pressing to burst forth—a side effect of his overcharged consciousness.

He turned his gaze inward to his Nuclear Core Space. At its center blazed a radiant star, no longer the dim, sickly light of before.

“Good. The wounds from splitting my Secondary Divine Spirit have nearly healed.”

While Ning Ji could visualize the Nuwa Chart to restore his soul, Jiang Zhe had the Dormant Dragon Technique to strengthen his will through dreams.

“We both have bright futures,” he mused.

With a thought, arcs of lightning crackled across the hall as his Lightning Domain manifested.

“Six-layered Domain? After further digestion, it’ll likely become seven.”

Satisfied with his progress, he turned to his waiting companion. “Anna, what time is it?”

“Master, it’s March 19, 2050. Four months and nine days have passed since you drank the Thunder Crystalline Matrix.”

“Please note—the Qianwu Auction occurs this December. Reserve ten days in your cultivation schedule to attend.”

Jiang Zhe nodded. He needed to attend the auction to find special lifeform body tissues for Silver Robe Yuan Shen. But unlike others seeking innate law affinities, Silver Robe Yuan Shen already possessed unparalleled affinity.

What they truly needed was an Innate Secret Art—something like the Huisuo Behemoth’s Temporal Stasis. A technique akin to the spatial sects’ three profound mysteries: “Teleportation,” “Crushing,” and “Sealing,” to help Silver Robe Yuan Shen breach the spatial law threshold.

He moved to his workstation, settling into the high-backed metal chair customized by Orianna to fit his frame. Retrieving his Thunder Laws Engraving Plate, he focused on its seventy-two protruding points, merging his recent insights.

After ten hours, he laid a new circuit board on the table, wielding his welding gun to etch intricate patterns.

Three to five minutes later, he completed the first Storm Origin Law mystery’s circuitry, channeling his mental energy to send it to the detector.

Orianna stood beside the large, photocopier-like machine, inserting the board into a slot. She pressed the activation button and tossed in an A9-grade Ink Bronze block.

Hiss—

A brilliant laser beam erupted, slicing the bronze block in half.

“First mystery—ten out of ten, fully understood!” Orianna announced.

Jiang Zhe’s lips curved. He laid down a second board, reigniting his welding gun for a completely different pattern.

Three minutes later—“Second mystery—ten out of ten, fully understood!”

...

“Fifth mystery—ten out of ten, fully understood!”

...

“Eighth mystery—ten out of ten, fully understood!”

...

“Eleventh mystery—six out of ten, passing grade!”

As Orianna’s report echoed, Jiang Zhe set down his welding gun, flexing his wrist. He’d halted at eleven mysteries—accumulated insights from ascending to Stellar-Level Lightning Domain, his Tiger Monarch, Thunder Dragon, and Bear King dream realm experiences, and the Thunder Crystalline Matrix.

“I’ve delved quite deep into Thunder Laws,” he mused.

“Some Chaos Tablets start with lower laws—like the Golden Heart Scar Tablet analyzing Metal’s Primordial Laws. If I master all seventy-two mysteries of lower laws, I might reach Heaven’s Bridge sixth or seventh layer? Not certain, but it’d match Realm Lord-tier comprehension.”

“A long road ahead. And Time Law—can’t just stick to lower laws. That’s a dead end.”

Law comprehension had its hierarchy of contempt:

Mortals studied lower laws;
Geniuses mastered upper laws;
Eternities fused laws.

Jiang Zhe, naturally ambitious, set his sights on conquering time laws first, saving the beast gods’ fusion techniques for later. The pinnacle path, of course, lay in Secret Patterns—the path even Sitting Mountain Guest revered.

All in good time.

“Anna, what’s the date?”

“April 2nd. The Qingming Festival is the day after tomorrow. Your grandfather asks if you’ll emerge from seclusion? Will you attend the ancestral rites?”

“Nothing urgent. I’ll attend the rites the day after tomorrow.”

As he stretched, rising from his chair, he suddenly froze. “Wait—when did I break through to Stellar Class?”

He’d been so engrossed in law comprehension after waking that he hadn’t noticed his eight planets had fused into a single blazing star in his Dantian.

“The Thunder Crystalline Matrix’s effect?” he realized.

“Yes, Master. It’s similar to the Purple Flame Ape Wine from your memories.”

Her words reminded him of that billion-credit luxury he’d once owned.

Take one sip, and an ordinary person ascends directly to Cosmic Level. Another dose turns them into a Cosmic Level prodigy with extraordinary fire law talent. Yet its most celebrated feature is this: even a Cosmic Sovereign would get drunk from a single cup, while the enhancement of fire Primordial Laws affinity remains largely overlooked. Naturally, those who can afford it don’t care, and those who care simply can’t afford it.

“Anna, if I use another Thunder Crystalline Matrix, will it still work?”
“It’ll elevate your lifeform further, but your law affinity has already reached its limit with this substance.”
“Nine doses left… Anna, have my senior cousins already broken through to Stellar Level?”
“They’ve all succeeded. Your eldest cousin was the last—she ascended during the New Year, over two months ago.”
“Oh… Right, what elemental attributes do their Primordial Energies have?”
“First Brother Jiang has earth; Second Brother Jiang has ice; Miss Jiang Sisi has water.”

Jiang Zhe pinched his nose. Only he bore lightning affinity. Among time-attribute cultivators, he felt like a Husky among wolves.

Suddenly, he recalled how the Mental Energy sphere in his Consciousness Ocean had shifted from dark gold to violet gold.

“Hmm… Could it be I was originally meant to have metal affinity? But after cultivating the Life Blueprint, my genetic code rewrote itself, transforming me into a new human species—and my Primordial Energy attribute changed along with it?”

He clicked his tongue, finding the thought amusing but not worth deeper analysis.

“Anna, can the remaining nine doses be used on my family? Will there be rejection reactions?”
“They’re compatible, but transforming their bodies will consume more source plasma energy. Their cultivation advancements won’t be dramatic.”
“That’s fine. As long as their law affinity improves—energy accumulation can be supplemented through other means.”

——

April 4th.

After the ancestral rites, Jiang Zhe followed Elder Jiang to the Front Courtyard’s Meeting Parlor for a chat.

They discussed the Thunder Crystalline Matrix distribution first, then shifted to bizarre tales from the wider Universe.

Most Jiang Clan members now spoke fluent Universal Tongue, preparing to enter the Virtual Universe later this year.

Jiang Zhe had already rented a sprawling villa on Heilong Mountain Island, covering thousands of square meters, as the Jiang Clan’s future base.

As the two chatted, a coldly elegant woman knocked and entered the parlor.

“Uncle Jiang, you summoned me?”

The girl was Lei Lei—now graceful and confident, nothing like the timid girl she’d been two or three years ago. She no longer feared Jiang Zhe like a tiger, even nodding politely at him.

Jiang Zhe nodded back, then used telepathy to gossip with Orianna.

He asked whether Lei Lei had ever had a crush, or if her unlucky boyfriend had been killed by Lei Shen…

Orianna revealed that Lei Lei had spent the past three years training within the Jiang Clan, rarely interacting with outsiders. She’d already reached Higher Warrior—8.2x power amplification—and entered the Domain Tier, making her a standout talent even among the unscathed Yunmo Star cultivators.

Jiang Zhe understood her Domain Tier ranking was the key. After all, Yunmo Star’s apprentice martial artists averaged around 10x amplification.

“Xiao Zhe,” Elder Jiang interjected, “Lei Shen came to me personally. He says Lei Lei’s cultivation in heart-mind isn’t bad—she inherited his talent for physical power. He wants you, the strongest Earth warrior, to mentor her. See if she can catch the great opportunity coming in over a decade.”
“Of course, this guidance shouldn’t interfere with your own training.”
“Hong and Lei Shen both emphasized—your further progress in that future opportunity will benefit all Earth humans.”

Jiang Zhe inwardly shook his head. Even if he let her inherit a Huisuo Behemoth, she still wouldn’t catch the “express train” departing once every five millennia.

Still, he agreed, promising to offer guidance.

Eight months before the auction, Jiang Zhe moved into the Traditional Martial Arts Hall—a nine-story tower rebuilt with C-grade alloys, distinct from the virtual world managed by Alpha.

He spent this time:
- Deepening his comprehension of the Time Law Impression Plate.
- Mentoring martial artists like Lei Lei, Second Brother Jiang, Sisi, his little aunt, and others.
- Occasionally hosting Elder Jiang, his father, and two uncles, who’d drop by to listen.

But now, they’d abandoned studying Striking Arts—once reaching 10x amplification, they shifted focus entirely to Domain cultivation and Primordial Law-related secret techniques.

Jiang Zhe didn’t correct them.

Let them slam into the Domain wall for a decade or two—they’d learn their limits soon enough.

He knew the truth clearly: Even if Earth humans possessed hidden talents, few could possibly manifest Domains at Stellar Level in this era.

He considered himself lucky his father and uncles had reached Domain even at Cosmic Level!

As for Elder Jiang—refining his skills steadily—he had a real chance to grasp Domain at Stellar Class. Like Hong and Lei Shen, but… a budget version.

Still, with enough resources, Elder Jiang’s natural talent could easily secure him Immortal status.

In those eight months, Jiang Zhe didn’t slacken cultivation.

He burned through his prior accumulations, finally crossing the Time Law threshold—though he remained far from fully grasping the first time mystery.

——

Virtual Universe, Slaughter Arena.

Jiang Zhe stood atop the Skyfaring Needle, locked in battle with a second-rank space beast resembling a gorilla.

Suddenly, space trembled faintly. Without warning, two identical figures materialized.

They were both Jiang Zhe!

The beast hesitated, its consciousness wavering—unsure which target to strike.

One figure seized the opening. A dark purple “fish” shot forth, piercing the beast’s Cerebral Domain faster than thunder.

The fight ended.

The beast’s corpse dissolved, and the leftmost figure vanished.

That was the Temporal Echo Technique.

From the Domain of Shadowed Echoes—a mentalist flight technique surpassing the Myriad Lines Flow.

A treasure from Yunmo Star, aiding Time Law mastery.

Both were incomplete, missing their final layers. Yet even so, the former outclassed the latter.

Spatial Mirror Body worked by distorting space, creating mirror-like projections—multiple illusions.

Temporal Echo Technique manipulated time itself.

It split a time segment into countless moments, delaying Jiang Zhe’s manifestations from each node into reality.

These past selves mirrored his movements, reacting identically—indistinguishable from the real thing. Even Mental Energy scans couldn’t tell them apart.

Thousands of illusions gathered in one area could alter that region’s time flow.

If he could control the acceleration or deceleration—even slightly—he’d approach the two ultimate mysteries of time.

That was the Domain of Shadowed Echoes’s core philosophy!

Even as an incomplete text, it offered a vague but viable path toward touching time’s two ultimate mysteries—hence its superiority over the Myriad Lines Flow.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end