Chapter 2704: False Immortal Realm

"The Primordial Ancient Canon..."

"The formula of experience for the constant of the immortal Dao universe... what was its original source?"

Jiang Ding murmured.

By now, he knew that the Primordial Ancient Canon's path to becoming an emperor was a man-made Dao of immortality, not some ancient ladder to ascension where reaching the peak guaranteed immortality—such a thing did not exist, nor did the convenient notion of steady, step-by-step advancement.

The very first emperor could barely reach a hundred characters, the weakest of the ancient emperors.

Back then, the ancient emperors even shared rule with numerous Emperor-realm cultivators, were constrained by them, and could not be called invincible across the boundless starry void.

But this path of the Primordial Ancient Canon to emperorhood had already been opened.

In its infancy, this path had many great flaws—easy death, difficult enlightenment, thorns and bloodshed all along—but its clear advantages were equally known to the discerning: it precisely grasped the shifts in the universe's immortal Dao principles, with "my heart is the heart of heaven," granting a distinct advantage in exploring rules and comprehending the Dao; this alone was enough to drive all the Dao lineage powerhouses of the time mad.

One peerless genius after another chose this path, one true immortal after another turned into bones, trudging forward with difficulty.

Time flowed in the immortal Dao universe, and Shen Zhou underwent vast changes.

After an unknown span, the title of Ancient Emperor gradually became synonymous with invincibility, even having the name of the Ancient Emperor inscribed into the Heavenly Dao, feared by all beings, who submitted; many races would rather die than rebel against the contemporary Ancient Emperor—a great feat etched into the souls of myriad races by generation after generation of Ancient Emperors.

Before the Ancient Emperor, there were titles like Heavenly Sovereign, Dao Lord, and Supreme One—all referring to the same thing. Supreme, Heavenly Sovereign, Dao Lord, Ancient Emperor, Ancient Emperor, Great Emperor... as time passed, the name of Ancient Emperor kept changing, but the core of its path, the Primordial Ancient Canon, never changed; it always sought to simply depict the essence of the boundless starry void's Heavenly Dao, step by step toward immortality.

This is the essence of the Primordial Ancient Canon's method of becoming an emperor and attaining the Dao!

It was not a ladder that existed from the start, but a stairway to immortality painstakingly piled up by generation after generation of immortal Dao beings, driven by their ultimate longing for ascension, built from bones and wisdom!

And now, Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang has discovered a problem.

He has reached the very peak of the Primordial Ancient Canon's method of becoming an emperor and attaining the Dao; all the ancient emperors who walked this path before, all the thoughts of all beings, he has already experienced and verified—confirming what was wrong or right—and now the road ahead is utterly bewildering, with nothing left to reference.

Should he continue on the Primordial Ancient Canon's Dao method, continue deducing the Three-Character Immortal Scripture?

But he finds no way to push forward.

Or should he return to the Emperor-realm cultivator's Dao method as a foundation, continually strengthen his immortal body, and when the immortal body is forged to its utmost, will the path above the Three-Character Immortal Scripture be unlocked?

Or should he pursue the direction of immortal soul enlightenment?

Or should he forge all his resources into a true immortal-realm sword, then use the immortal sword as a vessel to cross over, directly reaching the other shore of immortality?

Or...

One idea after another arose in Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang's heart, but they remained mere ideas, with no feasible immortal Dao path to be found. The predecessors' paths, their theories, had all become reality, all been verified.

"Where lies the road ahead?"

Jiang Ding gazed upon the Great Dao Crown before him.

This crown originally belonged to the Huanggu Great Emperor; not long ago, the Huanggu Great Emperor severed it and gifted it to Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang, who greatly praised it.

The Great Dao Crown.

This is the core immortal Dao technology of the Primordial Ancient Canon's Dao method, capable of greatly enhancing the Ancient Emperor's mastery of Heavenly Dao rules, strengthening his ability to comprehend the Great Dao; within a single crown lie soul-enlightenment Dao technology, fortune technology, rule-mastery technology, and more—a masterpiece of wisdom for generation after generation of Ancient Emperors.

But now, for an Ancient Emperor of the Three-Character Immortal Scripture, its use is minimal.

He has penetrated the essence of the Great Dao, standing at the very peak of the Primordial Ancient Canon's Dao method; every word and deed now embodies the essence of the Great Dao Crown.

"However, the crown is not useless."

"The old crown has become obsolete; a new crown must be reforged to command all things in the boundless starry void, to assist the Great Dao."

Jiang Ding spoke in a low voice: "The new crown's core shall be the spirit of the super warship Ri Yue, the Great Sun—this was my original crown, and henceforth it shall be the crown of immortality."

"Furthermore, the Tai Qing Flying Sword!" "When the Tai Qing Flying Sword advances to the twelfth level of quasi-immortal restriction, how could my Great Dao not advance further even in extremity, even when there seems no path?"

In the end, Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang finally made up his mind, and without any viable immortal Dao theory to verify, he set out from the crown and the flying sword to explore a path for the immortal scripture to advance further.

At the moment of his resolve, Jiang Ding felt a lightness in his heart, his immortal soul seeming to clear a little.

This was not some Great Dao guidance, a resonance in the dark, but the conviction in the heart of an invincible being becoming utterly firm—no more hesitation, no more wavering.

"Soft persimmon,"

"Now, in the boundless starry void, how many Ancient Emperors remain?"

Jiang Ding lifted his head, gazing at the woman beside him whose face showed no sign of age, and asked softly.

Over a hundred million years have passed; though Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang created a cultivation environment comparable to a false immortal realm, some Ancient Emperors have still died one after another, time being merciless.

Besides the beings whom Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang cherishes.

At this moment, Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang is so powerful, so terrifying, that merely his affection is enough to grant people extended lifespans—this extension must have a limit, though none is currently visible.

Moreover, benefiting from Tai Shang Da Ri Gu Huang sharing a fragment of his essence, the Fusang Empress has already undergone five cycles of feathered transformation and rebirth, having long surpassed most Ancient Emperors.

"Your Majesty," "There remain three hundred and nine Ancient Emperors in the boundless starry void."

"Among them, nine are Five-Character Immortal Scripture Ancient Emperors, thirty-nine are Six-Character Immortal Scripture Ancient Emperors, and the rest are all Seven-Character Immortal Scripture Ancient Emperors; the other Ancient Emperors... have all already departed."

The Fusang Empress spoke after tallying them.

This empress, having endured countless years, has always influenced the Ancient Emperors with her positive and optimistic attitude.

Over three hundred Seven-Character Immortal Scripture Ancient Emperors!

Merely hearing this, a heavy, terrifying aura surged forward—those once deemed invincible beings in the boundless starry void now number three hundred, which is why the boundless starry void is called the false immortal realm: too abundant, too flourishing, long beyond the limits of imagination.

"So many Dao friends have died?"

"Lifespan ultimately has its limits; Shen Zhou has always been thus."

Jiang Ding spoke calmly.

"Many Ancient Emperors, on their deathbeds, have begged you for one thing."

"They beg that, if you one day become immortal, you will resurrect them, let them live another life, let them see what a true immortal is like."

The Fusang Empress relayed this softly.