No Retreat

Luo Feng intently observed the scroll detailing the 'Nayin Secret Art'. The scroll was covered in countless characters, and with Luo Feng's formidable memory, he instantly committed them all to memory. "Nayin..."

Luo Feng silently pondered and researched the contents of this secret art, striving for a deeper understanding to prepare for cultivation. As the saying goes, taking the time to prepare properly ensures efficiency; the more critical the moment, the less one should rush.

"This Nayin Secret Art demands extremely high qualifications," the Purple Horned Beast said proudly. "Since my master created me, countless peerless geniuses have coveted it, yet none have succeeded to this day."

Luo Feng's heart skipped a beat, and he glanced at the Purple Horned Beast beside him. *Countless geniuses?* He thought. *Those who can reach this eighth floor of Wuqi Tower shouldn't be called 'countless geniuses,' right?*

"As for you, you'll probably fail too," the Purple Horned Beast sneered, casting a sidelong glance at Luo Feng.

Luo Feng concentrated on the scroll, continuously thinking and analyzing. He quickly grasped the detailed steps of cultivation. Once he understood everything, Luo Feng immediately began to cultivate.

This surprised the Purple Horned Beast beside him. "How decisive, to start cultivating right away. Still, he'll probably fail." The Purple Horned Beast then bent its four legs, lying directly on the hall floor, its head drooping, waiting for Luo Feng to fail and be sent out.

...

Once he began cultivating, Luo Feng's various avatar consciousnesses couldn't help but become completely immersed. In an instant, his Earthling original body, Golden Horned Beast avatar, Demon Killer Clan avatar, and the boundless Youhai all began to cultivate.

"Whoosh~"

In the Original Universe, within humanity's territory, the Original Secret Realm.

The vast, boundless Youhai suddenly became calm. Every part of the ocean faintly shimmered with white light, like white electrical sparks, flickering everywhere. Simultaneously, it began to emit increasingly powerful will-shocks, wave after wave, spreading in all directions.

Some Immortals and Sector Lords in spaceships flying above the boundless Youhai felt an endlessly terrifying wave of will-shocks sweep over them.

*Boom.*

Instantly, they all fell unconscious.

...

The boundless Youhai was incredibly vast and the most crucial heartland of the Original Secret Realm. Many Hong Alliance Universe Masters were present there. As the boundless Youhai surged with will-shocks, it caused a large number of Sector Lords, Immortals, and even Universe Venerables to instantly fall unconscious. This shocked many powerful beings throughout the Original Secret Realm.

"What's wrong with Yinhe Lord's Youhai avatar?"

"Why are there flickering white lights everywhere? And these will-shocks are too terrifying. Even Universe Venerables can't withstand them in the slightest."

"Such powerful will-shocks, even I feel strained."

Universe Masters from the Hong Alliance appeared at the distant edge of the boundless Youhai, all gazing at it. Several human Universe Masters also appeared.

"Why such sudden will-shocks?" Ice Peak Master frowned.

"I don't know, it just happened suddenly," replied an alien Universe Master from the Hong Alliance, clearly a step below. Ice Peak Master had quickly reached fifth-tier combat power after receiving guidance from Luo Feng's publicly shared ancient civilization knowledge. Coupled with the internally shared first stage of the Divine Power Burning Secret Art, Ice Peak Master's strength was even more formidable.

"The boundless Youhai is flickering with white light everywhere and emitting powerful will-shocks that even Universe Venerables can't withstand."

Amidst the shock, no one knew what was happening.

They could only speculate...

"Yinhe Lord is in Jinzhi World. Could he have had some encounter there, obtained a powerful secret art, and is now cultivating it?" Many Hong Alliance Universe Masters communicated their guesses telepathically.

*Whoosh.*

A figure appeared, exuding boundless pressure. It was Chaos City Lord.

As a Cosmic Ultimate Expert, his appearance commanded immediate respect from everyone around him.

"Issue an order," Chaos City Lord commanded. "Protect and retrieve all those who have fallen unconscious. And forbid any powerful beings from entering the boundless Youhai."

"Yes."

"Yes."

Eight Universe Masters immediately responded and went to make arrangements.

Chaos City Lord, however, stared at the boundless Youhai, a flicker of worry crossing his eyes before being buried deep within his heart. "Luo Feng, what has happened to you? I've tried to communicate with you, but there's been no response... Why are you generating such strong will-shocks?"

Chaos City Lord was immensely worried.

...

Not only the Original Secret Realm but also Yinhe Holy Land was engulfed in indiscriminate will-shocks.

In Jinzhi World, on the eighth floor of Wuqi Tower.

Luo Feng stood motionless on the floating land, his entire body also shimmering with white light, emitting waves of will-shocks. Every portion of his divine power was enveloped by white secret patterns, directly penetrating the life imprint within each speck of divine power.

This was a test of the soul, the most fundamental test.

And during this test, Luo Feng's will naturally began to 'merge' with his divine body. A normal powerful being's will is like rootless duckweed; once they perish, even if their divine body remains, it won't generate terrifying will-shocks. But Luo Feng's will was gradually and completely merging with every portion of his divine power.

Thus, his will would gain a 'root'.

Only then could 'Will Secret Arts' be performed. This was the prerequisite for all will-based secret arts, such as the God-Eye Secret Art. Such a powerful being, even if they died, a drop of blood, a strand of hair, a tooth, would all contain super-strong will!

...

This process was very slow. A full nine hundred years passed. The flickering white lights on Luo Feng's divine body surface suddenly turned into blue lights.

*Boom!

*

The will-shocks from the boundless Youhai surged again! This caused the faces of some Hong Alliance Universe Masters, who had been silently guarding from afar, to change drastically. Only a few Universe Masters with stronger wills could easily resist. The more ordinary Universe Masters could only resist with great difficulty.

"What's going on?"

"The will-shocks have intensified."

...

In the void of the eighth floor of Wuqi Tower.

The figure in the luxurious royal robe, wreathed in black light, gazed at Luo Feng standing on the distant floating land.

"He has entered the second stage." The black-light figure trembled, an uncontrollable excitement in its eyes. "My Jinzhi World can still produce such a prodigy. When this scroll was circulated outside... countless geniuses from various major forces had the opportunity to enter, but very, very few ever reached the second stage."

"Could it be that he can truly succeed?"

"He must..."

"He must..."

The dark figure's eyes held worry, anxiety, and anticipation.

...

In the scroll world, the Purple Horned Beast, which had been lying there with its head drooping, also looked at the cultivating Luo Feng in astonishment. "He actually entered the second stage! The Nayin Secret Art has three stages, and he managed to enter the second. Since my birth... I don't know how many geniuses from various major forces have entered, some having received extremely precious inheritances, some nurtured from birth with endless resources, yet fewer than fifty have managed to endure and enter the second stage! What is this kid's background? Could he be a super genius cultivated under the Jinzhi God King?"

Days turned into months.

Luo Feng was completely unaware of the immense stir he had caused.

"Pain!"

"Torture!"

"Hell!"

This was how Luo Feng felt. After beginning cultivation, he knew that this 'Nayin Secret Art' was divided into three major stages. The first stage was relatively easy, but once the second stage began, his life imprint was subjected to the most brutal treatment, as if countless needles repeatedly pierced his life imprint, or as if countless scorching brands were seared onto it.

In terms of pain, it was no less than when he first recognized the Star Tower as his master.

Fortunately, the current Luo Feng was immeasurably stronger than he was back then. He could still endure the pain targeting his life imprint. But endurance was one thing... whether the life imprint itself could withstand it was another. Even if Luo Feng could bear the pain of his life imprint shattering, once it shattered, it meant death.

"Could cultivating this Nayin Secret Art carry the risk of death?" Luo Feng's heart tightened.

But he was already in the midst of cultivation, unable to retreat.

...

"He's already in the second stage," the Purple Horned Beast anticipated. "As long as he can enter the third stage, that would be good. Since being captured by the Jinzhi God King... no one under the Jinzhi God King has even reached the second stage."

"Kid."

"Work hard, you must enter the third stage. Once you enter the third stage, well... failure naturally means death. But if you succeed, at least in the Jin Kingdom, you would probably be second only to your God King陛下." The Purple Horned Beast also looked forward to it. Its destiny was to find a suitable successor.

Of course, once a suitable successor was found, it would also be the moment its spirit, as the secret art's guardian, dissipated.

But it didn't care. From the day it was born, it had pursued that most brilliant moment.

...

In the void of the eighth floor of Wuqi Tower, the black-light figure kept its gaze fixed on Luo Feng. "He must enter the third stage; only by entering the third stage is there hope! Yet, even among all the forces combined, there were only a dozen or so peerless geniuses who entered the third stage, and of those, only three were saved from death; all the others perished."

The first and second stages of this Nayin Secret Art posed no life-threatening danger.

But once it progressed to the third stage, it was the final moment: succeed or perish! Failure meant death.

Of course, ancient civilization had many life-saving methods. Even though many peerless geniuses from various major forces failed in the third stage, three were still saved.

"However, my true body has perished, so I have no way to save your life."

"Third stage, if you survive it, you should be grateful to me."

"If you don't make it..." The black-light figure shook its head slightly.

...

In the Original Secret Realm within humanity's territory of the Original Universe, three hundred years after the boundless Youhai began to glow with blue light.

*Boom!

*

All the flickering blue lights instantly transformed into countless purple lights, and these countless purple lights seemed subtly connected, forming an immensely grand and mysterious ancient pattern.

"Boom!!!"

The will-shocks emanating from the boundless Youhai surged once more.

"Ah!"

Some Hong Alliance Universe Masters who had been waiting collapsed into unconsciousness, leaving only two Universe Masters still conscious.