Xiang Shaoyun was stunned. He had not imagined that his master would leave him on the mountain after saving him. He had the urge to go and hug his master’s leg to plead to be taken away. However, his master’s departure was too sudden. He couldn’t even react in time.
“Master is quite an irresponsible one,” grumbled Xiang Shaoyun.
The gravekeeper elder did not reappear. He had left for real, leaving only Xiang Shaoyun behind. He only had himself to rely on. One could say that the gravekeeper elder wasn’t exactly a responsible teacher. However, Xiang Shaoyun believed that his master would be able to solve the crisis brought by his identity as a devil. Since that was the case, he no longer needed to be overly worried. He decided to follow his master’s advice and focus on the Desolation mantra for now.
The Desolation mantra contained a large amount of truth in it. Each time he studied it, he would gain new enlightenment. With the destruction of his nine stars, an odd sensation rose within him when he meditated on the mantra once again.
The Desolation mantra mainly detailed the birth of primal chaos, the enlightenment of yin and yang, the cosmos, the heavens, the world, and numerous other great daos. All those were concepts related to astral energy. This was a mantra that could help one comprehend the many profundities, a scripture of the great dao.
During his time at Brightflower Land, Xiang Shaoyun had been able to recover additional parts of the mantra using his Light of Wisdom. Thus, when he meditated on the mantra again, he entered a deeper level of comprehension. His entire being seemed to be drifting beyond the various profundities, observing the passage of time and the changes of nature.
Since he no longer had his stars, he could only perform the visualization exercise during his meditation and visualize the numerous profundities. Akin to a spectator, he observed the phenomena of the sun, the moon, the stars, and the universe.
Without realizing it, he entered the human heaven unity state. He forgot the world around him and forgot himself, becoming a star among the endless universe, moving in accordance with the laws of nature, observing the passage of time.
The universe was boundless and contained countless stars. New stars would take form; old stars would cease existing. The universe contained countless changes, eternally all-embracing. Xiang Shaoyun had a sensation that he had returned to the Brightflower Land and was observing the numerous profound changes, surrounded by the many profundities.
Instead of trying to comprehend any profundity, he reflected on his inner body. His nine stars had been destroyed, yet pieces of the stars remained. But since he couldn’t rejoin the broken pieces, they remained useless.
Looking at the broken pieces, Xiang Shaoyun felt like he was looking at countless stars in a river of stars. These pieces were not completely useless. They each shone and flickered like an independent star, freely drifting about within his body. Instead of disappearing, all his astral energy had remained in these broken pieces. If he could reorganize these broken pieces, he could probably reforge his stars. But apart from astral grass, nothing could help him rejoin them.
Suddenly, Xiang Shaoyun had a feeling that even without astral grass, he could still make use of these broken pieces. He was merely lacking a vital piece to complete this puzzle, as though the final piece was blocking his path forward. His confusion woke him from his state of meditation.
“The stars have broken down, but the pieces remain. Even the astral energy remains. What should I do to regain control over these pieces?” muttered Xiang Shaoyun with a sigh. He did not force himself to stay in meditation. Instead, he walked around the snowy mountain.
The snowy mountain was desolate. Every now and then, demonic beasts could be seen roaming around. The vegetation was rather lush and hid quite a number of dangers. However, all the dangers were nothing for Xiang Shaoyun. Apart from those at the Saint Realm and above, nobody could pose him any threat.
He was in no rush to leave. Thus, he roamed the snowy mountain, immersing himself in the desolate atmosphere while inwardly chanting the Desolation mantra. Every now and then, he stopped and performed the many techniques he knew. In that manner, he roamed the mountain aimlessly.
If demonic beasts were to appear, they would become his food. If devilish plants were to appear, they would become his source of amusement. Roaming the uninhabited mountain, Xiang Shaoyun’s heart became more and more tranquil. At one point, he even forgot that he was a devil. He became cut off from the rest of the world and stopped caring about all worldly affairs.
Just like that, a month passed. Xiang Shaoyun’s comprehension of the Desolation mantra became increasingly deep, allowing him to frequently enter the human heaven unity state and comprehend the many profound concepts of the great dao, including three of the greatest daos: the dao of time, the dao of life, and the dao of primal chaos.
Unfortunately, his lack of astral energy made it impossible for him to verify what he had learned, causing him to feel somewhat regretful. He had yet to comprehend the way to utilize his broken stars. The final piece of the puzzle remained shrouded in fog, a fog that would not clear no matter how he tried.
He walked and walked until one day, he reached the fringe of the snowy mountain territory. The temperature was much higher than on the snowy mountain, as though winter had passed and spring had arrived. The number of beasts he saw also increased. These beasts weren’t particularly strong. Xiang Shaoyun could easily stay hidden from them.
He continued walking around. Before long, he arrived before a clear pond. The pond wasn’t large, but the water was clear. Fish could be seen swimming in the pond while lush weeds could be seen growing around it. The surrounding environment was incredibly scenic. It had been a long time since Xiang Shaoyun had last cleaned himself. He couldn’t help undressing, and he jumped inside.
Whoosh!
The clear water splashed as Xiang Shaoyun dove deep into the pond like a fish. A refreshing sensation covered his entire body. His naked body looked proportionate and perfect while his skin was as fair as ivory. Anyone who saw him would exclaim with praise.
After all, his saintly body had been tempered repeatedly with the Limit Stimulation Technique. All his flesh had been reforged before. After cultivating the devilish energy, he further modified his body with the devilish energy. The god-grade spring water had also further nourished his body, allowing his body to regrow and become incomparably pure.
Floating on the surface of the lake, Xiang Shaoyun shut his eyes and immersed himself in the refreshing sensation, enjoying the feeling of being reborn anew.
“It’s good to be alive,” lamented Xiang Shaoyun.
During his battle after exiting the Saintforce Realm, he had thought that he would die for sure. He had even prepared for his death. However, he was resilient enough to survive and crawl out from the abyss of death. That helped him better appreciate the wonders of life. At this moment, his desire to live was even stronger than before. He wanted to live better than anyone. He did not wish to die.
In his fully relaxed state, someone approached. He did not notice them until they reached the pond. When he left the water, he was met with a pair of innocent eyes.
