After Xuan Zhen heard the answer he wanted, his expression relaxed slightly. Whether Qingxiao had spoken truth or falsehood, he could only choose to believe him now.
At least that gave him a little solace.
"Thank you for granting my wish, venerable one," he said, lowering his head.
"No need for thanks. Rise." Qingxiao nodded in satisfaction and swept his hand lightly, carving a rift through the void. Within it, the outline of the Fuli Heaven Domain's mainland was faintly visible.
"The passage is ready. Go on ahead, everyone."
Xuan Zhen nodded silently, then turned and stirred the Three Qi to protect himself. With a sudden exertion, he heaved that patch of the realm of neither being nor nonbeing onto his back.
The realm of neither being nor nonbeing seemed capable of corrosion. It spread up and down Xuan Zhen's spine, grinding away at his Dharma Body bit by bit, inch by inch.
His face abruptly went white, as though he bore an abyss of heaven upon his back.
Forcing himself to endure the pain, Xuan Zhen drove the Three Qi with all his strength to barely resist that corrosive force. Through gritted teeth, he advanced toward the rift between the two worlds, one step at a time.
With his first step, his fingers abruptly vanished; with his second, his arms turned transparent.
"Fellow Daoist Xuan Zhen!" an Emanated Cultivator behind him cried out.
Unmoved, Xuan Zhen continued forward. After his fifth step, the outline of his body gradually dissolved. By the seventh, he had become a faint silhouette of light, silently dissipating within the rift.
Someone beside him tried to catch hold of him, but grasped only empty air.
Only that patch of the realm of neither being nor nonbeing remained suspended in place, seeming to tremble slightly.
"Continue.