Villains Aren't Stepping Stones!

Chapter 108: Chapter 108: Myriad Dao Transformation Art

The silence atop the sea of clouds was no longer heavy with the suffocating weight of the past; instead, it felt like the stillness of a mirror-calm lake after a violent storm.

Shen Haoran now sat perfectly still, his spine straight, his golden eyes clear and unclouded.

The journey through his own memories—the vivid dissection of his loneliness and his hidden, desperate hope for an equal—had acted as a baptism of the soul.

The fractured pieces of his heart seemed to knit together, not into a soft vulnerability, but into a tempered, adamantine clarity.

He took a slow, deep breath, feeling a refreshing coolness circulate through his meridians.

The mental fog that often accompanies those born into too much power—the stagnant boredom and the directionless arrogance—had vanished, and in its place was a sharp, focused intent.

He looked across the wooden table at the Heaven Piercing Saint, whose nebula-filled eyes were watching him with a flicker of something resembling paternal pride.

”I feel... lighter,” Haoran murmured, his voice regaining its melodic, commanding edge, before he shook his head and looked directly at the ancient ghost. ”So? Did I pass the test?”

The Heaven Piercing Saint nodded slowly, a faint smile touching his ethereal lips. ”Yes, Shen Haoran. You passed. The third trial is a mirror; it shows the participant what they fear most, or what they hide best. Although the experience is unique to each individual, all five of you who reached this stage have managed to navigate the depths of your own hearts. You have the will and spirit required to carry a Saint’s legacy.”

Haoran leaned forward slightly, his golden hair catching the light of the celestial indigo sky. ”Then, let’s just get straight to the point. Who among us will you give your full inheritance? Me? Or someone else?”

The Saint hummed, letting out a a low vibration that resonated through the clouds as he poured anothrr cup of tea, the liquid jade swirling with tiny, star-like motes. ”Personally, if I were to choose based on the purity of the path and the potential for total world-shaking evolution, I prefer that other child—the one in the tattered cloak. He is the bearer of the Formless Void Divine Physique, after all. That is the legendary physique of the Formless Emperor, the greatest Human Emperor to ever grace the annals of history.”

Haoran’s brow furrowed, a flicker of genuine confusion crossing his face. ”The Formless Emperor?”

He doesn’t know that person.

He have scoured the Grand Libraries of the Shen Clan and the ancient scrolls of the Imperial Capital, and he have read the lineages of the Three Primordial Sovereigns and the Five Elemental Kings... but he have never heard of a ’Formless Emperor’.

Haoran considered himself a peerlessly well-read individual; his education had been overseen by Feng Yuyan, who valued knowledge above all else, so to find a gap in his historical understanding was a rare and jarring experience.

The Heaven Piercing Saint let out a long, wistful sigh, his gaze drifting toward the distant stars. ”It is normal that you do not know. The history of the Shen Clan is vast, but even they probably do not possess the complete records of the Void-Era. The Formless Emperor is a figure considered a legend even in my time, three hundred thousand years ago. He was a man who stood outside the flow of Karma, a shadow that moved between the atoms of reality. His very existence was an affront to the fixed laws of the universe.”

Haoran shook his head, dismissing the historical trivia. He will find that out sooner by himself, he doesn’t need a lecture. ”Let’s get back to the matter at hand. I want your legacy.”

The Heaven Piercing Saint stared at him, his gaze piercing through Haoran’s physical form to look at the swirling energy within his Dantian. ”The greatest treasure in this realm, the jewel of my life’s work, is my Piercing Heaven Cultivation Technique. It is a method designed to strike through any defense and bypass any conceptual shield. But... you have no need for that, do you? You cultivate the Myriad Dao Transformation Art.”

Haoran’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous chill entering the air. ”You even know about that? That is a secret kept behind ten thousand seals in the heart of the Shen Domain.”

”I fought a Shen Supreme to the death, young man,” the Saint replied calmly. ”In that final clash, I felt the nature of your clan’s ultimate power. And he arrogantly boasted about his cultivation technique. If I remember correctly, the Myriad Dao Transformation Art is the culmination of the collective wisdom of every Supreme Emperor of the Shen bloodline, past and present. It is the most powerful cultivation technique in existence, and it is accessible only to the direct main line.”

Haoran remained silent, acknowledging the truth. The Myriad Dao Transformation Art was the reason the Shen Clan remained the undisputed hegemons of the Prime Origin Realm.

It was a technique that evolved alongside the practitioner.

And while most cultivation methods were rigid, forcing the user to conform to the nature of the Qi, whether it be fire, ice, or lightning, or having a specific type of dao, allowing enemies to prepare specific counters, the Myriad Dao Transformation Art is completely different.

This is because it had no fixed nature to exploit.

It reshapes itself around the user’s Dao, refining and evolving in real time. In other words, if Haoran faced a fire-user, his Qi would become the absolute vacuum that chokes the flame; if he faced a mental attack, it would become an impenetrable void.

As his comprehension deepened, the technique would continuously rewrite its own limits, turning every flash of insight into immediate, crushing power.

It meant there was no ceiling—only continuous, exponential growth.

This was not just a method; it was a living extension of his will, making him the literal embodiment of his Dao.

And to practice it, one had to start from the very first breath of Qi Gathering. And if those who already practiced another cultivation technique were to practice this, they would have to cripple their Cultivation and start over.

Not to mention, Shen Clan’s Supremes are required to pour in all their experiences and knowledge to improve this technique, making it stronger by every generation.

Back then, during the Immortal Era a hundred thousand years ago, this Cultivation Technique allowed several members of the Shen Clan to ascend to the legendary Immortal Realm.

They even created an Immortal Rank version of this technique, but it is only available to the Supreme Emperors of the clan.

”So I just wasted my time here?” Haoran asked, his eyes narrowed. ”If your technique is redundant to my Art, then this entire journey has been a farce.”

The Heaven Piercing Saint shook his head. ”Not exactly. While my primary cultivation method would conflict with your Myriad Dao Transformation Art, my Treasury of Origin is vast. I can grant you the ancient scrolls of the Lost Regions, forbidden combat techniques that require no specific Qi signature, and the forgotten knowledge of the era before the Great Calamity. I am sure knowledge from such ancient era is precious even in the vast library of the Shen Clan, correct?”

”... Yes. That will do,” Haoran nodded. ”So, the primary inheritance, the core of your Saintly Power, you truly intend to give it to that Jiang Chen?”

The Saint nodded solemnly. ”Yes. Like I said before, I wanted him as my successor due to his physique since I greatly admire the Formless Emperor, and hope that my legacy can help this person.”

”...And what if I kill him?” Haoran asked, his golden eyes flashing with a dangerous light. ”Will you stop me?”

The Heaven Piercing Saint stared at him for a long minute, then let out a tired, resigned sigh. ”...That is up to you, Young Master Shen. The dead should not interfere with the affairs of the living. Especially since it’s a personal grudge of the younger generation. If he lives or dies is a matter of his own fortune and your own resolve. However...”

The Saint looked at Haoran with a sudden, pleading intensity. ”I merely ask of you one thing. The Formless Void Divine Physique is a miracle of the human race. If you must kill the boy, do not let that unique bloodline die out. Find a way to extract the origin and grant it to a suitable person in your own clan. It would be a tragedy to let the legacy of the Formless Emperor vanish into the dust of this lower realm. After all... that physique is useless to you anyway.”

”Indeed.” Haoran said, his gaze turning distant. ”Very well. I agree to your request.”

He knew the laws of the higher physiques better than anyone, especially how each Divine Physique was incredibly domineering, a cosmic absolute, and how if a cultivator were to forcefully attempt to fuse two different Divine Physiques—like his own Infinity Dragon God Physique and the Formless Void—they would not harmonize.

Instead, they would clash with the violence of two colliding galaxies, devouring the user’s soul from the inside out until they were consumed by agony or triggered a cosmic explosion that would wipe out a star system.

”He can have the techniques,” Haoran whispered, a dark smirk touching his lips as he stood up from the mist-cushion. ”But he will not have the time to use them. I will take your knowledge, Saint, but I will still take his life. I cannot allow such person with great fortune and potential, who also has a grudge against my clan, to grow up.”

The Saint sighed, nodding.

There is nothing he can do anyway. He’s just a remnant soul, even if he used up all his remaining energy, he wouldn’t be able to save Jiang Chen, and he will also offend the Shen Clan even more.

If they were angered, even his spirit wouldn’t be able to rest in peace.

It’s not worth it.

Especially since that Jiang Chen don’t have a large fortune, even the Heavens are starting to turn their gazes away from him.

Now, if his fortune were still vast and he was still favored by the heavens, that will be a different story.

...how does he know all this? Obviously, he’s also a High Ranking Seer.

”...The trials are ending,” the Saint said, his form beginning to flicker and fade into the white clouds. ”Take the scrolls, Shen Haoran. And remember... the top of the mountain is only lonely if you refuse to look down.”