Haotian and Yaochi Achieve Dual Breakthroughs, Hongjun Enters Seclusion to Comprehend the Primordial!

So the moment they returned, Hongjun raised a hand and laid down a Spirit-Gathering Defense Array.

The array patterns were based on Chaos Prime Stones, drawing on the core spiritual vein power of Jade Capital Mountain.

Pale golden array light shimmered as spiritual qi was compressed into fine spiritual liquid, dripping down through the gaps in the array patterns.

This spiritual liquid could both provide ample qi for Haotian and the Jade Pool and block out external interference.

"Enter the array and break through. The qi within is enough to support your advancement." Hongjun's tone was gentle as he gestured for the two to step inside.

Haotian and the Jade Pool exchanged a glance, then walked side by side into the formation.

The moment they entered, they felt the surrounding spiritual qi wrap around them like warm flowing water.

Dozens of times denser than the outside world, the qi surged into their bodies along their meridians, every breath carrying pure Dao Rhythm.

The two sat cross-legged and began circulating their techniques simultaneously. A faint pale green glow of Space Law radiated around Haotian.

The Primordial Heart Sutra flowed through his Sea of Consciousness. Golden Merit Power rose from his dantian, nourishing his limbs and bones along his meridians.

The Jade Pool, meanwhile, circulated the Primordial Heart Sutra passed down by Hongjun. Ren Water Spiritual Qi coalesced around her into fine water ripples.

The Jade Pool Golden Hairpin at her brow grew slightly warm, as if aiding her in refining the qi.

With the boost from this spiritual qi, the Jade Pool soon encountered her breakthrough opportunity.

She had already been at the peak of Primordial Unity Golden Immortal, just one step away from Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

As qi continued to pour in, the phantom of her Primordial Spirit slowly manifested above her head.

At the brow of the phantom, a crystalline Human Flower quietly bloomed.

Petal by petal, it began to unfurl, until all nine petals were fully open.

The Human Flower glowed with a faint pale green spiritual light, and on its petals, the runes of the Ren Water Law could faintly be seen flowing.

This was the sign of a Nine-Petal Bloom, and also the necessary talent threshold for breaking through to Grand Unity Golden Immortal!

"Hum—" Ripples suddenly spread through the void. A tributary of the silver-glowing River of Time materialized out of thin air.

Countless fine timelines, like silver threads, coiled around the Jade Pool's Primordial Spirit.

She felt her Sea of Consciousness clear. Fragments of past cultivation and blurry traces of the future flashed before her eyes.

A moment later, the timelines all converged and merged into her Primordial Spirit. A single condensed true spirit of the Primordial Spirit detached from the River of Time and fused completely with her original Primordial Spirit.

This was the mark of breaking through to Grand Unity Golden Immortal—transcending the River of Time, fate no longer swept along by the Heavenly Dao, truly achieving the same lifespan as the Primordial World.

But the Jade Pool did not stop her breakthrough. The Heavenly Dao Merit within her body was still circulating.

Gentle Merit Power enveloped her Primordial Spirit as spiritual qi poured in endlessly.

Beside the Human Flower in her Primordial Spirit, an Earth Flower slowly began to condense.

The Earth Flower also bloomed with nine petals, its pale green hue complementing the nine-petal Human Flower.

Her aura steadily rose, breaking through from Early Grand Unity Golden Immortal all the way past the mid-stage bottleneck before finally slowing to a halt.

She could clearly feel that the spiritual qi flowing through her meridians had become more refined, and her comprehension of the Ren Water Law had deepened. Any further breakthrough would require settling—more would be too much.

"A Nine-Petal Bloom... she actually did it." Hongjun stood outside the array, a flicker of surprise and satisfaction in his eyes.

Though he had sensed the Jade Pool's extraordinary talent before, he hadn't expected her to achieve a Nine-Petal Bloom during her breakthrough. Such aptitude was enough to make her a personal disciple.

And just as the Jade Pool was stabilizing her cultivation, Haotian's breakthrough signs grew increasingly apparent.

The phantom of his Primordial Spirit emerged, and above his head, three flowers simultaneously condensed—the Heaven, Earth, and Human Flowers.

Each flower bloomed to twelve petals, their petals glowing with a pale golden Chaos spiritual light, completely different from the Grand Unity Three Flowers of ordinary cultivators, faintly radiating a Dao Rhythm that transcended the Primordial World.

Under the circulation of the Primordial Heart Sutra, the three flowers slowly rotated.

Golden Merit and Space Law intertwined, ultimately fusing into a single golden Primordial Spirit Flower. His aura then broke through to Peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

But this was not the end. Haotian mobilized the Heavenly Dao Merit he had accumulated within his body, combined with the accelerated comprehension of Time-Space Law from the Primordial Heart Sutra, and began to assault the Early Golden Immortal of the Origin realm.

A hundred years, a thousand years, ten thousand years... Time flowed silently within the formation. His understanding of Time-Space Law steadily rose from twenty percent to thirty percent, until the moment it crossed that threshold.

"Boom!" A Heaven and Earth Phenomenon far surpassing the Jade Pool's breakthrough erupted violently!

The sky outside the array was instantly dyed chaotic. A phantom of the River of Time, a hundred times thicker than the one during the Jade Pool's breakthrough, stretched across the heavens.

Within the river's waters were not only timelines but also countless spatial fragments, as if interpreting the Great Dao's ultimate principles of time and space interwoven.

Then, the billions of stars surrounding Jade Capital Mountain began to arrange themselves along specific trajectories, forming a massive Time-Space Star Array.

Starlight converged into pillars of light, shooting straight toward Haotian within the formation.

Even more astonishingly, the Chaos Airflow at the edge of Chaos was drawn by the phenomenon.

It transformed into wisps of gray mist drifting toward Jade Capital Mountain, swirling around Haotian as if nourishing his Chaos Origin.

Inside the array, Haotian's true Primordial Spirit began to ascend. Visible Time-Space Law runes surrounded him.

Golden runes intertwined with the gray Chaos mist, forming a Time-Space cocoon that enveloped him.

As the cocoon shell cracked, his aura stabilized completely at Early Golden Immortal of the Origin. The fluctuations of Time-Space Law around him caused even the array laid down by Hongjun to tremble slightly.

"This Heaven and Earth Phenomenon... is even more magnificent than this teacher anticipated!"

A flicker of surprise passed through Hongjun's eyes, then settled into understanding.

Given Haotian's talent of a Twelve-Petal bloom, it was only natural for him to trigger a Heaven and Earth Phenomenon.

Yet the scale of it was far stronger than even his own breakthrough back in the day.

But thinking that this disciple of his could stand shoulder to shoulder with Great God Pangu, he let it go.

He looked at Haotian, whose aura had steadied within the formation, and revealed a look of relief, though it carried a hint of solemnity.

Outside the formation, Jade Pool, who had just stabilized her cultivation, stared at the overwhelming phenomenon, utterly dumbfounded.

The hem of her light pink Daoist robe trembled slightly from shock.

She had known her senior brother's talent was extraordinary, but she never imagined his breakthrough could stir such a heaven-shaking sight, even the distant stars seemed to respond.

As the phenomenon dissipated, Haotian slowly opened his eyes. In his light amber pupils, it seemed as if galaxies spun in reverse, and a flash of Time-Space Law's spiritual light flickered and vanished.

He rose and looked at his master outside the formation, bowing respectfully: "Thank you, Master, for guarding me. Your disciple has broken through to Golden Immortal of the Origin."

Hongjun raised his hand to signal him to rise, then spoke gently: "Your talent and effort, I have seen with my own eyes. To achieve this breakthrough is the fate you deserve."

His tone shifted, carrying a note of caution.

"But disciple, even with such talent, remember to keep some cards hidden in your future actions."

"The Primordial Wilderness is perilous. Such a heaven-shaking phenomenon may display your power, but it also easily invites unnecessary covetousness."

"Keep some tricks in reserve, and never reveal your full foundation, so that you may walk farther and steadier through the great tribulations to come."

Haotian felt a warmth in his heart, knowing his master meant well, and nodded solemnly: "Your disciple understands. Thank you for the guidance, Master."

Hongjun nodded, then turned his gaze to Jade Pool, who was still somewhat dazed.

She had yet to recover from Haotian's earth-shattering phenomenon.

The hem of her light pink Daoist robe still trembled slightly, her eyes full of awe.

Seeing this, Hongjun smiled, then spoke with a serious tone.

"Jade Pool, my disciple. Your Nine-Petal Bloom shows your aptitude is sufficient. Are you willing to become my sixth personal disciple?"

Jade Pool snapped back to reality, a burst of joyful light flashing in her eyes. She quickly knelt on both knees: "Your disciple is willing! Thank you, Master, for accepting me!"

"Rise." Hongjun raised his hand in a gesture, lifting her up.

"When the time is right in the future, I will forge a set of innate spiritual treasures of the same origin for you, to help stabilize your path."

"Thank you, Master!" Jade Pool bowed again, her small face brimming with excitement, her voice carrying a hint of cheerfulness.

Having settled matters with his disciples, Hongjun's expression gradually turned serious.

"Now that you have both broken through, I intend to go into seclusion for several thousand Yuanhui to comprehend the remaining Great Dao laws within the Jade Disk of Creation."

"During this time, the affairs of Jade Capital Mountain will be left to you. If you feel bored, you may also travel outside."

"But remember, do not lightly involve yourselves in clan conflicts. Guard your Dao Heart well."

"Your disciples will remember Master's teachings!" Haotian and Jade Pool answered in unison.

Hongjun nodded in satisfaction, turned, and transformed into a streak of light, entering the depths of Purple Firmament Palace to go into seclusion.

Watching their master's departing figure, Haotian and Jade Pool exchanged a glance, both letting out a sigh of relief, then went their separate ways.

Back in his own cultivation hall, the Mysterious Vault Hall, Haotian did not immediately sort through his insights as a Golden Immortal of the Origin. Instead, he first focused his mind to sense the depths of his Primordial Spirit.

With this breakthrough to Golden Immortal of the Origin, the seal on the Chaos Origin Gift Pack left by the system had just been lifted. A second gift pack floated quietly beside his origin Primordial Spirit.

With a thought, the gift pack transformed into a golden light and unfolded in his palm, revealing several treasures.

The first was a warm golden light cluster. As it touched his hand, a dense aura of Heavenly Dao Origin surged forth.

This was Heavenly Dao Origin, but it was not the Heavenly Dao Origin of the Primordial Wilderness. Where had the system gotten it?

Regardless, its effect was still decent. It could be used to comprehend the Heavenly Dao and assist in attaining sainthood, or it could be infused into a Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure to help it ascend to the level of an Innate Supreme Treasure.

Haotian looked at the light cluster before him, a flicker of thought passing through his mind.

He could not walk the path of a saint, so the only use for this Heavenly Dao Origin was to upgrade the Primordial Dao Comprehension Lamp.

But there was no rush. He would wait until after the third lecture. He believed that once it was elevated to an Innate Supreme Treasure, entering the Primordial Dao Comprehension Lamp to comprehend laws would surely yield twice the results with half the effort.

With that thought, Haotian turned his gaze to two flowers whose petals were the color of chaos, with faint Dao Rhythms lingering around their stamens—Chaos Dao Comprehension Flowers.

These were good things. He had secretly used one on Jade Pool before.

Although Jade Pool had no need for them now, in the future, whether for his not-yet-incarnated sister Yaoji, or as gifts for trustworthy subordinates, they would be excellent aids.

Besides these, there were also two Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasures, a Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Root, and a token for Penglai Immortal Island.

The latter was not urgent. The island was not going anywhere, and he could visit it later when the opportunity arose.

What was more captivating now were the items before him. The two Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasures were the Northern Profound Origin Water Control Banner, one of the Innate Five Direction Banners, and the Innate Five Elements Pearls.

The former banner was embroidered with water ripple patterns, exuding pure Ren Water Law.

The latter was divided into five Innate Treasure Pearls, colored gold, green, blue, red, and yellow, corresponding to the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

Each pearl contained a single-element law, not only aiding in comprehending the Five Elements Dao but also capable of combining to form the Five Elements Great Formation, covering both offense and defense.

As for the Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Root, it was a half-foot-tall sapling.

The sapling's branches and trunk were silvery-white, and its leaves were dotted with specks of starlight, exuding a dense aura of the Star Law.

Each time it matured, it could bear Star Fruits, which, when consumed, could greatly enhance one's comprehension of the Star Law and also nourish the Primordial Spirit.

Gazing at this Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Root shaped like a sapling, Haotian raised his hand to set up a Spirit Gathering Formation, enveloping it within.

Afterward, he calmed his mind and began to deduce the insights into the Time-Space Law at the Golden Immortal of the Origin realm.

Combining this with the essential principles of the Primordial Heart Sutra, he laid a solid foundation for his subsequent breakthrough to higher realms.