"Are you truly not the reincarnated Spirit Seed of some Elder?" the middle-aged man with the mark on his face glared fiercely at Jun Mo Xie. "You must also be aware that you reached the peak of Saint Sovereign Third Level before turning twenty! But there is one thing you don't know: if you weren't a reincarnated Spirit Seed, there is absolutely no way you could have achieved this speed!"

He added the last sentence darkly: "Even if the eleven of us had been channeling cultivation energy into you since birth, supporting you with the finest rare treasures along the way, without the slightest deviation, we still could not have achieved what you have before the age of twenty! Now, do you still deny it?"

"But I truly am not a reincarnated Spirit Seed! If the Elder does not believe me, there is nothing I can do. May I ask in return, can a so-called 'reincarnated Spirit Seed' truly achieve what I have achieved?" Jun Mo Xie shrugged, his face utterly innocent.

The marked middle-aged man was instantly struck dumb, because even a body that was a reincarnated Spirit Seed could not possibly reach the level Jun Mo Xie had attained at this moment. Even with past life memories, comprehension, foundation, and even cultivating from before leaving the womb, it would be extremely difficult to reach the current accomplishments of Young Master Jun.

While being a reincarnated Spirit Seed provides the most ideal cultivation environment, it still has limits. Someone like Young Master Jun’s achievements are beyond human capability!

"What this young man says is the truth; he is indeed not a reincarnated Spirit Seed!" The white-robed man seated at the head sighed wearily and uttered this earth-shattering answer: "When our divine senses intersected just now, I investigated thoroughly. His consciousness is perfectly integrated, without the slightest dislocation! He is not an accumulation of two lifetimes!"

At this declaration, everyone's expression changed!

A perfectly integrated consciousness, without any dislocation!

Everyone present understood the implication of this statement.

Any reincarnated Spirit Seed must locate a pregnant woman on the verge of giving birth and be reborn into that body. However, in such cases, the formed fetus already contains another innate soul!

To take over, the original soul must be killed! Only then can the Spirit Seed survive by anchoring itself to that body. This naturally grants rebirth and the advantage of existing in a primordial embryonic state, making the path of cultivation smooth. But every advantage has its drawback; reincarnated Spirit Seeds possess a significant flaw: consciousness dislocation!

After all, the reincarnated Spirit Seed killed an innate soul! The divine sense world obtained after killing that innate soul is not one's own innate inheritance, so it can only be slowly familiarized with and transformed, bit by bit! But no matter how much it transforms, a degree of separation will always remain—it will exist forever!

This is the final and most perilous hurdle faced by peak cultivators: "The Trial of a Hundred Refinements for the Soul by Heart Demons!"

Ancient lore states that if a cultivator can pass this trial, they can freely shatter the void, open the gates of heaven and earth, and traverse dimensions at will. But if they ultimately fail this trial of the Heart Demons, the consequence is certain destruction of the soul—vanished into nothingness, irrespective of past or present life!

The difficulty of this trial is absolutely more perilous than crossing the Heavenly Tribulation!

Since antiquity, no one has ever broken through it!

Shattering the void, opening the gates of heaven and earth, freely shuttling between planes...

In the Profound Profound Continent, in ten thousand years, only the First Young Master of the Nine Hells has achieved this! Not only did he achieve it, but he also shuttled across with his hundred wives accompanying him...

The so-called ancient lore was actually the words left behind by the First Young Master of the Nine Hells! It was also the final stage of the profound technique he passed down!

But no one knew that the reason the First Young Master of the Nine Hells succeeded was that he was never a reincarnated Spirit Seed to begin with; and his wives were all the same. Thus, they were entirely free from the danger of the "Trial of a Hundred Refinements for the Soul by Heart Demons."

As for later generations who cultivated to the peak without being a Spirit Seed... in the last one hundred thousand years, not a single one has succeeded!

The leading middle-aged man present was a reincarnated Spirit Seed following the death of the previous generation's Guardian. There were five others in the room who shared the same fate! These six individuals represented the six highest cultivation bases in the Celestial Saint Palace!

The others were present, but their true cultivation level was worlds apart from these six!

Now, here was a monstrous anomaly—not a reincarnated Spirit Seed, yet having cultivated to the peak of Saint Sovereign Third Level before the age of twenty! This was something everyone had previously thought impossible, even in their wildest dreams.

To explain Young Master Jun’s currently outstanding achievements, the "reincarnated Spirit Seed" was the only plausible answer they could conceive. But at this moment, that sole answer was utterly shattered by a few simple words!

They did not know that while Jun Mo Xie was not a so-called reincarnated Spirit Seed, he was fundamentally not born of this world either. He was also a different soul, one that started cultivating halfway through, and not even with an innate body... However, because he possessed the Hongjun Tower, it had already polished away all traces of this! Heart Demons, Heavenly Tribulations—they were simply beneath his notice!

"Although you are not a reincarnated Spirit Seed, your body still contains the power of many spiritual medicines! Or rather, it is they who forged your powerful strength today!"

The middle-aged man still smiled, but there was a tone of warning: "However, everything beneficial also has its drawbacks! You must be careful, as this is not a good thing for you either. While rapid advancement in a short time can grant immense power, in the long run, it carries profound future consequences. When you reach your next breakthrough, you truly need to calm your mind and ideally digest all this power completely before planning the breakthrough. Otherwise, if you press forward recklessly to the final trial... the peril you face may not be less than ours, perhaps even greater!"

Jun Mo Xie looked at him deeply and said, "Thank you!"

Jun Mo Xie could fully discern that the man's words were genuine guidance, offered with sincerity. Although he had the Hongjun Tower ensuring his safety through the final trial, the man's goodwill still warmed his heart.

Upon hearing that the man's body contained the influence of 'many' spiritual medicines, the expressions of the others immediately softened. While still utterly unbelievable, this explanation was undeniably easier to accept. After all, the world held countless unknown things, perhaps some supremely heaven-defying spiritual medicines, and Jun Mo Xie's body just happened to be able to bear them, leading to this legendary outcome through sheer coincidence.

Otherwise... compared to Young Master Jun, these old monsters who had lived for thousands of years might as well bang their heads against a wall and die—it was too humiliating to their pride...

"Jun Mo Xie, although your current position puts you at odds with the Holy Land, my peers and I do not wish to make things difficult for you. Since you came here with Protector Qu and the other two, you must have something to discuss, yes?" The middle-aged man smiled, his demeanor slowly returning to its previous calm, gradually resuming that strange state of existing within the void.

Seeing their leader speak, the others present suddenly sighed in unison.

Jun Mo Xie’s youthful cultivation to such heights was truly a great miracle in this world! Thus, upon seeing him, the leader immediately summoned them, harboring an idea: if he continued at this pace, this young man might reach the summit, or even surpass it, in a very short time!

If he could pass the Trial of a Hundred Refinements for the Soul by Heart Demons right before them, the reference value for everyone would be incomparably huge!

But now, their leader had clearly abandoned that enticing notion.

However, they did not know that upon interacting with Jun Mo Xie, the Celestial Saint Leader’s initial idea had not disappeared or been abandoned; instead, it had grown even stronger! It was just that he possessed the ability to recognize character, and upon their first contact, he knew Jun Mo Xie was an obstinate mule—one who retreats if pushed forward and resists if pulled back!

Directly making demands of such a person with an arrogant stance would be harder than ascending to heaven! And given their status, lowering themselves to beg was simply impossible!

Fortunately, such a person had one weakness: a fear of owing favors! Therefore, the only current approach was to sincerely befriend him and proceed step-by-step, accepting whatever level he reached. Furthermore, in that initial connection, he had sensed the formidable power of Jun Mo Xie’s own soul; when they contended, it felt as if Jun Mo Xie hadn't even used his full strength! Whether he could withstand Jun Mo Xie if the latter truly attacked with full force was now an unknown matter!

This realization terrified him immensely! Yet, he failed to realize that Jun Mo Xie had actually exerted his utmost effort!

As for that inexplicably powerful hidden force, it was indeed the might of the Hongjun Tower. And in that assessment, he wasn't entirely wrong, except he had underestimated the power slightly: if Jun Mo Xie used the integrated Hongjun Tower at full strength, especially in a pure divine sense attack... even if everyone in this room combined their efforts, they could not withstand it! How could the power of the Hongjun Tower be something humans could resist?

Seeing the conversation return to the main topic, Qu Wu Hui quickly stepped forward and explained the details of the bet.

When they heard that over thirty Saints had perished in the confrontation, and even the Saint Sovereign expert Zhan Mu Bai had ultimately died, the eight original individuals in the room showed no discernible emotion.

There was only a slight sigh, issuing from nowhere in particular, ethereal and carrying a note of inexplicable melancholy...

"So you require the Exquisite Lotus..." The leading middle-aged man said faintly, his eyes half-closed. "No problem! A bet must be honored. I will give it to you shortly!"

At these words, everyone present exchanged stunned glances.

"Thank you! Among the Holy Land, there is finally someone who can honor a promise!" Jun Mo Xie smiled faintly and raised his eyebrows to ask, "May I ask your honored name, esteemed Sir?"

This query, though outwardly respectful, carried a subtle edge of disrespect, given the disparity in their statuses. And as Jun Mo Xie stood there, despite his cultivation being as distant as heaven and earth compared to anyone else in the room, in the eyes of the others, Jun Mo Xie’s current bearing had suddenly reached a level where he could contend equally with their leader!

And the middle-aged man seemed to have been waiting for Jun Mo Xie to ask this question. Hearing it, he opened his eyes and smiled, somewhat vaguely: "What is my name... I have quite forgotten most of it... Currently, I suppose I am called... Gu Han? I recall three thousand years ago, my surname was Wu. Wu Shan Yun was my name then..."

This question from Jun Mo Xie seemed to remind him of something, and a faint flicker of melancholy crossed his usually ethereal and illusory eyes... With a soft sigh in some distant void, a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of three thousand years of time, three thousand years of joys and sorrows, partings and deaths...

Three thousand years ago... Jun Mo Xie was genuinely shocked this time!

This handsome middle-aged man with youthful features and black hair was actually a figure from three thousand years ago! However, from his words, Jun Mo Xie understood one thing: it seemed this man was that so-called "reincarnated Spirit Seed"!

Telling him both his past and current names carried an obvious, implicit meaning.

"Then should I call you Gu Han or Wu Shan Yun?" Jun Mo Xie smiled.

"A name is just a designation, it doesn't matter what you call me. Even if you call me 'Old Undying' in your heart... I wouldn't mind," the middle-aged man replied with a smile.

"Hahaha..." The other party was candid, and treated him well, showing no intention of making trouble. Therefore, Jun Mo Xie decided to reciprocate. This was undoubtedly a huge favor, and the one thing Jun Mo Xie disliked most was owing favors, especially... favors from people of the Holy Land!

He looked at this 'Wu Shan Yun' or perhaps 'Gu Han' and said with a smile: "Three thousand years, Gu Han. In these three thousand years, how many wives did you marry? The beauties who caught your eye must all have been peerless, yes? And where are they now?"

As soon as this question was uttered, ten out of the eleven people present showed intense anger, subtly ready to erupt!

While longevity was certainly what they pursued, within those long lives, there were still many things they found unbearable to recall, things too painful to forget! Every time they thought of them, their hearts ached intensely!

"Young Master Jun, your words have gone too far!" Cheng Yin Xiao said sternly.

And Wu Shan Yun, seated at the head, suddenly seemed enveloped by a thick veil; no one could see his face... only a heavy, oppressive atmosphere surged around the room, making it difficult to breathe.

"Gone too far? Very well... I'll rephrase the question," Jun Mo Xie smiled. "Three thousand years, you have experienced two lives... that isn't much! But... your birth parents in each life... they cherished you exceptionally, didn't they? Where are those elderly figures now?"

"Jun Mo Xie! You are presumptuous!" Qu Wu Hui abruptly stood up, glaring and roaring.

"Presumptuous... perhaps that's still not right... Then let me try another question," Jun Mo Xie stroked his chin. "In three thousand years, you have had parents, confidantes, and wives... Surely you must have had your own flesh and blood! Where are your children, who survived in this mortal world, now?"

Jun Mo Xie smiled faintly, glancing around: "These three questions are also what I ask everyone present. All of you here seem to have lived for thousands of years... Are your parents, wives, family, and children still around?"

This question was too hurtful. Besides these high-level cultivators, who else could live for a thousand or even several thousand years? Jun Mo Xie was practically flaying open their rawest wounds!

"BOOM!" Ten people stood up simultaneously, their faces contorted in fury! Ten extraordinarily powerful surges of mental energy clashed and roiled, these formless things almost solidifying in that instant, launching the thatched hut into the sky! They were about to strike the disrespectful young man, Jun Mo Xie!

"What are you doing? All of you, sit down!" Wu Shan Yun, at the head, suddenly roared! Extremely enraged: "Do you not understand the meaning behind Jun Mo Xie's questions? Does he truly intend to provoke such collective fury right in front of the eleven of us? Is he a fool?! How could he commit such suicidal behavior? Haven't you considered it? Hah? After thousands of years, are you still so unable to control your temper?!"

Under the pressure of his stern gaze, the others reluctantly sat down, but their looks toward Jun Mo Xie remained quite hostile! If Jun Mo Xie could not provide a reasonable explanation, they would certainly not let him leave this doorway!

Jun Mo Xie sighed, dropping his playful demeanor, and became solemn: "I believe none of those present are heartless people. This is evident from how my previous words touched upon your personal sorrows. Regardless of how profound the cultivation—be it Divine Profound or Saint Sovereign, or even higher, like the level of the Fourteenth Young Master of the Nine Hells... fundamentally, we are all still human! Humans with flesh and blood! What we can never sever, what will forever remain, is that kinship of blood! I believe no matter how many times one cycles through reincarnation, as long as that memory remains, the separation and death stemming from innate emotion will forever be the deepest scars in our hearts!"

"When facing enemies, losing a thousand or ten thousand means nothing. But if it is one of our own, the loss of even one will cause sorrow for a long time."

"As for those parents who painstakingly raised us—nurturing us from our youthful vitality until we grew up, only for them to age... until we understood things, they had already passed away... The tree wishes to be still, but the wind does not cease; the son wishes to provide filial piety, but the parents are gone. This is a wound that can never be healed!"

Jun Mo Xie spoke solemnly, his tone measured, carrying a strange magic, a faint sorrow permeating the air.

Following his words, the supreme experts present involuntarily recalled their own fathers and mothers... as if they could again see the vigorous, strong father who once lifted them high and laughed with them, slowly growing aged, stooped, white-haired, and finally passing away quietly, leaving behind eyes filled with deep lingering concern for their children...

And the embrace of that warm mother, her gentle smiles and chastisements... eventually dissolving into thin smoke, only the willingness to sacrifice everything for her children enduring eternally, never extinguishing...

These memories, already too distant, felt just as vivid in their warmth when recalled now, and the helplessness and grief of their passing still pierced their hearts...

Especially for those experts who were reincarnated Spirit Seeds: although they might have initially felt uncomfortable or highly resistant during their infancy, they alone remembered every scene since the day they were born. From resistance to acceptance, even enjoyment—starting from the first time they feigned innocence to delight their worried parents, they had already accepted...

Who hasn't had those days? Those ordinary yet warm days. Every time they woke in the dead of night, who hasn't stood on the rooftop staring at the sky and sighing longingly? A thousand turns and twists all resolved into a deep, lingering sigh...

"...And those unparalleled beauties with whom you shared heartfelt love during your youth, sacrificing yourselves for each other—from a shy young girl to a companion for decades... bearing children for you, washing clothes and cooking for you, staying by your side, intending to grow old with you peacefully... but in the end, they still had to age before your eyes... finally beyond saving..."

"Who has forgotten the vows made in those days, swearing by the seas to dry up and rocks to crumble, to live and die together, to be inseparable for all lifetimes? Who can truly forget that bone-deep longing? Who can truly forget the tender entanglement of loving passion?... That shy smile, that satisfaction and joy of having their heart belonging to you... the red veil on the wedding night... You might forget their names, but can you truly forget the experiences you shared? In the dead of night, have you not sighed softly? Have you not regretted it? Have you or have you not?..."

"'Ten years of life and death, vast and unknowable; thinking of it only brings sorrow, thinking less only deepens the longing; a lone grave a thousand miles away... nowhere to speak of my desolation; even if we met, we likely wouldn't recognize each other, dust on our faces, hair like frost... Last night in a dream, I suddenly returned home, to the small window, where she was dressing, our eyes met in silence, only... tears flowed endlessly. How heartbreaking it is, year after year, at the moonlit night... by the short pine mound...'”

Jun Mo Xie’s eyes grew distant as he slowly recited: "Others cannot bear it after only ten years... but you have endured a thousand years, or even longer! Do you still remember the lone grave where your beloved lies buried? Do you recall the moonlit night... the short pine mound? Hearing this now, do your hearts ache? Do you feel nostalgia?...”

No need to ask. Now, these supreme experts standing at the pinnacle of the continent had already lost the determined composure and sharp killer instinct that once defined them. All that remained were deep nostalgia and sorrow...

Those ancient vows, sworn that the seas would dry and rocks would crumble, to live and die together, to be intertwined for all lifetimes... the beloved wife who ultimately passed away helplessly... That sweet smile, once like an apple; that beautiful woman who smoothed the wrinkles from his robes every time he left, the gaze as clear and longing as autumn water as she watched for his return late in the evening...

My dearest wife… even across endless cycles of reincarnation… but the memories we once shared, how could I possibly forget you? Do you know, in the deepest quiet of the night when sleep evades me, the spot in my heart that aches the most—the softest place—it is only you…

In that instant, these paramount masters, who commanded the world with a mere gesture, were each struck by a profound, crushing sorrow…

The calm voice continued, imbued with a singular, strange magical resonance, speaking slowly: “And what of the children you held countless times in your arms? The very flesh and blood whose birth made your faces split with joy. From their first babbling words, to their hesitant first steps, then growing into young men and adults… they were the very crystallization of your lifeblood… But they… ultimately could not outlast the march of time, passing away peacefully in your embrace… That wrenching grief of the aged burying the young… who could ever truly forget that?”

“These indelible memories… who among you could ever truly forget them?!!” With this final sentence, Jun Moxie nearly roared it out, employing a technique akin to the Lion’s Roar!

Sometimes like the deep tolling of a monastery bell, sometimes like the sudden crack of thunder!

My deepest apologies, Feng Ling’s flight is delayed. I can’t afford sleep now, so I am updating first. Without further ado, here is the chapter. Please support with your monthly votes!!!C