Chapter 18

Luohu discovered that this Demonic Dao possessed a peculiar property called "Great Freedom," which he had only sensed before in the Ascetic Monk's Great Dao.

Focusing on this point, Luohu conducted a deep deduction and found that the repulsion between Buddhism and Demonic Dao had actually vanished within this new Demonic Dao.

This showed him an opportunity to break the balance of the Western Land.

From that point on, Tai Ming's existence became the key to the future three-way stalemate.

Tai Ming was perplexed—why had his casual attempt produced such far-reaching consequences?

He thought worriedly, "Could it be that I'm just being used as a tool?"

In reality, on Mount Sumeru, Tai Ming was treated unexpectedly well.

The outcome of the exchange between Luohu and the Ascetic Monk not only made the Ascetic Monk accept this "demon," but also led him to teach Tai Ming the Pure Land Buddhist Dao.

Within just a few hundred Yuan Hui, besides the Great Freedom True Demon Ghost Dao and Demonic Dao fortune, Tai Ming also comprehended the Great Freedom Pure Land Ghost Dao and Buddhist Dao fortune.

With the help of the new Great Freedom Pure Land Ghost Dao, he had already elevated the Great Freedom True Demon Ghost Dao to the peak of the Immortal Venerable God Realm.

This made Tai Ming's Ghost Dao system complex and diverse, encompassing the Beast Emperor of Reincarnation's Innate Reincarnation Ghost Dao, Luohu's Great Freedom True Demon Ghost Dao, Mount Sumeru's Ascetic Monk's Great Freedom Pure Land Ghost Dao, and even the Corpse Ghost Dao of his incarnation Jiang Chen, the Corpse Ancestor—all of which had reached the limits of his Ghost Dao main trunk.

Especially Jiang Chen's Corpse Ghost Dao, which in the Netherworld Blood Sea had already surpassed him, the original body.

Faced with all this, Tai Ming's emotions were too complex for words, and he joked to himself, "At this rate, maybe in the future I can incorporate the Heavenly Dao Lineage, Human Dao Lineage, and Immortal Dao Lineage all into my Ghost Dao system."

He, as the fortune tool of a Branch Vein derived from the Primordial Dao Lineage, could no longer deny his position and strength.

The self-deprecation revealed Tai Ming's ambitious nature.

Though the outside world buzzed with discussion about his identity as a "tool," he paid it no mind.

He firmly believed in his heart—if he could merge the Three Thousand Chaos Innate Great Daos and even the Myriad Daos of the Heavens into one, who could truly seize the initiative?

He possessed four Ghost Dao Branch Veins—the Innate Reincarnation Ghost Dao, the Great Freedom True Demon Ghost Dao, the Great Freedom Pure Land Ghost Dao, and the Corpse Ghost Dao—foundations that had already surpassed the limits of the Immortal Venerable God Realm.

Yet Tai Ming's existence was like a variable, shattering everyone's understanding.

Currently, outside Mount Sumeru, because of Tai Ming's interference, the balance of the Western Land had been broken, and a great war was imminent.

However, Tai Ming on Mount Sumeru remained safe, protected by the Ascetic Monk.

As long as he stayed here, he was the best bridge for cooperation between the Buddhist and Demonic Daos.

Even if war broke out, this place would be the safest.

So he began to consider breaking through his Ghost Dao to the Indestructible Grand Unity Venerable God Realm.

In the Primordial Era, the Divine Dao flourished; "the God and the Dao are one" was not empty talk but the core of Divine Dao cultivation.

Cultivation to the Indestructible Grand Unity Venerable God Realm was about developing the authority one possessed.

Different Innate Divine Beings had different understandings of the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm.

But no matter how the variations evolved, the key to breakthrough lay in authority—it was the Great Dao Foundation.

Why did Primordial Beings yearn to become Innate Divine Beings? All because of the allure of the Great Dao Foundation and the authority of Innate Divine Beings.

At the Primordial Chaos Beginning, the Three Thousand Chaos Origin Great Daos were nurtured to form the Chaos Void Universe, collectively constituting the Mother of the Great Dao, which in turn nurtured the Three Thousand Primordial Chaos Great Dao Demon Gods.

Though "Three Thousand" was not a specific number, this origin was the root that all beings pursued.

Dao Gives Birth to One, which then evolves into Two, and Two gives birth to Three, from which all things derive.

Three is the mother of all things, with no concept of a limit.

"Thousand" implies abundance, vastness, completeness, and boundlessness—immeasurable.

Thus, the Three Thousand Great Daos symbolize the boundless, immeasurable Great Dao origin laws of Chaos, and the Three Thousand Great Dao Demon Gods represent the immeasurable Great Dao Demon Gods within Chaos.

When the Primordial World was created, Innate Divine Beings were born, conceived from the Three Thousand Innate Great Dao Laws.

Primordial Innate Beings revered these beings as the Three Thousand Great Dao Divine Beings, their numbers incalculable.

At the Primordial Era Beginning, these Divine Beings were all transformed from the Great Dao Ancestral Qi, each born carrying an Innate Origin Ancestral Qi.

This Ancestral Qi was the Divine Being's authority and the Great Dao Foundation—innate in existence, and undefeated even in the acquired state.

Every Divine Being could represent a part of the Heavenly Dao, wielding authority over a portion of the Innate Great Dao.

Cultivation realms were essentially extensions of authority.

If authority was compared to a tree, the cultivation realm was its trunk.

The strength of the trunk signified the height of the cultivation realm; the number of branches showed how deeply the Divine Being had comprehended and derived their own Great Dao.

The authority of an Innate Divine Being was not the Innate Great Dao itself.

To grasp more Great Dao authority, one had to continuously perfect, deduce, and elevate it until it encompassed all things.

For innate Divine Beings born of heaven, "cultivation" is the process of continuously perfecting their authority and comprehending the Innate Great Dao.

Authority itself is the embodiment of the Great Dao.

Grasping a portion of the Great Dao thoroughly is enough to elevate a Divine Being to the pinnacle of the Primordial World—this is the true meaning of "the god and the Dao are one."

Beyond this, those who obtain the authority to establish a Dao postnatally and transform into Innate Divine Beings may also acquire a strand of Great Dao Ancestral Qi.

Though there is no distinction of strength between the two, a fundamental difference exists.

Innate Divine Beings cultivate the Innate Great Dao, where god and Dao are one. Aside from enduring the brutal and fierce Dao Struggle, they can directly reach the realm of Dao Lord of the Innate Great Dao.

Postnatally achieved Innate Divine Beings mostly establish their own Postnatal Great Dao—that is, a New Dao beyond the Three Thousand Chaos Origin Great Daos.

Compared to the eternal Chaos Innate Great Dao, the Postnatal Great Dao may grow or wither as the Dao evolves.

But this does not mean the Postnatal Great Dao is weaker than the Innate Great Dao.

For example, Cang Li Shi's Heavenly Dao and Yue Jianshi's Earthly Dao in the Primordial World are both Postnatal Great Daos. Though they transcend the Innate Great Dao, they are not inferior to it.

From the moment of their birth, these Postnatal Great Daos were built upon the Innate Great Daos represented by various top-tier Innate Divine Beings. Through the tempering of time, they absorbed the essence of the Three Thousand Great Daos and transformed into the source of the Primordial World. As long as the Primordial World endures, these Daos endure.

As cultivation progresses, the Branch Veins derived from the Dao gradually flourish, eventually surpassing the Three Thousand Great Daos.

The prominence of the Heaven, Earth, and Human Daos in the Primordial World makes this trend clear.

Though it remains unknown whether these three Daos have already surpassed the Three Thousand Great Daos, if achieved, the Ancient Three Sovereigns might rival Pangu Clan and the Mother of the Great Dao.

Understanding this, Tai Ming's path of cultivation in the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm became clear, and he recognized the potential and direction contained within the Ghost Dao.

With the establishment of the Ghost Dao, the concept of "ghosts" first appeared in the Primordial World.

When Tai Ming established the Ghost Dao, he was influenced by the Netherworld. Now he deeply understands the profound karmic ties with the Earthly Dao's Netherworld.

With the aid of the Netherworld's will, he rapidly absorbed the Innate Great Dao Origin Ancestral Qi of the Beast Emperor of Reincarnation, becoming an Innate Divine Being ahead of time.

After comprehending these things, Tai Ming felt the unfathomable depth of the Primordial World.

Fortunately, much of this was a great opportunity.

He resolved to repay the Earthly Dao Lineage when he had the power to do so in the future.

With his mind clear, Tai Ming began to deduce the core of the Ghost Dao, digging deep into its potential.

A Dao establisher in the Primordial World must gather the essence of the Innate Great Dao, absorb the potential of all Daos, and while fusing one Dao with myriad Daos, achieve Myriad Daos Return to One, refining the core essence of the Postnatal Great Dao.

In this way, their cultivation realm can advance by leaps and bounds, surpassing all beings, gods, and devils.

Otherwise, establishing a Dao without a foundation will only relegate one to a side path.

Take the Immortal Dao and Buddhist Dao in the Primordial World—both were established by Innate Divine Beings, yet their treatments were vastly different.

The Immortal Dao and Demonic Dao absorbed the essence of the Innate Great Dao, giving rise to myriad Daos.

But the Buddhist Dao failed to gain widespread recognition like the Immortal Dao, accepted only by a minority.

Thus, the Immortal Dao became an acknowledged Great Dao.

Tai Ming must open up the core of the Ghost Dao to truly master its power.

To become a Buddha, an Immortal, a Demon, or a Yao—and likewise a ghost—one must absorb the Three Thousand Innate Great Daos to enhance one's own foundation.

Tai Ming's goal is to unearth the potential of the Ghost Dao and move toward a higher future.

Time flowed like a shuttle. After witnessing the contrast between the Postnatal Great Dao and the Innate Great Dao, endless inspiration surged into Tai Ming's mind.

Sparks of wisdom flickered continuously, integrating all the knowledge he had previously absorbed, carrying out a transmission and reshaping of wisdom.

One day, during his deductions, Tai Ming unexpectedly discovered that the Ghost Dao, which he had not yet fully explored, harbored astonishing power.

The Innate Great Dao originates from the Chaos Void Universe. The fusion of the Three Thousand Innate Origin Great Daos is the supreme Dao order of the Primordial World.

Though the Postnatal Great Dao originates from the Pioneer of Dao, it is also an evolution of the Primordial World's foundation and is encompassed under the Innate Great Dao.

Its potential is limitless. If it absorbs the essence of the Three Thousand Innate Great Daos, it could even rival the Mother of the Great Dao of the innate Chaos Void Universe.

In the past, Tai Ming knew that comprehending the Dao was important, but he only half-understood its true meaning and benefits.

Now, he finally grasped the key, realizing that he had not fully unleashed the Ghost Dao's maximum potential before.

Therefore, as the Lord of the Ghost Dao, Tai Ming must think deeply and clarify his future cultivation direction.

In an instant, a decision formed in Tai Ming's heart, and a smile appeared on his face.

He now knew how to better develop his Ghost Dao and advance to a higher realm.

Since he had already chosen the path of the Postnatal Ghost Dao, establishing its core power became the top priority.

Only with a core could Tai Ming's Ghost Dao coalesce into one; otherwise, no matter how many insights he gained, they would remain scattered like loose sand.

Without a core, even breaking through to the Grand Unity Venerable God Realm would only make him a Three-No Grand Unity like Daoist You Quan, with feeble power.

The power Tai Ming currently possessed was enough for him to choose the Demon Dao or Buddhist Dao—two equally limitless Postnatal Great Daos—as the core of his Ghost Dao.

At this moment, he had already comprehended the corresponding Ghost Dao Branch Veins.

Choose one to merge into the Ghost Dao's Main Vein, and the Ghost Dao could fully take shape, fixing the current imbalance where the trunk Great Dao was weak while the Branch Veins flourished.

In the future, if possible, he could even contend for the fate of the Demon Buddha's two Dao masters.

As long as Tai Ming attained the Dao before the path-openers of the Buddha and Demon Daos, he could claim these Postnatal Great Daos under his own name.

But this path was fraught with risk—after all, the devouring and seizing between Great Daos was a two-way street.

One misstep, and Tai Ming might suffer backlash from these Postnatal Great Daos.

Considering his own insufficient strength, Tai Ming chose to abandon this tempting notion.

The Demon Buddha's two Daos were powerful, but in the end, they were not the Ghost Dao's own strength.

If he chose to rely on them, he feared not even bone fragments would remain, and the Ghost Dao would instead become a Branch Vein of those two Daos.

This was also why those powerful beings chose to let him be.

Thus, Tai Ming decided to forge a true core power unique to the Ghost Dao, merging the Great Freedom True Demon, the Great Freedom Pure Land, the Corpse Dao, and even the Innate Reincarnation Great Dao—along with the Three Thousand Innate Great Daos of the primordial wilderness—all into it, making the Ghost Dao a supreme Great Dao rivaling or even surpassing the Demon Buddha's Postnatal Great Daos.

This decision was not born from empty fantasy; he possessed the former Beast Emperor of Reincarnation's Innate Great Dao inheritance, allowing him to wander the Chaos in spirit through the inheritance and directly comprehend the obscure Innate Great Daos within.

Tai Ming settled his mind and began to accept the Beast Emperor of Reincarnation's inheritance, roaming within the true intent of the Chaos Great Dao.

This enabled him to incarnate as the Reincarnation Demon God of yore.

Seizing this opportunity, he had a chance to open a brand-new Great Dao surpassing the three paths of Immortal, Demon, and Buddha.

This was thanks to the Chaotic Cave Dao Heart Will he had comprehended on his own.

For anyone else, they might have been assimilated by the Beast Emperor of Reincarnation's will within the inheritance, transforming into an incarnation of the Innate Reincarnation Great Dao.

Opportunity was important, but without sufficient ability, it could not be grasped.

Having made up his mind, Tai Ming began to act, sitting cross-legged in the void.