My classmates chose martial arts and fantasy, but I chose the prehistoric world.

Three days later.

A calm and indifferent voice came from the heavens, resonating clearly in the hearts of every living being:

"I am Hongjun, and I have now attained the Dao of Hunyuan, becoming a sage of the Primordial Heavenly Dao."

"Three thousand years later, in the Purple Cloud Palace of Chaos beyond the heavens, the Great Dao will be expounded, and the mysteries of the Primordial Chaos will be elucidated. Those who are destined may come to listen to the Dao."

The voice paused slightly, then continued:

"Only those above the Golden Immortal level can enter the Chaos Realm and reach the palace gates."

As the words fell, the Taoist aura dissipated, and the oppressive aura receded.

The primordial world was in complete uproar!

The sage preaches the Dao! The profound mysteries of the primordial chaos!

Countless cultivators stuck at the threshold of Golden Immortal, Taiyi, or even Daluo were so excited they trembled.

Since the beginning of time, this is the first time that a Primordial Sage has publicly preached and spread the Supreme Dao!

An incredible opportunity!

But the prerequisite is that one must have the cultivation level of a Golden Immortal.

Deep in the sea, Meng Chuan's expression remained unchanged, but his heart was churning with turmoil.

Three thousand years?

He had already reached the peak of the Golden Immortal realm, far exceeding the minimum threshold for listening to the Dao at Zixiao Palace.

"Perhaps... I can attain the Great Luo Dao before the lecture at Zixiao Palace?"

He shook his head and chuckled, his attention returning to what was in front of him. "We're still missing the last Sea-Stabilizing Pearl."

His divine sense spread out again, searching carefully.

Perhaps because Hongjun's ascension to sainthood stirred up the heavens and earth, there were hidden disturbances in the depths of the East Sea.

Three months later, relying on the faint resonance of the twenty-three Sea-Stabilizing Pearls, he finally located the position of the last one—

At the far eastern edge of the East China Sea, at the deepest point of the seabed, lies a bottomless abyss millions of feet deep.

Even ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortals and great demons are unwilling to set foot there.

The abyss was filled with a deathly aura that slowly eroded magical power and eroded life force.

Without hesitation, Meng Chuan sped away.

A month later, he stood on the edge of the abyss.

Looking down, all that could be seen was thick darkness.

The divine sense could only penetrate a thousand feet before it was eroded and dissipated by the death energy.

He jumped down.

It kept falling.

The deathly aura clung to him like a bone-deep sore, causing the clear light of the Primordial Golden Cauldron to tremble violently, and its energy consumption to increase sharply.

100,000 zhang, 300,000 zhang, 500,000 zhang...

It has finally hit rock bottom.

The bottom of the abyss was devoid of sand and stones, containing only cold, black, metallic texture, smooth as a mirror.

At the center, on a natural stone platform ten feet in diameter, the last Sea-Stabilizing Pearl floats quietly, emitting a soft, pale blue halo that illuminates the small area.

A figure was huddled up beside the stone platform below the pearl.

That was a dragon.

A green dragon that is only ten feet long is considered "petite" among dragons.

The dragon scales were dull and damaged in many places.

A section of the dragon's horn was broken off, and its whiskers drooped limply.

It closed its eyes tightly, buried its head deep into its coiled body, and its dragon tail tightly wrapped around the central pearl.

It was as if that was its only light, its only warmth.

And the aura emanating from it—

Peak of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm!

Although it was dim and chaotic, revealing weakness and panic, its ultimate life level and Dao charm were absolutely true.

This is a dragon from the Taiyi Golden Immortal peak who survived the Dragon-Han Calamity!

Meng Chuan's heart sank.

He stopped a thousand feet away, holding his breath and concentrating, even suppressing his magical power to the extreme, not daring to reveal the slightest bit.

His gaze was fixed on the seemingly slumbering Azure Dragon.

The dragons who survived the fierce battle between the dragons, phoenixes, and qilin, even if they were just minor figures back then, and even if they are now in such a sorry state, are far beyond what he can contend with at this moment!

Anyone below the late Taiyi stage can be killed without a powerful spiritual treasure.

But the peak of Taiyi... that is already a state that has just touched the threshold of Daluo.

Even the weakest Taiyi peak level is worlds apart from the late Taiyi level.

Even in its worst condition, the Azure Dragon before us is still at the peak of the Taiyi realm!

Meng Chuan had no doubt that if anyone dared to step forward and snatch the pearl, even with the Golden Dragon Scissors in hand, the best outcome would be to escape with serious injuries, or even be killed in one blow!

He stood there silently for a long time.

The Azure Dragon remained coiled and motionless, as if trapped in an eternal nightmare. Only the slight undulation of its body proved that it was still alive.

The Sea-Stabilizing Pearl was nestled within its embrace, its radiance alluring.

So close, yet worlds apart.

After a long while, Meng Chuan slowly retreated.

One step, two steps, retreating thousands of feet, tens of thousands of feet, until breaking out of the abyss.

Without turning his head, he rose rapidly upwards.

Only after returning to the bright sea did he stop and look back at the bottomless darkness below.

Although I know it's impossible, my unwillingness still surges like a tide.

After a thousand-year search and countless bloody battles, all twenty-three have been collected, with only the last one missing.

When these pearls are gathered together, the twenty-four heavens will evolve, and you will gain another top-grade innate spiritual treasure that combines offense and defense and contains a world within it, further increasing your strength!

But now, we can only retreat for the time being.

"My strength... is still not enough."

Meng Chuan clenched his fist, then slowly relaxed it.

He is not a hesitant person.

If you can't defeat them, retreat.

To survive in the wild, the first thing is to know yourself and act within your capabilities.

"First, I'll go back and refine the remnants of the God-Slaying Spear, then seek to break through to the Taiyi Realm... After breaking through, I'll come back to retrieve the pearl!"

He looked westward, his gaze seemingly sweeping across the endless sea before settling on the majestic silhouette of that towering mountain.

Buzhou Mountain.

And that valley.

At the bottom of the pool in the valley, the remains of the God-Slaying Spear are sealed.

With his current cultivation at the peak of the Golden Immortal realm, even without the assistance of those two top-grade spiritual treasures, he should be able to easily refine the broken spear and comprehend the killing principles within it.

If you use Lingbao (a magical artifact) as a supplement, you will achieve twice the result with half the effort!

The Way of Slaughter governs conquest, destruction, and severance.

This might help him break through the Taiyi Gate!

and……

The cold, hard light in Meng Chuan's eyes softened slightly.

He missed her a little.

The barefoot girl in hemp clothing with a calm gaze.

He speaks frankly, readily bestows valuable gifts upon others, and loves to quietly munch on fruit by the fire.

For a thousand years, he drifted in the East China Sea, fighting bloody battles one after another, accompanied only by the dark sea and cold weapons.

That tranquil valley, that clear pool, that crooked tree, that quiet figure... have become just a few warm memories.

"It's time to go home."

Without further hesitation, the Qiankun Ruler was unleashed, and the Xuanhuang Daoist rhyme tore through the void.

He glanced one last time in the direction of the abyss, then turned and stepped into the void passage, disappearing from sight.

Target—the nameless valley near Buzhou Mountain.