Lin Moyu pondered and muttered to himself, "So the consumption of soul power is the first trial of this highest difficulty. But this trial alone would not stump those true supreme powerhouses. They can simply prepare materials to replenish soul power. That is not difficult for them."
"The real difficulty should still lie in the pressure."
"This highest difficulty is called Supreme. That is, it stands above everything, with no one and nothing above it. Could this thing not come from a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth, but from something of an even higher level than a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth? Or is Supreme merely a name? That is still hard to say. I will only know after personally trying."
The Wings of Heaven-and-Earth. Technique activated.
Whoosh. The Wings of Heaven-and-Earth unfolded, and rosy radiance shot outward. But immediately, an enormous pressure surged in. The rosy radiance shattered and could not be released at all. The Wings of Heaven-and-Earth, which could originally cover countless billions of miles, now grew to less than one meter, and the rosy radiance was completely suppressed, unable to leave his body.
Lin Moyu was startled. He felt an unknown pressure. The weight of the rules here was unprecedented.
If this thing comes from a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth, then these rules are the rules of a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth. A Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth would be stronger than I imagined.
If it is higher than a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth, then it should come from the far side of the Life-Forbidden Zone.
A Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth has existed. Within it, perhaps there were true supreme powerhouses who stepped onto the far side of the Life-Forbidden Zone. Any true supreme powerhouse who has mastered the Primordial-Heaven Art will receive guidance from Heaven-and-Earth and see a treasure. That treasure lies on the far side of the Life-Forbidden Zone. Could it be this?
If someone saw the Heaven-and-Earth guidance and crossed the Life-Forbidden Zone to obtain that guided treasure, it is not impossible.
Lin Moyu carefully sensed. He could only sense that the rules were heavy, far surpassing a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth. Beyond that, he could not discern much. He knew his level was still not high enough. This could not be rushed. He could only proceed step by step.
Fine. First, I will borrow these rules to temper my formation Dao.
If my formations can surpass this chess game, then no matter which Heaven-and-Earth I enter, even if I enter a Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth, I will be able to pass through without obstruction. And if one day I step into the Life-Forbidden Zone, perhaps I could even resist a thing or two with formation Dao alone.
Lin Moyu's thoughts were bold, but not impossible. This Chess of All Living Beings had shown him the potential of the formation Dao. Compared to other Great Daos and Heaven-and-Earth rules, the profound and unfathomable depths of formation Dao were the truly inexhaustible mysteries.
Lin Moyu ignored his forces and let them develop on their own, while he fully focused on researching formation runes.
At the highest difficulty, the Heaven-and-Earth chess game progressed extremely quickly. Lin Moyu did not care at all. His forces and territory were soon seized by nearby enemies, and before long he was eliminated.
Again.
Lin Moyu did not pause for even a second. He activated the chess game again and entered again. He used the game only to study runes and ignored everything else.
Again and again.
Lin Moyu was eliminated repeatedly, and he re-entered repeatedly. He treated the Heaven-and-Earth chess game as a tool, a tool for researching formation runes.
This approach would not work for anyone else. Their soul power could not endure and would be exhausted in no time. Even with supplements from materials and pills, they could not persist for long.
Only Lin Moyu, backed by the little tree, had as much soul power as he wanted. He did not need to worry about it at all. It would not be an exaggeration to say he could squander it freely.
Lin Moyu forgot time. He did not know how many attempts he made, how many failures he suffered. He absorbed experience from countless failures, adjusting the runes.
Gradually, the purple light within the runes grew brighter and brighter, occupying more and more areas. The runes were transforming into full purple.
The brighter the purple light, the stronger the runes, and the weaker the suppression from rules. The formation talismans laid with such runes became more powerful.
As the runes grew stronger, Lin Moyu found his formation Dao becoming deeper and deeper. His understanding of runes and formations rose at an astonishing speed, surpassing Heaven-and-Earth and truly stepping outside Heaven-and-Earth.
A realization rose within him.
He could ignore the binding of Heaven-and-Earth rules and lay formations in any Heaven-and-Earth. The formations would carry rules with them, self-contained, relying on no external thing, unmatched in power.
As formation Dao grew stronger, the number of runes he mastered was instead continuously shrinking. After fine adjustments, the various runes fused into one another, the Great Dao returning to one.
He had once mastered tens of millions of runes. Now there were fewer than a hundred, and the number was still decreasing.
Formations were the same. In the past, he could lay all kinds of formations according to his will, large or small, strong or weak, with different functions and scales. But now, the number of formations was also decreasing.
Any single formation could be freely adjusted in size, scale, and strength by his intent. The required function could also shift as he wished.
One could say the runes were fewer, the formations were fewer, but not a single function was missing, and everything was simpler and more flexible than before.
Lin Moyu had already seen the ultimate endpoint of formation Dao.
Runes return to one. Formations return to one.
With a single thought, a rune is formed. With a single rune, a formation is formed.
In the end, rune and formation become one. The rune is the formation, and the formation is the rune. Whatever formation or rune he wanted, it would all be within a single thought.
Now, he was not far from the endpoint of formation Dao. At the very least, he had already seen it.
As long as you see it, you can reach it.
It was like a distant high mountain. As long as you see it, no matter how far, you can walk there.
What one feared was not distance, but never seeing the endpoint, or even mistaking the endpoint.
Like Calamity Supreme. He thought his formation Dao was already the peak of the Chaotic Ancient Wilds, with none above him, at most equals. When he discovered that Lin Moyu had tampered with his formations and he had known nothing, it was already too late.
He did not know that what he called the limit of formation Dao was nothing at all before Lin Moyu.
Lin Moyu was eliminated again. The chess game dispersed.
Lin Moyu exhaled a long breath and asked quietly, "How long has it been?"
The Hongmeng Gemstone said, "Three hundred years already."
Lin Moyu calculated. "Time really passes fast. In a blink, three hundred years."
"There are still a little over four hundred years before the first Great Calamity arrives."
"Unfortunately, the little tree still has not found it. Perhaps the opportunity has not arrived yet."
The Hongmeng Gemstone gave a small sound of agreement. "Judging by Master's aura, Master must have gained a lot."
Lin Moyu said, "The gains are indeed not small. My formation Dao has made great progress. There is not much road left to the endpoint."
"And I have also comprehended some interesting things."
The Hongmeng Gemstone asked curiously, "What things?"
Lin Moyu said, "If I can reach the endpoint of formation Dao, then even if my cultivation is insufficient, I can still step into the Life-Forbidden Zone."
"Just as becoming a true supreme powerhouse is not the only path, stepping into the Life-Forbidden Zone is also not the only path."
"Using formations as a shield, I can block annihilating power. However, that would only be stepping into the Life-Forbidden Zone. It is still not enough to complete what I have deduced."
"Formation Dao must be cultivated, and my cultivation realm cannot fall behind either. The emptiness of the flesh body must be found."
The Hongmeng Gemstone was clearly worried. The emptiness of the flesh body was hard to find. Master only had a conjecture, and it still required a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth to test. Whether it would succeed or not was unknown.
And time was too short. Only a little over four hundred years remained.
Even if a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth was found, Yushen Heaven-and-Earth would still need time to absorb and refine it. It was indeed tight.
Lin Moyu said, "No matter how tight, I must try. I hope the little tree will have results."
"I will continue entering the chess game and polish my formation Dao to the utmost, stepping to the endpoint of formation Dao."
Lin Moyu continued entering the Chess of All Living Beings to temper his formation Dao.
The rules within the Chess of All Living Beings were heavy. As long as one was inside, one had to continuously consume soul power. Only Lin Moyu could do this.
Whether what I am doing is correct or not, I firmly believe that the road I have chosen is the most correct one for the present.
Lin Moyu's Dao heart surpassed metal and stone. Once he decided something, he would do it to the end. But if he realized halfway that it was wrong, he would decisively change direction, never clinging to it.
Firm but not stubborn.
It was precisely this Dao heart that allowed him to reach this point.
The number of runes continued to shrink, and the formations likewise. In the blink of an eye, more than a hundred years passed.
Lin Moyu sensed something.
There were only three hundred years left until the first Great Calamity of Yushen Heaven-and-Earth.
While inside the Chess of All Living Beings, Lin Moyu saw the Heaven-and-Earth Wall appear again, like a three-two-one countdown.
The Heaven-and-Earth Wall began the timing for the first Great Calamity of Yushen Heaven-and-Earth.
Lin Moyu temporarily stopped working on runes. From within the Chess of All Living Beings, he looked at the suddenly appeared Heaven-and-Earth Wall and gained an insight.
The Heaven-and-Earth Wall can pass through the rules of the Chess of All Living Beings. Clearly, the Heaven-and-Earth Wall's level is higher than the Chess of All Living Beings.
Just as I predicted earlier. The Heaven-and-Earth Wall will be the endpoint of everything.
And reaching this endpoint will be hard.
From here on, my obstacles and enemies will no longer be those cultivators, but the rules formed by the Life-Forbidden Zone and the Heaven-and-Earth Wall.
If there is still an enemy, perhaps it is...
Lin Moyu slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again after a breath, there was nothing in his gaze except resolve.
A game ended. Lin Moyu left the Chess of All Living Beings.
At his ear, the little tree's urgent voice sounded. "Master, found it. I found it."
Joy rose in his heart. Lin Moyu stepped out and arrived at the little tree's side.
Among the dense, emerald branches and leaves, a semi-transparent leaf was especially eye-catching. A spatial passage had already formed on the leaf, but the leaf was not fully transparent, unlike before.
Lin Moyu saw the anomaly. This time seemed different.
The little tree extended a branch and projected an image.
In the image, a fragment of Heaven-and-Earth wreckage glimmered in the void. Even as wreckage, a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth's radiance and aura far surpassed the Chaotic Ancient Wilds.
The little tree said, "This is my first time encountering a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth. I do not know whether its Heaven-and-Earth barrier is too strong, or due to some other reason. I cannot directly establish a spatial passage inside Heaven-and-Earth."
Lin Moyu frowned. With the little tree's ability, even if a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth was strong, it should not be like this. There had to be another reason.
The Hongmeng Gemstone stared at the projection for a while, as if seeing something. "I feel this Heaven-and-Earth is somewhat abnormal. It is not the little tree's problem. It is this Heaven-and-Earth's problem."
Lin Moyu gave a small sound. "Little tree, tell me. What is the situation now?"
The little tree said, "I cannot enter. I can only establish the spatial passage exit outside the Heaven-and-Earth barrier, about a thousand miles from the barrier."
Lin Moyu understood.
The spatial passage exit that the little tree built was still a thousand miles from the Heaven-and-Earth barrier. This thousand miles was within the Life-Forbidden Zone. If he wanted to enter this Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth, he would have to face the Life-Forbidden Zone head-on and cross this thousand miles.
A thousand miles was not far, not even requiring a step.
But this was the Life-Forbidden Zone. Those who stepped into it died. Among countless true supreme powerhouses, only a few could cross a thousand miles within the Life-Forbidden Zone. And Lin Moyu was not yet a true supreme powerhouse.
The Hongmeng Gemstone said, "If Master wants to go, you not only have to cross the thousand-mile region, you also have to open a hole in the Heaven-and-Earth barrier. Only then can the little tree's power enter Heaven-and-Earth and leave Master a retreat path."
"Even if you enter Heaven-and-Earth, after refining the Heaven-and-Earth core you still have to retreat. You must leave a retreat path."
Lin Moyu said, "You are so sure I can cross the thousand-mile forbidden zone?"
The Hongmeng Gemstone giggled. "If Master could not cross, Master would not be thinking about all this. Since Master thought it through, there must be a way."
After being with Lin Moyu for a long time, the Hongmeng Gemstone already understood his way of doing things.
Lin Moyu chuckled and said nothing. His eyes closed slightly as he thought of a method.
There was indeed a method.
Before, there was none. But now, it seemed there was.
These years in the Chess of All Living Beings were not wasted. His formation Dao had already surpassed Heaven-and-Earth. By his own classification, it was already formations above Heaven-and-Earth. And above Heaven-and-Earth was the Life-Forbidden Zone.
When he had divided formation Dao into two levels, he had used the Life-Forbidden Zone as the baseline.
In his deduction, formations above Heaven-and-Earth could allow him to survive in the Life-Forbidden Zone.
Now, he was still a bit short of the endpoint of formation Dao and could not survive long in the Life-Forbidden Zone. But surviving for a short while and crossing a thousand miles should not be a problem.
However, that was only his deduction.
If his deduction was wrong, he would very likely die in the Life-Forbidden Zone. Once he entered, there would be no retreat. If he died there, it would be true death. Even rebirth would be useless.
Should he take the risk?
That was the question.
I have now condensed my runes down to ten. These ten runes contain all the runes I once mastered. The runes have almost entirely turned into purple runes. Formations laid with them are thousands of times stronger than before.
Even if a true supreme powerhouse entered my formation, if their luck was bad, they might fall within it. Even with good luck, they would still be badly battered.
Lin Moyu was extremely confident in his formation Dao. If he used a grand formation to protect himself, he might have a chance to cross the thousand-mile region of the Life-Forbidden Zone.
As long as he could touch the Heaven-and-Earth barrier, he could smash a hole in it. On that front, the Calamity Scepter never disappointed.
Then the little tree could seize the opening and enter, establishing a spatial passage within Heaven-and-Earth and leaving him a way back.
After thinking it through, Lin Moyu landed on the leaf and entered the spatial passage.
This distance was extremely far. Lin Moyu walked within the spatial passage for a long time. The little tree had searched for several hundred years along the direction given by the True Lord Seeker-of-Knowledge before finding it, so it was naturally not close.
His gaze passed through the spatial passage, and he saw the boundless void of the Life-Forbidden Zone. He could sense the terrifying power within it. Formless annihilating power was everywhere, capable of destroying all living beings who entered.
Annihilating power targeted living beings. For treasures like the Calamity Scepter, it was not as terrifying.
At maximum speed, after more than ten days, he finally reached the end of the spatial passage.
Standing at the exit, he saw a fragment of Heaven-and-Earth wreckage.
The wreckage was irregular in shape. It had likely been circular before, but after enduring the great annihilation, the Heaven-and-Earth rules shattered into wreckage and its shape became strange.
Lin Moyu could sense the barrier outside the wreckage. The barrier emitted heavy Heaven-and-Earth power. Even as wreckage, a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth was still extremely strong.
The spatial passage exit was a thousand miles from Heaven-and-Earth. To any true supreme powerhouse, this thousand miles was a fatal distance, hard to cross.
The Hongmeng Gemstone said, "Master, why not forget it? It is too dangerous. We can find another chance. An Eight-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth is already very good. It is still unprecedented."
Lin Moyu chuckled. "So-called unprecedented is only for this era of the great annihilation. In the era of the previous great annihilation, there might have even been Hongmeng Heaven-and-Earth, and people who crossed the Life-Forbidden Zone."
"Since we are here, I have to try, or I will not be satisfied."
With a thought, several runes flew out, leaving the spatial passage and unfolding within the Life-Forbidden Zone, turning into a grand formation.
The runes bloomed with purple light, like a purple divine flower blossoming in the Life-Forbidden Zone. Several runes fused into one, forming a grand formation.
Annihilating power arrived accordingly and fell upon the grand formation. The grand formation trembled unceasingly within the Life-Forbidden Zone, as if it might collapse at any moment.
But in the end, it held.
It held for a full ten seconds before truly breaking.
Ten seconds was enough.
Lin Moyu calculated. Ten seconds was more than enough. In fact, he did not need ten seconds. As long as it could last more than three seconds, it was enough.
One second to lay the formation, one second for rebirth, and another second to lay the next formation.
Three seconds was the limit. Ten seconds far exceeded expectations.
Lin Moyu quickly laid another formation. The formation moved according to his will and became a defensive formation. He had already achieved formations moving with his intent. Any kind of formation could be decided with a single thought.
After the formation was laid, Lin Moyu stepped out, charging out of the spatial passage and entering the formation.
Between the spatial passage and the formation, there was only half a meter. That half meter was enough to kill Lin Moyu.
The instant he left the spatial passage, his flesh body and soul began to be destroyed. His flesh body turned to dust, then his soul.
His soul was stronger than his flesh body and could endure longer. With the flesh body destroyed, the soul carried rosy radiance and smoothly arrived within the formation.
Then the soul voluntarily self-destructed.
Purple light flashed. Lin Moyu was reborn within the formation.
In the next breath, the grand formation flew toward Heaven-and-Earth. With annihilating power blocking it, the formation did not fly fast. In the blink of an eye, seven seconds passed. Three more seconds and the formation would break.
Lin Moyu did not wait until the last moment. Several runes flew from his fingertips and formed another grand formation.
The two formations drew close, then fused. The previous formation automatically dispersed, becoming support for the new formation.
In the transition between old and new, a trace of a gap appeared. The Life-Forbidden Zone's annihilating power was everywhere, drilling in and exploding inside the formation.
The formation rumbled but was not damaged.
Lin Moyu, however, was unlucky. On the spot, he was blasted into fragments by the annihilating power.
In the next second, he resurrected again and continued controlling the formation, flying toward the Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth.
Each time, he left himself enough margin. Even if there was a mistake, he would still have a chance to redo it.
Facing the Life-Forbidden Zone, Lin Moyu did not dare slacken for even a moment. He was fully focused and extremely cautious. One wrong step meant complete death.
Countless true supreme powerhouses had already proven the terror of the Life-Forbidden Zone. Lin Moyu had also personally experienced it, so he had to be even more careful.
He controlled the movement of the formation. The speed was not fast.
A mere thousand miles, which before required no step and could be reached in a blink, now took a full hour.
The last one.
The last formation took shape pressed against the Heaven-and-Earth barrier.
Lin Moyu rushed into it, and at the same time he swung the Calamity Scepter.
Bang.
The Heaven-and-Earth wreckage violently trembled once. The Heaven-and-Earth barrier was smashed open into a huge hole.
The Calamity Scepter never disappointed Lin Moyu. One smash, one hit. Even the Heaven-and-Earth barrier of a Nine-Wheel Heaven-and-Earth could be smashed open into a hole.
Just as he was about to charge in, Lin Moyu's face changed drastically.
At the same time, the Hongmeng Gemstone cried out, "Master, be careful!"
It proactively flew out and instantly grew larger, like a shield blocking in front of Lin Moyu.
A vast annihilating power surged out from the hole, like a heavy punch, and struck the Calamity Scepter.
The Calamity Scepter was knocked away, and it also sent Lin Moyu flying.
This power was irresistible. Lin Moyu could not stop his backward flight.
His reaction was extremely fast. He quickly controlled the formation and flew in the same direction as himself.
But the formation moved too slowly, far slower than him. In less than one tenth of a second, he would leave the formation's range.
If he fell into the Life-Forbidden Zone, he would surely die.
"Utmost Undying!"
Lin Moyu shouted, activating Utmost Undying. Utmost Undying could allow him to survive in the Life-Forbidden Zone for at least half a second.
Half a second was the decisive key.
His aura surged sharply. Utmost Undying put Lin Moyu into an undying and unperishing state.
But this undying and unperishing state also had limits. If he suffered a violent impact, the duration of Utmost Undying would be greatly shortened.
Against attacks at the Supreme realm, Utmost Undying meant truly undying and unperishing. Hit as you like, it did not matter.
Against a true supreme powerhouse's attack, Utmost Undying could also hold for a very long time, and could still be considered undying and unperishing.
But in the Life-Forbidden Zone, facing endless annihilating power, Utmost Undying could only hold for half a second.
That half second was Lin Moyu's life-or-death moment.
Countless runes carrying dazzling purple light poured out. In groups of ten, they rapidly formed formation after formation.
At this moment, Lin Moyu fully unleashed his formation Dao. To survive, he poured out everything.
Within one tenth of a second, more than a hundred formations took shape.
Purple light illuminated the void, forming one isolated island after another, each able to last only ten seconds.
Lin Moyu could not be sure which formation he would fall into. That power just now was too strong. His backward flight weakened somewhat under Utmost Undying, but he was still flying backward and could not stop at once.
In the next one tenth of a second, another hundred formations took shape.
Now he could only lay formations as much as possible, occupying the surrounding void so he could be safe.
Using three tenths of a second, Lin Moyu laid more than three hundred formations.
Then, with a thought, all formation lights intertwined and instantly connected into one. More than three hundred formations and more than three hundred isolated islands merged into one enormous island.
The power on Lin Moyu finally weakened. He controlled himself with all his might and fell into the island.
Relying on the formations to block annihilating power, he fell into the formations, and his body and soul shattered with a boom. His undying and unperishing state finally reached its end.
Purple light flashed. Lin Moyu was reborn.
The Hongmeng Gemstone asked anxiously, "Master, are you alright?"
Lin Moyu shook his head. "That was close. I almost died. What was that just now?"
The Hongmeng Gemstone said, "I said earlier this Heaven-and-Earth was not right. I just could not see it clearly. Now I know. This Heaven-and-Earth has already been invaded by the Life-Forbidden Zone's annihilating power."
"Just now, when Master smashed a hole, it was like releasing the annihilating power inside the Heaven-and-Earth."
Lin Moyu frowned. "How could this happen?"
The Hongmeng Gemstone said, "We will only know after we go inside. Right now that hole is still spewing annihilating power. There is quite a lot inside. It will keep spewing for a while."
Lin Moyu quickly recovered and continued using the same method, approaching the Heaven-and-Earth barrier again. He changed position and arrived before the barrier once more, then raised the Calamity Scepter.
"One hole vents too slowly. I will make more holes to let it vent."
Bang. The Heaven-and-Earth barrier was smashed open into another hole.
This time Lin Moyu was prepared. He had prepared a formation in advance. After smashing the hole, he immediately dodged into another formation.
A large amount of annihilating power spewed out from the hole, but this time it posed no threat to Lin Moyu.
Lin Moyu repeated the process, smashing dozens of holes.
The annihilating power inside the Heaven-and-Earth wreckage was quickly vented clean.
When no more annihilating power spewed out, Lin Moyu finally chose a hole and flew in.
The moment he entered Heaven-and-Earth, the pressure immediately lessened greatly. Lin Moyu finally let out a long breath.
Using Lin Moyu as the coordinate reference, the little tree quickly extended the spatial passage over and established the spatial passage.
The Hongmeng Gemstone and Lin Moyu observed this Heaven-and-Earth together, examining the specific situation within it.