Wang Lin’s brow furrowed, the words of the Ancient Vermilion echoing within his spirit, casting him into a deep silence.

“The Five Fingers of Void Piercing is a process of gathering your void-piercing power. Only by honing this power to its peak, to the very limit of the Second Step, can you borrow the power of your origin to shatter the gate to the void. Your cultivation is too diverse. First, there’s that Ancient God physique of yours. An Ancient God! Who would have thought a descendant of my Vermilion Bird clan could become an Ancient God!” The Ancient Vermilion’s eyes gleamed with an otherworldly light as he gazed upon the crimson sword poised between Wang Lin’s brows.

“I know little of the Ancient God path, but in my time, the strength of an Ancient God was earth-shattering. Back when Daogu Ye Mo was at his prime, though not listed among the Immortal Venerables, his cultivation was enough to make even them wary.”

“Daogu?” Wang Lin asked, startled, and looked up at the Ancient Vermilion.

“I am bound by oaths from long ago and cannot speak of this. Do not ask again. If fate wills it, you may discover the answers lost within the currents of time.” The Ancient Vermilion’s expression turned melancholic.

“If you had only cultivated the Ancient God physique, proving your way with strength and shattering the gate to the void, it might have been simpler… but you also possess origins within you, and not just any origins, but five of the most astonishing origins to ever exist. As such, entering the Third Step of Nirvana Void becomes infinitely harder. The more origins you possess, the more difficult it is to attain Nirvana Void, unless you forsake all but one, cultivating it to complete perfection, thereby entering Nirvana.”

Wang Lin remained silent.

“The Third Step of Nirvana Void requires the completion of an origin. With the aid of incense and devouring of Dao spirits, and with a touch of fate, there is a chance to enter Nirvana Void, but I sense no trace of incense on you.

The path you walk is a difficult one, vastly different from the Second and Fourth Generations. On this, I cannot help you… but at this moment, you have a choice, one you must consider carefully.”

Wang Lin gazed at the Ancient Vermilion and said calmly, “What choice?”

“Abandon your Ancient God physique, forsake your seemingly complete, yet still flawed, Lightning Origin, and discard all origins save for fire… remain here in this Heavenly Fang Realm, and within a century, I will help you attain the Third Step. From then on, you will only have one origin: the Vermilion Bird’s Fire! Once you reach the Third Step, I will teach you the Mori Flame! You will cultivate peacefully here with the Second and Fourth Generations, and when I break free from this seal, I will take you three… away from here!” The Ancient Vermilion spoke slowly.

“Away from here?” Wang Lin’s eyes flashed, sensing an underlying meaning in those words.

“Away from here!” The Ancient Vermilion’s eyes turned wistful as he said softly, “Back to the world from whence I came…”

Wang Lin’s spirit trembled. He was about to speak when,

“Do not ask. It cannot be spoken. To speak of it is to die! They wish to fight, to seize, but I am weary. I wish not to participate. I only wish… to go home.” A note of exhaustion laced the Ancient Vermilion’s voice.

“I give you time to consider. I hope you will weigh it carefully…” The Ancient Vermilion sighed softly.

Wang Lin’s breathing grew rapid, his expression conflicted. The Ancient Vermilion’s words were a great temptation, even greater than those of Daoist Blue Dream. After all, Daoist Blue Dream was not of the Vermilion Bird clan, and Wang Lin was more inclined to trust the Ancient Vermilion.

“If I abandon my Ancient God physique and forsake the other origins to become a Nirvana Void cultivator of the Third Step, could I then cultivate the other origins anew?” Wang Lin asked hesitantly, his voice low.

“Naturally. Third Step Nirvana Void cultivators also cultivate origins. The more origins one possesses, the deeper the comprehension, and the greater the cultivation. However, they cannot be perfected, thus halting one’s progress at the Third Step. But this poses no danger to you. It is a clear, wide road, one that does not require you to abandon your convictions. I myself experienced Karma Fire and know the importance of such convictions to those who cannot sever them…” The Ancient Vermilion gazed at Wang Lin, as if seeing his younger self, and sighed.

Wang Lin’s heart trembled, and his breathing grew even more rapid. The choice before him seemed to be tipping heavily. Within his heart, a voice, laden with the weariness of two thousand years of cultivation, whispered to him, filled with the possibility of a peaceful life and a flicker of excitement.

“Stay here…”

“Stay here… no more bloody battles, no more life-or-death crises…” “Stay here… attain the Third Step within a century… even if you abandon your origins, even if you forsake your Ancient God physique, you can still cultivate them anew after becoming a Third Step cultivator… even if you cannot perfect them, to reach the Third Step in this lifetime is worth it, even if it halts your progress!”

“Stay here… are you not weary of two thousand years of cultivation? Have the repeated brushes with life and death not filled you with fear? Stay here, stay here…”

Wang Lin’s struggle intensified, his breath coming in ragged gasps. These few moments felt like an eternity. After a long silence, Wang Lin suddenly raised his head, looked at the Ancient Vermilion, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, “When the Ancestor finally leaves, can you only take three? Could you not take a few more? This junior has friends he cannot bear to abandon…”

The Ancient Vermilion fell silent, and after a long moment, his voice echoed through the heavens.

“To take you three is already my limit… Very well, if the day of departure truly comes, I can grant you one more spot at most! Any more than that, and I fear we may not be able to return.”

“One spot…” Images flashed through Wang Lin’s mind: Li Muwan… Situ Nan… Qing Shui… Zhou Ru… Li Qianmei… the figures that had shaped his two thousand years of cultivation.

“Now tell me, what is your choice?” The Ancient Vermilion’s words echoed within Wang Lin’s spirit.

A storm raged within Wang Lin’s heart. The choice tormented him, filled him with hesitation. After a long pause, Wang Lin raised his right hand and grasped at the empty air. Immediately, a storage space appeared before him, from within which a coffin slowly floated out. Within the coffin, Li Muwan lay peacefully, as if asleep.
“Might the venerable predecessor possess the power to restore her?” Wang Lin’s gaze lifted, his eyes laced with crimson threads of sleeplessness and sorrow. The torment of this decision, this agonizing choice, felt to him as a brutal and unending war. A long sigh echoed through the hallowed halls of the Celestial Realm, followed by the resonant voice of the Azure Phoenix.

“When you opened your storage space, ancient eyes beheld the coffin nestled within… This maiden, it seems, is the anchor of your soul’s desire. This vessel, though unfamiliar to mine age-old wisdom, bears the mark of artifice, crafted by hands long past. I sense its purpose… This woman, her mortal thread was not severed by fate’s decree, yet her nascent soul, her very core, suffered a devastating blow, leading to her demise. You, in your profound grief, enshrined her essence within this coffin, granting her a semblance of flesh once more. Alas, her spirit is shattered, scattered like stardust across the cosmos.”

Wang Lin’s form trembled, his gaze transfixed upon the still form of Li Muwan within the enchanted casket.

“This coffin possesses an arcane property, one that slows the dissipation of her shattered spirit, preventing it from utterly dissolving into the fabric of existence. Should one discover the method to harness its magic, it might be possible to gather those fragmented pieces of her soul… Yet even should you succeed in this arduous task, even should you reclaim every last shard, I lack the power to breathe life anew.”

A wave of despair washed over Wang Lin, dimming the light in his eyes. He stared blankly at the coffin, a searing pain tearing at his heart.

“But my limitations do not define the boundaries of all existence. In the realm of my origin, there are three souls capable of reweaving her spirit and restoring her to life! Alas, these three reside upon the loftiest peaks of power, beyond my humble reach… Yet fear not, I shall lend what aid I may…” The Azure Phoenix fell silent for a moment, its voice filled with ancient solemnity.

Wang Lin did not lift his gaze. Silently, he reached out and touched the coffin. A flash of light erupted, and the enchanted vessel vanished, drawn back into the depths of his storage space.

“The individuals you speak of, revered ancestor, exist in a realm too distant for my grasp. Their ability to achieve such a feat is surely interwoven with their profound cultivation, a depth of power beyond mortal comprehension.” Wang Lin finally raised his head, his eyes still ringed with red, but the torment had receded, replaced by clarity and resolve.

“A peaceful life, a respite from the endless cycle of life and death that defines the cultivator’s path, the treacherous machinations of mortal hearts… Such is my yearning, to remain here, to fade into the tapestry of time, even if my cultivation never surpasses the Third Step. What does it matter?”

A spark of brilliance ignited within Wang Lin’s eyes. “Yet, I cannot… To seek aid from others is a gamble, to place my fate upon the whims of strangers. Such dependence denies me my own agency, my own choice. Therefore, I shall not seek such fleeting aid. If they have ascended to such heights, then I, Wang Lin, shall strive to do the same!”

“…I shall!” These two simple words, though spoken softly, resonated with a power that surged through Wang Lin’s entire being, revealing a formidable strength that had lain dormant within him.

The words echoed through the heavens and the earth, shaking the very foundations of the Celestial Realm. Even the Azure Phoenix stilled, its ancient gaze focused intently on the mortal before him.

“The Ancient God’s physique, I shall not forsake it! The four elements beyond fire, I shall not abandon them. No matter how arduous the path, I shall walk it! I will not allow my cultivation to stagnate…” Wang Lin bowed towards the statue of the Azure Phoenix and stepped forward, walking upon the air.

“Venerable ancestor, I am grateful for your kindness… The Five Declines of Heaven and Man, the Five Fingers of Rupture, these are born from the cultivators’ own understanding, the accumulation and preparation before the breaking of the void… If such is the case, then why can I not forge my own path, one unique to Wang Lin? You said, predecessor, that the Five Declines are like fingers, and only when all five are complete can one truly grasp the heavens. These Five Declines, I shall not seek them through the Ancient God’s path. For I shall forge my own hand, with the five elements as my fingers! The Five Declines of Heaven and Man, the Five Fingers of Rupture, the Five Elements… Though their names differ, their purpose is one and the same. Each element mastered is akin to enduring one decline. When all five elements are perfected, I shall be a cultivator who has mastered the Five Declines of Heaven and Man, and I shall shatter the gates of the void and attain my own path to divinity!”