After the Great Dao Died

The dark clouds gathered above Queshi Star had yet to scatter.

The layer of cloud was incredibly thick and pressed extremely low, as if the entire sky were about to collapse.

Queshi Star!

Ten stars aligned in a grand formation, inherently possessing the profound mystery to seize the good fortune of heaven and earth. Normally, their starlight flowed and shone across thousands of miles. Even in the most remote corners of the Nine Quarters Great Domain, one could see the radiance of those ten stars suspended in the void.

Yet over the past three days, that starlight seemed to have been wiped away, layer by layer. At first, it merely dimmed, but eventually, it vanished completely behind the clouds.

Queshi Star was plunged into gloom from top to bottom. Only a few strands of daylight occasionally slipped through the cracks in the clouds, falling upon the palaces and mountains suspended in midair, illuminating the spirit jade walls to reflect a few cold, eerie ripples of light.

Then, the void wept blood!

Thunder boomed!

Countless people across the Land of Nine Palaces speculated about exactly what kind of unforeseen event had occurred on Queshi Star.

Many gazes fell upon Queshi Star.

Those gazes came from extremely far away; some had even crossed several great domains, separated by an unknown number of void barriers.

All of them were the gazes of experts!

These experts watched with cold indifference.

Clad in a silver robe, Xi Hengsu stood in the center of a resplendent hall.

He was exceptionally handsome, with sharp eyes and brows, a high-bridged nose, and a lip line as sharp as a knife cut. His black hair was bound in a silver crown.

But mere handsomeness was nothing. Standing there, he resembled a longsword drawn just half an inch from its sheath—the chill restrained, the edge hidden, yet already deterring anyone from daring to look him in the eye.

The silver robe he wore was extremely plain, embroidered with only the finest, subtle star patterns at the collar and cuffs.

Normally, given Xi Hengsu’s status, he should have been wearing the most luxurious dharmic robe among the younger generation of the Que Star Xi Family.

But these past few days, he had no mind for attire.

He stood in the hall, his brows furrowed tightly.

At the head of the hall sat three elders.

The man on the left had a robust physique, with thick eyebrows, wide eyes, and a large frame.

His name was Xi Zhong, an elder of the Xi Family who governed military affairs. His cultivation had already reached the Golden Palace Late Stage.

The man on the right was as lean as bamboo, wearing a blue-gray robe with a few strands of white hair at his forehead, possessing a pair of incredibly deep eyes.

His name was Xi Wujiu, and he was in charge of the external affairs of Queshi Star.

This person had always been the most steady and calm. Even at a moment of life and death for the Xi Family, it would be hard to see him show the slightest panic.

Yet today, his eyes were gloomy, and even his breathing was somewhat rushed.

The woman in the center wore a gorgeous moon-white robe, her expression cold and stern.

Her name was Xi Yue, the True Monarch’s sister, and also one of the individuals wielding the heaviest authority on Queshi Star.

The hall remained silent for a long time.

It seemed no one wanted to be the first to speak.

After a long while, Xi Yue finally spoke.

”Exactly what kind of hidden secret is concealed within the Weiji Grotto-Heaven? Can anyone here tell me?”

Her voice was cold and clear as it fell in the hall.

Xi Zhong snorted coldly, ”A True Monarch will naturally sense it when a tribulation draws near. Never did we expect, though, that the True Monarch would be injured in that grotto-heaven!”

Xi Yue asked, ”Then where is that Great Sage?”

Xi Wujiu slowly shook his head.

Xi Yue let out a rare sigh.

”The disaster has already arrived. Our Queshi Star must make preparations. Erect the grand formation as early as possible to prevent opportunistic scoundrels from coveting us.”

”Also, invite the family head to emerge from seclusion to take charge of the overall situation.”

The meeting dispersed.

Xi Hengsu, however, remained standing where he was.

Thoughts flashed through his mind.

The sky of that grotto-heaven had been shattered by the aftershocks of the clash between the True Monarch and the Great Sage.

Although the void turbulence possessed order, strands of it would still leak inside.

Once a rift formed within that grotto-heaven, even more void turbulence would plummet in.

Sooner or later, that grotto-heaven would face annihilation.

’But... that young man, I wonder if he is already dead.’

Xi Hengsu’s avatar had followed the True Monarch, personally venturing into that Weiji Grotto-Heaven!

He had seen Chen Lingxi standing before the Heavenly Gate Sea Cauldron Vessel.

This person was only at the Early Dao Foundation stage—clearly an ant-like figure—yet before the Great Sage descended, there was not the slightest fear in his eyes. He remained completely composed.

Murderous intent had even arisen in his eyes.

Xi Hengsu furrowed his brows tightly, unable to make sense of it no matter how much he pondered.

A Dao Foundation ant harboring murderous intent toward a Golden Core True Monarch—such a thing was simply too absurd.

But if this absurd event occurred at the exact same moment the Great Sage descended, it could no longer be ignored.

’His expression remained unchanged, as if he had known all along... then his eyes revealed murderous intent, and right after, the Great Sage descended!’

’Could the descent of the Great Sage’s true body have been related to that Chen Lingxi?’

He thought for a moment, but then couldn’t help but chuckle.

What kind of figures were Great Sages and True Monarchs?

How could they be schemed against by a lowly Dao Foundation cultivator?

’With the void turbulence falling into that grotto-heaven, if this person cannot escape it, he will undoubtedly die.’

’It’s just...’

Xi Hengsu turned his head, looking toward Bai Lingze among the numerous disciples.

Although Bai Lingze was a figure from the Yutai Bai Family, he had taken him as his master and cultivated on Queshi Star. Precisely because of this, many of the divine abilities Bai Lingze excelled in came from the Que Star Xi Family.

’Lingze’s aptitude is extraordinary, and his killing power is commendable. For that Chen Lingxi to have been able to defeat Lingze, it shows just how profound his karmic fortune is. He cannot be underestimated.’

’We still need to investigate this person’s whereabouts. If he truly had the fortune to leave that Weiji Grotto-Heaven and reach the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, he must be killed as early as possible to prevent him from truly becoming a disaster in the future.’

—

Chen Lingxi opened his eyes.

He saw an expansive sky.

That sky was incredibly high and distant, vaster than any sky he had ever seen in his entire life.

The firmament was crystal clear, a shining azure that resembled a boundless piece of top-quality colored glaze, stretching from above his head to the edge of his vision.

What left him deeply shocked was this.

There were actually three suns in that sky!

Three massive suns hung in the void—one blazing gold, one silvery-white, and one crimson—each radiating a different colored brilliance.

The three suns did not vie against one another. They were separated by a distance, distinctly apart, yet they illuminated the entire firmament as thoroughly as broad daylight.

Chen Lingxi narrowed his eyes slightly, stung by the glare of the silvery-white sun, and couldn’t help but turn his head away.

”The Great Xuanzhuo Realm...”

He struggled to sit up and looked down, finding himself lying on a gentle slope. Unknown green grass grew all around him; the blades were slender, and extremely faint threads of light flowed within their veins, flickering on and off like breathing, exhaling an incredibly sheer trace of spiritual energy.

This spiritual energy was omnipresent and incomparably dense.

As soon as he took a breath, he felt that spiritual energy seep in through his nose and mouth like water. He didn’t even need to deliberately perform breathing exercises; the Thunder Prison Profound Root in his dantian was already expanding and contracting. Like a swimming fish, it greedily devoured the abundantly rich spiritual energy of this heaven and earth.

”So this is the Great Xuanzhuo Realm.”

He murmured, lying back face-up.

The warm sunlight fell upon his body.

At this moment, he could no longer sense the deathly aura that had constantly weighed down upon his heart while in the grotto-heaven.

It made him feel suddenly and incomparably relaxed.

But after relaxing, he suddenly sat straight back up and called out softly, ”Changle.”

No one responded.

The valley was empty and vast. A breeze blew in from afar, fluttering the loose hair at his forehead.

”Liu Changle!”

He called out again, his voice much louder this time.

Still, no one answered.

Chen Lingxi stared blankly.

’Changle... sent me here to the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, but I don’t know if he’s still alive.’

Chen Lingxi fell silent for a moment, then stood up.

He turned around. Not knowing which direction to face, he simply faced the patch of void he had seen upon waking up, slowly bowed at the waist, and performed a grand, formal bow.

”This life-saving grace, Chen Lingxi will firmly remember.”

He took a deep breath, turned around, and began to survey his surroundings.

This place was incredibly expansive.

The mountains easily reached tens of thousands of zhang, piercing straight into the heavens. The snow gathered on their peaks never melted year-round, and as it was illuminated in turn by the three suns, it refracted overlapping layers of glowing rosy light.

Great rivers surged between the valleys, their wide surfaces as smooth as mirrors. The water was not ordinary water either; it shimmered with a soft, azure glow, looking from afar like an unfurled roll of brocade.

Colorful clouds hung at the horizon. Occasionally, tiny motes of light could be seen streaking past above the clouds at astonishing speeds—likely cultivators flying on their magical artifacts.

Upon these clouds, among the mountains, and by the edges of the waters, traces of flowing spiritual energy were everywhere.

Some of the auras were dense and heavy, profound as the abyss and imposing as lofty peaks.

’Truly worthy of being a heaven and earth meant for cultivation. The spiritual energy is abundant to such an extreme extent.’

’No wonder the Weiji Grotto-Heaven was called the Qi-Depleted Grotto-Heaven! Comparing the spiritual energy in that grotto-heaven to the spiritual energy of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm is no different from comparing the moisture in a cloud of mist to a surging ocean.’

He pondered for a moment, spiritual light seeming to swirl in his eyes as he channeled the Method of Qi Observation.

He directed qi into his eyes and looked in all directions.

Upon looking, his heart shook once more.

Within a radius of a thousand li, he could actually see several peak-level auras fading in and out of view.

Those auras either sank or floated. Some were like a massive sun crossing the sky, hanging openly and brightly above some mountain peak; others were like surging earth fire, hidden beneath a great river. There was also one that was the most obscure, seemingly there yet not, like a star wrapped in layers of night, leaking only a tiny speck of dark light.

’They are all Dao Foundation cultivators.’

Chen Lingxi raised his eyebrows.

’The Great Xuanzhuo Realm is truly different.’

He suppressed the shock in his heart and carefully reined in his own aura a bit more. Only then did he choose an uninhabited mountain, enter it, and seek out a cave.

He sat cross-legged in that cave and activated the Vision Roaming Divine Ability!

His Vision Roaming range had long since exceeded three hundred thousand li.

’Nothing.’

’I cannot sense Lin Suri’s location either, nor can I perceive Ying Xian.’

He opened his eyes, feeling somewhat disappointed, yet also feeling that this was exactly how it should be.

The Great Xuanzhuo Realm was simply too vast.

This heaven and earth was boundless. Throwing the entire grotto-heaven into it would probably be no different than tossing a pebble into the sea.

He didn’t know where Lin Suri, Daoist Shu Rong, and the others had been guided by the Pool of Reincarnation, and as for Emperor Daye...

’Emperor Daye might still be inside that grotto-heaven.’

He shook his head, choosing not to overthink it.

Right now, there was only one pressing matter.

Cultivation.

’I shall cultivate here and refine the third wisp of Celestial Ranking Spiritual Energy. Combined with that Immortal Slough...’

With that, Chen Lingxi closed his eyes and began to cultivate.

He sat in that cave for a full two years.

He managed to refine a fraction of the Immortal Slough’s mighty power. Blending it with the Celestial Ranking Spiritual Energy, the originally solid ice-like spiritual energy slowly melted into warm Dao Origin, surging mightily into his Plundering Dragon Dao Platform.

As if watered by immortal dew, the roots of the Thunder Prison Profound Root slowly climbed upward bit by bit. A tiny, incredibly tender fruit gradually formed on its branches.

The fruit was pale gold, its surface densely covered with lightning patterns. A profoundly mystical layer of spiritual light flowed over it, resembling a miniature, restrained lake of thunder.

A Profound Root Wondrous Fruit.

It was done.

Right at this moment, Chen Lingxi suddenly felt a sensation, and his consciousness sank into his Divine Chamber.

He closed his eyes to look inward. Sure enough, he saw that deep within the Divine Chamber, the tadpole-like script used to brand ”Vision Roaming” was flashing constantly.

’The third Vision Roaming slot is about to appear.’