The tattered cocoon gradually crumbled away, eerie and astonishing.
The cocoon woven from Dao principles had been scorched and damaged, resembling charred wood as it slowly fractured, revealing the figure within. His skin was dull, exuding an ancient aura amidst the Dao principles—more akin to an artifact than a living being.
**Boom!**
The blackened cocoon suddenly blazed with brilliance, burning fiercely. It was the manifestation of rules, of order, reaching an extreme intensity that engulfed Shi Hao.
Earlier, when the cocoon had been burned by that mysterious fist-sized flame, it had not been so blinding. Now, however, it burned at its peak, radiant to the point of exhaustion.
At the same time, this was terrifying—it signified the collision and annihilation of the myriad heavenly rules. How could Shi Hao, trapped at the center, resist?
Not far away, the beautiful woman gasped in shock. Just when she thought Shi Hao might succeed, such an unpredictable transformation occurred.
Indeed, Shi Hao faced an immense crisis!
His dull flesh was instantly ignited, blazing to the extreme, as he became a torch, enveloped by countless rules, burning alongside the cocoon.
This was the Dao Flame—fire born of the myriad Daos of the heavens, the most terrifying of all!
It could incinerate anything, reduce all to ashes.
The Dao, singular in the vast cosmos, could be divided into countless rules. Now, these rules had coalesced into flames capable of annihilating everything.
Shi Hao’s body was riddled with holes, instantly rendered unrecognizable, yet no blood flowed. Only pockmarks and blackened ruin remained.
He resembled a shattered piece of charcoal, further battered by rubble.
At this moment, he teetered on the brink of destruction, his form and spirit on the verge of annihilation.
Shi Hao sighed. He had known it wouldn’t be so smooth. If success came so easily, someone in ancient times would have already achieved the supreme position. Why wait until now? No one had ever walked this path to completion!
Meanwhile, the mysterious fist-sized flame nearby still flickered, shrouded in immortal mist and chaotic light, enigmatic and unfathomable.
Shi Hao had once suspected this flame to be immortal fire, a primordial blaze, the first flame of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.
But now, he doubted. He couldn’t define what it truly was—it could transform into a mirror reflecting the profoundest truths of the Dao, or become a flame that incinerated all existence.
Moments ago, it had burned through the cocoon of rules.
Yet now, it remained motionless, observing indifferently, as if waiting for an outcome.
Shi Hao was in peril, his life hanging by a thread. His skin cracked, bones nearly shattered, and oily fluids sizzled from his charred flesh—a sight that chilled the soul.
At the very least, the female being nearby found it unsettling. She considered intervening but hesitated, unsure if it was necessary.
Because Shi Hao still lived. He still resisted. He still sought enlightenment.
She couldn’t help but think—this youth was a monster!
Indeed, Shi Hao was immersed in enlightenment, his mind multitasking even in delirium. Memories of the past surfaced one by one.
He had faced such dire straits before—when refining immortal energy, he had been scorched by the flames of the Dao, surviving by a hair’s breadth.
Now, bathed in the flames of myriad Daos, he glimpsed the essence of primal runes, the foundational elements of the cosmos, its very composition.
Greedily, he studied them, comparing them to his own being, seeking to awaken his “Inner Dao.” Yet, he couldn’t neglect survival—if he perished, all would be for naught.
Shi Hao’s body was nearly incinerated, his flesh almost gone, leaving only a skeletal frame wrapped in skin.
Yet, he did not die. Within him, a resistance withstood the erosion of the myriad Dao flames—a remnant of his past trials, a resonance of fire within.
“Back then, I had already embarked on this path. Surviving was a miracle—it meant I had begun awakening my Inner Dao. It is what resists, what opposes the Dao of the cosmos!”
Shi Hao understood. Many pieces fell into place.
**Boom!**
But now, the flames grew fiercer, surpassing even the blaze of the myriad heavenly Daos from before—more dazzling, more terrifying.
Back then, he had merely borrowed the flames to temper himself, refining immortal energy—a preliminary trial. Now, the rules rained from the heavens like waterfalls, all-encompassing, holding nothing back.
This power was nearly insurmountable, poised to reduce him to dust!
Even the glowing stone slab protecting him struggled to shield him effectively. At any moment, Shi Hao could turn to ash.
**Boom!**
Finally, a faint but clear light emerged from within Shi Hao—emanating from a door within his body.
He had unlocked a treasure of his flesh, as if opening an immortal gate. The human body might hold many such doors, and now he had begun uncovering them, releasing their power.
This was the so-called Inner Dao, capable of standing alongside the cosmos.
“A speck of dust can fill the sea”—this was its meaning. Though the human body was minuscule compared to galaxies, once its “doors” were opened, transcendence became possible.
**Boom!**
The myriad heavenly flames coalesced into a strange pattern, pressing down, no longer in the form of fire, seeking to crush Shi Hao.
Simultaneously, clusters of clear light emerged within him, mysterious and profound, forming their own pattern to resist the external force.
“That is…” The woman nearby was astonished. The clusters of light emanated from doors within him.
In an instant, countless doors appeared in Shi Hao’s body, each cracking open slightly, emitting faint light to counter the external pressure.
Shi Hao was exhilarated. This was the Inner Dao—the power of the human body itself, proving his path correct!
Indeed, the human form could rival the cosmos. The Inner Dao could oppose the external Dao, standing as its equal. The key lay in how to “birth” it.
**Boom!**
Outside, the myriad heavenly flames manifested, pressing down, forming the shape of a Yin fish, threatening to snap Shi Hao’s bones, twisting him into a curve.
Within him, clear light gathered, forming a Yang fish that surged outward, pressing against the opposite side of his body.
“This is…” The woman’s eyes widened in shock. She alone witnessed this—was this the youth’s path?
It was profoundly staggering—an absolute embodiment of the Dao.
The Dao of the cosmos pressed down, merging with his body and Inner Dao, forming a Yin-Yang Taiji diagram.
Had this been deliberately crafted to interpret the mysteries of heaven and earth, it would have been unremarkable. But here, it arose naturally amidst suffering.
The agony, the torment, the ordeal—all culminated in this supreme Dao diagram.
In that moment, everything froze—space, time, as if trapped in eternal silence.
Time stood still.
For an instant, Shi Hao seemed to attain immortality. The stillness, the suspension of time, filled him with a profound emptiness, an immeasurable vastness.
In that gaze, he seemed to traverse eternity.
Carrying the weight of ages, the depth of darkness, he crossed what felt like a cycle of reincarnation.
**Ssshh!**
Finally, the stasis broke. Time resumed. Shi Hao’s battered body scattered the clear light, absorbing it back within.
At the same time, the myriad heavenly flames outside extinguished, vanishing without a trace.
“Was that your path?” the woman nearby asked, her voice trembling.
“No,” Shi Hao denied. It had been a coincidence, a fleeting moment—not the end.
The cosmos was not him, and he had no desire to merge with it. Perhaps one day, he would leave.
What he relied on was himself—his flesh, his spirit. Only by strengthening himself could he prevail!
**Boom!**
Within him, cataclysmic changes erupted. Immortal doors bloomed like volcanoes, unleashing potential and power.
He was drowned in radiance, dazzling beyond measure.
“If I wished, I could manifest countless such patterns,” Shi Hao declared.
Thus, within and outside his body, innumerable Yin-Yang divine diagrams appeared—flowing in his blood, etched into his bones.
Some expanded, enveloping him, reshaping his body into that elegant, powerful curve of Yin and Yang.
But in the end, they scattered.
His Dao sought the Inner Dao—it didn’t need this pattern for interpretation.
Now, Shi Hao truly sought enlightenment, pursuing strength—though “pursuit” wasn’t quite the word. He wasn’t seeking; he was unlocking what was already his.
The prerequisite was to truly understand the self, to awaken to one’s own nature.
In that frozen moment, as time stood still, he had glimpsed eternity, looking back upon countless ages. The impact had been immense, leading to this awakening, the opening of countless “doors” within.
“The doors… their opening… is limited. You… have not yet grown to that stage.”
A voice suddenly spoke—fragile, like a candle in the wind, weary, aged, carrying the aura of impending death.
It came from the flame, the fist-sized fire shrouded in immortal mist and chaotic light, now more mysterious than ever.
Shi Hao’s eyes widened in shock. For he saw another aspect of the flame—something entirely different.
The flame remained fist-sized, yet within it, he glimpsed countless figures—fighting, roaring, wailing, amidst endless bloodshed.
Billions of souls mourned; countless spectral shadows surged.
**Boom!**
Then, silence returned. The voices faded, and the flame seemed normal once more.
“What… is this flame?” Shi Hao murmured, his voice hoarse.
Next, he focused inward, observing the dazzling doors within, demonstrating boundless Dao principles, releasing the most arcane chains.
This was the Inner Dao—his Dao!
Yet he was only breaking through to the next realm, aiming to become a sect master-level expert, not yet at his peak. This release was momentary—he would need to truly open all doors in the years to come.
“Using the body as the seed—exactly as I imagined,” Shi Hao mused. He walked his own path, aligning with the teachings of the Great Elder.
Seeking the Inner Dao, relying on oneself, not the Dao of the cosmos—this was his way.
Using the body as the seed meant unlocking the doors within, releasing one’s own Dao. This was merely the beginning—like planting a single seed.
Within him, the countless doors weren’t fully opened. They slowly closed, leaving only a crack, emitting a wisp of clear light.
Finally, these lights intertwined, forming a seed that merged with his flesh.
Others sought the perfect seed nurtured by the cosmos, fusing it into themselves, gaining the world’s acknowledgment—becoming sons of heaven.
Such chosen ones were naturally protected by the rules of the cosmos, wielding its power with divine might!
But in the end, they were bound to this universe.
Shi Hao’s path—using the body as the seed—was entirely different.
Now, he had condensed this seed—himself. In the future, he would rely on none other than himself!
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