Divine Path, Star Official!

Shen Yijun didn't stay with Li Qi for long; he quickly left the Lingchou Realm, after all, he was only there to help.

That's how powerful a martial artist is. After Li Qi revealed his background and helped suppress the opponent's Technique Method, he launched a surprise attack and single-handedly destroyed the opponent.

Meanwhile, after cleaning up the mess, Li Qi went to visit the Lord of Lingchou Realm.

Upon arriving at the office of the Lord of Lingchou Realm, Li Qi knocked on the door.

"Please come in..." came the weak voice of the Lord of Lingchou Realm from inside.

Li Qi pushed open the door and walked in. He saw the somewhat haggard Lord of Lingchou Realm. As a fifth-rank official, her appearance was really... not very presentable.

Because she already knew that the Heavenly Dao had been refined, and Li Qi hadn't even kept it from her.

This was the choice she made. After witnessing Li Qi, a sixth-rank official, suffer the backlash from the Heavenly Dao, she made her decision.

"It's Young Master Li... So, has everything settled?" Upon seeing Li Qi, the Lord of Lingchou Realm breathed a sigh of relief and slumped into his chair.

"The Realm Lord is a fifth-rank official, so he should be able to see the battlefield. Or has the Realm Lord closed his eyes?" Li Qi walked over and sat down opposite the Lord of Lingchou Realm.

"Yes, I dare not look, but... since it is you who came, the Human Path envoy should have already left, right?" The Lord of Lingchou Realm took a deep breath and barely calmed down.

"If the Dao heart of a Realm Lord is only like this, the road ahead will probably be very difficult." Li Qi did not answer her question, but instead started a new topic.

"What can we do? I am the Child of Destiny, and the fifth rank is the limit of my life." The Lord of Lingchou Realm naturally followed Li Qi's words and did not ask any further questions about the fate of the Human Path envoy.

Li Qi has already given a hint, so there's no need to ask any further.

"So the Realm Lord is the Child of Destiny, no wonder he is so... pathetic." Li Qi shook his head, his words a little harsher.

The Lord of Lingchou Realm did not refute, but continued the topic, "Now that the Heavenly Dao has been refined by you, young master, this world has fallen into your hands. Young master, could you please be merciful and let me wander outside the realm?"

"Why? My Refining the Heavenly Way is merely a temporary measure. I have no intention of dominating this world. I will return the Heavenly Dao with both hands later. I am only afraid that the World Lord will side with the Human Path. As for whether the World Lord is willing to join the Shaman Path, that is voluntary. The Shaman respect the wishes of the world's civilization itself," Li Qi said.

The Lord of Lingchou Realm gave a bitter smile, "Is it meaningful? If we don't join the Human Path, we will only be purged by Human Path. In the end, we will still have to choose one side to join."

"This isn't the fault of the Shaman Path. We won't force you, but... while we won't force you to join, you can't be enemies of the Shaman Path either, or you'll bring trouble upon yourselves." Li Qi shrugged, unwilling to take the blame.

The Shaman Path believes that everything in the world has its own place, and countless niche-like positions form a stable balance, which is the balance between 'heaven, Heaven, Earth, Humanity, Spirits, Ghosts' that Shaman want to maintain.

They rarely force others to do anything unless absolutely necessary. For example, if the Lingchou Realm wants to become an enemy of the Shaman Path, then needless to say, they will definitely take action.

However, if you don't interfere with the Shaman Path, the Shaman Path generally won't interfere with you either, unless you're particularly unlucky and encounter a Shaman wants to cause you trouble for personal reasons.

Personal reasons are another matter, as there are all sorts of reasons, but the Shaman Path as a whole generally follows a style of 'non-interference'.

"Yes, Human Path is not wrong, Shaman Path is not wrong, the fault lies with us, with the Lingchou Realm itself..." the Lord of Lingchou Realm murmured.

Li Qi did not answer, but instead released himself from control of the Heavenly Dao, then bowed slightly and left.

What a joke! Even the Shaman Path himself has no choice but to make a decision.

How can anyone do whatever they want? Li Qi may seem high and mighty, but wasn't he still forced to participate in the war?

Everyone has their difficulties.

Without lingering, Li Qi headed straight for the outer dock of the Lingchou Realm, preparing to depart from there.

There's no need to worry about the affairs of the Lingchou Realm anymore. The merchant guild I left behind will take care of things. Once the world group representing the fifth-grade world is stabilized, then we can head to the core of the Heart Mansion.

A rare phenomenon from beyond the borders: Great Fire.

Using the Method Formula that Shen Yijun gave me, let's see if we can truly communicate with the Great Fire and win over the Star Official with even a little bit of favoritism, or even absolute neutrality. That would be a great achievement.

Li Qi didn't waste any time. He had already spent so many years in the Lingchou Realm. Although a few years was nothing, after all, they were all immortal beings, and it was common for a small battle to take several years.

Thinking about all these random thoughts, Li Qi arrived at the dock outside the Lingchou Realm and put his Ghost Chariot down there.

The Ghost Chariot was vastly different from the surrounding flying boats. Hellish phenomena appeared all around, with little ghosts banging drums and gongs, and various underworld beasts howling, startling everyone around.

Li Qi ignored them and drove the Ghost Chariot, speeding across the outer realms amidst the strange phenomena.

A ghostly path stretched out, with spirits laughing and talking in the air, singing or crying. Ghosts were led along, which was extremely terrifying. The style was not good at all, but... it was quite in line with the general impression of Shaman in people's eyes.

It's normal for Shaman to be a little strange; Li Qi even performed a shamanic ritual during his sacrifices, so it's no different.

Under this style of action, Li Qi's speed soared to nearly a thousand times the Heavenly Way Limit. He raced wildly across the outer realms. If he maintained this speed, it would take about one year and three months to reach the largest world built by the Shaman Path itself, which was closest to the Great Fire. There, the branch of the Liesu.

Yes, the branch of the Liesu still has to be teleported through the Liesu. If you want to fly to the Great Fire at a speed a thousand times Heavenly Way Limit, it would take about three hundred years if you had to run at a snail's pace.

There's no way around it; the outer realms are vast and empty. Only those with great power or those who have no urgent business are qualified to travel there. Everyone else should stick to the paved highways.

The journey was incredibly boring; you could see practically nothing. Only very occasionally would you brush past some World-Class Giant Ship, but that was all. The ships couldn't even see Li Qi; they could only see the exhaust fumes from the Ghost Chariot.

More than a year passed peacefully before Li Qi arrived at Liesu's location.

This large world is of the fourth rank, and it was built by the Shaman Path himself. Originally, there were no native inhabitants.

That's right. Although it's Fourth-Rank World, it has no indigenous civilization and is just an empty shell. It's said that this is because the Heavenly Dao here is extremely tyrannical, destroying the world several times and eventually annihilating all civilizations, turning it into a lifeless dead land.

Of course, it is a dead zone, but the world itself is perfectly fine.

If the world exists only for survival, then life is unnecessary. It is life that needs the world, not the other way around.

After the Heavenly Dao destroyed the world several times, civilization itself could no longer influence the world, so it remained at the fourth rank until the Shaman Path discovered this world and refined it.

This is basically a small replica of Wushen Mountain, Shaman Path have modified with their own ideas.

Li Qi didn't linger here. He replenished his supplies, visited the clan members, left his information and traces, and then, using the branch of the Liesu, he arrived in the divine world not far from the Great Fire.

The area surrounding the Great Fire was a divine world controlled by the Star Official.

Li Qi was somewhat excited because it was the first time he had come into contact with the true 'orthodox Shintoism'.

As Shaman, they actually had a good relationship with the gods, and the Star Official were also the great gods that the Shaman often interacted with.

This is not something those wild gods can reach.

During the Liesu process, Li Qi couldn't help but feel a sense of longing. He was eager to see what the real divine world was like.

Several Chen later, Li Qi landed back in the outer void as he had wished.

Here, the 'Great Fire' stands out vividly, a blazing inferno hanging in the void, but it is neither scorching nor dazzling.

The Great Fire, which appears to be this bright from hundreds of thousands of light-years away, is now just a light-year or two away, yet it still appears to be this bright.

It seems that the light of the 'Great Fire' did not diminish at all, both initially and hundreds of thousands of light-years away.

However, this world is a collection of...

Empty and lifeless.

There was absolutely no sign of life.

Even in a place like the Lingchou Realm, World-Class Giant Ship can be seen everywhere, as well as personal flying boats. Numerous means of transportation shuttle through the stars, clearly demonstrating the vibrant life of the endless outer realms.

However, there was no life in this territory controlled by the gods.

Li Qi could feel the grandeur and magnificence. Under the immense power of the Great Fire, Li Qi could feel his own insignificance. He could also see many worlds operating in an orderly manner...

However... although it is operating, no one and no ship has broken through the world barrier. There seems to be no communication between them. These worlds must be very strong, worlds directly under the Divine Path. The intelligence that Li Qi had previously collected indicated that there were even fifth-rank officials stationed here.

How could such a powerful world group be like this?

No business? No communication?

Is this what orthodox Shinto is like?

With this question in mind, Li Qi drove the Ghost Chariot towards the divine world, which was relatively close to the Great Fire.

Although this isn't the main base of the divine path in the world, I should still be able to glean some information, right? Li Qi thought to himself.

It took him several days to slowly arrive outside a world barrier.

This world is completely blocked by barriers; you can't get in.

Generally speaking, in worlds like the Lingchou Realm, the world barrier will have an opening to facilitate entry and exit, so that it is not necessary to cross the world barrier every time one enters or exits.

However, in the world of gods, there is no such entrance at all. From the very beginning, those inside never intended to come out, and similarly, those outside cannot enter.

Li Qi frowned. He began his journey, spending several months visiting about one or two hundred universes.

This world group, with so many worlds, is like this in every single one.

Wow, what's going on?

What's with the boundaries of Shinto? Is it because they have no intention of communicating with humans at all?

Li Qi wandered in the void for half a year, but couldn't find a single person who could speak. The endless void was empty, with only the world running steadily, and there was nothing alive outside.

"Perhaps... the method is wrong?" Li Qi thought to himself, "Should I try invoking the gods?"

He thought about it, so he flew into the void, set up an altar, and began to try to invite the gods.

This is a common tactic used by Shaman, and also one of the signature skills of those Shaman.

The saying goes, "To speak to the gods is called 'prayer,' and to ask the gods to inflict calamity is called 'curse.'" This was also the way the earliest Shaman communicated with the Innate Spirits of the world.

Offerings were laid out, and rituals were prepared.

The wine cups are made of fine wine, and the pipes and chimes are played with restraint.

With reverence and respect, may your divine presence be radiant.

Tong Gui was granted early honors, and an imperial carriage was subsequently erected in his honor.

The sound reaches the music, and the blessings descend upon abundance and purity.

The wind blew through the air with the sound of sheng (a type of reed pipe), and a fragrant aroma filled the air; the gentle sounds of pipes and chimes also rose.

This was a grand ceremony, because Li Qi wanted to communicate with a wide range of beings, including all the worlds he could currently see in the void.

As a legitimate Shaman, his rituals were quickly answered.

And so, in that very instant—

With a loud bang!

Li Qi sensed a response from the 'gods'.

It's not the kind of deification that comes from being surrounded by believers.

They are not mountain and water deities who occupy mountains and rivers.

They are not fabricated, nonexistent deities.

Rather... it is a great road, a great road originating from the Heart Mansion!

Li Qi could see that the worlds he had visited before, the worlds where he had passed by and found the world barriers to be completely closed, had come to life.

These worlds, like meridians and acupoints,... make up a body.

Well...

A constellation chart?

In those paintings, Li Qi once saw constellations, with a few stars dotted out and then connected by lines, which in turn formed a rough outline.

However, the constellation outlines in the picture don't actually look very big.

But now... this so-called 'constellation', which is the gathering of hundreds of worlds, has responded and formed a body with pale blue starlight, appearing in front of Li Qi!

Li Qi had been pondering what the world of gods should be like, but he never imagined that... the Star Official lineage of the gods is the world itself! Moreover, it's not just one world; they are constellations, constellations composed of worlds!

Li Qi stared at the enormous body that probably covered half a light-year...

What kind of Star Official is this? What is their cultivation level?

Under such immense pressure, Li Qi took a deep breath and, relying on the composure he had developed from years of touching high-voltage power lines, carefully observed the Star Official's body.

First of all, this is definitely not High Antiquity Star Official; it should just be Orthodox God of the Star Official lineage.

The High Antiquity Star Official were at least of the third rank, including the Four Symbols, the Nine Luminaries, the Twelve Yuan Chen, and the Twenty-Eight Mansions. Each of them was a renowned and well-known figure. If you cannot recognize them, then they are definitely not the ones you are looking for.

If it's just an ordinary Star Official, then... they should be able to see through it.

Li Qi activated all his senses, using every means at his disposal except for the True Knowledge Dao Charm that had been sealed away.

He could clearly see inside the body of that Orthodox God...

They have no inner world, because their inner world is the real world.

They also do not have their own 'way', because the way of the gods is the most universal and common 'way of the world'!

God is heaven and earth themselves!

God is the concrete manifestation of the great power of heaven and earth; He is the innate Great Way!

"Shaman, what brings you to me?" The Star Official sent a silent message, but Li Qi felt it was deafening!