"It's not that it 'can't be taken away,'" Tang Wulin corrected, his tone serious. "It's that 'even if it is taken away, I am still myself.' I want to forge a cultivation system, not centered on the accumulation of power, but on the 'deepening and expansion of one's existence.' It's not about seeking to control how many laws, but about how deeply one understands 'existence itself.' It's not about unleashing the most powerful attacks, but about how clear and unshakeable the imprint of 'my' existence is upon the universe."
He paused for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts, then continued, "Just as I told the Eye of Annihilation that day, the fact that it has rained cannot be erased. What I want to do is make every 'rain' in my life—every choice, every moment of being moved, every act of loving and being loved—into an indelible fact in the universe. When these 'facts' are numerous enough, profound enough, and interwoven into a network, my 'existence' will become so solid that no void can shake it."
Qian Renxue was stunned into silence. This completely overturned the common wisdom of cultivation. Since ancient times, cultivation was about becoming stronger, about control, about transcendence. Yet, what her husband spoke of was a cultivation of 'existence itself'—not about striving to surpass others, nor seeking to control anything, but simply making the existence of 'oneself' more real, more profound, more indelible.
"Then... how do you do it?" she asked, posing the most critical question.
Tang Wulin was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't know."
"You don't know?"
"I don't know the specific method," Tang Wulin admitted frankly. There was no bewilderment in his eyes, only the light of exploration. "But I know the direction, and I know the starting point."
He opened his palm again. This time, he didn't release his soul power but closed his eyes, as if sensing something. Qian Renxue looked closely and suddenly noticed an extremely faint point of light appear in her husband's palm—it wasn't the golden glow of soul power, but an indescribable, nearly transparent shimmer that would have been almost imperceptible without close scrutiny.
"This is..."
"A memory," Tang Wulin said, opening his eyes and looking at the point of light in his palm. "Our first encounter, at the tournament of the Soul Master Academy. You were the captain of the Spirit Hall Academy then—proud, powerful, invincible. I was the captain of the Shrek Seven Monsters, shouldering the mission of the Tang Sect. We were opponents, enemies, yet in your eyes, I saw a loneliness that mirrored my own."
The point of light flickered, and two blurry figures faintly emerged—a boy and a girl, facing each other on the tournament stage. There was no hatred in their eyes, only the fiery passion of two worthy opponents.
"This isn't power, not even a soul skill," Tang Wulin said softly. "But it did exist. On that day, in that moment, on that stage, Tang Wulin met Qian Renxue. That fact is forever etched into the river of time. And what I must do... is make that fact not just a memory, but a part of my very 'existence.'"
As he spoke, the point of light gradually stabilized. Though still faint, it no longer flickered but shone steadily, like a fragment of an eternal star embedded in his palm.
Qian Renxue held her breath. She could feel that what the point of light contained wasn't energy, but something more fundamental—a sense of 'certainty,' an absolute reality of 'this has happened.'
Tang Wulin closed his eyes again, and a second point of light appeared in his palm.
"This is the first time Mom taught me the Raging Waves Hammer Technique," he said, a gentle smile gracing his lips. "I could never quite get the rhythm right, always failing at the eighty-first hammer. Dad said I lacked talent, but Mom always encouraged me. She'd say, 'Wulin, a hammer isn't just a weapon. It's an extension of your arm, the rhythm of your heartbeat.' Later, I finally understood. The Raging Waves isn't an accumulation of eighty-one strikes, but the complete cycle of a single breath."
The second point of light stabilized, shimmering in concert with the first.
A third, a fourth, a fifth... more and more points of light appeared in Tang Wulin's palm. Each one represented a memory, an emotion, a profound realization. Some were bright, some dim, some warm, some sorrowful, but they were all there, real and undeniable.
"These are the starting points," Tang Wulin said, opening his eyes. The points of light in his palm gradually faded, but something seemed to have been ignited deep within his gaze. "Using memories as anchors, emotions as bonds, and understanding as the framework to construct the network of my 'existence.' Then, I'll let this network resonate with the laws of the world—not to control the laws, but to become a part of them. It's not about the Sea God controlling the ocean; it's about the existence of 'Tang Wulin' itself embodying the laws that resonate with qualities like 'protection,' 'responsibility,' and 'love'—qualities that echo the ocean's vastness, its inclusiveness, its nature as the source of life."
Qian Renxue understood completely, and she was utterly shaken.
This wasn't just an innovation in cultivation systems; it was a fundamental redefinition of the very concept of 'cultivation.' If her husband could truly walk this path, he would no longer be a 'being who possesses power,' but a 'being whose very existence is power.'
"It will be very difficult, won't it?" she asked softly, her eyes filled with aching concern.
"More difficult than anything before," Tang Wulin admitted frankly, taking his wife's hand. "There's no past experience to draw from, no existing path to follow. Every attempt could be a mistake, every exploration could lead to a dead end. And..."
He paused, his tone growing complex. "And I need to re-understand everything. What is soul power? What are soul rings? What are martial souls? What is a divine position? From the perspective of 'existence,' these familiar concepts might require entirely different interpretations."
Qian Renxue leaned against his shoulder and said firmly, "I'll be with you. No matter how difficult this path, no matter how long it takes, I will be with you."
"I know," Tang Wulin said, kissing her forehead. "And your companionship will become the most steadfast part of my 'existence' network."
Just then, the sound of footsteps came from outside the courtyard. Tang San and Xiao Wu walked in, carrying a food box. They were here to deliver lunch.
"Wulin, how are you feeling today?" Xiao Wu asked with concern. Her gaze swept over her son's pale face, and her heart ached, though she forced a smile.
"Much better, Mom," Tang Wulin replied with a smile, then looked to his father. "Dad, there are some things I'd like to ask you."
Tang San set down the food box and sat on a stone bench. "Go on."
"When you inherited the divine position of the Sea God, what was your greatest sensation? Not the feeling of gaining power, but... at the moment you became the Sea God, what fundamental change did you feel within yourself?" Tang Wulin asked with great seriousness.
Tang San was slightly taken aback; he hadn't expected his son to ask this question. He pondered for a moment, then said slowly, "It wasn't a gain, but... an acceptance. When I raised the Sea God's Trident and faced the final trial of the Sea God Nine Trials, what I felt wasn't power pouring into my body. It was the will of the entire ocean asking me, 'Are you willing to become one with us?'"
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