Two Realms High Martial Arts: Gathering the Heavens to Become a Great Luo Immortal

Chapter 464 Congratulations, Arrival, Observation of the Ceremony

Today's sunlight bathed the majestic Forbidden City in a glorious and solemn golden-red hue.

The once solemn and quiet palace grounds are now filled with an unprecedented tranquility.

Starting from Chengtianmen, passing through Duanmen and Wumen, all the way to the white marble square in front of the main hall, it was already packed with people.

The square was packed with people, almost impossible to move.

Looking around, one sees figures dressed in Taoist robes, monk's robes, Confucian robes, Chinese clothes, or all sorts of strange costumes.

Their auras varied in strength, some were serene, some were deep and composed, some were upright, and some were mysterious. They were all cultivators who had embarked on the path of refining the spirit.

Those with weaker cultivation levels, such as those who had achieved a state of meditation, could only squeeze onto the outermost edge of the plaza, standing on tiptoe, craning their necks, and gazing longingly at the imperial palace hall that symbolized the power of the empire and the core of the supreme Dao. Their faces were a mixture of excitement, awe, and a hint of regret for not being able to enter the hall.

Even so, no one made a fuss or complained. Everyone held their breath, as if afraid that even the slightest sound would desecrate the supreme being who was about to descend.

Those who could enter the vermilion gates of the main hall were all highly skilled individuals who had achieved mastery of spiritual cultivation.

Inside the hall, gleaming gold bricks were laid out, and huge golden pillars with coiled dragons supported the high and wide dome.

At this moment, the once spacious and solemn hall seemed somewhat "crowded".

The crowds were dense, their breaths mingling, filling almost every inch of foothold.

Standing at the very front, closest to the lofty imperial steps and the golden throne adorned with nine dragons, were a handful of figures whose auras were the most profound, seemingly resonating subtly with the surrounding world.

The Celestial Master Qingxu of Longhu Mountain, dressed in a purple robe and jade crown, holding a whisk, had a solemn face illuminated by the bright pearls and the afterglow of the setting sun in the hall.

Master Chan Ning of Dajue Temple, wearing a bright red robe with gold thread, has his head slightly lowered, his prayer beads still, and faint phantom images of dragons and elephants floating around his body;

In addition, there were two or three reclusive Thunder Tribulation Realm elders, who also stood silently with their auras calm and composed.

They are the pinnacle of the current world of Divine Refining, the few Thunder Tribulation True Monarchs among them.

A little later, there were the Manifestation Saint True Lords, who were in slightly larger numbers.

At a glance, there were more than a dozen!

This brings together almost all the divine power in the world.

There are Taoist elders with white hair and youthful faces, Buddhist monks with solemn and dignified appearances, great Confucian scholars with upright and righteous spirit, and patriarchs with profound family heritage.

They stood in their own indistinct circles, their auras subtly restraining yet respecting one another, their gazes lowered, not daring to look directly at the throne before them.

Further on, there was a vast expanse of Out-of-Body Real Persons.

Cultivators at this level, who would normally be figures capable of establishing sects and being admired in any prefecture or state, were now densely packed in the back of the main hall like students taking the imperial examination.

They tried their best to conceal their aura, not daring to let it leak out in the slightest, for fear of offending the True Lord in front of them, and even more so for fear of disturbing the one who was about to arrive.

Time slipped away little by little in this silence, which was both extremely oppressive and extremely expectant.

The light and shadow of the setting sun moved slowly across the golden bricks inside the hall, gradually changing from bright and dazzling to soft and dim.

Inside and outside the hall, not a single cultivator moved, not a single person spoke, and even the transmission of divine thoughts was completely cut off.

Everyone's attention was focused on the empty dragon throne.

Don't you see, even the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain and the chief monks of Buddhism can only wait here quietly. Who would dare to have the slightest dissatisfaction? Who could utter a single complaint? To be able to stand here and breathe the air that exists in the same temple as that being is already an immense opportunity and honor.

As the last rays of sunset were about to be swallowed by the deep blue twilight, and the pearls in the palace automatically lit up with a warm glow, from behind the throne, beside the screen leading to the inner hall, came the voice of Eunuch Hua, uniquely high-pitched yet incredibly clear and solemn at this moment: "His Majesty has arrived—!"

The sound wasn't loud, but it was like a pebble thrown into an absolutely calm lake, instantly shattering the suffocating silence that had lasted for several hours.

The entire hall seemed to be swept by an invisible law. Heads that were already bowed drooped even lower; bodies that were already upright tensed even more.

From the Celestial Master Qingxu and Master Channing at the very front, to the various manifested saints in the middle, and then to the crowded Astral Transformation True People at the back, everyone, without prior agreement and with remarkable tacit understanding, began to subtly adjust their positions.

Without any command or communication, the initially somewhat chaotic positions quickly became clearly defined.

With the Thunder Tribulation True Lord in the first row, the Manifestation True Lord in the second and third rows, and the Out-of-Body True Lords arranged in a relatively neat square formation in the back row according to their respective forces or regions.

Although they did not possess the official tablets used by court officials during court sessions, at this moment, everyone adopted almost the same posture—

His head was lowered, his gaze focused on the tiny gap in the gold brick in front of his toes, as if the greatest Dao was contained within that gap, his expression extremely focused.

"Tap—tap—tap—"

The sound of steady, gentle, and clear footsteps came from behind the screen, growing louder as it approached.

Li Xijun did not deliberately conceal his footsteps; the sound was clearly audible in the hall where one could hear a pin drop.

However, even so, from the three leaders of the three religions and the Thunder Tribulation Ancestor at the core of the hall to the low-level cultivators on the white marble square outside the hall who could only look at the hall gate from afar, everyone maintained that almost frozen posture, like a group of carefully carved stone statues.

No one dared to look up, no one dared to probe with their divine sense, no one dared to make the slightest unnecessary movement, and even their breathing was kept to a minimum.

In the vast Forbidden City, where thousands of cultivators had gathered, the silence was so profound that only the rhythmic footsteps and the barely audible tinkling of the bronze bells rustling in the evening breeze at the corners of the palace could be heard.

It was as if time had been stretched out and frozen at this moment.

Finally, the footsteps stopped.

The figure in black robes had already taken his seat comfortably on the supreme nine-dragon golden throne.

The moment he sat down, the scene, which had been paused, suddenly resumed playing, and the frozen river thawed and began to flow again!

Led by Grand Secretary Li Boyan, a highly respected and experienced minister who had witnessed many changes in his life, the first to bow deeply, his voice, though aged, resonant and filled with immense excitement and piety, echoed throughout the hall: "Your Majesty, we congratulate you on attaining the supreme Yang God Dao! May Your Majesty live a long and prosperous life, and may the Dao flourish forever!"

It's like a signal!

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on attaining the supreme Yang God Dao! May Your Majesty live a long and prosperous life, and may the Dao flourish forever!"

Master Qingxu, holding a whisk, bowed with the highest Taoist etiquette, his voice as clear as a chime.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on attaining the supreme Bodhi Yang Shen! Your light shines upon the universe and benefits all living beings!" Master Channing bowed with his palms together and chanted in a Buddhist chant.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty! May your literary tradition continue forever and your great path shine together!" Wen Zhiyin and all the Confucian scholars in the hall bowed in salute, their noble spirits resonating subtly.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty! May the Lin family forever enjoy the Emperor's grace, and may Your Majesty's path be ever prosperous!" Led by the Lin family, representatives from various clans and sects, whether manifesting divine power or leaving their bodies, offered their congratulations with the utmost respect.

The sound waves inside the hall erupted like a long-accumulated volcano, yet strangely converged into a neat, loud, awe-inspiring, and fervent chorus of congratulations that burst out of the hall and swept across the entire square!

Immediately afterwards, the thousands of cultivators who had been eagerly waiting and were already impatient in the square outside the hall seemed to be drawn by an invisible force. Upon hearing the congratulatory voices coming from inside the hall, regardless of their cultivation level or where they came from, they all bowed down in unison towards the direction of the hall!

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on attaining the Great Dao of Yang Shen!!!"

"Congratulations, Your Majesty!!!"

The roaring sound, like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami crashing, rose higher and higher, spreading outwards from the main hall like a ring of waves created by a boulder falling into water, instantly engulfing the entire Forbidden City and even rippling outwards in all directions of the capital!

As the sun completely disappeared and night fell, the Forbidden City was illuminated by the unified cheers of the crowd and the various spiritual lights unconsciously emanating from the pearls in the palace and the cultivators, making it resemble a divine kingdom on earth, the central hub of a sacred land.

Li Xijun sat upright on the golden throne with nine dragons, receiving the thunderous congratulations. His expression was neither joyful nor sorrowful, only his deep eyes reflected the deepening night outside the hall and the dazzling spiritual light inside.

After the deafening roar subsided slightly, he slowly spoke. His voice was not loud, but it strangely overwhelmed all the subtle noises and clearly reached the ears of every cultivator inside and outside the hall, as if it were resounding directly in the depths of their minds: "Today, those who can gather here are all people of destiny."

His radiance seemed to pierce through the dome of the hall, gazing into the depths of space. His voice remained steady, yet carried a serene, all-knowing wisdom: "At this opportune moment, beyond the universe, there exists a being of the 'Ancient Era,' coveting this realm. Now, the barrier is about to break, and its arrival is imminent. Such a being may be a catastrophe for you, but for me, it is merely a spectacle."

He paused, and under the watchful eyes of thousands of cultivators, continued, "I will let you witness for yourselves what the Yang God Realm is, and what great power the Yang God possesses."

The moment the words left his mouth, a deafening "BOOM!" echoed.

The silent roar did not resound in the ears, but exploded directly in the very soul of every cultivator!

Li Xijun, seated on his throne, remained motionless. However, a warm, pure, pale golden halo—as if containing the purest radiance of the universe's origin—suddenly shone brightly in the space between his brows and in his mind's eye. Then, like a supernova explosion, it expanded infinitely.

diffusion!

In the perception of all the cultivators present, the throne no longer belonged to the emperor in black robes, but suddenly rose a "pure yang sun" that illuminated all heavens, governed all laws, and was warm yet carried supreme majesty.

The radiance of this "Great Sun" is not light or heat in the physical sense, but rather a manifestation of the purest and most primordial power of the Yang God.

It instantly filled my vision, my senses, and every corner of my soul!

What terrified all the cultivators, especially those powerful figures at the Tribulation and Manifestation realms, and almost caused their souls to flee, was that although they clearly felt they were still standing on the golden bricks of the main hall, with their fellow cultivators beside them and the imperial steps in front of them, the "world" around them seemed to have been completely replaced in an instant!

They seemed to have been forcibly pulled into a "domain" that was independent of reality yet encompassed it, centered around Li Xijun's Yang Shen!

"This is... a world created from a single thought?" Master Qingxu was filled with utter shock.

He tried to sense it with his own tribulation-level primordial spirit, but found that his divine sense was like a mud ox sinking into the sea, unable to break through this barrier at all. Even his connection with the outside world became blurred.

This means that their lives and deaths are now entirely in the hands of the "Pure Yang Great Sun" on the throne.

If the other party so desires, a single thought is enough to completely crush the souls of thousands of cultivators inside and outside the hall!

This immediately filled everyone with awe and horror.

This is completely beyond their understanding of "power"!

And all of this is just the beginning.

Just as Li Xijun's Yangshen Domain enveloped the entire Forbidden City, pulling all the cultivators into this seemingly real yet illusory "viewing platform," his vast and unparalleled divine sense did not stop. Instead, it burst through the planet's atmosphere, ignoring the world barrier riddled with cracks, and extended directly into the cold and desolate void of the universe!

Just at this moment—

"Crack—Boom!!!"

With a deafening roar that reverberated through the soul, symbolizing the complete rupture of a crucial "shackle," the already overburdened barrier of the Great Sheng world finally shattered under the relentless and frenzied bombardment of the three ancient pillars.

A massive gap, its diameter immeasurable, appeared on the planet's periphery, and murky, chaotic energy and terrifying otherworldly aura surged in like a flood bursting its banks!

Almost at the same moment the barrier shattered and the three ancient beings were about to descend into the material world through the gap, Li Xijun's vast Yang God divine sense, which had extended here in advance, suddenly tightened like a net that had been spread out in the sky!

"Buzz—!!!"

In the void of the universe, it seemed as if an invisible chain of laws was manifesting!

The massive bodies of the three ancient beings, who had just broken through the barrier and were about to unleash their ferocity and devour everything, suddenly froze.

They felt an irresistible force forcibly enveloping them, pulling them from that familiar cosmic void into Li Xijun's "domain".

And then, the next moment—

Inside the main hall and in the plaza outside, all the cultivators fortunate enough to be "inside" this divine realm simultaneously felt a sense of awe before their eyes.

The situation changed drastically once again.

Against the backdrop of a surreal starry sky intertwined with chaotic energy, three masses of immense, distorted forms defied description.

An evil, indescribably polluting shadow suddenly appeared, clearly presenting itself in everyone's "perceptual" vision.

The oppressive feeling, the twisting force, the crazy whispers, the illusion of flesh and blood proliferation, the cold and malicious gaze that directly affect the soul—all surged in like a tsunami!

"Ugh!"

"puff--!"

Almost instantly, the faces of those cultivators in the hall whose cultivation was only at the Nascent Soul stage, or even some at the Manifestation Saint stage with unstable foundations, turned ashen.

They only glanced at the three shadows, and they felt as if their souls were being torn apart, distorted, and melted.

Terrifying visions uncontrollably surfaced in my mind: flesh and blood writhing and splitting on their own, reason collapsing into meaningless fragments, and my own existence being completely distorted into dark matter!

Even the Thunder Tribulation True Lords like Master Qingxu and Master Channing were shaken to their core, their Daoist and Buddhist hearts rippled violently, and they had to immediately guard their minds and activate their highest secret techniques in order to barely resist the pervasive aftershocks of pollution. However, their foreheads were already covered in sweat, and their eyes were filled with fear.

However, just as these thousands of cultivators were about to be corrupted by the ancient "unbearable to look at" characteristic, their minds losing control and even undergoing immediate distortion—

Li Xijun, who hung high in the center of the domain like a pure yang sun, only had a slight thought.

A ripple of golden divine thought, soothing everything, swept across the entire world and into the minds of every cultivator.

"laugh----"

Like a red-hot iron falling into the snow.

The wildly growing illusions in the cultivators' minds, the blasphemous whispers in their ears, and the distorted impulses rising from the depths of their souls vanished as quickly as morning mist exposed to the blazing sun, disappearing into nothingness the instant the pale golden ripple of divine thought swept over them!

All cultivators, from the Thunder Tribulation True Monarchs to the lowest-ranking cultivators on the outermost perimeter, simultaneously felt a sense of relief and profound shock, as if they had survived a calamity.

It was precisely because of Li Xijun's intervention that the three ancient beings who had been forcibly pulled into the divine realm focused their chaotic and greedy attention entirely on Li Xijun.

The countless writhing eyeballs of the fleshy sphere, the swirling darkness within the Gate of Blasphemy, the densely packed pupils of the Thousand-Eyed Moon Shadow—despite their varied forms, they all conveyed the same unmistakably clear thought at this moment—desire! Devour! Merge!

They "smelled" it.

Deep within the core of that "Pure Yang Great Sun" that they loathe, lies the aura of the [Original Matter - Primordial Darkness of the Universe] that they have been longing for.

That is the key to enabling us to complete ourselves, undergo unimaginable evolution, and even reach higher levels!

>