Enlightenment on Life and Death

With the Three Purities Hall's resolution made, Mount Mao's massive machinery immediately began operating with high efficiency.

Elders Xuan Ji, Qing Ming, and Qing Yun personally led teams, carrying the essence of the sect's formations and abundant resources, to rush to the newly discovered fissure.

They began setting up isolation and purification arrays, striving to minimize the influence of the Yellow Springs' death qi.

Concurrently, commands to track the whereabouts of the "key" were transmitted through various channels in all directions, causing the undercurrents of the entire cultivation world to surge even more fiercely.

Mo Yuan did not accompany the team to the fissure. His mission was more long-term and crucial—to increase his strength and prepare for the eventual purification of the Yellow Springs Skeleton.

Sect Leader Shi Jian granted special approval, granting him unlimited access to the fifth floor of the sect's Scripture Pavilion. All texts related to lightning magic, talismans, and formations were available for his perusal, and all cultivation resources would be prioritized for his supply.

However, Mo Yuan did not immediately immerse himself in the vast sea of books within the Scripture Pavilion.

He knew deeply that facing an existence like the Yellow Springs Skeleton, which involved the origin of life and death and the laws of the universe, mere knowledge accumulation was insufficient. What was needed more was a profound understanding of the essence of the Great Dao.

After requesting permission from the Sect Leader and his master, he decided to personally travel to the periphery of the fissure to experience the power of the Yellow Springs' death qi and the Nine Nether Demon Array up close, seeking a breakthrough in danger.

Although Uncle Nine was worried, he knew his disciple's Dao heart was firm and that his heaven-defying comprehension protected him. He finally nodded in agreement, only repeatedly warning him not to go near the core of the demon array.

Several days later, Mo Yuan, alone, once again arrived at the edge of Burial Demon Valley.

From afar, the newly cracked fissure looked like a hideous scar on the earth. Grayish-black Yin Sha qi mixed with the unsettling grayish-yellow death qi of the Yellow Springs.

It rose like smoke, dyeing the sky above that area a dim hue.

Even from a great distance, a chill of all things ending and souls freezing assailed him.

The disciples led by the three elders were busy working intensely around the fissure. Spiritual lights and talismans were being struck into the ground, and formation flags were planted according to profound trajectories.

They outlined the shape of a massive formation, attempting to construct a powerful spiritual energy barrier to isolate and purify the escaping death qi of the Yellow Springs.

Mo Yuan did not disturb them. He chose a relatively high cliff several miles away from the fissure and sat down cross-legged.

From this vantage point, he could clearly see the faintly discernible, massive, dark skeletal outline deep within the fissure, as well as the dark red, dizzying Nine Nether Forbidden Demon Array surrounding the skeleton.

He suppressed his spiritual energy, maintaining his life force with only the most basic incantations.

Then, he carefully released a sliver of his divine sense's barrier, actively reaching out to touch and perceive the death qi of the Yellow Springs permeating the air.

"Buzz--!"

It felt like ice needles piercing his soul.

An intent of death, decay, and finality, pure to the extreme, fed back through his divine sense.

In an instant, illusions appeared before Mo Yuan's eyes: all things withered, stars extinguished, the universe returned to heat death, all existence lost its meaning, leaving only eternal silence and void...

His Blood Essence circulation instantly slowed, his spiritual energy flowed sluggishly, and even his thoughts seemed on the verge of freezing.

This was merely the diluted death qi escaping from the periphery, diluted countless times.

The Soul Cleansing Banner vibrated violently in his sea of consciousness, emitting a brilliant clear light, fiercely protecting his core soul and blocking the terrifying intent of death.

The inextinguishable Thunder Emperor's Will also spontaneously surged, emitting a majestic heavenly might, dispelling the Yin cold death qi that had invaded his body.

Mo Yuan held firmly to the single point of clarity in his spiritual platform, enduring the discomfort at the soul level. He did not immediately sever his perception but instead circulated his Primordial Comprehension, forcibly analyzing and understanding the essence of the Yellow Springs' death qi!

"Death... is not pure destruction and finality..."

Amidst extreme pain and cold, his mind became like a tempered diamond, increasingly brilliant and clear. "Death is also the beginning of life, Yin is the root of Yang... The Yellow Springs connects Yin and Yang, and governs death.

Does its aura, besides finality, also contain a trace of... opportunity for Samsara?

Does the 'born from death' structure of the Nine Nether Demon Array reveal this point?"

He recalled the faint Traces of Samsara Law he had obtained from a system check-in.

At this moment, stimulated by the dense death qi of the Yellow Springs, that originally dormant trace of law surprisingly became slightly active, resonating with his comprehension.

He no longer resisted the erosion of the death qi. Instead, he attempted to use his own Dao Foundation as a bridge to draw upon that trace of Samsara Law, to touch, embrace, and analyze the fragments of law contained within the Yellow Springs' death qi.

This was an extremely perilous process, like walking a tightrope over a bottomless abyss.

Once his comprehension could not keep up, or if the Samsara Law could not balance the death qi, his Dao Foundation and even his soul could be assimilated by the Yellow Springs, becoming mere withered bones that only knew death.

But Mo Yuan's Dao heart was indestructible, and his Primordial Comprehension was heaven-defying.

In his perception, the Yellow Springs' death qi, originally filled with destruction and despair, began to display more complex "textures."

He "saw" the laws of "decomposition," "return to tranquility," and "sedimentation" contained within it, and also vaguely captured a hint of the extremely obscure artistic conception of "transformation," "waiting," and "new life."

The cycle of life and death, Samsara, was not a simple repetition but a spiral upward movement of laws.

Death was not the end but the accumulation and preparation for another form of life.

"I understand!"

Mo Yuan's heart suddenly became enlightened. "The 'creation and destruction' artistic conception within the Five Thunder Divine Method does not merely refer to creation and destruction. On a deeper level, it is the power that drives this cycle of life and death, Samsara, and the circulation of all things.

Lightning is not only a synonym for destruction but also the primordial light that opens the heavens and the earth and nurtures life! The Thunder of Creation contains this principle!"

His understanding of the Five Thunder Divine Method, especially the two artistic conceptions of "creation and destruction" and "creation," reached a qualitative leap at this moment! Although he was still far from truly mastering it, he had found the direction.

At the same time, the Thunder Source Dao Seed within his Dantian was also stimulated by the artistic conception of life and death and the Samsara Law. It trembled slightly, revealing more profound patterns on its surface, and its growth rate increased slightly.

"System, check-in!"

[Ding! Check-in successful! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Top-Grade Spirit Stone x5, Yin-Yang Enlightenment Stone (Fragment) x1, Life-Death Talisman Basic Concept x1, Remnant Aura of the Primordial World: A wisp of pure Innate Yin-Yang Energy (weak)!]

[Yin-Yang Enlightenment Stone (Fragment)]: A fragment of a mystical stone containing the profound mysteries of the Yin-Yang Great Dao. It can aid in comprehending the changes of Yin and Yang, and the cycle of life and death.

[Life-Death Talisman Basic Concept]: A nascent conceptualization of a talisman derived from comprehending the cycle of life and death. If perfected, it can command vitality and control death qi.

[A Wisp of Pure Innate Yin-Yang Energy (Faint)]: The primordial energy from before the separation of heaven and earth. It can harmonize all things, balance life and death, and is one of the foundations for cultivating the supreme Dao.

The rewards once again perfectly aligned with his comprehension.

The Yin-Yang Enlightenment Stone could deepen his understanding, the Life-Death Talisman concept opened a new door to talisman arts for him, and that wisp of innate Yin-Yang energy was an unparalleled treasure.

He immediately guided this wisp of energy to merge into his Dantian, coexisting with his Thunder True Essence, Chaos Qi, Demonic Origin Source liquid, and so on.

As the Yin-Yang energy entered his body, he instantly felt his Dao Foundation become more stable and complete.

His meridians and soul, which had been slightly damaged by forcefully comprehending the Yellow Springs death qi, rapidly recovered under the influence of this harmonizing power, becoming even more resilient.

His understanding of the life-and-death realm also became more profound.

Just as he was immersed in the harvest of his comprehension, a sudden anomaly occurred in the direction of the earth fissure.

Perhaps it was because the isolation formation set up by the three elders had touched some kind of balance, or perhaps the Yellow Springs Skeleton instinctively sensed a threat.

"Roar--!!!"

A silent roar, as if from the Nine Nether Hells, filled with endless hatred and ferocity, erupted from the depths of the earth fissure.

It was not a sound on the physical plane, but a shock that directly impacted the soul.

In an instant, the world changed.

The Yellow Springs death qi gushing from the earth fissure surged several times, sweeping outwards like a tsunami.

The Nine Nether Forbidden Demon Array's dark red light flared intensely, countless twisted demonic patterns writhing as if alive, emitting a despair-inducing oppressive aura.

"Not good, the demon array is acting up, death qi is erupting, reinforce the formation!"

Martial Uncle Xuan Ji's roar echoed.

The disciples outside, who were in the process of setting up the formation, all changed color and desperately poured spiritual energy into the formation that was not yet fully formed.

Spiritual light clashed fiercely with the surging grey-yellow death qi, emitting crackling corrosive sounds. The light barrier shook violently, hanging by a thread.

Even more terrifying was the invisible soul roar that swept over. Many Qi Refining stage disciples clutched their heads and screamed, black blood seeping from their seven orifices, their souls severely wounded.

Even several stewards in the early Foundation Establishment stage turned pale and swayed unsteadily.

Mo Yuan bore the brunt of it.

He was the closest, and he had previously taken the initiative to sense the death qi, his soul having formed a subtle connection with the Yellow Springs Skeleton.

At this moment, the enraged soul impact was directed overwhelmingly towards him.

"Careful!"

Uncle Nine's startled cry seemed to come from the distant horizon.

Mo Yuan felt an indescribable, terrifying will, a convergence of ancient stillness and the resentment of Demon Gods, like billions of ice picks, fiercely piercing into his sea of consciousness.

The clear light of the Soul Cleansing Banner was instantly suppressed to its limit, emitting a mournful cry.

The Thunder Emperor's Will autonomously unleashed its thunderous might to resist, but it was like a candle flame in a gale, flickering precariously.

His consciousness was almost overwhelmed, frozen, and assimilated by this torrent of terrifying will.

Life and death hung by a thread!