Translator: CinderTL
Upon reaching the Core Formation Realm, cultivators gain complete mastery over their physical bodies. Growing three heads and six arms becomes a trivial matter.
From the Nascent Soul stage onward, a cultivator's focus gradually shifts from refining Essence, Qi, and Spirit to cultivating Mystical Powers and nurturing their Primordial Spirit.
By the Void Refining stage, cultivators can wield Mind Power to embody cosmic laws, transcending their physical form and achieving a state where the immortality of their Heart-Mind guarantees their own.
However, a fundamental limitation remains: the Heart-Mind, the essence of the mind, originates from Essence Qi, which itself is rooted in the physical body.
Consequently, newly advanced Void Refining cultivators, even those who have manifested their Dharma Aspects, cannot completely shed the shackles of their physical bodies as the source of Essence Qi.
If their physical form perishes and their Essence Qi supply is severed, even though a cultivator's Dharma Aspect might persist briefly by drawing upon its stored cosmic laws and Mind Power, it will ultimately fade away like rootless duckweed, vanishing without a trace.
This limitation, however, is shattered during the transition from Void Refining to Supreme Sage.
The Dharma Aspect merges with Essence, Qi, and Spirit, drawing its power not from the physical body's reserves, but directly from the laws of the Cosmos.
At this stage, cultivators sustain themselves by directly absorbing power from these cosmic laws.
Once this step is achieved, the constraints of being carbon-based, silicon-based, plasma-based, or information-based lifeforms lose all meaning. They transcend such classifications and can truly be called Law Lifeforms.
Therefore, judging whether a being belongs to the Human Race solely based on its humanoid appearance becomes irrelevant.
Instead, membership in the Human Race is determined by the fundamental nature of one's mind and the degree to which one identifies with humanity as a whole.
Even an Undying Flaming Phoenix, if raised among humans from birth by some of humanity's greatest figures and fully embracing human definitions and culture, could be granted human status.
The Immortal God Race follows a similar principle.
Though originally a splinter group from the Divine Race, tens of thousands of years of separation have led them to consider themselves part of the Human Race.
Within their territory, when subjects reach the Third-Tier of cultivation and gain the ability to alter their physical forms, they invariably transform themselves into human appearances.
Even First and Second-Tier subjects go to great lengths to modify their forms, some even developing arcane arts like the Transformation Art specifically to appear more human.
Li Chunjun had learned some details about the Immortal God Race from the Wood Spirit Clan.
This race has long strived to join the Human Race, constantly racking their brains for ways to achieve this goal.
However, lacking true Dao Unification experts, they have never been formally recognized as a subordinate race by the Human Race.
But Li Chunjun, armed with his own human identity...
If the Immortal God Race truly exists within this Lesser Thousand World, obtaining the information he seeks from them should be straightforward.
A seven-colored rainbow light streaked across the void.
A meteoroid orbiting the shattered Lesser Thousand World was instantly pulverized into cosmic dust by the shockwave generated by this void-rending force.
As the residual energy dissipated, Li Chunjun's figure materialized.
After briefly calming the surrounding energy, his gaze returned to the shattered Lesser Thousand World beneath his feet.
Then...
The rainbow light flared anew!
Li Chunjun tore through the void, his radiant figure hurtling directly into a patch of empty space within the shattered world.
At that moment, fourteen figures, divided into three distinct formations, were pursuing a rapidly fleeing warship.
These fourteen figures...
At first glance, they appeared indistinguishable from humans, save for their attire, which leaned toward ancient styles.
Their powers closely resembled those of Primordial Spirit Cultivators, each wielding mystical powers as they relentlessly chased the warship.
Despite their speed, Su Fang's warship, powered by the Golden Crow Battleship engine, was clearly faster.
Having already transmitted his message, Li Chunjun had put over a thousand miles between himself and his pursuers.
At that moment, the Seven-Colored Rainbow Light he rode tore through the void and arrived.
The space occupied by the six Fifth-Tier Cultivators trailing the warship shattered instantly under the Rainbow Light's assault, like glass struck by a bullet.
The resulting shockwave of spatial fragmentation engulfed the six figures, tearing their bodies to shreds in an instant.
Bereft of their hosts, the six Heart Demons were forced to manifest simultaneously.
Four of them roared, unleashing mind-shattering shrieks as they lunged at Li Chunjun.
The remaining two seemed more cautious, their expressions a mixture of astonishment and suspicion.
The Scarlet Sky Sword swirled around them, while Li Chunjun's Divine Sense, imbued with Mind Power, spread like a vast net, ensnaring the Heart Demons and forcibly dragging them toward him.
This happened even faster than the four Heart Demons who had already been intent on diving straight for Li Chunjun to corrupt his mind.
The four Heart Demons froze momentarily, confused by the human's sudden actions. Before they could react, Li Chunjun's divine sense power erupted once more.
"Come on in, all of you!"
Li Chunjun's raging Divine Sense, infused with Mind Power, surged toward the four Heart Demons, instantly dragging them back into his spiritual realm.
"Mind Power!"
The four Heart Demons, along with two others, trembled with shock and fury as the Heavenly Heart Eternal Method activated.
The four fully manifested Heart Demons were swiftly annihilated by Li Chunjun's Mind Power.
Having eliminated them, Li Chunjun didn't bother cleansing the residual mental pollution. As his Life Level increased, such impurities would naturally be purged from his spiritual realm.
Following the trajectory of Su Fang's retreating warship, Li Chunjun launched himself into the air with Escaping Light.
He activated the Void Heaven Flash, a technique for traversing space.
Simultaneously, his formidable Divine Sense rapidly expanded, catalyzed by his Divine Sense, quickly covering a radius of several thousand miles.
He couldn't be bothered to fly to the four nearest Heart Demons. Instead, he summoned the Scarlet Sky Sword, its form shifting at his will, and sent it howling through the atmosphere at hundreds of times the speed of sound.
By the time he finished hunting down those four Heart Demons, the remaining four had sensed the danger and were desperately trying to flee.
Unfortunately, against the swiftly arriving Li Chunjun, whose overwhelming power left them little chance, these four Heart Demon Vessels—capable of wielding at best the combat strength of a Ninth Tribulation True Monarch—were quickly dispatched.
However, Li Chunjun chose not to immediately refine the remaining eight Heart Demons. Instead, he suppressed them, intending to first replenish Elsa, Huang Tian, and Zuo Cheng's Mind Power. Against Heart Demons, lacking Mind Power left one utterly defenseless—it was no exaggeration to say they stood no chance whatsoever.
"Sword Master!" Su Fang and the others arrived in their warship as Li Chunjun, weakened but having subdued the Heart Demons, stood in the void.
"You've circled this Lesser Thousand World multiple times. Did you find any survivors?" Li Chunjun asked.
"The moment we entered, we were pursued by Heart Demon Vessels. We had no time to search..." Su Fang replied.
"I'll take a look," Li Chunjun said, his Divine Sense expanding as he attempted to merge his Mind Power with the World Will.
But within moments, he realized something.
"This world... is already dead."
Without Dao Rhythm, it was as good as being dead.
A dead Lesser Chiliocosm naturally lacked a "heart." Li Chunjun's attempt to replace the Heavenly Heart with his own, monitoring the entire realm, was futile.
"Let's search thoroughly," Li Chunjun ordered. "If any Immortal God Race members have survived, our status as humans and our record of destroying Heart Demons should compel them to reveal themselves."
He said "should," not "will," because during Su Fang's warship's escape from the Heart Demons, no Immortal God Race members had emerged to help.
Of course, this might have been due to their dwindling strength, making resistance impossible.
But it also indirectly proved that, aside from their leadership, not all Immortal God Race members were willing to prioritize the safety of human lives over their own.
"Understood," Su Fang replied respectfully.
Immediately, Primordial Spirit and Nascent Soul cultivators flew from the warship, beginning their comprehensive search of the Lesser Chiliocosm.
This Lesser Thousand World spanned eight hundred thousand li in diameter.
While the classification of a Lesser Thousand World wasn't solely determined by its size, its dimensions generally reflected its tier.
Worlds smaller than one hundred thousand li were typically classified as ordinary Lesser Thousand Worlds.
Those ranging from one hundred thousand to one million li were considered superior Lesser Thousand Worlds.
The most exceptional Lesser Thousand Worlds often exceeded one million li in area.
Measuring eight hundred thousand li across, this particular world fell just short of being considered top-tier.
Of course, the possibility remained that unique resources within this world could elevate its status.
For example, the Azure Star Minor Realm, due to its unique spatial position, possessed the foundational requirements for constructing Star Gates, propelling it from an ordinary Lesser Thousand World to a superior one.
Eight hundred thousand li wasn't particularly vast.
With over a hundred Primordial Spirit and Nascent Soul cultivators dispersed across the landscape, a comprehensive search could be conducted swiftly.
A complete survey of the entire world could be accomplished in just one or two days.
By midday, Li Chunjun had flushed out two more Heart Demons.
Just then, Su Fang sent a message: they had located survivors from the Immortal God Race.
Whoosh!
Li Chunjun transformed into a streak of Escaping Light and swiftly joined Su Fang, who was stationed six thousand li away, keeping watch and ready to assist.
Three figures with weakened auras and exhausted appearances stood beside Su Fang.
"Sword Master, these three are members of the Immortal God Race," Su Fang conveyed through Divine Sense. "They sought me out."
Li Chunjun turned his gaze to the trio.
Two men and a woman, all in human form.
Yet, under his Mind Power's perception, one of the men seemed to be a rooster in disguise. The other two weren't entirely human either, merely maintaining humanoid shapes.
As for their original species...
He didn't recognize them.
The Cosmic Void teemed with countless worlds, both vast and minute, each harboring a bewildering array of races. It wasn't uncommon for a single Lesser Thousand World to host dozens or even hundreds of distinct species.
Li Chunjun saw no need to investigate further. As long as these individuals embraced the ideals of the Human Race and maintained their human forms, he had no objections.
"Ri Ang, Bi Yan, and Liu Su, from Fu Feng World in the Green Mountain Domain of the Heavenly Fortune Immortal Dynasty, pay respects to the esteemed True Monarch of the Human Race," the three said, bowing deeply as Li Chunjun approached.
"The Heavenly Fortune Immortal Dynasty?"
Li Chunjun had learned a fair amount about these Immortal God Races from the Wood Spirit Clan.
The entire Immortal God Race referred to their newly formed Great World as the Great Earth Immortal World, dividing it into six major Immortal Dynasties.
Each dynasty occupied a fan-shaped territory, governing one of the cardinal directions.
The Heavenly Fortune Immortal Dynasty ruled the east, venerating the Azure Flower Emperor of the Eastern Pole.
However, due to the Wood Spirit Clan's limited knowledge, Li Chunjun's understanding remained vague.
He scrutinized the trio for a moment before abruptly asking, "You three... your Heart-Minds are depleted. Were you injured in battles against Heart Demons?"
"Yes," Ri Ang sighed. "The Heart Demons are formidable. Even with repeated divine possessions, we haven't been able to completely eradicate them."
"Hmm?" A thought struck Li Chunjun. "So, some of your people are still suffering from Heart Demon infestations?"
"Thirty-two Heart Demons remain sealed by us, yet beyond our control," Ri Ang replied truthfully.
"Lead the way."
(End of the Chapter)
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