After the Great Dao Died

Above the Nine Quarters Wilderness, a deserted, solitary peak stood in silence.

The summit was barren. There was only a single cyan rock, worn smooth and round by the heavenly winds. A thin layer of frost coated its surface, refracting the daylight into a thread of silvery white.

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged on the cyan rock. His robes fluttered and snapped in the long wind rolling in from the west, but he remained completely oblivious. He merely furrowed his brows slightly, gazing toward the secret realm shrouded in spiritual mist to the west.

’The Under-Dao Academy is a Great Xuan Sect. It can be considered formidable here in the Western Border of the Nine Quarters. They have no shortage of disciples, nor a lack of Dao Foundation cultivators. So why is Daoist Brother Lin the only one guarding this secret realm?’ he wondered.

Using Vision Roaming, he had borrowed Lin Suri’s perspective to inspect all twenty-odd streams of qi.

Those auras were scattered among the mountains and wild forests surrounding the secret realm, positioned far from one another. Some hid within the clouds, some lay concealed beneath the canopy, and others sat upright upon peaks like small mountains, their auras as deep and heavy as the abyss.

Seven or eight of them only possessed Early Dao Foundation cultivation. Though their figures were distinct, they didn’t give him too strong a sense of pressure.

Four or five were already at the Dao Foundation Middle Stage. Their auras were vigorous, with extremely faint spiritual light flowing around them. They neither conversed nor approached each other; they merely guarded their own positions, all casting their gazes toward that patch of spiritual mist.

And behind an extremely high and distant solitary peak to the southwest of the secret realm, another aura lay dormant.

This aura was incredibly terrifying, truly bottomless. It showed neither ripples nor sharp edges, yet when Chen Lingxi’s Vision Roaming swept over it, a profound sense of oppression bloomed within his Sea of Consciousness.

A Dao Foundation Late Stage figure.

Chen Lingxi took a deep breath. ”Ten or twenty Dao Foundation cultivators, all surrounding a secret realm no larger than a few hundred li, with a Dao Foundation Late Stage figure lying dormant among them... This opportunity is absolutely extraordinary.”

”It seems that the sun Daoist Brother Lin obtained is precious indeed.”

Chen Lingxi thought for a moment, then remained sitting cross-legged atop the solitary peak. He left a sliver of his consciousness inside the Divine Chamber, using Vision Roaming on Lin Suri day after day without showing the slightest reaction.

The many auras outside the secret realm were also waiting—waiting for that sun to completely transform Lin Suri’s body, waiting for the opportunity to shed from his form.

Several days passed quietly in this manner.

On this day, the small sun inside the secret realm slowly faded from above Lin Suri’s head. Its pale golden radiance fully submerged into his crown, and the profound spiritual light around his body converged alongside it.

He opened his eyes.

Right at that moment, the spiritual mist at the entrance of Lin Suri’s cave dwelling suddenly parted down the middle. A figure in white slowly walked in through the gap in the mist.

The person’s age was difficult to discern. He had a clear and gentle face, and an innate air of composure rested between his brows. His white robes bore few decorations, save for a wisp of a cloud pattern embroidered at the cuffs.

His pace was neither hurried nor slow. As he stepped into the secret realm, the cloud energy beneath his feet retreated on its own. The Dao Origin around his body was heavy and condensed, not leaking out in the slightest—revealing him to be a Dao Foundation Middle Stage cultivator.

Through Lin Suri’s eyes, Chen Lingxi watched this person.

The man walked up to the cyan rock, stopped several zhang away from Lin Suri, and first cupped his hands in a bow.

”Daoist Brother Lin.”

Lin Suri slowly raised his eyes to look at the man. He didn’t stand to return the bow, merely saying flatly, ”Daoist Friend Bai Qieyun.”

’Surnamed Bai? He’s most likely from the Yutai Bai Family.’ Chen Lingxi committed the name to memory.

Bai Qieyun paid no mind to his coldness. He sat directly on a boulder on the other side of the cyan rock. With a flick of his sleeve, he took out a jade cup, poured a cup of clear water, and set it on the stone surface between them.

”It has been several years since Daoist Brother Lin entered this secret realm,” he said, his tone peaceful. ”Yet I never expected that Daoist Brother Lin’s gains would be so tremendous.”

”A secret realm like this only allows cultivators below the Dao Foundation Late Stage to enter! When the Under-Dao Academy dispatched Daoist Brother Lin here all alone back then, I still had many doubts in my mind. After all, Daoist Brother Lin was only at the Twelfth Floor of Qi Circulation at the time, not having even stepped into the Early Dao Foundation stage.

”Who would have thought that after a few fleeting years, Daoist Brother Lin’s progress would be so rapid, even managing to obtain the greatest opportunity within this secret realm.”

Hearing this, Chen Lingxi’s mind stirred slightly.

’So that’s how it is.’

This secret realm only allowed those below the Dao Foundation Late Stage to enter; that explained the twenty-odd auras surrounding it.

However... Chen Lingxi recalled that Dao Foundation Late Stage figure, and a hint of doubt crept into his eyes.

If Dao Foundation Late Stage experts weren’t permitted to enter, then who was the Late Stage expert currently inside the secret realm?

Bai Qieyun drank a mouthful of clear water and said slowly, ”I shouldn’t be speaking out of turn by coming here today. But after watching Daoist Brother Lin guard this opportunity all alone for the past several years, I find it truly a pity.”

He paused, his gaze falling upon the spot above Lin Suri’s head where the sun had just faded away.

”My Bai Family also has a fellow sect member currently in closed-door cultivation within this secret realm.”

Bai Qieyun’s tone was incredibly flat. ”He cultivates three Great Divine Abilities. He has already mastered the third one, and his Profound Root has even fallen into his Dao Platform, allowing him to reach the Dao Foundation Late Stage right inside this secret realm.

”The only reason he remains in closed-door cultivation at this very moment is to stabilize his cultivation!”

He tilted his head slightly, looking at Lin Suri.

”Daoist Brother Lin.”

”When that time comes, you will face certain death within this secret realm.”

Chen Lingxi instantly understood. So the Yutai Bai Family was exploiting a loophole.

Lin Suri listened quietly. Atop the cyan rock, his back was perfectly straight. The spiritual light locking in all of his qi flowed slowly around him, and his face showed not the slightest trace of panic.

Bai Qieyun didn’t push him any further. He merely raised his hand, lightly tapping his fingertip against the rim of the jade cup.

”Rather than fighting stubbornly to the death, you’d be better off handing over the [Slaughtering Sun Opportunity] while you still can.

”If you hand it over to my Bai Family, we will naturally remember this favor. In the future, when Daoist Brother Lin travels outside the Under-Dao Academy, whenever you encounter difficulties, my Yutai Bai Family will surely repay you.”

Hearing this, Lin Suri finally took a deep breath.

He raised his eyes and looked straight at Bai Qieyun.

”The Yutai Bai Family and Ehai are too insidious.”

He said, ”It was agreed back then that our three factions would share the secret realm’s opportunities. Whoever obtained an opportunity, the other two would not plot to seize it.

”Yet now you are trying to force me to hand over the opportunity I obtained?”

Hearing this, Bai Qieyun slowly shook his head.

He showed not a shred of shame. He simply looked at Lin Suri, his tone carrying a sense of genuine candor.

”You possess an Innate Precious Body. Your opportunities are boundless.”

”But we are different. Living in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, ascending to immortality and seeking the Dao are of the utmost importance. I ask for Daoist Brother Lin’s understanding.”

Having said that, he stood up, took the jade cup from the stone surface, and stored it back into his sleeve. He bowed to Lin Suri once more, said no more, and with a flick of his sleeve, turned and walked into the spiritual mist, exiting the secret realm in the blink of an eye.

Silence returned to the secret realm.

Only Lin Suri remained sitting on the cyan rock. That stream of profound spiritual light flowed slowly around his body, and he didn’t move for a long time.

Through the eyes of Vision Roaming, Chen Lingxi watched Lin Suri take a jade slip out of his sleeve, close his eyes to concentrate, and inject a sliver of Dao Origin into it.

But the jade slip yielded no response.

He tried again, and then once more.

The jade slip remained dead silent.

Lin Suri slowly opened his eyes, stared at the lusterless jade slip in his palm, and fell silent for a long while.

”This secret realm really is isolated from the outside,” he muttered to himself.

Chen Lingxi understood in that moment why Lin Suri hadn’t sent a message to the Under-Dao Academy.

This secret realm severed the inside from the outside. No matter what kind of divine abilities you possessed, as long as you were inside, you wouldn’t be able to transmit the slightest bit of information.

Standing atop the solitary peak, he slowly withdrew his gaze.

Then, after lowering his head in thought for a moment, cloud energy naturally manifested beneath his feet. A layer of pale golden lightning concealed itself within the clouds, completely hidden from sight.

He leapt up from the solitary peak, transforming into an extremely faint streak of light, skimming over the sea of clouds as he darted toward that patch of spiritual mist.

The entrance to the secret realm was incredibly well-hidden.

Had Chen Lingxi not caught a distant glimpse of that thread of aura extending from within the spiritual mist while using Vision Roaming, he likely wouldn’t have found this place even if he paced back and forth in front of the churning fog ten times.

The entrance itself was actually just an inward fold of a mountain cliff.

The spiritual mist surged in from all sides, wrapping that section of the cliff tightly. If ordinary cultivators looked at it, they would only think it was a concave cliff filled with fog; they would never imagine there was a path.

But as Chen Lingxi approached, sticking close to the cliff wall, he could clearly see that the path traced by the thread of aura in the mist perfectly formed an extremely narrow passage between the rocks, just wide enough for a single person to squeeze through sideways.

His figure blurred, dropping right into the passage.

The Hidden Edge Method circulated silently within his body, wrapping up all of his auras, every fluctuation of Dao Origin, and even the spiritual energy he breathed in and out, not letting a single trace leak.

The passage was extremely short.

After just a few steps, his vision suddenly opened up.

A mountain range unfolded beneath his feet, with winding mountain streams and lush ancient trees. Daylight fell from a great height, illuminating this area of several hundred li with sheer clarity.

Meanwhile, the spiritual mist that had been completely opaque from the outside was now entirely behind him, forming an invisible barrier.

Chen Lingxi didn’t linger to admire the view. He simply found a natural stone cave beneath a cliff in the eastern part of the secret realm, slipped inside, and sat cross-legged on a flat cyan rock at the bottom.

The cave was gloomy. Spring water occasionally seeped from the stone walls, dripping onto the cyan rock with a very soft sound.

Chen Lingxi sat peacefully, keeping the Hidden Edge Method running constantly. He spent his days sitting quietly and utilizing Vision Roaming, keeping it active continuously.

Outside the cave, the daylight faded into darkness, then shifted from darkness back into light.

Chen Lingxi sat inside that mountain cave for seven days.

Over those seven days, he gained much more understanding of this secret realm.

It wasn’t until the eighth day, when Chen Lingxi used Vision Roaming once more, that he saw the spiritual mist of Lin Suri’s cave dwelling part again. Bai Qieyun had returned.

This time, he arrived in much more of a hurry.

Through Lin Suri’s eyes, Chen Lingxi saw that when he walked into the secret realm, the cloud energy under his feet was still somewhat scattered. His white robes were also stained with traces of cold mountain dew, as if he had rushed here from afar.

Bai Qieyun walked up to the cyan rock, not even bothering to bow before he spoke. ”Daoist Brother Lin, I wonder how your considerations are going?”

Lin Suri’s expression remained unchanged.

Bai Qieyun continued, ”This time, Clan Brother Bai Hong’s closed-door cultivation will take three months at the fastest, and half a year at the slowest, before his cultivation is inevitably stabilized!

”On the day he emerges, he will come to seek you out personally, Daoist Brother.”

He paused and suddenly softened his tone, genuinely revealing a bit of regret.

”Daoist Brother Lin, both of us are sect cultivators with neither grudges nor enmity between us. I did not come here today wanting to make an enemy out of you, nor do I wish to make things difficult for you.

”I just want a single word from you.

”Hand over the Slaughtering Sun Opportunity, and I will swear an oath on my Bai Family’s name to guarantee you leave this secret realm safely. From then on, the Yutai Bai Family will naturally owe the Under-Dao Academy a favor.”

Sitting on the cyan rock, Lin Suri listened quietly, but stubbornly shook his head.

”I appreciate your good intentions, Daoist Brother,” he said simply, speaking no further. He closed his eyes again, the profound spiritual light flowing slowly around his body, sealing off the sound of the wind, the mountain streams, and even Bai Qieyun’s breathing.

Bai Qieyun stood in place for a long time.

In the end, he didn’t try to persuade him any further. He merely let out a breath, flicked his sleeve, turned around, and walked into the spiritual mist.

The spiritual mist closed back up.

Silence returned to the secret realm once again.

Inside that mountain cave, Chen Lingxi fully observed this conversation through Vision Roaming. Only when the spiritual mist closed back up did his Vision Roaming finally shatter.

He opened his eyes.

The cave was dark; only a trickle of spring water seeping from the stone wall reflected an extremely faint light.

Chen Lingxi slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

”That Dao Foundation Late Stage Bai Hong has been in closed-door cultivation for over a month. As soon as he emerges, he will come looking for Daoist Brother Lin.”

After a long time, he stood up.

He quietly left the cave. With the Hidden Edge Method wrapping his entire aura, he moved close to the cliff walls, neither disturbing the ancient trees nor stepping into the streams, dashing all the way toward a mountain in the western part of the secret realm.

That mountain wasn’t considered high. Its waist was covered by a deep, ancient forest, and the spiritual energy between the trees was much denser than elsewhere. This was exactly where that Bai Family’s Dao Foundation Late Stage cultivator was in closed-door cultivation.

Chen Lingxi landed at the foot of a broken cliff on the mountainside. He was still several li away from the cultivation spot, and he didn’t advance any closer.

With a raise of his hand, he retrieved an item from his Vast Void Pouch.

The object was roughly a chi long, completely dark gold in color, and covered in incredibly complex patterns. The patterns linked and echoed with one another, each exuding an ancient aura and a piercing killing intent!

It was exactly the Killing Power Cauldron Vessel Fragment he had obtained in the Weiji Grotto-Heaven!

[Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall]

Chen Lingxi looked at it carefully using the Method of Qi Observation.

Within the Spirit Wall, three auras were already engraved. Each of the three was different, flowing slowly and completely undisturbed by the others.

He silently counted in his heart, ’Out of the five auras, two more can still be engraved.’

Chen Lingxi slowly raised his eyes, looking toward that patch of ancient forest several li away.

Deep in the ancient forest, a faint wisp of aura dispersed from that closed-door cultivation spot. Wisps of it mixed into the spiritual energy of the mountain woods. If one didn’t look closely, they wouldn’t be able to distinguish it at all.

That Bai Family cultivator was in closed-door cultivation, all of his Dao Origin gathered within his Dao Platform to challenge the final bottleneck. Yet the convergence between his Dao Platform and the heavens and earth still allowed a sliver of his aura to seep out through his pores.

Latching onto that sliver of aura, Chen Lingxi slowly circulated his Qi-Gathering Technique.

His Dao Origin probed into the ancient forest like a thread of silk, bypassing all surrounding spiritual fluctuations to peel away just that single wisp of the Bai Family cultivator’s aura.

Chen Lingxi wrapped that wisp of aura in his Dao Origin and guided it into the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall.

Then he spoke softly, stating the man’s name: ”Bai Hong.”

The moment the aura entered the wall, the patterns on the Spirit Wall suddenly lit up. Then, right beside the three older auras, a brand-new aura emerged.

Chen Lingxi closed his eyes, waiting quietly.

After about two shichen, that brand-new aura finally settled completely. It stopped flowing, quietly suspended within the Spirit Wall.

”It’s done.” Chen Lingxi took a deep breath, a slight smile appearing on his face. ”Daoist Brother Lin, I wonder if I can save your life yet again this time!”