Chapter 489: Rite of the Four Seasons (Two-in-One)

{Item Name: Heart of a Certain Deity (Incomplete)}

{Quality: Silver}

{Tier Requirement: Usable at the Sixth Tier}

{Effect: Deities are unfathomable}

{Description: The heart of a deceased deity. Although his divine position has already been inherited by a successor, as the most essential part of his former body, it remains incredibly precious. Of course, risks and opportunities always coexist. No one can say for sure what exactly lies within this heart.}

When every gaze landed on the jewel-like heart in Yan Jing's hand, the clamor abruptly ceased.

No one could tear their eyes away from it—even if it was merely a fragment of a heart, and even if it appeared utterly devoid of energy.

But this was the heart of a deity.

Even the weakest deity was still a deity.

Even a dead deity.

Was still a deity.

It took several seconds for the crowd to finally snap out of their daze.

A chorus of sharp gasps rang out.

"Fuck, who did this guy rob?!"

"Why don't I have luck like that? This is bullshit! The heavens are blind, totally blind!!"

"I think it might be a fake. Tell you what, let me hold it, and I'll help you appraise it."

Yan Jing's expression remained perfectly calm.

"It was a gift."

"Damn it, definitely from a woman,"

someone muttered into the ensuing silence.

The crowd voiced their unanimous agreement.

Since ancient times, heroes were always surrounded by beauties—this was an eternal law.

"She's either filthy rich or hopelessly naive. And if she's neither..."

"Then this kid is screwed. He'll never shake that woman off for the rest of his life."

Another wave of agreement swept through the crowd.

"If my daughter gave something like this away, I'd break her legs,"

someone remarked.

Yan Jing coughed lightly and said, "So, which one should I use?"

"Is that even a question?!" The crowd erupted into an uproar again.

"If a deity is an option, pick the deity—haven't you heard that before?"

"This kid's a bit dense!"

"No wonder he reached the Celestial Immortal Realm with his physical body; his brain is all muscle."

Amid the relentless scolding, Yan Jing nodded.

Of course, he wasn't stupid. He just hoped someone could offer a bit of "advice."

According to Xiao Yu's speculation, there might be a way to absorb more than one Ritual.

As things stood, it seemed he hadn't encountered anyone capable of that yet.

But just then, a gloomy voice drifted down from above.

"I know what you want."

"I have a way for you to choose all of them."

Hearing this voice, the many entities present narrowed their eyes and looked toward a high peak behind them.

A figure walked down step by step from the summit. With every stride, countless mechanical threads materialized beneath his feet, forming a staircase to support his weight.

It was a man with hair like a bird's nest, deeply sunken eye sockets, and a scruffy beard. He exuded a heavy, shadowy aura. "It's him... He came too?"

someone whispered.

At that moment, two more figures stepped out from a corner of the great curtain and spoke softly to the man:

"I didn't expect you to come as well." "Good morning."

"Yes, I had to come take a look. Now it seems the trip was well worth it,"

the man replied, his voice as raspy as a crow's.

One of the two figures smiled.

"It's too early to say."

"To be honest, I'm also interested in what this kid is holding."

The other figure gave a slight nod.

But before he could speak, the man flicked two objects from his hand, tossing them to the pair.

"Your injuries are severe. The Mutation has likely invaded too deeply. This is Repair Liquid. I brought it with me before entering the great curtain, and I only have two bottles left." He turned to the other. "As for you, you should be close to advancing your tier. This is a Pseudo-Divine Source."

The man paused, then added, "Besides, you can't compete with me. I am the only one who can solve his problem."

After speaking, the man didn't spare them another glance and walked straight toward Yan Jing.

The two looked at the items in their hands, shared a wry smile, and put them away.

They had long heard of the man's immense wealth and knew he was socially inept, which was exactly why they had deliberately set up this "highway robbery."

As for actually competing with him, that was just for show.

Just as the man had said, there were very few people within the great curtain who could solve this problem.

The man stopped in front of the great curtain and said, "This Heart of God is already empty. In your terms, it only has its form without its soul."

"Divinity, divine soul, divine position—none of these three exist inside it anymore. But it still possesses a shell."

"I can coordinate the solid ice and the Earth Soil, blending their powers in proportion. If the input energy frequency matches the frequency difference between the two forces, there's a chance of triggering a frequency inversion. Of course, the baseline probability is extremely low, but with this divine heart acting as a carrier, the success rate will increase to at least eighty percent."

"And that remaining twenty percent accounts for my lack of familiarity with you."

"I don't know if you'll be able to withstand it."

Having said this, the man looked at Yan Jing, his gaze calm and profound.

Yan Jing merely smiled, then pulled out a massive chunk of solid ice.

"Is this enough?"

The man nodded.

"It is."

His body trembled, because right now he was speaking directly with Yan Jing, an act forbidden by the great curtain. Yet, his expression remained perfectly serene as he instructed Yan Jing to arrange the Earth Soil, the solid ice, and the Heart of God in a specific sequence before an incense burner, and then to apply a Ritual Blessing Coupon over them.

"Now, close your eyes. I will input a burst of energy. You need to mimic the exact same input frequency based on the energy I provide. It's somewhat difficult, but since you were able to step into the Celestial Immortal Realm with your physical body, you should be able to grasp it."

Yan Jing closed his eyes and began to quietly sense his surroundings.

Soon, he felt an extra trace of energy in the air. Just as the man had said, this wisp of energy was incredibly faint. Never mind mimicking it, just distinguishing its output frequency was difficult enough.

But for Yan Jing, this was a simple task. A few seconds later, his fingertips twitched slightly—he had already replicated an energy frequency almost identical to that wisp. "Now multiply the output volume by a thousand times."

The man's voice rang in his ear. Yan Jing paused for a split second, then did as he was told.

That momentary pause was caught by the man.

For the first time, a flash of approval gleamed in his eyes.

Risk-taking, courage—these were, of course, traits a genius should possess.

But maintaining a level head in the face of massive potential gains was what truly made one rare.

Science was exactly the same.

Yan Jing's momentary hesitation just now was him analyzing whether the man's instructions posed any danger.

Soon, as all of the man's steps were executed, the pitch-black jewel on the ground suddenly began to tremble.

A powerful suction erupted from its upward-facing side, forming a swirling vortex.

The Earth Soil and solid ice placed on either side of it now exuded a gaseous, flowing energy. Drawn by the vortex, they were slowly absorbed inside.

And the originally pitch-black jewel actually began to change.

Pale blue blood vessels wrapped around it, while an earthen yellow core beat at its center.

Thump, thump, thump...

It was as if the heart had been granted new life.

Ultimately, both the Earth Soil and the solid ice vanished completely.

"Now is the time."

The man spoke. He reached out through the great curtain and plucked away the invisible substances within it.

Meanwhile, his originally normal appearance began to alter bit by bit.

His eyes vanished from his sunken sockets, and two streams of bloody tears gushed from the hollow voids. From his messy hair, black crows began to emerge one by one, letting out hideous shrieks.

All the entities watching this scene fell silent.

They hadn't expected the man's Mutation level to be this severe.

They were people who had chosen to enter the great curtain, which meant they had completely committed to a path opposing weird energy.

But the Mutation would not stop.

Physical mutations combined with the inability to absorb weird energy would ultimately lead to one result... total corruption.

The crowd, who had initially wanted to scrounge some benefits, universally took a step back.

The man had accomplished many great feats in the past. Even though his personal combat strength wasn't at the very top, he had benefited countless thousands, becoming the spiritual leader for many who resisted the Source of Mutation back then.

Yet, in the face of the crowd's retreat, the man simply grabbed a handful of the extracted substance and distributed a piece into everyone's hands.

Just like he had done in the past.

"The best way to resist the Mutation is to absorb a sufficient amount of 'Mass.' If someone completely loses their mind, don't dispose of them right away. Preserve their flesh and blood. If your 'Mass' approaches zero in the end, you can still use that flesh to cling to life a little while longer."

His voice calm, the man announced the results of his latest research.

"The specific method is..."

The crowd listened in silence.

Meanwhile, Yan Jing shaped a hand out of weird energy and grasped the completely transformed heart.

The heart now used Earth Soil as its main body, its crystals packed with distinct grains of sand, while ice-crystal blood vessels wound around its exterior. The two colors, yellow and blue, were clear and transparent.

Two entirely different types of energy—one chilling, the other profoundly dense—seeped into Yan Jing's body bit by bit, flowing like two small streams.

However, the moment these energies entered Yan Jing's mind, his eyes narrowed.

Concealed beneath their trickling exterior was a power like a landslide or a tsunami. In a split second, it transformed into terrifying, crashing waves threatening to swallow Yan Jing whole.

But Yan Jing didn't panic. Facing the oncoming surge of energy, he simply mobilized the power within his body.

Then, a towering, pitch-black tree sprang up from the ground, completely intercepting the raging tide.

Following that, a faint light illuminated his body, and he threw a punch straight at the monstrous waves.

Under the relentless barrage of his punches, the dense, solid waves slowly ground to a halt, then flowed backward, and finally shattered into a fine rain that seeped into every inch of Yan Jing's body. Just like that, an unknown amount of time passed.

The sound of an electronic alarm clock rang out.

Yan Jing slowly opened his eyes.

He was already back in his room.

Standing across from him were three figures.

One stood about two meters tall, her entire body bulging with muscle. A tiger-skin skirt wrapped around her upper thighs and tightly bound her towering chest.

Another stood with his back to him, wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with a gleaming gold dragon pattern, radiating an inexplicably haughty aura.

The final figure was draped in white veils, just as always.

Yan Jing looked at the three and smiled.

"To have three domain lords visit in person, I am truly flattered."

"However, I have some urgent matters to attend to right now. I wonder if you could give me a minute?"

Everyone around, including the three domain lords, froze in shock.

No one had expected that Yan Jing's first request upon appearing would be to ask three domain lords to wait a minute for him.

But Yan Jing didn't care what anyone else thought. His gaze landed directly on the ability description displayed in front of him.

{Rite of the Four Seasons: Heart of God; Earth and Frost (Reshaped) (Silver-Gold)}

{Rite of the Four Seasons Ability 1: Earth} {You possess the ability to manipulate the earth element. If the earth element is unowned, you can control it directly. If the earth element is owned by someone else, as long as their Tier does not exceed yours by more than two (less than or equal to your Tier + 2), you can control it directly (excluding Deities of the [Earth] Pathway). You can create soil. While you are in contact with the earth, all of your abilities are amplified by twenty percent, and all damage you take is reduced by twenty percent.} {Rite of the Four Seasons Ability 2: Frost}

{You possess the ability to manipulate the ice element. If the element is unowned, you can control it directly. If the ice element is owned by someone else, as long as their Tier does not exceed yours by more than two (less than or equal to your Tier + 2), you can control it directly (excluding Deities of the [Ice] Pathway). You can create frost and extend the lifespan of objects encased within it. When your life shatters, you can initiate one reboot.}

{Rite of the Four Seasons Extra Trait: Mutated Heart. You now possess two hearts. When one is destroyed, the other will continue to function. Furthermore, the first heart will be reshaped within five minutes. You are only considered to have lost a life (life shattered) if both hearts are destroyed simultaneously.} "Alright, done."

After scanning the effects of his abilities, Yan Jing looked at the three people across from him and smiled.

"Thank you for your willingness to wait, domain lords."

All three remained silent.

Faced with Yan Jing's overly familiar attitude, the speeches they had prepared all instantly fell flat.

Finally, Long Quezhou spoke up, his voice icy.

"Yan Jing, you know exactly what you did to our Meng Bing and Zhu Jian."

Yan Jing blinked in bewilderment.

"I recall we were just having a normal spar."

"Whose normal spar results in one person's physical body being completely annihilated and the other left in a state where they can't even be touched?!"

Long Quezhou lost his temper, and a furious dragon's roar instantly detonated in the sky.

"If you can't give us a proper explanation, this isn't over today."

Beside him, Wang Yu also spoke up at this moment.

"And on our side, everyone in the First Echelon is now in a state of utter despondency. More than half of them have had their Dao hearts shattered. How do you explain that?"

"That really was just a normal spar."

Yan Jing said, "As I recall, the injuries on the [Beast Lord]'s side were the lightest of the three."

"You actually did quite well on that front." Hearing this, Wang Yu looked somewhat pleased, but she quickly realized something was wrong. Feeling the murderous glares aimed at her from both sides, she let out a couple of coughs.

"However!!!"

"That's still no excuse for you to slaughter innocents indiscriminately inside the Dungeon!"

"I didn't kill any innocents..." Yan Jing blinked again.

"Then why is Wan Yicheng dead?!"

Finally, Liu Xiaoyue couldn't hold back any longer and completely exploded.

The moment she spoke, the somewhat relaxed atmosphere changed in an instant.

Liu Xiaoyue said coldly, "Yicheng was a pillar our Yueyin spent years cultivating. We poured a massive amount of effort and resources into him, and now he's dead at the hands of one of our own."

"Xiao Yan... I need an explanation."

Everyone could hear it. Among the three people present, Liu Xiaoyue was the one who was genuinely furious.

She was so enraged that the other two actually felt they had gotten off relatively lightly, which consequently made them seem far less angry by comparison.