Chapter 923: The Dao-Realized One

Li Yi’s plan was simple: take this opportunity to subdue these thirty-three Great Perfection cultivators, thereby addressing Earth’s shortage of top-tier experts and giving himself more confidence when launching a cross-realm war.

But he didn’t trust them—unless they willingly accepted the Self-Sacrifice Spell, he’d rather let them pass away in this world than take them across realms.

He had no intention of suddenly gaining a batch of enemies for no reason.

The requirements of the Self-Sacrifice Spell were indeed harsh—it amounted to surrendering one’s life entirely to Li Yi, with no room for resistance. Though Li Yi claimed he would grant them freedom and later lift the spell, no one knew if that was true or false.

The cultivators pondered, hesitated, and watched each other.

Everyone was indecisive.

“The Self-Sacrifice Spell? I’ll give it to you. As long as you can take me across realms, this demand is nothing.”

After a brief silence, suddenly a Great Perfection cultivator flew in from beyond the heavens, releasing a beam of light.

That beam was the Self-Sacrifice Spell.

Li Yi reached out and caught it; a faint rune immediately appeared on his hand.

“Xuan Zhenzi, why are you so impulsive?” the other Daoists exclaimed in surprise.

Xuan Zhenzi said nothing, only looked at Li Yi: “May I now follow the Celestial Sovereign across realms?”

?￠O

Li Yi said, “You may, but I must check whether you’re carrying any storage Dao artifacts. If you’ve hidden a whole group inside one and tried to sneak across, I’d be at a disadvantage.”

At these words, Xuan Zhenzi fell silent, then let out a self-deprecating laugh: “Of course—I should’ve known my little trick wouldn’t fool you.”

He’d hoped to gamble, but this Taiyi had already sensed his move—this tactic was useless now.

“Master, your disciple is incompetent. My scheme has been uncovered by this Taiyi. Please reveal yourself.”

He sighed, then swept his robe—and a delicate jade palace flew out.

The next instant, a figure emerged from the palace, transforming into a young Daoist boy of about ten or so.

Though he appeared as a boy, his eyes held the stillness of heaven and earth, nearly embodying the Dao itself.

Yu Qing Daoist and the other Great Perfection cultivators, upon seeing the boy, froze, then bowed in unison: “We pay our respects to the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign.”

He bore the title of Celestial Sovereign.

This young Daoist was no Great Perfection—he was a true Dao-Realized One.

In the cultivation world, Dao-Realized Ones had reached the pinnacle of cultivation, beyond further advancement. Since ancient times, those who achieved this state were as rare as phoenix feathers or dragon scales—fewer than one could count on one hand.

“Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign?” Li Yi narrowed his eyes: “So you’re a Dao-Realized One.”

“Greetings, Taiyi Celestial Sovereign,” the young Daoist smiled and bowed.

Hearing this address, it wasn’t Li Yi who was shocked—but the other Great Perfection cultivators. They stared at Li Yi in astonishment; they hadn’t expected the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign to address him as Taiyi Celestial Sovereign.

This meant Taiyi’s power had been acknowledged by the Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign—or that Taiyi was already perilously close to the Celestial Sovereign realm. He could not be underestimated.

“Even a Dao-Realized One wishes to cross realms?” Li Yi asked.

The young Daoist sighed: “This realm is beyond saving. Even though I’ve realized the Dao, the depletion of spiritual energy will eventually erase heaven and earth. Now that Taiyi Celestial Sovereign has come across realms to rescue us from this sea of suffering, how could I miss this chance?”

“Even if you’re a Dao-Realized One, I still charge toll for crossing,” Li Yi said. “If you object, I’m happy to fight you.”

He remained undaunted before a Dao-Realized One.

With his divine power and dual cultivation, fighting a Dao-Realized One might not guarantee victory—but he didn’t believe he’d lose. Worst case, he’d take the opponent down with him.

If he didn’t assert dominance now, how could he ever subdue these people? How could he establish authority before them?

“No need to fight.”

The young Daoist swept his robe, sending a beam of light toward Li Yi, leaving a rune imprint on his arm.

It was the Self-Sacrifice Spell.

“Master!” Xuan Zhenzi stared in shock—his master had also accepted the Self-Sacrifice Spell.

“Taiyi Celestial Sovereign, are you satisfied?” the young Daoist smiled.

Li Yi remained calm: “No one knows if the Self-Sacrifice Spell can bind a Dao-Realized One. But it doesn’t matter—I’ll trust you once, since you’ve accepted it. You may cross with me.”

He then turned to the others: “Anyone else who wants to leave? I don’t have much time—I won’t stay here long.”

Seeing that even the Dao-Realized Eastern Pole Celestial Sovereign had accepted the Self-Sacrifice Spell, Yu Qing Daoist and the other Great Perfection cultivators had no grounds to resist. With resigned sighs, they gave up their hesitation and each released a beam of light.

Thirty-two Self-Sacrifice Spells appeared. Li Yi sensed them all, confirming no one was left out.

“It seems you’ve all made the right choice. Good. Then prepare to depart with me.” Li Yi, seeing the matter settled, immediately moved to leave.

“Celestial Sovereign, may we request a brief delay? We have some personal matters to attend to,” Yu Qing Daoist said.

Li Yi said, “I’ll give you half an hour. After that, board the Immortal Warship and cross realms with me.”

He wasn’t heartless—if they were willing to serve him and accept the Self-Sacrifice Spell, he’d grant them some leeway.

“Thank you, Celestial Sovereign,” Yu Qing Daoist said gratefully.

He glanced at the other Daoists.

Instantly, all of them stepped onto auspicious clouds, their divine radiance vanishing from sight—they had returned to beyond the heavens to settle their personal affairs within the half-hour window.

In truth, this was unnecessary.

Once they reached Earth, they could obtain cross-realm devices and rare artifacts—they’d have their own chances to return later, not entirely cut off from this world.

But Li Yi said nothing, letting them go.

He returned to the Immortal Warship.

Lin Yue had been closely observing the external situation; seeing Li Yi return, she realized that the many experts following him had come from this low-level cultivation world.

“Li Yi, bringing so many powerful cultivators back to Earth—won’t that cause trouble?” she asked quietly.

“There will be trouble, certainly—but compared to threats from other realms, what’s a little trouble?”

Li Yi said, “If not for the cultivators from this end-of-cultivation world, Earth would’ve been conquered long ago. Lin Jie, don’t worry—I’ll control them. If anyone causes trouble, I’m confident I can eliminate them.”

Lin Jie thought for a moment, then nodded slightly, saying no more.

The benefits clearly outweighed the risks.

To gain dozens of powerful cultivators for free, bearing a little risk was worth it—if Li Yi launched cross-realm battles, these people would be his frontline generals.