Aboard the Space-Time Shuttle.
After handing the Time Marrow to Gu Qing, He Ni went full ice queen, standing alone at the bow in solitary elegance.
She acted as if she wasn't the least bit curious about the Celestial Pearl and the Return-to-One Sword he'd brought out, or the changes in his cultivation.
Gu Qing laughed softly. He loved that pure heart of hers — that unshakeable nature, unmoved by external things.
He promptly pulled her into his arms and couldn't resist planting a kiss on her soft, pale cheek.
Controlling the Space-Time Shuttle, he soared away, leaving everyone in the dust. The assembled mighty experts were left standing there in disarray.
The experts exchanged glances, their minds reeling.
They had assumed the two were master and disciple — clearly, they were not.
But the two of them didn't match at all.
He Ni was so transcendent — a suspected Immortal King existence whose divine might was utterly unmatched, slaying Profound God Realm experts like chickens and dogs.
Of course, that was what they'd thought before. After Zhou Shengfeng's suicidal stunt, they'd also considered another possibility.
He Ni bore a striking resemblance to an Immortal Emperor's descendant, possessing a transcendent bloodline.
After all, Immortal Emperor descendants were exceedingly rare, but not nonexistent.
If she truly were an Immortal Emperor's descendant, that would be terrifying — who knew how much blessing the Immortal Emperor had left for her lineage? An Innate Spirit Treasure was surely among them.
Even without one, this Space-Time Shuttle was no inferior to an Innate Spirit Treasure.
Moreover, the Immortal Emperor bloodline naturally made it easier to attain the Dao Fruit of an Immortal Emperor than ordinary beings.
One could say He Ni had real hope of proving the Dao as an Immortal Emperor.
And yet such an existence had been defiled by a mere Divine Fire Realm ant?
"Sigh, young people these days just don't want to endure any hardship at all."
"Don't they know that relying on others is unreliable? Mountains may crumble, people may run — counting on yourself is better than counting on anyone else."
Someone said this with bitter anguish, their eyes red with jealousy.
"What immense fortune this ant has stumbled upon."
That was an Immortal Emperor bloodline — the most noble fairy in the world.
Having secured this meal ticket, the Great Dao was within reach.
Gu Qing could practically win while lying down.
And what about them? Their cultivation was countless times higher than Gu Qing's, yet they were still struggling desperately, running themselves ragged just to find a single drop of Time Marrow.
The more they thought about it, the more devastated they became, cursing the heavens for their injustice.
"If only I were as handsome as that pretty-boy." Someone touched their own face.
Though they were quite handsome too, they simply couldn't compare to Gu Qing.
As the Space-Time Shuttle traversed the vast cosmos, it was eventually forced to a halt by a delicate moan.
It was unclear how much time had passed before the two of them strolled leisurely into the Limitless Tower. From here, one could take in the boundless universe at a glance.
At the same time, the Limitless Tower was the core of the entire shuttle. Here, one could comprehend the limitlessness of time and space, the immensity of the cosmos.
"When do you plan to leave the Dawn Dusk Sea?" Gu Qing asked.
"I'm not sure, but at least not until I've grasped the Chronos Sword Formation."
"If possible, I'd like to find more Time Stones to refine the Chronos Sword Formation."
He Ni replied softly, her beautiful face tinged with a rosy flush, her gaze gentle.
When she first entered the Dawn Dusk Sea, it was merely to find Time Marrow and quickly restore her strength.
But now, having comprehended the true essence of the Laws of Time, He Ni harbored even greater ambition.
She wanted to fuse her Great Thousand Sword Formation and Heaven and Earth Sword Formation with the Laws of Time, creating an entirely new sword formation — the Chronos Sword Formation.
Back in the day, she had used the Great Thousand Sword Formation and Heaven and Earth Sword Formation to fight three Immortal Emperors simultaneously without defeat.
If she could grasp the Chronos Sword Formation — time itself becoming her sword, infinite and endless, sweeping away all Daos into nothingness — slaying an Immortal Emperor would be no issue at all.
Gu Qing also understood the terrifying power of the Chronos Sword Formation, which was why he'd brought her to the Limitless Tower to lend her a hand.
"The Limitless Tower contains the Great Dao of time-space equilibrium. If you comprehend the Dao here with the Celestial Pearl's assistance, I'm sure you'll grasp the Chronos Sword Formation very soon," Gu Qing said softly.
He Ni needed to enter secluded cultivation, but so did he.
After all, having obtained so much Time Marrow, he naturally needed to use it as soon as possible to raise his cultivation.
Gu Qing wanted to break through to the Heavenly God Realm as quickly as possible, and then head to the Star God Sect.
He Ni pressed her red lips together, touched, said softly in agreement, and sat down cross-legged.
The Celestial Pearl flew out from within her.
Gu Qing had already lent it to her.
With her soul brand imprinted on it, the Dao comprehension effect was even more powerful.
While comprehending the Dao, He Ni didn't forget about her daughter either, controlling the Celestial Pearl to shower down divine radiance of the Great Dao, cleansing Yan'er's spiritual foundations.
Yan'er, still sleeping soundly in her mother's womb, was showered with boundless fortune, and she slept even more sweetly.
Gu Qing deposited a large amount of Primordial Yellow Mother Qi into the Limitless Tower, then entered the Primordial Ruyi Space.
He saw Zhi Meng transformed into a giant blue egg, its surface flowing with divine patterns of the Laws of the Great Dao of Thunder, profoundly mysterious.
Gu Qing froze for a moment, then activated his Dao Eye to inspect.
He saw Zhi Meng cradling the Heavenly Thunder Pearl, the two merging into one.
The Heavenly Thunder Pearl had become Zhi Meng's natal supreme treasure, fusing with the Great Dao of Thunder. The day the fusion was complete would be the day Zhi Meng became an innate goddess who commanded the Great Dao of Thunder.
Gu Qing withdrew his Dao Eye, his eyes filled with worry, sighing inwardly at Zhi Meng's audacity.
Clearly, Zhi Meng had endured the agony of the thunder cleansing her soul and body, and then, undaunted by death, had begun fusing with the Heavenly Thunder Pearl.
Doing so could quickly raise her cultivation and allow her to rapidly master the Great Dao of Thunder.
But it was also far more dangerous and painful — a literal nine deaths to one chance of survival.
If Zhi Meng's state of mind wavered even slightly, or if her own Dao proved incompatible with the Heavenly Thunder Pearl, she would be instantly devoured by the thunder backlash — soul annihilated, body reduced to nothingness.
Even those Immortal Emperors who obtained Innate Spirit Treasures didn't dare fuse with them; they only dared to comprehend the Laws within.
Let alone the Heavenly Thunder Pearl, whose killing power was unmatched.
The Heavenly Thunder Pearl did have one advantage, however — it could cleanse soul and body, allowing oneself to perfectly align with the Great Dao of Thunder.
But even so, the risk of failure remained enormous.
After all, Zhi Meng had already condensed a Heavenly God Realm Dao Fruit. She hadn't dissolved her Dao Fruit either, which made a Dao clash very likely.
The only ones who could fuse with an Innate Spirit Treasure were those in the innate Great Dao fetal state, whose minds and spiritual foundations were pure and flawless. Only then could one perfectly fuse with an Innate Spirit Treasure without any danger.
In short, no cultivator in the world dared to fuse with an Innate Spirit Treasure.
If it were Gu Qing, he absolutely wouldn't dare either.
Nor would he dare let the heavenly thunder cleanse his soul and body.
After all, it was too painful.
If he could raise his cultivation comfortably, why would he take the risk?
But everyone had their own destiny, and the Dao had no shortcuts.
"Master, you must succeed."
Gu Qing could only pray silently. In matters like this, outsiders simply couldn't intervene.
Recklessly interfering would only harm Zhi Meng and cause all her efforts to come to naught.
Gu Qing walked over to the immortal infant and gently pinched Xian'er's soft, chubby little cheeks, saying softly, "Once your Auntie He Ni is done with the Celestial Pearl, I'll have it cleanse your aptitude too. That way, you'll be born in Rome — divine from birth."
With that, Gu Qing stepped out of the Ruyi Space, deposited more Primordial Yellow Mother Qi, and set the Space-Time Shuttle to autopilot.
"That's too wasteful."
Although he had countless amounts of Primordial Yellow Mother Qi, this was still squandering it.
Perhaps one day, the Primordial Yellow Mother Qi would run out too.
He needed to find a way to earn Immortal Crystals — at least a hundred trillion, to be prepared for any eventuality.
Thinking of this, Gu Qing pondered for a moment and decided to consume Time Marrow in the Space-Time Shuttle's cultivation chamber to raise his cultivation.
Although the Primordial Ruyi Space had a tenfold time flow rate, the space was suffused with the Primordial Yellow Great Dao.
That was not the Great Dao he primarily cultivated.
Besides the Primordial Yellow Great Dao, Gu Qing also cultivated the Star Great Dao, the Time-Space Great Dao, the Yin-Yang Great Dao, the Life-Death Cycle Great Dao, the Guixu Great Dao, the Chaos Great Dao...
Cultivating in the Ruyi Space would actually interfere with his Daos.
Besides, he had Time Marrow. Even if he couldn't achieve sudden enlightenment, a single drop of Time Marrow contained nine years of time — wasn't that far faster than the tenfold time flow in the Ruyi Space?
After sorting through his own Daos, Divine Abilities, and techniques, Gu Qing began consuming Time Marrow, comprehending the profundity of heaven and earth, the vastness of the cosmos.
Time flowed on.
In just ten years, Gu Qing broke through to the peak of the Divine Fire Realm.
But regarding the Heavenly God Realm Dao Fruit, he was completely stumped.
Because the Heavenly God Realm was unlike ordinary realms.
If the Divine Fire Realm was about igniting the divine fire and comprehending the Laws, then the Heavenly God Realm was about understanding one's own Great Dao and condensing a Heavenly God Dao Fruit.
What was his Dao Fruit?
Was it the Great Dao of Time-Space?
The Great Dao of Stars?
The Great Dao of Yin-Yang?
The Great Dao of Life-Death Cycle?
The Great Dao of Guixu?
The Great Dao of Primordial Yellow?
The Great Dao of Chaos?
Or should he prove the Heavenly God Dao Fruit through his physical body?
After all, his body contained the indestructible Laws' divine nature — this too was a supreme Great Dao.
Gu Qing frowned, racked his brain, and finally chose the Chaos Great Dao, using it to encompass all myriad Daos.
But the Chaos Great Dao was simply too vast.
As for how to condense a Chaos Dao Fruit, Gu Qing was completely at a loss.
"It's fine if I can't figure it out. It just means my comprehension isn't deep enough yet," Gu Qing murmured.
When water is full, it overflows. As long as his understanding of all the myriad Daos of heaven and earth was sufficient, he would naturally grasp the Chaos Great Dao.
Gu Qing came to the Limitless Tower, borrowing the power of the limitlessness of time and space, along with the Celestial Pearl and Time Marrow. He refused to believe he couldn't comprehend the Chaos Great Dao.
Time flew by.
Gu Qing had consumed all the Time Marrow, and his mastery of Daos, Divine Abilities, and techniques had become unfathomably profound.
Yet the Chaos Dao Fruit he sought to condense always felt just barely out of reach.
That slight gap made Gu Qing understand the true meaning of "a miss is as good as a mile."
Chaos was, after all, simply too vast and abstract.
A small difference was, in reality, an impassable chasm.
"Husband, there's something I'm not sure whether I should say." He Ni spoke, her expression hesitant.
Cultivating alongside Gu Qing for these past hundred years had made her thoroughly understand what it meant that there are always greater people, and heavens beyond heaven.
If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she would never have believed that someone could simultaneously comprehend so many supreme Daos.
After all, every single Great Dao that Gu Qing cultivated was an absolute supreme Dao.
Proving the Dao through any one of them alone would be enough to become a supreme existence.
Even among Immortal Emperors, such a being would be invincible.
Yet Gu Qing cultivated all of them simultaneously — and now wanted to use the Chaos Great Dao to encompass all myriad Daos and condense a Chaos Dao Fruit.
This was something even an Immortal Emperor couldn't do. If Gu Qing could pull it off, that would be truly bizarre.
She had wanted to urge Gu Qing to give up for a long time now.
But then she thought that even if he failed, Gu Qing wouldn't suffer any losses — on the contrary, the myriad Dao mysteries he comprehended in the process would be a tremendous blessing in themselves. So she hadn't said anything.
But now, seeing Gu Qing so consumed by obsession, He Ni was truly worried.
Gu Qing raised a hand to stop her, frowning in thought.
He felt he could do it. His comprehension was already sufficient — he just lacked a catalyst, a spark.
"A catalyst... a spark..." Gu Qing murmured, then his expression suddenly went blank.
The Chaos Indestructible Halberd that Jiang Yu had given him — it contained the Chaos Indestructible Laws. Wasn't that the perfect catalyst?
Gu Qing couldn't wait to take out the Chaos Indestructible Halberd and study it closely, his brow slightly furrowed.
The halberd did indeed contain the Dao resonance of the Chaos Indestructible Laws, but it was too low-level — far from sufficient to help him condense a Heavenly God Realm Dao Fruit.
Gu Qing opened his Dao Eye to scan the Chaos Indestructible Law's Dao resonance, absorbing whatever he could.
But when his Dao Eye scanned into the interior, he discovered a restriction blocking his gaze.
Without a second thought, Gu Qing circulated the Chaos Indestructible Scripture to refine it. Three days later, he had worn away the restriction.
The Chaos Indestructible Halberd revealed its true face.
It was at the Heavenly God Artifact tier, but its essence was forged from Chaos Adamantine, Chaos Iron Mother, Primeval Stone, Chaos Divine Water, and other supreme treasures.
The Chaos Indestructible Halberd had the potential to ascend to the Chaos Artifact tier — one rank above even an Innate Supreme Treasure.
Most crucially, Gu Qing could use it as a reference to comprehend and condense the Chaos Indestructible Dao Fruit.
Given a few centuries, Gu Qing would definitely be able to condense the Chaos Indestructible Dao Fruit.
"So Jiang Yu had already prepared a Dao-proving Artifact for me."
At this moment, Gu Qing wanted nothing more than to hug Jiang Yu's thigh and shower it with kisses.
How truly heartwarming.
Sure enough, with Jiang Yu around, the system could be thrown away.
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