Hongjun's Scheme

After hearing Zhou Jun's words, Di Kun felt stormy waves rise within his heart, as though the entire world before his eyes had been overturned.

If the Three Daos of Heaven, Earth, and Man truly all existed, then given their abilities and status, they should have discovered them long ago. After all, they possessed the exalted rank of Ancestor of the Earth Dao! If even beings like them could not detect the existence of the Earth Dao, it was simply inconceivable, utterly beyond explanation.

Di Kun knew well that the reason the Earth Dao did not exist now was precisely because he himself had become the Ancestor of the Earth Dao. What he expounded were the operating principles of the Earth Dao, while what others expounded were the operating principles of the Heavenly Dao.

The Heavenly Dao had existed innately. Like the fundamental laws of the universe, it existed naturally, and thus there was no such thing as an Ancestor of the Heavenly Dao. The Earth Dao, however, was different. It was more like a refined product, much like classifying laws.

Laws encompassed countless matters. Through grading, classification, and summarization, they formed distinct branches such as civil law and criminal law. Though they were all collectively called laws, there were clear distinctions between them.

And Di Kun, in this process, had classified and divided the Heavenly Dao, thereby creating the Earth Dao. That was precisely why he could become the Ancestor of the Earth Dao!

Thinking of this, Di Kun could not help but begin doubting his former ideas. He started reevaluating his understanding of the Three Daos of Heaven, Earth, and Man, realizing that his long-held comprehension might have been flawed.

At the same time, a trace of relief welled up in Di Kun's heart. He thought to himself that although his thinking might have been biased, at least the path he had chosen was correct. Had there been even the slightest misstep, he might never have advanced another inch. His Dao heart might even have shattered, leaving him unable to rise again, muddling through the days as they came.

Amid that relief, Di Kun's thoughts drifted to another question: what exactly was the Heavenly Dao? It was a broad concept encompassing countless Great Daos, and each of the Three Thousand Great Daos could lead to the path of attaining the Dao. Yet why were there so few people in later generations who managed to attain the Dao—so few that they were practically nonexistent?

Di Kun racked his brains as one possibility after another flashed through his mind. Aside from Hongjun and the legendary Ancestor Yang Mei, everyone else seemed to have attained the Dao through accumulating Merit. Could Hongjun's calculations be hidden within this?

The more Di Kun considered it, the more likely it seemed. After Hongjun merged with the Dao, had he integrated every Great Dao into the Immortal Dao? If so, his Dao would have influenced the entire world, leaving others to grope bitterly through the Immortal Dao while never truly attaining the Dao.

Because by then, the Great Daos of the Heavenly Dao that they comprehended had most likely already been tampered with by Hongjun, infused with the influence of his own Dao. Thus, even if someone gained insight within the Immortal Dao, they would merely be evolving within the framework of Hongjun's Dao rather than truly attaining the Dao.

So, was this truly Hongjun's scheme? Di Kun pondered silently, continuously deducing every possibility in his mind, yet no matter how he tried, he could not find a feasible way to unravel this mystery.

He felt this matter was exceedingly thorny, because using one's own Dao to evolve and conceal the Three Thousand Great Daos was itself an immensely difficult task. Moreover, doing so would violate the natural order of Heaven and Earth. After all, when someone transcended or attained the Dao, the benefits they brought to Heaven and Earth were absolute.

Such benefits would not only make the origin of Heaven and Earth richer, but also make the entire world more solid. This was a crucial step in the evolution and ascension of Heaven and Earth. Just like the novels Di Kun had read in his previous life: when a person transcended the limits of Heaven and Earth, they either ascended and left that world, or brought the entire world with them as it ascended and evolved.

This was in fact an instinctive reaction of the world. Unless the world's origin had already been exhausted and it could no longer ascend, it should not casually allow an existence that had transcended the world to ascend away just like that.

At the same time, Di Kun secretly wondered whether the system of realms he had proposed, using Golden Immortals as the divisions, would affect the transcendence of Primordial World Beings. Or would such a division place them all under the influence of the Immortal Dao, making it difficult for them to comprehend the true Great Dao?

Watching Di Kun's expression, Zhou Jun naturally guessed what he was thinking. He smiled faintly and reassured him, "You needn't be so worried. Before Hongjun, weren't there many powerful beings as well? Perhaps they merely fell a little short, or perhaps they were plotted against and thus failed to transcend. Maybe their deaths were precisely because Hongjun did not wish for anyone to attain the Dao before him. As for Ancestor Yang Mei..."

"I reckon he attained the Dao while hiding within Chaos. That possibility is extremely high. After all, Chaos contains endless mysteries and power. Attaining the Dao there might allow him to avoid much interference and many restrictions. As long as one attained the Dao before Hongjun, they should not be too greatly affected.

"Besides, Heaven and Earth have now undergone tremendous changes because of us. If Hongjun still acts according to his original plan, the situation he faces may be completely different. Think about it—even if he ultimately succeeds in merging with the Dao, can his Dao still deceive the reincarnations of those Chaos Gods and Demons as it once did?

"If it cannot, then once these Chaos Gods and Demons attain the Dao, how will Hongjun respond? With his strength alone, he will likely find it difficult to withstand those powerful beings. Even with those few who became saints through Merit, they likely will not be able to halt their advance.

"When that time comes, Hongjun may have no choice but to withdraw his scheme and let all living beings have a chance to attain the Dao. But if that happens, can he still be respectfully called the Ancestor of the Dao? After all, what he did before has already aroused everyone's dissatisfaction and doubts.

"Worse still, if his plan fails, will he suffer backlash? That is indeed a worrying question." Hearing Zhou Jun's analysis, Di Kun also felt it made great sense and could not help sinking into thought.

After a while, Di Kun finally said, "It seems that the Abyss you intend to open is probably the best solution. Creating life may be nothing much, but if your Abyss can truly allow these Chaos Gods and Demons to create through their own bodies, that would be extraordinary. It might even shake Heaven and Earth, and Hongjun possesses the Creation Jade Disc Fragment. Perhaps he will obtain some information from it. When that time comes, his scheme may collapse without being attacked."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jun merely shrugged and said as though he did not care, "Who knows? None of us knows just how capable these Chaos Gods and Demons truly are. And who knows whether Hongjun has some backup plan? Still, no matter what, as long as all living beings can attain the Dao and countless Ancestors of the Dao emerge, that will be a good thing."

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