Gou Dao and Cultivation of Immortals, Start from Farming

Above the ruins of the Golden Puppet Realm, chaotic energy surged ceaselessly, like the primordial fog before the beginning of time, quietly enveloping this desolate battlefield. Shattered stars hung in the void, and broken continents floated like decaying bones. Only the metallic remains silently told the final chapter of a civilization.

Li Mu stood alone in the vast expanse, his green robe fluttering in the wind, the hem of his robes gently swaying with the invisible waves of Dao. He opened his palm, and the Spirit Control Bracelet floated quietly, its halo flowing, warm and smooth as jade, yet within it, an earth-shattering transformation was being conceived.

Within the bracelet, the Chaos Altar, born from a single thought, soared into the boundless sky. The bright moon sat cross-legged atop it, eyes closed, its body enveloped in a divine white-gold radiance—the supreme law of the fusion of the Primal Puppet Dao, formed from the remnants of the Golden Puppet Ancestral Core, and Chaos itself.

Above his head, the fist-sized remnant core slowly rotated, and with each rotation, it scattered billions of golden dust, like a galaxy pouring down, all of which disappeared into the bright moon's luminous spirit body.

The bright moon, like a deep sea embracing all rivers, and the spirit body, like a bottomless cave, swallowed up the very essence of the ancestor of all puppets.

Mingyue's consciousness had sunk into an unprecedentedly vast realm.

Before my eyes, there are no more mountains, rivers, sun, or moon; only endless data flowing, logical chains intertwined into a net, structural diagrams layered upon layered, and energy matrices evolving in countless ways—that is the accumulation of billions of years of the Golden Puppet Civilization, from the initial inscription of symbols on ordinary iron, to mechanical beings, and then to the awakening of intelligence and the pursuit of the Great Dao! It is the complete path of the Puppet Dao from inanimate objects to near-Dao!
The bright moon "saw" the first puppet absorbing spiritual energy staggering along, witnessed the thrill and joy of its first awakening of spirituality, and also saw the ancestral core lose its true nature in endless deduction, sinking into absolute order, ultimately becoming a cold and dead end...

Countless memories flooded in like a torrent, forcibly imprinting themselves into Mingyue's sea of ​​consciousness.

"Uh!"

A muffled groan escaped her lips, and Mingyue's spirit body trembled violently. Her silver hair danced wildly, and the pale gold spirit mark between her brows flickered, almost shattering. The information was too vast and too violent for an eighth-tier puppet spirit to bear.

At that moment, a vast yet gentle will descended.

Chaotic divine thoughts descended like celestial music.

"Calm your mind and focus your spirit, and hold fast to the One."

"Yin governs form, Yang governs spirit, and chaos resides in the center, capable of harmonizing all things."

"Take its essence, discard its rigid attachments, and with your true heart, rebuild the Puppet Path!"

……

Li Mu's voice, like a bell resounding through the deepest recesses of the underworld, reached the very depths of Mingyue's soul. In an instant, the scattered spiritual consciousness returned to its place, and the chaotic torrent was calmed.

A wisp of chaos emerged from the bottom of the altar, like a skilled craftsman holding silk, straightening out the chaotic laws one by one.

Mingyue had an epiphany, and her mind became clear. She abandoned the cold, extreme logic of the ancestral core and focused on the original meaning of "unity of spirit and puppet," "the emergence of consciousness," "the transformation of energy into form," and "the construction of heaven and earth by law."

The tremors of the spirit gradually subsided, and the divine light changed from violent to inward. The puppet pattern between his brows condensed into a deep Dao mark, slowly evolving and gradually becoming perfect, as if a Dao pattern was about to be formed.

Time loses its meaning here.

After an unknown period of time, the remaining core finally vanished, and the last grain of golden dust merged into the body of the bright moon.

boom--!
A vast and powerful pressure exploded from Mingyue's body! The void twisted, Dao patterns arose spontaneously, and countless illusory and real puppet runes surrounded her, flowing and dying, demonstrating the ultimate principles of spiritual machinery.

Mingyue suddenly opened her eyes. The starry river in her eyes had vanished, leaving only two deep golden vortexes. Within the vortexes, gears turned, runes appeared and disappeared, and coldness and agility merged into one, revealing an unparalleled majesty that looked down on all machines.

Her silver hair moved without wind, the ends dyed with eternal platinum; her skin was like jade, yet it concealed the immortal quality of gold. Her slender body contained the power to move stars and shake mountains.

In one step, one ascends to the heavens, leaping through eight levels, and instantly achieving the ninth level!
At the pinnacle of the Puppet Spirit, the barriers have shattered. With chaos as its foundation and the ancestral core as its catalyst, the battle is finally won today!
The bright moon slowly raised its hand, its five fingers lightly clenched, as if all the shapes of puppets and the structures of mechanisms in the world were contained in its palm. With a slight thought, it could create things out of thin air and endow inanimate objects with life; with a single thought, all machines would bow down and the laws would submit. Such power, such freedom, was unprecedented and unseen before.

Mingyue turned her head, her gaze piercing through the barrier of the bracelet, landing on the figure in green robes outside. The oppressive aura in her golden eyes faded, leaving only a deep-seated faith and reverence.

Without a word, his figure flickered, and the altar was empty.

The next instant, the void beside Li Mu rippled slightly, and the bright moon quietly appeared. Barefoot, he trod the void, his body radiating Daoist energy, becoming one with heaven and earth.

Mingyue knelt down and performed the Puppet Spirit's salute: "Mingyue thanks Master for bestowing upon us the Way. The spiritual path has finally reached its end."

The sound was like a clear spring striking jade, but with an added metallic chill and majesty, and it couldn't hide the stirring within.

Li Mu turned around, his gaze sharp as lightning, scrutinizing her closely. After a moment, a barely perceptible hint of approval flashed in his eyes: "Good."

"Ninth-tier Puppet Spirit, Chaos Foundation Establishment, Ancestral Core as Guidance, Your Path has transcended that of a mortal puppet and can be called—Chaos Puppet Path. The road ahead is boundless, and the Dao Fruit is unpredictable."

After speaking, Li Mu lightly tapped his fingertip, and the chaotic energy condensed, transforming into a Dao seal that was both real and illusory, with profound patterns, as if the mechanism of birth and death flowed within it.

The Dao pattern flew out and disappeared into Mingyue's brow.

Mingyue's body trembled slightly, and she suddenly felt the power within her body flowing like rivers into the sea, completely under her control. Countless mysteries of the fusion of chaos and puppetry emerged in her mind, and she suddenly understood them.

I bow again, speechless with gratitude.

Li Mu looked up, his gaze piercing through the remnants of the world and falling upon the endless sea of ​​stars.

"Now that the Dao has been achieved, follow me to conquer the heavens once more. The sharp edges of all realms await your slaying."

Bright moon's golden eyes blazed with intensity, its fighting spirit burning like flames.

"The bright moon is willing to lead the way for its master, shattering all worlds!"

Li Mu nodded slightly, his sleeves fluttering gently.

The chaos of the surrounding land surged like a tide, flowing back into him. The illusory image of the Chaos Dao Tree that supported heaven and earth beneath his feet slowly faded away, merging back into its origin.

As chaos receded, the desolation of the Golden Puppet Realm was laid bare. Stars shattered into dust, continents cracked like paper, leaving only metallic remnants floating silently in the void, like monuments.

Li Mu remained unmoved, his mind already focused on the next realm—the Xuan Yuan Jin Realm, a scorched earth world burning with the flames of destruction and rebirth.

Just as he was about to tear through the void and lead his army on another expedition, a thought suddenly stirred in his mind, and his gaze fell back on the bright moon.

Mingyue frowned slightly, raised her right hand, and a wisp of platinum spiritual light swirled around her fingertips. Within the light, extremely fine hexagonal metallic patterns appeared, flashing by in an instant, exactly the same as the ancestral core itself.

“Master,” Mingyue said with a hint of doubt in her eyes, “Since I absorbed the Ancestral Core, I seem to be able to sense a faint, extremely distant and cold fluctuation of ‘order,’ which is intermittent, difficult to understand, and impossible to interpret.”

Li Mu's gaze suddenly darkened, as if two icy abysses had split open, and he knew what it was.

It is something that no ordinary civilization can exude; its essence is of the same origin as the ancestral core, yet it is more ancient, more vast, and more unfathomable.

"As expected, the Golden Puppet Civilization is not a lone star shining brightly. Behind it, there may be an alliance of order spanning eras, wielding absolute logic and commanding all machinery. This ancestral core may just be a child!" Li Mu said in a deep voice.

Mingyue's golden eyes narrowed slightly. One core was already difficult to defeat. If there were an entire alliance... how terrifying would its power be?
“No need to worry.” Li Mu said calmly, “Those who come will be killed, and those who plot will be destroyed. No matter how many schemes or how many layers of order there are, they will all eventually return to oneness before my chaos.”

Li Mu paused slightly, his aura suddenly surged, and the surrounding void trembled.

"Right now, let's take the Ash Realm and refine the fire to achieve the Dao Fruit."

After speaking, Li Mu raised his hand and made a sweeping motion forward.

Stab it!

The vast void split open like a ripple, revealing a colossal maw stretching across the heavens and earth. Beyond it lay not a deep, starry sea, but boundless, dark red scorched earth, shrouded in ash and spiritual mist. Within the scorching stillness lay a destructive power capable of burning the heavens and annihilating the earth, yet also a life force capable of rebirth. The Xuan Yuan Ash Realm, its gates wide open!

Li Mu, dressed in green, moved and stepped in first, his figure instantly swallowed up by the dark red world.

Mingyue followed closely behind. Before leaving, Mingyue glanced back at the metal ruins, her golden eyes showing neither sorrow nor joy, only an iron-willed determination.

As the moon took its first step, its platinum radiance flashed and disappeared against the dark red background.

Thousands of miles away, the fleet of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty moved at the order. The bow of the Lieyu ship turned around, and the steel torrent, like a dragon, sailed into the boundary gate.

Inside the bridge of the flagship Lieyu, there was no relaxation after the great battle, only a mixture of solemnity and anticipation, forming an aura of iron will. Xiao Jingtian, the Valley Master of Burning Heaven Valley, the King of Zhenhai, the Ancestor of the Sword Sect, and other Immortal Venerable-level generals, all clad in armor, stood solemnly like pine trees, their gazes all focused on the figure in blue robes at the head of the table.

Li Mu stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze calm as he looked at the dark red world before him, like an irregular scar cracked in the void, from which ash and spiritual mist slowly emanated, carrying with it a terrifying sense of destruction and death.

Li Mu had just attained enlightenment and refined all the gains from the great battle, making his aura increasingly profound, like a calm ancient well, yet containing boundless thunder.

Behind him, Mingyue stood quietly, her white dress as white as snow, her golden eyes calm and unwavering. Her spiritual pressure was contained, yet the faint aura of a ninth-rank official still made the hearts of all the Venerables present tremble slightly, as if they were standing on the edge of an abyss.

"The Golden Puppet Realm is now settled, its origins return to my Dao." Li Mu spoke, his voice reaching everyone's ears: "The Profound Abyss Ash Realm is where the ancient Burning Heaven God and Demon fell. Their remains plummeted into the Chaos Abyss, their divine fire undying. Through countless ages, it evolved into this realm. Ash energy permeates the air, the laws are violent, and it contains the source of destruction and rebirth. Its inhabitants are mostly Ash Spirits, Fire Demons, or other strange species that feed on Ash marrow. It is extremely dangerous, and killing intent is everywhere."

Before the words were finished, the Xuan Guang Dao Mirror displayed the scene of the Ash Realm: the boundless scorched earth was as red as blood, the lava rifts were like scars on the earth, the ash storms churned like dragons, and strange creatures appeared in phantom form—giant beasts with their bodies ablaze and demons with crystal bones, all exuding a savage and violent aura.

“Perilous places hold hidden opportunities, and desperate situations give birth to the Dao.” Li Mu raised his voice slightly and indicated, “At the core of that realm, there may be fragments of the Dao of the Burning Heaven God and Demon, or even the origin of the inextinguishable divine fire. If you obtain this, you can condense the Dao Fruit of Fire, which will be of immeasurable benefit and should not be missed.”

Li Mu paused, his gaze sharp as lightning, sweeping across the entire scene: "Therefore—the next conquest will be the Xuan Yuan Jin Realm!"

The four words, spoken as if by divine decree, reverberated throughout the bridge of the ship.

The generals were shaken, and their eyes blazed with fighting spirit.

In the battle of the Golden Puppet Realm, they personally experienced a bitter struggle and were almost driven to the brink of despair. In the end, Li Mu reversed the tide with the Hand of Chaos, and they also witnessed the earth-shattering change of Mingyue breaking through to the ninth level.

At this moment, their morale was soaring, and their faith in Li Muzhi had reached its peak. Upon hearing the order, they felt not only no fear, but also a surge of excitement!

"Your humble servants will obey the decree!" Xiao Jingtian stepped forward, his armor clanging, his voice like thunder: "We are willing to raze the Ash Realm to the ground for you, senior, and seize the Source of Fire!"

"Crush the Ashes Realm, seize the Fire Source and return!" The generals roared in unison, their murderous aura soaring to the sky, causing the bridge to tremble slightly.

Li Mu nodded slightly, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes. This kind of sharpness was exactly what was needed to conquer the heavens.

"Xiao Jingtian".

"The general is here!"

"Immediately assemble the army, select elite troops, and form an advance legion. The Rift Universe will serve as the main ship, accompanied by the three major battle camps: 'Breaking Army,' 'Prairie Fire,' and 'Burning Heaven.' Two hours later, follow me to the entrance of the Ash Realm."

"Yes, sir!" Xiao Jingtian clasped his hands in a fist salute, his eyes blazing with fighting spirit.

"The Valley Master of Burning Heaven".

"I am here!" The old man in red robes and with red hair stepped forward, his body radiating heat, clearly overwhelmed with emotion.

"Your disciples mostly cultivate fire-based supernatural powers, making them perfectly suited to the Realm of Ashes. I hereby appoint you to lead your unit as the left wing, to explore spiritual veins, suppress the spirits of the Ashes, and gather all that is related to the source of fire."

"Haha, as you command! I will roast those Ash Spirits into charcoal!" The Valley Master of Burning Heaven laughed, flames leaping in his palm.

"King of Zhenhai".

"Your subordinate is here!" The Zhenhai King, clad in azure armor, responded in a deep voice.

"You command the navy, which is incompatible with fire, but the combination of water and fire can also create a powerful force. I appoint you as the right wing, to deploy the 'Mysterious Origin Heavy Water Formation' to firmly defend the central army, guard against surprise attacks, and also be in charge of support and resource transfer."

"Your humble servant obeys! I will protect the army to the best of my ability!" King Zhenhai clasped his hands in a fist salute, his tone steady.

"The patriarch of the Sword Sect."

"This old man obeys your command." The white-haired patriarch of the Sword Sect cupped his hands, and the ancient sword behind him hummed softly, as if it were thirsting for blood.

"Your sword cultivators are unparalleled in their sharpness, specializing in defeating powerful enemies. I hereby order you to lead the elite troops to deploy the 'Decapitation' sword formation, patrolling the central army, and specifically targeting high-level fire demons and mutated ember beasts."

"Good." The patriarch's words were brief, yet his sword intent soared to the heavens.

Military orders fell like thunderbolts, and the war machine of the Immortal Dynasty roared into action. Teleportation arrays on each ship lit up one after another, and cultivators transformed into streaks of light as they rushed to their posts.

The furnaces in the weapon-refining workshops were brightly lit as they rushed to produce fire-resistant magical artifacts and talismans; the array masters worked tirelessly to reinforce the shields, enabling them to withstand the high temperatures and erosion of the laws of the scorched earth.

With everything arranged, Li Mu turned his gaze to the bright moon.

"Mingyue, you have just advanced to the ninth rank and should solidify your path through actual combat. In this expedition, you will be the vanguard, clearing paths through mountains and slaying enemies in your path. Are you up to the task?"

Mingyue's golden eyes flickered slightly, and she gently raised her fair hand, her body radiating a faint white-gold aura.

"Rest assured, Master." Mingyue's voice was as cold as frost as she answered the order: "Mingyue is ready to test her skills. All who stand in my way will turn to dust."

Mingyue spoke calmly, revealing a resolute determination to annihilate all things. Her Chaos Puppet Spirit abilities, including control over machinery and energy, had reached a state of perfection, making her a sharp blade to pave the way.

“Good.” Li Mu nodded: “Go. The army will scout three miles ahead. If any enemy is encountered, kill them without asking for permission.”

"Yes!" Mingyue responded, her figure flashing like a platinum lightning bolt piercing through the void, instantly penetrating the shield and heading straight for the entrance to the Ash Realm.

Li Mu withdrew his gaze, his pupils filled with a chaotic flow, as if he had pierced through the boundary and glimpsed the raging fire of the heavens and the slumbering remains of gods and demons.

The Dao of Fire... if perfected, will unleash the power of chaos and conquest to new heights. Moreover, fire governs civilization and creation, and will have boundless uses in the future for creating living beings and evolving celestial realms.

Li Mu's mind stirred slightly, and the Fire Seed Fruit on the branch of the Chaos Dao Tree within his body faintly heated up, as if sensing the call of the distant fire of the same origin, conveying a trace of longing.

"Order the entire army!" Li Mu's voice resounded across the ships: "Destination—the Profound Abyss Realm! Set sail!"

Woo——hum——

A desolate bugle call echoed through the void as the flagship, the Rift Universe, sounded its long marching cry.

In an instant, with the ferocious dragon head as its spearhead, the massive Immortal Dynasty fleet slowly changed formation, like a colossal beast awakening from the starry sea, spewing out streams of light, and sailing majestically toward the dark red gate.

The steel torrent is set in motion once more, carrying the ambition to conquer and the thirst for the great path, heading towards a burning land.

Li Mu stood at the bow of the ship, his blue robe fluttering in the wind, reflecting the approaching crimson of destruction. His gaze was deep, as if he had seen through countless calamities, reaching the very end of the Dao. (End of Chapter)