The Decaying World

"Ah, finally home." The moment Ding Luo stepped inside, she kicked off her shoes. She let the household robot scurry over to pick them up while she took a flying leap, collapsing onto the long sofa by the door.

The soft cushions enveloped her completely, and she let out a contented groan.

"Did you guys run into any trouble on the way back? I saw on the news that some kind of wraith energy appeared on your route!"

The door to one of the three bedrooms off the main hall flew open, and a young man with messy hair and glasses rushed out.

He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Lin Hui and Ding Luo, then hurriedly asked his question.

"We did run into it. Almost didn't make it back. It was incredibly dangerous," Lin Hui said with a nod, his expression perfectly natural.

"Your tone... is so normal it's almost weird..." The young man was none other than the second child of the Ding family, Ding Yiran.

The moment vacation started, this guy would hole up in his room and play video games from dawn till dusk. He never came out to join the family unless there was a specific reason.

He only came out to show some concern now because he'd heard about the wraith energy attack.

"It's probably just emotional numbness after a major trauma. Simply put, my emotions haven't caught up to what I experienced yet. When it sinks in later, I'll be terrified," Lin Hui explained quickly.

'Even though I can't be bothered to act, I should at least give them a logical explanation. It's a matter of respecting their intelligence.'

"...You..." Ding Yiran looked at his calm and composed little brother, then at his exhausted older sister.

"Whatever, as long as you're okay. I just get the feeling... you two are sneaking out behind my back to do something fun..."

THWACK!

A sofa cushion hit him squarely on the forehead.

"What the hell is wrong with you!? I still haven't told Mom and Dad about the time you snuck out in the middle of the night and tried to boil my stockings in a soup! Are you looking for a death wish!?" Ding Luo exploded.

"Whoa, whoa! I was just talking! Spare me!"

Ding Yiran cried out, and as he did, he lunged forward to try and grab his big sister's leg.

It looked like he was trying to get handsy again. Ding Luo sent him flying with a kick, and he lay sprawled on the ground, unable to get up.

Lin Hui was speechless. Ding Yiran had always been like this. But it was also because of him that the house was constantly bustling, never a quiet moment, which gave Lin Hui a unique feeling of warmth.

They quickly called their parents via interstellar phone to tell them about the attack and set their minds at ease. Afterward, Ding Luo started preparing dinner, with Ding Yiran helping out as her assistant. As the youngest, Lin Hui was shooed off to his room, supposedly to study and do his homework.

Of course, while he was supposedly doing homework, he was actually studying the wraith energy head he had just acquired.

This was a specimen he had worked hard to get his hands on for years.

「Inside the Heart Source Demon Palace.」

Lin Hui's main consciousness, housed in his Saint Form of Life, circled the floating wraith energy head.

'This thing... it seems to be able to continuously turn all surrounding matter to ash, then absorb the essence to strengthen itself.'

After a long period of observation, he had discovered one of the head's external properties.

"The Power of Ashes is just a weaker version of the power you wield, a step down from the Wind Calamity, so that's normal. But this thing... it seems to possess more than just the Power of Ashes," Fusheng added from the side. "I was just observing it. I discovered it can also internally generate infinite life force. It's a bit like the legendary Power of the Life Calamity."

"Life Calamity?"

"Mm. Besides that, it also has traces of the Cold Calamity. To put it simply, this thing is a hodgepodge. Several types of infinite Disaster Energy have been masterfully fused, combined, and arranged within it into a near-perfect structure, creating this ridiculous creature." Fusheng shook his head. "In many places, in many lesser worlds, this would be considered a world-ending monster."

"That is a bit much," Lin Hui agreed. 'Being able to channel and use several types of Disaster Energy at once... no wonder this thing was so much trouble.'

"What do you plan to do?" Fusheng turned his head to ask.

"I came here to find resources. Senior, how do you think I should go about finding what I need?" Lin Hui had originally thought the monsters here would be like potent spirit herbs, but after capturing one, he realized the situation was more complex than he'd expected.

"There must be someone in this place researching how to fuse and use multiple Disaster Energies. The Energy Levels are very high, so you must be careful. Your current strength isn't that great; make sure you stay hidden," Fusheng warned.

"Speaking of which, I don't even know what level I'm at myself. How would you know, Senior?" Lin Hui was suddenly curious.

"Your master didn't tell you? Oh, that's right. He's only a remnant will himself, so it's normal that he'd overlook such basic information. Allow me to bring you up to speed." Fusheng chuckled, his skull bobbing. "Above the Insect People is the so-called Breaking Realm level. This level is extremely broad. We usually delineate it by directly correlating it to the Source Calamities. Whether you're in the Fusion Sect or the Resistance Faction, facing a Source Calamity is an unavoidable experience for everyone."

After a pause, he continued.

"After the Breaking Realm level, an individual's power is great enough to destroy a lesser world single-handedly. So, using worlds as a frame of reference is no longer sufficient. You need to use more powerful phenomena within the Source Calamities as a benchmark. In our era, the most common system was the one adopted from the Immortal Dao Civilization. To wit: Breaking Realm corresponds to Heavenly Immortal, followed by Golden Immortal, Primordial, Harmonization, and Exogenous Source."

"Originally, Harmonization was the limit. Beings at that level were known as Saints, the supreme existences. But then, individuals who surpassed the Harmonization Saints appeared from within the Source Calamities, born from devouring the Dao itself. Thus, they were designated as the External Source Level."

"Golden Immortal, Primordial, Harmonization, Exogenous Source..." Lin Hui carefully mulled over these subsequent realms.

"Then may I ask, Senior, how is the line between Breaking Realm and Golden Immortal defined?"

"In truth, there's no standard definition. In an actual fight, a single bizarre ability could allow a fresh Breaking Realm individual to kill a Primordial. So, the only true measure is one's combat record," Fusheng replied. "That True Monarch of Seven Destructions from the Wind Calamity you attracted before? He's a Fusion Sect powerhouse who has reached the Primordial level. Have you ever fought him?"

"Er..." That question hit a blind spot for Lin Hui. He and Qimei had never actually fought.

He had always just assumed that he was no match for Qimei.

'But if we've never fought, why do I assume I'm not his match?'

"So you haven't. You can use him as a benchmark to gauge your own level. You've just reached the Breaking Realm, and you can already casually trigger widespread infinite Disaster Energy to destroy lesser worlds. But you must understand which part of that is your own power, and which part is the inherent corrosive nature of the Disaster Energy itself. Basic Disaster Energy is effective against ordinary worlds, but once you get to the Breaking Realm level and beyond, experts at the Golden Immortal level have almost all dealt with Source Calamities. They know how to handle them, so low-level Disaster Energy is completely useless against them."

Fusheng paused here, then continued.

"At that point, stripped of the amplification from the Source Calamity, your own true power is what's left."

"Can't you give me a standard based on destructive power, Senior? I know different worlds have different material and energy compositions, so destructive force will manifest differently. What about using our current world as a baseline?" Lin Hui still felt the explanation was too abstract.

"Hmm... In any case, just remember this: never underestimate any opponent you face. In a fight to the death, you must always probe first. After multiple probes, you only commit to a full-on attack as a last resort. This is a fundamental quality for any seasoned powerhouse," Fusheng advised.

"As for a direct display of power, a Golden Immortal can easily destroy a celestial body with a radius of over one hundred thousand kilometers in a single strike. Some powerful Golden Immortals will occupy a star or the center of a small galaxy as their personal cultivation ground. Of course, I'm not sure about your Fusion Sect; I'm speaking about the Resistance and Neutral Factions."

"That... It's not that hard to destroy a celestial body if you just disperse your power and hit its core. Can you be more specific?" Lin Hui mentally simulated his own power, thinking he could probably manage that if he went all out—destroying a slightly smaller celestial body, at least.

"Tofu is soft. Would you judge a man's strength by how many blocks of tofu he can shatter with one slap?" Fusheng countered with a pointed question.

"So... you're saying the matter that makes up a star is like tofu, Senior?" Lin Hui understood.

"Exactly. So don't use how many blocks of tofu you can destroy as a measure of your strength, because it's meaningless. Probe. Probe some more. You'll know who's stronger once you've actually fought." After saying this, Fusheng still offered a rough estimate. "I'd guess you're somewhere between the Breaking Realm and Golden Immortal levels. But you have all sorts of strange abilities, so I can't be sure what kind of combat results you could actually achieve."

"Thank you, Senior..." Lin Hui nodded.

He had been a bit lost ever since reaching the Breaking Realm. None of the inherited memories from his Cultivation Techniques had mentioned the power levels that came after.

So, in reality, he had no idea what his own level was.

"Now I understand why some factions can be so narrow-minded and blindly arrogant. When the power levels within a single system are clearly defined, it's easy to compare strengths and weaknesses. If you master that system, you'd naturally think you were invincible. But..."

Fusheng finished the thought. "But once you step outside that system, you're just the strongest *within* it. When you face the endless variety of abilities and powers in the outside world, even if you can destroy a planet in an instant, your system might have an overlooked weakness. You could be defeated by some unremarkable, commonplace ability, and then your entire system becomes a joke."

Lin Hui nodded.

"I've learned a valuable lesson."

"So, what's the plan for this thing?" Fusheng glanced at the head floating in mid-air.

"First, let's run a test..." Lin Hui extended a hand. A vast, terrifyingly powerful wave of Mental Power, channeled through the Divine Decision technique, instantly surged forward to crush it.

He had, after all, been constantly enhanced by the Demon Fragrance. For so many years, his Mental Power had been growing, day after day, seemingly without end.

The result was that his Mental Power had now almost reached the absolute limit his body could contain.

He couldn't possibly contain any more. This was clearly the full extent of the Demon Fragrance's power.

As the vast Mental Power surged forth, the head in mid-air trembled slightly. It actually turned, opened its mouth wide, and began to greedily devour the approaching wave of Lin Hui's Mental Power.

'Interesting... It can actually break down my refined Mental Power.' Lin Hui's brow twitched. His Mental Power had been tempered to an incredible degree over the years through constant contact with both Wind Disaster Energy and stellar energy.

This was why all living creatures would be forced to their knees whenever he unleashed his Heart and Spirit.

Simply put, any individual with an Energy Level lower than a primary Disaster Energy would be completely suppressed by his Heart and Spirit.

'But... this monster is just a head... and it can still devour and absorb my Heart and Spirit. That's a little unnerving.'

With a thought, Lin Hui switched to Wind Disaster Energy.

A wisp of pale blue Disaster Energy, like a thread, appeared on his fingertip and floated lightly towards the head.

POOF!

This time, the head also swallowed the Disaster Energy in one gulp.

But because it was Disaster Energy, this time Lin Hui could clearly perceive exactly how the creature was digesting and absorbing the foreign energy.

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