517: Master and apprentice meeting

Xiao Zhuo hid in the shadows, quietly observing from ten miles away.

He did not use his Divine Sense—the two men's Divine Sense strengths were similar, and once he probed, Hao Duo could easily detect him.

Hao Duo's figure sank to the seabed, yet he moved as if on flat ground; the surrounding seawater did not affect him in the slightest.

He walked step by step towards the divine temple.

Arriving before the magnificent, colossal gate, he raised his hand and took out the sacred status light orb he had just acquired.

"Originally, I planned to obtain the key to the divine temple by passing the trials set by Yuan Gu, but I didn't expect my Main Body to break free directly this time, and even obtain this broken saint position… Heaven truly helps me!" Hao Duo's lips curved into a smile, his eyes unable to conceal the excitement of his long-cherished wish about to be fulfilled.

The sacred status light orb flew towards the center of the great gate.

The giant gate, which had been standing silently, a hundred zhang tall, sensed the aura of the light orb and rumbled open.

Once the gap was wide enough for one person to pass, Hao Duo stepped in without hesitation.

He did not notice that a shadow, fused with the Void Realm, also followed closely behind him and swept into the giant gate.

The interior of the divine temple was vast and boundless, unlike ordinary architecture.

Before him was an endless jade path, surrounded by an infinite sea of stars.

The entire divine temple actually contained a Universe of stars.

Hao Duo transformed into a streak of light and sped along the great path. Not long after, a massive cluster of light, swirling with Chaos radiance, appeared at the end of his vision.

"World Origin!" Xiao Zhuo, hidden in the shadows, also witnessed it, his heart shaking. "This cluster of Origin is even stronger than the one I seized in the Void Holy Realm."

He immediately understood that this place was precisely where the Nirvana Realm's Origin was hidden.

The divine temple's giant gate exuded a strong Saint Dao aura, clearly set up by a Saint.

From Hao Duo's soliloquy, it was clear that to enter this place, one either had to possess a portion of Primordial Great Saint's saint position or pass the trials he had set.

Perhaps those trials were even the purpose behind Hao Duo taking him as a Disciple.

It was just that the Nirvana Realm opened prematurely, and Hao Duo didn't have time to retrieve him, so he had no choice but to enter in person.

Unexpectedly, after his Split Soul's disturbance, the powerhouses of the Immortal-Demon Realm broke through the Saint's seal, his Main Body descended upon the Nirvana Realm, and even exposed Yuan Gu's Three Corpses to the public.

Hao Duo clearly understood the Nirvana Realm extremely well, directly finding this divine temple where the Origin was hidden.

But why did he need so much Origin?

Hao Duo was on the path of severing the Three Corpses to become a Saint; since he had already severed the Three Corpses, he only needed a saint position to become a Saint. He shouldn't have to rely on World Power.

Compared to the Great Thousand World Origin, the remaining two sacred status light orbs should have been more attractive to him.

Xiao Zhuo watched Hao Duo begin to collect the Origin, and another guess formed in his mind: "Could it be… he also wants to walk the path of Karma to become a Saint?"

By promoting the world's advancement to gain vast Karma Luck, one could also condense a saint position.

This was the path Blood Heaven took; a Karma Saint was also the weakest of the three known paths to sainthood, and most deeply bound by the world, meaning prosperity and decline were shared.

"With Hao Duo's arrogant Heart-Nature, he should disdain choosing Karma to become a Saint," he mused.

However, the scene before him made him unable to think of any other possibility.

No matter what, this Origin was something he absolutely had to obtain.

Thus, in the Void Realm, Xiao Zhuo stepped out.

Almost simultaneously, Hao Duo's action of collecting the Origin paused, and his sharp gaze suddenly shot towards Xiao Zhuo's location.

Seeing the person's face clearly, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"Xiao Zhuo?"

Xiao Zhuo calmly bowed: "Greetings, Revered Master."

"I didn't expect… you would appear here, and even be able to hide from my Divine Sense." Hao Duo's eyes completely concealed his emotions, his tone indifferent, as if the person before him had little connection to him.

Xiao Zhuo smiled faintly: "Disciple also didn't expect that it was Revered Master who led me to this place."

"It seems you want to contend with your Revered Master?" A dangerous light flickered in Hao Duo's eyes; before his words finished, a heavy darkness spread from around his body.

"Disciple is also quite interested in this Nirvana Realm Origin."

Xiao Zhuo did not deny it.

Almost the moment he spoke, the entire starry sky suddenly vanished, turning into boundless darkness.

Deep shadows surged towards him like a tide.

Xiao Zhuo was unhurried, flicking his fingertips; in an instant, Spirit Script danced, and a Spirit Group great array instantly formed: "Where there is darkness, there is light."

Before his words finished, the Spirit Group erupted with immeasurable radiance.

Blazing golden light bloomed, and the approaching darkness was forcibly resisted, even showing signs of being dispelled.

Hao Duo snorted coldly, an dark-red energy orb appearing in his palm. As he crushed it, countless dark-red stars immediately emerged from the surrounding darkness, hurtling towards Xiao Zhuo with destructive force.

Xiao Zhuo seemed to have anticipated it; his figure remained still, and the Spirit Group great array before him evolved on its own.

Light converged into countless light clusters, meeting the dark stars.

In an instant, the entire space rumbled incessantly; the impact of light and destruction caused the surrounding star points to flicker and constantly disintegrate.

"Revered Master, since you chose the Dao of severing the Three Corpses, with your Heart-Nature, why do you still collect Origin?" Xiao Zhuo's voice pierced through the roar, clear and resonant.

Hao Duo smiled upon hearing this: "Since you know your Revered Master's character, you should understand that your Revered Master must have a plan. Naturally, it is not to achieve a Karma saint position."

"Oh?" Xiao Zhuo raised an eyebrow; although the light clusters of the great array before him were still continuous, they subtly showed signs of being suppressed. "May Revered Master enlighten Disciple? Could it be that the method of severing the Three Corpses can also be combined with proving the Dao by force?"

"Combining them is certainly not possible. But do you know that incorporating a Great Thousand World into one's own body can greatly enhance one's own foundation?"

"Disciple understands." Xiao Zhuo nodded.

"Severing the Three Corpses and becoming a Saint by borrowing the Heaven and Earth saint position, though not weak, is also bound by a single realm. Once one leaves that realm, the power of the saint position's blessing will rapidly diminish."

"Thus, millions of years ago, the Lord of the Nirvana Realm conceived a method: refining a Major Thousand Worlds into one's own body and fusing with it. With both the saint position and the world contained within the body, one can be free from constraints."

"This concept was perfected by your Revered Master and him together."

Hao Duo recounted leisurely; as he spoke, the speed at which dark stars condensed in the darkness surged.

Xiao Zhuo's resistance became increasingly difficult.

"Heh heh, you have gained considerable fortune in the Nirvana Realm, even obtaining a part of Yuan Gu's Legacy, which is truly good." Hao Duo looked at the golden light area, which had already been suppressed to less than a hundred zhang, and said with a faint smile. "It's just a pity, you are still too weak."

"If you hadn't intruded at this time, perhaps in the future you could have become a great general of my Black Heaven lineage, expanding territory for your Revered Master."

"But since you have entered the Quasi-Saint realm, even your Revered Master cannot easily capture you." Hao Duo showed a look of regret, "What your Revered Master is doing does not tolerate any interference, so… I'll have to ask you to die."

Xiao Zhuo's expression was calm, as if the crumbling Spirit Group was of no consequence.

After hearing Hao Duo's words, his heart was already clear.

Hao Duo had existed for far longer than he had imagined, actually living in the same era as Primordial Great Saint.

It was just unknown why Primordial Great Saint, after refining the Nirvana Realm, ultimately perished under the encirclement of the Saints.

And Hao Duo, after millions of years, still had not become a Saint.

Refining a world and fusing it with one's body would require the assistance of an immortal root… And Hao Duo participated in Primordial Great Saint's concept of fusing with a world, so he must also understand the method of Spirit Group, and perhaps even refined an immortal root that suited himself.

No wonder his cultivation was still above Hao Tian's.

Xiao Zhuo, understanding everything, smiled faintly: "Revered Master is indeed far-sighted… Disciple thanks you for the enlightenment. Since that is the case, then Revered Master, please—go to your death!"

Hao Duo's expression suddenly changed.

Xiao Zhuo's voice held no trace of dejection, but rather exuded immense confidence.

Even though he was confident of being invincible below the Saint realm, at this moment, he couldn't help but feel a premonition of ill omen.