Three Paths

The miasma of Blackwater Marsh cut off divine sense, making it the best possible cover for him.

After crossing mountains and rivers for several hundred miles, Shen Qingzhou found a secluded underground karst cave.

He set up several simple warning array discs outside, then carved out a temporary stone chamber deep within the cave wall before finally sitting down cross-legged.

He sank his divine sense into his storage pouch and carefully counted this expedition's gains.

The combined possessions of several Earth Spirit Sect disciples amounted to over six hundred low-grade spirit stones, along with several bottles of healing pills and a heap of earth-element spiritual materials.

The most valuable item was naturally the jade vial containing thirty drops of Kan Water Jade.

He did not rush to consume them at once. Instead, he chose to settle himself first, allowing his aura to gradually grow more harmonious and complete.

This process lasted a full seven days.

Seven days later, Shen Qingzhou opened his eyes. Even the moisture in the cave stirred slightly with each breath he took.

He took out the jade vial and pulled its stopper. Clear, pure spiritual essence rushed toward his face, leaving him refreshed.

Without hesitation, he tipped his head back and swallowed a drop of Kan Water Jade the size of an infant's fist.

Pure water-element spiritual qi exploded directly within his body.

Had an ordinary Kan Water Lineage disciple suddenly swallowed such a spiritual treasure, their meridians would have burst apart inch by inch.

But Shen Qingzhou's Abyss-Hiding Sword Essence had been condensed from the Abyssal Concealment True Meaning. Its core lay in accommodation and sinking.

The originally pitch-black vortex of magical power gained a faint glimmer of deep-blue starlight at its core after absorbing this drop of source spiritual essence.

The grade of his magical power was rising.

The Abyss-Sinking Formula revolved madly, refining this power into the foundation of his own cultivation.

One drop, two drops, three drops...

Shen Qingzhou's expression remained calm as he continuously swallowed Kan Water Jade.

When the tenth drop of Kan Water Jade was refined, the power accumulated within him finally reached its critical point.

The black vortex within his dantian's sea of qi suddenly spun faster, expanding outward by more than a full circle. The invisible barrier shattered at once beneath the impact of his magical power.

Qi Refining, Eighth Layer.

An aura far more tyrannical than before spread from his body, shaking the loose stones in the chamber until they rattled down.

He did not stop, continuing to refine the remaining Kan Water Jade.

Only after all thirty drops had been exhausted did his cultivation stabilize at the middle stage of Qi Refining, Eighth Layer.

His total magical power was several times greater than it had been at Qi Refining, Seventh Layer. His Abyss-Hiding Sword Essence had also become more condensed, and when activated, it faintly carried the sound of flowing water.

"What a pity. This still isn't enough."

Feeling the power within himself, Shen Qingzhou could not help smacking his lips.

Though Kan Water Jade was excellent, it was ultimately only a cultivation resource. It could not conjure a cultivation art's Dao treasury from thin air.

The Scripture Master profession's proficiency remained stuck at Infer Ten from One, and the progress on the panel had not budged in the slightest.

The Swordsman profession, on the other hand, saw Sword Principles Newly Established rise by a small measure after his breakthrough.

In the end, his attention settled on that brand-new profession: Source Heaven Master.

After advancing, he had not yet had the chance to carefully experience the changes this profession had brought him.

With a slight stir of divine sense, he attempted to activate the Source Heaven Master's core ability.

It was Dao-Rhyme Revelation.

In an instant, his world changed.

The inner textures of rock formations and the veins of flowing water all turned into countless fine, intricate lines, clearly displayed within his sea of consciousness.

He could even see the warning array discs he had placed, every trajectory and node of their circulating spiritual qi visible at a glance.

That was the power of Dao-Rhyme Revelation: it could perceive the circulation of the Dao-rhymes at the origin of all things.

A bold thought arose in his heart.

Since it could perceive external objects, then could it... perceive himself?

He turned Dao-Rhyme Revelation upon himself.

Buzzz—

His sea of consciousness shuddered violently. The divine sense consumed was far greater than when perceiving external things.

The Profession Panel suddenly unfolded before his eyes. This time, it was no longer mere text, but transformed into three vast, hazy scrolls of imagery.

These three scrolls were precisely the three future Dao Paths he had vaguely glimpsed before!

In the first scroll, water had no form, nor did it make a sound.

A point of deep blue emerged from nowhere, then spread across the surface of all phenomena. Light first lost its brightness; form later lost its boundaries. Things that were solid ceased to be solid, and things that separated ceased to separate.

Shen Qingzhou focused for a long while before he vaguely grasped its meaning.

"This Dao Foundation is called [Azure-Ripple Dissolution]. It excels at dissolving, eroding away... not bad. The imagery fits as well."

Shen Qingzhou murmured softly.

The method Su Yu had once used to dissolve Huang Shi's defenses had been similar to this. As for whether Cloudveil True Person had also taken this path, he could not determine that for now.

There was no question of this Dao Foundation's formidable strength in combat. Any artifact defense would appear fragile before this art; it was as though every strike landed squarely upon the opponent, each blow dealing solid, true damage!

Unfortunately, it seemed to have been most deeply influenced by the mighty existence above. If he chose this path, he might end up like Cloud Hermit—neither rising nor falling, stuck halfway in the middle.

Holding his breath, he continued to look. In the second scroll, there was no water.

There was only an emptiness descending downward.

That emptiness was neither a rift nor a gateway. It was like heaven and earth had forgotten to close at a single point.

Nothingness, endless nothingness...

Yet it carried an unspeakable, overwhelming terror.

Shen Qingzhou's heart sank. Merely contemplating this image filled him with boundless deathly stillness, cold sweat seeping down his back.

With his current cultivation, even his Dao heart nearly fell into it, unable to free itself!

This path was called [Fallen Abyss Gate].

Based on the manifested imagery, he could roughly guess the effects of forging this Dao Foundation. It should involve attraction, annihilation, and the like. Its might in battle might even surpass [Azure-Ripple Dissolution].

He analyzed it inwardly. "It even carries a hint of the laws of space and time... Anything that touches either of those two will never be weak."

His face had gone pale, but he forced himself to remain focused and continued looking. The third scroll was even more obscure.

Above were stars, but the stars did not shine upon people; at the side was a moon, but the moon did not form a wheel. Clouds seemed unborn, rain seemed unfallen. A broken ancient seal drifted amid them, like authority, yet also like a corpse.

Wind, water, and yin phenomena revolved around it, yet they could never become one.

Shen Qingzhou could make out only the faintest outline.

This path was called [Cloud-Rising Torrent Path], and it contained the least information of all.

If his guess was correct, he was able to see this Dao Path because of that Rain Master Ancient Stele from back then.

It was not simply a Kan Water Lineage path, but pointed toward a more ancient office at a higher level.

To reclaim the authority of clouds and rain, command all waters, send clouds rolling and spread rain across the land—perhaps that was the legendary Rain Master Path.

"Which path is truly the most suitable for me?"

After regulating his breath for a while, Shen Qingzhou's complexion regained its healthy color. He frowned as he pondered.

Meanwhile, deep within Blackwater Marsh, in another valley shrouded by an array.

Two Earth Spirit Sect disciples stumbled and crawled into the valley, their faces deathly pale and their eyes filled with terror.

"Senior Brother, this is bad! Something huge has happened!"

The two staggered toward a temple, throwing themselves before its tightly shut doors as they shouted hoarsely.

Only after quite some time did the heavy wooden doors emit a dry scraping sound and slowly open to either side.

A gloomy-faced young man stepped out across the threshold. Though he too was at Qi Refining, Seventh Layer, his aura was far more solid than that of the man Shen Qingzhou had killed.

"What has you panicking like this?"

"Senior Brother Li, Senior Brother Li and the others' life tablets... they've all, all shattered!"

One of the disciples spoke through a trembling body.

"We went over to investigate and discovered, discovered..."

The gloomy young man's brows twisted tightly together.

"Discovered what? Speak!"

"Th-they're all gone!"

The other disciple collapsed onto the ground with a grief-stricken face.

"The altar has completely collapsed. There's only mud and shattered rocks left everywhere, and the blood pool has vanished too."

"Senior Brother Li and the others did not even leave behind intact corpses. And those Dao Soldiers—there's truly nothing left at all."

The gloomy young man's expression instantly became exceedingly ugly.

A stronghold guarded by both an array and Dao Soldiers had been silently wiped out just like that. No matter how he thought about it, it was impossible.

"Damn it. In a few months, it will be... If we delay Senior Brother Xu's great undertaking, none of us will survive."

He cursed under his breath, then hurriedly pulled out an earth-yellow transmission talisman. In a fluster, he poured magical power into it and sent news of the situation upward as quickly as possible.

A faint glimmer flashed across the transmission talisman before it shot directly into the deepest part of the temple.

The entire valley fell back into deathly silence. The two disciples who had delivered the report lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to even breathe loudly.

After a long while, a muffled, low hum finally sounded from the depths of the temple.

"Investigate the reason for that gap. Go and find..."