Shrouding the Heavens: The Ultimate Daoist Venerable

Chapter 256 The Path to Breaking Limits
At this time, the Kunlun Immortal Mountain was home to the six strongest individuals in the universe who had achieved enlightenment through unconventional means. Even by later standards, they would be considered exceptional. Moreover, although their progress had been slow over the years, they had still managed to make some significant improvements. Therefore, even with their physical advantages, the Undying Golden Body Ancestor and the Overlord Body Ancestor could not stand out from the crowd.

Upon meeting the Undying Golden Body Ancestor, the Overlord Body Ancestor chuckled and said, "Fellow Daoist, aren't you being a bit unfair? We just agreed to join hands and work together to break through the limitations of our physical bodies, and you've already forgotten that? You think you can surpass me by communicating with them? No way!"

Although the Immortal Golden Body Ancestor was somewhat embarrassed, he still stubbornly said, "Is that so? When you connected with those three, you didn't think of including me, did you? We're all in the same boat."

Both of them snorted coldly, dismissing the question. They had been fighting for over a thousand years without a clear victor; for them, defeating each other was second only to achieving enlightenment. Therefore, when they encountered someone to exchange blows with, they unanimously planned to first accumulate enough advantages to defeat the other before recruiting them into their ranks.

However, now that they had stumbled upon each other's thoughts, although it was a little awkward, they had been friends for over a thousand years, so they quickly moved on and didn't take it to heart.

The six then introduced themselves to each other, learning their respective identities. The Undying Golden Body Ancestor and the Overlord Body Ancestor were somewhat shocked. These people included opponents of the Limitless Heavenly Venerable, opponents of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable, and even disciples of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable. Even the Three Lives Supreme was now a core high-ranking member of the Underworld. This was truly a gathering of heroes.

Immediately, the six of them began to discuss and demonstrate the Dao, exchanging experiences with each other. Of course, their focus was on the Dao of Breaking Limits, that is, how to break the limitations between themselves and the laws of heaven and earth, and to defy the heavens to prove the Dao.

In fact, during the alternative path to enlightenment, if one wishes to continue to improve, there are two main approaches: first, to further enhance one's cultivation level; and second, to find ways to strengthen one's physical constitution. Of course, these two approaches are not isolated or conflicting; they complement each other.

For the former, under the suppression of the Great Dao Imprint, the vast majority of those who achieve Dao through unconventional means will be halted, after all, they are not Ye Fan. To achieve this, one would probably need to be among the most talented individuals in the entire Shrouding the Heavens universe.

As for the latter, changing one's physical constitution is something even those who have attained the Dao may not be able to solve. Apart from Liang Yu's Ancient Scripture of Transformation and the Devouring Heaven Demon Art and Undying Heaven Art of the Ruthless Great Emperor of later generations, it is basically impossible for those who have not attained the Dao to find a way in this regard. Therefore, after achieving the Dao in a completely unconventional way, it is also a dead end.

However, the special scripture developed by Liang Yu and Ming Zun, which is based on the laws of wondrous places, can bypass this limitation because it is self-contained and has the same origin as but different from the laws of the universe. It can modify one's physical constitution to a certain extent and improve one's cultivation, thus achieving the miracle of continuing to progress after achieving enlightenment in an alternative way.

Ying Shenxiao had already made it possible to break through this limitation by living a life in reverse, and later he obtained the Kunlun Immortal Mountain and the Kunlun Immortal Scripture from Liang Yu, thus mastering the Kunlun Immortal Scripture. Therefore, his physique and cultivation level improved further, reaching a level no weaker than that of a Dao Prover.

If he could further refine the Kunlun Immortal Scripture, he could transform himself into the Kunlun Immortal Body. At that point, he might even have the potential to challenge the Chaos Body, and perhaps even gain strength surpassing that of ordinary Dao-proving individuals before achieving Dao. Therefore, he is actually a significant example of someone who has essentially completed the path of breaking limits.

However, Ying Shenxiao's ability to live a life in reverse is truly impossible to replicate, so others can only look on with envy.

Over the years, the Supreme Being of Three Realms successfully found the Underworld, received guidance from the Underworld Emperor, and became a core member of the Underworld. In fact, his self-created method of reincarnation in the Three Realms was related to some of the Supreme Beings and Lords of Reincarnation in the Underworld, and could be considered to be of the same lineage, yet he forged his own path. Therefore, his trip to the Underworld was practically a return to his ancestral roots.

Now in the underworld, he could naturally gather wisdom from the wisdom of his predecessors and derive methods for continued progress. Of course, his greatest gain was mastering the highest inheritance in the underworld—the Netherworld Scripture. Under the influence of the Netherworld Scripture, he had finally broken through a small limitation, allowing him to continue to improve.

Although Chuan Ying did not cultivate these special immortal scriptures, he received guidance from Yuanshi Tianzun. There are not many alternative paths to enlightenment that can continue to progress under the suppression of the Great Dao Imprint, but Yuanshi Tianzun was definitely capable of doing so, after all, he possessed the highest level of talent in the human universe.

Therefore, with his master's help, Chuan Ying successfully reached another peak on the path of the God of War, subtly breaking through some limitations and taking another step forward. After all, Chuan Ying can actually be considered a weakened version of Yuanshi Tianzun in every way. The path he took was very similar to that of Yuanshi Tianzun's first incarnation. Therefore, under Yuanshi Tianzun's guidance, he naturally made some progress.

Of course, Chuan Ying's continued improvement is also related to the path he's taking, since he's now following a path similar to that of the Fighting Saint Emperor. While the Fighting Saint Emperor of later generations likely didn't possess Heavenly Emperor-level combat power, he still reached near-Heavenly Emperor level. In other words, although the Fighting Saint Emperor possessed the elixir of immortality and only lived for a little over ten thousand years, his combat power improvement was still very significant.

Therefore, Chuan Ying naturally suffered constant losses and progress under this domineering path. However, with the nurturing of the immortal pool and various divine treasures in the Kunlun Sacred Realm by the Primordial Celestial Venerable, all of Chuan Ying's losses were wiped out.

As for Yuanxiang King, he was rather unlucky. Leaving aside the two founders, among the four of them, the other three either had powerful connections or powerful backers, but he had no one to rely on.

One's abilities are ultimately limited. Yuanxiang King realized within his limited cultivation that some difficulties were beyond his individual capacity to overcome. Therefore, he finally decided to relinquish his insistence and seek out a powerful patron. With this thought in mind, he suddenly felt a sense of boundless freedom. Thus, he successfully found Yuhua Divine Island, seeking to become Lingbao Tianzun's disciple and receive his guidance.

He chose to become Lingbao Tianzun's disciple for two reasons. First, Lingbao Tianzun was relatively less concerned with race and origin, unlike some others. Second, Yuanxiang King had long regarded Lingbao Tianzun as his role model.

Although Lingbao Tianzun's time on the ancient primordial star was short, hundreds of thousands of years ago, he still left behind a considerable amount of Daoist teachings. However, even though he didn't intentionally favor the human race, his methods were ultimately more suitable for them. Thus, Lingbao Tianzun's unintentional act still interrupted the rise of the demon race on the ancient primordial star.

When the young Yuanxiang King learned of this, he did not harbor resentment towards Lingbao Tianzun like other demons. Instead, he felt a longing and yearning, thinking, "A true man should be like this." He also wanted to attain enlightenment and become a true powerhouse whose every move could stir up the winds and clouds of the world and whose casual actions could change the course of history.

Although the Celestial Venerable of Morality also did something similar, it was too long ago, and the details are far less detailed than those of the more recent Celestial Venerable of Spiritual Treasure.

So although Yuanxiang King could have sought out Wuji Tianzun, who had helped and guided him, to become his disciple, or even Changsheng Tianzun and Daode Tianzun, he ultimately chose Lingbao Tianzun, whom he had once worshipped.

Lingbao Tianzun, who was setting up his Daoist temple on Yuhua Divine Island and preparing for his next incarnation, did not refuse. After all, he found Yuanxiang King's method of proving the Dao through force quite ingenious, and if he could truly continue down this path, his potential would be immense. Such a genius was certainly worth Lingbao Tianzun's special guidance and instruction.

Now, the Venerable Lingbao, who had been driven to tranquility by extreme aggression, had restrained his murderous intent and begun to become peaceful and serene. Being able to avoid fighting and instead focus on cultivation, teaching a few disciples, was exactly what he desired. Therefore, King Yuanxiang naturally received guidance from the Venerable Lingbao, thus clarifying his direction for further advancement.

Moreover, he gained an unexpected advantage. The unique laws within Jade Flower Divine Island grant its native races a vitality and abundant essence far exceeding that of the outside world. Naturally, the Celestial Venerable Lingbao also spent some time deciphering these laws.

In order to accelerate the repair process, the universe has actively spurred the emergence of Earth Immortals. Therefore, the special laws in these wondrous places are no longer so difficult to decipher, and can be comprehended without the need for source techniques.

Of course, even so, these laws are still very difficult. Therefore, due to the short time available, Lingbao Tianzun only deciphered a portion of them, creating only the first volume of the Jade Flower Immortal Scripture. But even this part of the immortal scripture was enough to greatly benefit Yuanxiang King, significantly enhancing his physique. Moreover, since he was pursuing the path of proving the Dao through strength, his physical body was the foundation, resulting in even better cultivation effects.

Therefore, Yuanxiang King's path is now smooth. As long as he keeps pushing Lingbao Tianzun, he can continue to improve. At this moment, Yuanxiang King feels that it's wonderful to have someone protecting him. Of course, although he is somewhat proud, he is not arrogant. His heart remains extremely firm, and he always puts his own cultivation first.

The paths to breaking limits for the four supreme beings are actually quite clear, and there is still considerable room for improvement.

The Undying Golden Body Ancestor and the Overlord Body Ancestor were actually somewhat behind them. After all, these four Supreme Beings had reached a point where they could not advance any further and could only find alternative paths or even rely on the power of others, while the Undying Golden Body Ancestor and the Azure Overlord Body Ancestor had only reached their limits and had not yet begun to break through them. Or rather, they had not yet begun to find the right method to break through their limits.

Currently, they appear to be on par with the other four supreme beings, belonging to the same tier, but this is merely due to their physical characteristics. As long as the other four continue to improve their physical abilities through those special methods, their advantage will eventually disappear.

Therefore, even the Undying Golden Body Ancestor and the Overlord Body Ancestor couldn't help but feel a sense of urgency. After all, while both were breaking through limits, they also faced the limitation of their physical constitution in addition to the suppression of the Great Dao Mark, making it much more difficult.

However, the guidance from Yuanshi Tianzun and that mysterious celestial being did indeed point them in the right direction. After all, it was indeed difficult for them to make progress in their personal cultivation, at least not to the point where they could break through the limitations, but their physical constitution was still worth studying.

Ye Fan in later generations essentially progressed by reversing the Great Dao and later by cultivating the Hundred Scriptures in the furnace, allowing his ever-improving Dao techniques and realms to break through the limitations of his physique.

However, neither of their ancestors possessed such talent, so they had to change their approach, focusing on physical constitution and origins to reduce or even eliminate this limitation by compensating for physical deficiencies. Although this was still incredibly difficult, it was still a viable direction.

(End of this chapter)