Comprehending the Origin

A faint thread of consciousness drifted helplessly in a vast void.

The Yanyang Xuancang Flame silently watched as Shi Yu’s consciousness grew weaker and more chaotic.

Half a year had passed since Shi Yu accepted the task. Sealed within this “nothingness,” she was gradually being assimilated by it. If she could not comprehend a way to break through before her conscious self completely faded, her body and spiritual soul would vanish from the world forever.

Seeing Shi Yu’s thread of consciousness waver even more in the void—to the point where even her identity grew blurry—the Yanyang Xuancang Flame let out a soft sigh. “Is it truly... impossible?”

Comprehending the origin of a law was extraordinarily difficult; it shouldn't have pinned its hopes on a tiny human cultivator. Even if this cultivator possessed a touch of extraordinary talent, she was currently nothing more than a mortal flesh-and-blood body. Throwing her into the void would only cause her to turn into nourishment for the nothingness.

Seeing Shi Yu’s consciousness grow increasingly faint and indistinct, the Yanyang Xuancang Flame knew that if this continued, she would completely disappear into the void within three days. Having lived through tens of thousands of years and witnessed countless deaths, though it felt regret for Shi Yu, it could only watch in silence.

...

In the void, that feeble thread of consciousness faded day by day. At first, Shi Yu had merely noticed the loss of her five senses and her perception of the world. Later, she discovered that her consciousness, memories, and thoughts were also slowly dissipating. She did not know how much time had passed; slowly, she forgot her own name, and eventually, she no longer even knew what she was, becoming nothing more than a vague, chaotic thought.

Yet deep within that thought, a single sentence remained firmly ingrained: she had to comprehend the origin and find a way to break through this predicament.

Origin? What was origin?

She did not know what origin was, only feeling that everything was far too empty. Because it was empty, it needed to be broken; because it was empty, it needed to change; because it was empty, it needed to create.

Watching the thread of consciousness finally move toward complete extinction within the void, the Yanyang Xuancang Flame felt a hint of loneliness.

But before it could even sigh, a tiny spark of light emerged in the void.

It froze in place. “She... she is... turning her consciousness into fire!”

The Yanyang Xuancang Flame suddenly grew agitated. Its previously tranquil flames surged and flickered wildly as hope and anticipation returned to it once more.

In ancient times, when the mighty cultivator Xuancang had summoned a projection of the burning sun and spent tens of thousands of years refining it to forge the Yanyang Spiritual Realm, he had forcefully created a small world out of the last remaining primordial void in existence, using that grand power of creation to birth the very first spark of fire.

At this moment, the void surrounding Shi Yu’s consciousness was precisely a strand of primordial Grandmist Qi preserved by the Yanyang Xuancang Flame.

At the dawn of time, there was only ultimate chaos—formless, featureless, silent, and soundless. Before all things were born, a single spark of flame burned ceaselessly, illuminating the empty void.

That flame was a strand of spiritual Qi within the chaos, naturally condensing into shape. After an unknowable number of ages, it finally developed a sliver of sentience. Existing alone in the chaos, it was like a firefly, weak yet stubborn.

It felt its own existence and the surrounding loneliness. It knew not its name, only yearning for more companions and more change.

It began using its sentience to explore the chaos, hoping to find other living beings or other mysteries. Yet all it could touch was endless nothingness.

That tiny spark of flame felt loneliness and helplessness, but also anger and unwillingness. It decided to use its own power to break this dead silence and create a world of its own.

“Destruction, ruin.” The spark flashed violently, its entire body quivering with a terrifying surge of energy inside the void. With a light tremor, countless blades of light suddenly erupted, slicing through the chaos.

A moment of great transformation, the beginning of all creation.

It began using its flames to refine the chaos, separating it into Yin and Yang Qi. The Yin Qi sank, becoming the solid earth; the Yang Qi rose, becoming the clear sky. Between the earth and sky, a vast void was left behind.

The flame grew increasingly pure as it spread bit by bit, expanding to an immense size. The earth trembled, heaven and earth shifted, and the vast sky suddenly turned dark.

“Change, creation.”

In an instant, towering, lofty mountain peaks emerged within the spacious world. White rock capped the peaks, while endless spiritual Qi churned continuously within their depths.

Silver peaks met the frost, jade trees crowned the clouds; heaven and earth intersected in serene, clear azure.

The original nothingness completely dissipated. At the foot of the mountains and across the lap of the earth, lush vegetation sprouted, and playful birds and fish swam and flew about.

In that exact instant, she found herself again.

“...” Shi Yu snapped her eyes open, her chest heaving as her arms trembled slightly.

She stood blankly on the ground, raising her head to behold the surrounding scene of the blessed paradise. The waterfall of flames and flowing currents still coursed around her, while a cluster of red flame floated in midair right before her.

Everything remained just as it had been before.

After a long pause, Shi Yu hesitantly spoke: “Senior?”

The flame before her flickered once as if in response.

Unable to resist, she looked around once more, but could no longer see the vibrant world filled with living beings and flourishing nature from earlier.

That long, immersive experience of nurturing all creation felt like nothing more than a fleeting illusion, leaving Shi Yu to wonder if she had truly experienced it all.

Sensing her thoughts, the Yanyang Xuancang Flame slowly floated over to her. “Everything you saw and experienced was the scene of the Yanyang Spiritual Realm when it was first formed.”

A tone of warmth and laughter laced its voice. “Having comprehended a portion of my origin, you have gained some of my memories and experience, learning of the things I once saw, heard, and did.”

“So that’s how it is...” Lingering awe remained in Shi Yu’s eyes.

What she had experienced earlier from the perspective of the Yanyang Xuancang Flame had been truly miraculous.

It felt as though her vision had widened to the absolute extreme, her consciousness and perception expanding to encompass infinity, while her very existence felt boundless. Such a feeling was impossible to describe in words—so grand, magnificent, and endlessly transformative.

She took a deep breath.

The Yanyang Xuancang Flame was the pinnacle of fire, and its origin law was the Laws of Fire.

The Laws of Fire were the hottest, most violent, and most destructive laws in heaven and earth, yet also the most dynamic, transformative, and nurturing for creation.

It was a power capable of burning everything—a power that could destroy all things, yet also nurture all things; a power that could shatter order, yet also create order; a power that could consume life, yet also grant life...

What she had comprehended just now was merely a single hair from nine oxen, yet the benefits were already boundless, requiring years for her to fully digest.

At that moment, a faint pulsing sensation came from her palm. As if sensing something, Shi Yu opened her hand, only to see a tiny crimson flame spring forth from her palm. It looked identical to the Yanyang Xuancang Flame before her, merely a miniaturized version.

She could feel the intense heat and power within it, as well as the wisdom and spirituality contained inside.

“Is this a portion of Senior’s origin?” Shi Yu asked.

The Yanyang Xuancang Flame hummed softly in confirmation before generously saying, “It is yours now.”

Shi Yu looked at the flame in her palm with subtle joy. The flame did not completely belong to her yet; she could only temporarily draw upon a portion of its power.

But... it was not hard to imagine what a magnificent aid it would become once it was fully hers.

Shi Yu knew that if she wanted to completely refine this spark of flame, integrate it into herself, and turn it into one of her natal fires, one thing remained: she still needed to help the Yanyang Xuancang Flame contend against its malicious thought. Only then could she earn its complete approval.

She rubbed her palms together, already unable to wait.