In the Jade Void Palace, the gazes of numerous mighty beings and great supernatural powers fell upon Meng Qi. Behind him, a misty aura rose, dark and profound, exuding an extraordinary mystery. Then, his Mud Ball Palace opened, and a surge of energy soared into the heavens, intertwining with the mist to form a chaotic, indistinct cloud of celebration—about ten feet in size—yet possessing the grandeur to envelop all directions.
“The Supreme Infinite Primordial Celebration Cloud…” As the foremost of the Jade Void Twelve Immortals, Guangchengzi naturally recognized this manifestation of the Infinite Seal. Likewise, he understood how arduous and painful it was to refine and elevate the essence of infinite chaos to the level of illusory Dao. To encompass all Daos and nurture all things was far from mere words. Back then, his own pride had led him to focus on mastering the Heaven-Overturning Seal and the Heart Seal, smoothly attaining the Dao of Creation and earning the title of Heavenly Venerable with hopes of reaching the Other Shore.
At this moment, seeing Meng Qi’s Primordial Celebration Cloud—neither real nor illusory, neither small nor vast—truly embodying the essence of infinite chaos, Guangchengzi couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion, tinged with wistfulness.
Truly, the waves behind drive those ahead; each new generation surpasses the last!
Suddenly, the gentle laughter of Manjushri, the Vast Dharma Heavenly Venerable, echoed in his ears: “Rather than ‘the waves behind drive those ahead,’ I think ‘a newborn calf fears no tiger’ is more fitting. When the Sect Master chose to cultivate all nine seals and embody the Primordial, he had no idea of the path’s difficulty—not just in stepping from Legend to Creation, but in condensing the illusory Dao Fruit and ascending to the Other Shore.”
“Indeed,” Guangchengzi chuckled. “Ignorance breeds fearlessness…”
Not as a slight, but as self-mockery. The more one knew and the longer one cultivated, the more cautious one became, unwilling to take risks or tread the hardest paths. As mortals would say: the older the river, the smaller the courage.
Under normal circumstances, this was no fault. But with the apocalypse looming and the era ending, how could one advance swiftly without abandoning caution and embracing risk?
With this thought, he instinctively glanced at his fellow disciples: Chijingzi, Yuding Zhenren, and Manjushri. The first had laid his foundation on the Yin-Yang Seal, mastering the contradictory paths of life and death, aiming high. Yuding Zhenren had focused solely on the “Primordial Golden Chapter,” creating the Nine Revolutions Mystic Art inspired by the Seventy-Two Transformations, using swordsmanship to forge his own path to unity. Though slow, his steps were steady.
As for Manjushri, her brilliance and wisdom shone brightly. She had mastered the latter six seals, unifying them through Buddhist emptiness, forging a unique path to unity. Though gravely wounded in the battle of Vulture Peak, her Buddhist form perished, years of contemplation had purified her, advancing her further.
None of the surviving second-generation Jade Void disciples were simple or complacent… Guangchengzi sighed inwardly. Then, he saw black and white energies rise around Meng Qi—black, dark, cold, silent, and utterly yin, brimming with death; white, bright, warm, vibrant, and purely yang, radiating life. They intertwined, forming a yin-yang fish, death birthing life, life culminating in death.
Boom!
The yin-yang Taiji diagram took shape, stirring the infinite heights as if the Dao of yin-yang and life-death composing the myriad worlds resonated. Chijingzi, his purple sash around his waist, closed his eyes slightly, concealing the surging yin and yang, life and death within.
Aura intertwined, Daos resonated!
The Yin-Yang Seal spiraled and swiftly merged into the Supreme Infinite Primordial Celebration Cloud. Instantly, the chaotic cloud seemed to subtly divide, exuding the flavors of the first and the last, yet remaining an inseparable whole.
As the unity of the first and last within the infinite manifested, another transformation unfolded around Meng Qi. Red, blue, black, and white surged; earth, fire, wind, and water raged. A purple bell pulsed like a heart, expanding and contracting. Earth transformed into a lotus, golden light erupted, heaven and earth inverted, and the three realms collapsed.
Next, his acupoints shone, taking forms: Zhulong, Bifang, the Five Virtues Phoenix, and the Seventy-Two Transformations, accompanied by a sea of thunder, sword qi of preaching, and the palm of questioning the heart. Within the confines of the Jade Void Palace, these manifestations encircled Meng Qi’s seated figure, as if he were the sovereign of all heavens.
Both minuscule and vast!
Finally, the void rippled, black dots forming lines, weaving into planes, layering into worlds, filled with time, unfolding a profound and wondrous structure.
This change stirred the illusory Daos of Guangchengzi and Manjushri, forcing them to circulate their mystic arts and restrain their auras.
Earth, fire, wind, and water surged into the Supreme Infinite Primordial Celebration Cloud. The purple qi of the primordial heart followed, along with the Earth Lotus, Heaven-Overturning Image, Five Virtues Phoenix, Void Golden Dragon, Flaming Bifang, Time Zhulong, Divine Thunder, and traces of the Severing Heaven Sword Intent and Tathagata’s Palm—all devoured and dissolved by the infinite chaos.
When the layered spacetime also merged into the chaotic cloud, the Jade Void Palace darkened utterly, losing all distinction between ceiling and floor, front and back.
Then, an eerie light spread like water. Guangchengzi’s eyes reflected Meng Qi again, still seated, eyes closed, the Supreme Infinite Primordial Celebration Cloud above him subtly changed. At first glance, it seemed a single point—a chaotic nexus of all Daos, infinite possibilities, past and future, the first and the last. Upon closer look, it was clearly a vast cloud covering all realms, its eerie light cascading like a curtain.
“All phenomena return to one; the Primordial Infinite…” Yuding Zhenren’s murmur, tinged with awe and nostalgia, reached Guangchengzi’s ears.
Yes, all phenomena return to one; the Primordial Infinite. The Sect Master had truly refined the essence of infinite chaos into an illusory Dao. Since their teacher, only one other in the Jade Void Palace had achieved this through the orthodox path: their nephew, Yang Jian. The sole difference was that Yang Jian had done so through the Seventy-Two Transformations, not the Infinite Seal.
Now, with the Infinite Seal reborn, it felt as if their teacher had returned!
With such a foundation, though Meng Qi might lag behind specialists in the Four Symbols, Heart, Earth, or Five Virtues, he had laid a formidable groundwork. Perfecting these Daos after reaching the Other Shore and condensing the illusory Dao Fruit would be straightforward. Apart from past and future, he was but a step or two from the embryonic Dao Fruit!
Thoughts swirled, emotions complex. The Jade Void immortals present fell silent.
With the illusory Dao of the Infinite Seal formed, Meng Qi pressed on, refining the Heaven-Opening Seal. He visualized the void’s layered structure intersecting with the river of time, the sequence of the Five Supreme and Five Virtues in creation, and the initial separation of yin-yang and chaos of the Four Symbols.
This process was the inverse of condensing all Daos into the Infinite!
Creation divides; one becomes all.
Time became irrelevant as the weight around Meng Qi grew. Phantom images of his earlier act—sundering the apocalypse, shaping the void, uncoiling time—resurfaced.
One strike brought light, heaven and earth, past, present, and future!
Crack!
The Jade Void Palace’s pillars groaned as if straining under an invisible force. Above Meng Qi’s Primordial Celebration Cloud, a shadow—neither banner nor axe—gradually solidified into an ancient, timeless “Pangu Banner.”
Facing it, even the Daoist Sage of Virtue shifted aside, unable to bear the aura of creation.
With the Dao of Creation complete, Meng Qi activated the Cause of All Effects. His eyes opened, revealing an ancient, indescribable glass lamp within. Black and white light streamed forth, endlessly dividing and flowing.
Boom!
The Myriad World Knowledge Ball in the Kunlun Mountain Jade Void Palace trembled inexplicably. Countless threads of karma—communication, love, hatred, and myriad human affairs—manifested, connecting the real world to all universes, illustrating cause and effect, the Cause of All Effects.
When crafting the Myriad World Knowledge Ball, Meng Qi had intended it as a foundation for the Dao Unity Seal and the elevation of the Cause of All Effects.
Now, at this critical juncture, the illusory world of karma surged violently.
Meng Qi’s eyes emptied, his spirit seemingly focused on the Dao Unity Glass Lamp. His mind brimmed with past connections, future destinies, and the inversion of cause and effect to alter fate!
The glass lamp in his eyes faded, replaced by a lamp beside the Pangu Banner. The flame of the first cause ignited, illuminating black causes with white effects, and white causes with black effects.
Boom!
As the Dao Unity Glass Lamp manifested above the celebration cloud, within the boundless Buddha-land of eternal light, a glass lamp held by a golden Buddha suddenly flared, disrupting the black and white radiance.
“Has Su Meng attained Creation?” The Ancient Buddha of Dipankara, holding the ancient glass lamp, stared in shock toward the unseen Jade Void Palace.
Boom!
With the Dao of Karma complete, the sea of suffering surged around Meng Qi. Supported by the illusory Daos of the first three seals, he rose slowly, escaping the corrosive depths of the sea, standing above it, free from submersion. A weight lifted, bringing relief and clarity.
The sea of suffering was boundless, its waves fierce, its winds howling, impassable to birds or ships. Only the illusory Dao beneath one’s feet could serve as a boat, carrying one forward—though always at risk of capsizing.
The sea of suffering is boundless; the Dao is the boat!
This was the distinction between Creation and Legend: the ability to wield the sea of suffering to drown others, denying them liberation.
…
“Even with refining part of the Origin of Life and Death, he shouldn’t have advanced to Creation so swiftly…” The Ancient Buddha of Dipankara sighed, having divined the heavenly secrets.
With the Cause of All Effects elevated to an illusory Dao, its uniqueness and exclusivity would hinder his own cultivation irreparably. Moreover, any future oaths sworn on karma would be heard by Su Meng—a threat to guard against.
In essence, he had become a living embodiment of karma!
Before him, a handsome, carefree monk smiled faintly. “Fellow Daoist Dipankara, hesitate no longer. If you cannot kill Su Meng before he perfects Creation, you will have no chance left—only fate to rely on.”
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