"You're concluding I'm a Star Lord based on that alone?" Han Feng interrupted him. "Isn't that a bit too hasty?"
Dongfang Lin suddenly smiled, his wrinkles smoothing out: "Based solely on the Star Mirror's reaction and these clues, this old servant truly cannot be certain." He held up the Star Mirror with both hands, "But the method the Star Lord used to command the Star Mirror to recognize its master was the 'Seven Stars Knocking on the Door,' a technique only a true Star Soul inheritor would know!"
Han Feng was taken aback. He had only subconsciously touched a few spots according to the trajectory of the energy flow within his body; how could he have known it was some special technique?
"Even so," Han Feng shook his head helplessly, "you came to me just to confirm this identity?"
"Lord Star, you may not know this," Dongfang Lin's expression suddenly turned solemn. "For eight hundred years, my Dongfang, Shangguan, and Zhang families have guarded the Star Mirror, awaiting the awakening of a new master." Dongfang Lin's voice wasn't loud, but it was enough to shock Han Feng. "The origins of all the ancient martial arts families today are actually closely related to the previous Lord Star."
Han Feng's pupils contracted slightly: "What do you mean?"
Dongfang Lin placed the Star Mirror on the stone table and pressed a spot on its surface with his finger. The bronze disc unfolded layer by layer like a lotus flower, revealing a thumb-sized blue crystal at its core. Inside the crystal, a miniature nebula seemed to be sealed, slowly rotating.
"According to the ancestral teachings of the East, during the time of our ancestor, a powerful enemy from beyond the realm pursued the Star Lord all the way here," Dongfang Lin recalled the records of the Dongfang family. "The two powerful beings fought fiercely in the skies above Blue Star for three days, and even the aftershocks of their energy caused immense damage to Blue Star. The energy they unleashed shattered countless meteorites, which, after falling to the earth, formed what are known as 'cultivation source stones.'"
Han Feng abruptly stood up, causing the stone bench to tip over with a loud crash. He suddenly remembered the strange energy contained in Mu Xiaoxiao's gene serums and the shadow power used by Kurosaki—could they all originate from this ancient war?
"You mean..." Han Feng's voice was hoarse, "...the energy cultivated by all the ancient martial arts families is actually..."
"They're all remnants of the Star Lord's and the enemies from beyond the realm," Dongfang Lin said with a bitter smile. "People pick up fragments of stone containing energy, mistaking them for rare treasures of heaven and earth, and study them to develop various cultivation methods. Little do they know that they are nothing more than a drop of blood or a piece of armor from a true powerhouse."
Han Feng frowned, then suddenly realized the crucial point: "What about the three great families? Do they also rely on these 'rubble fragments' for cultivation?"
"No, that's not it." A hint of arrogance flashed in Dongfang Lin's eyes. He lightly tapped his fingertip, and three points of light on the star map suddenly lit up with golden light. "Our three families received the cultivation techniques personally taught by the Star Soul Master."
Like a lightning bolt cleaving through the fog, Han Feng finally understood why the Dongfang, Zhang, and Shangguan families had stood strong for eight hundred years—they possessed the orthodox Star Cultivation System, not those incomplete energy fragments!
Dongfang Lin continued, "Eight hundred years ago, when the Star Lord first arrived on Blue Star, he appeared as a mortal. At that time, the ancestors of the three families passed through Yunzhou and saw a group of bullies humiliating a down-on-his-luck scholar..."
As the old man narrated, the power of the stars conjured a vivid scene in the air: four splendid young men surrounded a scholar in a blue robe, shoving and insulting him, while three simply dressed old men stepped forward to protect the scholar behind them.
"That scholar is the Star Lord," Dongfang Lin said, his tone filled with reverence. "Seeing that the three ancestors were of pure heart, he used extraordinary means to implant the power of the stars into their bodies and taught them basic cultivation methods."
In the scene, three points of starlight bloom from the scholar's fingertips, each disappearing into the brow of one of the three old men. The old men shuddered, and starlight began to circulate around them.
"So that's how it is..." Han Feng muttered to himself. No wonder the three major families could cultivate individuals far surpassing ordinary martial artists; they cultivated the most primal power of the stars!
Dongfang Lin suddenly became serious: "Those ordinary people who cultivate by shattering stones will find it difficult to break through to the mid-stage of the Innate Realm in their entire lives. But our three families..." He gave Han Feng a meaningful look, "...theoretically, with enough talent, we can cultivate to one ten-thousandth of the Star Lord's level."
One ten-thousandth of the Star Lord realm? Han Feng's heart trembled violently. If even a Shadow Messenger like Kurosaki had given him such a hard time, how terrifying must the true power of the stars be?
"Something's not right." Han Feng suddenly realized, "If the three major families are really that strong, why can't he sense any aura above the Great Dao Realm?"
"So you do know about the Great Dao Realm." A glint of light flashed in Dongfang Lin's cloudy eyes, and stellar illusions swirled around him. "That's right, because the cultivation techniques of our three great families are, after all, only basic techniques, and the amount of stellar power we can absorb is limited."
The old man raised his hand and waved, causing the starlight in the air to condense into a gradually drying river: "Furthermore, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth on Blue Star is becoming increasingly scarce, and for nearly a hundred years, no one at the Great Dao Realm has emerged on the entire planet."
The illusion shifted, revealing the figures of three elderly men meditating with their eyes closed. The starlight surrounding them was noticeably more solid than that of the other images.
"Only the surviving heads of our three families have reached the early stage of the Great Dao Realm," Dongfang Lin said, pointing to the illusion. "The other ancestors are currently in seclusion, concealing their auras."
Han Feng suddenly realized. No wonder he couldn't sense the presence of those at the Great Dao Realm; it turned out these old monsters had all sealed themselves away. The thought of possibly facing an enemy of that level sent a chill down his spine.
"Let's get back to the point." Han Feng composed himself. "Have you asked Dongfang Xun to tell me if you have any news about Mu Xiaoxiao?"
Dongfang Lin sighed, and the starry illusion rippled accordingly. His aged fingers tapped the armrest lightly, and the entire reception room was suddenly enveloped in a starlight barrier, isolating it from both inside and outside sounds.
"That is indeed true." The old man's voice was low. "Although our three great families have always considered ourselves servants of the former Star Lord..." He gave a bitter smile, "eight hundred years have passed, and the Star Lord has vanished without a trace. It's inevitable that some people will harbor other thoughts."
Three months ago, the unusual phenomenon of the star mirrors brought the three families together again. Dongfang Lin sketched the scene in the air: three ancient star mirrors floated above the altar, emitting a faint, resonant light.
"I propose that the three families work together to find the new Star Soul Master sensed by the Star Mirror." In Dongfang Lin's illusion, a dignified middle-aged man suddenly rose from his seat, "But Shangguan Ce, the head of the Shangguan family... is showing unusual resistance."
In the scene, Shangguan Ce's eyes flickered, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead as he faced the questions from the other two families. That night, he saw a hallucination showing him secretly meeting a woman shrouded in a black robe.
"Later we learned that a woman had approached the Shangguan family." Dongfang Lin's stellar power conjured the silhouette of a woman, "promising to provide sufficient spiritual energy to help them break through the bottleneck of the Great Dao Realm."
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