Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

1771 Mutation

The voices came to an abrupt stop. They remained silent for a long while, their shock almost palpable.

They couldn't understand how Ryu's mind worked. It was simply impossible for anyone normal to leap to such a conclusion…

And even more shocking that it was the correct one.

"… I see. What a fascinating mutation."

"You see it too?"

"Yes. To think such a trash Bone Structure could have such powerful, synergistic effects."

"It's not just the Bone Structure. This brat is a freak. Anyone else would have died."

"He benefitted from being targeted. Those Martial Gods sure are shameless. Who attacks a child like this? Not just a child, but a baby who hadn't even been born at that."

"You say that like you're some upright white knight. How many Clans and Sects have you wiped out, exactly? How many of those women you killed happened to be pregnant?"

"That's different. They offended me." A snort rang out.

Ryu frowned. The moment they said such a thing, his mind began churning. When they mentioned his "trash" Bone Structure, he immediately understood and his eyes opened wide.

The trash Bone Structure they were referring to was obviously his Ice Jade Crystal Body. No one would say such a thing about his current Bone Structure.

And if that was the case…

'Maybe I was missing a part of the picture. Could it be that there was more my body did to compensate for my harmed soul than just changing the weight?'

The strongest ability of the Ice Jade Crystal Body, if he were to choose, wasn't how it sped up cultivation speed, but rather its ability to balance.

This was a huge benefit because its range of applications was shocking. It could do everything from making sure his Meridians were evenly spread out across his body, to helping him control both halves of his body with perfect efficiency.

If he thought about it, why was it that most could use one hand far better than the other? Wasn't it a matter related to the brain?

By that logic, didn't that also mean that the Ice Jade Bone Structure was capable of making changes to the mind as well? Not the soul… but the physical brain itself?

Ryu had never truly investigating the correlation between the brain and the soul. Often, he thought of them interchangeably, even often calling it the "mind". Even further than that, the fact this path of cultivation was called the Mental Realm muddied the waters even further.

What if while his body was missing not just one, but two of his Incorporeal Souls, his Ice Jade Crystal Body took over to force a balance by affecting the one thing it could…

His brain?

Ryu's comprehension had always been exceptional. Even when he lost his eyes for all those years, he hadn't lagged behind. And after they returned to him, his comprehension seemed to have reached another level entirely, skyrocketing.

Could it be that he had the one talent he had neglected so much he got rid of it to thank?

If he took it even further, the eyes were the window to the soul… but weren't their optic fibres that likewise ran right into his brain? Could it be that this was part of the reason for the saying?

Taking yet another step back… how many languages was he familiar with where the word for mind, brain and soul were entirely interchangeable?

Ryu put a hand on his forehead, in complete shock that he had missed something so obvious. He was a Ruin Master, how had he not thought of this before?

Of course, these thoughts were ridiculous. It was entirely natural to miss such a thing. It was just that Ryu truly was used to grasping everything.

He was so focused on his soul alone, but could he be missing a part of it?

How did one even cultivate something as fragile as the brain? Should he even do so?

Was the brain the connection between the Incorporeal Souls and the Corporeal Spirits?

A flood of questions came to Ryu in waves. He didn't even realize the voices had fallen into silence once again.

"… Truly a freak."

"This is interesting, though. We can likely create a cultivation method around this."

"Potentially. But it would be hard to replicate the full effects unless we crack this boy open."

"He's just a human, anyway. Why bother protecting his life. Imagine how valuable such a method would be? Wouldn't we be able to pump out Dao Gods with great ease?"

"I've already said it. We control the path to new life for all Races."

Ryu slowly came back to himself to find the layered voices arguing once more. He couldn't help but be shocked by their vastly different personalities.

It made him wonder what the point of reincarnation was at all. If you were so different every time, could you even be considered the same person? Was there any comfort in reincarnation, then? Who cared if you'd get another shot at life if you couldn't be yourself?

Could it be that he was a coward in a past life?

This was the idea Ryu hadn't the most, and the thought made him even more confident in his decision.

Back in the Martial God Clan, he had cut off his path to Reincarnation by taking the steps he had. The path he had taken didn't come without a great sacrifice.

He already didn't care back then, but now rather than being indifferent, he even felt that it without a doubt the correct choice.

"Enough."

A voice suddenly suppressed the others. It was the one of the nine that Ryu hadn't heard before, and it made him subconsciously look at the Dream Wraith statue.

"Boy. You have already cut off your path to Reincarnation?"

Gasps rang out from the other voices as they too probed. When they realized that the voice was correct, they felt their world views flip upside down.

Such a young man had made this choice?