Paragon of Sin

"TWENTY DAYS?!" He nearly jumped so high that he touched the ceiling. He fumed with anger and discontent. Gnashing his teeth, he demanded an answer from these unruly Natal Souls of his! Yet they remained mum, as if they were unified in acting blameless! He felt a sudden urge to spank them! Spank them like the ill-minded children they were!

Wait.

How did they even keep him unconscious for that long? He inspected his physical body and realized it was perfectly healthy. There was no sign of malnutrition. While his cultivation was high, he still required sustenance to thrive and survive, and food created solid and liquid waste and a need to expel. After inspecting himself, he realized his stomach contained recently consumed food, and his bladder was mostly empty.

Did they bring him food? Did they…

He decided to stop thinking about this as he inspected his surroundings. He was still within his Alchemy Room. After a while, his emotions calmed down. While this likely meant he needed to set-up more defenses for the unexpected, this was evidence of a grand truth: 

They were self-cultivating.

In fact, they might have placed him in that long coma-like state for his own benefit. When he thought about his abnormal Natal Soul that was his literal fleshy heart, the Natal Soul within his sea of consciousness, and their subsequent transformations, perhaps that would've been a very painful or difficult to handle process.

Perhaps being unconscious helped them facilitate their transformation without his detrimental influence. While that was likely the case, he still realized that his second mind was still independent. 

For now, his Natal Souls could not live without him acting as their host. Since they likely wouldn't act against him for now, he could only accept their uniqueness and move forward. In the world of cultivation, being able to adapt was a trait that only survivors could possess. And, he was a survivor.

With a thought, he lifted his hand and exerted a little bit of his will. His qi started to rapidly gather at the center of his and soon constructed a cube with an inch in height, width, and length. It floated calmly within his palm.

Frowning, he felt as if there was a slight difference in this cube of qi. 

'Wait...is it?' He started to enlarge the cube until it was a meter in height, length, and width. His eyes never left the cube and this continued for three full hours! Only then did he dare confirm the situation, and came to an absolutely exceptional understanding!

The cube of qi didn't need him to infuse more qi into it. In fact, it was interacting with the ambient energies of the world perfectly and sustained itself! This...this was…

PERMANENCE!

This was the power that gods and immortals were said to possess, true creation! If he created a river, that river would forever influence the world, entering into the world's natural cycle. If he created a mountain, that mountain would forever exist until eroded or destroyed! It would be no different than a real mountain!!

Normally, the cube would slowly dissipate overtime as the refined mana was taken away, losing its ability to maintain the connected yin-yang energies within, but now it was no longer an issue! There was no sign of dissipation.

'Is this...the legendary Zenith Mortal State?! Zenith Essence?!' With mouth agape, he pondered the implications. As long as his qi did not dissipate, he could actively control it! Usually, when two attacks collided that didn't nullify each other, they would scatter into the surroundings with chaos, the inherent mana within dissipating until it scattered.

Now, if he were to send out a saber light of qi and it was dodged, he could still control it! If it collided with another attack or defense and remained, he could send it to attack again in full strength!

This also meant he didn't need to funnel energy into his defenses or attacks to maintain peak power. After creating a ward, all he needed to do was manipulate it with his thoughts. 

The advantage was clear! It was absolute!

Excited, he hurriedly tested his theories. Just as he assumed, he truly had these advantages. As he looked around, a hundred strands of saber qi lingered in the air. They were all connected to his thoughts and awareness. With a thought, they merged into one and then split back into a hundred!

"Perfect! This is the Zenith Mortal State! Incredible, incredible! Those at this level, while they may not be gods, they are certainly close!" As he announced his thoughts, he nodded to himself. While his qi could be whittled down until it dissipated, unlike true matter that can only be destroyed or broken down, it still meant he could create! 

If he wanted, he could create his own palace that'd be made entirely of his qi and lasts forever! 

Creation!!

His excitement got the better of him as he slowly indulged in his fantasies. The limitless possibilities made it a limitless fantasy! 

He had to take a very long time before he calmed down. It was quite difficult to do after this discovery. Not only did his Mark of Myth evolve, his cultivation base advanced, but he had achieved something many thought was impossible! Not even Astral Core Realm cultivators had the ability to make their astral force permanent.

If, in the future, his cultivation base skyrocketed, could he create his own continent? His own planet? His own star? Did all these things exist because cultivators created them? If so, what was the limit of this world?! He felt a sudden urge to see the peak, explore it fully, and excavate its secrets.

Luckily, he was not a rash person. 'That is a far-off goal. Even if I can reach it, thinking about it will only distract me from seeing what's before me. I still have to overcome the Second Calamity of Hell and then its subsequent calamities. I can't even be certain I'll be able to over the Astral Tribulation. I need to take one step at a time.' This cooled his emotions greatly, and he realized the detriment of being overly excited.

He sent a message to Su Mei. Afterward, he lifted himself upwards and started to contemplate what other eighth-grade products he should attempt to concoct.

In a few moments, Su Mei arrived. Her black eyes were bright and pure, and her presence was becoming more exceptional. This startled Wei Wuyin as he felt that she was undergoing unfathomable changes, yet he felt that her thoughts towards him remained the same. 

"Have you compiled the reports?" He asked. Before the incident with Bai Lin, he wanted to find members for his faction—Ascendants, and he had a set of specific parameters that needed to be reached. Su Mei had the pegasus and could gather information from his neighbors or below, and she was always diligent.

She gave a brief nod, and brought over a spiritual jade that contained information regarding various candidates. After taking, it gave it a brief read and was somewhat shocked. 

"So few?" There were merely seventeen candidates listed.

Su Mei nodded.

Giving a soft sigh, he realized his parameters were a little too stringent. While he wanted quality over quantity, he still didn't think it would be so little, considering there were trillions of people on all three planets and the various continental flat earths. 

"Well, make preparations to meet number three." 

Su Mei nodded and left.

Wei Wuyin realized that he didn't want to gather a bunch of nobodies, but highly skilled elites that could be useful to him. If he found some capable lieutenants, he could allow them to manage the lower members, and create an army. 

However, that's for the future. For now, it would be best to concoct some more products for the future. With his improved cultivation base, the effects of his Alchemic Qi should be multiplied. His excitement was tangible!