Chapter 106: Comprehensive Advancement, The Second Global Mutation

Mount Tai Trial Courtyard.

A standalone building stood prominently.

It had been specially arranged and constructed by the upper echelons.

Its décor was antique, exuding a refined charm, with many parts crafted from rare woods.

Some rooms were even made entirely of alloy—not overly luxurious, but focused on comfort.

At this moment, within one such room,

Lu Yuan sat cross-legged, eyes gently closed.

A powerful aura radiated from him, trembling subtly.

Though the golden hue of the aura was now fully retracted, no longer visible,

his imposing presence grew ever stronger.

Before him,

the Meridian Repair Furnace intermittently emitted sounds as surging energies converged.

After several days of refining, a formation had taken shape inside, slowly rising and hovering at the furnace’s mouth.

About the size of a thumb, crystal-clear and radiant with a glowing light.

Upon closer inspection,

one could discern some profound patterns etched on its surface,

reminiscent of the immortal grand pills recorded in ancient texts.

Not long after, Lu Yuan opened his eyes and, upon seeing the pill, smiled softly.

“I have already broken through seventy genetic shackles. I wonder how far I can advance after ingesting this pill?”

Seventy genetic shackles—approaching the ultimate count of one hundred and eight—was not far now.

With his current foundation, all that remained was enough energy.

This pill

was refined from the essence of rare spiritual fruits and exotic herbs gathered from Mount Olympus.

Extracting the purest essence and removing dross, its contained energy far surpassed past concoctions.

Without hesitation, Lu Yuan extended his hand, took the pill, and swallowed it directly.

The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth,

transforming into an immensely pure and vast force.

In a flash, it surged through every limb, bone, muscle, and skin cell.

He closed his eyes again, circulating the Ancestral Dragon Breathing Technique, beginning to fully integrate the power into himself.

Buzzing sounds filled the air.

Soon,

at the moment Lu Yuan absorbed the energy,

his aura surged once more.

His entire body was enveloped in glowing light, illuminating the entire room.

The pill, crafted from multiple spiritual fruits and exotic herbs, contained profoundly thick energy.

This power surged directly into Lu Yuan’s mind.

Usually, such overwhelming power would inflate one’s confidence into arrogance, leading to self-loss.

Ancient texts record this as a spiritual obstacle on the cultivation path: crossing it leads to perfection; failing means grave danger.

Yet Lu Yuan was calm.

He recited the complete version of the Tao Te Ching once more, envisioning the vastness of the cosmos.

In his mind, the innate spirit—the God of Wisdom—sat silently beneath an ancient Bodhi tree.

Within an instant, the sensation vanished.

The boundless energy was completely mastered.

Crack.

Crack.

Crack.

Three consecutive sounds echoed from within Lu Yuan’s body.

This signified that three genetic shackles had been shattered outright.

Behind him, nine celestial caves appeared, each nurturing a True God; the tenth was already forming.

Lu Yuan knew that thanks to the pill, this retreat would yield great gains; his strength would leap forward again.

He ceased all other thoughts, focusing entirely on his visualization technique and breathing, slowly refining the powerful energy.

He was unhurried; haste would only hinder progress.

His foundation was sufficient; the rest must be taken step by step.

Thus, time passed bit by bit.

The force erupting from his body grew ever stronger.

The tenth celestial cave was complete.

The eleventh was also brewing.

More genetic shackles were being broken one by one.

A month and a half passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day,

Lu Yuan, within his chamber, opened his eyes sharply, a gleam flashing within.

His aura no longer surfaced, hidden but potent; yet a faint fragrance emanated from his body, his skin shimmering with radiant light—signs of a physique strengthened to a formidable degree.

His internal organs no longer roared as before but fell silent like a dormant volcano, ready to erupt at any moment.

Whenever called upon, they could unleash unimaginable terrifying power.

Inside,

the number of broken genetic shackles reached ninety-five.

In other words, the ultimate was now just thirteen shackles away.

His cultivation of the Ancestral Dragon Breathing Technique had also reached a new height, with fifteen celestial caves opened.

This meant a fifteenfold increase in combat strength and amplification.

His physique.

His power.

Both had been greatly enhanced in this single cycle.

Moreover, the innate spirit in his mind, cleansed for a long time by the ancient decree of the Heavenly Emperor,

now seemed to glow with a faint purple halo—solemn, noble, exuding an aura of looking down upon all living beings.

Of course, this was only the beginning; with time, it would become more extraordinary and divine.

“This harvest is indeed remarkable,”

Lu Yuan said as he rose, clenching his fist.

Immediately, his bones and muscles sang in unison.

As his blood surged, the air around him seemed to crackle explosively.

He made a rough estimation—he was now far stronger than before his retreat.

If facing nuclear weapons again, even without the celestial cave boosts from the Ancestral Dragon Breathing Technique, he should remain unscathed.

In summary, the gains were immense.

The third stage of evolution—the Shackled Realm—was nearing its pinnacle.

Afterward, he would advance toward the fourth stage, the Golden Body Realm.

“I wonder how far the Great Dao Sword Embryo has progressed. Let me take a look.”

Lu Yuan then took out the sword embryo and examined it carefully.

The sword’s body remained black.

Its brilliant radiance was restrained, yet the sword’s aura had become even stronger.

The patterns on it grew clearer, profoundly mysterious.

With a slight activation, the Great Dao sword light emerged, accompanied by a sharp killing intent that even threatened his own body.

Clearly, after absorbing the five ancient sacred artifacts of the Church and some divine materials, the Great Dao Sword Embryo had ascended once more.

If wielded with the Heaven-Earth One Sword technique, it would be terrifyingly powerful.

It might even be able to sever a small mountain without difficulty.

“Alas, divine materials are so hard to come by.”

“Otherwise, with enough, the sword embryo would grow even stronger.”

Lu Yuan sighed inwardly at the scarcity of divine materials capable of transforming the Great Dao Sword Embryo.

At least for now, they were nearly impossible to find.

But he was patient; he would take it slow.

After all, he had already outpaced so many others; the road ahead would only grow smoother, with no need for haste.

Without further thought, Lu Yuan showed no intention of leaving.

He took out his communicator to catch up on recent events outside.

First, the formation of the Human Alliance was proceeding smoothly, with little opposition, all recognizing Huaxia as the leader.

There were also various news reports about himself.

Titles like “The True Human Sovereign” and “Current Strongest Human” abounded.

This level of attention far exceeded that of the previous Five Supremes.

Of course, by now, no one mentioned “Supreme” anymore, knowing it to be an exaggeration.

Meanwhile, more and more Awakened Ones were emerging—such as Zhu Qingyu, the Pure Yang Little Celestial Master, Monk Huikong, and others.

They had all reached the Awakened Realm and were hailed as the pride of the younger generation domestically, drawing much attention.

Yet no one dared compare these individuals to Lu Yuan.

In everyone’s eyes,

Lu Yuan was in a league of his own.

However, he paid little heed to such news, instead scanning other reports.

For instance, sudden earthquakes, snow disasters, torrential rains, and lightning strikes appeared frequently.

There seemed to be a pattern of frequent calamities.

Take Shuntian, for example.

It had been snowing continuously for half a month with no sign of stopping.

And Deep City’s sea levels were rising sharply.

Yet these events drew little attention, as this was the New Era, and people’s focus was on supernatural powers.

But Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly upon seeing them and spoke slowly:

“By my reckoning, the second global mutation is about to begin.”

Aside from the first mutation, subsequent second and third mutations occurred silently.

Without memories of a past life, it would be difficult to perceive them accurately.

This also reminded him of what the Spirit Monkey had said.

The king of sea beasts had recently been somewhat uneasy.

It seemed certain entities were about to appear.

After that,

extraterrestrial beings from beyond the domain would gradually descend.

“A brilliant great era, huh?”

Lu Yuan murmured, his expression growing solemn.

A great era also meant great calamity.

He then recalled Old Ji’s instructions about those two otherworldly guests.

They would come to the Mount Tai Trial Courtyard once more.

More than half a month had passed; the time was nearly right.

Yet this was uncertain.

He decided to wait a few more days.

Besides, the gains from his retreat needed thorough digestion.

Thus,

several more days slipped by.

On this day, Ice Fairy and Zhu Qingyu had just left their rooms, preparing to train.

On the way, they noticed ahead two strange individuals—a man and a woman.

The young woman was tall and slender, with long legs, snow-white skin, and an exceptionally distinguished aura.

Her appearance was even more outstanding than theirs, yet she wore ancient-style clothing.

Beside her was an elderly man in a flowing red robe, lagging slightly behind, steadily walking forward.

“May I ask, what brings you to the Mount Tai Trial Courtyard?” Ice Fairy stepped forward to inquire.

She was certain she did not recognize them; it was her first encounter with these two.

The young woman turned her head, smiling, with two dimples that made her look stunning and endearing.

Politely, she said, “I am here to find Lu Yuan. Has he returned?”

Lu Yuan?

Ice Fairy and Zhu Qingyu exchanged glances,

each detecting a trace of strangeness on the other’s face.

“Both of you,”

just then,

Old Yun approached from afar, slightly bowing and cupping his hands.

“King Lu has already returned.”

“He instructed that if you two arrived, you could seek him directly. I can guide you there.”

Old Yun had met these two before and knew their identities were extremely mysterious, their strength formidable.

So he had come immediately.

“Thank you very much, Elder,” the young woman replied sweetly, still very polite.

She glanced at Ice Fairy and Zhu Qingyu, nodded once, and followed closely behind Old Yun.

As for the elderly man in the red robe, he remained silent throughout, extremely reserved.

“That woman’s aura and appearance rival Zhou Yunqiong’s, perhaps even surpass her,”

Ice Fairy watched their backs and chuckled softly.

“Looks like King Lu’s not only powerful but also quite popular with women.”

Beside her, Zhu Qingyu chose not to respond, standing still and carefully observing the young woman’s figure.

Meanwhile,

elsewhere,

after several days, Lu Yuan had completely stabilized his recent gains.

He opened his eyes, preparing to stretch his limbs, but soon lifted his head to look outside, a faint smile curling his lips.

“Finally arrived, huh?”

(End of chapter)