Time flew by; spring gave way to autumn, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a year had passed.
The mountain ranges stretched on, forests remained as dense as ever, and all manner of birds circled and called high above. The air was still fresh, but the temperature was steadily dropping.
"Gray-Gray."
"I’ve come again today." Toni, now thirteen, wore an apricot-yellow dress and crouched beside the gray statue, gently brushing its smooth surface with her fingertip. Staring at the clean, polished gray statue, she drifted into a dazed smile.
Birdsong filtered through the thick branches.
Bright sunlight scattered into patches of dappled light.
"I..."
"I probably won’t ever come again..."
"I couldn’t become a cultivator. Tomorrow I’ll be married off as a cultivator’s concubine..."
Toni sighed, stood up, picked up a yellowed leaf that had fallen onto the gray statue, and stood there silently, saying nothing more.
...
Day and night traded places; birds called; a coolness filled the air, and sunlight streamed through the dense forests. It seemed no different than before.
Crack.
At that moment, several fissures split across the surface of the gray statue.
It was as if shackles had been broken, a cage torn apart—a peerless gold-red light flashed and vanished.
Crack, crack—two or three more sharp sounds followed, and the gray statue shattered like porcelain. Countless cracks spread across its surface, then it fragmented, then collapsed—a pair of eyes, brimming with gold-red light, opened within!
It was Andrew Han!
Freed from the constraints of the Lunyis Star System, his Stellar Palace–tier Soul-Will broke through to the third sub-stage: Primordial Palace Stage!
The Stellar Palace Tier has five stages: Phantom Palace, True Palace, Primordial Palace, World-Boundary Palace, and Nirvana Palace.
Forging the Origin Mystic Palace marks the completion of the Primordial Palace Stage.
If he advances one more step, the Origin Mystic Palace opens up an independent world, able to store objects—this is the World-Boundary Palace Stage.
"Primordial Palace Stage."
Andrew Han awakened, rising with a thunderous motion.
Crack!
A crisp shattering sound rang out, as if billions of crystal diamonds had exploded into dust.
The gray membrane instantly disintegrated, turning into countless drifting points of light. It reverted to a vast, invisible mass of cosmic particles, whipping up a mighty storm that toppled the surrounding trees.
Standing at the center of the storm, Andrew Han lifted his gaze.
Voom!!!
Countless people were moved, their faces drained of color!
The entire life-planet fell into absolute silence!
A blazing gold-red funnel-shaped storm surged skyward, soaring ninety thousand kilometers and piercing the life-planet’s atmosphere—a colossal pillar of light stabbing into the darkness of outer space!
"Heavens above, what is that?"
"That’s the might of a great cultivator—it must be a Stellar Palace great cultivator!"
"They say great cultivators possess terrifying power to change heaven and earth. I can’t even imagine... And above them, the Void Rift Lords and those listed on the Venerable Roll—how mighty must they be?"
Nearly half the life-planet could see the massive pillar of light, and the flood of astonished voices rose in waves.
The gold-red storm pierced the heavens and earth.
So dazzling, so brilliant, that people could not bear to look directly at it.
By now Andrew Han’s Soul-Will had reached Primordial Palace Stage, while his martial arts stood at the peak of True Palace. As a composite cultivator, his strength had skyrocketed—he could match a fourth-stage Void Rift expert.
The fifth stage of Void Rift is also known as the Void Rift pinnacle.
If the Lunyis Star System had no Void Rift pinnacle, then with his current power, Andrew Han could already declare himself invincible!
"Soul-Will at Primordial Palace Stage..."
"The Lunyis Star System’s restrictions no longer apply..."
Andrew Han planned to leave this life-planet and head for the strongest power in the nearby starfield—the Jade Lake Sect, where a Grand Lord resided.
So-called Grand Lords are merely Void Rift–tier, after all.
As long as they aren’t Void Rift pinnacle, he can defeat them all.
"But before I go..." Andrew Han’s Soul-Will swept his surroundings, a faint smile appearing: "That little girl wanted to become a cultivator—I’ll grant her wish."
At that moment.
The wind and clouds stood still, not a bird or beast made a sound; only the gold-red pillar of light remained.
Andrew Han stood with hands clasped behind his back in the heart of the pillar, his Soul-Will sweeping the mountain’s edge: "Hm? Why can’t I find her?"
His awareness kept spreading, reaching in all directions, until it covered the entire life-planet. Still, he found nothing—the little girl seemed to have vanished.