Chapter 720 - 32: Fu Xi Opens the Heavens, Pangu Splits the Earth, Taiyi Gives Birth to Water (The Grand Finale, Part 1)

"One day."

"When I become the Daoist Ancestor."

Lu Xuan said to Taiyi, his eyes closed.

Taiyi's heart pounded violently. He couldn't wait a second longer. He devoured the rest of Lu Xuan in a frantic, desperate frenzy, trying to swallow him whole. He had to become one with him, to complete himself, to...

Transcend!

He succeeded.

He had swallowed Lu Xuan.

And yet, he did not Transcend.

"Why..."

Taiyi stood tall within the Infinite Chaos, sighing in confusion. His gaze shifted toward The Beginning of Ancient Times. There, where the peach tree had once stood, now sat a peaceful Daoist, resting quietly.

The Daoist appeared ordinary, almost unremarkable. He was exceedingly gentle, viewing all things in creation as equals.

It was Lu Xuan.

Lu Xuan asked softly,

"Taiyi, do you know why you haven't achieved Transcendence?"

"Why?"

Lu Xuan's blood still dripped from the corners of Taiyi's mouth as he ground out the question through clenched teeth.

The Daoist on Jade Capital Mountain stretched lazily and said with a smile,

"You've already swallowed me once, haven't you? The part you're missing isn't the 'me' you just devoured. It's the 'me' who vied for the title of Daoist Ancestor at The Beginning of Ancient Times... Do you understand now?"

Taiyi was stunned at first, but then realization dawned.

"I see, so that's how it is..."

After a pause, he began to laugh.

"Then all I have to do is swallow you again, isn't that right...?"

Taiyi's smile grew wider, tinged with a hint of madness. He strode into The Beginning of Ancient Times, and with a single step, crushed half of it into ruin!

"Come, Lu Xuan! Let me devour you! Devour you! We will finally become one! We will finally Transcend! Together, we will finally..."

He closed in as he spoke, his colossal Form pressing down from above The Beginning of Ancient Times, plunging everything into darkness!

"Together, we will finally... Transcend!!"

Amid his roars, The Beginning of Ancient Times shattered.

And amidst those roars, amidst the shattering of The Beginning of Ancient Times...

The Daoist looked up and spoke with a puzzled expression,

"But the problem is..."

At some point, his hand had come to rest on Taiyi's head. With no visible effort, no strange phenomena, no world-destroying shockwaves—just a light press.

"But the problem is..."

"I've already Transcended, haven't I?"

As he spoke, Taiyi was crushed down to the size of a mortal and forced to kneel before the Daoist.

The entirety of The Beginning of Ancient Times fell deathly silent.

"No... Impossible."

Taiyi struggled to lift his head. Spitting out a mouthful of Chaos Qi, he charged forward again.

SMACK!

With another light, casual slap, the Daoist smashed him into the ground. His Physique exploded, and he died instantly. After reviving in the next moment, he found himself kneeling on the ground again, his head bleeding from kowtowing.

"Now, is it possible?"

the Daoist asked softly.

Taiyi gasped for breath, his eyes losing focus. He didn't understand. Why? Why...

"I... I don't believe it."

Taiyi gave a bitter laugh. 'Something I pursued for two whole Great Eras... was obtained so easily by my own incarnation?'

He couldn't believe it. He wouldn't believe it. He refused to believe it.

Taiyi raised his voice in a soaring song, a battle hymn from the previous Era. He had sung it at the end of that last Era while striking down All Daoist Fruits, and he had hummed it softly in this Era after ambushing Wa Huang.

This was the third time he had sung this ballad aloud. It was a piercing lament, like a soul being torn asunder, yet it also rang with the clash of steel on armor and the thunder of a thousand war drums.

The melody wove together a magnificent vision: a vision of Taiyi achieving Transcendence, reigning supreme over all, Only I Am Venerable!

He lunged forward for the third time, but his former confidence and certainty were gone, replaced by a sense of tragic heroism.

SMACK!

Again, it was just a light slap from the Daoist. Like a fly, Taiyi was swatted and smashed into the ground.

This time, it took him a long while to heal and revive. The newly resurrected Taiyi was utterly broken, remaining motionless in a posture of silent kowtow.

"Now, do you believe?"

the Daoist asked softly again.

Taiyi was dazed. After a long moment, he looked up, uncomprehending, and gave a stiff nod.

"I... believe."

The Daoist nodded, his gaze profound.

"There is, after all, a deep connection between us. I will permit you to Transcend with me. Return to my body, and together we shall witness the sights of the realm of Transcendence. Child, are you willing?"

Taiyi looked up in disbelief. After a long pause, he laughed self-mockingly. 'How ironic...'

His will was completely broken. 'I know I have no hope of achieving Transcendence on my own anymore, but Transcendence has long been my deepest, most unshakeable obsession...'

'I must set foot in the realm of Transcendence. I have to see the world beyond. No matter what, no matter how...'

'Even if it's as a part of someone else.'

Taiyi gave a slight nod, his composure restored. Like Fu Xi before him, he let out a long sigh, the lament of a fallen conqueror at the end of his road.

"Ah, Transcendence."

He gave a bitter smile and walked forward, abandoning everything. Bit by bit, he walked into the Daoist's body, choosing to merge with him.

The Daoist remained silent. Only after Taiyi had completely merged into his Dao Body did he let out a long sigh of relief.

'That was a truly massive gamble...'

Lu Xuan muttered to himself as something materialized above his head...

The Door of Transcendence.

He hadn't Transcended yet.

Just like Taiyi, who had fused with the Era Remnants but still couldn't Transcend, Lu Xuan was ultimately a part of Taiyi. Even after becoming the Daoist Ancestor, he still couldn't Transcend because he had not yet achieved Perfection...

Those three slaps just now had taken all his strength; he had even burned his own essence to deliver them. After those three blows, even the current Lu Xuan was exhausted. At best, he could have managed another seven or eight slaps.

But now...

The more confident and arrogant a person is, the more easily they fall into despair. A perfect example: Taiyi.

Lu Xuan quietly savored the feeling of Perfection, the baptism of becoming the Daoist Ancestor.