Destiny in Cinders

The first seal, spanning his entire body, laid the foundation. The second through eighth seals focused on progressively strengthening the limbs and core components of the human body, the muscles, meridians, skin, flesh, and bones. The ninth seal acted upon the soul, completing a minor phase and granting the first ability, Firm White.

An Jing chose his arms to hold the second seal, making the goldfur bear paw a perfect fit. In addition to immense resilience, it enabled An Jing's arms to unleash several times the usual force whenever he activated the seal. Consequently, he could push his strength far beyond its natural limits by channeling the Imperial Sky Art and Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal.

"Let's keep going!"

Though he knew that he still had time, An Jing had no intention of ending his seclusion early. An ordinary person required a full day to digest spirit items. Even if his cover identity was also a genius, he still needed to remain in the meditation room for the entire night to not draw undue attention.

Figuring he had nothing better to do, An Jing continued with the next seal. Even if he failed, gaining further insight was always beneficial. Who would have guessed that this single attempt would lead to an unstoppable breakthrough?

For his third seal, An Jing chose to strengthen his legs. While focusing on the arms was undeniably the most direct method to boost strength, martialists couldn't overlook the explosive power and speed generated by the legs.

Given that over seventy percent of the body's muscle mass was concentrated in the legs, the ancient adage held true. Power originated from the ground, making footwork paramount. The principle centered entirely on the seamless coordination linking the legs and core directly to the ground.

Lower-body conditioning was something An Jing never overlooked. And thanks to his influence, even his companions at Direlife Manor never missed out on leg training. As a result, he gained both agile footwork and explosive power, and with the addition of the seal, his strength would double.

Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal was a sword immortal's technique that allowed for rapid progression in the initial stage through the consumption of resources. It was easy to learn but difficult to master, requiring abundant resources as well as a bold, indomitable spirit committed to relentless growth.

Strictly speaking, condensing the seal demanded a perfectly clear mind while conditioning qi essence and metal lethal qi. At the same time, it required a profound comprehension of both physical anatomy and the nature of the metal aspect.

An Jing happened to check every box. He possessed both the requisite courage and resources, mental clarity, and practiced Sword of Tranquility. Furthermore, having recently broken through to the Tide Aura Stage with the aid of a spirit item, he had gained an entirely new comprehension of his own physical form and the properties of the metal aspect.

He had condensed the second seal, but it left his qi essence nearly exhausted. Theoretically, he needed to rest until his reserves were fully restored, but An Jing still had an ace up his sleeve!

Circulating the mental technique, An Jing simultaneously guided the lethal qi from the jadeslice steel and his own qi essence into the Evenstar seal seed. He then used the seed to weave layer after layer of seals. This sequence was remarkably similar to cellular protein production, an insight born from the unique blend of the Spark and his fortune.

Through this insight, he understood that the essence of Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal was to create countless microscopic seals invisible to the human eye. They worked to gradually enhance his entire being from the very foundations of his vascular network.

The physical composition of those in Void Embrace was likely fundamentally different from the humans of his previous world, made of qi essence and the five aspects rather than physical matter, yet the underlying principles of the Grand Dao still held true.

With Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal, he didn't need a high cultivation level. Forming nine seals would take him straight to the peak of the Spirit Awakening Realm. As Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal suffused his entire body, he would be fundamentally transformed.

At that level, he would be capable of swallowing gold and chewing through iron. He could even reattach severed limbs and survive for an extended period even if his head were chopped off. Breaking through to the Qi Refinement Stage via Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal would bring miraculous results, potentially elevating his spirit roots' grade!

It's truly a divine cultivation technique from the ancients, nothing short of miraculous!

Delighted to have grasped the essence of it, An Jing circulated the mental technique, guiding the seals toward the pressure points in his legs. Piece by piece, like construction workers carving out a grand highway, they constructed a flawless metal lethal qi framework, opening a vast path where nothing had existed before.

Through the intricate precision of Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal, An Jing could sense his entire internal network, from his meridians down to the most hidden pressure points, being tempered as the seals spread out. Not a single drop of his qi essence or the lethal qi from the jadeslice steel went to waste; they were refined into every inch of his legs.

Even Yvelbane was astonished to see An Jing break through Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal in one flawless, seamless attempt. He's fully grasped the essence of Evenstar Ivory Divine Seal?! Granted, it's just the core of the Spirit Awakening Realm, but to comprehend it by the second seal?! Back then, even my original wielder, I... Hmm... His name...

Once again, its thoughts ground to a halt due to the memory loss, but Yvelbane was no longer troubled by it. It doesn't matter. With An Jing by my side, I'm certain I will reclaim my lost memories!

A surge of astonishment and joy gripped the sword soul as it witnessed An Jing continue to form the third seal. Then, his thoughts suddenly shifted. Wait... his qi essence is insufficient! He's going to fail.

In fact, An Jing was fully capable of absorbing spirit qi to convert it into his own qi essence. Though he had yet to formally cross into the Qi Refinement Realm, breaking through to the Tide Aura Stage had already tempered his physique to meet the required standard. He simply hadn't taken the leap yet.

Because Void Embrace's spirit qi was heavily contaminated, absorbing it without a lifearc would cause qi deviation. But for An Jing, manifesting his lifearc would completely expose his identity. Still, he possessed the spirit-qi crucible and evergreen core!

The spirit-qi crucible! Snapping his eyes open, An Jing pulled out the spirit-qi crucible he had seized from the soldier of the Fengdu Guard. The grade-two spirit stone in the crucible still contained more than half its spirit qi, which was more than enough to supply a Spirit Awakening cultivator.

An Jing didn't hesitate. While doing so carried a risk of injury, he still possessed half of the evergreen core and could use Ailment Swordfinger to heal himself. The white patterns on the pale blue spirit-qi crucible flared to life as a massive wave of spirit qi poured into An Jing.

Despite the boost from the Seven Ruins Arc and a body matching that of a Qi Refinement cultivator, An Jing's heart hammered like a war drum. Blood surged violently toward his neck and ears, and his meridians and pressure points throbbed, swelling rapidly like a balloon.

Any ordinary Aura Realm martialist would have already perished, their internal organs incinerated by the spirit qi influx, or if lucky, their body blown apart. But An Jing remained undeterred.

His qi essence surged like a powerful tide, flooding his entire body and shielding every inch of his flesh to withstand the violent wave. Then, the external spirit qi was transformed for his own use through his spirit roots, and the empty reservoir of qi essence in his body surged with renewed abundance.

Although the brutal spirit qi replenishment left An Jing with hidden injuries, he could fall back on Ailment Swordfinger. Gnashing his teeth, he continued to direct his qi essence to condense the seal. As the seal fully enveloped his legs and the jadeslice steel in his palm dissolved into smoke, a sudden lightness washed over An Jing's entire body.

This weightlessness made it feel as if his physical form no longer existed, leaving only a hazy wisp of psychic will floating between heaven and earth. Looking out, there was only pure Evenstar light wrapped around him. Within An Jing's dantian, amid the primordial, formless, pure dao, the Evenstar seal seed poured forth a profound, infinite dao talisman and a speck of ethereal dao light. The talisman transformed into a spirit seed, sinking deep into An Jing's soul.

Returning to reality, An Jing opened his eyes. The light of his soul erupted from his gaze like a blazing fire or red-hot gold inside a furnace. With a sharp ring like clashing swords and colliding metal, the boy stood up. He felt instantly weightless, his body newly infused with a colossal, overwhelming power. Manifesting the third seal was a complete success!