After the Great Dao Died

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged inside the King of the East’s Traveling Palace.

After he stepped onto the Qi Circulation Eleventh Floor, the spiritual qi within his body had thickened to a truly astonishing degree.

The Three Flowers above his head cast a profound light, the Flower of Golden Essence by far the most massive among them.

With this breakthrough in his cultivation, Chen Lingxi began to comprehend the second profound mechanism of the True Edict of Approaching the Dao’s Palace Knocking Realm.

The Flower of Golden Essence above his head was already as massive as a mountain, the essence within it surging like a bursting river.

Under the Palace Knocking Realm of the True Edict of Approaching the Dao, the phantom of Great Sage Yaotian breathed day and night within his crude Inner Divine Palace. Rolling essence washed over his limbs, bones, organs, and skin like a tide.

Chen Lingxi intended to use this majestic essence to break open the second profound mechanism of the Palace Knocking Realm.

On this day, Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged on the purple sandalwood throne in the main hall of the King of the East’s Traveling Palace, his eyes shut tight as he looked inward.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the blurred silhouette formed by the Great Sage Yaotian Approaching the Dao Diagram still stood tall, holding up heaven and earth.

Stars circulated around that figure, and the Great Sage’s breathing carried an indescribably profound aura.

The method of the True Edict of Approaching the Dao flowed endlessly through Chen Lingxi’s mind.

The first profound mechanism of Palace Knocking, [Great Sage Breathing], allowed him to automatically temper his physical body at every moment, endlessly generating and circulating essence.

This rendered his physical body unprecedentedly powerful.

According to the method’s records, the second profound mechanism of Palace Knocking used the Great Sage’s momentum as a guide to knock open an invisible door within the Inner Divine Palace.

Once that door opened, the Great Sage’s momentum could be released outward, empowering all of his physical attacks.

Every movement would then be like the Great Sage descending in person. It would not only bolster his own momentum and killing power, but also overwhelm the enemy’s mind, striking them with immense terror.

This profound mechanism was named [Heaven-Inviting Momentum].

The name took the meaning of ”inviting the Great Sage’s momentum to descend upon the mortal realm.”

The Great Sage’s momentum was immensely vast; borrowing even a single strand was enough to make mortal cultivators quail in fear.

Chen Lingxi sank his focus, gathering his entire will within the Inner Divine Palace.

The phantom of Great Sage Yaotian sat cross-legged atop a high platform within the crude palace.

The Great Sage’s face was blurred and his figure merely a faint outline, yet his sheer presence was astonishing.

He was like an ancient god walking out of the eons of time. Even as a mere phantom, he could still make the heavens and earth tremble.

From the Flower of Golden Essence above his head, thick essence continuously poured into his body, while the Flower of Divine Lead made his mind increasingly clear.

With his eyes closed, Chen Lingxi circulated the True Edict of Approaching the Dao and visualized Great Sage Yaotian.

After an unknown amount of time, a hint of joy suddenly appeared on his face.

At the same time, he felt an indescribably majestic momentum crash down from the high platform.

This momentum was incomparably heavy and brimming with might.

A flash of enlightenment crossed Chen Lingxi’s eyes.

He remained seated cross-legged, continuing to circulate the Palace Knocking method of the True Edict of Approaching the Dao!

The method of the True Edict of Approaching the Dao continued to run within his body.

The momentum descending from the Great Sage phantom surged forth, flooding into his body and even his Sea of Consciousness, allowing him to profoundly experience the Great Sage’s might!

At this moment, Chen Lingxi felt he was no longer just a lowly Qi Circulation cultivator.

It was as if he had transformed into a Great Sage, standing tall and overlooking the world just like the phantom.

Right then, Chen Lingxi clearly sensed a wisp of aura beginning to brew around the phantom of Great Sage Yaotian within the Inner Divine Palace.

It was exactly the Great Sage’s momentum.

As Chen Lingxi visualized this momentum, a terrifying profound mechanism seemed to brew around him.

Two clusters of indescribable radiance lit up in his eyes.

The radiance seemed to echo the light in the eyes of the Great Sage phantom on the high platform.

He then stood up, a towering phantom faintly appearing behind him.

With the phantom’s manifestation, an indescribable, overwhelming coercion surged out from him.

Standing proudly in the King of the East’s Traveling Palace, Chen Lingxi’s presence was magnificent and boundlessly powerful, just like a true Great Sage!

Chen Lingxi exhaled a breath of stale air, a small smile appearing on his face.

”I have successfully cultivated the second profound mechanism of the Palace Knocking Realm, [Heaven-Inviting Momentum], to perfection.”

”From now on, all my physical attacks will naturally carry the Great Sage’s momentum.”

He muttered to himself, his eyes clear and bright. ”With this momentum, ordinary cultivators will cower before they even fight me. Their minds will be overwhelmed and their bodies suppressed; they won’t be able to exert even sixty or seventy percent of their full strength.”

Other than that...

Chen Lingxi sensed his physical body.

The [Great Sage Breathing] mechanism still relied on the spiritual qi within Chen Lingxi’s own Qi Sea.

The thicker and more powerful his spiritual qi was, the faster his physical strength would increase, and the more robust his essence would become.

”Having stepped into the Qi Circulation Eleventh Floor, my physical cultivation will continue to rise.”

”Now that I’ve attained the Heaven-Inviting Momentum mechanism, it’s like a fierce tiger gaining wings or a flood dragon entering the sea!”

Chen Lingxi took a deep breath, suppressing the agitation in his heart.

”Although my spiritual qi cultivation has only just entered the Qi Circulation Eleventh Floor, in terms of sheer killing power... I don’t know how much stronger I am than ordinary cultivators of the same realm. Even those noble cultivators from major sects wouldn’t be my match.”

A glint of sharp light flashed across his eyes.

”If I add the Thunder-Concealing Sword Scripture, the Longevity Bridge, and the Heaven-Seizing Seal—these Wondrous State divine abilities... even among the noble cultivator disciples of the Noble Sect Immortal Gates in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, and even at the Twelfth Floor of Qi Circulation, I fear there aren’t many who could fight me.”

Chen Lingxi grew increasingly confident, feeling ever more satisfied with the True Edict of Approaching the Dao as a cultivation method.

’I haven’t cultivated the True Edict of Approaching the Dao for long. Although I’ve mastered both profound mechanisms of the Palace Knocking Realm, I’m still some distance away from perfecting it.’

’To step into the next realm, the Palace Building Realm, I still need to use a massive amount of essence to temper the Inner Divine Palace, expanding it from a single room and hall into a true Great Sage’s palace.’

The True Edict of Approaching the Dao had six major realms: Palace Knocking, Palace Building, Image Establishment, Spirit Clarifying, Truth Uniting, and Sage Transforming.

The gap between each realm was like a heavenly chasm.

The Palace Knocking Realm merely opened the Inner Divine Palace, enshrined the inner god phantom, and borrowed its breathing to temper the physical body.

The Palace Building Realm, however, required constructing actual halls and pavilions within the Inner Divine Palace, expanding that crude single room and hall into a majestic Great Sage’s palace.

By then, the inner god phantom would also solidify slightly, and Chen Lingxi would be able to visualize and enshrine other inner gods, bringing a qualitative leap to his physical combat power.

’But to build the palace, the essence required will likely be more than ten times what the Palace Knocking Realm needs.’

Chen Lingxi shook his head and sighed inwardly. ’Relying solely on the [Great Sage Breathing] mechanism to temper my body day and night, who knows how many years it’ll take to accumulate enough essence... I’ll need to find external resources.’

’It’s a pity that this Qi-Depleted Grotto-Heaven has exhausted its spiritual mechanisms. Heavenly materials and earthly treasures are incredibly scarce... and there are no profound spiritual pills like those in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm.’

’Or perhaps... if I had that Immortal Slough, I could use its essence to cultivate my body. Coupled with sufficient spiritual qi in my Qi Sea, I could surely step into the second realm.’

’By then, my physical body would reach unimaginable levels of strength.’

He pushed these thoughts aside for the time being. Without dwelling on them further, he stepped out of the King of the East’s Traveling Palace.

Outside the cave, a sea of clouds churned, and the sky winds howled.

Chen Lingxi stood at the mountain peak.

He activated the Method of Qi Observation in his eyes, his gaze piercing through layers of clouds and mist to look in the direction of Yuanjiang Prefecture.

Yuanjiang Prefecture remained as usual.

Within Xuanhuo Temple, the halls and pavilions constructed from illusions still appeared real. In the side room behind the temple, Liu Changle was still fast asleep.

Chen Lingxi withdrew his gaze, sighing softly in his heart.

’Changle must be deeply worried about Sun Observation Peak. The other Liu Changle on Sun Observation Peak is already heavily injured, yet he remains deeply attached, willing to return to this grotto-heaven.’

Chen Lingxi shook his head and stopped looking at Liu Changle. With a slight shift in his thoughts, he immediately activated the Vision Roaming Divine Ability.

Upon reaching the Qi Circulation Eleventh Floor, his Vision Roaming range had expanded to sixteen thousand li in every direction.

’Sixteen thousand li across... I wonder if I can find traces of Emperor Daye in such a vast area.’

Chen Lingxi pondered this in his heart.

Within the Divine Chamber, a wisp of Chen Lingxi’s consciousness soared upward, passing over Jingji Circuit, Lunan Province, Qinghua Province, Heqing Province, and even further into the Northern Snowfields, the Southern Seas, and the Great Zhou Frontier... Countless cities, mountains, and rivers flashed rapidly through his mind.

Then, the Vision Roaming Divine Ability finally locked onto the deepest part of the Great Zhou Imperial City.

It was a dark side hall located in an extremely secluded corner of the Great Zhou Imperial Palace.

And at this moment, someone was sitting cross-legged inside this side hall.

It was none other than Emperor Daye, Ying Xian.

This emperor of the Great Li Dynasty was actually inside the Great Zhou Imperial Palace right now!

He wore luxurious black robes, his face as aged as ever.

But what shocked Chen Lingxi was that rolling essence was circulating around Emperor Daye’s body.

The essence was pale gold, lingering around him like a thin mist. With every breath, it repaired his internal injuries at a visible rate.

’This is... the essence of the Immortal Slough.’

Chen Lingxi’s pupils shrank slightly. He then saw a faint cluster of pale golden light flickering beneath the earth of the palace—it was exactly the essence of the Immortal Slough.

The essence was extremely rich, welling up endlessly from the ground and flooding into Emperor Daye’s limbs and bones, nourishing his flesh.

’The Immortal Slough is right here in the Great Zhou Imperial Palace!’

’Emperor Daye seems to be able to directly absorb the essence from the Immortal Slough to repair the chronic ailments left behind by his forced cultivation of the Age-Dial Reversal.’

Astonished, Chen Lingxi continued watching.

He then saw a middle-aged man in dragon robes kneeling on the ground not far in front of Emperor Daye.

The man had a heroic visage and wore an imperial crown—it was the Emperor of Great Zhou!

At this moment, the Son of Heaven of Great Zhou knelt there with a face as calm as water, yet his eyes bore a look of deep reverence.

’It seems Emperor Daye has implanted memories into this Emperor of Great Zhou.’

Chen Lingxi sighed emotionally in his heart.

For a figure like Emperor Daye, taking over this grotto-heaven world was truly as easy as turning over his hand, posing no difficulty at all.

’Emperor Daye proactively used the Immortal Slough as bait, exposing its aura to the world to attract the covetous eyes of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm’s experts, while he hides deep within the Great Zhou Imperial Palace, using its essence to heal himself.’

Chen Lingxi muttered in his heart, before immediately pondering: ’For him to dare do this, he must have deeper calculations.’

’His shrewdness and far-reaching schemes are completely beyond my ability to gauge.’

’I wonder what exactly he is plotting.’

He mused for a moment, forming a plan in his heart.

’Emperor Daye is also a native figure; the crisis he faces is the same as mine.’

’Once the grotto-heaven is refined, both he and I will become nourishment for the Realm Essence within the Realm-Refining Furnace, and both of us will die,’ he pondered secretly. ’Since he dared to expose the Immortal Slough, he must have already cast life and death aside, ready to fight with his life on the line.’

’If I can maneuver around a figure like this, it might not be impossible to find a silver lining.’

He recalled the last time he used the Absolute Perception Deduction; Emperor Daye had signed the Jade Precept Book of Qi Circulation with him, promising to bestow upon him a great opportunity.

That Jade Precept Book naturally harbored malicious intent, but it also revealed that Emperor Daye had some sort of scheme concerning him.

’What is he scheming against me for? I’m just a Qi Circulation cultivator—no different from an ant to him.’

Chen Lingxi narrowed his eyes. ’During the Absolute Perception, he said he would wait for me to step into the Heaven-Facing Realm... There must be a reason behind this.’

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Emperor Daye was unfathomable, yet it also made him more curious.

’Next time I use Absolute Perception, I might as well make a trip to the Great Zhou Imperial Palace and meet this Emperor Daye face-to-face.’

’If I can probe out some useful information, it won’t be a wasted trip.’

Having made up his mind, Chen Lingxi thought no more on it.

He withdrew from Vision Roaming and opened his eyes. Day after day, he cultivated and used Vision Roaming, patiently waiting for the right moment.

Several dozen days later, Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged in the King of the East’s Traveling Palace as usual, activating the Vision Roaming Divine Ability to spy on Emperor Daye’s movements.

His perspective landed inside the side hall of the Great Zhou Imperial Palace, just in time to see Emperor Daye suddenly open his eyes.

With a flip of his hand, an ancient bronze mirror appeared in his palm.

It was exactly the Mirror Listening Cauldron Vessel.

Chen Lingxi’s heart chilled.

Emperor Daye lightly tossed the mirror up and raised his hand to strike out a streak of golden Dao Origin.

The Dao Origin sank into the mirror’s surface, transforming into countless golden tadpole characters that frantically swirled across the glass.

Immediately after, Chen Lingxi witnessed an astonishing scene.

Borrowing Emperor Daye’s perspective, he saw with his own eyes that the images within the Mirror Listening Cauldron Vessel actually flew out from the Great Zhou Imperial Palace.

The images flew past the palace walls, past the imperial city, past countless prefectures, over many mountains, lakes, and seas, flying straight onward!

Eventually, the image locked onto a small city in Heqing Province.

The city was nestled among the mountains and was quite inconspicuous.

Yet right now, a speck of spiritual light could be faintly seen shooting into the sky from within the city, sketching out the blurred silhouette of a black-robed figure.

The figure condensed from the moonlight, his aura as deep as an abyss, looking entirely unlike someone from this world.

The image shifted again.

Deep within the Northern Sea, a water snake coiled among the seabed reefs.

The snake was originally only as thick as a bowl, with dull gray scales, no different from an ordinary sea snake.

But suddenly, the aura around it surged wildly. A single horn grew from its head, and sharp claws thrust out from its belly, transforming it into a hundred-zhang flood dragon in just a few breaths.

The flood dragon burst out of the sea, letting out a heaven-shaking roar at the sky, stirring up the wind and waves to raise monstrous swells.

The image shifted a third time.

In Nanhai Province, within a remote fishing village.

A fisherwoman sat on a seaside reef, holding a half-woven fishing net in her hands.

The net was woven from hemp thread, coarse and crude, and her hands were covered in calluses left by years of hard labor.

But suddenly, she opened her eyes. They shone brilliantly, as if brewing an indescribable profound mechanism.

She looked down at her callused hands, a smile entirely unsuited for her age floating on the corners of her mouth.

The images continued.

Within the borders of Great Li, inside a long-abandoned ancient temple, the clay idol enshrined there suddenly opened its eyes, a bloody light flashing within them.

In Guanshan Province, beneath a riverbed that had been dry for decades, mud and sand churned as a stone coffin burst out of the ground, its lid smashed open from the inside by an immense force.

In Cloud Province, a mad beggar who spent all day panhandling on the streets suddenly stopped in his tracks. He tilted his head to gaze at the sky, a streak of purple light flashing through his eyes.

Deep within the Northern Snowfields, a glacier shattered, and a youth in white robes walked out from inside. Frigid air poured from his body, and every step he took froze the ground for a hundred zhang.

’These figures...’

Looking at these scenes, shocking waves surged in Chen Lingxi’s heart.

’In this grotto-heaven, I don’t know just how many experts of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm are descending through all kinds of profound means.’

’It seems that the Myriad Realms Projection used by the Under-Dao Academy isn’t the only method to descend into this world.’