World version update

Chapter 298 The Emperor's Dharma Image
The "movement" of those old corpses is not any form of physical relocation in conventional understanding, but a violent disturbance at a more fundamental level of information.

In an instant, it was as if an invisible giant hand plucked the underlying strings that constituted the entire mysterious version, and as the instigator of this forbidden melody, Lu Yan heard with unmistakable echoes originating from the deepest part of the old corpses, spanning endless years of deathly silence.

The echo was a pure torrent of information, which, in a way that surpassed the speed of light and ignored any barriers, instantly pierced through his soul and permeated every corner of his being.

Immediately afterwards, an unimaginable pressure suddenly descended.

That is the entire mysterious version of the world, from its inception to the present moment, all the rules, all the history, all the accumulated mysteries and causes, the sum of its vast and boundless information.

As the source of the mysterious version, the ancient corpse is itself the source of creation. The moment Lu Yan disturbed the ancient corpse, the information from the source of creation seemed to find an outlet, collapsing and condensing with Lu Yan's consciousness as the singularity.

Lu Yan felt that he was no longer an independent individual, but was instantly and forcibly elevated to an unbelievable perspective, as if he had become the very essence of this world.

Those great principles of heaven and earth that were originally shrouded in mist and required painstaking effort to comprehend and deduce, those twisted and obscure lines of law, and even the deepest secrets left behind by the fallen in the past, were now presented to his perception in perfect detail, like the lines on the palm of his hand, as if they were within his reach.

This wasn't the first time Lu Yan had experienced this feeling.

In the urban version, Lu Yan, by borrowing the power of the Heavenly Dao to forge an unparalleled foundation, experienced the power of the Heavenly Dao in an instant.

In the Great Collapse version, Lu Yan, who ruled the Second Heaven Dao and suppressed all the heavens, also had a similar experience.

However, whether it is the new Heavenly Dao in the urban version or the second Heavenly Dao in the Great Collapse version, it already has an owner, and Lu Yan is only borrowing it temporarily.

In this mysterious version, the ancients have long since fallen. The gods have schemed for countless years just to enjoy the remains of the ancients. The information disturbance that Lu Yan suddenly stirred up from the remains of the ancients can only originate from Lu Yan himself, and only Lu Yan himself can bear it.

Aside from being unclaimed, what's more important is that the size of the old corpses is far greater than that of the newly revived spiritual energy of the Heavenly Dao, the second Heavenly Dao of the Great Collapse version.

This sudden omniscient perspective, along with the information disturbance from the ancient corpses, acted as a catalyst, completely reversing his originally smooth cultivation breakthrough process.

The predetermined path to the Nascent Soul realm underwent an unpredictable and fundamental change in the face of this upheaval originating from the very foundation of the world.

According to the common practice in cultivation novels, the process from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core is a process in which cultivators solidify their foundation, glimpse the gateway to the world, and thus acquire their innate supernatural powers. It represents the initial understanding and application of the rules.

The advancement from Golden Core to Nascent Soul represents a qualitative leap from understanding to mastery. During this process, the soul undergoes a transformation, magical power surges, and one can mobilize the rules of heaven and earth at a deeper level, no longer limited to a single supernatural power. This lays a solid foundation for the future attainment of the Divine Transformation realm, where the body merges with heaven and earth and forges a Dharma body.

Lu Yan achieved the Great Dao Golden Core with an unparalleled foundation that is rare throughout the ages. Furthermore, he acquired the heaven-defying supreme divine power of manipulating creation. His understanding of the myriad paths of heaven and earth far surpasses that of ordinary Golden Core cultivators. Even when he was in the Golden Core realm, Lu Yan touched upon the rules of heaven and earth that only Nascent Soul cultivators could explore with his Great Dao Golden Core.

His original plan for a breakthrough was to naturally integrate the feedback from the rules and achieve a smooth transition.

However, the intervention of the old corpses abruptly interrupted all of this.

Lu Yan could clearly sense that although he possessed insights far exceeding those of his peers, he still had not yet reached the profound mystery of merging with heaven and earth like a Nascent Soul cultivator, and could not truly condense and manifest his own Dao principles and foundation into a Dharma form that could rule over a region.

This is a qualitative defect, a natural limitation brought about by the boundary barrier.

But amidst this desperate turmoil, an unprecedented, even insane, path was forcibly laid out before him.

Since the quality of one's realm cannot temporarily overcome the gap of the Nascent Soul stage, then one can use unimaginable quantity to make up for it, or even surpass it!
That fleeting, creation-like experience, triggered by the disturbance of information from ancient corpses, was like opening Pandora's box.

What he received and perceived was no longer the gradual and progressive Great Dao of Heaven and Earth during a normal breakthrough, but the entire mysterious version of this world, which gave birth to multiple unique beings of this world and was built on the remains of the past.

Its infusion of all rules and all information is beyond description by the myriad principles, but rather an almost endless torrent of fragmented information about rules.

His once perfect and flawless Great Dao Golden Core, under the onslaught of this frenzied information torrent, has broken through the limits that originally bound it and has begun to undergo a crazy transformation in some indescribable direction.

On the surface of the Golden Core, countless Daoist runes representing the rules of the Great Dao are frantically generated, annihilated, and reorganized, while its internal space seems to be expanding infinitely and collapsing infinitely.

Lu Yan could clearly feel that his soul, the true spirit that contained his essence, and even the vague position he had just glimpsed from the afterglow of the past, were all forcibly drawn into the Great Dao Golden Core.

The golden elixir was no longer a golden elixir; it seemed to have become a chaotic singularity, a gestating embryo.

Amidst the endless chaos and overwhelming information, a vague outline, indescribable by any known concept, was slowly taking shape deep within the Golden Core.

It seemed to have absorbed everything from Lu Yan, and it also seemed to be connected to the endless mysteries of those ancient corpses, exuding a chilling ancient aura.

"Dharma image!"

Lu Yan's pupils suddenly contracted, and an expression of barely suppressed emotion appeared on his face.

The outline that was slowly condensing deep within the core of the Great Dao Golden Core was clearly the prototype of a Dharma Image.

This is simply an inconceivable creation. You must know that only by reaching the realm of divine transformation, after the god and the Dao merge with heaven and earth, can one use one's own understanding of the Great Dao and the power of origin as the foundation to give birth to an unparalleled manifestation that can govern the rules of a region.

The Dharma form is both the embodiment of heaven and earth and the manifestation of the path.

Lu Yan considered that his foundation was so solid that he had already forged an unparalleled Dao foundation that was unprecedented in all time. Whether it was the accumulation of magical power, the power of supernatural abilities, or the depth of his understanding of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, he was no less than an ordinary Dao Lord who had just entered the Nascent Soul stage, and even surpassed him in the level of heaven-defying supernatural abilities such as manipulating creation.

However, there is always a vast chasm called realm between him and a true deity, a fundamental difference that is the constraint of not being able to truly merge with heaven and earth.

However, at this moment, thanks to the sudden, world-destroying information disturbance from the ancient corpses, he unexpectedly managed to pry open this insurmountable barrier.

Using the massive amount of rule information derived from ancient corpses as building blocks and his own Great Dao Golden Core as a framework, he forcibly crossed the boundary between Nascent Soul and Deity Transformation and directly began to nurture his Dharma Form.

If he can truly condense a complete Dharma Image at the same time as breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, then he can almost be regarded as a genuine Nascent Soul Dao Lord.

At that time, with his foundation and supernatural powers far exceeding those of his peers, he might be able to put up a fight against those above the Nascent Soul stage.

An uncontrollable surge of ecstasy coursed through Lu Yan's heart like an electric current, but this ecstasy lasted for less than a breath before being instantly extinguished as if by the cold wind of December, replaced by a bone-chilling coldness and vigilance.

His smile froze on his face, his brows furrowed instantly, and his eyes sharpened like knives as he stared at the nascent Dharma form that was rapidly taking shape within the Great Dao Golden Core.

Because he could clearly sense that the chilling aura swirling around that nascent Dharma form originated from the ancient corpses. Even the indescribable Dharma form seemed to bear some resemblance to those ancient corpses.

"This is the price?"

The reason he was able to break through the barrier of realm and cultivate his Dharma form ahead of time was due to more than 80% of the credit for the information disturbance that occurred in the old corpse at that moment.

It was this immense external force, powerful enough to distort the rules of the world, that allowed him to compensate for the lack of quality by accumulating quantity.

"But the price is far too heavy, and this is definitely not the result I want!" Lu Yan's expression turned serious, and his eyes were filled with apprehension.

While achieving a breakthrough by condensing a Dharma form is undoubtedly a great thing, if this Dharma form is fundamentally connected to the mysterious and unpredictable ancient corpse, then it may not be a blessing.

In the past, it was a terrifying existence that once attempted to merge with the super-large version of the Heavenly Dao and challenge the one and only in this world.

Although information indicates that He has collapsed along with the version of Heavenly Dao, and even His remains have been devoured by the Seven Gods for countless years, it seems that there is no possibility of His revival.

But who can truly say whether an existence of this caliber might have left behind any hidden tricks?
Could the seeds of resurrection be sown in the most unlikely corner?

Even as they devoured the gods of old, they remained wary and dared not allow the times to change unchecked.

If one's own Dharma form, due to its deep karmic entanglement with the old corpse, ultimately becomes the opportunity for that long-fallen old being to return.
Whenever Lu Yan thought of this possibility, he felt a chill run from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. He had experienced several version updates, suffered losses at the hands of the Eternal Heavenly Venerable, and witnessed the schemes of the Main God. He no longer dared to underestimate or take any chances with these unique individuals who stood at the top of the version.

"We absolutely cannot let this happen!" A resolute glint flashed in Lu Yan's eyes.

He could clearly feel that as the nascent form of the Dharma continued to condense, the ancient aura was becoming increasingly entangled with his soul and true spirit.

Without any hesitation, Lu Yan's thoughts stirred, and the nascent Divine Court Underworld was instantly and forcefully activated.

A majestic divine power descended from the void, as if ten thousand feet of golden light pierced through the barrier of the Golden Core, illuminating the blurry phantoms of the gods, carrying an aura of solemnity, reverence, and absolute order, like the Milky Way pouring down, attempting to wash away and suppress the increasingly dense ancient aura within the nascent form of the Dharma.

However, to Lu Yan's dismay, the ever-victorious Divine Court Order suffered its first unprecedented setback.

The divine order, which could suppress even uniqueness, collapsed silently when it came into contact with that seemingly weak but extremely profound ancient aura, as if a mud ox had entered the sea and not even a ripple was stirred.

"Just as I expected." Lu Yan was not surprised at all.

Although the Divine Court and the Underworld have boundless potential, their foundations are still shallow and they have not yet truly taken shape and become complete.

The ancient one was a great being who had almost reached the end of the path of the only one in this world. Even if it was just a trace of breath or a fragment of information left after its fall, its status was far beyond what the current Divine Court and Underworld could contend with.

The power of the divided portion of order alone cannot shake it in the slightest.

Time was of the essence, the nascent form of the Dharma was taking shape at an increasingly rapid pace, and the erosion of the old aura was becoming more and more profound.

A resolute glint flashed in Lu Yan's eyes as he reached out and summoned the black and gold Emperor's Banner, which landed in his palm.

Since the Divine Court and Underworld were initially established, the Human Emperor Banner has been carefully nurtured by Lu Yan as the core foundation of the entire system, and is no longer used lightly.

This banner is connected to the fortunes of the Divine Court and the Underworld. Any damage to it would be a devastating blow to the still unstable Divine Court and the Underworld.

But at this moment, Lu Yan couldn't care less about anything else. If he didn't completely resolve the old hidden dangers in the Dharma Image, not only would the future of the Divine Court and the Underworld be in jeopardy, but even his own existence would be in danger.

"Suppress!" Lu Yan roared, throwing the artifact containing most of his accumulated power and merit directly into the rapidly evolving Great Dao Golden Core.

boom!
It was as if the universe had just begun, and chaos had exploded!
The Human Emperor Banner, carrying the immense power of the nascent Divine Court and Underworld, forcefully squeezed into the already crowded inner space of the Golden Core, like a complete world projection.

The majestic city of Fengdu stood tall, and the waters of the Yellow Springs flowed ceaselessly. The entire phantom of the underworld forcefully enveloped the nascent Dharma form that was gathering in an unprecedented manner.

The supreme authority of the Divine Court of the Heavens, under the rule of the Human Emperor Banner, has transformed into the most solid cage of order, attempting to completely suppress and refine the unruly aura of the past.

Inside the Great Dao Golden Core, it had completely transformed into a chaotic battlefield beyond description, where the golden light of the Divine Court's order clashed, tore, and annihilated against the deathly darkness of the past.

Amidst this extreme chaos and conflict, the indescribable Dharma form, which had originally resembled a projection of an ancient corpse, gradually began to become clearly visible.

That was the underworld, within the city of Fengdu.

The illusory image of the Dharma was still draped in a robe with twelve symbols and a crown with twelve tassels, exuding an aura of majesty and imperial power, and sat regally on the supreme divine throne.

Below it, the phantom images of gods stood guard, in perfect order.

If you look closely, the sun, moon and stars pattern on the robe seems to be entwined with an everlasting shadow of death, and behind the drooping pearl crown, the emperor's gaze is as deep as the stars of eternity.

Meanwhile, outside, the seven awakening gods are all drawn to the disturbance caused by the ancient corpses.

They, who were not fully awake, separated a wisp of consciousness and traveled across time and space, attempting to capture the source of the disturbance.

However, before they could investigate further, the chaotic aura that originated from the past, which was both familiar and alarming to them, receded swiftly like a tide.

As they traced the cause and effect, the stars in the sky began to shift and change.

The moment that signifies the return of the stars to their rightful place seems to have been disrupted, and the historical process locked by the gods has begun to become blurred.

In that infinitely high dimension where ancient corpses lay, a phantom of an emperor, formed from the convergence of stars, seemed to have replaced the ancient corpses. He sat on his throne, looking down upon this world.

This sudden change caused these newly awakened ancient wills to feel a sense of astonishment and confusion.

(End of this chapter)