Chapter 454: The Realm of Truth

Atop the snow-capped mountain peak, the icy wind howled, seemingly capable of freezing one’s blood first, then peeling away layers of skin.

Huangliang’s hoarse voice did not waver in the slightest as he slowly said, “After many years of arduous cultivation, I approached the Dao through martial cultivation and finally shattered the void, but ended up in this world, a realm different from the past.”

“‘Ascended’? Meng Qi felt a strange sense of humor amidst his seriousness.

“The differences between these two worlds and my personal experiences prompted me to ponder deeper questions. If I cultivate and break through again, shattering the void once more, where would I go? Repeating this cycle endlessly, where would I ultimately arrive? How would it fundamentally differ from the previous world? Why is it the final destination, why the ultimate limit?” Huangliang’s voice was deep and hoarse, echoing as if questioning the heavens.

Shangguan Heng listened with a headache and instinctively replied, “The Dao, of course, is the Dao.”

Though the eras of the Nine Patriarchs of Daoism, the Five Ancient Emperors, and the various “Masters” of Buddhism were long gone, and only a few noble sects like the Jiangdong Wang Clan or the Suden Sect might know what comes after achieving the Dharmakaya, the ultimate goal of seeking the Dao through martial cultivation never changed.

Huangliang glanced at him and flatly said, “As stupid as an ox.”

Shangguan Heng’s face flushed red, but he knew that someone who had lived for years atop the peak without food or drink was beyond his reach. He lowered his head, gritted his teeth, and glared violently at the ice and rocks.

Layer upon layer of “ascension”… Meng Qi suddenly felt a toothache. Carefully choosing his words, he asked, “To see the Tathagata? Return to the Primordial?”

He was afraid of giving a wrong answer and displeasing Huangliang, just like Shangguan Heng, which would dampen the mood of the conversation and lead to being expelled from the mountaintop. Thus, he felt somewhat uneasy.

“If one seeks with the heart, it is the Tathagata,” Huangliang nodded slightly. As for “Primordial,” he gave no comment, seemingly unfamiliar with Daoism. “I often wonder, if the previous world was an illusion, is what we see today real? And if the past was not an illusion, why leave by shattering the void?”

“In my endless contemplation, I met a strange person who transmitted the great Dao to me. I finally understood what is real and what is false. My constant meditation toward the heavens is to find that thread of truth.”

“Truth?” Meng Qi inhaled deeply, while Shangguan Heng felt his headache worsening.

Huangliang’s voice slowly spread out: “Above all worlds lies a realm of truth. Its core cannot be described by our thoughts or understanding. There is no past or future in time, no six directions in space, no cause and effect, no birth and death. In short, anything we can perceive is not the true essence but rather a false combination shaped by our differing minds.”

“Daoism calls it ‘Dao,’ Buddhism refers to it as ‘Tathagata’ or ‘Bodhi,’ and the Vedanta calls it ‘Para Brahman.'”

It was indeed an interesting idea… Meng Qi began to listen with growing interest, since parts of the description aligned with his understanding of “Primordial.” Whether Huangliang’s view conflicted with Buddhism or how far it strayed from the truth didn’t matter much, as the saying goes: stones from other mountains can polish jade.

“Beyond the core, there are various manifestations, forming a world that is the condensation of laws and principles, unchanging by external factors. Daoism calls it ‘Great Luo,’ Buddhism refers to it as ‘Pure Land,’ and Vedanta calls it ‘Apara Brahman.’ My sect collectively refers to it and the core as the ‘Realm of Truth,’ which is authentic and unchanging since ancient times.” Huangliang’s eyes revealed a fanatical emotion.

He exhaled slightly, and suddenly a gust of wind rose, forming a long blade that blew away the icy mist: “Outside the ‘Realm of Truth,’ sensing the different essence gives rise to various laws and principles. Combined with earth, fire, wind, water, metal, and wood, they generate different worlds. Perhaps in one of these worlds, a powerful being becomes an immortal, living forever, but as soon as the essence outside the ‘Realm of Truth’ changes, the laws of that world change, causing immortals to fall from the heavens, losing all their powers.”

“I know you won’t easily believe me, but only this can explain why different worlds vary so greatly and why the lifespans of Dharmakaya beings have been decreasing generation after generation…”

Meng Qi had merely taken Huangliang’s earlier words as a fascinating new idea, but when he mentioned the diminishing lifespans of Dharmakaya beings, he was startled. This hypothesis might not be entirely baseless.

Yet he quickly raised many doubts. Didn’t the lifespans of powerful beings in the Journey to the West world remain unchanged? And why did it overlap with many historical figures from his own world?

Huangliang continued: “…only this can explain why in some worlds, beings live among the stars, revolving around the sun, while in others, the sky is round and the earth is flat, with Fusang in the east and Kunlun in the west…”

“Living among the stars, revolving around the sun?” This statement shocked Meng Qi even more than before.

Huangliang rarely laughed, his tone filled with a sense of desolation: “The world I came from was exactly like that. After shattering the void, this world I arrived in resembles the latter.”

“Can you be certain that beings live among the stars?” Meng Qi asked gravely.

The world Huangliang came from was a martial cultivation realm, vastly different from Earth, likely one of the cycles of reincarnation. If it truly was among the stars, Meng Qi’s own hypothesis would not be without foundation!

Shangguan Heng listened in stunned disbelief, feeling more convinced than ever that he wasn’t mad and couldn’t understand their words.

“Of course I can,” Huangliang replied calmly. “In my past world, there were many powerful beings. Some had traveled around the world and returned. Some experts in numerology calculated through the changes in the stars that our world revolves around the sun…”

Shangguan Heng couldn’t help but interrupt: “Surely everyone can fly? Otherwise, except for a few places, all beings would have fallen into the endless void long ago.”

“Do you really think the mysteries of stellar forces can be understood by a mere child?” Huangliang scoffed.

Shangguan Heng’s face turned red again, clenching his jaw tightly.

A thought struck Meng Qi: “Is the sun also a stellar force?”

“Indeed,” Huangliang showed a hint of delight, as if seeing a promising student.

But he immediately closed his eyes again, as if unwilling to delve deeper.

Meng Qi did not take offense, burst into hearty laughter, and turned to leave.

Shangguan Heng had long been eager to leave this place and quickly followed him down the peak. After descending, he frowned and asked, “Do you believe what Huangliang said?”

“Not at all,” Meng Qi smiled at him.

“Not at all?” Shangguan Heng nearly spat out blood. Then why had he been so engaged in the conversation if he didn’t believe it?

Meng Qi simply smiled, not responding. For him, the most important things he learned were two: first, that Huangliang came from another world, and second, that there indeed were other worlds that were not flat and round.

Although Huangliang was called a madman by Shangguan Heng, Meng Qi saw no signs of madness during their conversation. At most, his descriptions of the Realm of Truth and other worlds were somewhat “delusional.” But the credibility of his origin and past world was relatively high.

Of course, there was a possibility that Huangliang was merely dreaming. But for Meng Qi, this was only supplementary evidence; the fundamental basis was his own Earth and the reincarnation worlds of the Six Paths.

Next, Meng Qi focused on comprehending the “Tathagata Palm,” “Shenxiao Annihilation,” “Primordial Golden Scripture,” “Eight-Nine Mystical Art,” and other martial arts to build upon his ideas and find a path forward.

Ignoring Shangguan Heng’s reaction, Meng Qi quickly descended the mountain with his hands alternating.

From that day on, Shangguan Heng noticed that Su Meng had changed. Every day, he looked like a withered tree, his eyes devoid of any spirit. Whether it was sunny or raining, he walked step by step, never entering cities or lighting fires. When hungry, he picked fruits; when tired, he meditated on the ground. His face grew a beard, and his hair became messy.

Moreover, his external aura was withered, all his vitality and spirit seemingly drawn inward, not revealing the slightest bit, making him difficult to sense.

“A wandering monk?” A thought suddenly crossed Shangguan Heng’s mind.

Thus, he watched Meng Qi walk from early autumn to early winter, heading northward, gradually reaching the border between the Northern Zhou and the grasslands.

“Ahead lies Tianjieshan, are you really going to the grasslands?” Shangguan Heng finally couldn’t help but ask.

Tianjieshan was a mountain range at the border between the Northern Zhou and the grasslands.

It was still dark at the break of dawn, and Shangguan Heng had no intention of rashly entering the grasslands and being chased by experts there.

The words “Celestial Realm” entered Meng Qi’s ears, suddenly making him shudder and think of another phrase:

“The Nine Heavens!”

Many worlds had legends of the heavenly court and the Nine Heavens, the Thirty-Three Heavens, similar to Buddhist descriptions of the Four Dhyanas and Nine Heavens, and the Four Emptiness Heavens… Meng Qi suddenly found a similarity between the Buddhist and Daoist sages’ descriptions of the universe. The difficult questions he had been pondering were instantly resolved.

In other words, even if my understanding of the multiverse differs from the descriptions of Buddhist and Daoist sages, it won’t be too far off, and I can gradually correct and deepen my understanding in the future…

At that moment, the distant horizon began to show a faint orange-red glow, and the first rays of morning sunlight shone into Meng Qi’s eyes, so brilliant and dazzling.

“Embracing change, achieving immortality, everything is empty, realizing Bodhi.” Meng Qi gained a deeper understanding of these two lines. Suddenly, his forehead grew warm, and he felt as if he were in a vast emptiness, surrounded by countless stars, floating continents, golden crows, chaotic holes, and various living beings—all manifestations of change.

Shangguan Heng suddenly felt that Meng Qi before him had become someone else, ethereal like the sky, seemingly capable of embracing all things.

This transformation was not deliberate but natural.

“Heavenly and human resonance?” He was startled. At that moment, he saw Meng Qi turn around and look at him with eyes that defied description.

They were unfathomably deep, as if containing a blazing sun, dancing golden crows, an impenetrable darkness, and dazzling stars…

Shangguan Heng instinctively took a couple of steps back, struggled to avert his gaze, and then turned and walked away without looking back.

“Not following me anymore?” Meng Qi asked with slight confusion.

Shangguan Heng muttered a few words:

“I’m not your match.”

He strode forward, walking firmly and lightly.