"Killing a Heavenly Saint in a single strike..."
Ancestor Chen murmured under his breath, gazing at Lu Changsheng with a complicated expression.
He had practically watched Lu Changsheng rise from obscurity.
Back then, Lu Changsheng had been merely an Earth Saint.
He had even faced threats from Bloodfire Ancestor.
Of course, it was Ancestor Chen himself who had initially tried to coerce Lu Changsheng into surrendering his spirit treasure.
Yet by virtue of his own strength, Lu Changsheng had won Ancestor Chen's respect.
Thinking back on it now, it was truly a stroke of fortune.
Where was Bloodfire Ancestor, who had sought to put Lu Changsheng to death? Dead without even bones remaining.
And what of Ancestor Gu, who had defied Lu Changsheng's wishes and brazenly clashed head-on with him just now? Dead as well!
From his rise until now, Lu Changsheng had directly or indirectly caused the fall of two Heavenly Saints.
"Lu Changsheng cannot be opposed by force!"
"If Lu Changsheng remains in Saint Star City, he will practically be the sovereign sky above it. As long as he is here, Saint Star City must revere him above all."
"Fortunately, Lu Changsheng is a true disciple of Jidao Sacred Ground; sooner or later, he will leave Saint Star City."
"Yet with Ancestor Gu serving as a grim warning today, even after Lu Changsheng departs, we must tread with utmost caution. Under no circumstances may we move against the Hundred Flowers Sect."
"From now on, the Hundred Flowers Sect is taboo..."
In an instant, the remaining seven Heavenly Saints swiftly aligned their attitudes and found their proper places.
Lu Changsheng's execution of Ancestor Gu had thoroughly struck terror into their hearts.
They would never dare defy him.
Seeing this, Lu Changsheng was quite pleased.
His objective had clearly been achieved.
Only the members of the Gu clan remained, mourning as if at their parents' funeral, looking as though the sky had collapsed.
In truth, for the Gu clan, the sky had indeed caved in.
After all, Ancestor Gu had been their sky.
With his death, their world had crumbled.
Naturally, Lu Changsheng would not concern himself with the survival of the Gu clan.
Nor would he bother acting against them personally.
There was no point.
Yet once Lu Changsheng departed, the Gu clan—having lost their Heavenly Saint—would hardly meet a pleasant end.
After all, they had been exceptionally overbearing and rampant before.
Now their Heavenly Saint was gone.
To say the Gu clan was plunging into total ruin would be no exaggeration.
***
Lu Changsheng returned to the Hundred Flowers Sect.
Saint Star City was merely his first stop.
Next, he intended to head back to Tiansheng City.
After all, Tiansheng City was home to the Holy Land Heavenly Sect he had founded, making it a place of considerable importance to him.
After leaving instructions regarding the affairs of the Hundred Flowers Sect, Lu Changsheng set off directly for Tiansheng City.
Compared to Saint Star City, Tiansheng City was undoubtedly far more backward.
When Lu Changsheng returned to Tiansheng City, he felt a faint sense that though the scenery remained, the people had changed.
He walked straight toward the Holy Land Heavenly Sect.
The Holy Land Heavenly Sect of today was nothing like before.
Relying on the foundation Lu Changsheng had left behind, combined with their mutual defense alliance with the Li clan, the Holy Land Heavenly Sect had developed smoothly.
By now, it had become one of the top powers in Tiansheng City.
"Who goes there? This is the Holy Land Heavenly Sect. If you wish to join our sect, you must return next month."
The martial artist guarding the Holy Land Heavenly Sect barred Lu Changsheng's path, assuming he had come seeking apprenticeship.
Lu Changsheng offered a faint smile. With a flip of his hand, an identity token materialized.
"Do you happen to recognize this token?"
The gatekeeper disciple took one look, and his eyes widened in shock.
"This is... the Supreme Elder's token!"
"You... you are the Supreme Elder?"
The gatekeeper disciple naturally knew that the Holy Land Heavenly Sect had a legendary Supreme Elder who had departed many years ago, even leaving Tiansheng City behind without a trace.
Yet everyone knew that the Holy Land Heavenly Sect had been founded single-handedly by that very Supreme Elder—a figure who was truly the ancestral patriarch of the sect!
And now, that Supreme Elder had returned?
"Indeed. I am Lu Changsheng."
"No need to announce me. I will go in and have a look."
With that, Lu Changsheng's silhouette flickered slightly, traversing dozens of yards in an instant as he entered the Holy Land Heavenly Sect.
Yet how could the gatekeeper disciple dare fail to report it?
He immediately rushed to inform the sect master and elders.
Before long, the sect master and elders of the Holy Land Heavenly Sect came hurrying over.
Their eyes brightened, their faces flushed with immense excitement.
"It truly is the Supreme Elder! He has returned!"
"Supreme Elder, you have been gone for so many years with no word at all. We thought..."
"In the end, you have returned, Supreme Elder!"
Many elders were deeply moved.
Lu Changsheng had finally returned.
To the Holy Land Heavenly Sect, he was a living legend!
"It is nothing. I only returned this time to take a look."
"Seeing the Holy Land Heavenly Sect doing well sets my mind at ease."
Meeting these "old acquaintances" of the past, Lu Changsheng suddenly realized there was little to say.
These people were too far removed from his current level.
Even though Lu Changsheng believed he had remained true to his original aspirations, an inescapable chasm had naturally formed between them.
A Heavenly Saint—one rivaling a Martial Dao Sovereign—had very little in common with a group of martial artists who had not even attained the Martial Saint realm.
There was no shared ground left to discuss.
The Holy Land Heavenly Sect could no longer keep pace with his footsteps.
"Tell me about how the Holy Land Heavenly Sect has fared over these years."
And so, Lu Changsheng quietly listened to the developments of the Holy Land Heavenly Sect over the years.
In truth, nothing momentous had occurred.
They had progressed step-by-step, building a steady foundation to reach their present state.
Naturally, this was also inseparable from the Li clan's support.
By now, even without relying on the Li clan, the Holy Land Heavenly Sect remained one of the top forces in Tiansheng City.
Even with Lu Changsheng absent, the sect could continue to prosper.
"Good. You have done very well."
Lu Changsheng was satisfied.
Originally, he had contemplated elevating the cultivation of some elders, converting them into blood scions if necessary.
Yet upon careful reflection, turning them into Martial Saint–level blood scions might not be a blessing for the Holy Land Heavenly Sect.
Once they became blood scions, they would be seen as "aberrations" in Tiansheng City.
For one or two individuals, that would hardly matter.
Yet if the entire sect became "aberrations," then once Lu Changsheng departed for a prolonged period, the Holy Land Heavenly Sect would surely face a grim fate.
It was better to leave things as they were.
Steadily developing step-by-step was enough.
"Very well. I must also return to the Ancient Region this time."
Lu Changsheng did not linger long at the Holy Land Heavenly Sect, returning instead to the Ancient Region.
After visiting the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect, he found even less to see.
Following the reforms Lu Changsheng had instituted when establishing the Holy Land Heavenly Sect, the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect had long since transformed beyond recognition.
To him, it felt entirely unfamiliar.
And so, Lu Changsheng journeyed back to the Northern Region, returning to Nanyang City, back to Miaoshou Garden.
Miaoshou Garden was where his Martial Dao had begun.
Yet Lu Changsheng was now in his fifties or sixties.
Virtually all his old acquaintances from Miaoshou Garden were either aged or deceased.
Hardly a single familiar face remained.
Miaoshou Garden remained prosperous, but the people were no longer the same; it was no longer the Miaoshou Garden of his memories.
For a moment, a sudden pang of loneliness gripped him.
It seemed that throughout his rise to the present day, no one had been able to walk alongside him.
Lu Changsheng slowly made his way back to the residence he had once owned during his days at Miaoshou Garden.
It was a secluded dwelling he had purchased back then, completely unbeknownst to anyone at Miaoshou Garden.
Now that decades had passed, he wondered what state it was in.
Yet when Lu Changsheng stepped soundlessly into the courtyard, he discovered traces of habitation.
"Hmm?"
The courtyard was kept in meticulous order, carrying a lively warmth of daily life.
Lu Changsheng noticed clothes hanging out to dry in the courtyard.
Judging by the attire, they belonged to a woman.
Could it be that because his courtyard had sat vacant for so many years, some stranger had taken possession of it?
That was entirely possible.
A house left empty for decades was very likely to be claimed by someone else.
*Creak.*
Suddenly, the main door was pushed open.
An elderly woman, leaning on a cane and carrying a vegetable basket, ambled slowly inside.
Her steps were sluggish.
She appeared to live alone.
Turning to shut the front door, the old woman slowly shuffled into the room.
"Hmm?"
The moment she stepped into the room, she cast a glance at the floor, and her expression sank slightly.
She looked around the room, yet saw no one.
In a cold voice, she called out, "Since you have come, show yourself."
"This old woman has lived in retirement from the jianghu for well over a decade. I never expected an enemy to track me down."
"Now that you are here, give your name."
Her voice was steady, betraying not the slightest panic.
"I have not come seeking vengeance."
"Though you might not believe it,"
"the original owner of this courtyard happens to be me."
Suddenly, a voice drifted from behind her.
The old woman whipped around instantly.
Between her fingers, several throwing needles were already held ready to strike.
Yet the moment she turned and caught sight of the figure standing behind her—particularly that familiar face—she felt as though struck by lightning, freezing on the spot.
"Lu... Lu Changsheng?"
"No, that cannot be. Decades have passed; Lu Changsheng would be at least sixty years old by now."
"You are not Lu Changsheng. Who on earth are you? Could you be his grandson?"
The old woman seemed to recognize Lu Changsheng.
Looking upon his face, she was overcome with astonishment.
Lu Changsheng was equally surprised. Looking at her, he asked, "You recognize me?"
Lu Changsheng swept his consciousness over her.
The old woman appeared decrepit and frail.
Lu Changsheng had no initial recollection of her.
Yet as his consciousness washed over her, her facial structure was imprinted into his mind.
Instantly, a visage surfaced from his memories.
"You are... Li Hongzhuang?"
Lu Changsheng recognized her.
Li Hongzhuang!
Back then, they had met in the black market of Nanyang City.
Later, they had joined hands in many ventures, forging quite a connection between them.
Lu Changsheng had never imagined he would meet an old acquaintance once more.
Only, the spirited, beautiful young woman of the past had now become a frail, white-haired crone ravaged by age.
"You... you truly are Lu Changsheng?"
"But at sixty years of age, how do you still look like this?"
"So... so young!"
Li Hongzhuang trembled, her face filled with disbelief.
Lu Changsheng reached out and caught Li Hongzhuang, steadying her frail frame.
By now, he had confirmed that the old woman was indeed Li Hongzhuang.
Thinking back, aside from Lu Changsheng, Li Hongzhuang was indeed the only person who knew of this courtyard.
Yet after retiring from the jianghu, she had lived here all along.
Her intentions required no explanation.
There were things Lu Changsheng was not blind to.
Yet their paths were different.
Now, they could only meet under these circumstances.
"Yes, it is me."
"The wonders of the Martial Dao are vast; longevity is hardly impossible."
"I have walked very, very far along the path of martial arts. Let alone decades, even after hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of years, I will remain as I am now."
Lu Changsheng helped Li Hongzhuang to a seat.
"Could it be... you have become an immortal from legend?"
Li Hongzhuang had once wandered the jianghu and heard legends of immortals and gods.
Back then, she had always dismissed them as sheer nonsense.
Yet seeing Lu Changsheng now, she realized that ageless immortals truly existed in this world!
"Back then, I knew you were extraordinary."
"Yet with my limited horizons, I only thought you might become a peerless master of the jianghu. I never imagined you would become an ageless immortal."
A faint smile appeared on Li Hongzhuang's face, yet it carried an unmistakable bitterness.
Once, she had believed Lu Changsheng was long dead.
Otherwise, why would he fail to return to Nanyang City for decades?
Never had she expected he had become an ageless immortal.
She had waited bitterly for several decades.
Now that her hair was white, her face lined with wrinkles, and she was tottering on the brink of old age, what meaning was there in finally seeing Lu Changsheng again?
"Miss... Miss Li, why did you choose to live here?"
Lu Changsheng could tell at a glance that Li Hongzhuang had never married, and had remained untouched her entire life.
Li Hongzhuang slowly straightened her trembling posture, her clouded eyes gazing at Lu Changsheng. "You must have guessed it. I was waiting for you, and I have waited for a very, very long time..."
"At one point, I thought you were dead."
"Yet holding onto a sliver of hope, I kept watch over this courtyard, hoping that if one day you returned to Nanyang City and came back here, I might see you once more..."
Lu Changsheng fell silent.
"I have a method that can grant you a new lease on life, reversing your aging and restoring your youth."
"Would you be willing to try?"
Li Hongzhuang remained silent for a long time. Suddenly, she laughed.
"You are still the same as ever."
"Between us, our paths diverge; we were never travelers on the same road."
"It was only my foolish longing."
"Still, being able to see you once more has satisfied my heart."
"I am in the twilight of my years, with not much longer to live. Even if I could regain my youth, things could never return to the way they were."
"Let me fade away slowly into the years..."
Li Hongzhuang shook her head.
She refused.
Or rather, the moment she saw Lu Changsheng, she had understood everything completely.
"We can still count this as a reunion of old friends."
"Come, sit and have a meal before you go."
With that, Li Hongzhuang tottered to her feet to prepare food.
Lu Changsheng had not eaten ordinary fare for many years.
Yet at this moment, he sat quietly and waited.
Before long, Li Hongzhuang laid out a table of dishes, all simple home-cooked meals.
Lu Changsheng sampled each one.
The taste was quite good.
Like old companions reunited after a long parting, they ate and conversed.
Li Hongzhuang shared tales of her past wandering through the jianghu.
Lu Changsheng recounted the trials and tribulations of hacking a path through thorns on his martial journey.
The meal lasted two to three two-hour periods.
They ate until the sun sank below the horizon, casting the sky in amber twilight.
"All feasts must come to an end."
"Brother... Brother Lu, I know you must continue along your path, pursuing the pinnacle of martial arts."
"May fate allow us to meet again."
Lu Changsheng nodded. "Very well. May fate allow us to meet again."
With that, Lu Changsheng took a single step and walked out of the courtyard.
Li Hongzhuang rose and watched the direction of his departure.
A gentle smile rested upon her face the entire time.
This parting would almost certainly be their last.
Yet she harbored no regrets.
Lu Changsheng stepped into the void.
Gazing across space, he could see Li Hongzhuang still standing in the courtyard, watching him go.
At this moment, the memories of the past in Lu Changsheng's mind seemed to gather dust and settle away.
They felt like an ancient painting.
Vast and distant!
Lu Changsheng understood that everything of his past had, in this moment, bid him farewell.
"Time to go..."
Lu Changsheng's form transformed into a streak of light, piercing the sky and vanishing without a trace.
***
Lu Changsheng returned to Jidao Sacred Ground.
Having revisited the familiar places of his past and seen familiar faces, his heart was completely unburdened.
Now, his sole desire was to scale the pinnacle of martial arts!
Time trickled by, and in the blink of an eye, a year had passed.
On this day, Lu Changsheng felt a sudden stirring in his heart.
He snapped his head upward.
He could feel immense pressure bearing down upon the surrounding void.
It seemed as though the entire world were weeping in agony.
"Is this... the descent of a Martial Ancestor?"
Lu Changsheng immediately surmised the truth.
A Martial Ancestor had arrived!
And it was a true body's descent.
Otherwise, it would not have caused such an enormous commotion.
By now, Lu Changsheng had essentially grasped the limits of the Immortal Martial World.
The pinnacle of the Immortal Martial World was, in truth, the Martial Dao Sovereign realm.
As for Martial Ancestors?
The three Martial Ancestors, as well as the Mahayana cultivators, had all journeyed to the Boundary Sea to seek opportunities, thereby ascending to Mahayana or Martial Ancestor.
To advance to Martial Ancestor within the Immortal Martial World was simply too difficult.
One needed only look at the scene before him to understand.
With the descent of a Martial Ancestor's true body, the entire Immortal Martial World groaned in distress.
Merely by entering the Immortal Martial World, the Martial Ancestor's true body caused the spatial fabric to shatter all around.
Soon, Lu Changsheng caught sight of a colossal phantom silhouette.
It was enormous, seemingly attempting to squeeze its way into the Immortal Martial World.
Yet the Immortal Martial World appeared incapable of bearing the burden; space shattered like glass, accompanied by pervasive, agonizing groans.
Lu Changsheng began to understand why Martial Ancestors remained in the Boundary Sea rather than the Immortal Martial World.
Under such circumstances, a Martial Ancestor residing in the Immortal Martial World was like a prehistoric shark trapped in a small fish pond.
It was awkward no matter how one looked at it.
The pond suffered, and the Martial Ancestor felt constrained.
Thus, Martial Ancestors could only venture into the Boundary Sea.
Only in the Boundary Sea were they free from all constraints.
Yet now, in order to personally escort Lu Changsheng, the Martial Ancestor had to descend in person.
*Crack!*
At last, space ruptured.
Regardless of whether the Immortal Martial World was willing, the Martial Ancestor forcibly descended.
Moreover, the one descending was Martial Ancestor Gufu!
"We welcome the Martial Ancestor!"
Within Jidao Sacred Ground, a number of Martial Dao Sovereigns were present.
At this moment, led by the sacred ground's sect master, these Martial Dao Sovereigns all bowed in solemn greeting.
Even though the one descending this time was Martial Ancestor Gufu, the three Martial Ancestors of the Immortal Martial World were virtually of one accord—the pillars upholding the Martial Dao.
Therefore, even Jidao Sacred Ground had to respectfully receive Martial Ancestor Gufu.
Such a tremendous commotion shook the entire Jidao Sacred Ground, alerting true disciples, inner disciples, and everyone else.
They were all Heavenly Saints, highly sensitive to spatial disturbances.
One after another, they sensed the shattering of space and the aberrations of the Immortal Martial World.
"What is happening?"
"That looks like the sect master, along with the Sovereign Elders who rarely show themselves!"
"The sect master and Sovereign Elders seem to be welcoming someone!"
"Is that... a Martial Ancestor?"
"Which Martial Ancestor has descended? Could it be the founder of our Jidao Sacred Ground?"
"Is it our patriarch?"
Many Heavenly Saints grew fervent.
The founder of Jidao Sacred Ground was Martial Ancestor Jidao, the revered ancestral patriarch.
Many Heavenly Saints had never seen Martial Ancestor Jidao in their entire lives.
Now that a Martial Ancestor had descended, it seemed like an opportunity.
Then, the void shattered further, and an immense figure gradually emerged.
A Martial Ancestor!
Martial Ancestor Gufu!
*Rumble!*
The descent of the Martial Ancestor caused the Immortal Martial World to tremble.
The space within Jidao Sacred Ground strained under the overwhelming burden.
Yet the Martial Ancestor had arrived at last.
Lu Changsheng finally saw the Martial Ancestor clearly.
The figure simply stood in the void, yet seemed like the fountainhead of all martial arts.
Upon the Martial Ancestor, one could seemingly perceive every martial dao in existence.
It felt as though the Martial Ancestor were the Martial Dao, and the Martial Dao were the Martial Ancestor.
Such an existence brought a phrase to Lu Changsheng's mind:
All methods return to one!
All paths converge at the source!
This was a Martial Ancestor.
It was difficult to describe such majesty with mere words.
This was a great being capable of roaming the vast Boundary Sea.
However, Lu Changsheng observed that Martial Ancestor Gufu's colossal frame was merely a phantom image.
That projection seemed composed of martial daos, or perhaps some kind of domain.
In any case, this layer of phantom shielded the Martial Ancestor within.
No matter how the spatial fabric of the Immortal Martial World attempted to expel him, it proved entirely futile.
The Immortal Martial World seemed constantly driven to force the Martial Ancestor out, while the Martial Ancestor had to maintain this phantom projection simply to avoid being expelled.
In other words, the two were engaged in a continuous contest of strength.
"Lu Changsheng, my avatar has already met you. Strictly speaking, this counts as our second meeting."
Martial Ancestor Gufu's gaze fell upon Lu Changsheng at once.
"Greetings, Martial Ancestor Gufu!"
Lu Changsheng bowed in greeting toward Martial Ancestor Gufu.
At once, an uproar rippled through the onlookers.
In truth, many martial artists—including the Sovereign Elders—did not understand why Martial Ancestor Gufu had descended in his true body.
Now it seemed it was all for Lu Changsheng?
They had no inkling of the reason.
Why would an exalted Martial Ancestor descend in his true body merely to see a Heavenly Saint?
Even if Lu Changsheng was no ordinary Heavenly Saint, could all those Martial Dao Sovereigns combined fail to measure up to a single Heavenly Saint?
Elder Feng had kept the matter strictly confidential.
Even the other Martial Dao Sovereigns were in the dark.
Perhaps only Elder Feng and the sect master of Jidao Sacred Ground knew the inside story.
Yet such matters had required secrecy beforehand, especially since Lu Changsheng had not yet finished his preparations.
Now that even the Martial Ancestor's true body had arrived, secrecy was no longer necessary.
Those Heavenly Saints, true disciples, inner disciples, and the rest were left slack-jawed in utter disbelief.
"It is actually Martial Ancestor Gufu?"
"The Martial Ancestor of Gufu Sacred Ground descended in his true body just for True Disciple Lu?"
"Could it be because True Disciple Lu conquered the ninth floor of the Tower of Heaven back then?"
"Most likely. After all, the Tower of Heaven was left behind by Martial Ancestor Gufu himself."
"To actually move a Martial Ancestor to descend in person... by the looks of it, a tremendous opportunity is in store..."
Envy colored the eyes of many.
To be held in high esteem by a Martial Ancestor—what staggering fortune that was!
Of course, this was also because Lu Changsheng had displayed extraordinary brilliance.
After all, since the appearance of the Tower of Heaven, Lu Changsheng had been the sole individual to clear all nine floors.
How could Martial Ancestor Gufu fail to value such a prodigy?
Yet what was the purpose of Martial Ancestor Gufu's personal descent?
Could it be merely to lay eyes upon Lu Changsheng?
Martial Ancestor Gufu's gaze was calm and deep.
With a single look, he seemed to perceive Lu Changsheng through and through.
Before this Martial Ancestor, Lu Changsheng seemed to have no secrets left.
"Good. A physical body at the Heavenly Saint realm, and ten thousand martial daos perfected!"
"In the Heavenly Saint realm, you have truly reached the absolute limit."
"Now that you are prepared, let us depart."
"The Boundary Sea is the grand stage where you can truly unfurl your wings!"
With a wave of Martial Ancestor Gufu's hand, the void shattered once more, forming a pitch-black passage.
"Go!"
Martial Ancestor Gufu took the lead, stepping into the black corridor.
Without hesitation, Lu Changsheng followed closely behind, shooting into the darkness and vanishing from sight.
***
Lu Changsheng felt as though he had passed through a membrane.
The sensation was not unfamiliar in the slightest.
On the contrary, it felt very familiar.
After all, he had traveled to one secret world after another in the past.
Back then, he had also departed the Immortal Martial World.
The difference was that previously he had gone directly to a secret world, whereas now he was heading into the Boundary Sea.
*Hum.*
Lu Changsheng's figure swayed slightly before coming to a firm halt.
Yet the moment he stabilized himself, a terrifying pressure bore down upon him instantly.
He felt prickles of danger running down his spine, as though needles were pressing against his back.
An intense sense of peril flooded him from every direction.
"You may use your Dao body to resist it."
Martial Ancestor Gufu's voice echoed in Lu Changsheng's ears.
Lu Changsheng immediately manifested his Dao body.
A massive Dao body materialized with a roar.
Coupled with his ten thousand perfected martial daos, it propped up a safe sanctuary around his physical form.
Only then did Lu Changsheng catch his breath, the harrowing sensation of danger receding.
"Is this... the Boundary Sea?"
Lu Changsheng looked up.
The surroundings were not pitch-black.
Instead, brilliant and radiant lights danced in magnificent splendor.
It felt as though he were standing within a vast river of stars.
Those palm-sized "nebulae," if examined closely, were actually entire worlds.
As for the Immortal Martial World...
Lu Changsheng looked back.
He saw the Immortal Martial World.
Compared to the other surrounding worlds, it was at least ten times larger.
At least in this region, the Immortal Martial World was truly a behemoth.
No wonder it had birthed so many mighty figures.
It could even attract numerous secret worlds to attach themselves to its periphery.
The Immortal Martial World was inherently extraordinary.
Curiously, however, Lu Changsheng felt no established rules.
No, it was not that rules were absent.
Rather, everything was chaotic and disordered.
The most prominent characteristic of the Boundary Sea was this profound lack of order.
Space here seemed distorted and misaligned.
Moreover, all manner of formidable energies constantly attempted to corrode his body.
Only by deploying his Dao body could he ward them off.
Yet even with the Dao body deployed, it had to constantly endure the corrosion of the Boundary Sea.
If this continued indefinitely, the moment his Dao body collapsed would be the day he perished.
Lu Changsheng finally understood why only those who had attained the Martial Dao Sovereign realm could venture into the Boundary Sea.
The reason was simple: survivability!
Only by becoming a Martial Dao Sovereign did one possess the ability to survive in the Boundary Sea.
"Seeing the Boundary Sea for the first time, how does it feel?" Martial Ancestor Gufu asked with a smile.
"Vast!"
"Majestic!"
"Mysterious!"
"And... filled with limitless possibilities!"
Lu Changsheng spoke each word with deliberate conviction, voicing the feelings of his heart.
Though the Boundary Sea was fraught with peril, it gave him the sense of a bird released into the boundless sky, rich with infinite potential.
"Indeed. For you, the Boundary Sea truly holds limitless possibilities."
"Come, I will escort you; otherwise, your Dao body will not hold out for long."
"We shall head straight for the Immortal Martial Palace."
With that, Martial Ancestor Gufu grasped Lu Changsheng, pulling him within the phantom silhouette surrounding his body.
Inside the phantom projection, Lu Changsheng could no longer feel the corrosion of the Boundary Sea.
Then, the Martial Ancestor's phantom expanded continuously.
In the end, it swelled to tens of thousands of yards, stretching beyond the horizon.
"Go!"
The Martial Ancestor took a stride forward, sprinting through the Boundary Sea like an awe-inspiring colossus.
A single step crossed an unfathomable distance.
In the blink of an eye, they had vanished into the distance, and the Immortal Martial World was lost from sight.
Chapter 317