The Prodigies War

In the depths of a desolate mountain wilderness, Lin Xun sat cross-legged in meditation. Dao aura coiled and drifted around him like pale mist, shrouding his figure and lending him an almost celestial air.

After defeating Black Crow’s dao manifestation, he did not rush onward to challenge the dao manifestations left behind by his master, the Lord of Fangchun Mountain, or by the golden cicada. Instead, he chose to pause, to reflect, and to cultivate. This was because he had realized something crucial.

Take Chen Linkong, Ape Ancestor, and Black Crow as examples. When they were in the Mortal Transformation Zone, each of their dao paths had already reached the level of ‘all daos converge into one, and from one arise all daos.’

Even so, their cultivation at that time still ran into a bottleneck, preventing them from truly entering the perfect state of the Immeasurable Realm. Could it be then that the power of ‘all daos converge into one, and from one arise all daos’ was merely a power that an Immeasurable Dao Lord could wield?

If one wished to reach the true perfection of this realm and to become an Immeasurable Sovereign, what kind of breakthrough was required on the cultivation path?

“All daos converge into one, and from one arise all daos. This is to smelt the daos of the world into a single furnace, and that furnace is one’s own dao path. What is derived from it is still the daos of this world...”

As he sat in meditation, Lin Xun sank into deep contemplation. “The daos of this world...how vast they are...how countless... Traced back to their source, they are all born from the primal chaos origin. However, how did the primal chaos origin create so many great daos?

“Wait...create?!”

In that instant, Lin Xun’s heart trembled violently. If the primal chaos origin could create daos that had never existed in this world, then why couldn’t cultivators grasp such a power of creation as well? If this could truly be achieved, then on the path of the dao, wouldn’t it mean accomplishing ‘creation from nothing’?

All daos converge into one referred to the unification of daos that already existed in the world. One giving rise to all daos was nothing more than the unfolding of laws and mysteries that had long existed in the world since immemorial.

What already existed in the world could be refined and derived. In contrast, what did not exist in the world, could it be created by oneself?

Like a thunderclap tearing through primal chaos, Lin Xun’s mind roared. In that instant, it felt as though a veil of mist had been torn from apart, unveiling an inconceivably vast world. A world filled with mysteries so immense that his heart quaked with excitement, reverence and a faint unease.

Creating the great dao, creating power that had never existed in the world before. This thought itself was unimaginably bold, as if it had touched upon a forbidden ultimate mystery, filling Lin Xun with both exhalation and tension. Did such a power of creation truly exist in this world?

He did not know how long it took before his emotions finally settled. Slowly, he began to re-examine the Eternal Path. The Eternal Stage was divided into three great realms: Law Transcendence Realm, the Creation Realm, and the Immeasurable Realm.

The Law Transcendence Realm, as its name implied, concerned transcending ‘law’ itself, where ‘law’ referred to the laws, order, and principles that governed heaven and earth. To transcend the laws meant that after fully comprehending and mastering them, one could wield those laws at will and ultimately step beyond the constraints of heaven and earth themselves.

This was the first step of the Eternal Path.

The Creation Realm was the stage where one wielded the laws they had mastered to give birth to all things and manifest all phenomena, wielding power akin to that of a primordial creator. Upon reaching this stage, the more laws one refined, the more formidable and terrifying one’s cultivation became.

This was the second great realm of the Eternal Path.

At first glance, the thought of creating daos that had never existed seemed faintly similar to the profundities of the Creation Realm. Of note, Lin Xun knew full well that the two were fundamentally different in essence.

One was the creation of all things and the manifestation of all phenomena. The other was the forging of daos that had never existed before in the world, akin to how the primal chaos origin itself gave birth to great daos.

Moreover, the power wielded by those at the Creation Realm stemmed from the laws they had refined. Only by refining more laws could they achieve the means to create all things and give rise to all phenomena. To ‘create a great dao’ was to touch upon the very secret of a dao’s birth, to trespass upon the forbidden, primordial mysteries of the primal chaos origin! The two were utterly incomparable.

The Immeasurable Realm was the final stage of the Eternal Path, and also the ultimate destination of cultivation itself. To step into this realm was to traverse countless epochs, and to attain true freedom and ease.

However, even at this height, one could not act without restraint, nor do as one pleased. Because beyond the All-Wonder Dominion, to survive the destruction of an epoch, one must first endure the blows of the Great Silence Unlife Calamity.

In other words, setting aside the struggles for supremacy among cultivators, the only force in this world capable of threatening Immeasurable Realm beings was the Great Silence Unlife Calamity.

However, where did this calamity come from? No one knew. Even among the most powerful Immeasurable Realm figures, none had been able to unravel this mystery to this day.

In Lin Xun’s view, if anyone truly possessed the answer, it could only be the Alpha Origin Master. That being wielded the Alpha Origin Bell and could command the power of the Great Silence Unlife Calamity itself. He could even allow his chosen Heavenly Mandate Apostles to borrow that power, an ability that could only be described as utterly taboo.

So why did the Great Silence Unlife Calamity exist? Why did it arise at the turning of each epoch? And why did it target only those who had reached the Immeasurable Realm?

Lin Xun had pondered these questions before, but he had never found an answer. Now, however, as the notion of ​​‘creating great daos,’ like the primal chaos origin itself, took shape in his mind, a bold and unsettling possibility suddenly emerged.

Could it be that the very existence of the Great Silence Unlife Calamity was meant to prevent any being from wielding a power akin to the primal chaos origin: the power to create great daos themselves? At this thought, Lin Xun fell silent. His mind roiled, unable to find calm for a long while.

The Alpha Origin Master must understand this answer most clearly. Or perhaps Elder Chen Xi, or that mysterious swordsman has already grasped part of the truth. After all, figures such as them would not come to the All-Wonder Dominion without reason. They most likely came for this very secret...

Moreover, it is said that within the All-Wonder Dominion lay fortunes and opportunities capable of granting ultimate transcendence upon the ultimate path...

Only after a long while did Lin Xun manage to sort through his tangled thoughts.

First, the path of ‘all laws return to one, and from one arise all,’ was a power that only Immeasurable Dao Lords could truly grasp. Back in the Mortal Transformation Zone, people such as Chen Linkong, Ape Ancestor, and Black Crow had all reached this level.

Second, to break through the boundary of Immeasurable Dao Lord, to step into the perfect Immeasurable Realm and become an Immeasurable Sovereign, one had to achieve a further transcendence upon their dao path. In other words, one had to achieve a breakthrough beyond the path of ‘all laws return to one, and from one arises all.’

Furthermore, if one wished to determine whether the path of creating great daos that had never existed before in the world truly existed, then the answer could only be found by probing the primal chaos origin power of the All-Wonder Dominion.

After all, the Chaos Dao Fruit was born precisely from the primal chaos origin of the All-Wonder Dominion. Each Chaos Dao Fruit was a complete innate principle power, and it was rumored to be the very opportunity through which Immeasurable Realm beings could attain ultimate transcendence.

Finally, the origin of the Great Silence Unlife Calamity was almost certainly intertwined with the primal chaos origin of the All-Wonder Dominion. If answers existed at all, they could only be found within this All-Wonder Dominion!

As these threads fell into place, Lin Xun felt a sudden clarity wash over him, as though clouds had parted and brilliant sunlight flooded his mind. He understood now. If he followed these traces to their end, he might truly uncover those forbidden, ultimate secrets. Furthermore, in the process, his own path of cultivation would inevitably undergo a profound transformation!

......

The mountains and wilderness lay vast and desolate, and every sound was swallowed by utter stillness.

Lin Xun sat cross-legged on the ground, his mind fully immersed in cultivation. Gradually, his aura began to transform. A wondrous and extraordinary dao path unfolded from within him, as though a vast starry cosmos was opening, billions of stars igniting, rivers of galaxies flowing, and endless astral vortices revolving...

Then, another completely different dao path emerged, one where all ages withered, the heavens fell, and all things dissolved into emptiness. Desolation spread without end as worlds were annihilated, apocalyptic visions unfolding one after another.

Thereafter, innumerable Buddha realms came into being. Marvellous lotuses drifted through the ten directions, Brahma chants rolled forth like an endless tide, and boundless radiance illuminated a realm of great dao bliss. At last, nine pure heavens took shape, unfolding visions of pure emptiness, primordial vastness, and the wondrous harmony of all transformations...

These were the supreme dao paths once followed by the founders of the Four Great Ancestral Courts: Yuan Chu, Tian Wu, Shi, and Xu Yin. Now, Lin Xun used the power of Nirvana to reenact them in turn, unveiling every last trace of their profound mysteries!

Time slipped by. In the blink of an eye, an entire month had passed

One day, Lin Xun’s aura suddenly shifted again. Clear and turbid qi surged forth, interweaving and circulating, separating into yin and yang, revolving endlessly until they formed a complete Taiji...

That aura was unmistakably the power of Ape Ancestor’s dao path! However, in less than an hour, the power Lin Xun had manifested abruptly stalled, then collapsed and dispersed completely.

At the same time, Lin Xun let out a muffled groan and jolted awake from his deep meditation.

“The mysteries of this dao path cannot yet be deduced,” Lin Xun sighed inwardly. “It seems my cultivation is still lacking. Otherwise, it would not have turned out this way...”

Defeating Ape Ancestor’s dao manifestation was one thing. Fully unraveling the mysteries of his dao path was something else altogether. After all, the dao manifestation Ape Ancestor left behind already belonged to the realm of the Immeasurable Dao Lords, where all daos converge into one, making it extremely difficult for anyone to glimpse its primordial secrets.

With Lin Xun’s current level of cultivation, fully manifesting the profound mysteries of this dao path was still beyond him.

“Very well. Then I shall go and experience the power of Elder Golden Cicada’s dao manifestation.” Lin Xun rose to his feet and departed from the mountain wilderness.

The Yong Kingdom, Mapleleaf Crossing.

A fiery red maple forest spread along the banks of a great river. Crimson leaves drifted down upon the water’s surface, resembling burning flames rippling and dispersing with the current.

Above Mapleleaf Crossing drifted a lone auspicious cloud, upon which a golden cicada lay, head raised, gazing silently toward the sky. Lin Xun stood above the fiery-red maple forest, his moon-white robes stirring in the river breeze, his bearing as aloof and untainted as a celestial. The golden cicada gazed at the sky. Lin Xun gazed at the cicada. Their eyes met in silence, content to look at one another without end.

Near Mapleleaf Crossing, ordinary travelers waited for the boats to dock, while farther away, the silhouettes of many mighty cultivators stood in silence. Each of those mighty figures stood far away, but when their gazes fell on Lin Xun, reverence and awe inevitably surfaced in their expressions.

Of the five dao manifestations ranked jointly first in the Heavenly Cycle Dao Laws, three had already fallen to Lin Xun. Now, he was about to face the golden cicada’s dao manifestation!

Suddenly, a fiery-red maple leaf rose with the wind, spinning lightly before drifting into the blue-green river below. At that very instant, Lin Xun moved as well.

He clasped his hands in salute from afar and spoke gently, “Elder, please grant me your guidance!”

Beneath the vault of heaven, above the drifting auspicious clouds, a cicada’s cry suddenly rang out. At first it was faint, barely perceptible, then it soared through the clouds, shook heaven and earth, and echoed across the mountains and rivers of the world.

Those mighty figures who had long hidden themselves far away all felt their minds shudder. In their hazy vision, they seemed to see a cicada beating its wings as it came forth from the eternal river of time amid the turning of epochs.