Yuan’s Ascension

Chapter 1166: The Beginning Of Dao Pioneering, Forging The False Into Truth (1)

Wu Yuan’s Daos? Ever since his two true selves created their eternal ultimate techniques, the Daos he yearned to pioneer had already taken shape.

His qi refiner self aimed to evolve the Dream World, transforming the cycle of samsara into reality, creating a brilliant and eternal realm. His body refiner self harbored even grander ambitions, attempting to encompass samsara, Creation, Spacetime, Destiny, and more, integrating all destruction and creation into one.

To this end, Wu Yuan’s body refiner self had already formed a prototype of Great Destruction through countless trials and tribulations.

Climbing this heavenly stairway while facing oppression from the various Greater Laws represented a test from the heavens. Wu Yuan resolved to use his nascent Dao to counter and vanquish all other Daos.

Perish under the Dao tribulation. Born anew under the Dao tribulation. Nothing can annihilate me. Everything will become fertilizer for my path. Wu Yuan’s two true selves roared in the depths of their spirits.

Whoosh! An endless sea of golden lightning erupted, surging mightily as it crashed into the bodies of Wu Yuan’s two true selves.

This time, Wu Yuan did not throw a punch. Instead, he used his Dao Intent to protect his physical body, enduring the corrosion from the River of Universes’ Dao essences.

The pure Greater Laws weren’t particularly strong, but the Dao essences of the River of Universes were infinitely majestic. A small stone might not be too sturdy, but what if it were an endless, unbroken mountain range?

Boom! The Dao essences scoured him, attempting to assimilate and annihilate Wu Yuan, yet they only caused his spirit and consciousness to grow more brilliant, transforming again and again.

They tempered his Dao Intent, removing many impurities, constantly refining the false and preserving the true.

Most importantly, colliding with the essences allowed his comprehension of the Law of Metal and Law of Thunder to skyrocket.

Third-level True Intent stage, ninth-level True Intent stage, first-level Dao Field stage… his progress climbed at a speed that would leave countless Sovereigns dumbfounded.

This was to be expected. Wu Yuan’s cultivation level was already so high that he could just about match a Saint. With his talent, he could comprehend all the Greater Laws after achieving Dao Enlightenment, given enough time. The current Dao tribulation merely accelerated this process ten thousandfold.

As Wu Yuan ascended to an even higher step, the scenery around him changed again. Amidst the golden light and sea of lightning, countless flames appeared. These flames were filled with profound power, vast and mighty as if they could incinerate heaven and earth, burning all things. The power of Fire’s essence had descended.

Nothing can block my path. You are merely Greater Laws in the end, merely derivatives of the workings of the eternal Great Daos. How strong can you truly be? Wu Yuan raised his head high, his gaze sharp, as though they could cut through all obstacles where they focused.

Unafraid, he climbed step by step, using Dao Intent to protect his body as he endured the impacts of the Divine Essence Order.

His aura grew ever stronger. His comprehension of Daos and Laws deepened further.

A mere wisp of these terrifying powers from the Divine Essence Order was enough to annihilate a Sovereign, yet they could hardly shake Wu Yuan. On the contrary, his vital aura grew increasingly vigorous.

To pioneer a Dao, one must first comprehend the Dao. For Wu Yuan, whether it was his qi refiner self or body refiner self, if he could comprehend the many Greater Laws now, it would help him understand the workings of heaven and earth and the core principles of samsara more clearly.

So, Wu Yuan’s pace was very slow. With each step he climbed, he would stubbornly endure the impacts of countless Law essences, striving with all his might to comprehend them. This comprehension was not to master them, but to transcend them!

Time flowed on.

One hundred steps, one thousand steps, three thousand steps… A hundred years, a thousand years, nine thousand years… For one at his level, hundreds or thousands of years passed in the blink of an eye.

All this time, Wu Yuan was immersed in Dao comprehension. His climbing speed gradually increased with the rising rate of comprehension, and the tribulations he faced grew ever more terrifying.

The seven Greater Laws of Metal, Thunder, Fire, Wood, Water, Earth, and Wind manifested one after another. As these Dao essences appeared, they didn’t lead to a simple addition of power, but rather combined to display profoundly wondrous might.

Ten thousand years have passed. Wu Yuan had already progressed extremely far along this ancient heavenly stairway. The Law of Solaris, Law of Lunaris, Law of Slaughter, Law of Death… the six special Greater Laws began to appear in succession.

The void trembled.

The seven common Laws and six special Laws combined one by one, their power surging even higher. They were no longer simple impacts of raw power from the Divine Essence Order, but had transformed into divine weapons.

There was a divine sword, seemingly able to cleave the heavens.

There was a divine axe, ancient and majestic, possessing the power to cleave open worlds.

They even transformed into a great mountain, more vast and towering than many stars, pressing down upon Wu Yuan.

Stronger and stronger, more and more numerous, they manifested above the heavenly stairway, crushing downwards.

Climbing the stairway was like defying the heavens. Heavenly punishment rained down, seeking to suppress Wu Yuan, this being who attempted to break through its limits.

Transcend the River of Universes, break free from all constraints of this heaven and earth, only then can one achieve Dao Enlightenment. Wu Yuan finally moved his arm once more.

This time, both of his true selves attacked together, but no longer with simple punches. Instead, they too had formed weapons.

The body refiner wielded a saber, the qi refiner danced with a sword. Blade rays and sword lights blossomed, shattering all the scenes formed from the Law essences in an instant. Divine weapons and tools, grotto-heavens and rivers, ultimate treasures and rare artifacts—all were cleaved apart.

The heavenly stairway was endless, undoubtedly a terrifying tribulation. Wu Yuan finally understood why the Emissary of the Heavenly Path had repeatedly advised him against choosing this path. Without having pioneered a Dao, trying to walk this path was indeed arduous.

For ordinary Overlords or even Perennial powerhouses, if they were to find themselves here, they would run out of mana or ether and die before long.

Wu Yuan also had no way out. Having come this far, one tribulation followed the last. He no longer had a path of retreat. All he could do was sweep away everything with his own strength. Only then could he advance.

Fortunately, I have two true selves working together. Wu Yuan’s momentum was unstoppable, never faltering. His two true selves stood tall on the heavenly stairway, like two war gods who had walked out of ancient times, gazing down upon all beneath the heavens.

When choosing to walk this path, Wu Yuan had already resolved to surpass all that came before, to become the mightiest sempiternal lifeform of past and present.

Time flowed on.

Among the many Greater Laws, the mightiest Law of Time and Law of Space appeared, making the attacks from the Divine Essence Order on the heavenly stairway even more violent.

Wu Yuan had incinerated countless waves of attacks, losing count of the number of steps he had climbed, yet the attacks still came without end.

Perhaps twenty thousand years, thirty thousand years, or even longer spans of time had passed.

The Law of Metal, fully comprehended.

The Law of Earth, fully comprehended.

The Law of Thunder, fully comprehended… With their talent, Wu Yuan’s two true selves finally began to fully comprehend the Greater Laws one by one.

Wu Yuan’s attacks grew ever more powerful, constantly tearing apart the onslaughts that crashed down from the heavenly stairway.

But all of this still seemed to be in vain. Even when Wu Yuan had comprehended a full eleven out of the fifteen Greater Laws, that all-encompassing onslaught showed no signs of abating. On the contrary, it grew even stronger.

Endless and infinite? Is this perhaps a dead end? Wu Yuan found it hard to believe.

His two true selves possessed unrivaled vitality, able to absorb Xuanhuang qi ceaselessly and make it their own, with no need to worry much about their power diminishing.

However, tens of thousands of years of ceaseless battle and comprehension had already placed a massive burden on his soul and spirit. This path was unexpectedly difficult.

My Dream World is vast. But on this heavenly stairway path, these countless attacks originate from Law essences. They pay no heed to soul attacks, rendering the Dream World useless. Yet Wu Yuan still refused to submit, and had not even once considered giving up.

Both pairs of eyes grew ever more brilliant, like four cosmic stars burning frantically, yearning to reach the top of this ancient heavenly stairway.

…

Unbeknownst to Wu Yuan, mysterious phenomena were currently unfolding across the Mythic-tier Star he had yet to set foot on, with countless anomalies shrouding the entire celestial body.

“What exactly is happening?”

“What is going on on the Mythic-tier Star? Why do I feel such trepidation?” Overlord Bei Zhen and many other fourth-stage Overlords who had rushed over shuddered.

They did not know the cause behind this anomaly, only feeling that the entire star seemed to be pressurized, as if the entire Mythic-tier Star might shatter at any moment.

This was a scene never before witnessed, unrecorded in any historical texts.

“Could it be Overlord Wu Yuan?”

“He and Overlord Ming Jian are both nowhere to be seen. Is it them?” Many Overlords made guesses, but could not confirm them.

…

In the blink of an eye, another ten thousand years passed.

On that mysterious Path of Legends, the heavenly stairway remained endless, and Wu Yuan still trudged forth with difficulty.

The attacks formed from the Laws grew ever fiercer! Like a vast ocean, boundless and unending, they had completely submerged Wu Yuan.

Wu Yuan’s body refiner self coughed up mouthfuls of blood. His body couldn’t withstand the assault for much longer. The Laws burned fiercely, encircling his form, while he struggled to fend off wave after wave of impacts.

The battle had simply gone on for too long.

Blood dyed his robes crimson, and stained step after step of the stairway red. Everything seemed to be coming to an end.

Hum~ Another formless ripple spread out. Wu Yuan’s spirit became crystal clear as he finally comprehended the last Greater Law – the Law of Karma.

At this point, Wu Yuan had thoroughly comprehended all fifteen Greater Laws. Countless profundities whirled and merged within his mind, forming a unified whole that grew exceptionally powerful and radiant, containing unique might.

So it turns out that even without comprehending a Great Dao or achieving fusion, simply fully comprehending fifteen Greater Laws is enough to reach the limit of sempiternal lifeforms, rivaling a fourth-stage Overlord powerhouse.

But those who took this path were exceedingly rare. Even for a monstrous prodigy like Wu Yuan, without this special opportunity, it would have been impossible to comprehend so many Greater Laws in just tens of thousands of years.

Furthermore, even having mastered these Greater Laws, the boost to Wu Yuan’s strength was too small to break through his current predicament.

With a thunderous crash, Wu Yuan was sent flying for the first time, blood spraying as he suffered grievous injuries. Yet even in such dire straits, the light in his eyes remained resolute, burning even brighter than before.

I must surpass them. Only by integrating all I’ve learned into my own Dao do I have any hope of victory. Wu Yuan realized this crucial point.

This heavenly stairway was likely similar to the Path of Dreams he had experienced before. Without fully understanding the myriad Laws and truly rising above them, there would be no escaping this place.

In a sense, Wu Yuan’s time was running short.