Essence Devouring Art

Chaotic Star Heaven.

Juntian.

Before the Star Hub leading to the Taiyi Emperor Star.

"Fellow Daoist Tongtian, that’s the general situation inside the Emperor Star. I see an old friend, so I’ll take my leave. Farewell, and may fate bring us together again."

After being skillfully questioned by Wu Dao, Chen Zimu had given a rough overview of the situation on the Taiyi Emperor Star. Seemingly deciding Wu Dao wasn’t a kindred spirit, he took his leave and wandered off to other groups.

’It’s not wise to go it alone...’

Wu Dao watched Chen Zimu’s retreating figure, mulling over the information he had just obtained and forming a general conclusion.

Over the past tens of millions of years,

the Taiyi Emperor Star had opened a total of nine times.

Each time, just like now, it attracted a massive number of cultivators from All Heavens to enter the Emperor Star in search of fortuitous encounters and Creation.

But in those tens of millions of years,

the interior of the Emperor Star had still not been fully explored. A vast amount of treasure from the Four Tribulations remained buried in unknown locations, yet to be unearthed.

The fundamental reason for this,

was that the interior of the Taiyi Emperor Star was a gigantic ancient battlefield ruin.

During the Four Tribulations,

the Taiyi Star Emperor, in order to protect the Chaotic Star Heaven,

had moved the main battlefield between Hongyuan and Mountain and Sea into the Emperor Star. The casualties on both sides were incalculable. Great Power Saint Realm experts and Mountain Sea Ancestor Kings fell in droves within it.

The deaths of countless beings

had caused an unimaginable accumulation of malevolent qi, hostile qi, killing qi, baleful qi, and battle qi within the Emperor Star.

In addition,

the order of a massive number of crumbling and chaotic Emperor’s Artifacts had collapsed.

After the Four Tribulations,

the Emperor Star formed countless dangerous forbidden zones that could claim one’s life and extinguish one’s soul at a moment’s notice. Some areas could even be the final resting place for Great Powers.

Since the Four Tribulations,

every time the Taiyi Emperor Star opened,

it would release the refined and dissipated Tribulation Qi, while devouring the spiritual qi of the Great Dao to autonomously repair the shattered order of the Emperor’s Artifacts.

Well,

to put it bluntly,

the Taiyi Emperor Star was like a damaged computer infected with countless viruses. For tens of millions of years, it had been running antivirus software, trying to save itself.

This was also why,

over the nine times the passage to the Emperor Star had opened,

the required cultivation level for entry had progressively decreased.

Cultivators at the Grotto Heaven realm and above,

if allowed to run rampant, would cause far too terrifying destruction.

This would violate the Emperor Star’s self-rescue protocol.

This led to a problem.

Cultivators at or below the Grotto Heaven realm,

while entering the Emperor Star to hunt for treasure, also had to bear the risk of their bodies and Daos being annihilated at any moment.

There were no absolutely safe zones within the Emperor Star.

Countless internal dimensional spaces were constantly shifting. One moment it could be calm and peaceful, and the next, one could find themselves in a terrifying forbidden zone.

Over tens of millions of years,

incidents of entire groups of Celestial Prides from All Heavens being wiped out were commonplace on the Emperor Star. Countless ambitious individuals had met their end there.

It’s not wise to go it alone.

Chen Zimu was actually being conservative.

Across All Heavens,

only those Overlord Forces of Celestial Domains with ancient legacies

had the ability to summarize the laws of survival on the Emperor Star through generations of exploration, grasp the secrets of various deep forbidden zones, and pave the way for their descendants.

Any other minor power,

or even Loose Cultivators,

let alone explore the Emperor Star and summarize survival experiences,

mostly just picked up scraps left behind by others on the periphery. Without the guidance of their predecessors’ experience, venturing deep into the Emperor Star alone and weak was simply courting death.

Therefore,

each time the Emperor Star opened,

most minor powers would rather attach themselves to the major Overlords and get a sip of the soup than go it alone and risk annihilation.

The Overlords of All Heavens were also happy to have cannon fodder to scout the way, and they would recruit a large number of vanguards before the passage to the Emperor Star every time.

"Perhaps I can leverage their strength."

A glint flashed in Wu Dao’s eyes as a plan formed in his mind.

’During the Divine Wilderness era,’

’he had learned a great deal of information about Hongyuan from that old monster, including the locations of treasure troves within the Taiyi Emperor Star.’

’Many of these treasures’

’would be of great benefit to his current cultivation.’

’But the locations of most of these treasure troves were still extremely dangerous for him at his current level.’

’By borrowing the strength of those factions,’

’and guiding them just a little,’

’exploiting the information gap,’

’it might not be impossible to seize the opportunities for myself.’

’Of course,’

’all these treasures were ones that had little to do with the old monster. He had passed on all the ones with major implications to the Primordial Demon.’

At this point,

whether he knew the old monster’s true identity or not didn’t make much of a difference to Wu Dao anymore.

But the karmic ties to the old monster were too great.

It wasn’t a simple matter of killing a few Celestial Prides and embarrassing a few realms.

Once he was truly on that pirate ship,

Wu Dao couldn’t guarantee that the Bitter Dust Robe would still be able to protect him.

An Emperor’s Artifact was not omnipotent.

For instance, Heaven-Burning Fire possessed a Dao Artifact capable of refining a Near Dao Great Emperor to death. It was just that the cost of activating it was too great, so it would not be easily awakened.

But if their bottom line was crossed,

then it was hard to say.

’And where was that bottom line?’

’Any chance, no matter how slim, of the Slaughter Emperor—who had initiated a calamity and massacred several worlds—being revived was clearly one of the bottom lines for those worlds.’

As his thoughts churned,

Wu Dao glanced at the long line ahead, then left the Star Altar again, much to the confusion of those behind him.

"Hm?"

The divine sense of the World Guards stationed at the Star Hub constantly enveloped everyone on the Star Altar. When one saw Wu Dao leave so abnormally,

a commander frowned.

He subconsciously activated a Divine Artifact within his Grotto Heaven that was designed to detect Divine Spirits.

Over on the Azure Dragon Dao,

a lawless Evil God Celestial Demon had recently appeared, and the Master of the Azure Dragon Hall had sent a warning to the Star Divine Domain.

"A Soldier Cultivator?"

After detecting a restrained, Emperor Grade Heaven-Slaying Soldier Qi, the World Guard commander was slightly surprised, but he withdrew his gaze and paid it no more mind.

’It seems devouring Divine Spirits in the Chaotic Star Heaven won’t be so easy from now on.’

As he left, Wu Dao also noticed a faint, divine Magnetic Field enveloping him for a moment. He knew his previous transgressions in the Border Wilderness had been too great, attracting the attention of the Star God Hall.

But it didn’t matter.

’They’re looking for Primordial,’

’What does that have to do with me, Tongtian?’

A short while later,

Wu Dao returned to the Star Altar once more.

This time, however,

the line now included many of his incarnations disguised as various personas from the Primordial Chaos era, each with a different appearance and temperament.

Pangu, Yang Mei, Luo Hou, Hongjun, All Saints, Bodhi, Zhenyuan, the Twelve Ancestral Witches...

The famous figures from every era.

Yes.

They were basically all here.

The line moved quickly.

It wasn’t long before it was the turn of Wu Dao and his many incarnations—nearly a hundred people in total, a vast assortment of old, middle-aged, and young, encompassing soldiers, martial artists, and immortals.

Their auras were different, their appearances distinct.

They looked completely unrelated.

But in reality, it was all a one-man show starring Wu Dao.

"All Heavens have different vanguard Teleportation Dojos. To choose your destination, just extend your consciousness and select one."

Before the Star Hub, which was as majestic as a Celestial Pillar,

a World Guard from the Star God Hall glanced at Wu Dao and his numerous incarnations and gave the routine reminder.

Wu Dao complied, extending his consciousness into the Star Hub. Instantly, images of the All Heavens Dojos appeared in his mind, each with a different atmosphere, like a selection of maps in a video game—

Heaven-Burning Fire, Chaotic Star Heaven, Cyan Nether Heaven, Fuguang Heaven, Buzhou Heaven, Divine Ruins Heaven, Daluo Heaven, Profound Yellow Heaven, and even the Nine Heavens Dojo of the Celestial Court.

The Taiyi Emperor Star was a top-tier Emperor’s Artifact.

Those without sufficient strength didn’t even have the right to observe it.

The slightest trace of Tribulation Qi’s Mighty Power

could obliterate a Grotto Heaven Dharma Aspect.

Entering the Emperor Star was naturally not a matter of a physical "parachute jump," rushing in foolishly.

These Dojos,

were all stable Grand Teleportation Arrays carved out by the Great Powers of All Heavens amidst the Tribulation Qi spewed forth by the Emperor Star.

They were essentially transit stations,

corresponding with the Teleportation Dojos in different regions on the Emperor Star’s periphery.

Based on the intensity of the treasure troves in his memory,

Wu Dao divided his nearly one hundred incarnations into groups of varying sizes and assigned them to the different Dojo regions of the Nine Heavens.

As for his Main Body,

he didn’t plan to show his face.

The Emperor Star was filled with countless terrifying forbidden zones, which to him, was like a fox in a henhouse. Fighting and killing held little interest. He preferred to savor the "delicacies" before him, getting intimately familiar with them.

BUZZ—

After the arrival zones were selected,

the Star Hub began to turn the order of spacetime. Starlight cascaded down like a waterfall, enveloping Wu Dao and all his incarnations.

The stars shifted and time and space were inverted.

In an instant,

Wu Dao and his nearly one hundred incarnations arrived at the different vanguard stations of the Nine Heavens’ Dojos.

WHOOSH~

The Chaotic Star Celestial Domain’s Dojo.

Atop the Teleportation Altar,

Wu Dao’s perception spread out as he raised his eyes to survey his surroundings.

This Dojo was like a cosmic egg born of Chaos. The sky was round, the earth was square, and the far ends were a blurry, primordial haze.

Outside, a tide-like torrent of multicolored, explosive Tribulation Qi eroded and grated against the barrier. The unceasing roar of wind and thunder sounded like listening to the crashing tide from a lonely island.

Upon the Dojo,

countless figures came and went.

They continuously teleported in from various Star Hubs, then gathered at the miniature Star Altar in the center to be transported to the eight directions of the Emperor Star.

"Fellow Daoist, interested in joining the Divine Blade Sect? Our Divine Blade Sect has a legacy of a million years and possesses experience accumulated from the last time the Emperor Star opened..."

"The Crane Feather Star Palace is recruiting those at the Dharma Realm with Saint Grade or higher Dharma Aspects! A Grotto Heaven expert will lead the exploration. Interested parties, come quickly!"

"King Grade? See those country bumpkins over there? Get lost!"

"Ten Thousand Laws Alliance. No restrictions on the three daos. We only accept Emperor Grade."

...

Across the vast Dojo,

recruiters from the various powers of Chaotic Star Heaven, both large and small, had occupied the areas around the Teleportation Altars. With attitudes ranging from enthusiastic to arrogant, they solicited the cultivators from All Heavens who were entering the Dojo.

After observing for a while,

Wu Dao discovered that

although this Dojo belonged to the Chaotic Star Heaven,

he didn’t see any cultivators from the Chaotic Star Heaven’s Overlord, the Star God Hall, recruiting anyone.

But on second thought,

it made sense.

A Celestial Domain-level Overlord Force,

had members spread throughout its entire Celestial Domain. They could get as many cultivators of any level as they wanted, so there was naturally no need to recruit outsiders.

However,

Wu Dao had no plans to join the Star God Hall either.

The Star God Hall’s influence on the Emperor Star was too strong.

There were too many unstable factors.

Even with his information advantage, he might just end up doing all the work for someone else’s benefit.

With this in mind,

Wu Dao strode towards the Ten Thousand Laws Alliance, which was considered a second-tier power in the Chaotic Star Heaven.

The Ten Thousand Laws Alliance.

As its name implied, it was an alliance of ten thousand laws.

It originated after the Fourth Tribulation.

It taught all comers without discrimination.

It gathered the Heroes and geniuses of all Daos in the Chaotic Star Heaven.

It held a certain prestige in the Southern Vermilion Bird Path of the Chaotic Star Heaven. Neither righteous nor evil, it was a gray power with a high degree of inclusiveness.

"Biyou Palace, Tongtian?"

In front of the Ten Thousand Laws Alliance’s Teleportation Array,

a member of the Alliance stationed there sized up Wu Dao, then nodded in admiration.

"Emperor Grade, Tenth Heaven. For someone from a minor sect to have this level of cultivation is truly impressive. Go on in. Once you enter the Emperor Star, a member of our Ten Thousand Laws Alliance will receive you."

An Emperor Grade Tenth Heaven in the Military Dao.

In terms of combat Power,

he could fight on par with an Eleventh Heaven expert of other Daos.

Moreover, Wu Dao’s aura was as flourishing as the midday sun.

He was in his Golden Peak Period.

His cultivation age was definitely no more than a thousand years.

To achieve this in less than a thousand years was enough to be called a Celestial Pride, even within the major Overlord Forces.

Most importantly,

he was from a minor sect.

That meant there would be no repercussions for using him.

This wasn’t to say they were plotting against Wu Dao.

The Ten Thousand Laws Alliance was not a charity.

Since outsiders chose to attach themselves to it,

they were tacitly agreeing to act as the Alliance’s vanguards and laborers, shouldering the risks of paving the way in exchange for a bite of the meat.

If you didn’t want to risk your life, you were free not to join.

Of course,

there was no shortage of black-hearted major powers that, for the sake of excavating treasure, were tyrannical and treated people as less than human.

As for this sort of thing,

you could say it was one part opportunity, one part risk, and ninety-eight parts luck.

If your luck was good, you’d return with a full load. If your luck was bad and you lost your life, it was a consensual arrangement.

While "Tongtian" was joining the Ten Thousand Laws Alliance,

Wu Dao’s other Primordial Chaos personas, all with Emperor Grade cultivation, also successfully infiltrated the major powers of All Heavens, some alone and some in groups.

As for his Main Body,

it didn’t join any faction. He chose a public Teleportation Altar and entered the Taiyi Emperor Star without a sound.

...

「Taiyi Emperor Star」

Somewhere on the periphery of the Four Tribulations battlefield ruins.

The vast, black territory was like a writhing bog of flesh and blood. Divine Mountains were broken and collapsed, great rivers were defiled and blackened. Everywhere was a scene of decay and apocalypse.

RUMBLE—

High in the sky,

scarlet Thunderbolt rolled and exploded.

Blood-red clouds obscured the sky for hundreds of millions of miles.

Deadly, baleful qi saturated every inch of space.

The world-ending hurricanes it formed raged across the Ten Directions of the World, carrying the wails of Gods and Ghosts and destroying all signs of life. It was no exaggeration to call it Purgatory.

BZZT!

At a certain moment,

at the edge of this dark Purgatory, brilliant starlight, guided by a void altar, cascaded down from the emptiness like a waterfall.

After the starlight dissipated,

Wu Dao and tens of thousands of cultivators from the Hongyuan Heavenly Realms manifested on the altar, having arrived on the Taiyi Emperor Star.