The undead have descended upon the world? I possess a sword that can cleave the heavens once more!

The building fell silent, with only those four characters echoing softly in the empty space.

Wu You stood still, her long white hair hanging down her shoulders, her black trench coat gleaming with a dark luster in the blue light.

His face was expressionless, but something in his eyes was being rearranged, reorganized, and reinterpreted.

Rules are the foundation of becoming a god.

The foundation of godhood means that to become a god, one must master the rules.

Or is it that mastering the rules naturally paves the way to godhood?

His thoughts couldn't help but wander.

The Fifth Lord of Li said that His true form is not here, and that an avatar or projection can achieve this level of power. So how powerful must His true form be?

Is it also at the level of a god?

No, that doesn't seem right either. The level of power He used was clearly not as high as the divinity I had absorbed before. That pure essence from the gods was still somewhat different from the aura emanating from the His Majesty before me.

Wu You pulled himself out of his thoughts, raised his head, and looked at the blue, blurry, and unrealistically beautiful figure.

"Your Majesty, what does 'the foundation of godhood' mean...?" he asked tentatively, wanting to know more and confirm some of his vague guesses.

The blue figure shook its head but did not answer.

Those pale blue eyes were very calm, as if to say: It's too early for you to know these things now.

Seeing this, Wu You changed to a more practical question that might be immediately useful: "Your Majesty, once you have grasped certain rules, how should you proceed? Or rather, what should you do next?"

With such a powerful figure standing at the pinnacle of humanity here, he naturally wouldn't miss the opportunity to learn from him and gain more information.

A clear, ethereal voice rang out, this time carrying a hint of admonition: "Before reaching the Law Control Realm, it's best not to always forcefully control the rules; you know the consequences yourself."

"Don't overthink it, just let things take their course."

"The Realm of Law Control?" Wu You was taken aback. Another term he'd never heard before—the eleventh rank? Or even higher?

Then, the blue figure sighed. The sigh was very soft, but it sounded somewhat heavy in the empty space.

He paused, his pale blue eyes losing focus, as if he were thinking or receiving some kind of message from afar.

After a moment, He continued, his tone filled with obvious regret: "Unfortunately, it's too late. If only you were at the Law Control Realm now."

Upon hearing this, Wu You's heart sank slightly, and he couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, what is the Imperial Law Realm—?"

"In terms of rank, the twelfth rank is the Law Control Realm."

The twelfth rank, the Realm of Imperial Law.

It is two major realms higher than Zhenyang, and four major realms higher than his current eighth rank.

"Your Majesty, what do you mean by 'there's not enough time'?"

From the words of the Fifth Lord of the Underworld, Wu You sensed something unusual.

Is there not enough time? Is something big about to happen?

Furthermore, He said it would be better if it were the Law Control Realm. Does this mean that in the major events to come, only those at the twelfth rank and above will have the power to protect themselves? Or will they be able to obtain some kind of immense benefit?

The dampness returned to Wu You's body, and he knew that the Fifth Lord of Li had turned his gaze to him again.

He shook his head: "You're only at the eighth level now, so knowing is useless to you."

But then He remembered Wu You's age and talent, the star that appeared in the deep dark realm sky, and a certain extraordinary quality in this young man. He added a sentence, as if to give himself a reason, or as if to leave Wu You with a glimmer of hope:

"Unless you can reach the Imperial Law Realm within a year..."

At this point, Fifth Lord Li realized what he was saying and stopped.

He turned his head slightly, a helpless smile appearing in his pale blue eyes.

"Forget it. It's impossible for you to advance to the Law Control Realm within a year, even if you only took half a year to advance to the eighth rank."

"Or rather, no one can do it. To jump from the eighth to the twelfth rank in a year, even we can't do it."

The ninth level is the illusory form, and the tenth level is the true yang.

Now, Wu You also learned about the two realms above True Yang: the eleventh level of Enlightenment and the twelfth level of Law Control.

He silently recited the word "realm" and memorized it.

But... transparent? Doesn't that word sound familiar? Wu You felt like he'd seen it somewhere before.

He snapped out of his thoughts, not rushing to ask further questions, but instead looking at the blue figure with a puzzled expression.

Even the Lords of the Underworld couldn't do that? What does that mean? Is there anything special about the Imperial Law Realm or the Enlightenment Realm? Is there some kind of threshold?

The blue figure of the Fifth Lord did not rush to answer, but continued speaking in a soft and ethereal voice: "It is different from the foundational stage from the first to the eighth rank."

Upon hearing this, Wu You's lips twitched involuntarily.

Eighth rank – already a high-level combatant capable of standing alone in the provincial investigation bureau, and undoubtedly the chief in the Jiuli pre-selection training.

However, according to the Fifth Lord, this was only the "foundational stage".

But considering the identity and strength of the person in front of him, it seems that there is nothing wrong with what He said.

The ethereal sound continued.

"The Illusionary Realm and the True Yang Realm are relatively easy to reach. But the Enlightenment Realm is not something that can be achieved in a year or two."

"Clear, clear." He murmured these two words, as if savoring their profound meaning.

"Cultivation in the Tongming Realm involves rules and places extremely high demands on the cultivator's state of mind."

"The first to eighth levels represent the accumulation of a cultivator's own strength and depth of ability, while the illusory form and true yang are the manifestation of the cultivator's internal ability in the external world, which is the outward expression of inner strength."

"And Tongming, on the other hand, is about finding his own path."

Then, His voice became distant and far-reaching.

"Hang the mirror of your heart high, reflecting inward to see yourself, and outward to see all living beings."

"Every word and action should originate from one's true heart, conform to nature, and be clear and unobstructed."

"Only in this way can it be called enlightenment."

Wu You listened quietly, not missing a single word.

"Only by reaching the Enlightenment Realm can one master the rules and continue to advance." Saying this, the blue figure shook his head, a trace of emotion flashing in his light blue eyes, "Don't let my easy tone fool you, this step has indeed stumped countless heroes."

"It's easy to see all living beings, but difficult to see yourself."

After listening to the Fifth Lord's description of the Enlightenment Realm, Wu You's expression became somewhat strange. He had already remembered why the word "Enlightenment" felt so familiar to him.

He silently opened the Sword Manual panel.

In the first column of the panel, next to his name, a term is clearly displayed.

He had noticed and pondered that term when he first obtained it, but he had never thought about it in depth, assuming it was just a description of a certain state of mind or a kind of buff effect attached to the sword manual.

But now it seems there are some other uses?

Wu You turned his gaze to that entry:

Sword mind is clear.