Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryu's Immortal Rings flickered and vanished. He was quite satisfied that they didn't grow beyond 10 meters in size, he felt like it gave him tighter control similar to how Nemesis' Adept Body Talent worked.

Ryu had an inkling that the reason for this wasn't because of Ailsa's technique, but rather because of the influence of his Chaos Qi. It seemed to have allowed him to break the rules set down by Order, dragging them down into Chaos.

When Ryu reached this conclusion, he came to understand something. He had been worried that after he reclaimed his Spiritual Foundation, there would be some other cultivation misstep he would need to make in the future in order to continue to evolve his Chaotic Silk Meridians, but it seemed now that that wouldn't be necessary.

The focus on his progression should no longer be on his meridians themselves, but rather the Chaos Qi they produced.

Ryu also felt that his cultivation method had changed.

He no longer had to absorb neutral qi and then convert it to Chaos Qi. He felt a connection directly to the Chaos Plane that allowed him to cultivate directly with Chaos Qi.

This was likely one of the biggest changes Ryu had experienced alongside the reformation of his soul. The reason he had stepped into the 2nd Immortal Ring Realm so quickly was because he was resonating not with the Heavens, but rather with this mysterious Chaos Plane he still didn't quite understand.

The experience was similar to his comprehension of his Great Swordstaff. It was such a rare weapon that pulling and molding its Fate as he pleased was incredibly easy. By the same token, the Chaos Plane seemed to be so exclusive that Ryu could resonate with it far easier than he could the Heavens in this place.

The result was a cultivation speed even beyond Ryu's initial estimates. He felt it might not even take a year for him to enter the 3rd Immortal Ring Realm… This was a kind of pace that left even him somewhat shaken.

But, in his present state, his heart was calm and measured. He felt that even if he was akin to a small boat amidst a raging ocean tide, he would be able to keep his wits about him.

At the same time, Ryu had a newfound appreciation for the gifts he had been given in life. Sarriel's words still reverberated in his mind from time to time, acting like a chime that calmed his heart.

What reason did he have to act like a victim? If he couldn't succeed with these cards in hand, he wouldn't even want to look himself in the mirror.

As Ryu stepped down from the skies and his feet touched the earth, a ripple of gold energy spread out with the tips of his toes as the center. Ryu emotionlessly gazed at this ripple, feeling that a fascinating change had just happened. But, he didn't try too hard to grasp at it.

He felt a mellow song in his mind, a hymn of a lost age plucking at the strings of a heavenly lyre. He took one step after another, entering the Immortal Cave to find Eska silently preparing a meal. She worked with the delicate diligence of a housewife.

Looking at the meat she was using, Ryu recognized many discarded carcasses of beasts he had killed long ago.

He had drained them all of their blood to use to train his body. Though they had been here for a long while, with the cultivation they had before their deaths, it would still take several centuries before the meat began to degrade, let alone rot.

As for the herbs and spices, they all came from Ryu's Incubator. He had no idea how Eska had gotten to them, but he wasn't about to question the prowess of a Mental Realm Master who had reached the realm of Sky Gods.

Eska noticed Ryu's arrival and gave him a simple greeting. The kitchen of the Immortal Cave was another place that didn't see much use. After all, Ryu saw eating a lot like he did bathing.

The only reason he ate at all was because his Bloodlines forced him to. Always sustaining his Vital Qi with just his qi alone was a poor waste of his stamina. But, he didn't bother to make the food taste good, he simply heated it up and ate it.

Since he had his flames to do this, there was no need to use the kitchen.

Eska placed down plate after plate before taking an elegant seat down. She motioned for Ryu to sit across from her, to which he obliged.

"Thank you." Ryu said.

"No need to thank me, I'm only doing as I should."

Ryu didn't respond to this as he had already begun to eat. His appetite was as large as one might expect, and it had only grown after entering the Blood Tempering Stage. He would have to make it back to the Shrine Plane soon and sneak into his Clan's Ancestral Grounds so that he could find the pieces of the technique he needed to continue.

"I have finished organizing Isemeine's memories. There is a great amount of information. I'll explain as clearly as I can, and as concisely as possible."

For Eska who had experienced trillions of years of life, Isemeine's own memories were like a blink to her. It hadn't taken her long at all to sift through them all. The only annoying part was ignoring what was useless and throwing them out.

"I can begin with your First Wife. She…"

Ryu shook his head. "I know my wife. The things Isemeine said she had done, she hasn't. You can move on to the other matters."

Eska gave Ryu a deep look, her expression not giving anything away. However, all she found was an unperturbed Ryu swallowing ocean's worth of food with an elegance that didn't match his volume.

His confidence… Was off the charts. There wasn't a single fabricated bone in his body.