Chapter 898: Inheritance Stele

Everyone felt immense joy. They naturally knew that positions within the upper echelons of the Cosmic Garden's ruling class were limited, and as the first group of disciples, they had the best chance to ascend.

Holding the little girl, Reynald Manasga gazed down at the inner disciples, who appeared as tiny as ants, and spoke softly: "I have no interest in your identities, nor do I need to know your home planets. I also do not care what great opportunities or secrets you may be concealing."

"Coming here is simple: you only need to learn and grow. How much you achieve will be entirely up to you."

Xu Zhi turned to Medusa and said softly, "You will be their instructor. That multiverse is a suitable place."

Medusa nodded. "Yes," she replied.

"You may go."

With utmost calm, Reynald Manasga stated, "If you can survive for three days, I will prepare some small gifts to mark your entry."

The dozens of individuals below respectfully took their leave.

They knew full well that they were not yet worthy of the attention of such forbidden-level beings. The upcoming trial would likely be the third elimination round, and no one knew how many would perish.

Yet, their eyes blazed with fierce determination, completely devoid of fear.

The path of growth for every powerhouse is always paved with the remains of countless peers.

Their home civilizations were suffering catastrophes. These prodigies needed to become immensely powerful, mastering formidable techniques within the Cosmic Garden to become their civilizations' saviors, enabling them to return, rescue their people, and defeat the Pillar God Tathagata.

After they had departed, Medusa remained standing.

Reynald Manasga then looked at her.

"Since I have tasked you with instructing them, it is only natural that I instruct you as well. While I am not familiar with the cultivation methods of the Evil God race, I can teach you other, similar principles."

Medusa began to listen intently. "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty," she said.

Xu Zhi's expression drifted into reminiscence and a slight trance.

This wasn't the first time he had discussed the Dao with Medusa. Long ago, in the ancient Jianghu, Baixiaosheng and Medusa would debate the Dao during their travels by carriage, often conversing late into the night by candlelight.

Now, having received the complete ninth-tier breakthrough system and concepts from Reynald Manasga's inherited memories, his understanding of the ninth tier in this regard was truly superior to anyone else currently in the sandbox.

Even powerful figures like Emperor Qi and Caroline were merely nascent ninth-tier practitioners who had not fully committed to that realm. Since they hadn't thoroughly researched its intricacies, their comprehension naturally fell short of his.

Reynald Manasga began, "Most of your body is currently composed of divine beings, and the fastest among them have already embarked on the path to the ninth tier. However, your mastery over your own power and your future ninth-tier journey is not yet complete."

"Is my mastery not yet complete?" Medusa asked softly.

Xu Zhi spoke eloquently, "Where does the true power of an Evil God reside? Every single organ within an Evil God is a living entity, and each entity, in turn, is comprised of cells... You possess an additional structural layer compared to ordinary beings. While others breaking through to the ninth tier signifies the formation of one world, for you, it means countless worlds converging to become you."

"This is the source of your immense power. However, there are many aggregated beings in the universe, such as the Pillar God Tathagata outside, who is also a powerful entity formed from the aggregation of countless living beings."

"It is also an aggregated being?"

Medusa paused, slightly surprised, as she had never witnessed the Pillar God's true form and therefore didn't comprehend this.

"Yet, he is far less powerful than you. Why is that?"

Xu Zhi calmly explained, "His power is a quantitative change, a mere accumulation of uneven numbers... You, however, represent a true qualitative transformation, formed by the precise and intricate aggregation of countless distinct aspects of yourself."

"Each of his aggregated parts is like an identical component, like a crudely constructed stone building made from haphazardly stacked rough stones—poorly made and shoddy."

"Whereas every one of your aggregated parts is a completely unique component—gears, linkages, chains—a perfectly integrated being born specifically for this purpose."

Reynald Manasga's voice gradually deepened, becoming steady and powerful as he continued:

"He achieves enlightenment by leveraging external forces, by drawing upon sentient beings. This reliance on external power enables him to cultivate very quickly."

"You, however, attain enlightenment through your own efforts. You cultivate on behalf of each individual part of yourself, meaning you must traverse a single path over a hundred thousand times... This is why your cultivation speed is exceedingly slow."

Medusa's mind was subtly stirred.

Upon careful reflection, she realized this was indeed true for her.

After leaving the Demon Realm and developing a new Cthulhu Evil God body, she had never again relied on the assistance of other beings. Now, she cultivated entirely on her own.

She had discovered that with increasing familiarity, her self-cultivation speed was not slow, and relying on others for cultivation presented too many drawbacks.

Nearby, the little girl Iron Stone was also lost in thought. While these ninth-tier concepts existed within her own inheritance, her understanding wasn't as profound, nor had it been tempered by countless trials.

Such vast knowledge required immense time to accumulate.

It was clear that her father, having witnessed countless civilizations, the rise and fall of innumerable eras, and constantly studied their development, had accumulated such profound wisdom.

Seated in the study, Reynald Manasga continued softly, "The terrifying nature of Evil Gods lies not merely in their aggregated form, but in their exceptionally thorough understanding of every single realm. Others traverse a path only once, yet you must now walk a single path one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred times."

"Your realm is incredibly stable, formidable, and powerful."

"An Evil God is the ultimate being with the most profound understanding of the entire grand universe's rules and cultivation paths."

Medusa's mind reeled, as if she had just grasped the very essence of her being.

Prior to this, she had never had such a comparison.

Consequently, she had never fully understood her own unique structure, being the sole entity of her kind. Only now, through comparison with another aggregated being, did she truly comprehend her distinctiveness.

For the little girl Iron Stone, these words landed like a thunderclap.

An ultimate being...

She was utterly shaken, her mind buzzing as she looked at Medusa.

She never imagined that her 'sister's' race was indeed as powerful as her own Iron-based lineage. No, perhaps... even more formidable!

Traversing a single path one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred times—this was akin to the legendary Butcher Ding, achieving a near-Dao-like mastery.

The true might of Evil Gods might not solely stem from their aggregated bodies, but perhaps from their terrifying comprehension of realms, combined with their profound understanding of the Great Dao in both body and soul. This dual invincibility might be the root of their ineffable nature.

Reynald Manasga's voice, resonant like a brass bell, echoed deeply within the study. "Every realm, every stage of cultivation, has become almost instinctual for you—as simple as eating or drinking... requiring no thought, like the natural beating of a heart. You have developed this instinct... But is it truly beneficial to have developed such an instinct?"

Medusa was momentarily taken aback.

Having cultivated countless times, she had naturally become incredibly proficient. Even now, while speaking, she was simultaneously controlling thousands of her constituent organs, all cultivating at once.

Indeed.

Organs of various realms—Heavenly Emperors and Gods alike—were all cultivating simultaneously under her command.

Her familiarity had reached such a level that she could instinctively breathe even with her eyes closed and asleep—a proficiency that was astonishing.

However, she had always felt an increasing, unseen barrier, making it progressively harder to break through, especially on the path to the ninth tier.

Logically, it should have been different...

Her fastest organ should have already completed the cellular path, given that its cell count was even less than that of a Super Saiyan. Yet, it remained unable to advance.

It was as if something unseen was holding her back.

"You've already realized it: you cannot truly embark on the path of laws... You are using these instincts—your innate understanding of every realm and the rules of the grand universe—to shackle yourself, forming rigid patterns that construct a high wall on your path to the ninth tier."

"This confines you within a rigid framework, making it harder for you to break through to the ninth tier than any other life form in the universe!"

The little girl Iron Stone, standing nearby, found her mind struggling to process this.

Surely, after cultivating a single path one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred times, one should understand the cosmic rules better than anyone else...

It should be easier to break through to the ninth tier than for anyone else...

After all, her father had stated just moments before:

"An Evil God is the ultimate being with the most profound understanding of the entire grand universe's rules and cultivation paths."

"Why?" the little girl Iron Stone couldn't help but ask from his embrace.

Xu Zhi paused, then stroked the little girl's head and smiled, saying, "My dear daughter... The ninth tier is about forgetting rules, twisting rules; the heart *is* the world... At this stage, thirty percent of the cultivation techniques and systems they've practiced throughout their lives will be completely forgotten, absorbed into their instincts."

"If tiers one through eight are about understanding and deciphering the universe's rules, then the ninth tier is about forgetting them."

Forgetting?

Medusa hesitated.

A colossal mental storm surged within her mind, as if something profound was vaguely surfacing. Her eyes seemed to contain lightning, torrential rain, tsunamis, and sunlight; countless celestial phenomena enveloped her, revealing the vast cosmos.

This wasn't about forgetting, but about...!?

"Others have only traversed it once, making it easy to forget the rules. But you, you have walked it one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred times..."

Xu Zhi sighed softly. "Of course, if you can truly forget the one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred paths you have traversed, then at that point, you will achieve a true power that transcends all cosmic concepts."

"The universe is balanced; there are gains and losses."

"The Evil God lineage endures the longest cultivation process. While invincible within their own realm, the threshold for their breakthrough is simply astounding. The ninth tier will be unimaginably difficult."

Medusa's mind roared, as if in a trance. She listened obediently, dimly perceiving a direction.

Medusa gradually began to grasp the true meaning of the ninth tier. She couldn't help but ask, "I need to forget... but..."

She frowned.

She remembered things more profoundly than anyone else. Forgetting ingrained thought patterns—it seemed almost...

Xu Zhi paused, then, sitting in the study and stroking the little girl's wire-like hair as if holding a rebar doll, he smiled. "Long ago, an old friend of an Evil God—your predecessor, in fact—left behind a stone tablet documenting his life's journey, detailing various Dao methods he encountered on his path to growth. You may examine it... but you must never, under any circumstances, allow it to be leaked or known by any other living being."

Medusa's mind jolted.

This was an Evil God's Dao methods and disciplines, used throughout their growth?

"It's not the original version; it can only be vaguely manifested from memory," Reynald Manasga's voice conveyed a touch of regret.

Within the study.

A stone tablet, inscribed with Dao patterns, slowly materialized and stood upon the ground.

Its opening line read:

"Having traversed the universe for seventeen millennia, slaying all enemies and vanquishing all heroes, finding no one left to contend with, I reluctantly withdrew to a deep valley, befriending octopuses. Alas! My life's pursuit of a worthy adversary has proven fruitless, a truly profound and unbearable solitude."

—Left by the Evil God Dugu Qiubai.

As Medusa read these lines, she was engulfed by an overwhelming sense of desolate, invincible solitude—a profound loneliness that evoked a deep yearning within her.