Above the Nine Heavens, astral winds howled fiercely.
Li Qingxiao traveled against the current, piercing through the outermost Nine-Layer Heavenly Astral Wind Layer of the Primordial World.
To an ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortal, these heavenly astral winds were enough to flay bone and scatter the soul,
but before the protective immortal light of Li Qingxiao, an Early Great Encompassment Golden Immortal,
they were like a gentle breeze brushing his face, unable to stir even the corner of his robes.
However, when he truly crossed the Primordial World Fetal Membrane and stepped onto the edge of the legendary Beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens,
the sight before him changed drastically in an instant.
There was no distinction between up and down, left and right, nor any difference between past and future. Everywhere he looked was an expanse of gray.
Violent, disorderly Chaos Currents writhed through the void like countless frenzied dragons tearing into one another.
The fundamental laws of earth, water, fire, and wind had completely collapsed here, transforming into Chaos storms capable of shredding all things, their deafening roars never ceasing.
"So this is Chaos? As expected, it is the first great chasm that separates all living beings."
Li Qingxiao stopped and murmured to himself.
Listening to the Dao at Purple Heaven Palace was not an opportunity just anyone was qualified to pursue.
Dao Ancestor Hongjun's words, "All those with destiny may come and listen," concealed a deeper meaning.
The Chaos astral winds Beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens were the cruelest test!
As Li Qingxiao observed his surroundings, several streaks of light desperately rushed up from the Primordial World Fetal Membrane below.
They were several peak Taiyi Golden Immortal cultivators who had come from some remote immortal mountain.
"The Saint's Great Dao is a rare opportunity. We must contend for it!"
The leading old Daoist wore a fanatical expression. A mid-grade Innate Spirit Treasure protective mirror floated above his head as he plunged headlong into Chaos.
Yet he had gone less than a hundred zhang beyond the Primordial World Fetal Membrane.
"Boom!"
A gray Chaos Current mixed with violent earth, water, fire, and wind
came crashing down upon the protective mirror like a giant hammer wielded by a heavenly god.
With a crisp crack, that mid-grade Innate Spirit Treasure did not even last half a breath,
before it was instantly covered in cracks and violently exploded!
"No—!"
The old Daoist's terrified scream had barely left his throat before his entire body was swept into the Chaos astral winds.
That Taiyi Golden Immortal body, capable of withstanding the collapse of mountains and rivers, was like paper before the Chaos Current.
In an instant, he was ground into a cloud of blood mist. Even his primordial spirit was completely erased, reduced to nothingness.
The remaining cultivators who had attempted to force their way through were so frightened that their souls nearly fled their bodies.
They immediately scrambled back into the Primordial World, never daring to mention the word "contend" again.
Cruel!
Utterly cruel!
Without the cultivation of a Daluo Golden Immortal or a top-tier defensive spirit treasure, entering Chaos meant certain death!
Having witnessed this scene, Li Qingxiao's expression did not change.
With a thought, rings of pure, flawless ripples spread beneath his feet.
The phantom of the Twelfth-Grade Purifying White Lotus silently bloomed beneath him, casting down hundreds of millions of radiant white strands of World-Cleansing Divine Light that enveloped his entire body.
Then, with his hands clasped behind his back, Li Qingxiao stepped into the depths of the incomparably violent Chaos like an immortal banished from heaven.
An astonishing sight unfolded.
When the Chaos Currents and earth, water, fire, and wind that could instantly tear apart even Taiyi Golden Immortals approached within three zhang of Li Qingxiao,
the moment they touched that layer of radiant white World-Cleansing Divine Light, all their violent malice was forcibly smoothed away,
and they were directly purified into the gentlest and purest innate spiritual energy, which flowed back into Li Qingxiao's body!
Others fought for their lives in Chaos, walking through the gates of death.
But Li Qingxiao strolled leisurely, even using the Chaos Currents to cultivate and replenish his mana!
Ten Thousand Laws Immunity, purifying all things—such was the peerless tyranny of a Supreme-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure!
Li Qingxiao traveled through Chaos with effortless ease.
After an unknown amount of time, a vast, dazzling earthen-yellow curtain of light suddenly appeared amid the gray Chaos Currents ahead.
The light curtain was incomparably solid, and upon it, phantoms of the Primordial World's land, endless mountains, and earth veins faintly circulated through cycles of birth and destruction.
No matter how violently the Chaos astral winds outside bombarded it, the earthen-yellow curtain remained as steady as Mount Tai, firmly blocking them outside.
"A Supreme-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure—the Earth Book, formed from the Earth Fetal Membrane?"
Li Qingxiao's eyes flashed as he instantly recognized the origin of the light curtain.
He slowed down and looked carefully.
Beneath the Earth Book, two Daoists were being protected.
The man on the left wore a crimson Daoist robe. His face was round, his expression kind, and he was curiously looking around.
The man on the right wore an earthen-yellow Daoist robe. His features were lean and steady, his long beard fluttering as he focused fully on channeling his mana to maintain the Earth Book's defense.
"Ancestor Hong Yun, the Primordial World's foremost good man, and Zhen Yuanzi, Ancestor of Earth Immortals."
Li Qingxiao recognized the identities of these two central mythological figures at a glance.
Just then, Hong Yun, dressed in crimson Daoist robes, also noticed Li Qingxiao approaching from behind.
When Hong Yun saw that Li Qingxiao was alone, holding no proper magic treasure in his hands and relying only on a phantom White Lotus beneath his feet,
yet was able to remain untouched by all laws in Chaos, his eyes widened in utter disbelief.
"Ah! Fellow Daoist ahead, please wait!"
Hong Yun was naturally warm and hospitable. Even in this dangerous Chaos, he could not resist taking the initiative to strike up a conversation:
"What a profound protective divine ability! What deep foundations in the Great Dao! This poor Daoist is Hong Yun. Greetings, Fellow Daoist!"
Zhen Yuanzi, beside him, also turned to look.
When he saw Li Qingxiao's leisurely manner, a trace of shock and gravity likewise flashed across his lean face.
He had only dared to travel through Chaos with Hong Yun by relying on the Supreme-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure, the Earth Book.
Just who was this young man before him?
Li Qingxiao knew of Hong Yun's tragic fate in the future "seat-yielding affair."
He intended to forge a favorable karmic connection here, laying the groundwork for seizing seats at Purple Heaven Palace in the future.
He smiled faintly, stepping on the White Lotus until he arrived three zhang before the two men, then cupped his hands in greeting.
"This poor Daoist is Li Qingxiao, a mere independent cultivator. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Hong Yun. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi."
"So you are Fellow Daoist Qingxiao!"
Hong Yun casually moved closer and praised him repeatedly through the Earth Book's curtain of light.
"Fellow Daoist, your defensive method is truly extraordinary. You can treat such violent Chaos Currents as though they were nothing. This poor Daoist admires you immensely!"
Zhen Yuanzi was comparatively cautious. He carefully sensed Li Qingxiao's aura and discovered that although Li Qingxiao was merely at the early Daluo stage,
the transcendent Dao aura around him caused even Zhen Yuanzi, a mid-stage Daluo Golden Immortal, to feel a pang of unease.
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Qingxiao."
Zhen Yuanzi nodded slightly.
"Chaos is filled with peril. If Fellow Daoist does not mind, why not travel together with the two of us? We can look out for one another."
"It would be my pleasure."
Li Qingxiao readily agreed.
The three flew side by side toward the depths of Chaos.
Along the way, Hong Yun enthusiastically conversed with Li Qingxiao about the Dao, speaking at length about the Primordial World's strange tales and curious events.
He even shared his cultivation insights without the slightest reservation, showing a complete lack of wariness.