Lu Ming stood at a height of over three meters tall, Even though he was hunched over. His figure emanated a perverse feeling of oddness and wrongness something that even the world seemed to reject.

The abomination he had morphed into wasn't one of recognition. He was like a chimera, but more… arranged? Perfected? Yet no words could truly describe it. Even with the alignment of his features, everything about his being still felt flawed — like a mistake one would see and feel an overwhelming urge to fix.

If one was learned enough, they would recognize the source of some of his features: an amalgamation of spirit beasts.

The claws of the Starry White Tiger. The head of the Blood Moon Wolf. His dark glossy fur, bristling silently, belonged to the Black Hole Feral Bear. Beneath the fur, sharp glints of light flickered every now and then — the scales of the Metal Shield Dragon. And his eyes, in stark contrast to his horrifying appearance, still held the bearing of a human. They were the ember pupils of the Phoenix race.

On the path to creating the Perfect Life, this was the road Lu Ming had once trodden. He believed that by compiling the most redeeming features of various races — the sharpest claws, the toughest skin, the strongest jaw — he could create perfection.

But he was wrong.

This path only made him understand the distinction between ultimate and perfect.

What he had made himself into was an ultimate life — the strongest creature in this realm. Though he had yet to reach his full potential, as he had not stepped onto the path of cultivation.

And as for why he had still yet to cultivate?

The reason was simple: he wanted to achieve Perfect Life, a being with no flaws. Something beyond even the ultimate. By cultivating — whether the mortal path, the immortal path, or even the beast path (which he could follow due to his unique existence) — once he stepped onto any of them, his genes would be locked, set in stone. And he would have to give up on his dream.

He gazed coldly at Spark's dauntless figure. Though this form left him unsatisfied and irritated, he had to accept that apart from a Perfect Life, nothing could stand against this body in the same realm. Even lower-realm cultivators wouldn't stand a chance.

He was just like Spark — a freak of nature. A mortal who could trump those at the top.

As he thought of this, Lu Ming let out a growl that eerily morphed into human words.

"I will give you one more chance. Stand down. Facing me, you have no chance."

Spark burst into cold laughter in response. His blood-stained hands combed through his hair, leaving behind crimson imprints as he spoke, his voice filled with rancor and resentment.

"Do you know how long I've waited for this? Do you know how many times I dreamed, prayed for this moment? Our time together might not have been long to you, but to me it was an eternity…

So just cut the crap and come meet your death."

As he spoke, his aura shifted. His back straightened, his bloodlust became dangerously contained. His hands clasped behind his back, and even the blood smears and ragged clothing couldn't dampen the suffocating overbearing presence he exuded.

Lu Ming let out an annoyed sigh. At this point, there was nothing more he could say. Spark's hatred for him ran too deep. He doubted the fool would even be satisfied with his death.

Why couldn't he understand that the suffering he endured was for a greater cause?

Through his pain, a Perfect Life had been born. Why did he have to feel so aggrieved?

Honestly, Lu Ming didn't understand the thought process of other humans. They were born with poor physiques, poor aptitudes, mortal fragility — and yet they were satisfied. Born as imperfections, but still content.

Why?

He had pondered this for many years and concluded that even they didn't know they were flawed. And so he had taken up the burden of correcting nature's error. Yet here he was, hated and feared as a heretic and a madman.

He shook his head in disappointment. Humans may have transcended mortality, but their minds remain muddled in mortal waters. Only I can correct this. Destroying what is called the norm and opening their eyes — only then can our race take its rightful place as kings of all.

His figure hunched, hind legs caving as his body tensed, ready to spring into action like a drawn arrow on a bowstring.

Crack!

The ground beneath his feet split, leaving two deep beastly footprints as his figure vanished from sight.

Spark's eyes glinted. The scholar was absurdly strong. If it had been the old him, he wouldn't have stood a chance. But now…

He raised an arm effortlessly. Though a simple act, the energy behind it was boundless, and the use behind it was overly advanced. Spark had reached a level of realization previously unimaginable.

His hand clamped around the swinging claws of his opponent, stopping the charge instantly. The force behind the attack dissipated harmlessly.

He finally understood what he couldn't before. He had been put under constant pressure, like a river blocked from flowing but still accumulating current. And the moment it burst free…

Now he realized how laughable his previous application of his ability had been. The act of creating innate stars — crude, childish.

After understanding that his entire being was an energy container. He embedded in each and every one of his cells held within them a nucleolus of energy, constantly thrumming at a frequency that resonated with the world. With this, he could never run out of energy, nor could he be over-bloated like he once felt with Slade.

Spark was brimming with confidence as an arrogant smile spread across his face an the ethereal force bloomed, pressing its intentions on reality.

It was the unmistakable effect of a Will!

His other fist clenched and flew into motion. It looked like a simple, ordinary punch, it neither moved to fast or to slow and even then it carried a mundane feeling to it.

But Lu Ming's pupils constricted to pinholes. That simple looking punch carried the unmistakable stench of death. His instincts screamed: if it landed, he would surely bear a sever damage.

Unfortunately, evading wasn't an option. Spark's unshakable vice grip held his other arm firmly.

An irritated glint flickered in Lu Ming's ember pupils. The Phoenix eyes caught every slight deviation in the attack. He concluded he could only bear it and lose in this exchange — what was more important was to use the moment to turn the tide.

Within a split second, Spark's punch landed.

There was no shockwave, no staggering momentum, not even a muffled sound. It was like a punch thrown without force.

But in its wake, a bucket-sized hole appeared in Lu Ming's torso.

Silence.

Lu Ming didn't seem unnerved. As a scorpion-like tail germinated from his back and whipped into motion, seeking to meet with Spark's neck.

Goosebumps rose across Spark's skin. Where the hell did that tail come from? The burning stench wafting from its tip told him all he needed to know — that thing couldn't get close.

He immediately let go, his figure blurring out of sight as the furious retaliation of his opponent missing him by a hair.

Spark frowned. He couldn't let this drag out. He already deduced the scholar's motives: either kill or delay.

Whatever the bastard was concocting, it wasn't good. And there was also that thing he made from his blood. If it woke up, who knew whose side it would take?

If nothing else, Spark knew Lu Ming well enough to understand that whatever he deemed "perfection" would be so out of this world that the lunatic would have no choice than to be satisfied. That meant Spark had to destroy it before anything unexpected happened.

Lu Ming seemed to read his thoughts as he jeered:

"You flawed fool! Of course you think that way. I created a Perfect Life. It cannot be killed. It cannot be injured. No matter what circumstances it faces, it will evolve and adapt endlessly. Even I don't dare waste time in getting the serum I need, because even I can't guarantee its death."

As he finished, Lu Ming lunged at Spark with maddened abandon. Every move, every strike carried the same feeling as his being — an intense felling wrongness, a suffocating weight.

And Spark defended in kind, meeting madness with madness. His movements were quick, efficient, calculated. Each attack was designed to make Lu Ming expend more strength, waste more energy.

Boom!

A punch and a claw met mid-air. The overwhelming rebounding force threw both parties apart.

"I see you're having fun…" the beast-man sneered, his voice brimming with an amused interest. "Let's see if you still are once I start using my Will."

[A/N] okay guys I want to apologize for the recent reductions in daily uploads, I've been swamped with work and my current situations didn't help either. Hopefully this week I will be back to my usual uploads… once more this poor author apologizes 🙏🙏🙏

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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