Old Master, Times Have Changed - Chapter 706 (Patreon)

Chapter 706: Taiyi’s “World Purification”

Yuan’s heart stirred slightly.

“What do you mean by that?”

What did he mean—out of selfishness, hoping Yuan would go back?

“Before everything here is over, I won’t leave the Tai Xuan Realm.” Xu Xing paused, then continued, “And as for how it all ends… no one can predict it.”

“If you can return smoothly, it proves your homeland is still safe and sound.”

Having said that, Xu Xing didn’t continue.

But Yuan already understood what he meant.

And in his heart, he already had an answer.

“Sorry, but like you—before everything here is over, I probably won’t be thinking about going back either.”

If he could return smoothly, it would prove his homeland was safe and sound. Then his fellow townsman could finally put one worry to rest and face everything in the Tai Xuan Realm with peace of mind.

But now, Yuan already knew what the Tai Xuan Realm was dealing with.

He understood the origins between the Human Clan and the Cang race, and he also knew the final decisive battle could erupt at any time…

Even a True Immortal couldn’t predict their own outcome in that battle.

Let alone anyone else.

There were too many people important to him in the Tai Xuan Realm. How could he possibly leave at a moment like this?

Even if the role he could play wasn’t that big.

“If anyone should apologize, it’s me.” Xu Xing sighed softly. “You came to the Tai Xuan Realm because of a single thought of mine, and I didn’t even ask for your consent.”

Even if it was only an unintentional thought.

But there was no denying it—this really was his fault.

“An experience countless people can only beg for…” Yuan shook his head slightly.

Whether it was good or bad depended mostly on the person, and even on what stage they were in.

For his past self, being suddenly thrown into a terrifying world where cultivators could move mountains and fill seas, pluck stars and seize moons—where even surviving was hard—of course that wouldn’t be a good thing.

But everything he had experienced over the next nearly two thousand years could absolutely not be called “bad.”

Every person he met, every event he lived through, and the achievements he ultimately reached…

Not to mention that he was now at the Soul Transformation realm.

Even if he found his homeland in the future, he had the ability to return to the very day he left and make up for every regret.

“When you really count it up, I’ve been lucky enough.”

…

Xu Xing fell silent for a while, then sat down in a chair nearby.

“Since you’ve decided to stay, I’ll tell you about the ‘Tai Xuan Ascension Web.’”

“Alright.”

Yuan nodded, then found a chair and sat as well.

Chi Jiuyu had been pricking up her ears and eavesdropping for a long time, but when she realized she still couldn’t hear anything, she pouted and wandered off to the side.

On the way, she took out her phone, snapped a picture, and posted it to her spirit-web account.

[Today I came with Shishu to meet Sage Emperor Yuan! o(￣▽￣)ブ]

Visible only to Ye Zhiwei, Ye Zhiwei, Zhao Ruohan, Lin Xuanxuan, Zhang Yunlu, and a few others.

Something like this wasn’t suitable to spread widely, after all.

Showing off in her small circle was enough.

Very soon…

[Quietly-refining-spells Little Zhao gave it a “like”]

Hehe.

Grinning widely, she put her phone away and walked over to Yin Ling, who was sitting obediently by the window.

“Hi, I’m Chi Jiuyu.”

Yin Ling blinked. “I’m Yin Ling.”

Sage Emperor Yuan was actually keeping a little girl like this with him—next time she met Senior Sister Wanzhu, she had to tell her!

Chi Jiuyu thought that to herself.

…

…

“The ‘Tai Xuan Ascension Web’ uses the Divine System framework of the Realm of Peace as its skeleton, with my power as its core. Its main purpose is to assist the progress of the Ascension Plan,” Xu Xing explained.

Just like how the authority of the gods in the Realm of Peace comes from the world itself.

Under the Tai Xuan Ascension Web system, the various functions used by “Ascension Envoys” come from evolutions of his immortal energy.

“The Ascension Plan?” Yuan was a little confused.

Back then, Xu Xing had taken Chi Jiuyu to Lingyin Pavilion, and only then—through Ning Ruo—did he learn the Ascension Plan existed.

At that point in time, only a handful of people even knew about it.

Naturally, Yuan had no related memories.

“The Ascension Plan was proposed by Ning… Daoist Ling.”

Daoist Ling…

Wanzhu’s master.

“The purpose is to select Human Clan cultivators from the myriad heavens and worlds—those below Hedao whose conduct and talent both pass—and bring them to the Tai Xuan Realm under the name of ‘ascension,’ then use the Immortal-Cleansing Pool to bestow upon them the Tai Xuan Realm’s own bearing.”

Xu Xing lifted a hand. From the void, a single thread descended—half-real, half-illusory—shimmering with an uncanny radiance.

With a light toss, the Ascension Web strand drifted down toward Yuan.

“The reason for doing this, you should already understand.”

Yuan: …

No, seriously—this is actually okay?

He stared at the Ascension Web strand floating before him and couldn’t help saying, “Then doesn’t that mean the Tai Xuan Realm is basically the Immortal Realm?”

Merit perfected, ascendees, the Immortal-Cleansing Pool…

“That’s more or less the idea,” Xu Xing didn’t deny.

…

Yuan fell silent for two seconds, then finally raised his hand and lightly touched the Ascension Web strand in front of him.

But the instant his fingertip made contact, the strand melted straight into him.

At the same time, a pale-blue, semi-transparent panel unfolded before his eyes.

[Tai Xuan Ascension Web]

[Name: Yuan]

[Age: Hidden]

[Realm: Soul Transformation]

[Class: Dharma Cultivator]

[Affiliation: Alliance of Righteousness]

[Foundation Technique: “Void-Mark Empty-Calamity Boundless True Canon” (Soul Transformation)]

[Divine Abilities, Arts: One Thought, a Thousand Worlds (Soul Transformation), Realm-Cutting Overlapping Shadows (Soul Transformation), Ten Thousand Reflections Body (Soul Transformation) …]

[Permissions: None]

[Dao Marker: None]

Yuan: …

They even made a personal profile page.

This is just mass-producing “systems,” isn’t it?!

“The current Ascension Web has gone through multiple rounds of testing and is already very stable. Once you recover a bit, go back, straighten out the Alliance of Righteousness, and build the Ascension Hall, I’ll have someone deliver the Ascension Platform hub over there.”

Yuan was conscious now, but the injuries to his Soul Transformation body hadn’t healed.

It wasn’t that Xu Xing couldn’t do it—rather, letting Yuan find his own way to recover would be better for his future cultivation.

At Soul Transformation, one could already peer into the true nature of the cosmos and understand the essence of all phenomena.

If he wanted to comprehend the Dao’s extreme and knock upon the Immortal Threshold, it was best to borrow as little from others as possible.

For example, earlier—when Cheng Ding was injured—Xu Xing only cut away some negative states that might have caused the Dao injury to worsen further.

“Oh right. The Speaker of the Alliance of Righteousness… the previous Speaker is also at the Sword Sect right now. He was present during the Ascension Web testing before. When you have time, you can go meet him.”

“And also—those girls will probably arrive at the Sword Sect tomorrow. You can prepare a bit first.”

Yuan paused.

“I understand.”

It really is one thing after another…

“Then that’s that.” Xu Xing said. “That’s basically everything I needed to say. Do you have anything you want to ask?”

… Yuan considered for a moment, then shook his head. “Let me think on my own first. I’ll deal with what’s in front of me, then we’ll talk.”

“Alright.”

Xu Xing stood up.

“Let’s go, Jiuyu.”

“Huh?!” Chi Jiuyu, who had just gotten familiar with Yin Ling, froze. “We’re leaving already?”

With her naturally friendly personality, she had successfully made friends with Yin Ling, calling her “Xiao Ling” every other sentence.

“If you want to stay here, you can.”

“Umm… I’d better go.” Chi Jiuyu stood up, then turned back to Yin Ling. “I’m leaving, Xiao Ling. Come find me to play sometime—I’ll be at the Sword Sect these next two days.”

Xiao Ling was pretty pure and simple.

Her Ancestor Jiuyu liked making friends with pure, simple people the most!

“Mm.” Yin Ling answered softly.

Even though Chi Jiuyu’s topics jumped all over the place and a lot of it went over her head…

She didn’t dislike it. Instead, she found talking with Chi Jiuyu pretty interesting.

“Let’s go, let’s go! Shishu, wait for me!”

Chi Jiuyu trotted after Xu Xing.

Soon, with the sound of the door closing, the two figures vanished completely from view.

Yuan withdrew his gaze, then looked again at the Tai Xuan Ascension Web personal interface floating before him.

…

In just a few decades, they’d even made “systems,” and the kind you could mass-produce!

If he really waited until he returned home and then came back to the Tai Xuan Realm, this world would probably become something he didn’t recognize.

…

…

Meanwhile.

Taiyi Realm.

Counting from when Yuan was taken away by Huo, several days had already passed here.

Ji Yinxue arrived in the Taiyi Realm in an overwhelmingly high-profile manner—shattering the world’s crystal-wall system and stepping in under the worship of ten thousand Daos.

That very day, she not only forcibly interrupted the Taiyi Realm’s transformation process and extracted Heaven’s Will of Taiyi, she also killed four reclusive Sacred Lords of the Chaos side, seven Sacred Kings, and nineteen Saints.

As for “Saint-tier” transcendent beings, there was no need to even mention it—nearly half of the higher-level Chaos-side Saint-tier were dead.

And for the lower-level ones, Ji Yinxue didn’t even need to lift a finger. Nearly two-thirds of the Chaos-side transcendent beings died in the collapse of the Tai Yi Continent.

If, at the last moment, Kongji Sacred Lord hadn’t burned her essence in an attempt to restrain the Tai Yi Continent’s collapse…

Then Ji Yinxue would likely have “purged” the entire Taiyi Realm that very day.

Tai Yi Continent, Kongji Sacred Domain.

Within the sacred city, Ji Yinxue walked slowly along the streets.

Kongji Sacred Lord followed half a step behind, her whole body visibly weakened, her aura withered to an extreme.

When she burned her essence, she held nothing back. That was why she fell into silence on the spot, only awakening today.

“You…”

“You want to ask why I came to your world, don’t you?” Ji Yinxue spoke as if she could see straight through her heart, voicing the very question Kongji Sacred Lord was about to ask.

“Yes. I do wish to ask your purpose in coming to the Taiyi Realm.”

Though Ji Yinxue’s terrifying level far surpassed her, Kongji Sacred Lord felt not the slightest fear.

“This realm is utterly evil—using the world’s light as bait, and the goodness in human hearts as the hook.” Ji Yinxue’s tone was calm. “This world is filthy. Human lives are like roadside weeds, and transcendent beings wreak havoc at will.”

“This time, I came to Taiyi precisely for ‘world purification’!”

To her, comprehending the Dao’s extreme was secondary. Slaughtering every wicked, twisted fiend in this realm was what mattered most!

… Kongji Sacred Lord fell silent for a long time, then slowly spoke. “The Taiyi Realm became what it is today because I lost to Dongming Sacred Lord back then.”

Her defeat had plunged the entire Taiyi Realm into chaos.

In an era like this, they could only submit helplessly to the current.

In Kongji Sacred Lord’s view, aside from a small portion, the vast majority should have been given a chance to repent and atone—instead of being beaten to death with one indiscriminate cudgel like this.

“From that perspective, I’m also part of ‘evil.’ Then why did you still save me?”

Yes—when she burned her essence without holding back, she had no path left.

She only wanted to do what she could to save the collapsing Tai Yi Continent.

In the end, it was this “Pure World Dao Lord” who saved her, and even sent her back to the Kongji Sacred Domain to repair her injuries.

“Good and evil, right and wrong—I have my own answers in my heart.” Ji Yinxue’s voice remained steady.

Kongji Sacred Lord was very kind. She deserved a good ending.

Good should be rewarded, evil should be repaid.

The world should be like that!

This was the “Dao” she held to. No matter how others viewed it, her heart would not be shaken.

…

Watching Ji Yinxue’s straight back—every step precise, without the slightest deviation—Kongji Sacred Lord suddenly felt a kind of powerlessness.

As a Sacred Lord-tier transcendent of the “new ritual cultivation system,” she knew she could never shake the thoughts in this Pure World Dao Lord’s heart.

So they remained silent.

Kongji Sacred Lord followed behind Ji Yinxue and arrived outside Kongji Sacred City.

But then she saw that the crystalline palace pillars lined up on both sides had vanished, replaced by figures in gorgeous golden robes and crown-like diadems.

These were all high-level Order-side Saint-tier transcendent beings who had died in the holy war back then.

After their deaths, she preserved a thread of their divine-soul origin and sealed it into the pillars, nourishing it with the power of the entire Kongji Sacred Domain and guiding them toward revival.

When they saw Kongji Sacred Lord appear, they all knelt on one knee, devout in posture.

“We pay respects to the Sacred Lord!”

Even after dying once, there wasn’t the slightest resentment on their faces.

Where the heart points, life and death are nothing to fear!

Kongji Sacred Lord paused, immediately guessing this must be the Pure World Dao Lord’s handiwork.

Then she first told everyone to rise.

Only then did she look toward the two figures kneeling in the center of the Great Dao, motionless like statues.

The two had hunched bodies, so thin and frail it seemed a gust of wind could blow them away. In front of them lay a cane and a heavy hammer, like nothing more than ordinary old men.

Dianling and Cuijiu!

They were the two reclusive Sacred Lords whom Dongming Sacred Lord had called in before—when Kongji Sacred Lord went to assist Yuan—to block her.

“These two are for you to deal with,” Ji Yinxue said bluntly.

And the instant she spoke, the two recovered from their frozen state.

They tried to stand, only to discover their knees seemed rooted to the ground, completely unable to move.

Not only that—the vast transcendent power within them, and their eternal, un磨-able physiques, had both become like those of ordinary people.

They even felt cold sweat on their backs.

The moment they saw Ji Yinxue and Kongji Sacred Lord, they instantly understood their situation.

Any “backbone” or “face” was thrown away on the spot.

They were practical people. They knew this Pure World Dao Lord far surpassed their current level of existence.

“World purification—ngh…!”

Dianling barely managed to spit out two words before the rest jammed in his throat.

Ji Yinxue couldn’t be bothered listening to their nonsense and directly sealed their ability to speak.

“These two achieved Integration—what you call ‘Sacred Kings’—four thousand three hundred and twenty-one years ago. In their lives, they did not do much evil, nor did they do much good.”

“Counting back from three hundred and seventeen years ago, they have never once engaged in wanton slaughter of the innocent.”

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