Chapter 550: Chapter 193 Tai Chu Rune

In the Tai Chu era, that was the age when cultural inheritance began, the starting point of the Ancient era, In an age that everything was like Chaos just opening.

When Zhou Yan started the Artifact Refining process, it was obvious that he immediately caught the attention of many Cultivators.

It wasn’t because of his unique identity, but rather the inexplicable aura that emanated from his body.

This was akin to the blazing sun in the night sky, where even an attempt at understatement would be strikingly dazzling.

This kind of aura, incompatible with all others, stood out as a sudden emergence.

Such an aura belonged to the Tai Chu era.

The aura of the Tai Chu era was familiar to every Cultivator, but to be able to release such an aura, one must either possess the Tai Chu Sword Body or hold some Ancient Scrolls or Scriptures from the Tai Chu era.

However, it was apparent that Zhou Yan had neither the Tai Chu Sword Body nor held any of the ancient artifacts from the Tai Chu era. So where did this aura come from?

At this moment, besides Zhou Yan and the Cultivators focused on their own Artifact Refining, everyone else, including figures like Saint Yao and other Saints, couldn’t help but pay more attention to Zhou Yan.

“Could it be that after he killed Xiao Tianlun, he acquired some Cultivation Methods for the Tai Chu Sword Body from Xiao Tianlun’s Qiankun Ring?” mused the Yaochi Saint thoughtfully.

“Maybe, he has comprehended a trace of the profound meaning of Ancient Runes from the Tai Chu era and can exhibit them,” Fairy Die spoke highly of Zhou Yan.

As she spoke, a look of great anticipation sparkled in her beautiful eyes, making them exceptionally bright.

The Yaochi Saint curled his lips and chuckled, “Him? Comprehend the profound meaning of Tai Chu Runes? I think you’re overestimating him. If he had grasped even a thread of the profound meaning of Ancient Runes from the Tai Chu era, he would have stopped being so low-key long ago and would have displayed his capabilities unabashedly. Such a person truly has nothing to be anticipated. If they had any card up their sleeve, they would be arrogant beyond measure, eager to show it off.”

The Yaochi Saint said this and noticed that Saint Yao and Fairy Die didn’t look too pleased; he stopped short of saying what he was about to say next.

In reality, he wanted to say that such characters often meet an early demise, not worth waiting.

“How about we make a bet?” suggested Fairy Die pensively.

“Good, I bet that Zhou Yan is simply seeking the crowd’s favor, with no great creation in Artifact Refining, and it is impossible for him to understand even a thread of the profound meaning of Runes from the Tai Chu era. If he does, then consider me the loser,” she declared.

“Since you’ve put it that way, if he doesn’t understand, then I’m the loser. Yaochi Saint, you have a ‘Fiery Sun Golden Crow Soul Stone’, right? If you lose, that item is mine; and if I lose, the Soul Killing Essence in my possession will be yours.”

“It’s a deal!”

“It’s a deal!”

…

The two quickly agreed on the wager, so although other geniuses were brilliant and showed various impressive skills, the Yaochi Saint and Fairy Die paid even more attention to Zhou Yan’s Artifact Refining.

After a moment of preparation, various auras manifested, reaching an extreme state, and only then did Zhou Yan begin to operate the true profound meaning of the Runes.

Netherworld Runes, Ancient Runes combined, along with the meanings of the pictographs in the oracle bone script, Zhou Yan gradually comprehended the profound meaning of Tai Chu Runes.

He had already understood a small part of the profound meaning of Tai Chu Runes, and now his mind was suddenly clear so he gained new insights – almost half of the entirety of these ancient runes!

This was a breakthrough-like progress for those studying Tai Chu Runes.

With joy in his heart concerning the Artifact Refining process, Zhou Yan finally had absolute confidence.

The profound meaning of ancient runes emerged, deriving an incredibly powerful aura of Tai Chu Sword Dao belonging to Zhou Yan.

Following the appearance of this aura, the geniuses refining nearby were not affected, but the Cultivators observing from outside began to whisper among themselves.

“Isn’t this the Tai Chu Sword Body aura of Xiao Tianlun? How does Zhou Yan know this too?”

“What is the Tai Chu Sword Intent doing here? This isn’t a swordsmanship competition. What does Zhou Yan intend to do?”

“Xiao Tianlun came from the Tai Chu Secret Realm, could it be that Zhou Yan now possesses treasures from Xiao Tianlun’s secret realm?”

“I don’t understand; could it be that Zhou Yan is about to make a big move? It seems worth anticipating.”

…

The Cultivators discussed animatedly, and the atmosphere became even more intense.

At this moment, the Yaochi Saint and Fairy Die calmly focused on Zhou Yan’s Artifact Refining. The Yaochi Saint had an almost victorious smile on his face, whereas Fairy Die could not conceal a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

It was clear that the stronger the Tai Chu aura, the less likely it was to comprehend the profound meaning of Tai Chu Runes, because this intertwined even more profound elements.

“It looks like you really overrated him. The presentation of Tai Chu’s aura, even with the formation of Sword Intent, it demonstrates that he has only grasped an overall sense of the Tai Chu, but not the inscrutable Rune profound meanings. Even a thread is beyond his reach,” the Yaochi Saint said confidently.

He was also excited – acquiring Fairy Die’s Soul Killing Essence would be a huge gain. This bet was proving to be a major windfall for him.

Fairy Die’s eyes dimmed a bit, but she didn’t deny the outcome, and with a gesture, she took out the Secret Treasure Soul Killing Essence, ready to hand it over to the Yaochi Saint.

Saint Yao, watching from the side, could not help but sigh and shake his head resignedly.

At this moment, a wind suddenly arose between heaven and earth.

The wind rose.

Heaven and Earth gave birth to immortal clouds.

From the immortal clouds, endless Chaos materialized, within which Yin Yang Qi of Heaven and Earth was derived.

The Pure Qi rose, while the Turbid Qi descended.

The vast Ancient Energy locked this part of Heaven and Earth, casting a layer of mysterious light and shadow over all territories, including the Southern Wilderness.

“This is—”

The Yaochi Saint and others were astonished, their eyes riveted on Zhou Yan, the person who had caused all this.

They saw Zhou Yan’s left hand with Purple Flame, his right hand flickering with runes that danced like elves.

Each rune emitted the aura of the Taichu era, so pure and so real that it was shocking.

This aura even stirred the wind and clouds of Heaven and Earth, making the brilliance of all things in the world pale in comparison.

“This is the Taichu Rune, he has mastered the profound meaning of the Taichu Rune, mastered it, not just grasped a strand! How is this possible?”

Even Fairy Die was thoroughly moved; even though she had considered the possibility of Zhou Yan grasping a strand of Taichu Rune, she had not expected Zhou Yan to be proficient, rather, nearly fully proficient in the Taichu Rune!

This was monstrous, absolutely terrifying!

Such innate talent…

This ability has undoubtedly secured him first place without any suspense.

Fairy Die’s heart was thrown into disarray, her heart ‘thump thump’ wildly pounding, completely shocked by Zhou Yan’s bold move. Inexplicably, she suddenly had a strong desire to take this astounding genius into her arms and ravage him fiercely.

She couldn’t explain why she felt this way, but at this moment, this feeling and impulse were incredibly overwhelming.

“Huff—”

Fairy Die took a deep breath, calming her agitated heart, preventing herself from losing reason.

But she had to admit in her heart, Zhou Yan was truly captivating, truly charismatic and skillful. Even a saint like herself was moved; how could other women escape his allure?

Sure enough, as she glanced at the female cultivators outside the arena, their nearly breathless expressions and nearly flushed cheeks made it clear that their passionate hearts had been ignited.

…

“Purple Flame condenses into frost and flowers, Taichu reveals ancient charm.”

“Heaven’s intent vast and distant emerges, Qiankun connects with Ghosts.”

Zhou Yan murmured to himself, then merged the displayed Purple Flame with the Ancient Energy of the Thunderflame Sword Body and Emperor Qi Sword Body to create a stream of Turbid Qi.

In his other hand, the essence of the Tai Chu Rune Profound Meaning converged, the rune script gathered together like sprites, forming a stream of Pure Qi.

The Pure Qi, together with the Turbid Qi, represented the Supreme Dao of the division of Yin and Yang in Chaos.

Within the scope of the Supreme Dao, Zhou Yan displayed his incredibly terrifying Artifact Refining Ability, surpassing Wu Ji’s nine Path of Artifact Refining, surpassing the Artifact Refining Path of the Heavenly Mechanism Skill, and the Artifact Refining Path of Qi Fortune and Fate.

Despite the fact that every genius’s artifact had entered an intense stage, had begun to take shape, and had reached a high level, they were still suppressed by the artifact refining process of Zhou Yan and could not cause any interference.

Moreover, no matter how brilliant their auras were at this time, they could not compare with the Supreme Dao anomaly presented by the Profound Meaning of the Taichu Rune.

Taichu was the starting point of everything, the beginning of the inheritance of the ancient era, representing the most top-tier existence.

Taichu Sword Intent might not be as powerful as Sword Intent that had developed over countless years, but the Dao and Runes of the Taichu era were the Runes and Dao when Heaven and Earth were first created, the ancestors of all runes and Dao.

This Dao was truly powerful.

Through runes, Zhou Yan had grasped the ancient Supreme Path of the Taichu Rune, putting him above everyone else.

At this time, merely this was not enough to satisfy Zhou Yan. After the division of Yin and Yang from the convergence of Pure Qi and Turbid Qi, Zhou Yan wielded the Power of Yin Yang to refine artifacts directly in the Void, without the use of an Artifact Refining Furnace.

During the refining process, Zhou Yan also perceived and analyzed the last bit of Fist Intent from his Master, and subsequently condensed a similar wisp of Fist Intent to infuse it into the Void.

As this breath entered the Void and many materials melded together, Zhou Yan began refining artifacts with complete focus.

With refining that combined the Ancient Rune with the Netherworld Rune to form the Taichu Rune, the artifact’s level naturally rose.

Not only that, but Zhou Yan also purified the impurities in the materials with the refining power of the Purple Flame in the Yin Yang Qi, allowing each material to integrate into the Qiankun Ring in their most perfect form.

Under such conditions, he began artifact refining at an extremely fast pace, a technique unheard of and unseen before.

In the silence of this moment, Zhuge Jiayue’s artifact refining was completed; the Qiankun Ring, imbued with the Power of Destiny, materialized in the Void.

Outside, a thunderous cheer erupted.

Then, the nine Path of Artifact Refining, Heavenly Mechanism Skill Path, Qi Fortune Path, and other Tao artifact refinings were also successfully completed one after another.

And at this moment, Zhou Yan infused even more Taichu Runes into the Qiankun Ring, and the ring was finally refined.