After the myth

Chapter 1170 Plan
"Wuji, has our path been restricted?" Although Ding Huan was asking Mo Wuji, he seemed to be talking to himself.

Mo Wuji said, “I’m afraid no one has the right to restrict our paths, not even the One Yuan Three Daos can do that.

I suspect it's the immensity that limits it. The immensity is self-contained and cannot be the universe of any one person.

Although the vastness is self-contained, its Great Dao source must be compatible with the Dao spirits that originated from it. Compared to the vastness, our origins are not illustrious, even humble, so the Dao of the vastness looks down on us.

We not only originated from a lower universe in the vast expanse, but we also initially cultivated using all the principles and primordial energy here.

Mo Wuji sighed as he said this: "We are essentially branded with humility, losing the chance to step into the ninth step of the Great Dao from birth, let alone take that step."

Ding Huan agreed with Mo Wuji's statement, and that his own Great Dao Universe Origin Law had long been derived from his own Great Dao.

Every principle in his Great Dao World has no connection to the outside universe.

But regardless of his perception or what he does.

None of this can change one fact.

His path originates from the vastness beneath, and he himself is a being from the vastness beneath.

His Great Cosmic Technique evolves his own Great Dao Source Principles, allowing him to avoid being controlled by the cosmic Dao Principles to the greatest extent possible.

Ding Huan patted Mo Wuji on the shoulder: "Wuji, it's nothing. We are indeed under the vastness, but aren't the One Yuan Three Paths also under the vastness?"
They may have taken the ninth step of the Great Dao and gained immortality, but they still cannot control the vast primordial laws. A single thought from them could kill us.

I have some good news for you today. You know what lies beyond Jiugai, right?

Mo Wuji nodded: "Not only do I know, but I know quite a lot. I haven't wasted these years. I spent thousands of years in the Ten Directions Universe City in order to find the key to stepping into the ninth step of the Great Dao."

Unfortunately, the First Universe is too exclusive, allowing very few people to survive there. Dao City is just one of the Ten Directions Universe Cities, and my information about it is limited.

But there must be a great secret beyond Jiugai, but unfortunately this place has become the dojo of Mudao, one of the three paths.

I've always had this question: why did the other two paths and One Yuan allow Wu Dao to occupy outside the Nine Realms?

Ding Huan chuckled: "I'll tell you something you can't find out: the area outside Jiu Gai isn't actually occupied by Wu Dao."

Wu Dao is very likely also guarding outside Jiu Gai; he wants to occupy the area outside Jiu Gai. At least so far, he hasn't succeeded.

Upon hearing Ding Huan's words, Mo Wuji immediately became excited: "Then it must be right..."

He gathered his thoughts and said, "I have made great progress in my search for the entrance to the Eight Gorges over the years."

The Eight-Town Canyon contains countless abandoned source laws and myriad miasma source laws, but for a true Daoist, these are not truly useless.

If you and I can both understand this principle, I don't believe that people like the One Yuan Three Paths and the Five Ancestors don't understand it either.

Our Dao is excellent, but as the most outstanding beings under the vastness, their Dao is definitely no weaker than ours.

I assume they all understand this principle, so why hasn't anyone come to seize the Eight Peaks Canyon? Instead, the area outside the Nine Peaks is occupied by Wu Dao?

There is only one possibility: the area outside the Nine Gai plays a crucial role in taking the ninth step of the Great Dao.

However, the status of Bayan Canyon is equally high. The reason why no one has occupied Bayan Canyon is likely due to a matter of order.

To take the ninth step of the Great Dao, one must first seek the Dao beyond the Nine Gai, and then come to the Eight Valleys.

Outside of Jiu Gai, Wu Dao guards the area, making it inaccessible to ordinary people. Although Wu Dao is stationed outside Jiu Gai, he shouldn't expect to have this place to himself; the other two Daoists and Yi Yuan might be watching him closely.

This created a stalemate, as no one outside of the Nine Gai could enter to cultivate. Coming to the Eight Peaks Canyon alone without going outside the Nine Gai was also pointless.

Ding Huan understood Mo Wuji's meaning, and he secretly admired him.

He knew that the Nine Gai Land was the source of the Great Dao because Si Wu had told him this intentionally or unintentionally.

Mo Wuji's ability to arrive at this conclusion based solely on guesswork is truly remarkable; he is a genius of the Dao.

"Wuji, can we get our hands on Jiu Gai first?" Ding Huan rubbed his hands together; that was what he had in mind before he came.

Mo Wuji's eyes lit up; the area beyond Jiugai must be as vast and boundless as the Bayan Canyon.

No matter how strong Wu Dao is, it is impossible for him to protect all the places outside Jiu Gai.

"It's decided then. The two of us will first study how to enter the boundary seal of the Eight-Town Canyon. After we open the entrance to the Eight-Town Canyon, we won't go in. We'll wait for Xiao Bu to arrive, and then the three of us will go to the outside of the Nine Gai."

Mo Wuji was no coward; Ding Huan's suggestion was exactly what he wanted to do.

Mo Wuji had been studying the boundary seal outside the Eight Valleys for hundreds of years, and Ding Huan's own Great Dao was related to the Origin Law of the Universe. He had even single-handedly killed a Void Algae Forest.

After he joined, the two were able to study the source boundary outside the Eight-Town Canyon much faster.

Two hundred years passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, while Ding Huan and Mo Wuji were still discussing the Origin Principle Boundary of the Eight Gorges, the Origin Principle Boundary that Mo Wuji had set up outside fluctuated again.

"Little Bu is here." Mo Wuji immediately opened the portal to the dimension.

Sure enough, Lan Xiaobu rushed in, looking travel-worn.

"I'm late." Lan Xiaobu laughed heartily. He was in a great mood when he saw Ding Huan and Mo Wuji there.

“You’re not too late. The seal on the Origin Realm of the Eight Valleys hasn’t been opened yet. We need some more time. Come over here and we can continue breaking the seal while we talk…” The three of them worked together, and the speed of breaking the seal was even faster.

At the same time, Lan Xiaobu also figured out the relationship between the Nine Gai and the Eight Cliffs, and learned from Ding Huan that the source of the Great Dao lies beyond the Nine Gai.

According to Mo Wuji and Ding Huan's guess, a cultivator at the ninth step of the Great Dao must occupy both the Nine Gai and the Eight Valleys simultaneously in order to take the ninth step of the Great Dao.

Lan Xiaobu asked in confusion, "Through absorbing the vast Yuanmai River over the years, I've learned one thing: no matter how much vast Yuan Qi there is, it's not enough for us to step into the ultimate ninth step."

This is probably related to our birth, but I haven't figured out the specific reason yet.

If your guess is correct, then the area beyond the Nine Gai and the Eight Valleys are the key to taking the ninth step on the Great Path.

"We haven't even stepped into the ninth step of the Great Dao yet, so how can we talk about taking that ninth step?"

Ding Huan shook his head: "Otherwise, our Dao is no worse than those old guys' Dao."

"If we use the source of the Great Dao that allowed them to take the ninth step of the Great Dao to enter the ninth step of the Great Dao ourselves, does that mean our strength will surpass theirs in the future?"

"That makes sense, but even if we use the Nine Gai and the Eight Treasures to step into the ninth step, we are still under this vast expanse."

Lan Xiaobu wasn't raising any objections, but since he had joined later, there were some things he needed to understand.

Mo Wuji said, "We haven't stepped into the ninth step of the Great Dao yet, so we don't know if when we stand at the ninth step of the Great Dao, our understanding of our own Great Dao will break free from the vastness and reach a higher level."

Whether we are in the vastness after stepping into the ninth step of the Great Dao is not our concern. What we need to consider now is how to step out of the ninth step of the Great Dao.

Lan Xiaobu nodded: "There's one last question, Brother Ding Huan, have you thought about what Si Wu's purpose was in telling you about the Nine Gai?"

Ding Huan had thought about this question long ago, so when Lan Xiaobu asked him, he replied, "Si Wu is probably also eyeing the Nine Realms."

This guy doesn't have the guts. He wants to use me to spread the word about the Nine Realms, preferably letting all those Realm Lords know.

If more people go beyond Jiugai, diverting Wudao's attention, he might also have a chance to enter beyond Jiugai.

But I think this guy is overthinking it.

Even if I spread the word beyond Jiugai as he requested, I doubt many people would dare cause trouble in one of the three major regions.

"Not necessarily, what if it's one of the other two paths?" Mo Wuji said.

After some discussion, the three of them had a clear objective.

The first step is to break the seal of the source boundary of the Eight Peaks Canyon, then mark the area and leave.

Leaving doesn't mean not coming back, but rather finding a way to enter beyond Jiugai.

They need to find a way to get outside Jiugai.

Once they enter outside the Nine Realms, they can comprehend the vast Dao there.

If their guess is correct, then after leaving Jiugai, they can return to Bayuan Valley for seclusion to attempt the true ninth step of the Great Dao.

The seal of the Eight Valleys' source realm was already mostly broken, and now with Lan Xiaobu's addition, the seal of the Eight Valleys is being broken even faster.

The three of them are essentially complementary in their paths. Previously, Mo Wuji broke through the seal of the Origin Realm here by himself. If a problem arises, it will take him many years to figure it out.

Now that the three of them are together, once a problem arises, they can quickly come up with a completely new approach.

In just thirty years, the source seal of the Eight Gorges was broken.

The moment the seal of the Eight Peaks Canyon Source Principle was broken, what the three sensed was not the endless miasma source principle or the garbage source principle formed during the creation of the vast expanse, but a vast source principle that they had never encountered before.

In Ding Huan's and the other two's minds, whatever the source law of the Eight Valleys was, it must be related to the vast creation.

Only after truly encountering this fundamental principle did the three realize how wrong their ideas were.

Although they had never come into contact with this source law, they knew that it was definitely a source law from before the vast creation.

The three exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with an irrepressible joy.

If it is the primordial principle before the creation of the vastness, then isn't it also the primordial principle for the formation of the vastness?

Even before the vastness.

Their guess was correct; the Eight-Town Canyon was indeed the key place to take the ninth step on the Great Road.

"Seal it up immediately," Mo Wuji said.

Without Mo Wuji's reminder, Ding Huan and Lan Xiaobu had already begun setting up the sealing source rules.

They knew very well that the primordial laws that existed before this vast creation were something they could not understand at present.

This directly confirms their guess that there is another source of the Great Dao beyond the Nine Gai, and they need to go beyond the Nine Gai first.

(Good night, fellow Taoists!)

(End of this chapter)