Covering the sky: Traveling through the holy body, suppressing the dark turmoil

Chapter 81 The Return of the Gods
Lingbao Tianzun's heart was filled with turbulent waves, and he could not calm down for a long time. The vastness of that realm appeared before his eyes, and the shock it brought far surpassed anything in the world.

The Immortal Slaughtering Formation Diagram evolved in his mind, combining it with the power of the Immortal Realm's laws that had been released when he saw the Desolate Heavenly Emperor enter the Immortal Realm.

Even though it's just fragmented memory, there are still many things we can learn from it.

The power of the laws roared, and four dark red streams of light flew out from between his eyebrows, heading towards the Four Swords of Zhuxian.

In an instant, the entire Flying Immortal Star was shrouded in boundless killing intent. The killing intent emanating from the souls pressed down on all living beings, making them dare not make any rash moves.

The swords rang out, killing light flowed, and powerful energy surged from the swords, soaring into the heavens.

The Immortal Slaughtering Formation Diagram trembled, stirring up countless cosmic paths. The ancient runes on it emitted a dazzling light, and a powerful killing intent swept across the nine heavens and ten earths.

Immediately afterwards, Lingbao reached out and summoned a special law that flew out from the shattered body. The divine power flowed, and all the living beings on Flying Immortal Star felt as if they were ascending to heaven in broad daylight.

Am I about to become an immortal?

"Flying Immortal Star, can one really ascend to immortality from there?"

All living beings were astonished by this sudden change. Many creatures whose lifespans were nearing their end were given a year's extension, as if they had taken a precious medicine.

In the sealed land, the expression of shock on the face of the Celestial Venerable of Annihilation never faded.

"It is absolutely a law of immortality."

After a long while, he finally spoke slowly, unwilling to give up.

That law does not belong to the human realm; transcendent power flows from it.

Then, Lingbao Tianzun waved his hand, and four immortal swords flew from the void, combining with the immortal laws in the void.

The sound of swords echoed throughout the heavens and the earth, and a blood-red phantom materialized from the four swords, sitting cross-legged on the Immortal Slaughtering Formation Diagram.

The chanting never ceased, and an inexhaustible life force surged forth from the deity. A myriad of mournful cries, a power far surpassing that of humanity, were contained within that deity.

Then, the array diagram rotated, the runes on it recombine, light flowed, and an aura of immortality erupted.

"In the end, it was still just a little short," Lingbao Tianzun said regretfully.

The Four Swords of Zhuxian are now incredibly close to being immortal artifacts; they wouldn't be at a disadvantage even when facing the Desolate Tower. However, they are still a little short of being true immortal artifacts.

Li Xuan was not too surprised by this. The power of the Four Swords of Zhuxian was beyond question, and the Zhuxian Formation Diagram was known as the number one killing formation in history.

In later generations, Ye Fan encountered an ambush by four supreme beings wielding the Four Swords of Zhuxian and the Zhuxian Formation Diagram. Even Ye Fan suffered considerable losses.

The current state of the Zhuxian Formation is an inevitable outcome.

With a wave of his hand, Lingbao Tianzun absorbed the Zhuxian Formation Diagram and the Four Zhuxian Swords into his body, making his aura even more unfathomable than before.

“Senior Lingbao Tianzun, this is a checkpoint on the path to immortality in later generations. Although it is not open now, it would not hurt to take a look,” Li Xuan suggested.

As the two continued forward, the immortal runes left behind were completely obliterated by the aftershocks of the collision.

"Thank goodness we've saved this place!" Li Xuan exclaimed with delight.

He had thought that leaving the Emperor here to restore the Immortal Ascension Cauldron would result in a significant loss, and that finding the Divine Child would require considerable effort. Now it seemed that sacrificing the Serpent and the Annihilation Heavenly Venerable would suffice.

We ventured deeper and deeper, arriving at the starting point of the path to immortality.

"It is extremely mysterious. If we force an attack, this road will be completely destroyed," said Lingbao Tianzun with some regret.

This path to immortality is arguably the most unique. In other paths to immortality, the higher one's cultivation level, the greater the chance of entering the Immortal Realm.

The lower one's cultivation level, the fewer tribulations one will experience on this path to immortality. If a cultivator wishes to achieve immortality through this path, they must sever their imperial body, which would be tantamount to giving up everything they have accumulated.

Li Xuan released his divine sense, breaking through the seal here, and everything inside was exposed.

"On the path to immortality, there are only two or three people!"

A massive stone tablet stood before the checkpoint, emanating an immense aura. The more powerful one's cultivation, the more one understood the strength of the person who carved the tablet.

Although Li Xuan knew of the existence of this stone tablet, he only understood its power when he actually saw it in person.

He wanted to go deeper, but a vast and mighty force emanated from that realm, blocking his path.

Li Xuan's primordial spirit unleashed a powerful force, attempting to break through the barrier of that realm.

"boom!"

A violent tremor emanated from the Path to Immortality, causing the entire Flying Immortal Star to shake uncontrollably.

After a long while, Li Xuan reluctantly withdrew his divine sense. The kings of that realm had left behind immortal marks, and his current strength was too weak.

However, this collision gave us a new understanding of the path ahead, and many laws were confirmed by the immortal mark of that realm.

His skin emitted a crystalline glow, and a transcendent aura flowed from the stone tablet. Li Xuan circulated his profound power, merging that aura with his chaotic world.

Instantly, the phantom images of dragons and phoenixes appeared within the Chaos Wheel Sea, all paths resonated in harmony, and boundless chaotic energy circulated, propelling the evolution of the chaotic world forward by a great step.

"I never imagined that the Chaos World could make such a significant progress in such a short time," Li Xuan remarked.

Lingbao Tianzun sensed the increasingly terrifying power within the other party's body, and a look of shock flashed in his eyes. To be able to make further progress in such a short time, his talent far surpassed his own.

After a long while, Li Xuan slowly opened his eyes, his eyes flashing with a sharp light that illuminated the heavens.

"It's time to deal with you all!" Li Xuan said calmly.

The only other opportunity in this place besides the path to immortality is the Immortal Ascension Cauldron.

The path to immortality is not yet open, but the Immortal Ascension Cauldron left behind by the Emperor can now be gathered together.

Li Xuan formed a hand seal, and a surge of energy flowed from his body, activating all the array platforms left behind by the Emperor.

Celestial light flowed, and a tremendous suction force erupted from the void, creating a void that emerged from the void.

"Your Majesty!" the snake exclaimed in surprise.

"Why aren't you dead yet? Why?!" the Celestial Venerable of Annihilation roared madly.

Then, endless life essence surged from all corners of the universe and flowed into that illusory figure.

Suddenly, the snake roared, blood trickled from its brow, its primordial spirit burned, and a shower of light flew out from its body, disappearing into the array platform.

At the same time, several chains of law flew out from the void, deeply piercing into the body of the Celestial Venerable of Annihilation, frantically absorbing his life essence.

"Your Majesty, how cruel you are!" said the Annihilation Heavenly Venerable in anger.

He understood at that moment that even without their intervention, they would still die when the path to immortality opened here in future generations.

Endless life essence flowed from the two individuals along the immortal chains into the array platform, breaking them down and then reassembling them into an immortal cauldron.

The previous being was also left with a contingency plan by the Emperor. Its remains offered no resistance and were transformed into life essence, flowing into the illusory figure.

Not long after, the serpent, the Heavenly Venerable of Annihilation, and all the prehistoric beings exploded. Their bodies had already been sealed by the Emperor, and their fate was already sealed.

"boom!"

Three powerful energies merged together and rushed towards a celestial well in the chaotic land. They fused together, forming a storm and then reassembled into a phantom.

Beyond the realm, the Kunlun Immortal Mountain.

Guided by the Immortal Ascension Cauldron at the bottom of the Immortal Ascension Pool, the insect, fish, bird and beast runes engraved on it burst forth with dazzling light. Then, a powerful force flew out from the Immortal Ascension Pool and flowed into the Immortal Ascension Cauldron.

A streak of light shot out from Kunlun Immortal Mountain, hurtling towards Flying Immortal Star at an unpredictable speed. Beidou, Northern Wilderness.

This place is lush with water and vegetation, and springs can be seen everywhere between heaven and earth, making it incredibly rich in spiritual energy.

Deep in the mountains, an ordinary stone slab blends seamlessly into the massive mountainside.

On this day, the stone body was pulled by a force from the depths of the universe, and it shook violently, trying to break free from that force.

The ending remained unchanged: the stone embryo broke through the mountain and transformed into a stream of light, flying towards the Flying Immortal Star.

The rosy clouds soared into the sky, and two dazzling rays of light converged on the Flying Immortal Star, illuminating eternity. The powerful aura was awe-inspiring, causing people to tremble all over.

"The Cauldron of Ascension to Immortality!"

"It really is it! I didn't expect it to have survived so long without breaking!"

Ancient beings recognized its origin and were utterly astonished.

Inside the Flying Immortal Star, Li Xuan had already noticed all of this.

In a short while, the two streams of light broke through the seal and arrived at the Immortal Well.

The outer layer of stone on the stone body has been worn away by the starry sky, revealing the divine child inside.

Just as the two were about to come together, a large hand descended, abruptly interrupting all of this.

The immortal runes that the Emperor had condensed at the cost of three supreme beings were shattered into fragments in his hands before they could withstand them for even a moment.

"What is this?" Lingbao Tianzun asked, pointing to the divine child in Li Xuan's hand.

"The deity of the Ascension Cauldron has come in response to the call from here!"

Li Xuan wasn't interested in the complete Ascension Cauldron of the Emperor, but he was quite interested in this deity. This was the future Emperor Yu Feng, an existence who could fight Shi Wang Bo to a draw.

“God Child, stop pretending to be dead, say a few words.”

Li Xuan patted the divine child's bottom several times through the immortal source, and the child finally couldn't take it anymore and couldn't help but speak up.

"Senior, I was wrong. I don't know why I'm here. Please be merciful and let me go," the child pleaded.

Li Xuan was somewhat surprised, not expecting the other party to be so pragmatic and not say anything too offensive.

"You now have two choices: either join my forces or become my disciple."

The child looked embarrassed and inwardly cried out that it was unfair, because no matter which way he chose, he would become his disciple.

"Do I have a choice?" the child asked helplessly.

"Be sensible, or I'll have given you a few more slaps."

Looking at the two men, Lingbao suddenly felt like a good person, while the two men in front of him were just scoundrels.

"Let's go, Senior Lingbao. The remaining items here are of little use to us. Staying here is just a waste of time."

Lingbao Tianzun had little objection to this and prepared to leave.

Suddenly, a strange feeling welled up in his heart, and his divine eyes opened, gazing through all realms and pointing directly to the Kunlun Immortal Mountain.

"Let's go to the ancient Earth. Fellow Daoist Morality's royal corpse has been reborn with a true spirit," said Lingbao Tianzun excitedly.

Li Xuan had no objection and agreed to Lingbao Tianzun's request. Although the future of the imperial corpse was already set, it was still acceptable to leave it in the Heavenly Court as a foundation.

Two golden paths flew, pointing straight into the depths of the universe. The two did not deliberately conceal their auras, and everyone in the universe noticed this place.

"Where are the two human emperors headed? Did their path to immortality on Flying Immortal Star fail?"

"That path, even with the peak cultivation of two Human Emperors, is not enough?"

People were talking about it, but no one could say what had happened there; they could only use their imaginations to guess what had happened.

Along the way, the child tried to escape Li Xuan's clutches several times, but in the end, his bottom turned red and swollen.

Lingbao Tianzun originally thought that the deity of the Immortal Cauldron would at least be fearless of threats, but now it seems that the other party is a pure bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong.

The two traveled at high speed and arrived at Kunlun Immortal Mountain in no time.

The two descended upon the immortal land of Kunlun Mountain, where the Celestial Venerable Morality was buried. This place was filled with secret characters, preventing outsiders from entering and those inside from leaving.

An elderly Taoist priest was groping for a way out, but after trying for a long time, he still couldn't find a suitable path.

He didn't understand why he was there, but his body's instincts made him move towards the outside world.

Then, a young man dressed as a Taoist priest appeared before the Celestial Venerable Morality, his face full of smiles.

Do you know who I am?

"I..." The Celestial Master seemed to remember something, but he didn't say the last word.

"Alas, he has passed away!" Lingbao Tianzun said helplessly.

He examined the other party's primordial spirit, which was a completely new primordial spirit, a pure Emperor Corpse Spirit.

"Senior Lingbao Tianzun, dust to dust, ashes to ashes. The only thing we can do now is to bring him into the Heavenly Court and look forward to the future of the Immortal Realm," Li Xuan comforted him.

Lingbao Tianzun thought about many things, and finally let out a helpless sigh.

"I'll call you 'father' then."

The Celestial Venerable of Morality had no objection to this; he had already moved on, and the name made no difference to him.

Li Xuan explored Kunlun Immortal Mountain again, hoping to find the Dao-Merging Flower, but the result was no different from several years ago—he found nothing.

"Let's go, Senior Lingbao Tianzun, let's return to the Heavenly Court!"

Then, two figures soared into the sky from Kunlun Immortal Mountain and departed.

"Do you think there's still a chance to bring back Daoist Morality?" Lingbao Tianzun was still somewhat unwilling to give up.

"Let's ask the Underworld Lord in the next life. He has cultivated the Reincarnation Seal, so he might have a way to communicate with the spirits of such Heavenly Venerable corpses," Li Xuan comforted him.

The two discussed this for a long time, but they still couldn't come up with a reasonable solution.

Lingbao Tianzun could only allow the other party to embark on cultivation, walk the path of the Corpse Emperor, and attain enlightenment a second time, hoping to restore his memories of his previous life through this.

……

Time passed slowly, and a hundred years passed in the blink of an eye. Li Xuan left the Ascension Cauldron in the Heavenly Court as one of its treasures.

Lingbao Tianzun personally guided Daode Tianzun's cultivation, traversing various realms, and found the Bodhi Tree, the immortal elixir from Daode Tianzun's lifetime.

The Celestial Venerable of Morality sits cross-legged under the ancient Bodhi tree every day, cultivating the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and strengthening himself.

Lingbao Tianzun looked at the other party with both expectation and worry.

"Fellow Daoist, have you really left no backup plan?"

But he searched the whole world and found nothing.

(End of this chapter)