Chapter 572: The Road to the Heavens Is Long; Do Not Be Impatient

His expression instantly grew solemn, and the personal feelings that welled up to his lips were completely replaced by the urgency and sense of crisis brought by those six characters.

Kong's voice slowly echoed through the void, each word seeming to carry the weight of history and the bloodiness of the future:

"The Dark Source… has already erupted into a great war."

"Casualties… countless…"

Countless casualties!

The casualties that even Kong can describe as "countless"—what a terribly brutal battlefield must that be?

To what degree was the battle at the Dark Source also raging?

Ye Wuque's heart sank.

He had long, from past experiences, from his father Ye Zhengrong's brief words, and from what he saw and heard on the Border Wasteland Battlefield, come to know the present perilous and severe state of the Zhutian Wanjie.

Ominous shadows, like rising tide, were gradually eroding the territories of the Zhutian Wanjie.

The Darkness Lineage, the Extinction Sequence, the Yongheng Anzu… each of these terms alone could crush the heavens!

Yet at this moment, the impact of Kong himself uttering "Darkness Has Arrived," "Source Great War," and "Countless Casualties" remained unparalleled!

This is the most direct warning and proclamation from a being truly standing atop the heavens, perceiving the deepest secrets!

Ye Wuque fell silent, clenched his fist, his nails digging deep into his palm.

A surge of intensified yearning and urgency to rush to the battlefield rose more strongly than ever before!

Moments later, he lifted his head, looked at the transcendent figure, and asked the question he most wanted to know:

"Kong… where exactly is your true form?"

He wants to find Kong!

He wants to go to Kong's side!

He wants to fight side by side with this being who is both teacher and friend!

Kong's mental projection fell silent.

That silence was longer and heavier than any before.

After a long while, that ethereal voice finally rose slowly, carrying a hint of helplessness even Kong felt:

"I don't know…"

Don't know?!

Ye Wuque was stunned.

With Kong's command of the Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts and his ancient, unrivaled power, his true form was even unknown to himself?

"But…" Kong's voice sounded again, "When you become strong enough… perhaps, then you'll know."

When you become strong enough…

Those words were like a bucket of cold water poured over Ye Wuque's eager heart that longed to find Kong.

He instantly grasped Kong's deeper meaning!

I'm still too weak…!

Though he had slain the Ten Phantoms of Marquis Immortal Level, and though he considered himself unmatched among his generation, compared to the battlefield truly standing atop the heavens, compared to the Dark Source that Kong and his allies faced, compared to that horrific war that made Kong utter "countless casualties"…

His current strength might not even qualify him to participate!

He doesn't even have the right to find Kong or meet him yet!

A deep sense of urgency and a clear awareness of his own power surged in his heart.

Kong's figure began to slowly become transparent and illusory, as if about to dissipate.

An even more ethereal, far‑reaching voice, as if coming from before eternity and drifting toward eternity after, slowly resonated in Ye Wuque's ears, each word like a brand etched deep into his soul:

"Time slices Heavenly Pride like a knife…"

"Time flies like an arrow striking heroes…"

"This path…"

The voice grew ever fainter.

"…you, take good care of yourself."

As the words fell, Kong's pure white radiance mental projection finally vanished completely, turning into specks of crystalline light rain that drifted through the void, returning to the endless Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts.

Ye Wuque stared blankly at the spot where Kong vanished, a deep sense of melancholy welling up inside him.

Their meeting was so brief, yet the parting even more hurried.

There were still many words left unsaid, many questions left unasked…

Yet, at the instant Kong's figure completely faded—

A brilliance as white as jade, gentle and pure yet containing unimaginable energy and information, silently shot out from where Kong disappeared, slowly drifting into Ye Wuque's forehead!

"Bzz—"

Ye Wuque's body trembled slightly as a vast, all‑encompassing torrent of inheritance information and energy surged into his Sea of Awareness!

It was… a strand of Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts power!

Though only a strand, its pure, massive energy could make even a Supreme Realm being envious!

More crucially, it contained Kong's profound understanding of the Beast Path, partial insights into the workings of the Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts, and countless pieces of knowledge about the varieties, bloodlines, talents, and inheritances of demonic beasts across the Zhutian Wanjie!

Its value is incalculable!

Ye Wuque felt boundless shock and emotion welling up inside him.

How could he not know that the Dao of Heaven's power is such a special existence?

In the Zhutian Wanjie, other beings who wish to obtain a certain Dao of Heaven power must either achieve it themselves or usually can only inherit it through bloodline—receiving a trace of the blood‑mark from a close elder who controls that Dao, then, through long years of cultivation, gradually awaken and strengthen it.

Yet Kong, in this inconceivable, unconventional way, directly bestowed upon him a strand of Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts power!

Allowing this human, with no blood ties to the beast races, to inexplicably receive the seed of the supreme Dao power that governs all beasts!

What trust is this? What hand? What… a bond that is both teacher and friend!

Just as Ye Wuque was immersed in this feeling of awe and shock, in the Void, the final words belonging to Kong slowly sounded:

"This power is for reference only."

"Observe the way of others to confirm oneself."

"To reach the summit, one ultimately relies on oneself."

"The sea embraces all rivers; broadly draw from many strengths."

"The Forbidden Severance Method is extremely special."

"Only after Heaven-Connecting does one become Immortal."

"The path to Heaven-Connecting is long; never be impatient."

"Tongtian Eighteen Realms—each realm a creation, each realm a defiance of Heaven, each realm a metamorphosis…"

That voice was ethereal and distant, yet each word was a pearl; like morning bells and evening drums, it struck the deepest part of Ye Wuque's soul.

After hearing these words, Ye Wuque remained silent for a long while, then, deeply, toward the vanished Void of Kong, he solemnly bowed.

He understood Kong's well‑intended purpose.

Kong, using the Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts as an example, gave him power—not to make him rely directly on that power, but to provide a guide, a reference.

He lets him, through perceiving the operation of the Beast Path of Ten Thousand Beasts, reflect upon himself and verify his own Dao.

Other people's things remain others' in the end.

Truly becoming strong ultimately requires one's own comprehension, one's own creation, one's own path!

And that phrase "The sea embraces all rivers; broadly draw from many strengths" encourages him, in the process of growth, to keep an open mind, to widely draw the wisdom and power of the various races of the Zhutian Wanjie, melt them in one furnace, and make them his own.

As for "The Forbidden Severance Method is extremely special," it serves as a hint regarding the Forbidden Law he cultivates, making him aware of its uniqueness and that it must be handled with caution.

The most crucial point is the emphasis on the Heaven-Connecting Realm—"Only after Heaven-Connecting does one become Immortal," "The path to Heaven-Connecting is long; never be impatient," "Tongtian Eighteen Realms—each realm a creation, each realm a defiance of Heaven, each realm a metamorphosis"...

Kong is reminding him that the Tongtian Eighteen Realms, this vital great realm, is the key step where humanity overcomes Heaven and achieves ultimate metamorphosis!

One must never be impatient; step by step, solidify the foundation, seize each realm's "creation" and "defying Heaven" opportunities, complete metamorphoses one after another, so that the future Immortal path, and even higher realms, have the firmest base!

Kong, evidently, had long foreseen that he would come here, undergo the trials of the Ten Thousand Beasts Archipelago, and receive this opportunity and guidance.

And this boundless, towering Ten Thousand Beasts Archipelago, a place of grand Great Creation that drives countless Heavenly Pride across the Zhutian Wanjie to madness and spawns innumerable opportunities, its creator behind it…

It is probably also Kong!