Primordial Era: Reborn as a Qi Immortal, Steadily Cultivating

Chapter 69 Phoenix Clan Habitat
After slaying that Taotie, which was at the level of a Taiyi Golden Immortal.

Ma Yuan then rode Ao Xuan, continuing to travel leisurely through the vast and boundless southern wilderness.

He did not deliberately seek out any rare or precious materials, nor did he actively seek out any karmic consequences.

However, the Great Dao is fifty, and the Heavenly Evolution is forty-nine. There is always a glimmer of hope and a glimmer of danger, which cannot be avoided simply by wishing to.

This desolate southern land was once inhabited by ancient ferocious beasts.

Hidden within are countless vicious beings, evolved from the lingering remnants of chaotic demon gods.

Over the next few hundred years, Ma Yuan encountered several more ferocious beasts at the level of Golden Immortals.

These ferocious beasts are of chaotic intelligence, knowing only slaughter and destruction. Although they are not as powerful as the Taiyi Beast, they are still physically strong, filled with murderous aura, and fearless of death.

Whenever they sense the pure aura of merit emanating from Ma Yuan that they find extremely repulsive, they will charge at him fearlessly, like moths to a flame.

If an ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortal were to encounter this, they would likely face a fierce battle.

But for Ma Yuan now, it's just a matter of turning his hand over.

He didn't even need to use the twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls; the Three Talents Divine Light, which he had already cultivated to a divine level, was enough to easily suppress and kill it.

Each time a kill was made, the Heavenly Dao would respond, bestowing down varying amounts of golden light of merit.

Although not as vast as the first time, it still accumulated little by little, continuously flowing into the golden wheel of merit outside his primordial spirit.

Over the centuries, the golden wheel of merit surrounding him has become increasingly solid and substantial, with the mysterious yellow energy flowing endlessly on it, almost materializing.

It exudes a vast divine power that is impervious to all laws and wards off all evil, protecting his primordial spirit as solid as a rock.

With his primordial spirit constantly nourished by this pure power of merit, Ma Yuan felt that his thoughts were clear and his mind was lucid.

His speed of comprehending the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth has increased by several times compared to before!

Good deeds protect the body, making one impervious to all evil.

The path of spiritual practice is swift and rapid.

"The power of merit is indeed infinitely wonderful."

Above the dragon's head, Ma Yuan felt an unprecedented clarity and power within his primordial spirit.

Gazing at the ever-thickening golden wheel of merit, a thought arose in Ma Yuan's mind.

He thought of the Taoist Ran Deng, the vice leader of the Chan Sect in later mythology, who later betrayed the sect and went to the West, transforming into the Ancient Buddha Ran Deng.

"If we could emulate the Daoist Burning Lamp and use immeasurable merit to refine all twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls into spiritual treasures of virtue..."

He knew that the Burning Lamp would later obtain twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls, but he did not regard them as mere treasures for killing.

Instead, it used the supreme Buddhist teachings and gathered the merits of the entire Western Buddhist sect to forcibly refine this top-grade innate spiritual treasure into a merit treasure capable of suppressing the Buddhist sect's fortune, known as the 'Twenty-Four Heavens'.

Thinking about this, it would be a lie to say that Ma Yuan wasn't tempted.

Merit and spiritual treasures are a unique type of magical artifact in the primordial world.

Its greatest use is that killing someone will not cause any karmic consequences, and it is immune to all laws. It can also be used to suppress one's own fortune, or even the fortune of a major sect!

For example, the map of mountains and rivers and the red embroidered ball in the hands of the sage Nuwa were transformed from her merits of mending the sky and creating humankind.

Furthermore, the Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow Exquisite Pagoda, which the Taiqing Saint claimed to be invincible upon standing beneath, was transformed from the merit of the creation of the world and is the number one acquired merit treasure in the primordial world!

If we could also refine the Sea-Stabilizing Pearl into a treasure of virtue.

If I possess this treasure in the future, I will be able to do as I please throughout this eon, and I will no longer have to worry about being tainted by the boundless karmic force of killing.

However, the thought only flashed through his mind before he forcibly suppressed it.

"The amount of merit required to transform the twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls into a merit-based spiritual treasure is simply too enormous."

He slowly shook his head, his mind clear.

"These twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls of mine were transformed from fragments of the Chaos Pearl. They were originally top-grade innate spiritual treasures, the first tier below innate treasures, and contained forty-eight innate restrictions."

To completely transform it into a merit-based spiritual treasure, the amount of merit required would likely be enormous.

"The reason why Dipankara was able to accomplish this was probably because after he defected to the Western Religion, he relied on the immeasurable Buddhist merits accumulated by the two saints and hundreds of millions of disciples of the entire Western Religion. It was definitely not something he could have done by his own strength."

With this thought, Ma Yuan completely let go of his greed, and his Dao heart returned to its tranquil state. He knew that the merit required to transform all twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls into treasures of merit was far beyond what Ma Yuan's current cultivation level could achieve.

His meager merits now are of no use whatsoever if he invests them in this matter.

It would be more practical to use it to protect the primordial spirit, assist in enlightenment, and solidify one's own foundation.

Moreover, what he seeks ultimately lies in the Great Dao of 'seeking within and reopening the chaos'.

But even the most powerful magical artifacts are ultimately external objects.

Rather than placing your hopes on external things, it is more prudent to hone yourself into a flawless and indestructible state.

He rode Ao Xuan southward.

As they ventured deeper into the southern heart of the wilderness, the surrounding landscape underwent another dramatic transformation.

It is no longer the desolate landscape of barren land and towering volcanoes.

Instead, it is a paradise filled with sycamore trees and ethereal atmosphere.

The raging fire elemental energy in the air gradually became pure and peaceful.

It even contained a faint trace of noble and immortal innate Daoist essence of fire.

On the earth, the charred volcanic rocks have been replaced by a kind of magical paulownia wood that is fiery red and has natural patterns flowing on it.

A series of clear, melodious, and majestic phoenix cries echoed from the depths of the sea of ​​clouds, resounding through the heavens.

Looking into the distance, one can only see the horizon.

A towering sacred mountain, hundreds of millions of feet high, its entire body ablaze with the eternally burning Southern Ming Fire, stands silently there.

The flames were not a symbol of destruction, but rather a manifestation of the transformative power of rebirth.

Above the sacred mountain, auspicious clouds swirled and auspicious energy rose. Countless magnificent five-colored phoenixes and seven-colored luan birds frolicked and danced in the flames, creating a spectacular sight.

Undead volcano.

The habitat of the phoenix clan.

The moment Ma Yuan saw this scene, he understood.

Back in the early days of the Dragon-Han War, the three races of Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin vied for supremacy in the primordial world, displaying their awe-inspiring power and dominating the universe.

Unfortunately, in the end, all three races were injured, their fortunes declined, and they had no choice but to withdraw from the prehistoric stage.

Although the Phoenix Clan still resides in this immortal volcano and is nominally the leader of all birds, they have long since closed themselves off from worldly affairs.

However, just as Ma Yuan was preparing to bypass this sacred place and continue on his way...

But what he saw was a fierce battle unfolding on the outskirts of that immortal volcano.

Several Phoenix Clan cultivators, dressed in magnificent feather robes and possessing handsome faces, were forming a battle formation and locked in a fierce battle with a massive beast shrouded in malevolent energy.

Those Phoenix Clan cultivators all possessed remarkable cultivation levels.

The leader had already reached the realm of Taiyi Golden Immortal.

They manipulated the pure Southern Ming Fire, transforming it into a sky full of fiery phoenixes, their attacks sharp and their formations exquisite.

But the ferocious beast was even more fearless, its murderous aura capable of corrupting the divine fire, and its sharp claws could easily tear through the void, making it difficult for the Phoenix Clan cultivators to win for a time, and they were caught in a bitter battle.

Ma Yuan stood atop the clouds, showing no intention of stepping forward to offer assistance.

He could clearly feel it the instant his own aura appeared.

The Phoenix Clan cultivators who were fighting the ferocious beast immediately diverted some of their attention to cast extremely wary glances in their direction.

His eyes were filled with alienation and distrust.

Clearly, to them, Ma Yuan, this suddenly appearing stranger, was a completely different Taiyi Immortal Lord.

Its threat level may not be lower than that of the ferocious beast.

(End of this chapter)