Chapter 385: Path Opening the Heavens (Part 2)

Chapter 385: Path Opening the Heavens (Part 2)

Holy King remained silent, his aura rising, with numerous Great Dao phenomena appearing around him, his Divine Light as brilliant as an abyss, ready to act at any moment.

As the Saints hesitated, glancing at each other, the Grand Cosmos trembled again!

The world was in turmoil, but one heart remained like a mirror, unmoving, reflecting all.

A ray of Dao light appeared in the depths of the Grand Cosmos.

Like the rising sun, even in the Great Void Heaven, its light was eternal and unchanging!

At this moment, one of the True Emperors from the Mayfly Palace, who had been silent since the anomaly began, his face twitching, finally exhaled and said:

"Excellent skills! Excellent courage! Excellent insight! Your world can still give birth to someone who can open the heavens? I thought I had overestimated you, but I underestimated your world... I am impressed!"

With these words.

Not only the disciples of the three transcendent sects, but even the Saints were startled.

"Is this... opening the heavens?"

"Who is it?!"

All the Saints’ gazes locked onto Holy King’s back.

They finally understood why he was so confident they wouldn’t interfere!

The eighth realm has three major thresholds: after Heavenly Venerable, one becomes a Dao Ancestor.

However, the true name of this realm should be "Dao Master."

A Heavenly Venerable opens a True Great Dao, integrating it into the universe, while a Dao Master pushes their Great Dao to its limits, forming the rudiments of a Dao fruit, becoming the master of a Dao, the Great Dao’s master.

The reason this realm is called Dao Ancestor is to honor the few who opened the heavens for countless beings in the Boundary Sea ages ago.

The Saints hadn’t considered this possibility.

Because opening the heavens is almost a legend.

The only known historical record of opening the heavens is the birth of the Five Pillars.

The Five Pillars were born with the Dao, their birth day marked the derivation of Dao principles, laying the foundation for the world, equivalent to opening the heavens.

If anyone could seize this Dao path, any Heavenly Venerable could directly advance to Dao Ancestor and pave the way for the True Emperor.

"Grandmaster, is someone really opening the heavens in this world?"

Luoshu asked, incredulous.

The True Emperor ancestor of the Sky Severing Sect whispered, "Not only that, but this person’s realm hasn’t even reached Celestial King."

Luoshu felt a suffocating sensation.

As a disciple of a transcendent sect, she knew what this meant.

The Boundary Sea is vast, and many strong beings seek out nascent, chaotic worlds to enter early, evolving their Great Dao to achieve a form of opening the heavens, gaining merit.

But this method is extremely risky, rare, and the rewards are far less than true opening of the heavens.

After all, such "opening of the heavens" is not creating a new path but evolving the existing Great Dao of the Boundary Sea in a new world.

However, the world they were in had stable Dao principles, a solid foundation, and was already connected to the Boundary Sea, leaving no room for such shortcuts.

This meant...

The path this person was opening was likely a new one!

"Using the opening of the heavens as the foundation for a Celestial King... this world has produced a transcendent seed."

Hearing her grandmaster’s words, Luoshu was shocked.

Her gaze fell on Chijin outside the hall.

Chijin had already been impressive today.

The breadth of the Heavenly Dao, encompassing the myriad worlds, was at the highest level among Celestial King path openings.

But even her brilliance was overshadowed by the other.

In the hall, Guardian Zhen said, "Holy King, we won’t interfere, but at least let us witness it."

He added, "If anyone tries to obstruct the path today, I will intervene."

Kong Xuan was surprised; why was he so proactive today?

Azure Sea Sage, who had a hunch, shouted loudly:

"Saint, don’t hide it. Let everyone see. If anyone dares to obstruct the path today, don’t blame me for a good beating."

Hearing the two elders speak, the other saints followed suit.

They all wanted to know who had the audacity to Path Open the Heavens, and not only gain the cooperation of Holy King and Cang Qing, but also have Holy King's own daughter, Chijin, cover for their breakthrough...

Who could have such audacity?

This time, Holy King did not refuse the crowd. With a wave of his hand, he lifted some of the restrictions on the great array.

Immediately, the saints used their great powers to observe the cosmos, shrinking the Grand Cosmos into a small space within their palms.

"Ji Jingqiu of the Yanhuang Federation?" one of the saints whispered.

"Indeed, after much thought, it can only be this boy", Kong Xuan muttered, preparing to return and urge Chang Sheng to greater efforts. His former rival had already Path Opened the Heavens, while this lazy brat was still exploring the Illusory Great Dao, truly a stark contrast.

Among the saints, the Moon Deity raised an eyebrow, her gaze falling on the young man enveloped in the chaotic Great Dao, his eyes closed.

...

Deep within the Grand Cosmos.

The chaos surged, intertwining with the Great Dao rules. The principles of the Dao erupted and boiled like a thundersea, almost turning the area into a desolate wasteland!

If someone were to gaze from afar, they would see beams of light reflecting the stars from the depths of the thundersea, as if a new universe, undivided by chaos, was slowly rotating.

Yin and Yang separated the chaos;

The Four Symbols supported the four poles;

The Five Elements evolved the five virtues;

The myriad phenomena arose and ceased, establishing the foundation of heaven and earth!

A moment felt like an eternity.

Eternity felt like a moment.

Time lost its meaning.

Only the beam of Dao light remained eternal and unextinguished, gradually evolving into a desolate land—

Mountains rose like dragon bones, veins extended like a web of spider silk, and rivers flowed like the Great Dao's pulse.

After an unknown amount of time, the moon hung in the sky, the stars gathered around it, and a blazing sun rose.

The sun and moon in the sky influenced the seasons, the mountains and rivers moved the earth's qi, and the yin and yang of heaven and earth intersected, causing rain to fall and nourish all living things.

"Boom!"

A tremor like a heartbeat echoed through the desolate universe.

—The first spark of life had just ignited.

Ji Jingqiu slowly opened his eyes.

In that instant.

It seemed that the entire universe was left with only this pair of eyes!

Through the "palm universe" created by the saints' powers, the younger generation in the hall, like Luoshu, were all shocked, their minds and spirits blank, as if these eyes had taken away all their thoughts.

The True Emperor of the Sky Severing Sect shook his head and waved his hand to awaken Luoshu and the others. When they awoke, they were terrified and wanted to say something, but their patriarch stopped them.

"You must remain calm and not be drawn into his mental influence", the True Emperor sighed.

The Yin-Yang Dao Sovereign's eyes were deep and profound. "I heard that a Celestial King who went to the place where this boy had been cultivating for twenty years was injured by his residual Blade Intent, thinking it was a joke. Today, seeing it... he truly is an anomaly."

Many of the saints nodded in agreement.

At this moment.

Ji Jingqiu's Path Opening journey was proceeding steadily.

Transformations and troubles came one after another, but they were all within his grasp.

He had pushed his Inner World to its limits, advancing into a complete inner universe.

Now, his entire being glowed, with Yin, Yang, the Four Poles, and the Five Elements all formed, manifesting the myriad phenomena. Every inch of his flesh and bone was undergoing a transformation and elevation.

The chaos outside surged, and within him, it surged similarly, like a universe containing all spirits and beings, a stunning sight.

In the end, his Heavenly Person Dharma Body seemed to dissolve, merging into the universe, a single drop of blood becoming a star, his meridians forming the Milky Way, his heart becoming the center of the universe...

With each breath, he added a brilliant "river of stars" to the cosmic galaxy, which would vanish with his inhalation, repeating in an endless cycle of birth and death.

His mind had already stood above the Dharma Realm, walking along a path that led deep into it.

Along the way, the hidden currents of the Great Dao, which were once indiscernible, were now clear to him.

Just a glance.

Was worth more than countless lifetimes.

It was the silent grandeur that could not be explained to a summer insect, the profound truth that could be grasped in a single morning and understood fully by nightfall.

Amidst this boundless splendor, he was resisting the allure of the Dharma Realm, a single misstep could plunge him into its depths forever.

He countered this invisible Great Dao erosion with the true essence of Guarding Void and Stillness, the immortal beam of Dao light in his mind growing increasingly radiant.

The mind that could encompass all changes remained unchanged, shining brightly.

Ji Jingqiu walked slowly in the Dharma Realm, leaving his own footprints, but he did not rush to inscribe the Great Dao in the Dharma Realm, which would be Path Opening the Heavens.

According to the original plan, he should have hurried to Path Open, and even if he failed, he could retreat to Daluotian, which served as a backup for the Grand Cosmos.

But he changed his mind.

In recent days, as he drew closer to the "Dao", he felt an overwhelming sense of malice.

This malice was unnoticed by others.

Even Heila and Little Wuzhou, who were closest to him, did not sense it.

When he told Little Wuzhou and Heila about this, the latter remained silent for a long time, ignoring Heila's sarcastic remarks.

Finally, Little Wuzhou asked Ji Jingqiu, "Do you know what the Misty Sea is to us?"

Ji Jingqiu had an epiphany. "A graveyard?"

The graveyard of the gods.

This was the answer Heila had given him before.

Wuzhou gave him a different answer:

"It is the last hope for all spirits to gain freedom."

At that moment.

Ji Jingqiu looked up.

A massive eye loomed in the dark universe, hollow and lifeless, oozing dark blood and decaying fluids.

When it opened, no celestial body, sun, moon, or Great Dao could describe its magnitude!

This was the "great thing" that Azure Sovereign and Holy King suspected was lurking behind the scenes...

Lightning flashed and thunder roared in his mind, the feeling of being targeted by a mad beast surged, and an unexplained fear and dread took root in his heart.

He looked inward, maintaining a state of tranquility, sitting in the void, unmoving.

These negative emotions came from the Misty Sea, not from his own heart.

Ji Jingqiu took a deep breath.

In the western region years ago.

He had seen a pair of pure eyes, flowing with the waves of life, shimmering and flickering in the void, drawing the residual imprints of all living beings in the world, silently watching him.

At that moment, Ji Jingqiu heard a weeping sound.

It was the weeping of all the spirits on this planet.

Even the planet itself was mourning.

At the same time, there was...

The low hum of the Sea of Souls.

At that time, was it his Heart Lamp that illuminated the spirits, or did the light of the spirits enter his heart?

He never found the answer.

But now, he felt the answer might be close.

...

In the Inner World.

Heila and Wuzhou's expressions were unusually serious, and for once, they did not argue with each other.

"What is this? The Misty Sea is vast, but if it harbored such a 'great thing,' we would have known", Heila whispered.

Wuzhou remained silent. "My True Spirit is incomplete, and I cannot see through this thing, but I suspect it is the remnant of a Transcender."

"What kind of Transcender?" Heila's face darkened.

"That's a stupid question!" Wuzhou's expression was cold. "It's very interesting. In my prime, I forcibly merged with half of the Misty Sea, and I couldn't even sense this thing's existence, let alone find its traces. Now that we are both weakened, it has emerged!"

Heila was silent, her mind racing with doubt.

This thing... Ji Jingqiu seemed to have sensed it more than once before he became a Heavenly Person?

"Taiyi!"

Little Wuzhou suddenly gritted her teeth.

"This guy knows more than either of us!"

...

Cang Qing's expression was more serious than ever.

This "thing" was not from the source of time or the River of Fate, but was hidden deep within the Misty Sea!

Cang Qing's eyes were deep and thoughtful. Was it always lurking in the Misty Sea, or did it enter after the Four Demons' silence?

He couldn't think about it for long and prepared to take action, contacting the saints.

The unpredictability of this thing exceeded their expectations, surpassing even the power of a True Emperor.

It was not just ancient, but a fundamental difference in power!

Under the "gaze" of such power, even he and the saints dared not guarantee Ji Jingqiu's safety during Path Opening!

"This is not the true culprit I was pursuing, but it is equally troublesome. Have you noticed that it has not awakened yet?"

Holy King's mental voice came, deep and solemn.

Cang Qing's expression was solemn. Of course, he had noticed. The thing had not awakened, only reacting instinctively.

And its reaction seemed to be directed not at Path Opening the Heavens, but at Ji Jingqiu?

Or perhaps, at the Guarding Void and Stillness that Ji Jingqiu was Path Opening?

Evidence was that when Chijin broke through to Celestial King and inscribed the essence of Guarding Void and Stillness in the lower layers of Daluotian, the thing had a slight reaction.

Now, as Ji Jingqiu Path Opened the Heavens, even before the final step, the reaction became more intense, and the Misty Sea, which had been dormant, was rapidly awakening!

If this continued, the Misty Sea would surely "return", and this return would be astonishingly swift.

So now, they must interrupt Ji Jingqiu's Path Opening, making him retreat and Path Open within Daluotian, proving himself as a Celestial King first.

As for Path Opening the Heavens, it would have to wait.

Suddenly.

Cang Qing's eyes blazed, focusing on Ji Jingqiu.

His shock at this moment was no less than when he first sensed the great entity.

A heart moon in Ji Jingqiu's brow shone brightly, illuminating the boundless universe.

Behind him, a vast and mysterious starry sky appeared.

Cang Qing gazed at it, seeing countless stars spread out like flowing sand, the vastness and inclusiveness of the cosmos making even his pure Divinity waver for a moment.

No.

Those were not stars.

They were lights.

In the Grand Cosmos.

The man who lit the lights of humanity, or the one for whom the lights of humanity held up a starry sky—

Sat in the universe.

In the void, the spirits and beings of the Grand Cosmos heard a voice—

"Life is but a fleeting journey, the world is like a tide, and countless beings rush through the dust, thoughts bring suffering, and actions cause disturbance..."

"Why do all beings possess the wisdom and virtues of the Tathagata, yet still remain in the sea of suffering, unable to transcend and see the Tathagata?"

This was the question Ning Ming had asked at the end of the ancient path.

Today.

Ji Jingqiu, now a Celestial King, asked the heavens, the beings, the Great Dao, and himself!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end