Chapter 326

Outside the city of Jin Shan Prefecture, the enormous golden Buddha statue radiated infinite light.

The sound of Sanskrit chanting spread throughout the entire prefecture, and the dark clouds above the city were pierced through by the light, causing the thousands of thunderbolts to dissipate.

With the joining of Pudu Temple, the battle situation was instantly reversed!

Although that Buddha from Pudu Temple had not been famous for many years, and was even ranked alongside the other four True Monarchs as one of the "Five True Monarchs," he had never received the respect he deserved.

Yet, among the top powerhouses of the current age, no one dared to underestimate this Buddha.

Now, separated by thousands of miles, this Buddha had shown his boundless Buddhist Dharma the first time he took action in front of the world!

If True Monarch Qingxu could thoroughly perfect his grand formation and bring down its full power, he would not fear a battle with the other party, but as it stood now—

He knew clearly in his heart that it was almost impossible for him to perfect the grand formation.

The Son of Heaven's Dragon Qi drawn in by Xiang Yunshu and the power transmitted from Pudu Temple had forcibly cracked a corner of the grand formation, making it difficult for True Monarch Qingxu to repair it.

If he continued to drag it out, the imperial court would send more powerhouses to destroy the grand formation.

In the blink of an eye, the thousand-meter Dharma image within Jin Shan Prefecture actually collapsed all at once!

Xiang Yunshu was startled.

He had analyzed the Dao principles and knew that True Monarch Qingxu had by no means reached the point of being "exhausted."

Therefore, this was the other party's own active choice.

"What is he trying to do?"

Xiang Yunshu felt a sense of vigilance.

At the same time, the Dharma images in the other four directions of Ming Province all underwent changes.

Xiang Yunshu could clearly "see" that within the territory of Jin Shan Prefecture, the power of the Dharma formation was "retreating."

True Monarch Qingxu had completely abandoned Jin Shan Prefecture!

He had set up five Dharma images in five directions, intending to construct a Dharma formation based on the principles of the Five Elements, thereby serving as the foundation for establishing a Daoist Nation.

But now, he had actively abandoned Jin Shan Prefecture, which belonged to the "Metal" attribute, and actively disintegrated the Metal-attribute Dharma image.

Subsequently, through analyzing the Dao principles, Xiang Yunshu "saw" the power between the four Dharma images connecting to one another.

"He's gone mad!"

Xiang Yunshu found it hard to believe.

True Monarch Qingxu had actually abandoned the Five Elements formation and was forcibly using the four remaining incomplete Dharma images to construct a formation!

Daluo Peak, the forbidden area behind the mountain.

Inside the cave dwelling, True Monarch Qingxu's true body still remained here.

Tai Yu was also still firmly suppressed by his restrictions.

Previously, True Monarch Qingxu had been suppressing Tai Yu while simultaneously battling Xiang Yunshu!

"Qingxu, will you not turn back yet?"

Inside the cave, Tai Yu suddenly roared.

Although he could not perceive the battle situation outside, he had been battling True Monarch Qingxu using Dao principles the entire time, so when True Monarch Qingxu suddenly disintegrated one of his own Dharma images, he was the first to notice.

In Tai Yu's view, this was a sign that True Monarch Qingxu was about to fail.

True Monarch Qingxu glanced at Tai Yu.

At this moment, he was actually still able to smile:

"Uncle-Master, from the day I sought the Dao, I told myself: in this life, if I do not attain longevity, I will never turn back!"

Having said this, he walked out of the cave dwelling without looking back.

Luoxia Peak, the Daoist temple where True Person Qingxia resided.

When True Monarch Qingxu began his move, this place was immediately sealed by a restriction; those inside the temple could not get out, and those outside could not get in.

After trying several times, True Person Qingxia no longer attempted to break the restriction, but simply sat quietly in the courtyard, lost in thought.

Suddenly, she felt something and looked up to one side.

A flash of clear light passed, and True Monarch Qingxu appeared there.

This was not True Monarch Qingxu's true body, but merely a clone formed from one of his phantom thoughts.

"Brother-Disciple actually has time to come see me? Is this because you have already been defeated?"

Upon seeing True Monarch Qingxu, True Person Qingxia did not stand up, but laughed mockingly.

"Why do you think I would only come to see you after being defeated?"

True Monarch Qingxu asked.

True Person Qingxia chuckled: "Based on my understanding of you, Brother-Disciple, if you had succeeded, there would be far too many things to do in the first instance; you would never have had the leisure to come see me. Only if you were defeated would you possibly come to hold me accountable."

True Monarch Qingxu looked at this former confidante before him.

He had once trusted her so much that he had even considered letting her know about the Daoist Nation.

"Have you already guessed my goal?"

"Brother-Disciple is a person of heaven-sent talent and grand strategy; in this world, the only thing that could make you painstakingly scheme and be willing to pay a huge price to pursue is nothing more than that one thing."

"Why?"

True Monarch Qingxu finally asked this question.

He wanted to know why True Person Qingxia had chosen to betray him.

Back then at the Grand Void Hall, if True Person Qingxia had not stood up to vote at the end, that "Joint Verification of the Dao Lineage" would never have started.

True Monarch Qingxu would still be the Sect Master of Daluo Sect, and he would not have needed to launch his plan in such a rush.

The final result might have been completely different!

"Just because of that dead disciple?"

True Monarch Qingxu's words carried a hint of anger.

True Person Qingxia stood up abruptly from the stone stool, staring at Qingxu without showing any weakness:

"Brother-Disciple must think that disciple was unimportant, so I want to know, who exactly is important in your heart? Is Brother-Disciple Qingding important to you?!"

True Monarch Qingxu was startled, his expression returning to calm.

Or rather, returning to indifference.

True Person Qingxia was uncharacteristically emotional:

"Brother-Disciple, tell me, who exactly is important in your heart?"

"In order to pursue your Great Dao, the disciples of Daluo Sect can be sacrificed at will, and the Junior-Brother who followed you for many years can be sacrificed. Even I, I suppose, can also be sacrificed, right?"

"In the face of your Great Dao, is it that everyone in the world can be sacrificed?!"

"Yes!"

True Monarch Qingxu interrupted Qingxia's questioning, giving her one last look with indifferent eyes.

The next second, his clone disappeared from the courtyard.

True Person Qingding was startled, then slumped to the ground.

"Haha, hahahahaha—"

She laughed crazily in the courtyard.

While the two were talking, in Yidu Prefecture, Jingmen Prefecture, Xiuzhou Prefecture, and the provincial capital of Ming Province, the four Dharma images in these four places, carrying the Blood-Scaled Golden Dragons circling around them, soared into the sky!

Heaven and earth shook.

"He wants to forcibly establish a Daoist Nation!"

Xiang Yunshu saw through True Monarch Qingxu's intentions by analyzing the Dao principles.

After discarding one Dharma image and one "corner" of the Five Elements, True Monarch Qingxu used the remaining Dharma images to reconstruct a Dharma formation.

Just for this feat alone, he was worthy of being the number one in the world at formations!

But a Daoist Nation forcibly constructed using an incomplete formation was also incomplete, and fundamentally difficult to maintain.

"Amitabha, Benefactor Qingxu is trying to forcibly verify the Dao."

A compassionate voice came from within the golden Buddha statue.

This was the voice of that Buddha of the current age.

He also saw through True Monarch Qingxu's intentions.

The formations in the other four directions had long been perfected; now, True Monarch Qingxu had abandoned Jin Shan Prefecture, shrinking the range of the Dharma formation, and also locking Xiang Yunshu and this Buddha statue outside the "door."

It was already too late for the two of them to stop True Monarch Qingxu.

"A path to self-destruction."

Xiang Yunshu said coldly.

Even if he succeeded in establishing a complete Daoist Nation, True Monarch Qingxu might not have much certainty of verifying the Dao.

Now, forcibly verifying the Dao using an incomplete Daoist Nation, the probability of success was even smaller!

Therefore, Xiang Yunshu believed this was a path to self-destruction.

The Buddha on the side remained silent, merely witnessing.

As a leader of Buddhism and a Buddha of the current age, he disdained True Monarch Qingxu's method of blood sacrifice and did not wish to see a Daoist Nation established.

But as a fellow seeker of the Dao, he felt some admiration for True Monarch Qingxu's choice at this moment.

As the two spoke, a Daoist Nation that shrouded more than half of Ming Province appeared:

Ordinary people and those with insufficient cultivation could not see it, but a golden giant dragon, fully ten thousand meters long, circled above this Daoist Nation!

Grand power rippled within it; the higher the realm of the powerhouse, the more alarmed they felt.

Bolts of thunder flickered in the sky, as if singing for the Daoist Nation.

On Daluo Peak, a purple-gold pillar of light shot into the sky, straight up to the clouds, with no end in sight!

Xiang Yunshu and the Buddha statue beside him both watched this pillar of light.

Many powerhouses who had been battling at the borders also stopped their fighting and looked toward this pillar of light one after another.

As long as they were within Ming Province, powerhouses who had reached a certain realm could feel it, sensing from it that magnificent, vast, and heaven-piercing aura!

The Daoist Nation was established, and True Monarch Qingxu began to break through his realm!

On the highway leading to Chongcheng, because Li Fei carried the Dragon Qi, he felt it the moment the Daoist Nation was established and turned his head to look into the distance.

He could also "see" that ten-thousand-meter-long golden dragon, and subsequently, he felt that aura on Daluo Peak.

"True Monarch Qingxu is going to verify the Dao?"

Li Fei reacted immediately.

He thought for a moment, injected a phantom thought into the Dream-Entering Token, and then informed True Person Qingding of this news.

"He established the Daoist Nation?"

Upon receiving this news, True Person Qingding was very agitated.

"It is indeed established, but it should be incomplete; I am currently within the territory of Jin Shan Prefecture, yet I am not shrouded by the Daoist Nation."

Li Fei said.

"He is trying to forcibly verify it!"

True Person Qingding reacted, then fell into silence.

"... It's a pity I cannot see it in person."

After a moment, True Person Qingding said with regret.

This was the lifelong vision he shared with True Monarch Qingxu; no matter what, he wanted to witness the final result.

In truth, Li Fei also very much wanted to observe how a top powerhouse broke through their limits and verified the Great Dao.

It was a pity that this place was several hundred kilometers away from Daluo Sect, and separated by a Daoist Nation; what he could see was truly limited.

"Wait a minute..."

Li Fei suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of something:

"If I enter the Dream World through the Gate of the Dream World, is it possible for me to see True Monarch Qingxu's subconscious?"

The Dream World could allow him to cross space and establish contact with extremely distant existences.

But the prerequisite was that he had to be able to perceive the other party's consciousness.

With Li Fei's current cultivation in the art of the Dao, he could at most perceive consciousness within a thousand-meter radius; wanting to perceive True Monarch Qingxu's consciousness from this location was almost impossible.

But now, True Monarch Qingxu was at the critical moment of breaking through his realm; the other party's consciousness in the Dream World should appear very dazzling, and it should not be difficult for him to find it.

Added to this, he now carried the Son of Heaven's Dragon Qi, and True Monarch Qingxu, as the master of the Daoist Nation, carried a massive amount of the Son of Heaven's Dragon Qi.

A connection would naturally be generated between the two.

"I can give it a try!"

Li Fei made his decision.

The Son of Heaven's Dragon Qi's enhancement of him was comprehensive; it not only strengthened his Jinli but also strengthened his spiritual power, so his phantom thoughts were also strengthened accordingly—not inferior to the Possession Stage, and even better than the Possession Stage!

This was also the source of Li Fei's confidence in daring to give it a try.

If one wandered too far in the Dream World, there was a risk of getting lost!

In the history of the Nightmare Sect, many powerhouses at the Possession Stage had become completely lost while wandering the Dream World because they went too far, their bodies becoming walking corpses.

With his current phantom thought strength at the Possession Stage, plus the Dream-Entering Token, Li Fei's ability to wander the Dream World would not be inferior to a True Person!

Only in this way did he have the confidence to "wander" to True Monarch Qingxu's side.

He used his phantom thoughts to manifest the "Gate of the Dream World," then used the Dream-Entering Token to step into the Dream World once again.

This time, he easily completed the "fixing of thoughts" and appeared on a highway surrounded by woods.

Then he turned his head to look in the direction where he remembered Daluo Sect to be.

He saw a sun!

This was the projection of True Monarch Qingxu's subconscious in the Dream World at this moment.

Li Fei's heart stirred, and he began to fly toward this sun.

Diving directly into the subconscious sea of a powerhouse was a very dangerous thing, especially since True Monarch Qingxu was currently breaking through his realm; who knew what terrifying things were hidden in his subconscious!

Li Fei did not intend to court death, so he would not enter True Monarch Qingxu's subconscious directly.

He only wanted to get closer to observe this breakthrough.

Other powerhouses observing from the real world might not be able to see as clearly as he could by observing through the subconscious!

Very quickly, Li Fei "swam" to the vicinity of that "sun" in the sky.

The closer he got, the more he could perceive the terrifying power contained within this "sun."

And this "sun" was extremely unstable, as if it could explode at any moment!

"Eight hundred years of Daoism, a thousand years of martial arts, no one has glimpsed the scenery above the peak."

Suddenly, Li Fei heard a grand voice.

This was True Monarch Qingxu's voice.

This was the voice of his subconscious projected into the Dream World; because the power fluctuations were too strong, Li Fei did not need to dive into it to hear it.

"Predecessors could not do it, I will!"

"If I do not attain longevity, I swear I will not turn back!"

"..."

One after another, "heart-sounds" were projected into the Dream World, allowing Li Fei to feel True Monarch Qingxu's will to seek the Dao.

At a certain moment, the "sun" before Li Fei's eyes suddenly leaped upward and radiated infinite light, as if wanting to illuminate the entire Dream World!

Li Fei could no longer look directly at this "sun" and could only try his best to feel the light projected onto him.

In a trance, he felt the entire Dream World shake.

Something had been broken.

Then he heard a burst of crying.

This crying was not sad; it was like the crying of an infant, as if it were seeing this world for the first time upon opening its eyes.

Hearing this crying, Li Fei, even under the protective cover of the Dream-Entering Token, still felt his spirit sway, unable to extricate himself:

He was also influenced by this crying, falling into a kind of immense, indescribable emotion!

Through this crying, he seemed to see many incomparably profound and mysterious things.

He could not understand these things for the moment and could only deeply imprint them in his heart.

At this moment, the world lifted its veil before Li Fei, allowing him to see a new heaven.

An immortal caresses my crown!

The real world.

A sun rose from the east, and ten thousand rays of rosy light tore through the darkness, bringing light back to the human world.

The morning sun rose, and dawn had arrived.

On Daluo Peak, a childlike smile appeared on the face of True Monarch Qingxu, who was shrouded in the purple-gold pillar of light.

The Dao has been heard.

Begging for monthly votes.

Only one update today; I'll take a rest and organize the subsequent plot.

(End of chapter)