Heading to Zixiao Palace

As the various great powers emerged and hurried toward Purple Cloud Palace, five hundred years flashed by at Western Mount Sumeru.

Over those five hundred years, Jiang Yun used the Golden Spirit Pearl and Water Spirit Pearl to draw Metal and Water elemental origin qi into his lungs and kidneys. He refined the qi with a secret method, then circulated it through his five organs to temper the Five Qi. After years of accumulated effort, the Metal and Water elements among the Five Qi in his Chest finally reached perfection as well.

The quality and quantity of the Five Qi in his Chest rose rapidly. As the Five Qi grew stronger, his physical body and primordial spirit were nourished by them and quickly expanded like balloons. The quality of the magical power he cultivated improved greatly too, and his cultivation rose swiftly from the Early Taiyi Golden Immortal realm to the late stage of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm.

Although he had barely entered the late stage of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm, Jiang Yun was not overly pleased.

His cultivation realm had advanced too quickly, and his physical body, magical power, and primordial spirit had not had time to be carefully tempered. They were all rather unstable. He could feel that his foundation was far less solid than before, and he would still need to spend a great deal of time slowly strengthening it.

That day, after Jiang Yun slightly consolidated his cultivation, he calculated that the time was about right. He left his cave abode ahead of time and waited before the Grand Hall.

After only a short while, Jieyin and Zhunti also walked out of the Grand Hall. He stepped forward and saluted them. The three did not exchange many words before setting off directly, transforming into a streak of Evasion Light.

Along the way to the Outer Chaos, Primordial Desolation beings heading to Purple Cloud Palace could be seen everywhere.

Among them were all kinds of great demons with mixed auras, as well as grass and wood immortals overflowing with pure qi. There were also countless strange spirits born from stubborn rocks. Everyone had different thoughts, but the goal was the same.

There were occasional clashes between beings along the way, but most simply hurried on in silence without provoking trouble. Whenever they encountered one another, they tacitly lowered their heads and continued onward, afraid they would not make it in time to hear the Dao.

To reach Purple Cloud Palace, they first had to pass through the Nine Heavens Gale and arrive at the Primordial Desolation Starry Sky. This single step alone eliminated an unknown number of people.

The Nine Heavens Gale lay at an extremely high altitude in the Primordial Desolation World, far from the earth, where spiritual qi was thin. All kinds of divine winds formed from the power of wind laws filled the area. These divine winds were extraordinarily fierce, moving at tremendous speed like sharp blades raging through space. Even incomparably sturdy magical treasures and spirit treasures would gradually be worn down and torn apart after being blown by the Nine Heavens Gale for a long time.

Many cultivators whose physical bodies were not strong enough and who lacked powerful defensive spirit treasures were either heavily wounded and forced to turn back while crossing this layer of gale, or had their magical power exhausted before being torn to pieces by the gale.

Even after crossing the Nine Heavens Gale, the path ahead led to the Void Turbulence.

This was the border region of the Inner Chaos, where the Primordial Desolation Starry Sky met the Chaos. Because the Chaos Qi was too powerful, capable of dissolving primordial spirits and corroding physical bodies, only Grand Luo Golden Immortals could withstand it. Thus, the Chaos Aura that surged wildly throughout this region was also known as the Void Turbulence.

Many cultivators below the Grand Luo realm were helpless when they arrived here and saw this scene.

The Dao Ancestor's preaching was never something ordinary people could reach. Cultivation, perseverance, destiny, and wisdom were all indispensable.

Jieyin and Zhunti brought Jiang Yun swiftly through the region and arrived here with ease. This was also his first time reaching the Primordial Desolation Starry Sky.

Before he could examine it carefully, the three plunged headfirst into the Chaos again.

Only after truly stepping into the Chaos did Jiang Yun feel the terror of this unknown domain. Although he had glimpsed a corner of the Chaos before through fragments of inherited memories, those memories had been from the perspective of a Chaos Spiritual Root like Jianmu. The sensation was still completely different from what he felt before his eyes.

All he could see was darkness.

There was no distinction between up and down or left and right, nor were there concepts of time or space. The complete silence naturally inspired overwhelming terror.

Chaos Aura surged wildly all around them. From time to time, a Chaos Storm would sweep past. If one was even slightly careless and got caught in it, one could easily be shattered to pieces, and escaping afterward would be unimaginably difficult.

Jieyin and Zhunti kept Jiang Yun between them. Divine protective light rose around their bodies and formed a protective sphere that shielded the three from the impact of the currents.

No one knew how long they traveled through the Chaos. The deeper they went, the stronger the currents striking their bodies became, and the more frequently Chaos Storms appeared. By then, Jieyin had already taken out the Twelve-grade Merit Golden Lotus and floated it above the three of them with his magical power, protecting everyone. Zhunti had also taken out the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree to observe the surrounding situation. Whenever a strong current or small storm surged over, he immediately waved the treasured tree and scattered it.

Jiang Yun was not idle either. He still had quite a bit of Three Lights Divine Water on him. At a time like this, he could not worry about wasting it, so he replenished the two men's condition at intervals. This made Jieyin and Zhunti ache with reluctance, but they did not say anything.

Just as the three began to feel slightly tired, a vague sensation suddenly rose from their hearts. Joy immediately surged through them, and their spirits were invigorated.

After exchanging some spiritual-sense messages, the three confirmed the direction of the sensation and continued onward.

The location of Purple Cloud Palace was mysterious beyond measure and profound beyond comprehension. Everyone who entered the Chaos had to undergo a trial before sensing its location. Of course, the Three Pure Ones were orthodox descendants of Pangu and possessed the great merit of creating the world, so they naturally did not need to be tested.

As for everyone else, each possessed tremendous destiny, and the road each person took toward it was different. A thousand people meant a thousand roads.

Thus, following the sensation, the three continued traveling for a long time. They had gone on so long that Jiang Yun was beginning to grow impatient when a magnificent, majestic, and solemn palace suddenly appeared ahead.

Endless auspicious light spread outward alongside purple qi, resembling a gigantic source of light that guided everyone toward it.

The three were overjoyed, their vexation instantly vanishing, and hurriedly accelerated toward it.

When they reached Purple Cloud Palace, they saw two little Daoist boys standing guard at the entrance, a boy and a girl on opposite sides. The palace gates stood open.

Seeing this, Jiang Yun thought, With the support of my Three Lights Divine Water along the way, Master and Martial Uncle finally didn't have to appear after enduring countless dangers in tattered clothes. They also don't seem to have arrived too late—the palace gates are still wide open.

These two little Daoist boys must be Haotian and Yaochi. They were truly adorable, with round, smooth little faces, forcing themselves to look like solemn little adults. Both had already reached the realm of Golden Immortal Perfection.

The three tidied themselves up briefly before walking into Purple Cloud Palace.

Jiang Yun followed behind Jieyin and Zhunti. As he passed Haotian and Yaochi, he smiled faintly at them and nodded in greeting.

After entering the palace, the three looked around at its interior.

The entire hall was tall and spacious. More than a dozen pillars rose so high that their tops could not be seen. At the heights above, thousands of strands of auspicious qi and myriad rays of light shone down, while clouds condensed from spiritual qi surged across the floor.

The palace floor was forged from bluestone of an unknown material. It was simple and natural, making one feel as though they had entered a forest. On the surrounding walls, Congenital Divine Script appeared and vanished from time to time, as if conveying some profound and wondrous truth.

By then, every seat in the palace was already occupied. Everyone present was a great being with extraordinary Root Foundation and profound auras. Not one of them was below the Grand Luo Golden Immortal realm.

The seats toward the front of the hall allowed one to hear the Dao more clearly. Six meditation cushions had been placed there, and people had already taken their seats on them. Everyone else sat directly on the floor.

No one who could reach Purple Cloud Palace was a fool. There were only six meditation cushions in the entire hall, so there was naturally something mysterious about them.

However, none of those who had secured seats was easy to deal with. The others considered this place the Dao Field of a Saint and did not dare rashly cause trouble. Although they coveted the meditation cushions, they still dared not act recklessly.

The moment Jieyin and Zhunti saw the meditation cushions, they sensed something in their hearts. To the two of them, these cushions seemed to represent an enormous opportunity that absolutely could not be abandoned. Yet seeing everyone else's posture, they did not dare cause trouble without reason and could only grow secretly anxious.