This is not how immortals cultivate

Chapter 458 Damn it, it ended here again.

Xiang Yuan looked inward and examined himself thoroughly, turning his entire body and mind upside down.

Finally, it was confirmed that the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed is ethereal, formless, invisible, intangible, and undetectable. Even with an epic-level enhancement, it will not materialize into a physical form.

"Even if you become a mountain, a sun, or even just a phantom of the Heavenly Emperor, just having a form would be good enough..."

Xiang Yuan muttered to himself, feeling utterly empty inside but having gained something externally.

After he took the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed, the Demon Emperor collapsed like water without a source or a tree without roots, his immense power, which had been integrated with the entire Demon Kingdom's territory, crumbled. The true form of the demonic dragon that spanned the heavens and earth now seemed to have its spine removed, its scales peeling off, its flesh withering, and it could no longer maintain its true form, only able to eke out a living under the suppression of the Thousand-Handed Buddha.

A candle flickering in the wind!

It's not the card master's lock-in and card printing; it's a genuine near-death experience.

The Buddha, manifested from the six-syllable mantra, is a compassionate Buddhist teaching extended far and wide, showing no mercy to the Demon Emperor. The Buddha's palm, like a celestial blade, pierced the Demon Dragon's chest, its five fingers gripping the still-beating, pitch-black heart, forcefully severing the entangled blood vessels and pulling it out of the body.

Pooh——

Black blood gushed out like a waterfall, and the demonic dragon let out a heart-wrenching wail.

The Buddha ignored him, its movements unwavering. Boundless Buddhist fire erupted from its palm, enveloping the heart like a furnace, beginning to forge and refine it.

The dragon's body completely collapsed, and the boundless black mud dissipated and merged into the dark earth. Its heart twisted and deformed in the Buddhist fire, and the pitch-black demonic energy was burned away inch by inch. After the impurities were removed, a crystal clear glass relic was formed.

It still hasn't burned properly!
When the immeasurable Buddhist fire burned away the last wisp of demonic energy, the heart that had been refined did not condense into a relic as desired. Instead, it disintegrated inch by inch in the golden light, leaving only a handful of ashes scattered in the wind.

It's understandable. The Demon Emperor brand portable hard drive is the carrier of the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed. Without the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed, the Demon Emperor is nothing. It's about removing impurities and purifying...

The Demon Emperor is that impurity.

Leaving behind a handful of ashes proves that such a thing as the Demon Emperor once existed.

The Buddha lowered its eyes to look at the remaining ashes in its palm, without the slightest regret. It nodded and smiled faintly, then clasped its hands together, and its thousand-armed golden body transformed into specks of light and dissipated.

boom!
At the same time, the entire territory of the Demon Kingdom trembled violently.

Looking down from a high altitude, the mountains and rivers change, and the sun and moon shine again.

The dust on the mirror was wiped away, and the sky became clear again, sweeping away the endless gloom like a tide.

The land corrupted by demonic energy gradually shed its black filth, revealing its original fertile soil and green mountains. The cracked earth healed itself, the depleted spiritual veins surged anew, and even the air was filled with a long-lost freshness.

Even more astonishing changes are taking place.

Everything is renewed, and cities, houses, fields, and ponds return along with the mountains and rivers.

Countless dusty figures crawled out of the yellow earth. They were ragged and haggard. These were ordinary people who had been refined into the bodies of the Demon Emperor. Now, as the Demon Kingdom's territory returned to its original state, they regained their freedom and saw the light of day again.

They were once part of the Demon Kingdom's territory, bearing the Demon Emperor's self-righteous destiny as the Heavenly Emperor. They also witnessed the Great Buddha subduing the demon and heard the names of the immortals from the Upper Realm.

Northern True Warrior!

Nine Heavens Demon-Subduing Ancestor!

All bowed in gratitude, wishing to worship for generations to come, with incense burning continuously, forever grateful for the divine grace.

The changes in the world and the mountains and rivers are directly related to the change of the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed. Control of the entire Demon Kingdom territory has been transferred from the Demon Emperor to Xiang Yuan.

Rather than control over the Demon Kingdom's territory, it's more accurate to say that it's the right to rule over the laws and principles of the Chongting Realm!

"The Chongting Realm is something else; it's not just an ordinary lower realm..."

Xiang Yuan whispered in thought that the manifestation of the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed's control over the laws of heaven and earth in a realm had many similarities with the laws of heaven and earth in the Heavenly God Realm and the Ancient Desolate Realm, which only respected the Heavenly Emperor and could not be learned or controlled by others.

This is why the Demon Emperor obtained the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed, quickly gained power, and ventured far into this realm, causing the laws of heaven and earth to immediately kneel and fawn.

"No wonder the Demon Emperor was avoiding me at first. The laws of heaven and earth should have been controlled only by him, but suddenly a mysterious person who was on equal footing with him appeared. He became suspicious and insecure."

Xiang Yuan nodded secretly. When in doubt, he protected the three giants in front of him. Although the Demon Emperor was crazy, he had not become stupid. He had not forgotten the instinct of life to seek advantage and avoid harm.

Unfortunately, despite possessing the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed, it lacks the method to cultivate a small world, causing its version to stagnate and destined to be utterly defeated.

Xiang Yuan continued to ponder. The Chongting Realm was very similar to the Celestial God Realm and the Ancient Desolate Realm, yet it was far less domineering than the latter two. The laws of heaven and earth allowed the local natives to cultivate, indicating that the Chongting Realm was neither the Celestial God Realm that accompanied the Heavenly Emperor, nor the Ancient Desolate Realm that the Heavenly Emperor had transformed into after his fall.

As a lower realm, Chongting Realm has some connection with the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed...

Curious.JPG
Xiang Yuan's expression changed, and he raised his hand to press it against his chest.

Oh no, Hakimi is scratching me again!

At this time, Xiang Yuan was in charge of the entire Chongting Realm and could be called the Little Heavenly Emperor. It was not difficult for him to explore the truth of this realm. He closed his eyes and sensed it slightly, and soon found a clue.

……

The once-powerful Demon Emperor City has now shed its demonic aura, revealing its original appearance.

It's a town of moderate size, about the same size as Fengxian County. It has blue bricks and gray tiles, and its streets and alleys are well-organized. It has neither luxury nor a simple and profound historical atmosphere, and it is very inconspicuous.

When the Demon Emperor was still human, he was a feudal lord here, and this is where he made his fortune.

Xiang Yuan flashed and disappeared underground.

A vast underground space emerges, with a dilapidated, gray-black palace complex stretching out like an ancient ruin buried underground.

These palaces are strangely designed, possessing both the grandeur and solemnity of the heavenly court, yet they are tainted by demonic energy, with twisted eaves and rotten pillars, suffering pollution and losing their original appearance.

In the very center of the palace complex, a section is conspicuously missing, the break clean, as if it had been forcibly dug away.

The size of the missing piece perfectly matches the white palace that Xiang Yuan absorbed into his body!

Clearly, it was here that the Demon Emperor obtained the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed.

As Xiang Yuan walked through the ruins, his fingertips traced the patterns on the palace walls. The auspicious clouds that should have surrounded the immortal patterns were now stained with ink, transforming into hideous demonic faces.

"There's no mistake, the architectural style of the Heavenly Court is also recorded in the ancestral land of the Feng clan in the Qianyuan Realm!"

Xiang Yuan nodded firmly, completely certain that the Heavenly Palace ruins before him and the Heavenly Palace ruins that Feng brought from the Heavenly Sect belonged to the same piece of the puzzle.

Chongting Realm and Qianyuan Realm were once under the same Upper Heavenly Court!
Xiang Yuan sorted through the clues in his mind, and images came to mind one after another.

The Heavenly Court went public and began acquiring properties in the lower realms to strengthen its power. However, it encountered the established listed company, the Demon Realm, which triggered a dimensional war. The Heavenly Court suffered a defeat and was pushed all the way to the Southern Heavenly Gate by the extraterrestrial demons.

Unable to reverse the tide of fate and unwilling to let the Bloodline fall into the hands of the Demon Realm, the Heavenly Emperor destroyed the Heavenly Court and closed the relevant ascension channels to the lower realms.

Specific operations...

Xiang Yuan had never seen it before and dared not make any wild guesses. According to the Qianyuan Realm, Yan Xuanhe's sword cut through the sky, severing the connection between heaven and earth, cutting off the ascension path to the upper realm, and also blurring the concept of the upper three realms.

It is known that Yan Xuanhe is the reincarnation of the Heavenly Emperor, and he even brought Su Ran Sword Venerable, who was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor at the time, to the Qianyuan Realm. It can be inferred that he is probably the defeated Heavenly Emperor.

Therefore, Yan Xuanhe had the rudimentary form of the Heavenly Court, the Heavenly Sect, and collected the Heavenly Court puzzle pieces that had been corrupted by demonic energy.

Although there are still many details worth examining and many doubts, such as the fact that the Heavenly Court puzzle in Yan Xuanhe's collection has a longer history and can be traced back to the original ancient Heavenly Court, which is not the same as the Upper Heavenly Court of Qianyuan Realm, Xiang Yuan figured that the outline was just like that, and he had seen through the truth.

The more you know, the more you realize you don't know, and countless new questions keep surfacing.

Why Qianyuan Realm?
Why did Yan Xuanhe bring the reincarnated people to the Qianyuan Realm? Why did Bai Wuyan, the reincarnation of the Queen Mother of the West, appear in the Qianyuan Realm? What makes the Qianyuan Realm so powerful that so many big shots have taken turns targeting it?

What role does Shigetsubi play?
Although both are in the lower realms, the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed cannot govern the laws of heaven and earth in the Qianyuan Realm. Upon entering the Chongting Realm, it is fawned upon by all. With a single thought, it can reverse mountains and rivers, sun and moon. Its power is so great that it can be called a minor Heavenly Emperor.

They wandered through the ruins, hoping to find clues such as murals.

He had only taken two steps when he suddenly remembered something. He slapped his forehead, took out a jade belt, quickly wrapped it around his waist, and used the method taught by Jingyun to open the ascension passage from the inside out.

Solving the case isn't urgent; let's take it slow. At worst, the White House Master will cough up blood. Let's complete the task assigned by Master Jingyun first.

Bigking, this way!

Xiang Yuan acted as a guide twice: once in the Blue Star Realm, where he spent two days opening up the ascension passage, and once in the Wasteland Realm, where he opened up the ascension passage in half an hour.

The cross-border signal is poor, and the time for opening the ascension channel is not fixed, which may be related to the distance or other reasons.

The three thousand worlds are too complicated!

Instead of waiting idly, Xiang Yuan continued to explore the ruins of the Heavenly Court.

As the saying goes, where there's a will, there's a way.

It means that ambitious people, if they persevere, can actually accomplish things.

This was perfectly exemplified by Xiang Yuan, who actually found clues in the ruins.

It's still a mural!
Those with great supernatural powers seem to prefer using this method to convey information to future generations. Perhaps it's because murals look more impressive, are easier to praise, and are more intuitive than written words, or perhaps people below felt that this method was more suitable for flattery.

Xiang Yuan stood in front of the wall, looking up at it.

In the boundless sky, the sun and moon shine together, 365 main stars gleam brightly, and billions of stars spread out like the Milky Way, dazzling and spectacular.

One by one, immortals and deities, riding on auspicious clouds and wielding magical treasures—swords, talismans, pagodas, jade bottles…—along with countless other supernatural powers, faced a pair of dark claws emerging from the chaos. The claws were boundless; even the mere carvings on the murals exuded a suffocating sense of oppression, as if they might burst forth from the walls at any moment!

At the end of the celestial light, a figure stood tall and imposing.

He had an imperial sword at his waist, his robes fluttering in the wind, and golden light surging in his eyes like the blazing sun. However, his face was blurred by some kind of power and could not be clearly seen. Although he was just a figure on a mural, he had an aura that could suppress all ages.

And then……

It's gone.

The mural ends abruptly here, the latter half of which seems to have been deliberately erased, leaving only a mottled blank space.

"Damn it, it broke here again!" Xiang Yuan roared in anger.

The reason it was "again" is because he had seen similar fragments twice before.

Once in the Heavenly Demon Realm, and once in the ancestral land of the Feng Clan.

Both murals depict the ancient Heavenly Court, a time before humans existed. The oxen and horses riding auspicious clouds were demons, and the powerful being who appeared to be the Demon Emperor held a giant banner. The invisible hand behind him was the first and oldest Heavenly Emperor.

The mural before us is different. The immortals and gods are all human, and there is no demon emperor holding a giant banner in the scene. There is only a heavenly emperor holding an imperial sword.

Xiang Yuan firmly believed that this mural recorded the upper heavenly court of Qianyuan Realm and Chongting Realm. The Heavenly Emperor who wielded the Imperial Sword was Yan Xuanhe's previous life. The parts that were erased later most likely recorded how the Heavenly Emperor descended to Qianyuan Realm, how he was reborn as Yan Xuanhe, and how he severed the heavens with a single sword.

In this way, it becomes reasonable and justifiable for these images to be erased.

The fact that the ringleader absconded is a stain on any company's record, and it shouldn't be documented.

"Sigh, after searching to the very end, we still haven't discovered anything special about Chongting Realm..."

Xiang Yuan pouted in dissatisfaction, raised his hand and waved it, peeling off most of the mural, erasing the figure of the Heavenly Emperor wielding the Imperial Sword, and expanding the blank space.

Anyone who comes after him and sees this mural will have an even bigger headache than he did.

Le.JPG
While laughing, Xiang Yuan suddenly stopped laughing, his face darkening: "The blank spaces I saw, could they have been erased like this too...?!"

Boom!

A deafening roar shook the heavens and earth, disturbing Xiang Yuan, who was cursing the shameless riddle-maker with foul language. He sensed something and, through layers of space, saw the ascension passage slowly unfolding above the Chongting Realm.

Divine light descended from the heavens, appearing out of nothing, falling from another world.

The ethereal divine light and immortal energy rapidly expanded and spread, until it dyed the entire sky above Chongting Realm a soft gold. It brought with it an irresistible and magnificent power, colliding with the laws of heaven and earth of Chongting Realm, exchanging their arguments and entering a debate mode.

Compared to the muscular and powerful Heavenly God Realm, the Chongting Realm's upper limit is only the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. Apart from those who possess the Heavenly Emperor's Dao Seed and can enjoy top-tier special effects, it has nothing else to offer.

The reasoning of Chongting Realm is no match for that of the Heavenly God Realm. They will soon be taught a lesson and realize that they are nothing but a nobody.

"It's alright, about twenty minutes, pretty fast."

Xiang Yuan nodded in satisfaction, sensing the changes in the laws of heaven and earth. With the divine power of the True Martial Emperor upon him, he could once again continue to show off to his heart's content.

"Forget it, I'm a low-key person and I don't like to show off. I'll just go through the motions before leaving, nothing too outrageous..."

Xiang Yuan muttered to himself, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

The ascension passage has clearly been opened, but the expected divine power of the True Martial Emperor has yet to arrive!

"Why is this happening?"

Xiang Yuan swallowed hard, a bead of cold sweat sliding down his temple. He had already guessed the reason: it was too terrifying, and he didn't want to face reality.

The ascension passage opened, but the divine power of the True Martial Emperor did not descend. There is only one reason:
This is NOT a passage to the realm of gods!

boom!
Xiang Yuan felt as if struck by lightning, his hair standing on end, and he felt as if his scalp was about to explode. Without thinking, he took a step forward, teleported into the air, and his aura rose steadily. With a flick of his hands, he unleashed his strongest attack to date.

Nine Paths to Heaven: Return to Nothingness!

Who do you think you are, opening the ascension portal? Go back now!
Xiang Yuan tapped the air with both hands, and a point of extreme black light burst forth from his fingertips.

The black light surged, transforming into a long sword with chaotic intertwined black and white colors. The blade was without edge or shape, barely serving as a blade, and was entangled with a terrifying chaotic aura. It used the method of reversing yin and yang to destroy the heavens and the earth.

With the power to govern the laws of the Chongting Realm, the destructive force of this attack was amplified infinitely.

Wherever the entangled blades of Yin and Yang passed, space twisted and collapsed, and the laws of heaven and earth were reversed and upside down!

The path to ascension, which was about to stabilize, was abruptly disrupted. The divine light and immortal energy slowly receded, and the golden light that filled the sky gradually faded and dissipated.

From the other end of the passage came a cold snort, devoid of joy or sorrow, a sound as loud as thunder, shaking the entire Chongting Realm. Immediately afterward, a gigantic hand, blotting out the sky, broke through layers of spatial constraints, its five fingers spread wide, forcefully catching Xiang Yuan's strongest strike.

Click!

The Yin-Yang Blade shattered inch by inch under this absolute power difference. Even though Xiang Yuan had the home-field advantage and was blessed by the laws of the Chongting Realm, he still could not make up for the disparity in strength.

The difference is too big!
Xiang Yuan took a deep breath, closed his eyes tightly, and a vertical line appeared between his brows.

A wisp of chaotic light, ethereal and elusive, carrying an absolute aura that could cut down anything, locked onto the colossal hand that blotted out the sky on the other side of the passage.

The moment it locked on, the colossal hand that blotted out the sky suddenly vanished.

It wasn't a retreat, but rather the complete erasure of all traces of it, as if it had never existed. Only the ascension passage continued to expand rapidly, its golden light growing ever brighter, with the faint silhouette of a celestial palace at the other end visible.

Alarm bells rang in Xiang Yuan's mind, leaving him no time to think. Holding the Jinglan Blade, he poured all the chaotic light between his brows into the blade, transforming it into a blade of light that traversed the heavens and earth, and slashed fiercely down towards the ascension passage.

"Give me……"

"Break!"

The dazzling blade light, capable of splitting the heavens and earth, tore through the sky, slashing straight through the ascension passage, neatly cleaving the space along its path like thin paper, revealing dark void cracks.

The laws of the world in Chongting Realm were boiling and running rampant, strange phenomena were frequently occurring, and even afterimages of the past and future appeared on both sides of the blade.

Rumble————

The earth-shattering blade of light slashed down on the ascension passage, unleashing a deafening roar. The chaotic light instantly engulfed the sky for a thousand miles around, plunging straight into the ascension passage.

However, the ascension passage only trembled a few times, with a few ripples appearing on its surface, before it returned to stability.

At the end of the passage, a magnificent ancient mirror stood tall, and the chaotic light that entered it disappeared without a ripple, like a mud ox entering the sea.

"Such a thing actually happened..."

Xiang Yuan exclaimed in disbelief. The chaotic light hidden between his eyebrows was his trump card, a sure-kill move that was always successful. He never expected to be defeated today.

What magic weapon is this?
He stared intently at the ancient mirror, which was entirely black with a clear, water-like surface that reflected the images of the stars in the heavens, forming a constellation of stars that reversed cause and effect and was impervious to all laws.

Click!

A ripple appeared on the clear mirror surface, and as a barely perceptible crack spread out, the stars in a certain area dimmed.

That's pretty much it!
Xiang Yuan's complexion improved considerably. Seeing that his trump card could still dominate the battlefield, he swallowed the words, "Having drifted aimlessly for half his life, I have never met a wise ruler."

The words were on the tip of my tongue, and I almost blurted them out.

Buzz buzz————

At the other end of the sky, another ascension passage slowly expanded, golden light gradually spreading out, its vast power suppressing all directions. The overwhelming strength of the laws of heaven and earth caused the Chongting Realm to be taught a lesson by two muscular overlords on the same day.

Right this time!

As the ascension passage opened, Xiang Yuan sensed the divine power of the True Martial Emperor.

At the same time, a golden figure descended, riding on auspicious clouds.

As the rosy light shone through, the figure's outline became blurred and indistinct.

Is that you, Master?

Looking up with great joy, he knew that although King Frieza always had a cold face and enjoyed watching his apprentice ride the drop tower, he actually cherished his precious apprentice from the bottom of his heart. Whenever he was in danger, he would definitely come to marry... no, to save him, dressed in golden armor and riding on a colorful cloud.

But not.

The fairy guessed the beginning but not the ending. Xiang Yuan was even worse than her; he couldn't even guess the beginning.

Although the newcomer rode on auspicious clouds and wore golden armor, once the rosy light faded, he turned out to be a strange man.

He should be called a male god.

With sword-like eyebrows reaching his temples, eyes like cold stars, golden armor covering his body, and a bronze ancient sword hanging at his waist, both his appearance and equipment gave Xiang Yuan the feeling that he had been paid for.

Hey buddy, who are you? Which department do you work in?

You only earn a few hundred dollars a month, and you spend so much money on it?

Xiang Yuan looked at the man beside him with suspicion. Did such a deity exist in the Celestial Realm? He'd never seen him before, and...

This is demonic energy!
(End of this chapter)