Chapter 176: Shortcut to the Other Shore

The God King soon returned home; he needed to cross-reference the formula within the Strongest Bloodline Evolution Fluid and rummage through the family treasury to find usable materials.

At the same time, he also had to communicate with the Desolate Ancient Ji Family to see if he could obtain the peculiar Heavenly Mandate Rock from them.

Zhang Xuan was somewhat idle; there was basically no major task left for him to do.

"Compared to Ye Fan, who is born with a life of toil and has to collect all kinds of materials himself, my life is a bit too comfortable. Sigh, power, status, and wealth really do make one degenerate..."

Zhang Xuan sighed leisurely, first studying the One Dou Character Secret in detail, marveling at this peerless technique among the Nine Secrets.

Only then did he begin to re-examine the mysteries within the Eight-Nine Profound Art. In a very short time, he had previously made two consecutive breakthroughs, reaching the level of the Outer Scene Sixth Heaven. Such speed and progress made him feel slightly uneasy.

Now, comparing it with the techniques described by the Dao Ancestor and carefully reviewing the parts explained in detail by the Dao Ancestor, he used the innate comprehension of the Nine-Orifice Stone Man to study it. After several days in a row, he finally found the subtle differences and changes within.

"It is because of the Nine-Orifice Stone Man..."

The Nine-Orifice Stone Man is nurtured by heaven and earth. Before it is fully nurtured, there is naturally heaven and earth within its body. Once the rules condense and reach completion, it is born carrying Imperial Dao Laws.

If there is no Great Emperor in the contemporary era, it can basically soon become a perfect, flawless Holy Spirit, capable of truly clashing with a Great Emperor.

Before a Holy Spirit is nurtured, the rules of heaven and earth will manifest within its body, and then a rule most suitable for the Holy Spirit will be selected. If it is fire-attributed, it is born mastering fire-attributed Imperial Dao Laws.

If it leans towards earth-attributed, it will be born mastering earth-attributed rules.

This rule will continuously grow and strengthen within the body, eventually allowing the Holy Spirit to become invincible in the world.

At the same time, other rules will also be outlined and nurtured within the Holy Spirit's body, displaying supreme might.

And the most important thing about the Eight-Nine Profound Art is absorbing the rules of heaven and earth, understanding the rules of heaven and earth, and thereby constructing a grand world.

The entire level of the Outer Scene is like this.

Absorb enough powerful rules, construct a powerful world, and then, with one main rule as the foundation, forge an Undying Golden Body to achieve a Dharma Body.

And now, the Nine-Orifice Stone Man is born in such a state; after all, many rules are naturally integrated into the Nine-Orifice Stone Man's body.

It is just that a normal Nine-Orifice Stone Man will only choose one rule to continuously strengthen, while Zhang Xuan can use the Eight-Nine Profound Art to comprehend many rules and then keep them within his body.

"In that case, wouldn't I be taking off directly? When I am able to reach completion, wouldn't I truly be able to fully comprehend a powerful rule? Becoming an Other Shore-like being."

Zhang Xuan was joyful.

But after being excited for only a moment, he felt something was not quite right.

"There should be a certain difference. After all, in the Yishi Zhi Zun World, once one comprehends a rule, one can rely on that rule to evolve in detail all the way to the Other Shore."

"But that is because the Yishi Zhi Zun World is special and uniquely endowed. Only in the Yishi Zhi Zun World can such a cultivation technique be developed, just like the unique Inner Heaven and Earth technique in the Shenmu World; that is because of the long-term war against the Heavenly Dao, hence the technique thought up to divide the power of the Heavenly Dao."

"In the Zhetian World, I can succeed in practicing the Eight-Nine Profound Art because of the Chat Group's special ability, but comprehending a rule in the Zhetian World does not necessarily mean I can reach the Other Shore."

"After all, the entire Zhetian World is merely a fragment of the original Immortal Domain, it is the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, and the remnants of the Three Thousand Dao Provinces..."

Zhang Xuan lowered his head and pondered.

"Judging from the technique described by the Dao Ancestor, if a technique like the Eight-Nine Profound Art can be practiced in any world, then as one practices along that path, one will gradually occupy a certain rule of that world."

"Then one becomes the incarnation of some concept of the world's rules, just like in the Yishi Zhi Zun World, where the Dao Ancestor became the Basis of the Existing World. His being alive means the current world still exists; his being alive means the entire world is still alive."

"Practicing in the Zhetian World, I will also become the conceptual incarnation of a certain rule. If I master rules related to fire, I might become a unique conceptual existence like a Red Dust Immortal, and I would also possess wisdom and spirituality."

Zhang Xuan whispered, noticing the subtle difference here.

"The Dao Ancestor, Yuanshi, and Tongtian, in the Yishi Zhi Zun World, they were all born as Holy Spirits, naturally mastering a certain rule, and becoming powerful beings within that rule."

"And subsequent cultivation allowed them to further grow, becoming truly real existences, becoming the Other Shore."

"According to the concepts of the Zhetian World, Tongtian, the Dao Ancestor, and Yuanshi were born as Holy Spirits, naturally occupying a certain rule, and then sublimating upon this rule."

"Therefore, using the Yishi Zhi Zun technique to practice, especially by using a Holy Spirit to practice, one would have abilities similar to Tongtian, the Dao Ancestor, and Yuanshi."

This was the partial mental cultivation method and mystery that Zhang Xuan summarized by comparing it to the Eight-Nine Profound Art taught by the Dao Ancestor.

Of course, while they are called Holy Spirits and are existences of the same level and concept, there is a world of difference between one Holy Spirit and another.

In Yishi Zhi Zun, there are also many natural Holy Spirits, among whom the most famous is undoubtedly Sun Wukong.

But it is extremely difficult for these later natural Holy Spirits to reach the Other Shore because their ecological niches have already been occupied. It is unrealistic and impossible to reach the Other Shore using the rules they are most proficient in.

They must take a detour, and there are people ahead blocking them. In the process of reaching the Other Shore, if they happen to displease any of the previous Other Shore existences and they use their rules, they would die on the spot.

Except for the three figures—Yuanshi, the Dao Ancestor, and Tongtian—who were already conceptual incarnations of rules at the very beginning of the world's birth, other figures who want to reach the Other Shore later need to go through extremely difficult trials.

Moreover, in the Yishi Zhi Zun World, it is also difficult to have Holy Spirits with such unique births as the Opening Heaven and Earth Three Brothers.

In terms of talent and foundation, no one compares to those three; no matter how one puts it, later Holy Spirits have a huge gap compared to them.

Placed in the Zhetian World, if one were to force an analogy, it would be like the Immortal Tear Green Gold or Dragon Pattern Black Gold, which are specifically used to refine exclusive Great Emperor sacred objects, becoming sentient and achieving Holy Spirit status.

There are also ordinary stones that become sentient over millions of years; both are Holy Spirits, but the gap between them is also very large.

And the conceptual difference between innate Holy Spirit rule incarnations like Yuanshi, Tongtian, and others, and ordinary Holy Spirits, is even more unimaginably large.

Yuanshi and the others might be born as the Other Shore, or with a little effort they become the Other Shore, but for later figures like Sun Wukong, achieving it requires long years of effort.

"But that is for the powerful beings in the Yishi Zhi Zun World; this is very, very difficult to achieve. But for me, it is not so. In terms of talent and foundation, the Nine-Orifice Stone Man in my hand does not count as having abundant luck, nor is its innate talent uniquely endowed; it is much worse than powerful Holy Spirits."

This is not Zhang Xuan belittling himself, but it is indeed the case; after all, the Nine-Orifice Stone Man in his hand is truly just a stone that became sentient.

Even the sacred object it naturally carries is not very sufficient, with only a small piece of Dragon Pattern Black Gold; its luck and endowment are not quite enough.

And it was dug out by someone; if there were no accidents, it would have died directly afterward.

"But this does not affect anything. After all, there is no Other Shore in this world. The Eight-Nine Profound Art I practice is uniquely endowed, one of a kind."

"I can practice all the way up, with absolutely no one competing with me. After all, the Other Shore in this world is completely void, there is not a single real existence. I can move forward all the way and become the Dao Ancestor who opened heaven and earth in this world."

Thinking of this, Zhang Xuan's heartbeat could not help but accelerate slightly.

There is truly a smooth path in front of him. If the Eight-Nine Profound Art can be practiced successfully quickly, directly clearing this path and possessing the abilities of an Other Shore level figure, then he can truly walk sideways in this world.

But a moment later, he could not help but think of Qingdi, who was still in the Immortal Tower wanting to create an Immortal Realm, and he could not help but curl his lip slightly.

"Damn, I actually still have a competitor!"

Competing with Qingdi, Zhang Xuan does not have much confidence, even though he now has a Nine-Orifice Stone Man as his 'other self'.

After all, Qingdi can also be considered a natural Holy Spirit, formed from the sentience of an Undying Green Lotus. In terms of talent and foundation, Qingdi's talent and foundation are terrifying.

It is very difficult to compete with Qingdi. If it weren't for the fact that Qingdi took the wrong path during his cultivation, Zhang Xuan feels that Qingdi would very likely have been struggling in this red dust, becoming a Red Dust Immortal.

"However, judging from the recent situation in the Chat Group, Qingdi still seems to intend to continue moving forward along the path within the Zhetian World."

Zhang Xuan had seen Qingdi pop up a few times recently; Qingdi seemed to want to re-condense a physical body amidst the Universe, and then continue walking the path of the Great Emperor he had originally walked.

"If that is the case, it is fine. My competitors are few. Perhaps Qingdi does not know the detailed situation regarding the Holy Spirit, and at the same time, Qingdi's current state should no longer count as a heaven-gifted Holy Spirit. If he continues to compete with me, the outcome is still unknown."

Zhang Xuan cheered himself on.

"However, if one cultivates like this, there should still be no small problems."

Sitting cross-legged in the magnificent palace, Zhang Xuan pondered countless thoughts in his heart.

"The rules of this world are completely comprehended by me, and then I occupy a certain rule to become the incarnation of that rule's concept, holding the authority of the heavens and earth, but I only become the Other Shore within the Zhetian World."

"In the concept of a higher-level world, I still cannot count as an invincible Other Shore existence. Perhaps this is the reason why Qingdi is unwilling to walk this path. With Qingdi's insight, he should have understood the principles within this long ago."

Regarding the concept of the Other Shore, Zhang Xuan had a very clear understanding. If one were to compare a world to a game, becoming the Other Shore would be like an ordinary character in the game suddenly becoming the developer and creator of this game, possessing the highest authority over the entire game.

A character of the Other Shore can, like an existence in reality, jump out directly and become a player.

They can choose to start playing the entire game from different timelines, and can even change the side quests of the game at will, opening up completely different endings.

Manipulating the timeline is just like being unhappy with how the game is played and deleting the save file to start over.

Of course, due to the different authorities of those on the Other Shore and the different levels of save files, a powerful Other Shore existence can start saving the game and playing the game directly from the very beginning.

And characters with insufficient authority might only be able to start playing the game again from the middle of the game.

The difference in the save file stage represents the difference in strength and realm between characters of the Other Shore Realm.

In the Yishi Zhi Zun World, the Other Shore belongs to the top-tier powerhouses, and the Other Shore in the Zhetian World would likewise belong to the top-tier powerhouses, but they can only possess supreme authority within their respective worlds.

"However, a difference is a difference; it does not have much influence on me."

Zhang Xuan whispered.

He did not feel dejected; he even felt excited.

If one says that the Yishi Zhi Zun and Zhetian worlds are both games, then the game difficulty in the Yishi Zhi Zun World is simply Hell-level. After all, you have to first become a character in the game world of the Yishi Zhi Zun World, and then achieve the Other Shore under the attention of countless Other Shore figures.

The most terrifying thing is that these Other Shore figures all clearly know all the past and future of this game character, and even their way of acting and mode of thinking are completely exposed under their eyelids. If there is any operation that makes them dissatisfied, they will make this character start over.

That is absolutely Hell-level difficulty.

And the Zhetian World is a completely brand-new game.

Zhang Xuan also obtained a game walkthrough and got stuck on a small bug; his experience points are rising rapidly, and without any Other Shore interference, he can achieve the Other Shore in the shortest possible time.

"There is no world more comfortable than this."

Zhang Xuan whispered softly, his eyes shining.

And having confirmed that there would not be too many problems and difficulties in cultivating the Eight-Nine Profound Art, Zhang Xuan immediately stopped actively suppressing it, and thus, without much turbulence, he broke through from the sixth heaven of the outer path to the seventh heaven.

Regarding the heavens and earth, and regarding himself, it was as if he had more and deeper insights. A rather magnificent world circled around Zhang Xuan, forming and displaying various rules.

"It is probably that the rules with earth and wood as the core are actively moving forward. My state should be similar to Sun Wukong in Yishi Zhi Zun..."

Zhang Xuan whispered.

"Originally it was just a joke, but now looking at it, I am afraid I am really going to walk the path like Sun Wukong; I have really grown a Sun Wukong."

Zhang Xuan could not help but chuckle.

"But if it is only like this, in case Qingdi also continues to want to compete with me, it will still be very troublesome. I must speed up the progress."

(End of this chapter)