After Li Yi left, cultivators soon discovered the enormous block of Mystic Ice that encased Venerable Blazing Fire and the others. It caused a minor stir, but most cultivators were still reeling from the shock of the Venerable's residence, so they paid relatively little attention to it.
Before him lay a breathtaking immortal island. Grass grew lush and birds flitted through the air; streams burbled, and all kinds of creatures frolicked freely across the island. Compared with the Primordial Continent, where fighting broke out everywhere, it was truly a paradise.
More than three thousand years had passed since he left the island. Apart from the birth of more plant spirits, little had changed. Standing on the island, Li Yi felt a sudden sense of peace. It seemed he had truly come to regard Penglai Island as his home.
"Azure Flood Dragon, come out," Li Yi sent out telepathically.
"Roar! Master, you've finally returned to the island!" A hundred-zhang-long azure shadow shot out from the island's center, sending the plant spirits into a commotion.
"You're at the mid-stage of the Mystic Immortal realm now, Azure Flood Dragon. Looks like you haven't been slacking off," Li Yi said happily as he looked at the Azure Flood Dragon, water vapor curling around its body. After all, the Azure Flood Dragon was the first creature to follow him, so naturally, the stronger it became, the better.
"Master, you didn't take any mounts while you were out in the Primordial World, did you?" As he spoke, it furtively glanced behind Li Yi. Seeing no other spirit beasts, it let out a long sigh of relief.
"Are you asking for a beating? I told you I wouldn't take one, and I meant it." So the rascal was still afraid someone would take its place. Li Yi found it rather amusing.
After returning to Penglai Island, Li Yi planned to cultivate in seclusion. Whether fighting and slaughtering or traveling through the Primordial World, neither did much for his cultivation anymore. Even when they did, the effect was quite limited. The most important thing now was to analyze the Sword Dao, discard the dross and keep the essence, and elevate it.
And so Li Yi shut himself away from worldly affairs on Penglai Island. He quietly recalled the slaughter and travels of the past three thousand years, constantly reflecting on himself: which things he had done right, which he had done wrong, which he should have done, and which he should not have done.
He kept probing for the root of everything and chastening his own heart, casting away all those tangled thoughts and purifying his mind step by step, until the intent of his Sword Dao grew ever purer.
Over the years, the aura of slaughter that clung to Li Yi after countless battles gradually faded, until it vanished completely. The Power of Slaughter within him grew mild and gentle. It no longer carried the heavy aura of death and seethed with killing intent beneath its restrained surface as it once had.
Now the Power of Slaughter had returned to simplicity, existing as a pure force. Its might had not diminished but increased, while the burden it placed on his body had lessened considerably.
Li Yi had always been clear about the path he cultivated: to overcome Nirvana through the Sword Dao and evolve Reincarnation through it. He would enter the Dao through the sword and devote himself to the Sword Dao; everything else was secondary.
After analyzing it all over the years, Li Yi divided the Sword Dao into four realms:
The first realm was the Nirvana Sword Dao, corresponding to the Golden Immortal realm. When the Slaughter Sword Dao reached great perfection, the extreme of yin gave birth to yang, and one comprehended the Power of Life to achieve balance between life and death, one would attain the realm of the Nirvana Sword Dao.
The second realm was the Reincarnation Sword Dao, corresponding to the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm. The intent of life and death could transform at will, the unreal and the real gave rise to one another, and cause and effect revolved in endless cycles.
The third realm: Rule Sword Dao.
The fourth realm: Law Sword Dao.
At present, Li Yi had a clear understanding of only the first and second realms of the Sword Dao. He knew the general direction of the Rule Sword Dao and Law Sword Dao, but his understanding of them was still vague.
As Li Yi continued to comprehend the Sword Dao, day after day passed. Compared with the days when slaughter had been unceasing, this period was remarkably peaceful.
Before he knew it, another hundred thousand years had passed. During this time, Li Yi occasionally preached on the island. Whenever he did, many plant spirits came to listen, in addition to the Azure Flood Dragon.
At first, the plant spirits had been somewhat afraid of him. But as time went by, they realized Li Yi was actually quite mild-tempered. Now Lotus Root Saplings, ginseng children, and other spirits often played around him.
Li Yi liked these plant spirits. They were innocent and carefree, and watching them play always filled his heart with warmth and calm.
While Li Yi cultivated the Sword Dao in seclusion on Penglai Island, the atmosphere across the Primordial World grew strange again after more than a hundred thousand years. Many Grand Unity Golden Immortals had been stuck at the Great Luo Realm for years, unable to advance any further. They needed more of Heaven and Earth's favor and a stronger momentum from Heaven and Earth to help them break through.
Moreover, over the past hundred thousand years, the ferocious beasts had grown increasingly violent, their eyes faintly tinged red.
The various factions were making plans and preparations. The alliance of the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans, however, did the opposite of what everyone expected: it gradually withdrew its forces, retreating toward the coast, volcanoes, and deep mountains.
All these strange signs showed that this calamity would be unimaginably terrible.
At Buzhou Mountain, in a mysterious cave abode, Main Body stood up for the first time in all these years. His silver-white eyes seemed deeper than ever, and flashes of Rule runes flickered across his body. The once vast and imposing aura was now completely reined in. Main Body seemed to have merged with Heaven and Earth, without the slightest hint of existence.
Main Body went to the twelve Blood Cocoons. A flash of white light crossed his eyes, and twelve beams of white light shot from them into the cocoons. With a casual wave of his hand, dense restrictions covered the entire cavern.
Once he had finished, Main Body pointed at the space before him. Ripples shimmered across it, slowly forming a void. He stepped inside and disappeared, while the space gradually returned to stillness.
On Kunlun Mountain, Daoist Hongjun gazed quietly at the sky and murmured, "The great calamity is upon us. It's time to leave the mountain." With that, he transformed into a streak of light and flew away.
On an ordinary mountain in the Primordial World, an old man with a willow branch stuck in his head let a glint of light flicker through his dim eyes. "It's time." Then he vanished.
In the western part of the Primordial World, at the heart of the mysterious Demon Domain, stood a pitch-black great hall. A black-haired man whose aura was as deep as the sea sat upon the throne, his face obscured by darkness. "Hahaha... My era is about to begin. Soon, every living being in the Primordial World will grovel at my feet!" The black-haired man laughed arrogantly.
On Penglai Island, Li Yi's comprehension of the Sword Dao grew deeper and deeper. He had completely discarded his six former sword techniques. As he quietly studied the Sword Dao, a black lotus appeared behind him. It was very different from before: only a hundred zhang across, with twelve branches, and purer than ever in its blackness.
Now, with a casual point of his finger, a black lotus appeared in the air. With every step he took, a black lotus appeared beneath his feet. The Dao and his body had become one.
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