"Now that Xu Ying has become the Primordial Origin Dao Master, he will definitely take this chance to strike at Luo Shizong. He once saw me withstand Dao Master Luo's Great Dao fluctuations and assumed he could return to the past to kill Dao Master Luo."
Dao Master Taiyi frowned slightly. If Xu Ying truly did so...
"Then... would Dao Master Luo be slain? Or would Xu Ying face the surging Great Dao torrent across boundless time all on his own, only to be blasted apart until his soul disintegrated into nothingness? Is Dao Master Luo truly destined to survive the Nirvanic Extinction Tribulation? If he is destined to survive nirvanic extinction, why was Xu Ying able to beat him into paralysis the last time?"
He hesitated for a moment, thinking, *No matter what, Xu Ying will certainly make a move against Dao Master Luo. And as long as he makes a move, danger will follow.* He set off for Tianjue City. By now, Tianjue City had also been moved by him to another location. Yet upon arriving at Tianjue City, he found no sign of Xu Ying! Qingxuan, Holy Venerable, and Jiu Zeng were not in the city either.
Dao Master Taiyi's expression darkened. He immediately channeled the Taiyi Great Dao. In an instant, all the Taiyi Great Dao throughout heaven and earth reflected clearly within his Dao heart. Discerning each thread of the Taiyi Great Dao, he frowned slightly; he still could not find Xu Ying's Taiyi Great Dao. Dao Master Taiyi stamped his foot, concealing Tianjue City within a cave abyss, and his figure vanished without a trace.
Not long after he left, Dao Master Lin descended from the heavens. His piercing gaze swept through the area in search, but finding no trace of Taiyi, he too departed.
Just as Dao Master Lin left, Dao Master Luo stepped out from the void. Casting a wary glance in Dao Master Lin's direction, he murmured, "Fellow Daoist Lin, something is not right with you. How could you have arrived here a step ahead of me?" Hua, Lin, and Luo—the three Dao Masters—had always stood united, jointly holding sway over the other shore and ruling the Great Thousand Universes. To outward appearances, the three were as close as one person, yet they were simultaneously players across a chessboard. On the surface, the Great Daos they cultivated were never hidden from one another, but what any of them cultivated in secret was known to no one.
When Dao Master Taiyi mobilized the Taiyi Great Dao between heaven and earth to search for people, that had included the Great Dao cultivated by Dao Master Luo, thereby alerted him. Dao Master Luo had rushed here at the first opportunity, never expecting he would still be a step slower than Dao Master Lin, which could not help but put him on guard.
"The Dao Venerable once said that among the three of us, Dao Master Hua had the finest natural endowment, I had the greatest talent, and you possessed the sharpest comprehension. Over all these years, just what have you come to comprehend?" Dao Master Luo grew secretly wary. Concealing his figure, he continued his search for the other Dao Masters.
Holy Venerable was hiding amidst Wanren Mountain in the mortal realm. He had folded a segment of space-time, concealing it upon a leaf of an ancient tree deep in the mountains, and hid inside that space-time to step up his sacrificial refinement. "Snatching this innate numinous treasure, the Chaos Shuttle, from the tiger's jaws... now that I possess this treasure, I would dare to trade blows even with Dao Ancestor Xu," he thought to himself.
Right then, Dao Master Taiyi walked straight in from outside and said, "Yuan Yu, do you know where your senior brother Xu Ying is?"
Holy Venerable froze in disbelief. He had laid down layers of restrictive seals and hidden himself so discreetly; how could Dao Master Taiyi have found him so easily?
Seeing him dazed, Taiyi asked once more.
Holy Venerable hurriedly shook his head. "Ever since Dao Master Hua died, I have not seen him!"
Taiyi felt somewhat disappointed. As he turned to walk outside, he suddenly remembered something and halted his steps, saying, "These arrangements of yours are useless against a Dao Master. If Dao Master Luo wishes to kill you, he need only search for the Great Daos of spirit, soul, hun, po, and the like to pinpoint your location."
He continued walking outside, saying, "The Dao of the soul also falls within Taiyi. You can use the Hunyuan method of the Taiyi Great Dao to blind his senses. It can hoodwink Dao Master Luo as well as anyone else. Aside from me, no Dao Master will be able to find you!"
Holy Venerable hurriedly called out, "Master, how do I hoodwink you?"
Taiyi's voice drifted back from afar: "Master the method of cyclical verification, and you can blind my perception."
Taiyi then went in search of Qingxuan. Qingxuan had also seized an innate numinous treasure and was currently sleeping with his head pillowed upon it. Taiyi entered his dream, woke him, and asked after Xu Ying's whereabouts, but Qingxuan did not know where Xu Ying was either.
Taiyi sought out Jiu Zeng next, but Jiu Zeng did not know Xu Ying's whereabouts either.
*Could Xu Ying already be dead?* A chill settled over Taiyi's heart.
In the Que Realm, Xu Ying's voice rang out: "Ancestral God, becoming the heaven-and-earth primordial spirit of the Que Realm ought to have healed your Dao injuries, right? Hurry, let us quickly hit the road and return to the other shore."
Dao light permeated the sky, tinting the entire firmament like rosy dawn clouds. The Ancestral God's colossal face lowered from above as he said, "This is only the eighth universe. Ah Ying, I feel that my Dao injuries have still not fully recovered!"
Xu Ying snorted, seeing right through his lie. Ever since escaping Dao Master Luo's all-out blow, Xu Ying and the Ancestral God had suffered heavy injuries and had no choice but to stay behind first to recuperate and heal their Dao injuries.
During his battle with Dao Master Luo, Xu Ying had discovered that Primordial Origin possessed uniqueness; the Primordial Origin Great Dao across all universes ought to be identical. Thus, when Dao Master Luo's strike pierced through the void of eight universes in succession, Xu Ying had borrowed the Primordial Origin Dao force between heaven and earth from those eight universes to cleave open Dao Master Luo's strike. Through this experience, he had come to realize the immense benefits of harvesting Dao force from other universes. However, he did not know the locations of those universes in the Chaos Sea; only these eight universes, marked by his Primordial Origin Great Dao, had known positions.
*If I want to defeat Dao Master Luo and Dao Master Lin, I must sink into the mire alongside them; otherwise, when they borrow the Dao force of the Great Thousand Universes, I will have no way to contend with them.* Thus, over these past days, Xu Ying had brought the Ancestral God back and forth among these eight universes, deepening his connection with the Primordial Origin Great Dao of each one.
As for the Ancestral God, he too had noticed that these eight universes lacked a universe primordial spirit. Presumably, back when the other shore invaded, their universe primordial spirits had been reduced to Dao ash. As extreme misfortune brings good fortune, it had been only natural for him to become the universe primordial spirit of all eight universes, completely healing his Dao injuries and causing his Dao force to surge tremendously.
*To kill Dao Master Luo, I must reach the other shore. Yet if I could pinpoint the locations of the other universes and simultaneously harvest the Primordial Origin Dao force of the Great Thousand Universes, why would I even need to return to the past to kill Dao Master Luo?*
*I could even beat the Dao Venerable to death,* an irrepressible desire welled up within Xu Ying's heart. *If I beat the Dao Venerable to death, I will be the sovereign of the Great Thousand Universes! With a single thought, I could decide the life and death of hundreds of millions of people! I...*
Suddenly, his hair stood on end. *I have only harvested the Primordial Origin Dao force of eight universes, yet I am already influenced by calamitous destiny! If I were to harvest the Great Thousand Universes, the calamitous destiny would likely plunge me deep into the calamity without me even realizing it!*
He thought to himself, *This harvesting method cannot be used constantly, or else I will inevitably suffer the backlash of calamitous destiny. Still, the stronger the calamitous destiny, the more potent one's cultivation in the path of calamitous destiny, and the heavier the karmic ties become. If I were to attain the Dao through calamitous destiny and causality, beating the Dao Venerable to death...*
The moment Xu Ying thought this far, he immediately severed his connection with those eight universes. Only then did his own calamitous destiny subside.
*How could I have been influenced so deeply? That's right—I too am a Dao Master of the other shore, standing amidst the calamity.*
At that moment, the Ancestral God's massive face lowered from the sky canopy, and his entire form slowly descended, separating from the heaven-and-earth Great Dao of the Que Realm.
"Ah Ying, you only just recovered from your injuries. Why are you in such a hurry to return?" The young Ancestral God's eyes shone brightly as he said, "Why not wait until you become the Primordial Origin Dao Master of the Great Thousand Universes before we head back? It won't be too late."
Xu Ying summoned the Kaiyuan Divine Axe and sneered. "By the time I became the Primordial Origin Dao Master of the Great Thousand Universes, I fear the Three Realms would have vanished long ago. Dao Master Luo is so formidable, and Dao Master Lin is certainly not weak either. Now that Dao Master Hua is dead and Tongtian is gone, the two of them could easily massacre all the Dao Masters. When the Three Realms run aground, everyone will become their slaves and rations."
He reached out, grabbed a passing cultivator, and focused his gaze. Instantly, he recognized that the cave abyss the cultivator had summoned belonged to the techniques of Yu Xuantong of the Taishang Dao! "We shall return to the other shore through Yu Xuantong's cave abyss. Once there, we will immediately return to the past and execute Luo Shizong!"
Xu Ying led the Ancestral God as they shuttled through the amber substance. The amber substance was originally an exceptionally viscous void. Since Xu Ying had cultivated the Void Great Dao, traveling through it did not meet with the terrifying resistance of before. Furthermore, with the Kaiyuan Divine Axe carving a path through the amber substance, the speed of the two was naturally far greater than in the past.
*The void truly is wondrous, actually capable of traversing the Chaos Sea,* Xu Ying praised in his heart. Right at that moment, the corridor abruptly disintegrated at high speed. The corridor pulling them toward the other shore crumbled, making it impossible to discern their heading. Xu Ying's heart gave a violent jolt, and he came to a sudden halt.
The Ancestral God asked in confusion, "What happened?"
"True King Yu Xuantong of the Taishang Dao is dead!" Cold sweat poured down Xu Ying's forehead. Yu Xuantong's death had caused the Taishang Cave Abyss to collapse, leading to the disintegration of the void corridor connecting the Que Realm and the other shore. Although the void remained continuous, without the corridor, Xu Ying had no idea which direction led to the other shore.
The void of the Chaos Sea was extraordinarily dense and viscous. If one lost one's way here, one could very well be trapped to death. Xu Ying steadied his mind and said, "No need to panic. My Primordial Origin Great Dao has already attained the Dao. As long as I sense the direction of the other shore, I can find it."
He concentrated his senses, and sure enough, he detected the Primordial Origin Great Dao of several universes. Xu Ying was stunned. The Primordial Origin Great Dao possessed uniqueness; the Primordial Origin Great Dao across every universe was identical, without any distinguishable difference. In other words, he could not tell which among these universes was the other shore.
"However, I am the Primordial Origin Dao Master. I can sense those cultivating the Primordial Origin Great Dao across nine universes. In the other shore, Gong Jiexuan's Primordial Origin Great Dao is already close to that of a Dao Master. By sensing her, I can determine which one is the other shore."
Xu Ying calmed his thoughts. Fearing his cultivation might be insufficient, he also summoned the Great Dao sutra banner; with Dao force bolstering him, his cultivation doubled. He extended his senses carefully. Suddenly, he detected an existence who had nearly attained the Dao in Primordial Origin, and he was overjoyed. *This must be Gong Jiexuan... Wait, there is another person whose attainment in Primordial Origin is even higher than mine!* Xu Ying's heart skipped a beat as he sensed another immensely imposing existence. That existence, noticing his probing, instantly severed the connection between their Primordial Origin Great Daos.
*The Dao Venerable! It's the Dao Venerable!* Xu Ying's heart pounded wildly. Knowing he could not probe carelessly, he immediately resumed his journey, rushing toward the other shore together with the Ancestral God.
Gong Jiexuan was searching for the whereabouts of other Dao Masters across the other shore, her movements elusive. Suddenly, she too felt a peculiar force causing the Primordial Origin Dao force within her body to rise and fall slightly, like the ebb and flow of a tide. *Why does this situation resemble the arrival of a Great Dao tide?* Her cultivation also fluctuated high and low, though fortunately it did not plunge straight to rock bottom as it would during a Great Dao tide.
*This should be the Primordial Origin Dao Master sensing my location,* she realized at once. The Primordial Origin Dao Master was the sovereign of the Primordial Origin Great Dao. Although she had attained the Dao through Primordial Origin, she was still governed by the Primordial Origin Dao Master! *This state of affairs is so similar to the Great Dao tide—could the Great Dao tide be the Chaos Sea sensing Tianjing?* An idle thought could not help but arise in her mind.
Within the amber substance, Xu Ying frowned slightly and said to the Ancestral God, "This woman is like a hare that never stays in its burrow, scampering all over without a fixed dwelling. Tracking her is extraordinarily exhausting."
Gong Jiexuan's unpredictable whereabouts forced him to change direction time and again as he pursued her. Nevertheless, he could broadly discern the heading of the other shore, even though they had long drifted away from their intended course.
The Ancestral God remarked, "If we can make it back to the other shore, we should burn high incense in thanks; we truly owe that young lady our gratitude!"
The two pressed forward, only to find that besides themselves, other things drifted within this void. They encountered several cultivators frozen within the amber, and saw several coffins crisscrossed with chains and plastered with yellow talismans. They also came upon hollow zones resembling ancient post-roads. Both marvelled at the sight. "Could there once have been a civilization in the Chaos Sea even more splendid than the other shore, using void corridors to traverse between universes?"
The expanse of the amber substance was truly vast. The void, compressed to solidification by the Chaos Sea, concealed countless unknown secrets that remained undiscovered to this day. Had Yu Xuantong not died so abruptly, Xu Ying and the Ancestral God would merely have traveled along their set corridor, and would never have discovered so many intriguing things hidden within the amber substance.
After an unknown length of time, they suddenly broke through the amber substance, bursting out as if ejected from jellied broth, and tumbled rapidly down toward the lower layers of the void. Xu Ying immediately steadied his footing and looked out beyond the void. Seeing that this was indeed the other shore, and specifically Daoji Heaven, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
"Ancestral God, Dao Master Luo's Mount Jiuqiu is not far off. We shall head to Mount Jiuqiu, cut our way back into the ancient past from there, find Dao Master Luo, and obliterate him." Light flashed in Xu Ying's eyes as he smiled. "If we obliterate Dao Master Luo, I wonder what changes will occur in the history of the other shore?"
The Ancestral God pondered and said, "The ramifications would be immense. I fear karma would be reshaped, reincarnation drastically altered, and calamitous destiny would undergo tremendous shifts. The events entangled by it would be as numerous as hairs on an ox, impossible to count..."
Xu Ying also fell into contemplation, then shook his head. "The power of reincarnation in the other shore is extremely weak; this innate Great Dao is not particularly potent here. As for causality and calamitous destiny—all karma will be severed within calamitous destiny. No matter how history is altered, once it reaches the great outbreak of calamitous destiny today, it can only be cut off right here."
His spirits lifted, and he strode toward Dao Master Luo's Anyou Palace. The Ancestral God followed him inside.
Xu Ying stood outside Anyou Palace, turned around, and looked toward Mount Jiuqiu before the palace. His eyes flickered with resolve as he said, "This time, we will return to the moment when the three great Dao Masters slaughtered the other Dao Masters and stockpiled them as rations. Slaying Dao Master Luo then will cause the least impact."
Behind him, karma gathered into bundles, converging to form an All-Knowing Eye that swept across the universe of the other shore, laying bare all great karma before his mind. His heart gave a start. *So many Dao Masters have died? The calamitous destiny upon Dao Master Luo is so heavy! My own calamitous destiny is far less crushing than his, yet it still influenced my state of mind. He, on the other hand, will surely find it hard to escape this calamity.*
With a thought, space-time turned like a wheel, roaring as it sliced into the past space-time, boundless years rushing past in a flash. At that same moment, Dao Master Taiyi sensed Xu Ying's Taiyi Great Dao and immediately rushed toward Mount Jiuqiu.
Dao Master Luo also sensed Xu Ying's aura roaring in, and returned to Mount Jiuqiu a step ahead of Taiyi.
"You took the bait after all, Xu Ying! Let me show you just how terrifying the Nine-Spirit Space-Time Calamity passed down by my father truly is..." His figure flickered and vanished!
Dao Master Taiyi arrived at Mount Jiuqiu, frowning slightly. He then stamped his foot and spurred the Taiyi Great Dao, which held space-time within. Slicing through layers of space-time, he too gave chase into the past.
Just as he cut into the past, Dao Master Luo followed like a shadow, entering the past space-time alongside him.
Nine Major Factors Influencing Combat Power:
Factors influencing combat power: 1. Realm; 2. Cultivation Technique; 3. Great Dao; 4. Dharmic Power (Primordial Qi, Dao Force); 6. Divine Powers; 7. Experience; 8. Dharmic Treasures; 9. Numbers.
Data for Dao Ancestor Luo when mobilizing the Great Thousand Universes: Realm: Peak Dao Master. Technique Tier: Ordinary. Dao Grade: Secondary. Dao Force: Dharmic power equivalent to 4,600 × 9 peak Dao Masters of a single secondary Dao. Divine Powers: Ordinary. Experience: Average. Dharmic Treasures: 300 items. Numbers: 1.
Wu Xizi: Realm: Mid Dao Master. Technique Tier: Fairly good. Dao Grade: High. Dao Force: Dharmic power of 3,000 mid Dao Masters of a single secondary Dao. Divine Powers: Fairly good. Experience: Average. Dharmic Treasures: 1 item. Numbers: 1.
Dao Master Lin when mobilizing the Great Thousand Universes: Realm: Peak Dao Master. Technique Tier: Fairly good. Dao Grade: High. Dao Force: Dharmic power equivalent to 4,600 × 300 peak Dao Masters of a single secondary Dao. Divine Powers: Fairly good. Experience: Average. Dharmic Treasures: 300 items. Numbers: 1.
Luo Taizong: Realm: Consummate Dao Master. Technique Tier: High. Dao Grade: High × 7. Dao Force: Dharmic power equivalent to 3,000 × 7 consummate Dao Masters of a single secondary Dao. Divine Powers: Top-tier. Experience: Rich. Dharmic Treasures: Divine powers serve as treasures. Numbers: 2.
Dao Venerable: Realm: Consummate Dao Master. Technique Tier: High. Dao Grade: High × 9. Dao Force: Dharmic power equivalent to 3,000 × 9 consummate Dao Masters of a single secondary Dao. Divine Powers: Top-tier. Experience: Rich. Dharmic Treasures: Divine powers serve as treasures. Numbers: 1.
Chapter 874