Chapter 158: A Grand Reward, The Soul Palace, Dao Runes and A Guaranteed Future Promotion

The shower of golden lotus petals did not stop immediately. Instead, as the ethereal sound gradually faded into the depths of the universe, the countless glowing petals that covered his cultivation room suddenly stopped falling.

They began to circle around Yu Liang.

Thousands of golden lotuses spun around him in a majestic, slow orbit, like a group of divine golden fish swimming through the air. Then, one by one, they drifted forward and slowly sank into his skin, getting completely absorbed into his body.

There was no pain or no violent surging of energy like the Profound Wisdom Crystals. The feeling was incredibly smooth and gentle. It was a warmth that seeped directly into the deepest parts of his being, soothing his slightly fatigued body and calming his turbulent spiritual energy. It felt incredibly comfortable, like a exhausted worker finally returning home, or like a newborn baby being wrapped in its mother’s warm, gentle embrace.

This was the Heavens’ blessing, purifying and nourishing him after the brutal trial he had just endured.

But the Heavens were not done. A grand feat of this level naturally required a grand reward.

Many cultivators in the world often cursed the Heavenly Dao, believing that the Heavens were jealous and always opposed those who tried to break the laws of the world, sending down lightning tribulations to suppress them. But in truth, this was a massive misunderstanding.

The Heavenly Dao is not a malicious enemy, it is the most ruthless, yet the most impartial teacher. It uses suppression, tribulations, and bottlenecks to filter out the weak, the untalented, and those who lack the determination to walk the path of defiance.

It opposes ’blindly’ breaking the rules, but when a cultivator actually achieves a heaven defying feat just like Yu Liang did now, that proves their absolute worth, like comprehending the Origin Realm at the Foundation Establishment stage, the Heavens will celebrate it and bestow the most generous rewards one can imagine.

Think about it, if the Heavens were truly against cultivators and wanted to extinguish all them or geniuses , then no one would be able to break the laws in the first place! The suppression is merely a test. If you fail, you die. But if you pass the test and prove you are a true dragon among men, the Heavens will pour all their resources into nurturing you, because you have proven that you are worthy of standing at the apex of the world.

As the golden lotus energy permeated his entire body, the will of the Heavens instinctively scanned Yu Liang’s foundation, evaluating where to bestow this grand reward.

The Heavenly will quickly noticed that all over, Yu Liang was absolutely top tier. His physical body had reached the Ultimate Stage of Body Tempering, his cultivation foundation was flawless and unfathomably deep, and his techniques had reached the Mythical Origin Realm.

However, there was one glaring shortboard. He was severely lacking in terms of his Soul.

Even though his monstrous physique had survived the overload of the twelve Profound Wisdom Crystals, his Sea of Consciousness and his soul’s "vessel" were still only at the level of the Foundation Establishment Realm. The soul energy had nearly burned his consciousness to ashes. Compared to his other monstrous aspects, his soul was the weakest link.

Recognizing this flaw, the golden lotus energy suddenly shifted its focus. It didn’t travelled through his meridians or his dantian, instead, it plunged directly into his Sea of Consciousness.

The Heavens were going to do something unimaginable. They were going to forge a SoulPalace for him right now.

It has to be known that in the cultivation world, the Soul Palace is the ultimate sanctuary of a cultivator’s mind. It is a physical and spiritual structure built within the Sea of Consciousness to house the soul, protect it from external mental attacks, and provide a stable platform to comprehend the profound Laws of the universe.

Without a Soul Palace, the soul is like a ship without an anchor, vulnerable to the slightest storm.

But the most absurd part was ’when’ this was happening.

Normally, a cultivator could only begin constructing their Soul Palace when they broke through to the Dao Palace Realm And the Dao Palace Realm was currently the absolute highest peak of the entire cultivation world! Only a handful of hidden, life prolonging old monsters had reached more than that terrifying height.

By forcefully constructing the Soul Palace for him right now, at the Foundation Establishment Realm, the Heavens had basically handed him a VVVIP pass to the apex of the world.

This meant that if Yu Liang didn’t perish midway and die a tragic death, his entry into the Dao Palace Realm was now one hundred percent guaranteed! The most difficult, dangerous bottleneck that countless cultivators and geniuses throughout the history failed to cross had been completely bypassed. The foundation for his future Dao Palace was already being laid on.

One can only imagine just how huge and massive this opportunity truly was. It was a shortcut forged by the Heavens themselves.

Inside his Sea of Consciousness, which currently looked like a vast ocean, a miraculous transformation began to take place.

The golden lotus energy condensed into a glowing, divine material, acting as the ultimate building blocks.

First, the Heavenly will began to lay the foundation. The ocean churned violently as the energy solidified the very "core" of his consciousness, creating a massive, indestructible platform of pure soul power.

Then, the construction of the embryonic Dao Palace truly began.

Four massive, glowing pillars made of condensed Law and golden lotus energy erupted from the foundation, piercing through the mist of his Sea of Consciousness. These were the Dragon Subduing Pillars, designed to support the weight of the heavens and earth.

Next, the walls began to form. Countless golden lotus petals intertwined, weaving together to create translucent, glowing walls that emitted a faint and soothing aura. These walls were inscribed with the profound DaoRunes, protecting the interior from any future mental demons or soul attacks.

Dao Runes were manifestations of the Great Dao, each containing traces of the fundamental laws governing Heaven and Earth. Unlike ordinary inscriptions that cultivators could study, copy, or carve into formations, true Dao Runes were naturally formed through the help of the world’s laws, making them nearly impossible to reproduce or recreate through any human means.

Even a single rune could contain profound mysteries that an ordinary cultivator might spend thousands of years attempting to comprehend without understanding more than a fraction of its meaning. Their appearance was exceedingly rare, and most cultivators would live their entire lives without ever witnessing one.

In some ancient records, Dao Runes were said to have appeared during the birth of supreme treasures, or at site of legendary inheritances, or achievements so extraordinary that they drew a response from the Heavenly Dao itself, just like now.

For those fortunate enough to witness them, even a fleeting glimpse could provide insights that ordinary cultivation techniques and countless years of meditation could never offer. However, seeing a Dao Rune did not mean one could comprehend it, much less control the law it represented. Many experts had never encountered such manifestations in their lifetimes, yet only a handful had ever managed to grasp even a fragment of the mysteries hidden within them through countless years of experiences.

Then the grand towering doors of the palace slowly materialized at the front, carved with the images of flowing water and shifting clouds.

The structure was rising at a visible, majestic pace, exuding an ancient and supreme aura. The pillars were set, the walls were erected, and the grand doors were closed.

Now, only the final step remained.

High above the four pillars, the golden energy began to swirl into a massive vortex, slowly condensing into the shape of the palace’s grand roof. At the very center of this roof, a magnificent, throne like Dao Core was beginning to take shape.