The Heavenly Dao of the Mortal Realm

"This is... Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder!" The Ancestral God was somewhat bewildered. Although Xu Ying was mischievous and unruly, he hardly seemed like a heinous villain deserving of damnation. How could he have triggered Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder? The big bell, however, knew the truth. In his first lifetime, Xu Ying had undergone heavenly tribulation seven times, each more powerful than the last, raising the tribulation's ferocity to a level that no one had been able to survive for forty-eight thousand years after him. For forty-eight thousand years, countless Qi Refiners across the myriad heavens and realms had perished beneath heavenly tribulations; countless Qi Refiners had held out until their dying breaths, never daring to face the crossing; countless Qi Refiners had betrayed their Dao hearts to become leek harvesters and fishermen. The resentment and curses accumulated over these forty-eight thousand years had long surpassed those directed at butchers who slaughtered cities and obliterated nations, warlords who devastated entire worlds, or villains guilty of the most heinous atrocities. Therefore, it was only natural that his tribulation in the Mortal Realm had summoned Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder. "Could the person undergoing tribulation in the Mortal Realm not be him?" The Ancestral God considered this, then shook his head. The Ancient Ferry had not yet been reopened. Aside from Xu Ying, who else could have slipped into the Mortal Realm? Those who could reach the Mortal Realm in this world could be counted on one hand, and none of them had any need to undergo a heavenly tribulation. Seeing the Big Dragon and the big bell fretting with worry, the Ancestral God consoled them, "There is no need for you two to fret. The Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder delivers only a single strike; there will never be a second." Hearing this, the Big Dragon and the big bell were slightly relieved. "Because a second strike is almost never needed," the Ancestral God explained. "The first strike is more than enough to obliterate form and spirit, scattering the soul into oblivion." The Big Dragon and the big bell instantly grew tense with dread. They looked up at the sky, only to see that after the Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder detonated across the heavens, its purple light gradually faded. True to his words, no second strike fell. "Was I not right?" the Ancestral God remarked. Meanwhile, in the Mortal Realm, the villagers were still in shock over the terrifying power of that sudden thunderclap. Several elderly folks in the village remarked that they hadn't heard a single sound in years, and this sudden blast had scared the wits out of them. A few bolder villagers stepped outside to look for the youth who had crawled "like a champion" on a single arm earlier, only to find a human-shaped lump of charcoal, still wafting with billowing heat. The savory aroma of cooked flesh hung in the air. Across the ground around the blackened figure spread lightning-shaped patterns, crisscrossing in all directions. In the air drifted faint purple tracings woven into a dense, intricate net, seemingly obeying some wondrous law. When they approached slightly, a peculiar melody drifted from the faint purple tracings, making their heads spin and throb. "Just what kind of wicked sin did he commit to get struck by lightning like that?" the villagers muttered among themselves. Xiao Man and several lively children walked over and threw pebbles at the charred figure. But the moment the stones drew near, they were melted and vaporized by the faint purple patterns, disappearing without a trace. The children were startled, yet grew even more excited. "The purple lines are disappearing!" Xiao Man cried out in surprise. Before long, the purple tracings surrounding the charred figure grew dimmer and dimmer. Xiao Man observed closely and saw that the purple lines drifting in the air were flowing into the charred silhouette silently, like streams of water. By evening, the pale purple patterns had faded until they were nearly imperceptible. Even so, any stones they hurled were still reduced to ashes by an inexplicable force. Gradually, a wondrous Dao aura emanated from the human-shaped charcoal. The playing children sensed this marvelous resonance and halted their games. One by one, they stood up, spread their arms with palms facing the sky, tilted their heads back, and immersed themselves in the wondrous state of entering the Dao. Children possessed pure, transparent minds, free of scheming or ulterior motives, nor did they ponder whether this strange Dao aura was benevolent or malevolent. Very quickly, they attuned to the rhythm of the Heavenly Dao. Strange to say, whenever they had tried to imitate adults in the past, they rarely sensed anything at all, yet this time the resonance was extraordinarily intense! They felt as though they had merged with the world around them. They could feel crops growing, and deep within the ancient earth, the breathing of the terrestrial lungs and the flowing of subterranean magma. They felt clouds drifting across the sky, wind romping in glee, cries echoing through mountains and wilderness, vegetation flourishing unrestrained, and wild beasts frolicking in the forests. They even sensed the auras of archaic behemoths far away, as well as wanderers lurking in the darkness. They also sensed an exceptionally powerful consciousness, broad enough to fill the heavens and thick enough to span the earth. This consciousness resonated with them, ushering in endless wondrous insights into the Dao. In their innocence, the children let their thoughts enter the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, merging as one with the Heavenly Dao. This single experience of entering the Dao alone laid an incomparably profound foundation for them! In the Earth Immortal Realm's Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court. "Old Dragon, look quickly!" The Ancestral God looked up at the sky and exclaimed, "A new change has appeared in the Mortal Realm!" The Big Dragon and the big bell, who were cultivating diligently in hopes of refining the dragon-bell into an undying spirit body, hastily looked up at the news. Across the pitch-black Mortal Realm, several spots of light were like scattered starlight in the darkness, and one of them was actually expanding outward at a steady pace! The Big Dragon and the big bell were utterly astonished. That expanding point of light was precisely where the Ancestral God had hurled Xu Ying! "Ancestral God, what is happening?" the Big Dragon asked. "The Heavenly Dao there is expanding." The Ancestral God said, "The power of the Heavenly Dao is steadily growing stronger. In fact, it is multiplying at an astonishing speed!" As the saying went, when the Dao flourished, demons retreated. With the power of the Heavenly Dao surging drastically, the darkness was gradually pushed back. Life in the Mortal Realm was beginning to revive, and the living space would expand ever larger! "Although the light in the Mortal Realm grew in the past, it grew at a crawl. For it to double and expand like this now, something extraordinary must have occurred!" The Ancestral God murmured, "All of this happened right after I cast Xu Ying over. Could it be that Xu Ying caused this transformation?" He was deeply perplexed. Facing the Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder, could Xu Ying have possibly survived? "Utterly impossible!" He shook his head. The Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder was far too devastating; its lightning had illuminated more than half of the Mortal Realm. With such immense power, even Xu Ying's Leakless Golden Body would have been riddled with holes and leaking air in all directions. Even an Undying Primordial Spirit would have been extinguished, and an Undying True Spirit would most likely have been shattered. Yet if it was not Xu Ying, who else could be forging and strengthening the Heavenly Dao of the Mortal Realm? The Ancestral God felt an itch to descend into the Mortal Realm and see for himself what had transpired, yet the vast swathes of darkness covering the realm constrained him, making him hesitate to venture down. In the darkness lay great terror. A great terror that filled even him with dread! Across the Heavenly Sea at the Ancient Ferry, Immortal Emperor Supreme arrived in person to oversee the works. Tens of thousands of Heavenly Craftsman Immortals from the Heavenly Works Ministry of the Immortal Court raised various measuring treasures to survey the sky and earth, measuring the dimensions of the golden ships meant to cross the sea. Other Heavenly Craftsmen were transcribing the archaic imprints on the golden ships, studying their secrets. Still more Heavenly Craftsmen boarded the mostly repaired golden ships and piloted them into the Far Ancestor's dragon head, sailing forward along the channel formed by indestructible spiritual light. The indestructible spiritual light resembled a great river of radiance laid across the Heavenly Sea, leading into a dark, mysterious expanse. "Your Majesty, someone has already been through this archaic passage!" A Heavenly Craftsman made a discovery and rushed to report. "We found that someone stripped intact parts from many sunken ships to assemble a complete vessel." Immortal Emperor Supreme was taken aback. "Someone has already traveled through the passage into that darkness?" Right then, wretched shrieks echoed across the sea. Immortal Emperor Supreme looked over hastily and saw the golden ship that had just sailed into the radiant river breaking apart into fragments! Many Heavenly Craftsmen fell into the torrent, swallowed by the waters, vanishing without a trace! That river of spiritual light was exceedingly perilous. Formed entirely of indestructible spiritual light, its power was terrifyingly vast. Without a golden ship, reaching the end of the river was pure fantasy! "Who on earth reassembled a golden ship? Could it be the other three old monsters who seized the Far Ancestor's primordial spirit fragments?" As Immortal Emperor Supreme calculated intently, he suddenly caught sight of a flicker of light at the end of the radiant river, deep within that dense darkness. The light grew brighter and wider, blooming outward and repelling more of the gloom. Immortal Emperor Supreme's eyelids twitched. He tried to divine what was happening there, but could deduce nothing. He had also claimed a portion of the Far Ancestor's primordial spirit fragments, which contained memories of the Archaic Era chronicling many mysterious, magnificent events. Among them was the Ancient Ferry. Legend had it that this ferry connected two destinations: one was the Mortal Realm, and the other was the Heavenly Immortal Realm! "Pass down my decree: dismantle the Heavenly Road to repair the Ancient Ferry!" Immortal Emperor Supreme's voice resonated outward. "The deadline is three months! You must build me a complete golden ship! Even if it takes filling the river with human lives, you must repair this waterway for me!" With this command, the Heavenly Craftsmen grew all the more frantic. Immortal Emperor Supreme gazed toward the expanding glow and thought, *Is that the Mortal Realm, or the Heavenly Immortal Realm? Regardless of which realm it is, an earth-shattering upheaval must have occurred there!* In the Mortal Realm. After who knew how long, the voices of parents calling their children home rang out. Xiao Man, Xiao Lou, and the other youngsters were shaken from their trance. They noticed that the purple patterns around the charred body had completely vanished, though the Dao aura lingered. "Thank you." A voice echoed simultaneously in their minds. Xiao Man and the others looked around in bewilderment. That voice belonged to the colossal consciousness that had filled heaven and earth moments ago—the very consciousness that had guided them into the Dao. It had led them to attune to heaven and earth, comprehend the Great Dao of the universe, and resonate with this land. In this single afternoon of communing with nature and the cosmos, they had gained hundreds, thousands of times more than in all their previous years combined. Yet why was that voice thanking them? They did not know that when the Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder struck, it had instantly shattered Xu Ying's Leakless Golden Body, pierced straight through his Undying Primordial Spirit, and ruptured his Undying True Spirit! At that moment of life and death, Xu Ying had suddenly sensed that the Mortal Realm's Heavenly Dao was incomplete. Seizing on this flaw, he had managed to evade total destruction, saving part of his primordial spirit and true spirit from being obliterated by the lightning. Even so, his consciousness was almost blown apart by the Purple Firmament Tribulation Thunder. Unable to mend his physical body and primordial spirit, he seized the prime opportunity of facing a heavenly tribulation to comprehend the Mortal Realm's Heavenly Dao embedded within the tribulation lightning. However, his consciousness had scattered. On his own, comprehending the Heavenly Dao within the tribulation lightning in a short span would have been nearly impossible. Luckily, those playful children were nearby, and fortunately, they had the habit of imitating adults to comprehend heaven, earth, and nature, unknowingly doing Xu Ying an immense favor. As Xu Ying's consciousness gradually reassembled inside the charred silhouette, he thought, *Man models earth, earth models heaven, heaven models the Dao, and the Dao models nature. If not for these children, I fear I truly would have perished into smoke. Thanks to them, I was able to catch a preliminary glimpse of the Mortal Realm's Heavenly Dao and take another step forward!* "It's almost dark!" the urgent voices of the adults called out. Xiao Man and the others called back in response and ran toward the village. Suddenly, their bodies felt featherlight, and they actually took flight! One by one, they glided through the air as though the sky exerted buoyant force. Riding the wind to advance—what a wondrous feeling! The young boys and girls cried out in alarm, their cries quickly turning into joyful laughter as they rode the wind toward the village. Night fell. Crackling sounds echoed from the charred figure as its blackened crust fractured slightly, faint light swirling within. The resonance of the Heavenly Dao remained exceptionally rich, swirling around the charred form, while wondrous sounds of the Dao drifted from within. Just then, the sound of Dao weeping arose. Skeletal figures emerged across the vast wilderness. Towering tall, they opened fleshless maws to release waves of Dao weeping capable of destroying the Great Dao! These skeletons from the era of the Archaic Dragon Court seemed determined to destroy every Dao method in the world. Sensing Xu Ying's location, they surged forward in droves. For a time, the wilderness was covered in heaps of white bones surging like waves, phosphor flames lighting the night like day! The sound of Dao weeping grew even more deafening, as if reenacting the apocalyptic scenes of ancient times. Countless skeletons swarmed toward Xu Ying, among them even dragon-headed, human-bodied bones—undoubtedly masters among the dragon race! The sound of Dao weeping drowned out the Heavenly Dao's resonance, invading the charred figure. Within the blackened husk, radiant light curled, currently shaping the Dao bones. At this crucial moment, disturbed by the Dao weeping pouring in from all sides, the process fell into disarray. Just as all his efforts were about to be undone, an immortal plant suddenly leaped out from Xu Ying's Great Luo Heaven, towering between heaven and earth! Its flower bud, like the hammer of a giant deity, abruptly split into a cavernous maw and snapped down upon the skeletons! *Crunch!* The strange flower of the Heavenly River was large enough to swallow archaic behemoths. In a single bite, hundreds of skeletons met their doom, swallowed whole! Within the bud, jagged teeth lined the maw, while stamens flailed like tentacles from the bloody cavity, ensnaring the skeletons tightly and sealing their jaws shut so they could utter no Dao weeping. Once the bones fell into the flower bud, the sharp teeth crushed them, refining and absorbing them in an instant! Not only that, the strange flower was like a colossal giant striding between heaven and earth. Its leaves served as giant palms, its stem as arms, and its roots as feet. It rampaged across the wilderness, swinging its palms and striking with iron fists, shattering skeletons to pieces with nearly every blow! The skeletons seemed to realize that if the person inside that charred husk were revived, it would spell their doom. Thus, they surged forward like a tide; even the ferocious might of the strange flower could not deter them. They lunged onto the strange flower, unleashing waves of Dao weeping from their open jaws while battering its roots, stems, branches, leaves, and petals with fists and kicks, causing its sap to spill everywhere. Far in the distance, even more skeletons rushed toward the fray! The strange flower grew intoxicated with slaughter, fighting all the more savagely. It darted across the bone-strewn battlefield like a phantom, occasionally leaping into the air and spinning its body as its tentacles caught skeletons clinging to its surface and flung them away. Then it rolled across the ground, lashing with branches and sweeping with leaves, smashing and exploding skeletons to dust! The more it killed, the fiercer it became. It devoured them like a whale, sweeping aside everything in its path, never yielding despite sustaining heavier and heavier wounds! The flower kept itself close to Xu Ying, never allowing a single skeleton to take half a step near him! After a night of brutal slaughter, bones piled into mountains across the plains. Mighty as the strange flower of the Heavenly River was, it was battered black and blue: its branches and leaves were heavily damaged, countless rootlets were severed, and its flower bud was bitten through in several places, leaking air everywhere! Yet the strange flower fought on without backing down! Finally, after a long night, dawn broke in the east, and the sky gradually lightened. From deep within the distant darkness came a furious snort: "Meddlesome nuisance!" Immediately, the frantically swarming skeletons retreated like the tide, quickly vanishing beyond the horizon without a trace. "Meddlesome nuisance?" The strange flower spoke in a human tongue, sneering softly, "When my own life and livelihood are on the line, how could it be none of my business?" The strange flower turned its "head" toward Xu Ying, its voice taking on a bizarre tone: "Now... finally, no one is left to contest this physical body with me."