Lingxiao Asks About the Dao, the Dao Ancestor Offers Guidance

Seeing Lingxiao put away all three treasures, the Dao rhythm around him growing ever more complete, Dao Ancestor Hongjun pondered briefly before finally asking, "Little friend, do you intend to walk the path of a Heavenly Dao Sage, or the path of a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal?"

His gaze was gentle, yet it carried a trace of probing.

If Lingxiao intended to walk the path of a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal, there would be no need to use treasures to anchor the Three Corpses, so it would not matter much what treasures he chose.

By not choosing a matching set of Same-Origin Innate Spiritual Treasures, nor an Innate Supreme Treasure capable of anchoring all three corpses at once, he presumably truly had no intention of using Three Corpses Severance to become a Heavenly Dao Sage.

That was what Dao Ancestor Hongjun thought.

"May I ask, Dao Ancestor, what do you consider to be the difference between a Heavenly Dao Sage and a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal?" Upon hearing this, Lingxiao sat upright and gave Dao Ancestor Hongjun a deep bow.

"Since you ask, this humble Daoist shall explain it thoroughly." Dao Ancestor Hongjun stroked his beard with a smile, speaking candidly and holding nothing back. "A Heavenly Dao Sage uses Primordial Purple Qi as a bridge, branding the mark of one's Primordial Spirit upon the Heavenly Dao Origin and borrowing the power of the Heavenly Dao to attain Sagehood. This method was created by this humble Daoist to swiftly cultivate supreme great powers, establish order in the Primordial World, quell the slaughter of Calamities, and safeguard the continued existence of all living beings."

He paused, and a trace of melancholy flashed through his eyes.

"Yet this path is ultimately a shortcut gained through expedience, and naturally it has its shortcomings."

"Other than this humble Daoist, who intends to undergo Dao Integration and rise and fall alongside the Heavenly Dao, sharing in its prosperity and decline, all other Heavenly Dao Sages have their rank fixed the moment they prove the Dao—they shall be bound by the Heavenly Dao for life, unable to attain Transcendence. They have more than enough ability to preserve what exists, but lack the power to forge ahead. No matter how profound their cultivation becomes, they can never touch the Great Dao Origin."

"As for Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals, theirs is the ancient path walked by the Three Thousand Great Dao Demon Gods."

"They need no Primordial Purple Qi, relying entirely on themselves to prove the Great Dao, achieving the state where I am the Great Dao, and the Great Dao is me."

"This path is difficult, yet it is free and unfettered, existing independently beyond the Heavenly Dao. Even should the Primordial World shatter and the Heavenly Dao collapse, one would remain unharmed. One could continue advancing, roam the Chaos, and transcend Heaven and Earth."

Dao Ancestor Hongjun looked at Lingxiao, his gaze filled with sincere expectation.

"This humble Daoist had thought that, little friend, with your deep Merit, renowned prestige, fair conduct, and compassion for all beings, you might one day become my right-hand man—a pillar holding up Heaven and bracing Earth, safeguarding the order of the Primordial World from disorder."

"But when I saw your choice of treasures just now, I suddenly understood a crucial point—if the Primordial World remained eternally unchanged, stagnant like a pond of dead water, would that not itself be a form of regression?"

"If one does not advance, one retreats!" He let out a long sigh, his voice carrying both helplessness and relief.

"This humble Daoist is soon to undergo Dao Integration. From then on, I shall be the incarnation of the Heavenly Dao, with not a shred of freedom left, and even less ability to lead the Primordial World a step further."

"Restricted thus, I can only place my hopes in you, little friend. May you forge a path that belongs to you and, in the future, lead the Primordial World toward the broader Heaven and Earth of Chaos."

As his words fell, the depths of Violet Firmament Palace became silent. Only the faint sound of the Creation Jade Slip slowly turning could be heard.

Lingxiao's Consciousness Sea shook with a thunderous boom, and his mind was greatly jolted.

He had long known that the Dao Ancestor acted wholly for the public good, but he had never imagined that his vision would be so vast.

Unfortunately, the strength of one person was ultimately limited.

Conflict was the instinct of all living beings. Even though Dao Ancestor Hongjun exhausted his every effort and laid down countless contingencies, in the original course of fate, he had changed nothing.

The War of Liches, the Apotheosis Calamity, the Journey to the West Pilgrimage... After one massacre after another, the Heaven and Earth of the Primordial World became fragmented beyond repair, spiritual qi gradually thinned, and it ultimately still fell into the Dharma-ending Era, when gods and Buddhas recoiled and all living beings wailed!

"Thank you, Dao Ancestor, for your guidance." After his myriad emotions settled, Lingxiao took a deep breath. A determined glint flashed through his eyes as he cupped his hands toward Dao Ancestor Hongjun. "Originally, this humble Daoist intended to pursue the path of the Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. But now, it would be better to become a Great Dao Sage."

"A Great Dao Sage?"

Hongjun's brow suddenly furrowed, his eyes filled with confusion.

He looked at Lingxiao and asked in a grave voice, "Little friend, what is a Great Dao Sage?"

At present, the Primordial World had only the two paths of Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal and Heavenly Dao Sage. What kind of path was this Great Dao Sage?

"This is a new path derived by combining the method of Three Corpses Severance, the method of Proving the Dao through Force, and the method of Proving the Dao through Merit."

Lingxiao's tone was calm, yet every word rang like iron. "This humble Daoist believes that the reason Three Corpses Severance has an upper limit is not because the method itself is flawed, but because its final step is mistaken—it should not anchor the mark of one's Primordial Spirit upon the Heavenly Dao."

"The Dao Ancestor created the method of Three Corpses Severance to begin with in order to conform to the Heavenly Dao and establish order."

"But what if one stepped beyond the limits of the Heavenly Dao? What if, instead of anchoring the mark of one's Primordial Spirit upon the Heavenly Dao, one anchored it upon the Three Thousand Great Daos themselves?"

"If the Great Dao is undying, then I shall not die; if the Great Dao is eternal, then I shall be eternal! In this way, one can possess the undying, indestructible advantage of a Heavenly Dao Sage while retaining the independent freedom and limitless potential for advancement of a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal."

"At the same time, there is only one Heavenly Dao, but there are Three Thousand Great Daos. Even if one person anchored the Three Corpses upon three different Great Daos, in theory, up to one thousand Great Dao Sages could be born!"

Radiance gleamed brilliantly in Lingxiao's eyes.

It was likewise founded upon Three Corpses Severance to attain Sagehood, but his path did not involve the Three Corpses Unification to become a Sage. Instead, he drew upon Pangu's One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones, attaining three Sage ranks at once, proving three Daos together—one proof becoming three proofs!

"Then, one may supplement it by accumulating Merit, using it to harmonize the three Daos and make up for their flaws and conflicts."

"In this manner, the three paths of Three Corpses Severance to prove the Dao, Proving the Dao through Force, and Proving the Dao through Merit would be completely fused into one. Moreover, because the marks of the Primordial Spirit would be anchored upon the Great Dao rather than the Heavenly Dao, they would place no burden whatsoever upon the Heaven and Earth of the Primordial World or the Heavenly Dao, nor would they be bound by the Heavenly Dao."

"What does the Dao Ancestor think? Can this be done?"

Having asked, Lingxiao looked at Hongjun with eager anticipation.

If there were no conditions to support it, then so be it—he could only choose one of the three paths. But since the conditions existed, he naturally had to strive for perfection.

Three Corpses Severance to attain Sagehood was the path created by the Dao Ancestor, and it suited the Dao Ancestor himself best.

If the Dao Ancestor could create a new path to prove the Dao, why could he not do the same?

Proving three Daos together—one proof becoming three proofs!

Of the three corpse bodies, one would anchor the Five Elements Dao, one the Yin-Yang Dao, and one the Creation Dao. It was exactly right!

Of course, theory was ultimately only theory. Whether it could truly be realized still required careful, long-term deliberation.

Thus, Lingxiao first needed to seek guidance from the Dao Ancestor, this wise predecessor who had walked ahead of all beings, lest he stray onto the wrong path through aiming too high while lacking the ability to match it.

"This..."

Dao Ancestor Hongjun stared blankly at Lingxiao, shock appearing on his face for the first time.

He had lived through countless Yuanhuì and seen innumerable extraordinarily talented great powers, yet never had anyone dared to conceive such a bold idea!

Anchoring the Primordial Spirit upon the Great Dao rather than the Heavenly Dao, having one person prove three Daos separately, fusing three paths to prove the Dao... This simply overturned every understanding of proving the Dao!

Yet although this idea was somewhat outrageous, he did not reject it outright. Instead, his expression turned solemn as he raised a hand. The Creation Jade Slip floating above his head suddenly bloomed with hundreds of millions of rays of mysterious light.

Buzz.

Countless Heavenly Dao runes rapidly flowed, collided, and deduced themselves across the jade slip, causing the entire Violet Firmament Palace to tremble faintly.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun's eyes were tightly shut and his brows drawn together as he immersed all his focus into the Creation Jade Slip.

Fine beads of sweat gradually seeped across his forehead—this was the first time since proving the Dao and becoming a Sage that deduction had taxed him so greatly.

No one knew how much time passed before the light of the Creation Jade Slip gradually dimmed.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath of turbid air. Looking at Lingxiao, he said in a complicated tone, "This method is feasible."

Those four words alone made the stone hanging in Lingxiao's heart instantly fall to the ground.

However, Dao Ancestor Hongjun shifted the subject and continued.

"Yet there are also problems and flaws within it."