Yue Qingshan, bound by the golden thread, felt something vast and foreign flood into his mind.
He dropped into a cross-legged stance immediately, eyes sliding shut as he turned his focus inward to comprehend what had been granted.
Cultivation technique pathways. Circulation methods. Insights and experiences accumulated over countless years—all of it crystallized in his consciousness.
The technique that now resided in his mind possessed remarkable compatibility with his original cultivation method.
As Yue Qingshan circulated this new power, the spiritual energy within his body flowed without resistance, suffering no adverse effects whatsoever.
…
Time slipped past. Half a month gone like morning mist.
Yue Qingshan remained within the Ancient Ruins when his eyes snapped open, blazing with newfound light.
Power surged through every fiber of his being.
Having accepted the Great Saint's inheritance and absorbed his accumulated wisdom, Yue Qingshan's cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds—progressing at a speed that would have been unthinkable before.
The Ancient Ruins held countless medicinal pills left behind by their creator. Yue Qingshan had consumed them ravenously while cultivating, his strength surging upward throughout these fourteen days.
Within this brief span, he had shattered through bottleneck after bottleneck, ascending all the way to the Enlightenment Realm Peak.
The Great Saint's inheritance wasn't merely a cultivation technique.
His experiences embedded within allowed the inheritor to sidestep detours entirely, bypassing pitfalls that would have crippled lesser cultivators.
"Hmph!"
Yue Qingshan roared. Tremendous force erupted from his body in a furious wave, crashing against the Ancient Ruins themselves.
Yet these ruins had been wrought by a Great Saint's power. Even with Yue Qingshan's strength now reaching the Enlightenment Realm Peak, he couldn't leave so much as a scratch upon them.
After releasing the pent-up energy coiled within his meridians, Yue Qingshan rose and stripped away his upper robe, revealing a muscular torso.
His entire body practically hummed with strength—power that seemed to overflow from every pore.
This sensation was utterly foreign. Not only had his cultivation achieved multiple breakthroughs, but even his Tempered Physique appeared to have undergone further refinement.
Explosive power radiated from his core, filling Yue Qingshan with the heady sensation of being invincible—unrivaled beneath the heavens.
This was the intoxicating change brought by continuous breakthroughs. For a brief, dangerous moment, Yue Qingshan lost sight of the vast chasm still separating him from true powerhouses.
The giant figure watched him. It had grown far more ethereal now, barely substantial. Seeing Yue Qingshan drowning in his own power, the specter's voice thundered through the chamber.
"Qingshan, calm yourself!
Though you stand at the Enlightenment Realm Peak, a significant gulf still exists between you and genuine powerhouses.
Do not grow complacent.
Your smooth ascension resulted entirely from me imbuing you with considerable understanding.
The path ahead—that, you must walk alone."
The words struck like cold water.
Yue Qingshan jolted awake as if from a dream, clarity flooding back. In that fleeting instant, he'd nearly lost himself completely—had almost surrendered his will to raw power.
Reflecting on how close he'd come, cold sweat broke across Yue Qingshan's spine.
If his new master hadn't intervened, the consequences would have been catastrophic.
"Thank you, Master! If not for your intervention just now, I fear I would have drowned in that power entirely."
Those controlled by power became nothing more than puppets—hollow shells animated by forces they could no longer command.
Yue Qingshan's gaze shifted, and he suddenly noticed the giant figure flickering erratically, as though it might vanish at any heartbeat.
"Master, what's... happening to you?"
Though suspicion had already taken root in his heart, Yue Qingshan feigned ignorance, asking with manufactured curiosity.
He suspected—no, he knew—the giant figure was approaching its end.
After all, the true Great Saint had perished long ago. This was merely a wisp of lingering power, a final ember of consciousness preserved for this sole purpose.
The giant figure nodded slightly. His majestic, solemn voice resonated one final time.
"Qingshan, I was originally nothing but a wisp of power left by my former self.
Now that a successor has claimed my inheritance, my purpose reaches its natural conclusion.
When you claim all the treasures here, these Ancient Ruins will automatically collapse, and I will dissipate alongside them.
Your duty is to carry forward my lineage—to ensure it shines brilliantly once more throughout the Immortal Realm.
Do you understand?"
The words carried the weight of a final testament.
Yue Qingshan nodded without hesitation.
"I understand, Master. I will carry forward our lineage and ensure everyone knows your name."
The promise rolled smoothly off his tongue, though his thoughts followed a different current entirely.
If I develop smoothly, I'll reclaim everything that was stolen from me. Everything I lost.
Including Yue Ming.
The giant figure gestured one last time before slowly dissolving into the air, fading as though it had never existed at all.
Treasures lay scattered throughout the Ancient Ruins in glittering profusion. Naturally, Yue Qingshan intended to claim every last piece.
Once he finished gathering everything and departed, this place would truly cease to exist.
Without the Great Saint's power sustaining them, these Ancient Ruins could no longer maintain their form.
He swept the treasures into a spatial ring—item after item disappearing into the dimensional storage. Obtaining such a windfall exceeded even his boldest expectations.
Most importantly, Yue Qingshan acquired a Divine Artifact the Great Saint had once wielded personally.
Though this Divine Artifact fell short of the Samsara Artifact his first master—that remnant soul—had bestowed, it still ranked among the rarest Magic Treasures within the Immortal Realm.
Just as Yue Qingshan finished emptying the chamber, the entire Secret Realm convulsed violently, trembling as though it might shatter at any moment.
He'd already mastered the method of departure. With effortless ease, Yue Qingshan opened a passage to the outside world.
He materialized exactly where he'd entered—appearing out of thin air on the very spot he'd vanished from half a month earlier.
Yun Lan had remained hidden in the shadows, observing for over fifteen days. Now she finally laid eyes on Yue Qingshan once more.
He's emerged at last!
But... no.
This boy—why has his cultivation transformed so drastically?
Yun Lan sensed immediately that Yue Qingshan now stood infinitely close to the Holy Induction Realm.
Though he hadn't quite crossed that threshold, possessing such cultivation at his age was already remarkable.
Yun Lan had taken specific notice of Yue Qingshan before his entry. At that time, he'd barely reached the Early Stage of Enlightenment Realm.
Yet somehow, in just half a month, he'd shattered through Middle Stage, Late Stage, and now directly achieved the Enlightenment Realm Peak.
Such explosive advancement could only mean one thing.
The boy had received the inheritance of a great power.
Surprise flickered through Yun Lan's thoughts. She hadn't expected Yue Qingshan capable of passing whatever trial a legendary figure had left behind.
Still, her current strength far exceeded anything Yue Qingshan could contest.
If Yun Lan truly wished to kill him, she could accomplish it effortlessly—as easily as extinguishing a candle flame.
But Yun Lan had no intention of acting now.
Her assignment was surveillance—monitor Yue Qingshan closely, then report all intelligence to Ye Qian.
Only Ye Qian possessed the authority to decide Yue Qingshan's fate. His word alone mattered.
To Yun Lan, his will was absolute.