Great Dao

Biodata

Nature and Principles

• Cosmic order: Union with the Great Dao exposes the laws and order of the universe’s “ten thousand Daos.” Li Wangxian experiences this as becoming one with the universe, although his ability to control that knowledge remains limited by his actual cultivation 27.
• Tangible traces: Dao laws can manifest as Innate Dao Diagrams, making otherwise intangible principles visible and usable in battle 12.
• Cultivation suppression: The current era is described as one in which the Great Dao suppresses cultivation, making even the Great Ability realm difficult to reach 34.
• Imperial legacy: Cultivators expect another struggle along the Emperor Road after the deceased Azure Emperor’s Great Dao dissipates 32.

Yin, Yang, and Chaos

Role in Cultivation

Affinity and Dao Attainment

• Innate affinity: Connection to the Great Dao can baptize and improve a cultivator’s foundational “Dao nature.” Li Wangxian receives this benefit from birth 1.
• Dao resonance: The Yin and Yang Immortal Seed draws Dao resonance and spiritual currents from heaven and earth into Li Wangxian’s body during cultivation 2.
• Comprehension versus power: Dao attainment is distinct from divine power. Li Wangxian considers the conversion of accumulated insights into usable Dao attainment more valuable than a simple increase in energy 10.
• Retained understanding: Suppressing one’s cultivation does not erase Dao comprehension. Li Shenglan retains his Immortal Two understanding while limiting his divine power to the Four Extremes realm 12.
• Technique mastery: Profound understanding lets Li Wangxian rapidly learn and improve techniques. His refined Four Extremes Seal creates a miniature world-like domain, though it possesses only the semblance of a true world 23.

Cultivation Realms

Li Wangxian is an exception to the usual Four Extremes threshold: his innate affinity lets him harness the Great Dao while still at Dao Palace fifth heaven. Entering Four Extremes later removes the physical barrier that had prevented him from fully expressing his understanding 23 42.

Union with the Dao and Dao Transformation

Union with the Dao

• Heightened perception: Deep union reveals Dao arts and profound mysteries with extraordinary clarity. Li Wangxian deliberately uses it to decipher the ancient Dao Sound at Tianyuan 26.
• Limits of control: Exposure to the Great Dao does not mean a cultivator possesses the realm or Primordial Spirit perception needed to control it 27.
• Temporary authority: Li Wangxian’s exceptional state above the ten thousand Daos grants an emperor-like perspective and limited authority over heaven and earth. It does not make his actual cultivation or Dao attainment equivalent to a Great Emperor’s 28.

Dao Transformation

• Trigger: Li Wangxian attempts to capture the laws of the ten thousand Daos and refine them into his Primordial Spirit, exceeding his ability to contain them 27.
• Effects: His Primordial Spirit burns with Dao fire, followed by his body. His entire being begins dissolving into the Dao 27.
• Deceptive perception: While dying, he feels stronger than ever and believes he is mastering the ten thousand Daos. His clouded perception prevents him from hearing Uncle Jiang’s attempts to wake him 27.
• Escape: Reproducing the perspective of dimensional ascension activates the imprint left by his transmigration, restores his awareness, and extinguishes the transformation 27.
• Safer alternative: Receiving a baptism in the essence of the myriad paths is distinguished from merging with the Dao. Uncle Jiang undergoes this enlightenment safely under Li Wangxian’s supervision 28.
• Uncertain repeatability: Li Wangxian cannot guarantee that another deliberate merger would reactivate his dimensional power rather than kill him 28.

Dao Sounds and Recorded Insights

Sun Scripture Restoration

Solar laws manifesting in Li Wangxian’s awakened imperial blood resonate with the Sun Remnant Scripture and produce Dao sounds. Using this Great Dao Celestial Music together with his bloodline’s divine laws, he restores more than ninety percent of the Wheel Sea and Dao Palace Scrolls. The remaining imperial-level mysteries exceed his understanding 7 8.

Taiyin Human Emperor’s Legacy

The Taiyin Human Emperor’s ancient demonstrations of taiyin giving birth to the sun leave an indelible impression upon the Great Dao. Heaven and earth preserve this Dao Fruit, which evolves across countless ages into the Dao Sound heard at his former retreat 27.

A force of time seals the insights in the distant past. Spiritually attuned seekers may hear the sounds, but their meaning remains inaccessible. Li Wangxian’s temporary perspective above the ten thousand Daos reveals both the scripture and insights more precious than the Taiyin True Scripture alone; he stores them in his Primordial Spirit for gradual comprehension 27 28.

Manifestations in Combat

Dao comprehension can take tangible form without becoming a physical weapon. Li Wangxian’s arena Dao Bell, for example, is condensed from divine power rather than brought out as an artifact 48.

These manifestations help Li Wangxian establish the direction of his unfinished Myriad Transformations Divine Form: using the union of yin and yang to unfold the many aspects of the Great Dao. He contrasts its generation of Dao manifestations with the Ruthless Great Emperor’s Myriad Transformations Sacred Art, which dissolves mighty arts and the Great Dao 50.

Artifact Refinement

• Dao traces in weapons: Artifacts refined from Divine Patterns may eventually weave traces of the Dao within themselves. Bells, cauldrons, and pagodas are considered somewhat more likely to develop them, though success remains exceedingly rare 4.
• Life-bound vessels: Divine Patterns inscribe Dao laws into a vessel, allowing it to meld with its owner’s life and cultivated Great Dao 29.
• Myriad-path Dao fire: Using borrowed authority, Li Wangxian ignites the myriad paths to refine the Treasure Wheel and Jade Disk. He then nourishes them with the paths’ essence so they evolve into flawless Saint Weapons 28 31.
• Weapon spirits: Residual essence of the Great Dao sustains the newly formed Treasure Wheel’s deity, allowing it to remain independently awakened while absorbing that essence 33.
• Chaos Bell: Li Wangxian melts chaos stone marrow with the fire of the myriad paths and inscribes Sun and Taiyin divine laws into the bell, intending it to carry his Dao Fruit 29.