But in the next instant, a bone-chilling cold arose and spread from the depths of his Dao heart. In the instant all the answers were revealed, all doubts vanished. In the instant all the paths became clear, all choices solidified.
Before making a choice, the destination is already known; after the destination, the changes are already known; after the changes, the return to stillness is already known. Even the original intention of "why choose, why make choices, why move forward" has long been fully understood and defined.
Qin Yu stood there, realizing for the first time that omniscience is also a prison. Without the unknown, there is no new life, no exploration, no evolution, and no future. Everything is predetermined, everything has an answer. The vitality of the Dao of Derivation stagnates here. His eyes darkened, and he withdrew without lingering.
The second layer of knowledge unfolded in an instant, annihilating all clarity and reducing all principles and laws to nothingness, creating Chaotic Knowing Layer. Qin Yu was instantly plunged into a state of complete ignorance. He did not know who he was, where he was, what the laws were, what the rules were for, what past battles were, or where Return Path.
All meaning is severed, all mental pathways collapse, all cognitive connections are reduced to zero. There are no answers, no questions, because questioning, seeking, exploring, and resolving doubts all originate from "knowledge." With the disappearance of knowledge, even the right to doubt has been lost.
Qin Yu felt an unprecedented stagnation and blockage in his mind, unable to move because he did not know what action was, unable to stand still because he did not know what stagnation was. Ignorance is never liberation, never freedom; it is the Ultimate shackle that completely obliterates all possibilities, all choices, and all foundations for progress. Ignorance is also a prison.
The third layer of knowledge appeared instantly, and consciousness suddenly revived. With a single thought, all laws were withdrawn. Holding onto the Clinging Knowing Layer, Qin Yu grasped a wisp of law and a trace of true meaning at will. With just this one thought, the entire world and all its evolutions contracted, solidified, and took shape around this wisp of awareness.
There were no locks, chains, or ropes here, yet Qin Yu clearly sensed that he was already trapped in a cage, unable to escape. As long as he believed that a single thought was true, a single principle was real, a single path was the root, and a single result was certain, that thought would frantically evolve, take root, and spread outward.
One thought gives rise to ten thoughts, ten thoughts give rise to a hundred thoughts, a hundred thoughts give rise to countless thoughts, and countless thoughts give rise to infinity. The more one clings to and holds onto the initial thought, the more the subsequent thoughts will flow out of control and break free from one's grasp.
Grab, then lose; grab again, then lose again, in an endless cycle. In the past, the Wanyan Ones, in order to resist the calamity of Return to Emanation, stubbornly adhered to the principles of law, locked the rules, and clung to the existence of reality, vainly attempting to prove their own immortality with "I know that the Great Dao is eternally existent".
Yet he could never fathom the true meaning of the Dao of Derivation—knowledge is impermanent, every thought is derivation, the more one clings, the more one guards, the more one seeks, the more one loses. Qin Yu slowly loosened his attachments, letting go of all his stubbornness, and the shackles of Clinging Knowing Layer vanished in response.
The fourth level of knowledge follows immediately: the Doubting Knowing Layer. Upon entering this level, a thought arises spontaneously, leading to endless questioning. Is what was just understood truly without error? How can it be judged as true? Is the judgment of "truth or falsehood" itself reliable? Does the basis for judging truth or falsehood still need to be verified?
Should the original awareness upon which the research was based still be questioned? Once a doubt arises, countless doubts follow. Doubts arise about law, rules, meaning, heaven and earth, oneself, and all that is doubted.
Then comes the question of "why I have doubts," followed by the question of "whether doubt itself is illusory." Doubts arise one after another, progressing layer by layer, Endless answer. As soon as one answer takes shape, a new round of doubts will be born simultaneously and continue to entangle.
Doubts linger endlessly, reaching the fifth level of knowledge, where a single thought returns to stillness. The Empty Knowing Layer where law and reason are empty, rules are empty, meaning is empty, heaven and earth are empty, the self is empty, and Wanyan are empty. Qin Yu even clearly perceives that even the realm of "emptiness" is illusory and Space Silence.
But the moment the thought "emptiness is also emptiness" takes shape, a new thought arises again: I already know that emptiness is also emptiness, and then I become empty again, silent again, and then it evolves again. One thought of emptiness gives rise to another thought, emptiness and emptiness give rise to each other, silence and evolution repeat, still endless and without end.
Qin Yu's eyes grew increasingly solemn; at this point, he finally saw through the true terror of the sixth root.
Omniscience is a prison, ignorance is a prison, clinging to beliefs is a prison, doubt and delusion are prisons, and Space Silence is still a prison.
Once something is perceived, defined, understood, or retained, it is forever trapped within the root of intention and the Knowledge Abyss, with no way out.
But the fifth floor was not the end; the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth... Qin Yu's mind extended downwards to explore, when suddenly his body froze, his mind reeling. There was no end.
The Knowing Layer are infinite, nested one after another, extending endlessly. Each layer is a complete and independent system of perception, a complete world of evolution. The moment his mind penetrated the surface and explored a certain deep realm of knowledge, his pupils suddenly contracted violently.
Within that layer of heaven and earth, there were traces of the Wanyan Ones, the Primordial Ancestor belonging to that layer, the complete Six Sense Roots Emanation Domain, and the guardian beasts each with their own duties. The Emanation Guardian Sight-Derivation Beast, Hearing-Derivation Beast, Smell-Derivation Beast, and Touch Emanation Beast were all present.
There is also a hidden beast, corresponding to the sixth root— the Knowing Emanation Beast. The Wanyan Ones of that world also walks the Dao Path the six roots and has also experienced all kinds of desperate situations.
Some venture into the eye, some battle the ear, some cultivate the nose, some perish at the tongue, some are fighting to the death in the Sea of Touch, resisting the boundaries, and some have already stepped into the Intentless Root Domain that belongs to their own world.
Qin Yu's mind was violently shaken as he continued to probe downwards.
Within that Intent Root Emanation Domain, there are still countless Knowing Layer nested within, each containing a new Wanyan Ones, a new ancestor, a new six-root system, and a new cycle of reincarnation.
Layer upon layer, one hidden within another, an endless progression, Beginningless Endless, with no bottom or top. Qin Yu's breathing suddenly became heavy, and a bone-chilling cold rose in his heart.
Infinite nesting and endless reincarnation—is this very level of Knowledge Abyss, this realm, this cycle of the six senses, where I stand right now, merely a fleeting awareness arising from a single thought within a higher realm of knowledge, a mere illusionary evolution?
As soon as this thought arose, the Endless Abyss of Knowing suddenly surged across the entire domain, waves rose without wind, scenery changed without change, and vibrations shook silently. In an instant, billions of new thoughts of knowledge sprouted from the entire Intentless Root Domain, layer upon layer, and proliferated wildly.
Qin Yu is in the True Realm of this level. Qin Yu is only in the upper level of knowledge. Beyond the upper level, there is an even higher level. There is no highest level. The "no highest level" itself is also a thought of awareness.
Boom! Billions of thoughts surrounded Qin Yu's mind, frantically generating, iterating, and repeating. One answer gave rise to one question, and one question gave rise to one answer; one enlightenment gave rise to one doubt, and one doubt prompted one enlightenment; one emptiness gave rise to one knowledge, and one knowledge returned to emptiness.
The cycle repeats endlessly, without ceasing, without end. For the first time, Qin Yu truly experienced the unsolvable terror of the Sixth Root, a place with no outside, no inside, no outside, and no inside.
All thoughts, realizations, doubts, attachments, emptiness, experiences, and even this very thought that "I am currently in the realm of Intentless Root, experiencing the Knowledge Abyss," are all derivative knowledge, a layer of shackles within the Endless Abyss of Knowing.
Deep within the infinite Knowing Layer, countless nested worlds continue to operate ceaselessly.
Some are opening their eyes to observe shapes and colors, some are listening intently to countless sounds, some are concentrating to smell the air, some are quietly discerning flavors, some are physically confronting boundaries, and some are embracing all knowledge with their hearts.
The cycle of reincarnation continues endlessly, the evolution never ceases. Qin Yu stood at the core of the Abyss of Knowledge Abyss, silent for a long time, without moving an inch. After an unknown period of time, a strange change quietly occurred. Clarity, chaos, obsession, doubt, emptiness—the endless Knowing Layer —all paused for a moment at the same instant.
Extremely short, extremely light, extremely subtle, almost imperceptible; without form, Wheel-less, without breath, without fluctuation, without any unusual signs, yet deep within Qin Yu's mind, he had already clearly and distinctly perceived it.
Deep within the Abyss of Knowledge Abyss, something has awakened: the sixth and final Emanation Guardian. Its form is not yet revealed, nor its Daoist essence yet exposed, but its first primordial awareness has already settled upon Qin Yu, locking his mind, illuminating his Dao foundation, and knowing everything about him.
That "knowledge" that settled in the mortal world did not stir up the slightest ripple in the Endless Abyss of Knowing.
There was no attack, no killing intent, no oppressive force, and no tangible power for Qin Yu to retaliate. The Clear Knowing Layer, Chaotic Knowing Layer, Clinging Knowing Layer, Doubting Knowing Layer, Empty Knowing Layer Knowing Layer deep within—continued to operate quietly along their inherent trajectory. Qin Yu searched all directions but could not find the origin or location of this awareness.
Beneath the Ultimate calm, the undercurrents are most chilling. He slowly lowered his eyes, gazing at his palm, a deep frown settling between his brows.
There exists an unknown entity that has already thoroughly understood everything about this palm strike. The order of the metacarpal bones, the principles of flesh and blood growth, the origin and healing of every minute wound, and the evolution of every inch of muscle texture—all of this has been completely discerned.
This awareness did not penetrate the skin or enter the blood; it was untouched and uninterrupted, purely "knowing." Yet this formless and intangible knowledge spread from the palm along the arm, completely encompassing Qin Yu's entire body from the outside in. Bones, flesh, internal organs, the Annihilation Devil Pupil and the Final Spirit Core hidden deep between his brows, and even every trace of existence accumulated over countless ages of cultivation, were all transparently revealed, without the slightest concealment.
His physical body was unharmed, his Dao foundation was intact, and nothing was taken from him, yet the warning signs in Qin Yu's heart grew increasingly intense and piercing.
The other party never touched him in the slightest, but merely knew him. The invisible awareness continued to penetrate inward, passing through the physical body and reaching the source of his Fate Soul. Qin Yu's eyes darkened slightly. The Nine-Wheel True Evolution Dharma Wheel had not yet activated its defense on its own. This clear knowledge had already reached the outer edge of the "Silent Beginning - Ring Master Soul Diagram".
It knows the origin and mystery of the Nine-Wheel Dharma Wheel, the profound trajectory of the connection and operation of the wheels, and that he used the Inner Turning Mind Method to break through the shackles of the eye root in the past. It also knows his earth-shattering method of reversing the Nine Wheels and reverting the true essence of the Great Dao of "touch and generation" back to the origin along the path of touch when he fought to the death at the Sea of Touch.
It knows every unhealed crack deep within Fate Soul, which was created by the Evolution-Devouring Beast and which was expanded by the "Wanyan Return to Stillness Touch," accurately discerning the weakest point in Qin Yu's Fate Soul at this moment.
Qin Yu stood still, slowing his breathing and calming his mind. His eyes grew increasingly calm and clear, without a trace of panic. His opponent still showed no intention of attacking. Yet, the constraints of being "known" continued to deepen and infiltrate step by step.
The physical body is exhausted, the Fate Soul is exhausted, and then—all past experiences are thoroughly known.
In an instant, the Endless Abyss of Knowing and countless Knowing Layer surged simultaneously. The Dao Path Qin Yu had walked all the way through did not manifest as an illusion, nor did it replicate past phantoms; it was simply absorbed by pure and complete awareness.
Entering the Wanyan Ancestral Land, traversing the Stillness Veil void, and ascending the True Evolution Divine Hall; battling with the eyes to Sight-Derivation Beast, deciphering the myriad echoes with the ears, letting go of the breath to prove oneself with the nose, engaging in a duel with the tongue to devour the Evolution-Devouring Beast, severing the Touch Emanation Beast with the body... each and every past cause and effect is stripped of its chronological order, shed from the shackles of time, and transformed into a completely predetermined "known."