"For the sake of our descendants, some things must be settled within our generation."
"Annihilate the entire Abyss Demon race..."
...
The united human forces fell silent for a brief moment, then, as if by unspoken agreement, they all began to sing an ancient battle hymn popular in the primordial era of the human race.
Even the strongest among humanity, standing at the forefront, hummed the well-known battle song.
In that battle, countless human powerhouses charged headlong into the meat grinder of the battlefield!
...
At this moment, his eyes seemed to witness the scene that had unfolded back then.
The horns of war had already sounded!
The corpses of innumerable human powerhouses and Abyss Demon race members rained down upon the ground.
Later, the Abyss Demons, who once considered themselves gods, had their bones shattered, their hearts pierced, and were killed one by one.
This war, by its end, had altered the landscape of these mountains and rivers significantly, with endless plains of skeletons and rivers of blood.
...
Just then, that intense pain resurfaced.
It was as if he had just awakened, and this time it was even more severe, as if countless ants were gnawing at his body.
The pain forced him to crouch down, clutching his head with both hands.
Accompanying this intense pain, a completely unfamiliar memory emerged in his mind.
These scenes flashed before his eyes like a rapid playback.
Humans, Abyss Demons, and other races.
Countless memory fragments flooded his mind, and passively absorbing them, he could only grit his teeth and endure.
It took three days and three nights for these memories, originally his own, to finally be assimilated.
...
The master of the tomb chamber spoke his name: "Duan Yuhang!"
These three words seemed to be taboo within the Demon Abyss. The vast and immeasurably powerful Ghost River receded to both sides.
Countless cultivators, clad in ghostly armor and transformed into ghostly soldiers, surged towards the master of the tomb.
Innumerable zombies emerged from the depths of the corpse land, respectfully welcoming their king like subjects!
This top powerhouse, who had fallen in battle for humanity, had finally come back to life after tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions, of years had passed.
...
In a desolate wilderness outside the Demon Continent.
Wu Jian, lost in thought, flew through the sky, not even bothering to tend to his injuries.
"My kinsman, your brother is sorry for you."
"But, for the sake of the Crystal of Laws, for the sake of the family, brother can only sacrifice you."
At this moment, his expression was dazed, and his mind was severely wandering.
...
Just then, a fluctuation suddenly occurred in mid-air.
Sharp sword energy appeared and struck Wu Jian's back.
With a "puff," the Chuxi Sword pierced through Wu Jian's chest, creating a blood hole the size of a bowl.
"Damn it!"
"Who are you?!"
Suddenly ambushed, Wu Jian roared. His spiritual sense was normally extremely strong, but due to his dazed state, he was ultimately ambushed by Wu Tao.
Wu Tao heard this, let out a cold laugh, and did not reply.
He had no leisure to exchange pleasantries with the dead.
Seeing Wu Tao's demeanor, Wu Jian couldn't hold back and attacked first.
Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger!
A phantom fire tiger suddenly leaped out of the void and pounced towards Wu Tao.
As a result, Wu Tao showed no fear. With a slash of the Chuxi Sword in mid-air, a terrifying sweep of sword energy instantly slew the phantom fire tiger.
Seeing this, Wu Jian finally began to panic. It was important to note that his body was already nearing the end of its strength, and coupled with his recent severe injuries, how could he possibly defeat Wu Tao, who had been conserving his strength and hiding in the shadows?
After dozens of exchanges, Wu Tao's Chuxi Sword directly severed Wu Jian's head.
"I won!"
"As expected, I wasn't wrong. Even if someone were to escape the great tomb in the end, it would surely be after a fierce struggle. As long as I was prepared, I would never fail!"
Wu Tao played with the Crystal of Laws in his hand and thought gleefully.
...
Alas, how perilous! The path to Shu is more difficult than ascending to heaven. To the west of Taibai, there are bird paths, which can traverse the summit of Mount Emei...
Mountains collapsed and rocks crumbled, heroes perished, and then sky ladders and stone paths were linked. Above, there are towering peaks where the six dragons return, and below, there are rushing waves and treacherous currents. Even the yellow crane cannot fly over, and the gibbons are worried about climbing...
Chu Region, Shu Commandery!
This treacherous mountain path called the Shu Road was a path that, since ancient times, mortals had used for trade. For generations, countless lives had been spent carving it out of these life-devouring high mountains and cliffs.
The mortal merchants and commoners inside and outside the commandery communicated and traded through this mountain path. Depending on the type of goods, it was often called the Tea Horse Ancient Road.
Leading packhorses and carrying goods, walking on this mountain path, one could clearly see the cliff on one side, a chasm of ten thousand fathoms.
The mountains of Shu Commandery were steep and majestic, with snow-capped peaks at the summits, reflecting sunlight so brightly it could blind one's eyes.
The environment was so perilous, and the road even more so.
The mountain path wound and twisted, ascending around the mountain. If one were to travel in the rain, although the surrounding scenery was better, the mountain path was prone to collapse, and with one careless step, both person and goods could fall off the cliff!
It was now autumn, the season of late autumn.
A young man, walking alone with an ancient sword in hand, treaded the path, step by step, unhurriedly.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, the path ahead, which had been a narrow bend, suddenly widened, and the view opened up.
This was a turning point, a spacious back of the mountainside connecting the ancient paths to the front and back. Further down, the path became easier to traverse stone. The cliff also ended here, and apart from bandits and beasts, there were no other obstacles.
Merchants who had been traveling for business for years always breathed a sigh of relief upon reaching this place, their entire bodies relaxing.
Upon arriving here, it meant the most dangerous part of the journey was over. Indeed, if one stood on a protruding high stone nearby, they could even see the prosperous towns within Shu Commandery.
"The scenery here is quite good, but I wonder why the cultivators of Shu Commandery don't smash these troublesome continuous mountain ranges. Although it would require great effort, it would be a great deed benefiting all people!"
This man was clearly not a merchant. He gazed at the precipitous cliff with interest, admiring it while also expressing a hint of confusion.
As he gazed at the cliff, he tilted his head back, and the wind blew his black hair, revealing a very ordinary face!
"Wu Tao!"
If anyone familiar with him were to see him, they would find it hard to believe their eyes. The formerly decisive and ruthless individual was now walking on the road in such a manner.
After a brief pause, Wu Tao suddenly turned, sat on a large rock, crossed his legs, and took a short rest.
He was truly tired, not physically, but in spirit.
He traveled the world, tempering his Dao heart, seeking clarity of mind!
Along the way, he had witnessed torrential rains lasting three days, rivers overflowing, dikes breached, floods stretching for thousands of miles, and countless mortals fleeing for their lives, fearing that a single moment's delay would lead to disaster!
He had seen volcanoes erupt, lava spewing forth, killing all life, leaving only charred remains as far as the eye could see!
He had also seen the earth shake, the ground crack open, countless houses collapse, the land devastated, and the air filled with cries of agony.
Wu Tao was a person of determination and perseverance, otherwise, he would not have reached his current realm.
Regarding the clarity of his mind, through years of travel, he felt he had understood enough, comprehended it, and grasped it thoroughly.
However, had he achieved enlightenment?
No...
Knowing, understanding, and enlightenment were completely different things, two entirely different concepts.
Only when he truly embarked on the path to Nascent Soul, acting according to his heart and observing all things in the world to find his own Dao, did he finally understand what he was lacking.
He lacked the cognition of heaven and earth and the comprehension of laws.
There is an old saying that the closer you are to something, the less clear you are about its true essence.
The realm was much the same.
The closer Wu Tao got to the Nascent Soul stage, the more confused he became.
What is a domain?
A domain is an extension of laws, a method for Nascent Soul cultivators to borrow the power of heaven and earth.
To comprehend one's own domain, one must achieve a certain level and height of understanding of heaven and earth.
Like a clay sculpture or a stone statue, Wu Tao sat on the wide rock, and so he sat for seven days and seven nights.
Sunrise and sunset, moonrise and moonset, clear skies and overcast days, rainy days and scorching sun, none of it disturbed him or caused him to move.
Just as he seemed poised to sit there forever, an aged voice sounded.
"Young man, you've been sitting here for so long. What are you thinking about?"
As he spoke, the owner of the voice, an old man with white hair, over sixty years old, put down the load on his shoulders and sat down beside him.
Judging by his appearance, he clearly mistook Wu Tao for a young merchant who had gotten into a predicament due to a slip or an oversight.
This was the first person in seven days to actively speak to him. Wu Tao cast him a few more glances.
This glance sparked some curiosity in Wu Tao's heart.
...
This old man, who looked about sixty years old, had a face weathered by the elements, indicating a life full of experiences.
Although the old man was not wearing fine silk garments, he was not wearing coarse cloth either, but a gray cloth long gown.
This kind of gray cloth long gown, logically speaking, should not be worn by arduous laborers like itinerant merchants.
For while the income of these itinerant merchants was slightly better than that of farmers, it was not much better.