Some are trapped by omniscience, their path blocked by the perfect truth; some drown in ignorance, their self extinguished in chaos and nothingness; some cling to a single principle, stubbornly holding onto a single piece of knowledge, ultimately defined and shackled by their own obsessions for life; some are filled with doubt, endlessly questioning, until they can no longer even confirm their own existence; some seek only emptiness, taking a detached view of all things, yet live by "emptiness" as the final, most unsolvable constraint.
They had all overcome countless difficulties to reach this place, all sought transcendence and sought to break through the Knowledge Abyss, and in the end, they all turned into ruins in the ruins. Their bodies and spiritual essences had already Annihilation, but the "knowledge" that they held onto, succumbed to, persisted in, and doubted in their final moments still exists in the ruins, quietly colliding and evolving.
A blurred remnant, stubbornly clinging to a single thought since ancient times, "This principle is true." A Nameless skeleton, eternally trapped in the question, "What is true?"
In the distance, the almost transparent, ethereal remnants remained, with only a single thought of Annihilation: "All phenomena are empty." The body dies and the Dao vanishes, only knowledge remains. Qin Yu stood silently for a long time, then raised his eyes to gaze into the distance.
Beyond the Myriad Laws Return to the Ruins, he finally understood one thing: the Knowing Wall. This was not a concrete barrier or a physical barrier, but the Ultimate boundary where the endless abyss of Endless Abyss of Knowing could take shape and be defined as the "Intent Root Emanation Domain," the final edge of all formed knowledge.
High and low, far and near, large and small—all directions and scales are products of knowledge, beyond measurement and description. The Knowing Wall envelops the entire Knowledge Abyss, connecting the Knowing Surface above, covering Knowing Layer below, and encompassing countless Knowing Realm. All evolutions, all perceptions, and all principles ultimately converge here.
In the Knowing Wall, a thin, deep crack had silently stretched across the ages. Qin Yu's mind tightened abruptly. Within the crack, there was no light or darkness, no sound or breath, no taste or touch, and no laws or Daoist principles that could be directly interpreted.
But at the deepest, most profound source of the rift, something is slowly awakening, slowly emerging into the world. With one step, the entire Abyss of Endless Abyss of Knowing surges. With two steps, billions of Knowing Layer tremble in unison.
With three steps, all the broken remains within the Myriad Laws Return to the Ruins raised their fragmented consciousness, echoing each other from afar. Qin Yu's gaze suddenly sharpened like a sword; he finally saw—
No, he finally understood that the sixth true Emanation Guardian... the Knowing Emanation Beast.
It has no independent external form and no physical body. Qin Yu had always thought that the Knowing Emanation Beast would manifest its true form from the void of the Root Domain and compete in the world, just like the Sight-Derivation Beast, Smell-Derivation Beast, Evolution-Devouring Beast, and Touch Emanation Beast.
Only now did he fully understand that this thing had already appeared in the world. From the moment he stepped into the Intentless Root, he had already been inside the body of the Knowing Emanation Beast.
This is because the true form of the Knowing Emanation Beast is the entire Endless Abyss of Knowing.
The vast outline that slowly emerged from the crack in the Knowing Wall was not its true form, but merely a tangible phantom that it manifested so that all beings could perceive and glimpse it.
Its head is omniscient. It contains all laws, encompasses all principles, and contains all answers, bearing all the possibilities of the world, both those that have already happened and those that have not yet happened.
Its body is ignorance. All laws and principles return to chaos here, and all interpretations lose their meaning. There is no connection, Boundless Realm, no confirmation; it sinks into the source of bewilderment.
Its left arm is stagnation. It firmly adheres to established knowledge, anchors itself to established principles, and imprisons countless practitioners. Its right arm is doubt. It generates endless questions, overturns all established conclusions, and dismantles all foundations of the Way.
Its left leg is emptiness. Annihilation all phenomena, empties all forms, and causes all transformations to return to nothingness.
Its right leg extends into the deep Knowing Layer in infinite recursion, beyond definition and naming—but whenever someone attempts to define, name, or interpret it, entirely new knowledge immediately arises, without end.
Its spine is the Myriad Laws Return to the Ruins. The remains, broken names, fragmented principles, and Annihilation Dao intents of countless failures throughout history have all accumulated here, transforming into its primordial nourishment.
Its chest is the Knowing Wall that isolates all knowledge. It covers the entire abyss of Knowledge Abyss, drawing the Ultimate edge for all perception and fixing the boundaries of all evolution. At the core and most fundamental position of the Knowing Wall, Qin Yu was greatly shocked and glimpsed something.
A heartless "heart," without beating, without flesh and blood, without life, only a wisp of ancient, almost Annihilation gray light, quietly continuing for eternity.
It is the lingering echo of the primordial state of the Silent Form Realm, the last wisp of primordial awareness left in the world before the final curtain fell when the Myriad Ages Great Ancestor reached the peak of the Silent Form Realm. With each flicker of this lingering light, Endless Abyss of Knowing, giving rise to all kinds of laws and principles.
With each dimming, countless new knowledge Return to Emanation, and all laws and principles Annihilation into nothingness. Knowledge Annihilation, Annihilation to knowledge, and this cycle repeats endlessly, Beginningless Endless.
The Knowing Emanation Beast completely "emerged" from the crack, yet the Knowing Wall remained its chest, the Return to the Ruins its back, the infinite Knowing Layer continued to cycle within its body, and the Knowing Surface continued to surge and perish beneath its feet.
Qin Yu looked up and saw not a single beast, object, or form, but the entire root of intention, the entire Knowledge Abyss, and the entire system of myriad knowledge evolution.
He can perceive in any direction, explore to any depth, and contemplate in any dimension; everything he touches, feels, and understands is contained within the Knowing Emanation Beast.
It has no boundaries, Wheel-less, no inside or outside; all knowledge is it, and it is all knowledge. Qin Yu finally comprehended the terrifying origin of the sixth Guardian Beast.
Sight-Derivation Beast can break it, severing all illusions; Evolution-Devouring Beast can break it, freeing one from the shackles of the Dao Devouring; Touch Emanation Beast can break it, severing the boundary constructs and transcending the Emanation Wheel. Only the Knowing Emanation Beast is invincible and unbreakable.
The moment he conceives the thought "how to cut it down," that thought itself becomes knowledge, becomes the thing itself. The moment he seeks out even the slightest "weakness," that word "weakness" becomes knowledge, becomes its constraint.
If he seeks even the slightest "method to break the deadlock," the way to break the deadlock is knowledge, is its evolution. If he forcibly tries to stop thinking and not wanting, this state of "not thinking and not wanting" is still a kind of knowledge that can be perceived and defined.
The Knowing Emanation Beast has no eyes, no mouth, Formless, and no true appearance. Yet, the moment Qin Yu completely understood its true form, the entire Endless Abyss of Knowing simultaneously perceived it and turned to him.
Knowing Surface, Knowing Layer, Knowing Realm, the Myriad Laws Return to the Ruins nothingness, Knowing Wall, the afterglow of the silent form, all the myriad origins, all converged upon Qin Yu. Qin Yu slowly tightened his grip on the "Silent Origin Stainless Sword" in his hand.
The Knowing Emanation Beast neither moved, attacked, nor killed; it didn't even need to make any move. It simply existed quietly here. To be precise, it was this world, all the thoughts here, and everything that existed at this moment.
Every thought that arises, flows, and ceases in Qin Yu's mind resides within its body and falls into its consciousness; it is the Knowing Emanation Beast. All knowledge is transformed from it, all knowledge returns to it, and all knowledge is it.
The Knowing Emanation Beast did not open its mouth. It had no mouth, nor any organs for sound or breath. This colossal being, with omniscience as its head, ignorance as its body, and doubt and emptiness as its limbs, bearing the Myriad Laws Return to the Ruins on its back and containing the Knowing Wall in its chest, stood silently. The wisp of light of the Silent Form Realm in the center of the Knowing Wall flickered gently, and the Endless Abyss of Knowing suddenly stopped churning.
There was no sound, no written form, and no legal basis to construct language. Qin Yu simply—knew it.
Clarity, chaos, attachment, doubt, emptiness—all Knowing Layer simultaneously received this message. Deep within countless Knowing Realm, the universes that evolved within each Knowing Realm, along with the Wanyan Ones within those universes and the practitioners of the Six Sense Roots Emanation Domain, all embodied this message in the same instant. The words were not transmitted by the Knowing Emanation Beast; the moment Qin Yu perceived them, they had already settled in his heart.
"Know me, and you will pass the test." The Endless Abyss of Knowing rippled slightly, and a second source of knowledge followed. "If I know you completely, you will Return to Emanation."
Qin Yu's five fingers gripping the sword suddenly clenched, his knuckles turning white. Knowing it was the only way to pass the test; but the process of knowing it was itself falling into it. With each additional layer of understanding he gained about the Knowing Emanation Beast, he sank deeper into the Endless Abyss of Knowing; and with each additional layer of understanding the Knowing Emanation Beast gained about him, he drew closer to complete Return to Emanation. It had already seen through his physical body, his Fate Soul, his past, and his Evolution Name, and was already approaching the essence of "I am who I am."
Qin Yu must know it completely before it is fully known. But all knowledge is Knowing Emanation Beast itself; to know it completely is to know all knowledge.
Qin Yu's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, his breathing slowed, and he couldn't find a single opening to break the deadlock. The lingering light of the silent image within the Knowing Wall flickered once more, and new knowledge emerged from the entire Knowledge Abyss. This time, it was the end of the trial. "You cannot pass."
Qin Yu's pupils contracted. There was no oppressive force, no forced imprinting of the Dao; the Knowing Emanation Beast merely allowed him a glimpse into the underlying principles of law. "The extremities of the six senses, intention returns to knowledge." "Knowledge returns to derivation." "Only derivation itself can transcend this root."
Qin Yu's breath hitched. The entire Intent Root Emanation Domain seemed to be silently watching him. The next sentence emerged. "Those who cannot penetrate emptiness will ultimately be consumed by emptiness."
Deep within the Abyss of Knowledge Abyss, countless Knowing Layer successively return to stillness, only to be reborn again. Stillness, then evolution, an endless cycle. Finally, two strands of knowledge slowly unfold: "Evolution is the source of evolution." "Evolution cannot be exhausted."
Qin Yu stood frozen in place. The first five trials, whether through sight, smell, taste, or touch, all offered opportunities for breaking through. Even when he was on the verge of returning to the Return to Emanation, he always managed to find a way out. But the sixth trial had no path. Only pure "origin" could overcome this hurdle. And he was Qin Yu, with a name, a Fate Soul, a past Dao Path, and the conviction that "I am who I am." These qualities shaped him, but also prevented him from transforming into pure origin.
What's even more perplexing is that understanding, comprehending, and defining all belong to "knowledge." Even if one fully comprehends the true meaning of evolution, this understanding will only transform into a new Knowing Realm within the Knowledge Abyss. One can know evolution, but cannot become evolution.
Qin Yu's hand holding the sword trembled slightly, and the blade deviated half an inch. In countless deadly situations in the past, he could still calmly deduce and find contradictions. But this time was completely different. A chill slowly seeped from the depths of his Fate Soul, without excruciating pain, just pure cold, spreading throughout his body along the cracks in his Fate Soul. Cold sweat seeped from his palms, his breathing became heavy, and even his eyes trembled slightly.
He didn't need to hide it. The Knowing Emanation Beast understood this fear, knew its origin, and even caught his attempts to calm his breathing. The more he analyzed his situation, the more it was understood. The fear became increasingly real.
The opponent was not a powerful beast. Strong enemies can be fought, concepts can be severed, and causality can be broken. But as long as a thought arises, it is knowledge. Qin Yu's mind flashed with the thought of "Return to Origin and Sever Retracing," and a new knowledge appeared in the Abyss of Knowledge Abyss: "Use Return to Origin and Sever Retracing and Severing Back to Slay the Knowing Emanation Beast." He immediately stopped the deduction, but "stopping the deduction" itself generated new knowledge. Thinking is knowledge, silence is knowledge, giving up the search for answers is still knowledge. As long as he has awareness, he is within the Knowing Emanation Beast. Once he is completely known, he will be erased from the Wanyan, leaving no trace of his existence.
Qin Yu raised his eyes to look at the colossal being with an omniscient head. There were no answers in his eyes, only deep solemnity and a trace of barely suppressed fear. "Only Yan himself..." he said in a low, hoarse voice.
He knew he was not a derivative. The principle still echoed: those who cannot be derived into emptiness will eventually be derived into emptiness itself.
Qin Yu's sword-wielding hand slowly sank. The path ahead was blocked; the fifth Emanation Domain behind him had already closed, leaving no way back. Of the Six Faculties Trial, only the Will Root remained. He had no choice but to either pass or return to the Void of Wanyan.
Qin Yu closed his eyes, then opened them again. The fear hadn't dissipated, nor did he try to suppress it, for "overcoming fear" was also a form of self-knowledge. A chill ran through his soul as he faced the Ultimate Return to Emanation —a conclusion where even the existence of "Qin Yu" ceased to exist.
After a long while, he slowly raised the Silent Origin Stainless Sword, its blade not pointing at the Knowing Emanation Beast. Even the thought of "slaying it" had no foothold. He breathed heavily, fear still lingering, yet the determination in his heart had not been extinguished. What he faced was no longer just a Guardian Beast, but the entirety of—Knowledge.