Chapter 603: Ten Years

It was the sixth year since Meng Chuan and the other three had embarked on the path.

"How exactly should I cultivate? What is right? What is wrong?" Mong Hu stood on the second path, gazing up at the crystal road that disappeared into endless mists, its end nowhere in sight. His eyes were filled with confusion.

"In over five years, I possessed nearly ten thousand 'Sixth-Tribulation realm mighty figures'."

"Every day, I would reflect, keeping only the insights suitable for the Path of the Heavenly Dream General and discarding all other memories and comprehensions. As time went on, I even found myself discarding memories more frequently," Mong Hu murmured. "In over five years, I've purged my own memories thousands of times, yet I'm still lost."

"I don't know how I should cultivate from now on." Mong Hu stood on the path, utterly bewildered.

Numerous disorganized insights swirled in his mind, constantly clashing and contradicting each other.

In the early stages of his journey, Mong Hu had indeed gained much. He even successfully comprehended a third 'Fifth-Tribulation realm rule'. However, when he attempted to integrate these three Fifth-Tribulation realm rules to form a 'Sixth-Tribulation realm' understanding, the vast amount of insights he had acquired through possession began to contradict each other. This persisted even after he repeatedly purged memories he deemed incorrect.

"Memories can alter perception."

"With each comprehension gained through possession, my perception changed, even if I purged memories. But the choice to 'purge memories' was itself made by this altered perception."

"Perception changed repeatedly, and memories were purged again and again."

"It became increasingly chaotic."

Mong Hu looked around. He could see Old Devil Heifeng far behind him, moving much slower, and in the even greater distance, he could faintly discern Meng Chuan, who was proceeding even more slowly on the third path.

"I knew the danger of getting lost, believing I could gain benefits while fending off the risks. Yet, I still lost my way." Mong Hu was keenly aware of his situation. Painting on a blank sheet of paper can be very clear. But when countless strokes of different styles are applied, even if removed repeatedly, the artist's 'perception' becomes muddled and loses its clarity.

"Is my cultivation realm to be stuck here for life?" Mong Hu mumbled to himself.

He was a 'Heavenly Dream General' from the Heavenly Dream Realm, possessing the potential to reach the Sixth-Tribulation realm.

Now that he was lost, how could he accept it?

"It's time to go back."

Mong Hu looked up, taking a deep gaze at the dark mountain extending into the deep mists. Then, with a soft, soundless disintegration, his physical body and primordial spirit vanished completely.

This true body had perished.

Meanwhile, in the distant, mysterious, and vast living world known as the 'Heavenly Dream Realm'.

"It truly felt like a dream." Mong Hu emerged from his cave dwelling, which was built on a leaf tens of miles wide, surrounded by clear mists. This leaf belonged to a towering tree that reached the heavens.

"I'll go find my master," Mong Hu silently decided. "For this predicament, I can only seek my master's help."

As a higher realm, the Heavenly Dream Realm possessed incredibly profound foundations, far surpassing the Cangyuan Realm.

The disparity between the Cangyuan Realm and the Heavenly Dream Realm was akin to the difference between the Seventh-Tribulation realm and the Eighth-Tribulation realm.

Every Eighth-Tribulation realm mighty figure possessed inconceivable abilities.

Any traces left by them would be greatly restricted by the rules of the River of Spacetime. Any 'Eighth-Tribulation realm secret treasure' forged by them was enough to drive Sixth-Tribulation realm mighty figures into a frenzy, desired yet unobtainable. The Primeval Stones they casually acquired from the 'Primeval Star' commanded extremely high prices. In any era, the emergence of an Eighth-Tribulation realm mighty figure would send tremors through the entire River of Spacetime; even Seventh-Tribulation realm mighty figures would desire to follow them.

The home worlds of Eighth-Tribulation realm mighty figures possessed foundations far beyond imagination.

Mong Hu could now only hope that his home, the Heavenly Dream Realm, could help him; otherwise, his cultivation would be stalled forever.

"Mong Hu destroyed this true body?" Old Devil Heifeng, who was also on the second path, watched Mong Hu vanish completely in the distance ahead of him. He was momentarily stunned, and a chill ran through his heart.

"He chose the same path as me, so why would he destroy this true body? Did he discover a hidden danger in this path?" Old Devil Heifeng grew uneasy.

His method for traversing the second path differed from Mong Hu's.

From the beginning, he noticed that the mighty figures he possessed would repeatedly overlap. Being extremely cautious, he chose to only comprehend six of them, discarding all others and refraining from any comprehension even when possessing them.

He only comprehended six of them!

Moreover, all six of them primarily focused on 'wind'.

In over five years, Old Devil Heifeng had possessed these six chosen mighty figures, with the least frequent being over two hundred times, and the most frequent exceeding a thousand times. Evidently, the Sixth-Tribulation realm mighty figures available for possession on the second path numbered around ten thousand, and they would overlap repeatedly. Each possession represented a different period in those mighty figures' lives, yielding varying insights.

After five years, Old Devil Heifeng felt quite good about his progress.

"Although the number of Sixth-Tribulation realm mighty figures I've comprehended is fewer, they are all very suitable for me. I feel I'm close to mastering a third rule," Old Devil Heifeng mused.

"Even though it feels good, I still need to be careful. After all, Mong Hu destroyed one of his true bodies." Old Devil Heifeng, while still coveting the opportunities here, became even more cautious, fearing Mong Hu had discovered some unknown danger.

However, until he discovered a significant danger, Old Devil Heifeng was reluctant to leave.

Such opportunities, once missed, would be hard to come by again.

"Eight years have passed."

Fu Sui was the fastest, and his cultivation progressed most smoothly, consistently maintaining a state of enlightenment.

In eight years, he had traveled over thirty thousand li.

"Although I've traveled thirty thousand li, this path is truly long; I still can't see its end," Fu Sui thought. He was now enveloped in mists, barely able to see a hundred li above him, as the path continuously extended upwards.

"I can feel I'm getting closer and closer to the Sixth-Tribulation realm."

"Within a few years, I'm certain I'll grasp the Sixth-Tribulation realm rules."

Fu Sui was filled with fervor, advancing step by step.

Meng Chuan was the slowest among them, especially as the pressure on his mind and consciousness increased, even affecting the cultivation of his other external avatars. Naturally, Meng Chuan began to slow down, as he still needed to maintain two to three-tenths of his mental effort for his external activities.

This was Meng Chuan's tenth year on the third path, and he had only covered a little over three thousand li.

He could now hear a vast, surging sound coming from the direction of the mountain peak. However, after traveling such a great distance and being subjected to various invisible interferences, the sound remained intermittent. Yet, he could clearly discern individual words, each striking his primordial spirit and mind like a sledgehammer. Meng Chuan, however, had already grown accustomed to it.

He could clearly feel the stimulation each word inflicted on his primordial spirit and its impact on his mind and consciousness. Through prolonged resistance, he had gradually learned the most effective ways to counteract each type of influence.

Through this confrontation, Meng Chuan could feel his willpower strengthening.

This 'strengthening' was very slow; often, he would see no progress for a year or even half a year. Furthermore, as he advanced, the pressure intensified, turning the experience into a nightmare. Yet, by persevering through this 'nightmare' for three to five years, his willpower would undergo a qualitative change, making resistance feel much easier.

"In nearly ten years on this path, my willpower has clearly improved three times," Meng Chuan thought, feeling pleased.

The first improvement occurred in the second year of his journey.

The second was in the fifth year.

And the third, just now, in the tenth year.

Cultivation is the process of repeatedly refining oneself amidst setbacks, striving for perfection. Mental cultivation is no different; by enduring mental attacks, one can also discover their own mental shortcomings. The more refined and perfect one's mind becomes through this tempering, the stronger it will grow.

Only a sufficiently powerful mind can withstand the even vaster primordial spirit world in the future.