424: The Path to Nirvana

The Heavenly Tribulation seemed enraged by his composure.

Immediately afterward, endless Karmic Fire ignited from the Void Realm, boiling the seas and burning the heavens!

This flame did not harm the Physical Body; it specifically burned the Divine Soul's Karma, intending to ignite all the sins, Karmic Obstructions, and Heart Demons of the one Undergoing Tribulation, reducing them to ashes at the root.

The Karmic Fire illuminated Xing Tianao's face before instantly swallowing him whole.

His figure twisted and blurred within the flames, as if countless past scenes and cries of regret flashed within them.

“It’s him! It’s actually him!”

Among the onlookers in the Central Domain, an Old Relic suddenly cried out, his voice filled with extreme shock.

“Who is it?”

“Who is it?”

Many people voiced their confusion!

“The most astonishing Prodigy of the last ten thousand years! That peerless figure who once reached the Quasi-Emperor Peak, Xing Tianao!”

As soon as these words were spoken, it was like a clap of thunder exploding!

“What?! Xing Tianao?”

“How is that possible! According to ancient records, he was inexplicably injured that year, suffering a fatal Dao Injury, and there was no news of him after he vanished.”

“Everyone in the world thought he had long since passed away in some unknown corner. I never expected him to still be alive!”

“No wonder the Dao of Nirvana is so Heaven-Defying! So it's him!

“Back then, he swept aside all rivals of his generation, forcefully reaching the Quasi-Emperor Peak even during the decline of the heavens and earth—what a legend!”

Countless Cultivators instantly realized the truth, looking at the figure in the tribulation clouds with unbelievable reverence and awe.

Who could have imagined that this legend, silent for thousands of years, had not only survived but had been honing himself in secret until now, choosing this moment to challenge for the Supreme Imperial Throne!

Deep within Dao Zang Academy, the Old Dean was already weeping, trembling with excitement: “Revered Master! You are finally taking this step!”

Xing Tianao, inside the Karmic Fire, was completely unaware of this; he remained seated cross-legged in the Void Realm, forming an ancient hand seal with both hands.

However, he remained seated cross-legged in the Void Realm, forming an ancient hand seal with both hands.

The crimson-gold Nirvana Fire once again surged from his body. This time, it proactively merged and clashed with the Karmic Fire!

The Karmic Fire was burning his past, while the Nirvana Fire was refining and purifying him within the blaze!

He seemed to have placed himself in the cruelest furnace, intending to refine away all the Impurities and Heart Demons within his Divine Soul!

This process was excruciatingly painful. His body constantly flickered in and out of existence within the Karmic Fire, and his Aura fluctuated wildly, causing everyone watching to feel terrified.

But finally, as the Karmic Fire gradually subsided, a Divine Soul phantom, purer, more condensed, and seemingly cast from crimson-gold glaze, rose from the crown of his head. Though its light was not dazzling, it exuded a Concept of resilience that could withstand ten thousand tribulations!

“Burn away the Karmic Obstruction, True Self Nirvana!”

Next came the third, fourth, fifth... each layer more perilous than the last.

Xing Tianao's body sometimes exploded, only to reassemble in a bloody mist; sometimes his Divine Soul was torn apart, only to revive in annihilation.

He seemed tireless and immune to pain, rising with a more indomitable posture every time he fell.

The runes of the Nirvana Heaven Technique he created shone within the Tribulation Lightning, demonstrating the ultimate Profound Truths of the cycle of life and death, destruction and rebirth, leaving all observers deeply enlightened and utterly amazed.

He was not passively recovering after enduring the tribulation; rather, he was actively invoking destruction.

He disassembled himself into the most primitive Origin, then used the True Meaning of Nirvana as a guide to recast a new life from the ashes of destruction!

He was like a Crafting God who controlled life and death, using the tribulation as a hammer and destruction as fire, shattering himself again and again, and reconstructing himself from nothingness again and again. Every destruction was more thorough, and every rebirth was more powerful.

Amidst the flashing runes, one could see him condensing limbs from the blood mist, raising his Divine Soul from the ashes, and reforming his Dao Fruit from dissipation.

That cycle from destruction to rebirth was like a perpetual gear, not only failing to deplete his foundation but instead allowing every rebirth to inherit the power of the previous destruction, making his foundation increasingly profound.

This kind of Heaven-Defying Great Dao of proactively seeking death and finding life in death astonished all observers. Who could have imagined cultivation could be like this?

He actually treated this Great Imperial Tribulation—which caused all beings to tremble and stopped Ancient Emperors in their tracks—as a whetstone for his own Dao path!

Using the Tribulation Fire to temper his True Self and the might of heaven to refine his Dao Heart, such courage truly makes him worthy of being the most astonishing Prodigy of the last ten thousand years.

His Aura, through repeated destruction and rebirth, did not weaken; instead, it steadily climbed, approaching that Supreme critical point!

Hope blazed fiercely in the hearts of all the spectators!

Even the Supreme beings deep within those Restricted Areas involuntarily held their breath. Could he truly succeed?

On Zizhu Peak, Great Emperor Jimie had a solemn expression, his eyes filled with respect for a genuine Dao Seeker.

“Such a Dao of Nirvana, such tenacious Heart-Nature. If he succeeds, he will surely become an extraordinary Great Emperor.”

Even he had to admit that this person's Dao Heart and talent were peerless.

Ling Xi looked at Xing Tianao in the Emperor Tribulation, her eyes flickering!

Gu Changge's gaze also carried a hint of approval; he nodded slightly.

“To carve a path to life from despair, to seek rebirth from destruction. This Dao certainly has astonishing aspects, but...”

Finally, the ultimate test arrived!

In the deepest part of the tribulation clouds, a scene of unformed Chaos evolved, where the Aura of the Origin of Ten Thousand Daos surged.

This was not mere lightning, but the Tribulation of Ten Thousand Daos Returning to One!

It intended to completely shatter the one Undergoing Tribulation, along with their Dao Fruit and Divine Soul, merging them back into the Origin of Heaven and Earth.

Xing Tianao knew that the most crucial moment had arrived.

He took a deep breath, and the Qi surrounding him climbed to the Peak of his life; the crimson-gold Nirvana Light was dazzling, illuminating the dark sky.

He let out a long cry, no longer defending himself. Instead, he proactively dispersed all the protective divine light around him; even his Dao Fruit began to self-disintegrate!

He was about to undergo the final, and most dangerous, ultimate Nirvana, reducing everything about himself back to its initial Origin state under the immense pressure of Ten Thousand Daos Returning to One.

Then, relying on that sliver of undying True Meaning of Nirvana, he would reshape himself in the Furnace of Ten Thousand Daos, leap out of his restraints in one go, and achieve his Imperial Dao!

“Revered Master!”

Deep within Dao Zang Academy, the Old Dean sensed his Revered Master's resolute will, and his eyes brimmed with tears.

The dazzling Nirvana Light fiercely clashed and intertwined with the Chaos scene of Ten Thousand Daos Returning to One!

Xing Tianao's body began to turn transparent and illusory, as if it were about to merge into the Origin of Ten Thousand Daos.

An unprecedented Aura of a nascent Imperial Dao began to germinate and sprout at the very center of the collision... Had he succeeded?!

Everyone widened their eyes and held their breath.

However, just as the nascent Imperial Dao Aura was about to erupt, and his will was about to merge with the Ten Thousand Daos to complete the final transformation—at that most crucial instant—

A sudden change occurred!

“Buzz...!”

A terrifying Dao Mark, black as ink and seemingly existing since ancient times, erupted without warning from the deepest part of the Old Blind Man's Origin!

This Dao Mark contained a completely different Law—one unlike that of this Great World—and was incompatible with the nascent Nirvana Imperial Dao Aura, filled with destructive power!