[Myriad Tribulations.
What a dreadful thing they are.
Across my long life, I have undergone them twice.
The second time, I almost did not make it.
Truth be told.
I am not sure if I will survive the third.
That is why I.
The Sky Lord is writing this.
I wish that in case my death comes to be, not everything is lost.
In this diary, I have written all my knowledge, all my Immortal Gu Recipes, and Killer Moves, and the understanding I have gathered of this world.
Still.
This is just a precaution.
I WILL not fail, I CANNOT fail.
Not only do I possess more than four hundred thousand Cloud Dao Marks, but also more than two hundred thousand of Wind Path.
But I found the way to borrow the power of one another, the Dao Friction is almost inexistent. And when I use Dual Killer Moves, it's as if I had five hundred thousand of the former, and four hundred thousand of the latter.
I am also infinitely close to becoming a Supreme Grandmaster.
But I did not delve deep enough into the profundities of Yin-Yang.
Alas. I would like to study them more deeply and become a Supreme Grandmaster.
But my Tribulation approaches, I simply lack the time.
Regardless.
Even if I do survive the Tribulation, I already know that I will have to pay the price.
I have under my possession a Killer Move to sacrifice my lifespan in exchange for power; my count of Dao Marks will effectively double before the Tribulation, and for short bursts, it may even be as if I had five times the number.
I do not care if I only have a decade left on my body after surviving the Tribulation.
I must pass it.
Primordial Origin, Star Constellation, , and Limitless, they all demonstrate the obvious.
Venerables are invincible in the world; if I were to become one, not even the five regions together could compete against me.
A decade is more than enough to destroy Heavenly Court.
And with my understanding of Cloud and Wind Path, I can also track them in the two Heavens.
I can kill more than two-thirds of them.
With those two actions alone, we will gain respite. We will gain enough footing to one day reclaim the surface.
I cannot fail.
I will not fail…
…
...
...
The Tribulation.
It was just as fearsome as I predicted.
Almost every Immortal within the Clan has perished.
And yet, I remain.
And yet…
Nothing changed.
Apart from gaining several Dao Marks, my Aperture has not changed in the slightest.
Not a single change.
Why?
Why?
Why?
Is it because I am a Variant Human?
Were the rumors right?
…
…
…
I do not care anymore.
I already sacrificed my people, my lifespan. What sense is there in clinging to this body?
Even if I have to turn myself into the ones who destroyed my people, I no longer care.
As long as it gives me the power to destroy them, I will become one of them.
…
…
…
Even now.
Even after turning into this.
Nothing has changed.
My aperture remains at Rank 8.
But why? Was it because I had the Tribulation before turning myself human?
Or it does not count simply because I am not 'truly' a human?
I do not accept this.
I cannot accept this.
Even if all the roads have been cut by the Heavens, I will not give up.
I will find my own way.
….
….
…
'Condensed Steamy Cloud.'
This is my first success.
This Gu House uses the concept of building pressure to trigger a level of density beyond the expected limits, by using this and carefully built resources. I have been able to raise the level of Rank 5 Apertures to a level quasi-identical to one of Rank 6.
While the transformation was temporary, a total of two Dao Marks were engraved in the process.
And in the process, their Aperture was increased to 99.99% of Aptitude.
Infinitely close to a 100%, yet a step behind.
Unfortunately, Variant Humans cannot produce Extreme Physiques, even in the greatest of circumstances.
While the idea of using the Gu House to raise the aptitude of my Clan en masse sounds intriguing, it was far too expensive for a singular subject.
And while there may be a point in investing my time in this, to see if it can be applied on a larger scale, I simply lack the time to divert my attention; hopefully, the new generations to arrive may be able to bring this into motion.
…
…
…
The project has progressed splendidly. I have managed to raise the densities of Apertures of Rank 6 and even 7.
I have created Quasi-Rank 8 Apertures.
While a more lasting Transformation would be desired, a temporary ascension still proves rather useful.
If nothing else, our Clan may be able to temporarily produce a Rank 9 entity for a short period.
Which may prove useful on its own, but is not ultimately my goal.
Regardless. I am finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I only lack one step...
…
…
…
I am just one step away.
All my calculations, analysis, and even common sense and logic dictate that the transformation should take place.
I even experimented and was able to create Rank 9 Materials using this very process.
And yet.
As if the very world rejected the ascension of the aperture, it simply never condenses.
But why?
If Rank 9 were truly impossible, why have others achieved it?
And if the others could, what exactly do I lack to bring the sublimation?
Is it because the test-subjects I've been employing thus far, whilst being of Rank 8, lack the required number of Tribulations and Dao Marks to achieve the change?
I do not know.
Not a single case has survived. I do not wish to risk myself pointlessly, and yet, I am running out of fumes.
At this point, I have nothing to lose.
…
…
…
Failure. Another failure.
Why?
What am I lacking?
I feel that my step is just one research away from success, and yet I failed...
My aperture.
It shattered.
Before it killed me, I had to detach it.
Even then.
The damage I suffered in the process...
It's over.
I can no longer progress in my research.
But. Even if I cannot...Please do not let my research die with me.]
Those were the last words written in the diary.
Kao Zha Ji, who was reading the diary, closed his eyes solemnly.
"Even now…The truth seems so distant."
"We have speculated that one of the requirements must be to become a Supreme Grandmaster, but we are not sure, and we are not sure if it's only a few. Or if there are dozens of unique criteria."
Kao Zha Ji frowned deeply whilst pondering over this.
Such a manuscript was guided by the Will of the Sky Lord, and every generation of Supreme Leader was given it.
Countless other authors had written their own insights and answers, and had worked on top of his creations.
The current 'Condensed Steamy Cloud' was one such case, which was far more effective than when first invented.
Later generations even added the ability to transform those newly gained Dao Marks in those of other Paths.
Whilst others borrowed his idea of 'pressure' and 'quantity' to temporarily increase the Rank of objects, for Gu Refinement.
But there was one minor issue.
Those improvements did not belong to Cloud Path.
They belonged to Transformation and Water Path.
More than 90% of the improvements of his notes were made not by borrowing from Cloud Path, but by borrowing from other Dao's.
But it could not be helped.
The only thing he lacked to be a genuine Supreme Grandmaster was absolute mastery over Yin-Yang forces.
Even then, he made plenty of discoveries.
And regarding those profundities, it was well-known that to study them in earnest, one had to be a Great Grandmaster.
And Great Grandmasters are rare, especially those of Cloud Path.
And so.
Process stalled.
Kao Zha Ji sighed deeply.
So close, and yet so far from reach.
The results of Sky Lord had never brought fruit.
…
Briefly. The Supreme Leader turned his gaze towards the distant Kao Dao Ji before letting out a deep sigh.
"If he lives for a few thousand years in that state, will he be able to understand those depths?
Even if we fail to revive him, if this much is achieved.
It would be more than enough. For we would finally have a complete road.
We would only require a genius to grasp those notes, bring them to fruition, and to produce a singular insight of their own. And we would have a Supreme Grandmaster…" He pondered deeply.
Kao Zha Ji was still not sure how to guide the young Kao Dao Ji to focus on those two aspects.
But it still seemed so far, whilst he did not know what his current achievements were, he knew for certain he was not even a Quasi-Great Grandmaster yet, and before reaching such a level, there was no point in delving into that.
…
But as he turned his gaze in his direction.
His pupils suddenly widened.
He felt a disturbance within the surrounding clouds.
And as he did.
His expression hardened.
Immediately, he flew out.
…
Kao Dao Ji gritted his teeth.
"We have not gotten rid of even a fourth of those damned phantoms!" He cursed under his breath.
At the same time.
"Damn it…There must be something within that prophecy that can help me."
"The first part. It said something about a Dream come true? Does that have something to do with the Dream Seeker Physique? Fang Yuan said something about seeking the truth in a dream when he made the clone…"
Then he recalled the third part.
For the three bodies to escape, the five minds must unite —share their dream and escape the blight.
His pupils suddenly shone.
"Dreaming Gu. That's right, Dreaming Gu, it seems to be based around the Dream of its caster. However, I have under my possession Union Gu, could the two be used together somehow?" Speaking of Dreaming Gu, as Kao Dao Ji pondered further.
He recalled another thing.
"His inheritor, what was its name…Lu Wei Yin? He tried to redeem Fang Yuan within that dream realm, and the core of that Killer Move was 'Dreaming Gu.'
Maybe 'Dreaming' Gu's true effect is not to create an illusion, but a stable Dream World.
That may be what the prophecy talked about afterwards, but how exactly do I achieve this?"
There was no time to ponder.
He shouted.
"Le Tu, Uru Hong Jing. Come here, I think I have an idea that can get us out of this."
"Huh?"
The two turned their heads towards him before agreeing.
At this point.
It was obvious that it was impossible to get out of their current predicament with their current approach, especially because as they got rid of more Blood Phantoms, the remaining ones became harder to catch.
The two flew towards him.
And grabbed his hand, immediately Union Gu's Aura shone brightly.
"Le Tu activate your Dreaming Gu!"
"Huh?" But he agreed.
In the end.
He closed his eyes and activated the Gu, however.
Unlike before.
There was not a singular image, but it was split into three domains.
The one of Le Tu was a Golden Buddha, the one of Kao Dao Ji was simply a cloud, whereas the one of Uru Hong Jing was a pure blurring mess, as he was the only one who had not 'thought' their domain thoroughly.
The three figures stood in their respective 'domains', staring at one another.
"What did you do?" Le Tu asked somewhat puzzled.
"Ehem. I used Union Gu, whilst I was not sure what would happen, I figured that it would do something like this. 'Dreaming' Gu seems to manifest an illusion based on the target's own imagery.
Whereas Union Gu enables several objects, materials, and even Gu's to act together, so I thought maybe it would enable our minds to 'share' the same space."
"Ah, I see! The more people believe in a dream, the stronger it becomes. If enough people believe, it becomes 'real.'" Le Tu replied in dawning realization.
"Exactly!" Kao Dao Ji nodded solemnly. (Even though he had never considered that final part before he said it.)