Shrouding the Heavens: The Ultimate Daoist Venerable

Chapter 117 The Fourth World

Liang Yu stood before the passage between the two realms, looking at these people. He did not step inside, but simply smiled and said, "Gentlemen, we will meet again. At that time, we will discuss the grand plan of becoming immortals together."

The Quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the Strange World cupped his hands and said, "Fellow Daoist's divine might is unparalleled; we will certainly obey when the time comes."

In the blink of an eye, the passage between the two realms gradually closed, and everything vanished without a trace. The supreme beings of the strange world exchanged bewildered glances. If that figure hadn't been so deeply etched into their minds, they would have thought they were dreaming. After all, could such a barren world really give birth to such a terrifying being?

One of the supreme beings said, "If he comes in the future, will we really listen to him?"

Someone scoffed, "Otherwise what? Do you have any way to deal with him?"

One of the supreme beings said, "He is already old; perhaps he has no future?"

The Quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the Strange World sighed, "If that's the case, then so be it. He could have come here to prolong his life, but he chose to give it up. Do you think he's had enough of living?"

Another supreme being said, "The bell and the tower beside him seem to be celestial artifacts! Even our realm doesn't have any true celestial artifacts, yet his world has more than one."

Another supreme being said, "Couldn't he have refined it himself?"

Seeing that these supreme beings were somewhat uneasy, the Quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the Strange World said in a deep voice, "No matter what the situation, this person is beyond our ability to defeat. If he really comes to this world in the future, then we have no other choice but to obey."

"However, this incident also shows that the outside world is not limited to the Immortal Realm. Even in a world like this that has fallen into the Dharma Decline, there are such outstanding individuals. Only by putting aside our disputes and uniting can we fight against these risks. Even if we cannot defeat this person, as long as we advance and retreat together, he will respect our opinions and not go too far."

Clearly, he still holds considerable weight in this field, and the others were quickly drawn to his words.

A supreme being said, "You are right. We should indeed form an alliance, but the position of alliance leader..."

The quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the strange world raised the corner of his mouth slightly and said, "Let us discuss and exchange our skills, with the strongest taking the lead, shall we?"

Another supreme being, his aura fluctuating, said, "A temporary lead does not guarantee a permanent lead. I propose that we elect a leader every ten thousand years."

The quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the Strange World pursed his lips slightly and said, "I agree."

The other supreme beings reached a consensus and began to discuss and decide on the competition schedule, while the Quasi-Heavenly Emperor of the Strange World stared blankly at the place where Liang Yu had disappeared.

After all, he has now risen to a higher level, and the other supreme beings are no longer his match. The position of alliance leader can be said to be predetermined.

But the more he recalled Liang Yu's aura, the more powerless he felt, yet the more determined he became.

The longer he spent with these supreme beings, the slower his progress became. This was because he had completely surpassed them and they were no longer worthy of being his rivals.

Moreover, because longevity substances exist in this strange world, their lifespans are extremely long. Without pressure, he naturally loses his motivation.

The reason why those who attain enlightenment in the human universe are generally strong is twofold. First, the competitive pressure is immense; they must engage in fierce infighting to emerge from countless geniuses in the universe and become the sole victor. This is an extreme situation where the winner takes all.

Secondly, there is their short lifespan. After all, even those who attain enlightenment generally have a lifespan of less than 15,000 years. Therefore, they must be both courageous and diligent, and steady and methodical, to fully unleash their potential in just a few thousand years, like a series of brilliant fireworks, dazzling and fleeting.

However, in this strange world, there is neither the extreme of one person dominating their entire lifespan, nor the long lifespan of any single individual. Therefore, these cultivators are somewhat too peaceful, and the competition is not intense enough. This is especially true for the quasi-Heavenly Emperors of this strange world, or rather, the leaders of its alliance. But the moment he met Liang Yu, he deeply felt an almost insurmountable pressure, and once again saw a target he needed to strive to catch up with. Therefore, his ambition, which had been extinguished for many years, was rekindled.

Liang Yu deliberately stirred up trouble this time, letting the strange world know of his existence in advance. This was to prepare them psychologically, to achieve a kind of deterrence, and at the same time, to show goodwill and reduce their hostility.

Moreover, no matter what they have prepared, their psychological defenses will collapse again when they see Liang Yu, Lingbao Tianzun, Daode Tianzun, Mingzun, or even Dizun tens of thousands of years later.

In that situation, it would be much easier to discuss cooperation terms.

However, Liang Yu's attack on the path to immortality was actually a two-pronged strategy. The strange world was only one of his objectives; the other was to conquer the human universe.

He has been alive for 100,000 years; if he continues like this, he could easily overwhelm future generations.

Liang Yu did not want future generations of outstanding individuals to live in his shadow forever. At least until they attained enlightenment, Liang Yu hoped they would be invincible, proud, and confident.

Moreover, the Emperor's predecessor was about to be born, and he did not want to interfere with him.

Of course, another reason is those supreme beings in the forbidden zones. If he were still alive, these supreme beings would probably have to hide forever, until they die.

No matter what role he plays or how he acts, they will never be reborn. Searching for them one by one would be too troublesome and time-consuming.

Therefore, he must disappear from the mortal realm. Only then will those supreme beings relax their guard.

But how to disappear? Obviously, attacking the path to immortality is an excellent reason.

If his Dao Imprint disappears, then whether these supreme beings think he is dead or that he has become an immortal, they will lower their guard, making it easier for him to gather his forces and wipe him out in one fell swoop in the future.

The immortal emperor of later generations hid in the path to immortality, plotted against more than one ancient emperor, and even underwent nirvana within it, remaining almost undetected for millions of years.

Therefore, it is evident that the path to immortality is actually independent of the human universe. Whatever happens within it is very difficult for the supreme beings of the human world to sense it.

Liang Yu intends to live out his fourth life here, then refine his tower into a celestial artifact to suppress his own Dao, and then silently return to the mortal realm.

Just in case, Liang Yu combined the Desolate Tower, the Immortal Bell, the Qiankun Creation Tower, the Nine Great Immortal Golden Towers, and the Boundless Dao Stele into a grand array to seal his aura.

Liang Yu activated the Yin-Yang Dao within his body, mobilizing his remaining life force to begin a transformation.

For hundreds of years, the Yin and Yang energies circulated and filled the entire path to immortality. If one could look closely, one would discover that every tiny particle of these Yin and Yang energies is a Tai Chi Yin-Yang diagram, encompassing all opposing yet unified forces and laws of mutual transformation. It may seem like only Yin and Yang coexisting, but it naturally gives rise to all phenomena and laws.

Finally, a surge of blood and energy erupted, almost destroying the path to immortality, and all the beams of immortal light were crushed by this aura.

If Liang Yu hadn't laid out array patterns with numerous secret treasures beforehand, perhaps his aura would have truly flowed out of the path to immortality, allowing those supreme beings in the mortal realm to sense it.

Liang Yu stood up. He had lived four lifetimes, and still hadn't consumed the elixir of immortality or the Nine-Turn Immortal Pill. Three consecutive rebirths had made his aura so powerful that he was on the verge of ascending to immortality.

(End of this chapter)