The Strongest in the Luotian Star Domain, Lu Fuzi
At this point, the old man who had been guarding the pavilion stopped speaking, his gaze turning to the chessboard in front of him, a barely perceptible bitterness flashing in his eyes.
Luo Chuan gazed at the old man's hunched back, which exuded a profound and ancient Daoist charm. He gently stroked the fingertips that had just held the child's hand, revealing not a trace of the turbulent waves surging within him.
After a moment of silence, Luo Chuan got up as instructed and slowly placed the ancient book that recorded the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm back into the deepest part of the bookshelf. The moment the pages closed, a barely perceptible stream of nine-colored light flashed and disappeared through the gaps in the paper.
"I will keep your words in mind, senior." Luo Chuan cupped his hands again, his tone respectful but concealing a hint of unwavering stubbornness.
The old man stood with his back to him, gazing at the swirling starlight and clouds outside the Scripture Depository. His aged voice drifted over, carrying a calm acceptance of the vicissitudes of time, yet also a hint of melancholy that no one could understand.
"The Nine-Colored Path is not about cultivation, not about chance, not about destiny, but rather... defying fate and being reborn from the ashes."
The old man with graying hair and beard slowly turned around, his cloudy old eyes now as deep as the starry sky, piercing straight into the depths of Luo Chuan's soul.
"Back then, Luo Tian took that step only by sacrificing his own divine soul, fusing with the origins of all realms, and defying the laws of heaven and earth."
"He survived and became the Progenitor the star field, but throughout the ages, those who followed in his footsteps were annihilated, leaving not even a trace of their souls behind."
"You already have a seven-colored foundation, which is a blessing from the Heavenly Dao. If you take another step forward, you will be in an abyss of no return. Even I, an old man who has guarded this pavilion for seventy thousand years, cannot see through that abyss. Is it the supreme Dao or eternal nothingness?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the old man raised his hand and waved it. A gentle yet irresistible force enveloped Luo Chuan and sent him toward the exit of the Scripture Depository.
"That kid Qingshui was just as persistent as you were back then, but in the end he only managed to stabilize at the Extreme Realm and Thunder Pool again."
"Go! The remnants of the Blood God Child in the outer starry sky have not yet been eliminated, and the Thunder Immortal Palace is about to be embroiled in turmoil. Your path is not in that illusory Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm, but beneath your feet, right before your eyes."
Luo Chuan was forced to retreat, but his gaze remained fixed on the old man. The desire for the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm in his heart was not deterred, but instead quietly ignited like a spark.
He could clearly sense the unspoken meaning in the old man's words; it wasn't a dissuasion, but a reminder born of life's trials.
As soon as my feet touched the ground, the ancient doors of the Scripture Depository slowly closed behind me, shutting out the eternal silence within.
Luo Chuan clenched his fists, his eyes gleaming with a seven-colored light, and muttered to himself, "Shattered Dao, rebirth, defying fate...?"
"Even if the road ahead is an abyss, I, Luo Chuan, will surely shatter it and see what splendor lies at the Nine-Colored Peak."
The wind brushed against his clothes, and the white-robed youth resolutely turned around and stepped into the vast sea of clouds of the Thunder Immortal Palace. A path to defy the heavens and foresee the future was quietly laid out from that moment on.
Watching Luo Chuan's departing figure, the old man sighed softly, then looked at the old man not far away, "You've come too."
The old man stepped forward, nodded slightly, and his body surged with energy, as if he could annihilate all living beings in this place.
Lu Fuzi stood with one hand behind his back, looking at the old man with narrowed eyes, and said, "You should also know that Luo Chuan possesses Cinie Treasure magic treasure. If we can obtain it, our Thunder Immortal World will surely win this attack on the Cultivation Alliance."
"Even if you obtain his treasure, do you really think you can defeat Long Panzi of the Cultivation Alliance? He has already reached the Ethereal Realm, while you are merely at the Kongnie. You should understand the gap between the two."
Upon hearing the old man guarding the pavilion's words, Lu Fuzi instinctively clenched his fist and asked indifferently, "That doesn't mean you were defeated on the spot, and why did you explain the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm...?"
"The Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm originates from heaven and earth, and although it appears similar to the Extreme Realm, the relationship between the two is worlds apart."
"Cultivators at the Extreme Realm are invincible within their own realm, but once they reach the Nascent Soul Realm stage, there is no possibility of further breakthroughs. This is the limitation of the Extreme Realm. However, the five-colored and Seven-Colored Ultimate Realm are completely different..."
"The fact that the Seven-Colored Ultimate Realm was able to follow Luo Chuan in cultivation for a thousand years and reach the early stage of the Jingnie Realm indicates that the Extreme Realm has already disrupted the balance among cultivators."
"As for the legendary Luo Tian, he is even more outrageously powerful, possessing the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm... He can be called invincible!"
Upon hearing this, the old man guarding the pavilion merely glanced at Lu Fuzi indifferently. His aged face remained completely calm, but his eyes, which had been weathered by seventy thousand years of history, churned with a vicissitude and solemnity that even the collapse of a star field could not match.
The old man guarding the pavilion slowly walked back to the chessboard and gently brushed away the remaining black and white chess pieces.
The crisp sound of the chess pieces being placed echoed in the empty Scripture Depository, as if striking a chord in Lu Fuzi's heart, causing this high-ranking expert of the Thunder Immortal Palace to unconsciously conceal his sharp edge.
"You only saw the invincibility of the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm, and only cared about the Cinie Treasure on Luo Chuan's body, but you never saw the perilous situation of the Heavenly Dao hidden behind it."
The old man guarding the pavilion spoke in a low voice, with a hint of disappointment in his voice, and said calmly, "Back then, Luo Tian forged the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm, transcending the rules, and seemingly created an eternal golden age for the Luotian Star Domain. But do you really think that his departure was just an ordinary ascension to the Dao?"
Lu Fuzi's body trembled, his clenched fist slowly loosened, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. "You mean... there's more to the story behind the disappearance of the Progenitor Luo Tian?"
"The Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm, seizing the creation of heaven and earth and encroaching upon the mysteries of the sun and moon, has already touched upon the most core taboo of this universe. The so-called creation of rules is nothing more than a game of chess with a higher-dimensional being. Luo Tian won for a time, but ultimately could not win against the eternal cycle of reincarnation."
The old man guarding the pavilion raised his hand, and a faint nine-colored halo condensed at his fingertips. The halo disappeared in an instant, but it caused the entire primordial aura of the Scripture Depository to tremble.
"Luo Chuan's Seven-Colored Ultimate Realm is an anomaly that breaks the balance. If he insists on pursuing the Nine-Colored Realm, he will either become the next Luo Tian, or... it will be a catastrophe for the entire Thunder Immortal Palace, and even the Luotian Star Domain."
The old man guarding the pavilion paused, his gaze fixed on the direction where the sea of clouds outside the Scripture Depository had disappeared from Luo Chuan, and a hint of expectation, which he himself did not realize, appeared in his tone.
"I told him about the dangers of the Nine-Colored Ultimate Realm not to stop him, but to temper his character. With the Cultivation Alliance pressing in and the remnants of Blood God Star yet to be eliminated, if he can't even overcome the tribulations of this mortal world, how can he talk about shattering the Dao and being reborn, Ascendant Realm the Nine-Colored Realm?"
"As for the Cinie Treasure..." The old man guarding the pavilion suddenly sneered and said indifferently, "Lu Fuzi, after all your cultivation, don't you understand that true strength is never forged by external objects?"