Having completed his cultivation of the first great human body secret realm, Yuangeng stretched his body to his heart's content. As he felt the blood energy and magical power surging endlessly from his Sea of Bitterness secret realm, a powerful sense that none could stand against him arose unbidden.
Then he resonated with the Sea of Bitterness within him and drew a drop of Life Spring liquid from his Life Spring. The divine liquid gathered at his fingertip, then fell with a patter onto the stone platform where the Human Emperor had once sat cross-legged.
Boom!
In an instant, the myriad Daos throughout this vast area stirred to life. Laws rang out in unison, and runes scattered everywhere. Two entirely different sets of Lunar Essence Dao Laws-Yuangeng's and the Human Emperor's-coexisted, as though the whole region had been filled with renewed vitality, becoming even more suited to cultivation.
Marvelous!
Yuangeng marveled. The human body secret realm method truly tempered and sublimated the flesh at its very foundation. A single drop from his Life Spring was like a potent medicinal treasure. Even though he was no expert in refining pills or brewing medicines, he knew that his Life Spring liquid had endless wondrous uses.
What won Yuangeng's approval even more was that, unlike the Immortal Ancient Method, the method of using the body as a seed emphasized bringing every divine ability back into oneself. Cultivators did not need to study whether a person was compatible with a Dao Seed, either. Their bodies already belonged to them, so whichever path they wished to take was entirely their own decision.
At that thought, he could not help feeling wistful. During Immortal Ancient times, he had known several friends with considerable talent whose paths had been cut short because they could not find suitable Dao Seeds. Had the body-as-seed method existed then, those people might have had a chance to become immortals.
Crack!
Clatter!
With a slight stirring of his thoughts, accompanied by the sounds of shackles shattering and chains coming undone, ink-black Lunar Essence runes emerged from Yuangeng's flesh and bones before dissipating. This was his own art, originally used to seal himself and slow the loss of his life force. Now that he had begun a second lifetime, there was naturally no need for it.
Then Yuangeng raised his hand, and the Eternal Ancient Ruler fell into his grasp. He employed his Dao arts to draw the immortal gold ruler into his Sea of Bitterness. Within it stood a Divine Bridge, and the life essence surging over that bridge was just right for nourishing his ruler.
Only then did he turn to look a short distance away. Two cultivators who likewise cultivated the Lunar Essence Great Dao stood there respectfully: one was the young female leader of the Lunar Essence Divine Church, and the other was the Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor who had arrived afterward.
"Congratulations on beginning your second lifetime, Senior!"
Seeing that Yuangeng had finished cultivating, both let out long breaths. The Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor reacted first, speaking in a deep voice.
He felt deeply fortunate. Yuangeng truly seemed to have come only to study the Human Emperor Ancient Scripture and bore the Lunar Essence Divine Church no ill will. Otherwise, with the Church currently lacking an Extreme Dao Weapon, it would have been utterly unable to withstand an attack from such a supreme powerhouse.
"I was the one who came uninvited, and my cultivation caused rather too much of a stir."
Yuangeng saw through the Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor's true condition at a glance. He was in the first heaven of the Quasi-Emperor realm. Though his blood energy was still abundant and he had another thousand or two thousand years left to live, his potential was exhausted. Even if he devoted the rest of his life to it, he might never reach the second heaven.
By contrast, the female Church leader beside the Quasi-Emperor, though only at the Saint King level, showed signs of ancestral reversion in the emperor's blood within her. The Imperial Dao Laws in her body were awakening. If she could break through her shackles, she might travel farther.
At that moment, fluctuations of Imperial Dao Laws surrounded both high-ranking members of the Divine Church. Pitch-black formation patterns sheltered them within-a flawless Imperial Dao Formation.
Yuangeng nodded inwardly at this. This was, after all, the legacy the Lunar Essence Human Emperor had painstakingly left for his descendants. Even now, in the late Ancient Era, the Lunar Essence Divine Church still had a Quasi-Emperor and a flawless imperial formation, enough to preserve the standing and dignity of an Extreme Dao lineage.
"You are too kind, Senior. You are a fellow traveler of our imperial ancestor. Were he still alive, he would surely welcome your frequent visits," the Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor said.
In truth, he had been unable to sit or stand at ease throughout the past year. Across the ages, cultivators of the same Great Dao either cherished one another or became enemies who could not stand the sight of each other. Their Divine Church's ancestor had become an emperor through Lunar Essence. Having encountered Yuangeng, who walked the same path, they were bound to draw his attention sooner or later.
Fortunately, things were clearly moving in the best possible direction. The supreme Yuangeng held the Human Emperor's Great Dao in high esteem, which would benefit the Lunar Essence Divine Church's development. If they could receive Yuangeng's guidance and produce a few more Quasi-Emperors, he could face his ancestors without shame when he passed away.
"Had I emerged a little earlier, the Human Emperor would not have fallen so young."
Yuangeng, too, felt some regret. The Lunar Essence Human Emperor possessed great compassion, great courage, and great talent. In this era when the world's Dharma was waning, he truly had the potential to become an immortal. Sadly, the road to immortality was too long and life too short. In the end, the Human Emperor could not outlast the years and fell on the road of battle.
As far as character went, there was absolutely nothing to fault in Ziwei's two Human Race emperors of Taiyin and Taiyang. The Lunar Essence Human Emperor must have been the earliest Human Race emperor of the Ancient Era. He had established his Church on Ziwei and sheltered his people. The Solar Essence Sacred Emperor had watched over the Human Race throughout his life, ultimately dying in battle beyond his home domain and leaving his bones in a foreign land-a fate that stirred deep sorrow.
Moreover, as a transmigrator, Yuangeng knew very well that in the years to come, both Divine Churches would fall into complete decline. The Sun God Sect would lose its scriptures and be exterminated by a minor branch of the Golden Crow Clan. The Lunar Essence Divine Church would fare even more miserably: its servant clan would turn upon it, the cuckoo would seize the magpie's nest, and the Human Emperor's bloodline would come close to extinction.
Yuangeng's current body was also of the human race. In his era, there had been little conflict between the human race and other races, but they still took pride in their own heritage. Faced with what would befall these descendants of later Human Race emperors, Yuangeng was unwilling to watch coldly from the sidelines.
In other words, he wished to lend them a hand.
Thus, after a brief moment of consideration, he said:
"We walk the same Lunar Essence path, and the Human Emperor's scriptures and arts have given me inspiration. That counts as a favor owed. If there is a problem you cannot resolve, I can act on your behalf once."
At those words, the Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor froze for a moment before excitement immediately spread across his face. As though he had grasped a life-saving straw, he cast aside all concern for a Quasi-Emperor's dignity and bowed deeply before Yuangeng, this unfamiliar supreme being.
"We descendants have proven incompetent. The Human Emperor Seal was lost in a divine war tens of thousands of years ago. If you are willing, Supreme One, the Taiyin Sect asks for nothing else. We only beg you to act and recover our Church's imperial seal."
Beside him, the Church leader, Saint King Si Yanning, also offered a solemn bow. As the person in charge of a Divine Church, she understood all too well how important an Extreme Dao Weapon was to a lineage. It was no exaggeration to say that, so long as the Human Emperor Seal was not lost, the Lunar Essence Divine Church could endure no matter how difficult the great age ahead became.
"Rise."
At Yuangeng's words, the two high-ranking members of the Lunar Essence Divine Church rose involuntarily. With his hands clasped behind his back, he looked toward an ancient star in the heavens and said leisurely,
"I will agree to this. I have heard the stories of this era's two Human Race emperors. We are all of the human race, though we belong to different ages. I will help your two Divine Churches put some regrets of the past to rest."
Yuangeng stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze deep and distant, as though it still pierced countless hundreds of millions of miles of starry space and beheld many things.
"Go. Announce it throughout Ziwei: in ten days, Yuangeng will expound the scriptures at the Lunar Essence Dao Ground."
His voice was not loud, yet it filled the Lunar Essence Quasi-Emperor with delighted surprise. For one thing, he had not expected an ancient being like Yuangeng to be of the human race. For another, he had never imagined that Yuangeng would harbor such goodwill toward the two great religious lineages of Ziwei Ancient Star.
It had been far too long since a supreme powerhouse had expounded the scriptures on Ziwei.
Before you continue