Chapter 489: Message

Time passed.

As the Dao contest drew near, the North Sea Star grew increasingly lively. Every few years, a new Dao Lord would return to the North Sea Star from the vast starry sky.

Most of these Dao Lords kept a low profile to avoid attracting jealousy and too much attention, which would put them at risk of being ganged up on at the start of the Dao contest.

But a few Dao Lords who had obtained great fortunes and extraordinary encounters in the vast starry sky made a show of forming alliances and preparing for the coming contest.

Other Dao Lords with old scores to settle couldn't hold back when they met and immediately engaged in fierce battles. Collisions between Great Dao shook the North Sea Star and the surrounding starry skies.

If not for the Gate of the Immortal Realm stabilizing the North Sea Star, the planet would probably have been reduced to cosmic dust by the aftershocks of the Dao Lords' battles.

***

The arrival of so many Dao Lords from outside drew everyone’s attention, causing them to pay slightly less attention to Yaoguang. He spent two hundred and thirty uneventful years in the Heavenly Dao Sect.

In Heaven-Forsaken Valley, the Heavenly Dao Sect’s dedicated artifact-refinement grounds, two figures were busy working nonstop.

The two figures looked slightly different in appearance. Even their auras and the Great Dao fluctuations they emitted were different, making them seem like two completely separate beings.

Yet, if a Dao Lord proficient in the Great Dao of soul carefully examined them with a soul Dao Technique, they would discover that the two figures' souls originated from the same source. They appeared to be two people, but in reality, they were one.

These were none other than Yaoguang’s true body and the temporal clone he had created over the past two hundred years.

At one point, as the two continued working without pause, a mist filled with an abstruse aura suddenly spread outward from Yaoguang. It looked like nothing more than mist, yet it seemed to transform into an entire world. Within the mist’s range, different laws applied compared to outside.

Anyone who entered would not only have their perception of the outside world altered, but their understanding of the Great Dao Laws would also be affected. They might desperately try to draw upon the Great Dao of void, but in reality, they would connect to the Great Dao of destruction.

However, with their soul perception deceived, they would be unable to realize the mistake. They would keep trying to use their Dao Integration void body to draw on the power of the Great Dao of destruction, ultimately suffering backlash from it.

"The Ten Directions Heavenly Realm. No, it should only be called the Eight Desolations Heavenly Realm now." Feeling the mist-like world around him, Yaoguang sighed emotionally. "After the transformation of the Endless Tower a hundred years ago, it took another one hundred and thirty years... but it's finally done."

After one hundred and thirty years, he had finally upgraded the Eight Desolations Mirror, a top-tier Dao Artifact, into a semi-immortal artifact.

"I underestimated the difficulty of refining a soul-type semi-immortal artifact. If not for the fact that 'Shaohua' was successfully nurtured twenty years ago, allowing us to join forces and refine the Eight Desolations Mirror together, the time required for the Eight Desolations Mirror to complete its transformation would probably have been extended to one hundred and fifty years, or even two hundred years." As Yaoguang spoke, he glanced at the temporal clone he had named "Shaohua."

Shaohua immediately said: "Don't look at me. The Refiner branch has only reached 39% progress. The Great Dao of soul is among the most difficult Great Dao to cultivate among the core Great Dao. Transforming a top-tier soul Dao Artifact into a semi-immortal artifact in just one hundred and twenty years is already an impressive achievement.

"Besides, during these two hundred years, you were not only refining top-tier Dao Artifacts, but also practicing other techniques. In the end, you only delayed the original plan by a few dozen years. You should be satisfied."

Yaoguang was slightly stunned upon hearing this. His expression became somewhat strange. That strange expression seemed to infect Shaohua, too. In the end, the two figures fell silent together.

Their relationship was even closer than that of "two souls sharing one body." Even two souls sharing one body could still be considered two different individuals with separate thoughts.

But he had completely separated a portion of his own soul and used the part belonging to "Su Yaoguang" as the foundation for this existence. This was not a clone. It was more like borrowing a corpse to restore a soul.

Whether it was Yaoguang or Shaohua, they shared the same set of thoughts. No conversation was needed; they could immediately understand what the other was thinking and experiencing.

It was like a monitor split into two screens. Although two images were shown, the person viewing those images was still the same person.

Their conversations were essentially no different from talking to themselves. Yet their exchanges still somehow seemed natural. This little bit of amusement left both the original body and the clone speechless.

Shaohua directly entered the depths of Heaven-Forsaken Valley.

After experiencing the various wonders of the Eight Desolations Heavenly Realm, Yaoguang nodded in satisfaction. "Indeed worthy of being a semi-immortal artifact. Not only can it reflect everything around it, but the heavenly realm domain it forms can also continuously launch waves of soul attacks against enemies. Once someone fails to withstand these soul impacts, their perception will gradually become distorted."

Of course, these abilities were only additional functions. The Eight Desolations Heavenly Realm's most important ability remained its soul-suppressing power, which greatly reduced the effectiveness of soul-type and curse-type attacks.

In other words, this was a defensive semi-immortal artifact. First, he had refined the Endless Tower. Then, he had refined the Eight Desolations Mirror. Only after that would it be the turn of the Limitless Sword. The ability to preserve one's life came before the means to attack.

Now that I've completed the Eight Desolations Heavenly Realm and my mood is good, I'll call the Central Heaven Dao Lord over and tell him the good news: the Book of Truth has been refined. With that thought, Yaoguang sent a psychic thought message to Tang Fenghua, who was waiting outside.

After receiving his order, Tang Fenghua quickly departed.

After Yaoguang finished organizing the Eight Desolations Heavenly Realm, he took out the Book of Truth—which had been ready for a while—and arrived at a pavilion outside Heaven-Forsaken Valley specially used for receiving guests. The Central Heaven Dao Lord had already hurried over, and his joy was overflowing.

Although the Heavenly Dao Sect possessed the Great Dao Golden Book, this semi-immortal artifact belonged to the sect as a whole, not to any individual within it, including the Dao Lord.

Of course, Dao Lords could also ignore the rules and forcibly take the Great Dao Golden Book away. However, once they ascended to the Immortal Realm and encountered their seniors, they would have to face the consequences.

Under such circumstances, the value of a personal top-tier Dao Artifact was self-evident.

"Dao Lord, you're here," Yaoguang greeted him.

"Daoist Yaoguang, I heard that..." The Central Heaven Dao Lord asked impatiently.

Yaoguang did not waste any words. He directly handed over the book. The Central Heaven Dao Lord accepted it, and his own Great Dao power quickly immersed itself within it.

His Great Dao resonated with the Book of Truth, and he immediately sensed an increase in his own strength.

After only a brief moment, excitement filled his face. "It can increase the power of my Great Truth Technique by at least sixteen percent, perhaps even seventeen percent. Great! This is excellent."

"As long as you are satisfied." Yaoguang smiled.

"Satisfied? I am more than satisfied. Daoist Yaoguang, your artifact-refinement skills are truly astonishing! Not only did you refine a Book of Truth with such outstanding effects, but your refinement speed is also incredibly fast." The Central Heaven Dao Lord was visibly excited. "In the previous Dao contest, there were only three opponents competing for the Great Dao of Truth. Compared to the Dao Lord who obtained the Immortal Realm slot, I was only slightly inferior.

"If the remaining two opponents in this Dao contest are still those same two Dao Lords, then with the Book of Truth I will definitely stand out and successfully ascend to the Immortal Realm."

"Then I shall congratulate you in advance on entering the Immortal Realm, becoming a true immortal, and enjoying eternal life." Yaoguang smiled and gave a fist-and-palm salute.

"This is all thanks to Sect Master Yaoguang. My gratitude is sincere," the Central Heaven Dao Lord said earnestly.

Yaoguang nodded.

Immediately afterward, he couldn't help but feel somewhat envious of Dao Lords who cultivated relatively unpopular Great Dao, like the Central Heaven Dao Lord. For Dao Lords like him, every Dao contest usually involved only three to five competitors.

As long as they defeated their opponents, and the defeated side was unwilling to fight to the death, they would automatically withdraw. The victor could naturally ascend through the Gate of the Immortal Realm.

But for more popular Great Dao such as the Great Dao of void and the Great Dao of streaming light, there could easily be more than ten, or even dozens, of competitors. The difficulty was not just slightly greater; it was on a completely different level!

Yaoguang even considered letting his clone Shaohua ascend to the Immortal Realm alone when the time came. If Shaohua could successfully achieve Dao Integration and become a time Dao Lord, he wouldn't have a single opponent. He could directly walk through the Gate of the Immortal Realm.

Opportunities for Dao Integration are limited. Because there is no Dao Lord of the Great Dao of time on the North Sea Star, I dare not let Shaohua attempt Dao Integration recklessly. Yaoguang sighed inwardly.

He recalled the star map he had obtained from the Abyssal Ruins Dao Lord. Perhaps it was time to visit that Gate of the Immortal Realm. The North Sea Star had no Dao Lord of time, but who knew if that gate thirty billion light-years away did?

Furthermore, the North Sea Star's top-tier factions kept records of three additional Gates. However, without exception, those three Gates were all controlled by overlord-level factions.

Ordinary Dao Lords were not qualified to even come into contact with one of those Gates of the Immortal Realm. Yaoguang wondered whether those overlord-level factions possessed any Dao Lords who cultivated the Great Dao of time.

While Yaoguang was deep in thought, the Central Heaven Dao Lord had already finished comprehending the mysteries of the Book of Truth and gradually calmed down.

"Since your Dao Artifact has already been refined, it would be a good idea to go out and make a show of it. It would also serve as a form of publicity for me." Yaoguang smiled. "More than two hundred years have passed. The Dao Lords of the Ten Great Immortal Sects should have almost all returned, right? I would like to take on a few more commissions and test my skills."

"What about the Pill Cauldron Dao Lord and the Azure Crow Dao Lord?" the Central Heaven Dao Lord asked.

"No rush," Yaoguang replied with a smile.

The Central Heaven Dao Lord immediately understood. The highest bidder would get the service.

Although the Pill Cauldron Dao Lord and the Azure Crow Dao Lord had offered prices that couldn't be considered low, they only matched the normal market rate.

But now, with the Dao contest approaching, Dao Lords confident in their strength would inevitably be willing to pay a high price to have him urgently refine a top-tier Dao Artifact, allowing them to better compete for the chance to ascend to the Immortal Realm.

Especially since everyone had just returned from their travels through the starry sky. After several thousand years, they had all obtained some treasures. With wealth in hand, people were naturally more willing to spend.

Perhaps some Dao Lord would even bring out a treasure so impressive that it would make him willing to offer his services.

"I will immediately visit the various fellow Daoists and bring the Book of Truth along." For such a small matter, the Central Heaven Dao Lord naturally agreed without hesitation.

"Thank you," Yaoguang said as the Central Heaven Dao Lord smiled, waved his hand, and quickly left.

Yaoguang also settled his mind and turned his attention to the final top-tier Dao Artifact awaiting an upgrade: the Limitless Sword.

However, just as Yaoguang spent several days starting the process of upgrading the Limitless Sword, the communication jade talisman on his body suddenly trembled. He glanced at it. The message inside came from the Penglai Dao Lord.

"Yaoguang, there is something unrelated that I think you might be interested in."

"Oh? What is it?"

"While traveling through the starry sky, the ancestor of the Great Shang Immortal Dynasty, Shang Tianming, offended the Destruction Divine Venerable because of a treasure. Right now, the Destruction Divine Venerable has left the divine race's territory, bringing five other divine venerables with him. They are heading into the starry sky to intercept the Heavenly Fate Dao Lord."[1]

1. The "Tianming" from Shang Tianming also means heavenly fate. ☜