Planet Pulverizer: A Mortal's Ascent-Chapter 615: Dao

Every Astral God's avatar in the grand hall bowed toward the descending figure.

"Hall Master," greeted the Astral Gods in unison.

The figure was none other than the Hall Master of the Void Divine Treasury Hall, Twilight Radiance, Mu Hai. He was an elite being of the Astral World and a wielder of great divine power.[1]

Even within the Astral World's orthodox authority, the Myriad Astral God Hall, such an existence stood beyond command. He could choose to obey the court's decrees or ignore them at will.

For any gathering or banquet held by the Myriad Astral God Hall, an invitation to him was mandatory. Whether he chose to attend depended entirely on his mood.

This was the presence of a Cosmic Radiance. They were true sovereigns who stood above all Solar Flare and Starshine Astral Gods in both the Material and the Astral World.

Mu Hai nodded before turning his gaze toward Li Pin.

The moment their eyes met, Li Pin was struck by an overwhelming sense of exposure. He felt like he had become an open book, completely exposed, all his secrets out in the open. His once tranquil inner spirit lake rippled, each wave threatening to project his thoughts outward.

Li Pin understood what this was. It was the True Spirit.

To a being of Cosmic Radiance, any lifeform that had yet to condense True Spirit was transparent. Their thoughts, emotions, and intentions were fully revealed. If these beings chose to reflect upon someone with their True Spirit, everything would be seen with absolute clarity.

Just like now. Even with Li Pin's mind as calm as a still lake, the reflection of the True Spirit stirred ripples, bringing forth fleeting images.

Yet as he forcibly steadied his consciousness, the disturbances faded. The ripples vanished, and his mind returned to complete stillness, clear and undisturbed.

Mu Hai's eyes suddenly flashed with a hint of surprise. Soon, he smiled, not pushing further.

If he truly wished to see, nothing could remain hidden from him. But there was no need. Such a pure mind was already on the verge of forming a True Spirit. If Li Pin could break through the Void Divine Treasure World, the rewards that came with it would be enough to pave his path toward Cosmic Radiance.

Besides... in that brief moment, Mu Hai had already seen all he needed.

Li Pin's every action since entering the divine treasure world, his understanding of the Void Emperor Baili Qingfeng, his patient wait for Baili Qingfeng's growth and transformation into the Void Emperor... and their final battle.

In that fight, Li Pin had discovered a unique method to defeat the so-called invincible Void Emperor in Baili Zhu's eyes. He broke through the divine treasure world's fundamental laws, triggering its self-regulating mechanisms, and was ultimately expelled.

Mu Hai let out a small laugh and offered his praise. "Impressive."

Overcoming a divine treasure world left behind by a fallen being of Cosmic Radiance. Such a feat was worthy of recognition.

However, considering Li Pin's mastery over his own inner spirit... it was understandable.

Even so, Mu Hai's remark sent waves through the grand hall. The gathered Astral Gods, including Eternal Solar Flare like Yun Tu, Ran Shenji, and Bai Chao, turned their gazes in astonishment.

Mu Hai had achieved an unparalleled feat of ascending over eighty steps on the Supreme Ladder. Most Astral Gods, not even Eternal Solar Flares, could earn such praise from him.

Yet now... he had used the word "impressive" to describe a mere Divine Being.

"I am already aware of what transpired in the Void Divine Treasure World. You handled it well. Stay and rest in the Hall for now. If you need anything... Bai Chao, see that his requests are met."

Then, he added, specifically addressing Bai Chao, "Any requests within ten million Divine Treasury Points do not require my approval."

"Ten million Divine Treasury Points!?"

Gasps filled the hall. Yun Tu, Ran Shenji, Bai Chao, and the other Astral Gods were visibly shaken.

That was an astronomical sum!

Many Astral Gods with shallow foundations would not have that kind of wealth even if they combined their entire fortunes.

Li Pin could access such an immense amount freely? Without needing to report it?

Ran Shenji opened his mouth, wanting to say something. "Hall Master..."

But before he could, Mu Hai had already turned back to Li Pin. "I will submit your profile for consideration in the Supreme Council's Eternal Ascent of Humanity Initiative. I expect you to perform well."

"Eternal Ascent of Humanity!?"

The hall stirred once more. Some Astral Gods even drew sharp breaths.

Ran Shenji's pupils dilated sharply. "Hall Master... Li Pin... he... he's only a Divine Being!"

"Yes," responded Mu Hai, nodding but offering no further explanation. He looked at Li Pin and said, "Go back and take your time to absorb the insights from your battle with the Void Emperor."

Li Pin nodded. "Alright."

He really did need to properly digest and organize his thoughts.

Once Li Pin left, Ran Shenji couldn't help but say, "Hall Master, the Eternal Ascent of Humanity concerns the revitalization of the entire Human Race. Those who qualify for it are almost without exception the brightest talents of humanity.

"At the very least, they have reached the pinnacle of their respective fields. Each one of them is nurtured as a Cosmic Radiance, with a greater than ten percent chance of achieving that status. But Li Pin... he's just a Divine Being. He's not even an Astral God...."

"Don't use your perspective to judge those who are truly extraordinary," Mu Hai replied.

He didn't elaborate further. He had noticed that Li Pin wasn't too pleased with having his inner spirit reflected through True Spirit.

With a faint smile, he added, "There's a difference between a prodigy and an ordinary person. Even those hailed as geniuses pale in comparison. If you can't get used to that... you'll only make things harder for yourself."

With that, he turned into a stream of light and vanished from everyone's perception.

In a regional Divine Treasury Hall, even if it was a forbidden divine treasure world, having a Cosmic Radiance like him as its master was already considered an extravagant arrangement.

If not for the special nature of the Void Divine Treasure World and the fact that he had failed to breach it in the past, he wouldn't have paid such close attention to this hall or reacted so quickly.

As an ultimate lifeform, the greatness of a Cosmic Radiance was beyond imagination. As long as they weren't facing an equal, their True Spirit reflection allowed them to stand unfazed against the power of Eternal Oblivion.

After Mu Hai left, the other Astral Gods gathered and began whispering among themselves.

"It seems like Li Pin has caught the Hall Master's attention! The Eternal Ascent of Humanity initiative... Even though he's only submitted the application and it hasn't been approved yet, this indirectly suggests that the Hall Master believes he has the potential to become a Cosmic Radiance in the future!"

"What exactly did he do in the divine treasure world?"

"The Hall Master refused to explain, which means it involves highly classified information. We should avoid probing too much and just follow orders."

"Ten million Divine Treasury Points, freely at his disposal... Speaking of which, my wealth may exceed ten million, but if I had to immediately withdraw that much for a transaction, I wouldn't be able to do it without selling off my assets."

Amidst the discussions, many Astral Gods began to form their own thoughts.

Li Pin might still be a mere Divine Being for now, but once he overcame the initial hardships of merging into the Astral World, his growth would far outpace that of other Astral Gods. And with the potential he had just shown... surviving the initial stage didn't seem like a problem at all.

At that moment, Astral God Mi Meng and others had already begun thinking about how to form closer ties with him.

***

Inside the Divine Treasury Hall, Li Pin quickly arrived at his new residence under the guidance of Luo Fang, the hall's key intelligence personnel.

Compared to his previous living quarters, everything here, from its size to its various arrangements, had been significantly upgraded.

However, Li Pin paid attention to none of it. The moment he arrived, he headed straight for the training area to reflect on all he had gained from his time in the divine treasure world.

At first, he believed his greatest gain was a deeper understanding of his inner spirit power. The Inner Spirit Lake had undoubtedly been steadily forging the foundation of his True Spirit.

But as he carefully recalled the entire experience... something felt off.

He replayed the events in his mind.

"The Void Emperor...."

My existence had threatened to shatter the divine treasure world. To prevent me from destroying it, the Void Emperor had revealed himself and kicked me out.

But... a divine treasure world is unimaginably vast and indestructible. Even if an Eternal Solar Flare descended in person, they might not be able to obliterate it.

The Void Divine Treasure World, in particular, had been personally reinforced by the Void Emperor. Even the Twilight Radiance Astral God had failed to destroy it back then. The most he had managed was to tear a rift and escape, proving just how resilient the world truly was.

And yet... I, a mere Divine Being, vastly inferior to any Astral God's true form, somehow managed to collapse the Void Divine Treasure World, a world that even Cosmic Radiance couldn't destroy?

He meticulously reviewed every moment of his battle against the Void Emperor and the subsequent arrival of the real one.

Again and again, until eventually, he focused on a single image.

"Dao," he murmured.

Dao. The Dao of Evolution. The Dao of Transcendence.

But... the Dao spoken of by the Void Emperor seemed different from the one he understood.

Li Pin repeated the word, "Dao!"

What is my Dao? The nascent form of my Dao is nothing more than an unwavering belief.

Perhaps, when he became an Astral God and reached Eternal Solar Flare, this belief would become so firm and unyielding that it would transform into an obsession, allowing him to leave behind a divine treasure world. But... that was all to it.

For a cultivator, having unshakable faith was not unusual, right?

At least, Li Pin thought so. It seemed reasonable.

So why... why did the Void Emperor seem to think otherwise?

Lost in thought, he activated his communication bracelet and used his Ace Pioneer-level privileges to search the Void Divine Treasury Hall's database for all information related to the Dao.

The results were vague and contradictory.

After a long while, Li Pin let out a long sigh.

Either I'm overthinking it... or the so-called Dao is another classified subject, just like Transcendence.

His privileges weren't enough. It seemed the best way for him to find answers was to increase his strength as soon as possible.

With this thought, he calmed his mind and turned his attention to the Inner Spirit Lake, which had almost no resistance before Twilight Radiance. "True Spirit..."

1. Every Cosmic Radiance Astral God has their own alias, for instance, Yin Luo is the Light of the Ark Astral God. In Mu Hai's case, he is the Twilight Radiance Astral God. ☜