The great Dao of the world was profound beyond profundity, the gateway to all mysteries.
It could be simply understood as the foundational laws that constructed all things in the world, as well as the root of all cultivation and divine abilities. Every divine ability and cultivation art was derived from the branches and leaves of the Dao.
Dao resonance permeated heaven and earth, omnipresent. Those who observed it gained divine abilities; those who touched it began to seek the Dao. If one could win the recognition of a great Dao, one became a Heavenly Origin Dao Master, already one of the world's rare eighth-realm mighty figures. One step further was the even more difficult and elusive Mystery Communion—to merge as one with the great Dao.
From the perspective of the great Dao, after reaching the ninth realm, one was virtually undying and indestructible. But from the perspective of life's origin, even a ninth-realm cultivator's lifespan had an end.
Sage Li had lived so long ago that it could no longer be known; Sage Yang's lifespan had not yet passed a thousand years. The human race possessed spiritual intelligence, yet was born with short lifespans. It seemed to be some sort of balance within the heavenly Dao. This forced even those who had reached the ninth realm to continue seeking a path upward, unable to remain in the human world forever.
Perhaps that was why eighth- and ninth-realm powerhouses went to the Divine Ruins in their twilight years.
The Demon God's origin had remained unextinguished for three thousand years because it had benefited from its original body. As a spirit beast, the Heaven-Devouring Insect naturally possessed a long lifespan. Thus, even after its fleshly body had dispersed and its divine soul shattered, its origin had yet to fade away. It