After Ji Hao's round of treatment, Jiang Taixu had regained some vitality. Holding on for another hundred years or so would no longer be a problem. After a while, Jiang Taixu said, "Thank you, Little Ancestor."
He was no longer quite so weak and powerless.
"Little Ancestor, focus and calm your mind!"
With that, Jiang Taixu's figure was reflected on the stone wall once more, continuously assuming various postures. At the same time, a chant entered Ji Hao's mind, while Jiang Taixu also passed on his own understanding through Divine Sense. After recovering somewhat, he could barely use his Divine Sense now.
The tiny Divine Sense figure continuously imitated him, using its body as a seal and shifting through countless transformations. At first, it copied Jiang Taixu, but in the end, it gradually grasped the essence, evolving only the wondrous realm of Unity's origin.
Once the Divine Marrow was obtained, its form naturally appeared. With countless transformations, Myriad Laws Return to One.
The Bodhi Sapling emitted streams of Divine Light of wisdom, raising Ji Hao's spiritual awareness to its peak.
It placed Ji Hao in a wondrous state. Ten full days passed as he remained immersed within it, his body moving like a dream or illusion.
He formed seals with Divine Sense and used his body to evolve the Life-Slaying Great Art. Every part of him became part of a Dao seal. His entire being was like Taiyi, creating existence from nothingness, seeking to manifest the formless Great Dao into tangible force.
"All laws return to nothingness. The Dao gives birth to One; One gives birth to Two; Two gives birth to Three; Three gives birth to Myriad Things, which return again to Wuji."
At last, his mind shook violently, and an eternal, unchanging figure emerged. Countless transformations returned to one, forming the Unique Stance!
The Unique Stance became a seed planted within his heart, resonating with another seed. The "Fighting" of the Nine Secrets was now his.
Ji Hao slowly opened his eyes. In an instant, Battle Intent soared into the heavens, as though it wished to rise into the Nine Heavens and sever every restraint.
"Little Ancestor, your talent truly is extraordinary. How do you feel?"
"I feel great!"
Ji Hao said as he stretched his limbs.
"Little Ancestor, you should leave quickly. Purple Mountain holds too many dangers. With your talent, it will not be long before you become invincible," Jiang Taixu advised.
"I know, but I still have to take a look at Great Emperor Wu Shi's Daoist temple."
"At the end of the Immortal Path, who stands at the peak? At the sight of Wu Shi, all Dao turns empty."
"How could I not witness such an overwhelmingly powerful Human Race Great Emperor, the greatest of all ages?"
Although Ji Hao roughly knew he would not gain anything, since he had come to Shrouding the Heavens, how could he not pay his respects to Great Emperor Wu Shi's splendor?
Especially since he was the first Emperor's Son to attain the Dao.
"Little Ancestor... then I wish you a smooth journey," Jiang Taixu said after a long silence.
"Oh, right. I'll pass on another Secret Technique to you. I can't take your Nine Secrets for nothing."
Ji Hao opened another rift and pointed a finger, transmitting a Secret Technique into Jiang Taixu's Sea of Consciousness.
From withering to flourishing, turning decay and decline into vigorous Vitality. All phenomena and all things evolved, life and death interweaving layer upon layer. It was as if he saw someone whose Origin had dried up undergo Nirvana once more, a trace of Vitality born from utter stillness. One mysterious Symbol after another entered Jiang Taixu's Sea of Consciousness, forming two Emperor Scripts—Fortune!
When Jiang Taixu awoke, Ji Hao was already gone. Only two items remained before him: a bottle filled with Sacred Spring Water and a Little Medicine King.
"Little Ancestor..." Jiang Taixu could not help but sigh when he saw the items before him.
After leaving, Ji Hao had not walked far before arriving at an open cave dwelling. It was as vast as a great hall, like a plaza.
There were numerous corpses here. Ji Hao activated his Martial Dao Heavenly Eyes, their light flickering uncertainly. Suddenly, Divine Light blazed forth.
Beside one skeleton, a silver book gleamed, its surface giving off a cold luster.
Its strokes were forceful and vigorous, its script solemn and steady, flashing with silver radiance. It was undoubtedly the Origin Heaven Book.
Ji Hao drew it over, hesitated for a while, then put it back down. He had already taken the Bodhi Seed; if he took the Origin Heaven Book as well, Heavenly Emperor Ye might truly fail to grow.
For the current Ye Fan, the Origin Heaven Book was crucial. It could be said to be what he relied on to continue cultivating.
Without the Origin Heaven Book, he would not necessarily be stuck in the Dao Palace Secret Realm without being able to move, but he would still waste a great deal of cultivation time.
There was another reason: in their later years, Origin Saint Masters would become tainted by a curse. There were no exceptions. Even Ye Fan, who had become a Heavenly Emperor, could not escape it.
Ji Hao had no desire to grow red hair all over his body in his old age.
Black hair and green hair were no good either.
Especially because of some unspeakably powerful existence, most curses in this world manifested as "hair." The stronger the curse, the more luxuriant and vivid the hair became. And the stronger the cursed person, the more colors their hair would have.
Red hair, seven-colored hair... in any case, Ji Hao absolutely did not want a day to come when he was covered in red hair. Let alone growing it—touching it! He did not even want to touch it.
"Forget it. Who told me I'm such a good person?"
Beside the skeleton, Ji Hao dug a deep pit and buried Zhang Jiye's bones. He then erected a Stone Tablet and placed the Origin Heaven Book beside it.
Then he drifted away. Before long, he saw a Stone Book standing on the ground, more than ten meters long and roughly one or two meters thick.
The stone scripture lay across the ground. Behind it was a heap of rubble overgrown with vines, ancient trees, and wild grass.
As he approached the Stone Book, the two pieces of Emperor Jade began to glow as well.
The Wu Shi Scripture had been created by Great Emperor Wu Shi. At the end of the Immortal Path, who stood at the peak? With one glance at Wu Shi, all Dao became empty. He was absolutely one of the most dominant Great Emperors of the Human Race, his cultivation shaking ancient and modern times alike.
He had been without equal on the Emperor Road. No one had ever needed to worry about him. He swept through everything in his path, resolving battles with a mere wave of his hand. One generation of heavenly demons from the Demon Emperor Hall had even left behind the words: Better to battle the Great Success Sacred Body than ever face Wu Shi.
Ji Hao also tried to open it, only to discover that it would not move in the slightest. The Stone Book felt heavier than a Primordial Divine Mountain, impossible to budge even a fraction.
Other than an innate Holy Land Dao Embryo or gathering all nine pieces of Emperor Jade, there was no other way to open it.
Suddenly, Ji Hao seemed to sense something. His Martial Dao Heavenly Eyes lit up as he stared over and saw the figure of a Big Black Dog dart away like black lightning.
At the sight, Ji Hao immediately thought of that Big Black Dog who specialized in scamming acquaintances, one of the three great scourges of the future universe.
Other than that immoral, sinister Big Black Dog, the Black Emperor, who else could appear in this great hall?
Although this dog had once followed Great Emperor Wu Shi, its personality was famously wretched and sinister, and it was extremely unreliable in its actions. It could be said that half the credit for Ye Fan's path toward becoming the enemy of the world and attaining the Dao as a Heavenly Emperor belonged to him.
Ji Hao ignored the Black Emperor. He had no desire to be entangled by a dog that specialized in scamming acquaintances. He continued onward. Beneath ancient vines, many corpses had died at the roots of plants, as if they had been drained dry alive.
He stepped onto a small path and approached Purple Mountain's most mysterious place. Flowing light shimmered around the great hall, while orchid-like spiritual herbs and immortal grass were planted on both sides, their fragrance rich and sweet. It perfectly matched Ji Hao's image of an Imperial Daoist temple.
As he walked, Ji Hao nodded and said, "Now this is what an Imperial Daoist temple should look like. I've decided—when I attain the Dao in the future, I'll definitely build an even more magnificent Daoist temple."
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