The Mysteries of Da Luo, Set Aside

It took Yuan Yan a full thousand years to imprint his Dao upon heaven and earth, after which the Great Dao of heaven and earth slowly receded.

But now, he still had to enter the River of Time, gather his own timeline, and transcend the River of Time before he could break through to the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm.

Entering the River of Time was not difficult. Yuan Yan used the Law of Time to connect with it, and with a single thought, his true body entered the River of Time.

The River of Time existed between illusion and reality. It had existed since the beginning of creation, with no visible source and no visible end. The mighty power of time surged endlessly forward, irreversible and impossible to defy.

A tall figure appeared soundlessly, and the River of Time instantly sensed his presence.

Sensing that Yuan Yan had yet to transcend it, the River of Time began to target him.

At once, the seemingly real yet illusory waters of time transformed into the power of time, enveloping and coiling around him, seeking to drag him into the River of Time and bury him there.

Yuan Yan remained calm. With a thought, he directly manifested his Da Luo Dao Fruit.

In an instant, the Dao light of his Da Luo Dao Fruit bloomed, stirring the River of Time and sending up countless ripples. Following the unseen threads of connection, it pierced through endless ages and worlds, spread across boundless spacetime, and reflected Yuan Yan's past, present, and future.

His timeline began to converge. Every incarnation of his past, present, and future transformed into one imprint after another of himself.

At this point, Yuan Yan had completely become a Da Luo Golden Immortal. He transcended the River of Time, his true spirit eternal, indestructible, and undying.

Even if he were slain by a powerful enemy now, so long as every trace of his past, present, and future was not erased, he would not be truly dead. One day, he could return to life.

However, when Yuan Yan transcended the River of Time and broke through to become a Da Luo Golden Immortal, he received a message from somewhere beyond perception:

The River of Time was suppressed by the towering Mount Buzhou, its course corrected by the light of the Heaven-Splitting Axe, while Pangu stood at its source, cutting across the ages. It could not be rashly disturbed, nor could the past be altered.

Therefore, after breaking through to the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm, one could still travel through the River of Time, but one could only watch, not interfere.

The abilities Da Luo Golden Immortals had originally possessed—changing the past, retrieving people from past spacetime, opening new timelines, and reviving from past spacetime after perishing in the present... all of them were gone.

To kill a Da Luo Golden Immortal, there was no longer any need for such trouble. There was no need to erase every trace of their past, present, and future; killing them in the present was enough.

However, if a Da Luo was killed in the present, their past self still lived, so they could not be considered truly dead. If one day the River of Time was no longer suppressed by the three great mountains, they could return to life at any time.

Moreover, unless one had the power to break through the three great mountains, no living being could erase every trace of a Da Luo's past, present, and future and cause a Da Luo Golden Immortal to truly perish.

It could only be said that every gain came with a loss.

Of course, for Da Luo Golden Immortals, the losses certainly outweighed the gains.

Having just broken through to the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm and gained the ability to travel through the River of Time and trace upstream into the past, Yuan Yan naturally had no intention of leaving so soon.

He took a step forward and moved against the current, intending to head upstream along the River of Time, satisfy his curiosity, and gain a deeper understanding of the Primordial World through past spacetime.

However, after wandering upstream through the River of Time for a while, Yuan Yan was somewhat disappointed.

He discovered that it was difficult to obtain the information he wanted through past spacetime.

This was because even though he did not cultivate the Great Daos of heavenly secrets, karma, fate, and the like as his primary path, he could still use his primordial spirit to communicate with heaven and earth and obtain basic information.

As for secrets concerning Da Luo Golden Immortals and higher beings, he could not pry into them at all due to the unique nature of Da Luo Golden Immortals.

Da Luo Golden Immortals had already transcended the River of Time. Although outsiders could not erase their figures from the River of Time, their Dao evolved into a mist of the Great Dao that obscured and shielded their past, preventing powerful beings at or above the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm from viewing it freely.

Furthermore, besides experts at or above the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm, innate spiritual treasures and innate spiritual roots with standings equivalent to Da Luo Golden Immortals also possessed a mist of the Great Dao, capable of concealing and shielding past spacetime, karma, fate, and heavenly secrets.

Of course, some mists of the Great Dao were weaker, and he could force his way through them to spy on what lay beyond. Yet even if he could do so, he would not dare.

For forceful prying meant making enemies and inviting karma. He might not fear one or two such cases, but if there were too many, even Hongjun would likely not dare to do so. Though karmic entanglement could not cause his death, it could hinder his cultivation.

After traveling upstream through the River of Time for some time, gaining nothing and gradually adapting to and familiarizing himself with some of the methods of a Da Luo Golden Immortal, Yuan Yan no longer intended to remain.

With a thought, Yuan Yan returned to the Primordial World!

"I've finally broken through to the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm and attained an undying, indestructible body!" Back in the valley of Mount Buzhou, Yuan Yan sat cross-legged beneath the gourd vine, his heart filled with delight.

But then, as though he had remembered something, Yuan Yan frowned slightly. "However, even Da Luo Golden Immortals can be undying and indestructible. Pangu stands at the source of the River of Time, cutting across the ages. Did Pangu truly perish?"

"Probably not!"

After all, Da Luo Golden Immortals were undying and indestructible. So long as even a single trace of their past, present, or future remained, they would not truly perish.

Pangu's cultivation realm stood countless levels above that of a Da Luo Golden Immortal, so he naturally should possess such an essence as well—perhaps an even more profound one.

Then did any traces of Pangu still remain?

Yes! The entire Primordial World was one!

Since that was the case, how could he have already perished? Even if he truly had, it was likely only temporary. One day, he would probably return.

"Ah! What am I even thinking?" Yuan Yan suddenly shook his head and cast these wandering thoughts from his mind. What use was there in thinking about such things now? Were these matters for a mere Da Luo like him to consider?

What mattered most to him now was his own cultivation!

After pondering for a moment, Yuan Yan decided to continue manifesting his true form and connecting with the Primordial Gourd Vine. On one hand, he would allow the Primordial Gourd Vine to continue nurturing the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd; on the other, he would comprehend the laws and Great Daos contained within the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd and the Primordial Gourd Vine, while also developing the Great Dao of Reincarnation and the Great Dao of Worlds, refining them to the Da Luo level.

As for everything else, he would set it aside for now.

For instance, traveling abroad. The baleful aura and tribulation aura outside were growing ever denser. Before long, the great tribulation might fully erupt.

Though he had already broken through to the Da Luo Golden Immortal realm, he had no ability to protect himself against the Three Clans and those great powers. Furthermore, heaven and earth had given him an unseen warning: this was not yet his era. He should wait until the great tribulation had passed before entering the world.

Even though he dearly wished to see the world outside, he could only suppress the urge for now.

For instance, cultivating the Nine Yin-Yang Evolutions! His realm was still insufficient, and he vaguely sensed that completing even a single Yin-Yang evolution would be difficult at present. Even if he could accomplish it, it would certainly require an enormous amount of time.

Therefore, he had no intention of cultivating it now. He would wait until his cultivation realm advanced further.

As for refining the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd? It was not that he had forgotten. Rather, he had no intention of refining it at all—at least not before he left to travel abroad.

He worried that refining the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd and imprinting it with his true spirit might affect its continued nurturing and growth.

Though that might not necessarily happen, so long as there was a possibility, he would not gamble on it.

In any case, before he traveled abroad, he would have no need to use the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd in battle. He only needed to comprehend the laws and Great Daos it contained.

Moreover, his connection with the Myriad Dao Primordial Gourd was far too close. Even without refining it, this would not hinder his comprehension. He could even wield no small measure of its power.