"RUMBLE!"
The karmic scene shattered once again. The Primordial Saint stood silently within the pitch-black universe with his eyes tightly closed. After a long while, he opened them and looked toward the nearby World Honored One.
"Hmm."
In an instant, the World Honored One felt an inexpressible sense of crisis fill his heart. The bone-chilling killing intent even caused a faint pain in his Primordial Spirit.
However, before he could react, his vision was engulfed by a blazing white light. After that, all his perceptions shattered like glass, and his consciousness fell into a void of silence. It wasn't until a moment later, when he regained his senses, that he found himself somehow returned from the Great Karmic Net to the [Paramita].
Had his memory vanished? 'No... I died.'
The World Honored One's thoughts tightened instantly: 'That old bastard struck to kill me? Out of spite? No, it wasn't spite; it was to strike first while the initiative is his!'
He understood the Primordial Saint's intent in an instant.
By using thunderous methods to kill him—even though as a Dao Lord anchored to the [Paramita] he wouldn't truly perish—resurrection itself required time.
And during that time.
'He could easily head to the Netherworld!'
At this thought, the World Honored One's usually compassionate expression cracked. Intense emotions instantly swept away the indifference cultivated over countless years as a Dao Lord.
'That fool... Not good!'
A second later, the golden-bodied Buddha snapped awake from the void. A streak of golden light erupted from the first layer of the [Paramita], rapidly descending toward the direction of the Netherworld.
Meanwhile, in the Netherworld.
In front of the Netherworld Lord's Palace, Dao Tianqi pushed open the hall doors. He shielded Bu Tianque and Lian Tiandou behind the doors while standing unwaveringly before the newcomer.
It was a towering silhouette of light.
Layers of space-time rings circled his body, constructing his form. Umbilical-like Great Daos reached deep into the Dark Void, plucking peerless majesty from it at every moment.
"Master..."
Dao Tianqi's expression was complex. The Primordial Saint had arrived far too suddenly; he hadn't reacted in time and naturally hadn't had time to apply any further disguises.
On the other side, the Primordial Saint looked at Dao Tianqi with a calm gaze. His vision was primarily focused on the back of Dao Tianqi's head—on that slowly rotating Great Dao ring. Having long since renounced human emotions, he no longer felt surprise, shock, or even fear. He could only respond with silence.
"...It's you."
After a long pause, the Primordial Saint spoke in an ethereal tone: "Since when did this start? In that previous great battle, was the person who struck from start to finish is you?"
Silence followed again.
Finally, the Primordial Saint nodded slightly: "Impressive."
Before the words had finished falling, Dao Tianqi saw that same blazing white light. A boundless, majestic power descended from the heavens, instantly erasing him from existence.
However, in the next second, the Dark Void shook.
The Great Dao ring manifested, rotating in a cycle—neither increasing nor decreasing, neither dying nor being extinguished. Dao Tianqi's silhouette paced out, the expression on his face unchanged.
"Master, you can no longer kill me."
Primordial Saint: "..."
As expected, it was indeed the [Dead Cycle].
At this moment, even if the Netherworld were destroyed, Dao Tianqi would not perish. Like that Xuande, he had become another troublesome existence.
A [Variable].
More important than that—since Dao Tianqi had been playing the role of Lu Yang from start to finish, where was the real Lu Yang? Where had he gone?
'He couldn't be in the Dark Void.'
He had always been vigilant against that, precisely to prevent Lu Yang from sneaking into the Dark Void to disconnect the [Dead Cycle] and find an opportunity to elevate his stature.
'In that case, there only remains that mysterious Primordial Spirit and the Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Sword Pavilion. That Foundation Establishment cultivator truly was problematic; he merely deceived me before. Does this mean Lu Yang truly entered the Eighth Secret Realm? By tracing back through historical karma, he entered from the Ancient Era? How could such a thing be possible...'
The Primordial Saint lowered his eyelids, growing increasingly silent.
It wasn't until the [Heavenly Destiny Divine Record] in his sleeve vibrated slightly that he reacted. He scanned it with his spiritual sense, and his heavy thoughts finally eased somewhat.
[Do not worry.]
[Given Jun's personality, he wouldn't allow one person to take everything for themselves. He established the Equalizing Dao for the world; everyone has a chance. Entering that secret realm early is of no use.]
Is that so?
The Primordial Saint composed his thoughts and quickly stopped dwelling on it. At this stage, he could only believe that the Deity Transformation transcender truly lived up to his name.
'If that's the case, there is still a chance.'
'He entered early but cannot take the first step; he will inevitably change his previous style and take the initiative to cooperate with us to open the opportunity for transcendence.'
—That was the thought of an ordinary person.
However, based on the knowledge that their opponent could restart, both the Primordial Saint and the consciousness within the book felt a haze over their previously smooth thoughts.
After all, they had only one chance, while the opponent had infinite tries.
It wasn't fair!
'We can only take one step at a time.'
Within the [Heavenly Destiny Divine Record], a certain consciousness pondered with near-indifference: 'As long as I do not leave this book, there is still room for maneuver.'
'If I can obtain the method for transcendence.'
'Even if I have to abandon this life, it will all be worth it.'
Furthermore, on their side, the advantage the Primordial Saint had accumulated was large enough that even if that Xuande progressed rapidly, he couldn't bridge the gap in a short time.
In terms of pure strength, their side was still the strongest.
This was natural; after all, that Xuande had only restarted a dozen times, and by a precise count, it hadn't even been a thousand years. How much time could he have had to grow?
To become a Dao Ancestor was already inconceivable.
To go a step further? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
Heaven Beyond Heaven.
"Have I been discovered? If that is the case, the day must be drawing near."
Luxian, who was continuously vomiting blood, staggered down from the high platform. The invisible ripples transmitted through Karma had instantly inflicted heavy injuries upon him.
"Transcendence..."
There was a look of liberation in Luxian's eyes. To him, the karma of his faked death back then had always been a ticking time bomb, keeping him in constant fear of an explosion.
Now, it had finally exploded.
Although it left him heavily injured, it removed a great weight from his heart. Instead, it made him feel incredibly relaxed, and even his footsteps grew light.
Soon, he made his way through the pavilions of the Heaven Beyond Heaven, eventually arriving at a secluded palace. While this place was free of dust and grime, it possessed a sediment of ancient charm left by the flow of time. Currently, what swirled around the palace was ten thousand years of that ancient charm.
"Senior, the time has arrived!"
Luxian utilized all his profound wonders, his voice like a clap of thunder entering the palace, filled with anticipation: "The right time, the right place—the Heaven Beyond Heaven is about to open!"
"..."
After a brief silence, the ancient charm was swept away.
Inside the palace, his black robes moving slightly, Lu Yang opened his eyes. The Great Dao ring behind him seemed on the verge of distorting, revealing an accumulation that had reached its critical point.
His gaze projected out from the Heaven Beyond Heaven, seeing the scenes within the Netherworld.
'...As I thought.'
'Taiyuan Xian is indeed within the [Heavenly Destiny Divine Record]. Otherwise, the Primordial Saint would never have found the Netherworld so quickly. My guess was correct.'
The reason was simple.
He had left the karma of the [Dao Register] within the Great Karmic Net through Luxian. However, without the corresponding knowledge, one wouldn't understand the significance of the [Dao Register].
If it were the Primordial Saint alone, he would certainly remain ignorant.
Only Taiyuan Xian.
Only this being who had vied with [Jun] would come looking for him in the Netherworld so urgently after discovering his own name added to the [Dao Register]!
With this thought, Lu Yang flicked his sleeve and stood up.
One hundred and twenty-nine thousand, six hundred years.
For a Dao Lord, this time was both long and short, but regardless, it had truly filled the most deficient link for Lu Yang.
At this moment, his accumulation was sufficient.
Should he return to the Dark Void, he wouldn't even need to find a way to disconnect the [Dead Cycle]. He could simply directly trigger the second metamorphosis of his essence, drawing even closer to the Primordial Saint!
(End of Chapter)