Five Peaks Battlefield.
The disappearance of the Hundred Miles Furnace stirred up a massive uproar; after all, that furnace had been a steadfast symbol under the sky for twenty years, serving as a spiritual pillar for humanity.
It was a testament of the human race's first victory over the divine weapons that once ruled them for millennia.
In the capital of the Great Flame Dynasty, Sikong Lun, after leading the Godslayer Society to defeat the Thirty-Five Nations, quickly returned to the Great Flame Dynasty and assumed the position of Prime Minister.
Sikong Lun understood that Lin Yuan was the Emperor of the Great Flame Dynasty, and after conquering the other nations, he naturally turned his efforts towards supporting the dynasty.
Over the past twenty years, the Great Flame Dynasty unified the Central Plains, thanks not only to Lin Yuan's intimidating power but also to Sikong Lun's strategic cunning.
On this day, Sikong Lun reviewed the intelligence reports in his hand.
"The furnace has disappeared?"
He double-checked the reports in disbelief.
"And His Majesty is also missing?"
Concern flashed across Sikong Lun's face.
"Xu Chong," Sikong Lun called out.
Xu Chong immediately entered the room.
"What happened?" Xu Chong asked, puzzled.
"I want you to go to the Five Peaks Battlefield and look for..."
Sikong Lun began, but was interrupted by a gentle voice that spoke at his side.
"Looking for me?"
Lin Yuan appeared with a smile, inside the room.
"Your Majesty," Sikong Lun's eyes reddened with emotion at the familiar voice.
"Emperor Yan," Xu Chong, seeing Lin Yuan, shrunk back slightly, hesitant to speak.
Twenty years ago, during the battle at Five Peaks, his shout of "Emperor Yan" echoed across the battlefield, heard by countless.
Following that, Lin Yuan had appeared and replied with a slightly impatient "What are you rushing for?" Since then, Xu Chong had lived in a state of perpetual apprehension.
In truth, Xu Chong felt a bit wronged.
It was Lin Yuan himself who said that, in times of insurmountable odds, he could call on that name.
It was indeed a desperate moment then, with thirty-five divine weapons in the sky beginning their descent.
"Majesty, I've heard the furnace has disappeared?" Sikong Lun cautiously asked after a moment.
"How is Zheng'er?" Lin Yuan did not answer directly but asked instead.
Zheng'er, also known as Liu Zheng, was his child born over thirty years ago following the persistent persuasion of Dowager Empress Wang Shangfeng and a 'Blood Refining' female Martial Saint.
The reason he had to choose a woman of Martial Saint level was due to Lin Yuan's overwhelmingly powerful constitution back then.
Ordinary women couldn't bear his progeny, nor even withstand his essence.
Even female Martial Saints required Lin Yuan to significantly restrain his energy to succeed.
"Prince Zheng is extremely talented; unsurpassed..."
Sikong Lun initially wanted to say that Liu Zheng was not inferior to Lin Yuan, but thinking it might be too much of a boast, he refrained.
After all, who was Lin Yuan? He was hailed as the greatest Sage Monarch under heaven for millennia in the Central Plains.
Even if Liu Zheng was extremely gifted, he couldn't compare with Lin Yuan.
In all the world, across the ages, there would likely only ever be one Lin Yuan; no equal would emerge.
"That's good," Lin Yuan nodded slightly, showing no high expectations for Liu Zheng, as long as he maintained the Great Flame Dynasty's strong foundation.
"Your Majesty, those divine weapons..."
Sikong Lun cautiously asked again.
He had no choice; the matter was of utmost importance.
"The divine weapons have all been shattered by me," Lin Yuan replied casually.
"Shattered?" Sikong Lun was briefly taken aback.
"Couldn't they be completely destroyed?" Sikong Lun couldn't help but ask.
Even when shattered, divine weapons could become cursed weapons, capable of birthing new consciousnesses.
"The divine weapons were born of heaven and earth, and cannot be destroyed," Lin Yuan explained.
This was beyond even the ancient divine beings of millennia past, and he too could not accomplish it.
"You are worried that after I leave, in a hundred years or a thousand, those pieces of the divine weapons will regain consciousness and rise once more to rule the world?" Lin Yuan saw through Sikong Lun's concern.
Even pieces of the divine weapons, less powerful though they were, could far surpass a Blood Refining Martial Saint.
Without Lin Yuan, these rogue divine fragments might run rampant, with no one capable of stopping them.
"Your Majesty sees correctly," Sikong Lun said, a bitter smile on his face.
"No worries," Lin Yuan raised his right hand, pointing at Sikong Lun and Xu Chong's foreheads.
Instantly, a vast amount of information flowed into their minds.
It was the cultivation system Lin Yuan had spent decades developing, refining the world’s existing path, and removing the singular focus on physical strength, balancing it with the spirit and soul.
This system, influenced by Lin Yuan, extended beyond the Martial Saint to the realm of Martial God, and beyond that, the Heavenly Being Realm.
Normally, reaching the Martial God realm could make one equal to or surpass the divine fragments.
By passing on this system, Lin Yuan offered humanity hope for the future.
With such a perfected system, even if surpassing a Martial Saint was difficult, eventually several geniuses would emerge to reach the Martial God level.
"What is this?" Sikong Lun absorbed the information, his expression growing more astonished by the moment.
He quickly realized the terrifying potential of the system Lin Yuan imparted.
Although broadly similar to the original progression—Body Refining Disciple, Muscle Refining Practitioner, Skin Refining Warrior, Bone Refining Master, Organ Refining Innate Master, Marrow Refining Grandmaster, and Blood Refining Martial Saint—Lin Yuan's refinement at each stage on spirit and soul transformation pushed boundaries.
Thus, the Blood Refining Martial Saint was no longer a ceiling, with Martial God and Heavenly Being realms beyond.
At the described realms, a Martial God could indeed contend with those cursed weapons.
It was like a long-lost secret.
"This cultivation system..."
Xu Chong swallowed hard.
He was a cursed weapon master, technically a divine weapon master, as he wielded the complete Heaven-Splitting Axe.
But masters like him were rare, heavily reliant on the divine weapon; without it, he was nothing.
He couldn't compare to the power housed within Lin Yuan’s system, which integrated strength within oneself and even offered extended life at the peak of cultivation.
"On behalf of all under heaven, Sikong Lun humbly thanks Your Majesty for this great kindness," Sikong Lun kneeled with a thud in heartfelt gratitude.
If Lin Yuan's suppression of all divine weapons on the Five Peaks Battlefield was a historical achievement, then imparting this cultivation system was a timeless legacy.
From this day, every cultivator would forever remember Lin Yuan’s benevolence, an undying grace.
"It's alright," Lin Yuan waved dismissively, unfazed.
To him, this cultivation system was nothing special, and sharing it merely avoided a future where humanity might again fall prey to divine weapons.
After all, Lin Yuan was currently a member of the human race, and the Great Flame Dynasty belonged to his people.
Whether for kinship or righteousness, Lin Yuan would do the same.
"I also have another task."
Lin Yuan glanced at Xu Chong, recalling something.
"Ah?" Xu Chong blinked in confusion.
"Come out now," Lin Yuan said.
At his words, a black axe flew out from Xu Chong’s body.
It was the Heaven-Splitting Axe.
"Before coming here, I shattered all cursed and divine weapons, erasing their consciousness; you’re no exception."
Lin Yuan held the Heaven-Splitting Axe.
In Lin Yuan’s hands, the indestructible divine weapon was like fragile cotton.
With a gentle press, it shattered into dozens of pieces, its consciousness entirely wiped away.
Even though the Heaven-Splitting Axe was utterly loyal after being refined by Lin Yuan, he couldn’t risk any changes after he left this world.
Caution demanded no complete divine weapon could remain.
"It's fine," Lin Yuan said, noticing the disappointment in Xu Chong's eyes.
"With your talent, cultivating this system could very likely see you reach the Martial God realm."
Lin Yuan added, an assurance.
This refined cultivation system emphasized spirit and soul, and Xu Chong had innate spirit strength; otherwise, he wouldn’t have become a master of the Heaven-Splitting Axe.
"It’s time to leave," Lin Yuan glanced at Sikong Lun and Xu Chong, then quietly disappeared.
"Your Majesty," Sikong Lun felt a hollow ache, as if something irreplaceable had been lost forever.
"No, I must record this cultivation system at once."
Sikong Lun shook off his emotions, called for pen and paper, and set to recording the details from his mind.
"Prime Minister Sikong, you've aged; let me write it down," Xu Chong offered, feeling somewhat relieved by Lin Yuan's reassurance.
"No," Sikong Lun, eyes burning with determination, insisted on writing it himself.
"This system is too significant; only I can be trusted."
Two hours later, as Sikong Lun finished the complete system, his face was alight with emotion.
With this system, humanity would finally break free from millennia of being fodder for divine weapons.
Even if a new complete divine weapon appeared, humanity would have the means to resist, no longer reduced to begging for mercy.
All the past humiliation and resentment vanished under this cultivation system, and from now on, the human race on this land would truly stand tall.
"Your Majesty," Sikong Lun thought of Lin Yuan again, a redness in his eyes as he murmured, "In a dark chamber of a millennium, a single lamp shines bright."
Beyond the Thirty-Six Nations of Central Plains, in the extreme north—a place so cold even a Blood Refining Martial Saint couldn’t endure for long, and where the frigid wasteland had been lifeless for thousands of years—a figure slowly walked into the icy domain.
Yet, the bone-chilling cold had no effect on this figure.
Within a span of several tens of meters from the figure, warmth radiated.
"This is the place," Lin Yuan stopped, gazing around.
This was the last footprint of the ancient divine being, the location where they returned to their native realm.
"A spatial crack?" Lin Yuan continued forward, sensing the rippling of space tears.
Soon, he found the source—a misshaped fissure, as if torn from a painting.
Wisps of a grey mist floated within.
"The ancient divine beings left from here?" Lin Yuan stood silently, sensing an overwhelming danger emanating from the tear.
If he were to step through, survival seemed impossible.
Lin Yuan lingered, then decisively turned back.
He didn’t know how the ancient beings crossed, but he knew he couldn’t.
With no chance of surviving, Lin Yuan knew what course to take.
Spending the next twenty years wandering the world, with his heaven-defying comprehension, would yield far more than gambling on unknown peril.
As time passed and twenty years slipped by, Lin Yuan journeyed across the Central Plains, witnessing the growing strength of the Great Flame Dynasty and the wide adoption of his cultivation system.
[Name: Liu Yuan (Lin Yuan)]
[Identity: Gatekeeper of the Myriad Realms]
[Bound Talent: Heaven-Defying Comprehension]
[Current Status: Consciousness Descended]
[Remaining Time: One Hour]
As the deadline approached, Lin Yuan once again found himself at the extreme north, standing before the spatial crack.
"I’m returning soon enough," Lin Yuan mused.
"Might as well take a look inside first."
Focusing his thoughts, he expanded the Taiji Domain across his skin—his strongest defensive stance.
"Let’s go," Lin Yuan took a step forward, entering the space crack.
The next chapter will open the main world storyline.
Simply put: "Top ten globally? That's too weak."
(End of this chapter)