Alex walked slowly in the midst of the forest, his footsteps steady yet cautious as they pressed into the damp earth beneath him.

"Where are those trees?" he started to think, a faint crease forming between his brows as his gaze swept across the surroundings.

Before he could analyze further, his martial soul suddenly appeared by his side.

It manifested without sound, hovering beside him with a faint, almost ethereal presence. Alex could immediately sense its intention. There was no ambiguity. It wanted him to go somewhere.

He did not hesitate.

He followed that instinct and started moving accordingly, allowing the subtle pull to guide his direction. His pace quickened, though his movements remained controlled and deliberate.

The deeper he moved into the forest, the quieter everything became. Even the faint sounds of wind and distant creatures seemed to fade, as if the world itself was holding its breath.

Ten minutes later, he appeared beside a water pond.

The pond lay still, its surface smooth like polished glass, reflecting the dim canopy above. There was something unnatural about its stillness, something that made it feel separate from the rest of the forest.

In that pond, there was a lotus.

It floated gently at the center, its petals pristine and untouched. Despite its simple appearance, it radiated a presence that was subtle yet overwhelming.

His martial soul reacted immediately. It wanted that lotus.

Alex narrowed his eyes, focusing intently.

A system notification appeared within his mind.

[Name: Fragment of the Lotus of Creation. Rank: Above Absolute Reality.

Function: Can absorb the laws and produce worlds.]

"Holy shit." Alex was completely speechless.

His breath caught slightly as he processed the information.

Something unprecedented was lying before him, abandoned in such a casual manner that it seemed no more significant than debris.

Yet the description left no room for doubt. This was something that existed beyond absolute reality itself.

And it was understandable, in a way.

An object at such a level would naturally evade perception. Even that sword of Victor Balzard, which possessed terrifying detection abilities, likely could not sense its presence.

Alex stepped forward slowly, approaching the pond with careful precision. His movements became almost reverent as he reached out toward the lotus.

He plucked it gently.

The moment his fingers made contact, the lotus vanished instantly.

It did not dissolve or break apart. It simply disappeared and reappeared within his sea of consciousness.

"What is he doing? Admiring a flower?" Victor muttered, watching from a distance with a puzzled expression as he continued to follow.

Alex ignored everything outside.

He directed his awareness inward.

Within his sea of consciousness, the lotus had positioned itself beside his martial soul. It floated calmly, yet its presence felt vast, as though it contained an entire cosmos within it.

Then a familiar sound echoed.

[Ding! Host can follow a different path of cultivation. With this Lotus of Creation, if the host can comprehend the 108 Daos, his inner universe would become a limitless world where you would be able to assimilate other universes and multiverses and so on. Your strength would be equivalent to the worlds you consume.]

Alex almost fell on the ground.

His legs weakened for a moment as the sheer magnitude of what he had just heard struck him.

"What was that? Are you for real? I am not dreaming, right?" he struggled to articulate, his thoughts colliding as he searched for proper wording.

He had entered this place with a simple objective.

He wanted to find a seed that could form a solid foundation for his inner world.

That was all.

But now, everything had changed.

Instead of a conventional path, he was being offered something far beyond it. A cultivation path that did not merely strengthen the self, but allowed the creation and assimilation of entire worlds.

Now what would he do?

Should he follow the normal flow like others, walking the established path with predictable growth?

Or should he take a risk and do something completely unprecedented?

The answer surfaced almost immediately.

Of course, he would do something crazy.

"Should I collect the seed now?" he thought, briefly returning to his original purpose.

A moment passed.

"Of course. I will give it to Mom. She is still far from becoming a planetary being," he reasoned quietly within himself.

With that decision made, he started walking again.

This time, he did not remain bound to the ground.

He rose into the air and flew directly, cutting through the forest with increasing speed. The trees blurred past him as he followed the faint directional sense guiding him forward.

After thirty minutes of continuous flight, he arrived at an open space.

The forest abruptly parted, revealing a vast clearing.

At its center stood ten willow trees, arranged in a formation that resembled silent knights guarding a sacred domain. Their branches hung low, swaying slightly despite the absence of wind.

The middle tree was enormous.

It towered over the others, its trunk thick and ancient, radiating an aura of authority.

However, Alex was not alone.

By the time he arrived, the sky above the clearing was already filled with others.

Numerous figures hovered in the air, each maintaining a cautious distance while observing the trees below.

Everyone had found their target.

The atmosphere grew tense, filled with silent competition.

Then a young man stepped forward.

"I am from the Velmir Clan. We have seven supremes in our clan currently, and our ancestor has already ascended to a higher plane of existence. So let me have that golden seed. I will reward you for not fighting."

His voice carried confidence, bordering on arrogance.

The entire place turned silent.

The young man looked proud when he saw that no one responded immediately.

Then, without warning, laughter erupted.

"Hahahahhahahahahahah."

"Where did this moron come from? My boy, go and drink some more milk before stepping into the real world."

The mocking spread rapidly, echoing across the clearing as several individuals joined in.

The young man’s expression twisted.

"Ahhhhh!"

His eyes turned red with fury and humiliation.

Without hesitation, he activated his battle suit at full combat power. Energy surged around him, crackling violently.

"Shit, motherfucker," several people cursed under their breath.

Now they had no choice.

They activated their own power as well, unwilling to remain vulnerable.

The air became heavy with rising energy levels.

Alex observed everything calmly.

While others reacted emotionally, he remained detached. His gaze moved subtly, calculating distances, timing, and opportunities.

Then he activated his combat suit as well.

A timer appeared in his mind.

Two minutes.

That was all the duration he could sustain at this level.

But that was enough.

He raised his hand slowly and snapped his fingers.

Instantly, within a one kilometer radius of the area where everyone was present at that moment, everything froze.

Time itself stopped.

This was not like space lock.

In a space lock, individuals retained awareness but could not move.

But in time stop, even the soul froze as well.

Everything ceased to exist in motion.

"Victor is not present here," Rafael said calmly.

"Does not matter," Alex replied before moving toward those trees.

His voice was steady, unaffected by the overwhelming situation.

Normally, those trees would resist.

They were not ordinary vegetation. They possessed defensive instincts and could retaliate against intruders.

But now, they were frozen in time as well.

Without resistance, Alex moved swiftly.

He collected the ten seeds alongside the golden one from the central tree. Each seed radiated immense energy, even in its dormant state.

The process was efficient.

No wasted movement.

Once he finished, he vanished from there.

"System, hide my presence from the sword’s perception," he said calmly.

He knew Victor was following him.

Far away, Victor suddenly became panicked.

Because suddenly, neither he nor his master could sense Alex’s presence anymore.

"Damn it," he roared, his composure breaking as he began searching frantically.

Meanwhile, as soon as Alex left, the time stop ended.

Reality resumed instantly.

"What happened? I feel like something is missing," several people muttered, confusion spreading among them.

Then their attention shifted toward the trees.

The seeds that had been glowing moments ago were gone.

All of them.

"Nooo!"

A collective roar erupted, filled with immense anger and disbelief.

Someone had stolen every seed right in front of them, and none of them had even noticed.

Chaos followed.

Everyone began searching for the culprit like mad dogs, scanning the surroundings with desperation and rage.

But Alex was nowhere to be found.

He was under deep water, far from the clearing, completely concealing his presence.

The cold water surrounded him, muting all external disturbances.

There, in isolation, he began thinking carefully.

If he returned now, the grandmaster would definitely ask him to form his inner planet.

If he refused or lied, he would disappointed on him. There was even a chance that he would be thrown out of the tower.

That outcome could cause a chain reaction, potentially angering his master as well.

But revealing the truth about the lotus was not an option.

The consequences of that would be far more severe.

His situation was delicate.

After careful consideration, only one viable option remained.

He would stay in this realm.

He would continue comprehending the laws before forming his inner universe.

Only after reaching sufficient understanding would he proceed further.

With that, his strength would rise dramatically.

At best, he would enter the realm of a transcended being.

At minimu, he would reach the level of a universal existence.

Alex remained still beneath the water, his eyes slowly closing as his decision settled firmly within him.

The path he had chosen was dangerous.

But it was the only path that aligned with what he had just obtained.

And he had no intention of wasting that opportunity.