Gou Dao and Cultivation of Immortals, Start from Farming

The burial path leads to ancient tombs, where turbulent currents surge like a tide.

Xiao's nine chains tightly bound the Chaos Dao Fruit. The gray-black tribulation power clashed violently with the gray-cloudy Dao light. Under the impact of the massive Dao source, the surface of the Chaos Dao Fruit crackled and broke open with fine cracks.

"Xiao, let go of me!" Chen's lingering will roared, his immense Dao intent suppressing Xiao along with the chains.

With a roar, the nine broken chains snapped back and lashed out at Chen Zhi's face.

The starlight shattered instantly, and Chen's lingering will staggered back several steps, his soul churning.

"Get out of my way!" Yan transformed into a world-burning crimson dragon, spewing out dragon breath and descending upon the other remnants.

The remaining thoughts of the source were forced back and could not get close for a while.
The withered remnant avoided the sharp edge, and took the opportunity to extend its bone claws to grab the core of the Chaos Dao Fruit.

The Ruins summoned the collapsing 'Star Ruins' that pressed down upon them;
The Fiendish War Spear swept across; Nightmare wove layers of illusion, dragging half of the lingering spirits into the battlefield of inner demons...

In an instant, the nine lingering thoughts erupted into a fierce battle, causing the heavens and earth to collapse and the main vein of the vast land to cave in, with the ancient soil layers churning like waves...

Under the impact of the lingering remnants, the surface of the Chaos Dao Fruit cracked more and more, and wisps of chaotic origin seeped out from the cracks, turning into gray light spots and drifting away.

……

Li Mu sat withered beneath the Chaos Dao Tree, his Chaos Dao Body shattered, blood flowing like a river around him, his face like an ancient corpse, covered with wrinkles and gray spots; only the gray light between his brows still stubbornly flickered.

Li Mu shrank his soul into a mustard seed, hiding it deep within the core of the Chaos Dao Fruit. A wisp of divine sense sensed the fierce battle formation outside through the crack.

"Hit them...hit them harder!"

Li Mu's Daoist thoughts were like a flickering candle in the wind, desperately obscuring the core of the Dao Fruit—that heavily sealed "mysterious source".

……

Starry Sky Platform.

The eight patriarchs were filled with intertwined thoughts, and their faces were solemn.

Haotian Daozu stared at the chaotic light and shadow reflected in the array plate and said in a deep voice, "The nine thoughts are fighting each other, and the power of the tribulation has already collapsed three layers of Haotu; if this continues, it may affect the middle layer of the source vein."

Gu Xiqing's Daoist robe trembled slightly, and the Daoist aura of Gui Cang was trying its best to calm the fluctuations at the outer edge of the forbidden zone. He sighed, "With such a fierce battle, I'm afraid Fellow Daoist Li won't be able to hold out for long?"

Lei Yan sneered: "He sealed his own foundation and courted his own death. The aftershocks of the Nine Thoughts battle will be enough to turn him into dust. It would be a miracle if he could survive for three days."

Qingyuan Daozu shook his head and said, "His Dao Fruit is not broken, and his soul is not destroyed, but... the signs of exhaustion are already evident."

You Guang, his figure faint, suggested, "There are signs of instability at the outer edge of the forbidden zone. We should shrink it by another thousand miles to avoid being swept up by the turbulent flow of calamity power."

Yinghong sighed softly, "The cracks in the Chaos Dao Fruit are widening, and its essence is leaking out. Fellow Daoist Li is beyond saving!"

Chao Yuan looked towards the various regions of the vast land and gestured, "Those old things in the outer regions have withdrawn most of their divine senses."

Dao Ancestor Haotian raised his fingers to calculate and sighed, "The Ancient Burial Tomb has become a dead end; the chaotic flow of tribulation power makes it difficult for Dao cultivators to enter. They have given up."

Gu Xi remained silent for a long time before resolutely saying, "With the great calamity imminent, we must also shrink the scope of our Dao Domain and prepare for the calamity with all our might. The matter of the Chaos Hub can only be put on hold!"

Lei Yan flung his sleeve and said, "It should have been done long ago! We've wasted a thousand years of our energy on that brat!"

The eight ancestors had no objections and all made hand seals; the Star Evolution Forbidden Realm Formation shrank in size, completely abandoning the area of ​​hundreds of millions of miles around the graveyard, and only firmly protecting the core of the eight domains.

The light and shadow on the platform gradually dimmed, leaving only Haotian and Gu Xi.

Haotian Daozu looked at Gu Xi: "Fellow Daoist, are you still not giving up?"

Gu Xi gazed into the depths of chaos, nodded, and sighed, "Wait another hundred years. If the Dao Fruit still exists after a hundred years... perhaps there will be a chance for a turnaround."

"As you wish." Dao Ancestor Haotian nodded silently, uttered a single sentence, and his figure gradually faded away.

Gu Xi Daozu sat alone on the Dao platform, his clear eyes reflecting a faint gray light that lingered for a long time.

……

The ancient tombs and burial grounds are embroiled in endless battles.

Time flies, and a hundred years have passed in the blink of an eye.

The surface of the Chaos Dao Fruit was covered with cracks, spreading like a spider web. The leakage of its origin intensified, and the gray light spots turned into trickles, which were fought over and devoured by the Nine Thoughts.

The lingering resentment of Xiao severed three chains, and its body dimmed by 30%; the lingering resentment of Chen shattered its starlight cage three times, and its soul became ethereal; the lingering resentment of Ling was corroded in seven places by poison, and its misty form dissipated; the lingering resentment of Yan consumed its source, and the red dragon of its soul body lost its tail, and the power of the Burning World True Fire was halved; Shi, Ku, Xu, Sha, and Yan were all seriously injured.

However, the remnants of the Nine Paths of Transformation still refused to retreat. Instead, due to the leakage of their original essence through devouring, their ferocity intensified.

"The origin of chaos... truly profound!" Xiao's lingering will swallowed a wisp of light, and the broken chain showed signs of rebirth.

Chen Zhi's lingering resentment sneered, "Even if you obtain a little bit of the origin, you're merely clinging to life. This Dao Fruit should belong to me!"

The starlight condensed again, transforming into countless fine needles that pierced the remaining eight thoughts.

……

In an instant, the chaos reignited.

Li Mu's withered and emaciated body, sitting idly, was covered in gray-black dust, blending into the ancient tomb of the burial road. The gray light between his eyebrows was as faint as a firefly, flickering at increasingly longer intervals.

However, deep within Li Mu's soul, a sliver of clarity and resolve remained steadfast:
"The time is not right yet!"

"still have a chance!"

……

Time flies, and three hundred years have passed.

The Chaos Dao Fruit was riddled with cracks, the deepest of which revealed its core, with nearly half of its Chaos Origin lost. The Nine Thoughts' remaining bodies were all badly damaged, yet the fierce struggle continued. At the same time, in order not to damage the Chaos Dao Fruit, they had to suppress their own remaining essence to protect it, lest their attempt to seize the fruit backfire and destroy it instead.

It was precisely because of this that Li Mu's soul, which had sealed the core of the Dao Fruit, was able to catch its breath and was not completely destroyed by the lingering will of the nine Dao Transformation cultivators.

The lingering spirit, its misty form unstable, let out a mournful shriek: "Do you truly wish to perish together?"

The remnant spirit of the Ruins laughed wildly: "With this Dao Fruit, I can rebuild my Dao foundation! What does it matter if I die?"

The Fiend War Spear urged its blade straight at the core of the Dao Fruit: "Then let's die together!"

Yan, Shi, Ku, and Yan seized the opportunity to attack simultaneously, each unleashing their deadly moves.

……

With a wild laugh, the remaining three chains exploded, transforming into a storm of calamity that swept across the surroundings: "If I can't have it, no one else can!"

With a deafening roar, the calamity storm shattered several attacks, tearing a huge rift in the Chaos Dao Fruit, from which a mass of gray chaotic source flowed out.

The nine breaths all paused simultaneously.

The next instant, they pounced on him frantically!

Starlight of the Stars, Mist of the Spirit, True Fire of the Blaze, Poison of Corrosion, Deathly Qi of Withering, Star Ruins of Ruins, War Spear of Fiend, Illusion of Nightmare, Calamity Power of the Roar—the nine original killing moves of the remnants of the Dao transformation simultaneously blasted into the crack of the Dao Fruit!

The Chaos Dao Fruit trembled violently, and a mournful cry of impending collapse emanated from its core.

Li Mu's shattered chaotic body trembled violently, black blood seeped from his seven orifices, and the gray light between his brows dimmed, almost going out.

However, deep within his soul, that spark of clarity suddenly awoke.

"Right now!"

Li Mu exhausted his last bit of Daoist willpower and suddenly pulled at the strange source that had been suppressed and sealed.

……

Starry Sky Platform.

Gu Xi Daozu suddenly opened his eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "The Chaos Dao Fruit is about to shatter!" Hao Tian Daozu's figure appeared, staring at the array plate and said urgently, "Nine Thoughts' final strike will surely destroy the Chaos Dao Fruit. Fellow Daoist Li is finished."

Gu Xi formed hand seals, attempting to penetrate the turbulent currents with his Daoist essence, but it was torn apart by the violent tribulation force. He groaned, blood trickling from the corner of his lips.

“Fellow Daoist Gu!” Dao Ancestor Haotian frowned.

Gu Xi Dao Zu wiped away the bloodstains, shook his head and smiled bitterly, "So be it... indeed, human strength cannot defy the heavens."

Gu Xi Daozu glanced at the chaos, flicked his Qinghui Daoist robe, turned and left, indicating: "The Chaos Hub proposal is permanently sealed. Prepare for the Great Calamity with all your might, and let each accept their destiny."

Dao Ancestor Haotian nodded in agreement, saying, "It should have been done long ago."

The two figures vanished, and the Starry Sky Platform fell into complete silence.

……

In the center of the graveyard, the Nine Thoughts Killing Move was poured into the crack in the Dao Fruit.

Just as the Chaos Dao Fruit shattered, the strange source that Li Mu had pulled up suddenly awakened!

With a "gulp!" sound, a strange swallowing sound came from the core of the Chaos Dao Fruit. The vast Dao charm transformed from the Nine Thoughts Killing Move was swallowed up by the strange source, like hundreds of rivers flowing into the sea!

"What?" Xiao shouted in alarm.

The brilliance of the Star of the Morning quickly dimmed, forcibly pulled into the core by a cold, deathly devouring force: "This kid... still has a backup plan!"

Lingwu shrieked: "It's the Demonic Path! He refined the essence of the Demonic Clan into the Chaos!"

The corrosive venom swished back, and they retreated immediately: "Damn it, we've fallen for their trap!"

Jiu Nian wanted to retreat, but his lingering Daoist aura was tightly entangled by Gui Yuan, as if he were trapped in a quagmire and could not escape.

The strange source frantically devoured the Nine Thoughts Dao Rhyme, its own body rapidly expanding and transforming into a strange white vortex that surged out from the crack in the Dao Fruit.

Within the vortex, the power of calamity, starlight, spiritual mist, true fire, venom, death energy, star ruins, battle halberds, and illusions—all the origins of the Nine Thoughts were torn apart and swallowed.

"No!" The crimson dragon formed from Yan's lingering will was the first to be hit, its body breaking apart inch by inch, and the World-Burning True Fire was swallowed up by the Ghost Source.

Xiao's six chains shattered, and his body was swept into the vortex, his screams abruptly ceasing.

The seven thoughts of Chen, Ling, Shi, Ku, Xu, Sha, and Yan were terrified and struggled desperately. However, they had been separated from the origin of the ancient tomb and had been fighting for hundreds of years, so they were already weak. Moreover, the devouring power of the strange source was too domineering, and with the Chaos Dao Fruit as their foundation, it was like adding wings to a tiger.

"This child used himself as bait to lure us into attacking each other, and then used the source of evil to devour us... How vicious!" The remnant of the Ruins was pulled by the edge of the vortex and collapsed inch by inch.

The withered bone claws reached for Li Mu's body, and it roared, "Even if I die, I'll take you with me!"

The moment the bone claw touched Li Mu's body, the gray light between Li Mu's brows suddenly twitched.

The illusory image of the Chaos Tree flashed past behind him.

The withered bone claws froze in mid-air, then turned into ashes.

"You... can still move..." The withered remnant stared intently at Li Mu, a faint light fading from its empty eye sockets.

The vortex of strange origins corrupted and entangled the Daoist essence of the nine remnants of the Dao transformation, swallowing them whole and dragging them back into the crack of the Chaos Dao Fruit.

The cracks on the surface of the Chaos Dao Fruit healed at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the gray Dao light flowed again. However, a faint, imperceptible, eerie white light appeared on the gray surface of the Chaos Dao Fruit.

Li Mu's tattered Chaos Dao body was covered in dust, like a corpse, motionless. The Chaos Dao Tree behind him had withered completely, its leaves turning gray, but the faint gray light between his brows still shone brightly.

……

The fifth hundred years.

Deep within the vast earth, the burial path and ancient tombs have become a desolate wasteland.

The turbulent flow of calamity gradually subsided, the gray-black earth solidified like iron, and hundreds of broken steles turned to dust. Only the bases of nine giant steles remained, but the steles themselves were largely destroyed, losing their source of the remnant Dao.

The only sign of life in the entire Burial Path Ancient Tomb was a towering, gray Chaos Dao Tree. Its withered trunk gradually regained a glimmer of life, and the branches of more than five hundred realms shone with brilliance. Chaos Dao light flowed through the boundary walls; the sea of ​​flames in the Fire Heaven Realm was calm, the vegetation in the Green Realm of Longevity was lush, and the mountains in the Vajra Ape Realm were still and solid... The origins of all realms were stabilized, and they nourished the Dao Tree.

Beneath the Chaos Dao Tree, Li Mu resembled a withered corpse, his body covered in dust three feet thick, completely burying his form. Only a vague human outline could be seen, with a steady gray light flickering between his brows, like the blinking of a breath.

The cracks in the Chaos Dao Fruit burst forth with flames, and the cracks were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Deep within the core of the Chaos Dao Fruit, the strange source and the Nine Thoughts Dao Rhyme intertwined to form a chaotic flow of liquid, which was then enveloped and refined by layers of chaotic Dao Fire.

Li Mu devoted his entire being to the task, and his Dao Foundation operated spontaneously, slowly absorbing the flow of liquid and gradually drawing in external source energy to become fuel for the Chaos Dao Fire.

Progress is slow, but steady.

……

A thousand years have passed in the blink of an eye.

In the boundless land, the sea of ​​light surged and churned, and from the depths of darkness came muffled rumblings, like an ancient behemoth awakening. The aura of annihilation seeped from the void, infiltrating the source energy, causing vegetation to wither and the boundary walls to tremble wherever it passed.

The Forest of Ten Thousand Ancestors was bustling with activity like never before.

Crimson flames soared into the sky in the Eastern Region. Dao Ancestor Chixiao melted down three thousand five hundred realms, condensing them into a fiery prison. Trillions of living beings wailed as they turned into fuel to nourish the ancestral tree.

The Weak Water of the Western Regions surged backward, and the "Return to the Void Formation" set up by the Xuan Sha Dao Ancestor frantically absorbed the Dao Source of the seventeen surrounding Lesser Ancestral Trees...

Blood-red light covered the sky in the southern region. The Heavenly Demon Ancestor drove eight hundred demon ancestors to conquer the four directions, and the blood sacrifice in the demon forest covered hundreds of millions of miles. All the Dao essence he plundered was poured into the White Bone Throne.

In the Northern Regions, Southeast, Northwest… all the Dao Domains are preparing for war; the roots of an ancestral tree have penetrated ten thousand miles of vast land, draining the life force of three neighboring saplings; Dao Ancestors have joined forces to ambush and hunt down Dao Sources, seizing their Dao Fruits; rifts in the void are frequently opening, and Dao Ancestors from other realms are descending, stirring up a bloody storm. …

A great calamity is imminent, and all ancestors will go mad.

At the Starry Sky Platform, eight figures quietly gathered.

The forbidden realm array shrank to protect only the core of the eight domains, and the array patterns on the platform glowed faintly, reflecting eight solemn faces.

The Dao Ancestor Haotian looked solemnly at the ancestors and said in a deep voice, "The calamity energy is accelerating its invasion. At most a hundred years later, the tide will surely come."

Gu Xi's radiance dimmed, and he said with a bitter smile, "I have survived two great tribulations, but now the source energy of seven minor realms in the Dao Domain has been depleted and the earth veins have cracked. If this continues, I will definitely not be able to survive this tribulation!"

Lei Yan Daozu said in a muffled voice, "My Thunder Dao Domain is also not doing well. The calamity energy is disturbing the celestial phenomena, and the thunder is chaotic. Twelve Thunder Pools have already been destroyed."

The Dao Ancestor Qingyuan sighed, “The path of life is most afraid of calamity. Three-tenths of the branches and leaves of the Ancestral Tree of Myriad Spirits have withered, and its power to nourish life is waning day by day.”

You Guang, Chao Yuan, Ying Hong, and Ye Yan successively submitted their petitions, their situations becoming increasingly precarious.

The Dao Ancestor Haotian proposed, "If we fight each other, we will all perish. Only by joining forces to set up the 'Eight Extremes Calamity Suppression Formation' and using the origins of the eight regions to resist the tide may we have a glimmer of hope."

Night Dao Ancestor sneered, "Join forces? Fellow Daoist Haotian, have you forgotten what happened in that scheme a thousand years ago?"

Upon hearing this, the magistrate fell silent.

Gu Xi Dao Zu lowered his eyes and said, "The matter of Fellow Daoist Li... was a miscalculation on my part."

Qingyuan Daozu sighed, "It's too late for regrets now. The Eight Extremes Formation is indeed the only way out at present. However, the formation requires the eight ancestors to be of one mind and to complement each other's origins. If there is the slightest mistake, the backlash will be even more severe."

Daoist Chao Yuan pondered for a moment and asked, "Where should the array's core be placed?"

Dao Ancestor Haotian pointed to the center of the platform and said, "Right here, the Star Evolution Array will serve as the foundation, drawing the roots of the ancestral trees of the eight regions to converge and jointly build the circulation of primordial energy. When the calamity arrives, the eight ancestors will sit at the array's core and jointly resist the calamity's power."

Yinghong Daozu frowned and said, "Once this formation is activated, the eight regions will become one. If the foundation of one region is unstable, the rest will be affected."

Master Youguang reminded him: "There is no other way. A single tree cannot support a single tree; only by uniting can we survive."

……

For a moment, the eight patriarchs exchanged glances, each with their own concerns, unable to reach a consensus. (End of Chapter)