Many were the experts swept into Longxing Temple; most were merely of the eighth Dao Realm, with only several dozen being Immortals, True Kings, and Dao Lords.
Yet this era was exactly one hundred and twenty million years ago, when the highest cultivation on the other shore was nothing more than the eighth or ninth Dao Realm.
"If we take down Dao Master Hua, Dao Master Lin, and Dao Master Luo right now, could we replace them?"
Some stirred with restless ambition and laughed. "Even if we can't kill them, taking out the other future Dao Masters might give us a chance to attain the Dao!"
At these words, many people were tempted.
Since they had returned to the past through Longxing Temple, why not seize the opportunity to eliminate those old bastards entrenched in high positions who refused to step down, take those thrones themselves, and become the old bastards? Wouldn't that be splendid?
"Hua Shengsheng, Lin Chuanting, and Luo Shizong aren't Dao Masters right now! We can replace them!"
Grand Dao Lord Shenmo noticed the restlessness stirring among them and couldn't help shaking his head. Looking again at the ouroboros, an uneasy feeling crept into his heart.
"That snake is condensed from the Great Dao. Even I cannot fathom its inner profundities, but I can see it holds the mysteries of space-time Samsara. What on earth is Tianchengzi trying to do?"
Just then, Grand Dao Lord Shenmo suddenly caught sight of his younger self, and his heart pounded wildly.
"If I walk over right now and encounter myself, will I vanish, or will I coexist with myself? Is the me of the past the physical me or the primordial spirit me? If it is the physical me, then nothing about me has changed, yet the present me is different from the past. If the physical me has changed while the primordial spirit me has not, am I still me?"
For a moment, he was thoroughly bewildered. He thought, 'If I kill the me of that era, will the present me vanish? If I tell the me of that era how to cultivate, will the present me instantly become a Grand Dao Master?'
Muddled and lost in thought, he hesitated, unable to step forward.
Elsewhere, Grand Dao Lord Taiyi also saw his younger self. In those days, Taiyi was already a mature, steady young man, just as mature and steady as the Taiyi of today.
"If I walk over and tell the me of that time the direction of the future, could I prevent so many things from happening?"
He stood dazed.
Throughout his life, he harbored many regrets. These regrets haunted his Dao heart like silt resting at the bottom of the water; whenever recalled, they churned up murkiness that took a long time to settle again.
What if none of these regrets had to happen?
"Perhaps I would have a better way to handle the people of Tianjing. Perhaps the calamitous destiny back then would not have erupted. Perhaps in the battle against Tongtian, I would not have had to lose. Perhaps Haoyi would not have had to die."
Hesitating a moment, he nonetheless took a step toward his younger self.
He wanted to try and see if he could change the past.
"My past is, to the me of the past, a future that has yet to occur! For him, the future can be changed!" Passion burned in his heart.
Xu Ying, meanwhile, rode Dao Master Luo's carriage to Zhiren Hall, where Dao Master Hua resided. Without waiting for an announcement, Dao Master Luo strode straight inside and laughed. "Fellow Daoist Hua, today I met two fine friends and simply must introduce them to you!"
Xu Ying followed Tianchengzi inside, thinking curiously to himself, 'If I truly returned to the past and changed history, Dao Master Hua and Dao Master Luo would definitely know me. Yet they don't recognize me, which means... my disguise is very convincing!'
Full of confidence, he thought, 'Another possibility is that we didn't return to the past. But that is impossible.'
At this time, Dao Master Hua appeared exceedingly young and tall, with none of the vicious old man's demeanor that later made him hack down people at the slightest provocation.
His forehead was broad and high, giving him an air of great wisdom. Welcoming Xu Ying and Tianchengzi, his eyes flickered, and he smiled. "Tianchengzi cultivates the Great Dao of Space-Time. Hua has long heard of your renowned name, and today I finally have the fortune to meet you! A great blessing, a great blessing!"
Tianchengzi gave a lukewarm reply.
Dao Master Hua took no offense and turned to Xu Ying. "Fellow Daoist Ying's reputation is obscure, however; I have never heard your esteemed name before."
Dao Master Luo was astonished. "Fellow Daoist, you haven't heard of Fellow Daoist Ying? I assumed you had invited him, which is why we traveled together."
Dao Master Hua looked at Xu Ying with a faint smile that was not quite a smile. "Though I have a wide circle of acquaintances, I have never heard Fellow Daoist Ying's name, nor did I invite him. Fellow Daoist Luo, many unfamiliar faces have appeared on the island recently; we cannot let down our guard."
Dao Master Luo laughed. "Yet Fellow Daoist Ying is hardly an outsider. Like us, he studied under the Dao Venerable. He cultivates the Nine Innate Daos and claims to possess considerable attainments in Taiyi, Karma, and Samsara."
Even as he spoke, he shifted his footing, quietly cutting off Xu Ying's retreat.
Their pincer stance was set; they could strike at any moment.
Unperturbed, Xu Ying asked, "Are the two of you suspicious of my origins?"
Dao Master Hua said, "Very few cultivate the Nine Innate Daos. I know those who cultivate the Taiyi Great Dao; progress in that Dao is exceedingly slow, and achievements are low. To cultivate three supreme Great Daos at once as you do is rare indeed."
Dao Master Luo added, "Furthermore, though many cultivated beside the Dao Venerable back then, I met every single one of them. I only have no recollection of you."
"Just who are you?"
Dao Master Hua stepped forward and brought his hand down like an axe toward Xu Ying!
The moment he struck, Xu Ying discerned that his cultivation was truly extraordinary. He had already attained the Immortal realm. Though only in the early stage, he still wielded formidable combat strength.
The Great Dao cultivated by Dao Master Hua was also a remarkably supreme one: the Strength Dao.
All things possess strength. At the simplest level, an ordinary person can lift a heavy object of several dozen jin, and a sprouting seed can break through the soil; the geomagnetic meta-force of celestial bodies, the meta-magnetic force maintaining the circulation of star rivers, and the attraction and repulsion between the minutest particles of matter—all belong to strength.
His strength was domineering beyond measure, his axe carrying the momentum to open the heavens and cleave the earth. As the strike fell, Xu Ying even sensed that the void around him had been split across as many as thirty layers!
'To cultivate the Strength Dao to such a degree is truly extraordinary! An inconspicuous Dao like the Strength Dao cannot be underestimated either!'
With this thought, Xu Ying activated the first method of the Eight Immortality Methods, Earth-Opening, to meet Dao Master Hua's divine axe.
When Xu Ying originally created the Earth-Opening Method, it was merely an imitation of Dao Lord Wuchen. But now his perspective, insight, cultivation, and foundation had all surpassed Wuchen.
When he unleashed the Earth-Opening Method, it was even superior to Wuchen's!
Axe light met axe light. In the next breath, Dao Master Hua's divine axe shattered. His complexion changed drastically, and he staggered backward.
Yet Xu Ying inwardly praised him: 'One capable of becoming a Dao Master in the primeval era of the other shore is remarkable indeed. To elevate his cultivation to the level of a Dao Lord with just an unremarkable Great Dao is truly not to be underestimated!'
Though Dao Master Hua was defeated, he had earned Xu Ying's respect.
A sliver of wonder lingered in his heart: 'This Dao Master Hua's strength is genuinely extraordinary. Could I really have returned to the past?'
At the same time, Dao Master Luo had already charged forward, condensing his own Dao power into a pagoda that came crashing down toward Xu Ying's back.
Xu Ying fell back, meeting the Fengya Pagoda with his bare flesh. The pagoda shattered with a resounding crash!
Xu Ying's expression shifted slightly as he felt a dull ache in his back. He thought, 'This Dao Master Luo must possess Dao Lord-level strength as well. They likely only just attained the Immortal realm, yet they already have the combat prowess of a Dao Lord. As expected of Dao Masters who managed to survive to the present!'
What earned his admiration was that these two had probably not yet harvested the myriads of worlds in the universe, yet they already possessed such strength!
'After harvesting the boundless universes and becoming Grand Dao Masters, how terrifying must their might have been?' Xu Ying wondered secretly.
Hua and Luo were even more shocked than he was.
The two of them were the earliest experts on the other shore to achieve the Immortal realm. Summoning everyone to assemble on Qionghua Island this time was meant to cement their leadership and carry out a monumental endeavor.
They believed that even if others had proven Immortality, in terms of strength, no one could rival them.
Yet contrary to their expectations, this obscure Ying Xu had defeated each of them in merely a single move!
Before Hua and Luo could speak, a spear suddenly thrust in like a tempest, domineering beyond measure. In an instant, before and behind, left and right of Xu Ying, thrusting spear-points filled every corner of sight!
As the spear trembled, each blossoming flurry revealed scenes of worlds of the heavens, carrying the might of an entire world!
Such exquisite spear craft was rare indeed!
Marshaling slaughter Qi, Xu Ying used his finger as a sword. With one strike, he severed the spear-tip, and the sky full of spear shadows vanished instantly. In the next breath, his fingertip rested against the newcomer's brow. A single release of sword Qi would pierce the man's skull!
"Spare him!" Hua and Luo cried in unison.
Xu Ying pulled back his finger and looked at the newcomer. It was none other than another of the future Three Great Dao Masters of the other shore: Lin Chuanting, Dao Master Lin!
Dao Master Lin's face was deathly pale, filled with shock and doubt. Dao Master Hua hurried forward, laughing heartily. "Fellow Daoist Lin, this is Brother Ying Xu, not an enemy! We were merely exchanging pointers just now."
Dao Master Lin breathed a sigh of relief and quickly apologized to Xu Ying. "So it is Brother Ying. Brother Ying's cultivation is truly earth-shattering. I had thought that by breaking through to the Immortal realm I had achieved something worthwhile, never imagining I would fall so far short of Brother Ying."
Xu Ying smiled. "Those who do not know are blameless. Fellow Daoists, I have never cared for fame or gain, nor am I gifted in socializing. When the Dao Venerable preached the Dao back then, I kept my distance to focus on comprehension and grew estranged from you all; the fault is mine. I hope you three fellow Daoists can forgive me."
Hua, Lin, and Luo hurriedly demurred.
Looking at the three of them, Xu Ying felt an itch in his heart. He thought, 'If I strike and kill them right now, could I change the future?'
He could tell that Hua, Lin, and Luo at this stage were not overwhelmingly formidable in cultivation or combat strength. With his current power, eliminating the three would not be difficult.
As Xu Ying was pondering, Tianchengzi inquired, "Fellow Daoist Hua, for what purpose have you summoned us this time? Could you share a word beforehand?"
Dao Master Hua's gaze settled upon Xu Ying, and he smiled. "Indeed, there is a momentous matter to discuss. We were uneasy before, feeling it would be difficult to carry out this great endeavor cleanly and neatly. But with Brother Ying here, we have absolute certainty."
Dao Master Lin laughed. "For this matter, none other than Brother Ying will do. If Brother Ying acts as our leader, we will be convinced heart and soul!"
Xu Ying had initially planned to strike and kill them immediately, but hearing this piqued his curiosity. He asked, "Everyone, what matter is so solemn?"
Dao Master Hua's expression turned grave. Clearing his throat, he said in a low voice, "The Dao Venerable of Tianjing taught us principle scripts, Dao methods, and divine powers. It appeared to be for our good, but in truth, he harbored sinister intent!"
Xu Ying was slightly taken aback and blurted out a laugh. "The Dao Venerable taught us principle scripts and Dao methods, helping us emerge from ignorance. How could you say he harbored sinister intent?"
Dao Master Hua sneered. "He did not tell us that principle scripts would alter our heaven-and-earth Great Dao! He knew long ago that when we brought principle scripts back to our homeland, it would trigger a cataclysm of heaven and earth! Yet he concealed it from us, leading to the deaths of countless kin! This disaster has persisted for over a million years and still has not ceased! How can such a blood feud go unavenged?"
Dao Master Luo declared loudly, "Fellow Daoist Hua is right! This deep blood feud must be avenged! Blood debts must be paid in blood!"
Xu Ying frowned. "If the Dao Venerable truly harbored sinister intent, why would he impart his true teachings to us? His instruction was completely unreserved—he even taught the cultivation methods of the Nine Innate Daos."
Dao Master Hua said, "That is precisely where his cunning lies! Imparting the true teachings was merely to stall for time. When we ran aground on Tianjing and our two universes collided, they lost their Dao power due to the Great Dao tide, while our heaven-and-earth Great Dao remained intact. He had to destroy our heaven-and-earth Great Dao."
Dao Master Lin said, "He taught us the true teachings to destroy our heaven-and-earth Great Dao with principle scripts and transform it into Tianjing's heaven-and-earth Great Dao. That way, they could survive in our universe and cultivate in our universe!"
Dao Master Luo added, "It is a venomous scheme to nest in another bird's home! In recent years, many people of Tianjing have already migrated here and begun cultivating in our lands! If this continues, our very race will be supplanted by them!"
Dao Master Hua said, "The migration of the people of Tianjing today is a sign! It indicates that our universe's heaven-and-earth Great Dao has been altered to resemble Tianjing's. The next step, I fear, is for the Dao Venerable and other Dao Masters to come here to cultivate anew and become the rulers of our universe!"
The three young Immortals spoke one after another, voicing their respective concerns. Only Tianchengzi stood aside, offering no comment.
Xu Ying froze. Did the Dao Venerable of Tianjing back then truly have such intentions?
"How can we allow another to snore beside our bed?"
Dao Master Hua was impassioned and spoke with booming fervor. "The Dao Venerable's conspiracy has mostly succeeded, but with us here, we will never permit him to set half a foot into our universe! Brother Ying, we are all convinced of your prowess. Today, you shall be our leader, to guide us in marching upon Tianjing and slaughtering every last person of Tianjing!"
Xu Ying's mind roared: 'Could it be that I am the executioner who led the experts of the other shore to exterminate Tianjing?'
Dao Master Luo's blood surged. Gritting his teeth, he lowered his voice. "If our plan gets out, it will surely face opposition from many. Though those people are of our kin, they are loyal to the Dao Venerable and have become traitors to our clan! Fellow Daoist Hua invited them to the island this time precisely to round them all up and wipe them out in one fell swoop!"
Dao Master Lin's eyes flushed red with excitement. "This time, we will slaughter them all! Then strike all the way to the other shore, to avenge all our kin who died unjustly over these past million-plus years!"
The three turned their gazes upon Xu Ying and said in unison, "Brother Ying, what say you?"
Chapter 818