Chapter 292: The Mural Mountain
Three months had passed since the Verenthian Void Realm opened.
The Golgoth Holy Ground had transformed from a secluded ruin into a bustling hub of activity. Word of the pagoda and the body-tempering resources within had spread across the Void Realm, drawing cultivatorsz. The valley was now dotted with camps, training grounds, and temporary shelters.
Kael and Rue had spent those months in a secluded cave at the edge of the Holy Ground. The ambient mana density of the Void Realm was staggering—far richer than any cultivation formation Kael had access to in the outside world. Combined with the pills and herbs he had harvested, their progress had been rapid.
Kael had advanced to Mana Heart Rank 5. Rue, fueled by her fox-kin heritage and the intense environment, had broken through to Mana Heart Rank 7.
Most of Kael’s time, however, was dedicated to his new body arts. The Sky Destroyer Palm required precise aura manipulation—gathering the body cultivation energy into a single point until it distorted light and erased air pressure. The Special Grade gauntlet made the process smoother, amplifying his aura output by 150%, but the technique itself demanded brutal repetition to master.
Shatter-Point Strike was even more demanding. It required vibrating aura into his first two fingers and striking an object to detect its structural weak points. The difficulty lay in the vibration frequency—too slow, and it wouldn’t penetrate the target’s surface; too fast, and the aura would disperse harmlessly. Kael had shattered dozens of practice stones before he found the correct rhythm.
Around the end of the third month, rumors began circulating through the Holy Ground. A massive mountain had been discovered in the eastern region of the holy ground of Golgoth. Its surface was covered in ancient murals and stone tablets, radiating powerful intents and profound energies.
Kael and Rue packed their camp and traveled east. Four hours later, the mountain came into view.
It was colossal. A sheer face of rocks rising hundreds of meters into the sky, every inch covered in glowing inscriptions and painted scenes. At its base, a flat expanse of stone served as a gathering ground.
Hundreds of cultivators were already there. Most sat cross-legged on the ground, eyes closed, meditating. Fluctuating auras surrounded them—some radiated sharp sword intent, others heavy blade aura, and a few pulsed with elemental rule powers. The air itself hummed with compressed energy.
Rue’s green eyes scanned the crowd. "Let’s try our luck too."
Before the murals, placed in neat rows on the ground, were cultivation mats—ancient, woven from a spiritual fabric that Kael didn’t recognize. Most were occupied, but a few near the edges remained open. Kael and Rue walked over and sat down on two adjacent mats.
The moment they settled, the mats activated. A translucent barrier rose around each of them, isolating them from the outside world. The noise of the crowd vanished. The ambient distractions faded.
Kael glanced at the barrier. "The Void Realm does have its thoughtful designs."
He closed his eyes and extended his soul sense. His perception washed over the murals and tablets. The information was overwhelming. Not all of these were left by body cultivators. Kael felt the sharp, piercing nature of sword intents, the heavy, crushing weight of blade intents, and the abstract, conceptual pressure of rule powers. It was a repository of the Nine Court Heads’ legacies—and perhaps the legacies of others who had lived during the Primordial Era.
To truly comprehend these techniques and wills, a cultivator had to resonate with the murals. It wasn’t about reading the text; it was about connecting with the spiritual imprint left behind by the original creator. Most people here had been trying for weeks, and only a handful seemed to have manage to resonate.
Kael’s goal was specific. He didn’t want a new sword art or an elemental rule. He wanted to use the intents inscribed here to temper and refine his own Slaughter Intent. Slaughter Intent was powerful, but it was raw—a blunt instrument of malice. He wanted to give it edge, to refine it into something sharper, more versatile.
A month passed.
The number of cultivators at the mountain began to dwindle. Those who failed to resonate left in frustration; those who succeeded left to consolidate their gains. Kael remained motionless on his mat. His Tier 5 body cultivation meant his physical needs were minimal. A heavy meal of beast meat could sustain him for months, though when he did eat, he consumed massive quantities to fuel his marrow and muscles.
Inside his meditation barrier, Kael’s consciousness was submerged deep within a specific tablet. It was a desolate sword technique—a mural where the carved figures seemed to move, waves transforming into rain, each drop a blade, each blade a tear. The poem on the wall hid a powerful artistic conception of the sword. It spoke of a lonely shore where the sea met the sky, and the sky wept steel.
It wasn’t a technique of destruction. It was a technique of sorrow. Of desolation. Of the quiet, crushing weight of being the last one standing.
Kael began weaving this desolate conception into his Slaughter Intent. The raw, violent malice of his intent began to change. It didn’t lose its edge, but it gained a chilling, desolate undertone—a coldness that seeped into the bones.
Suddenly, a reddish aura erupted from Kael’s body.
It didn’t just radiate; it swirled around him, intensifying rapidly. The air inside his barrier grew heavy, pressing against the translucent walls. The reddish light bled through the barrier, casting a crimson glow over the surrounding area.
The cultivators nearby felt it. Even through their barriers, the oppressive, desolate slaughter intent pressed down on their souls. Several cultivators gasped, their meditation breaking violently.
A man nearby stumbled backward, clutching his chest. "What a monster," he muttered, staring at the crimson light swirling around Kael’s mat. "He already had such a powerful insight into one of the murals?"
"Look at the sky," a woman whispered, pointing upward.
Above the mountain, the painted constellations of the Void Realm’s sky were shifting. The blue-black expanse was turning red—a deep, blood-crimson that mirrored the aura around Kael. The pressure intensified, causing weaker cultivators to retreat from the mountain entirely.
"I wonder which family he’s from," another cultivator commented, their voice trembling. "Is he from the Central sector? Which family produced such a monster like this."
Inside the barrier, Kael’s eyes were closed, his breathing steady. The desolate sword conception merged fully with his Slaughter Intent. The sky above rippled, the crimson deepening for a single, breathless moment—before slowly beginning to recede.
Kael opened his eyes.
The red sky vanished, returning to the painted constellations of the Void Realm. The aura around him calmed, sinking back into his skin. The barrier around his mat lowered.
He turned his head to the right. Rue’s barrier was still up, but she was looking at him through the translucent wall, her green eyes wide. A moment later, her barrier dropped.
She smiled. "It seemed you’ve gained quite a lot."
Kael flexed his fingers, feeling the refined Slaughter Intent resting in his soul. "I could say the same for you."
Rue pouted, her cheeks puffing out slightly. "Well, you interrupted me at a critical junction. But I think two more months here, and I could upgrade my abilities to the next level."
Kael stretched his arms above his head. He had been sitting for a month straight. Even with a Tier 5 body, the stiffness needed to be worked out.
"Let’s eat first," Kael said, standing up and brushing off his trousers. "I’m kinda hungry."