Grandpa, times have changed.

Chapter 644 The Source of the Great Dao, Covering All Heavens

After standing silently in front of the Sword Ancestor's Hall for a long time, Xu Xing withdrew his gaze and started walking down the mountain.

After Yuan spearheaded the establishment of the Righteous Path Alliance, he considered the possibility that the alliance might go astray, so he laid out many contingency plans before leaving to prevent this.

This even included the very thing he least wanted to deal with...

To be fair, for a mere Dongzhen to dare to scheme against a True Immortal is already incredibly audacious.

However, his move was indeed very clever.

After all, Huo is an eccentric person. Even if he finds out later that Yuan tricked him, he'll probably just find it amusing...

wrong!

Huo even went to the place where Yuan left the coded message, so he probably already knows it.

With his mind wandering, Xu Xing had already reached the halfway point of the mountain.

The air became somewhat damp and chilly, and the surrounding area was shrouded in heavy fog, resulting in very low visibility.

ding dong~
A crisp message notification tone sounded.

Xu Xing paused, took out his phone, and saw that it was a message from Bie Xuening.

Senior sister: "Junior brother, I'm done here. I'll be back around this afternoon. /Little yellow duck holding a heart"

Isn't this because you can move freely after your cultivation level has improved?

Ning Ruo had previously descended to the Earthly Immortal Realm through the power of the Immortal Network, where she and Xu Xing studied the 'New Heavenly Will' of the Earthly Immortal Realm.

Because of the considerable harvest, he summoned Bie Xuening to the Lingyin Pavilion, intending to upgrade the Immortal Cleansing Pool...

As for the note, it was actually changed by Bie Xuening using Xu Xing's phone.

She originally wanted to change it to "my dearest senior sister", but after thinking about it, she still felt too embarrassed, so she changed it to the simple word "senior sister".

Senior Sister: "After this upgrade to the Immortal Cleansing Pool, the time required to cleanse the aura is shorter, and the discomfort experienced by ascendants when receiving information will also be reduced."

Senior Sister: "Unfortunately, the barrier to achieving Dao remains insurmountable; the connection between the world itself and achieving Dao is far too close."

Senior Sister: "Afterwards, I plan to refer to the fact that enlightened beings transcend the world and research ways to optimize the Immortal Cleansing Pool."

Ok?
Is this something a senior sister would say?
next second.

Senior sister: "She took my phone; that was the message she just sent."

That's more like it.

A smile appeared on Xu Xing's face as he replied to messages and walked down the mountain.

……

……

A few minutes later.

Xu Xing had already put away his phone when he arrived at the foot of the mountain.

Then you can see the plaza in front of the mountain steps.

Under a tree, a figure was already waiting.

Upon seeing Xu Xing, her clear, icy blue eyes lit up, and she quickly came forward to greet him.

"senior!"

This person is none other than the master of the Cold Moon Sword Palace in the Earthly Immortal Realm, and also the third ascendant since the 'Ascension Plan' was launched—

Xi Li.

Upon approaching, she bowed respectfully.

"I've met senior."

Compared to before, Xi Li has now changed her plain white dress into a very ordinary black tracksuit, and her originally long, snow-white hair has been tied into a high ponytail.

She appeared simple yet capable.

"Tell me about your experiences during this time," Xu Xing said as they walked.

"Ah."

Xi Li followed Xu Xing and began to recount her experiences traveling in the Tai Xuan Realm during this time.

The central continent, the starry sky, and the people I met on this journey...

There were no extra embellishments; I simply recounted every place I visited and one thing that left a deep impression on me.

Even so, it took more than ten minutes to finish speaking.

"Senior, I still want to join the Sword Sect," she said finally.

The information provided by the Immortal Cleansing Pool gave her a general understanding of this world.

Her experiences during this period also allowed her to see some deeper phenomena in this world.

Just as the elders said, there are still many unsolved problems in this world.

But this did not change her original idea.

From the perspective of 'inheritance', all her knowledge, the two fundamental lineages of 'Yin' and 'Sword', came from her predecessors.

From the perspective of seeking answers, she is currently standing at too low a height, and the 'scenery' she can see is limited.

Therefore, joining the Sword Sect is undoubtedly the best choice.

"Have you considered it?"

“Yes.” Xi Li nodded. “I have already submitted my application to join the sect.”

Previously, Sect Leader Du had said that if she was interested in joining the sect, she could contact him directly.

However, she wanted to follow the proper procedures of the Sword Sect, even if it took some time, since time was the last thing she needed right now.

"The sect entrance assessment will be held in three days."

"If you make the decision yourself, that's of course the best."

The two arrived at the southwest side of the inner continent of the Sword Sect, which is also the Sword Sect's 'rare spiritual herb cultivation area'.

Looking around, one can see neat rows of spiritual fields where spiritual herbs, radiating a soft glow, sway in the wind, surrounded by a misty atmosphere. The visible fragrance of the herbs intertwines with colorful auspicious clouds in the sky.

"Back then, we and the Beast God altered the flow of time, but now you're going to be delayed by several hundred years."

“How can this be blamed on you, senior?” Xi Li shook her head slightly.

Leaving aside the fact that the senior had already secured a glimmer of hope for the human race in the Earthly Immortal Realm from the Beast God's clutches, moreover...

She said earnestly, "If we don't do that, we won't even have the resources to fight against the Beast God Clan."

She paused for a moment, then explained why she thought that way.

As one of the top Void Returners in the Earthly Immortal Realm, he is naturally very clear about all the things that happened to the human race in the Earthly Immortal Realm in the past.

In her view, in the very beginning of the Earthly Immortal Realm, there were only a small group of cultivators from the human race, and only five of them had reached the Void Returning stage.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they could only eke out a living under the protection of Xi's Dao essence.

In that situation, even if the True Immortal Ancestor of the Tai Xuan Realm defeated the Beast God, the remaining Beast God race's Void Returning Beast could drown the human race with a single spit.

Unless the true immortal ancestors wipe out the Beast God Clan.

But what would the Earthly Immortal Realm look like now?

With all external enemies gone, there is no need to vigorously promote cultivation methods or increase the number of practitioners.

In the old era, practitioners possessed immense power, like mountains collapsing and seas crashing, and were high above others.

In order to maintain their status, they will inevitably monopolize cultivation.

Those who cultivate themselves dwell high in the clouds, regarding mortals as worthless weeds.

The vast gap between immortals and mortals means that the kind of heinous incidents that have occurred in the Cold Moon Sword Palace will only increase.

Although she believed that the Immortal Realm would inevitably face that fate in the future, the many years of war with the Beast God Clan had ultimately delayed that outcome.

"..." Xu Xing was silent for a while, then suddenly said, "You might be very suitable to become the sect leader."

Xi Li's expression remained unchanged:

"After joining the Sword Sect, I will strive towards this goal."

"Then work hard."

Xu Xing chuckled softly, then turned and left.

Jiu Yu has finally met his match.

Because of the shift in the flow of time, Xi Li would need at least four hundred years of accumulation to possess sufficient 'life depth' to bear the weight of the Dao.

If things go smoothly, Jiu Yu should begin to approach the threshold of Dao Integration about six hundred years from now. By then, the current sect leader's term will be almost over.

The two might actually be running for sect leader together.

Unfortunately, this method of manipulating the flow of time cannot be used indiscriminately.

After all, more than four hundred years of stagnation in the process of returning to the void has a high probability of affecting one's Dao heart, which in turn affects the most important step of merging with the Dao.

The situation in the Immortal Realm is rather unique.

Otherwise, he would have already thrown people into the outer world and mass-produced those who had reached the Void Returning Perfection stage.

……

……

Meanwhile, at Lingyinfang.

Contrary to Xu Xing's expectations, besides Bie Xuening, Mei Zu was also here.

"Speak quickly! What are your intentions in secretly summoning me here without telling my Daoist brother!" Meizu asked loudly with a serious expression.

She was thinking of finding some time to invite her fellow Daoist to the Hehuan Sect so that he could taste the Xuanzhu Fruit Wine she had brewed.

However, he was summoned by a message from the Spirit Ancestor.

"I called you here because I have something important to discuss," Ning Ruo said calmly. "It's just that I'm not sure whether I should tell Brother Xu about this."

Oh?
Meizu blinked.

He couldn't tell his fellow Daoist, yet he summoned me here...

"Oh! Don't worry, I agree, as long as you're not shy."

She feigned shyness and even glanced at Bie Xuening.

"..."

Although I don't know what this guy means by those words, I just want to draw my sword and kill her!

"..." Ning Ruo was silent for a moment, "I said, it's important business!"

"What I'm saying is indeed important!" Meizu said sincerely.

Ning Ruo: "..."

“I want to kill her,” Bie Xuening said.

"Chop!" Ning Ruo said without hesitation.

"No, no, no!"

Seeing this, Meizu quickly got up, pressed down the restless Bie Xuening, and then returned to her seat.

"You speak, you speak! I will not speak, I will just listen quietly."

Ning Ruo gave her a deep look. Mei Zu looked completely innocent, even somewhat 'obedient'.

Even though Sword Master and Yuanjun are just okay when they're tied together, why is this guy so difficult to deal with!

With a sigh, she began to explain.

"Some time ago, a 'new destiny' was born in the Earthly Immortal Realm, which you visited once before."

"That guy came back to life?" Meizu asked in surprise.

"It's not 'resurrection,' it's 'new life.'"

"Oh."

"Therefore, Brother Xu used his power of the Celestial Net to guide one of my avatars there."

Meizu paused, then remained silent.

Then Ning Ruo continued:
"The main purpose is to study the 'newborn heavenly will' of the Earthly Immortal Realm in order to find a more efficient way to refine the heavenly will of the Tai Xuan Realm."

"The reason why the Sword Master came here is because I was inspired by it and found a way to improve the 'Immortal Cleansing Pool'."

Understood.

She's a ruthless sword energy projectile!

"But there's no need to hide these things from you, fellow Daoist, and call me here specifically for this, is there?" Meizu asked, puzzled.

"Not only that, in addition to studying the 'Newborn Will,' I also discovered some changes when I left."

Variety?

Ning Ruo opened her hand, and a wisp of hazy, ethereal energy, seemingly containing endless colors, swirled in her palm.

It is the 'chaotic aura' that is commonplace in the Chaos Sea and can be considered as resources for the growth of the world.

"What's so surprising about that? It's just..."

Meizu stopped mid-sentence, a look of seriousness appearing in her eyes.

"Is this true everywhere in the Chaos Sea?"

"As far as I can see, this is true everywhere."

With a gentle push, Ning Ruo sent the wisp of chaotic energy drifting towards the Demon Ancestor.

Meizu reached out and took it, placing it in front of him and examining it intently, his eyes growing increasingly serious.

Although extremely faint, she still sensed a peculiar presence within this chaotic aura—a combination of 'impurity' and 'doubt,' capable of stirring up endless doubts and anxieties.

The Way is lost!

That's right!

This is exactly the same as the deep shadow she saw in Xu Xing's mind when she first observed him!
But why would 'Dao Wang,' a manifestation of past karma, and the obstacle that Brother Dao encountered on his further journey, manifest in the Chaos Sea?

After a long while, Meizu finally shifted his attention away from the wisp of chaotic energy in his hand.

"Brother Dao...didn't he realize it himself?"

“No.” Ning Ruo shook her head slightly. “After I discovered this, I tried to probe him indirectly, but Brother Xu didn’t seem to notice anything unusual in the Chaos Sea.”

The Way is lost, and my heart is hard to fathom.
This thought flashed through Meizu's mind.

"So, you mean those involved are often blinded, while bystanders see things clearly?" she murmured, then looked up. "You didn't mention this, did you?"

"No, because it's not clear yet whether this matter will have any further impact on him, so I didn't say anything."

You can never be too careful with something like this.

That's why she invited the Demon Ancestor, who had 'treated' Brother Xu and was in charge of the 'True Self' path, to come over.

I also wanted to see what she thought.

“Indeed, this is a crucial time, and we can’t tell our older brother about this unusual change yet…”

Ok?
Something seems wrong?
Ning Ruo and Bie Xue Ning exchanged a glance, but did not interrupt her thoughts.

After a long while, Meizu raised her head again, her expression solemn:
"Regarding the unusual changes in the Chaos Sea, I have guessed some possibilities, and I suppose you have as well."

"Not bad." Ning Ruo nodded slightly.

Bie Xuening: "..."

Have you guessed some possibilities?
She remained calm and listened quietly to Meizu's explanation.

"It is now clear that the three steps to becoming a true immortal are 'attaining the Dao', 'holding the Dao', and 'the source of the Dao'."

"Moreover, the only ones who have touched the 'source of the Dao' are Brother Dao and Xuan."

“In the past, our speculations about the ‘Source of the Dao’ step were based on the insights that Brother Dao usually shared, but now it seems that the ‘Source of the Dao’ step is probably even more ‘powerful’ than we previously speculated.”

Since I couldn't find a suitable adjective, the word 'amazing' is somewhat inadequate, but it's the only one I can use to describe it.

"The source of the Great Dao covers all the heavens, is infinitely wondrous, and rectifies the chaos."

The Demon Ancestor chanted softly.

"When someone touches the source of the Dao, their own state will be reflected in the Chaos Sea, and at the moment they truly achieve the source of the Dao, they will add new changes to the 'disorderly' Chaos Sea according to the way they achieve it."

From this perspective, the Chaos Sea can be seen as being in an 'immature' stage.

Every existence of a 'Source of the Dao,' or even an 'Enlightened One,' or a lower-level Dao-merging being, contributes to the perfection of the Chaos Sea.

However, the Dao Integration Realm is far too insignificant compared to the Chaos Sea.

Therefore, the changes reflected in the chaotic sea are so subtle as to be barely perceptible.

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(End of this chapter)