After the Great Dao Died

Emperor Daye’s Dao Origin flowed slowly within the jade slip. At the same time, waves of profound sound drifted into Chen Lingxi’s ears.

Chen Lingxi raised an eyebrow slightly. ”The qi mechanism on this jade slip points directly to the Volcano Immortal Pivot. For Emperor Daye to want to meet me there, it must be a matter of extreme importance. I imagine it’s because of the Cauldron Vessel precious mirror I saw during my Vision Roaming.”

He lowered his head in thought, but he was in no hurry to decide whether to keep the appointment.

With a raise of his hand, the precious sword radiating a compelling cold light immediately hovered before him.

It was precisely the precious sword from the Northern Sea.

Over the past three months, aside from collecting the many treasures scattered throughout the Weiji Grotto-Heaven, Chen Lingxi had done his utmost to refine this sword.

The rank of this precious sword was extraordinary. Even in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, it would certainly be considered a highly exceptional spiritual artifact.

After three months of refinement, Chen Lingxi was now only one final step away from fully mastering the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword.

He sat cross-legged within the desolate mountain cave, the Dao Origin around his body constantly surging like a tide.

The weighty power of the Divine Chamber and his Dao Origin continuously poured into the sword, penetrating the restrictions within and branding it with his seal incantations.

Three days passed in this manner.

Chen Lingxi finally completed his refinement of the precious sword.

He completely shattered the final restriction within it. From then on, his Dao Origin could flow freely through the precious sword.

Without the slightest hindrance.

He slowly opened his eyes, two clusters of lightning circulating deeply within his pupils.

”Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword,” he murmured, a smile involuntarily lifting the corners of his mouth.

The moment he refined the sword, a flood of information surged into his Sea of Consciousness like a rising tide.

This precious sword was named the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword, an incredibly extraordinary spiritual artifact.

Two profoundly mysterious powers were sealed within the blade, placing it far beyond comparison to ordinary magical treasures.

The first was the ability to amplify sword qi.

When the wielder drove this sword with their Dao Origin, the released sword qi would autonomously divide. The deeper their cultivation, the more flourishing the sword qi would become. If cultivated to a profound level, a single swing would send tens of thousands of streaks of sword qi roaring outward to blot out the sky and cover the earth—a truly remarkable feat.

The second was even more rare.

Deep within this Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword slumbered a wisp of an abyssal whale’s remnant soul.

The remnant soul slept in the deepest part of the blade, waiting for the wielder to warm and nourish it with Dao Origin and feed it with essence blood to awaken it.

Once the abyssal whale’s remnant soul awakened, the master of the spiritual artifact would gain another extraordinarily powerful offensive technique.

Chen Lingxi raised his hand, bringing his index and middle fingers together like a sword. A wisp of incredibly pure Dao Origin flowed from his fingertips.

Using that Dao Origin as a guide, he lightly tapped toward the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword hovering in the void.

The precious sword suddenly trembled. The residual patterns of the hundred restrictions on the blade lit up all at once, pulsing with a sharp, chilling gleam that made the heart palpitate.

The next instant, the precious sword transformed into an aurora and shot forward. Its speed was unfathomable, tearing through the sky like a true shooting star and trailing a dazzlingly radiant sword scar across the void.

Wherever the aurora passed, the body of the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword violently shuddered. Alongside the main sword qi, over ten additional streaks of sword qi split off from the blade, advancing side by side with the primary strike.

Every single streak of sword qi was peerlessly sharp!

They advanced closely together, like over ten invisible, sharp swords slashing down simultaneously to shatter the clouds and mists of the void.

The smile at the corners of Chen Lingxi’s mouth deepened a fraction.

With a slight shift of his intent, the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword abruptly doubled back and once again hovered in the void before him.

The dozen or so streaks of sword qi retracted along with it, leaving only the main sword qi pulsing uncertainly upon the blade.

”What a treasure,” he praised from the bottom of his heart, his eyes full of satisfaction. ”With this, my combat strength can rise to an even higher level.”

He stored the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword into his Vast Void Pouch before finally considering the matter of Emperor Daye’s invitation.

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged, his brows furrowing slightly.

’Emperor Daye has occupied the Volcano Immortal Pivot for a long time. He even placed Xiao Changlv’s avatar there, tempering it day and night with the boundless spiritual mechanism of the Mountains and Rivers Great Array.’

’In other words... this Volcano Immortal Pivot is an extremely important lair and stronghold for Emperor Daye. It is the core of his many schemes.’

’And yet, Emperor Daye actually took the initiative to invite me to that hidden location.’

’What is Emperor Daye’s intention?’ he pondered silently. After a long period of deep thought, he finally shook his head.

’Emperor Daye is deeply calculating and full of schemes. Although I have an agreement to join forces with him, I still must keep my guard up.’

Emperor Daye had personally said that he wanted to refine Chen Lingxi into his third avatar.

’Emperor Daye has numerous schemes that others cannot easily see through. He once called me Daoist Friend, and he once claimed he had already given up on refining me into his avatar.’

’But... if he sees that I have stepped into the Dao Foundation Realm and possess formidable combat strength, there’s no guarantee he won’t attack me again.’

Chen Lingxi fell into a dilemma.

’Given Emperor Daye’s calculations, he should have a method to escape this grotto-heaven.’

’If I don’t go, I fear I might lose that glimmer of survival.’ He sat cross-legged on the purple sandalwood throne, his brows locked tightly together in a long silence.

After a long while, Chen Lingxi slowly raised his head. The two clusters of lightning light in his eyes abruptly flared a fraction brighter.

He took a deep breath. With a flick of his finger, several objects suddenly materialized in the void before him.

The first to fly out was the Six-Layered Return to Void Sword Pagoda.

The sword pagoda hovered in the void in front of him. The upturned eaves and corners on all six levels of its body lit up in unison, sending sword qi cascading down like silken threads.

Following the sword pagoda was the newly refined Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword.

The precious sword was entirely translucent and crystalline. The residual patterns of the hundred restrictions on the blade were still slowly circulating, pulsing with a sharp, chilling gleam that made the heart palpitate.

After that came the golden decree, the Profound Binding Decree; the Spirit-Calming Shuttle; the Delayed Light Flying Dagger; the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall...

One treasure after another flew out from his Vast Void Pouch and hovered in the void before him. They each exuded a different radiance, illuminating the slightly gloomy cave with a bright clarity.

These treasures were the hard-won capital he had gained by risking life and limb and exhausting his wits within this Weiji Grotto-Heaven.

’These are my reserves.’

’Aside from these treasures, my own cultivation has also ascended to the Dao Foundation Realm. My Plundering Dragon Dao Platform is as deep and heavy as the abyss, and the Thunder Prison Profound Root has already been planted within it. My Dao Origin is so profound, and my killing power so tyrannical, that even if I were to face those noble cultivators of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, I wouldn’t be inferior in the slightest.’

’Add to that the augmentation of the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall’s Cauldron Vessel mighty power—even if Emperor Daye is at the Dao Foundation Middle Stage, if I am determined to flee, I probably won’t be doomed to die.’

As he pondered, his expression became increasingly composed, and his thoughts slowly sank back into his Dao Platform.

Within the Plundering Dragon Dao Platform, an incredibly extraordinary exotic treasure was taking root in the platform’s void.

The exotic treasure was entirely bronze in color. It resembled a towering ancient tree that had been shrunk countless times over, its branches and leaves flourishing, its root system burrowing deep into the very bottom of the Dao Platform.

And at this moment, a few tender green leaves had actually sprouted on one of the exotic treasure’s branches!

Though there were only a handful of leaves, an extraordinary, mysterious white light slowly circulated across their surfaces.

’There’s also this exotic treasure I obtained from the Undying Willow... It is also one of my most remarkable reserves.’

”With this cultivation, combined with all these reserves, even if I go to the Volcano Immortal Pivot and Emperor Daye truly intends to harm me, I won’t be completely without room to resist,” he muttered in a low voice, his gaze sweeping back and forth among the many treasures.

After a dozen breaths of time passed, Chen Lingxi finally stood up. With a flick of his sleeve, he stored all the numerous treasures into his Vast Void Pouch.

He straightened his dark robes and strode out of the cave dwelling.

The Azure Cloud beneath his feet, laced with pale golden lightning, activated silently. It lifted his figure into the sky, tearing through the surging sea of clouds as he flew rapidly toward the Volcano Immortal Pivot.

He rode the clouds and mist all the way, following the guidance of the jade slip. He crossed countless mountains, rivers, cities, and villages, until he reached that vast, boundless expanse of ocean.

After flying for a long time more, he finally spotted a towering volcanic crater within the thick fog.

Chen Lingxi lowered his cloud and stepped into the crater.

A deep, powerful heartbeat still echoed from the deepest reaches of the volcano.

Scorching magma surged and roiled beneath his feet. The heatwaves blowing against his face were enough to instantly incinerate an ordinary cultivator to ash.

But Chen Lingxi’s body was wreathed in the Weiji lightning of Thunder Prison Heaven. No matter how the magma surged, it couldn’t approach within three chi of him.

Right at this moment, the surging magma suddenly parted to both sides, revealing a passage leading to the deepest part of the volcano.

At the end of the passage, a figure wearing a Dark Dragon Robe could faintly be seen sitting cross-legged.

Chen Lingxi didn’t hesitate. He had long since stepped under Emperor Daye’s gaze.

Following the passage, he walked with a calm and unhurried pace into the cave dwelling suspended directly in the center of the magma.

Deep within that cave dwelling, right in the center of the magma, Xiao Changlv’s avatar remained sitting cross-legged. Golden blood energy surged around its body like the tide, and that heartbeat pounded like a massive drum in the volcano’s deepest depths.

Emperor Daye slowly turned around, the two clusters of golden flames in his eyes slowly dancing.

He still maintained the appearance of an old man. His white hair was bound beneath his imperial crown with a Purple-Gold Hairpin, and he wore his Dark Dragon Robe.

Yet at this moment, his face bore a hint of a smile. The smile was incredibly composed, much like a sovereign welcoming an old friend from afar.

”Chen Lingxi,” Emperor Daye said slowly, ”do you know why I summoned you here?”

Chen Lingxi glanced at the surging magma and shook his head.

With a flick of Emperor Daye’s finger, a dazzling jade-colored radiance suddenly shot into the sky from amidst the roiling magma.

Within that radiance, a precious mirror cast entirely of extremely ancient copper essence slowly rose from the deepest part of the magma and floated steadily toward Emperor Daye.

Chen Lingxi focused his gaze and saw that the precious mirror was only the size of a palm. The mirror’s body was a dark gold color, and its back was carved with incredibly intricate and ancient characters.

Those characters slowly flowed across the back of the mirror. As they circulated, a profoundly heavy and incomparably ancient primordial aura permeated from it.

That aura was all too familiar to Chen Lingxi. It was the precise ancient Dao rhyme unique to a Cauldron Vessel Fragment.

”This is the Cauldron Qi Spirit-Housing Precious Mirror,” Emperor Daye said slowly, his voice carrying a trace of emotion as well as an undisguised solemnity. ”This mirror is quite mysterious. It can house the three souls and seven physical spirits within it, allowing them to exist eternally inside.”

The Cauldron Qi Spirit-Housing Precious Mirror?

It could house the three souls and seven physical spirits to exist eternally?

Chen Lingxi’s pupils shrank slightly as he immediately thought of the Myriad Breeding Dao-Seeding Marvelous Lotus Qi.

The greatest profound secret of that Marvelous Lotus Qi was its ability to create the three souls and seven physical spirits out of the void. Emperor Daye had used this qi to create Xiao Changlv and refine him into an avatar.

That profound mystery lay precisely in the realm of souls and spirits.

And now, Emperor Daye had actually produced another Cauldron Vessel Fragment related to souls and spirits?

Emperor Daye paused and slowly turned around. The two clusters of golden flames in his eyes danced violently, and countless dense runes could faintly be seen circulating deep within his pupils.

Gazing intently at Chen Lingxi, he slowly asked, ”Chen Lingxi, are you willing to abandon your physical body and enter this mirror with your three souls and seven physical spirits?”