Above the Great Dao

Chapter 1246 583: All Thanks to My Own Efforts (Happy May Day, Please Vote Monthly Ticket)

Chen Shi withdrew his thoughts and nodded slightly, saying, "Lord Wu, in the future, do not be so courteous to me to avoid drawing attention from those who might take notice."

Wu Guanyun smiled and said, "After Mr. Chen was thrown into the Heavenly Prison, it took only a few days before he was released, which indicates that someone within the Heavenly Court is protecting Mr. Chen, and this person holds significant power. Therefore, being courteous to Mr. Chen is perfectly appropriate."

Chen Shi laughed heartily and walked alongside him.

The Fire Camp left half of its uninjured members to guard the Demon Refining Well, while the others followed along.

Before long, King Li received the news and led an array of Heavenly Gods to descend upon Huanxian Valley, arriving at the Three Pure Ones Demon Refining Well.

This King Li held an Exquisite Golden Treasure Tower, exuding majesty and exceptional might, having been worshipped with incense for countless years, with boundless Divine Power. Yet even more substantial was his Daoist Power, which was unfathomable and pervasive.

He had long parted from the Incense Fire Divine Dao, walking the path of the Daoist God.

As he moved, clouds and mist followed, accompanied by wind and thunder. The treasure tower in his hand possessed unparalleled divine might, containing within it the myriad worlds of the Buddhist domain, countless large and small Divine Kingdoms, where all beings resided, cultivating offerings of incense fire.

This immense Divine Power and Dao Power was something Chen Shi had never witnessed before.

Originally, Chen Shi did not have the qualification to see this divine being, but the occurrence with the Three Pure Ones Demon Refining Well was indeed significant, granting him as a Heavenly Soldier the opportunity to meet with King Li.

To say 'meet' is not entirely accurate, as it was merely a distant sighting of King Li.

King Li's stature was noticeably taller than an ordinary person, though not extravagantly so, standing at most six zhang tall. Clad in golden armor, wearing a golden helmet, he was imposing and stately. The most remarkable aspect was, from a distance, he stood six zhang tall, and even from a thousand li away, he appeared to remain six zhang tall. Approaching him, he was still six zhang tall.

Chen Shi's heart was moved, "Far does not diminish, and near does not augment—this is the manifestation of the Great Dao of Space refined to its utmost. In other words, no matter how far, he could reach out and strike directly at the opponent! Such a Daoist technique, I cannot compare."

Beside King Li, there were numerous Heavenly Gods.

These Heavenly Gods wore golden armor, some wielding golden whips, others holding golden seals, or wielding great bells. The assorted weapons they held were heavy, imbued with divine majesty, and carried the scent of incense fire, distinctly differing from the refinement of Immortal Artifacts.

Chen Shi carefully observed these Heavenly Gods and subtly compared them to the magical treasures of the West Bull New Continent, thinking to himself, "The Daoist inheritance of the West Bull New Continent is incomplete. Cultivators often tread the path of refining their treasures into Divine Artifacts. However, the refinement of Divine Artifacts and Immortal Artifacts is evidently quite different."

In the few days since he arrived in the Earth Immortal Realm, Chen Shi had either been cultivating or imprisoned, never having the opportunity to closely observe the distinction between Immortals and Divine.

Now, by closely observing, he quickly discerned the differences between Immortal Artifacts and Divine Artifacts.

"Immortal Artifacts are refined by embedding the Great Dao Laws within the magical treasure, thus the True Martial Evil Extermination Sword from the Great Ming, when its sword light strikes the physical body, the body is left with only half. This is the effect of the Great Dao Rules."

He silently mused, "Divine Artifacts are refined by sacrificial refinement of incense fire, embedding the Divine Dao within the magical treasure. In terms of Great Dao Laws, they appear crude, lacking the subtlety of Immortal Artifacts. But they prevail in the vastness of all beings' faith, with incense fire Divine Power stretching boundlessly. The Wenyuan Pavilion and other Nine Halls crafted during the True King Era follow the Divine Dao rather than being purely Immortal Artifacts."

While contemplating, he accompanied Wu Guanyun and the others, following these Heavenly Gods back to the Three Pure Ones Demon Refining Well.

King Li led the group deep into the well, arriving before those various Demon Refining Cauldrons. The gods approached to inspect the imitated Demon Refining Cauldron.

Chen Shi and the others stood at a distance. Chen Shi couldn't help feeling worried that King Li and other divine beings would discern discrepancies. These divine beings possessed vast Divine Skills, far exceeding any existence he had encountered before, bringing immense pressure, making it seem not difficult for them to discover the deception of the Post-processing Immortals.

However, Wu Guanyun appeared completely unconcerned.

After a moment, King Li and the others returned.

Chen Shi was stunned—King Li and these Heavenly Gods had not discovered that the Demon Refining Cauldron was fake!

"Lady Houtu said she does not understand Immortal Law, and now it seems it was not humility."

A flash of insight sparked in his mind, "The Divine Dao and Immortal Dao are already two separate paths. Even a supremely powerful divine being cannot comprehend Immortal Law!"

While he was thinking, King Li had already ordered the filling and sealing of the Three Pure Ones Demon Refining Well with heavy seals, leaving two Heavenly Gods to guard it.

"The founder of the Three Pure Ones left these Demon Refining Cauldrons with a definite purpose."

King Li said, "Since this is so, let the Demon Suppression Well continue to refine these Great Demons without moving it."

The Fire Camp earned merits, and King Li issued rewards. Each Heavenly Soldier of the Fire Camp was bestowed with a bottle of Immortal Qi Spirit Liquid and a small bottle of Five Elements Immortal Pill.

Chen Shi tasted one of the Immortal Pills, finding it inferior to those crafted by his own disciples in the West Bull New Continent, and casually tossed it to the Black Pot, who had also received a share. Having transcended the Five Elements, it also did not consume them, choosing instead to use these Immortal Pills to network with other Immortals, quickly earning widespread acclaim.

The Black Pot's circle of friends grew, and the esteemed reputation of the Black Immortal spread throughout the Heavenly Soldier Camp, often rallying support with a single call. Everyone said that the Black Immortal was generous and shared wealth, considering him a true Daoist friend, albeit a bit verbose.

Chen Shi, however, did not make a single friend.

In these days, he kept a low profile, constantly staying in the Western Heaven Swing, diligently studying the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture.

Zhong Lin, on the other hand, would occasionally visit the Western Heaven Swing to watch him practice swordsmanship.

Chen Shi possessed his own Dao Realm in the Western Heaven Swing, it being his place of Harmonization, his Daoist Field. At a thought, he could seal the Daoist Field, preventing other Heavenly Soldiers from entering. Yet, somehow, Zhong Lin always managed to enter his Daoist Field.

Chen Shi did not find it concerning, as Zhong Lin did not interfere with him, so he let him be.

Chen Shi slowly activated the Mixed Yuan Dao Scripture, and one after another Sword Qi emerged from the sword box, quickly surpassing thirty-six Sword Qi to reach forty Sword Qi.

Zhong Lin's heart skipped a beat. In such a short time, Chen Shi actually had made significant progress with the Mixed Yuan Dao Scripture, controlling four more strands of Sword Qi!

Although there were only four additional strands of Sword Qi, the power of the sword moves was worlds apart!

Currently, Chen Shi, who could simultaneously control forty strands of Sword Qi, had more than doubled the effectiveness of his techniques. If Wu Guanyun were to face this move again, he would undoubtedly find it difficult to counter and would certainly get injured!

Chen Shi's body moved with the sword, driving forty strands of Sword Qi to perform the fifth move of the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture, Cloud Covering Mist.

A vast and desolate nation in twilight, clouds disperse as mist clears, revealing the bright world!

The first part of this move symbolizes the downfall of a nation, an empire's end, with the Heavenly Dao muddled, the monarch in a daze, resources barren, and demons running rampant.

The latter part, however, represents the rising sword energy, purging demons, reshaping the Heavenly Dao, clearing the heavens and earth, cutting down foolish monarchs, pioneering resources, and reinvigorating people's livelihood.

This move is not difficult to practice, but understanding the profound mysteries within it is extremely challenging.

Since the establishment of the Heavenly Soldier Camp, countless heavenly soldiers have cultivated this move, but few have grasped its essence.

Practicing this move requires entering the Mortal World and, in a declining nation, sensing the chaos of the Heavenly Dao and the dwindling life of the people, witnessing the monarch's folly and the rampant demons. Following this, one should experience the chaotic era, see the people's resistance amidst death, observe the rise of heroes, and their lofty songs, to reorganize the heavens and remold the Heavenly Dao.

Only in this way can one understand the subtleties of this move.

Sometimes, it even requires an Immortal to take the initiative to reincarnate, participating in this grand process of regime change, to comprehend it.

However, spending a hundred or even hundreds of years to comprehend the intricacies of a readily available sword move seems unnecessary for most Immortals.

There are many other Immortal Laws in the world; why invest such immense effort in the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture?

Moreover, even with such great exertion, there's no guarantee of mastering it.

Nonetheless, Chen Shi demonstrated the essence of the Cloud Covering Mist move vividly!

In his sword move, the desolation and absurdity of an empire at its end washed over, with demonic and barbaric auras making one feel as if personally experiencing the scene, the Sword Qi covering the sky like mist, and the Sword Intent inundating like a flood!

When the Sword Intent swept through the Mortal World, recreating the Heavenly Dao and producing the vision of returning light, the swordsmanship's power reached its pinnacle, akin to an ascending sun from the east, cleansing the world's taint!

Zhong Lin watched the overwhelming Sword Intent envelop him, momentarily stunned, allowing the blazing Sword Qi to pass by him.

Chen Shi retracted his sword, and the forty strands of Sword Qi each settled into the Sword Box, calming his stirring Dao Heart.

In recent days, he had been diligently practicing.

In his battle with Wu Guanyun at the Three Pure Ones Demon Refining Well, though falling at a disadvantage, unable to withstand a few moves before being overpowered, he also noticed some peculiarities within himself.

He could essentially perform Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture's sword moves at will, comprehending the Dao essence hidden within and maximizing the moves' power!

This time again, he effortlessly executed the Cloud Covering Mist move, mastering its Dao essence completely.

Moreover, the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture even started to nourish the Mixed Yuan Dao Scripture in return!

This was somewhat preposterous.

The Mixed Yuan Dao Scripture forms the basis of the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture; the higher the Dao Scripture cultivation, the easier the Sword Scripture practice becomes and the stronger its power.

However, now, each time he practices the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture, the power of the Mixed Yuan Dao Scripture increases, nourishing it in return!

This was why he had been persistently practicing these days.

Suddenly, Zhong Lin said, "Mr. Chen, there must be something peculiar about you!"

Chen Shi looked at him and shook his head, saying, "I am perfectly fine, what could be peculiar about me?"

Zhong Lin approached, examining him from top to bottom, saying, "Your Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture has reached this level; in the entire Heavenly Court, no one could surpass its finesse! Your progress in Sword Dao definitely has an issue!"

Chen Shi, hearing this, laughed out of both anger and amusement, "The achievements of my Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture come from my diligent practice these days, could someone else possibly practice it for me?"

Zhong Lin responded, "Practicing the Mixed Yuan Sword Scripture in just a few days? While others may spend thousands or even tens of thousands of years without mastering it, you succeed in a few days, there's definitely something peculiar."

Chen Shi laughed heartily, "I was gifted since childhood…"

"Was it the Heavenly Mechanism Strategy that assisted you?" Zhong Lin suddenly interjected.

Chen Shi's heart skipped a beat; he braced himself and said, "I was naturally brilliant, and the Heavenly Mechanism Strategy helped me just a little, but all my achievements are due to my personal efforts…"

Zhong Lin exulted, "The Heavenly Mechanism Strategy is really with you?"

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