My Golden Core is a Star, do you call this cultivating?

Chaos.

Clarity.

<hr>

“You’re awake?”

A voice, faintly cool and detached, drifted into Qi Yuan’s ears as his consciousness slowly cleared.

He opened his eyes, trying to see the world around him.

But what met his gaze was neither the world nor void nor emptiness—it was an endless expanse of black and faint streaks of red.

“How long was I unconscious?”

Still groggy from his slumber, Qi Yuan’s thoughts were sluggish and unclear.

“Two months.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“That long?” Qi Yuan was startled.

It seemed clear—he wasn’t suited for in-person meetings.

Whenever he tried to meet others, if it wasn’t them encountering problems, it would be him.

“I saved you,” the blind girl said calmly. “I used my blood… and you broke my swing.”

“Thank you!” Qi Yuan replied earnestly.

If it weren’t for his current roleplaying as the Blind Artifact Master, he might have added:

“Thanks a lot. I’ll save you a spot in the underworld.”

But for now, he had to maintain his isolated, withdrawn demeanor.

“You owe me compensation.”

Her voice was devoid of emotion.

“I’ll compensate you!” Qi Yuan answered without hesitation.

“Can you forge artifacts?”

“I can.”

“What a pity you’re blind.”

“Even if my eyes are blind, my heart is not. I’m already a Heaven-tier Artifact Master, so don’t discriminate against the blind.”

“I’m blind too.”

“What?” Qi Yuan turned his head toward the girl.

His vision remained black and blurry, offering him no clarity.

Still, from her voice, he could tell she was quite young.

The silence stretched between them.

In the quiet, Qi Yuan could hear only the faint sound of the blind girl’s breathing and the occasional rustling of leaves in the wind.

“Is this the Divine Wood Abyss?” Qi Yuan asked.

He was curious. According to what he’d learned, the Divine Wood Abyss required three Divine Wood Tokens to enter.

So how had he fallen directly into it?

“You could say that.”

“Hmm?”

“This is the Deep Abyss of Divine Wood. Only those chosen by destiny may enter.”

“Chosen by destiny?”

Qi Yuan’s thoughts began to race.

It seemed the blind girl was yet another high-level NPC who existed to provide exposition.

Still, such details were secondary. His top priority was to embody the role of the Blind Artifact Master and ascend to the level of a Divine-tier or even Ancestor-tier Artifact Master.

“This is the Deep Abyss of Divine Wood. Does it contain Divine Wood? Can I take some of its materials to forge artifacts?” Qi Yuan inquired.

The Divine Wood Abyss was known for containing Divine Wood.

Since the Deep Abyss sounded even more prestigious, it should logically hold materials of even higher quality.

“…It does.” The blind girl paused for a long moment before answering. “If you need it, I can give you some.”

Qi Yuan’s spirits lifted.

Well, metaphorically speaking. He was still blind.

“You’re quite generous.”

“You’re rather naive.”

“That sounded like an insult.”

“These things aren’t free…” The blind girl’s voice trailed off as she turned slightly toward Qi Yuan.

Qi Yuan remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

After all, free things were often the most expensive.

He much preferred when others had clear requests.

“I hope you can become a Divine-tier Artifact Master, or even an Ancestor-tier Artifact Master,” she finally said. “Once you do, I want you to forge me a pair of eyes.”

Her voice carried a trace of melancholy, as though she were recalling something painful.

“It’s true… not having eyes complicates life. Just look at me now—blind and unable to see anything. If I weren’t, I’d already know your name.”

Blindness, Qi Yuan realized, was a major hindrance.

Even with his Divine-tier strength, it had proven troublesome.

“I’ve grown accustomed to this life,” the blind girl murmured, as though speaking to herself. “From the moment I was born, the world has been void—no sound, no color…”

“Then why ask me to forge eyes for you?”

“Because… if I have my own eyes, he won’t feel the need to give me his.”

“Huh?” Qi Yuan perked up, his curiosity piqued. “Who is ‘he’? Your father?”

The girl’s previously cool and distant demeanor seemed to waver.

Her cold tone softened, almost as if embarrassment had seeped into her voice.

“He’s my future husband.”

“Ah, a love story! How enviable. You get my stamp of approval.”

If he were back on Earth, Qi Yuan might’ve teased her with a remark like, “What a simp!”

But in this game-like world, he decided to play along with a heartfelt response.

Even as the Blind Artifact Master, he could still appreciate romance.

“Becoming an Ancestor-tier Artifact Master isn’t an easy feat,” she warned.

Her tone suggested she doubted whether her gamble on him would pay off.

“I’m very talented.”

“Among the Artifact Masters I’ve met, your talent ranks high. But… you’re blind.”

Artifact forging was a meticulous craft.

It required identifying materials, sensing the temperature of flames, and tempering components with precision.

A slight deviation in flame intensity or timing could spell disaster.

“You’ve met other Artifact Masters? I suppose that makes sense—anyone chosen by destiny could enter this place. You must have encountered many such individuals.”

“The last Artifact Master to come here was named Sheng Nu. Her talent surpassed yours.”

“Sheng Nu?” Qi Yuan froze.

Hearing the name of the creator of the Divine Descent was completely unexpected.

Had Sheng Nu also fallen into the Sunset Cliff and ventured into the depths of the Divine Wood Abyss?

“I taught her a great deal about artifact forging,” the blind girl said, her tone laced with pride as if relishing the chance to boast.

“You know artifact forging?” Qi Yuan felt a sudden longing for three days of restored vision—if only to see who this blind girl really was.

“I don’t,” she admitted. “But I possess several ancient forging techniques. Back then, Sheng Nu chose one of them to study.”

As she spoke, the blind girl cautiously approached Qi Yuan.

Before she even reached him, Qi Yuan caught a faint, pleasant fragrance—like the scent of unknown blossoms.

Sitting on a cold stone nearby, she let several wooden plaques slide from her sleeve.

“Here are eight plaques,” she said. “Each contains a forging technique.

Take the night to decide which path you wish to follow.”

Leaning back against the cold stone, Qi Yuan reached out and touched the warm plaques.

“Can I learn them all?” he asked, his usual greed for knowledge surfacing.

“If you’re capable, feel free,” she replied before turning and walking away.

Perhaps unfamiliar with her surroundings, she stumbled slightly as she left.

About ten meters away, her clear voice echoed:

“Turn right at the cave entrance and walk 700 meters. That’s where I live.

If you need materials, throw a stone into the cave. When I hear it, I’ll bring what you need.

Otherwise, don’t disturb me.”

With that, she disappeared into the pitch-black cave.

Now, Qi Yuan was left alone in the eerily quiet cavern.

Other than the faint sounds of flowing water, rustling leaves, and the blind girl’s retreating footsteps, the stillness was almost oppressive.

“Too bad I can’t activate the Divine Wood Token in the Deep Abyss. Otherwise, I’d let everyone know the meeting is canceled,” Qi Yuan muttered, turning his attention to the plaques.

Although blind, his fingers moved deftly across the plaques, deciphering the engraved words.

<hr>

“Gold Technique.”

“Wood Technique.”

“Water Technique.”

“Fire Technique.”

“Earth Technique.”

“Cloud Technique.”

“Thunder Technique.”

“Rain Technique.”

<hr>

Each technique was profound, its introduction brief but tantalizing.

For example, the Gold Technique contained only thirty-six characters describing the sharpness of metal:

“Wood grows and withers; metal thrives and decays…”

The rest of the details were left unexplained.

“So, these forging techniques are essentially frameworks, requiring the learner to fill in the gaps. Ingenious craftsmanship,” Qi Yuan remarked.

His familiarity with the Five Elements and his deep understanding of metal allowed him to grasp some of the Gold Technique’s intricacies.

“If only I weren’t blind… I could gradually refine and expand these techniques myself. But now, I’ll have to rely on my other senses.”

With that thought, he focused on his task, fully immersing himself in deciphering the plaques.

<hr>

Divine Wood Abyss.

Trees reached skyward, towering into the heavens, their vast canopies lost in the clouds.

They appeared to be close, just within arm’s reach. Yet, any attempt to approach them revealed the truth—everything was an illusion, a mirage, like a dream too far to grasp.

<hr>

Shen Lingxuan soaked in a hot spring, her body reclined against the smooth rocks.

Her long black dress clung to her figure, wet and heavy, outlining her graceful curves.

Her legs, long and slender, rested side by side beneath the water, her jade-like skin glowing faintly in the light.

The Bug Lady Caidie fluttered her delicate wings, descending gently onto a nearby rock.

She looked at Shen Lingxuan with a small smile.

“Your progress over the past two months has been astonishing,” Caidie remarked. “At this rate, it won’t take another two hundred years before we no longer need to hide in the Divine Wood Abyss.”

Shen Lingxuan opened her eyes, her gaze calm and serene, her features obscured by the thin veil covering her face.

“What’s happening beyond this world?” she asked, her tone as steady as a still lake but carrying a faint undertone of curiosity.

For as long as she could remember, the outside world had intrigued her.

Hearing the question, Caidie’s expression darkened, her smile fading.

“I’ve heard nothing from beyond the boundaries of this world for three hundred years.”

“The last message I received was…” she hesitated, her tone heavy, “the Black Earth’s invasion of the Void Sea.”

<hr>

The Void Sea, a space between universes, was an untouchable, chaotic realm of convergence where two universes collided.

A perilous and lawless expanse, it was deep, vast, and incomprehensible.

Even Ancestor Gods found it challenging to survive in the Void Sea.

Only Realm Masters—those who had reached the third layer of the Yang God realm—could traverse the Void Sea freely.

Lesser cultivators required Realm Master-tier treasures to endure the Void Sea’s devastating conditions.

<hr>

Caidie continued, her voice steady despite the grim news.

“The Black Heaven transformed into the Black Earth, sending billions of soldiers aboard seventeen Black Sails to invade this Nascent-Universe.”

“Each of those seventeen Black Sails is a Realm Master-tier artifact.”

Hearing this, Shen Lingxuan’s usually calm expression flickered with faint surprise.

Caidie pressed on. “And yet, the Divine Wood Universe only has one half-finished Realm Master-tier artifact to its name.”

As she spoke, an unmistakable bitterness crept into her tone.

“Ancestor God Yuan led the charge personally, carrying the Divine Wood Universe’s sole incomplete Realm Master-tier artifact, Green Cloud, into the Void Sea to intercept the Black Earth.”

The Green Cloud artifact was far from a true Realm Master-tier treasure.

It had only recently been forged, still incomplete, and lacked the strength to be considered fully formed.

But desperation forced the Void Sea defenders to arm it with whatever outdated divine weapons and Ancestor-tier artifacts they could find.

“A half-finished Realm Master-tier artifact going against more than a dozen fully realized ones?”

Caidie’s voice faltered, carrying the weight of despair.

It was a laughable mismatch.

Sending a crude, makeshift weapon to face an armada of advanced war machines.

“How could they possibly win?”

Shen Lingxuan’s serene demeanor cracked for a moment, and she leaned forward slightly, her voice sharp.

“What was the outcome?”

Caidie shook her head slowly.

“I don’t know.”

That was the last piece of news she had received.

Ancestor God Yuan had ventured into the Void Sea with the Green Cloud and an arsenal of outdated weapons to confront the Black Earth.

“The Blue Mountain Realm lies in the Chaotic Star Region, where the influence of the Light Council is immense. We can’t remain here for long,” Caidie cautioned.

Shen Lingxuan nodded silently.

“The chosen ones are the hope of all worlds,” Caidie said, her tone grave. “As long as you live, you carry the will of this universe.

If we can gather all the chosen ones, we can ignite the light, forge a beacon, and drive away the Black Heaven.”

Her voice carried both hope and despair.

Forging a Divine Light Treasure was the only viable solution to their dire predicament.

But creating such an artifact required strength and resources this Nascent-Universe lacked.

The term Light Treasure referred to a special category of artifacts, specifically designed to counter the Black Heaven and Black Earth.

The Green Cloud, though incomplete, was considered one such treasure.

“The plan to fight the Black Heaven with Light Treasures was originally proposed by the Immortals who fled to this Nascent-Universe,” Caidie continued.

Her expression darkened further.

“But even they failed.”

Even if they successfully created a fully realized Divine Light Treasure, would it be enough to turn the tide against the Black Heaven and Black Earth?

The Black Heaven and its army boasted thirty-two fully realized Realm Master-tier artifacts—far more than this universe could ever hope to match.

Shen Lingxuan’s voice turned cold. “If we could work with the Radiant Society, perhaps the road ahead wouldn’t be so bleak.”

Caidie dismissed the idea outright.

“Impossible! Free help is often the most dangerous.

The Radiant Society hunts chosen ones relentlessly, not out of goodwill, but because they fear we’ll succeed in forging a human-initiated Light.

They’d rather see a divine-initiated Light, but we of the Divine Wood Universe refuse to bow to gods!”

Her tone was resolute, unyielding.

The Divine Wood Universe rejected the path of relying on gods and divine intervention.

Instead, they chose the harder path—to rely on their own strength and forge a Human-Initiated Light.

“Our only potential ally is the Void Paradise,” Caidie said. “As for the Radiant Society… their intentions are as dark as their methods.”

<hr>

Within the Divine Wood Universe, two schools of thought competed over how best to counter the Black Heaven:

1. Divine-Initiated Light: championed by the Radiant Society, which sought salvation through divine intervention.
2. Human-Initiated Light: the path chosen by the Divine Wood Universe, which placed all hope in human effort and ingenuity.

“The Black Heaven is a mindless cosmic phenomenon, while the Black Earth is its conscious army,” Caidie explained.

“The Black Heaven uses specters to mark universes as targets, and the Black Earth follows those markers to invade.

Even the Void Paradise and the Zhou Universe avoid provoking them.”

Her voice dropped lower. “Expecting help from them would be nothing more than wishful thinking.”

Shen Lingxuan fell silent.

The world outside was a cruel, bleak, and despair-filled place.

The Black Heaven was not malicious—it was mindless.

Its devouring of this Nascent-Universe was simply instinct, like a beast hunting for food.

The true fault lay in their weakness.

And in this world, weakness was the original sin.

Caidie suddenly shifted the topic.

“By the way, in the recent battle in the Rosha Kingdom, the Divine Descent emerged victorious.”

Shen Lingxuan’s eyes widened slightly.

“What?”

“According to my sources, the young man who shares your future husband’s surname is the embodiment of the Divine Descent.

I never thought… it would take human form.”

Caidie added, “If I’m not mistaken, the Divine Descent also carries the mark of destiny.

If we could persuade it to join us and leave the Blue Mountain Realm, it would be a powerful ally.

But as long as it remains here, the Radiant Society won’t let it live.”

Every chosen one was a priceless ally, someone worth rallying to their cause.

“It’s unfortunate,” Caidie sighed. “We’ve gone to great lengths to hide in the Divine Wood Abyss.

If the Radiant Society detects your presence, they will stop at nothing to eliminate you.”

Her voice carried a note of worry.

Even hiding here wasn’t truly safe.

Perhaps… if they could find the strange entrance to the mysterious temporal fragment hidden within the Deep Abyss of Divine Wood, they could finally have a moment of peace.