Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

1754 Second-Rate

Ryu's attention turned to his Internal Matrix. His self-created method was built off the back of Real Qi alone. Even after all the changes to his soul, he hadn't touched it.

But now, he felt a state of enlightenment coming that he couldn't suppress.

The moment his gaze turned to the Internal Matrix, it was as though something had exploded in his mind.

Waves of Essence descended, forming a golden pillar as he lost himself in thought. He didn't even have time to register what level of Enlightenment he had just triggered. He had already begun to tear apart his Internal Matrix and reform it.

If he had gotten these many benefits from just the fusion of Real Qi and Nether Qi, didn't that mean if he split his Spiritual Sea into perfect thirds, incorporated Ethereal Qi as well, it would rise to another level?

But this was just speculation, he didn't know for certain.

What he did know, though, was that his Internal Matrix now had a lane for improvement he had simply never considered before.

Vense would never expect that his last sinister action would actually be the impetus for Ryu to improve by leaps and bounds. Not only was his soul far stronger than it had been in the past, but he had touched upon something incredibly profound.

The fact that Ryu didn't understand what Vense did or how he did it was a blow to his ego, but it was also a reminder of something clear.

He wasn't perfect, yes. But this wasn't his main take away.

What caught his attention even more was the fact that there were certain systems of cultivation and methods that he had never even seen.

It could even be said that if any one of the methods of the Demon Kings appeared in the True Martial World, they would be no different from Taboo methods in that case.

They were built upon fundamentally different realities…

But there was a stark difference between Taboo methods and Demon methods.

The former was suppressed by the Heavens, not having enough Faith to display their real power.

The latter, however, was perfectly in tune with the Heavens.

And the weight that difference held was enormous.

Ryu's mind shuddered, and a big bang seemed to echo through his mind. It felt like all the stars in the universe were reflecting in his eyes.

The world felt so large and yet so small at the same time, as though it was resting in the palm of his hands, nonetheless.

He reconstructed his Internal Matrix entirely. This time, not only did he use Nether Qi, but he also used Ethereal Qi.

It wasn't difficult for Ryu to get the Ethereal Qi he needed. He relied on his wife's Primordial Yin.

He didn't need much at all, just enough to trigger the changes he needed and comprehend the slivers of things that were beyond him just moments before.

His Internal Matrix began to strengthen considerably, shimmering as the only light of gold in the endless sea of black that was Ryu's Spiritual Sea.

Before this change, Ryu's Internal Matrix was able to help him to exhibit the hollow form of a Dao three levels above his own. Now that he was in the True Realm, this allowed him to exhibit at least the skeleton of an Omniscient Dao.

The problem with this was that it wasn't complete, and often it didn't allow him to maintain the full strength of a Founding Dao either. As such, though it definitely made his Dao far sharper, it was still limited in what it could do and the result wasn't nearly as exaggerated as one might have hoped.

But this stage was entirely different.

Somehow, it felt more whole.

Ryu couldn't just exhibit a skeleton now. His Dao was well and truly three stages above his own.

His Dao, which was at the True Grade, could now fully exhibit the strength of a Founding Dao at the Omniscient Grade without losing any of its efficacy.

The unfortunate part was the due to the suppression of the Rotten Sea, he couldn't access his Inner World. As such, his Internal Matrix had returned to its original state.

Even so, this still allowed him to exhibit the full scope of a Founding Dao in the Perfect Grade.

Even better than that, this Perfect Grade Dao that he could exhibit showed clear signs of surpassing the ceiling placed upon it by the Heavens, peeking beyond the Founding Grade to a world beyond.

When Ryu opened his eyes, his gaze flashed like lightning.

The golden pillar of light around him was slowly dissipating, but that didn't stop him from spotting all the figures that had approached him during his meditation.

He couldn't control what had happened. He had truly not wanted to miss that state of enlightenment.

Truthfully, he knew this would happen.

He just didn't give a damn.

Ahead, a looming Fire Giant stood.

Off to the side, there was an Ash Treant, its black bark and branches spreading out to encompass over a kilometer.

To another side, there was an Ice Queen, one with a radiant blue crown above her head.

All three were on Ryu's kill list.

"How convenient of you all to come to me."

Ryu stood to his feet, stretching his neck.

At that moment, the surrounding waters became incredibly still. His Bloodline Resonance stabilized, breaking through several tiers of control and forcing the heavy waters into submission.

His huge breakthrough had brought his comprehension back to a level where it had been in the outside world.

As far as he was concerned, this battle was already over. The second-rate geniuses weren't worthy of standing before him. They were lucky he had even graced them with his presence.

That said, for their thoughts about his wife, they would have to die.

The Ice Queen seemed to be instantly irritated by Ryu's words. A twin pair of small daggers appeared in her hands.

"I'm going to castrate you and flush that disgusting thing down your throat."

Ryu sent her an indifferent glance. "I hate to break it to you, but my wife quite likes that "disgusting thing"."

"I'LL KILL YOU!" She roared.

[Important Announcement Below. Also, WE'RE BACK BABY!!!]