When the final lightning giant was annihilated under the Destruction Thunder Seal of Yu Yuanchen, the Chaotic Void suddenly plunged into a deathly silence. The clamor of battle receded like a tide, leaving only the scarred Thunder Sacred Dragon, which Yu Yuanchen had transformed into, gasping slightly in the void. The echoes of that grand voice declaring "Qualification Verified" still lingered, and before Yu Yuanchen could even regulate his breath, he felt his consciousness being cast into a warm vortex, sinking continuously.
An unprecedented sense of drowsiness swept over him, more exhausting than any fierce battle he had ever experienced. He felt himself losing contact with things of vital importance—the earnest expectations of his grandfather Yu Boxuan, the silent care of his father Yu Mingfeng, the gentle gaze of Ye Zhilan, the heavy burden of family honor, and even his own pursuit of power and desire to become a god... All these external imprints and internal driving forces became like fading scroll paintings, turning blurry and distant.
He was no longer the once-in-a-century genius of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family, not the inheritor bearing the Thunder God Bloodline, and he no longer even remembered why he had appeared in this void. He seemed to have reverted to a blank sheet of paper, with only the most essential, unadorned "self" remaining.
When the surrounding scene became clear again, he was no longer in the Chaotic Void. In his ears was the howling of a cold wind, and before his eyes was a vast, white world of ice and snow. He found himself standing on a mountain road covered in thick snow, his clothes thin and tattered, the bone-chilling cold making him shiver uncontrollably.
He looked down at his hands; they were fair and slender, yet covered in frostbite and tiny scars. There was no trace of any cultivation, and he could not feel a shred of soul power within his body. The sensations of weakness, hunger, and cold were so real and intense.
"Who... am I?" His mind was a blank slate, driven only by the instinct for survival as he trudged with difficulty along the mountain road, one foot deep and one foot shallow. The wind and snow grew heavier, almost threatening to swallow him whole.
He did not know how long he had walked, but just as he felt his stamina was about to be exhausted and he was on the verge of freezing, a faint sound of crying drifted over with the wind. He forced himself to stay alert and followed the sound, discovering a small figure curled into a ball in a wind-sheltered mountain hollow.
It was a little girl of about seven or eight, wearing equally thin cotton clothes. Her small face was frozen purple, and tears had turned into ice crystals on her cheeks. When she saw Yu Yuanchen, she shrank back in terror, her sobbing stuck in her throat.
In normal times, given Yu Yuanchen's status and strength, he might have only ordered his clansmen to arrange for her proper care. But at this moment, he had forgotten all status and abilities, becoming merely a "person" struggling in a desperate situation just like her. The moment he saw the girl, a pure, unthinking pity welled up from the bottom of his heart.
He squatted down and asked in as gentle a tone as he could manage, "Little sister, why are you here alone? Where is your family?"
The girl looked at him timidly. Perhaps it was the clarity in Yu Yuanchen's eyes, untainted by the world, that made her feel a trace of comfort. She choked out, "I... I got separated from my father and mother... The snow is too heavy... I can't find the way..."
Yu Yuanchen fell silent for a moment. He himself was in a precarious situation with an unknown path ahead; bringing a child along would make the hope of survival even slimmer. Reason told him he should continue to seek a way out alone. But looking at the girl's large eyes filled with fear and helplessness, he almost subconsciously took off his own already tattered outer garment, barely wrapped it around the girl, and then held her icy little hands tightly in his own equally cold ones.
"Don't be afraid," his voice trembled from the cold, yet carried a strange, soothing power, "We will go together; perhaps... we can find a place to shelter from the snow."
He did not promise that they would definitely survive, because even he did not know where hope lay. This was merely the most instinctive concern of one life for another, weaker life in a desperate situation.
He pulled the girl along and plunged back into the wind and snow, using his own body to shield her from part of the cold. Every step was more difficult, but his spine subconsciously straightened a little, as if this faint responsibility had given him a reason to hold on.
The "journey" that followed was like a long and unpredictable dream. The scenes kept switching, and Yu Yuanchen experienced various "ordinary" yet heart-piercing trials.
He had once become the son of a poor woodcutter, going up the mountain to chop wood every day, witnessing the wicked servants of local soul master families bullying the villagers and engaging in extortion. Those wicked servants had low strength, and in his prime, he could have wiped them out with a breath, but in the illusion, he was just an ordinary youth with a bit of strength.
Should he choose to swallow his pride to protect himself and his elderly father? Or should he risk his life to speak up for the bullied villagers? During one incident where a wicked servant tried to forcibly abduct a neighbor's daughter, he ultimately could not hold back, grabbing his woodcutter's knife and standing in front. Even though he was beaten until covered in wounds, he protected the weeping girl behind him, his eyes showing no fear of power, only anger at the injustice.
He had once become a wandering beggar, struggling to survive outside a town plagued by an epidemic. While unable to even ensure his own survival, he encountered an elderly man dying of illness. Should he stay far away to avoid catching the sickness? Or should he share the half-piece of dry bread and water he had begged for—which could save his own life—with this total stranger who might die the next moment?
Looking at the longing for life in the old man's cloudy eyes, he silently broke the dry bread and carefully fed it into the old man's mouth, using the water to moisten his cracked lips. At that moment, he forgot that he was also hungry; in his heart, there was only compassion for life.
He even "became" a mediocre and inconspicuous servant disciple in a small sect. By chance, he discovered a conspiracy by the sect's senior brother to collude with outsiders and steal the sect's secret treasures. Should he pretend not to know and protect his own interests? Or should he risk retaliation from the senior brother, or even being framed, to find a way to report it to the elders?
After an intense internal struggle, he chose the latter. Although he was later framed by the senior brother due to lack of evidence and suffered humiliation and punishment, he never regretted it, simply because he felt it was "the right thing to do."
In these illusions, he was sometimes an older brother protecting a weak companion, sometimes a passerby speaking up for the wronged, and sometimes a stubborn person who refused to bow before power... Each time, he lost the strength and status he was proud of, becoming the most ordinary mortal facing difficult choices.
There were no earth-shattering feats, no calculations of pros and cons; there was only the most authentic touch and choice in his heart at that moment. The responsibilities of the family, personal ambition, and considerations of gain and loss—all these "external" voices were obscured. What guided his actions was a kind of goodness, justice, and compassion deeply rooted in the depths of his soul, bordering on stubbornness.
He would also be afraid, he would also hesitate, and sometimes he would even shrink back, but in the end, when faced with critical choices, his "heart" could always overcome the fear for his own safety, guiding him to make actions that left his conscience clear. This was not because he was some natural-born saint, but because his basic respect for life and natural aversion to injustice in the world had never been completely extinguished by the powerful strength and heavy responsibilities he had acquired later. This nature had perhaps already quietly taken shape when he grew up under that red flag in his previous life.
He did not know how many such "lives" he had experienced before Yu Yuanchen's consciousness returned to a state of chaos. But this time, there was a glimmer of realization in the chaos; the trial "seemed" to have been completed.
The scene before his eyes became clear again. This time there was no specific setting; his consciousness seemed to have been elevated to an infinite dimension. Beneath his feet was the vast and boundless universe, and above his head was an indescribable Thunder Divine Throne radiating supreme majesty.
That throne was composed of the most fundamental Thunder Law, shining with brilliant light, representing eternity, power, and authority. A grand, indifferent voice resonated directly in the depths of his soul, like a heavenly decree:
"Yu Yuanchen, step forward and inherit this position. From now on, you shall wield the thunder, act on behalf of the heavens to punish, and be eternally indestructible."
Becoming a god! This was the ultimate goal that countless soul masters dreamed of. Power, authority, immortality... all temptations were concentrated here. As long as he took that step, it seemed he could possess all of this.
However, right beneath that throne, he clearly saw billions of stars, countless worlds living and dying, and the life threads of beings as small as dust yet incredibly vivid. He could feel the joy and sorrow, hope and despair of every world.
The indifferent voice sounded again, carrying a power of absolute rules: "However, the divine position is unique, and the rules are ruthless. To ascend the throne, you must sever mortal ties and become the embodiment of the rules. Where divinity permeates, mortal emotions must be discarded. Everything you cherish and protect must no longer have any connection to you. This is the price of becoming a god; the rules are such, and they cannot be reversed."
Is it to choose to ascend that lonely divine throne, gaining personal ultimate sublimation and eternity, at the cost of losing all emotions and bonds as a "human," becoming a part of cold rules, and watching the joys and sorrows of billions of lives beneath his feet have nothing to do with him anymore?
Or is it to choose to give up this divine position that is within reach, return to the mortal world, and continue to endure the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, death, the pain of separation, and the resentment of being unable to be with those one loves, but be able to retain that most authentic connection and feeling with family, friends, and all things in the world?
This was an extremely cruel choice. The illusion had obscured his memories of specific people (such as his grandfather, father, and Ye Zhilan), but it had laid bare his more essential nature—the "universal compassion for all living things" and the "cherishing of his own emotions"—right before him.
Yu Yuanchen's consciousness stood between the starry sky and the divine throne, falling into an unprecedented silence. Powerful strength and eternal life were indeed what he pursued. But if the end of this pursuit was to be a lonely man, to lose the budding feelings for Ye Zhilan, to no longer feel the expectations of his grandfather or the care of his father, and to no longer be able to have a hearty battle with opponents like Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu... then what was the meaning of this eternal power? It would be nothing more than a magnificent and cold cage.
He slowly raised his head, his gaze passing through the dazzling throne, as if he saw those faces he had forgotten but were deeply rooted in his heart, saw the myriad states of the world, and saw the fragility and resilience of life. What he pursued was never a lonely, indifferent divine position, but the power to protect what he cherished in his heart, the freedom to explore the mysteries of life and the universe, and the warmth of experiencing and growing together with those around him.
"The divine position... is certainly tempting." Yu Yuanchen's voice was calm, yet carried an unquestionable firmness, echoing in this space of consciousness, "But if the price of becoming a god is to become a heartless and desireless rule of heaven that views all things as straw dogs... then this godhood, I shall not take!"
"My path is to wield the power of thunder with a human heart! To protect what I want to protect, and to experience what I long to experience! Not to sit high above and watch coldly!"
As his voice fell, he turned around resolutely, turning his back on the Thunder Divine Throne that radiated infinite temptation, and faced the vast starry sky and billions of living beings below. The moment he made this choice that defied the powerful temptation, the entire illusion of the universe collapsed with a roar!
The grand voice sounded again, but it was no longer cold; instead, it carried a gentle approval, as if an elder were nodding:
"The state of mind... is now clear."
"The original nature is not lost, the divine heart can be molded."
"I bestow upon you... the Thunder God Seal, to inherit my divine position!"
Before the voice finished, in the center of the Chaotic Void, that huge Thunder God Statue seemed to come alive. Two beams of purple-gold divine light, condensed to the extreme and containing the supreme Origin Power of thunder, shot out from its eyes and accurately merged into the Thunder Law Imprint at the center of Yu Yuanchen's brow!
"Boom—!"
Yu Yuanchen's whole body shook violently, feeling as if his soul had been cast into an ocean of thunder! Countless profound insights regarding the Thunder Law, ancient runes, and the supreme principles of the life and death of thunder in heaven and earth poured into his Sea of Consciousness like a bursting dam! This flow of information was vast and incomparable, far exceeding any previous inheritance, but this time, there was not the slightest rejection or pain. Instead, it was like a stream merging into the sea, naturally and seamlessly becoming one with him.
The Thunder Runes at the center of his brow, which had originally condensed on their own and were slightly blurry, were now, under the infusion of this Origin Power, like being meticulously carved by a top-tier craftsman, rapidly becoming clear, solidified, and complex! The structure of the runes became more profound, the lines smooth and full of power, and the color completely stabilized into a noble and deep purple-gold. At the very center, a tiny lightning light, like the beginning of the universe, lit up and rotated slowly, emitting a gentle yet supreme majesty!
Thunder God Seal!
This was no longer a simple Law Imprint, but a symbol that had received the formal recognition of this ancient ruin, and even the Thunder God's orthodox lineage in the dark! It was the key to the true divine position!
The light gradually dissipated, and the consciousness of Yu Yuanchen returned to his physical body, which remained seated cross-legged before the towering Thunder God Statue. He slowly opened his eyes, and a fine flash of purple-gold lightning flickered within them before vanishing. His entire aura had undergone a subtle transformation; the sharpness of his youth had diminished, replaced by a newfound depth and majesty, as if he were now more in tune with this ancient Thunder Canyon.
He gently touched the center of his brow, where the fully formed Thunder God Seal felt slightly warm, his mind clear and serene.
Through this trial of the heart, he had not only gained the qualifications for further inheritance, but more importantly, through each "ordinary" experience, he had washed away the vanity and seen the most authentic version of his own heart. This would provide immeasurable benefits to his future Path of Cultivation, especially in mastering the power of lightning—a force that contained both Destruction and represented Life Force and judgment.
He gathered his focus, closed his eyes once more, and began to absorb and digest the vast amount of information provided by the feedback from the Thunder God Seal with all his might.
At the bottom of the canyon, the Miasma of Lightning shrouded his figure, nurturing a new Transformation within the silence.
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: GodKun-Chan