Chapter 458: Awakening and Integration, the Transmission Tower Opens

Zhao Xing’s true body was secretly sent to the Academy City for treatment, while his remnant soul meditated on the cultivation chapter of the "Seven Apertures Heart Sealing Method" in a secret space on Crystal Island, Jia Chen Pass.

More than 230 years have passed since the Narcissus Festival sacrificial incident.

The Lingxu Origin Realm had long been conquered, and its internal races became subservient to humanity.

The benefits brought by the Lingxu Origin Realm were immense, as it contained an incredibly rich abundance of treasures that could be mined, cultivated, and grown.

This led to the rise of many powerful new families and ignited a new wave of exploration in the desolate regions.

Unlike Zhao Xing's personal fortunes, the Great Zhou Dynasty had a remarkably smooth journey over these past two centuries.

An Origin Realm was discovered on the Haitong Ancient Path, but during its exploration, only one million people were allowed to enter, making the quotas extremely limited.

Many powerful families were not satisfied with this, so as soon as the Lingxu Origin Realm was discovered, many turned their attention to other ancient paths.

If a new Origin Realm could be found on the Haitong Ancient Path, then surely there might be more in the surrounding areas?

Consequently, the Langping Ancient Path, relatively close to Haitong Ancient Path, quickly became another popular direction for exploration.

Thanks to Zhao Xing's status as a First-Class Haitong Emissary, the Great Zhou Dynasty established an early foothold in the Wangliang Star Zone of the Langping Ancient Path.

Because they could use the teleportation arrays of the Haitong Ancient Path to take shortcuts, they earned immense profits even just from transporting goods.

What's more, the Great Zhou itself was very proactive, with both its rulers and ministers maintaining a spirit of aggressive advancement.

Why did Zhao Xing say that Wei Tianchen's capture of him was a good thing?

Because when Wei Tianchen was 'fishing' for him, he used very generous bait.

He intentionally allowed Emperor Wu Ji Che to obtain a batch of fate-enhancing treasures. Their quality was not low, with the most valuable item reaching the level of a top-tier Samsara Dao Weapon!

Even more precious were the ancient cultivation texts on fate that Wei Tianchen gifted, which were extremely rare documents even in the era of the Five Emperors.

For the Great Zhou, they were truly invaluable treasures, capable of promoting the development of the Great Zhou's fate system.

Of course, while Zhao Xing thought the bait was significant, in Wei Tianchen's eyes, it was negligible.

Wei Tianchen possessed many divine artifacts, so what was one fate-enhancing Samsara Dao Weapon? As for ancient texts, he could simply make a copy from his collection.

As long as he could obtain the Seven-Star Dou Cabinet, Wei Tianchen felt he would make a huge profit.

He had originally planned to use even heavier bait, after all, that was Emperor Tianning, who had dominated the Yuanhai Dharma Assembly!

"Wei Tianchen is truly a treasure of an old man," Zhao Xing mused as he reviewed information about the Great Zhou.

Because of Wei Tianchen's intervention, both he and the Great Zhou had benefited.

The Great Zhou's foundation had been completely transformed compared to before the exploration of the desolate regions, now boasting nine Samsara Realm guest elders! One of them was even a seasoned Samsara Realm practitioner. And they still had a very long lifespan.

"The physician profession really is profitable," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "An old physician like Wei Tianchen possesses the ability to save emperors. Demanding half the saved person's fortune for a casual rescue wouldn't be excessive; it could even be considered merciful. His esteemed reputation must have come from this."

"He has lived for over two hundred epochs, so his personal wealth must be immense."

"If I could capture him, I wonder how many gold coins he would drop."

In terms of wealth alone, Zhao Xing even felt that Qingyuzi didn't possess as much as Wei Tianchen!

As for connections, the Ancient Physician's network was also formidable.

Currently, the four major powers—Archaic Hill, Red Star Empire, Origin Heavenly Palace, and Ancient Nations Alliance—had been hunting him for over two hundred years, capturing a large number of his disciples, but still hadn't found Wei Tianchen himself.

Zhao Xing refused to believe that no one was helping Wei Tianchen hide.

"He probably won't show up anytime soon, likely holed up somewhere trying to decipher the Seven-Star Dou Cabinet."

"However, he will definitely come looking for me again."

In his previous life, Wei Tianchen, acquiring the cabinet alone, might not have discovered the most precious secrets within the Seven-Star Dou Cabinet.

But in this life, with his involvement, especially at the last moment, when Zuo Qiyu swapped out his remnant soul and he survived, Wei Tianchen would surely gradually realize something was amiss.

Of course, what Zhao Xing had to worry about now was not Wei Tianchen, but the demigod scholar Bovay, who was close at hand.

"My true body has been taken into the Eighth Dharma Realm by Bovay for two hundred years now, and my remnant soul has no idea what he has done to me."

"What's certain is that he will definitely revive me and also list me as a candidate for the God-Creation Project," Zhao Xing mused.

Grand Scholar Bovay, after opening the Eighth Dharma Realm, had seen his status and prestige skyrocket.

If he were to also revive Zhao Xing, who was afflicted with the True Spirit Heavenly Poison, his reputation and standing would surpass all previous Grand Elders of the Academy City.

Anything he wanted to do would be incredibly convenient, and it was even highly probable that families would rush to send their prodigies to Bovay for training.

Scholars could teach and impart knowledge, providing enlightenment, and their image had always been one of greatness and righteousness.

Who could have imagined that Bovay would sacrifice over fifty thousand Samsara Realm individuals to create a god?

"Hm?"

Zhao Xing suddenly felt a ripple in his mind.

Subsequently, his remnant soul seemed to experience a hallucination.

A voice seemed to whisper in his ear.

"Gods are high above, selfish and self-serving..."

Who was speaking?

Zhao Xing paused, and the next moment he realized this wasn't a sound heard by his remnant soul, but by his true body.

"Is Bovay speaking to me?"

Zhao Xing vaguely felt the voice penetrate his soul, making it hard to forget.

"That old man is indeed brainwashing me."

He immediately mobilized his Azureflower Dharma Power to protect his soul; as Azureflower Dharma Power encompassed all great daos, Zhao Xing quickly erased the illusory sound.

After this incident, Zhao Xing vaguely sensed that his true body was about to awaken.

This was because his remnant soul immediately felt coldness and pain, and the fact that the remnant soul could perceive the sensations of the true body's soul core proved that the soul core within the true body was awakening.

"Gods are high above, selfish and self-serving. If you become a god, you should hunt gods."

Inside the Eighth Dharma Realm, Bovay looked at the naked Zhao Xing in the ice coffin, muttering incantations.

Each word he uttered was as if it had substance, then sank into Zhao Xing's body.

For two hundred years, Bovay had repeated this process daily before Zhao Xing's ice coffin.

"Bovay, do you think the God Realm can be controlled?" In the mirror behind him, a white-haired old man appeared.

"You want to create a God Realm being, control a God Realm being, and use them for your own ends?"

"Master, your vision is too narrow," Bovay shook his head. "You can no longer understand me."

"I truly cannot understand you," Zhixin sighed. "Ever since you became a Seven Realms Scholar, I haven't been able to see through you."

"True, you would certainly not tell me your true thoughts, lest you reveal heavenly secrets."

"I want to lead the Academy City and humanity to live better lives. That is the truth," Bovay said. "Master, I need your cooperation."

Zhixin had been refined into a tool spirit by his disciple, yet he couldn't bring himself to hate Bovay.

"I am already a tool spirit; how else can I cooperate with you?"

As the true body was about to awaken, the pain affected the remnant soul, and Zhao Xing's cultivation speed slowed down again.

After condensing the third wisp of Azureflower Dharma Power, he could no longer condense a fourth.

In the 247th year of his true body's slumber, the pain reached its limit, and even his remnant soul showed signs of impending collapse.

"Aaaahhh!"

The Grand Void Straw Effigy's face contorted in agony as it rolled on the ground.

The pain was unbearable, so excruciating!

Zhao Xing clutched his head and crashed into a mountain range, which collapsed with a thunderous roar, countless boulders crashing down on him, yet this physical pain was less than a ten-thousandth of the agony in his soul.

When the true body was asleep, there was no connection between its soul core and the remnant soul, so even if the True Spirit Heavenly Poison flared up, the remnant soul couldn't feel it.

But as the true body's soul slowly awakened, the remnant soul also began to feel the pain.

"Haaah… hisss…"

Zhao Xing pounded the ground with his hands, gasping continuously.

The attacks had a cycle, and now the pain had somewhat subsided.

"It's truly terrifying. The True Spirit Heavenly Poison I'm experiencing is probably less than a ten-millionth of its full power, yet even this tiny sensation nearly caused my remnant soul to collapse."

"And my remnant soul possesses peak second-order will!"

The True Spirit Heavenly Poison within the true body was suppressed by the Ten Cold Ice Coffin and further weakened by Bovay using ancient methods.

The remnant soul could feel less than a ten-millionth of it, and even that was almost enough to shatter it.

The True Spirit Heavenly Poison was indeed terrifying, truly a horrific poison capable of killing demigods. Even reincarnation couldn't escape its grasp.

"If it weren't suppressed and the poison source were allowed to erupt, my soul probably wouldn't last half a second."

"If the True Spirit Heavenly Poison is already this terrifying, I wonder how horrifying the Desolate God Poison is."

As time passed, the pain Zhao Xing's remnant soul felt slowly diminished after peaking, proving that Bovay's treatment was effective.

In the 254th year of his true body's slumber, Zhao Xing's remnant soul was able to completely ignore the pain and could control five wisps of Azureflower Dharma Power.

At this point, his Grand Void Straw Effigy clone alone could, in its normal state, rival a seasoned Samsara Realm practitioner.

By using Azureflower Dharma Power, he could unleash five ultimate moves comparable to a Lord-level combatant!

"Once my soul merges with my true body, and my soul becomes stronger, I will surely be able to control more Azureflower Dharma Power. I wonder when my true body will awaken." Zhao Xing also looked forward to his early recovery.

After all, the life extension limit in Academy City was three hundred years, and 254 years had already passed, leaving him with not much time.

In the 257th year, the remnant soul, meditating on the cultivation chapter, suddenly felt a stir in his heart and looked in a certain direction.

In the distant Academy City, Zhao Xing's true body slowly opened its eyes, a flicker of black light passing through them before quickly returning to normal.

At this point, the remnant soul and true body only had a vague connection, but the true body lacked the remnant soul's memories.

Therefore, Zhao Xing's true body's memories still stopped at the second before the Ancient Physician inflicted the True Spirit Heavenly Poison upon him.

"Y-you are Scholar Bovay?" Zhao Xing struggled to get up, feeling his spiritual body heavy and his thoughts somewhat sluggish.

"It is I," Bovay nodded. "Zhao Xing, you are currently receiving treatment in Scholar City. Two hundred and fifty-seven years have passed. How do you feel?"

Zhao Xing moved his body, finding that his spiritual body was unharmed, without a single injury.

But he always felt his head was heavy, and his thoughts were sluggish.

Looking inward at his Life Palace, he could see his Life Soul was riddled with holes and completely enveloped by black liquid.

"I-I feel very unwell," Zhao Xing articulated with difficulty. "It's hard to even circulate my Dharma Power."

He subconsciously tried to cast a spell, but found he couldn't even open his Origin Space. He wanted to cast a spell, but after forming the thought, it took about ten seconds for a spark to appear at his fingertip, which quickly extinguished.

"H-how could this be...?"

"You're not fully recovered yet," Bovay conversed with Zhao Xing through the ice coffin. "The True Spirit Heavenly Poison has now bound your soul. Your thoughts, which control your body's Dharma Power for spellcasting, originally transmitted almost instantly, in about a thousandth of an 'immeasurable moment'. Now, it has slowed down by approximately ten thousand times."

"So any spell you cast will only manifest after ten seconds."

Zhao Xing stared blankly for a long moment, and only ten seconds later did a wry smile slowly appear on his face, like a sloth.

Yes, the situation was indeed as Bovay had described.

Because his soul was enveloped by black liquid, thoughts transmitted out as if navigating through layers of a labyrinth.

However, now they could be transmitted, as the black liquid was layered, and Bovay had used a unique method to reverse its binding effect.

The current situation was that Bovay had controlled the poison's outbreak but had not yet completely purged it. The poison affected Zhao Xing's soul's thinking speed, thereby limiting his spellcasting speed.

"Elder Bovay, am I out of danger now?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Yes, the first stage of treatment is complete. Restraining the poison and allowing you to awaken was the first step."

"Next, you will proceed with the second stage of rehabilitation treatment. However, you awakened faster than I expected, so the second stage of rehabilitation should also be quicker than anticipated."

"Thank you, Grand Elder," Zhao Xing breathed a sigh of relief.

For him, a Life-and-Death Dao Domain Realm practitioner, to awaken from the invasion of the True Spirit Heavenly Poison was extremely rare. Bovay's treatment methods were indeed brilliant.

Being alive and having hope for a full recovery was already excellent.

"Alas, my power is still too weak," Bovay said with some regret. "If a God Realm being were willing to expend a bit of divine power to heal you, perhaps you could escape danger and recover even faster."

"However, God Realm beings do not concern themselves with worldly affairs, and the Academy City has no God Realm beings. You still have