Two Clears

Wenchang Pavilion.

Chancellor of Literature Yan Baichuan gazed up at the Rainbow Road in the sky, blue light flickering incessantly in his eyes. He then extended a hand and tapped the empty air. An Eight Trigrams Illusion appeared in the void. Yan Baichuan pressed his palm against it and twisted his wrist. The illusion rotated with it, finally locking into place. The Chancellor of Literature glanced at the completed trigram and murmured—

"Using Nine: See dragons without a head. Auspicious."

Yan Baichuan gently closed his eyes. In the darkness, he seemed to see a back he had spent his whole life chasing. That figure's back was broad and majestic as he walked with his hands behind him atop the Spring and Autumn Annals. Wherever he went, withered wood bloomed anew and fallen flowers fluttered in profusion.

"Teacher, what did you seek all your life?"

"All my life, I have wished only for everyone in this world to be like dragons..."

The scene in his memories froze there. Yan Baichuan opened his eyes once more. After countless years without a ripple, his eyes suddenly misted over, and even the Rainbow Heavenly Road in the sky grew indistinct.

Shouyang Mountain.

Grand Celestial Master Dao Lord Qingwei constantly worked through his deductions. Blood seeped from beneath his fingernails and fell drop by drop onto the ground. The ordinary wild grass struck by Qingwei's blood unexpectedly began to emit a faint light. A hazy consciousness seemed about to be born, showing signs of becoming a demon.

"The Heavenly Secrets have been disturbed, so I can't determine who caused such an omen. But faintly, this person seems to have some connection with my Daoist sect." Qingwei frowned. "A fourth Heavenly Cultivation Road has appeared. The world is about to change..."

Dao Lord Qingwei turned and left. With a casual flick of his finger, the wild grass that was about to become a demon flew out of the soil like a strand of emerald thread. It wound around Dao Lord Qingwei's wrist and vanished from the spot along with him.

The Western Regions, west of the Ten Thousand Li of Yellow Sand. Temple after temple and tower after tower gleamed with gold and jade, while the scent of incense soared into the heavens.

At the top of a towering Heaven-Connecting Path, a figure seated upon a golden lotus slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the Rainbow Heavenly Road in the sky.

He extended a hand toward the sky and seemed to pinch something from the empty air. When he withdrew his hand, he was holding a flower that glittered with rainbow light.

He smiled faintly, lifted the rainbow flower beneath his nose, and gave it a gentle sniff. The flower instantly dissolved into light and vanished.

"This Rainbow Cultivation Road bears a marvelous resemblance to the Vajra cultivation of my Buddhist sect."

"The one who created this road has a karmic bond with my Buddha."

"He shall become a protector of my Buddhist sect."

As his voice fell, the tower top, which had been empty save for him, suddenly answered...

"We respectfully obey the Great Bodhisattva's decree!"

The Southern Border, the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, Holy Monarch Hall.

"Was it Human Han Qingzhu who attained the Dao?" A phantom descended into Holy Monarch Hall, with a wolf's head and a human body.

"No!" Another figure, seemingly a human scholar, also emerged. Yet when he opened his mouth, his tongue was a forked serpent's tongue. "Han Qingzhu served as Great Xuan Minister of War for twenty years, intending to use battlefield killing intent to open another cultivation road for the Human Race. This Heavenly Cultivation Road contains Literary Qi but no killing intent. It absolutely has nothing to do with Han Qingzhu."

"Then who was it? To think someone actually opened a fourth Heavenly Dao!" A bewitching voice rang out. A third phantom appeared in Holy Monarch Hall, but the owner of that delicate, coquettish voice was actually a hulking Elephant Clan Holy Monarch. "Since it contains Literary Qi, it ought to be a human..."

"Old Monkey, Sister Fox, you both understand divination. Have you discovered anything?" At this point, the Snake Clan Holy Monarch looked toward the void and spoke.

The void rippled, and a hunched old man leaning on a cane appeared, his entire body covered in white fur.

The Ape Clan Holy Monarch smiled faintly. "I would like to know as well, but the Heavenly Dao has concealed it. I truly can't calculate anything... Little Fox, what about you?"

"Not interested!"

A lazy voice came from the void, but its owner did not reveal herself.

"This Monarch is late." A clear voice rang out. A white tiger phantom emerged, its body covered in black patterns like lightning. The phantom slowly rose and transformed into a tall woman. Those lightning-like black patterns wrapped around her jade-like legs, while only a few tufts of fur covered the vital parts of her body.

The Snake Clan Holy Monarch looked at the White Tiger Female Monarch, a flash of heat passing through his eyes before he spoke. "Female Monarch, you arrived at just the right time. What do you make of this newly emerged Heavenly Cultivation Road?"

"The Three Thousand Li Heavenly Road is enough to cultivate to a level equivalent to Blood Refinement. That isn't important. What matters is whether this person can continue opening the road! The Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist Heavenly Cultivation Roads are all Ten Thousand Li long. If that person opens another three thousand li, there's no need for our Demon Race to prepare just yet."

The Holy Monarchs nodded slightly.

"What if that person opens nine thousand li?" the previously languid Fox Clan Holy Monarch suddenly asked.

The White Tiger Empress glanced toward the void where the Fox Clan Holy Monarch was and slightly raised the corner of her mouth. "We'll talk after he gets past the Human Race Half-Saint's trial..."

For a long while, no one else spoke.

"Then enter it into the Holy Hall Records and keep a close watch."

The Northern Territories, the Barbarian Plains, Golden Tent City.

An extremely bizarre figure stood atop the city wall. His entire body was blue and purple, with four eyes on his face, a hooked nose and fangs, and four arms growing from his body. He was terrifying beyond words.

At that moment, the upper pair of eyes looked toward the sky, while the lower pair gazed into the distance.

A breathtakingly beautiful woman also climbed onto the city wall and walked to the terrifying man's side. She asked softly, "A Lang, it's late at night. Why haven't you returned to the palace to rest?"

"Shalina, did you hear it?" the man asked.

The peerlessly beautiful woman called Shalina froze. "Hear what?"

"The cheers from the Human Race's Great Wall of Righteous Qi, ten thousand li away..." the man said calmly, pointing at the Rainbow Heavenly Road in the sky. "They're cheering because the Human Race has gained another cultivation road."

"A Lang, if you're worried, should we find the person who opened the road..." Shalina made a slashing gesture.

The man was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "The road has already been opened. Killing its creator now won't change anything. A mere Three Thousand Li Heavenly Road can't alter the Great Trend."

The man paused before continuing, "Still, I look forward to seeing whether he can keep opening it."

Shalina was puzzled. "A Lang?"

A trace of weariness crossed the man's ferocious face, but he offered no further explanation.

He turned around and lifted Shalina into his arms with both hands.

"Back to the palace!"

Floating Cloud Mountain.

Ning Bing was pinned down by Heavenly Might, unable to move. More and more cracks spread across the Soul Shaking Pagoda until they finally joined together. The Soul Shaking Pagoda shook violently, and at last, unable to resist any longer, exploded with a boom, blasting into pieces.

Chen Luo opened his eyes, and the ice covering his body melted away in an instant. He rose to his feet and slowly walked toward Ning Bing.

"How... how is this possible?" Ning Bing's eyes widened. The entire area was clearly suppressed by Heavenly Might. Why could Chen Luo move so freely?

Linking the Heavenly Cultivation Road in the sky, the sudden appearance of Heavenly Dao Pressure, and the Soul Shaking Pagoda that had exploded, a guess surfaced in Ning Bing's mind.

"No... impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Ning Bing screamed hysterically inside. She refused to believe it and was unwilling to believe it. The person she had been willing to destroy her cultivation to force Jin Guagua to release the Soul Merging technique was actually a prodigy who had opened an entire cultivation path.

Throughout the ages, it was not that no one had created new cultivation paths. But only the Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist paths had produced Heavenly Cultivation Roads. That was because all the other paths were dead ends: they could not reach the highest point and could not win the Heavenly Dao's recognition. Now that a Heavenly Cultivation Road had appeared, it meant this path possessed the potential to reach ten thousand li into the heavens.

This was the potential to become a Saint! Even if the chance of success was less than one in ten thousand, it still represented a possibility!

"Something must have gone wrong somewhere!" A final sliver of hope remained in Ning Bing's heart. She hoped she had not been wrong. "You're just an ordinary person. You haven't even awakened the 'All-Read' talent. How could you open a Heavenly Cultivation Road? There must be someone else nearby. It must be!"

Chen Luo stopped and looked up at the sky. Ning Bing followed his gaze upward, only to see a thick mass of auspicious clouds appear above Chen Luo's head. In the blink of an eye, it poured into his body like an inverted funnel.

"Heavenly Dao Destiny!"

The last trace of hope in Ning Bing's heart shattered. These auspicious clouds were precisely the destiny rewarded by the Heavenly Dao. If Chen Luo had not opened the Heavenly Cultivation Road, why would the Heavenly Dao reward him?

"What... what have I done?" As a Great Yin Cold Toad, Ning Bing felt cold for the first time. In the entire history of the Human Race, people like this had appeared only three times. In the end, they became the Confucian Sage, the Daoist Ancestor, and the Buddhist Buddha.

In terms of potential, Chen Luo was the fourth in all the ages.

Even if he could not reach the final step in the future, so what?

After all, it was true that Jin Guagua possessed the bloodline of a Star Devouring Toad, but that represented potential as well!

At last, Chen Luo finished absorbing the Heavenly Dao Destiny. As the Heavenly Might gradually dissipated, Ning Bing also regained the ability to move.

"Aunt Bing, is it?" Chen Luo looked at her coldly. "Do you have anything to say?"

Ning Bing gave a bitter laugh. "My lord, every mistake was this servant's fault. This servant failed to recognize Mount Tai. Please, my lord, don't take your anger out on Granny and Guagua. This servant will give you an explanation right now!"

After speaking, Ning Bing condensed an ice spike in her hand and fiercely drove it toward her throat!

"Ning Bing!" At that moment, a golden light shot over and struck the ice spike in Ning Bing's hand. The spike shattered, and a copper coin fell to the ground. Chen Luo turned his head. Wei Yan, Tian Ling, and Granny Jin had already arrived, landing beside the two of them.

Wei Yan and Dao Lord Tian Ling surrounded Chen Luo. When Ning Bing saw Granny Jin, her knees went weak, and she dropped to the ground before Granny Jin, tears streaming down her face.

"Granny, this servant was wrong..."

Granny Jin looked toward Chen Luo, pleading in her eyes. "My lord, Ning Bing was foolish. I..."

Ning Bing threw herself before Chen Luo and pleaded, "My lord, it was this servant's fault! This servant is willing to accept punishment!"

Chen Luo ignored Ning Bing and looked at Dao Lord Tian Ling, inclining his head slightly. "Dao Lord, Frog Brother saved my life. Can the Daoist sect compensate me on his behalf?"

Dao Lord Tian Ling was stunned for a moment before saying, "Jin Guagua possesses the bloodline of a Star Devouring Toad. The Dao Palace has a secret realm called the Star Tomb. If a Star Devouring Toad enters, it can obtain a great opportunity, enough to repay the debt of saving your life."

Chen Luo looked at Wei Yan, who nodded slightly.

"Let Jin Guagua enter. I'll become this Daoist sect's Virtuous Teacher!"

After saying this, Chen Luo extended a hand toward Granny Jin once more. A mass of destiny rose in his palm. Wrapped within it, a vibrant soul swam about. Looking closely, it was a frog.

"Pavilion Master Jin, take this soul. We're even now!"

The frog's call had already passed the spring equinox; the recommendation needs warming up.

Frog son ultimately missed his chance. So who will be the protagonist's first Soul Merging beast?

If you want to know,

keep reading~~

Seriously, I'm begging you with a sincere face—please recommend and vote for monthly tickets... (I only just realized those votes are still useful to me at this stage!)