Chapter 317: Stop

Although the Two Star Immortals' exploration of the outside world wasn't long, they were Immortals, so the worlds they touched were numerous.

Later, they made a rough classification of those discovered worlds.

Broadly, they fell into three categories.

First were the Heaven-Round, Earth-Square worlds; below the baseline up to the Return-to-Void energy level, these worlds were the most numerous.

Second were the honeycomb-dimensional worlds, typically composed of multiple dimensions, with energy levels generally above the baseline.

The training grounds of the Cixian Sect—the Three Heaven Realms—were a type of world lying between these two categories.

Lastly, there were the Starry Cosmos-type worlds.

These were the rarest, and their energy levels were generally not low.

But even a Return-to-Void-level world of this type could at best be called a "pseudo-multiverse."

Thus, a true multiverse must be a He-Dao Great Realm!

Yet this classification method was merely a rough division, so it was incomplete.

"Have you attempted to invest your legacy?" Xu Xing asked.

"I've sent a few strands in," Seeing Hong Zun replied. "And several little ones within that world sensed them and tried to seize them—but failed."

"The strands I invested were ultimately captured by the world itself, and from them, new timelines formed."

At this, Seeing Hong Zun couldn't help but sigh: "This vast, chaotic sea is truly fascinating. Once matters in the Tai Xuan Realm are settled, I'll surely step out and wander."

Just as he finished speaking, Xu Xing felt a new force feedback toward him.

Still from the Beast God Realm—but the source was…

Sister and Xiang Yuanjun!

Hm?

"Younger brother, the Tai Xuan Realm's repulsion against us has lessened—how about you?" Bie Xuening's voice came from afar.

Lessened?

"Mine hasn't, but I've received some feedback from the Dao veins we left behind in the Beast God Realm."

"How much, roughly?" Xiang Yuanjun suddenly spoke up.

Roughly how much…?

Xu Xing sent a thread of thought back along the connection, detailing the exact quantity of the "feedback" force.

Not long after, a response came from Xiang Yuanjun's side.

"Essentially consistent. It must be due to the connection granted by the Tai Xuan Realm—so the Dao veins we left can be sensed by Elder Brother, and our repulsion weakens accordingly."

"As I suspected," Xu Xing replied. "I never imagined the Tai Xuan Realm's connection could have this effect."

This was a blessing in disguise.

"After all, nominally speaking, we are Elder Brother's 'gifts,'" Xiang Yuanjun laughed.

Even with the feedback force from the Beast God Realm, it was still far from fully countering the Tai Xuan Realm's repulsion.

In such a situation, a little jesting was a form of finding joy in hardship.

Bie Xuening said nothing.

She was Ye Shijie!

Then Xu Xing told Seeing Hong Zun of his recent discovery, while he himself continued being pushed farther away by the repulsion.

Soon, the Beast God Realm vanished entirely from sight, though the feedback force still lingered.

And Bie Xuening and Xiang Yuanjun sent word again.

They had reached the vicinity of the multiverse Seeing Hong Zun had passed through.

As they deposited their legacies, a feedback force arrived, further slowing Xu Xing's rate of being pushed away.

Of course, it was still far from enough.

Everything had to proceed slowly; Xu Xing calmed his mind, observing the worlds he passed during his drift, while sending in suitable legacies.

Though the feedback force paled compared to those Great Realms, accumulated little by little, it became a real aid.

In this process, countless worlds' scenes flooded into his vision—

One small realm, below baseline energy, utterly dark within, yet home to a race that bore faint light, living and dying in an instant—yet their fleeting moment of transcendence blazed so brightly it outshone Return-to-Void!

The small realm, blessed by this light, transformed from void into substance.

One world where myriad clans vied, all creatures striving freely under frosty skies, one rising as another fell, mountains and rivers trembling, heroes countless as forests.

One world where the Divine Path blazed gloriously, laws rigid and strict, the Heavenly Emperor seated high upon the Divine Court, beneath him divided into 108,000 deities—spirits who received human incense, regulated yin and yang, governed the Five Phases, and shared the lifespan of heaven and earth, the age of sun and moon!

…

One world after another, each scene different, each cultivation system unique.

Strong or weak, large or small.

Miracles unfolded every moment; creation never ceased for an instant!

Even with power capable of shaking the Chaos Sea, as countless scenes filled his vision, Xu Xing could not help but feel awe.

Eventually, he saw the multiverse Seeing Hong Zun had mentioned.

Weaker than the Beast God Realm, yet surpassing Return-to-Void—a world at He-Dao energy level!

Its shape resembled amber, within lay a vast, boundless forest, growing many towering "trees," each trunk constantly sprouting new "branches."

A few of these trees were especially "thick," their "roots" even embedded in other "trees," as if siphoning nourishment.

Those represented civilizations or individuals capable of escaping their own universe to explore further multiverses.

"Truly, creation is boundless."

Xu Xing sighed softly, then cast some legacies into the multiverse.

Since he made no effort to conceal them, as the legacies fell within, civilizations and regions with the ability to observe the outside immediately deployed methods to capture the legacy's comet-like luminous trail.

The result was naturally futile.

The world itself moved faster, seizing that legacy radiance.

Then, like planting a seed, it "planted" it in the unseen depths.

In an instant, a new "sprout" grew, standing alongside three taller "saplings," emitting a unique Dao essence. The world itself then sent forth a sense of kinship.

Of course, this world could not escape the filtering power of the Xuan Realm.

Vast power poured down—though not as immense as during the Beast God Realm's time, it differed from what ordinary worlds typically endured.

Yet this "multiverse" responded differently from the Beast God Realm's "hard resistance"; it did not oppose the Xuan Realm's filtering force, but allowed it to search, yet ultimately protected those four "cosmic seedlings."

In short: you may search all you like, but even if you find them, I won't let you take them!

As always, the Xuan Realm merely held its ground for a moment, then abandoned the effort outright.

In the blink of an eye, the "multiverse" vanished from sight.

As Xu Xing felt himself being pushed farther away, threads of feedback energy continued to reach him, steadily increasing.

Some came from worlds that had preserved the legacy gifts he had invested; some came from Bie Xuening and Xiang Yuanjun—but the greatest number…

came from Seeing Hong Zun.

Compared to the three of them, those worlds accepted Seeing Hong Zun's legacy gifts more readily.

!. read

And were more willing to fiercely defend the gifts he had bestowed, even against the Xuan Realm's filtering force.

…………

On the Chaos Sea, years went uncounted; thus, how long passed remained unknown.

Seeing Hong Zun lay on his back, his immortal body vast and boundless, the yin-yang fish pattern behind his head spinning endlessly.

Ripples spread across the Chaos Sea, gently pushing many small worlds aside.

The Xuan Realm's repelling force had now reached its maximum speed; his rate of being pushed away had slowed considerably, granting him leisure to observe his surroundings.

After observing left and right, he noticed a very powerful world not far behind.

If a Fanxu-level world was a leaf drifting with the current, this world was an ancient star—its "momentum" exceedingly high, its cosmic principles interwoven, inhaling and exhaling boundless chaos.

Slightly inferior only to the Beast God Realm, it was a Tongxuan-level world.

Even after traveling this far, few worlds of such a level had been encountered.

"Is this your elder brother's homeland?"

A thought arose in Seeing Hong Zun's mind.

But quickly, he denied it within himself.

With countless worlds as anchors, he should not yet have reached the end—so his elder brother's homeland must still lie some distance ahead…

As he pondered, the Xuan Realm's repelling force continued to weaken; after pushing him near that world, it vanished entirely.

Stopped?

Seeing Hong Zun paused, then rose from the Chaos Sea.

His form ascended; the yin-yang fish behind his head retracted and disappeared, and his vast, boundless immortal body shrank rapidly to ordinary human size.

Huh~

After exhaling softly, Seeing Hong Zun gazed toward the direction beyond that world—the very direction the Xuan Realm had intended to send them.

Chaos churned, without end.

"My elder brother's homeland lies beyond—yet I wonder what it looks like."

The thought in his mind quickly faded; Seeing Hong Zun turned back.

The faint, elusive connection still existed, stretching far into the distance.

"Elder brother, I have stopped." Seeing Hong Zun spoke along the connection.

The other responded swiftly: "I should be nearing my stop too—if no error, I'll halt near you."

Then, Xu Xing paused on his end, his tone unusually altered.

"Near you—is there a special world?"

Of course!

Seeing Hong Zun smiled knowingly.

I knew it—he couldn't possibly not care!

Come to think of it, since the very first time they met, he hadn't used that tone in countless years!

"There is one world—Tongxuan-level." Seeing Hong Zun gazed at the world, vast as an ancient star, his eyes swirling with yin and yang energy, "Its cultivation paths coexist: Immortal Dao and Divine Dao. Currently, Immortal Dao is in decline, while Divine Dao flourishes."

A Tongxuan-level world could not resist his scrutiny.

"Not a universe-type world?"

"No." Seeing Hong Zun scanned the surrounding realms again, "No universe-type worlds lie nearby."

"Then it's not that one."

The voice that came back still carried an unusual tone.

Regret?

Relief?

Or disappointment?

Perhaps a little of all three.

"Please enter the world and wait. When I, my senior sister, and Xiang Yuanjun arrive, we'll deliberate further."

His tone was calm, indistinguishable from his usual manner.

"Understood." Seeing Hong Zun replied.

Yet he pondered silently.

So Brother Dao's homeland is a world of the universe type… (End of Chapter)