Chapter 745: Pre-Heaven Treasure, Number One Under Heaven (Combined)

"This treasure has been nourished by the Great Dao of the Heavens, and is also tied to the Heavenly Heart of the Ten Thousand Realms. Therefore, once it emerges, it must be a Pre-Heaven treasure…"

At this point, the purple-robed Daoist paused slightly.

In the great hall, Daoist Daoist Tianyun seemed to realize something, and his heart was filled with unease.

Though he was a disciple of the Great Luo Heaven, in this hall he could only sit humbly at the lowest seat. Being summoned alone by his master already made him nervous, and hearing terms like 'Weitian Embryo,' 'Other Shore Golden List,' and 'Heavenly Heart of the Ten Thousand Realms' made him even more fearful and cautious.

The purple-robed Daoist merely paused slightly, yet Daoist Daoist Tianyun felt a touch of suffocation, and said with reverent fear:

"Di-disciple fears he is unworthy of such a great task."

"A great task? Well, I suppose it counts as one…"

The purple-robed Daoist looked a little dumbfounded, and said:

"Daoist Tianyun, what is the Other Shore?"

"Ah?"

Hearing the question, Daoist Daoist Tianyun steadied himself and answered: "In the Primeval Epoch, the Primordial Buddha once said, 'The sea of suffering of life and death, transcendence upon the Other Shore'…"

"How does one transcend?"

The purple-robed Daoist asked again.

"This…"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun shook his head blankly: "Disciple does not know."

"This old Daoist does not know either."

The purple-robed Daoist smiled and said:

"That old Buddha's words were always vague upon vague. Whether the end of the Dao is the Other Shore is still unknown, but this Golden List truly does contain some of the Dao-intent of 'the sea of suffering of life and death, transcendence upon the Other Shore' within it."

The more gently the Great Luo Dao Sovereign explained, the more uneasy Daoist Daoist Tianyun became—this was not the treatment a lowest-seat disciple should receive.

"Before the many epochs, the Mother Lord of Ten Thousand Kun proved the cycle of reincarnation and wished to govern the Daos of life and death, reincarnation, and yin and yang. Though she did not succeed, she still gave us much to gain…"

The purple-robed Daoist patiently explained the origins of the Other Shore Golden List.

Daoist Daoist Tianyun's emotions settled, and he listened with rapt attention.

One epoch ago, when the Origin Divine Dynasty already showed signs of collapse, the Primordial Buddha conceived the idea of forging a treasure. After the dynasty's fall, the Great Luo Heaven's founding ancestor also agreed.

Thereafter, the Lords of the Heavens jointly forged this treasure.

"The present world is yang, the Return Ruins is yin. The transformations of yin and yang give rise to the ten thousand Daos, each as the other's exterior and interior, and life and death are among them… Why is it so hard to transcend life and death when merged with the Dao?"

"There is no other reason—the Daos are interwoven, and the Great Dao has its fixed principles. To reverse life and death, one must shake the Daos of the Return Ruins and the present world, and all the Daos of the Dao Lords and Heaven Lords from the very beginning of antiquity to now…"

The purple-robed Daoist paused, saw the disciple's utterly blank face, shook his head slightly, and said:

"Those whose names are recorded on the Golden List may be able to reverse the life and death of the Heavens, so that from then on, though their bodies die, their Dao does not perish. They may even re-enter the world of the living, free from the oppression of the ten thousand Daos!"

"Reverse life and death?!"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun was greatly shaken. Had this not been spoken by his master, he would never have believed it.

Since ancient times, there were no shortage of cultivators who wrestled lifespan from the heavens and lived a second life, but that was absolutely not reversing life and death!

"Then Master summoned me…"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun suddenly realized, and his heart gave a sudden 'thud.'

"This treasure is about to emerge but has not emerged, about to be completed but not yet completed…"

The purple-robed Daoist said:

"Daoist Tianyun, would you be willing to be the first person recorded on the list?"

"…"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun's body stiffened, and he bowed with a bitter smile:

"Since Master commands it, how would this disciple dare refuse?"

Are lowest-seat disciples not people?

Old Daoist Daoist Tianyun's heart was filled with bitter grievance.

"Resentment in your heart?"

The purple-robed Daoist glanced at him. The latter lowered his eyelids and repeatedly said 'I dare not.'

"Then that means there is."

The purple-robed Daoist asked: "Daoist Tianyun, how many epochs of yin-lifespan do you have left?"

"Reporting to Master, if I do not encounter a calamity, I should have twelve epochs remaining."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun's heart was complicated.

The purple-robed Daoist asked again: "Twelve epochs—not short, not long. Is there hope of advancing further?"

"It is not necessarily impossible."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun's heart grew even more bitterly aggrieved.

"Then that means there is not."

The purple-robed Daoist nodded, and looked at his speechless and choked disciple: "Your being recorded on the list this time will have two possible outcomes."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun bowed.

"The first outcome is that the Golden List can reverse life and death. As the first person on the list, you may reverse life and death and live a second life. However, the hope is slim."

A second life!

Even though his master had said the hope was slim, Daoist Daoist Tianyun could not help his heart skipping a beat.

"The second outcome is that you do not gain yang-lifespan, but you may freely travel between the present world and the Return Ruins without loss to your yin-lifespan, or perhaps your yin-lifespan will be greatly increased…"

The purple-robed Daoist said.

"This?"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun could not help but harbor doubts. Why did this all sound like a great blessing?

But soon, he learned the downside of this list.

"However, those who appear on this list may never increase their realm again."

The purple-robed Daoist listed all the pros and cons.

"This..."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun frowned tightly. Although he had made no progress for many eras, he still possessed the heart of a Dao Lord: "May I ask, Master, once one is listed, can cultivation never increase again?"

"Yes."

The purple-robed Daoist nodded:

"Whether to join this list, you decide for yourself."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun fell silent. After pondering for a long time with furrowed brows, he took a deep breath and said:

"This disciple wishes to be the first on this list!"

The purple-robed Daoist looked at him deeply:

"Good."

Words spoken, the law followed.

The instant he heard his Master's voice, Daoist Daoist Tianyun felt darkness before his eyes; body and soul both perished.

"Buzz~"

Divine light rose within the Great Luo Hall, then Yu Yu Xuanji pierced through the hall and burst outward.

A faint yet present divine sound, centered on the Great Luo Hall, spread at extreme speed; mighty Dao-pattern ripples surged and crisscrossed through the void, reaching everywhere without limit.

"The Other Shore Golden List!"

At Mount Mount Dongxuan, within a quiet bamboo grove, Grandfather Grandfather Kuhai's bell suddenly shook. Inside the bamboo hut, Lord Lord Tianyu slowly raised his head, seeing only between being and non-being ripples spreading, various Dao-essences and principles appearing and vanishing:

"Has this list finally reached the time to emerge?"

The mighty ripples radiated toward the Return of Ruins and the Present World.

Across all realms of the Present World, great cultivators gazed with concentrated spirit, all startled, feeling invisible ripples surge and crisscross, as if about to cover all heavens and myriad domains.

Amidst a patch of gloom, Zhao Zhao Xuanyuan suddenly stopped, turned to look, and also felt surprise:

"The Other Shore Golden List..."

In a deadly forbidden land of the Return of Ruins not far from Zhao Zhao Xuanyuan, the misty-wave fishing old man, sitting and fishing, felt something in his heart, instinctively pinched his fingers, then Yu Yu Xuanji let out a muffled groan.

"Great Luo Dao Venerable?!"

The misty-wave fishing old man was startled in his heart, then Yu Yu Xuanji vanished into the void. He took out a Universal Knowledge Sphere, seeing only the 'Gods Interface' flash violently; countless old antiques had been stirred.

The Present World, the Return of Ruins, and even deep within the Return of Ruins, countless Ci Yuan Da Fa Jie.

Every cultivator above the Dao-Reflection level shuddered in spirit, sensing an indescribable, vast Dao-essence, hearing that divine sound from an unknown origin.

"This is..."

In that instant, inside and outside the Return of Ruins, across infinite dimensions, countless great cultivators felt shaken; the stronger one's cultivation, the more one could perceive the terror contained within that Dao-essence and divine sound.

Countless people calculated, divined, opened divine eyes to spy, yet all suffered backlash; lightly, dizziness; heavily, coughing blood.

Whether mental eyes, the Mystic Light Mirror, Primordial Spirit perception, or divine arts like Heaven-Seeing and Earth-Hearing, at this moment none were as clear as seeing with the naked eye.

"Is this... a supreme treasure emerging?"

Within the Netherworld, Daoist Yuan Ming's heart shuddered.

He had witnessed Dao Lords attaining the Dao more than once; this spiritual resonance was somewhat similar, yet the radiation seemed far deeper, more like a sign of a supreme treasure emerging.

"Nether Tower!"

Daoist Yuan Ming formed a thought in his heart, raised his hand to connect with the Netherworld. As great Yin Virtue was deducted, Dao-patterns seemed to weave within his eyes; his gaze instantly pierced the boundless void.

In a trance, he saw a boundless sea, within which endless divine patterns flowed; it was the 'Boundary Sea'.

The Boundary Sea rose in waves; ripples spread.

Faintly, he saw an extremely vast tome, as if about to cover the entire Boundary Sea, its color pale gold, unknown how much Dao-essence it had gathered; it seemed like a huge golden list!

But only for an instant; the ripples continued to spread, yet the golden list had already vanished, beyond pursuit, beyond grasp, as if completely disappeared into the void.

"Pfft!"

The next instant, Daoist Yuan Ming coughed blood and fell; only hearing a 'Crack!', the Nether Tower where he stood actually split open!

All sounds fell silent; all thoughts turned to ash.

As if only an instant, or perhaps after an infinitely long age, a thought suddenly sprang up in Daoist Daoist Tianyun's heart:

"Is this the world after death?"

With that thought born, the vanished perception returned.

"No, I am still alive!"

Daoist Daoist Tianyun suddenly snapped back to awareness, feeling golden light like a sea all around, boundless and endless: "This is..."

"The Other Shore Golden List."

A grand divine sound seemed to pour down from the sky; Daoist Daoist Tianyun slowly raised his head, his vision as if piercing through the boundless starry sky, seeing his own Master.

"Swish!"

The next instant, he felt his body lighten; he had suddenly returned to the Great Luo Hall.

"How was it?"

The purple-robed Daoist looked at his disciple.

"Master..."

Daoist Daoist Tianyun was dazed for an instant, then Yu Yu Xuanji concentrated his spirit to sense carefully.

With this concentration, his heart was startled; he felt an incredibly vigorous vitality. After his lifespan had been exhausted, the decaying spiritual resonance that had lingered within his origin had vanished without a trace.

It was as if he had lived out a second life!

"Eh?"

"No Yang lifespan seen, yet all rot has scattered?"

"Hmm?"

Terrifying divine senses pierced the void one after another, descending into the Daluo Hall.

Under the resonance of their qi mechanisms, countless wondrous scenes seemed to be born and extinguished.

"Heavenly Lord!"

Daoist Tianyun Daoist's heart grew cold; the joy of the rot's complete disappearance seemed to vanish.

For those terrifying divine senses now converged upon him, making his hair stand on end and his spirit tremble.

"Crack!"

Suddenly, a crisp sound exploded; the multitude of divine senses withdrew, coalescing into a terrifying figure woven from immortal light.

Daoist Tianyun Daoist kept his head down, feeling his breath grow obstructed.

"Failed to reverse life and death..."

"Yin lifespan multiplied, Yang lifespan undamaged, yet all rot gone, but not a second life..."

"Strange, strange..."

In the Daluo Hall, the divine senses of the Heavenly Lords, though withdrawn, still scrutinized the trembling Daoist Tianyun Daoist.

"Can cultivation increase?"

Daoist Tianyun Daoist heard only a low whisper; then Yu Yu Xuanji felt a heat at his brow, and magic power beyond imagination, like Wang Yang pouring down, flooded his small cultivation ground through a mysterious connection.

Then, he felt his Dharma Heaven tremble; like parched land meeting sweet rain after countless years, it rose at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Whoosh whoosh~"

Before even a single instant passed, Daoist Tianyun Daoist felt his magic power surge greatly, as if boundless heavenly and earthly spiritual energy poured into his body.

Just this one time equaled thousands of years of bitter cultivation after his lifespan had been exhausted!

"The Dharma Heaven can transform, magic power can grow..."