Chapter 749: Man Will Conquer Heaven
The old man's body slowly rose into the air, arriving at the edge of the Heavenly Lake. In his hand, he held several jade slips, on which were carved the names of those who had registered.
"Heavenly Lake Snow, Baili Xi, Han Qiuyu, Biluo, Huangquan, Lin Feng, Tang Youyou, Huangfu Long." A faint cyan light shimmered on the jade slips in the old man's hand as he called out the eight names. Lin Feng and the others were startled. He and Tang Youyou were newcomers to the Heavenly Lake, yet merely by carving a name, the old man could match the names on the jade slips to their faces. It seemed those jade slips were no ordinary items.
"First, on behalf of the Heavenly Lake, I congratulate the eight of you. You will represent the Heavenly Lake Empire and enter the secret realm. Next, the Heavenly Lake will perform a baptism for you, allowing your cultivation to advance another step before you enter the secret realm. However, the Heavenly Lake gives you its strongest support and the best conditions. Our only requirement of you is this: remember, you are people of the Heavenly Lake Empire. Everything, for the empire!"
The old man's words were solemn and majestic. The Heavenly Lake would make them stronger, giving without asking for anything in return. Only when the geniuses of the Heavenly Lake Empire grew powerful could the empire itself prosper. This was the unwavering belief of the Heavenly Lake: to spread martial arts throughout every corner of the empire, to make every martial cultivator strong, and thus the empire would continuously grow and strengthen.
"Everything, for the empire. Therefore, if you ever do anything detrimental to the empire in the future, the Heavenly Lake will spare no effort to hunt you down and kill you." The old man's tone suddenly turned sharp. A chilling intent surged within the Heavenly Lake. The Heavenly Lake would do everything to nurture them into talents, all for the sake of the empire. If they became traitors, they would be eradicated.
"Within these jade slips is a wisp of your aura. We will keep them here in the Heavenly Lake and leave them undisturbed. But if you betray the empire, we will be able to find you immediately." With that, the old man's hand trembled slightly, and he tossed the jade slips directly into the Heavenly Lake. The cold air enveloped the jade slips, and they vanished from sight.
If no betrayal occurred, no one would bother with these jade slips. Only when a traitor appeared would they retrieve them.
Lin Feng's gaze froze for a moment, then he understood. It seemed the Heavenly Lake was truly preparing to focus its efforts on nurturing the eight of them, which was why they were being so solemn. For him, this was a good thing.
It was just an identity. He had no reason to betray the Heavenly Lake Empire or do anything harmful to it.
Still, the breadth of vision the Heavenly Lake possessed was truly admirable. They did everything they could to make geniuses like them stronger. Their strength was also the empire's glory, representing the empire's might. Perhaps one day, they would even join the Heavenly Lake and become part of it.
"Her heart meridian is damaged. Feed her this pill." The old man flicked a pill toward Lin Feng, who caught it and said, "Thank you."
With that, Lin Feng crouched down slightly, pried open Tang Youyou's mouth, and placed the pill inside.
Tang Youyou swallowed the pill, opened her eyes, and looked at Lin Feng with a strange expression.
"Is this how you feed someone a pill?" Tang Youyou's voice carried a hint of grievance, leaving Lin Feng momentarily stunned. He then smiled wryly and asked, "Are you feeling better?"
Seeing the trace of apology in Lin Feng's eyes, Tang Youyou pouted. "The medicine hasn't taken effect yet. It might not be wise to use true essence power right now, as it could aggravate the damaged heart meridian."
"All of you, follow me," the old man said, stepping forward and flashing toward the vast snowy mountain range.
Excitement flickered in everyone's eyes as they followed the old man. Securing one of these eight spots meant receiving the Heavenly Lake's focused cultivation, which filled them with exhilaration.
"Let me help you." Lin Feng wrapped his arm around Tang Youyou, his expression neutral, and stepped forward to follow the others. As he passed a snowy mountain, Lin Feng's body dipped slightly, and a white shadow darted up from below, landing directly on his shoulder.
Xue Linglong's beautiful eyes glanced at Tang Youyou, causing the latter to feel a bit timid and lower her head.
However, Xue Linglong's little paw gently scratched Tang Youyou's face, a faint smile curling at the corner of its small mouth.
Within this vast snowy mountain range, countless peaks stood, all pure white. The old man led the way, stepping onto a northern mountain. The summit of this mountain was extremely vast, with many halls and pavilions standing atop it. Footprints marked the white snow on the ground, but it seemed even colder here, making the injured Tang Youyou shiver.
Lin Feng also felt his body grow stiff and frozen. This mountain was simply too cold, and snowflakes continued to fall from the sky.
Lin Feng reached out and caught a snowflake. He clenched his hand slightly, and the snowflake vanished into nothingness, as if it had never existed. Lin Feng couldn't even feel any moisture in his palm.
"Illusory!"
Lin Feng's pupils contracted. This snowflake was fake, illusory—not formed from the world's water vapor. A single squeeze, and it disappeared without a trace.
Yet he could clearly feel the cold contained within the snowflake.
Lin Feng wasn't the only one who noticed. These people were no ordinary individuals, all gifted with exceptional talent. Soon, they too discovered that the snowflakes seemed to be fake.
"You've all noticed?" The old man paused in his steps. Instead of flying, he walked slowly on the ground. With each step on the snow, a layer of it would directly vanish—illusory snow.
The group also descended and stepped onto the white snow. They found that half of the vast expanse of snow on the ground was real, and half was illusory—a very strange phenomenon.
"Does anyone know how this Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain came to be?" the old man asked the crowd. Everyone shook their heads. The Heavenly Lake Empire was filled with snow, and it was bitterly cold snow. When it fell, even martial cultivators felt the chill, but it also continuously strengthened their resistance and increased their affinity with the snow.
"In the past, the founder of the Heavenly Lake Empire came to this land of the Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain to cultivate. He sat here for a hundred years. The founder comprehended the essence of snow. As he cultivated and comprehended, snow began to fall from the sky, falling continuously. The snow piled up into mountains, gradually forming a continuous snowy mountain range. This was the origin of the Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain. Later, through the efforts of the empire's leaders, the Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain took on its present form."
The old man calmly narrated the origin of the Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain, but the hearts of the crowd trembled slightly.
The cultivation of a true expert—a single meditation could last a hundred years, equivalent to most of an ordinary person's lifespan. It was terrifying. A hundred years of accumulated snow forming mountains—how much snow must that have been?
"The snow falling here is caused by someone cultivating, not by nature," Lin Feng murmured. The old man turned his gaze to Lin Feng and nodded with a smile. Lin Feng was quick to react. This person, who had comprehended three types of will, must have extraordinary insight.
"Correct. The cultivation of snow cultivators can cause snowflakes to drift in the air. Some cultivators produce real snow, while others produce illusory snow. The Heavenly Lake Snowy Mountain has snow falling year-round because many powerful snow cultivators are training within the mountains."
The old man spoke to Lin Feng, but his words were also meant for the others. True experts, even when cultivating casually, could draw upon the power of heaven and earth, and it would continue endlessly.
"When I first saw the snowy mountains, I marveled at the greatness of nature's power. But now I see I was wrong. The saying 'man will conquer heaven' means that human power can harness nature, even overcome it. This continuous mountain range was not formed by nature but by human effort."
Lin Feng said slowly, causing a sharp glint to flash in the old man's eyes. This young man's casual words revealed a spirit of self-reliance. Man will conquer heaven—he had thought of relying on his own strength to overcome the heavens, which gave him this layer of insight.
"This young man must have the demonic intent removed from him and be specially nurtured," the old man decided in his heart. So young, having comprehended three types of will, and possessing a resilient will to grow stronger—this was definitely a promising talent.
Moreover, Lin Feng had his own story!
PS: The flower count today is really disappointing.