Beginning the Breakthrough! The Limit of the Chaos Saint Body, Thirteen Powers of Heaven-and-Earth Origin!

"A Natural Sage—what a Natural Sage indeed!" "With comprehension like this, allowing me to glimpse heaven-and-earth rules and origins, it would be difficult not to become an Earth Saint." Lu Changsheng smiled. "Time to go." Lu Changsheng departed from the desolate island and made straight for Tianhe Sacred Ground. Time slipped by in a blur. Several more months passed. By the time Lu Changsheng caught sight of Tianhe Sacred Ground, a full five months had passed since he departed the Divine Domain. Tianhe Sacred Ground was just as it had always been. Although protected by a mountain-guarding array, Lu Changsheng was a titled elder and could naturally come and go as he pleased. Moreover, the moment he appeared, he was immediately spotted by disciples of Tianhe Sacred Ground. "Look, quick, that seems to be Elder Lu." "It really is Elder Lu! Word had it a while back that Elder Lu left Tianhe Sacred Ground, and now he's back already?" "I heard Elder Lu went to some mysterious place. As for what he went to do, only the sacred ground's upper echelon knows." Many disciples recognized Lu Changsheng. His performance at Qingshan Sacred Ground had simply been too brilliant, utterly winning over countless disciples of Tianhe Sacred Ground. However, an even greater stir arose among the Martial Saint elders of Tianhe Sacred Ground. "What? Elder Lu is back?" "It's only been a year or two, and Elder Lu has already returned?" "Quick, invite Elder Lu into Tianhe Grand Hall!" Many Martial Saint elders of Tianhe Sacred Ground, as well as the sect master, had already gathered in Tianhe Grand Hall. Lu Changsheng walked into Tianhe Grand Hall. "Greetings, Sect Master. Greetings, elders." Lu Changsheng's expression was calm as he offered a polite greeting. Sect Master Wan smiled and said, "Elder Lu, you haven't been gone to the Divine Domain for long. How is it that you have already returned to the sacred ground? Could some unexpected development have occurred?" Indeed, to powerful Martial Saints, what was a mere year or two? Forget a year or two—even ten or twenty years were nothing. Lu Changsheng shook his head calmly. "Nothing went wrong. It is simply that I have accomplished my objective in the Divine Domain, so remaining there served no further purpose." "Accomplished your objective?" Hearing this, the eyes of the many Martial Saints lit up. They roughly knew what Lu Changsheng's objective was: deity fragments. Could it be that Lu Changsheng had already obtained a deity fragment? Yet a mere year or two was simply too short. In the Divine Domain, even with good luck, it usually took over a decade before one might obtain a deity fragment. Moreover, the agreement between Lu Changsheng and the various sacred grounds gave a hundred-year deadline. A century was more than enough time. There was no need to rush at all. Seeing the anxious looks on the Martial Saint elders, Lu Changsheng smiled faintly. "This is a deity fragment. Sect Master, please take a look." Lu Changsheng handed a deity fragment directly to Sect Master Wan. Moreover, it was the largest among the deity fragments he possessed. After all, Tianhe Sacred Ground had been the first sacred ground Lu Changsheng joined. Giving them a bit more benefit was only natural. *Whoosh.* The gazes of the Martial Saint elders instantly converged on the sect master, and specifically onto the deity fragment in his hand. With their senses, they could naturally tell that this was a genuine deity fragment! "It really is a deity fragment!" "What's more, this fragment is huge—larger than any deity fragment our Tianhe Sacred Ground has ever obtained in the past!" "Elder Lu has truly been considerate to bring back a deity fragment so quickly." "However... who should this deity fragment be allocated to?" Many Martial Saint elders were deeply tempted. A deity fragment! Lu Changsheng had only promised Tianhe Sacred Ground a single deity fragment. If they missed this chance, who knew how many ages they would have to wait before another opportunity arose? Yet there was only one deity fragment, while more than one Martial Saint elder met the conditions to use it. Thus, an internal contest within Tianhe Sacred Ground over this deity fragment was inevitable. Naturally, Lu Changsheng did not care how they competed for it. He said to Sect Master Wan, "Sect Master, my harvest in the Divine Domain this time was quite plentiful; I have already obtained ten deity fragments. You may notify the Martial Saint elders of the other nine sacred grounds to send someone to Tianhe Sacred Ground to retrieve their deity fragments." Lu Changsheng's words caused the pupils of all the Martial Saint elders to contract as their minds shook violently. "What?" "Elder Lu, you have more deity fragments? More than one?" "All ten sacred grounds have their deity fragments now? That's ten deity fragments! In just a year or two, you obtained ten deity fragments?" "Perhaps... even more than ten..." The elders were utterly shocked. When ordinary Martial Saints ventured into the Divine Domain, they were not even guaranteed a single deity fragment after ten or twenty years. Yet Lu Changsheng had gone to the Divine Domain for a mere year or two and secured a massive haul of deity fragments. This was simply... unbelievable! "Very well. I shall notify the other sacred grounds to make a trip to Tianhe Sacred Ground at once," Sect Master Wan nodded. This was a minor matter, no trouble at all. "By the way, as a titled elder, I should have open access to Tianhe Sacred Ground's Library, correct?" Lu Changsheng asked. "Of course. Elder Lu, feel free to visit the Library; you may peruse any book you wish." Tianhe Sacred Ground placed no restrictions on this whatsoever. After all, Lu Changsheng was already a Martial Saint. What could there possibly be to restrict? Lu Changsheng nodded, then departed Tianhe Grand Hall. He called up his attribute panel. Host: Lu Changsheng Comprehension: 1,039,000 (Natural Sage) Chaos Saint Body: Momentum of All Living Beings (91%) The progress of his Chaos Saint Body had reached 91%. At a rate of 3% per month from the momentum of all living beings, only three months remained until his Chaos Saint Body attained completion. Once the Chaos Saint Body was complete, Lu Changsheng could attempt to draw upon heaven-and-earth origins to advance to Earth Saint. Therefore, he needed to make ample preparations. And those preparations meant visiting the Library. Lu Changsheng headed straight for the Library to look through common knowledge regarding Earth Saints. To advance from Human Saint to Earth Saint, one only needed to achieve a complete saint body, comprehend rules, and draw upon heaven-and-earth origin. When the time came, the power of heaven-and-earth origin would cleanse the saint body; if the Martial Saint's saint body could endure without collapsing, it would undergo a transformation and advance to Earth Saint. Yet it was far easier said than done. Comprehending rules and catching sight of heaven-and-earth origins was already arduous enough. To then have one's saint body withstand the cleansing of heaven-and-earth origin power was extraordinarily difficult. The power of heaven-and-earth origin was exceptionally overbearing. If the saint body was not strong enough, it could be washed away and overwhelmed by the origin power. If the saint body collapsed, the path to Earth Saint was severed. In severe cases, the cultivator would perish outright. "A strong saint body..." Lu Changsheng fell into thought. The saint body was, in truth, the foundation. Theoretically, every saint body had a chance to achieve Earth Saint. Yet in reality? The moment many saint bodies were condensed, they basically lost any possibility of becoming an Earth Saint. Theory was forever just theory. Many ordinary saint bodies were simply incapable of bearing the scouring of heaven-and-earth origin power. Once they drew down origin power, their bodies would inevitably collapse. Hence, the importance of the foundation. Naturally, for many martial artists, merely casting a saint body and attaining Martial Saint was already a stroke of immense fortune. As for Earth Saint? They would not even contemplate it, for it was entirely meaningless. Only cultivators with immense ambition or absolute confidence in themselves would consider this aspect when forging their saint bodies, striving to forge one as powerful as possible to make their foundation unshakable. Lu Changsheng's foundation was extraordinarily solid. Back when he forged his saint body, he had not actually considered how it would benefit a future breakthrough to Earth Saint. But he understood that in martial cultivation, tamping down one's foundation to make it as sturdy as possible would always benefit his path. Thus, Lu Changsheng had chosen three of the most supreme saint bodies. Every single one was capable of withstanding the cleansing of heaven-and-earth origin power. Yet Lu Changsheng had not stopped at just one. He had chosen all three. Furthermore, relying on his monstrous comprehension, he had merged the three supreme saint bodies into one, creating the even more terrifying Chaos Saint Body. According to Lu Changsheng's estimate, his Chaos Saint Body could withstand the cleansing of at least ten kinds of heaven-and-earth origin power. "The more heaven-and-earth world origins drawn upon, and the longer the cleansing lasts, the greater the enhancement gained after the saint body's transformation, and the firmer the foundation upon advancing to Earth Saint." Lu Changsheng flipped through numerous books. Without exception, they all mentioned tips and techniques for progressing from Human Saint to Earth Saint. However, which kinds of heaven-and-earth origin power were better? Or was any heaven-and-earth origin acceptable? Lu Changsheng kept browsing through the texts. There were no specific records on this point. It seemed that any rule was truly acceptable. Or rather, what rule it was did not matter. What mattered was the power of heaven-and-earth origin itself. That was the key! "The Immortal Path values comprehension; deities value rules; the Martial Path values power." "Whether a Human Saint or an Earth Saint, it is all the same: strength reigns supreme. For a Human Saint, what kind of saint body one casts does not matter, as long as it is powerful enough. For an Earth Saint, it is the same—which rule one comprehends is not important, as long as one can draw upon sufficient heaven-and-earth origin power to cleanse the saint body." At this moment, Lu Changsheng felt a faint epiphany. He had already encountered many experts from systems such as the Immortal Path and the divine order. Comparing them to the Martial Path, he had vaguely grasped the true essence of martial arts. The Martial Path was about battling heaven and earth! Martial artists relied neither on comprehending heaven and earth, nor on comprehending rules, nor on external things—they relied upon themselves. All supreme might resided within oneself! As long as one possessed enough power, the Martial Path could forge ahead with indomitable drive. The ultimate purpose of the Martial Path was for oneself to wield invincible power, breaking through all obstacles with supreme might! This was the true essence of the Martial Path! "Therefore, if I wish to advance to Earth Saint, all I need to do is draw upon heaven-and-earth origin power." "The more, the better." Lu Changsheng now understood completely. No confusion remained in his mind. With his current comprehension as a Natural Sage, he could perceive rules one by one, and peer into the heaven-and-earth origins that lay behind them. He could draw upon as many heaven-and-earth origins as he wished. He did not even need any more deity fragments. With no lingering doubts, Lu Changsheng returned to his cave dwelling and quietly adjusted his condition. Day after day passed. Representatives from the nine sacred grounds arrived one after another. Lu Changsheng delivered the deity fragments to the Martial Saints of the other nine sacred grounds one by one. Those sacred ground Martial Saints were naturally overjoyed. In a mere year or two, they had each obtained a deity fragment. This deal was simply too worthwhile! Regrettably, this was a one-time occurrence. Naturally, they secretly wished Lu Changsheng would make another trip to the Divine Domain. Tianhe Sacred Ground felt the same. In just a year or two, Lu Changsheng had achieved such a harvest. If it had been ten or twenty years, or even a century, how many deity fragments could he have obtained? Of course, that was mere wishful thinking. Lu Changsheng was a Martial Saint, and a peak Martial Saint at that. He was not a pawn for sacred grounds to harvest deity fragments. Now that both sides had concluded their transaction, getting Lu Changsheng to go to the Divine Domain again was completely impossible unless he did so willingly. Lu Changsheng naturally had no intention of becoming a pawn for the sacred grounds. He had no further need for deity fragments. In fact, he still had more than a dozen deity fragments on him. Yet so what? Needing no deity fragments, he would certainly not waste time in the Divine Domain. Lu Changsheng simply declared that he was entering closed-door cultivation, ensuring he would not be disturbed by any sacred ground Martial Saints. "Seclusion." Lu Changsheng entered seclusion completely. In the secret room of his cave dwelling, Lu Changsheng sat alone. He had not entered seclusion to dodge the sacred grounds' lobbying. He wanted seclusion for himself. For he had decided to break through. Everything was prepared. Lu Changsheng did not wish to delay any longer. After all, nearly three months had passed since his return to Tianhe Sacred Ground. All preparations were in place. All that remained was waiting for his saint body to reach completion. Finally, three months and a few days after returning to Tianhe Sacred Ground... *Buzz.* Lu Changsheng's entire body shuddered. Immediately afterward, his saint body manifested involuntarily. "The Chaos Saint Body... is complete!" His Chaos Saint Body had finally attained completion. At this moment, Lu Changsheng hesitated no longer. "Begin." With a thought, his consciousness peered into the depths of the void, into kinds of heaven-and-earth origins. His monstrous comprehension as a Natural Sage allowed his consciousness to plunge effortlessly into the heaven-and-earth origins. *Rumble!* The first origin Lu Changsheng drew upon was the origin of "fire." He did not know precisely which fire origin it was. Regardless, with a thought, he directly summoned the fire origin. Instantly, the power of fire origin poured down in a torrent. Lu Changsheng manifested his thousand-zhang saint body. Fortunately, arrays had been laid out within the cave dwelling. Inside the secret chamber, space could expand or contract; forget a thousand-zhang saint body, it could even accommodate one ten thousand zhang tall. Thus, when Lu Changsheng manifested his saint body, it did not immediately destroy the cave dwelling. In the unseen depths, the power of heaven-and-earth origin descended, "swallowed" by Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body. Yet how could the power of heaven-and-earth origin be so easily swallowed? The moment the origin power entered his saint body, tempestuous waves surged within Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body. The entire saint body shook violently, as though it could collapse at any second. "Suppress!" Lu Changsheng remained expressionless. His mind was like an unrippled well, utterly tranquil. Calmly, he mobilized the strength of the Chaos Saint Body to forcefully suppress the heaven-and-earth origin power. Sure enough, a thousand-zhang Chaos Saint Body possessed terrifying might. Even the power of heaven-and-earth origin could not run rampant once swallowed into the saint body. Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body forcibly suppressed it. The origin power could only be pinned down bit by bit inside the saint body, gradually refining and tempering the Chaos Saint Body. However, it was not enough. A single heaven-and-earth origin was far from enough. "Again." Without the slightest hesitation, Lu Changsheng began to draw down a second heaven-and-earth origin. This time, it was an origin of water. *Boom!* The second origin, water, was drawn down and entered Lu Changsheng's saint body. Now, two heaven-and-earth origins were inside his saint body. Evidently, the destructive strain on the saint body multiplied. Yet by the same token, the benefits were equally apparent. The two origin powers continuously transformed Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body. With almost every passing breath, Lu Changsheng could feel his Chaos Saint Body undergoing a metamorphosis, faintly evolving in an ever more profound and divine direction. Yet Lu Changsheng still felt it was not enough. This was not his limit. "Continue." Lu Changsheng drew down heaven-and-earth origin power once more. A third, a fourth, a fifth, a sixth, a seventh, an eighth... Every single heaven-and-earth origin power was terrifying. For an ordinary Martial Saint, being able to endure a single origin power was already an incredible feat worthy of wild joy, granting them qualification to advance to Earth Saint. Yet what about Lu Changsheng? A single origin power could never satisfy him. Even several origin powers fell short of satisfying him. Lu Changsheng needed vast quantities of heaven-and-earth origin power. Were it another Martial Saint, they would have had no way around this. To comprehend one rule and glimpse one heaven-and-earth origin was already pushing their limits. As for several or over a dozen origin powers, they would not even dare imagine it. Who would willingly endure hundreds of years in silence merely to comprehend an extra rule? With that much time, they would have long since advanced to Earth Saint. But Lu Changsheng was completely different from other Martial Saints. The fundamental difference lay in comprehension. Once his comprehension reached Natural Sage, he could glimpse almost any rule between heaven and earth, and see the heaven-and-earth origins behind them. Drawing down heaven-and-earth origin power was as effortless as breathing—he could take whatever he pleased! A ninth, a tenth... Finally, Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body was suffused with ten heaven-and-earth origin powers. This had been Lu Changsheng's prior estimate of his Chaos Saint Body's limit. Yet that had only been an estimate. Reality proved that Lu Changsheng had underestimated his own Chaos Saint Body. Even after drawing in ten origin powers, he felt that his Chaos Saint Body had still not reached its limit. In other words, he could continue drawing in more origin power. When advancing to Earth Saint, the more origin power drawn in, the better. With that in mind, Lu Changsheng hesitated no longer. *Boom!* Lu Changsheng drew in origin power once more. An eleventh, a twelfth, a thirteenth... At last, having swallowed thirteen powers of heaven-and-earth origin, his Chaos Saint Body reached its absolute limit. Lu Changsheng ceased summoning more origin power. Instead, he poured all his efforts into allowing his Chaos Saint Body to rapidly transform under the influence of the thirteen heaven-and-earth origin powers. The power of heaven-and-earth origin was the origin of a world. It was the foundation of heaven and earth. Once a cultivator acquired heaven-and-earth origin, their cultivation could participate in creation itself. Every move they made would rend heaven and earth. Just like those deities. In the deity system, this referred not to false deities, but to innate deities. They were embodiments of rules. Every move they made wielded the power of heaven and earth. Once a martial artist's saint body was transformed and tempered by heaven-and-earth origin, they too would be like deities, accompanied by heaven-and-earth power in every gesture, terrifying to behold. Yet between the two lay a fundamental distinction. Innate deities could only rely on heaven-and-earth power. Martial artists were different. When a martial artist advanced to Earth Saint, their saint body underwent transformation through origin power. The saint body itself possessed earth-shattering might. As for the heaven-and-earth power accompanying the saint body, it was merely an added bonus. Lu Changsheng now completely understood why the seal over the Divine Domain forbade Earth Saints from entering. An Earth Saint and a deity king were theoretically in equivalent realms. Yet in reality? An Earth Saint's saint body was terrifyingly strong in its own right, with heaven-and-earth power being merely incidental. If an Earth Saint fought a deity king, there was no doubt: the deity king could be slain in an instant! A single Earth Saint could contend with multiple deity kings at once. If Earth Saints were truly permitted into the Divine Domain, the deity kings inside would surely be slaughtered en masse. Wouldn't the deity lords go mad then? Even if deity kings would be "reborn" after some time, the deity system would certainly not sit idly by and await destruction. The deity lords themselves would personally intervene. When that happened, they would be pushed back onto the old path of all-out war against deities. There was simply no need to do so. There was no need to provoke the deities. Thus, Earth Saints were barred from entering the Divine Domain. Lu Changsheng understood everything. Now, he looked forward to the saint body's transformation even more. For once it transformed, every action of his saint body would carry heaven-and-earth power. And how much heaven-and-earth power would accompany him? Thirteen kinds! He likely would not even need to exert the strength of his saint body. The thirteen kinds of heaven-and-earth power alone would suffice to match or even defeat other Earth Saints. This was the difference. This was the gap. The sturdier the foundation, the higher one's realm upon advancement, and the smoother one's martial journey would be. Moreover, one step ahead meant staying ahead at every step. Without the solid foundation he had laid down in the past, how could Lu Changsheng have withstood thirteen powers of heaven-and-earth origin? And if he could not withstand thirteen origin powers, how could his saint body come to carry thirteen kinds of heaven-and-earth power? Lu Changsheng's saint body was in the midst of transformation. Originally, the arrays of his cave dwelling's secret chamber had concealed it. However, as the saint body began to transform step by step, the arrays could no longer hold out. If there were only one or two kinds of heaven-and-earth power, the array might have held. Yet within Lu Changsheng were a full thirteen heaven-and-earth origins. The accompanying heaven-and-earth powers numbered a terrifying thirteen as well. Particularly in this state: as his saint body transformed, Lu Changsheng could not fully restrain the heaven-and-earth power. He could not do so. Before the saint body completed its metamorphosis, Lu Changsheng could not control the heaven-and-earth power. Consequently, one heaven-and-earth power after another descended from the heavens, swirling around his saint body. The arrays within the cave dwelling were naturally shattered and obliterated by the power. *Crack!* The arrays broke. Lu Changsheng's cave dwelling could no longer conceal the saint body. *Rumble!* In an instant, the saint body smashed a massive hole directly through the cave dwelling. Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body manifested high in the void above Tianhe Sacred Ground, exuding a vast, terrifying aura. What was more, his saint body continued to expand bit by bit. One thousand zhang, two thousand zhang, three thousand zhang, four thousand zhang... Though the expansion was slow, Lu Changsheng's saint body was undeniably swelling. This sight alarmed every martial artist throughout Tianhe Sacred Ground. Whether disciples, elders, or even Martial Saints, all could see the terrifying saint body towering in the void. "Look, what is that?" "A saint body! That's a Martial Saint's saint body! Which Martial Saint is it?" "A saint body several thousand zhang tall—that's simply unheard of! Wait, doesn't that saint body look like Elder Lu?" "Yes, it's Elder Lu! His saint body is still expanding! Could he have broken through again?" The disciples of Tianhe Sacred Ground were quite knowledgeable, recognizing it as a Martial Saint's saint body. Some even guessed whether Lu Changsheng had achieved another breakthrough. Yet it was merely a guess. Their understanding extended only as far as Martial Saints. As for Earth Saints? These disciples knew nothing of them. However, while the disciples were ignorant, the Martial Saint elders of Tianhe Sacred Ground understood all too well. Seeing the heaven-and-earth power swirling around Lu Changsheng's saint body, how could they not know that he was breaking through to Earth Saint? Yet this only made the shock all the more staggering. "How long has it been since Lu Changsheng forged his saint body and became a Martial Saint? Just a few years! And now he's about to advance to Earth Saint?" "It's true! Lu Changsheng has already drawn upon heaven-and-earth origin power and begun transforming his saint body. Once the transformation succeeds, he will advance to Earth Saint!" "An Earth Saint... Just how long has it been since our entire Tianhe Sacred Ground produced an Earth Saint?" "Moreover, Lu Changsheng is not just advancing to an ordinary Earth Saint. Look at the heaven-and-earth power on him—just how much is there?" "The power of heaven-and-earth rules?" Many Martial Saint elders narrowed their eyes. They began to carefully sense the heaven-and-earth power around Lu Changsheng's Chaos Saint Body. One kind, two kinds, three kinds, four kinds, five kinds... With this sense, every Martial Saint elder felt their heart quake. Even from a rough sensing, they could already detect five or six kinds of heaven-and-earth power. They knew all too well what that signified. "Five or six kinds of heaven-and-earth power? That means Lu Changsheng has comprehended five or six heaven-and-earth rules and drawn down five or six heaven-and-earth origin powers! H-How is this possible?" "Unbelievable, truly unbelievable... This defies belief!" "For Elder Lu's saint body to withstand five or six heaven-and-earth origins is astonishing indeed. And don't forget, Elder Lu's saint body is still transforming, and the number of heaven-and-earth powers around him is still increasing. That means Elder Lu didn't just draw down five or six origins—the true number might be even higher..." "Indeed, it could be higher—perhaps seven or eight, or even more than ten. We have all witnessed Elder Lu's Chaos Saint Body and know how formidable it is. To say the Chaos Saint Body can withstand ten origin powers doesn't feel exaggerated in the slightest." "What truly astonishes me is how Elder Lu managed to comprehend so many rules. Even if he reaped a bountiful harvest in the Divine Domain, only about two years have passed since he entered! To comprehend so many rules in that time... such comprehension is simply unfathomable!" The Martial Saint elders fell silent. They could only watch in quiet awe at Lu Changsheng's colossal saint body towering in the void.