In this world, one can attain the Dao in a single night.
Huo Hengxuan once joined forces with Su Yu to use the entire Liang Kingdom as a grand stage to validate the Dao of Protecting the Nation. They briefly became a False Saint, and forcibly slew the Eastern Sovereign of the Zhou Kingdom.
Mu Zhao, not long ago, also tried to arrange a sealed battleground for Wen Yao within the Ancient Battlefield of Meditation, so that Wen Yao could slaughter the peerless geniuses of other sects, through this "performance," he sought to validate the Dao of Self-Alone Supremacy before Heaven and Earth.
But unfortunately for him, he ran into Chen Kuang.
Not only did his plan fail, he was directly killed, his Dao shattered, and his existence erased...
This proves that while one may gain the Dao overnight, to be acknowledged by Heaven and Earth requires the alignment of Heavenly timing, Earthly advantage, and Human harmony, lacking even one makes success impossible.
To grasp the Dao in an instant is possible,
, but to gain the approval of Heaven and Earth?
How difficult, how demanding!
Lu Zhexuan's Dao of "Devoted Affection" had been tied to Chen Kuang from the very beginning.
Even when her eight-hundred-year lifespan was nearing its end, the fleeting thought in her mind was still of Chen Kuang. Her unwavering affection moved Heaven and Earth, allowing her to attain the Profound Realm.
But to take another step forward, seemed utterly impossible.
When love has reached the point where even after losing all trace of the other, one's feelings remain unwavering unto death, how could that possibly be surpassed?
That was why for the past thousand years, she made no further progress.
Because her Dao had been bound to that "Tongjun" of 2,300 years ago, and "Tongjun" had long since disappeared without a trace.
And yet, Lu Zhexuan never regretted it.
She knew full well that without "Tongjun's" guidance back then, without his sudden departure, she would've become ensnared in the trap of the "Phoenix Codex Sutra", eternally stuck, never reaching her current heights.
It was those seven days of dual cultivation with "Tongjun" that unraveled the knot in her heart. It allowed her to let go of all fetters, be it physique or cultivation technique, and resolutely pursue the Dao.
Lu Zhexuan knew, more clearly than anyone:
As long as "Tongjun" didn't reappear, her stage for proving the Dao would never be built.
What she never expected was that just as she was preparing to let go of her obsession, "Tongjun" suddenly reappeared!
But this time, he was no longer the unfathomable senior of the past.
Instead, he was Chen Kuang, the very one she once brushed past in the royal capital of Liang Kingdom, whose name she had heard several times since, but had ignored every time.
Clearly, if they had just met face to face once, she would have recognized this heartless man,
, but not once did she even consider meeting the person at the center of all this chaos.
What was she thinking back then?
"Since it's a tribulation that Xingzhu must endure, let her face it herself... temper her arrogance. Let her understand that there are times when even she makes the wrong decisions, does the wrong things."
That was indeed a line of thought befitting a Diling Dao Lord.
But the moment Lu Zhexuan laid eyes on Chen Kuang, she knew..
She regretted it.
If only she had come earlier, just a little earlier...
Still, it didn't seem too late now.
Lu Zhexuan naturally understood the grudge between Chen Kuang and Mu Zhao. The moment she connected the dots between why Ling Yazi had called her over, the whole situation became clear.
Mu Zhao intended to become a Saint again, and once more, Chen Kuang ruined it. Old and new hatred compounded, and now his true body had descended. He had clearly come to exterminate Chen Kuang completely.
At the moment she drew her sword, Lu Zhexuan was more clear-headed than she had ever been.
She was a publicly acknowledged "Half-Saint", the Profound Realm expert closest to Sainthood.
Even facing the Martial Saint, she was far from helpless, certainly not someone who'd fail to withstand even a single punch.
If she was willing to pay the price, it would be easy to severely wound the Martial Saint, even if it cost her life.
But...
, She chose to stand directly in front of Chen Kuang, and take the blow head-on.
This wasn't foolishness born of romance.
It was because Lu Zhexuan realized,
Right before her was an absolutely perfect stage to prove her Dao!
The light at the end of the tunnel, a Heaven-sent opportunity!
Even more precious than dying with undying affection, was receiving the genuine love of the one to whom that affection was devoted.
This was the gamble Lu Zhexuan set.
Sixty percent calculation, forty percent emotion.
Did Lu Zhexuan love Chen Kuang?
Undoubtedly, yes.
But a single year spent together, only seven days of joint cultivation and Dao discussions, set against the backdrop of 2,300 years, was simply far too short...
So short that even if her feelings were worn down, even forgotten, it would be understandable.
She was no longer that fragile, powerless young cultivator.
She had ambition. She had blood on her hands. She had shed countless attachments.
Until finally, she refined a Dao Heart that could no longer be shaken.
"The Dao is before me, then I shall claim it."
This was a truth Lu Zhexuan had long understood.
From the moment she chose to enter Chen Kuang's courtyard, her conviction had already become unbreakable.
She was Lu Zhexuan, Dao Lord of Earth Spirit, wielder of the Mysterious Divine Path Sect.
Her "Devoted Affection" was no longer just for Chen Kuang the man.
But how much of her willingness to wager her life here...was merely her throwing a tantrum at the one who had broken her heart?
Only she knew.
If Chen Kuang truly was heartless, and her deep affection had been misplaced, if all this became no more than a Mirror Flower, Water Moon, then the moment she realized the truth, her Dao would collapse.
Even if she didn't die, her cultivation would regress drastically.
Chen Kuang, relying on himself alone, had no chance of surviving the wrathful Mu Zhao.
Fortunately, Lu Zhexuan's gamble paid off.
At a certain moment,
Chen Kuang developed feelings for her.
And in that instant, Heaven and Earth resonated!
Lu Zhexuan retracted her smile and looked calmly at Mu Zhao before her. Her aura surged violently.
Her Dao Domain reformed, now spreading wider and wider. Behind her, a colossal phantom manifestation slowly emerged.
Surrounding the manifestation was a vast, boundless Sea of Suffering.
Countless formless hands reached out from it, seemingly attempting to drag all life into its depths.
Faintly visible within the Sea of Suffering were endless scenes of birth and death, joy and sorrow, love and hatred, all beings returning to dust, becoming a piece of the great whole.
There were also countless non-sentient things, some short-lived, some enduring ages, merging into the world, becoming Sumeru Particles in human bodies after countless eons.
Within this Sea of Suffering:
Life and death rotated.
Time and space interwove.
All things blended, then broke apart,
sometimes in chaos, sometimes in clarity.
This was.. Reincarnation.
This vast Sea of Suffering was the source of all spiritual erosion, the cage that bound all beings, the very vessel of Samsara.
Only by crossing this sea, reaching the Other Shore can one be liberated from the cycle of all living beings!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
...
Lu Zhexuan's manifestation, sword in hand, took step after step forward, undaunted, unstoppable.
Wherever she passed, the Sea of Suffering surged high, waves crashing but not a drop touched her.
Her Dao Domain, solid and indestructible, became the invisible boat that bore her onward toward the Other Shore!
The power of her Dao Domain surged outward, unstoppable and overwhelming.
Mu Zhao stood high in the sky, his expression dark, unmoving like a mountain.
That formless force clashed against his own Dao Domain but this time, he could no longer remain indifferent or leisurely.
Crack... Crack...
Mu Zhao could hear faint shattering sounds coming from his own Dao Domain.
Lu Zhexuan's Devoted Affection, unchanged over 2,300 years, once validated, truly soared like a dragon to the heavens.
Especially when her object of affection was right behind her, the one she now chose to protect, perfectly completing the Dao of Devoted Affection!
With unwavering willpower reinforcing her, Lu Zhexuan's Dao Domain surged in might, its momentum climbing higher and higher, vaguely beginning to surpass the Martial Saint himself.
"Hoo..."
Mu Zhao exhaled slowly, expressionless as he looked at Lu Zhexuan, his gaze unshaken.
He was the Martial Saint!
A man who became a Saint through martial prowess, invincible beneath Heaven and Earth.
So long as any martial art remained within the bounds of reason, so long as it was covered by his Dao Domain, it could not possibly defeat him!
This was his Tyrannical Dao, and the foundation of his supremacy!
Of the four greatest peaks beneath Heaven, Mount Tai stood among them only because of his statue.
How could such a man ever be defeated?
Could a newly ascended Saint pose any threat to him?
Impossible!
Mu Zhao took a deep breath, raised his hand, and entered his opening stance.
In that instant, Heaven and Earth trembled, even the Sea of Suffering quivered in fear. Wind and cloud surged. It was as if, in this space-time, there remained only Mu Zhao. Everything else existed merely as background, irrelevant.
He stood there..
Heaven-piercing, Earth-rooted.
He alone, was the only being worthy of attention in all existence.
None were qualified to be his enemy. No one was worth even a second glance.
Aside from him, everything else, was like ants, shattered at a single thought.
Tyrant Storm of Wind and Rain.
Chen Kuang had seen this move three times.
But this time, he finally witnessed what came after.
"Heaven and Earth, Within My Grasp!
Heaven and Earth, Qian Kun, was the cosmos itself.
At that moment, Heaven and Earth became one with Mu Zhao, pressing in on his enemy, crushing them entirely.
In this collapsing world, only Mu Zhao remained as its absolute controller.
Lu Zhexuan's manifestation had been stepping forward, but at that moment, the universe compressed around her. What was once vast became minuscule.
The Sea of Suffering was still as vast as before, but what had once required only three steps to cross, now stretched out endlessly. The Other Shore was nowhere in sight.
Exalt the self, belittle the other.
This too, was Tyrannical Dao.
Lu Zhexuan remained calm. She stood her ground, shielding Chen Kuang behind her.
She extended her sword and drew a circle around herself.
The circle appeared small, but in truth, it was vast.
In a flash, the endless Sea of Suffering was enclosed within it, one end before Lu Zhexuan, the other before Chen Kuang.
Her manifestation was drawn back into herself.
She stepped forward, one step to cross the Sea of Suffering.
To the devoted, there is only you and I in this world.
Chen Kuang stared at the shifting heavens and earth, completely dumbfounded.
So this... is a true clash of the Dao!
He was reminded of the time he had seen, from within the Heavenly Prison, the galaxy above being casually stirred and manipulated, a power so immense, it appeared effortless.
This, this was what a battle between Saints should look like.
But the entire world around them had already been devastated by their clashing Dao Domains.
No wonder Saints rarely made a move.
After all, a Saint's Dao Domain represented mastery over a part of the world's laws.
If they acted recklessly, the entire realm of Cangyuan might be ruined like a toy.
Within Lu Zhexuan's Dao Domain, Chen Kuang remained unharmed.
He watched the clash between the two Dao Domains, pushing and pulling, one overtaking the other.
But Lu Zhexuan had only just ascended. And Mu Zhao was utterly mad.
Her momentum soon began to falter.
Chen Kuang wasn't overly worried about her safety.
After all, the passive ability of "Heart for Heart" was still in effect.
As long as she was protecting him, she would not die because of him.
However, every time Mu Zhao struck, those cold, venomous eyes were always locked onto Chen Kuang.
If Lu Zhexuan let her guard down for even a second, Mu Zhao would kill Chen Kuang without hesitation.
In this state, Lu Zhexuan had to protect and fight simultaneously, only growing more exhausted with each exchange.
Mu Zhao... truly hated Chen Kuang.
His grand plans, his ambition, all destroyed by Chen Kuang.
To train another true disciple, how many years would that take?
And one wouldn't be enough!
Even Li Hongling and Wen Yao before them had not been enough.
He needed one capable of uniting with his Dao, an Upper Third Grade cultivator.
At the very least, someone at the Profound Realm!
And Mu Zhao... was already 2,800 years old.
He had only 200 years left to live!
How could he possibly cultivate a Quasi-Saint in just 200 years?
He had reached a dead end. He was deranged with desperation.
All of this, was because of Chen Kuang.
He must die!
But Chen Kuang... sensed something odd in Mu Zhao's gaze.
He shouldn't hate like this.
Mu Zhao could despise, could be furious with humiliation, but this kind of hatred was out of character.
After all, Chen Kuang was just a junior. All he'd done was kill two of Mu Zhao's disciples.
To a Martial Saint, what did two disciples matter?
Didn't he have as many as he wanted?
But now, Mu Zhao hated him to the core.
It didn't make sense.
Chen Kuang recalled how Mu Zhao had been willing to go against all other sects, just to forcibly raise Wen Yao to sainthood.
Would just two Saints make him invincible?
Impossible.
There had to be another reason, a reason why Mu Zhao believed that, with a Saintly disciple, he could ignore all others.
Chen Kuang narrowed his eyes, and suddenly spoke:
"Mu Zhao. You call yourself Tyrannical, but in truth, you're just obstinate and self-righteous. Can't even protect your own disciples, what kind of tyrant is that?"
Mu Zhao's eyes turned venomous:
"Impudent brat, barking nonsense!"
Chen Kuang said:
"I killed just two of your disciples, and you've flown into this much of a rage? Your heart's too small."
"What about the Martial Saint Pavilion? The Monument of the Dao? Aren't those your disciples as well? So many talents, yet not a single one could learn your supreme techniques?"
"Or is it that... you were just chasing fame, never placing your true Dao within the monument?"
Chen Kuang's tone grew amused:
"No wonder no one could learn it."
"Seeking glory, but hiding your skills, what a great 'Tyrant' you are, tsk tsk."
Mu Zhao's face darkened further. He said nothing.
Chen Kuang chuckled:
"Mu Zhao. Not much time left for you, is there?"
Mu Zhao's expression faltered:
"Silence!"
Chen Kuang murmured:
"So it's true. No wonder you're so angry about lacking a successor."
Mu Zhao still said nothing. But his attacks became even more ferocious.
Chen Kuang continued:
"I can learn it."
Mu Zhao froze. Even Lu Zhexuan was stunned, uncertain what he meant.
Chen Kuang looked at Mu Zhao and smiled:
"I said, I can learn your supreme technique."
Mu Zhao burst into mocking laughter:
"You're on the brink of death, have you gone mad?"
Chen Kuang staggered to his feet.
His spiritual energy was exhausted. His hair was white and withered. His body bore few wounds, but his spiritual soul was in tatters.
And yet, this was enough.
He formed the stance of Tyrant Storm of Wind and Rain.
Shape with rhythm, rhythm with spirit.
Mu Zhao's laughter stopped abruptly.
His eyes widened, bloodshot and disbelieving.
Chen Kuang withdrew his stance and said lightly:
"I only needed a single glance to understand it. I just wasn't strong enough back then to use it."
He looked at Mu Zhao, and suddenly smiled softly:
"Say... why not take me as your disciple? I daresay my talent is far greater than those two pieces of trash."
"I want to survive. You want a disciple. Know when to yield, that's the way of a wise man. With the Martial Saint behind me, who'd dare lay a finger on the Elixir of Immortality?"
An utterly absurd proposal.
And yet..
Mu Zhao... could not stop himself from considering it.
What if... what if Chen Kuang really became his disciple?
His talent was far too frightening. How long had it been? He was already at the Moon-Embracing Realm's peak. And just now, he had learned Mu Zhao's technique with a single glance!
What if he trained in Mu Zhao's Dao?
Then... his ambition could still be fulfilled!
He could share a Dao and touch Canliao!
Completely feasible.
Mu Zhao, in that instant, saw the future of his dreams.
This kid, after all, was just a hunted stray. Seeking protection was perfectly reasonable, wasn't it?
Mu Zhao unconsciously asked:
"You... really mean that?"
"Pfft... Hahahaha!"
Chen Kuang finally burst into laughter:
"Of course I was lying! You fool of a Martial Saint!"
He casually raised a finger and pointed to the sky:
"To fawn and then strike from behind, that's the way of a petty man. It doesn't belong to the Tyrannical Dao."
Mu Zhao's expression changed drastically.
CRACK!
In the next instant, Mu Zhao's entire Dao Domain began to collapse!
His Dao Heart was shattered!