Shi Ming had a dream.
In the dream, his consciousness was present, but he had no control over his body. He crawled out from the terrifying ruins of an explosion, his body pushed forward by an unseen hand, walking a long, long road...
A hundred years of time flowed past beneath his feet, slipping away like uncontrollable grains of sand.
He crossed lands,
traversed oceans, and stepped into the starry sky.
Finally, he entered a bizarre, kaleidoscopic space. The space was a fiery crimson, and wherever he stepped, watery ripples spread out beneath his feet, creating the illusion of a water’s surface.
Above the surface, there was nothing.
But below, it miraculously reflected cyan lotuses.
Shi Ming looked down.
His own shadow appeared at his feet.
Suddenly, his head grew heavy. His entire body, along with his consciousness, involuntarily flipped upside down. After a dizzying, disorienting spin, as if in a mirror, his consciousness reversed into his shadow. The shadow and the physical body had swapped places.
The cyan lotuses bloomed beside his hand, within arm’s reach.
’This is...?’
’The Purification Origin?’
Shi Ming was pleasantly surprised.
Amid his surprise, he heard an ethereal voice from among the lotuses.
"Child..."
...
’There’s someone else here?’
Shi Ming cautiously spread his Spiritual Power, but detected no living beings.
Only then did he notice with his naked eye a figure sitting amongst the lotus leaves. He couldn’t detect it at all with his Spiritual Power; only by sight could he make out the form of an old man. He had distinct human features, and his aura was as still as an ancient well. How could someone as cautious as Shi Ming have failed to notice even a trace of him?
’Then again,’
’this is a dream.’
’Anything can happen in a dream.’
...
...
...
"Child, you are called Shi Ming?"
The voice was old and feeble, yet it was filled with the authority of a superior. Even in what was clearly a dream, Shi Ming could feel the man’s presence, an aura that seemed as if it had existed since time immemorial.
’Does such a powerful expert exist above the Endless Ocean?’
’No,’
’this isn’t necessarily the Endless Ocean.’
’Back at the Scorpion King’s Pyramid, that mysterious woman was able to drag me into the cosmos using mirror reflections. This old man before me might have also used some powerful means to pull me into this unbelievable dream.’
Shi Ming had experience entering the dreams of other beings.
He recalled how, beneath Fujing Mountain, he had usurped the dream of the Great Black Heaven Dragon, entered its body, and experienced a day in the life of a dragon. He had even adapted to the "Nine-Headed Sanctuary" ahead of time, allowing him to form a connection with the Origin of Destruction.
"Senior."
Shi Ming nodded in respectful acknowledgment.
It was only natural to show reverence to a being who was clearly extraordinary and bore no ill will.
"Mm, not bad. My eyes were not mistaken. It is a good fit for you."
’Your eyes?’
Shi Ming observed that this person’s form had no eyes, no heart, and no body. Even the space beneath him cast no reflection. He was like a being of pure nothingness.
’This...’
’Could it be...?’
Shi Ming’s mind had always been quick to make leaps in logic.
Even in a dream where his Spiritual Power was unusable and his physical strength was limited by the dreamscape itself, his ability to think remained unaffected.
A guess formed in his mind.
But he did not voice it.
"Hehehe."
The old man chuckled as if he had read his mind.
"I am merely someone who has already passed on. You may have many questions, but now is not the time for answers. My remnant consciousness has lingered here for far too long, and pulling you into this Dream Space was the limit of my power. As for unrelated matters, you must find the answers yourself."
The old man reached out a hand,
and brushed it across a Cyan Lotus.
"This entire Cyan Lotus is the ’Purification’ Holy Hall Origin."
"A long, long time ago, so long that I can barely remember the era, I discovered a peculiar Origin in this Star Domain. It encompassed everything, yet seemed to be nothing. It possessed a definite future, yet also held infinite possibilities. It was both an abstract chaos and a concrete reality."
"I found it quite peculiar, so I named it ’Zero’."
"Later, the concept of ’Numbered Nirvana Skills’ came into being, and its number, naturally, was 1."
"It is Zero, and it is One. It is One, and it is infinity."
Shi Ming was stunned.
’Number 1?’
’The numbering of Nirvana Skills isn’t based on power, but on the order of their creation.’
’Does that mean ’Zero’ was created before all other Numbered Nirvana Skills, making it the very first one?’
’That really was a long, long time ago.’
Shi Ming’s guess was implicitly confirmed. He didn’t interrupt, simply listening as the ethereal old man before him spoke of the past.
"Many people believe that Numbered Nirvana Skills are simply more powerful than other Nirvana Skills. Many also think that each Numbered Nirvana Skill is roughly similar in might."
"But in truth, that is far from the case."
"They each represent a unique principle of the Star Sea. From this perspective alone, they far surpass other Nirvana Skills. Moreover, these principles also vary in strength. ’Zero’ symbolizes the beginning of everything, endless evolution, and all possibilities. It is also known as the ’Primordial Zero,’ so naturally, its power is in a league of its own."
"Unfortunately, after my passing, it was shattered and has remained broken down into eight Holy Hall Skill Origins for over a hundred thousand years. It has changed hands many times during this process. Reassembling it is not as simple as you might think. Six conditions must be met simultaneously."
"First, you must reach the Nirvana stage."
"Second, you must have a fundamental understanding of all eight Holy Hall Origins."