Chapter 16

The result was unexpected. The two Divine Beings were defeated without being able to resist at all.

Tai Ming found it somewhat boring. Judging from his memories of the Primordial Wilderness, their level of strength seemed weaker than he had expected.

After calming himself, Tai Ming handed the two Divine Beings over to the Heart of the Earthly Path within him.

He turned his gaze toward Daoist You Quan. "Daoist You Quan, how did the Earth Emperor's Earthly Dao Lineage end up in such a state?"

Daoist You Quan came back to himself and helplessly explained the current state of the Primordial World to Tai Ming.

With a change of thought, he invited Tai Ming into the nearby Hun Ming Mountain Range to explain everything in detail.

At that moment, Tai Ming and You Quan appeared at the place where the Innate Undying Spiritual Light had emerged.

This was precisely Daoist You Quan's Dao Field.

A banner drifted over from the distance. It was the lower-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure that Daoist You Quan had previously refined—the You Quan Banner. It fell into You Quan's hand without the slightest resistance.

Next, they entered a Dao Palace.

Daoist You Quan entertained Tai Ming with the finest Houtian Spirit Fruits, then began telling him about the bleak state of the Earthly Dao Lineage in the Primordial Wilderness.

As time passed, Tai Ming quietly listened to Daoist You Quan's account. His gaze remained clear and undisturbed.

Yet the slight movement of his eyes revealed the turmoil within his heart.

He had finally learned the current state of the various major factions from You Quan. The Earthly Dao Lineage was in the most dire circumstances.

Ever since Yue Jianshi established his Dao, the God Clan had entered a new era, and the Earthly Dao Lineage had emerged in response.

But during the era when Jiu Tou Shi rose to prominence, all the various factions chose to lie low, and the Earthly Dao Lineage became especially discreet.

After the era of the Ancient Three Sovereigns ended, the Earthly Dao Lineage had long since lost its former glory.

Even so, it remained one of the top factions in the Primordial Wilderness.

However, new changes later occurred throughout the entire lineage of the Ancient Three Sovereigns.

Now, the lineage of Jiu Tou Shi had risen and become one of the most powerful factions among the Five Directions.

White Emperor Rahu had established the Demonic Dao independently, engaging in endless conflict with the Nameless Ascetic Monk among the Five Old Lords while also remaining locked in a stalemate with the White Tiger Clan.

Green Emperor Yang Mei, meanwhile, had chosen to conceal himself, leaving no one aware of his whereabouts.

Now, only a few ancient Innate Divine Beings from the Divine Court still persevered in upholding the glory of Jiu Tou Shi.

The current state of the Earthly Dao Lineage was even more alarming.

After it had just reappeared in the world, Dao Lord Hongjun, Yin-Yang Ancestor, and Qian Kun Daoist—the three most top-tier Innate Divine Beings among the Five Old Lords—had already offered it their support.

In addition, the Heavenly Dao Lineage unexpectedly revealed three top-tier Innate Divine Beings—Cang Tian, Qing Tian, and Huang Tian, the Three Heavens Supreme. It also brought forth the Realm of the Nine Heavens that Cang Li Shi had opened in the past, causing the Heavenly Dao Lineage to rise instantly and become the undisputed number one faction in the Primordial Wilderness.

However, compared with the glory of the Heavenly Dao Lineage, the Earthly Dao Lineage faced an even more difficult situation.

The Yellow Old Lord among the Five Old Lords and Yellow Emperor Shi Qilin among the Five Directions Divine Emperors had ** the Earthly Dao Lineage **, while Shi Qilin had even taken most of the Earthly Dao Divine Beings into the Qilin Divine Race, leaving only the Yellow Old Lord to support it alone.

However, because he had to guard Buzhou Mountain, the Earthly Dao Lineage had practically lost all external support from top-tier Innate Divine Beings. The other factions continued to pressure it, leaving it in an extremely difficult position in the Primordial Wilderness. Even newly born Earthly Dao Divine Beings like You Quan had no decent inheritance.

Hearing this, Tai Ming sighed deeply. "The lineage of the Three Sovereigns has actually fallen to this state."

He knew that restoring the glory of the Earthly Dao Lineage would be a long and arduous task.

The Heart of the Earthly Path possessed Tai Ming's body. After obtaining this information from the souls of Daoist Zi Xu and Molten Mountain Daoist, it felt deeply embarrassed.

It had originally thought that, as the Dao lineage inherited from Yue Jianshi, the Earthly Dao Lineage would not be in such a poor state. Reality, however, had far exceeded its expectations.

Although the Earthly Dao Lineage had been marginalized, in the eyes of the Heart of the Earthly Path, as long as the Netherworld and the Heart of the Earthly Path existed, the Earthly Dao Lineage would always possess the foundation to rise again.

Moreover, there was the Guardian of the Dao from the Old Era, the Yellow Old Lord, as well as the Innate Divine Beings of the New Era, such as Tai Ming and Jiang Chen. The Netherworld also had Ming He and Huang Quan, two Innate Divine Beings still being nurtured.

The Heart of the Earthly Path firmly believed that once these forces matured, restoring the glory of the Earthly Dao Lineage would not be difficult.

Thinking this way, it felt much better.

Next, the Heart of the Earthly Path gave Tai Ming some instructions...

In the Hun Ming Mountain Range of the northern Primordial Wilderness, the Heart of the Earthly Path and Tai Ming decided, after careful consideration, to temporarily conceal their identities as Innate Divine Beings of the Earthly Dao Lineage.

They turned their attention to the most urgent problem at hand.

Facing Daoist You Quan before him, Tai Ming still felt troubled despite the fact that he was a Grand Unity Venerable God of the Earthly Dao Lineage.

Although You Quan seemed outstanding in some aspects, his strength made Tai Ming feel that he was far too weak, nearly becoming a burden.

After receiving the reminder from the Heart of the Earthly Path, Tai Ming realized that such a situation was actually quite common in the Primordial World.

Most Innate Divine Beings without a good inheritance faced difficulties similar to You Quan's.

However, when he compared this with what he had seen of people like Zi Xu and Molten Mountain Daoist, he suddenly reassessed himself and gained a little more self-recognition.

As the Dao Opener of the Ghost Dao Lineage, he was far from insignificant in the Primordial World. Instead, he was highly respected.

Although establishing the two Great Daos of ghosts and corpses in succession seemed simple, no one could know the effort and uniqueness hidden behind them.

As an ascender, his starting point had been low, but his experiences before ascending had given him a unique foundation.

That foundation was as ordinary as the corpse-refining techniques of the One Man World, yet in the Primordial World, it could evolve into a racial Great Dao and reveal its extraordinary nature.

By comparison, the native Innate Divine Beings of the Primordial World were constrained by their environment and inheritances.

Against this backdrop, the Heart of the Earthly Path and Tai Ming decided to turn their attention toward the broader situation. They realized that they had to accomplish something major to change the circumstances of the Earthly Dao Lineage in the Primordial World.

Creating an entirely new path containing limitless potential was an incomparably arduous task.

It surpassed the scope of experience and wisdom and was more closely related to differences in worldview.

Having comprehended the Innate Great Dao Laws of Yin-Yang, life and death, reincarnation, and others, Tai Ming had already surpassed most Primordial Beings while creating a practical Ghost Dao.

With the support of the Hun Dong Will, which had received the Baptism of Pangu's Will, his cultivation was even more profound.

Those Innate Divine Beings capable of establishing a new Dao and gaining a foothold in the Primordial Wilderness through tempering all possessed extraordinary qualities.

The common understanding in the Primordial Wilderness was that Dao Openers were far stronger than Innate Divine Beings of the same level.

Previously, because the Heart of the Earthly Path held him to such high standards, Tai Ming had not realized his own advantages. Only after comparing himself with people like You Quan did he recognize his extraordinariness.

The Heart of the Earthly Path smugly mocked Tai Ming for having too narrow a perspective.

After mocking him, the Heart of the Earthly Path warned Tai Ming to beware of the potential threats around him and act decisively.

The outcome of the exchange between the Heart of the Earthly Path and Daoist You Quan in You Quan's Dao Field remained unknown.

But after learning that a powerful expert was protecting Tai Ming, Daoist You Quan became even more respectful toward him.

He promised to follow Tai Ming's instructions, go to the Netherworld Blood Sea to deal with the relevant matters, and draw away the pursuers from the Xuanwu Clan for Tai Ming.

"I hope you can display the might of the Earthly Dao. Farewell."

With those words, You Quan confidently departed with Zi Xu and Molten Mountain Daoist, whose wills had been corrupted.

This turn of events left Tai Ming somewhat stunned.

He asked the Heart of the Earthly Path curiously, "Senior, how did you communicate with him? Why does it seem as if I'm about to participate in some major affair?"

The Heart of the Earthly Path replied, "That idiot was much easier to fool than you. There's no way to deal with a cautious brat like you.

"But you're not wrong. We're going to do something 'major' next."

As it spoke, the Heart of the Earthly Path revealed a look of anticipation.

Thunderous roars rang out as flashes of Innate Dharma Power and spiritual energy erupted. Under the concentrated barrage of attacks, an ancient divine mountain was reduced to dust.

A figure dodged the attacks at astonishing speed. It was Tai Ming, who had just left the Hun Ming Mountain Range.

With gritted teeth, he said with a hint of "gratitude," "This is the major affair you mentioned?"

The Heart of the Earthly Path replied, "What are you thinking, brat? Hurry up and run. You can't even deal with these small fry, yet you still want to attain the Dao and become an Ancestor?"

Its tone was full of schadenfreude. Clearly, it was taking revenge on the Xuanwu Clan while "tempering" Tai Ming.

Tai Ming's figure vanished instantly. It had only been an illusion; his true body had already escaped.

The next moment, several divine-light figures whose realms surpassed Tai Ming's appeared at the site. They were experts of the Xuanwu Clan, beyond the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm.

This was the second time ** Tai Ming's Xuanwu Clan experts.

They said furiously, "He got away again. Keep chasing him."

Remembering the humiliation of having their three Grand Unity Venerable Gods tricked earlier, they were determined to capture Tai Ming. Otherwise, they would become a laughingstock among the other four clans.

They then swiftly pursued the direction in which Tai Ming had vanished.

Ahead, Tai Ming felt deeply that the Heart of the Earthly Path was like a massive trap as he fled.

During this period, he had been constantly busy dealing with attacks from the Xuanwu Clan.

Following the Heart of the Earthly Path's instructions, he had repeatedly disrupted the Xuanwu Clan's operations in the northern region.

Among the members of the Xuanwu Clan who tried to stop him were no shortage of Innate Divine Beings, along with several experts of the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm.

Although the Heart of the Earthly Path concealed the Heavenly Secrets for him, allowing him to evade the calculations of Grand Unity Venerable Gods, the Xuanwu Clan still insisted on sending elite forces to capture him.

This was the second wave of elite forces. Their leader had already reached the peak of the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm.

Facing such powerful enemies, Tai Ming had gained and grown, but he still felt powerless.

Although he was in a sorry state when facing his enemies, his experience in combat had increased, and his use of the Ghost Dao had reached the point of perfection.

During this period, his Eight Wonders Technique had successfully transformed to the level of Great Dao Laws, becoming a true divine ability.

He knew that all of this was the Heart of the Earthly Path's tempering.

Without such tempering, given the domineering attitude of the Five Directions Divine Race, a Grand Unity Venerable God would have intervened long ago.

In this world, there was no such thing as bullying the weak with superior strength.

The key point was that the Heart of the Earthly Path helped Tai Ming resist the calculations of the Grand Unity Venerable Gods while allowing him to display his powerful potential.

After experiencing a series of challenges, Tai Ming was about to face the pursuit of the Xuanwu Clan.

At the crucial moment, the Heart of the Earthly Path's protection concealed the predictive abilities of those Grand Unity Venerable Gods, making them realize that a true existence stood behind Tai Ming.

Thus, Tai Ming gained a clear understanding of his own strength and abilities.

After hearing this, the Heart of the Earthly Path also put away its attitude of watching from the sidelines.

"Your performance has been outstanding enough. Although you have yet to reach the peak I expect, you have already taken an important step."

Although the Heart of the Earthly Path was extremely satisfied with Tai Ming's achievements, even when it thought he had reached his limit, he could always display yet another surprise.

Therefore, aside from helping him block the deductions of the Grand Unity Venerable Gods, the Heart of the Earthly Path had given Tai Ming no assistance at all.

Facing the Xuanwu Clan at the peak of the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm, Tai Ming successfully escaped through his own strength after suffering one setback.

At present, Tai Ming had yet to enter the Taiyi Realm, but his performance against a true genius of the Xuanwu Clan was astonishing.

As Tai Ming and the Heart of the Earthly Path were about to end this trial, the Xuanwu Clan, which had failed to catch him from behind, began to grow furious.

The leading Xuanwu, being at the peak of the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm, felt that Tai Ming was playing him for a fool, as if Tai Ming were toying with them by relying on his speed.

Although Tai Ming was only at the Immortal Venerable God Realm, his speed was actually superior to that of the Xuanwu.

They could neither shake Tai Ming off nor catch him, and every moment filled them with frustration and fury.

One member of the Xuanwu Clan angrily proposed asking the Grand Unity Venerable Gods within the clan for help.