Nine Star Hegemon Body Art (WN)

“Why are you not afraid of the dark?” asked the woman.

“Why would I have to be afraid of it?” asked Long Chen.

The woman paused, seemingly not expecting this. She continued, “Why do you like the dark?”

Long Chen didn’t hesitate and directly said, “Because I’m used to the dark. When I was bullied and humiliated without the power to fight back, this world of despair had no pity for me. No one had mercy, no one helped me, and no one was willing to accompany me. Only the darkness never rejected me. No matter what grievances I had, the darkness was willing to silently listen to my complaints. Even if the entire world abandons me, it will always silently accompany me. It will never reject me. Its arms will always be open to me. When I hadn’t set foot onto the path of cultivation, within my world, only the darkness was my friend. In its embrace, I silently wept and nursed my wounds. I only left it when I was strong enough. When I fought until I was covered in wounds, it was my greatest comfort because I knew that it was waiting for me. If it treated me like this, why would I fear it? Why would I not like it?”

The woman continued, “You have experienced darkness and you have experienced light. Which one do you like more?”

“I like them both… and dislike them both,” said Long Chen with a bitter smile.

“Then what do you think is the boundary between light and dark?”

“There is no boundary. There is light in darkness, and darkness in light.”

“So that’s the case.”

The woman seemed to comprehend something. She said, “Your principle is correct. This world has no absolute black and no absolute white; there is no absolute good or absolute evil. But you must remember, there is a boundary between them. There is a yardstick to measure right and wrong. That boundary, that yardstick, it is like a judge that can determine right and wrong.”

Long Chen asked, “Is that judge really impartial? Who can guarantee that its judgment is correct?”

“That is related to a certain thing, the scales of the heavens. It is the foundation that maintains the balance between the ten thousand Daos and laws. Between black and white, right and wrong, good and evil, movement and stillness, corporeal and incorporeal—between any two opposing forces, there is always a scale as a foundation. To use your human race’s principles, it is the principle of the Dao gives birth to one, one births two, two births three, and three births all things. All things in this world both restrain and support each other. Using that as an inference, where there is Yin, there must be Yang. Where there is life, there must be death. Where there is good, there must be evil. Where there is movement, there must be stillness. Where there is purity, there is impurity. However, between Yin and Yang, life and death, good and evil, movement and stillness, purity and impurity, there is a mysterious energy separating them. One and two are diametrical. But with three, one and two began to flow together, and the two kinds of energy formed a cycle. Only then was our world born.”

Long Chen was shaken, feeling like a bolt of lightning had just struck his mind. He felt like he was seeing an unprecedented world.

“If it is the scales that are the three, then by mixing two opposite powers, is it possible to possess the power of creation?” asked Long Chen, his voice quivering.

“In principle, that is the case. But in reality… you are overthinking it. The Grand Dao cannot be spoken. Any principles that can be spoken clearly with the mouth are not the true Grand Dao. Thus, the Grand Dao that we speak of is only the ordinary Dao. If the true mysteries of heaven and earth are ever exposed, then either the nine heavens will collapse, or the ten worlds will be reborn.”

“Many thanks, senior!”

Long Chen respectfully bowed to this woman. These words had essentially opened a window for Long Chen, letting him see an unknown world.

Now, Long Chen understood why the dragon expert had asked her to enlighten him. Her realm was truly high.

The woman nodded and her body transformed into flames that slowly dissipated. After that, Long Chen simply sat in front of the gate and slowly formed hand seals.

BOOM!

Golden scales covered Long Chen’s body, as his blood, qi, and bones ignited. Their power was like erupting volcanoes.

The darkness that had returned to this world once the woman left now went away because of Long Chen.

…

On the tenth level, everyone was taking laborious breaths in the pitch-black world. They felt like their wills were about to crumble.

Within the darkness, countless negative emotions constantly invaded them. All their painful and bitter experiences were shown to them over and over again. It felt like there was an invisible wall in front of them that was blocking their progress.

That wall caused them to despair. Due to it, they couldn’t see the light or hope. They could only see despair.

At first, Zhu Yunwen and the others were still encouraging them. Hearing the encouragement from Zhu Yunwen and the others, the imperial disciples were still able to endure.

However, toward the end, other than their own breathing and heartbeats, they couldn’t hear anything else. It was as if everyone else was gone, as though they were alone in the abyss of death. They called to the heavens and got no response; they called to the earth but it was silent.

When they reached the last step, the darkness was even stronger. Long Chen hadn’t even sensed the change due to how close he felt to the darkness. But everyone else found it difficult to endure. Even Zhu Yunwen and the others were starting to hear voices.

Suddenly, they saw light. Through the cracks in the gate before them, they saw golden light.

“It’s Long Chen!”

Yu Qingxuan cried out excitedly. Hearing this, everyone was instantly revitalized. Long Chen was waiting for them up ahead, so victory was in sight.

In an instant, they charged through to the eleventh level. There, they heard various voices, and it wasn’t just in their imagination. However, they ignored the voices, focused their minds, and continued toward the light.

BOOM!

Suddenly, there was an explosive sound, causing them all to cry out in alarm. After that, the light vanished and the darkness returned.

At this moment, Long Chen was coughing up blood, and cracks covered his body. Within the darkness, he looked at his own hands and smiled.

“Hehe, I’ve found it. The blood, qi, and bones are corporeal, while the spirit, soul, and will are also corporeal. They are only incorporeal on the outside. The crux of the Dragon Soul Body Forging Art is to balance the corporeal and the incorporeal with the mind. It is the foundation of the scales, the three of the Grand Dao.”

After resting an hour, Long Chen shouted and the golden light once more appeared, exploding out of him. At the same time, a resplendent dragon cry rang throughout the entire Vermilion Bird space.

Long Chen’s dragon scales began to ripple as if they were breathing. Formless spiritual and mental energy then mixed with the power of his flesh and blood, no longer separable.

“Success!” The dragon expert roared in excitement. It was even more excited than Long Chen.

As for Long Chen, the moment he merged his corporeal power with his incorporeal power, he felt his body suddenly swell. It felt like it was about to burst.

“Cloud Dragon Immolation Claw!”

Long Chen let out a roar and slammed his claw at the gate. If he didn’t unleash this power, he would explode.

BOOM!

That giant gate crumbled. The next moment, space twisted and Long Chen and the others appeared in the palace once more.

“We’re… we’re out?!”

Zhu Yunwen and the others almost couldn’t believe their eyes. They had completed the trial by fire.

“Excellent, you’re finally out! Hurry to the battlefield! The Vermilion Bird Empire is in crisis!”

As soon as they appeared, they heard an ancient voice in their minds.