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*****
Although Su Wen was "drawing a pie in the sky," he was not entirely full of hot air. He did indeed have ideas and research regarding the breakthrough to the Heavenly God rank. While he had not reached that level himself nor witnessed a true Heavenly God-level powerhouse, he possessed a general understanding of the key to the breakthrough based on the characteristics of the Heavenly God rank.
It was nothing more than a Domain.
A Heavenly God-level powerhouse could rule over all the Heaven and Earth Vital Energy within their sphere of control! This was equivalent to taking total command of the surrounding environment; it was an advanced version of a Domain. While Su Wen had not yet achieved this, he was actively researching it. For instance, his "Book World" was essentially an attempt to perfect itself in this direction.
The information conveyed through the golden streak of light was simple: it was Su Wen's personal insights into the cultivation of Domains. At first, Long Shiya did not pay much attention to the incoming information, judging it to be merely cultivation experience for Domain-type abilities. However, as the information continued to flow in, his expression grew increasingly solemn.
This Su Wen was no simple man!
A Heavenly Bead Master's Intent Bead could imprint skills, and many Heavenly Beast skills naturally carried their own Domain-type effects. Long Shiya himself possessed six attributes, meaning that one of his Intent Beads could imprint at least six skills. If he were to imprint every one, he would have sixty-six opportunities, among which Domain-type skills were certain to exist. Given his capability and vision, finding matching Domain-type skills was not difficult.
Long Shiya was not alone in this; many other Heavenly Kings and Heaven Emperors were the same. They all possessed at least two or more Domain-type skills to assist in their Heavenly Power cultivation, helping them perceive the mysteries of the power of Heaven and Earth and thereby improve their practice of "Heaven Dao Power." Unfortunately, even if one refined these Domain-type skills to the extreme, there was still a limit. Throughout the history of Heavenly Bead Masters, countless individuals had attempted to make a breakthrough in their Domains to achieve the Heavenly God rank. Alas, they were always short of the mark.
The so-called "Heavenly God's control over the surrounding world" was merely a manifestation of a state of being. Breaking through to the Heavenly God rank still required sufficient enlightenment of the heavens and earth, an understanding of the profound mysteries of how the world operates, and the cultivation of one's Heaven Dao Power to the ninth level before one could break through that barrier. Therefore, when Su Wen first mentioned that the trick to breaking through was simply making a breakthrough in one's Domain, Long Shiya had dismissed it. He simply believed Su Wen's technique was flawed.
Yet, as Su Wen transmitted his experience in Domain development, Long Shiya's expression gradually turned grave. At this moment, he began to doubt: could there actually be a technique to achieving the Heavenly God rank?
"The Emperor's 'Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array' already creates a Domain, drawing upon the Heaven Dao and governing the space within the formation. It merely lacks one final step, which is why it has failed to fully evolve into a world of its own," Su Wen calmly began to critique Long Shiya's signature technique.
Faced with Su Wen's critique, Long Shiya chose to listen patiently. He had no choice; he had been proven wrong far too many times in a short span.
"The Heavenly God rank might require one to cultivate Heaven Dao Power to the ninth level to achieve control over the external world, but this control is also inevitably the key opportunity to break through to that ninth level."
Even the most toxic of substances has an antidote within a hundred paces. Since reaching the ninth level of Heaven Dao Power granted one the ability to command the heavens and earth, why couldn't commanding the heavens and earth be the very catalyst for breaking through to the ninth level? From this perspective, Su Wen affirmed his claim that a breakthrough to the Heavenly God rank could be found by looking for opportunities within one's Domain.
Long Shiya remained silent and did not offer a rebuttal. Having absorbed Su Wen's insights, he began to question the conclusions that many Heaven Emperors on the continent had reached in the past.
"Breaking through to the Heavenly God rank via a Domain is not about perceiving the heavens and earth through the Domain. After all, a Domain is one's own power, while the heavens and earth are external. Using a Domain to perceive the heavens and earth—and thereby forcing one's own Heavenly Power to fuse with the power of the Heaven Dao—is fundamentally illogical." Su Wen was, indeed, a true scholar, distilling the essence of the previous failed conclusions reached by generations of Heaven Emperors.
Only then did he propose his own approach: "My idea is to cultivate one's own Domain into another realm of existence."
Cultivate one's Domain into a world!
Long Shiya felt a shock in his heart. Having received Su Wen's experience, he had already reached this conclusion himself and understood Su Wen's general line of thought. Yet, hearing Su Wen say it aloud still shook him. A Domain belongs to oneself, while the heavens and earth belong to the universe. Using one's Domain to sense the world was helpful, but that path reached its end at the eighth level of Heaven Dao Power. It was ineffective for comprehending the ninth. That was why Masters required external luck and opportunities to perceive the mysteries of the world and break through to the Heavenly God rank.
"The Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array naturally aligns with the laws of heaven and earth and is capable of drawing upon the Heaven Dao to suppress the repulsion between attributes. It is actually very close to becoming a true world. The Emperor's breakthrough should be sought in this direction."
Long Shiya frowned, deep in thought. On his wrists, a total of eleven pairs of beads appeared, circling him in formation. The eleven Intent Beads hovered around his body, five above and six below. The six below were arranged in a perfect hexagon, while the five above formed a perfect pentagon, rotating constantly, shifting and echoing against the hexagonal shape below. As the surrounding environment shifted, the circulation of Heaven and Earth Vital Energy seemed to be under his control.
Long Shiya attempted to alter the Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array, trying to manipulate the Heaven Dao that his formation drew upon, but he failed. He looked up at Su Wen. The Heaven Dao was, after all, something drawn upon via the formation—it was the true Heaven Dao. Controlling the power of the Heaven Dao was incredibly difficult. Even Long Shiya, at the peak of the Heaven Emperor stage, could barely manage it, let alone use it as a foundation to construct the embryonic form of a complete world.
The area formed by the Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array could be considered a Domain; Long Shiya knew this, and it was his best option for perfecting a new world. However, due to the presence of the Heaven Dao itself, constructing a world through this method was inevitably much harder.
"Your Majesty, that is not how one constructs a world," Su Wen said, pressing a hand to his forehead. It was truly a miracle that Long Shiya had been able to stumble upon the Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array at all. While the formation seemed simple—a combination of six Intent Beads in a hexagon—it required the operation of one's own Heavenly Power to succeed, aligning with the movements of heaven and earth.
To put it bluntly, the entire Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array relied on the power of the external world, using a clever technique to bridge the existence of the Heaven Dao. As for Long Shiya's own comprehension of the Heaven Dao? It was quite low. His achievement of reaching the peak of the Heaven Emperor stage was likely the result of practicing the Six-Absolute Heaven Dao Array; by using the formation to channel the Heaven Dao, his cultivation of Heaven Dao Power had always been smooth. However, having reached the eighth level of Heaven Dao Power, he had effectively hit a ceiling. Even the Heaven Dao he channeled could no longer help him; instead, it had become his prison.
(End of Chapter)