At the summit of Mount Sumeru, though the upheaval of Attaining the Dao that had shaken the Primordial World had already subsided, the lingering might of Dao resonance still permeated the air.
Ming Xin's Three Bodies merged into one, his aura withdrawn. With calm, unhurried steps, he approached the two Sages, Jieyin and Zhunti.
He bowed deeply, his tone gentle yet carrying unquestionable resolve. "Masters, through establishing my lineage this time,
I gained new insights into the Daos of Slaughter, Five Elements, Mortal World, and Cause and Effect. I must immediately enter seclusion to absorb them and consolidate my gains, so I shall take my leave first."
Jieyin and Zhunti looked at their beloved disciple. Though he had not truly become a Sage,
his aura was already unfathomable, faintly carrying a profound depth that allowed him to stand on equal footing with them. Their faces bloomed with immense satisfaction and pride.
"Good! Very good!" Buddha Mother Zhunti clapped and laughed, her eyes full of admiration. "My beloved disciple's Dao Foundation has been established, and the road ahead is now wide open. This is precisely the critical moment to diligently advance in comprehending the Dao. Do not let external matters delay you!
Go quickly, go!"
"Amitabha." Jieyin nodded as well, the suffering expression gone from his face. His tone was warm. "Go and cultivate, disciple.
With me and your martial uncle guarding Mount Sumeru, no one can disturb your secluded cultivation. I hope you will soon perfect your cultivation. When that time comes, The West shall gain another pillar capable of holding up the heavens!"
"Thank you, Master and Martial Uncle!" Ming Xin bowed once more. Without further words, his figure flickered and vanished from where he stood, returning to the secluded cultivation chamber guarded by layers upon layers of restrictions.
Inside the chamber, all was silent.
Ming Xin sat cross-legged, his mind instantly sinking into his body.
Within his sea of consciousness, the vast, ocean-like Heavenly Dao Merit that had yet to be used was efficiently extracted and transformed by the system core into the purest Power of Law Comprehension.
With a thought, he guided this immense power toward several key directions:
Mortal World and Reincarnation: The phantom of his Past Self manifested within his sea of consciousness, seated atop the fortune of the boundless Mortal World.
As the power of merit merged into it, that Mortal World scene grew ever more vivid and real. The Seven Emotions and Six Desires evolved to their utmost extremes before returning to a transcendent compassion.
The passage of Reincarnation also became clearer and more stable, rapidly deepening his understanding of the essence of souls and the circulation of karmic force. Mortal World and Reincarnation had always been two sides of the same whole, and now they intertwined more deeply.
Cause and Effect and Fate: His Future Self held a compass, countless fine and intricate Threads of Karma winding around his body.
The infusion of merit power was like instilling Order and light into those chaotic threads, allowing him to see the nodes of Cause and Effect and the veins of Fate more clearly.
Though he still could not fully control them, his ability to deduce the future and interfere with predetermined trajectories steadily increased.
Slaughter and Judgment: At the core of his main body, the Dao script character "Slaughter," representing the Great Dao of Killing, underwent a subtle yet profound transformation under the refinement of merit power.
Its ultimate killing intent had not weakened. Instead, it became even purer. Yet from within that purity, an even colder and more supreme meaning was stripped free—Judgment!
This was not a simple verdict, but the final judgment, based on some ironclad law and some Order, upon sin, Cause and Effect, and all things that violated the rules!
Slaughter was its method, while Judgment was its core! This budding Law of Judgment caused a qualitative leap in Ming Xin's Great Dao of Killing, elevating both its power and rank to an entirely new level.
The system operated at full power, assisting Ming Xin in this vast and precise process of law comprehension and sublimation.
Merit power was like the finest fuel, steadily driving his Dao Cultivation toward deeper and more fundamental levels.
Though his realm was suppressed at Half-step Primordial Unity, the depth of his understanding and degree of control over the Great Dao laws he wielded, as well as his deductions regarding that ultimate goal—
—the path of the Primordial Limitless Grand Unity Golden Immortal, all improved at a staggering pace.
The outside world shifted constantly. Friction between the Wu Yao clans grew increasingly fierce, and the Killing Intent of the Tribulation gradually thickened.
Meanwhile, deep within Mount Sumeru, Ming Xin was like a patient hunter, silently accumulating strength, sharpening his fangs, and waiting for the final moment to arrive.
When heaven and earth overturned and the rules fell into turmoil, he would complete that earth-shattering final leap in the most perfect form possible!
Time flew by, and the Primordial World knew no years.
Since Ming Xin entered seclusion deep within Mount Sumeru, using vast quantities of merit as firewood and relying on the system to deduce the various Great Daos, an unknown number of tens of thousands of years passed in the blink of an eye.
On this day, within the quiet chamber, the figure that had remained still as an ancient boulder finally stirred slightly.
Ming Xin slowly opened his eyes. There was no heaven-shaking divine light within them, only the depth and calm of one who had endured countless tribulations and seen through the rise and fall of all things.
His aura had become ever more restrained. If not for the faint Sage's might and perfect Dao resonance lingering around him, he would have seemed nearly indistinguishable from an ordinary mortal.
He carefully examined the gains from this period of seclusion:
The Red Dust Great Dao had been completely mastered! With a single thought, he could draw upon the fortune of the boundless Mortal World, manifest the myriad states of living beings, and turn the Seven Emotions and Six Desires into either blades or boats, ferrying others and himself alike.
The light of the Mortal World around his Past Self had become seamless and complete. It had already reached great attainment.
The Great Dao of Reincarnation had reached ninety percent comprehension!
Only the Underworld, which governed the Reincarnation of all beings in the Primordial World, had yet to emerge. Without that final piece of the puzzle, it could not truly reach perfection.
Even so, his understanding of the essence of souls, the flow of karmic force, and the mysteries of rebirth had reached the pinnacle of the Primordial World, enough for him to wield many great divine abilities of Reincarnation.
The Dao of Cause and Effect had been successfully mastered!
The compass in his Future Self's hand had solidified, and the Threads of Karma upon it were clearly visible. He could now initially move them, and even sever ordinary Cause and Effect.
He had gained an essential understanding of, and the ability to wield, the Heavenly Principle cycle of "good being rewarded with good, and evil being repaid with evil."
The Great Dao of Fate truly deserved its place among the top five Supreme Laws. It was incredibly difficult and consumed the most merit, yet he had only mastered sixty percent of it.
Though he could not defy fate and alter destiny, he could now glimpse more branches of Fate, foresee fortune and misfortune, avoid danger, and gain greater initiative for himself amid the unseen.
The Great Dao of Killing had advanced another step. The sliver of Law of Judgment it had nurtured had also grown stronger. Though it had not yet fully separated, it could already lend his killing power the majesty and effect of a Heavenly Dao verdict.
The Five Elements Great Dao, as his foundation, had long since reached perfection. He could now evolve Chaos with increasing ease.
"Huu..." Ming Xin slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. That breath seemed to contain ten thousand years of the Mortal World, a hundred lifetimes of Reincarnation, and endless Cause and Effect before finally dispersing into nothingness.
"My foundation is sufficient. I only await the east wind." He murmured to himself, a sharp gleam flashing through his eyes.
Through his Future Self's deductions and the system's grasp of heavenly secrets, he already knew that the conflict between the Wu Yao clans had reached its critical point. The first large-scale bloodbath that would sweep across the Primordial World was about to erupt!
This was precisely the greatest stage he had long awaited: to seize the fortune of the Tribulation, perfect himself, and ultimately Attain the Dao!
He did not linger. Rising to his full height, he stepped out of the quiet chamber.
With a flicker of his figure, he arrived at the main hall of Mount Sumeru. Seemingly sensing his arrival, the two Sages, Jieyin and Zhunti, had long been seated upon their Cloud Beds, waiting.
Before you continue