Lind spent the next 3 years simply exploring his new powers. Apprentice and Journeyman Tiers generally had an increase in Divine Qi, Dao power, and Mystery energy capacity. The facets of each layer then directed that power along the path forged by the cultivator, yet they were relatively comparable.

Luxor was a good example. Despite a bear and a dragon being massively opposite on the ends of the powerscale of predators, a Divine Realm of each could be relatively close in strength.

The Master Tier, however, blasted apart that balance. Lind’s Time Layer had proven that harshly with the Bastard and in his other applications.

Very few could stop him if he was able to employ the full power of that layer alone.

Thus, he took great care as he dove into his Tapestry Layer. Now that his foundation was mostly consolidated, he could explore what he had gained.

His concern about affecting others via their bonds had been exaggerated in his mind. That was actually a great relief.

He could not control anyone at all. It was more like he could read the pattern across existence like an observer. That ability, however, while not dangerous to anyone’s existence, made hiding from him nearly impossible!

Anyone below the Divine Realm could be found by him! The more he knew, the easier it was! Even worse, thanks to his Time Layer being combined with it, he could trace their entire history and a glimpse into their futures!

He had been truly shocked when he had been checking on how far he could go back and near exhaustion, he did not snap back to the present but saw a glimpse beyond the moment he had found them!

Of course, looking ahead had a massive cost to it! He would be wiped out much faster than looking backwards. Still, he saw how malleable history was for mortals through the Sky Realm.

It made him nervous how easy things could be changed but he learned that the Heaven Realm and above were far more resilient to any such changes.

The Divine Realm, as he well knew, did not care at all! The only exception to that had been Karu.

Even with all his power, he could not match up to her former Talent. It made it very clear that even with all he grasped, her single Talent outstripped everything! No wonder the Bastard could never thwart it.

Essentially, the easiest use of his new layer was information gathering. He no longer had a need for spies or man power, he could do it alone! Still, he learned that Immortals and Divine Realm beings were much harder to follow.

It was not that they detected it, but the power needed to parse their lives and choices required far more effort on his part. Casual glances were about even across the board but if he needed details, it got exponentially harder.

If he could watch mortals to Heaven Realm cultivators for centuries, Immortals were only 10 or 20 years at most, and Divine Realm cultivators were a month at best.

He might improve as he mastered his new powers, but he doubted the disparity would shift much. He did notice a little shift on that strain. If it was his wives, it was like there was no effort at all.

It was the same with close friends. Sun, currently twirling his staff as he fought some very forlorn looking trainees, was laughing in joy under sunny sky and on a stone platform. He had been able to watch for months before he felt tired.

He suspected there were nuances he had to explore to find out what that was but the closer in spirit people were, the less effort he needed.

The dead were a different story. They were essentially a movie. There were no possible histories or any chance of changing their fate. Lind swiftly affirmed that was due to the fact the dead moved on or were damaged by Fiends so they could not have such chances.

The continuity of the soul became very clear to him. Solon was not the only person he knew to die to those creatures and without exception, they were just animated memories so far as his skills were concerned.

Reborn were different. They were not true reincarnation so far as he could figure out, just an intact soul in a new life. Only 1 thread had been avoided by him heavily. It was just too tempting and he knew he would lose himself looking in on her new life.

She had been reborn, he had confirmed that by inference. That alone gave him mental relief. Cyntilla, his fierce demoness wife, was gone. Her soul had simply stayed intact and now had her own life or lives.

If that was the be all and end all of his new layer, Lind would have been severely disappointed. Yet, he was actually thrilled as his comprehension and analytical skills had skyrocketed!

Before, as he had advanced and tried to pierce the veil of the Divine Realm, it took decades or centuries now that he was not under the pressure of the war. The threat of the Fiends and Karu helped him make explosive progress.

Now, just mastering his new layer took only a handful of years! It had taken so long to master his Time Layer and truly apply it! He already not only had ideas how to improve his skills and Arts, but he saw new possibilities as well!

Such speed would shock any Divine Realm being no matter how skilled! Half the reason they lived so long in seclusion was just trying to take a half step forward on their path! The Tapestry Layer was like a hyper accelerant!

It also allowed him to enhance the use of his various layers in combinations that would have been dangerous without completely researching if what he wanted was feasible!

The final piece of his layer was the least he grasped. Despite such powerful ability to analyze it, the final facet still did not fully reveal itself.

Just being able to see his past connections to those gone from his life seemed very small to him. He also felt like there was something just beyond his reach. It was like some kind of barrier, not a bottleneck, was preventing him from understanding.

He had never felt it before. Adding to his confusion, it did not impede his cultivation. Normally, a layer had to be reinforced as it was fully grasped by a Divine Realm, yet his emerald energy had already fused as if there was no need to do so.

He suspected the layer itself allowed it and was tied to the part he could not yet see. The spirits had said it was new. Could there be some kind of part of it that had to be defined by him alone?

That would be intriguing. If a brand new layer was defined by the one that condensed it, it meant there was room to refine and improve the layer more than normal. He would have to research that later.

For the moment, he wanted to actually see people in person. Spying was not nearly as satisfying.

He was about to move when he froze. There was something he had not tried.

He considered and found it feasible but with a risk. He was unsure what would happen so he began to enhance the weavings in his quarters. The barriers were thickened and then he laid traps on top of that.

He also took a drastic measure and summoned a small mountain of materials to make brand new artifacts he had never attempted.

Anyone familiar with his current mastery would be left slack jawed as several large metal arcs floated and isolated the entire space from the Divine Lands!

That was almost beyond Mystery Grade in anyone’s minds but Lind knew he was far from graduating to that level. The Tapestry Layer had made it possible for his hundreds of thousands of years of experience to now explode in breakthroughs he had been on his way too much farther in the future.

It was simply a matter of time for him to reach it and the Tapestry Layer cut that time down but an untold number of millions of years. His accumulated knowledge laid the foundation and just needed enough mental capacity to make progress.

He looked at his creations and suddenly looked at the black ring that had been with him for so long. No matter how far he had come, it had eluded him.

Haro was so versatile and far more powerful than any artifact he had ever created. Now, he suddenly understood the creator had made artifacts that could improve! Each Master allowed the ring and its spirit to become more profound!

It was a concept alien to him still, yet he now grasped the very fundamental steps. Whoever had made those rings was still far above him!

Lind then calmed himself and cultivated until he recovered to his peak. He had to be at his best for what he was going to attempt.

Once he was there after a few days, he slowly opened his Eyes and began to peel away the various connections around him. There was a certain kind he was seeking and had never even felt.

Even though others he had only met in their Inheritances or creations, there was one he had met in real life. He had touched that aura and he had no doubt it was now connected to him.

Sure enough, a single vile thread tried to evade him. Its reaction was odd. He had expected it to try and pull him in, yet the thread fled from him.

He observed it and noticed it kept trying to blend into the larger pattern, but now that he had found it, it could never hide again.

{Reinforce my wards} He invoked his Divine Authority and a massive chunk of his lifeforce was consumed. A warning from Heaven and Earth, no doubt.

He took a breath and followed the thread. He took great care as he well knew he was not ready to truly see. What he was instead trying to assess was what was going on.

A sudden sensation of danger washed over him and he pulled back. He carefully probed a little at a time until the feeling rose beyond any safety. He then pushed his senses carefully.

A sensed titanic forces just beyond some kind of veil. Anger, arrogance, pain, and annoyance were the strongest sensations. He dared no more and tried to pull back.

[Trying to leave, ant?] A vile voice he had not heard in some time suddenly filled his head. Lind crushed a jade stone in his hands instantly.

The artifacts lit up and shock now flooded his mind. He was pulled safely away but he fell covered in sweat as he heard the artifacts shatter. The wards had been flayed and vile Qi had sparked before it was purified.

It had held, just barely. He could not do that again.

The original Bastard had proven the Tapestry Layer was a horrifying level of power but it currently was only a narrow use. He had to change that and quickly get stronger. Just the faint sensations had left him feeling helpless!

The Eternal Realm was more horrifying than he had ever imagined!