“Of course the Myriad Worlds Painting is a divine artifact.”
Yelia said, looking at Aksai with a gaze that suggested he was a mere novice in the matters of Spirit cultivation.
“My lord, think about it. What 3rd-order, 4th-order, or even 5th-order artifact would allow you to hop between many worlds while you are still but an ant in the grand scheme of things?” Yelia asked as she stepped forward. She then smiled at him before continuing.
“Although a 5th-order artifact can indeed allow someone to travel between worlds, it comes with numerous restrictions, requirements, and even astronomical conditions that you wouldn’t be able to meet, even if you became a Nascent Soul cultivator,” Yelia explained.
Aksai sucked in a cold breath at her words. “I….” He wanted to defend himself but didn’t know what to say. In the end, he chose to remain silent and listen.
“My lord, your vision is too narrow. I don’t blame you for this since you’re still inexperienced in many areas. But I think you are unable to scrutinize things without having a bias.
Even though you are prudent and try to moderate your expectations, you’re underestimating the Myriad Worlds Painting by doing so. Please know that transcending worlds is not a normal thing even among the so-called Nascent Soul Kings and Deity Transformation Gods. Even cultivators at that level can only dream about visiting another world without getting captured by a spatial storm.
And yet, Myriad Worlds Painting allows you to travel not just one world but many. Such a heaven-defying thing– if it’s not a divine artifact what else could it be?” Yelia asked as she sighed.
“Divine artifact,” Aksai murmured with complicated emotions in his heart. He didn’t know why but he felt inferior to have something like that. It was the kind of inferiority complex that he knew was absurd. Yet, he couldn’t avoid feeling it at the same time.
To be honest, he didn’t fully grasp what that truly meant or how powerful it was. It was something beyond his wildest dreams, something he had never even considered. Just as Yelia had pointed out, his vision was limited because he couldn’t think beyond the might of Core Formation Lords. In his current world, the Dadangar subcontinent, the 3rd realm of Spirit cultivation was the pinnacle.
Aksai had heard legends of the Nascent Soul Kings. However, the last Nascent Soul King in the Dadangar subcontinent had existed around 800 years ago. Since then, no one had been capable of reaching the 4th realm of cultivation.
It was said that this particular Nascent Soul King had relied on luck and a rare cultivation resource to achieve his breakthrough into the 4th Spirit cultivation realm.
As such, Aksai, like many others, regarded the existence of a Nascent Soul King as nothing more than a legend—a myth. Even if it was possible to become a Nascent Soul King, it likely wasn’t meant for him.
It was like seeing records set by Olympic athletes. Even though one knew such records were possible, they seemed unattainable for an ordinary person. How could someone without extraordinary background or natural born talent hope to emulate what an Olympian could do?
The records of the Olympics represented the peak of human achievement. Technically, breaking those records was possible, but for a layperson with no background? Almost certainly not.
The concept of a 4th realm Spirit cultivator—the Nascent Soul King—was like an Olympic record for all the cultivators of the Dadangar subcontinent. While they knew it was technically possible to become one, they didn’t dare to dream that far.
Having been raised in this environment, Aksai couldn’t conceive of anything beyond a 4th-order artifact. To him, it represented something utterly heaven-defying, something only meant for legends like the long-dead Nascent Soul King from 800 years ago.
And yet, here he was– possessing something that he couldn’t quite wrap his mind around.
“Which rank is a divine artifact?” Aksai finally asked as he looked at Yelia with a fervent gaze. Since he knew that it was a divine artifact becoming a Nascent Soul King using the artifact’s help should be no problem right?
Aksai subconsciously knew that he was probably still underestimating the might of the Myriad Worlds Painting. Yet, since all he could think about the peak was represented by a Nascent Soul realm– he decided to stick to it. He would worry about setting his goals higher once he became a 4th realm Spirit cultivator.
He was not even a Core Formation Lord at this moment. He was still struggling to cross the last threshold and become a mid-stage Foundation Building Expert at this point. Did he have the right to think beyond the 4th-order item?
“I can’t tell you the rank of Myriad Worlds Painting, my lord. Knowing too much too early might harm you instead of helping you,” Yelia sighed. “It would create a Mind Demon in your heart that you won’t be able to get rid of.”
***
Yelia’s concern was genuine. She didn’t want Aksai to think that all his past achievements or future successes were solely due to the Myriad Worlds Painting. If he truly believed that, he might become too reliant on it, which would create a psychological barrier and slow down his cultivation.
On the other hand, if Aksai dismissed the importance of the Myriad Worlds Painting in his achievements, he could become complacent. On regular days, this might not be a significant issue.
However, Aksai would have to face a tribulation when breaking through to the 3rd realm in the future. This tribulation consisted of three parts:
Celestial Wrath – a lightning tribulation.
Pain Penance – a tribulation of pain for the body.
Dejection Demon – also known as the Heart Demon, an earth tribulation for the mind.
Most Foundation Building Experts believed that Celestial Wrath was the toughest challenge to becoming a Core Formation Lord. However, that might not be the case for everyone.
Even though Pain Penance was extremely difficult and nerve-wracking, it could still be passed relatively easily with the help of rare resources and medications.
However, the Dejection Demon Test was particularly vicious, especially for those who walked intent-based cultivation paths or something similar.
The Dejection Demon Test was impartial. Cultivators couldn’t rely on external help to overcome it because it had nothing to do with their surroundings or possessions in the physical world. This test targeted a cultivator’s mind.
Aksai had heard about the Dejection Demon Test after becoming a Foundation Building Expert. This was also why he was so fixated on settling debts of gratitude and grudges. Although he wasn’t entirely confident that he would become a Core Formation Lord, he wanted to increase his chances by maintaining a clear heart.
***
Having a clear heart—what did that mean? And why was it so important in the Dejection Demon test? This test was based on one’s emotional entanglements. The clearer one’s mind, the better their chances of passing.
Yelia didn’t want to increase the difficulty level of Aksai’s passing the Dejection Demon test by revealing too much prematurely. Saying that the Myriad Worlds Painting was enough, she felt that, as the legitimate owner of the artifact, Aksai needed to know this truth, even though it could potentially make the test more difficult. However, she dared not say more.
Aksai understood what Yelia was thinking. Although he had tried to maximize his chances of passing the Dejection Demon test after becoming a Foundation Building Expert, he wasn’t overly concerned about it. The reason? He had the neural link fabric.
After learning a few things about the tests related to the 3rd realm breakthrough, Aksai concluded that his neural link fabric would help him pass this particular test with flying colors. Even though he wasn’t entirely sure, his instincts were usually spot-on.
As such, Aksai didn’t beat around the bush and asked Yelia again, “Yelia, it’s fine. Why don’t you tell me the rank of the Myriad Worlds Painting?”
Yelia knew Aksai was determined to know. She pondered for a bit before shaking her head.
“If it were any other artifact, I might have given you more information because you are its legitimate owner. However, the Myriad Worlds Painting is special. Just knowing that it’s a divine artifact is already enough to broaden your vision. But knowing more could be detrimental in many ways.”
Aksai scrunched his nose in annoyance. “I’m pretty confident about passing the Dejection Demon test. Why don’t you just tell me?” he asked again.
Yelia smiled but didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she thought for a moment before speaking further.
“My lord, I can’t tell you more about the Myriad Worlds Painting. However, I can certainly tell you more about Enchanted Everwood Farm.”
Aksai’s eyes lit up as he looked at Yelia with an expectant gaze, his excitement barely contained.
“The Enchanted Everwood Farm might not seem significant compared to the Myriad Worlds Painting, but it’s still a powerful artifact.
Especially after its fusion with the divine artifact, it is now a 5th-order artifact, very close to becoming a 6th-order treasure.”
Yelia replied, enjoying Aksai’s astonished expression.
