Group Transformation

[Xiao Yan: This visualization diagram is ridiculously incredible! I only glanced at it, and the Flame Mantra I cultivate and the Heavenly Flames inside me are already merging and transforming!]

[Emperor Yongle: I bow in gratitude to the High Immortal for bestowing upon me a path to the heavens. I will surely contemplate it day and night and live up to your grace. To me, this diagram is worth more than a million miles of rivers and mountains!]

[Ye Hei: As expected of a divine treasure bestowed by Senior Qingxu. Contemplating it for the first time has already benefited me greatly. It has confirmed my own path, and I've even faintly grasped a trace of its supreme Sword Intent.]

Their cultivation levels and perspectives differed, so they each gained different insights from the Dao Self True Form Diagram. Yet all three truly felt that the divine diagram was extraordinary, and they had gained enormous benefits from it.

Watching everyone's reactions in the Chat Group, Li Qingxu was quite pleased.

The Immortal Leaf and Divine Spring Water he had bestowed before were consumable items.

But the Dao Self True Form Diagram could be contemplated again and again, allowing them to draw upon its true meaning and guide their own transformations.

As his cultivation improved in the future, he could continue to imbue the Dao Diagram with new Divine Charm.

When new members joined the Chat Group, they would also be able to study the Dao Self True Form Diagram.

After bestowing this opportunity, Li Qingxu wasn't in a hurry to ask Ye Hei and the others for offerings. He simply told them to contemplate and study it carefully.

After all, asking for offerings outright could damage the image of a senior he had established in their minds.

Besides, Ye Hei, Xiao Yan, and Zhu Di were all grateful people. After receiving his kindness, they would surely offer treasures of their own accord once their strength improved and they obtained them.

Great Ming World.

After contemplating the diagram all night in the Imperial Study, Zhu Di stepped outside, feeling refreshed and full of boundless energy.

What's more, he had even managed to crack open a sliver of the legendary, elusive "Immortal Gate."

"Father!"

Just then, the stout Zhu Gaochi came hurrying up the steps with a memorial in hand, reaching Zhu Di in a few quick strides.

"What is it? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Zhu Di glanced at Zhu Gaochi and asked in a stern voice.

"An urgent report from Liaodong. The Japanese Pirate leader Umekawa Naiku led more than ten thousand Japanese Pirates in a raid on the Liaodong Peninsula, leaving countless civilians dead or wounded."

Zhu Gaochi reported, handing the memorial to Zhu Di.

Zhu Di skimmed through it and finished reading the entire memorial in just a few breaths.

"How dare they!"

With a sharp slap, Zhu Di snapped the memorial shut.

His expression darkened, and a chilling imperial aura radiated from him.

"Those wretched Japanese have repeatedly invaded our lands, slaughtering the people of Great Ming. They're practically begging for death!"

"Pass on my orders. Have the Three Thousand Camp assemble at once."

"I will root them out and wipe out the Wa Kingdom in one fell swoop, eradicating this threat for our descendants!"

The Wa Kingdom had always feared force, not virtue. During the prosperous Tang dynasty, they had bowed in submission, groveling for favor.

When the Song and Yuan dynasties grew weak, they seized the opportunity to invade, burning, killing, looting, and committing every kind of atrocity.

Faced with a people so deeply rooted in their vices and so unwilling to change, Zhu Di no longer wished to civilize them. He was prepared to end the problem once and for all and eradicate the Japanese completely!

"Yes!"

Zhu Gaochi nodded. He made no attempt to dissuade his father.

After all, the soldiers of the Three Thousand Camp had all drunk the Divine Water bestowed by the deity, and each of them was practically a superhuman.

Moreover, Great Ming's warships and firearms far outmatched those of the Japanese Pirates. They had simply been too occupied dealing with the Grassland tribes to take care of them before.

Now that the chaos on the Grassland had been quelled and the Three Thousand Camp's strength had advanced by leaps and bounds, there was no need to keep tolerating the Japanese.

"By the way."

Just as Zhu Gaochi was about to leave and carry out the order, Zhu Di suddenly called him back.

"Is there anything else, Father?"

Zhu Gaochi stopped and turned to ask.

Zhu Di carefully pulled a portrait from his sleeve and handed it to Zhu Gaochi.

"This is a portrait of Immortal Qingxu. I order you to summon artisans from across the country and build temples to the High Immortal in important locations in every prefecture. Have golden statues made in his likeness."

"From this day forth, during every festival and sacrificial ceremony, all civil and military officials must personally make offerings to him. There must be no mistakes!"

Zhu Di had sketched it himself the previous night while contemplating the Dao Diagram. Though the portrait captured less than one ten-thousandth of its Divine Charm, it could still aid in contemplation.

Zhu Gaochi took the portrait. As he looked at the deity seated on a Green Lotus, with the Sun, Moon, and Stars above his head and the Crimson Divine Sword in his hand, he felt a jolt go through him. His pupils contracted, and he sensed an invisible force entering his body.

"Immortal Qingxu is a supreme True Immortal who blesses all living things."

"Making offerings to his likeness can earn divine empowerment, enlighten the people, and strengthen their bodies."

Zhu Di turned around and gazed intently at the vast lands beyond the palace walls. His voice rang with unshakable resolve. "I will use this opportunity to make every citizen of Great Ming a dragon! May our nation prosper forever!"

"I understand, Father!"

"I will do everything in my power to see it done!"

Zhu Gaochi solemnly accepted the order. His last lingering concern about the burden on the people and the expense had vanished completely.

Having experienced the portrait's miraculous power himself, he knew this was no ordinary act of worship. It was an unprecedented boon that could bless the people and strengthen the very foundations of the nation!

Meanwhile, in the Battle Through the Heavens World.

The energy of heaven and earth above Jia Nan Academy erupted in an instant, turning into visible torrents of seven-colored light that surged into a quiet room. A massive vortex of energy formed over Xiao Yan's head, an astonishing spectacle.

Under the guidance of the True Sun Fire's original flame essence within the visualization diagram, the Heavenly Flames inside him underwent a fundamental transformation.

The Green Lotus Core Flame and the Fallen Heart Flame no longer suppressed each other. Instead, harmonized by the original flame essence, they merged completely and transformed.

Their original powers complemented and nourished one another along the circulation pathways of the Flame Mantra, ultimately giving birth to a tiny wisp of chaotic-colored flame.

Though small, it radiated an original aura that surpassed ordinary Heavenly Flames, as if it were the beginning and end of all fire. Its terrifying heat distorted the surrounding space whenever it flickered.

With the birth of this wisp of chaotic flame, the Flame Mantra Xiao Yan cultivated completed its transformation, reaching the Heaven Grade Lower level.

Driven by this new power and the advanced cultivation art, the barrier to his cultivation shattered. His aura surged, and he broke straight through to the Nine-Star Dou Emperor realm. His understanding of the laws of "fire" also reached an entirely new level.

At that moment, Elder Dan traveled through space and appeared beside Xiao Yan.

Feeling the powerful aura radiating from Xiao Yan, as well as the flame at his fingertip, Elder Dan immediately guessed that the legendary Senior Qingxu had bestowed another opportunity upon Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan didn't hide anything from him and told him about the Dao Self True Form Diagram.

"Senior Qingxu's methods are still as extraordinary and unparalleled as ever."

"A mere Dao Diagram was enough to make the Green Lotus Core Flame and the Fallen Heart Flame merge and transform, pushing your cultivation all the way to the peak of the Dou Emperor realm."

Elder Dan sighed from the bottom of his heart.

Even the legendary, supreme Dou Di couldn't come close to wielding such methods.

"Elder Dan, where do you think the flame I've created through this fusion would rank on the Heavenly Flame Ranking?"

Xiao Yan gazed at the chaotic-colored flame at his fingertip and asked curiously.

"Hmm..."

Elder Dan stroked his beard and carefully sensed the flame before giving his answer:

"This flame's power far surpasses that of the Bone Spirit Cold Fire."

"In my view, it might rival the top five on the Heavenly Flame Ranking."

Hearing this, Xiao Yan's eyes shone.

He had gained such a dramatic transformation from contemplating the Dao Self True Form Diagram just once.

If he contemplated it every day from now on, his strength would surely advance by leaps and bounds.

And now, only half the time had passed before his Three-Year Agreement with Nalan Yanran.

Once, that agreement had been a humiliation, a source of pressure, a shackle he had no choice but to bear.

But now, after enduring the coldness of his clan, battling in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, tempering his body with Heavenly Flames, and finally encountering an unparalleled opportunity, his horizons had long since expanded beyond one clan or sect. His resolve had been tempered until it was as firm as stone.

"Nalan Yanran..."

Xiao Yan murmured her name. His voice was calm, yet it held absolute composure and confidence.

"I'm fully prepared for our Three-Year Agreement."

"I hope you... won't disappoint me either."

His determination now had nothing to do with proving himself to the girl who had once looked down on him and broken off their engagement.

To him, the Three-Year Agreement was more like a solemn farewell to the past, and a thorough examination and transcendence of himself.

He would give the Xiao Yan who had once struggled in the depths of despair but never given up the most complete and powerful answer!