At this moment, the meridians within Ethan Carter’s body had been completely shattered, yet he didn’t care. He kept repeating the circulation of astral energy, letting it flow throughout his body, until night fell and the starlight enveloped Ethan Carter’s body.

Ethan Carter once again imagined the existence of a channel. His perception followed this channel, continuously rising upward. This kind of self-hypnosis was also something Henry Black had taught him—sometimes, people need to hypnotize themselves to gain stronger willpower.

As his perception rose, Ethan Carter clearly felt a faint pressure, but it couldn’t stop him. Soon, Ethan Carter felt as if he was standing amidst endless stars; he had arrived at the first celestial river.

Every time he came here, Ethan Carter’s heart would be deeply shaken. The nine heavens’ star rivers were incomparably magnificent. Standing here, he felt so insignificant, like a drop in the ocean, surrounded by countless stars.

“Broom Star.” Ethan Carter sensed a star beside him, shaped like a broom—it was the Broom Star.

“Weeping Willow Star. If I connect with it and awaken the star soul, perhaps my body could become incredibly flexible.”

“Water Serpent Star, Lyra Star.” Ethan Carter took a deep breath. It seemed that as long as he wished, he could connect with any martial fate star, even those considered extremely powerful by most people. But he still gave up, letting his perception continue to drift upward, crossing the first celestial river, then the second, until Ethan Carter reached the third heaven.

The pressure grew greater and greater; he could no longer freely choose martial fate stars as he did in the first heaven. However, if others knew his situation, they would probably call him a celestial being. He was completely unaware of the extent of his sensitivity to the stars. Ashley Baker had connected with a martial fate star in this very star river and was now famous throughout Chu.

“The martial fate stars of the third heaven clearly contain far more immense energy than those of the first two heavens. Let’s keep going—this isn’t the limit yet.”

Ethan Carter’s perception continued to drift upward. He felt the pressure on his senses growing ever stronger, as if it was about to force his perception back. His head began to ache and swell, but he gritted his teeth and persisted.

“Pain is only a matter of will. Empty yourself—pain will pass like a dream.”

Ethan Carter reached the fourth heaven. The terrifying energy contained in the stars here gave him a strong urge to connect with them. If he wished, perhaps he could become a genius the likes of which Chu had never seen.

“Henry Black once prepared for me information on many stars in the first five heavens. Clearly, he has high hopes for me.” Ethan Carter secretly gritted his teeth, letting his perception continue to drift upward.

“To connect with a martial fate star and awaken a star soul is very difficult. Besides talent, it also requires great willpower.” Ethan Carter told himself, enduring the swelling pain in his head, and continued to rush upward. Finally, he crossed another celestial river, and his perception reached the fifth heaven.

In front of him was a star, resembling a skull, filled with an evil aura.

“Skull Star.” Ethan Carter glanced at it and immediately shifted his perception away, drifting to the side. Now, he could no longer easily sense all the stars as he did in the first heaven; he could only sense them one by one. After a while, he sensed a lion star filled with the aura of flames.

“It’s the Fire Lion Star. If I connect with it, I’ll definitely gain powerful flames and overwhelming strength.” Ethan Carter considered it, but still gave up—he wanted to see more stars.

Then, he sensed a massive hammer-shaped star—the Celestial Hammer Star.

“Celestial Hammer Star.” Ethan Carter recalled Henry Black’s notes about the Celestial Hammer Star. Suddenly, he made a ruthless decision and took a gamble.

His perception surged madly toward the Celestial Hammer Star, connecting with it. He imagined himself as a consciousness merging into the Celestial Hammer Star. His head throbbed with increasing pain.

Beams of starlight rained down from the heavens, passing through layer after layer of celestial rivers, falling upon the cultivating Ethan Carter, enveloping his body. However, they did not directly rush into Ethan Carter’s body, but instead gathered on the stone at Ethan Carter’s neck.

At this moment, the terrifying starlight shone upon this stone. This ‘ordinary’ stone suddenly released a terrifying radiance, then began to disintegrate bit by bit, merging into Ethan Carter’s skin until it completely disappeared. Only then did the starlight truly shine upon Ethan Carter’s body, gathering little by little, the immense astral energy incomparably domineering.

A phantom of the Celestial Hammer appeared on Ethan Carter’s body, while his head felt as if it would explode from the pain. He clenched his teeth tightly, making a grinding sound, but still persisted, letting the astral energy circulate through his shattered meridians, forming a swirling vortex. At the same time, he desperately tried to condense his star soul. Only in this way could he truly be considered a martial fate cultivator.

“Rumble!” A buzzing sound came from within Ethan Carter’s body. It was as if endless astral power was rampaging through his shattered meridians, circulating again and again, gradually gathering into a terrifying vortex, spinning madly like a storm. He knew that the most critical moment had arrived—if he succeeded, he would complete his transformation.

This inhuman pain was almost unbearable. Even more terrifying, Ethan Carter had to split his focus, condensing his star soul and forging a complete meridian at the same time.