Ryu gasped awake. The feeling was not much unlike the very first cry of a newborn child. Though, he was far too grown now for it to truly reach such a level.

His body was coated from head to toe in the most foul of scents. In fact, it felt so toxic even Ryu's skin began to tingle.

Without hesitation, Ryu took out an enormous vat of a frosty liquid, diving in. All his clothing had been incinerated by the impurities leaving his body to begin with, so there was already not much else to be reserved about.

This vat of liquid, though Well, it could only be said that Ryu was truly extravagant with his spending. That said, he had the capital and riches to do exactly that.

This barrel of liquid was an Ancestral Grade natural treasure and was known as Frosty Dew Aloe. It was the inner liquid of an Ancestral Grade Herb known as the Frosty Dew Cactus. Not only was it expensive, but even a Cosmic Seed Realm expert's life would be in danger if they were too rash in harvesting this Spiritual Herb.

The Frosty Dew Cactus' spines were so translucent and crystalline in nature that they could fool even a cultivator's sharp eye, appearing completely invisible to most. By the time you realize that something was wrong, you could have already been pierced through. The instant you were, all of your blood would freeze over first, followed by your organs, and then finally your bone and skin. If you tried to retreat at this point, the barbs of the spine would cause you to shatter into a million pieces. But, if you didn't move, you would have to hope that an expert came to extricate you.

If this expert was too slow in their arrival Well, you would become the nourishment of the Frosty Dew Cactus.

However, this was just the worst case scenario. With the expertise of the Ice Phoenix Clan, harvesting Frosty Dew Cacti wasn't impossible. In fact, Ailsa herself had taken it upon herself to grow some in the Incubator because they were simply too useful Or, at least their Dew was useful.

Frosty Dew Aloe was most definitely in the top three of skin nourishment treasures and was among the best liquids for cleansing. Usually, it would be used to deal with poisons and to ward off curses. But, as though he didn't know about this purpose at all Ryu used it as his bathing water.

What happened next, though, left Ryu completely speechless.

The Frosty Dew Aloe, a liquid just a hint more viscous than water, known for its ability to even purify and relieve poisons of the Ancestral Grade Almost instantly turned entirely black the instant Ryu stepped into it.

Ryu furiously scrubbed himself down, causing the liquid to turn deeper and deeper shades of black. By the end of it, he was forced to go through five separate vats worth before he was finally clean.

Ryu could imagine what would have happened if he stepped into a normal river. Maybe he would have caused the entirety of the Higher Mortal Plane to die.

'Just what kind of impurities could possibly be so potent?'

Ryu stood up from the last vat. Though it hadn't turned completely black like the others had, the radiant blue light the Aloe usually gave off had dimmed considerably. But, instead of that, it was Ryu's skin itself that began to shimmer as though it was giving off its own light.

Ryu looked down at himself before shaking his head. His member down below was standing at full mast, his blood rushing as though it had a mind of its own. But, that wasn't even what shocked him.

While it stood up menacingly, it shone almost like there was a disco ball hidden within it.

'Why is my skin so'

Ryu couldn't even finish the words.

Finally, he looked up to find Ailsa was actually right before him. But, what was so confusing was the fact he hadn't quite sensed her before.

It was a weird feeling. She was right in front of him but

'Huh?'

Ryu's gaze shifted, only to find a furiously blushing Yaana. But, what astonished him was that he hadn't sensed her either.

What the hell? Wasn't a breakthrough supposed to come with a boost in senses? Why did it feel like he had regressed so much?

Ryu's brows furrowed, focusing his attention. But, everything seemed blank, like an endless torrent of darkness surrounding him from all sides.

'My eyes?'

Ryu was suddenly astonished to find that his Heavenly Pupils had been completely unsealed. All 999 had blasted open completely outside of his expectation. Even with his resources, it should have taken several more years, and even then, it was only theoretical.

Heavenly Pupils being completely unsealed was an extraordinarily rare event. In fact, Ryu only had guesses that it had happened before, but no conclusive proof. He had basically been hoping that he didn't reach a bottleneck that he couldn't pass through. But, for him to suddenly reach such a state caught him completely unprepared.

'But why?'

Ryu wasn't confused about this sudden change, he was confused as to why everything felt so empty. He could barely feel himself. It almost felt as though he was looking into a mirror, but couldn't quite grasp that the person staring back was truly him.

Ryu closed his eyes, growing exceptionally focused. His State of Meditation rushed upward at a speed he had never experienced before. And then

BANG!

'Shit!'

This was the only thought Ryu could finish before his skin suddenly became a shining beacon. The furious glow was like a pillar of light piercing through the skies and drowning out even the sun above. In that moment, the blue skies were painted in white, being completely outshone by Ryu himself.

And then, it was like a vacuum took form. Every strand of qi from the surrounding hundreds of thousands of miles surged toward a single location.

"Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop!"