Chapter 360: One Hand Subdues the True Dragon, the Profound Xuan Crosses Realms (Combined)

Responding before they asked could be called "concern," but responding after they asked? That's "trying to cover up."

Especially since their previous letters clearly mentioned Qian Shuang's injury.

I actually thought Brother Dao had messed up, but turns out it was me who messed up…

No!

This is all my fault!

I already had my reply ready!

"Little sister, you must help me explain this!"

"Explain what? I just told the truth. You never told me ahead of time."

"You…!"

"And do you really think they'll believe you if you explain?"

"…."

Indeed, even if Little Sister explained for me, they'd only think I bribed her to lie…

But to be misunderstood like this—what kind of situation is this?!

Just as he was about to say more…

Hummm~

The levitating Ascension Platform suddenly trembled, and Ning Ruo's voice emerged from within.

"The communication channel has been redirected to the Starry Sky. This is the final transmission. Given the time-flow disparity on your side, Elder You should still take quite some time to arrive."

After all, this world is truly far from the Xuan Realm.

Even with the communication channel's aid, transmitting power here isn't something that can be done instantly.

Ning Ruo could achieve real-time communication only because she repeatedly adjusted the Ascension Platform—and because she herself is its creator.

"Spirit Ancestor!" Hong Zun, as if seeing hope, hurriedly said, "I've already prepared my reply—please help me deliver it!"

But there was no response.

"Messages sent this way have delays," Xu Xing explained.

In other words, by the time the message arrives, it will be far too late.

emm…

Why do I suddenly feel like laughing?

Hong Zun: "…"

I was just trying to struggle a bit.

…

…

In the blink of an eye, summer had passed.

The scorching heat faded; the endless rainy days and the boundless desolation of heaven and earth didn't last long—winter was coming.

Within these few short months, through disciples spreading the Dao, distributing medicine to aid the people, and divine manifestations of miracles, the Taiping Dao's influence grew like an avalanche.

Now, in all twenty-three prefectures of the Datong Dynasty, thirteen prefectures' people have joined the Taiping Dao, with disciples numbering nearly ten million.

The followers of the Taiping Dao have become the most brilliant presence in this great shift of immortals and gods.

Among today's mortal cultivators, only Xuanling Daoren, who defeated the Eastern Greenwood Thunder Lord in direct combat, can rival them.

Chengming Mountain, summit.

The strange mists that once clung here had vanished, leaving only a thin veil of ordinary cloud vapor.

Mist and rain flowed through the mountains, as if draping the entire Chengming Mountain in a gauze robe.

A tall figure, resembling a young girl in a silk robe, walked slowly along the mountain path toward the summit.

It was Yuxu Tianjun.

One of the few Lower Realm Zhenjun who had openly joined the Taiping Dao.

"This mountain…"

Compared to other famous peaks, Chengming Mountain was utterly ordinary—even among surrounding peaks, it was unremarkable.

But now…

Yuxu Tianjun extended her hand, and several cold raindrops fell between her long, snow-white fingers.

She silently withdrew her hand and continued upward along the path, growing more astonished with every step.

In her perception, this ordinary Chengming Mountain seemed to occupy the very center of heaven and earth; the mountain ranges around it, whether higher or lower, naturally converged and surrounded it.

The entire mountain felt as if it had come alive—seated firmly in heaven and earth, breathing and inhaling, as if boundless torrents surged through the void.

Though only a hundred zhang tall, Chengming Mountain radiated an aura of sovereign dominion over the ten poles of the cosmos, guiding and saving all directions.

Normally, such a small hundred-zhang hill would take her but an instant to reach!

Yet now, Yuxu Tianjun walked for a full quarter-hour before finally reaching the summit.

The summit was flat and spacious, capable of holding dozens.

But now, only two figures sat facing each other, expression calm.

One wore a black crown and black robes, his aura heavy and profound, like the stars hanging high above the heavens…

No!

The stars above the heavens were bowing to him, submitting to him!

Xuanling Jie'e Yansheng Star Lord!

Once, the first Star Lord after the Supreme Star Lords of Taiyin and Taiyang.

Now, Xuanling Daoren.

Even the Eastern Greenwood Thunder Zhenjun, who had slain nearly a hundred lower-world Zhenjun, was defeated outright by him!

Opposite him stood a gray-robed Daoist, his hair streaked black and white, bearing an air of solemn dignity, his qi like mountains and oceans.

Strange, unique energies circled and rotated upon his body, like countless rivers converging.

The very ground beneath him, Chengming Mountain, seemed altered by his presence.

The Taiping Daoist Jiang Lin.

Their qi interwove and clashed, giving rise to an invisible, formless field that stretched over a thousand li.

Anyone who gazed upon it felt an overwhelming sense of boundless freedom and ease, irresistibly drawn into its embrace.

Heaven and earth fell silent!

In that instant, Yuxu Tianjun felt as though she were a tiny insect trapped in resin, overwhelming power—deep as abysses, vast as oceans—surging at her from all sides…

Even at her Current Realm, she felt as if she could not breathe.

How long passed, no one knew.

Suddenly, the pressure lifted, and endless light filled her vision.

"Senior Xuanling, your cultivation is profound. I have lost this round," came a clear, bright voice beside her.

All strange phenomena vanished. When she looked ahead, she saw Jiang Lin, who had been sitting with closed eyes, now open-eyed.

He looked merely an ordinary gray-robed Daoist, devoid of the earlier mountain-still, ocean-deep pressure.

"This round doesn't count."

Xuanling Daoist turned his head to look.

Meeting his deep, dark eyes, Yuxu Tianjun felt icy coldness spread through her entire body, as if her blood had frozen in place.

But as Jiang Lin waved his hand, all discomfort vanished completely.

Seeing this, Xuanling Daoist did not press further: "When no one disturbs us again, we shall compete once more."

Jiang Lin sighed: "Senior Xuanling, if you would join the Taiping Dao, I would gladly teach you this alchemical method—and all other arts."

"..." Xuanling Daoist fell silent for a moment. "We shall compete again."

With those words, his entire form turned into a streak of light, shooting toward the heavens and vanishing in an instant.

Watching his departing direction, Jiang Lin sighed again softly.

But soon, he turned his gaze back and rose to face Yuxu Tianjun: "Forgive me for keeping you waiting, Senior Yuxu."

Yuxu Tianjun opened her mouth to speak, but what came out was only a dry, parched question:

"Daozhu, was that Xuanling Daoist just now?"

"Mm."

"..."

It truly was Xuanling Daoist…

Yuxu Tianjun felt a complex tide of emotion surge within her.

How little time has passed!

Jiang Lin, who once could not even match her, who had been driven to the brink by a wolf demon, had now grown strong enough to stand on equal footing with Xuanling Daoist.

Even if I had not relinquished my divine position, I doubt I could withstand a single blow from him…

"I merely borrowed external power. In truth, I still have great distance to cover before matching Senior Xuanling."

Jiang Lin knew his own limits.

His current strength came entirely from borrowing the power of many deities—but borrowed power always has its limits…

"Did Xuanling Daoist also seek your methods?"

"Likely."

"Then why did he refuse your invitation to join the Taiping Dao?"

"Senior Xuanling knows what I intend to do—and what the Taiping Dao is doing. He simply does not wish to betray his own heart."

'Heart,' some discard like worn-out shoes; others cherish as priceless treasure.

Xuanling Daoist was clearly the latter.

Perhaps he did not want to, perhaps he could not, or perhaps he feared—after all, the greatest obstacle has never been anything in this mortal world…

But who can truly know what he thinks?

By the way, have you started studying the alchemical method and the 'Divine Control Method'? Jiang Lin did not pursue the topic further—not because he was withholding secrets, but among these four methods, the only one he could barely transmit was the 'Divine Control Method,' which he had studied most deeply.

"... No." Yuxu Tianjun felt ashamed.

She had always believed her talent was decent—until now, she finally understood what it meant when others surpass you, when heaven towers above heaven.

Jiang Lin had taught her without reservation, yet she could not even enter the first threshold.

"Senior, do not rush. I myself only entered these four methods after a rare stroke of fortune." After offering comfort, he asked: "What of the 'True Pure Original Spirit Refining Method'?"

This was a simplified version of the 'Devouring Deity Method.'

The method now practiced by the Taiping Dao's troops was a further simplification of the 'True Pure Original Spirit Refining Method,' called the 'Taiping Spirit Refining Method.'

Even that has already stumped too many.

"I have entered this method."

Compared to the illusory, dreamlike alchemical method and 'Divine Control Method,' the 'True Pure Original Spirit Refining Method' was still difficult—but within reach of comprehension.

One error in a single line, a single phrase, a single character—none!

"Good." Jiang Lin nodded slightly. "By the way, why did you come to find me?"

"Oh, right!" Yuxu Tianjun suddenly remembered.

So much had just happened—she had nearly forgotten.

"It's about the Emperor of Datong." She pulled out a scroll of bright yellow silk. "He has issued an edict naming you State Preceptor and elevating the Taiping Dao as the state religion. I felt I should consult your opinion on this."

The Taiping Dao's influence has now swollen to a scale no side can afford to ignore.

But the Datong Dynasty remains the nominal legitimate authority of the mortal realm.

She understood the Dao Master's ambitions, so she came to ask whether he needed to borrow the Datong Dynasty's "prestige."

"Imperial Tutor, hmm…"

Jiang Lin reached out and took the imperial edict from the hands of Yuxu Tianjun.

Even amid the hazy rain, the bright yellow silk still glowed vividly.

Without even glancing at its contents, he tossed it straight into the air, along with a surge of magic power.

Boom!

The imperial edict instantly shattered into a thousand fragments.

"It's about time, isn't it?" Jiang Lin murmured as if to himself, then turned to Yuxu Tianjun. "If I meet with misfortune later, when Xuanling Qianbei comes again, you must pass the alchemy method on to him."

Huh?

Yuxu Tianjun, hearing this, was slow to react.

"Consider it me taking advantage of a honest person," Jiang Lin chuckled bitterly, then stepped past her and walked toward the distance.

"Dao Master, what are you…?"

"To kill the Emperor."

The voice reached her; she turned back, but Jiang Lin had vanished entirely into the hazy rain.

…………

The Datong Dynasty, capital city of Jingcheng.

The imperial palace, the Imperial Garden.

The Datong gardens were the finest in the mortal realm; this imperial garden was uniquely ingenious, grand and majestic yet elegant and refined—even now in late autumn, vibrant blooms of every hue still clustered in profusion.

A middle-aged man with a pale face was fishing, his brow and eyes radiating the stern authority of one long entrenched in supreme power.

If a cultivator used the Art of Gazing at Vitality to observe, they would see golden scales flickering faintly in the surrounding void, a vast and noble aura swirling, emitting distant roars of a dragon.

This world was not like the Three Celestial Realms, where immortals and mortals were utterly separated.

The extraordinary manifested visibly; the mortal emperor's supreme position naturally carried the dynasty's destiny as protection, impervious to all arts.

During a dynasty's peak, even a Tianjun-level deity dared not offend; even a Xingjun-level deity attacking the emperor would suffer backlash and damage to their origin.

As the saying goes: magic does not reach the noble. Practitioners of the Qilin Dao could not act against officials with official status.

Minor offenses would reduce their spiritual energy allotment; severe ones would result in direct dispatch of the Thunder Bureau deities to kill them!

It was extremely strict.

Over half of the Qieling Dao practitioners were driven into existence by this.

But now, with deities stepping down from their posts and the great era shifting, coupled with the Datong Dynasty itself teetering on collapse, the dynasty's protective destiny had been greatly weakened.

Within the divine domain, invisible to ordinary mortals.

A deity in purple robes and a splendid crown sat beside the true dragon of the dynasty's destiny, staring coldly at the emperor.

He was the Land God of Jingcheng, also the Tianfu Xingjun—a guardian deity of the Datong Dynasty.

Just then, the emperor in the imperial garden sighed:

"Sometimes, I truly envy those recluses in the mountains, free from the burden of paperwork, wandering carefree among forests…"

"…."

Free from the burden of paperwork?

How in the world do you dare say that?!

Tianfu Xingjun considered himself a patient deity, but the emperor's conduct over the years had driven him to this state!

Damn it!

Emperor Changjing, was your brain kicked by a donkey, choosing such a bastard as emperor?!

"Alas~ Is there truly eternal life?"

This question made the palace maids and eunuchs tremble, terrified of losing their heads over a single misstep.

Tianfu Xingjun remained expressionless, glancing at the frail true dragon of the dynasty's destiny beside him.

Eternal life certainly existed, but under divine rule, the higher one's position, the harder it was to cultivate.

The emperor was impervious to all arts—and equally unable to practice any.

Tianfu Xingjun withdrew his gaze and returned his stare to the emperor.

Given the Datong Dynasty's current state, when this man dies, he'll barely earn a Tongli Shenjun title!

Then I shall make him understand what retribution means!

As he thought this, Tianfu Xingjun suddenly felt a sharp pang in his heart, then lifted his gaze toward the distance.

His divine sight revealed everything far away!

In the hazy rain, a gray-robed Daoist walked through empty space, his aura like a mountain and an ocean, surging and rolling forward in overwhelming force.

Boom—!

Even the divine domain, nonexistent in reality, trembled violently!

The dark clouds above Jingcheng were instantly swept aside by this invisible terror, forced outward in all directions.

In an instant, long-absent sunlight poured down upon Jingcheng, causing many to look up.

"The Taiping Daoist!" Tianfu Xingjun's face changed.

Yin~!

The Datong Dynasty's true dragon of destiny let out a dragon's roar, forming a terrifying distortion invisible to mortals, crashing toward the Daoist!

Yet the violent force, capable of shredding divine iron and golden essence, barely stirred the Daoist's sleeve as it reached him.

This exaggerated scene made the Tianfu Star Lord's heart leap.

Though he knew the Taiping Daoist was powerful, this was too extreme!

With the divine system now in turmoil, could he still be his match…?

As his thoughts turned, some Taiping Daoist disciples hidden within the capital recognized the man and eagerly moved to prostrate themselves.

Taiping Daoist disciples spread across the land, many of them fanatical believers.

In their hearts, the Master of Taiping Dao was already a savior.

Yet as Jiang Lin swept his hand upward, the fanatical disciples found themselves lifted by a gentle force, unable to kneel no matter how hard they tried.

Under the gaze of the entire city's populace, high officials, and nobles, Jiang Lin walked step by step toward the imperial garden.

In just a few steps, he arrived above the Emperor of the Datong Dynasty.

The Emperor's face twisted in fury as he suddenly rose to his feet, staring at Jiang Lin, who stood midair, bathed in sunlight like a celestial exile.

"I—!"

Boom!

A terrifying aura crushed down, cutting off his words instantly.

The Emperor gritted his teeth; golden scales flickered across his body, veins bulged on his forehead, as if bearing unimaginable pressure.

"Emperor, do you know your crime?"

A calm voice spread, clear in every person's ear.

Thud!

Already physically depleted, and with his destiny-protecting power greatly weakened, the Emperor could no longer stand—he collapsed to his knees.

The palace maids and eunuchs around him turned pale with fear, all wanting to kneel too—but none could kneel!

The whole city stood unyielding; only the Emperor knelt.

"What crime have I committed?!"

Hum~!

A dragon's roar echoed through the void—a ancient, noble five-clawed golden dragon roared toward them.

Jiang Lin's expression did not change; behind him, the shadow of a towering giant emerged, and a hand glowing with Jin Guang, interwoven with Lei Guang and flame, reached out and seized the true dragon!

The Eighty-One Heavenly Spirits Manifestation of Taiping Dao!

Just as he was about to make his next move—

Hehehe!

A strange, sinister laugh echoed in the heart of every living being, from the lowliest ant to the highest Xuantong, none could escape it.

The entire heavens and earth, the whole world, grew suddenly crowded at this moment.

The Yin Si, the Heavenly Palace, even countless hidden Xuantong realms.

As if some terrifying existence the world could not bear was being forcibly squeezed into this world, causing the world itself to groan under unbearable strain.

Primordial Flame Qi, Origin of Shadow!

The inexplicable feeling came swiftly and vanished just as fast—in an instant, all anomalies disappeared.

Jiang Lin froze.

"An illusion…?"

He brushed the thought aside and turned his gaze once more to the kneeling Emperor below. (End of chapter)