The Third Sermon at Zixiao, the Heavenly Dao Nears Completion

Myriad Dao Academy flourished above the East Sea, its Literary Radiance shining bright and its atmosphere magnificent, having truly become a pure land that could not be ignored.

However, the great trends of the Primordial Era, like an unceasing river of destiny, would not alter their inherent course due to the prosperity of a single corner.

Above the nine heavens, at the edge of Chaos Space, sat Zixiao Palace.

The palace gates opened once more, and Dao rhymes permeated the air.

This was the third and final time Dao Ancestor Hongjun would expound upon the Great Dao! Unlike the previous two sessions, the threshold for attending this time was even higher, and those who could step through these doors.

Were all top-tier innate Gods and Devils of the Primordial Era, beings of great fortune and great perseverance. The Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, Zhun-ti, Dijun, Taiyi, Kunpeng, Minghe...

Each of these Great Powers, who would stir up the winds and clouds in later ages, sat solemnly upon their prayer mats, listening to the Dao Ancestor expound upon the Primordial Saint Dao and the ultimate principles of heaven and earth.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun sat high upon his cloud bed, his figure becoming increasingly ethereal, as if he were merging ever more closely with the entire Zixiao Palace and the mysterious Heavenly Dao Will.

The Dao he spoke of was no longer specific cultivation methods or magical arts, but pointed directly to the fundamental rules governing the operation of the Heavenly Dao.

It involved fortune, causality, calamities, and even the mysterious and profound opportunity for the Saint Position!

The sound of the Great Dao roared; golden lotuses sprang from the earth, celestial maidens scattered flowers, and purple qi came from the east for thirty thousand li.

The Great Powers listened, entranced, some suddenly enlightened, others with brows tightly locked, some with faces full of joy, and others with hidden greed.

Especially when Dao Ancestor Hongjun mentioned the limited number of "Saint Positions," the atmosphere within Zixiao Palace became subtle and tense.

Every Great Power understood that after this sermon, the landscape of the Primordial Era would be permanently set, and the authority of the Heavenly Dao would be gathered into one.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun, this Ancestor of the Mystic Gate, would unite with the Dao, completing the Heavenly Dao; from then on, the Heavenly Dao would be Hongjun.

Hongjun would not be the Heavenly Dao. He would become a part of the Heavenly Dao, or rather, the Heavenly Dao would become an extension of his will.

For all beings of the Primordial Era, this meant the establishment of order and the perfection of rules.

But for an "anomaly" like Wanhua, who walked the path of self-contained Primordial Dao and did not rely on the merits of the Heavenly Dao.

Whose Dao lineage philosophy and the Mystic Gate Immortal Path—and even the soon-to-be-perfected Heavenly Dao order—held potential differences, this was undoubtedly an unprecedented and massive challenge!

After uniting with the Dao, Hongjun's will would be the Heavenly Dao Will.

At that time, Wanhua's Confucian Dao—a system that emphasized "people-oriented" values, "self-strengthening of the heart," and that "principles are higher than heaven's mandate."

Would it be viewed as a challenge to the authority of the Heavenly Dao? Would it be rejected and suppressed by the Heavenly Dao?

Could Myriad Dao Academy, this pure land, continue to exist and develop in the new era that was about to be completely dominated by the Heavenly Dao?

The academy observed quietly, while undercurrents surged.

The news of the third sermon at Zixiao Palace, and the signs that Hongjun was about to unite with the Dao, naturally reached Myriad Dao Academy.

At the level of Wanhua and Xuanjizi, they could already faintly perceive the pressure brought by that invisible, great power between heaven and earth that was currently converging, condensing, and about to reach perfection.

"Teacher, Dao Ancestor Hongjun is about to unite with the Dao. When the Heavenly Dao is perfected and order is reshaped, what will become of our academy..."

Xuanjizi showed concern as he sought guidance from Wanhua, who sat quietly in the Chaos Space. His cultivation had grown deeper, allowing him to better comprehend the vast and irresistible nature of the Heavenly Dao's great trend.

Wanhua slowly opened his eyes, his gaze calm, as if he had long since foreseen all of this.

He did not answer Xuanjizi's question directly, but instead asked in return: "Xuanjizi, you have cultivated the Confucian Dao until now; do you know upon what foundation the root of my Dao stands?"

Xuanjizi pondered for a moment before answering respectfully: "Returning to Teacher, the root of our Confucian Dao lies in the 'human' heart, in 'self'-strengthening, and in the universality of 'reason'.

We do not seek from external forces, nor do we rely on heaven's mandate; we only seek to clear the heart and see nature, to investigate things to attain knowledge, to let literature carry the Dao, and to control methods with reason."

"Not bad." Wanhua nodded slightly. "Hongjun uniting with the Dao and the perfection of the Heavenly Dao is a way of using external force to regulate heaven and earth, establishing order to bind all beings.

This is one path, but not the only path. Our Confucian Dao seeks to shape the universe from within and define order for ourselves.

The Heavenly Dao has its constants; it does not exist for the sake of Yao, nor does it perish for the sake of Jie. The principles of our Confucian Dao should be the same—not increasing or decreasing with the waxing and waning of the Heavenly Dao, and not wavering with the changes of the external environment."

His words carried a sense of absolute confidence and transcendence: "After he unites with the Dao, the Heavenly Dao Will will manifest, and it will inevitably reject philosophies different from the Mystic Gate. This is certain.

However, rejection is not destruction, and suppression is also a form of tempering. The key lies in whether our Confucian Dao itself is resilient enough, and whether our principles are sufficiently enlightened.

Whether we can hold onto our original heart under this great trend of the Heavenly Dao and carve out a heaven of our own."

He looked at Xuanjizi, his gaze deep: "This is a calamity, but also an opportunity.

Only by surviving this calamity can the Confucian Dao truly plant an unshakable foundation in the Primordial Era, and only then can its philosophy withstand the test of the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, truly qualifying to shine alongside eternity."

Wanhua did not just speak empty words; he had already begun to lay his plans in secret.

First, consolidate the foundation. He further strengthened the instruction of the academy's disciples, especially emphasizing the tempering of the "Literary Heart" and the independence of "reason."

He taught more methods and philosophies involving the tempering of the will, guarding the original heart, and resisting external evils.

At the same time, he accelerated the perfection and deepening of the academy's own Literary Dao Laws, making the "Literary Radiance Order" formed within it more self-contained.

Like a nation within a nation, it minimized reliance on the external rules of the Heavenly Dao as much as possible.

Second, build good relations and diffuse potential pressure. He tacitly allowed, and even encouraged, his disciples to engage in exchanges at the level of "Knowledge and Action" with other forces in the Primordial Era that were not core to the Mystic Gate.

For example, discussing the Earth Immortal path and the Principle of Benevolence and Generosity with Zhenyuanzi; exploring the difference between slaughter and "Righteous War" with Minghe of the Sea of Blood;

And even releasing limited information regarding "Order Governance" to Dijun and Taiyi of the Demon Race.

He demonstrated that the Confucian Dao did not blindly oppose conquest, but rather pursued a higher level of order and stability, attempting to reduce the future hostility of the Demon Race.

Third, delve deep into the principles of the "Yi" to search for the "variables" of the Heavenly Dao. Wanhua instructed Xuanjizi to lead the elite of the academy in a full-scale, in-depth study of the principle of the "Unchanging Change."

Although the Heavenly Dao is perfect, the Dao of Yi emphasizes change, the unchanging, and simplicity. Does the perfect Heavenly Dao also possess "cracks," "cycles," or "variables" within its operational laws?

Could they utilize the principles of Yi to find a "path of vitality" for the survival and development of the Confucian Dao under the shroud of the Heavenly Dao's order? This was an extremely difficult yet crucial deduction.

Fourth, prepare for the worst-case scenario. Wanhua himself began to use his Primordial Chaos Realm to deduce the operational mode of the Heavenly Dao after the unification with the Dao.

He assessed the level of pressure it might exert on the academy and quietly laid down deeper, conceptual-level defensive measures around the periphery of the academy and the East Sea.

These measures were not intended to oppose the Heavenly Dao, but rather to secure a buffer period and room for maneuver for the academy when the exclusion from the Heavenly Dao reached a certain level.

The mountain rain is coming, and the wind is sweeping through the pavilion.

Inside the Zixiao Palace, the sermon was nearing its end. The aura of Dao Ancestor Hongjun became increasingly vast and ethereal, his resonance with the Heavenly Dao reaching its peak. All the Great Powers knew that the time for the unification with the Dao was at hand.

Across the Primordial World, an invisible sense of restraint, as if all things were about to be drawn into a predetermined track, began to spread quietly.

Many keen-sensed Great Powers felt that their connection with the world had become clearer, yet also... more passive.

Above the Myriad Dao Academy, the Aura of Literary Splendor that soared into the sky seemed to feel an invisible pressure under this pervasive trend of the Heavenly Dao.

Though its light did not dim, it lost some of its previous unbridled flamboyance, gaining instead a sense of restraint and composure.

Xuanjizi stood before the academy's mountain gate, gazing at the increasingly distant and majestic firmament, his fists clenched tightly within his sleeves.

He knew that the "Calamity" and "Opportunity" his Teacher spoke of were about to arrive.

The future fate of the academy would depend on whether they could hold fast to their own principles in this silent collision with the order of the Heavenly Dao.

In the Chaos Space, Wanhua's gaze pierced through the void, as if meeting the eyes of the Dao Ancestor in the Zixiao Palace from afar.

"Uniting with the Dao... is nothing more than Drawing a Circle to Make a Prison.

The world is the board, and All Beings are the pieces. However, we who seek the Dao should be the ones holding the chess pieces; even within the game, we must fight for that sliver of opportunity for transcendence."

"Fellow Daoist Hongjun, your Dao is Order.

My Dao is Civilization. Let us see if the future of the Primordial World will be one where order swallows civilization, or where civilization... illuminates order."

Beneath these calm words lay a silent contest between two Primordial Chaos existences regarding the future path of the Primordial World.

A grand game concerning the survival of a Dao Lineage and the rise and fall of ideologies officially began as the day of Hongjun's unification with the Dao drew near.

The storm is coming, and Wanhua and his Myriad Dao Academy are already standing at the ready.