Five Sages in One Day! Had the Age of Sages Arrived?
"He's become a saint!?"
Ao Changsheng stared blankly at the Primordial World above.
If his incarnation's memories are accurate, Laozi didn't seem to show any signs of becoming a saint before his incarnation returned.
His avatar even fed the other person a bowl of chicken soup.
But how did he suddenly become a saint?
Watching Laozi rapidly absorb the Heaven-Opening Merit and enhance his Law Power from afar, Ao Changsheng couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.
Merit is a good thing. In Ao Changsheng's opinion, the Heaven-Opening Merit hidden in Laozi's Primordial Spirit is definitely equivalent to Laozi's hundreds of millions of years of hard cultivation after becoming a saint.
Unlike him, who had to painstakingly absorb and refine Innate Spiritual Qi to cultivate, even after millions of years of arduous cultivation, he might not have gained as much Law Power as Laozi in just one moment by absorbing merit.
Pity...
Merit, this kind of cheat code for cultivation, is of little use to Ao Changsheng.
After all, the traces of the Heavenly Dao within were far too dense. For Ao Changsheng, it would be a loss to be tainted by those traces of the Heavenly Dao for the sake of that little bit of Law Power.
Ao Changsheng casually fed the merits he had previously gained to the World Tree.
"It's so good to have a good dad!"
Ao Changsheng looked at Laozi with envy while popping a Yellow Center Plum into his mouth.
Ten thousand years of Law Power bestowed upon him!
"Now that Laozi become a saint, doesn't that mean the other Sage should also be born soon?"
"The eldest brother has become a saint!"
Mount Kunlun, Jade Void Palace.
Yuanshi and Tongtian gazed at the Primordial World phenomena that filled the primordial world, feeling the aura of Laozi within the Sage's power, and their faces lit up with joy.
As the eldest, second, and third disciples of Hongjun, the Three Purities of Pangu were surprisingly made saints first by their junior sister Nüwa.
This fueled a burning desire in Yuanshi and Tongtian to become saints as soon as possible, so as to uphold the dignity of their 'senior brother'.
Now, although it's not them who have become saints, the Three Purities Ones are one, and Laozi's sainthood is the same as theirs!
But...
Before Yuanshi and Tongtian could make any further moves, their expressions changed simultaneously.
Within their Primordial Spirit, the Heaven-Opening Merit that had been dormant and untapped was suddenly activated the instant they absorbed the Heaven-Opening Merit saints.
Two golden beams of merit shot straight into the sky from the two mountain peaks of Kunlun, transforming into a sky full of golden clouds of merit.
Mount Buzhou, atop an unnamed mountain peak.
Laozi gazed at the Heaven-Opening Merit Primordial World, which spread from Mount Kunlun, and sighed slightly, his eyes revealing a hint of regret.
"My two junior brothers, if you don't understand now, when will you?"
Laozi Tzu's whisper, amplified by the Sage Divine Ability the sage, traversed an immeasurable distance, reaching the ears of Yuanshi and Tongtian in the Mount Kunlun, where it transformed into a thunderous roar.
Upon hearing this outburst, Yuanshi and Tongtian in the Jade Void Palace seemed to have been enlightened, and a look of understanding simultaneously appeared in their eyes.
"Heavenly Dao is above, I, the Jade Purity Celestial Venerable Yuanshi, have now come to understand the Heavenly Dao. I shall establish a teaching to enlighten all beings, named 'Chan,' in accordance with the Mandate of Heaven, to elucidate the Heavenly Dao!"
"Let the Pangu Banner be the treasure that guards our religion! The Chan Sect is established!"
The mighty sound originated from the Mount Kunlun and resounded throughout the entire Primordial World.
The moment the Yuanshi voice fell, the Primordial purple qi in his sea of consciousness slowly dispersed and merged into his Primordial Spirit.
The Celestial Venerable Yuanshi stood atop the Eastern Kunlun, whereupon countless miles of golden Auspicious Cloud arose, along with ten thousand golden flowers and ten thousand golden lamps, with drops of fire falling and forming a necklace.
Three misty white lotuses emitted a milky white halo, a strange fragrance filled the air, and thousands of golden flowers and lamps shimmered with light.
The Pangu Banner stands atop it, fluttering fiercely, towering thousands of feet high, its Chaos color moving without wind, like a gentle breeze caressing one's face and ripples on water!
At the same time, the Ruyi Scepter, made of Three Treasures Ruyi, held by Celestial Venerable Yuanshi emitted a bright red light, illuminating all the heavens. Just as Celestial Venerable Yuanshi's voice fell, Tongtian's powerful voice also originated from Mount Kunlun and spread throughout the primordial Primordial World.
"Heavenly Dao is above, and I, the Supreme Purity Celestial Venerable Lingbao, have now come to understand the Heavenly Dao. I shall establish a teaching to enlighten all living beings, named 'Jie' (截). 'Jie' means to seize! To seize the last glimmer of life between heaven and earth."
"Use the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation to suppress the Karmic Luck of the Jie Sect. The Jie Sect shall be established!"
Azure auspicious Auspicious Cloud, no less magnificent than those of the Yuanshi, slowly rose.
Sweet rain fell everywhere between heaven and earth, heavenly flowers rained down, purple mist rose, and rosy light followed us!
The stars in the sky showered down their brilliance, filling the air with Spiritual Qi. Visible to the naked eye, plants sprouted and grew leaves, transforming in the blink of an eye into towering trees, lush and verdant.
A mysterious array diagram slowly emerged, and four swords brimming with murderous intent rang out joyfully, flying out of the Auspicious Cloud and growing into four colossal swords that could support the heavens, their imposing presence shaking the universe!
At the same time, the Green Duckweed Sword in Tongtian's hand trembled and rang, its azure light illuminating the world.
Yuanshi and Tongtian established their great sects one after the other, and the two golden clouds of Heavenly Dao Merit from the creation of the heavens fell directly into their bodies.
The combined might of two Sage simultaneously permeated the Primordial World, overwhelming all the heavens and the vast universe!
In the Primordial World, all living beings who had just prostrated themselves in reverence for Laozi's divine power immediately bowed down once more.
However, Yuanshi and Tongtian, who had just become saints, showed no joy. They exchanged a glance and both saw a faint bitterness in each other's eyes.
The Three Purities Ones are one, their vital energies are interconnected, and the Heaven-Opening Merit within their primordial Primordial Spirit are also a legacy of Pangu.
When Laozi activated his merits to become a saint, the Heaven-Opening Merit were activated together, and the opportunity to attain enlightenment naturally appeared.
This created the fortuitous opportunity for both of them to become saints at the same time.
Pity...
Neither of them severed their Three Corpses, comprehended everything, and attained sainthood. Instead, they relied on their vast merits and used the Primordial purple qi as a foundation to attain the Human Path.
For a cultivator practicing the Dao of Severing the Three Corpses, the difference between severing the Three Corpses to attain enlightenment through merit and severing two corpses to achieve sainthood through merit is self-evident.
"My two junior brothers, you've become attached to appearances!"
Laozi's figure appeared in the Mount Kunlun, gazing at Yuanshi and Tongtian, whose eyes were filled with bitterness.
"The Sage Wuji and limitless, without birth or death, returning to the stillness of emptiness; he can gather and disperse, neither born nor dying, and remains unyielding through countless eons."
"Seeing through oneself and cutting off one's obsessions is only a matter of time!" Laozi calmly gazed at the Yuanshi Heavenly Dao.
"Senior Brother is right!"
Yuanshi and Tongtian bowed to Laozi and responded, the faint bitterness in their eyes dissipating.
As for whether they truly parted ways or merely pretended to, only the two of them know the answer.
And it was on Mount Kunlun that the Three Purities were conversing.
In the west, on Mount Sumeru.
Zhunti looked up at the phenomena of sainthood spreading from the east across the primordial Primordial World, a trace of sorrow appearing in his eyes. He turned to Jieyin and said, "Senior brother, I..."
Before he could finish speaking, Zhunti stopped abruptly, a look of surprise and delight in his eyes as he looked at Jieyin.
At this moment, Jieyin's eyes were half-closed, as if he were asleep or awake, and twelve-colored precious light shot up from the top of his head, illuminating all directions.
A pure white figure with a look of pity stepped out from the precious light and merged into the body of the Jieyin.
Within the Daoist Jieyin's sea of consciousness, the previously calm Primordial purple qi instantly dissipated and merged into the Jieyin Primordial Spirit.
In an instant--
On Mount Sumeru, a phantom figure slowly emerged, with a sallow and thin face, a topknot, and a white hair between his eyebrows, sitting on a Twelfth-Grade Golden Lotus that radiated a shimmering precious light.
Above the Auspicious Cloud, three milky-white relics, each the size of a bowl, floated and sank above the sea of clouds, like pearls in a seashell, tears of the ocean, shining brightly.
In his left hand he holds a twelve-tiered Jieyin's Treasure Banner, inlaid with countless bright pearls and relics, illuminating the boundless worlds in the ten directions of the void; in his right hand he holds a whisk, from which golden flowers fall to the ground with each swing.
"Senior brother, you have become a saint!" Zhunti was overjoyed.
"Junior brother, if you don't understand now, when will you?"
Surrounded by strange phenomena, Jieyin's eyes were half-closed, Jieyin pointed a Zhunti, seemingly speaking to himself, yet also offering a hint, as he uttered a soft sentence.
A Twelfth-Grade Golden Lotus slowly emerged beneath Zhunti. The voice reached Zhunti's ears, and the Primordial purple qi within his Primordial Spirit suddenly surged.
Between heaven and earth, the Four Sages appeared together, causing the Heavenly Dao to tremble. Zhunti's fortuitous opportunity attain enlightenment slowly emerged in his mind, and a look of enlightenment appeared in his eyes.
"Heavenly Dao is above, I, Zhunti, hereby establish the Western Sect to enlighten all beings, and use the Twelfth-Grade Golden Lotus to suppress the Karmic Luck of all beings. The Western Sect is established!"
The voice of Zhunti spread throughout the prehistoric Primordial World from the west, and the moment the voice fell...
Across the vast western land, wisps of merit slowly emanated from the mountains, rivers, soil, sand, vegetation, and even living beings.
It slowly transformed into a vast expanse of golden clouds of merit in the sky.
At the very end of the previous era, Dao Ancestor Hongjun and Devil Ancestor Luohou fought, which affected countless Spirit Vein in the western lands, thus activating the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram.
However, he was still no match for Hongjun, and in his madness, he actually Jieyin the entire Western Spirit Vein.
This left the western land in ruins, life scattered, and nearly a dead end. Jieyin and Zhunti were among the very few Western Innate Divine Beings who survived this catastrophe.
After tens of millions of years of tireless efforts, the two Quasi-Sage exhausted their minds and resources to bring new life to the vast western land.
Although it cannot compare to other regions of the Primordial World, it is no longer a desolate wasteland.
This merit is the result of the efforts Jieyin and Zhunti over tens of millions of years, as they traveled across the Western Land to repair Spirit Vein and dredge waterways, thus revitalizing the Western Land.
On Mount Sumeru, gazing at the boundless merit, they felt the heartfelt gratitude of the Western Land towards the two of them, contained within that merit.
Tears welled up in the eyes of Jieyin and Zhunti as they bowed in reverence to the boundless merit.
Merit points slowly descended upon the two of them.
With a casual Jieyin, the merit that had originally fallen upon him was redirected to Zhunti.
"Senior brother!" Zhunti couldn't help but speak up.
"Close your eyes and cultivate!" Jieyin said calmly.
Without needing many words, Zhunti glanced at Jieyin, Zhunti his eyes and wholeheartedly absorbed the boundless merit, diligently cultivating himself.
Soon, Zhunti had absorbed more than half of the Zhunti.
At this moment, the Primordial purple qi in Zhunti's sea of consciousness slowly melted away and merged into Zhunti Primordial Spirit.
At the Mount Sumeru, another figure appeared, with his hair tied in two topknots adorned with two flowers. In his hand, he held a branch that was neither blue nor white, radiating seven layers of precious light, dazzling and shimmering.
Seated serenely atop the crown of the precious tree, with three golden relics visible at its top, the golden precious tree stands tall amidst the sea of clouds.
Zhunti opened his eyes, pointed his finger, and the merit surging towards him from the sky suddenly split into two, merging into his body and Jieyin's body respectively.
Jieyin no longer refused, but instead focused on absorbing the merits and improving his Law Power.
After the two had absorbed all the merit, holy might emanated from their bodies, instantly overwhelming the Primordial World.
Once you've experienced it, you'll become familiar with it; the third and fourth times, you'll be friends. The beings of the Primordial World felt the familiar divine might, and no longer felt the fear they had before.
Even many powerful beings in the Primordial World continued to gaze at the sky, waiting for the next extraordinary phenomenon.
After all, seven streams of Primordial purple qi —this wasn't just the first time six Sages had emerged.
However, in the end, no extraordinary phenomena or holy might of Hongyun's ascension to sainthood were reported from the direction of Fire Cloud Cave.
The appearance of the five sages in a single day completely changed the atmosphere of the Primordial World.
Even the most obtuse person would understand that the coming Primordial World era would belong to the Sage.