Chapter 198 - 191: Daluo Heaven
Time seemed to have lost all measure.
Only the cyan-gray waterfall flowed on without end, washing over the pool and the figure seated before the stone tablet.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Perhaps it was an instant, perhaps an eternity.
Qi Yun, who had been sitting cross-legged in meditation, seemingly one with the dark stone tablet, finally trembled his eyelashes and slowly opened his eyes.
The moment he opened them, deep within his eyes,
an indescribable flicker of profound Divine Rhyme—ancient, deep, and seemingly holding the primordial secrets of creation—flashed and vanished.
It was not a Realm he could have possibly possessed on his own.
Rather, it was an imprint left behind,
seared into his body and Divine Soul after staring directly at the trajectory of the Great Dao for so long.
In almost the same instant that his consciousness fully returned,
the [Magic Technique Panel] appeared silently before his eyes, its screen of light flowing and as clear as ever.
In the space that normally displayed the name of a Magic or Dharma Gate,
a new line of text was slowly materializing.
[Daluo Heaven: Automatically Updating (1%)]
’It worked!’
Seeing this short line of text, Qi Yun couldn’t suppress the slight upturn of his lips, which formed a smile of both relief and anticipation.
The Foundation Establishment Method recorded on the stone tablet was all-encompassing and boundless.
To completely master it and use it to forge a Dao Foundation,
by his calculations, would take at least four hundred years.
’Four hundred years...’
’Even if I were to reincarnate and recultivate three more times, it might not be enough.’
But now that [Daluo Heaven] had been grasped by the [Magic Technique Panel],
as long as the automatic update could be pushed forward,
the [Magic Technique Panel] would deduce and construct a Daluo Dharma Gate unique to him!
The first step to attaining the Dao of Daluo.
He had successfully taken it!
Just as his heart surged with emotion at having successfully activated the panel—
BUZZ!!!
An incredibly dense aura erupted from the side without any warning!
The source of the tremor was the cyan-gray waterfall and pool, formed from pure [Innate Qi]!
The calmly flowing [Innate Qi] began to churn and boil violently.
It seemed to have sensed the fluctuations of the [Daluo] Dao Trace, sensed that nascent sliver of "possibility" on Qi Yun.
Without words, the Great Dao resonated on its own.
Qi Yun slowly rose, his sleeves fluttering in the windless air.
He ignored the conspicuous percentage on the screen of light before him, his gaze turning calmly toward the restless [Innate Qi].
Arriving at the edge of the pool, the cyan-gray current churned at his feet, exuding the heart-pounding power of Creation.
He tilted his head slightly, glancing at the vast, mottled heavens above, fragmented by the branches and leaves of Xinglin. All traces of hesitation and uncertainty had vanished from his eyes.
Then, he took a step forward, decisively entering the pool formed entirely of condensed [Innate Qi].
There was no imagined cold or heat. The moment he made contact, an endless, supremely pure torrent of Innate Qi surged and pressed in on him.
At that moment, a faint light began to bloom from Qi Yun’s body.
The miraculous power of the [Magic Technique Panel] was gradually awakening!
Innate Qi!
Instantly refined!
...
Just as Qi Yun’s figure completely submerged into the [Innate Qi Pool], activating the nascent "Daluo" Dao Trace within him and officially beginning his assault on the rarely-seen-in-a-million-years [Venerable Dao Foundation],
across the entire Northwest Cultivation Realm—no... even including the vast Southern Land, the many Overseas Immortal Islands and Secret Realms, and even the depths of some Giant Sects with ancient legacies—
boundlessly vast and powerful wills, strong enough to make Heaven and Earth tremble,
stirred from their slumber or quiet cultivation with a subtle premonition.
"Hm?"
On a certain Suspended Mountain Peak, wreathed in clouds and circled by immortal cranes, a calm voice, which nonetheless seemed to contain the sound of stars being born and dying, let out a soft exclamation of faint surprise.
"Someone is trying to attain a [Venerable Dao Foundation] again?
This aura... is it [Daluo]?"
...
In another place, at the lowest level of a deep and gloomy subterranean palace filled with eerie Ghost Fire, a pair of eyes that seemed to swallow all light slowly opened, a glint of interested blood-light flashing within them.
"Who is it? It’s been many years since a little brat this audacious and reckless has appeared.
Hehehe, interesting, truly interesting..."
...
Overseas, within a magnificent palace covered in draconic reliefs, a figure lounging on a jade throne straightened up slightly. A stream of chaotic energy coiled around their fingertips as they seemed to be divining something.
"First [Creation], and now there’s a stir from [Daluo]... Heh, are you all trying to claim all [Twelve Venerable Ones] for yourselves?"
...
"My Buddha is merciful..." In the West, within a Pure Land of vast golden light and faint Brahma Chanting, a solemn-faced monk lowered his gaze, the Buddha Beads he was slowly rolling in his hand pausing for a moment.
"This trace... it is tainted with annihilation, yet it also hides infinite life. It is paradoxical... Its source seems to point toward the Northwest Demon Cave..."
In an instant, whether out of curiosity, indifference, malice, or simply the desire to watch a good show... one after another, powerful intentions capable of looking down on all living things and commanding the fate of countless lands cast their attention over.
Many of these entities even directly activated their Supreme Divine Techniques, attempting to part the mists of causality and trace the source that had stirred the ripples of Dao Rhyme.
They wanted to see just who it was that dared to touch this Forbidden domain!
Countless invisible Cause and Effect Threads began to tremble, and the river of fate rippled.
A silent confrontation spanning endless territories quietly unfolded on a plane imperceptible to ordinary people.
However, just as these powerful intentions from all directions, like tentacles extending from the darkness, converged on the Northwest Cultivation Realm and reached for the Wuji Holy Sect,
BUZZ—!!!
At the Wuji Holy Sect Mountain Gate,
the [Taixu Mirror Heaven] suddenly erupted in brilliant light!
An endless, clear radiance surged forth like a tangible tide.
Boundless Daoist Intent descended like the celestial river from the nine heavens, instantly enveloping the entire Wuji Holy Sect’s mountain gate, its territory, and even the river of fate under its influence, within a hazy yet indestructible barrier of light.
This radiance carried a majestic momentum that looked down upon the world and suppressed all else, imperiously declaring sovereignty over this land!
Meanwhile, on the highest level of the Taixu Mirror Heaven, on a platform that overlooked the phantoms of all the heavens and myriad realms,
a strapping man leaned casually against a seemingly ordinary Grandmaster’s Chair.
His face was rugged, with features as if carved by a blade and hewn by an axe.
He was not exceptionally tall, but as he sat there, he naturally exuded a sense of stability and pressure that could prop up Heaven and Earth.
Beside him, a Great Halberd, pitch-black all over with a primitive and fearsome design, was planted upright.
The shaft was dark and heavy, as if it could absorb all surrounding light.
Only along its edge did a faint, cold glint flow, one that seemed capable of tearing space itself.
This man was none other than the one currently presiding over the Wuji Holy Sect, the Desolate Halberd Shattering Void True Monarch—Guan Si Hai!
Without opening his eyes or even changing his lazy posture,
Guan Si Hai simply tapped his index finger, which rested on the armrest, ever so slightly, like the beat of a war drum.
DONG!
A deep thud, resounding through Heaven and Earth, echoed clearly in the depths of the Heart and Spirit of every True Monarch Level existence trying to peer into this place, and then brazenly exploded!
Along with this thud, a terrifying Dao Rhyme—brutish, domineering, and filled with the Realms of "Primordial Chaos" and "Broken"—swept out brazenly like an invisible tidal wave, with the [Taixu Mirror Heaven] at its center.
It ruthlessly... crushed every single extended Divine Thought, deduction, and causal probe!
"Hmph!"
A cold snort crossed an infinite distance, ringing directly in the Sea of Consciousness of certain True Monarchs with ill intent, carrying an undisguised warning and a command to withdraw.
In an instant, all the prying gazes from the outside world retreated and withdrew as if scorched by Fierce Fire.
Deep within Xinglin, the waterfall flowed on.
The cyan-gray Qi stream in the pool surged madly into Qi Yun’s body. He was completely unaware of the silent storm he had caused in the outside world.
And on the top level of the Taixu Mirror Heaven, Guan Si Hai remained with his eyes closed, feigning sleep, as if he had just swatted away a few annoying flies.
Only the pitch-black Great Halberd standing beside him, with the faint Evil Qi it emanated, caused the very void to freeze.
Beyond the borders of the Holy Sect’s domain, countless gazes hidden in the shadows watched the Demon Land, now shrouded in clear light, with a myriad of complex emotions.
...
"That kid... he actually got his foot in the door."
The moment the intentions of the many external True Monarchs were domineeringly blocked by Guan Si Hai,
Nan Dou Master, who was outside Xinglin, also clearly sensed the faint yet fundamentally profound Dao Rhyme fluctuations coming from the direction of the [Innate Qi Pool], as well as the storm it had stirred in the outside world.
A look of unconcealable surprise appeared on his face, which was usually as placid as an old well.
’To be able to trigger fluctuations in the aura of the Great Dao on such a scale...’
’It means Qi Yun’s efforts were not in vain.’
’He has truly touched the threshold of [Daluo].’
He subconsciously pinched his fingers together, calculating the time.
"Two years... From comprehending the stone tablet to triggering the Dao Foundation, it took a full two years," Nan Dou Master muttered to himself, a complex look of consideration flashing in his cloudy eyes.
"This speed, among all the past attempters, can only be considered... average."
"Of the twenty-three before him, a full nineteen of them exhausted their lifespan in the Qi Refining Realm without ever fully comprehending the mysteries of this Daluo Foundation Establishment Method.
They ended up dying in despair, or from an eruption of their Heart Demons..."
Comprehending the Dao from the tablet was the first trial, and also the cruelest.
It had nothing to do with combat power, only with comprehension, disposition, and that bit of inscrutable fate.
"Qi Yun... you were lucky enough to pass this first trial, but the path ahead... can you walk it?"
Ripples stirred in Nan Dou Master’s Heart and Spirit.
However, just as his Heart Thought fluctuated and a strange light flickered in his eyes,
WHOOSH!
A blazing, meteor-like streak of rainbow light suddenly tore through the tranquility outside Xinglin, landing at extreme speed. The light receded, revealing a figure.
The newcomer was tall, his skin an unnatural crimson red. His eyes were like two miniature golden suns, shooting out brilliant rays of light whenever they opened or closed, making it impossible to look at them directly.
An illusory golden halo faintly hovered behind him, emitting a scorching and majestic aura.
It was the Holy Sect’s Master on duty—Chi Yang!
Striding quickly toward Nan Dou Master, the suddenly arrived Chi Yang Master didn’t even bother with pleasantries, blurting out anxiously:
"Eldest Brother! Something’s happened!
The [Innate Qi Pool] seems to be leaking!"
"What?!"
...