After the Great Dao Died

At this moment on Yang Awakening Peak, the sea of clouds surged like rolling waves.

Spiritual qi gathered from all directions, so dense it almost condensed into a physical substance, wrapping the entire Upper Peak in a thick, hazy mist.

Chen Lingxi watched the dragon-taming figure depart before following after Wang Chenchuan.

His attention, however, remained fixed on the small sun high in the sky.

The sun was like an inverted bronze mirror, hanging quietly at the highest point of the void.

Yet its light was overwhelmingly fierce, dyeing half the firmament a blinding, brilliant gold.

Countless dense, tiny runes faintly flowed within that light, overlapping and linking together into a massive, heaven-spanning net that caged the sun within.

”A complete Cauldron Vessel,” Chen Lingxi muttered.

He stared at that sun for a long time. Inside his body, the Plundering Dragon Dao Platform slowly rotated, and his Profound Root faintly trembled. A stream of incredibly pure Dao Origin quietly surged from his sleeve and swept through the void.

The Dao Origin was like silk, fine and imperceptible.

He prepared to extract a wisp of the Cauldron Vessel’s aura.

The archaic aura of this Sun Cauldron Vessel was overwhelmingly dense, permeating the surrounding void.

Extracting it was not difficult; in the blink of an eye, he snatched a wisp straight out of the void.

The Dao Origin in his palm abruptly tightened, firmly wrapping and winding around that wisp of aura layer by layer. Then, using his Dao Origin as a wall, he erected an invisible barrier outside the aura, completely isolating the archaic energy and the blazing light.

With a flip of his hand, that wisp of aura, along with his Dao Origin, vanished into his Vast Void Pouch.

Up ahead, Wang Chenchuan remained completely unaware.

Only then did Chen Lingxi let out a long breath of stale air.

’It’s done.’

’Once I return, I’ll use the Dao-Absorbing Fruit to absorb the Cauldron Vessel’s dao profundity and see exactly what wondrous uses this Sun Cauldron Vessel has.’

He murmured inwardly, a flash of joy passing through his eyes.

He retracted his gaze and continued to follow Wang Chenchuan forward.

Through the churning sea of clouds, he eventually spotted a palace. It was massive and exceedingly grand, its resplendent halls faintly discernible amidst the mist.

They traveled all the way through the fog, arriving before the palace’s front courtyard.

The expansive gateway was as tall as a hill. Even before stepping inside, Chen Lingxi could already see the interior of the palace.

His pupils slightly contracted.

The interior of this palace was actually vastly larger than what he had perceived from afar.

The vaulted ceiling hung high above, like a canopy of heaven suspended directly overhead.

The lapis lazuli floor tiles spread out across the hall, stretching as far as the eye could see.

’The space inside is actually more than a hundred times larger than the palace appears from the outside.’

Chen Lingxi mused silently.

”Keep up,” Wang Chenchuan’s divine sense swept past.

Chen Lingxi followed Wang Chenchuan, stepping over the threshold.

With a single step inside, the entire scene within the hall entered his sight.

The first thing to catch his eye was a muscular man wrestling with a flood dragon.

The man looked to be in his thirties, built sturdy and strapping. He was bare-chested, his exposed muscles knotted like dragons, appearing as if forged from cast copper and iron.

The intense vital energy throughout his body surged, burning around him like a layer of golden flames.

At this moment, he was locked in combat with a flood dragon.

The flood dragon was over ten zhang long, its entire body covered in ink-black scales. Its four claws were like hooks, and its dragon head was hideous and fierce.

The man smashed his fists into its body blow after blow, shattering its scales inch by inch. Ink-black dragon blood splattered, leaving the resplendent hall in a total mess.

Yet the flood dragon continued to struggle. It opened its cavernous maw and spat out mouthfuls of black dragon flames. Searing waves of heat rolled in all directions, scorching the hall’s curtains and pillars completely black.

But the muscular man was entirely fearless.

He stood amidst the dragon flames as if standing in a gentle spring rain.

Taking all of this in, Chen Lingxi was deeply shaken.

’So this is a Four Profound cultivator at Dao Foundation Perfection.’

His deep and heavy Dao Origin and his tyrannical physical body had both reached a realm that Chen Lingxi simply couldn’t hope to match.

It was like a towering mountain standing right there.

On both sides of the palace interior sat several red sandalwood desks.

Three figures sat upright behind the desks.

All three wore luxurious robes and possessed an extraordinary bearing.

One was a middle-aged scholar with a pale, beardless face and gentle eyes, holding a cup of tea in his hands.

One was a thin elder with a long beard draping over his chest. His eyes were half-closed, like an old monk deep in meditation.

The last was a young man with a ruthless expression. He was quite handsome, but his eyes radiated a lingering, unshakeable coldness.

Sitting upright at their desks, they watched the battle between the muscular man and the flood dragon from a distance, conversing in low tones.

Chen Lingxi pricked up his ears and listened closely.

”The Peak Master’s physical cultivation has advanced again recently,” the middle-aged scholar said. ”This Black-Scaled Flood Dragon has lived for over eight hundred years; an ordinary Dao Foundation Late Stage cultivator wouldn’t be able to do anything to it. Yet now, the Peak Master doesn’t even need to use his Dao Origin. He can suppress it with physical strength alone.”

The thin elder gave a slight nod and said, ”The Peak Master cultivates a body-refining Great Divine Ability that has already reached the Wondrous State. His punches strike like the collapsing heavens.”

The ruthless young man remained silent.

Chen Lingxi and Wang Chenchuan stood by the palace entrance, waiting quietly.

Chen Lingxi watched the scene in the hall, his eyes brimming with curiosity.

He had been on the path of cultivation for a long time and had witnessed many battles between experts, but to watch a Dao Foundation Perfection cultivator wrestle a flood dragon at such close quarters was a first.

Right at that moment, a strand of divine sense suddenly echoed in his mind.

”Do not show disrespect.”

It came from Wang Chenchuan.

Chen Lingxi remained impassive, slowly lowering his head and completely withdrawing the curiosity from his eyes.

High above, two bright mirrors hung in the sky.

One blazed gold like a great sun, and the other shone silver-white like a bright moon. Suspended in the distant void, they continued to emit a radiance that only Chen Lingxi could see.

Just then, the muscular man thoroughly suppressed the flood dragon.

His hand shot out, fast as lightning, and snatched the flood dragon’s horn in a vice grip.

Caught like this, the flood dragon instantly let out an earth-shaking wail.

It struggled frantically, its four claws tearing into the lapis lazuli tiles and carving deep gouges. Yet the muscular man’s hand was like an iron hoop; no matter how the beast thrashed, it didn’t budge an inch.

Pressed down so hard it couldn’t lift its head, the massive dragon skull was pinned flat to the floor. Ink-black dragon blood gushed freely from its mouth, dyeing that patch of ground completely black.

Only then did the muscular man slowly raise his head and glance toward the entrance.

His gaze swept past Chen Lingxi, then over Wang Chenchuan, before finally landing back at the desks.

”Elder Mo,” he spoke, his voice deep and booming like thunder. ”Is this the outsider who killed the three Dao Foundation cultivators of Yellow Luminary Peak, including Zhuo Jiaowu?”

The middle-aged scholar, Elder Mo, set down his teacup upon hearing this.

He turned his head and looked at Wang Chenchuan by the door.

Wang Chenchuan gave a slight nod.

Elder Mo smiled and said, ”Peak Master, this person is no outsider. He is a member of Sun Observation Peak, which falls under the jurisdiction of our Yang Awakening Upper Peak.”

Chen Lingxi kept his expression perfectly neutral, simply standing with his hands at his sides.

Right at that moment, the muscular man suddenly moved.

The hand pressing down on the dragon’s horn abruptly pulled back, then clenched into a fist and smashed down!

Boom!

The fist slammed into the flood dragon’s skull, producing an earth-shattering boom.

The flood dragon’s head burst apart like a smashed ink-jade gourd. Black dragon blood and white brain matter splattered outward, painting a small half of the hall in gore.

The muscular man paid it absolutely no mind.

He straightened up, casually grabbed the dragon’s horn, and flexed his arms, lifting the massive, ten-zhang-long carcass high into the air.

Then, he spun around and violently hurled it!

The flood dragon’s colossal body flew out like a pitch-black meteor, streaking across the entire hall straight toward the palace gates.

It flew right over Chen Lingxi and Wang Chenchuan’s heads!

The intense wave of air dragged in the wake of the massive dragon carcass practically transformed into a gale, sweeping through the whole palace.

Chen Lingxi felt the fierce wind crash against his face like sharp blades, stinging his skin.

Yet he remained motionless, only narrowing his eyes slightly as he let the gale rush past him.

Rumble!

The flood dragon’s body flew out the gates and crashed into the sea of clouds outside, smashing through who knew how many layers of mist. It kicked up a monstrous surge of clouds that didn’t disperse for a long time.

Silence returned to the hall.

The muscular man—the Yang Awakening Peak Master—casually snatched a piece of white cloth and wiped the dragon blood from his hands.

He was bare-chested, and his cast-copper, iron-forged body gleamed with a bronze luster under the candlelight of the hall.

He strode up to the high platform and sat squarely upon his throne.

Then, he turned his head, his gaze falling upon Chen Lingxi.

Those eyes were incredibly sharp, piercing straight into Chen Lingxi like two unsheathed swords.

He slowly waved Chen Lingxi over.

Taking the hint, Chen Lingxi stepped forward, traversing the messy hall until he arrived beneath the high platform.

He adjusted his robes and bowed respectfully to the Peak Master.

The Peak Master watched him, a faint smile slowly surfacing on the corners of his lips.

”Early Dao Foundation, a Profound Root Wondrous Fruit, yet able to kill Zhuo Jiaowu on Yellow Luminary Peak...” he slowly said, his voice deep as thunder. ”Not bad.”

Chen Lingxi kept his head bowed. ”The Peak Master praises me too highly.”

The Peak Master ignored his modesty. His gaze shifted slightly, and a sudden radiance shone from his eyes.

The radiance was red-gold in color, shooting out from his pupils and landing squarely on Chen Lingxi.

Chen Lingxi felt his whole body heat up, as if the light had swept over him from head to toe. Falling upon him, the brilliance seemed intent on piercing his flesh to see through his Qi Sea, his Dao Platform, and his Profound Root.

A few breaths later, the radiance slowly retracted.

However, the sharpness in the Peak Master’s eyes grew even more intense.

”But I wonder, what sect and what master do you learn under?” he asked.

Chen Lingxi raised his head and met the Peak Master’s gaze.

His eyes were calm as he spoke frankly, ”I am but a mere loose cultivator. I have no master.”

Hearing this, the Peak Master initially blanked, then burst into roaring laughter.

The laughter echoed through the vast hall, shaking the remaining curtains until they rustled and trembled.

”Good. Good on you for being a loose cultivator.” Finishing his laugh, he picked up a cup of wine beside his throne, tilted his head back, and drained it before slowly saying, ”I have no desire to bother with you killing those three Dao Foundation cultivators from Yellow Luminary Peak. Nor am I interested in your background. Since you claim to be from Sun Observation Peak, I will acknowledge it.”

He paused, his sharp eyes falling back onto Chen Lingxi, his gaze like a sword.

”It’s just...” His voice slowly lowered. ”Sun Observation Peak is an inferior peak under the jurisdiction of my Yang Awakening Upper Peak, and it has already been a long time since they paid tribute. Daoist Zhiling, what should be done about this?”

Hearing this, Chen Lingxi revealed nothing on his face, merely bowing once more.

”I am willing to heed the Upper Peak’s orders,” he said.

The smile on the Peak Master’s lips deepened, and he suddenly flicked his finger.

Out of thin air, a command medallion suddenly appeared, hovering in the void.

The medallion was about the size of a palm and entirely red-gold. The front was engraved with the words ”Yang Awakening,” while the back bore the carving of a sun.

Spiritual light flowed around the medallion, and a faint, incredibly subtle dao charm emanated from it; one glance was enough to tell it was no ordinary item.

”How about this,” the Peak Master said, standing with his hands behind his back and looking down at Chen Lingxi from on high. ”Your cultivation is extraordinary, so join my Yang Awakening Upper Peak. I will treat you as a Chief Disciple. Every year, you will receive two Fourth-Grade Spiritual Elixirs, two stalks of Heavenly Spirit Grass, and eight hundred spirit stones. What do you think?”

As soon as these words were spoken, the gazes of the three elders simultaneously landed on Chen Lingxi.

Their eyes were placid, betraying neither joy nor anger.

Chen Lingxi’s mind raced.

’Since a Four Profound cultivator has spoken, I cannot refuse.’

He mused to himself.

A cultivator at Dao Foundation Perfection had fully planted all four Profound Roots, and their Dao Origin was as vast as an abyssal ocean.

When a figure like this opened his mouth, there was no room for him to say no.

If he were to shake his head here today, he feared disaster would instantly follow.

Besides... the conditions offered by this Yang Awakening Upper Peak truly weren’t bad.

And so...

He gave a slow nod and said, ”Zhiling obeys.”

He paused, then hesitantly probed, ”The elder of Sun Observation Peak was a good friend of mine. Before he passed, he entrusted Sun Observation Peak to me. I wonder... can I still cultivate on Sun Observation Peak?”

Hearing this, the Yang Awakening Peak Master waved his hand dismissively. ”There’s no harm in it. You may cultivate wherever you please.”

After saying this, his eyes shifted, and the medallion hovering in the void floated smoothly over to hang right in front of Chen Lingxi.

Red-gold colors flowed across the medallion, its light gentle and not glaring at all. It hung within arm’s reach like a tiny sun.

Chen Lingxi reached out and plucked the medallion from the air.

It was slightly heavy in his hand and warm to the touch. The spiritual light over the words ”Yang Awakening” slithered up his fingertips like a living creature, then sank deep into the medallion and returned to silence.

Stowing the medallion in his sleeve, Chen Lingxi bowed to the Peak Master once more.

”Thank you, Peak Master.”

The Peak Master nodded slightly, settled back onto his throne, and waved his hand, gesturing that he could withdraw.

Chen Lingxi understood, turning and walking out of the hall.

The moment he stepped out the doors, he heard a flurry of footsteps behind him.

Looking back, he saw Elder Mo strolling out of the hall.

The middle-aged scholar had a pale, beardless face and gentle eyes. His azure robes fluttered lightly in the wind, making him look like a Confucian scholar who had just stepped out of his study.

He walked over to Chen Lingxi’s side and gave him a faint smile.

”Daoist Zhiling,” he said. ”Come with me. I’ll escort you to your residence on Yang Awakening.”

Chen Lingxi nodded and followed behind Elder Mo.

The two slowly descended a long white jade staircase outside the palace.

The stairs were incredibly long, stretching all the way from the peak of the sea of clouds down to the middle of the mountain. Planted on both sides were many spiritual plants that Chen Lingxi couldn’t name.

The spiritual plants had lush branches and leaves. A faint spiritual light flowed across their foliage, exuding a subtle, barely-there fragrance.

Elder Mo walked ahead at a leisurely pace, as if taking a stroll through his own backyard garden.

He suddenly spoke. ”I have already ordered your Chief Disciple rations to be prepared and placed in your residence. The Fourth-Grade Spiritual Elixirs, Heavenly Spirit Grass, and spirit stones—not a single one will be missing.”

”Many thanks, Elder Mo,” Chen Lingxi said.

Elder Mo chuckled and said, ”No need to thank me. These rations were personally promised by the Peak Master; I am merely doing things by the book.”

He paused, turning his head to glance at Chen Lingxi.

”You seem to have many doubts,” he said. ”Why not take this opportunity to ask?”

Hearing this, Chen Lingxi pondered for a moment before speaking. ”I do have one thing I don’t understand. Dare I ask, Elder Mo, what exactly does this ’Chief Disciple’ mean?”

”All cultivators at the Early Dao Foundation stage are Chief Disciples,” Elder Mo replied. ”Today, Yang Awakening Upper Peak has a full twenty-one Chief Disciples.”

Chen Lingxi’s footsteps abruptly stopped.

’Twenty-one?’

He marveled inwardly.

Placed on any of the inferior peaks under the Dragon-Revering Sect’s jurisdiction, an Early Dao Foundation cultivator would be more than enough to be called a local powerhouse.

Even on Yellow Luminary Peak, an Early Dao Foundation figure like Zhuo Jiaowu was enough to throw his weight around.

Yet on this Yang Awakening Upper Peak, there were actually twenty-one Early Dao Foundation cultivators?

Elder Mo seemed to see through his surprise, and the smile on his lips grew a bit deeper.

”By being in the Dragon-Revering Sect, one can ascend to an Upper Peak,” he said slowly. ”With Yang Awakening Upper Peak’s current strength, even if it were placed in the Nine Quarters where the Dragon-Revering Sect resides, it would still be an extraordinary profound sect in its own right.”

He paused, then suddenly changed the subject.

”However...” he said, ”cultivating on Sun Observation Peak is not a very good idea.”

Chen Lingxi frowned slightly upon hearing this.

”Why do you say that, Elder Mo?” he asked.

Elder Mo didn’t answer immediately. He merely looked up into the distance.

By now, the two had reached the middle of the white jade staircase.

Looking out from here, the churning sea of clouds stretched endlessly. The distant mountains faintly discernible through the mist looked like a splashed-ink landscape painting.

”Sun Observation Peak,” Elder Mo said, ”is located at the very edge of Yang Awakening Upper Peak’s territory. A further one thousand six hundred li to the east lies Flame Bell Upper Peak.”

He turned his head and looked at Chen Lingxi.

”Our Yang Awakening Upper Peak has a longstanding dispute with Flame Bell Upper Peak,” he said. ”Both openly and in secret, the two sides have fought for who knows how many years. If the people of Flame Bell Upper Peak find out that a Yang Awakening Chief Disciple has appeared on Sun Observation Peak, it will definitely bring disaster.”

He paused, a touch more gravity entering his tone.

”I advise you to come cultivate here on Yang Awakening Upper Peak.”

Chen Lingxi fell silent for a moment.

Then, he slowly shook his head.

”Thank you for your kind intentions, Elder Mo,” he said. ”It’s just that this disciple... would still prefer to stay on Sun Observation Peak.”

Elder Mo gave him a glance and offered no further persuasion.

Chen Lingxi had politely refused Elder Mo’s goodwill, but he had his own calculations in mind.

He carried the Immortal Slough on him.

That Immortal Slough was his greatest secret, as well as his greatest trump card.

If he cultivated here on Yang Awakening Upper Peak, where experts and prying eyes were numerous, he was afraid the secret of the Immortal Slough couldn’t be hidden for long.

Once someone noticed a clue—with the Yang Awakening Peak Master’s Dao Foundation Perfection cultivation, and with the foundation of Yang Awakening Upper Peak’s twenty-one Chief Disciples—he feared he wouldn’t even be able to escape.

What was more...

He never wanted to stay in the Dragon-Revering Sect for long anyway.

The Dragon-Revering Sect was simply too fractured.

Such a massive sect with a hundred peaks under its jurisdiction, yet it let the various peaks fight amongst themselves like raising venomous Gu bugs. Although Yang Awakening Upper Peak was strong, presided over by a Dao Foundation Perfection figure, compared to a true behemoth, they were still leagues behind.

Such as the Yutai Bai Family, or the Que Star Xi Family.

Those True Monarch immortal clans had experts as numerous as the clouds, boasting deep foundations that were hard to imagine.

If Chen Lingxi’s tracks were exposed and the Bai Family or the Xi Family tracked him down, a mere Yang Awakening Upper Peak wouldn’t even be able to protect him for a moment.

And would a Dragon-Revering Sect that allowed disputes among its hundred peaks really stick its neck out for a loose cultivator from an inferior peak?

’Moreover...’

Chen Lingxi mused silently.

’Back in the Weiji Grotto-Heaven, I destroyed the avatar of Sword Audience Peak’s Elder, Liu Chengfeng.’

That Liu Chengfeng was a member of this very Dragon-Revering Sect.

Sword Audience Peak and Yang Awakening Upper Peak were both under the Dragon-Revering Sect’s jurisdiction. If Sword Audience Peak found out about that matter and realized Chen Lingxi was right here on Yang Awakening Upper Peak, it would just be another disaster.

The Dragon-Revering Sect was simply not a good final destination.

Chen Lingxi turned these thoughts over and over in his mind a few times before finally making a decision.

’I’ll first settle those disciples on Sun Observation Peak, and then I will leave this place.’