422: To tread the heavens, true transcendence!

Around the demon sealing tower, four ancient stars emitted soft and mysterious light, slowly swirling around it, appearing as two suns and two moons.

These four ancient stars rotated around the demon sealing tower in a unique and harmonious rhythm, and around the demon sealing tower, dense dao rhyme lingered like ethereal mist.

In front of Shen Nian, the golden skeleton disappeared. In the scene that had undergone earth-shattering changes due to the reversal of time, the ancient golden bones and the broken black tower that had originally met Shen Nian’s eyes suddenly vanished amidst a flicker of light and shadow.

In their place stood a tall figure dressed in a green robe. This figure stood steadily, gazing at Shen Nian with a gentle smile.

He was a middle-aged man, with the marks of time quietly etched upon him.

His temples were slightly gray, as if gently touched by the first snow of winter. Those streaked white hairs swayed gently in the breeze, adding a touch of weathered charm to him. His face held no astonishing handsomeness, nor that sharp, majestic aura; his appearance was extremely ordinary, as unremarkable as a grain of sand in the vast sea of humanity.

If he were placed in a crowd, no one would easily let their gaze linger on him for long.

He wore a simple green robe; though not luxurious, it was clean and tidy. The corners of his clothes, fluttering gently in the wind, added a touch of scholarly elegance to him.

His appearance truly didn't resemble that of a Revered Master in the slightest; rather, he looked somewhat like an ordinary village schoolteacher.

"Thank you for what you did for Xiaobai..."

The First Dao spoke softly, his voice seemingly traversing endless years, coming from ancient times to the present.

This was a dialogue across time and space!

And it was happening after his death!

It had already surpassed the known levels of Immortals and Ancients!

"Senior Eight Generations, you are too kind..." Shen Nian said, truly from the bottom of his heart.

"How are Xiaolan and Luo Li...?" The First Dao asked.

"The Ancestor fought to the death, severely injuring Candle Nine Nethers, buying Eastern Profound a lot of time. Revered Master was captured by the gods and demons and her whereabouts are unknown," Shen Nian truthfully informed, but his eyes held killing intent, and he said coldly, "I will rescue Revered Master."

"Soon!"

Shen Nian added at the end.

"Alas~" The First Dao sighed softly, his voice seemingly filled with endless helplessness and a hint of self-reproach.

"Since you have come here, Candle Nine Nethers must have died..."

Shen Nian nodded.

"In the past, I deliberately spared his life because I calculated that he would be sent to Eastern Profound Star. Only Candle Nine Nethers would act selfishly; if it were any other Mountain Sea Great Demon, Eastern Profound Star wouldn't have lasted until your arrival..." The First Dao spoke softly, seemingly having discerned the confusion in Shen Nian's heart.

Upon hearing this, Shen Nian understood.

No wonder the Eight Generations was so strong, yet didn't kill Candle Nine Nethers. He had actually somewhat guessed it; after all, Candle Nine Nethers wasn't the true mastermind. Even if one Ancient Realm Great Demon died, there would be a second and a third.

Listening to the Eight Generations, does this mean Candle Nine Nethers was relatively gentle?

"Time is limited. Although I have many words I wish to impart to you, let us not waste it..."

"Do you know why subsequent demon sealing never reached the Realm of the First Generation Ancient Origin Lord?"

"Why?" Shen Nian asked softly. He indeed wanted to know. It was no exaggeration to say that every generation of Demon Sealing Dao Venerable was the most prodigious person of their era, and they all possessed destiny. If they were all as powerful as the First Generation, they would have long since annihilated the gods and demons, right?

Why leave behind future troubles?

"Because of the Dao Fruit," The First Dao explained.

"The so-called Dao Fruit is the crystallization of one's Dao, blooming into the Flower of the Great Dao. One flower is one world, one world is one cycle, and after nine cycles, one can tread the heavens..."

"And the First Generation, after condensing, bloomed nine Flowers of the Great Dao, just one step away from treading the heavens, thus making the gods and demons wary, and even allowing him to contend with the Heavenly Dao!"

"But later generations of demon sealing all perished before reaching nine cycles, simply because this path is too difficult. Even the most prodigious Fifth Generation demon sealing only reached the Eight-Cycle Dao Venerable Realm, and I only reached the Fifth Cycle..."

"For this, I searched through the ancient records left by successive demon sealing, and from them, I discovered a secret: the mystery of our Demon Sealing Sect's Luck, words left by the First Generation..."

"One is the beginning, nine is the extreme..."

After hearing this, a hint of shock appeared in Shen Nian's pupils, and he fell into contemplation.

"Ninth Generation, you have already entered the Heavenly Net and do not need the Ancient Realm to condense a Dao Fruit. I have already found the method for condensing the Dao Fruit for you. This was practiced by the First Generation demon sealing Ancient Origin Lord. Subsequent generations of demon sealing were unable to Cultivate it, only you can!"

Hearing this, Shen Nian frowned slightly and asked, "Why?"

"Because the Ancient Origin Lord was the first Divine Body between heaven and earth, formed by devouring Chaos. Later generations called him the Innate Chaos Body..."

"And in his Dao Fruit, the most important thing was that wisp of Innate Chaos Qi, which allowed him to transcend and establish his own Ancient Dao..."

Shen Nian's expression changed slightly; he hadn't expected the First Generation demon sealing to have the same Physique as him.

"Before this, first Cultivate your Innate Chaos Body to Major Achievement, and your Physical Body and Heavenly Net Realm should also reach their Peak. Then, combine the Dao Fruits left by our successive demon sealing. The Dao Fruit condensed in this way will be the ultimate, granting you the opportunity to tread the heavens!" The First Dao spoke softly, as if stating something very ordinary.

Immediately, he looked at Shen Nian, who was deep in thought, and said, "What you lack most is time, and what you lack least is also time..."

"Therefore, there is that slightest possibility. It's just that your heart power is too weak. If you can witness the vast sea turn into mulberry fields, and your heart remains eternal, then the possibility of treading the heavens can be greatly increased..."

Shen Nian's expression changed slightly as he asked, "What is 'treading the heavens'?"

"A Realm."

"Above the nine cycles of the Dao Realm, treading the heavens, a true transcendence, the Realm that the gods, demons, and Heavenly Dao have been searching for..." The First Dao parted his lips slightly and slowly began to explain. His voice seemed to be endowed with some mysterious and powerful magic, traversing endless time and space from a distant, unknown depth.

That voice, neither fast nor slow, yet seemed to possess immense power. Every word clearly entered Shen Nian's ears, echoing in this strange world.

As The First Dao's words rang out, the seemingly calm world suddenly vibrated violently. The earth undulated like waves, and huge cracks rapidly spread, as if to tear the entire world apart;

In the sky, dark clouds rolled in, instantly obscuring the sunlight, intertwined with lightning and thunder, emitting deafening roars.

At the same time, behind The First Dao, strange phenomena followed one after another.

Figure after figure, obscured by Grandmist Divine Light, slowly emerged as if from an ancient scroll of time.

Grandmist Divine Light, a mysterious radiance originating from the most primitive and chaotic state of the Universe, emitted a soft yet extremely deterrent halo, enveloping these figures and making it difficult for others to glimpse their true appearance.

These figures, some tall and robust, others graceful and lithe, varied in form, but all exuded a powerful and mysterious aura.

Perhaps because the time was too distant, so distant that even the memories of this world had become blurred, the faces of those figures were long indiscernible, leaving only hazy outlines hidden behind the Grandmist Divine Light, as if narrating a long-sealed history.

However, despite their indiscernible faces, the aura they exuded was still incredibly strong. Voices from across endless years, like thunder, exploded in Shen Nian's ears.

"Ancient Dao, upholding the obsession of sealing the heavens, my life is immeasurable!"

These figures were the successive demon sealing!

Shen Nian suddenly entered a special state; the simulation value was activated by Shen Nian in that instant.

[Ding, simulation initiated]

[Simulation target: comprehending the Dao Fruit of the Second Generation Demon Sealing Dao Venerable...]

And when The First Dao saw this scene, he merely bowed slightly towards Shen Nian and said softly, "The path of sealing the heavens for my demon sealing lineage rests on you..."

"May the Ancient Dao be eternal..."