This subversive truth was like an invisible heavy hammer, striking hard at the hearts of all the powerful cultivators.
“Leaf…?” The shadows of Eternal Night Demon God fluctuated violently, his voice filled with unbelievable confusion.
Bone Emperor Demon God’s skeletal body emitted faint cracking sounds, his ghostly flames dimmed, as he stared blankly into the Void Realm.
“Hahahaha!” Blood Hell Demon God laughed maniacally, yet his sea of blood was as still as a mirror: “We, who have roamed the ages, are merely ants at the tip of a giant tree!”
Celestial Venerable Fentian’s smile vanished, his posture hunched, his voice hoarse: “Fellow Daoist Li… how much have you truly glimpsed? Do we… still have hope?”
Mind Clarity Holy Monk’s Buddhist wheel spun with chaotic golden light, as he sighed with compassion: “A single leaf, a single Bodhi… yet this leaf is a leaf about to wither! Alas, how sorrowful!”
Soul Devouring Demon God’s face twisted, as he shrieked in doubt: “Heretical talk! It must be a weird Dao backlash illusion!”
Grand Profound Sword Revered, like an ancient sword returned to its sheath, asked Li Mu in a deep voice: “Fellow Daoist Li, have you fallen into the trap of the Weird Dao’s will, and been given false ‘memories’?”
“Not an illusion, but the truth analyzed from its Origin imprint and Dao traces after the Chaos Treasure Mansion refined its core. Our Three Realms are merely a withered leaf named ‘Barren Corner’ at the end of the ‘Profound Branch’ of the ‘Primeval Ancient Tree’. The Weird Dao’s mother body is the ‘Weird Cancer’ parasitic on the World Tree; the Demon Abyss Seal merely cut off the thinnest tip of its suction tube that extended into this place!” Li Mu shook his head, explaining calmly.
“Mother body’s power?” Mysterious Fiend Demon God asked with difficulty.
“Immeasurable.” Li Mu said gravely: “Even a ninth-tier supreme treasure is like a firefly before it. The Weird Tree’s will that we are resisting is probably less than a single thought of its.”
Despair, like cold ice, froze the powerful cultivators.
Star Dome Old Ancestor’s voice was filled with sorrow: “Could it be… that our tens of thousands of years of arduous cultivation… is ultimately just food for that ‘cancer’? We don’t even have the right to struggle?”
“Despair is the nourishment most desired by the Weird Dao Cancer, … … However, it has not yet reached the point of an unsolvable catastrophe!” Li Mu’s voice was resolute, like a stabilizing needle, causing everyone’s spirits to stir.
“Although the Weird Dao Cancer is strong, we are not just sitting ducks!” Li Mu changed the subject, posing the most crucial question, his voice carrying a weight and probing quality that pierced through the Void Realm: “Fellow Daoists, having traversed the Three Realms for eons, do you know what other Realms exist beyond this ‘Extreme Dao’?”
This question, once uttered, was like a thunderclap from a clear sky!
In the dead silent Star Domain, the suffocating sensation was instantly replaced by a deeper sense of bewilderment.
“Beyond the Extreme Dao?” Celestial Venerable Fentian’s hunched body trembled slightly, his eyes flickering with sharp light, which then turned into deeper confusion and solemnity: “The Extreme Dao is already the Peak of this world. Beyond that… ancient remnants of texts might mention ‘Transcendence’ or ‘Dao Master’, but these are all ethereal, unseen by anyone, and without concrete proof! What we seek is merely the Perfection of the Extreme Dao, to glimpse a sliver of the Dao’s Origin.”
“Hmph!” Blood Hell Demon God suppressed his churning emotions, fierce light and confusion intertwined in his blood-red eyes: “The Extreme Dao is the Peak! A Demon God’s body, Eternal for tens of thousands of years! What you speak of as ‘beyond’ is merely a legend, a mirage!”
Bone Emperor Demon God’s eye sockets glowed with flickering ghostly flames, as he said solemnly: “The Demon Abyss Legacy is the most ancient, and it only records the ultimate Realm of a Demon God. Beyond that… if such beings exist, why would they be confined within a ‘leaf’?”
Mind Clarity Holy Monk pressed his palms together, the chaotic golden light on his Buddhist wheel flickering uncertainly: “Amitabha… Buddhist scriptures record ‘Bodhi Fruit Status’ and ‘Unsurpassed Right Enlightenment’, but such Realms require transcending the Three Realms and Five Elements, and shattering all phenomena, which this world cannot bear. Li Shi Zhu’s question points directly to the ultimate Dao.”
Grand Profound Sword Revered’s gaze was as sharp as a sword. After a moment of silence, he slowly said: “This old man has exhausted the Sword Dao, only to feel that ahead lies an abyss, like a prison, as if there is a barrier. The Realms of ‘Uniting with the Dao’ and ‘Dao Manifesting into Myriad Forms’ recorded in ancient texts might be that ‘beyond’. However, such Realms require breaking free from the cage of this Heaven and Earth, and we… are all within the cage.”
Soul Devouring Demon God’s illusory face twisted, as he shrieked: “Absurd! If there truly were higher Realms, why have we never sensed them? Why has no living being in this world ever set foot there? Fellow Daoist Li, could it be that you have been instilled with a false ‘Dao path’ by that Weird Dao’s will?”
Mysterious Fiend Demon God, Eternal Night Demon God, Star Dome Old Ancestor, and others all showed solemnity and deep contemplation.
Li Mu’s question was like a key, attempting to open a door they had never considered, or even subconsciously believed did not exist.
However, combined with the truth of the “leaf,” the very existence of this door held a chilling possibility—perhaps, only by stepping “through the door” would there be a glimmer of hope to resist the “Weird Cancer”!
Li Mu took in everyone’s reactions; their confusion, doubt, and limited understanding were all within his expectations. He did not directly refute Soul Devouring Demon God, but slowly spoke, getting straight to the core: “If this world is merely a leaf-cage, then what would it be like beyond the cage, above the branches, and even at the Peak of that Primeval Ancient Tree…? The Dao has no end, Fellow Daoists, your horizons… should not stop at this withered leaf.”
Li Mu’s words were like throwing a giant stone into stagnant water, stirring up deeper ripples.
The blankness, doubt, and even despair on the faces of the powerful cultivators were replaced by an unprecedented, stinging thirst for knowledge.
Yes, if this world truly was a withered leaf-cage, then what would it be like beyond the cage, above the branches, and even at the Peak of that Primeval Ancient Tree…? The Dao has no end, and their billions of years of cultivation, were they truly just circling within the veins of this withered leaf?
“Fellow Daoist Li… since you say you ‘were fortunate enough to glimpse beyond the Extreme Dao’… do such Realms truly exist? And how… how did you manage to glimpse them?” Star Dome Old Ancestor’s sorrow had not faded, but a glimmer of hope ignited in his eyes as he asked with concern.
All gazes, as if pulled by invisible threads, instantly focused on Li Mu.
“They exist.” Li Mu’s voice was resolute, carrying a profound composure that came from discerning the truth. “This is not conjecture, nor a Weird Dao illusion, but a revelation ‘analyzed’ from the most fundamental Dao traces and imprints when refining the core of the Chaos Treasure Mansion. Just as a withered leaf can sense the Context of its branch, that core imprint contains… Dao traces far beyond what this world’s ‘Extreme Dao’ can bear!”
Pausing, Li Mu seemed to be recalling that breathtaking refining process, his aura becoming ethereal and distant: “When my mind merged with the deepest Origin imprint of the Treasure Mansion’s core, it was like a frog in a well gazing up at the true Starry Sky for the first time! Deep within that imprint, there was no specific Cultivation Technique Legacy, but rather a certain… ‘state of existence’ of the ‘Dao’! It was vast, profound, and self-contained; the levels of rules and power it contained made the ‘Extreme Dao’ Laws I knew seem insignificant, like a stream compared to an ocean, or a firefly compared to a blazing sun!”
Celestial Venerable Fentian leaned forward, eagerly pressing: “What kind of state is it? Fellow Daoist Li, what exactly did you glimpse?”
Li Mu glanced at him and said directly: “The core imprint of the Chaos Treasure Mansion did not directly bestow specific Realm names or cultivation methods. It was more like a fleeting ‘revelation’, a directional ‘coordinate’. What I ‘comprehended’ was not its form, but its ‘essence’!”
“I comprehended that the core characteristic of the Realm ‘beyond the Extreme Dao’ lies in ‘Origin’! In ‘Seed’! In ‘Self’!”
“Origin? Seed? Self?” Bone Emperor Demon God's eye sockets flickered intensely with ghost fire, and his skeletal fingers unconsciously rubbed together, emitting a faint scraping sound. These few words, simple yet heavy as a thousand jun, pointed directly to the root of the Great Dao.
“Precisely!” Li Mu’s gaze was like lightning, sweeping over everyone, and he explained in detail: “What all you Fellow Daoists cultivate, whether Immortal, Demon, God, or Buddha, no matter how world-shaking the Divine Ability, the ‘Origin’ of its power is all ‘external’! Drawing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, borrowing the Law of the Great Dao, seizing the vitality of all things… This is ‘cultivating the Dao of external Origin’! Refining, controlling, and maximizing the power of ‘external Origin’ is the ‘Peak’ in this Realm!
Li Mu’s voice suddenly rose, carrying a thunderous roar: “The ‘Beyond Peak’ reflected by the Chaos Treasure Mansion imprint, its power’s ‘Origin’ is ‘internal’! It is no longer ‘borrowing’ and ‘using’, but ‘generating’ and ‘creating’! It is like… within one’s own Chaos Void Realm!”
“‘Planting’ the root ‘Seed’ that belongs uniquely to ‘oneself’! The Foundation of this Dao, its ‘Origin’ is born from ‘self’, grows from ‘self’, and is perfected by ‘self’! I… will tentatively call it ‘Planting the Dao in Self-Origin’! Therefore, Beyond Peak should be the Seed Planting Realm!”
“Seed Planting Realm!”
These three words were like three Chaos Divine Thunders that split heaven and earth, striking fiercely into the minds of all the powerful cultivators.
“Internal Origin… self-generated… self-created…, planting the Dao of self-Origin.” Celestial Venerable Fentian muttered to himself, his hunched body straightened slightly, and his eyes burst forth with brilliant light, as if he had seen a completely new Realm.
He had pursued the ultimate fire that could burn all directions throughout his life, and its Origin… was not in the Heaven and Earth, but in himself? This subversive realization impacted his Dao Foundation!
“Self as Origin? Self as seed?” Blood Hell Demon God’s insane laughter completely vanished, and his huge blood-red eyes churned with an unprecedented storm. He had plundered the blood Qi of all living beings to achieve his Demon God body, and the Origin of his power all came from ‘external’ sources.
If power originated from an internal ‘seed’ within oneself, then the meaning of plunder… He felt a tremor originating from the instinct of life itself.
“Amitabha!” Mind Clarity Holy Monk’s Buddhist wheel glowed with unprecedented brilliance: “Bodhi originally has no tree, nor is the bright mirror a stand! So… the Bodhi fruit position is not found by seeking a pure land externally, but by planting the Bodhi cause in one’s own heart! ‘Planting the Dao in Self-Origin’… This is the supreme righteous path to transcend the withered leaf cage of this Realm! Excellent! Most excellent!”
Mind Clarity Holy Monk’s compassion transformed into great joy as a glimmer of the ultimate direction of the Great Dao finally appeared.
Grand Profound Sword Revered was as silent as an ancient sword returned to its sheath, but at this moment, the sword sheath emitted a low, excited hum. He had pursued the unity of body and Dao, and the transformation of sword into myriad forms throughout his life. If what was ‘united’ was the ‘Origin Dao’ planted by himself, if what was ‘transformed’ were the myriad Laws derived from self-Origin… that would be the true ultimate of the Sword Dao!
Leap out of the cage, open a new heaven with the sword! A majestic Sword Intent of gestation and creation quietly sprouted deep within Grand Profound Sword Revered’s body, which had been silent for eons!
“Absurd! Absurd!” Soul Devouring Demon God shrieked, his illusory face twisted and deformed by extreme fear and rejection, and he said in an incomprehensible tone: “Self as Origin? Self as seed? Without external support, how can one grow? How can one resist the erosion of the Weird Tree? This is simply a self-destructive path! It is the most sinister trap of the Weird Tree’s will, luring us to abandon the power Foundation we rely on for survival!”
Profound Fiend Demon God, Eternal Night Demon God, Star Dome Old Ancestor… all their minds were greatly shaken, and their expressions changed erratically. None of their Cultivation Techniques relied on external sources, meaning they had no connection with the true Great Dao, unless they severed their Dao and cultivated anew!
Li Mu’s words, without specific Cultivation Techniques, were more subversive than any Cultivation Technique, but they fundamentally shook their understanding of cultivation Foundation and power sources that they had believed in for tens of thousands of years!
“It is not abandoning the Foundation,” Li Mu looked calmly at Soul Devouring, his gaze seemingly able to penetrate the fear in his Soul, and said directly: “But reshaping the Foundation! Like a giant tree seedling, initially it may need to draw nutrients from the soil, but its ambition to reach the sky, its Eternal vitality, its ultimate mighty power to look down on the sky!”
“Its Origin lies in the seed of life conceived within itself! ‘Planting the Dao in Self-Origin’ does not mean isolating external nutrients, but transforming external sources into resources to nourish the ‘Self-Origin Dao Seed’. Its core and ultimate goal are for that unique ‘my’ Dao Seed to take root, sprout, grow, until… it breaks open the cage of this Realm and touches the vast branches outside that cage!”
As he spoke, Li Mu stretched out his palm, and a faint but incomparably pure stream of Qi, carrying a primitive and independent aura like the beginning of Chaos, slowly appeared, swirling and arising and perishing in his palm, like a miniature Chaos Dao Seed, emitting a charm completely different from any known power in the Three Realms.
“This is not Divine Ability, not magical power,” Li Mu’s voice carried a guiding meaning, and also contained a hint of profundity from his own ongoing exploration of understanding, reminding them: “This is a nascent form of ‘Intent’ that naturally emanated from the depths of my Origin when I tried to understand the Origin of that Dao Seed and my mind resonated with it, ….”
That faint aura was like the first spark thrown onto a dry grassland. In an instant, the Divine Thought of all the powerful cultivators, like gluttons smelling a peerless delicacy, wrapped around it desperately, greedily perceiving, analyzing, and comprehending this strange and sublime “Intent”.
However, the Dao Seed Li Mu formed was his own unique Chaos Dao Origin, and although others observed and comprehended it, they ultimately fell short and could not truly touch its core Origin.
The Demon Gods and Peak cultivators were unwilling to let such a great Opportunity go to waste, and their Divine Thought, like a net, instantly enveloped that wisp of “Intent.” Immediately, their expressions varied, and their own Dao Origins trembled violently.
Celestial Venerable Fentian: Dao Fire flickered erratically on his body surface, as if this wisp of “Intent” had ignited some dormant Origin, and the Dao Laws in his eyes were frantically deducing.
Grand Profound Sword Revered: The hum within his body grew even louder, and a hint of sharpness, like the splitting of heaven and earth, was brewing deep within his silent form.
Mind Clarity Holy Monk: He softly chanted Buddhist mantras, and the light of his Buddhist wheel gently but firmly merged into that wisp of “Intent,” as if affirming that “the self-heart is the pure land.”
Soul Devouring Demon God: Fear turned into rage! “Illusory! Break!” An invisible and intangible black thorn, specialized in devouring the Origin of the Divine Soul, silently pierced towards that wisp of “Intent” in Li Mu’s palm, intending to pollute and devour it!
Profound Fiend Demon God: A dark glow flashed in his eyes, and a ghostly claw, condensed from pure Profound Nether Demonic Fiend Qi, struck first, grabbing at the stream of Qi! He did not intend to destroy it, but rather to forcibly seize it and study the secret of this “Self-Origin”!
Facing Soul Devouring’s sinister Soul thorn and Profound Fiend’s domineering demonic claw, Li Mu’s expression remained unchanged.
The faint wisp of Qi in his palm suddenly trembled slightly.
Buzz!
An indescribable “sense of existence” suddenly spread. It was not an explosion of power, but as if it itself was the “Origin point,” untouched by all Laws!
“What?!” Profound Fiend Demon God’s expression changed for the first time, and he abruptly retracted his demonic claw, looking at the trace of Chaos aura remaining on his fingertips, his eyes filled with doubt and surprise.
That wisp of “Intent,” faint as a candle in the wind, yet contained a supreme quality of “invulnerable to all Laws, self-generating and self-evolving”! It seemed to exist independently of the Laws of this Realm, forming its own minute Chaos! (End of Chapter)
