After the Great Dao Died

Chen Lingxi awoke!

The profound radiance of the Cauldron Vessel still shone upon him.

It hung in the void, its brilliance burning away the surrounding clouds and mist, rolling them back to reveal a spotless stretch of sky.

Countless intricate patterns were engraved upon the Cauldron Vessel, layered over one another as if someone had used the stars for ink and time for a brush to write some indescribable, ultimate truth upon its surface.

”It was all false, all an illusion.”

Chen Lingxi took a deep breath.

His appointment as head disciple by the Yang Awakening Peak Master, for instance.

Or his conversation with Elder Mo.

Or Liu Zhi handing him the Clear Origin Mushroom.

Every single one of these developments had been an illusion.

Chen Lingxi’s heart tightened.

He had been so deeply ensnared that he had even taken out the Immortal Slough within the dream!

All these scenes had perhaps played out in a mere instant.

In a single flash of time, it had probed out his most extraordinary secret.

It was simply unimaginable.

And now, as he woke, the Yang Awakening Peak Master stood right there in the void.

Chen Lingxi had no choice but to face the coercive pressure of this cultivator at Dao Foundation Perfection.

That pressure crushed straight down on him like a mountain and a sea.

Chen Lingxi inhaled deeply. High above in the sky, beyond the three blazing suns and two bright mirrors, hung that small sun.

It hovered over the summit of Yang Awakening Peak, shining down with tens of thousands of brilliant rays that cast the entire mountain range in blinding white.

It was utterly profound.

’This Cauldron Vessel beguiled me. Entirely unlike a spell or a divine ability! It easily forced me to reveal a flaw.’

’It made me believe I was in reality, thereby exposing the Immortal Slough.’

’The methods of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm are simply unimaginable.’

Chen Lingxi was filled with inexplicable astonishment.

His surprise at the profoundness of the Cauldron Vessel only grew.

Meanwhile, the bare-chested Yang Awakening Peak Master, still clutching a flood dragon in his hand, looked down at him.

The flood dragon continued to struggle in his grip. Its scales were like ink and its whiskers like flame. Its four claws carved gouges deep into the void, yet no matter how it thrashed and roared, it could not escape that palm in the slightest.

Right now, the Yang Awakening Peak Master’s eyes were filled with unrestrained delight.

The Immortal Slough... how precious it was!

The Yang Awakening Peak Master likely had never imagined that a cultivator merely at the Early Dao Foundation stage would possess such an opportunity.

His fiery gaze fell upon Chen Lingxi.

The aura of Dao Origin around Chen Lingxi grew increasingly heavy.

Chen Lingxi pursed his lips... The pressure squeezed toward him like a multitude of massive boulders, leaving him briefly unable to even draw breath.

’Dao Foundation Perfection is simply too tyrannical,’ Chen Lingxi murmured in his heart.

Right at this moment, atop the distant clouds, the gloomy-faced Liu Zhi strolled over.

He wore long black robes, his sleeves fluttering as he walked among the mist.

He still looked the same, his eyes narrow and long, his expression dark and sinister.

He landed dozens of feet away, bowed respectfully from afar to the peak master, then turned his gaze to Chen Lingxi.

In the next instant!

Liu Zhi didn’t waste a single word.

His large hand slammed down!

Immediately, streaks of profound light burst from his hand. Like ropes, like long serpents, they surged from his sleeves, his fingertips, and the depths of his Dao Origin.

The profound light was dark cyan, each streak as thick as a child’s arm. They let out extremely faint hisses as they tore through the void, like a thousand small snakes flicking their tongues all at once.

As the streaks of profound light blanketed the sky and swept toward him, Chen Lingxi felt the surrounding air freeze. With his current cultivation, he couldn’t contend with Liu Zhi at all.

Chen Lingxi knew that even if he brought out all his hidden trump cards, he had no way to resist this.

A Dao Foundation Late Stage figure possessed condensed Dao Origin and profound light as vast as a sea. How could he possibly fight back against that?

Yet, a sliver of relief actually welled up in his heart.

’This is the first fatal tribulation I’ve encountered since arriving in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm. Thankfully, it’s taking place within this Absolute Perception Deduction.’

By now, the profound light was already slithering toward him like a snake.

Liu Zhi’s expression remained cold as he reached out, clawing at Chen Lingxi.

In a flash, Dao Origin howled forward like a gale, its imposing aura utterly tyrannical.

This terrifying presence left Chen Lingxi breathless.

’It seems the Absolute Perception Deduction is about to dissipate.’

’It’s just... once I return to reality, how am I supposed to survive this tribulation!’

Chen Lingxi’s thoughts were in turmoil, and he even closed his eyes.

Right at this moment, a voice suddenly drifted over from afar.

”It’s quite lively here on Yang Awakening Peak.”

Chen Lingxi jerked his head up, feeling the surrounding pressure suddenly vanish!

The voice was clear and resonant, floating out from deep within the clouds with a casual tone.

But the instant that voice faded, a flash of saber light bloomed!

The saber light flooded the void. A surging aura crashed down, casting an unimaginable brilliance over the space. A peerless, lethal power rushed out like the tide, completely shattering Liu Zhi’s profound light!

Like ice and snow meeting a blazing sun, the numerous streaks of profound light crumbled inch by inch, turning into a sky full of glowing dust.

Liu Zhi’s expression drastically changed.

He abruptly retracted his hand and looked up, a trace of shock and doubt flashing through his eyes.

”Who is it?” Liu Zhi couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

The Yang Awakening Peak Master also looked up.

He saw a woman standing in the void.

The woman was incredibly striking. She had a beautiful face and a superb, curvaceous figure.

Her eyebrows were sharp as knife cuts, her eyes like cold stars, and her thin, red lips radiated a fierce sharpness when pursed.

But the most extraordinary thing about her was the long saber strapped to her back, which was as tall as a person.

The long saber was a Spiritual Artifact. Even unsheathed, a surging, razor-sharp aura leaked from its scabbard. Waves of killing intent pressed outward, forcing the surrounding clouds and mist to withdraw!

She simply stood there, looking down from above. Her gaze swept past the peak master and Liu Zhi before finally settling on Chen Lingxi.

”The main sect has issued an order. I have been commanded to retrieve the [Profound Wondrous Dao Mechanism].”

She spoke. Her voice wasn’t loud, but every word was distinct, scraping against everyone’s ears like the edge of a blade.

”That dao mechanism should be on this person.”

The woman pointed at Chen Lingxi.

This woman stood high in the sky, looking down upon them.

Behind her, a Dao Platform hung high in the air.

Trees grew atop the Dao Platform. There were three of them, proving that this woman was a Dao Foundation Late Stage cultivator.

At the Dao Foundation Late Stage, one’s Dao Origin was fully condensed, and the wondrous trees were fully formed. In terms of cultivation, she already stood at a height that ordinary cultivators could only look up to.

Yet such cultivation was still a head lower than the Yang Awakening Peak Master.

The Yang Awakening Peak Master was a figure at Dao Foundation Perfection!

Having cultivated four Great Divine Abilities and formed four Profound Roots, his cultivation was extraordinary, rendering him far stronger than anyone at the Dao Foundation Late Stage.

But right now, this Dao Foundation Late Stage woman was standing in the void, looking down from above.

Her voice was frigid and her aura was scorching, ringing out like a heavenly decree!

’Hm? Who is this female cultivator?’

Chen Lingxi was greatly astonished, completely unaware of where this woman had come from!

She stood there with her chin tilted slightly upward. Amidst the calm of her eyes, an unbridled arrogance ran rampant.

Through the Sun Cauldron Vessel, the Yang Awakening Peak Master had learned that Chen Lingxi harbored the Immortal Slough. He had fully intended to capture Chen Lingxi and seize his Immortal Slough opportunity to break through to the Golden Portal.

Beyond Dao Foundation Perfection, the very next step was the Golden Portal.

This was a step that countless people could never cross in their entire lives.

Some suffered from a dried-up Qi Sea, others from a shattered Dao Platform. But an even greater number simply wasted hundreds of years of lifespan, ultimately staring at that threshold at the end of their days, dying with a heart full of resentment.

But with the Immortal Slough opportunity right in front of him, that step was no longer out of reach.

He had used the Cauldron Vessel to see through Chen Lingxi’s mind, weaving a grand dream to secure this Cauldron Vessel opportunity!

Now, all he had to do was seize the Immortal Slough from the hands of this ”Daoist Zhiling”... and he would obtain an unimaginable grand opportunity!

Everything should have fallen into place naturally.

He never expected this woman to appear out of thin air and intervene, snatching this opportunity right out of his grasp...

To cultivators, stealing an opportunity was tantamount to severing one’s path of the Dao—an act that bred bitter, deep-seated hatred.

But right now... facing this Dao Foundation Late Stage female cultivator, the Yang Awakening Peak Master stood in the void, his eyes flickering, before he took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed his surging killing intent.

Then, this peak master at Dao Foundation Perfection descended from the void, landed atop the Yang Awakening Main Peak, and respectfully bowed to the saber-carrying woman in the sky.

”Since the main sect has issued an order, Yang Awakening Peak will naturally let him go.”

The peak master bent down. His posture was deferential, entirely lacking the dominant aura he displayed while suppressing the flood dragon in the illusionary main hall.

At the same time... the violent, oppressive pressure bearing down on Chen Lingxi suddenly and quietly faded away.

It felt as though a massive mountain had been lifted from his shoulders, and Chen Lingxi immediately felt light all over.

The spiritual qi within his Qi Sea began circulating again, and his bloodline, which had nearly ground to a halt, resumed its surging flow.

’The main sect...’

’This woman is a figure from the Dragon-Revering Sect’s main sect.’

Chen Lingxi looked up at the woman in the clouds.

The two bright mirrors in the sky shone down upon her.

And yet, the woman simply accepted the Yang Awakening Peak Master’s bow without even returning the gesture.

She merely gave a slight nod in acknowledgment before her gaze shifted back to Chen Lingxi.

As she scrutinized Chen Lingxi, sizing him up, a stream of divine sense entered the Yang Awakening Peak Master’s ears.

”Peak Master.”

”You probed this person’s opportunities with the Red Jade Suspended Mirror. Did you discover anything?”

Hearing this question, the Yang Awakening Peak Master inhaled deeply, but he could only lower his head as he sent back a stream of divine sense.

He released a strand of divine sense that crossed the void silently and entered the woman’s ears.

At that very moment, the woman’s expression underwent a drastic change!

Her initially arrogant and composed demeanor vanished the instant she heard the divine sense transmission!

She was inexplicably shocked!

But in the blink of an eye, she forcefully suppressed the shock in her eyes and stared at Chen Lingxi.

”The Immortal Slough?”

After a long moment, the woman took a deep breath.

”So the so-called Profound Wondrous Dao Mechanism... is the Immortal Slough?” the woman muttered to herself.

In an instant, Chen Lingxi felt another colossal pressure crash down. It was sharp to the absolute extreme as it pressed directly against him.

This pressure felt like countless long sabers being unsheathed all at once!

The profound saber light rested entirely against his throat, his heart, and the space between his brows.

The sheer sharpness pierced straight to his marrow, causing every hair on his body to stand on end.

’The power of this female cultivator’s lethal divine abilities is absolutely far superior to that of an ordinary Dao Foundation Late Stage cultivator!’

Chen Lingxi forcefully supported his body and anchored his consciousness to keep from losing himself in the pressure, yet his heart was thoroughly astonished.

The woman’s expression was frosty, her aura icy.

Without sparing another glance at the peak master, she kept her gaze fixed entirely on Chen Lingxi.

”This matter is deeply consequential. Word of this absolutely cannot be leaked in the slightest.”

She raised her hand, and the long saber on her back trembled slightly in its scabbard.

”Suppress this person within the Space-Locking Array for now!”

”We will wait quietly for the True Person to arrive!”

Chen Lingxi’s pupils shrank.

’A True Person?’

’A figure of the Golden Portal?’