Unsealing Emptiness

Chapter 429: Transcendent?

"What is the cultivation realm beyond the Origin Realm? And what does being a Sage really mean?"

Amused by his curiosity, Ember smirked at him. "Look at you, so curious about things beyond your imagination."

"There are the Transcendents after the Origin Realm. The Transcendent Realm has its own sub-stages, but few even think of going above that. Forget worrying about being a Sage for now. That comes even after the Transcendent Realm."

The new information left the four people wondering just how many realms there were in this cultivation journey, but asking was useless as Ember didn’t think it was helpful to them in any way.

"Even thinking about the Transcendent Realm is useless for you guys. Give it a few years at least," she remarked honestly. Even considering their talent which surpassed anything she had ever seen, there was no denying that the Origin Realm would take years for them to surpass.

And even that was an astonishing speed since it was nothing compared to others who took at least a few decades.

That is precisely why she wasn’t prepared enough to hear the next words.

"Spar with me. I have to show you something..."

Having already understood his way of cultivation was most likely different than others, Ember didn’t know what to think. But the way he said those words only made her think the impossible,

"Don’t tell me... you... already??"

However, Ozul neither confirmed her suspicion nor denied it. Instead, he simply stared at her, insisting on the spar.

"Alright, I have the perfect place for it. I was itching for a fight anyway," Ember agreed without a second thought. However, she would have to control her strength in order not to injure him.

...

Ember led her outside the estate, and they all arrived at yet another forest.

But Ozul could tell it was a unique place since he couldn’t even sense the presence of animals, much less humans.

But still, with his enhanced sense of emotions, he started to feel a little overwhelmed again since he was surrounded by plants and insects.

Though the absence of animals didn’t arouse his curiosity, the fact that there weren’t even Beasts had him a little worried.

"Is this a territory of some strong Beast?" he asked Ember, hoping she would deny it or at least tell him it wasn’t something to worry about.

"Oh? You could even tell that. Impressive. Indeed, as you say, it’s the territory of a Lord of Beasts. It can chew on Origin cultivators without batting an eye."

Looking at her with a deadpan face, he eyed the trio who were still struggling in the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm.

"Heh, don’t worry. I’m a Beastkin Sage. Would any Beast dare even come near me?"

Understanding her reasoning, Ozul didn’t insist further and took a deep breath.

Ember, on the other hand, motioned for the trio to move out of the way as she smiled slightly at Ozul. Never would she have imagined coming across such a diamond in the making.

"Come at me with everything you hav-"

She wasn’t allowed to finish when she felt the air move behind him. She quickly side stepped and the Spiritual Essence exploded in that space on her command.

"Quite impatient, aren’t you?" She muttered, but gone was her smile as she felt the power and speed behind the attack she only sensed in the last second.

’Above the Origin Realm?!’ Those were her thoughts, but she refused to believe them. When coming here, she had assumed, with great difficulty, that he might have reached the peak of Origin Realm and thus was inquiring about the Transcendent Realm.

But already being in the Transcendent Realm? How was it even possible?!

Unfortunately, no one could answer her thoughts as Ozul kept attacking her without speaking.

Not only had his attacks become stronger, but she could gauge that no one under the Transcendent Realm would even be able to react to his speed!

To say that she was only surprised was an understatement for Ember.

The more she fought, the more reality dawned upon her that this boy was the greatest genius in the continent’s history!

At least to her knowledge, the speed with which he advanced hadn’t been recorded anywhere.

The amount of the Purity he could control had also increased by a huge margin and so Ember found herself surrounded by a torrent of blackness that not only blocked her vision but hindered her other senses as well.

But suddenly, Ember stopped admiring the artwork manifesting before her eyes and sighed in a rueful manner,

*Sigh!*

"I can’t believe I am going to do this, but you leave me no choice but to doubt you."

A hundred meters away, the trio didn’t know what was going on and for a moment, they thought that maybe Ozul could defeat a Sage.

But they were in for an awakening as the Spiritual Essence in the forest started to tremble. It was like an earthquake, but the Spiritual Essence was shaking!

The Spiritual Essence was then sucked toward Ember as if she was a vacuum in space before it all exploded outwards in an explosion so loud that trees on the ground just beneath her were crushed instantly!

The tornado of the Purity that surrounded her was blown away.

The winds were so strong that Ozul had to cover his eyes and wait until they settled down.

But Ember had gotten serious and she wasn’t going to give him time to recover.

Before the winds calmed down, she appeared behind him in a swift manner. But even in that scenario, Ozul’s heightened senses allowed him to sense her presence as he tried to fly away.

But Ember was faster than him as her hand suddenly held his shoulder and didn’t let him budge an inch no matter how much he tried. His body wasn’t like the Purity he could change the shape of to slither out of the way.

And as if the winds were only performing at her whims, they came to a standstill the moment Ember jolted Ozul to make him look her in the eyes.

Her silver hair shone with a lustrous glow, but the dangerous glare in her eyes wouldn’t let anyone admire her beauty.

Ozul too was a little taken aback at first, but he could feel no malice brewing in her heart.

"Who are you, boy."

She asked the question, knowing full well he couldn’t be an enemy. After all, no enemy of hers would let her regain her powers.

What she was curious about though, were the origins of this boy. The speed at which he grew didn’t make sense unless she were to consider reincarnation.

"I have heard legends about reincarnation. That some heaven-defying talents manage to rebirth their souls to start their cultivation journey again..."

Even in her lifetime, she hadn’t heard about a single reincarnated individual, and the legends seemed only farfetched.

But even if there was a tiny possibility that he was a reincarnation of some strong cultivator, then she needed to know.

Such an individual would obviously have their own grand goals which would change the course of the whole continent!

"Tell me who you are and what you want to do!" She exerted a bit of pressure on him, vainly hoping it would have an effect.

Ozul remained as stoic as ever. He wouldn’t worry as long as there were no ill intentions in her heart.

"I don’t know who I am and as for what I want to do; I want to find out who I am..."

The melancholy in his tone deterred Ember from asking any further questions as she could see he wasn’t lying.

With a self-deprecating smile, she shook her head, "It seems that decades of weakness have really gnawed at my wits. I apologize for losing my composure.

But you are at fault here! I have never seen someone reach the Transcendent Realm in just a few years. Not even the Dragon Hatchlings are supposed to be this monstrous!"

Ember had already lost him when she mentioned the Transcendent Realm.

’So I have completely surpassed the Origin Realm...’

He didn’t know where exactly he stood compared to an average Transcendent, but this little spar at least showed him where he stood against a Sage.

Ember effortlessly subdued him the moment she was tired of his theatrics.

"Now can you tell me what Transcendents are?"

Ember nodded her head, admitting her defeat. Even after regaining her powers as a Sage, it seems she would remain an old lady in the eyes of this eccentric boy.

. . .

Back in the estate, Ember explained to him a bit of the cultivation path as even without him mentioning it, she had realized he didn’t follow the norms of this Realm.

And instead of being greedy, she was only curious to see where his path would lead him to. After all, many before had tried to forge their path only to be stuck at a certain threshold or simply dying after taking one wrong step.

"The Nascent cultivators simply free their potential from the shackles of a mortal body in the form of freeing their ’Soul’ as we call it. But in the Origin Realm, the cultivators need to physically open Origin Gates in their body which holds the true potential of the physical body.

It also gives them more insight and control over the Spiritual Essence of course. But after you have opened all the Origin Gates, you have basically exhausted all the potential mortal body has."

She was teaching them concepts that even Raven, who liked reading, hadn’t read anywhere in the cultivation manuals. They were taught the steps to advance, but not what it all really meant.

’So that’s why cultivators become disciples of others...’ Raven thought silently. Her thoughts were parallel to those of Ozul’s as he knew the extent of knowledge Raven and the other two had on cultivation.

"So If that’s all the potential we people have, how do they advance further?" Zier asked curiously, but Ember eyed him to shut up as she wasn’t done explaining.