Darkness covered the sky, and the mountains were deathly still. Above the clouds, lightning surged through rolling black thunderclouds like divine wrath descending from the heavens.
At the edge of a towering cliff, a lone figure sat cross-legged. His black hair danced in the wind, his robes fluttered, and his entire body radiated with spiritual light—like a god descended upon the mortal realm.
This was Ye Chen, the universally acknowledged number one genius of the cultivation world. At only thirty years of age, he had reached the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. Now, he stood at the most critical juncture of his life—transcending the heavenly tribulation to enter Soul Transformation.
If he succeeded, he would cast off mortality, roam the void, and step into the realm of true immortality.
He sat with eyes closed, spiritual energy surging like a raging ocean within him. Deep in his dantian, a golden infant figure spun silently, radiating pure and majestic aura. His divine sense enveloped the surroundings, and even the grass and trees bowed before it.
"My Nascent Soul is stable. My spiritual sea is clear. If the heavens do not stop me today—then I shall ascend."
As if responding to this declaration, the skies trembled and thunder roared.
The clouds churned violently. Countless bolts of lightning crisscrossed the sky, and divine pressure descended.
Boom!
The first bolt of heavenly tribulation struck like a divine spear, slamming down upon Ye Chen.
He opened his eyes suddenly, as sharp as blades. His hands formed seals, and protective spiritual light surged around him, forcibly resisting the lightning's impact. Blood seeped from the corners of his mouth, but he remained motionless.
The second bolt, the third… the sixth!
Each thunderstrike was like the hammer of divine judgment. His protective light cracked, his golden core trembled, and his entire body was charred. Yet Ye Chen sat unmoved, enduring each wave of destruction with unyielding will.
When the seventh strike descended, his expression finally changed.
"This power... is not ordinary thunder tribulation."
He instantly realized the truth.
This was no ordinary ninefold tribulation—it was the legendary Heaven-Slaying Tribulation, which only descended upon those who defied fate itself.
"The heavens… refuse to tolerate me?"
Ye Chen laughed, blood trailing from his lips, his voice filled with unshakable pride.
"Very well! If the heavens wish to destroy me—then I shall defy the heavens!"
With a flick of divine thought, he reached deep into his spiritual sea—
There lay a fractured, gray ancient ring: the Soul Seal Ring, forged by Ye Chen himself to preserve his soul and legacy should his body ever perish.
"Even in death, I will endure."He bit through his tongue and spat a mouthful of blood onto the ring.
Crack!
The ancient ring shattered, releasing a swirl of gray light that instantly wrapped around his soul.
BOOM!!!
The final bolt of lightning roared down like a pillar of divine judgment.
Ye Chen's body exploded. His golden core shattered. His world turned black.
Only a wisp of soul remained—torn from reality and cast into the abyss.
…
Darkness.
An endless, formless darkness.
Ye Chen drifted, stripped of sense and thought, his soul adrift in a sea of void.
Until one day… a flicker of light appeared.It grew brighter.Closer.
CRASH!
Agonizing pain returned.
Ye Chen gasped and opened his eyes. Pain surged through every bone, every nerve, as if his entire body had been burned and broken.
He sat up with effort, finding himself on a cracked stone bed in a dark, decaying chamber. The air was stale and reeked of blood and mold. His surroundings were filthy and unfamiliar.
"Where… am I?"
His mind reeled, and then—memories not his own flooded in.
This world was not his. It was called the Cangyan Kingdom, and the body he now inhabited belonged to a youth also named Ye Chen—a prince, but a disgraced one.
Born of a low-ranking consort. Labeled a cripple since birth. Fifteen years old and still had not awakened battle energy. Mocked by the court as the "Useless Seventh Prince." Just yesterday, he had been ambushed and nearly killed by his elder brother during a power struggle for the throne.
"So… I've possessed this body?"
Ye Chen sat in silence, absorbing the memories. His soul had merged completely. His divine consciousness was stable. This body now belonged to him.
"A useless prince, is it?"He let out a cold chuckle."Fine. Then let me, Ye Chen, walk the path anew in your place."
He closed his eyes and tried to circulate his energy—but found his meridians blocked and his dantian dry, devoid of any power.
But then—
"Hmm?"
A soft glow flickered in the depths of his spiritual sea.
It was the gray Soul Seal Ring—the same one from his past life. It hovered quietly, releasing gentle pulses of spiritual energy.
"You came with me?"
Ye Chen focused his mind and touched the ring with his consciousness.
A surge of familiar warmth responded.The ring opened.
Pill recipes. Techniques. Formation diagrams. Spirit herb records. And—most importantly—his unique divine method: Void Refining Soul Technique.
Even in this barren world, the inheritance of his past life had arrived with him.
He immediately sat down cross-legged and began drawing the faint spiritual energy into his body, forcing it through the blocked meridians.
Even a single strand of spiritual energy is enough. If I can breathe it—I can cultivate.
Moments passed.
Ye Chen opened his eyes. Calm, cold, unshakable.
His power was gone. His body was weak. His world had changed.
But so long as he lived, he would rise again.
"New world... Let's see what you have that can stop me."
…
Beyond the ruined chamber, beneath the flickering palace torches, a shadowy figure stood atop a distant wall, looking down upon the Seventh Prince's quarters with disdain.
"Still alive, are you? Hmph… a cripple is still a cripple. If he dares appear in the trial tomorrow, I'll make sure he dies for real."