Chapter 2: The Path of Chaos
After Fen Hao parted from his father, he retreated to his own palace—a crumbling, neglected structure that seemed as worn as his spirit. Stepping inside, he quietly made his way to the small bedroom and lay down, closing his eyes with a heavy sigh.
As he drifted off, he once again entered to the mysterious place he always visited in his sleep. A majestic palace of white and gold , its grandeur untouched by time. In the vast main hall were seven thrones, each adorned with unique tattoos. Only the central throne was unmarked, and that was where Fen Hao always sat.
In this ethereal palace, he could accelerate the passage of time—up to fivefold. He mused to himself, I'm probably at least fifteen or sixteen in soul now, thanks to this place. I've spent five years refining my Chaos Body technique, yet I still can't absorb or manipulate spiritual qi at all.
He forced a faint smile. At least I'm not entirely useless. My body's strength rivals that of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, and if they don't use their domain, I might even hold my own against a Nascent Soul-level cultivator… He exhaled deeply. "Haa… Well then. Let's begin my body refinement practice again."
He began moving through a sequence of esoteric gestures, each motion echoing the instructions from the jade scroll. Suddenly, golden and silver light burst forth from within his body. The energy in the palace responded to him, rushing towards him in swirling currents.
Fen Hao smiled as he noticed the qi he absorbed spiritual qi— but his qi Suddenly became different.
it was something entirely different, a transformed energy of unknown origin. He considered this quietly. No matter how much I think about it, I can't make sense of it. I suppose I'll just have to wait and see.
Time passed, and soon his dantian qi core was filled with this unique qi, reaching the peak of the ninth layer of the Qi Refining realm. At this stage, cultivators must shatter their qi core to establish a foundation— And creating their inner world foundation, a realm unique to each cultivator that give them the chance to become different from normal mortals.
The Foundation realm also had nine layers. At each layer, cultivators could incorporate spiritual treasures or rare elixirs to strengthen their foundation further. Fen Hao focused his mind and broke through, shattering his qi core to build his first-level foundation.
Normally, a first-level foundation was a barren patch of land, but Fen Hao's was as large as the Fen Clan's main hall and already covered in grass. This was no ordinary grass—it was spiritual grass that produced spiritual qi, albeit in small amounts compared to the vast qi veins of the Immortal Realm. Still, Fen Hao was elated. With these spiritual grasses, he could now absorb qi at an accelerated rate.
Yet his cultivation didn't stop there. His strength surged as he quickly ascended through the Foundation realm, layer by layer. Fen Hao grew alarmed—if he reached the Golden Core realm so quickly, his foundation would be shallow, a fatal flaw for any future cultivation.
He paused to think, recalling that cultivators who had too much energy could transfer it to another living being to avoid destabilizing themselves. But his inner world was barren of life—except for the spiritual grasses.
With determination, he channeled all his excess spiritual qi into the grasses. Time passed, and when he finally calmed down, he surveyed his foundation and was astonished. What had once been a simple patch of grass had transformed into a dense jungle.
At the heart of this jungle, an emerald light pulsed. Investigating, he discovered that one of the grasses had gained wisdom, transforming into a humanoid form. Fen Hao recalled reading that for a plant to gain wisdom, it normally required ten thousand years; to transform into a human form would require at least ninety thousand. Yet here it was, manifest before him.
The only explanation was the unique, alien nature of the qi he wielded. He clenched his fists. Now's not the time to ponder this. If this plant spirit fully transforms into a human, it will become a Nascent Soul-level existence. Only cultivators of the Nascent Soul realm can house living beings in their inner world.What a normal cultivator does in the Golden Realm is bring some small grass and plant it in his or her inner world land. However, Fen Hao already has a vast jungle and now also possesses a soul, which is required for a cultivator to break through to the Nascent level[1].He felt a surge of determination. I must reach the Nascent Soul realm soon… But how? With a heavy heart, he rose from his bed and made his way to Fen Hung's room.
explain -
When a cultivator breaks through to the Foundation Realm, a small patch of land manifests within their inner world. The size of this land is directly influenced by the amount of qi the cultivator channels into it, as well as the quality of the elixirs and natural treasures they consume during the process. Once the cultivator reaches a point where they can no longer expand their land, they may proceed to break through to the Golden Core Realm.
In the Golden Core Realm, the cultivator forms a unique golden core at the center of their inner world's land. This core serves as the vessel for pure spiritual qi, and its strength is directly linked to the cultivator's potential. Once the golden core is formed, cultivators often awaken their own unique martial technique or innate talent. These techniques vary—some may gain powerful swordsmanship, while others develop the art of alchemy. There are also those who awaken talents such as spatial or temporal manipulation, or engrave ancient family techniques onto their golden core.
Acquiring a talent or technique is crucial, for when cultivators advance to the Nascent Soul Realm and gain a domain, this domain will reflect and amplify the abilities of the golden core technique. It is widely believed that these two realms—the Golden Core Realm and the Nascent Soul Realm—are profoundly interconnected. Should a cultivator fail to acquire a technique upon breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm, they will not naturally manifest a domain. However, it is possible for cultivators to acquire a domain through their own exceptional efforts.
When a cultivator reaches the Golden Core Realm, they often plant spiritual grasses within their inner world. These grasses act as a source of qi, fueling and purifying the golden core. Once the golden core is fully saturated with spiritual qi, the cultivator must acquire a soul possessing the strength of the Nascent Soul Realm. Many choose to hunt down powerful animals or plants that have attained such cultivation, forcibly claiming their souls. Others form contracts with these beings, forging bonds of mutual benefit. This is because animals and plants that reach the Nascent Soul level often struggle to survive and maintain stability, making them vulnerable to such arrangements.
Upon obtaining a soul, the cultivator brings it into their inner world. There, they shatter their golden core, creating a soul image that closely resembles their own spiritual essence. This shattering is perilous: in that moment, the cultivator is rendered powerless and loses all control over their inner world. The soul they have brought in is responsible for shaping and stabilizing their nascent soul. If the soul is incompatible or becomes unstable, it can result in catastrophic failure—sometimes leading to the complete destruction of the cultivator.
When the nascent soul is successfully formed, the cultivator also has a chance to inherit a portion of the soul's innate abilities. For this reason, most cultivators carefully select an animal or plant soul that complements the talent or technique engraved within their golden core.
In Fen Hao's unique case, however, he possesses an inner world that is already a vast jungle and has manifested a soul spirit, despite being only at the Foundation Realm. This anomaly, while offering incredible potential, is also fraught with danger. If anything goes awry, the explosive clash of energies could annihilate him completely.
[1] read the end