Chapter 104: Fate Spiritual Treasure, Suppressing Fate

Su Yuan gazed once more at the sky above the Seven Stars Sect. He saw an even more massive crimson cloud of fate enveloping the entire sect. Like his own before, this crimson fate cloud sometimes absorbed strands of fate energy while at other times leaked some outward. Numerous strands of fate continuously drifted toward him, merging into his own fate cloud. The fate energy that had originally been leaking from him - most of which would have flowed toward the Seven Stars Sect's fate cloud - now ceased flowing to the sect due to the suppression of his Heaven-Earth Status. Thus, the Seven Stars Sect's collective fate became one-sidedly nourishing Su Yuan while still naturally dissipating outward. Fortunately, the sect's fate cloud continued growing overall, absorbing more fate than it lost. Su Yuan's eyes focused as he examined his spiritual treasure. After some thought, he summoned the sixth-grade cave heaven-type spiritual treasure - the Floating Light Sun-Moon Vessel. Xiao Li materialized at the vessel's mouth, puzzled. "Master? Why have you summoned my true form?" With a faint smile, Su Yuan replied, "I need your true form to suppress the Seven Stars Sect's fate energy." "What?" Xiao Li looked utterly confused. With a mighty throw, Su Yuan sent the Floating Light Pot soaring into the sky. Within moments, it expanded to several hundred meters in size, drawing the attention of every sect disciple. Gu Qingzhu flew out from the main hall, staring in astonishment at the massive vessel hovering above Cave #6 on Seven Stars Peak. "What is Su Yuan doing now?" Ignoring the onlookers, Su Yuan guided the Floating Light Pot into the fate cloud. Focusing his gaze, he activated his Heaven-Earth Status from his consciousness sea and declared in a booming voice: "I, Su Yuan, founding ancestor of the Seven Stars Sect, hereby use this sixth-grade cave heaven spiritual treasure, the Floating Light Sun-Moon Vessel, to suppress our sect's fate energy. Let Heaven and Earth bear witness!" His proclamation instantly echoed throughout the sect's territory, reaching every corner under Seven Stars Sect's control. Countless living beings looked up in shock. Sect disciples gazed skyward with excitement and surprise, while demonic cultivators from various demonic sects turned toward the Seven Stars Sect in astonishment. "What nonsense is this? A sixth-grade cave heaven treasure?" "Let Heaven and Earth bear witness? Such arrogance!" "What's actually happening?" "Where is this voice coming from?" "Who's speaking to me?" As countless cultivators within Seven Stars Sect's domain puzzled over the phenomenon, the sky suddenly transformed. A massive golden cloud coalesced above the sect. After a brief pause, a beam of golden light descended from the heavens, illuminating the Floating Light Sun-Moon Vessel. The vessel immediately absorbed the golden radiance, its aura surging dramatically until it reached the absolute peak of sixth-grade, just a hair's breadth from seventh-grade! Simultaneously, another golden beam shot toward Su Yuan himself. "Celestial Merit? How is there Celestial Merit?" Su Yuan was genuinely surprised. When he had obtained his Heaven-Earth Status, he'd also gained extensive knowledge about the world, including information about Celestial Merit - a blessed energy bestowed by Heaven as reward for meritorious deeds. It could enhance cultivation, stabilize realms, temper the body, cleanse sins, and upgrade spiritual treasures. While holders of Heaven-Earth Status found it easier to obtain such merit, Su Yuan never expected that simply using a sixth-grade treasure to suppress sect fate would directly grant him Celestial Merit. Examining the golden energy in his hand, then looking at the Floating Light Pot, Su Yuan decided, "I'll give it all to you!" He tossed the golden energy toward the vessel. Upon absorbing the energy, the treasure's core spontaneously generated an entirely new set of natural restrictions. These additional formations caused a qualitative transformation in the treasure's core! The Floating Light Pot's aura surged again, definitively breaking through to seventh-grade! When the pot settled into the sect's fate cloud, the previously unstable energy immediately condensed. The cloud's color transformed from crimson to orange, and at its center, an illusory first-grade orange lotus gradually took form. Su Yuan smiled in satisfaction. This indicated the Seven Stars Sect now had potential to become an immortal sect! The sect's fate cloud now maintained only a single channel leaking energy toward Su Yuan while retaining all other fate energy. Moreover, the rate of fate energy flowing into the sect increased dramatically! The Floating Light Pot floated serenely within the fate cloud, being slowly tempered by the fate energy. As long as the sect's fate continued strengthening, the pot's grade would gradually improve. From this moment, the treasure became bound to the sect's destiny - if the sect fell, the pot would degrade or even be destroyed. This was the way of fate - shared prosperity and shared downfall. From his vantage point, Su Yuan observed changes in his disciples' personal fate clouds. Sect Leader Gu Qingzhu's originally orange fate cloud, under the influence of the enhanced sect fate, transformed directly to green, skipping yellow entirely while becoming much more condensed. This indicated his fate had strengthened many times over, with significantly increased potential. Not just Gu Qingzhu - every disciple experienced improvements of varying degrees, some jumping three color grades, others rapidly expanding their fate clouds. These individual enhancements in turn accelerated the sect's collective fate growth and the rate at which energy flowed toward Su Yuan. Only Su Yuan could perceive these intricate changes. Others merely marveled at the transformed aura of the Floating Light Pot. With a thought, Su Yuan recalled the vessel back to his hand. Xiao Li popped out excitedly, exclaiming, "Master! What did you do? I've advanced to seventh-grade! This is incredible! Now that dry old man won't dare look down on me!" Nearby, Old Qian manifested from the Myriad Treasures Heaven-Earth Cauldron, looking bewildered. "What just happened? How did the Floating Light Pot advance so suddenly?" He looked at Su Yuan hopefully. "Can I get some too?" Su Yuan shook his head. "No, this was Xiao Li's destined opportunity. There's deep karmic connection between the Floating Light Pot and Seven Stars Sect - the sect's cultivation methods all originated from it. That's why it could become the sect's fate-suppressing treasure." Though Old Qian didn't fully understand, he grasped the main point - he wasn't qualified. Xiao Li lifted her chin proudly. "I can feel myself growing stronger every moment. Jealous?" Old Qian snorted dismissively. "All I need is to refine more treasures to advance! My progress will be much faster than yours!" Examining Old Qian, Su Yuan was surprised to discover the Myriad Treasures Heaven-Earth Cauldron also had a fate cloud - a green one no less, indicating noble status where averting disaster became basic instinct. Moreover, the cloud contained a third-grade green lotus, suggesting the cauldron had potential to become an immortal artifact. Noticing the fate threads connecting the cauldron to himself, Su Yuan realized this exceptional fate stemmed from their connection. If someone else possessed the cauldron, its fate wouldn't be nearly as strong. These observations gave Su Yuan much to contemplate about fate's workings. More importantly, these events had shaken the entire Green Vine Continent. Cultivators everywhere discussed the Seven Stars Sect and its founding ancestor Su Yuan. Within the sect's sphere of influence, every living being now knew Su Yuan's name! Countless mortals in human kingdoms who'd never heard of Su Yuan before now enshrined tablets to the Seven Stars Ancestor in their homes. Similarly, various mountain spirits and demonic beasts spread Su Yuan's name among their kind. Consequently, Su Yuan's fame points skyrocketed. The system notifications about increasing fame became a continuous stream that Su Yuan temporarily muted. Checking his system panel revealed the fame points counter racing upward at astonishing speed. While one hundred million points seemed an enormous sum, with so many beings learning his name, filling the quota would only be a matter of time - and not much time at that! The density of Mind Echo threads instantly multiplied ten-thousandfold as countless beings spread Su Yuan's name. In this moment, Su Yuan's reputation truly resounded across the entire Green Vine Continent. This outcome didn't surprise Su Yuan. After obtaining the [World Traveler] trait, he'd gained several escape routes - he could abandon the Tianyuan Realm for other worlds if necessary. This security had allowed him to act more boldly. Within just a few days, breakthrough auras erupted throughout the Seven Stars Sect. Many disciples stuck at bottlenecks found their obstructions loosening during meditation - their minds clearer, thoughts more agile, allowing them to overcome previous limitations. Disciples training outside the sect found themselves encountering more fortuitous opportunities. While each individual's improvement seemed minor, collectively the sect's power grew at staggering speed. Witnessing fate's effects firsthand amazed Su Yuan. Ironically, his [Dangerous Mission] trait activated far less frequently as disciples encountered fewer perilous situations. Just as Su Yuan observed these fate phenomena, a distant consciousness finally connected with him. Both [World Traveler] and [Seven Stars Shine Bright] lit up sequentially. Su Yuan immediately activated [Mind Echo].