Volume One, Chapter Sixty-Six: The Rhythm of Becoming a God

Chapter Sixty-Six: The Rhythm of Becoming a God

The heart’s essence blood of the Asura King was truly a treasure beyond compare.

Among the Asura race, sincerity and boldness ran deep; they were fierce and unyielding, masters of martial arts, dauntless in battle, never bowing to oppression. Any act of aggression or injustice was met with immediate, uncompromising retaliation. Generations of fighting spirit had been etched into their bloodline, so that whenever faced with unfairness, they would answer with their fists. In fact, the only ruler among the heavens and realms who hadn’t fought with the Asura was the Lord of Yama; there weren’t many others.

Yet their love for war did not mean they lacked reason. Rarely would Asura provoke trouble unprompted; only when others slighted them would they retaliate—and when they did, it was with ruthless force, never sparing mercy. Their logic was no barrier to them being labeled as heretical deities or demonic gods by the heavens.

Thus, what immense will was contained in a drop of old Rahu’s heart’s essence blood? Once infused into Tu Zhe’s veins, to what heights would his unyielding spirit and fighting will ascend?

As Rahu’s essence blood merged into Tu Zhe’s brow, he felt an overwhelming surge of battle intent, making his blood boil.

His spirit and will ignited instantly, and, in the mysterious depths of the cosmos, he sensed the energy waves emitted by countless comets and meteors establishing an enigmatic connection with him. It seemed that with a single thought, he could command all comets and meteors to alter their courses. Destruction or creation, devastation or birth, all lay at his whim.

He perceived comets and meteors emitting boundless visible light or flames, or immeasurable invisible waves of energy, constantly converging upon his body.

In a flash, Tu Zhe felt the seed within his Alaya consciousness—the seed capable of devouring all—begin to throb hungrily, drawing in the energies of countless comets and meteors. He sensed the seed continuously growing.

Since absorbing the soul crystal of the celestial god and the immeasurable energy of the divine king Brahma crystal within the heart of the lotus, the seed had clearly been in slumber and digestion. Now, stimulated by comet and meteor energy, it began to greedily absorb once more.

How much energy must this seed consume before it transforms and grants him new divine powers?

Tu Zhe’s heart brimmed with anticipation.

In a single day, Tu Zhe had obtained and mastered the Sun Barrier; drunk and absorbed the immortal nectar; received the Asura King Rahu’s heart’s essence blood, gaining control over comets and meteors.

In barely a month since his birth, Tu Zhe’s fortunes were nothing short of astonishing. Yet, despite this, his heart remained anxious and fraught with a sense of crisis.

Not for any other reason, but because of the Brahma Egg.

According to Mara’s words, this seed of the mid-tier world would gestate and explode within one year, forming a new galaxy.

If he failed to absorb the Brahma Egg before then, it would spell disaster—not only would he be obliterated, but the heavens, the very mid-tier world he inhabited, might be destroyed.

One year. Within a year, he had to find countless rare materials and cultivate the Immortal Demon Body to refine the Brahma Egg.

Damn it, could Tu Zhe, not even a year old, possibly accomplish this?

Actually, counting the thirty thousand days spent within the heart of the lotus, with altered time, Tu Zhe should be nearly a hundred years old. Damn, he wasn’t so young after all.

Wait—a hundred years?

Hold on—

What does this mean?

He had spent nearly a century in the heart of the lotus, hadn’t he?

Yet the Brahma Egg hadn’t exploded in all that time.

Tu Zhe felt as if he had caught a glimpse of something vital and grew exceedingly excited.

Damn, cold sweat broke out all over him. Thankfully, it hadn’t detonated.

But why hadn’t it?

Could it be that Mara’s “one year” was a misunderstanding of time?

Or perhaps the “one year” spoken by Mara and the gestation year of the Brahma Egg were not the same concept?

Yes!

Not just a mid-tier world—even in a lesser world like the heavens and realms, time itself was a vastly different concept.

For example, in the first layer of the heavens, Four Heavenly Kings’ Heaven, one day equaled fifty years on Earth.

In the second layer, Trayastrimsha Heaven, one day equaled one hundred years on Earth.

In the third layer, Yama Heaven, one day equaled two hundred years on Earth.

In the fourth layer, Tusita Heaven, one day equaled four hundred years on Earth.

In the fifth layer, Nirmanarati Heaven, one day equaled eight hundred years on Earth.

In the sixth layer, Paranirmita-Vasavartin Heaven, one day equaled sixteen hundred years on Earth.

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Beyond that, the upper heavens were incalculable, measured only in kalpas.

Tu Zhe realized he had grasped the essence: the higher the realm, the more time relative to Earth became like comparing a river to a drop of water.

Lamo—

Tu Zhe was almost certain his deduction was correct, and suddenly the sense of crisis felt very distant.

Damn, wouldn’t a year in a lesser world be far less than a year in a mid-tier world? Though he still didn’t know how a mid-tier world’s year compared to Earth’s, it was surely followed by a string of zeros that would take ages to count.

He was beside himself with joy at the thought.

Damn that Brahma Egg, ever since acquiring it he hadn’t slept soundly, always fearing it would suddenly explode, taking him and the world with it. Death was one thing, but wanting to live was another.

Now, Tu Zhe’s mind turned mischievous, and his thoughts began to race.

Lamo—

So, in different spaces, time flows at different speeds? The pace of time depends on the sophistication of the space you occupy?

But why such distinctions?

Oh, so advanced spaces are like mighty rivers and oceans, while lesser ones are like bowls, cups, or dewdrops?

Is this the will of the gods, or simply nature’s design?

Forget it, it’s a problem with no answer for now. Dwelling on it is pointless.

Still, lamo.

It means that different time concepts can coexist in the universe.

A fleeting instant may span ten thousand years, or ten thousand years may pass in a moment—it’s not mere fantasy.

Lamo, theoretically, time can be shaped?

If this hypothesis holds, lamo—

Does it mean that if I fully master the laws of time, I could manipulate the hatching time of the Brahma Egg at will? Extend it as I wish, shorten it as I please?

Would time in my hands become like dough, to be kneaded as I desire?

Dough is easier to grasp than rivers, right?

Suppose I mold the dough into the shape of a river—does that mean I could make it the Yangtze, the Yellow River, the Mississippi? Euphrates, or even Baikal Lake or Niagara Falls?

And further, if I were displeased, I could simply reverse time, sending it back thousands, tens of thousands, countless years—rearranging the world’s future as I see fit?

Damn, wouldn’t that make me truly a god?