"My legs are shaking." Hong Zhou stretched his body, cracking some of his bones, and sat down on one of the hills of the beast-wandering mountain, regaining his strength.
""No one around… Did the inner disciples already scurry back? Not that I'm exactly eager to return to that viper's nest."
Just months prior, a chance eavesdrop had revealed his own sister's plans – a plot to dispose of him under the guise of a fatal "accident" in this very wilderness. A death amongst beasts, easily excused.
"All for that cursed inheritance," he muttered, venom lacing his tone. "The Luo Celestial Sect. Weakest of the bunch, yet supposedly dripping with more wealth than any other in the Astral Continent.
"I never craved their riches. Family..." He spat on the parched hills. "Damn them!".
The reason she wants Hong Zhou dead is because Hong Zhou is supposed to be the real inheritor of the riches of the Luo Celestial Sect. Though the Luo Celestial Sect is the weakest, it is probably one of the richest in the Astral Continent, or so they believe.
"I didn't ask for wealth, yet I was betrayed by my family."
"Damn it!"
"If only my system had awakened, maybe I would have had a chance."
Suddenly, a blue system notification screen popped up in front of him, and a voice almost identical to his echoed inside his head.
[Ding]
[Good morning, my creator.]
"..."
Hong Zhou was speechless.
[You have successfully created the Astral Domain System.]
"Ha... hahahaha! Yes! I knew it! I knew I wouldn't fail!"
At that moment, Hong Zhou felt like the happiest man in the Asura Continent. After a moment of jubilation, he asked the system, "What are my abilities? Do you have a status screen for me? That's how it worked in the VRMMORPGs I used to play in China."
[.....]
[Status window requested from the Astral Archive.]
"What do you mean, status window requested from the Astral Archive? Did you pair with the Astral Archives or what?"
[Yes, Master!]
"It even calls me 'Master.' That's cute; I love it already!"
[Name: Luo, Hong Zhou]
[Age: 24 years]
[Profound Bloodline: None]
[Dao Title: Immeasurable Merit Heavenly Sage / Omniscient Heavenly Sage]
[Physique: Poisoned Fleshy Body]
[Soul Power: ~]
[Cultivation: 15th Level Bone Tempering]
[Talent: Weak]
[Spiritual Roots: Low]
[Dharmic Abilities: None]
[Lifespan: 19]
[Fate: None]
[Destiny: None]
[Luck: Infinite]
[Abilities: Invincible Astral Domain, Astral Archive]
[Skills: Flying Qi Sword, Shield Spell, Yin and Yang Dragon's Fire, Recovery Breathing Technique, Astral Qi Swords]
"I have infinite luck? That's amazing!"
Hong Zhou couldn't believe his eyes. It was like a game system, something he had always imagined in his mind. Little did he know that this system he had created had already made him the most powerful entity in the universe.
But he was curious. "Quick question: will it be possible for another entity to possess or create skills like this system? And can other immortal cultivators know that I have a system? Knowing this could save me from unexpected trials."
[No. Even if a cultivator is at the very last stage of cultivation, they would not sense me. I am beyond the strength of all worlds by many layers, and no one can create something like me. Nobody will ever create something like me.]
[Even if someone could find out how to create a system like mine, it would be an inferior version because there is only one Astral Archive in the entire cosmos, and I have merged with it, transcending all laws and cultivation of the world.]
"Ha! Stop joking. Do you even know how powerful these cultivators are? They could divide the ocean if they wanted to."
[I'm well aware.]
"Is it just me, or are you now fluent in your speech?"
[No! It's just your imagination.]
"Alright, what is your strongest ability?"
[Invincible Astral Domain.]
"What does it do?"
[Explanation: The Invincible Astral Domain is an invincible domain field; where the creator's word is the final say. In this domain, you are all-knowing and invincible; everything is possible within it. The domain grants one gift every single day, as long as you don't leave it.]
"What happens if I leave the domain?"
[No gifts for one year.]
Hong Zhou cried out in desperation "I'm your creator! How can you deny me gifts?"
[ I'm sorry master ]
"So how big is my Domain field?"
[The domain is just 2 meters wide. You can gain domain field points by defeating powerful cultivators or accepting disciples.]
"So that means the Astral Domain cannot move with me, but it stays in one location and extends. Does it have a limit?"
[No, it doesn't. As long as you fight powerful cultivators, the domain and your cultivation will increase without limits.]
"That's good news! Doesn't that mean I don't have to cultivate anymore?"
"So this is what it feels like to be invincible! Yeah boy!" At the same time, he was also getting emotional. "After suffering for six months of constant pain in my body, I have finally made it."
"One final question: since anything is possible in the Astral Domain, doesn't that mean I can just raise my cultivation realm to the final stage within the domain?"
[Yes, it's possible.]
[However, while that is possible, you will always be beneath the system and will never surpass it for all eternity. The only way to surpass the system is to cultivate slowly and naturally while the domain increases in size.]
"So my main goal is not to reach the end of cultivation, but to surpass my own creation? That doesn't make sense."
He was confused and didn't take all of the system's words seriously, but everything the system said was true. This was only possible because the Astral Archives contained all the knowledge of the universe. Although Hong Zhou was unable to access the real information in the Astral Archives, the system could. It then bonded with the astral archive and evolved into something more dangerous and complex, surpassing everything else in the world.
"How can I even fight cultivators if I can't even move out from my domain field?"
[I thought you were a sage master.]
"What did you say?"
[Nothing, master. You just have to bind the domain to a specific place or building. I recommend a location where demonic beasts are plentiful; that way, you won't have to search for cultivators to increase your strength.]
"One year ago, I met a lady my age at the Luo Celestial Sect. Her name is Li Won, and when she touched me, I received some information from her. I found out that she discovered a hidden inheritance in the Forest of Jing Ming County to the north."
"So, I did my research while I was in the library. The Asura continent is divided into four regions: north, south, east, and west. I sent my disciples to the location of the inheritance, and I hope they are okay."
"System, can you generate a map to the Forest of Jing Ming County from here?"
[.....]
[Generating map….]
[Success.]
Unlike the Astral Archives, the system successfully generated a clear map detailing where he was and where he needed to go.
"Oh my… This is a real map I can see! I don't have to close my eyes to look at the Astral Archives."
"Does the Astral Archive even exist anymore? Has it been swallowed by the system?"
[I'm the Astral Archive, and I'm also the system. We're one.]
"Why don't I give you a name?"
"Let's call you Alva from now on. Your name is Alva."
[ Thank you for the name master ]
It's time to leave this forsaken mountain of corpses.
Hong Zhou created a flying qi sword, jumped on top of it, and started following the map.
Meanwhile, two months ago, Li Won received a transversing talisman from the sect leader before he came to the beast wandering mountain. This talisman secretly teleported all the disciples back to the sect, except for Hong Zhou. She teleported everyone two months after all the disciples successfully completed their competitive test.
Shortly after their arrival at the sect, the sect leader summoned her to report on what had happened in the Beast Wandering Mountain.
In the Ancestral Hall, usually a place of reverence, a tangible sense of dread settled in Li Won's stomach, a cold, heavy stone. Sect Leader Luo Ning's summons had felt like a viper's kiss. As she crossed the threshold, the sheer magnitude of her presence—a monolithic force of will—crashed upon her. Her breath hitched in her throat. A bead of sweat trickled down her temple.
A visceral terror resonating in the marrow of her bones gripped her. She felt adrift in a sea of dominance, the Sect Leader's silhouette an obsidian obelisk against the flickering candlelight, an oppressive weight crushing her spirit. Her courage evaporated, leaving her a trembling shadow before the ineffable power radiating from him.
"Tell me… what happened inside the Beast Wandering Mountain. Make it as short as possible."
Li Won struggled to respond, her legs quaking with fear. "Ha… I—"
Luo Ning cut her short. "I want to know what happened to my brother. Did he survive?" her gaze was fixed on Li Won, sharp and lethal.
"He was nowhere to be found, Lady Ning."
At that moment, Luo Ning realized that her junior brother was a genius. He had understood that she intended to kill him, yet he hadn't run; instead, he had remained calm in her presence. As long as he didn't return to the sect, she wouldn't have to kill him or give up her position as sect master.
"Interesting… very interesting. Li Won, do you know your crime?" Luo Ning asked.
"No… no!" Li Won was so terrified that her words began to falter.
"You belong to the Fiend Cult, don't you?"
How did she know that? I haven't visited the cult in three years, yet I was discovered, Li Won thought.
"I will not kill you; waste your cultivation. And get out of my sight, or do you want me to do it myself?"
"No, Sect Leader, please! Lady Ning, you can't do this! I beg you, please have mer__"
Before she could finish her sentence, Luo ning was already in front of her, "mercy you say, what would have happened in thirty years time wouldn't be mercy but a total annihilation, don't you agree with me?".
she Injected her true qi and broke Li won's golden core within seconds.
Blood splashed
"How?.... How did you find out, I was extremely careful"
Luo ning gave her a cold response "Oh please, i have eyes in the entire west region of astral continent, including the fined sect"
Li won was now a mortal, severely wounded; she ran away from the sect and headed north to the Jing ming county on foot.
She knew that without a cultivation base, that even the fiend cult will reject her from coming back so she headed to the forest, a place nobody will find her until she dies a normal death.