Paragon of Sin

The Samsara of Stars was as massive as the reach of the universe, empty and vast, the only occupants were none other than deceased shells of peak Astral Souls, germinating star seeds, and the Mortal Dao, with the only visitors of this exquisite space being a single mortal and a star he birthed with effort and care sprinkled with lofty ambition.

The mortal floated under the radiant glow of the solar star. The illumination of its brilliance was warm and comfortable to an unnatural extreme, enough to lull one to a slumber that could last for millions upon millions of years. The familiarity of this direct exposure triggered the mortal's latent memories of his past. Both location and warmth were enough. With a hearty and relaxed sigh, the mortal smiled.

A dawning realization struck Wei Wuyin at this moment. The immensity of Little Defiant had always been unknown to him, and Wei Wuyin was already curious about the energy limits of Little Defiant, pushing it little by little to achieve unimaginable feats beyond the imagination of the average mortal. While he knew it was big to an extent that could unleash an instant calamity upon release, only now he realized the range of that calamity and the vast reserves of solar essence, solar light, and solar energy Little Defiant had in reserve.

Unlike the Absolute-sized solar stars at the end of the Chosen King Competition, which were artificially bloated to an extreme with energy and essence, not the slightest amount of mass, and why there weren't any gravity emissions to the point of killing those Astral Core Realm Chosen by raw attraction, Little Defiant was a solid solar star in its most complete form. It was a natural generator of true Mortal Dao Realm cultivation!

Given its size, it wasn't that Little Defiant was inexhaustible by any means, but simply that it had TOO MUCH energy to be exhausted so easily! Not even galvanizing its reserves of energy to propel himself to the perceptive speed and rapidly accelerate enough to rival the Heavenly Radiance State could equate to a drop in an ocean when Little Defiant's energy was concerned. This was absurd, and if any cultivator knew of its existence, they would understand that Wei Wuyin was quite literally carrying a galactic-level treasure in his head that far, far, far exceeded the Onestar Galaxy's legendary solar star.

"No wonder." Wei Wuyin and his Astral Souls had truly taken steps to make unprecedented moves across the mortal realms of cultivation, not slacking off at all, and while Little Defiant's birth had a mixture of luck within it, it was undoubtedly their ambitious will and drive to pursue a unique path of a paragon that allowed its birth. After all, the debonair version of himself hadn't birthed such a beautifully wondrous star!

Oddly enough, Wei Wuyin couldn't help but feel a faint thankfulness toward the Eighteen Calamities of Hell and the Heavenly Daos. Without them, he wouldn't have been able to have this wonderful family...

Bai Lin.

Orianna.

King.

Eden.

Kratos.

Element.

Little Defiant.

Bai Xiu.

The Heavenly War Spirit.

Without the Bloodline of Sin, his head would have long decomposed into the ground serving to only grow grass. A forgotten name in history. Would he have those like Su Mei and Xue Yifei in his life?

He wouldn't have anyone or anything.

Not in this life, at least.

Closing his eyes gently, he bathed in Little Defiant's warm light as his Astral Souls went to work. They externalized. From the beginning of their ability to externalize, they've taken their path of cultivation by the reins and actively pushed for the greatest benefits, exploiting the Mortal Dao's path of cultivation as amazingly as Wei Wuyin exploited fortuitous encounters and blessed opportunities.

Little Defiant had been proclaimed as the Lord of Stars by the Mortal Dao's own volition, serving to exemplify its unprecedented existence amongst the stars and status to the Mortal Dao itself! It was to an extent that Little Defiant was granted free access to the Samsara of Stars, eliminating Wei Wuyin's intent to seek forgiveness after the intrusion.

"If his Stellar-Paragon Physique had obtained such rights due to the Mortal Dao's previous blessing, he wouldn't have found it strange. Now that he knew of Little Defiant's immensity, he found it even less strange. However, all that aside, Little Defiant's path had only just begun after its birth, and those reckless Astral Souls already schemed its next stage of pursuit, all for the sake of better increasing their compatibility to establish a paramount version of their Astral Idols, the pinnacle manifestation of the Mortal Dao."

"Ori was a radiant white star, soaring across the worldscape leaving a trail of endless colors that kept diversifying the further out it became, introducing all sorts of new energies. It was the genesis of many forces, deeply intertwined with the Material Dao. The Mortal Dao celebrated this appearance with a flourishing dance of space and time, welcoming Ori entirely."

"King took the form of a saber. Everything its edge touched was annihilated at a fundamental level, causing everything to split into two, severing space, time, and light with understated ease. It was only after it trembled from a warning pulse of power. King ignored it."

"Ori and King established a balance that left the Mortal Dao partially uncertain about how to react. Over time, the Samsara of Stars was losing substance but gaining new, purer, stronger substance. King obliterated the old while Ori generated the new. The unity between them was equal. For every iota of the world that was annihilated, an iota of the world was created."

"Eden's Star Core was in the form of an ancient tree. It had seven-colored leaves, roots, with thick and willowy branches, and a crown that moved as if blown by the winds of mortality. It walked with its roots as if they were legs, moving around Little Defiant. From time to time, a solar flare would erupt, purposefully by Little Defiant, and Eden's root would joyfully swipe toward it, sending seven-colored light. The area would briefly shift into a seven-colored sunspot."

"If relationships were considered, Eden was the closest to Little Defiant out of the four, both due to the Sea of Consciousness containing their homes-the sea of mental energy itself and the Mind's Eye-and they shared mutually intense feelings of protecting their family. Everyone loved and accepted this, especially since Eden's previous existence's dream was once to get closer to the stars, to what it considered the most loyal and reliable family."

"Kratos was a light grey cloud. The outline of a True Dragon, an Unseen Divinity, revealed itself from time to time as a vague silhouette. It was the most at ease in this unique space, flying every which way without the slightest hindrance as if this territory was its home and it treated it as such with a domineering air."

"In its mind, all of the Void was its home."

"It could leave and enter whenever it wished. Who dares to say otherwise?"

"Wei Wuyin was taken aback by Kratos' externalization given its state of cultivation. However, he was stunned to sense that it had already digested the entirety of the White Abyss, its cultivation firmly within the First Level of the Mark of Mystic Myth.

"When?" Wei Wuyin pondered.

As he thought about this, he instinctively checked his Mind's Eye and discovered that the White Abyss that he had absorbed had disappeared while various precious treasures remained that were unwanted by Kratos.

Eden spun and danced at the edge of Little Defiant, and as if sensing Wei Wuyin's question, it sent a single leaf toward him at speeds that rivaled light itself. When it entered his glabella, Wei Wuyin was given an answer. So that's why they wanted to visit the Samsara of Stars!

Here, time and space were strange and distorted. It was a natural acceleration zone that could accommodate Little Defiant's millions of years of devouring and growth without aging any mortal soul, Star Souls included. Furthermore, Kratos was a True Void Dragon with the Minor Law of Time and Space cycling its soul, easily capable of accelerating itself and the others to an outrageous extent. With the strange rule of unaging mortal souls established here, it could do so without feeling any ill effects.

Unfortunately, there were limitations.

Only mortal souls could enjoy that effect, and cultivating other Daos that weren't under the purview of the Mortal Dao was forbidden. For example, Wei Wuyin couldn't concoct or consume Mystic-Earth or higher products in this space or try to cultivate things under the purview of the Mystic Dao, as they would inevitably invoke their presence, and that... was a huge violation.

However, Mystic-Earth? Mystic-World? Say less!

This was... incredibly valuable even without that! The thought of bringing the mortal Ascendants here to cultivate for as long of a period as they needed flourished within his mind. However, this thought was met with a reaction from the Mortal Dao within this space-a refusal. He gave a wry smile.

But how could he not try? With a sly smile, he said: "How about just nine?"

"..." No reaction.

"Great! Thanks!" Wei Wuyin chuckled and only then was he given a straightforward response!

No!

However, how could Wei Wuyin not continue? He didn't mind it given that the Mortal Dao blessed him and declared Little Defiant as the Lord of Stars, so there was no way that it would, given its personality, punish him for harmlessly asking. "I can settle for eight. You drive a hard bargain."

Bargain?

Wei Wuyin wasn't offering anything! However, the response was repeated for several weeks as Wei Wuyin refused to relent. The prospect of bringing the Prime Ascendants to cultivate Spiritual Arts or consolidate their foundation was far too valuable! Eventually, the Mortal Dao gave a response that Wei Wuyin hadn't expected.

It had agreed!

On the condition that Wei Wuyin came with, causing Wei Wuyin to sigh, looking as if he was saddened at being defeated in this negotiation. Of course, he agreed! Since he wasn't given a numerical restriction, he simply had to come with them. That was easy to accomplish! While what they could do was limited, the unaging experience was enough to do many, many things.

The Samsara of Stars would soon become the Neo-Dawn Ascendant Emperor's greatest nurturing tool for mortals! His very own... blessed grounds for cultivation!

Opening his eyes, he sensed the four Astral Souls take their positions within four directions of Little Defiant. It took Ori, King, and Eden several hours to get into position. Kratos had long since visited his position but soon left and was playing around in this unique space. At one point, Wei Wuyin's ability to sense it grew fuzzy and indistinct! It went too far!

Fortunately, it returned right away with a growl and a roar of discontent. Wei Wuyin could feel the urge it had to bring him with it across the Samsara of Stars, but then the other three Astral Souls would have similar issues. It could only stay within the limits of their connection.

Now, the four Astral Souls were at various positions around Little Defiant. They formed perfect diagonal lines that intersect with Ori and King forming a line while Eden and Kratos formed the other. If Little Defiant was perfectly split into four pieces by a horizontal and vertical line, then the four of them hovered at the diagonal positions, dividing Little Defiant into four sections.

"We're beginning!" Eden communicated through the leaf. Wei Wuyin nodded, and without thinking much, he kicked off and plunged into Little Defiant! He was less than a drop of water entering an ocean. The four of them similarly entered Little Defiant! Their current forms were much larger yet still incredibly small when compared to Little Defiant!

The madness of four Astral Souls, one Solar Star, and a single mortal was about to be unleashed!