Chapter 368: One Step Further, the Body Enters Dao

Walking and pausing along the way, not long after, that world of the "Multiverse" was utterly left behind.

Around him, the scenery reverted to what he usually saw.

In this boundless, endless Chaos Sea, worlds of Reversal Void tier were rare, let alone Great Realms reaching above Union with Dao.

Xu Xing calmly observed, then suddenly released his own scale.

Hummm~!

In the countless, immeasurable worlds, the radiance of the Sword Dao interwove and rose, converging toward him to form a halo behind him, containing immeasurable Sword Dao.

Just as when he had fallen out of the world!

Long before, when he had severed his past and was no longer directly oppressed by the Tai Xuan Realm's repulsion, he had gained insight.

But that feeling was too vague, leaving him uncertain what state he had truly realized.

His immeasurably vast immortal body walked through the Chaos Sea; chaotic qi spontaneously gathered around it, and countless tiny worlds took shape in an instant of a billionth-billionth moment, about to form.

"..."

With a thought, a crimson thread flared to life in the Chaos Sea, slicing down those tiny worlds.

Chaotic qi churned endlessly, stretching infinite and boundless, its high-low "trend" impossible to transcend.

Even Dao-attained beings—Immortals or Ancestors—facing this boundless, endless Chaos Sea, could only use their own Dao as an anchor, groping slowly.

"The Dao is infinite, ever-present..."

Countless scenes of myriad worlds entered his eyes.

Now, as he traveled this path, those insights had become far clearer.

The embryonic worlds fell, yet did not shatter; instead, they continued absorbing surrounding chaotic qi to perfect themselves.

Of course, influenced by Xu Xing, the lifeforms born within these worlds would lean toward the Sword Dao, and having experienced an extremely high "trend," their future potential to break through and become Union-with-Dao Great Realms would be slightly higher.

But it was still exceedingly remote.

Never mind Union-with-Dao Great Realms—every Reversal Void-tier world was the result of countless miracles intertwining to reach that step.

"What about the Tai Xuan Realm?"

Xu Xing pondered: a Dao-attained being who could walk independently in the Chaos Sea, akin to a creator, was still not the end in the Tai Xuan Realm.

And according to Xuan's earlier words, he had come to the Tai Xuan Realm because the Tai Xuan Realm itself sensed Hun Tian Yi's desire to escape its restraints, deliberately selecting him from myriad worlds as the "Heavenly Calamity..."

"The past... homeland..."

Countless thoughts intertwined; Xu Xing felt the most crucial point was within reach, yet impossible to touch.

The past was extremely vague, leaving no trace of memory.

He had no choice but to reconstruct everything from the beginning—from when he had been deceived by Xuan.

The Source Dao Anchor, acting as a proxy authority, falling out of the world, all the way to that Tong Xuan-tier world, where the immortal-deity age had changed, the world's great trend had solidified, and even Hun Tian Yi could not alter it.

Immortal Dao as medicine, Divine Dao as nourishment...

Great trend?

Could it be that the Tai Xuan Realm also had a great trend?

And that this great trend was precisely to use Xuan's hand to make him sever his past, so he could truly become a person of the Tai Xuan Realm?!

Once this thought arose, it could not be stopped.

Amidst swirling thoughts, countless possibilities appeared in his mind.

Yes—otherwise, how could everything unfold exactly as he had imagined?

How could the process of severing his past have been so smooth?

But the world itself, as an aggregate of Dao's principles and infinite rules, should not possess subjective agency.

Could it be...

Is the so-called "great trend" itself merely another form of world rule?

"Fate..." Xu Xing murmured.

Indeed, in the Tai Xuan Realm, the future was unpredictable, fate too elusive to grasp.

No being had ever attained Dao through "fate"; even the so-called methods of divining heavenly fate could only glimpse a fragment of the future.

As he thought of this, the pressure around him vanished entirely.

The influence of the Tai Xuan Realm's repulsion was completely gone!

Ahead, not far off, stood a colossal world like a dam, spanning the center of the Chaos Sea, swallowing and exhaling immeasurable chaotic qi.

Beast God Realm!

Xu Xing suddenly realized and came to a sharp stop.

No!

If the so-called "great trend" truly was the world's own rule, then why had the Beast God Realm's Hun Tian Yi succeeded?!

Remember, the Beast God Realm's Hun Tian Yi had seized the essence of the Beast God, transformed into a "Heavenly Immortal," only after exterminating every Union-with-Dao and higher cultivator.

Such an act was undoubtedly a massive injury to the world itself...

Xu Xing calmed his mind and observed his own state.

Yet after several silent observations, he found nothing amiss.

After a brief pause, Xu Xing suddenly gestured, drawing a thread of world-light from the dam-like Beast God Realm beside him.

The light shifted, transforming into a figure identical to Xu Xing's usual form.

This was his trace left in this world.

Through his own lingering trace, briefly borrowing the Beast God Realm's power, Xu Xing observed himself again.

His vast, immeasurable, awe-inspiring immortal body seemed woven from Dao and principles, transcending all.

A river of Sword Dao, embracing all existence, without beginning or end, appeared to sever everything, surging forward, as if on the verge of transformation.

But now, a dull, gray shadow covered it, as if the very embodiment of "confusion" and "doubt," causing anyone who looked upon it to be overwhelmed with endless doubts and endless worries.

So it is!

It is said: those involved are confused; those watching clearly see.

Above the Cave of Truth, life does not endure; none can bind it, only oneself can harm oneself. These were all the doubts, confusions, worries, and uncertainties that arose in him whenever he encountered obstacles in his cultivation—these distracting thoughts sought to halt his further progress.

Originating from within oneself, there is nowhere to flee.

"Should it be called… Dao Wang?"

Xu Xing's eyes shimmered with an inexplicable light.

…

…

Beast God Realm.

At the border between human and Beast God territories, a vast and desolate battlefield.

Smoke and bloodfire were its dominant themes; the air reeked of a foul, metallic stench, and the ground was a terrifying dark red.

Amid constant explosions, massive warships, like iron behemoths, densely filled the sky, raining down beams of destruction like falling rain.

Colors of divine arts interwove, as torrents of lethal spells surged forward in overwhelming waves.

Not a single word, syllable, or detail is missing in every single one!

And within this battlefield spanning a million li, the human race's fire-arts battalions remained the most striking.

Even the simplest Fireball Technique, when billions converged under the human race's newly created Fusion Art, unleashed power like countless suns crashing down upon the battlefield's center.

With thunderous explosions.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators were instantly vaporized by this terrifying power.

Of course, the Beast God race's mecha battalions were no less formidable than the human fire-arts battalions.

Even Golden Core cultivators, when clad in mecha and uniting in groups of several, could directly confront Nascent Soul cultivators, and slaughtered all below Nascent Soul with utter dominance.

The scent of blood filled every corner of the void!

And higher still lay the battlefield between Returning Void cultivators.

Merely the residual shockwaves from their clashes carried power sufficient to shatter any cultivator below Returning Void!

A mighty mecha, its back adorned with six golden wings, its entire body dark gold, wielding a battle blade of identical dark gold hue.

The Supreme Mecha of the Beast God race!

Opposing it was a woman clad entirely in black, her snow-white hair tied into a high ponytail.

In her hand, a longsword radiated the supreme killing intent of severing spirit and extinguishing divine essence!

It was Xi Li!

Despite her opponent's mecha enhancement, she still dominated him in combat!

Originally, the human race and the Beast God race had been locked in stalemate, neither able to overcome the other.

But years ago, that upheaval wounded many human cultivators who practiced the Dao of Origin, allowing the Beast God race to launch a counterattack and gain significant advantages.

Fortunately, they ultimately held their ground.

Until another upheaval—suddenly appearing Dao lineages shattered the balance once more!

Though wary, many still cultivated those newly emerged Dao lineages, their combat power surging dramatically!

To this day, the human race's strength had utterly surpassed the Beast God race, prompting them to launch the final decisive battle!

"Die—!"

After blocking another slash from the mecha, Xi Li raised her sword and charged forward again!

This is a war of clan annihilation!

Only when one side is utterly destroyed will the war cease!

…………

Outside the realm, Xu Xing observed for a while.

Previously, he had come as an avatar; the world's light emitted by the Beast God Realm had blocked his gaze.

But now, with his true body present, it was different.

Especially since the Beast God Realm was currently weakened, and within it still bore traces of his past activity.

"They've reached this point… it's time to deploy another Ascension Platform."

Thanks to the Dao lineages he had previously planted, the human race now possessed far more high-level cultivators than the Beast God race.

If not for Xi Yun's desire to forge her own Dao and her failure to realize she could leverage the Dao essence of "Xi" to break through to Union with Dao, the battlefield situation would have been even more stable.

Of course, he was destined never to ascend via his own Dao.

After all, the Beast God Realm's time flow had been manipulated, and the world itself remained in a weakened state.

Hmm…

It would be convenient to directly use the Ascension Platform he had left behind in the Beast God Realm.

Thinking this, Xu Xing flicked his finger, sending a spirit light into the Beast God Realm to activate the long-dormant Ascension Platform.

The Ascension Platform trembled, then rose into the sky, appearing in a location inaccessible to ordinary cultivators of the Beast God Realm.

After embedding a sword-intent spirit form, Xu Xing observed its condition for a while longer before turning away.

His earlier contemplation of the Beast God Realm had not been affected by "Dao Wang."

It seemed that "Dao Wang" only activated when he probed deeper into his own cultivation.

With a thought, Xu Xing resumed his contemplation of that hazy spark he had perceived when severing his past.

Indeed, as soon as the thought arose, he felt a heavy, dark shadow clinging to his Dao, as if his mind had been dusted over with gray.

Instantly, doubts surged, worries unceasing.

He suddenly found himself worrying about how he would face Sister Yuanjun and Ning Ruo after the matter of the Cang Clan was settled.

Wouldn't he end up just like Hong Zun, too...

Xu Xing: "..."

What nonsense!

Xu Xing suppressed his chaotic thoughts.

It seemed he must break through the Dao Confusion to advance further.

But how, exactly, should one break through this Dao Confusion? (End of Chapter)