Two Realms: A giant of immortal martial arts emerges from low Wu Gan

The longer a major battle drags on, the more cautious one must be.

A slight mistake, though not necessarily leading to utter disaster.

However, if a large number of disciples are sacrificed, even if they have reached the Dao Venerable realm, they will have to find their own resources and will need to spend more time on cultivation afterward.

For someone at their level, time is even more important.

Further comprehension of the Great Dao requires sufficient time to gradually attain understanding.

With sharp eyes, the Purple Extreme Daoist observed the victory reports one by one, lingering for the longest time on three points on the map.

The dark green color represents the chaotic swamp.

The dense water system markers known as "Qianliujian".

And a large area of ​​scorched yellow, symbolizing a "desolate desert".

"Gentlemen, the battle results are remarkable and have greatly boosted morale."

After another wave of good news subsided, the deep, steady voice of the Purple Extreme Daoist rang out. It wasn't loud, but it clearly drowned out the murmurs inside the tent, and all eyes turned to him.
He paused briefly, glanced at the map, and continued, "In these three areas, progress has stalled for more than seven days, and there are many unusual things going on."

He raised his hand and pointed to the dark green, chaotic swamp.

"The Chaotic Swamp has been reported by scouts to have intensified miasma, with its toxicity far exceeding that of the past."

"The three elite scout teams that had ventured more than fifty miles in have all lost contact. Their soul lamps have been extinguished, and the last images they transmitted before their deaths were distorted and broken, as if they had suffered a violent impact on the level of the soul."

After saying that, the Purple Extreme Daoist moved his fingertip and landed on the mark of Thousand Streams on the map, and continued: "Thousand Streams has a network of waterways, and the water flow suddenly accelerates several times, and it also carries countless undercurrents and whirlpools."

"During several probing attacks, whether Zhenwuzong tried to cross the river by force or to bypass it, they were intercepted with extremely precise precision, as if they had been foreseen."

"Clearly, the monsters in this area are not as simple as the investigation revealed. Their defensive tactics are cunning and ruthless, and they attack the weak points of the formation every time. Their fighting style is definitely not that of ordinary water monster tribes."

Thousand Streams Valley is a strange place within the Chaotic Demon Sea.

Between the islands, the currents are so dense that even a feather dropped in will fall in a very short time.

Several powerful demon clans live here, completely unaffected.

I originally thought that no matter how strong these demon beasts were, they could not possibly be a match for the human army.

But judging from the results now, it is clear that the human race underestimated the demon race.

After pondering for a moment, the Purple Extreme Daoist pointed to the desolate sand sea and said, "The desolate sand sea appears to offer little resistance, and several small groups of demon soldiers were easily defeated by my vanguard."

"However, any army that enters the core area of ​​the desert, whether on foot or by air, will find its advance speed inexplicably slowed down, as if it were stuck in an invisible quagmire."

"According to the disciples' feedback, the Daoist aura here has been forcibly distorted, resulting in a significant reduction in the power of our army's cultivators' spells."

"So far, two Dao Lords have noticed that there are special and unstable ley line fluctuations deep in the desert, which faintly correspond to some kind of large-scale sealing or summoning formation."

Ziji Daozun withdrew his finger, his gaze as deep as a still pool.

"These three places have different terrains and different methods of defense by the demon race, but they have in common that progress is unusually slow, consumption is increasing, and there is some kind of precise guiding or suppressing force operating behind the scenes that is beyond common sense."

"This is definitely not the kind of coordination that an ordinary demon lord, who fights alone, could achieve."

Although the demon race does not have high requirements for living conditions, according to the information Hu Yi sent back, these three places can be described as desolate lands, and those powerful demon races would definitely not be able to set up camp here.

Therefore, this situation arose, and everyone could see that these three places were not simple.

The sect leader frowned deeply and slowly nodded, saying, "Therefore, the demon race is not truly defeated, but is consolidating its strength and plotting in secret."

"These three places are probably key nodes set up by the demon race, and moving one of them will affect the whole situation."

"They used the terrain and some unknown amplification to pin our main force to the periphery of several key locations, preventing us from spying on the core."

"The truly fatal blow may be hidden in places that we cannot detect or are temporarily unable to overcome."

"These locations must be investigated with additional personnel!"

"At least a Dao Lord level expert should be dispatched to lead the team. If necessary, I will send an avatar."

As the great war has progressed to this point, although the Dao Venerable and Demon Venerable levels have not yet engaged in a true war, the battles between their clones have already taken place no less than a dozen times.

Ziji Daozun shook his head slightly, stopping the sect leader from making a move.

Although it is only an avatar that has descended, if the avatar falls into a trap and is ambushed by the demon lord of the demon race, and is injured, it can indirectly affect the sect leader.

Not to mention, in a great war, the hearts and minds of the people are the most crucial element.

If the demon race succeeds in their ambush and spreads the news far and wide, it will only bring harm to their True Martial Sect.

"Sect Leader, it is our duty to find out the truth, but we must plan carefully before we act. A direct attack will only play into the hands of the demon race."

"The demon race is extremely vigilant against the great formation. Right now, the priority is to stabilize the areas that have already been conquered and consolidate our forces."

"In addition, select reliable individuals to infiltrate in small groups and be sure to find out the root cause of these three anomalies, especially the source of that unusual increase."

He paused, his deep gaze seemingly piercing through the tent, looking towards the distant void.

"A deployment and transformation of this scale could not possibly be completed in just two or three days."

"The demon race has been brewing for many years and has a grand plan. What we are showing you now is just the tip of the iceberg."

"Our counterattack force is showing signs of fatigue, and we cannot rashly invest more resources in this quagmire. Therefore, we need to find the key to defeat the enemy in one fell swoop."

The tent was completely silent, except for the red and blue blocks on the map that were moving.

Beneath the surface of victory, undercurrents were surging to the point of being capable of overturning the course of the battle, and everyone felt a heavy weight on their hearts.

The sect leader nodded slowly and said, "Then let Lu Chong lead his disciples there."

Everyone accepted the order and left, leaving only the Sect Master and the Purple Extreme Daoist Venerable behind.

After a moment of silence, the Sect Leader finally spoke.

"Have you found Jiang Shu?"

The Purple Extreme Daoist shook his head and said, "There is no news at all."

“During this time, both I and his half-demon organization have tried every possible way to contact him, but it's all like throwing a stone into the sea—we can't find a trace of him.” “The only thing we know is that he is still alive, and living a good life.”

Jiang Shu left a wisp of soul fire in the True Martial Sect, from which one can see a trace of his condition.

Recently, Jiang Shu's soul fire has been fluctuating wildly, sometimes almost extinguished and sometimes extremely vigorous, which has caused even the Purple Extreme Dao Venerable some concern.

"However, judging from Jiang Shu's luck, he won't be in trouble so easily. Many demon lords in the demon race have sent out clones to search for him, but to no avail. Perhaps he has found a secret place and is currently in seclusion, making it inconvenient for him to contact us. You don't need to worry, this kid has always been a man of his own mind."

The Sect Master spoke slowly. He was not only a Dao Venerable but also the Sect Master, with broader knowledge. He had already guessed that Jiang Shu's opportunity might be even greater than that of an ordinary Dao Venerable.

It is highly likely that the existence of a Dao Lord in the Returning to Void Realm is involved.

As long as you're alive, that's all that matters.

……

In the space of the eighth floor of the Eternal Tower, time is stretched to 256 times that of the outside world.

There is no concept of the rotation of the sun, moon, and stars here, only eternal silence and the vast and pure Daoist charm flowing silently.

Jiang Shu sat cross-legged, suspended in the void, his breathing long and deep. With each inhale, the surrounding Daoist energy flowed into his body like rivers flowing into the sea, forming a visible vortex. With each exhale, he expelled wisps of turbid Daoist energy impurities.

Having reached the Venerable Realm, one enters a completely new world, standing at a height that countless cultivators look up to.

However, for the Star Ruins Realm, which is about to face a great calamity, the Venerable Realm only truly gave him the ability to protect himself.

Having just achieved the status of a Venerable One, his immense and unparalleled power and his sudden surge in spiritual understanding filled his entire body. He urgently needed to settle and control it, much like trying to condense a raging storm into a calm yet immensely powerful abyss.

Jiang Shu's mind was completely immersed in the nascent world within his body.

This was projected from the Dao patterns at the core of that mysterious black stone, and it was the foundation upon which Jiang Shu comprehended the laws of space and achieved the status of a Venerable.

At this moment, this world is in chaos, seemingly existing between reality and illusion, like a nebula at the beginning of the universe, slowly rotating and giving birth to infinite possibilities.

The laws of space flowed through his mind, and he repeatedly deconstructed and verified them.

It is no longer a simple application of tearing, folding, and confinement, but rather a deep dive into the essence and exploration of its inner mechanism.

With a thought from Jiang Shu, the surrounding space was manipulated by an invisible hand, like gentle flowing water.

It was then compressed into an indestructible crystal wall with a density so high it was terrifying. Without any other techniques, a mere thought was enough to crush an ordinary tenth-realm expert to death.

Then, this space was stretched into an invisible passage that spanned 100,000 miles.

Everything happened silently, demonstrating the Venerable One's absolute control over the space.

The charred material on the surface of that mysterious black stone had been almost completely peeled away, revealing its deep, dark jade-like true form. Its volume had shrunk by nearly half, but the spatial aura it exuded was even more restrained and profound.

It hovered above Jiang Shu's palm, and Jiang Shu was still carefully absorbing and refining the primordial energy, integrating it into that nascent space, making its structure more stable and its boundaries clearer.

With each strand of refinement, Jiang Shu felt his connection with the universe deepen, and his understanding of the word "space" became more profound.

The vastness and grandeur of the Law of Force, the ceaseless cycle of creation, the all-encompassing nature of the primordial beginnings, the refined purity of the soul, the invincible sharpness...

These fundamental principles upon which he relied for breakthroughs, like trickling streams, found their respective places within this nascent space, merging and colliding with each other, ultimately achieving a delicate balance and resonance.

Through this continuous tempering, the newly formed Venerable Body became even more translucent and flawless. Every inch of its flesh and bones was engraved with the imprint of the laws, containing power sufficient to shake the stars.

Meanwhile, the World Tree sapling, half a foot tall, with two young leaves—one a deep yellow and the other a pale blue—was quietly taking root in the center of Jiang Shu's dantian.

When it was taken out, it looked listless, with the edges of its leaves turning yellowish.

At this moment, nourished by Venerable Jiang Shu's Daoist aura, and especially enveloped by the gentle warmth of the laws of creation, the withered yellow color was quietly fading away, and a faint glimmer of life was flowing deep within the veins of the leaf.

It is no longer just a simple thing; it is more like a life core connected to Jiang Shu's spatial foundation, a seed for the future world of saints.

Jiang Shu could clearly perceive the profound resonance between it and the various laws within his body, especially the laws of creation, space, and force.

He even began to try to guide it with his divine thoughts, trying to understand its essence of giving birth to life and transforming into the supporting space.

Although the process is extremely obscure and slow, like deciphering a celestial book, each attempt seems to lay the foundation for the future "creation".

Time slipped away silently inside the tower, countless days and nights passing by.

Until a certain moment, the surging power within Jiang Shu was completely tamed, becoming as easy to control as his own arm, and the rhythm of the nascent space was perfectly synchronized with his breathing and heartbeat.

A wisp of divine thought was released, capable of clearly piercing through the dust tracks and subtle energy ripples in the void within a radius of thousands of miles...

Only then did he slowly open his eyes.

In his deep eyes, the illusion of swirling stars flashed by, eventually returning to a calm and vast darkness, as if containing the boundless universe itself.

The Venerable One's initial realm was finally solidified as firm as a rock.

With a slight thought, the solid spatial barrier of the eighth floor of the Eternal Tower rippled out like water in front of Jiang Shu.

With a single step, space itself shifted, and his figure appeared within the base, but he merely sensed the aura emanating from it. The next instant, Jiang Shu left the base and appeared in the vast universe.

Jiang Shu suppressed all outward aura, as if returning to simplicity, and took one step at a time.

Without needing to use any star shuttles or teleportation arrays, his figure merged into the void, and the laws of space naturally extended and contracted beneath his feet.

In just a few breaths, he traversed a distance that would normally take several days to travel in a starship, and appeared in a starry sky that was completely different from the solemn and deadly style of the War Alliance.

On the edge of this star field, a small but exceptionally busy planet inhabited by life is scattered throughout.

Outside the planet, strangely shaped star shuttles flow endlessly, some resembling magnificent star birds, others like ferocious beasts, or ancient sailboats.

Various information streams and energy fluctuations flickered faintly in the public channel, indicating the thriving interstellar trade in this area.

This is Tianqu Star, one of the newest transit hubs of the Nine Universe Business Alliance in the universe.

Tianqu Star is located at the intersection of the inner and outer boundaries of the Star Ruins Realm. Originally, the Nine Universe Business Alliance only had a presence on Tianqu Star.

However, with Jiang Shu joining the War Alliance, the Nine Universe Merchant Alliance also successfully connected with the War Alliance, taking a firm step into the inner perimeter of the Star Ruins Realm.

Tianquxing was officially acquired by the Jiuyu Business Alliance.

The vast business market within the Merchant Alliance can all be transshipped through Tianqu Star, connecting the outer and inner perimeters of the Star Ruins Realm. (End of Chapter)