Lu Yuan continued to look.

A large portion of the mural described the little figure's struggles with these monsters.

In the painting, the little figure exhibited extraordinary prowess, blasting monsters apart with a single punch and tearing them asunder with his bare hands.

However, although the little figure was incredibly formidable, at the end of the battle, he was gravely wounded.

The figure sat atop a mountain, blood flowing all over his body. His surroundings were littered with the severed limbs of monsters, along with other small figures who had fallen to their knees.

Despite the simplicity and even crudity of the drawings, Lu Yuan was deeply affected, feeling a strange sense of tragic grandeur.

Lu Yuan continued to observe.

The next part of the mural depicted the blood-soaked little figure apparently preparing for a breakthrough.

The severed limbs of the monsters and the kneeling figures emanated a mysterious substance that flowed into the little figure's body. Lu Yuan didn't know what this substance was; the mural merely depicted it with a few crude lines and dots. Regardless, this benefited the little figure, allowing his power to greatly advance. A round orb even appeared to form in the center of his chest.

"Huh..." Lu Yuan froze the moment he saw the round orb, immediately thinking of the blood orb at the center of his own chest.

The blood sphere he had formed when he ascended to the Extraordinary Grandmaster realm looked very similar to the round orb depicted on the mural. However, he wasn't sure if they were the same thing.

If they are... he wondered. Does that mean the Extraordinary Martial Path I'm currently following genuinely existed in the distant past? Am I not its creator, but... its inheritor?!

Lu Yuan continued to look at the mural with a serious expression.

In the next image, besides the round orb in his chest, three lotus flowers appeared on the little figure—one on each shoulder and one on top of his head. In the following one, five streams of qi appeared around the little figure, who now bore the Three Flowers on his head.

Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, Five Qis Converging to the Origin?! The phrases instantly popped into Lu Yuan's mind, and he hurriedly looked further down.

In the next image, the three lotus flowers on the figure's head and the five streams of qi around him had all disappeared. Instead, the round orb at the center of his chest glowed brightly.

Is this the classification of realms after Grandmaster? Lu Yuan's eyes burned brightly, his heart pounding with the thrill of discovering a new continent.

The little figure with the glowing round orb in his chest was unstoppable in the subsequent murals. Everywhere he went, all monsters turned to dust, and more and more small figures knelt at his feet. The little figure himself grew larger and larger, eventually becoming the size of a giant.

The content thereafter became more fantastical. To emphasize the figure's immensity, the mural depicted small mounds at his feet representing mountains. A sun was drawn beside his head, implying his 'heaven-supporting, earth-standing' stature.

Then, the mural suddenly depicted a bolt of lightning, a ball of flame, and several giant monster palms, all descending upon the little figure.

Then...

BOOM!

The little figure exploded, and the mural was left with only a pot-shaped pattern.

The Pot Heaven Secret Realm! Lu Yuan immediately recognized the meaning of the pot-shaped pattern, and a surge of emotion swept over him. This mural narrates the origin of the Pot Heaven Secret Realm! So the Pot Heaven Secret Realm... was actually created by human power? Was it a relic left behind by a powerful Martial Artist of ancient times after his death?

Lu Yuan found it hard to believe and continued to look.

The subsequent murals no longer depicted any monsters. The scenes always included the pot-shaped pattern and a few small figures. These small figures moved in and out of the pot-shaped pattern, which continuously shrank in the mural. Lu Yuan could see that the figures in the mural seemed to be constantly trying to expand the pot-shaped pattern. But none of them could ever reach the level of that first little figure. They could no longer produce a round orb in their chest, manifest the Three Flowers and Five Qis externally, or transform into a giant...

The mural abruptly ended there.

Lu Yuan stared blankly at the dense mural before him, hidden within the rosy glow.

"An epic of Martial Arts..." he muttered to himself.

Had Heaven Lord Wu Chao seen these murals? Lu Yuan pondered. He must have, considering he lived within the Pot Heaven Secret Realm for two hundred years. Did he believe it?

Lu Yuan didn't know. He likely didn't believe it, as even Lu Yuan found the contents fantastical and incredible after seeing them. However, in the moments before Heaven Lord Wu Chao's death... he had likely come to believe it.

No wonder he immediately felt he had taken the wrong path; he probably associated it with the content of these murals, Lu Yuan thought, his expression complicated. So, the Pot Heaven Secret Realm wasn't originally this small. It had shrunk to its current size because no one afterward had the ability to maintain and nurture it. Perhaps the Pot Heaven Secret Realm will completely disappear in a hundred years?

Lu Yuan was deeply stirred at that moment. He realized that if the contents of the mural were entirely accurate, then the decline of Pure Martial was not due to the rise of New Martial and Modification in the modern era. The downfall of Pure Martial had already happened a very, very long time ago.

Pure Martial was once a path that led directly to the heavens! But then... the path had been severed.

It was severed by that lightning, the flame, and the giant monster claws... Lu Yuan mused, closely studying the mural that detailed the death of the first little figure once more.

He didn't know what the lightning, flame, and monstrous claw on this painting represented; the mural gave him too little information.

"Does it represent an Ancient Evil God?" Lu Yuan pondered.

If so, could it be interpreted that the Ancient Evil God would not allow the existence of someone as extraordinary as the little figure in this world...? Or perhaps... Lu Yuan's eyes flashed as he thought of another possibility. Because the little figure's strength grew too fast, reaching a level where he could potentially threaten those represented by the lightning, flame, and giant claws in the mural. Therefore, he was forcibly obliterated. Even the path of Pure Martial was severed, so that subsequent Pure Martial Fighters, let alone surpassing the first little figure, couldn't even reach the stage I am at now—the true Grandmaster Realm!

Lu Yuan immediately thought of the Evil God Secret Realms. The truth of Lament Ruins was that the Hundred-Eyed Dark Crow, a creature of the Netherworld, had destroyed a world to create it. But this didn't mean every Evil God Secret Realm was like this. The officially recognized explanation was that Evil God Secret Realms are perfect divine kingdoms created by Ancient Evil Gods for their followers. An Ancient Evil God created a world to accommodate his followers. This was much like how the Pot Heaven Secret Realm emerged after the little figure's death, benefiting countless subsequent Pure Martial Fighters.

The truth seemed about to be revealed at this moment—

The little figure in the mural was on the verge of becoming a God through Martial Arts! Or in other words, he might have reached a height comparable to that of an Ancient Evil God.

Therefore... he died.

In an instant, a tremendous sense of horror surged up from the depths of Lu Yuan's heart.

I stumbled onto the true path of a Pure Martial Grandmaster by sheer chance. If my strength continues to increase, will I also encounter the same fate as the little figure in the mural?!

Lu Yuan's face instantly turned grim. He touched his chest, sensing the blood orb within, constantly rotating and slowly growing larger, as if seeing his own future.

Even the little figure in the mural, who single-handedly created a separate space, a Secret Realm, and a grotto-heaven, was obliterated. Could I survive the future path-severing calamity?

Lu Yuan didn't know, his expression constantly shifting. However, after a brief moment of turmoil, his mood quickly calmed.

My situation is still different from the little figure in the mural, he reasoned. Back then, the little figure in the mural was the only one so remarkable; he stood out too much. At that time, Pure Martial was the only path available in the world. But it's different now. Although I've become an Extraordinary Grandmaster, there are still many people stronger than me. New Martial, Modification, and Extraterrestrial Martial Arts—these paths aren't weak either. The situation with the Ancient Evil Gods has probably changed too. Nowadays, most Ancient Evil God Sects in the world are reviled like rats, and Evil God Secret Realms are freely entered and exited by major Extraordinary organizations, much like public restrooms. The Ancient Evil Gods would have no reason to ignore them and target me, a minor figure, first.

Worst case scenario... Lu Yuan continued to muse, I have various Extraordinary class panels. If necessary, I can completely disguise myself as a follower of an Ancient Evil God, develop slowly, and act as an 'undercover agent'...

Lu Yuan had been very successful with this in the Crow God Sect. The Crow God adored him. Not only did they often have "intimate interactions" in dreams, but the Crow God even left him a legendary treasure in the real world: the Hundred-Eyed Dark Crow.

Let me make a bold guess: the Starry Sky Martial Path severely suppresses the Ancient Evil Gods. Perhaps if I reach the level of the little figure in the mural now and show the potential to 'achieve godhood,' the Ancient Evil Gods, far from harming me, might even show goodwill and try to recruit me to fight against the powers in the Starry Sky...

As Lu Yuan considered this, he suddenly felt much better. Of course, all of this was his speculation, his conjecture. He didn't know what the real situation was.

This time, by reclaiming 'Penglai,' I've earned enough Merit. When the time comes, I must brazenly ask Yu Wentong to buy me the three volumes of 'The Origin Heart Sutra' from the Merit Shop. I need to see the differences between Extraterrestrial Martial Arts and the true Pure Martial path I'm currently on. Which is stronger, which has more potential. If Extraterrestrial Martial Arts is more powerful, I don't need to stubbornly stick to Pure Martial...

Lu Yuan thought, completely clearing his train of thought. He took one last look at the mural on the edge of the cave entrance, considering whether to erase them. After some thought, he decided against it.

Even if someone saw the contents of these murals, it wouldn't matter. In this world, besides me, probably no one else would believe that Pure Martial once had such a glorious and dazzling past. Most people would just dismiss it as ancient people's worship and exaggeration of Martial Arts, shrugging it off with a laugh.

Lu Yuan flapped his wings and slowly descended from the apex of the Pot Heaven Secret Realm. He began to collect the "relics" left by Wu Chao.

First was the golden Mecha located in the center of the space. Probably no man could resist this thing. Its design was simply awesome, closely resembling a divine general from the Heavenly Palace in ancient myths. Lu Yuan didn't know if this Mecha's model was considered advanced. He jumped in and sat for a moment, but found it couldn't start due to insufficient energy, so he could only climb down with a regretful expression.

Many notes were scattered beside the Mecha. Lu Yuan casually picked up a few and flipped through them; they were all in Wu Chao's handwriting. Through these notes, he made an astonishing discovery—Wu Chao had built this Mecha himself!

Indeed, time is the most precious treasure! Lu Yuan couldn't help but sigh in admiration. In over two hundred years, how much did Wu Chao teach himself to be able to build a Mecha from scratch?!

He guessed that Wu Chao felt he had reached the end of the path in Pure Martial and then began to seek greater power from other directions. He even tried making a Mecha. This suggested that although he was revered as a legend in the Martial Arts world, the true pinnacle of the Pure Martial realm, and a living legend who had witnessed several eras, his thinking hadn't ossified; he was still progressive and open to new things.

In that case... the appearance of the Fake Wu Chao can also be explained, Lu Yuan thought, his eyes flickering slightly. Then, he walked step by step towards the biochemical laboratory in the corner of the Secret Realm space.

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