By the power of my Golden Seal, even within the hallowed grounds of the Immortal Clan, no harm shall befall him. Since fate has delivered him thus far, let us not rush his arrival here. Let him endure trials, for by them his future will know no bounds. “Xuan Luo pondered, yet remained seated, unwilling to journey to the Immortal lands. His repeated presence there would inevitably stir unwanted waves amongst the immortals.

For should the Great Celestial Venerables of the Immortal Clan make a habit of visiting the Ancient Kingdom, they would surely face banishment, perhaps even a united assault. Xuan Luo’s previous venture to the Immortal realm, though he departed unscathed for the most part, left him with lingering wounds, prompting his seclusion. A second reason for his retreat was the sorrow of Wang Lin’s absence.

Now, with his heart’s ailment healed, his physical wounds are of no consequence. “Wang Lin, my disciple, the Immortal Astral Continent is your home, the Dao Ancient lineage, your birthplace. Here, your master awaits your return…” A benevolent smile graced Xuan Luo’s face as he closed his eyes, sinking into the rhythm of his breath.

In the Celestial Bull Continent, near Protector Du Qing, Wang Lin sat in meditation beside a ball of fire, his hands weaving an intricate series of incantations. Each signet, infused into the fiery sphere, caused the Vermillion Bird within to become ever more defined, its cries more resonant.

“Primal Avatar, coalesce!” After countless hours, as the Vermillion Bird within the fiery orb spiraled with ever-increasing speed, its essence radiating with growing clarity, Wang Lin’s eyes snapped open, and he uttered a soft, yet commanding cry.

The sound struck Du Qing’s ears like a thunderclap, jolting him upright. His eyes widened, revealing an uncontainable shock. “It is truly a primal avatar! He is indeed forging a primal true form!”

The moment Wang Lin’s words echoed, the fiery orb, a foot in diameter, erupted in a deafening roar. The spinning Vermillion Bird within faltered, ceasing its whirling dance. Then, a blaze ignited at the base of the bird’s tail, its feathers consumed by an intense red radiance, slowly taking the form of human-like legs. A true form was emerging, taking its first slow shape!

Du Qing witnessed this very moment; his expression was one of stunned reverence. Never had he seen the birthing of a primal true form. The spectacle before him offered a profound boon, opening a pathway for his future cultivation.

The path, previously shrouded in shadow, was now growing ever clearer. “A True Form! I am witnessing its creation, a sight few in all the realms are privileged to see! I, Du Qing, have beheld it!” Excitement flared across Du Qing’s face. His cultivation was still shy of the Emptiness Tribulant stage, held within the Seven Xuan Tribulations. He dared not brave the eighth or ninth, lacking the certainty of success. But the scene unfolding before him, the raw power of creation, offered an immense shift to his origin!

The vision seemed simple, yet Wang Lin bore an unimaginable pressure, sweat beading upon his brow. The moment the moisture appeared, it would vaporize, enveloping him in a misty aura, making him seem ephemeral.

His essence of fire was not enough to forge a true form. However, he had drawn upon the power of the sixteen branches of the Celestial Bull Continent, devouring the soul of a minor terrestrial fire vein, particularly the will of fire that resided within.

This combination of energies and intent had granted Wang Lin a personal will that he now sought to contend with all the fire in the world, to seize the control of the Celestial Bull Continent’s essence of fire.

This very thought sparked the desire to condense the primal true form, though it was a daunting challenge. Wang Lin exerted every ounce of his power, barely managing to manifest the form of legs.

As time flowed, the fiery orb dimmed, the flames threatening to die out. The Vermillion Bird, with its nascent limbs, stood motionless, its form slowly shriveling. This was due to a lack of flame essence. Wang Lin’s eyes flashed with determination. He moved down and landed on the mountain below. He pressed his right hand against the earth.

As his hand connected with the ground, Wang Lin’s divine sense emanated from his right hand, merged into the soil, and spread in a frenzied manner in all directions. A thousand, ten thousand, a hundred thousand, a million, ten million… until it was limitless.

This was the first time Wang Lin had ever extended his divine sense so wildly on the Immortal Astral Continent, covering such a vast area. Even so, for the entirety of the Celestial Bull Continent, Wang Lin’s divine sense only covered less than 10%, not even half.

But even this area was infinitely close to the size of the entire cave world. Within this area, there were a total of 172 terrestrial fire branch veins, and two terrestrial fire sub veins.

“One hundred and seventy-two terrestrial fire branch vein souls, be drawn to me!” Wang Lin roared, his right hand rising from the ground. As his hand rose, the heavens rumbled and the earth trembled. All terrestrial fire branch veins within the range of Wang Lin’s divine sense trembled.

If one looked from above with great divine abilities, one could clearly see mountains collapsing, as terrestrial fire branch vein dragon souls roared out.

There were also fragments of plains with large cracks, as magma erupted and dragon souls charged out!

There were also rivers that instantly dried up, riverbeds cracked, and a dragon soul flew out!

From all directions, across an uncalculatable amount of land, a total of 172 terrestrial fire branch vein dragon souls roared out into the sky. Their bodies couldn’t be seen by ordinary cultivators, but they could be felt by cultivators with great power.

At this moment, the 172 dragon souls roared as if they were being pulled by a great suction force, flying from all directions towards Wang Lin.

They moved faster than any cultivator, arriving in an instant, appearing in the sky above Wang Lin and Du Qing.

Du Qing was stunned as he stared at this scene, forgetting to breathe.

He saw each and every dragon soul roaring, as if to rebel, but they ultimately couldn’t escape the fire will that had appeared in the dark. They had no choice but to rush toward the fire ball that was about to die above Wang Lin.
At the behest of that will, they surged forth with a thunderous roar!

That will, born of Wang Lin’s absorption of the lesser vein, was the very essence of his own Fire Origin. Save for the main vein held by the Princess, all lesser veins and tributaries would bend to its command!

The heavens trembled with the deafening boom as one hundred and seventy-two dragon souls of earthfire plunged into the ten-foot sphere of flame. The orb erupted anew, and within its heart, the nascent Vermillion Bird, its legs already manifest, cried out in a joyous shriek that echoed across the land.

With each shriek, it greedily devoured the Fire Origin of the one hundred and seventy dragon souls. Through this ravenous consumption, the Vermillion Bird’s wings slowly coalesced into arms, each adorned with fiery runes.

Limbs complete! Only the torso and crested skull remained. Wang Lin’s true Fire Origin form was tantalizingly close to completion! Du Qing, though but an observer, stumbled backward, sensing the immense difficulty of this manifestation. Such boundless Fire Origin energy, yet still it struggled to forge the final form.

A chilling dread crept into his heart.

“So,” he muttered, “this is why True Origin forms are so rare! The forging of such a being is an arduous task, growing ever more difficult the closer one gets. Only through such immense struggle can the true majesty of a True Origin form be realized!”

“This one possesses seven Origin sources, Shackles…? If he were to ultimately manifest the True Form of all seven, then…” Du Qing gasped, unable to fathom the consequences.

Wang Lin, atop the mountain, labored for breath. He gazed at the ten-foot sphere of fire, at the Vermillion Bird within, its four limbs now wrought, yet still far from perfection.

“Two more lesser vein dragon souls, I command them forth!” With a guttural cry, Wang Lin slammed his hands upon the earth. The ground buckled like waves, and a thunderous rumble echoed forth. Within the reach of his divine sense, from two far-flung directions, came roars of raw power.

To Wang Lin’s east, upon a mountain range crowned with millennia of unmelting snow, the peaks shuddered. The snow turned to water in an instant, becoming a surging tide, rushing towards the earth. Before it could flow far, however, it hissed and evaporated in a cloud of white mist. From within that vapor, a dragon soul of earthfire materialized, roaring towards the heavens before hurtling towards Wang Lin.

To Wang Lin’s west lay an inland sea, hemmed in by the continent of Tianniu. As the waves crashed upon the shore, in the ocean’s darkest depths lay a submerged mountain range, its shape resembling a slumbering dragon!

Now, the mountains trembled, and the sea churned into a colossal vortex. The mountain range shuddered, and from within its heart, a wave of soul energy unfurled, drawing countless gallons of water into its form. Thus, a sea dragon was born, bursting from the ocean’s surface.

Though seemingly devoid of fire, each drop of water within that sea dragon contained infinite potential. As it ascended, the sea dragon shook, and the blue water of its form instantly became crimson, morphing into scalding magma!

This dragon of molten fire roared, its trajectory locked upon Wang Lin.

Though told in many words, all transpired in but a heartbeat. The moment Wang Lin lifted his hands from the earth, two roars rent the air from east and west. Two lesser vein dragon souls came hurtling forth!

It seemed the sky itself had been seared, leaving long, burning scars upon its face. The ferocity of the two dragon souls struck fear into Du Qing’s heart.

Wang Lin raised his head, his eyes gleaming with power. He leapt into the air, soaring towards the approaching dragon souls.

“Du Qing! I offer you an opportunity! Hold one of these dragon souls at bay for half an hour!” As Wang Lin spoke, he hurled himself towards the magma-born dragon of the sea.

Du Qing’s face twisted in conflict, but with a resolute cry, he launched himself skyward. A violet aura enveloped him, solidifying into a wooden form as he braced himself to meet the other dragon soul.