Chapter 531 - 467: The Truth

Qi Yun hovered quietly in the void. The churning aura of slaughter and the destructive Sword Intent surrounding him receded like a tide, and his eyes—which had transformed into an ocean of iridescent colors—returned to their profound calmness.

His gaze fell upon the black-robed Daoist before him, whose aura remained perfectly intact. After a moment of silence, he slowly spoke, his voice flat and devoid of emotion, "It seems... you have a lot you want to say to me."

Hearing this, Grandmaster Kunpeng of the Demon Race deepened the genial smile on his face.

He didn’t say any more. Instead, he simply gave his large sleeve a gentle wave at the surrounding Broken void, which had just endured the ravages of two supreme killing arrays and still retained the Dao Rhyme of destruction, creation, and annihilation.

WHOOSH.

An unfathomable, invisible fluctuation rippled outward, carrying the power to fold space and smooth over time.

In an instant, the Broken darkness, annihilating turbulent flows, residual sword scars, and Array Patterns surrounding them rapidly faded and reorganized—like a sand painting erased by an invisible giant hand!

Light and shadows flowed as space and time shifted. A magnificent grand hall rose from the ground.

The hall had no roof; looking up, one could see the phantom image of a vast dome where billions of stars flowed, evolving scenes of the opening of chaos. Beneath their feet was a bizarre floor, smooth and warm like dark jade, yet containing a slowly flowing Star River within. Towering, seemingly endless giant pillars stood all around. Made of neither metal nor stone, they were entwined with living-like Cyan Gold vines and archaic Dao Patterns, emitting a heavy Dao Rhyme as if they were supporting Heaven and Earth.

A soft, bright light from an unknown source illuminated the entire hall, rendering it solemn and majestic.

In the center of the hall, Kunpeng had already taken a seat on a large, wide wooden throne that appeared to have naturally grown from gnarled ancient wood. Beside the throne, another equally archaic and grand wooden chair quietly materialized.

"Sit," Kunpeng gestured casually.

Qi Yun’s expression remained unchanged as he took a single step and sat down steadily. He looked calmly at Kunpeng, waiting for him to continue.

Kunpeng picked up a cup of Spiritual Liquid swirling with chaotic aura that had naturally condensed on the armrest of his throne. After taking a light sip, he finally spoke, his voice echoing through the spacious hall, "I presume... you have already met Shen Yi."

Qi Yun didn’t even bat an eyelid. His expression remained calm; he neither confirmed nor denied it. This silence was an answer in itself.

Seeing Qi Yun’s reaction, a faint, cryptic smile played on Kunpeng’s lips. "You are his disciple’s descendant, hailing from the Holy Sect. You received his secret assistance and followed his guidance to come seeking these Imperial Soldiers... Logically speaking, you should trust him implicitly."

Qi Yun finally raised his eyes to look at Kunpeng, his gaze deep. "If you continue to beat around the bush and probe me like this, Senior..." His voice was indifferent but carried an invisible pressure, "...then you are wasting both of our time."

"Heh." Instead of getting angry, Kunpeng let out a low chuckle. He gradually put away his smile, his gaze turning profound and sharp as he looked directly at Qi Yun. "You are... quite different from that old geezer Shen Yi. You have a bit less hypocrisy and a bit more directness. Very well."

He leaned forward slightly, and an indescribable aura of heaviness and solemnity naturally permeated the air. "Since that’s the case, I will make a long story short.

"Do not believe a single word Shen Yi says to you!

"He, those bald donkeys led by the World Honored One, and the other few fellows hiding in the shadows are birds of a feather!

"If you trust him and walk down their path..." Kunpeng’s voice was resolute, carrying an icy, undeniable certainty honed over eons, "Profound Yellow will be in grave danger! And you, too, will be doomed beyond redemption!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the air in the hall stagnated for a moment.

A perfectly measured hint of surprise flashed in Qi Yun’s eyes, followed closely by a faint smile at the corners of his mouth. "I shouldn’t believe Ancestor Shen Yi, who has taught me, resolved my doubts, and shown me grace... Should Qi, instead, believe you... the Grandmaster of the Ancient Demon Race?"

These words were incredibly sharp, pointing directly at the fundamental contradiction in their stances and trust.

However, upon hearing this, Kunpeng did not get angry, nor did the slightest hint of offense appear on his face. He merely cast a deep look at Qi Yun.

"Believing or not is not something to be decided by my words alone," Kunpeng said mildly, then gave a light wave of his sleeve. "I will let you see clearly for yourself."

HUMM.

As his sleeve swept past, the void beside them suddenly rippled violently! Endless chaotic mist surged out from the nothingness, tumbling and converging, rapidly solidifying and evolving...

In the next moment, a magnificent, boundlessly ancient scene—one that defied description—slowly unfolded within the chaotic mist, presenting itself with absolute clarity before Qi Yun’s eyes!

It was a place whose size could not be defined, transcending the very concept of space. At the center of the scene, rooted within an endless, heavy expanse of earth displaying the purest Profound Yellow hue and condensing the origin of boundless existence and matter, grew a Treasure Tree!

A supreme Treasure Tree that pierced Heaven and Earth, propped open the endless void, and possessed a massive scale that completely transcended the very concept of a tree!

Its main trunk was unimaginably thick, twisted together from countless surging Star Rivers, solidified time, and intertwined rules. Permeated with the aura of eons of vicissitudes and bearing the weight of all things, it rose from the thick earth and pierced straight into the unseeable Supreme heights! Its bark was mottled, and every vein looked like a winding ancient history, recording the magnificent transformations since the creation of the world.

At the unreachable pinnacle of its canopy, transcending the highest dimension any branches or leaves could touch, hung endless, profoundly unfathomable wisps of purple qi!

A surging River of Heaven and Earth Years orbited the entire Treasure Tree. The gurgling sound of its flowing water echoed like rolling thunder!

What was truly shocking, however, were the branches, leaves, and fruits of this Profound Yellow Treasure Tree. Its numerous branches extended into the boundless void. Every leaf... was not simply a leaf, but a vast celestial realm slowly rotating, internally evolving the sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and even the blurry phantoms of civilizations!

The leaf’s veins were the rules of the realm, and its flesh was the foundation of all things!

And suspended at the very tips of some of the thicker main branches were fruits... varying in shape and size, exuding unique colors and Dao Rhymes! Of these fruits, some were as blazing as a grand sun, some as cold as a frigid moon, some as heavy as mountains, and some as ethereal as smoke and clouds...

Within each fruit lay a complete world with self-consistent rules and unique Dao Rhymes!

The entire Profound Yellow Treasure Tree stood silently in the endless void. Connected to the profound purple qi above and rooted in the Profound Yellow thick earth below, its branches were lush and its fruits abundant. It exuded a supreme, majestic aura of nurturing all existence, bearing the heavens, and enduring eternally!

Gazing at this Profound Yellow Treasure Tree before him—which, despite merely being a manifested conceptual image, delivered a severe impact on the level of his Divine Soul—Qi Yun’s pupils involuntarily contracted slightly. His Heart and Spirit experienced an unprecedented shock.

"Is this... the true appearance of... the Profound Yellow Origin Realm?" he thought.

Kunpeng slowly rose from his throne and walked with steady steps toward the grand manifested image. Raising his hand, he pointed at the endlessly towering Profound Yellow Treasure Tree. His voice was deep and solemn, as if revealing the ultimate truth of the Cosmos:

"This tree is Profound Yellow.

"Its roots are the Dao, the Cosmos, the mother of all things, and the ’reality’ within the virtual and the real.

"Matter, time, space, rules, and even every ’existence’ that can be defined or spoken of... all originate from here, tied to this tree."

His finger slowly moved upward, sweeping past those countless celestial realm leaves that were like stars. Ultimately, he pointed to one of the thickest and oldest core branches of the Profound Yellow Treasure Tree.

This branch, like a spine supporting Heaven and Earth, was more ancient and vigorous than the others. It emanated a unique Dao Rhyme of Perfection and compassion, yet faintly carried an exclusive nature. And hanging at the end of this branch was an incomparably massive fruit, its entire body flowing with a warm, peaceful, golden-yellow luster!

This fruit was unlike the others. Countless fine Sanskrit Talismans naturally surfaced on its exterior. Grand, solemn sounds of sutra chanting and ethereal sandalwood incense vaguely emanated from within, while endless Swastika Buddha Seals and the True Meaning of Buddhist Dao orbited it like ribbons of light.

It clung firmly to the branch, emitting a powerful suction that drew in and assimilated the thin purple qi cascading from the extreme heights—qi that was supposed to nourish the entire Treasure Tree!

Because it was excessively huge and heavy, the ancient branch bearing it was already noticeably bent under the weight. The entire fruit was teetering on the verge of falling!

Qi Yun’s gaze remained tightly locked onto this peculiar golden fruit. Divine light flowed intensely in his eyes. The insight granted to him by the Primordial Dao operated at a frenzied pace, analyzing the endless information conveyed by the image before him.

"The leaves are celestial realms, and the fruits are worlds..." Countless clues collided and linked together in his mind. An astonishing deduction, one perfectly consistent with the scene before him, flashed across his Sea of Consciousness like lightning!

"Could it be... that the Realm of Dao King is achieved by detaching from the Profound Yellow main trunk, using one’s Dao Fruit as the core, and bearing a fruit of one’s own?"

"Smart!" Grandmaster Kunpeng’s eyes erupted with astounding brilliance as he clapped his hands in praise. "You understand at the slightest hint!"

Pointing at the golden fruit, his voice grew impassioned. "A Dao King is called a Dao King precisely because their great Dao has reached the pinnacle. They can form their own realm and rule over their domain! Furthermore, because they have practically detached from the Profound Yellow main trunk, their fruit can directly absorb the profound mysteries of the Heaven and Earth Dao to strengthen themselves."

Hearing this, Qi Yun looked back at the teetering golden fruit devouring the purple qi. He thought of the attitude the World Honored One and others held toward Profound Yellow, and recalled Shen Yi’s seemingly reasonable but ultimately flimsy words...

Qi Yun’s eyes narrowed slightly as the last trace of fog in his gaze completely dissipated. He slowly raised his head, looked at Kunpeng, and spoke the truth word by word:

"So...

"What the World Honored One and the other Dao Kings have been scheming to destroy was never a new Dao King who might threaten their positions.

"What they truly want to destroy is ’Profound Yellow’—the ’mother tree’ itself, which supplies them with nutrients yet also binds their roots!

"Only by destroying Profound Yellow can their Dao Fruit—which is already mature but still tethered by the branches, unable to completely detach—truly break free from its restraints and fall from the branch... allowing them to become the new ’Profound Yellow’!"