The Tenth Heavenly Passage
"The mortal dao is faint, the immortal dao boundless."
"The ghost dao brings joy, yet it bars the gate of life."
"The immortal dao cherishes life, the ghost dao cherishes endings."
"The immortal dao is ever auspicious, the ghost dao ever ominous, yet the supreme clarity is radiant and beautiful…"
Shi Yi sat beside Liu Shen, dutifully reciting the Scripture of Salvation. With each verse, he spoke as if imbued with the authority of the heavens, as though he were a reincarnated sage.
Golden lotuses bloomed, and celestial flowers fell in a dazzling cascade.
Fortunately, this was within Shi Yi's tenth heavenly passage, a microcosm resembling a small world or universe. The power of the Scripture of Salvation was confined to this primal space.
Yet it was clear that with each bloom of golden lotuses and shower of celestial flowers, this ambiguous world—whether a small world or universe—grew more stable and vibrant.
But don't mistake this for the sole work of the Scripture of Salvation.
Without Liu Shen personally suppressing the forces of earth, water, fire, and wind, and harmonizing yin-yang and chaos, the scripture would have no effect on the chaotic elemental forces within the tenth passage.
The Scripture of Salvation saved people, not worlds.
After reciting the scripture twice, Shi Yi opened his eyes to find Liu Shen gazing at him quietly. He could even see his own reflection clearly in her pupils.
Before he could speak, Liu Shen's lips parted, and she said, "This scripture greatly aids my recovery. Recite it twice daily for a hundred years, and I can return to my peak!"
Ever since she discovered that Shi Yi's devout recitation of the Scripture of Salvation had healed the physical ailments of countless Stone Nation citizens—restoring sight and hearing to the impaired—she realized the scripture was a supreme text, particularly for healing injuries. Thus, she had Shi Yi recite it to her twice daily.
It wasn't that Liu Shen's own methods were lacking. Her innate ability of endless vitality was immensely powerful. During Shi Yi's ten-day, ten-night battle with the adult Pixiu, that vitality had kept his body from collapsing.
But her injuries were severe, her dao foundation deeply damaged. Her endless vitality could only keep her alive, not heal her foundation.
Restoring her dao foundation required a slow, meticulous process, impossible to rush.
Liu Shen's methods focused on immortality, allowing her to undergo nirvanic rebirth. From the moment her vitality rekindled, her power had been recovering at an exponential rate.
Given enough time, returning to the Immortal King Realm wasn't impossible. But repairing her damaged dao foundation was another matter—she estimated it would take at least another 100,000 years.
That was an extraordinarily long time.
Unless she entered the Primordial Gate and sought opportunities in the Boundary Sea, only then might she recover to the Immortal King Realm within 10,000 years.
But she hadn't anticipated that Shi Yi's devout recitation of the Scripture of Salvation could heal her dao foundation's injuries. This made her realize the scripture was far more profound than it appeared.
She had tried reciting it herself, mimicking Shi Yi, but while she gained some insights, she couldn't trigger celestial phenomena like golden lotuses or falling flowers.
It was peculiar.
No one else, including Liu Shen, could recite the Scripture of Salvation and summon such phenomena.
For Shi Yi, however, it was as effortless as eating or drinking.
"I'll recite the scripture for you for a hundred years, Teacher!" Shi Yi declared with unwavering resolve, expressing his steadfast determination.
I, Shi Yi, am loyal! There's not a trace of disloyalty in me…
He didn't know what Liu Shen's peak state entailed, but he wasn't foolish. She had spoken, so how could he dare refuse?
Besides, devoutly reciting the Scripture of Salvation benefited both others and himself.
Each time Shi Yi recited it with sincerity, he felt a cleansing of both body and spirit, which was greatly advantageous to him.
So, recite he would!
___
A few breaths later, Liu Shen spoke again. "Shi Yi, you wanted to ask earlier how to safely undergo spirit transformation, didn't you?"
Residing within Shi Yi's tenth heavenly passage, she was privy to most of his thoughts, save for those kept deep in his heart. She knew he was troubled by how to approach spirit transformation.
"Yes, Teacher," Shi Yi replied.
He sat close to Liu Shen, their shoulders nearly touching. A faint, natural fragrance emanated from her, invigorating him and sharpening his senses.
"Your heavenly passages contain forces of extraordinary complexity. Reaching the extreme in the Spirit Transformation Realm won't be simple and may even pose a danger to your life," Liu Shen said, glancing up at the tenth passage. The seemingly calm forces of earth, water, fire, and wind concealed boundless turbulence.
Without her suppression, Shi Yi's current cultivation wouldn't allow him to set foot in this passage with his true body.
It sounded absurd, but it was true. Shi Yi's ten heavenly passages were derived from thirteen supreme scriptures, yet he could only recite the Scripture of Salvation among them.
"Please guide me, Teacher!"
In a bold move, Shi Yi grasped Liu Shen's jade-like hand, his expression pitiful, making it hard to discern whether he was scheming to defy his master or genuinely seeking her aid.
"You can enter the Void God Realm," Liu Shen said, subtly freeing her hand from his grip. She didn't dislike Shi Yi, but she was unaccustomed to such interactions and sensed he harbored some improper notions. "The Void God Realm can perfectly replicate your body and cultivation level, and only your spiritual will exists there. You can attempt to break through to the Spirit Transformation Realm, forging your true spirit and self, harnessing the essence of your passages to transform your body and soul."
"Transform my passages in the Void God Realm?"
Shi Yi lowered his head, pondering whether the Void God Realm could truly help him safely undergo spirit transformation. Otherwise, he genuinely didn't dare to attempt it.
Earth, water, fire, wind, yin-yang, chaos… A single misstep, and I might perish on the spot.
He was somewhat familiar with the Void God Realm, having visited it a few times. He knew it was a purely spiritual world, akin to the virtual reality he'd dreamed of in his past life.
However, he didn't fully understand its nature, only that it was a miraculous virtual space constructed by ancient powers using their collective spiritual senses.
Entering wasn't difficult.
In the Lower Realm's Eight Domains, within the territories of ancient nations, cultivators at the Blood Transformation Realm could sense and enter the Void God Realm with their spiritual consciousness.
But there was a strict condition: one had to be within an ancient nation to perceive the Void God Realm's existence.
Only beings of Liu Shen's caliber could bypass this requirement, allowing cultivators outside ancient nations to enter.
Over the past five years, Liu Shen hadn't mentioned this ability, and Shi Yi hadn't asked, unaware of her capability to grant such access.
In Shi Yi's understanding, entering the Void God Realm required being within an ancient nation, like a signal tower. In a desolate place like the Great Wilderness, there was no "signal" to connect to the Void God Realm.
Why such a condition?
According to ancient lore, only when an entire nation collectively offered sacrifices to the heavens, earning the Void God Realm's blessing, could cultivators within that nation freely access it.
In the Desolate Domain, only the Stone Nation and Fire Nation had received this blessing. Thus, only within their borders could one use spiritual consciousness to sense the Void God Realm.
Stone Village, deep in the endless Great Wilderness, was far from any ancient nation and held no sacrificial rituals. Naturally, entering the Void God Realm from there was impossible. Shi Yi hadn't visited it in five years.
"I'll head to the Void God Realm now and see if I can transform my passages there," Shi Yi decided.
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