The Ancient Saint Emperor of the Heaven-shading

Chapter 223 The Cycle of Reincarnation, Immortal Ascension Approaching

That path leads to the final resting place of all souls; it is a cycle of reincarnation.

At the end of the cycle of reincarnation, the underworld is the final resting place for all spirits. Eerie sounds echo here, weaving together to send chills down one's spine.

Whether it was the four supreme beings or the three from the Heavenly Court, everyone present had a solemn expression.

Because they saw many phantoms, all of which were spirits, seemingly lost and confused as if their souls had left their bodies, walking in one direction.

Even the souls of the two supreme beings who had died earlier appeared, walking among them and stepping onto the ancient road behind the millstone, as if summoning them to reincarnate.

"Don't tell me that reincarnation and rebirth are real in this world?" Some supreme beings didn't believe in superstitions and thought that these were all illusions, but two souls had actually embarked on their journeys, which was truly undeniable.

Even the Emperor, who firmly believed that there was no reincarnation in the world, frowned slightly. Everything before him seemed to be shaking his Dao heart and trying to dismantle his will.

"Perhaps it's a cycle of human evolution," he murmured, still firmly believing that there are only similar flowers, only cycles of reincarnation, but never reincarnated people.

Cao Yusheng's expression kept changing. He vaguely remembered that he was looking for something in the cycle of reincarnation. Perhaps the person he was looking for was on this path? With these thoughts surging, even knowing that there was danger here, he had to bite the bullet and venture out.

Wang Hongwu paid no attention to these things. He was still staring at the golden characters inside the millstone. There were only fifty of them, but they were eternal and immortal, like something forbidden. He was even copying those characters, trying to engrave them into his Myriad Paths Fist!
In the process of contact, it was as if his consciousness was also drawn in, being ground by the millstone, mingling with countless beings from before, feeling their remnants, their imprints. Gradually, he came into contact with various residual artistic conceptions, including battles before death and cultivation while alive, as if he could hear the breathing of ancient beings and resonate with them.

Fortunately, after being crushed by the millstone, the undying obsessions or overwhelming resentment of these corpses were completely purified; otherwise, such comprehension would have been a great calamity for his primordial spirit. At this moment, the Six Paths Reincarnation Disc protected his body, and the sacrificial bowl at his waist shone brightly, helping him to cultivate and comprehend.

It's not just about understanding those characters, but more importantly, about dealing with the crushed blood and mud, the corpses of living beings!

There are ferocious nine-headed birds with glowing wings and surrounded by silvery-white fairy mist; there are also sacred peacocks with their wings spread out, their fairy light covering the sky; and there are golden pheasants with their fur like fire and their roars like thunder... all of them are terrifying races from ancient times.

At this moment, the supreme source within the sacrificial bowl ignited, refining and integrating these powers back to their ancestral origins, merging them into Wang Hongwu's Eight-Nine Heavenly Technique, elevating it to a higher level.

Gradually, sacred peacocks, golden-haired lions, and all sorts of other creatures began to appear around him; the others who saw this were quite surprised. They were here lamenting the danger and studying reincarnation, but the Venerable One was here to comprehend the Dao and expound the Dharma.

That's incredibly careless.

Doesn't it matter at all?

Indeed, Wang Hongwu didn't care. He focused solely on carving those characters. It was impossible to master them all, and even if he did manage to carve them, they would all mutate and differ greatly from the originals. He only took a portion of their mysteries and artistic conception, incorporating a somewhat imitative 'hybrid' into his Myriad Dao Fist, giving it a completely new look.

Visible to the naked eye, he ignited Dao fire in his fists, lighting up one Dao trajectory after another. Some of these were evolved from his own Myriad Dao Tree, while others were gathered from the creatures in the millstone. Each trajectory reflected a world, containing the evolution corresponding to that Dao. Later, these Dao trajectories began to rotate, forming a circle.

Boom! In an instant, strange phenomena appeared in the sky. The corpses of all realms, as well as the phantoms of this strange city and mysterious path, all emerged, forming ten thousand arcs like a millstone around the trajectory of the Great Dao. They crushed everything, extracted its essence to strengthen themselves. This is a myriad-path fist technique that will continue to evolve. The path of the enemy that is shattered will be integrated into it, making it stronger.

"Excellent! In this way, the enemies I kill are also useful. Their Dao is incorporated into the fist technique, their spirit into the wheel of life and death, their essence into the bowl, and their imprint into the wheel. Truly, nothing is wasted, hahaha!"

Wang Hongwu was overjoyed; the trip had enabled him to master two of his divine arts, which was truly a stroke of luck.

From then on, he never wasted any of the enemies he killed, utilizing them efficiently in every possible way.

"A celestial technique?!" Upon seeing this brand-new Myriad Paths Fist, everyone was shocked. Even Cao Yusheng, who had just been marveling at his creation of a near-celestial technique, was stunned. He stared at him intently and asked in confusion, "Mingzun, have you been possessed by the undying will of the dead beings here?"

Everyone frowned, wondering if the Bright Lord was no longer himself! Otherwise, how could he have created immortal techniques?
"Only the Nine Heavenly Venerables can possess the power of immortal techniques when using their near-immortal arts; apart from that, only the Emperor Venerable created them. How could the Bright Venerable do the same?" The other four Supreme Venerables nodded in deep agreement. This was impossible. After all, the Emperor Venerable was the only example in the world to have created immortal techniques; but now, the Bright Venerable had actually done it!
Even more outrageous than the Emperor, he didn't even achieve Dao, yet he created immortal techniques at the Ninth Heaven, which is simply unparalleled and terrifying.

In fact, Wang Hongwu understood that his original Ten Thousand Paths Fist, which extracted this artistic conception, was only transformed into a near-immortal technique. But what was terrifying was that the golden runes completely broke the limits of his fist technique, elevating it to the level of an immortal technique. If he could master it all, the possibilities would be unimaginable.

Its runes have an extraordinary origin, related to the person who left this path in the past! They are also connected to the Three Generations Bronze Coffin.

At this moment, everyone was somewhat dazed by him, but Cao Yusheng's eyes flashed as he looked at the Emperor and said, "This road may be dangerous, it's best if we don't go first."

The Emperor immediately understood his meaning, his cold gaze sweeping over the four Supreme Beings, and he said indifferently, "Either you go on your way, or you die here."

Clearly, this was meant to force them to explore the way. The four supreme beings' expressions immediately changed. What was the difference between this and sending them to their deaths?
They're going to die on the road, and they're going to die staying here, so they might as well take a gamble and see if they can escape during the battle!
"Your Majesty, don't push your luck! At worst, the four of us will attack that millstone, and we'll all die here!" The four supreme beings threatened, resolutely refusing to embark on their journey. Naturally, Your Majesty wouldn't tolerate them and took a hard line, intending to capture and suppress one of them and throw him into the cycle of reincarnation.

Wang Hongwu then fixed his gaze on the Slaughtering Heavenly Venerable. Before their battle was over, the Slaughtering Supreme Venerable let out a long roar, manifesting a divine form and a strange phenomenon. The two merged to form a nine-layered Corpse Throne. Each throne was made up of different bones of the Supreme Venerable, surrounded by a blood-red vortex. Inside, shattered universes, broken divine weapons, and the Supreme Venerable's head were embedded in the tip of the throne, emitting a roar that caused all things to wither.

This was a forbidden secret technique he had created, which not only possessed the power to suppress mysteries through strange phenomena, but also the power to attack with divine form. It also contained the remains and evil thoughts of the enemies he had killed, which was enough to shock the world. However, the Mingzun did not care at all. He directly stepped into the sky and made a powerful move. The golden-haired Hou galloped, the sacred peacock spread its tail, the golden-winged roc struck, and the nine-headed bird roared with thunder and wind. Different immortal spirits pressed down together and collided with his domain.

The more he attacked, the higher Wang Hongwu's aura became. He activated the Eight-Nine Heavens Technique, and bursts of white light shot out from his mouth and nose, like the roar of a tiger and the cry of a dragon, accompanied by rolling thunder. With one palm, he unleashed a powerful battle aura that shattered the three thrones, and with one punch, he pierced through the blood-red vortex. The three immortal spirits around him surged forward and destroyed the remaining six thrones.

Only the supreme head remained, charging forward with undying resentment, but it was shattered by a single punch. Seeing this, the Heavenly Venerable of Slaughter did not hesitate to use his forbidden domain, chanting, "This abyss buries the enemy, and also buries oneself; at the end of destruction, one can see the true meaning of the path of slaughter."

As he spoke, seven figures immediately appeared behind him: a three-headed, six-armed Blood Asura wielding a Blade of Burning World Karma; a pale ghost king whose tears turned to ice, freezing the void; a faceless black shadow that devoured everything as dust; and a ten-thousand-headed worm that spewed out Emperor-slaying poisonous light... each representing a certain emotion.

This is his forbidden domain, the Seven Calamities of Slaughtering the World Body, which is formed by stripping away his seven emotions (joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hatred, and desire) and refining each into a killing god form. They can also combine to create strange phenomena. It also contains some of the mysteries of numbers and word combinations. Obviously, he also had the opportunity to comprehend these two mysteries and integrate them into his own Dao fruit.

With this one move alone, he is far stronger than Bixiao Tianzun. This forbidden killing move is terrifying. Combined with his own attack, it is as if he were facing an eightfold attack in an instant. Who could resist it? It is only slightly inferior to the near-immortal technique created by the nine great celestial beings.

"The Wheel of Life and Death of the Heavens!" Wang Hongwu sneered, unleashing his sublimated near-immortal technique. A colossal Wheel of Life and Death rose up, encompassing the entire world. Supporting this Wheel of Life and Death were countless gods, all of whom were enemies he had killed. Even several supreme beings from the Primordial Ancient Mine and Burial Island appeared among them.

With each rotation of this colossal Wheel of Life and Death, the primordial spirits and physical bodies of everyone hummed. Simultaneously, a smaller Wheel of Life and Death appeared atop each of the Seven Tribulations of Slaughter, tightly binding their bodies and spinning them forcefully. A fierce, surging yang energy filled the entire universe, dominating and reigning supreme. "Is this the power of a near-immortal technique?" Slaughtering Heavenly Venerable exclaimed in surprise. Then, he saw the largest wheel, held aloft by countless gods, crushing down upon him. He immediately unleashed his full power, engaging in a bloody battle. But when his fists clashed, he was astonished to find that his hands were cracked from the impact, unable to budge. Looking again, he saw that the Bright Venerable stood atop that divine wheel!
Boom! Wang Hongwu stomped his foot, bringing down the divine wheel and blasting the Slaughtering Heavenly Venerable away. Then he grabbed the divine wheel and threw it like a flying disc, splitting the seven divine forms in two with a soft thud. When it flew back, the disc decomposed into two black and white light bands that wrapped around his fist and rushed over.

He used this divine power in many variations, and when he got close to Lu Mie and Qi Hou, he launched a series of powerful attacks. He fought against eight opponents at once, capable of killing the gods of the Nine Heavens and annihilating the demon kings of the Nine Netherworlds. Once he made his move, he never stopped and continued to kill, shattering the seven divine forms in succession. He forced Lu Mie Tianzun to retreat. This kind of battle could not be fought with three thousand moves in one go, but rather by using the strongest ultimate technique to decide life and death in an instant.

Slaughtering Heaven Technique! Knowing that the fate of the Heavenly Venerable of Slaughtering Heaven was sealed, he finally revealed the supreme technique he had combined under the divine punishment. A beam of blood-red light shot out from his body, causing his physical body to shatter. When it reassembled, the porcelain cracks were gone. Clearly, the previous state was due to the nurturing of this beam of blood-red light, which tormented even the supreme being and prevented him from healing his wounds.

Then, the blood-red light transformed into a broken dragon-headed guillotine, connected to a platform below, which crashed down upon Wang Hongwu with a deafening roar, no less than a divine punishment reborn! This killing move terrified even the Supreme Beings, for it truly possessed the power to kill them! But unfortunately, he was facing a Bright Being; Wang Hongwu raised his fists, and countless burning trails appeared, forming a giant millstone.
The Myriad Paths Fist! He directly unleashed the immortal technique he had created, several blurry golden runes reflected on it, bringing with them the power to crush all stars and myriad realms. Myriad arcs outlined a giant millstone, which in a single turn crushed the guillotine, shattered the execution platform, and struck directly at the body of the Ascended Celestial Venerable. The Destroyer, struck by this heavy blow, cried out, his body cracked from the force of the impact, and he burst into flames, shattering on the spot.

His path of slaughter condensed into a scarlet trail that disappeared into the symbol of the Myriad Paths Fist; his primordial spirit was absorbed into the Wheel of Life and Death of the Heavens, transforming into a new slave god; his origin disappeared into the sacrificial bowl; and the brand and the Myriad Calamities Slaughtering Weapon were absorbed into the Wheel of Reincarnation, leaving nothing behind.

A powerful Celestial Venerable, having revealed all his trump cards and inflicted divine punishment once more, was slain and devoured without mercy. This served as a terrifying deterrent to the other Venerables.

The Mingzun's strength was even more terrifying than they had imagined. He could even suppress a powerful emperor, and he himself was not seriously injured. Such strength was truly terrifying.

The remaining supreme beings naturally could not survive either. One was annihilated by the Emperor, another tried to attack the millstone but was instead drawn in and ground to dust, dying and disappearing; the third was captured alive and sent to scout ahead as a vanguard for the king.

After confirming that his physical body would not be affected by the path, the three of them followed.

However, after they left, the void behind them trembled. A mutilated immortal corpse fell and lay on its back in the distance from the millstone, instinctively absorbing the souls and origins of the people present. A vague substance also flowed out along the cycle of reincarnation and into its body, undergoing spiritual evolution.

Gradually, its fingers twitched, instinctively grasping at its broken legs and intact head, trying to mend its body.

A series of severed limbs were pulled over, forming a horrifying ball of flesh.

This ancient road is very long. Passing through a place that resembles a boundary gate, it feels like entering another world.

The sky and earth were shrouded in gray, the sun and the earth were nowhere to be seen. Beneath their feet was a road paved with black stones, covered with bloodstains that looked like corpse spots. It was eerie and slightly sinister. Here, spirits seemed to drift, and there was a subtle sense of traversing between life and death.

"Is this really the path of reincarnation?" Cao Yusheng was surprised and felt that it was somewhat unbelievable. The road ahead was particularly monotonous. The starry sky was deathly silent and lifeless. Even the starlight seemed to be shrouded in a layer of gray fog, carrying a heavy aura of death.

Once you cross this place, an ancient road appears ahead, laid out in the void, winding its way in.

As they embarked on this path, a wondrous sight appeared before them: a building constructed of stone steps, its railings old and exceptionally rough, seemingly dating back to ancient times, or even longer.

In addition, there is blood on the stone steps, which has not yet dried, and each step is more than a person's height, so it doesn't seem to be for normal people.

Wang Hongwu looked up and saw a shrine above the nine stone steps. Inside sat a dark figure, like a clay figure. To be precise, it was buried in dust and eroded by time, and now it was impossible to tell whether it was male or female. It sat there motionless.

It is humanoid, dressed in a very ancient and somewhat barbaric style, like a Taoist robe sewn from animal hides. Centered on it, there exists a certain power, like golden ripples, washing away misfortune and darkness. Everything that comes into contact with or sees is cleansed and purified, and the remaining parts are far from comparable to the past.

"Is this the being who controls reincarnation?" Cao Yusheng was surprised, but felt a little empty inside. He had a feeling that this was not the person he was looking for, but there seemed to be a connection. So he stepped forward with high hopes.

However, when he reached the top of the steps, he encountered a terrifying pressure, coughing up blood and flying backward, his whole body covered in cracks, which were beyond the reach of any extreme being.

Seizing this opportunity, the Supreme Being, who had been used as a scout, rushed forward. Staying here would only mean certain death, so he might as well take a gamble.

Clang! In an instant, he stepped onto a step, causing a massive tremor. Boundless matter was propelled and vibrated by the golden ripples, instantly shattering him. He didn't even have time to scream before he vanished into thin air.

The remaining matter, along with the shockwave, caused the already injured Cao Yusheng to cough up blood. He cursed his bad luck, thinking that he had spent his whole life swindling others, but he never expected to be swindled himself today, resulting in serious injuries and leaving deep, unhealable marks in his body.

Seeing this, the Emperor intervened, blocking and neutralizing these substances, and took them into his palm. However, his expression shifted slightly as he unexpectedly discovered that these substances were even more effective than the essence emanating from the immortal corpse, like a substance that could prolong life! However, they carried a slightly indescribable sense of decadence, making them somewhat eerie.

However, since this was purified by the clay, and the reduction was extremely dangerous, he silently accepted it.

As if sensing something, the clay figure trembled slightly, and as golden ripples spread, a bright light shone from the infinite heights, as if the sky had been torn apart, revealing a passage leading outwards!

"Let's go, we shouldn't stay here any longer." Wang Hongwu said, and flew towards the crack first, followed closely by Cao Yusheng, with the Emperor Venerable stepping out last.

At the same time, spatial rifts appeared outside the Kunlun Mountains, dark and spewing out blue flames, causing all living beings in the area to tremble with fear and their souls to tremble.

As the sun sets, clusters of spider lilies appear atop the mountain, sparkling like blue diamonds, blooming continuously. Blue pollen rises and transforms into a misty haze, creating a dreamlike scene.

When the three emerged from the crack, the red sun in the sky turned blue, eerily so, hanging on the horizon and emitting a faint blue light.

It's like a cycle, a loop.

"Phew, thankfully I listened to your advice and didn't rashly take this path, otherwise I'm afraid there would have been big trouble." Cao Yusheng, still recovering from serious injuries, glanced at Wang Hongwu with a wry smile and sighed. The Mingzun, however, had a glint in his eyes and looked at the closed crack, saying, "I just don't know where that incomplete immortal corpse went. I have a strange premonition."

"Now, we should prepare to ascend to immortality as a sect." The Emperor said, but secretly he was holding another substance in his palm. He thought to himself that this substance had been purified and stripped of its danger, and was worth studying.

Boom! At the same time, the Immortal Palace in the vast chaos also moved, as if pulled by something, and also fell towards Kunlun on Earth.

(End of this chapter)