Origin beyond heaven

Laughter of the World

A strange silence settled over the Awakening Square as thousands of eyes drifted toward the ash-gray scripture above Lin Yuan's head. It was unlike any cultivation technique they had ever seen in the entire history of the cultivation world, showing no dazzling light, no elemental aura. It simply hovered in the air, weathered and unremarkable, as though it had existed for countless ages.

The Grand Elder frowned deeply. "Bring it here."

With a wave of his sleeve, a strand of spiritual energy wrapped around the scripture and drew it toward the elders' platform. The scripture offered no resistance, floating quietly before the Grand Elder, his brows furrowing even further.

"No spiritual fluctuations..." He reached out and gently touched its worn cover, but nothing happened. The book remained as lifeless as an ordinary piece of parchment.

One elder rose from his seat. "Allow me." He examined the scripture carefully, injecting a stream of spiritual energy into it. Several breaths passed, but still nothing showed.

"It rejected my spiritual sense."

"No..." The elder shook his head. "It isn't rejecting it. It simply doesn't respond."

Another elder stepped forward, one who specialized in identifying cultivation techniques and bloodlines. Closing his eyes, he formed a series of hand seals before pointing toward the ash-gray scripture. White qi emerged around his fingertip and slowly revolved around the book, circling it three times before shattering into countless specks of light.

The elder's expression stiffened. "I cannot determine its grade."

A murmur spread through the square. "Impossible — even a Mortal Grade technique has an aura."

"What kind of cultivation technique has no rank?"

The Grand Elder remained silent and sighed deeply. He turned toward the shelves behind the elders' seats, where several jade records had been brought out, and one after another, they compared the ash-gray scripture with every known cultivation technique recorded by the Lin Clan over thousands of years.

An incense stick burned to ashes. Then another, as time passed slowly. The excitement that had filled the Awakening Ceremony gradually transformed into confusion.

Finally, the Grand Elder closed the final jade record, a trace of disappointment flashing across his face as he slowly stood.

"The Lin Clan possesses records of more than thirty thousand cultivation techniques. Mortal Grade. Spirit Grade. Earth Grade. Heaven Grade. Saint Grade. Emperor Grade. Immortal Grade. And even the legendary Dao Grade." He looked once more at the gray scripture floating silently before him. "Yet among all those records, there is no cultivation technique that resembles this one."

The crowd fell completely silent. Every disciple stared at the ash-gray scripture with curiosity. An unknown cultivation technique — was that a blessing, or a disaster?

The Grand Elder raised his hand, his solemn voice cutting throughout the Awakening Square. "After examination by the Council of Elders, this cultivation technique possesses no elemental affinity, no identifiable cultivation path, no measurable rank, no spiritual resonance." He paused for several seconds before making the final declaration. "Therefore, it shall be recorded in the Lin Clan archives as a Defective Cultivation Technique."

The words had barely fallen when a single laugh rang out from somewhere within the crowd.

"Hahahaha." The lone laugh broke the silence of the Awakening Square. "He... he awakened a Defective Cultivation Technique?"

For a brief moment, the crowd remained stunned. Then the whispers spread. "They called him the greatest genius of the Lin Clan?"

"What a disappointment."

"I expected at least an Earth Grade technique."

"Forget Earth Grade — even a Mortal Grade technique would have been better."

The whispers quickly turned into open ridicule as some disciples shook their heads in pity while others made no effort to hide the smiles on their faces. Only moments ago, Lin Yuan had been the pride of the younger generation. Now he had become the greatest joke of the Awakening Ceremony.

Standing among the crowd, Lin Hao slowly stepped forward, his Heavenly Sword Scripture already returned to his dantian, yet the confidence it brought still evident in his eyes. He looked at Lin Yuan and sighed softly. "What a pity. I truly believed you would become my greatest rival." His words sounded sympathetic, but the faint smile at the corner of his lips betrayed his true thoughts.

Several branch family disciples immediately echoed him. "It seems Heaven has already made its choice."

"The main family has finally produced a waste."

"I guess talent can only take you so far."

Laughter erupted once again.

On the elders' platform, several clan elders exchanged disappointed glances. One of them slowly stood. "Since Lin Yuan has awakened a Defective Cultivation Technique, the cultivation resources previously reserved for him shall be redistributed among the other talented disciples."

Another elder nodded. "Agreed. The Spirit Gathering Pills. The high-grade cultivation chamber. And the monthly spirit stones — they should no longer be wasted."

One decision after another was made without hesitation. In just a few breaths, everything Lin Yuan had earned over the past sixteen years was taken away, his status as the Lin Clan's greatest genius disappearing like smoke. The crowd watched quietly, and no one dared object. In the cultivation world, strength determined value. Without talent, even yesterday's genius could become today's burden.

High above the square, Lin Zhentian remained silent, his face revealing no emotion, yet beneath the wide sleeve of his robe, his hand slowly tightened into a fist. Beside him, Lin Qingxue's eyes filled with concern. She wanted to speak, but she knew this was the decision of the Council of Elders — even the Clan Head could not overturn it so easily.

Meanwhile, at the center of the Awakening Platform, Lin Yuan quietly listened to every word, his expression never changing. He neither argued nor pleaded. To everyone watching, it appeared as though the humiliation had completely broken his spirit. Only Lin Yuan knew the truth. He had once stood above the Nine Heavens. He had ruled an entire era as the Heavenly Emperor. How could the ridicule of a small clan shake his heart?

His gaze briefly swept across the faces laughing at him, and without another word, Lin Yuan turned and walked down from the Awakening Platform as the laughter only grew louder behind him.

The laughter followed Lin Yuan all the way back to his courtyard, some mocking him openly while others whispered behind his back. To them, the once-celebrated genius of the Lin Clan had become a cautionary tale. Lin Yuan paid them no attention. He quietly entered his room and closed the wooden door.

Click. The noise outside instantly faded, and the room fell into silence. For a long while, Lin Yuan stood without moving.

Then, with a wave of his hand, he released his spiritual consciousness. A faint ash-gray light emerged from within his dantian, and the ancient scripture slowly floated before him, exactly as it had been on the Awakening Platform. Its weathered gray cover bore no words. No aura leaked from it. No spiritual fluctuations could be sensed. It looked like nothing more than an old book abandoned by time.

Lin Yuan reached out and gently touched its cover, frowning in surprise. "In my previous life... I never awakened you."

Back then, he had awakened a Heaven Grade cultivation technique. Only after countless fortuitous encounters had he eventually discovered the Origin Scripture in a forbidden realm. That discovery had completely changed his destiny. Yet now it had appeared during his Awakening Ceremony. Everything was different. "Is it because I returned from the future?" he wondered. "Or... did my reincarnation change history itself?"

No answer came, and the scripture remained motionless.

Lin Yuan slowly sat cross-legged on the floor. Closing his eyes, he attempted to communicate with it using his spiritual sense, but nothing happened. He circulated the tiny strand of spiritual qi within his body, but still the scripture didn't show any flicker of power.

"It doesn't respond..." He opened his eyes, disappointment flashing across his face. Could the elders have been right? Was this truly a defective cultivation technique?

"No." He immediately shook his head. The mysterious voice before his reincarnation and the ancient symbol upon the scripture — neither could be a coincidence. "There must be a trigger."

Just then, as he withdrew his hand, the edge of the worn cover scraped across his fingertip, and a tiny cut appeared. A single drop of blood rolled down his finger.

Plop. It landed upon the cover, and to Lin Yuan's surprise, the blood disappeared instantly.

Lin Yuan's pupils contracted as the room suddenly became deathly still.

Buzz. The scripture trembled, and a faint pulse echoed through the room. Then another. The ash-gray cover slowly began absorbing the blood, as though it had been asleep for countless ages and had finally tasted something it had been waiting for.

Crack. Tiny golden cracks spread across the weathered surface, and the room trembled lightly. Incomprehensible runes emerged one after another, surrounding the scripture like countless stars.

The first page slowly turned on its own. Blank. The second page. Blank. The third. Blank. Then, upon the fourth page, a single stroke appeared, and another followed immediately. Golden characters slowly wrote themselves across the page, one word at a time.

Lin Yuan held his breath. When the final character was completed, the room became completely silent. Only one sentence remained upon the page.

"Heaven stole my name."

Before Lin Yuan could recover from the shock, the golden words suddenly shone with a brilliant light. A deep voice echoed from within the scripture.

"At last... you have returned."

Lin Yuan's eyes widened in shock. The scripture had spoken.