Yuan’s Ascension

Chapter 1315: The Creator Of The Ancestral Pagoda (1)

“Senior Tian Xu, I’m coming right away,” Wu Yuan said, cupping his hands respectfully before stepping onto the shimmering light beneath his feet.

The light pulsed with mysterious fluctuations, drawing him swiftly toward the distant void. It significantly amplified his flight speed, allowing him to subtly surpass the spacetime limit.

Such incredible speed. Wu Yuan thought, eyes widening. No less effective than traversing via the Great Dao of Spacetime’s essence. According to his senses, Senior Tian Xu should still be at the True Saint stage. What kind of method was this?

In moments, the stream of light carried Wu Yuan an immense distance. The spacetime before him suddenly split open like a vast curtain, revealing a boundless world beyond.

This? Wu Yuan’s expression betrayed his shock. He hadn’t detected that such a world lay hidden beneath the dark void.

No Primordial fluctuations? Is this a region beyond the reach of the Primordial Rules? His astonishment grew as he thought of the Nine Realms within the Azure Saint Tomb, which similarly existed beyond the Primordial Rules’ influence.

What an expansive world. Wu Yuan gazed downward. Even without sensing the Primordium or wielding his Dao Master’s Authority, his strength remained intact, drawn from his self-created Dao.

With a single thought, Wu Yuan could sense the vast, endless land below. The sheer magnitude of this realm likely rivaled the entire Ling Jiang Universe. Countless lifeforms dwelled here. Many were at Sovereign level, along with some eternal beings. Most Eternals were Perennials, with only a handful reaching the Saint level.

The radiant light continued guiding Wu Yuan through layer upon layer of clouds until he arrived at a place beyond the reach of this realm’s countless inhabitants. Here at the edge of the void floated a hall. From a distance, Wu Yuan made out ancient characters inscribed on the hall’s plaque: Starweave.

Starweave Hall? He mused, wondering at its significance.

Wu Yuan alighted at the hall gates. On the plaza, a middle-aged man in azure robes had already set out a table with a pot of tea and two cups.

“Wu Yuan, you’ve arrived. Please, sit,” the azure-robed man smiled.

“Senior Tian Xu, you…?” Wu Yuan inhaled sharply, sensing that Daoist Tian Xu seemed vastly different from the person he’d known before.

“Sit down first,” the azure-robed man said with a smile.

“Yes,” Wu Yuan replied respectfully, taking a seat across Daoist Tian Xu.

The azure-robed man poured tea for Wu Yuan, who accepted with hasty reverence.

“You sensed this place so quickly after your breakthrough,” Daoist Tian Xu finally spoke. “It seems you’ve perfectly merged with the Great Dao of Spacetime’s essence. Among all the Dao Masters throughout history, you’re likely the first to achieve this.” He paused, adding emotionally, “In terms of raw power, you can rightfully claim the title of strongest Dao Master since the Primordium.”

Strongest Dao Master? Wu Yuan wasn’t surprised; he had anticipated as much.

“Senior, were the other Dao Masters unable to perfectly merge with their Great Dao’s essence?” Wu Yuan asked curiously.

“They couldn’t. Neither I, nor Mountain Daoist, nor any other Dao Master could do it back then,” Daoist Tian Xu explained. “We forged our own Daos relying on the Great Dao’s essence… With flaws in our self-created Daos, perfectly merging with the Great Dao’s essence was nearly impossible. By utilizing the Great Dao of Spacetime’s essence for traversal, I believe you’re able to achieve astonishing speeds.”

“Indeed,” Wu Yuan nodded. “It took me only three days to travel here from the River of Universes.”

“Three days? Much faster than me,” Daoist Tian Xu smiled. “Back then, it would have taken me several months.”

Wu Yuan was inwardly shocked. It seemed that when Senior Tian Xu was the Spacetime Dao Master, his abilities didn’t match Wu Yuan’s current capabilities. Wielding a Great Dao’s Authority also required sufficient strength.

“You must have many questions,” Daoist Tian Xu said. “Originally, I planned to wait until your strength progressed further, and until I reached the Dao Zenithel stage, before answering them. However, since your qi refiner self has already become a Dao Zenithel and found its way here, there’s no harm in telling you about it earlier.”

“This junior shall listen,” Wu Yuan said respectfully. Daoist Tian Xu was too mysterious. While beings like Goddess Nüwa, Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu, and the Heavenly Imperator were incomparably powerful, their pasts were still somewhat traceable. Only Daoist Tian Xu remained shrouded in absolute mystery.

“I was born bearing great providence, the first lifeform to emerge in this Primordial Epoch,” Daoist Tian Xu revealed. “In a sense, I am the Primordial origin spirit, the starting point of spacetime, the source of all things. From my birth, this Primordial Epoch gained meaning, and everything began.”

Wu Yuan listened in shock. He had speculated that Senior Tian Xu might have some special identity, but what he heard exceeded his imagination. The beginning of everything? The starting point of the Primordial Epoch? It was too astounding, undoubtedly his greatest secret.

“Thus, I easily became the first eternal powerhouse of the cosmic sea,” Daoist Tian Xu continued. “Then, as the source of spacetime, I naturally received the favor of the Great Dao of Spacetime’s essence, becoming the Spacetime Dao Master and arguably the strongest Dao Master up to that point.

“For others like Mountain Daoist, becoming a Dao Master required both their own efforts to cultivate to the eternal stage, as well as some luck. But I alone was destined to be the Spacetime Dao Master from birth.”

Wu Yuan’s heart surged with both shock and awe. Born a Dao Master? And the strongest one at that? This was destiny! Daoist Tian Xu’s starting point was an unattainable end goal for countless lifeforms.

“At first, I too thought I was fortunate,” Daoist Tian Xu continued. “But when I became a Dao Master and awakened many memories, I understood that none of this was luck… You should know that this Primordial Epoch is not the only epoch. You obtained the Xuanhuang Dao Treasure, so you must have entered Frostheaven Peak.”

“Yes,” Wu Yuan nodded, unable to resist asking, “Senior, you know of Frostheaven Peak?”

Daoist Tian Xu fell silent for a moment, then nodded slightly. “I do. It’s the abode created by an inconceivable being, an eternally indestructible place.

“All the great existences from previous eras, like the Origin Saint and Azure Saint, were all lifeforms born in previous Primordial Epochs. Mountain Daoist was able to become a Dao Master because he received guidance from the Origin Saint.”

Wu Yuan listened quietly. Senior Tian Xu seemed to know far too much, as if there were no secrets unknown to him.

“Is the Origin Saint truly still alive?” Wu Yuan couldn’t help but ask.

“Yes, he still lives,” Daoist Tian Xu confirmed. “Like the Great Leader of Frostheaven Peak, the Origin Saint, the Azure Saint, and others, including Goddess Nüwa, who has gone far away… They’ve all taken the fifth step to become Grand Supremes!”

“Goddess Nüwa has become a Grand Supreme?” Wu Yuan’s heart jolted with disbelief.

This news, if spread, would absolutely shock the entire cosmic sea. Even Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu had told Wu Yuan that she didn’t know Goddess Nüwa’s situation, only that she had gone to the deeper regions of the cosmic sea.

“I can’t be entirely certain, but there’s an 80% chance,” Daoist Tian Xu said. “However, I can confirm that she’s still alive. After all, her imprint remains on the Ancestral Pagoda. If she had perished, the imprint would naturally dissipate.”

“Ancestral Pagoda imprint?” Wu Yuan was briefly puzzled, then quickly realized: “Is Goddess Nüwa also an Ancestral Pagoda Archon?”

Daoist Tian Xu nodded slightly.

Goddess Nüwa is actually an Ancestral Pagoda Archon? Wu Yuan’s thoughts raced. When I became an Ancestral Pagoda Archon, the Origin Spirit told me that the Ancestral Pagoda could have at most eight Archons, but there are currently only three. Goddess Nüwa is one, I’m one, so the last one…?

Wu Yuan couldn’t help but look at Daoist Tian Xu. “Senior, could you also be an Ancestral Pagoda Archon?”

“No! I once was, but not anymore,” Daoist Tian Xu replied. “Remember Mountain Daoist? He was also once an Ancestral Pagoda Archon, but later passed the imprint on to you.”

Wu Yuan was stunned. In an instant, he understood.

“Goddess Nüwa’s status as an Ancestral Pagoda Archon… came from you?” Wu Yuan said in a low voice, his heart racing.

Daoist Tian Xu sighed softly. “Her talent is exceptional. In some ways, no less than yours. She just lacked some providence… Destiny truly is crucial at times.”

Wu Yuan’s inner turmoil reached its peak as one secret after another was revealed. So Goddess Nüwa was able to rise so swiftly in that era thanks to Senior Tian Xu’s guidance. What Wu Yuan didn’t know was that Goddess Nüwa’s decision to create the human race was also closely tied to Daoist Tian Xu.

“Then who is the last Ancestral Pagoda Archon?” Wu Yuan asked, puzzled.

“Has your body refiner self not broken through yet?” Daoist Tian Xu inquired.

Wu Yuan shook his head.

“When you break through, you’ll resonate with the Ancestral Pagoda and naturally know who the last one is,” Daoist Tian Xu explained. “A true Ancestral Pagoda Archon must be a Dao Zenithel.”

Wu Yuan nodded slightly, recalling that when the Origin Spirit departed, it had said something similar—that when Wu Yuan’s strength and Dao cultivation matched Mountain Daoist’s, he would be able to connect with the Ancestral Pagoda’s true form.

No wonder Daoist Tian Xu had always seemed so knowledgeable about the Ancestral Pagoda. He was once an Archon himself.

“If the Origin Saint, Goddess Nüwa, and the others are all still alive and have taken the fifth step, why have they never appeared in the cosmic sea?” Wu Yuan asked.

“Because of the Primordium,” Daoist Tian Xu explained. “Just as eternal powerhouses are not allowed to linger long in the River of Universes, this also holds true under the shroud of the Primordial Rules. The self-created Daos of Grand Supremes can be called Primordial self-created Daos, and they have all been derived to completion! In short, their Daos are not inferior to the Primordial Rules. Naturally, the Primordial Rules would be extremely resistant to their existence.

“It is only during the Primordial Eras, at the beginning of each Primordial Epoch when the Primordial Rules have yet to operate perfectly, that the Grand Supremes can appear occasionally to lay their plans,” he added.

Wu Yuan had a sudden realization. So that’s why the Origin Saint left no traces apart from fleeting appearances in the Primordial Era. Meanwhile, Goddess Nüwa never returned.

However, according to Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu, Goddess Nüwa seemed to have fought against some calamity back then… which differs somewhat from what Senior has just said. Wu Yuan kept these doubts to himself as he continued to listen attentively.

“Before this Primordial Epoch, there were many other epochs,” Daoist Tian Xu continued. “In these epochs, Grand Supremes would occasionally be born… Though they have departed, most would leave behind some relic sites and methods.”

Relic sites and methods? Wu Yuan was startled.

“Like the Azure Saint Tomb, which is a relic left by the Azure Saint,” Daoist Tian Xu explained. “Frostheaven Peak was left behind by that great powerhouse. And this spacetime we’re in, named Chang Feng Spacetime, was left by another super powerhouse.”

Wu Yuan grew more astonished and looked around once more. With Daoist Tian Xu’s reminder, he observed his environment more carefully. Before long, he sensed the special nature of this world.

“The Primordial Rules cannot envelop it?” Wu Yuan pondered thoughtfully.

“Correct.” Daoist Tian Xu gave Wu Yuan an approving look. “These special places all bear the majesty of those Grand Supremes’ self-created Daos, which the Primordium cannot infiltrate. The Primordial Cataclysm cannot destroy them either, thus allowing them to be passed down through generations.”

“This Chang Feng Spacetime… Senior, it seems you created a worldlet with the same name in the Blood Dream Voidrealm,” Wu Yuan said with slight confusion.

“Haha, that was just a memento,” Daoist Tian Xu smiled. “You need not ask further.”

“Understood.” Though curious, Wu Yuan didn’t pursue the matter.

“The Chang Feng Spacetime is no less vast than the Azure Saint Tomb,” Daoist Tian Xu said casually. “I only control part of its profundities, and what you can glimpse is even less than that.”

Wu Yuan nodded slightly, his mind still reeling from these revelations.

This place seemed to have been left behind by a mysterious Grand Supreme, likely concealing terrifying power.

As Wu Yuan considered this, he turned to Daoist Tian Xu, “Senior, who was the supreme powerhouse that created the Chang Feng Spacetime?” he asked, his curiosity evident in his tone.