Chapter 389

Chapter 389: Forging the Foundation

“Young Master, should we still stay?” Formless Demon Lord shivered as he looked toward Ye Xu.

When immortals battle, mortals suffer.

Though he had reached the end of the Great Dao as an Immortal Venerable, he was no different from a child before a group of Immortal Emperors with the Three Yuan Proof.

“Of course we’re leaving.”

Ye Xu rolled his eyes. “Staying would surely turn us to ashes. Are you stupid?”

They had already obtained five of the Nine Towering Divine Pillars, making the journey worthwhile.

While these couldn’t compare to the Taiyi Divine Mountain or the Innate Dao Seed, they were precious treasures used by Pangu to guard his sanctuary.

“Whoosh!”

The two fled immediately.

“Boom!”

Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze charged at Reincarnation Ancient God first, transforming into one of the nine-clawed divine dragons. Bathed in lightning, waves of primordial Divine Thunder surged like a tempest, engulfing the sky as they assaulted the ancient deity.

Daoist Qing Xuan rode his creation sword map across the River of Time.

Yuanzu, Ancient God of Origin, and Si Ming each summoned their might.

As the five surged into the River of Time, they discovered the waters remained unnaturally tranquil—as if frozen at a single moment in time, rendering passage impossible.

Reincarnation Ancient God’s Reincarnation Dao had temporarily sealed the River of Time.

His power was formidable enough to manipulate time and space through the Reincarnation Dao.

Yet, within mere moments, Daoist Qing Xuan and the others detected a flaw in Reincarnation Ancient God’s approach. Shattering the cycle of reincarnation, two sped downstream while three soared upstream.

Their goal was to seize an opportunity to eliminate him, weaving between the past and future.

Reincarnation Ancient God sat cross-legged within his sanctuary. The revolving light wheel cast shifting reflections of endless worlds—spring yielding to autumn, summer fading into winter—bound by the inexorable flow of reincarnation.

“All Laws Reincarnation!”

As the ancient god unleashed his divine power, the sanctuary trembled violently. Cracks spread visibly across its surface as torrents of sacred energy flooded into his body.

The Reincarnation Heavenly Wheel materialized as a radiant halo over him, merging with his being. His Reincarnation Dao snaked like a dragon through the River of Time, coiling like chains to bind the currents.

“Crack!”

The Reincarnation Lock manifested. The River of Time folded in upon itself; no matter how far Daoist Qing Xuan, Yuanzu, Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze and the others advanced, they inevitably returned to their starting point.

“Reincarnation Dao again!” Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze snarled in rage, for the Reincarnation Dao’s strangeness governed all things under heaven, even the natural order itself, binding all within the cycle.

The alternation of life and the turn of stars yielded to reincarnation alone.

“His mastery of the Reincarnation Dao is unparalleled, verging on divinity,” Daoist Qing Xuan remarked gravely. “To break it, one must first shatter the concept of reincarnation within one’s mind.”

“Exactly.”

Yuanzu nodded. “Our consciousness and flesh are trapped within this reincarnation. Only by discarding the very idea of the cycle can we escape its grasp.”

The five sat in lotus position, sheltered by their Great Daos, and began comprehending a method to break free from the Reincarnation Dao.

“Guh!” Reincarnation Ancient God coughed out a mouthful of sparkling divine blood. He had strained every ounce of his power to imprison these five within reincarnation—it was the last limit he could endure.

During this period of time, if Lin Qianmo could not subdue the Taiyi Divine Mountain and advance to the Three Yuan Proof, then when the five people broke through the reincarnation, it would become utterly impossible.

Boom!

Lin Qianmo’s consciousness connected with the will of the Taiyi Divine Mountain. Between them, thoughts communicated, and the Taiyi Divine Mountain seemed to recognize Lin Qianmo, continuously shrinking.

Vast and mighty divine power surged into Lin Qianmo’s body.

Hmm?

At this moment, the Heavenly Emperor and Emperor Yang also sensed something abnormal.

"Has the Taiyi Divine Mountain been subdued?" Emperor Yang’s eyes shone brightly; in an instant, he had insight into everything. Within the Taiyi Divine Mountain, power accumulated over hundreds of millions of years was rapidly fading away.

This boundless universe was collapsing, transforming into primordial essence that was being absorbed.

"Probably only she can do it."

Li Ruoyu’s expression shifted slightly, and the first person he thought of was Lin Qianmo.

"Neither you nor I can take this Innate Dao Seed away. Since that’s the case, let’s split it in half." Li Ruoyu sneered, as the Great Dao of Tai Chi turned into a sword, slashing toward the Innate Dao Seed.

Emperor Yang ignored it.

Clang!

As the sword fell, the Innate Dao Seed was split into two halves, and vast vital energy gushed out in torrents.

Li Ruoyu reached out and snatched one half.

"Emperor Yang, how does it feel to have become a puppet of the Heavenly Dao?" Li Ruoyu said lightly.

Emperor Yang indifferently said, "The Heavenly Dao is devoid of emotions and is strictly impartial and selfless."

Li Ruoyu smiled coldly.

"If the Heavenly Dao is selfless, why doesn’t it save all beings?"

"From this, it can be seen that the power of the Heavenly Dao is also limited."

His voice lingered in the universe, but he had already vanished.

Swoosh!

Li Ruoyu stepped out of Pangu’s Daoist Temple, and his gaze fell upon the void. He saw that the Reincarnation Dao Field of the Reincarnation Ancient God was covered in cracks, almost shattering into pieces.

"This person can fight single-handedly against five stall five peak Immortal Emperors; his strength should not be underestimated."

Li Ruoyu gathered his magical power, and the Great Dao of Tai Chi transformed into an imperial sword. With a casual swing, he slashed into the River of Time.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Terrifying power erupted, and Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze, Daoist Qing Xuan, and the others were instantly blasted away. The five were flung out of the River of Time, their faces as pale as gold paper.

"Heavenly Emperor!"

Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze’s expression turned ugly. "Do you intend to help her too?"

The Reincarnation Ancient God slowly opened his star-like eyes, and a hint of weariness appeared in his gaze.

He looked toward Lin Qianmo’s direction.

Lin Qianmo continuously absorbed the power of the Taiyi Divine Mountain, her cultivation surging higher. She had successfully mastered the Taiyi Divine Mountain and started refining it.

"It is done."

With a single thought from the Reincarnation Ancient God, the Other Shore Flower bloomed. The five Immortal Emperors were released from the cycle of rebirth, and the flower flew to settle in the palm of his hand.

Li Ruoyu said, "This young lady has a pact with me. I need to watch over her Dao journey."

"Watch over her Dao journey?"

The Dragon Emperor of Lei Ze and others were grim-faced.

One Reincarnation Ancient God had already trapped them in the endless cycle, making escape impossible for a time. Adding a Heavenly Emperor to the mix made their chances of victory vanishingly small.

"She has already mastered the Taiyi Divine Mountain!" Daoist Qing Xuan exclaimed, his face darkening.

The Taiyi Divine Mountain had already become a claimed object.

"What is her background?"

Daoist Qing Xuan was utterly baffled.

He had once forced his way into the River of Time, attempting to slay Lin Qianmo. But he couldn’t even see its end, proof enough that her origins were astonishingly profound.

"Can we just give up like this?" The Ancient God of Origin was overcome with intense killing intent.

"Sire, who exactly is this woman?" Qin Yu flew out of Pangu’s Daoist Temple with the Heavenly Emperor. Both their gazes focused on Lin Qianmo. Qin Yu’s face was filled with confusion.

The mysteries of the Taiyi Divine Mountain were profound. Even those who had achieved the Three Yuan Proof couldn’t easily subdue it.

Yet, now this sacred mountain had fallen into the hands of a woman who had only attained the proof of the Second Primordial Spirit.

The Heavenly Emperor’s gaze was deep and unfathomable.

For over ten million years, he had been investigating Lin Qianmo’s identity, but had found nothing. Today was no different.

He could only ascertain one thing: Lin Qianmo was not from the Pangu universe.

Because the Heavenly Dao held no record of her existence.

"Pangu ultimately failed to transcend." The Heavenly Emperor murmured to himself, "In this universe, besides the path of Transcendence through Merit, are there truly no others?"

"The people of the Qing Xuan plane have returned empty-handed. It’s unlikely they’ll let this rest."

"Let us depart."

This journey had achieved his own intended purpose.

The two vanished from Pangu’s Daoist Temple.

Rumble!

The Taiyi Divine Mountain rapidly shrunk, descending into Lin Qianmo’s Purple Palace. Her power surged, reaching the Three Yuan Proof and ascending to the peak among her peers.

Lin Qianmo opened her beautiful eyes; divine light blazed within them.

"The essence of Taiyi is change."

Lin Qianmo whispered softly to herself, "This sacred mountain truly lives up to being the most formidable Great Dao among the Five Innate Elements. Everything in creation is undergoing unceasing transformation."

"Alas, mastering the Great Dao of Taiyi… my understanding is not quite ripe yet."

Yi symbolized change.

The Great Dao of Taiyi was the Dao of Transformation.

All beings in the universe, every object under heaven and earth, undergo constant change without cease.

If she could truly master the Great Dao of Taiyi, her cultivation would surpass even that of her previous life. Achieving the transcendent realm would only make her stronger still.

This was the fundamental reason she contended for the Taiyi Divine Mountain.

It was the forging of her foundation.