Lu Yuan had received the first three levels of The Origin Heart Sutra ten days ago. Yu Wentong was as "generous" as ever. But the so-called Extraterrestrial Martial Arts, after he truly began cultivating, showed effects completely different from what Lu Yuan had expected.

The principle of The Origin Heart Sutra is actually quite simple. It involves using one's own will to communicate with the cosmic intent, then drawing cosmic energy into the body to refine it. In this process, the hidden treasures of human potential would be fully unlocked, and one's consciousness and life form could achieve infinite evolution.

"The first thing to achieve when cultivating Extraterrestrial Martial Arts is to communicate with the will of the cosmic starry sky and resonate with it; only then does one become qualified to sense the ubiquitous cosmic energy..."

In this step, spiritual will—that is, the power of the mind—is particularly important. It is the key to whether one can begin. The "Heart" in The Origin Heart Sutra probably originated from this.

The Origin Heart Sutra recorded a total of twelve physical actions to assist this step of cultivation. The twelve actions were progressively more eccentric and twisted; many even defied the human body's structure and were simply not performable by a normal person.

"Even a Fighter with a certain foundation might break their bones and rip their muscles when performing the fifth movement... and bleed heavily internally after the sixth. Failure to complete the eighth movement could likely result in death..."

No wonder the mortality rate for cultivating Extraterrestrial Martial Arts was so high; the difficulty was immense even in the first step, before one truly began. Of course, this was nothing to Lu Yuan, who was already a Martial Arts Grandmaster and had long since been able to control his body at will.

Lu Yuan stood calmly in the center of the empty space, performing the twelve introductory movements recorded in The Origin Heart Sutra one by one. During this process, he felt his mind gradually become tranquil, and the operation of his bodily functions also seemed to slow. It had to be said, this was quite magical. With his current strength, few cultivation methods could affect his body. It was incredible that just twelve movements, similar to the Pure Martial "Pile Skill," could achieve such an effect.

After completing all twelve movements, Lu Yuan stood still. At that moment, the blood sphere in his chest almost completely stopped rotating, his Qi and blood stagnated, the white light of his five organs grew faint, and his heart stopped... It seemed as if everything had come to a halt; only the golden light in his mind, representing Spiritual Power, blazed to its utmost extreme.

At that moment, Lu Yuan felt as though he had completely broken free from the constraints of his physical body. His entire being, like light, fog, or smoke, quickly drifted upward, spreading out. Countless scenes flashed before his eyes, yet he couldn't accurately capture any single frame.

Before long, Lu Yuan felt as if he had arrived in the Starry Sky. An endless sea of stars appeared before him, countless stars twinkling within it—a scene both shocking and beautiful. This meant he had successfully communicated with the cosmic intent. There was no ripple in Lu Yuan's heart; apparently, this was not the first time he had reached this stage.

The Origin Heart Sutra described that, generally, after successfully sensing the cosmic will of the Starry Sky, a peril would arise. Ordinary people, upon their first contact with the cosmic will, were very likely to lose themselves in the vastness before them. Their consciousness would be completely assimilated by the cosmic will, stripping them of their qualification to exist as an independent entity. This was the death Xiao Rui had previously mentioned to him—a death that not even a consciousness upload could reverse. The outward manifestation was the practitioner's consciousness being suddenly erased, rendering them a vegetable, never to awaken. This step would filter out about half of those attempting to cultivate the Starry Sky Martial Path. Of those remaining, another half would die upon reaching this step. Thus, the elimination mortality rate reached seventy-five percent.

The next step was the third. Lu Yuan recalled the description in The Origin Heart Sutra: "Awaken the Life Star Chart, and open your first Star Cave within your body..."

Having sensed the cosmic will without being assimilated, the next moment would truly determine one's fate. The Origin Heart Sutra stated that every person in the cosmos was a unique and independent entity. Just as no two leaves in a forest were exactly alike, every person possessed their own Life Star Chart. To embark on the Starry Sky Martial Path, one first had to awaken their own Life Star Chart and then illuminate the stars on it, one by one.

Lu Yuan had been truly astonished when he first read this description. This concept alone was so wildly imaginative and incredible; in its conception, it surpassed Pure Martial by an unknown, vast margin. It was no surprise that the Starry Sky Martial Path could shatter existing limitations and usher in a great wave of life's infinite evolution.

This step did not involve much risk; it was merely a screening based on innate conditions. It was similar to many of the fantasy cultivation novels Lu Yuan had read in his previous life. Before cultivating, the protagonist would always need to have their "Spiritual Root" examined or something similar. Without a "Spiritual Root," one lacked the aptitude for cultivation. The Life Star Chart was essentially the "Spiritual Root" for cultivators of the Starry Sky Martial Path. This round would filter out about another half of the remaining people.

Fortunately, Lu Yuan had also successfully passed this step. He smoothly awakened his own "Life Star Chart." Lu Yuan's consciousness seeped into the vast starry sea before him, and soon, seven stars lit up within it. The seven stars formed a funnel-like shape, somewhat resembling the Big Dipper from his previous life.

Since it served as a standard for qualification, the quality of Life Star Charts naturally varied. The Origin Heart Sutra recorded dozens of Life Star Chart shapes. Lu Yuan couldn't find one similar to his own, but it described that the rank and quality of a Life Star Chart were usually judged by the number of stars composing it. Each star represented a Star Cave that the practitioner needed to open within their body. Star Caves were the "warehouses" for receiving and containing cosmic energy. The more Star Caves one possessed, the more profound their foundation, and naturally, the greater their strength.

A Life Star Chart with seven stars wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either. It was probably in the lower-middle tier. Generally, a Life Star Chart with ten or more stars was considered good. Of course, there were even more exceptional cases, where the first Star Map contained dozens of stars. Seven stars compared to dozens... it was indeed somewhat lacking.

But before Lu Yuan could feel disappointed and dejected about his "subpar" status, the real difficulty arrived. He recalled the next step: "Open the Star Cave."

Lu Yuan projected his consciousness onto the Star Map formed by the seven stars before him, selecting the lowest one as the location for the first Star Cave he would open. Following the description in The Origin Heart Sutra, Lu Yuan's Spiritual Power began to stir. Instantly, it felt as though countless torrential currents were pouring into him. This was the so-called cosmic energy!

It was only at this step that Lu Yuan realized what the mysterious energy was—the energy attracted by the self-forming vortex around his Platinum Dharma when he summoned his Grandmaster's Dharma. Initially, he had been somewhat pleased, thinking Pure Martial and the Starry Sky Martial Path shared some common ground. But the next second... harsh reality delivered a vicious slap!

BUZZ—

As a large amount of cosmic energy surged into Lu Yuan's body, a faint glow enveloped him. The torrent of cosmic energy converged towards a specific point within Lu Yuan, poised to carve out the first Star Cave in his Life Star Chart.

However, at that exact moment, the blood sphere in Lu Yuan's chest trembled violently. His body hummed, the originally perfect internal cycle on the verge of shattering. As more cosmic energy poured in, the nascent Star Cave's location glowed brighter, while the blood sphere in Lu Yuan's chest grew increasingly unstable, showing signs of imminent collapse.

The blood sphere was the core maintaining the circulation of Qi and blood in Lu Yuan's body. Its impending collapse began to throw his entire system into disarray. His Qi and blood reversed flow, muscles tore, bones cracked, and internal organs shifted...

PUFF!

Lu Yuan abruptly opened his eyes. The glow enveloping his body vanished in an instant, and he spat out a mouthful of crimson blood. An expression of profound helplessness and complexity crossed his face. He slowly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, murmuring, "Still not working..."

During this period, Lu Yuan had tried countless times. But each time he attempted to open the Star Cave, he encountered irresistible opposition. Using Grandmaster Meditation Battle, Lu Yuan had tried to force himself to continue practicing in the Consciousness Space. The result was the complete collapse of the blood sphere, followed by his entire body exploding and dying under the uncontrollable, rampaging cosmic energy. Even forcibly activating his Demon form at the critical moment yielded the same result. To continue practicing... meant death!

From the looks of it, the path forward after becoming a Pure Martial Grandmaster and the Starry Sky Martial Path were completely incompatible... A bitter expression flashed across Lu Yuan's face. This was because after advancing to Grandmaster via the Pure Martial path, one's life form changed, creating a perfect internal cycle within the body. Yet, to open a Star Cave, one first had to shatter this cycle.

That was why Xiao Rui had told him back in Penglai that if a Pure Martial Grandmaster tried to cultivate the Starry Sky Martial Path, their death would be even more gruesome than an ordinary person's. After advancing to Grandmaster, it was nearly impossible to switch to the Starry Sky Martial Path, as the mortality rate approached one hundred percent.

Xiao Rui had heard this from Yu Wentong. However, it had also been Yu Wentong's idea for Lu Yuan to first break through to Grandmaster and then practice the Starry Sky Martial Path.

Initially, Lu Yuan had even wondered if Yu Wentong was trying to "harm" him. Later, when he asked Yu Wentong, he learned the truth. These were Yu Wentong's exact words: 'After a Pure Martial practitioner advances to the Grandmaster Realm, transitioning to the Starry Sky Martial Path is indeed at least ten times more difficult than for an ordinary person. But... if you succeed, the Star Caves you open will also be ten times larger than an average person's. The cosmic will has always been fair. The more you invest, the more you will receive. Everyone gets only one chance in their lifetime for such a magnificent foundation. If you miss it, you will remain mediocre forever.'

After reading the reply, Lu Yuan had asked Yu Wentong if there was a successful precedent. Yu Wentong replied that there was. Curious, Lu Yuan asked who this formidable individual might be. Yu Wentong had simply replied, "I am."

Only then did Lu Yuan realize that Lord Tong herself had first cultivated Pure Martial to the Grandmaster Realm before switching to the Starry Sky Martial Path. No wonder Lord Tong was so certain about this; she had experienced it herself. Lord Tong's deliberate delay, waiting until he broke through to Grandmaster before imparting The Origin Heart Sutra, was indeed for his own good.

Lu Yuan suddenly felt "flattered" by Lord Tong's painstaking efforts and the immense expectations she had for him. At the same time, he wanted to cry but had no tears.

Damn it.

Even someone as incredible as Lord Tong could never have imagined... that he hadn't advanced to an ordinary Pure Martial Grandmaster, but to the true Extraordinary Grandmaster Realm! If the difficulty for an ordinary Pure Martial Grandmaster transitioning to the Starry Sky Martial Path was ten times that of a normal person... then for him... it had to be a hundred times! Perhaps even more!

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