Star Scroll One seemed to be a collection of casual notes, recording the moods of the person who had written the book.
But as Lei Zhan read it word by word, the book's extraordinary nature gradually revealed itself.
These seemingly simple passages gradually drew him in. As he resonated with the Star Hall, they also led him into an entirely new world.
He looked at the lush green mountains in the distance, at the countless barren rocks, and at the lively stream burbling along. It was as if he could see countless Daos, each containing endless mysteries.
Even a tuft of grass stubbornly growing from a crack in a stone contained an incomparably wondrous Dao.
Before he knew it, Lei Zhan raised his head.
In the sky above, stars glittered brilliantly, dazzling beyond compare. Each one gave Lei Zhan a different feeling.
"This is water... a Dao related to water?" Lei Zhan could hear waves roaring in surging torrents beside his ears.
It was the vast ocean he had seen after walking across the endless land.
He had also flown across that ocean, riding the waves. Only after spending countless hours traversing it had he finally reached this place to take part in Immortal Juhua's three trials.
Splash, splash~~~
Splash, splash~~~
Inside the Star Hall, beside the stone bench in front of the thatched cottage,
streams of deep blue water rippled and splashed, gradually gathering together.
One stream, two, three, then countless more—slowly, they joined into a boundless ocean. The waves surged, instantly rising into a vast storm...
Surging, roaring, unceasing.
"No wonder he stood out among countless Xiantian Beings and Purple Mansion beings, becoming the one and only being to pass the trial. His level of Dao comprehension is truly high!"
Yellow-Haired Great Bear nodded slightly. "This is a Dao? It should be a Dao of the water element!"
"This is the Dao of the Azure Sea!"
A deep voice sounded from behind Yellow-Haired Great Bear. An old man in Daoist robes walked slowly in from outside the Star Hall.
He fixed his gaze on Lei Zhan, who was comprehending the Dao in front of the thatched cottage, and a flicker of astonishment crossed his eyes.
Yellow-Haired Great Bear glanced coolly at Immortal Juhua, who stood beside him. "I thought you really weren't going to come see your only disciple! What, couldn't resist after all?"
"Why wouldn't I come? As you said, he's my only disciple—and the closed-door disciple of me, Juhua! This is his first time in the Star Hall. He's accumulated plenty of insights, so the effect will be excellent. Naturally, I had to come see the disciple I took in." Immortal Juhua glared at him.
"Yes, yes. The disciple you took in is far better than you, his master! Back when you were at the Purple Mansion stage, you were far inferior to him now."
Yellow-Haired Great Bear spoke calmly. "The stars in the Star Hall are shining brilliantly. Lei Zhan doesn't look like he's comprehending just one Dao."
"Of course. The disciple I, Juhua, took in could hardly be mediocre."
Immortal Juhua paid no mind to Yellow-Haired Great Bear's words. He nodded and said, "I know a little about the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Map. Once one cultivates to the Xiantian Being level, one can control water and fire."
"Moreover, whenever one breaks through a major realm, the two Supreme Stars, Taiyin and the sun, appear and send down a trace of Lunar True Water and Solar True Fire. Naturally, when Lei Zhan broke through to become a Purple Mansion cultivator, his understanding of water and fire deepened as well. The Dao of fire should appear soon, too."
Splash!
The waves raised by the surging seawater grew more and more violent, one after another, as if they would never end...
As Immortal Juhua and Yellow-Haired Great Bear spoke, the azure water swirling in front of Lei Zhan suddenly dissipated, vanishing into thin air.
But it wasn't over yet.
Rumble!
Rumble! Rumble!
Suddenly,
even more surging, mighty blue seawater poured forth. If the waves before had surged and risen into a vast storm, now a terrifying tsunami rolled across the boundless ocean—endless and overwhelming.
"This is... the Domain of the Azure Sea!"
Even Immortal Juhua's eyes now held unmistakable surprise.
The war between gods and demons had only just ended; all things were at their beginning.
Cultivators who could comprehend the true meaning of a Dao at the Purple Mansion stage were extremely rare. Whenever one appeared, powerful figures from great tribes and sects would eagerly compete to take them as disciples.
Yet his own disciple had actually comprehended the Domain Realm of a Dao right here in the Star Hall?
One had to understand: ordinarily, only cultivators at the Wanxiang level could comprehend a trace of a Dao's true meaning. Those who could comprehend a Dao's Domain Realm were seasoned Wanxiang True Persons or even Primordial Spirit Daoists.
Of course, all of those were ordinary, thoroughly average cultivators. Their paths would go no further than that.
Time passed, until the tsunami-like Domain of the Azure Sea finally dissipated...
Boom!
Boom! Boom!
One flower, two, three.
Next, one crimson flower after another suddenly appeared out of thin air.
"Another Dao!" Immortal Juhua and Yellow-Haired Great Bear immediately sensed the change in front of the thatched cottage.
"Is this the true meaning of blazing fire?"
The Way of Blazing Fire represented by this true meaning of blazing fire was one of the most common minor paths. Yellow-Haired Great Bear didn't wait for Immortal Juhua to speak; a satisfied smile appeared on its face.
The more monstrous its master Daoist Sanshou's future successor was, the greater the chance he had of surviving the Tribulation of the Celestial God. That also meant a greater chance of becoming its master's true disciple and inheriting Daoist Sanshou's legacy. Naturally, it was all the happier for it.
"Mm. It's indeed the Way of Blazing Fire!" Immortal Juhua nodded.
A moment later,
the phenomenon revealed by the Way of Blazing Fire in front of the thatched cottage, along with the Dao's mighty force that it had stirred, slowly faded away.
"Truly unbelievable."
Immortal Juhua sighed. "During his first session of comprehending the Dao in the Star Hall, he read the entire first scroll before stopping! Lei Zhan's level really is high. After reading so much, he must have sunk into an incredibly deep state of comprehension."
"That just goes to show that your disciple hasn't received much good guidance in his daily life. Now that he's entered the Star Hall, all that he's built up over the years has burst forth, turning into insight into the Dao..."
Yellow-Haired Great Bear praised him as well. "For such a monstrous genius, if you teach him well from now on, there may yet be a chance..."
Immortal Juhua and Yellow-Haired Great Bear both understood this clearly.
The scroll was, in fact, only a guide, leading cultivators into an extremely deep state of meditation. The more they read, the deeper that state of comprehension could become!
Of course... what they managed to comprehend depended on their own prior accumulation. The saying "a thick accumulation leads to a sudden breakthrough" was true: without the insights gathered in ordinary times, there could be no sudden moment of understanding.
And Lei Zhan was just beginning that process!
But it seemed things still hadn't come to a stop.
Lei Zhan suddenly raised his head and looked at the sky. The stars overhead were scattered like a chessboard, each radiating brilliant starlight.
The Star Scroll One in his hand had long since been set aside. He simply stood there beneath the starry sky, his eyes fixed on one enormous star.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Inside the Star Hall, wisps of breeze descended from nowhere.
In an instant, a mysterious and profound "intent" appeared around Lei Zhan.
"This is..." Sensing the vast Dao-intent that had suddenly appeared, Yellow-Haired Great Bear's round eyes widened like copper bells.
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