Aftermath

Dao Lord Penglai was mystified when Yaoguang had asked her to show mercy, only to suddenly burst forth and slay Dao Lord Yuanxu himself... Yet she did not pry. Perhaps Yaoguang wished to build confidence for his own eventual attempt at Dao Integration by slaying a void Dao Lord. Cultivation was an intensely personal affair. Even the closest of friends ought not to inquire too deeply into such things. So long as the goal was achieved, that was enough. "A rank-fifteen formation." Dao Lord Penglai glanced at the grand array enveloping the entire Heavenly Dao Sect, her confidence growing that Yaoguang would indeed be able to lay down an immortal formation in the future. Thereupon, she spoke directly, "I shall go see if I can still catch Black Moon and Yulin. Since they dared join hands and actively provoke me, they must be made to pay for their actions no matter what." "Please proceed as you see fit, Dao Lord," Yaoguang said, then added, "Afterward, I must trouble you to return here. I will need to borrow your strength for the final refinement of the Human Emperor Sword." "It is nearly complete?" A gleam of brilliance flashed in Dao Lord Penglai's eyes. "So soon?" "I, Yaoguang, am famous for my speed," Yaoguang said with a smile. "Very well. I will sweep through the surrounding region and put them thoroughly in their place, then return to fully assist you in completing the Human Emperor Sword's final refinement," Dao Lord Penglai replied with delight. With that, she prepared to depart. Yaoguang hastily brought out a high-grade Dao artifact and the surviving core of a grotto-heaven. "Slaying Yuanxu was entirely thanks to your might, Dao Lord. These items..." "Keep them for now. The remnants of a void Dao Lord will surely aid your future attempt at Dao Integration. If you succeed, we can advance and retreat together, so consider them a gift from me. But if you fail... I won't be polite about taking what you leave behind," Dao Lord Penglai said bluntly. Hearing this, Yaoguang did not insist. He nodded. "I will not disappoint you, Dao Lord." "Take care of yourself. If another crisis arises, call on me at once." The moment Dao Lord Penglai finished speaking, her figure flickered and vanished without a trace. This was spatial shuttling achieved by using the Great Dao of Origin to leverage the Grand Dao of the Void. Just as a person of immense physical strength could never be truly slow, resonance and interplay naturally existed among the Three Thousand Great Daos. Once Dao Lord Penglai had departed, Yaoguang turned his gaze back to the six Void Shattering experts within the formation, led by True Monarch Xujin. Stepping through the void, he appeared directly on the battlefield where True Monarch Xujin, Zhen Xuanyuan, and the others had fought to a standstill. Clenching his hand in the empty air, the power of the Twelve Fiendgods Sky-Sealing Formation surged. Each fiendgod manifested might far surpassing the Void Shattering tier, boldly seizing and suppressing the troublemaking Void Shattering cultivators one by one. Yet these Void Shattering cultivators... Even True Monarch Xujin included, the moment they noticed the shockwaves of battle grinding to a halt and saw Yaoguang descending as the victor, ceased fighting at once and pleaded for mercy. "Sect Master Yaoguang, see reason! We were all coerced by Yuanxu and had no choice but to stand against the Heavenly Dao Sect. In truth, we harbor not a shred of malice toward you!" "Reporting to Sect Master Yaoguang, though we are True Monarch Xujin's followers and disciples, we were forced by circumstance! He grew jealous of our innate talents and power, leaving us with only two choices: submit entirely to become his disciples and subordinates, or be executed on the spot. In such a predicament, we had no choice at all..." "We are willing to pledge our allegiance to the Heavenly Dao Sect! From this day forth, we will contribute to the sect's growth and construction, dedicating our strength to atone for the offenses committed today!" Yaoguang glanced up at the twelve fiendgod phantoms re-coalescing overhead... The reason these Void Shattering figures surrendered so swiftly was, nine times out of ten, because they understood full well that against the might of a rank-fifteen formation, unless they wished to die, surrender was their only option. However, just as he was controlling the fiendgod phantoms to deliver a fatal strike to these Void Shattering cultivators, Zhen Xuanyuan spoke up: "I know nothing of the other Void Shattering cultivators, but a millennium ago, True Monarch Xujin truly took Yuanxu as his master only to preserve his own life..." Saying this, he added, "Moreover... his true form is human." Yaoguang's gaze fell upon True Monarch Xujin. Once cultivation reached a certain level, one's life form could be transformed at will. Although True Monarch Xujin maintained human form, given his status as Dao Lord Yuanxu's disciple, Yaoguang had assumed he was of the Astral Spirit Race or Void Race. "A thousand years ago, I too could be called a dazzling genius, needing a mere three hundred years from entering the cultivation path to ascend to the Void Shattering realm," True Monarch Xujin said bitterly. "Yet precisely because the talent I displayed was too exceptional, I caught Yuanxu's eye during an excursion. Fabricating an arbitrary excuse, he sought to put me to death, forcing me to take him as master simply to preserve my life..." Having said that, he quickly added, "In truth, though I served dutifully at Yuanxu's side for a millennium, he never trusted me in the slightest. As early as three hundred years ago, relying on a karma Dao artifact he obtained by chance, he planted karmic bonds within us, using that artifact to indirectly control and influence us." "A karma Dao artifact?" Yaoguang was somewhat surprised. Although his horizons were now incomparably broader than before, he had yet to touch the domains of fate and karma. Sweeping his senses through the remnants of Dao Lord Yuanxu's grotto-heaven core, a Dao artifact brimming with profound mystery soon appeared in his hand. Holding this artifact, Yaoguang immediately felt a connection forming between himself and over a hundred targets. Among them were several corresponding to the six Void Shattering figures before him, including True Monarch Xujin. Over countless years, Dao Lord Yuanxu had, whether sincerely or deceptively, guided the cultivation of True Monarch Xujin and the others. This established a karmic bond. Through this karma Dao artifact, he could forcibly compel Xujin and the others to repay their karma, thereby directly stripping away their cultivation. In the case of True Monarch Xujin before him, once stripped, his strength would plummet precipitously, tumbling from a figure ranked among the top ten of the Dao Lord Candidate List down to an ordinary, unremarkable Void Shattering cultivator. Not only that... Dao Lord Yuanxu had seemingly also "saved" the lives of True Monarch Xujin and the others. Even though it had been Yuanxu who led them into perilous realms—which also formed part of the karma, explaining why Xujin and the others had slacked off and withheld their strength when Yuanxu was in mortal danger earlier—the fact remained that he had saved Xujin's life. Had Yuanxu activated this karma Dao artifact... Under the karmic backlash, even if True Monarch Xujin were not forced to pay with his life, he would still suffer catastrophic recoil. And now, this karma Dao artifact had fallen into Yaoguang's hands... "From this day forth, we will follow Sect Master Yaoguang's every command! If we dare violate even half a word, let the karmic backlash cause us all to suffer cultivation deviation and perish!" True Monarch Xujin said in a deep voice. The other Void Shattering cultivators voiced their allegiance one after another, eager to submit to the Heavenly Dao Sect and redeem themselves through merit. Yaoguang glanced toward Zhen Xuanyuan. Zhen Xuanyuan said, "The Heavenly Dao Sect is indeed in need of capable hands right now. If you are willing to accept them, Sect Master Yaoguang, we have no objections." After all, during the battle just now, had True Monarch Xujin not slacked off, given his strength as the sixth-ranked powerhouse on the Dao Lord Candidate List, one or two of the Heavenly Dao Sect's Supreme Elders would inevitably have fallen. They owed True Monarch Xujin a debt of gratitude for that restraint. Hearing this, Yaoguang pondered briefly. 'This time, Demon Lord Black Moon and Demon Saint Yulin joined hands to besiege Dao Lord Penglai. Afterward, Dao Lord Penglai will surely retaliate against them. If nothing else, there is a very high probability that the Shadow Moon Sect will be uprooted entirely. Once the Shadow Moon Sect is eradicated, sufficient power will be needed to occupy that territory and withstand the counterattacks of the Shadow Moon Sect's demonic cultivators over the coming decades or even centuries. Throughout that period, strong cultivators must oversee that land until the Shadow Moon Sect exhausts all its power...' With this thought in mind, his gaze returned to the Void Shattering cultivators. "Then I shall give you an opportunity to turn over a new leaf. Assist our Heavenly Dao Sect's Southern Domain and assist Dao Lord Penglai in attacking the Shadow Moon Sect, and then guard the Shadow Moon Sect's former lands. If you perform well, I will sever the karmic bonds you bear upon this karma Dao artifact." "Thank you for your mercy, Sect Master!" "Sect Master Yaoguang has delivered us from the sea of misery! We are endlessly grateful and will devote our utmost efforts to serving the Heavenly Dao Sect to repay your benevolence!" The Void Shattering cultivators chimed in one after another. Seeing this, Yaoguang waved his hand. "Very well. Zhen Xuanyuan, Gu Li, Dongxi, I must trouble the three of you Supreme Elders to lead True Monarch Xujin and the others to the Southern Domain to expand the war against the Shadow Moon Sect. This time, we will thoroughly expel and eradicate the Shadow Moon Sect." "Understood." Zhen Xuanyuan and Chiyun solemnly responded, soon departing with True Monarch Xujin and the others. "Chiyun, Liaochen, Yuanxing, the three of you shall handle the aftermath. Tend to the injured disciples with all our resources, compensate the families of those lost, and swiftly rebuild the damaged peaks. Strive to restore order to the Heavenly Dao Sect and emerge from the shadow of this great battle as quickly as possible," Yaoguang continued to instruct. The three Supreme Elders accepted their orders and set about their respective duties. As for Yaoguang... He cast a glance at the surroundings. Although the battle between him and Dao Lord Yuanxu had been exceedingly brief, it had inflicted severe damage upon the Heavenly Dao Sect. In particular, the head-on collision between Venerable Golden Book—wielding the Twelve Fiendgods Sky-Sealing Formation—and Dao Lord Yuanxu had wrought devastation across several hundred thousand li, even though the clash had occurred in the void. Who knew how many buildings had collapsed and formations shattered in the tempest whipped up by the shockwaves? Who knew how many cultivators had perished on the spot in the wake of that impact? Before the might of a Dao Lord... Cultivators who had not even reached the Void Piercing stage were simply too fragile. After observing for a moment, Yaoguang flickered and appeared beside Venerable Golden Book. "Venerable One." Venerable Golden Book was currently sizing up the Twelve Fiendgods Sky-Sealing Formation, asking curiously, "Since when did this formation possess such immense power?" Seeing the calm expression on the Venerable's face, seemingly unbothered by what had just transpired, Yaoguang calmed down as well. "I made a series of modifications to the formation, elevating it to the rank-fifteen level." "A rank-fifteen formation?" Venerable Golden Book recalled the concept. "The grading system for formations, artifact forging, and alchemy that you promoted within the sect?" "Yes. The previous descriptions—grandmaster-tier formations, pinnacle formations—were far too vague," Yaoguang replied. "Very well, then." Venerable Golden Book nodded. "If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." With that, his figure flickered and vanished without a trace. The logic and thought processes of an artifact spirit were completely distinct from those of humans. Perhaps... Even life and death were, to their kind, merely natural evolutions of life forms, eliciting not the slightest sorrow. With Venerable Golden Book gone, Yaoguang cast another glance at the Heavenly Dao Sect elders bustling about everywhere. With them handling affairs, the sect would not fall into chaos. However, as for the two pinnacle Dao artifacts he was refining, he had to make sure the Heavenly Dao Sect's tremors and shifted earth veins had not disrupted the process. At once, his figure flickered, returning to Abandoned Heaven Valley.