Within the Kunlun Mountains lay hidden worlds; inside some unremarkable peak might be a separate paradise, a cave abode opened by the divine abilities of disciples from the Three Sects.
Xuan Qing had opened one as well.
Cultivators absorbed spiritual qi, which was inherently a form of taking from heaven and earth. A fine cave abode, supplemented by formations, could greatly improve cultivation efficiency.
The Golden Crow flew and the Jade Rabbit ran. Ten thousand years had passed since the Three Pure Ones' last lecture.
During those ten thousand years, Xuan Qing had not merely cultivated in seclusion. At times, he entered closed-door cultivation; at times, he sparred with fellow disciples; and at times, he sought out Daoist Duobao to discuss the methods of Artifact Refining.
Naturally, he had not forgotten to borrow some fellow disciples' Innate Spiritual Treasures and imprint the Dao essences within them.
Yunxiao's Primordial Golden Dou contained the Dao of space and the Way of Ultimate Fate. Jin Ling's Dragon Tiger Ruyi nurtured the Dao of yin and yang, while Duobao's Duobao Pagoda contained the Dao of sealing and suppression.
Beyond that, he had not overlooked Ran Deng, the Chan Sect's vice sect master. From the Spirit Coffin Lamp and Universe Ruler, two Innate Spiritual Treasures, he had respectively imprinted the Dao of annihilation and the Dao of heaven and earth.
As for the other disciples, their cultivation was still shallow. Neither Primordial Lord of Heaven nor Sect Master Tongtian had prematurely bestowed Innate Spiritual Treasures for protection upon them.
The Dao essences contained within the Innate Spiritual Treasures on Kunlun Mountain had all been swept up by Xuan Qing.
What remained was to slowly digest them, comprehend the Innate Great Daos within those Dao essences, and integrate them into his Dao Fruit, making it ever more complete.
Over these ten thousand years, Xuan Qing had benefited immensely.
Originally, the Innate Eight Trigrams he had comprehended had only possessed the form. He had merely understood the three Great Daos of lightning, fire, and wind. Now, with the aid of the various Dao essences in his spiritual platform, he had comprehended the other five Great Daos and fully perfected the Great Dao of the Innate Eight Trigrams. Through Return to Origin and the Innate Dao essence contained within the Four Symbols Pagoda, he had also comprehended the Innate Dao of the Four Symbols.
Within his spiritual platform, the most powerful Dao essences undoubtedly came from the Four Immortal Slaying Swords, Pangu Banner, Taiji Diagram, and other Innate Supreme Treasures.
Unfortunately, with his current cultivation, he was still unable to comprehend them.
He had opened an Inner Scenery Land and transformed the Great Daos he had comprehended into a Dao Tree. Each time he comprehended another Great Dao, the Dao Tree would grow a zhang taller and a chi thicker, while a new branch would evolve from its trunk.
As for the core of the Dao Tree, the foundation of everything, it was naturally the Great Dao of Refining!
Furthermore, discussing the Dao with many fellow disciples had also benefited him greatly. Discussing the Dao with Lü Yue had taught him that refining plagues could also become part of the Great Dao of Refining!
Discussing the Dao with Duobao had shown him that techniques such as Artifact Refining, sword refining, and Formation Refining could also be fused together. From this, he had even deduced a Supreme Clarity World-Suppressing Sword Formation!
Furthermore, his deeper understanding of the Three Pure Ones' Great Daos had given him some new ideas. The Three Pure Ones currently had a good relationship, and their disciples exchanged what they had. Yet Great Daos of the Sages involving their core inheritances could still only be learned by direct disciples.
For example, of the Primordial Nine Seals created by Primordial Lord of Heaven, only the Chan Sect's direct disciples could learn the upper three seals. Other disciples could only learn the remaining six seal arts.
Aside from the Grand Pure Divine Thunder, Grand Pure Immortal Light, and Grand Pure True Fire accompanying Laozi's Golden Core Great Dao, only Xuandu, his direct disciple, could learn Laozi's divine abilities.
As for the One Qi Manifests as Three Pure Ones that Xuan Qing coveted most, even Xuandu said he had never heard of it.
The Dharma could not be casually transmitted, nor could the Dao be lightly bestowed. He understood the actions of the two Sages as well. Allowing him to learn even part of their divine abilities was already proof of the Sages' mercy and magnanimity!
He had nothing to be dissatisfied with!
However, as he looked at the countless Dao essences within his spiritual platform, a bold idea inevitably arose in his mind.
Paths were made by those who walked them. The Sages would not teach him, but he could find a way to deduce it himself!
"One Qi Manifests as Three Pure Ones should be based on the common ground between the Great Daos of the Three Pure Ones. My First Martial Uncle must also have deep research into the Jade Pure Great Dao and the Supreme Clarity Great Dao!"
"The reason I could fuse the origins of three divine thunders was precisely because I saw the core of Three Pure Ones, One Qi. Only then could I use the Forge of Creation and the Innate Way of Change to return them to their origin!"
"If I reverse the concept of 'Three Pure Ones, One Qi,' then thoroughly comprehend the respective Great Daos of the Three Pure Ones, I may not be unable to achieve One Qi Manifests as Three Pure Ones!"
"I can find someone to try it first!"
One person's plans were limited, while many minds brought greater wisdom. Xuan Qing had never intended to rely solely on his own strength and wisdom to comprehend the ultimate divine ability Laozi kept hidden away.
He thought of the Three Cloud Sisters!
Like the Three Pure Ones, the Three Cloud Sisters shared the same origin. All three had taken form from Innate colorful clouds and were close to the Great Dao of Water. Yunxiao's wisdom was even more extraordinary.
Hearing Xuan Qing's purpose, Bixiao could not help frowning. "One Xiao Transforms into Three Xiaos? What kind of divine ability is that?"
Yunxiao, meanwhile, fell into thought.
Ten thousand years ago, she had personally watched Xuan Qing use the Forge of Creation to fuse the Three Pure Ones' divine thunders. When one method was understood, ten thousand methods became clear. The innate origins of the three sisters indeed shared similarities, just like the Three Pure Ones.
She comprehended the Great Dao of Profound Water, Qiongxiao comprehended the Great Dao of Ren Water, and Bixiao comprehended the Dao of Gui Water. All three were branches of the Great Dao of Water.
Therefore, Xuan Qing's proposal could become reality!
Of course, that was only if one of the three sisters could master and unite all three Great Daos.
"One Xiao Transforms into Three Xiaos!"
Yunxiao remained silent for a long time, seemingly contemplating something. A faint realization emerged in her heart. If she could thoroughly fuse the origin powers of the three sisters, she might comprehend a great divine ability.
However, ever since entering the Jie Sect and receiving the Primordial Golden Dou from Sect Master Tongtian, she had constantly been comprehending the Formation Dao and the Way of Ultimate Fate contained within the Primordial Golden Dou.
Thus, she had instead somewhat neglected the laws nurtured within her when she first took form.
"Of course, this is merely an idea of mine!"
Xuan Qing slowly said, "Master, First Martial Uncle, and Second Martial Uncle were all transformed from Pangu's Primordial Spirit, so their circumstances differ somewhat from those of you three junior sisters! Whether this can succeed will still require the three of you to consider it yourselves!"
This time, under the pretext of discussing the Dao, he had shared the concepts of "Three Pure Ones, One Qi" and "One Qi, Three Pure Ones" with the Three Cloud Sisters in the hope of using their wisdom to better comprehend the common ground among the Three Pure Ones' Great Daos.
Qiongxiao and Bixiao aside, Yunxiao's talent was not inferior to Duobao's or Jin Ling's in the slightest. During the Investiture of the Gods Calamity, she was the only one clearly stated to have severed the Three Corpses.
She split earth and opened heaven to attain the Dao; upon Three Immortals Island, she refined her true form. Having cast away all six qi and three corpses, she could leave the Jade Capital atop a blue luan with but a step. How could ordinary living beings compare to her?
Of course, he had merely planted a seed. Whether it could take root, sprout, bloom, and bear fruit would still depend on the wisdom and comprehension of the Three Cloud Sisters.
After bidding farewell to the Three Cloud Sisters, he headed straight for Supreme Clarity Hall. He planned to descend the mountain and travel for a time. Blindly cultivating in seclusion would not speed up his comprehension of Dao essences.
The Witch-Demon War had only erupted ten thousand years ago. Both races remained relatively restrained, and the Primordial Wilderness was temporarily peaceful. It was the perfect opportunity to descend the mountain and seek opportunities!
Yet for the sake of caution, he still borrowed the Golden Cloud Crown from Daoist Duobao to conceal his figure and aura, avoiding too much karmic entanglement during his travels.
"Seeking the Dao in Kunlun through countless autumns, dreaming of the vast cosmos beneath Kirin Cliff. By chance, I received the wondrous teachings of the Three Pure Ones, and beyond the ninefold clouds, I stood proud among immortals. Today, I ride the wind away for a time; someday, my sword shall point at Great Luo Heaven!"
"Off I go! Off I go!"
Having received Sect Master Tongtian's approval and borrowed the Golden Cloud Crown from Duobao, everything was ready. Xuan Qing no longer hesitated and immediately rode his sword away from Kunlun Mountain.
Now that he had reached the Taiyi Realm, this journey down the mountain made him feel as though the heavens were high and the seas vast, free for his cry.
In an instant, a long rainbow tore through the sky. When it appeared again, it was already tens of thousands of miles away!
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