Gou Dao and Cultivation of Immortals, Start from Farming

The Chaos Dao Tree has surpassed 5 billion feet in length. Its main trunk, like the spine of a gray-gold dragon, has pierced into the sea of ​​light. Its roots, like hundreds of millions of writhing dragons, have penetrated the vast earth. More than 500 perfect realms are on its branches, and more than 9,000 newly born realms are teeming with vitality.

Beneath the Chaos Dao Tree, Li Mu closed his eyes slightly and looked inward at himself.

Within the Chaos Dao Fruit, the nine remnants of the Dao of Transformation—the celestial light, the spiritual mist, the burning fire, and so on—completely merged with the Chaos Origin, becoming indistinguishable from one another.

Inside the Dao Fruit, a mass of chaotic liquid slowly rotated, drawing in external source energy that flowed back into Li Mu's limbs and bones.

Li Mu's cultivation was stable at the late stage of the Dao Integration Realm, and he could create all kinds of laws with a thought. The power of the Great Cycle of Annihilation could not penetrate him in the slightest.

Li Mu opened his eyes and woke up. The chaotic starlight in his eyes disappeared, and his gaze swept towards the ancient tomb of the Burial Path.

At this moment, the entire depths of the vast land were completely unrecognizable.

The bases of the nine giant monuments completely collapsed, the gray-black earth cracked like a spider web, and the deep earth veins trembled in waves.

Li Mu's divine sense penetrated through layers of vast soil, reaching its shallowest layer.

In the middle layer of the vast land lies the forest of ten thousand ancestors.

The primordial energy surged back, like billions of gray-white giant pythons falling from the sea of ​​light, tearing apart the roots, branches and leaves of the Dao Ancestor Trees, eroding the boundary walls, and causing the Dao Yuan to flow away. Plants withered, mountains and rivers collapsed, and stars dimmed.

The calamity's power was as dark as ink, staining the entire vast land.

In the vast eastern region, the Crimson Flame Ancestral Tree raged across the three thousand realms. The Crimson Heaven Dao Ancestor stood atop the tree, surrounded by nine blazing suns, roaring: "The calamity has arrived! All spirits shall offer sacrifices to aid me in burning the heavens!"

Below, in the fiery hell, trillions of beings wailed and turned to ash, their essence flowing like streams into the ancestral tree. The crimson flames surged, forcefully resisting thirty percent of the tidal erosion.

Chi Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, and his fiery hair stood on end: "Not enough... I'll set it ablaze again!"
-
……

In the Western Regions, the Weak Water surges.

Xuan Sha Dao Ancestor sat upright on the Ink Ice Jade Platform. The three thousand Weak Water Chains wrapped around the Ancestral Tree like living things, forming the "Return to the Void Array". At the array's core, the Dao Source of the seventeen small Ancestral Trees was forcibly extracted and transformed into jet-black water that flowed into the array.

"Returning to the Void, swallowing the heavens, untouched by eternity!"

Xuan Sha pointed his withered fingers repeatedly, and the Weak Water surged upwards, swallowing the incoming tide of Origin Qi layer by layer; however, the tide was endless, and the Weak Water array wall flickered, showing cracks.
-
……

In the Blood Forest of the Southern Region, ten thousand demons howled.

The Heavenly Demon Ancestor sat on the throne of white bones, his vertical pupils chilling: "Blood sacrifice to the Demon Forest, activate the Immortal Slaughtering Array!"

The eight hundred demon ancestors responded in unison, their demonic blood gushing forth and transforming into a towering blood mist that enveloped billions of miles. Within the blood mist, billions of demonic souls condensed into an array, their murderous aura soaring to the heavens.

The blood mist was torn open by the tide, and the bodies of hundreds of demon ancestors shattered on the spot.

The Heavenly Demon Ancestor extended his bone claws, forcefully resisting a surge of calamity power, roaring repeatedly, "Hold on for me!"

……

In the northern, southeastern, and northwestern regions, and across all the Dao realms, the Dao-Merging Ancestral Trees are engaged in fierce battles.

Some ancestral tree roots stretched for tens of thousands of miles, drawing on the essence of neighboring Dao trees to barely protect the core domain; some Dao Ancestors joined forces to set up an array to resist the tide, but the array foundation was unstable, the array broke and the Dao disappeared; some even tore through the void, trying to escape to another domain to avoid calamity, but were swept up by the tide, their Dao disappeared and their bodies perished.

On this vast land, in the forest of countless ancestors, cries of sorrow echoed everywhere.

……

Starry Sky Platform.

The Eight Extremes Calamity Suppressing Array shimmered with light, its eight-colored Dao patterns weaving into a net that firmly protected the core of the eight domains.

At the heart of the formation, the chaotic Dao source flowed in a hazy gray, harmonizing the origins of the eight ancestors.

Dao Ancestor Haotian sat in the center, his starry eyes fixed on the tide outside the formation, and said in a deep voice: "The calamity tide is 30% more intense than expected, and the Eight Extremes Formation may not be able to last long."

Gu Xiqinghui sighed, "The foundation of the array is still stable, but the Chaos Origin is being consumed too quickly; if this continues, the Origin Qi of the Eight Regions will be depleted in at most a hundred years."

Lei Yan Dao Ancestor roared, "A hundred years? My Thunder Dao Domain has already lost thirty percent of its power; it won't last more than thirty years!"

Qingyuan smiled bitterly, "More than half of the Life Force Domain has withered away, and its power of nourishment is waning day by day."

The four patriarchs, Chaoyuan, Yinghong, Youguang, and Yeyan, all urgently reported that their own sources of enlightenment were in dire need of attention.

Haotian Daozu pondered, "If we unleash the full power of the Chaos Dao Source, we might be able to sustain it for another fifty years."

Gu Xi shook his head and said, "The remnants of the Dao source will dissipate as soon as they erupt. At that time, the array core will become unstable, and the Eight Extremes Array will be destroyed immediately."

"Then what should we do? Are we just supposed to wait to die?" Lei Yan Daozu said with dissatisfaction.

“Under such a great calamity, this is the only way, unless…” Ancient Dao Ancestor sighed and gestured.

Upon hearing this, all the Dao Ancestors fell silent. Just as Dao Ancestor Gu Xi said, under the Great Calamity and Annihilation Cycle, it would be difficult for all the Ancestors to survive. If they had not joined forces to set up the array, using the Dao Source of Chaos as the array eye, they would have already been unable to hold on. Their situation was many times better than that of the other Dao Ancestors.

"That Chaos Lord surnamed Li has ruined us! Otherwise, if we had used the Chaos Dao Tree to surround the pivot and set up this formation, we would have been able to survive this great calamity!" Qingyuan Dao Ancestor sighed and said regretfully.

"If that kid could have played it safe, we wouldn't be in this situation!" Dao Ancestor Lei Yan slammed his fist on the jade table and said angrily, "If the Chaos Dao Tree were still here, it could have been used as the hub to operate the Eight Extremes Formation and divert the calamity power. Why would we have had to struggle so hard!"

Dao Ancestor Youguang sighed, "Things have come to this, there's no use in complaining; Fellow Daoist Gu Xi, you've gone through two cycles, how long will this calamity tide last?"

Upon hearing this, all the Dao Ancestors turned their gazes toward Xiang Gu Xi.

Gu Xi remained silent for a moment, a trace of desolation rising in Qinghui's eyes as he recalled: "The last great calamity lasted for a full seven hundred years, from the initial surge of the primordial energy to its return to calm. The calamity was not accomplished overnight; initially, it slowly eroded and disintegrated the outer boundary of the ancestral tree; the middle stage was the most intense, with the primordial energy flowing backward and all paths collapsing; the final stage gradually weakened, but the aftershocks still took a hundred years to subside."

"Seven hundred years..." Dao Ancestor Qingyuan said with a bitter smile, "Only a few decades have passed now, and the Eight Extremes Formation is already showing signs of fatigue. According to this calculation, we are afraid we will not be able to survive until the tide declines."

"What is the root cause?" Dao Ancestor Haotian stared intently at Gu Xi and asked probingly, "A cycle of 129,600 years, where exactly does this calamity originate? No Dao Ancestor knows, only that the vast land purifies itself. However, why must purification be so brutal? Ten thousand ancestors wither, billions are annihilated... This is not purification, but harvesting."

“Fellow Daoist Haotian, your words…” Gu Xi looked up at Dao Ancestor Haotian and said with a wry smile, “Touched a taboo.”

"A taboo?" Dao Ancestor Lei Yan raised an eyebrow and said, "Now that things have come to this, what is there that can't be said!"

Gu Xi looked around at the ancestors, sighed, and said, "Having survived two tribulations, what I have seen and felt is indeed different from what is recorded in ancient books. The calamity tide... may not have been spontaneously generated by the vast land."

"What?" Dao Ancestor Yinghong's robes trembled slightly.

“Ancient legends say that above the Dao Integration realm, there is a realm of ‘Dao Transformation’.” Gu Xi’s voice was deep. “The body becomes the source of all Daos, transcending the constraints of this vast land. However, the path of Dao Transformation requires a massive amount of origin, the resources of all Daos… and even more importantly, it requires severing the connection with the root of this vast land.”

Daoist Chao Yuan's expression changed drastically: "Fellow Daoist, are you saying..."

"The cycle of annihilation does indeed resemble a 'harvest'," Gu Xi Daozu speculated. "Harvesting the overly lush ancestral forests and seas, harvesting the accumulated origins of countless realms, harvesting the infinite variables evolved from the myriad paths—these harvested 'resources' might... be the offerings to nourish one or more 'transformed path' beings." Upon hearing this, the Dao platform fell into a deathly silence.

Night-Sick Dao Ancestor said in disbelief: "Absurd... If that's really the case, then all our cultivation over hundreds of thousands of years, reaching the Dao and becoming ancestors, has been nothing but making wedding clothes for others? Nothing but crops kept in the vast land...?"

"It's just a guess." Gu Xi shook his head and said, "However, during the two great calamities, I sensed a will fluctuation beyond the peak of the Dao Integration Realm deep within the tides, treating all living beings as straw dogs. Moreover, after each calamity tide receded, the total amount of Origin Qi in the depths of the Vast Land would indeed inexplicably decrease by several percent. The whereabouts of these few percent of Origin Qi are unknown."

The light in the eyes of the Dao Ancestor Haotian surged intensely as he continued, "So, 129,600 years is the interval of 'harvesting'? Once the forest flourishes again and the source is replenished once more, it will happen again?"

"I'm afraid so." Gu Xi said in a hoarse voice, "The resources required for the Dao Transformation are enormous. A vast land can nurture an ancestral tree, and perhaps, it can also nurture... beings of even greater heights."

The Azure Origin Dao Ancestor's emerald eyes dimmed as he said, "Then what is the point of our struggle? Fighting to the death against the calamity tide will only delay our being harvested. Even if we survive this time, we will still be unable to escape the calamity 120,000 years from now!"

The Dao Ancestors exchanged glances and remained silent, plunging the Star Evolution Dao Platform into a profound stillness.

Beneath the Chaos Dao Tree, Li Mu slightly opened his eyes, his divine sense spreading out like a tide.

The scene of the middle layer of the vast land surged into the sea of ​​consciousness—crimson flames burned the sky, weak waters surged backward, blood mist covered the sky... The Forest of Ten Thousand Ancestors struggled and roared in the calamity tide, and the source energy collapsed like a flood breaking through the dam.

With a thought, the countless roots of the towering Dao tree behind Li Mu suddenly straightened!

The roots, like countless gray dragons, probed into the depths of the vast earth, actively meeting the dissipating tides of calamity. The moment the calamity touched the roots, a gray light burst forth, forcefully enveloping the violent calamity and dragging it into the root system.

The tribulation force struggled violently within the chaotic Dao essence, but was suppressed by the chaotic Dao essence, rapidly dissolving and settling, transforming into pure primordial energy that nourished the Dao Tree.

The trunk of the Chaos Dao Tree trembled, and its fifty billion-zhang-tall trunk continued to grow taller!

5.1 billion...5.3 billion...5.5 billion!
Nine thousand newborn embryos on the branches frantically absorbed this feedback power, and the boundary wall solidified at a visible speed, while the chaotic and undefined state inside rapidly differentiated.

Li Mu sat cross-legged without moving, his mind and spirit becoming one with the Dao Tree.

The roots of the Chaos Dao Tree grew increasingly rampant, tearing at the calamity tide like a gluttonous beast, devouring the endless calamity power.

Time flies, and the chaotic Dao essence and the depths of the vast sky, the ancient tombs of the burial path spread outwards, with waves surging.

……

At the Starry Dao Platform, in the center of the Eight Extremes Array Eye, the hazy, chaotic Dao Source trembled violently!
"Hmm?" Dao Ancestor Haotian suddenly opened his eyes, his starry gaze fixed on the core of the formation.

The originally stable gray light of the Chaos Dao Source fluctuated violently at this moment, undergoing a dramatic transformation within. The Dao Source became increasingly profound, seemingly echoing some kind of power of the same origin.

Ancient Dao Ancestor stared intently at the Chaos Dao Source, exclaiming in shock, "This fluctuation... the chaotic aura is undergoing a transformation! This?!"

Lei Yan Dao Ancestor was suddenly shaken and said in disbelief, "Fellow Daoist Li didn't perish, so why is the Chaos Dao Source still undergoing transformation? How is this possible!"

Qingyuan Daozu's emerald eyes suddenly lit up, and he exclaimed excitedly, "Could it be... that Fellow Daoist Li is not dead?"

"No way!" Dao Ancestor Ye Yan exclaimed with a mixture of surprise and delight, then hesitated, "The Nine Thoughts of the Burial Dao Ancient Tomb emerged together, and the remnants of the Transformation Dao were fighting and devouring each other. Even the peak of the Integration Dao stage could not escape the calamity. That kid sealed his Dao foundation for a thousand years; he should have already perished!"

Dao Ancestor Youguang solemnly said, "This fluctuation cannot be faked. The Chaos Dao Source is resonating with the outside world, and the source... lies deep within the Vast Land."

Chao Yuan Daozu exclaimed excitedly, "Could it be that something has happened to the ancient tomb again?"

Yinghong Daozu said in a deep voice, "In any case, this is a variable. The calamity is raging, and the Eight Extremes Formation is already showing signs of fatigue. If it really is Fellow Daoist Li..."

The eyes of all the Dao Ancestors lit up at the unfinished words of Dao Ancestor Yinghong.

The Dao Ancestor Haotian's star-studded Daoist robe billowed as he rapidly formed hand seals, unleashing the full power of the Star Evolution Array to firmly lock the Chaos Dao Source fluctuations within its core.

"The fluctuations are too intense; they might attract the attention of those outside the realms," said the Dao Ancestor Haotian in a deep voice. "Fellow Daoist Gu Xi, you have undergone two tribulations, and your senses are most acute—could you possibly pinpoint the exact location of the source?"

Upon hearing this, Dao Ancestor Gu Xi closed his eyes and concentrated. The clear radiance of Daoist charm spread out like ripples, following the resonant power of the Chaos Dao Source to explore the depths of the vast land.

Three breaths later, Gu Xi suddenly opened her eyes, her clear eyes filled with surprise and joy. She excitedly said, "The Burial Dao Ancient Tomb... the fluctuations originated from the depths of the ancient tomb! That chaotic aura is indeed Fellow Daoist Li's, and it is several times more powerful than when Fellow Daoist Li was at his peak!"

"What!" Dao Ancestor Lei Yan stepped forward, excitedly exclaiming.

Gu Xi took a deep breath and said, "It's absolutely true. That aura was hidden deep within the chaotic currents of calamity power, yet the true meaning of chaos was pure and vast, definitely not a remnant illusion."

Qingyuan Daozu said urgently, "If Fellow Daoist Li is truly not dead, and his cultivation has greatly improved... then we are saved!"

Night-Sickness Dao Ancestor cautioned, "Don't be too happy yet. The Burial Dao Ancient Tomb has become a dead end, and the chaotic flow of tribulation power makes it difficult to enter even if you are a Dao cultivator. Moreover, if that fluctuation really is Li Mu, who has been lying dormant for a thousand years, it is still unknown whether he is an enemy or a friend."

Dao Ancestor Youguang continued, "Fellow Daoist Ye's words are reasonable. A thousand years is enough to change too much. If Li Mu truly refined the Nine Thoughts, his cultivation level would probably already surpass the Dao Integration realm. If he harbors resentment that the Eight Regions did not lend a helping hand back then..."

Upon hearing this, the Starry Sky Platform fell silent.

After a long silence, Dao Ancestor Lei Yan couldn't help but speak up: "Who cares about resentment or forgiveness! Now the eight regions are all in the same boat, and the calamity is pressing down. If we drag this out any longer, we will all die! Since there is a glimmer of hope, what's wrong with taking the risk to explore it?"

Qingyuan Daozu shook his head and said, "How can we explore it? The turbulent currents of calamity in the Burial Dao Ancient Tomb are so fierce that our divine senses would be torn apart the moment they touch it. If our physical bodies go there... the Eight Extremes Formation will be missing its array eye and will break immediately."

Dao Ancestor Chao Yuan suggested, "Why not use the Chaos Dao Source as a guide and project a wisp of Dao thought to investigate? The Dao thought is connected to the array eye, so even if it is damaged, it will not shake the foundation of the great array."

Dao Ancestor Yinghong frowned and said, "The projection of Dao thoughts requires the eight ancestors to be in accord, and their minds to be connected with the array eye. If there is truly danger deep within the ancient tomb, and the Dao thoughts are destroyed, all eight will suffer a backlash."

Gu Xi suddenly said, "This old Taoist priest will go alone."

All the Dao Ancestors looked at Gu Xi.

Gu Xiqinghui said with determination in his eyes, "The old Daoist Guizang is good at sealing and concealing, which may allow us to avoid the sharp edge of the calamity. Moreover, all the disciples enlightened by Fellow Daoist Li's Dao Seed were sent to cultivate in the myriad worlds by the old Daoist, so the karmic connection is the deepest. It is most appropriate for me to go."

After a moment of contemplation, the Dao Ancestor Haotian swept his starry eyes over the assembled ancestors: "What are your thoughts, everyone?"

Lei Yan Daozu spoke first: "I agree. Old man Gu Xi has thick skin and won't die."

Qingyuan Daozu said with a wry smile, "Fellow Daoist Gu Xi is indeed the best candidate."

You Guang, Chao Yuan, and Ying Hong nodded in succession.

Ye Yan Dao Zu looked at Gu Xi and said with hope, "Fellow Daoist Gu, go and return quickly. Dao thoughts should not be separated from the body for too long, otherwise the tribulation energy will corrupt the soul and damage the foundation of your Dao."

Haotian Daozu solemnly said, "Fellow Daoist Gu Xi, you must withdraw within three hundred breaths, whether you have seen him or not."

Gu Xi nodded happily: "I understand."

After speaking, Gu Xi sat cross-legged beside the center of the formation, his hands forming the Gui Zang mudra.

A pure, luminous Dao aura emanated from between his brows, transforming into a slender ray of light that disappeared into the chaotic Dao source. The hazy, gray light of the Dao source enveloped this wisp of Dao thought, following the resonating force, and plunged straight into the depths of the vast earth! (End of Chapter)