Though he had fallen in battle against Haoyi, Grand Dao Lord Taiyi had glimpsed the profound, higher potential of the Grand Dao of Taiyi. He bore the title Grand Dao Lord Taiyi, yet in his cultivation and attainment of that very Dao, Emperor Haotian had already surpassed him.
After that battle, Grand Dao Lord Taiyi's cultivation, strength, and Dao attainment had all improved immensely.
He therefore sought another person possessing the same talent and natural gifts as Haoyi, hoping to achieve another breakthrough.
However, while Grand Dao Lord Taiyi had felt genuine affection between master and disciple toward Haoyi, taking Xu Ying as his disciple was not out of genuine devotion—it was purely exploitation.
Xu Ying paid it no mind. High though his attainment in the Dao of Taiyi was, no matter how profound it became, it would always remain secondary to his Martial Dao.
*Whatever arts Grand Dao Lord Taiyi imparts will merely serve to expand my Martial Dao cave abyss,* he thought to himself. *I likely won't be able to offer him any guidance regarding the Dao of Taiyi, but by the time he realizes that, it will already be too late.*
The two reached the colossal figure formed by the radiant Dao light of the Tianjing Grand Dao Master. Multicolored auroras of the Great Dao continued surging in from across heaven and earth, various Daos submitting beneath the Grand Dao Master's form to become part of his body.
It was a spectacular and awe-inspiring sight.
Steering an imperial carriage, Dao Lord Hong arrived at Grand Dao Lord Taiyi's side. He cast a wary glance at Xu Ying and remarked, "This young friend looks rather familiar. It seems we've met before."
Xu Ying thought for a moment, then asked, "Back during the harvesting of the Heavenly Immortal Realm, did your Dao avatar perish under my Immortal Executing Sword?"
Dao Lord Hong shook his head, then suddenly realized with a cry, "You're that sword-wielding savage who went on a rampage during the harvest of the Heavenly Immortal Realm?!"
Xu Ying nodded, thought a bit more, and said, "Before coming to the Tianjing Ruins, when you were hunting Heavenly Venerable Taiyi, I was the cohort right by his side."
Dao Lord Hong bellowed, "That's right! You're the very accomplice Taiyi was protecting! You confess?!"
Xu Ying chuckled. "Dao Brother, I am the Grand Dao Lord's disciple. What would I be confessing to?"
Dao Lord Hong froze, then hurried to look toward Grand Dao Lord Taiyi, stammering, "Grand Dao Lord, this boy is clearly a rebel..."
Grand Dao Lord Taiyi replied indifferently, "Hong Tiangang, my disciple is never a rebel. Do you understand?"
Dao Lord Hong had no choice but to swallow his resentment. "Understood."
Grand Dao Lord Taiyi asked, "Is the karma binding me still present?"
Dao Lord Hong channeled his Wisdom Eye to discern karma. After observing for a long time, he said, "The Grand Dao Lord still shares a great karmic bond with the Tianjing Ruins. This karma involves you directly, Grand Dao Lord, so I dare not pass judgment..."
Suddenly, a divine ability surged through the distance. The Grand Dao of Divine Demon roiled tempestuously, transforming into a pair of black-and-white shears that snapped toward the Grand Dao Master's neck with a sharp crack!
"Brother Shenmo!" Grand Dao Lord Taiyi could not help but exclaim in astonishment at the sight. "When he strikes, it is truly that ruthless, reckless of all consequences!"
The Divine Demon Shears tore through myriad Daos, determined to sever the head of the forming Grand Dao Master. Right at that moment, the body of the Tianjing Ruins' Grand Dao Master began shrinking rapidly. With flick after flick of his fingers, he shattered the runic patterns of principle within the Divine Demon Dual Qi Shears!
Xu Ying was taken aback. "The Tianjing Ruins' Grand Dao Master doesn't need to seize a body—he can manifest a physical form directly from the Great Dao!"
He had previously assumed the Grand Dao Master of the Tianjing Ruins had scattered Dao lands, Dao Qi, and supreme treasures everywhere in order to reap them like chives, possessing the bodies of those fated cultivators to facilitate his own resurrection.
Now, seeing this Grand Dao Master gathering myriad Daos to construct a physical body, Xu Ying realized how shallow his initial thoughts had been.
How could a seized vessel ever compare to the exquisiteness and purity of a Dao body forged together by myriad Daos?
When anyone cultivated their physical body to the eighth realm of the Dao Realm and advanced toward the Indestructible Realm, they had to cultivate the body until the Dao was equal to the body, reaching the state where body and Dao were one.
At the realm of a Grand Dao Master, one's physical body surpassed ordinary Great Daos altogether, achieving unblemished Hunyuan to forge a Hunyuan Dao Body!
*If he seized a body, it would actually lower his achievements—the losses would far outweigh the gains,* Xu Ying thought as he watched. *If he isn't harvesting physical bodies, what is he harvesting?*
Before long, the Tianjing Grand Dao Master shrunk to the height of an ordinary person, appearing like a youth. His Hunyuan Dao Body had not yet fully formed. Currently, it was only the initial stage of the Tianjing Great Dao tide; the power of the Great Daos was still too weak. Although he could contend with the Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord, it laid bare his lack of strength.
His cultivation was not superior to the Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord's—in fact, it was somewhat inferior!
Yet as the Great Dao tide grew increasingly intense, his power would become stronger and stronger. Only when the Great Dao tide reached its peak would his strength be fully restored!
The Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord's true body arrived, channeling the Dao power of all his Divine Demon cave abysses in an attempt to disperse the Tianjing Grand Dao Master's Hunyuan Dao Body and sever his path to rebirth.
Yet the Tianjing Grand Dao Master's divine abilities were extraordinarily exquisite. Every technique precisely targeted the weaknesses of the Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord, conquering strength through weakness and forcing the Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord to retreat step by step.
The Grand Dao Master remained standing in place, while the Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord retreated further and further, roaring incessantly as his divine abilities were dismantled the moment they were unleashed.
Suddenly, the Yin Yang Grand Dao Lord swept into the fray and said leisurely, "Tianjing Dao Master, you truly have some skill! However, you elderly fellow had best be buried along with Tianjing!"
Fighting two at once, the Tianjing Grand Dao Master still did not fall into a disadvantage, dismantling both Grand Dao Lords' divine abilities with simple gestures.
The Yin Yang Grand Dao Lord was gradually forced back as well, leaving the two shocked and infuriated.
Around the Tianjing youth, even more multi-hued radiance of the Great Daos surged forth, pouring Dao power into his flesh and bolstering his cultivation and strength.
Facing multiplying pressure, Yin Yang and Shenmo groaned inwardly.
The Life and Death Grand Dao Lord activated his Life and Death cave abyss, channeling the dual Daos of Life and Death as he charged toward Dao Master Xuanhuang of the Tianjing Realm!
Confronting the three of them, Dao Master Xuanhuang still held his ground. Yet the Life and Death Grand Dao Lord's power was considerably more formidable than that of the other two Grand Dao Lords, exerting immense pressure that prevented Xuanhuang from freely marshaling Dao Qi and Dao power.
Seeing this, Grand Dao Lord Taiyi said to Xu Ying, "Go seek his legacy. I will see Dao Master Xuanhuang off. Fellow Daoist Hong, ensure their safety!"
Xu Ying felt a surge of dread. Grand Dao Lord Taiyi's strength was likely far greater than that of the Life and Death Grand Dao Lord. If he intervened, Dao Master Xuanhuang would be in dire straits.
Sure enough, the moment Grand Dao Lord Taiyi made his move, myriad Daos commingled, giving rise to boundless celestial phenomena that all paid homage to Taiyi. With a single strike, he sent Dao Master Xuanhuang flying backward, unable to halt his momentum.
As the other three Grand Dao Lords closed in for the kill, Dao Master Xuanhuang fought as he retreated, and the group soon vanished into the boundless darkness.
With Dao Master Xuanhuang's departure, a stretch of ruined walls and shattered rubble previously obscured by his towering figure was revealed before their eyes.
Zhuo Daochun, Wei Yi, Nangong Hao, Shi Yuting, and the others took flight one after another, rushing toward the ruins.
Xu Ying also sensed the Daos within his body stirring restlessly, as if something were calling out to him.
Dao Lord Hong warned sharply, "Brat, don't try any tricks!"
Xu Ying focused his gaze and saw an emerald-green stone stele standing amidst the ruins. Zhuo Daochun and the others dashed forward, charging straight toward the stele, but space trembled faintly, and they abruptly vanished.
Xu Ying arrived before the spot. Dao Lord Hong followed close behind, groping all around but feeling nothing. "Bizarre. There is no gateway here. How did they vanish?"
Xu Ying asked, "Dao Brother, can you see that stone stele?"
Dao Lord Hong asked in surprise, "What stone stele?"
Xu Ying pointed at the monument. "Right there."
Dao Lord Hong widened his eyes, yet he could not see any sign of the stele. Xu Ying was stunned. *Can this stele only be seen by the chosen?*
His interest was piqued. Leaping into the air, he looked around and muttered, "This is certainly a restriction formed from spatial divine abilities, transporting Zhuo Daochun and the others into the spacetime where the stele resides!"
With a sudden shift, Xu Ying passed into that space as well.
Dao Lord Hong grabbed his wrist firmly, entering that spacetime alongside him.
A blur flashed before their eyes, and they suddenly felt the Daos within their bodies rapidly turn sluggish, making it difficult to circulate their arts.
"The heavens are devoid of Dao! This place is close to the Chaos Sea!" Xu Ying exclaimed swiftly.
Dao Lord Hong's magic power was immense, unfazed by the suppression of the Chaos Sea, and he remained extremely formidable.
The two looked around. Outside the heavens surged the Chaos Sea, where wisps of chaotic Qi cascaded down like great waterfalls, eroding the ground into alarming chasms and leaving behind precipitous cliffs like a forest of blades, exceedingly treacherous.
Not far away, Zhuo Daochun, Wei Yi, and the others were also looking about.
Zhuo Daochun suddenly remarked, "This place must be a space opened within the Chaos Sea by Grand Dao Master Xuanhuang to evade the Great Dao tide. He left his legacy here so that his lifelong comprehension could be passed down in the future. All five of us have obtained the Grand Dao Master's legacy!"
"Do not wander off! Gather at my side—beware of danger!"
Dao Lord Hong abruptly exerted his magic power, shifting Zhuo Daochun, Wei Yi, and the others to his side.
"Where is this place?" he asked, looking around in bewilderment. "No such location ever existed in the Tianjing Ruins."
Xu Ying said, "This should be where Grand Dao Master Xuanhuang's legacy resides. Dao Brother Hong barged in after us—could it be that you wish to obtain the Grand Dao Master's legacy as well?"
Dao Lord Hong turned vigilant. "Fellow Daoist, what makes you say that?"
Nangong Hao, Shi Yuting, and Wei Yi took fright inwardly, hurriedly looking toward Dao Lord Hong.
Surveying their surroundings, Xu Ying saw that they were enclosed on all sides by the Chaos Sea, with no path back in sight. He remarked, "Presently, you are the only Indestructible Realm existence here, and a Dao Lord at that. Why bother hiding it? Taiyi, Yin Yang, Life and Death, Divine Demon—the four Grand Dao Lords have held sway over the other shore for far too long. Their pursuit of Dao Master Xuanhuang today is bound to be fraught with peril, triggering their respective tribulations and drawing the backlash of the Tianjing Realm's Great Daos. For them, it is a journey of grim tidings and little fortune—which instead gives you the opportunity to keep a Dao Master-level technique all to yourself!"
Dao Lord Hong laughed. "I oversee the Karma Great Dao and my Dao is equal to my body; naturally, I know how to pluck the strings of karma and seize opportunity. The Divine Demon Grand Dao Lord has the fiercest temper. With just a slight nudge in secret, I provoked him into clashing directly with Xuanhuang. Once he moved, the other Grand Dao Lords were bound to follow."
At these words, Wei Yi and Shi Yuting turned pale, feeling their chances of survival grow bleak.
Xu Ying smiled. "Those who master karma are ruthless figures. Dao Brother controls the Karma Great Dao, which is in no way inferior to the Daos of Taiyi or Life and Death. Plotting against four Grand Dao Lords is naturally well within your reach."
Dao Lord Hong roared with laughter. "The Karma Great Dao is the greatest Dao under heaven! By mastering karma, I can govern your every move; your every thought and intention will reflect upon karma. Those four Grand Dao Lords merely attained the Dao earlier than I did. Had I achieved the Dao alongside them, I would be the Grand Dao Lord, and they would be nothing more than second-rate figures!"
Zhuo Daochun said, "So, you followed us in to monopolize the Grand Dao Master's legacy and murder us to silence all witnesses."
Dao Lord Hong chuckled. "If you cooperate well, you may not have to die."
Xu Ying remarked leisurely, "You cannot see those emerald rock steles. You need us to help you and tell you what is written upon them."
Dao Lord Hong looked around and indeed saw no sign of any stele. He sneered viciously, "If you refuse to cooperate, I'll kill one or two of you first to warn the rest. We shall begin with the Three Realms savage!"
"Wait!" Xu Ying held up a hand and smiled. "The emerald rock stele I see is only one, right over there!"
He pointed toward the direction of the stele he saw. "Nangong Hao, where is the stele you see?"
Nangong Hao showed a puzzled expression and pointed toward a different direction. "The stele I see is over there! There's nothing at all where you pointed."
"That's not right! That's not right!" Shi Yuting pointed in yet another direction, differing from both Xu Ying and Nangong Hao.
Wei Yi added, "The position of the stele I see is completely different from all of yours."
Zhuo Daochun said, "I see a stele as well, and its position differs from all the rest."
Xu Ying's expression turned somber as he looked back at Dao Lord Hong. "It seems that if Dao Lord Hong wishes to obtain the complete Grand Dao Master legacy, you will have to preserve the lives of all five of us."
Chapter 745