Venerable Xuansheng's words were meant to comfort and reassure Yang Lingrui, but they also conveyed his and the other seven righteous Dao Venerables' resolve to defend the righteous path.
If Yang Lingrui had not yet attained True Intent—or if he could not carry out this Soul-Severing Karma Cut—then the eight Venerables guarding the Central Region were prepared to pay any price and fight the Soul-Return Dao Art to mutual destruction.
Hearing this, a surge of fervor rose in Yang Lingrui's heart. He turned and respectfully saluted the eight righteous True Intent Cultivators. "I am grateful for my seniors' protection. On this journey, Lingrui will surely exhaust every effort and give it his all!"
"Good! Everyone, clear a path for Little Friend Lingrui!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Rustle, rustle, rustle—
At Venerable Xuansheng's command, eight streams of Zhen Xuan, each containing the profound essence of the Dao, streaked through the air and formed a staircase leading straight to the true form of the Soul-Return Dao Art.
Then, beneath the watchful eyes of the eight Venerables, Yang Lingrui stepped onto it and climbed upward, gradually disappearing into the mist-like Soul-Return Dao Art.
"Ah... cultivation, cultivation. Who would have thought that even after we have attained the rank of Venerable, when the moment comes, we would still need a junior like Lingrui to solve this problem and break this impasse?"
Watching Yang Lingrui enter the soul art, Venerable Shuying let out a soft sigh. "He is not even a hundred years old. He still has a bright future and a long Dao path ahead of him, yet now he must stake all of it—even risk falling—to face such an unknown calamity."
Back when Yun Xiwu had brought Yang Lingrui to Fuyao Sect's main peak, she had been the first to voice her approval and