Chapter 731: 'Cheats'
Chapter 731: 'Cheats'
"Master, you're awake?"
While Lin Yuan was deep in thought, a voice filled with surprise sounded in his ear.
Lin Yuan looked up to see an old man with a hunched back, his eyes filled with joy as he gazed at Lin Yuan.
The hunched-back old man's white hair was unusually disheveled, and his eyes were bloodshot, clearly indicating he hadn't rested for a long time. Despite this, he exuded a cold and sinister aura, like a venomous snake ready to strike.
However, when he looked at Lin Yuan, there was no coldness, only joy.
"Uncle San."
Lin Yuan nodded at the hunched-back old man.
The hunched-back old man was nominally a servant of Lin Yuan's father, the leader of the Red Lotus Sect. In reality, they were close friends, and Lin Yuan called him 'Uncle San.'
This time, Lin Yuan was able to escape from the imperial army's encirclement largely because his father had drawn most of the attention. It was also due to the hunched-back old man's desperate efforts to save him, even using himself as bait to lure away the imperial pursuers.
Without the hunched-back old man, Lin Yuan's original self would not have woken up.
"Master, the Sect Leader is dead."
The hunched-back old man said with a sorrowful expression.
"Ah."
Lin Yuan nodded, his expression heavy.
With the death of the Red Lotus Sect Leader, Lin Yuan would become the primary target of the imperial army's manhunt.
Even with the hunched-back old man's desperate protection, it would not be easy to survive.
"However, as long as I am here, Master can rest assured."
The hunched-back old man said solemnly, "I will die before you, if I must."
"Don't say such discouraging things."
Lin Yuan shook his head and asked, "What do you plan to do next?"
Compared to his original self, the hunched-back old man definitely had more experience.
"I plan to take Master to the Red Lotus Sect's Yongzhou Branch. It should be relatively safe there, and the imperial army won't be able to track us down for the time being."
The hunched-back old man said in a low voice.
"Red Lotus Sect's Yongzhou Branch?"
Lin Yuan nodded slightly.
In his memory, the branch leader of this branch was fiercely loyal to his father. With the Red Lotus Sect Leader dead and the sect members in a state of panic, seeking refuge in the Yongzhou Branch was indeed a good choice.
"Then, Master, rest for a while. We will set out as soon as it gets dark."
The hunched-back old man finished speaking and got up to leave, needing to patrol the surrounding area to prevent the pursuers from getting too close.
Watching the hunched-back old man disappear, Lin Yuan slowly stood up.
He began to examine himself.
"Ancestor of Martial Arts."
"Ancestor of Martial Arts."
"Ancestor of Martial Arts."
Faint whispers echoed in his mind.
"These whispers come from practitioners on the path of martial arts evolution. They have formed stable 'path markers,' allowing me to clearly recognize that I am currently within a time loop."
Lin Yuan's mind was set.
In reality, without these faint whispers, those who had reached the peak of the Chaotic Realm and entered the time loop might lose all their power and understanding of the laws of the universe, leading to confusion and disorientation.
Especially at the end of the first cycle, when the second cycle begins and memories from the first cycle are erased, without external 'path markers' or 'anchors' to confirm, the cycle would become an endless repetition.
Now, Lin Yuan could at least confirm that he was still in the first cycle through these faint whispers from the outside.
With this confirmation, Lin Yuan immediately focused his mind and delved into the depths of his consciousness.
In the vast, empty depths of his mind, a majestic and grand Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds stood firm.
"Indeed, even the time loop cannot sever the connection between the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds and me."
Lin Yuan felt relieved.
The time loop isolates everything, and currently, only by spreading his evolutionary path can he barely maintain contact with beings within the loop, such as the faint whispers Lin Yuan heard.
Apart from that, there is no other way to contact beings within the time loop.
However, the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds is clearly an exception.
Lin Yuan can still see the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds in the depths of his mind.
Compared to the faint whispers, the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds has not appeared any less real.
It seems there is no difference between being inside and outside the time loop.
"Let's try to use the Boundary-Breaking Source Power."
Lin Yuan began to attempt it.
In an instant, the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds began to faintly glow.
Strands of mysterious energy flowed, trying to descend into this cyclical world.
"It works."
Lin Yuan nodded, and a thought arose in his mind—
Killing the emperor of the Great Feng Dynasty.
The Boundary-Breaking Source Power is the only omnipotent force Lin Yuan has encountered.
Theoretically, Lin Yuan can use the Boundary-Breaking Source Power to accomplish anything.
Including completely killing a time being.
Of course, the prerequisite is that there is enough Boundary-Breaking Source Power.
With enough Boundary-Breaking Source Power, not only can he completely kill a time being, but even a Time Lord can be eliminated.
However, the amount of Boundary-Breaking Source Power required to completely kill a Time Lord is likely as vast as mountains and seas, far exceeding Lin Yuan's current accumulation.
Even to completely kill a time being, Lin Yuan's current accumulation of Boundary-Breaking Source Power is insufficient.
But now, Lin Yuan does not intend to kill a thirteenth-rank time being.
Instead, he aims to kill a mortal in this world, at most an Initiate Daoist Master. It should not consume too much Boundary-Breaking Source Power.
Buzz, buzz, buzz—strands of mysterious energy continued to flow from the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds, and soon a message entered Lin Yuan's mind.
"Four million Boundary-Breaking Source Power."
Lin Yuan's expression was grim. "So much?"
To kill just a mere mortal, it would actually consume so much Boundary-Breaking Source Power?
"Is it because this mortal is extraordinary, or is it the time loop's isolation that has greatly increased the cost?"
Lin Yuan thought quickly.
He had accumulated a total of just over four million Boundary-Breaking Source Power to date.
This included the vast amount of Boundary-Breaking Source Power he absorbed after experiencing a cosmic cataclysm.
Without the cosmic cataclysm, it would have taken him millions or tens of millions of years to accumulate so much Boundary-Breaking Source Power.
"Still, let's wait."
After some thought, Lin Yuan decided not to immediately use all his Boundary-Breaking Source Power to kill the emperor of the Great Feng Dynasty.
The Boundary-Breaking Source Power within the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds was Lin Yuan's ultimate trump card. He would definitely not use it unless absolutely necessary, as it was a crucial resource for life-saving situations.
As for the time loop?
Even without the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds, could he not find a way to break through?
Even if he truly couldn't break through, he would only use it as a last resort.
At least for now, Lin Yuan could see the possibility of killing the emperor of the Great Feng Dynasty using his own abilities.
"With my foundation, the possibility of breaking through the time loop is much greater than for other thirteenth-rank beings."
Lin Yuan was confident of this.
The Boundary-Breaking Source Power within the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds could only be used as a final means.
He would only use it if he truly couldn't break through the time loop.
And now?
Lin Yuan planned to try breaking the time loop using his own methods.
"Runes."
With a thought, Lin Yuan summoned a series of incredibly tiny runes that coalesced and interwove before him.
As the legacy of a Time Lord, these runes could be used even within the time loop, to a certain extent, breaking the rules of the time loop.
"They are suppressed."
Lin Yuan looked at the runes before him and could sense the suppression they faced.
However, this was within his expectations, and the Lord of Daylight had already warned him.
Reaching the fifth level of the rune legacy did indeed allow the use of runes within the time loop, but with many limitations.
Compared to other thirteenth-rank beings who could not use any abilities within the time loop, being able to slightly use rune power was already considered a 'cheat'.
"Future."
Lin Yuan tried to use the runes to observe the future timeline of this time loop world.
Buzz, buzz, buzz—numerous runes continuously intertwined and collided. Due to the immense suppression within the time loop, Lin Yuan could hardly see the future, only receiving bits of information from the future.
This information appeared before him in the form of text.
[At eighteen, you were pursued by the imperial army and took refuge in the mountains. With Uncle San's intervention, you barely survived.]
[One day later, you and Uncle San set out for Yongzhou, planning to seek refuge at the Yongzhou Branch.]
[Half a month later, you and Uncle San arrived in Yongzhou safely.]
[The branch leader of the Red Lotus Sect's Yongzhou Branch warmly welcomed you.]
[One month later, the branch leader of the Red Lotus Sect's Yongzhou Branch and the imperial army worked together to ambush you.]
[Uncle San died in battle, and you escaped.]
[One year later, you were killed by three Daoist Masters.]
Text lines flashed before Lin Yuan's eyes.
Lin Yuan roughly saw one of his future timelines.
"The branch leader of the Yongzhou Branch has already betrayed to the imperial army?"
Lin Yuan furrowed his brow, regretting that Uncle San had placed so much trust in the branch leader, and his original self had a very good impression of him.
"Given the sect leader's death and the imperial army's overwhelming power, this is understandable."
Lin Yuan pondered for a moment and nodded slightly.
He then continued to observe other future timelines.
Of course, he observed them in the form of text.
After half a day.
Lin Yuan stopped, rubbing his temples.
Under the immense suppression of the time loop, he had observed over a thousand timelines in half a day.
Finally, he found the most favorable one for himself.
"The most important thing now is to become an Initiate Daoist."
Lin Yuan steadied himself. In the many future timelines he observed, the stronger he was, the easier the situation would be.
"Initiation, using mental power as a medium to draw upon the power of heaven and earth."
Lin Yuan thought of the Red Lotus Sect's initiation secret technique.
In fact, the first step of all initiation techniques was essentially the same.
For someone like Lin Yuan, initiation was incredibly simple.
Boom!
As Lin Yuan continuously emitted mental power, the power of heaven and earth began to slowly converge, flowing into his body.
In the distance.
The hunched-back old man, Uncle San, was vigilantly patrolling, carefully inspecting any traces.
At that moment.
The hunched-back old man's spirit was suddenly shaken, and he turned to look behind him, where the young master was resting.
At that moment, streams of the power of heaven and earth were converging, rapidly flowing toward that location.
"Is this...?" The humped-back old man's heart trembled, hardly believing it: "Mental power drawing upon the power of heaven and earth, this is initiation?"
"The young master, the young master has initiated, becoming an Initiate Daoist?"
"Lord Sect Leader, can you see? The young master has become an Initiate Daoist." The humped-back old man's eyes were moist with tears.
(End of Chapter)
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