When Han Yi reached the boundary between the two Dao Domains, it had been over 130 years since he left the Dao God Continent.
During this century-plus span, he had progressed from the First Step of the Dao Realm to the Dao Fruit Realm. While his strength hadn't skyrocketed, it was now incomparably greater than before, allowing him to face External Dao forces with the ability to retaliate.
After escaping the External Dao forces at the Immortal Mausoleum, Han Yi began investigating the Golden Egg within his Divine Aperture World. However, no matter how he tried to probe it, the egg remained unresponsive. When he attempted to use his Dao Thought to penetrate its interior and discern its contents, he discovered an immense Restriction encasing the egg's surface.
This Restriction prevented anyone from the outside from discerning the egg's internal state.
Han Yi tried repeatedly, but ultimately had to shake his head in resignation.
Ever since he retrieved the Golden Egg from the Sea of Fire, Han Yi had surmised that the Heavenly Venerable who perished within the flames was most likely the Eastern Emperor Taiyi.
Both the Sea of Fire and this Golden Egg, which radiated an aura identical to Eastern Emperor Buer's, served as evidence supporting this theory.
Moreover...
Han Yi recalled the words of Sui Zhu Dao Ancestor in the Primordial Great World: the Eastern Emperor Taiyi's ascension to Venerable status wasn't achieved through the normal path of a Heavenly Venerable, but through a shortcut, leaving him significantly weaker than ordinary Heavenly Venerables.
In fact, his ascension had occurred only a few thousand years ago, less than ten thousand years. While this span of time might seem long to ordinary cultivators, for a Heavenly Venerable, it represented barely enough time to recover from the post-ascension weakness period.
Given his inferior strength compared to ordinary Heavenly Venerables, Han Yi reasoned that his chances of perishing under the combined assault of several Dao Extinguisher Heavenly Venerables would be significantly higher than those of other Heavenly Venerables.
Han Yi stood at the boundary between two Dao Domains for several days. During this time, six figures emerged from the Chaos behind him, standing respectfully behind him.
These six figures no longer radiated the aura of the First Step of the Dao Realm; like him, they had entered the Dao Fruit Realm. Moreover, they were all Myriad Nether Incarnations of his.
These six Myriad Nether Incarnations were the Disordered Ones Han Yi had captured during his journey through Reverse Origin Mountain and the Blazing Flame Holy Land.
While wandering within the Chaos, he frequently encountered other beings in the Dao Realm. When he met those in the External Dao Realm, his strategy was to fight while retreating. If he encountered those in the Dao Fruit Realm, he would capture them alive if possible, then develop them into Myriad Nether Incarnations. Given his strength, he could easily overwhelm those at the First Step of the Dao Realm, and converting them into Myriad Nether Incarnations was a foregone conclusion.
Over several decades, the number of Myriad Nether Incarnations on his person increased from less than fifty to eighty-six, including six in the Dao Fruit Realm.
He stored the First Step Myriad Nether Incarnations in his Divine Aperture World, using them as "mining machines" to provide him with Proficiency. The six Venerable Dao Fruit Realm Incarnations were scattered in all directions to gather intelligence.
When reaching the borders of the Dao Domain, he naturally recalled them.
Over the years, these eighty-plus Dao Realm Incarnations provided him with a vast amount of Proficiency. Instead of using this Proficiency to deduce the next volume of the Dao Scripture, he invested it entirely in the Divine Canon.
He had cultivated to the Immeasurable Realm even before breaking through to the Dao Realm. Moreover, with the Taosi Divine Axe and Yueguang Divine Spear in his possession, his strength was sixty percent derived from the Divine Path and forty percent from the Immortal Path.
To advance his strength rapidly, Han Yi focused entirely on cultivating the Immeasurable Realm, specifically through the Ten Thousand Realms Fate Unification Divine Canon.
In the Primordial Great World, even an Immortal Sovereign would barely benefit from cultivating this Divine Canon, as the Primordial Heavenly Dao suppresses the development of the Divine Path. Even Immortals attempting to cultivate the Path of the Ancient Gods face severe restrictions.
However, in the Chaos, there are no such limitations. His Myriad Nether Incarnation consists mostly of the Six Chaotic Paths, with about ten transformed on the Dao God Continent, and the rest originating from the Chaotic Antiquity Dao Domain.
These Dao Realm avatars can cultivate the Divine Canon without any pressure or risk of Death Tribulations.
Looking at the progress bar on his panel, Han Yi felt a surge of anticipation.
Ten Thousand Realms Fate Unification Divine Canon (Immeasurable Realm: 48/100)
This progress was nearing the threshold for the Mid-Stage Immeasurable.
According to his understanding, the Immeasurable Realm is divided into three tiers: Low-Rank, Mid-Stage, and High-Rank Immeasurable. Based on experience, progress below 50/100 is considered Low-Rank, above 90/100 is High-Rank, and the intermediate range constitutes Mid-Stage.
In other words, he was just a step away from the Mid-Stage Immeasurable.
The Mid-Stage Immeasurable realm was equivalent to the Second Step of the Dao Realm, also known as the Dao Fruit Realm.
Once he broke through, his combat strength would undoubtedly advance to a new level, giving him more methods to deal with practitioners of the External Dao.
At the boundary of the Dao Domain, with a single thought, he sent a Dao Fruit Realm Inverter of the Dao forward.
The Chaos was divided into Nine Great Dao Domains, each separated by boundaries. These boundaries were not ordinary Chaos but special spaces devoid of Chaos itself, filled instead with boundless darkness.
Because of this, the boundary spaces were completely lethal to Immortals below the Dao Realm; anyone who entered would be obliterated. Even those at the Dao Realm had to tread carefully, advancing step by step to avoid being engulfed by the darkness.
Only cultivators at the Second Step of the Dao Realm, with their enhanced perception, could enter these spaces with a measure of safety.
Therefore, Han Yi had first dispatched six Dao Realm Avatars into the boundary space.
As each of his six Dao Fruit Realm Avatars entered the Dark Boundary in a fan-like formation, Han Yi followed. The Myriad Nether Tome, a true Chaos Supreme Treasure, allowed him to maintain clear perception even within this dark realm.
With this setup, his perception within the Dark Boundary was amplified by the senses of his six Avatars, combined with his own.
After a year and three months within the Dark Boundary, his first Avatar finally detected an exit ahead. Crossing the threshold, it emerged into the normal Chaos.
Behind him, Han Yi's face lit up with joy.
After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, he emerged from the darkness. Soon after, his last two Myriad Nether Incarnations also returned to the normal Chaos.
"We're finally out."
"This must be the Primordial Demon Dao Domain."
Long ago, Demon Witch Mountain had led him through the Vast Heng Dao Domain, the Ancestor God Dao Domain, the Primordial Demon Dao Domain, and the Chaotic Antiquity Dao Domain, finally reaching the Central Dao Domain. That journey had taken only forty-odd years.
But this time, traveling alone, Han Yi spent over a hundred years just traversing the Chaotic Antiquity Dao Domain. Had he still been at the First Step of the Dao Realm, the journey would have taken several times longer.
Naturally.
This was also one of the reasons Han Yi needed to be constantly vigilant in the Chaotic Antiquity Dao Domain.
Now that he had returned to the Primordial Demon Dao Domain, akin to moving from a Chaotic Dao Domain to an Ordered Dao Domain, Han Yi no longer needed to be constantly on edge. He could even utilize the ultra-long-distance Chaos Teleportation Arrays of certain Great Powers to teleport from one side of the Primordial Demon Dao Domain to the other, and then enter the Ancestor God Dao Domain.
Therefore,
he breathed a great sigh of relief.
He stored all his Dao Realm avatars, including the six Dao Fruit Realm avatars, within his Divine Aperture World, allowing them to continue cultivating the Divine Canon and serve as providers of Proficiency.
Then, he chose a direction and began his escape. In the Primordial Demon Dao Domain, releasing these Dao Realm avatars would inevitably make them targets for the righteous forces to hunt down, like a Chaos Evil God suddenly appearing in the Primordial Great World—forces would naturally move to exterminate it.
Order and Disorder have always been natural opposites.
Moreover, after breaking through to the Dao Fruit Realm, Han Yi's strength had significantly increased. His decades of cultivating the Divine Canon, nearing a breakthrough to the Mid-Stage Immeasurable, had also greatly strengthened his Divine Aperture World. Now, accommodating over eighty Dao Realm avatars felt neither cramped nor burdensome.
Three days later,
he suddenly slowed his pace. Ahead, he spotted a pursuit, not far away and heading directly toward him. With his strength, he could clearly see that both the fleeing and pursuing figures were merely Immortal Sovereigns.
At their cultivation realm, they couldn't possibly detect Han Yi from such a distance. This meant the fleeing individual was completely unaware of the Dao Realm expert ahead, and their paths had simply crossed by chance.
"Ao Zhuang, how dare you attack me? Aren't you afraid that the Sect Leader of the Flying Smoke Sect will come to Heavenly Ao Manor and wipe out your entire estate?"
The woman fleeing ahead was in her early thirties. Though her face showed a hint of panic, it couldn't diminish her stunning beauty.
"Hmph, as long as I kill you and erase all traces, even the Sect Leader of the Flying Smoke Sect won't find any evidence to act against me."
"Besides, by seizing your opportunity, I, Ao Zhuang, will have a chance to overcome the Great Dao Tribulation and become a Dao Ancestor. After lying low for some time to accumulate strength, I might even be able to destroy the Flying Smoke Sect and take its place."
"Opportunity lies before me. If I don't seize it now, I'll regret it for a lifetime."
"Suxin, surrender now, and I might spare your life. Once I break through to become a Dao Ancestor in a suitable location, I'll even grant you your freedom. How about it?"
The man chasing her was in his early forties, his aura already at the peak of an Immortal Venerable, with only a short distance left to the Dao Realm.
His offer was met with a cold laugh from the woman ahead.
The cold smile lasted only a fleeting moment before her expression shifted. The aura of a Peak Immortal Venerable that had been radiating from her suddenly plummeted, settling back to that of a Senior Immortal Venerable.
Her true cultivation realm was that of a Senior Immortal Venerable. However, in the face of life-and-death peril, she had employed a secret method from her sect to temporarily elevate her realm, greatly increasing her speed of escape. Such methods were inherently unsustainable, and she was now nearing the limit of its duration.
"Damn it."
The Immortal Sovereign from the Flying Smoke Sect, a female cultivator named Suxin, paled visibly.
Behind her, Ao Zhuang, the middle-aged man who had established Heavenly Ao Manor, grinned widely, laughing boisterously:
"Haha, Suxin, your fate has run out! Hand over the Rare Treasure you obtained from the Ashen Ruins immediately! Otherwise, when I capture you, I'll make sure you live in eternal torment, unable to live or die!"
Far from the two Immortal Sovereigns, Han Yi paid no attention to their petty squabble. After all he had experienced, he wouldn't judge a person's character based on one-sided accounts.
Throughout his cultivation journey, he had always believed in the principle of causality.
He had initially treated their confrontation like a spectator watching a play, but when he heard the middle-aged man's words, his eyes suddenly lit up.
"Ashen Ruins?"
The term stirred something within him.
He was no stranger to ashes. He had once obtained a fragment of the Ash Tower from the Myriad Dynasties Dao Ancestor. The Ash Tower was a Heavenly Venerable Ancient Artifact, part of a set known as the Ash Set.
According to Dao Ancestor Xuanzang, the nine Ashen Ancient Artifacts formed the Ash Set. This set of weapons belonged to a Half-Step Transcendent, and their combined power far surpassed the Heavenly Venerable level.
Furthermore, the Ash Set originated from a great power buried in the Long River of Time: Ashen Mountain.
Could the Ashen Ruins mentioned by the two Immortal Sovereigns be connected to Ashen Mountain, the former strongest power in this Dao Domain, which clashed with the Primordial Demon Palace in its bid for the title of Dao Domain Overlord?
Han Yi's curiosity was piqued.
It was this very curiosity that spurred him forward, accelerating his pace.
Ahead, Suxin had slowed, her face suffused with a deathly pallor. She knew her strength was no match for Ao Zhuang, yet the terror of facing death compelled her to fight with everything she had, to place herself in a desperate situation in hopes of survival.
She hurled a mirror—a coppery, two-sided mirror with a fan-like handle. Spinning rapidly, it unleashed cascading beams of bronze light. For a low-tier Immortal, these beams would be a fatal strike. But Ao Zhuang easily parried them with his long spear, the spear's shadow forming an impenetrable barrier.
Ao Zhuang's face twisted with murderous intent as he thrust his spear forward. The weapon moved with dragon-like ferocity, spanning the distance between them in an instant, poised to slay the despair-stricken Suxin.
But at that very moment...
A pair of hands seized the spear.
The abrupt transition from extreme motion to utter stillness was jarring, as if the chaotic spacetime itself had been paused.
Both Ao Zhuang, who had hurled the spear, and Suxin, whose face was etched with despair, were stunned.
A figure in a Profound Robe had materialized between them, plucking the spear from the air. With casual ease, the figure tossed it back to the astonished Ao Zhuang.
"Dao Ancestor! It must be the Dao Ancestor!" Ao Zhuang's heart thundered with reverence.
He swiftly lowered his head, too awed to even retrieve the spear thrown back to him. "Ao Zhuang of Heavenly Ao Manor on Emperor Profound Continent pays homage to the Dao Ancestor," he declared reverently.
Meanwhile, on the other side...
Suxin, who had been on the verge of despair, now wore a face of ecstatic joy. With equal reverence, she said, "Suxin of the Flying Smoke Sect on the Emperor Profound Continent, pays her respects to the Dao Ancestor."
Unwilling to appear weak, Suxin refrained from asking Han Yi, who had suddenly appeared, to slay Ao Zhuang, her pursuer.
Han Yi was pleased with the attitudes of both parties. Their composure and adaptability were commendable. From their earlier exchange, it was clear that Suxin's sect leader was the Dao Ancestor, yet she hadn't used this connection to make any demands of Han Yi. This self-awareness was rare and praiseworthy.
This observation piqued his curiosity about the Emperor Profound Continent, the origin of these two.
Turning to the respectful Ao Zhuang, Han Yi asked, "What exactly are these Ashen Ruins you mentioned earlier?"
As he spoke, a faint aura of the Dao Realm radiated from him, causing Ao Zhuang's heart to tremble with awe.
Daring not to be disrespectful, Ao Zhuang hastily replied, "Reporting to the Dao Ancestor: The Ashen Ruins appeared in the southeastern Chaotic Void of the Emperor Profound Continent, drawing countless Immortals and even the Dao Ancestor himself to investigate."
"The ruins are vast, suggesting they may be the true Ashen Ruins."