Shrouding the Heavens: The Ultimate Daoist Venerable

Chapter 842 Heavenly Man Touches the Top
The extent of Li Er's cultivation was unknown to anyone other than himself. Even though he had only just begun his cultivation, due to the unique nature of his body, most cultivators could only sense a transcendent Daoist aura.

For those more powerful cultivators, the aura they sensed was even more terrifying. The power emanating from Li Er was fundamentally far beyond their imagination.

In actual contact, Li Er's extremely profound understanding of cultivation made it even more impossible to judge his true strength.

And so, he became a very special being on the ancient star.

Li Er remained silent about the various speculations other cultivators had about him, because he himself didn't know where his extraordinary abilities came from. But for his journey of traveling the world and cultivating enlightenment, this mysterious aura obviously made him feel more at ease in completing it all.

As a result, Li Er began to acquire more and more scriptures and made contact with various forces of cultivators, exchanging ideas with them, which made his path of cultivation smoother and smoother.

Later, he obtained an incomplete Taoist scripture.

Li Er now possesses more than one ancient scripture, and even though none of them are complete, they are still very profound and have greatly helped his spiritual practice.

Of these ancient scriptures, only the Daoist scriptures resonated with him the most. While they weren't exactly tailor-made for him, they corresponded in some mysterious way to his still-developing cultivation philosophy.

After obtaining the Taoist scriptures, his cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds, and he quickly began to integrate other scriptures, making himself more perfect.

On the ancient star of the Primordial World, the Celestial Venerable of Morality, the Celestial Venerable of Spiritual Treasure, and the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning are collectively known as the Three Pure Ones, the origin of most of the cultivation forces on the ancient star of the Primordial World. Therefore, at the beginning, Li Er did not have any special thoughts about his connection with the Daoist scriptures.

After all, this scripture was originally the strongest foundation-building scripture, with a very wide range of applications. He couldn't possibly have connected it to the idea that he might have a relationship with the Celestial Venerable of Morality.

Moreover, the Celestial Venerable of Morality is far removed from this era. Although the cultivators of the ancient primordial star regard him as one of the three Dao Ancestors and sculpt his statue according to the descriptions in ancient books, his actual appearance has been distorted. All that is known is that he is an old Daoist with an air of otherworldly grace.

Therefore, no one on the ancient star could recognize that Li Er's appearance was exactly the same as that of the Moral Celestial Venerable, with only some differences in temperament.

As time went by, Li Er's cultivation level continued to improve. A hundred years after his birth, Li Er transcended the tribulation and became a sage. However, he lived in that wilderness for twenty years, and then spent another ten years as a mortal. Therefore, his actual cultivation time was only seventy years.

Although his cultivation speed is already very fast, it doesn't seem so impressive compared to his background.

Of course, this was not because he deliberately slowed down. Li Er simply naturally and meticulously cultivated his five secret realms, thus reaching an extremely perfect state, which is why he did not display an inhuman cultivation speed.

After achieving sainthood, Li Er embarked on his journey home again. He returned to the place where he had lived when he was born, and there, the birds and beasts that had been enlightened by his special Daoist charm also began to embark on the path of cultivation.

Although they received no instruction or scripture, they still achieved remarkable growth through their awakened intelligence and became spiritually connected beasts.

Li Er revisited the old place, also to look back at these past companions.

Since their enlightenment was due to the existence of Li Er, they were of the same origin. Therefore, although these birds and beasts were of very different kinds, they were still united and formed a group, and began to cooperate and promote each other.

Eighty years after his departure and becoming a sage, Li Er knew very well that, barring unforeseen circumstances, these birds and beasts should still be alive. His visit was a good opportunity to continue guiding them on their path and help them begin their true cultivation. However, the first person Li Er encountered was an old acquaintance, the woodcutter Li Guo, whom he had once rescued and who had taught him various practical skills.

He had been separated from him for eighty years, which meant that the woodcutter Li Guo was over a hundred years old. Among mortals, this lifespan was clearly incredible.

But after careful observation, Li Er understood the reason. There was a special energy within Li Guo's body that kept him in optimal condition, free from all diseases and in good health, which was why he had been able to live to this day.

This special aura was something that Li Er unintentionally achieved when he wanted to repay him.

He didn't know what the effect of this aura would be, but he had a vague feeling that Li Guo might not die of old age so easily. However, he still did not expect that the effect would be so significant.

If left unchecked, Li Guo could have lived for several more decades. So, it seems his connection with the woodcutter wasn't over yet.

After Li Er appeared, the birds and beasts immediately swarmed over, making all sorts of joyful cries. Li Guo also ran over excitedly, moving nimbly, not at all like a centenarian.

He said excitedly, "Sir, I'm so glad to see you again."

Li Er smiled slightly and said, "Now, you're just like me, like an old immortal."

With the enhancement of that special aura, Li Guo now also has the appearance of a white-haired youth with a youthful face. Even though he is dressed in coarse cloth clothes, he still has an otherworldly air about him, and he does indeed look somewhat similar to Li Er.

Li Guo asked, "Sir, will you leave again this time you've come back?"

Li Er said, "Yes. This world is still very vast; I haven't even been to the ancient primordial planets yet. Moreover, I also want to know my own origins."

“I have returned this time to give you a choice. If you choose to embark on the path of spiritual practice, then I will teach you how to practice; if you choose to live out your days here, then I will certainly try my best to meet your needs.”

Upon hearing this, all the birds and beasts bowed to Li Er, those who couldn't bow lowered their bodies as much as possible. Clearly, they had made their choice, hoping that after Li Er helped them awaken their intelligence, he would also guide them onto the path of cultivation.

Li Er looked at Li Guo: "Now we only need you. Are you willing to follow me in cultivation?"

In a daze, Li Guo saw the image of Laozi (Li Er) again, along with his mother who died of a serious illness, his father who died from injuries, his wife who died of natural causes, and his descendants who studied diligently to pursue fame and fortune...

Coming to his senses, he looked at Li Er, who seemed like an immortal, as if he could transcend life and death and escape from the mortal world, and knelt down on the ground: "Please teach me, sir."

Li Er gently stroked Li Guo's head, and a stream of life essence flowed into his body, turning his white hair back to black and restoring his youth.

(End of this chapter)