Nine Star Hegemon Body Arts

“The Grand Dao Source is the origin of a world’s formation. It contains a power you cannot yet fathom. This world has already withered—its energy long since plundered. However, this fragment of Grand Dao Source was hidden deep underground, escaping detection until now. With it, I was able to be reborn. That is the power of the Grand Dao. No matter how vast your strength may seem, before it, you are still nothing more than an ant,” replied the Earth Cauldron.

“Senior... what exactly is this Grand Dao?” Long Chen asked, echoing the same question he had once asked Mo Nian.

“The Dao... is something that cannot be expressed in words. And what can be expressed in words... is not the Dao.”

That answer only deepened Long Chen’s frustration.

He asked, “Then is the Grand Dao Source the Dao itself? If so, why can’t you explain it? If not, why is it called the Grand Dao Source?”

“Good question. That shows that you’ve gotten close to the true Dao. But your current realm is still worlds apart from what the five Sovereigns comprehended back then.”

At that, Long Chen suddenly remembered the moment when the five Sovereigns’ voices had echoed in his mind as he climbed toward the dragon scales.

“When the Grandmist separated, first came Yin and Yang... Yang floated up to form the heavens... Yin sank down to form the earth... Together, Yin and Yang formed Man. Man’s nature is a blend of heaven and earth, born of Yin and Yang. Born of the Five Elements—the five viscera, five virtues, five spirits... The mixing of the Six Directions—the six bowels, six roots, six divinities... Three pillars, the spirit of all things...”

After Long Chen had softly recited the passage, the Earth Cauldron said, “Did you think the words the five Sovereigns left you were only a cultivation method? You are mistaken. Cultivation itself is not the Dao. Cultivation is merely the path that chases the Dao, while the Dao itself is the treasure at the end of that path. The staircase is not the treasure chest, and the treasure chest is not the Dao. Don’t mistaken them as the Dao.

“As for how to explain the Dao, a thousand people would give you a thousand different faces of it, and ten thousand people would give you ten thousand different understandings. Every person only sees one part of the Dao. If you ask me to explain it, wouldn’t you take this one face of it that I see as the full thing?

“Furthermore, remember this—I am not complete. The Heaven Earth Cauldron is born from the Dao of the world, a merger of Yin and Yang. Right now, I am only the Earth Cauldron. I lack my other half, the essence of the Dao itself. How could I possibly give you a full explanation? Though I have manifested my complete form, I am ultimately still not the true Heaven Earth Cauldron that embodies Yin and Yang.” After a brief pause, the Earth Cauldron softly said, “Long Chen, don’t lose yourself in chasing answers too early. The Dao cannot be rushed. You are already on the correct path. Sooner or later, you will realize what the true Dao is... and what your Dao is. By then, the question of what the Dao is may no longer even matter to you.”

Long Chen nodded slowly. His Dao-heart had always been firm, but ever since arriving on this mysterious island, the Grand Dao had unsettled him.

The information he got was that karmic luck was a precursor to Grand Dao energy. But if that were true, why would the Grand Dao bless villains—murderers and tyrants—with karmic luck simply for slaughtering the innocent?

If such was the case, then chaos would forever reign, with only destruction waiting at the end. And if the nine heavens and ten lands were reduced to ruin, would the Grand Dao not perish alongside them?

The Earth Cauldron’s explanation offered no answer to that riddle. Whether it was that such profundities could not be put into words, or that it dared not invoke that kind of karma, Long Chen could not tell. This was the limit of what it was willing to say.

But the fact that it told him he was on the correct path—that was enough.

Perhaps it truly was as the Earth Cauldron had said: as long as Long Chen Dao-heart remained unshaken, then one day, when he reached the peak, what the Dao truly was would no longer matter. At that point, his Dao would be the Heavenly Daos themselves.

Everything was progressing as it should. To be dragged down by pointless questions would only disturb his Dao-heart.

At that moment, Long Chen felt as if dark clouds had parted above him. A rare clarity washed over him, leaving him light and free.

“Right now, you should think of a way to increase the power of your body so that you can control the Starry Sky Battle Robe. Rest assured, though I cannot help you kill, I can guarantee your safety,” said the Earth Cauldron confidently.

Clearly, it had recovered quite a bit thanks to the Grand Dao Source.

“Tch, who needs a pile of junk like you? So long as I’m here, you can keep licking your wounds.”

BOOM!

Just then, the void rippled open, revealing eight Dragonbone Evilmoons floating in the air.

Evilmoon was no longer simply blood-red—its crimson was now streaked with violet. Its aura was wild, violent, and drenched in bloodlust, shaking the heavens and earth.

“Damn! Isn’t this the power of a Divine Sovereign magical item?!” Long Chen cried out in shock.

Evilmoon’s might had already reached that level—or perhaps surpassed it.

“A Divine Sovereign magical item? That trash isn’t worth mentioning!” Evilmoon sneered. “This so-called ‘realm’ is nothing more than a stepping stone for me. This time, I ate my fill. These eight clones have fully condensed their blood moons, and my billion lesser clones are almost done refining as well. Keep killing, and once all my clones are complete, you’ll wield one billion Divine Sovereign magical items through me. Who could possibly stand against us then?”

As it spoke, blood-colored petals swirled around Long Chen. He noticed the runes etched upon them now covered nearly eighty percent of the petals. The dragon scales were thinner and looked even more like petals, but their edges gleamed with lethal sharpness.

Even drifting lazily, they sliced through the void itself.

“That Starry Sky Battle Robe or whatever is entirely unnecessary. With me here, no one can touch you!” claimed Evilmoon.

“What if something like that black lifeform reappears?” Long Chen asked gravely.

“That thing? Ah, that’s right, you’ve reminded me of something queer,” said Evilmoon, sinking into thought.

“What is it?” asked Long Chen hastily.

Evilmoon slowly said, “When that thing was purified, I heard a voice screaming in my mind. Let me think... what did it say? Something like: Your mission... wake up... And it also told me not to absorb its energy... because I came from the same place as them...”

Long Chen’s heart trembled, and even the Earth Cauldron’s aura shifted slightly.

With a grave voice, the Earth Cauldron asked, “And then?”

“And then?” Evilmoon snorted coldly. “Naturally, I ignored it. So what if we come from the same place? Who stops eating halfway through a meal? I devoured it.”

The Earth Cauldron fell silent for a long moment. Then, with a heavy sigh that seemed to echo through the void, it murmured, “It seems... the truth is drawing closer.”