Core Legacy

"Ah~~~" Luo Feng clutched the rock, his entire body trembling. He involuntarily tilted his head back as if a brand had been forcefully seared onto his glabella. A black and white intertwined mark finally appeared there, then completely receded and vanished, becoming undetectable. Luo Feng's body continued to tremble uncontrollably. He opened his eyes and looked at Duan Dong River, who stood beside him. "This... this was too painful." "This is the mark of my Duan Dong River lineage, passed down through generations," Duan Dong River said. "It was created by the third generation Ancestral Master, and each successor can inherit it. Once inherited, one can easily integrate with the entire Legacy Space! Only those bearing this mark can truly make the Legacy Space acknowledge them as its master... and only by controlling the Legacy Space can one obtain the true legacy of my Duan Dong River lineage." Luo Feng nodded. The more unique a supreme treasure, the more troublesome its acknowledgment process. This was evident with items like the Star Tower and the white wings. This 'Legacy Space' was a treasure used by the Duan Dong River lineage for its succession, far more valuable than a small universe, and infinitely more precious than even the most powerful supreme treasures. How complex must its acknowledgment be? Only those with the legacy mark could become its master. "Though I have fallen, I left behind a virtual consciousness," Duan Dong River said, looking at Luo Feng. "It's a consciousness virtualized from my true thoughts, memories, and personality. This allows me to wait patiently for a successor to accept the legacy. My ability to leave a virtual consciousness... is also one of the functions of the Legacy Space." Duan Dong River smiled. "The Legacy Space has numerous functions; it's a treasure specifically created by the third generation Ancestral Master for the purpose of legacy. You will learn about them one by one in due time." "My virtual consciousness currently controls this Legacy Space, so you cannot acknowledge it as your master yet." "I must actively relinquish control before you can acknowledge it." "Before you acknowledge it as your master... you must do one thing," Duan Dong River said, looking at Luo Feng. Luo Feng respectfully replied, "Teacher, please speak." "Take an oath," Duan Dong River said solemnly. "Repeat after me!" Luo Feng nodded, listening intently. Duan Dong River slowly and solemnly recited, "I, in the name of the new Duan Dong River, with the legacy mark as my witness... I, Duan Dong River Luo Feng, swear never to transmit the core legacy of the Duan Dong River lineage to outsiders. Should I violate this oath, may my soul be annihilated." "Must I?" Luo Feng looked at Duan Dong River. "You must," Duan Dong River nodded gravely. "Otherwise, you must perish, and I will choose another successor." Luo Feng nodded and stated directly, "I, in the name of the new Duan Dong River, with the legacy mark as my witness... I, Duan Dong River Luo Feng, swear never to transmit the core legacy of the Duan Dong River lineage to outsiders. Should I violate this oath, may my soul be annihilated." The voice echoed, reverberating in his ears, in his mind. The mark on his glabella lit up, and the words resonated deep within his soul. "Should I violate this oath, may my soul be annihilated." "May my soul be annihilated..." "May my soul be annihilated..." These voices continuously echoed within his soul. ...... Luo Feng frowned, looking at Duan Dong River with a puzzled expression. Duan Dong River nodded slightly. "This legacy mark will never dissipate. I know you are a Cosmic Venerable, and you can be resurrected if you die. But even if resurrected, you will still carry this legacy mark, forever... Once you violate the oath, the legacy mark will cause your soul to be annihilated. Even if you are resurrected, you will be annihilated again... an endless cycle of resurrection and annihilation." A chill ran down Luo Feng's spine. "Of course, as long as you don't transmit the core legacy to outsiders, you'll be fine," Duan Dong River nodded. "Alright, before you acknowledge this Legacy Space as your master, I will tell you about some of the most important information and treasures." "Follow me." Duan Dong River pointed into the void, and a spatial gate immediately appeared. Duan Dong River and Luo Feng flew into the spatial gate, one after the other. ...... All around them was an endless lake, with a small island in the center. On the island stood a simple wooden house, and in front of it, a curved pond. Duan Dong River landed by the pond. "This independent space is arguably the most important among the many spaces within the Legacy Space," Duan Dong River said, pointing above the pond. "Do you see them? The three black stones suspended above the water's surface." Luo Feng looked as well. The pond wasn't large, but three crystalline, smooth black stones continuously floated above it. "These are called Memory Stones, also known as Legacy Stones," Duan Dong River explained. "They can store vast amounts of memory information; even a super-powerful being's entire memory can be stored with ease." "These three stones... are the very foundation of my Duan Dong River lineage!" Duan Dong River stated solemnly. "Foundation?" Luo Feng's heart stirred. "Now look inside the pond." Duan Dong River waved his hand, and whoosh~~~~ the water in the pond instantly flew up, revealing countless black stones at the bottom. At a glance, there must have been tens of thousands of them. "Now look at the endless ocean," Duan Dong River said, waving his hand again. Rumble~~~~ The endless ocean surrounding the small island rumbled as the vast waters began to levitate, as if heaven and earth had inverted. All the seawater hung in the sky, leaving the seabed empty, revealing trenches, underwater canyons, and more... And with Luo Feng's vision, he could naturally spot some black stones scattered occasionally. "They are all Memory Stones," Duan Dong River stated directly. "These three... are the foundation, the most essential part of the Core Legacy!" Duan Dong River said solemnly. "They are the greatest contribution left by the third generation Ancestral Master to my Duan Dong River lineage." "And within the pond, there are a total of 12,002 Memory Stones, also part of the Core Legacy," Duan Dong River chuckled. "However, these represent various schools of thought, such as close combat, long-range attacks, artifact refining, machinery, and so on... The techniques and cultivation methods contained within them, any single one, would be enough to drive your Universe Ocean into a frenzy." "And scattered throughout the endless ocean are over a hundred million Memory Stones," Duan Dong River chuckled. "Those were collected by the powerful beings of my Duan Dong River lineage during their travels, constantly gathering all sorts of information. They are truly all-encompassing; perhaps ninety percent of my home civilization's basic techniques and information are recorded there. Of course, what's recorded is superficial and fundamental, just like the basic legacy you received." Luo Feng was filled with surging excitement. A library! It was practically a super library, or rather, a 'template' left behind by that ancient civilization. With the hundreds of millions of Memory Stones in the endless ocean, one could completely replicate the mid-to-low-tier power of that ancient civilization (since they were all superficial). "These 12,002 Memory Stones," Duan Dong River said, pointing to the bottom of the pond, "are the pride of generations of successors, their painstaking efforts! Of course, some are also first-rate, crucial cultivation information that was collected. They are all priceless; each Memory Stone alone could spark a war." "And these three... they could even cause the super-powers of my home world to wage war against each other." "Remember, the information within these three and these 12,002 stones must never be transmitted to outsiders," Duan Dong River solemnly instructed. "As for those in the endless ocean, you may do as you wish." "Understood," Luo Feng replied. "Try to envelop these three Memory Stones with your divine power," Duan Dong River said. "You have the legacy mark, so these three Memory Stones will acknowledge you and transmit all the contained legacy to you." Luo Feng held his breath. The essence of the Core Legacy... The proudest insights of the third generation Ancestral Master, who stood at the very pinnacle? Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Three invisible streams of divine power extended, swiftly enveloping the three black stones. The moment they were touched, the three black stones faintly glowed, ancient and complex patterns appearing on their surfaces. Immediately after, a torrent of information surged directly into Luo Feng's mind. Massive amounts of information! An overwhelming transmission... Even with Luo Feng's capacity to absorb, the transmission lasted for over a day before it was fully completed. ...... Duan Dong River stood by, watching with a smile. When Luo Feng opened his eyes, they were filled with shock and disbelief. It was merely three Ultimate Techniques! The very core of the Duan Dong River lineage's core, its true essence, consisted of these three Ultimate Techniques! They were named 'Severance', 'Eastern Splendor', and 'River of Immortality'. 'Severance', fully named 'Severance', is an extremely unique Ultimate Technique that allows all energy within one's divine body or physical body to rapidly erupt in a short period! It enables one's power to increase by hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of times within a brief duration... Simplified, this Ultimate Technique is somewhat similar to self-detonation, where one's entire power explodes instantly. However, with self-detonation, firstly, the energy attacks in all directions, and secondly, once one self-detonates, one dies. But 'Severance', a core legacy created by the third generation Ancestral Master, is completely different. It allows a powerful being to control the burning speed! For example, one could burn their entire divine body within three seconds! The power unleashed this way is immeasurably stronger than normal, and perhaps a battle could end in just one second, or the burning could be stopped immediately! Moreover, during combat, one can precisely control the power to attack opponents. Therefore, this is a truly heaven-defying Ultimate Technique, capable of killing enemies beyond one's rank. 'Eastern Splendor', fully named 'Eastern Splendor', is an escape Ultimate Technique. Once activated, one can transform into a streak of light... incredibly fast, even capable of easily penetrating layers of space. It is the most heaven-defying escape Ultimate Technique of the Duan Dong River lineage. 'River of Immortality', fully named 'River of Immortality', aims for true immortality! For flesh-and-blood lifeforms, upon becoming Immortals, Cosmic Venerables, or Cosmic Masters, their divine bodies begin to energize. But once they break through to become Cosmic Overlords... they return to their original essence! Numerous avatars merge into one! The divine body also becomes entirely flesh and blood. They are then considered true flesh-and-blood lifeforms! Although they can still burn a portion of their flesh and blood to convert into energy, they are essentially still flesh-and-blood lifeforms. Generally, to kill a Cosmic Master or even a Cosmic Overlord, a soul attack can ensure they are utterly dead. However, with 'River of Immortality', once cultivated to a certain level, a portion of the body can completely detach itself. For example, if a drop of blood is hidden, even if the main body and avatars are all annihilated by a soul attack... this specially refined drop of blood remains unharmed and can even rapidly absorb energy and, after some time, transform back into the main body! This is true immortality! ...... 'Severance' can unleash incredibly powerful combat strength in direct confrontation. 'Eastern Splendor' is supremely heaven-defying when one needs to escape. Even if escape is truly impossible, one can still rise again with 'River of Immortality'! Three Ultimate Techniques. With these three Ultimate Techniques, although there was only one Duan Dong River in each generation, almost every one of them rose to become a terrifying figure. "As expected of the third generation Ancestral Master's Ultimate Techniques, and the very core of the Duan Dong River lineage's legacy, this is truly heaven-defying," Luo Feng exclaimed in awe. "No wonder it was the pinnacle legacy of that ancient civilization. Anyone who obtained this legacy was truly a favored child of heaven, enough to make any other powerful being green with envy and madness. No wonder the Eastern Emperor Holy Land and Purple Moon Holy Land were so tempted and covetous; it seemed those two Ancestral Masters had also heard some information about the Duan Dong River lineage's legacy."