.1 Lightning Strike Breaks All Laws: The Dao of Taiyi

With a shout from Guang Chengzi, a thin, long bolt of lightning shot out from his fingertips.

This bolt of lightning looked rather clumsy, not even as thick as a little finger or an inch long, which made many Shangqing disciples unable to suppress their laughter. They wondered if such a divine thunderbolt deserved to be called the "Chantian" (a name associated with the heavens).

Even Duobao and the others remained calm, believing that this lightning could not be considered divine lightning at all. Guangchengzi's ritual had failed, and Jin Guangxian had won this round.

Only the three Celestial Venerables showed slight changes in their expressions, clearly having discerned something from the situation. Tongtian even shook his head and sighed, obviously not approving of his disciple's actions.

Sure enough, this seemingly ridiculous bolt of lightning began to absorb the scattered essence of heaven and earth in an instant, and before it had flown a few miles, it was already several feet long.

All around came muffled thunder, which had started as intermittent and barely audible sounds, but became a deafening roar that shook the mountains and rivers, and in a daze, it even had some characteristics of the great power of the Great Luo.

Jin Guangxian, who had been looking smug, suddenly changed his expression and shouted, smashing his crown to pieces. His already loose golden hair danced wildly in the wind.

But Jin Guangxian had no time to care about any of that. As his hair ornament shattered, a talisman inscribed with the Four Symbols scripture flew out. It flickered in mid-air and emitted four-colored light, forming a large array like a tortoise shell. It fell down, but instead of covering Guang Chengzi, it enveloped Jin Guangxian.

The tortoise-shell-like array had just been set up when the Heavenly Thunder descended from the sky like a raging dragon, followed by a deafening, earth-shattering roar that shook the entire Kunlun Mountain.

It wasn't a forceful, overwhelming movement, but rather as if the Kunlun Mountains spontaneously responded to it.

The moment the true thunder came into contact with the great formation, a series of dazzling lights suddenly flashed out with a thunderclap, and millions of lightning bolts flew out. The mountains and rivers for thousands of miles were almost instantly destroyed, as if the sky had collapsed and the earth had split open, the sea had dried up and the rocks had crumbled. The vast ocean and the rivers and mountains were all destroyed by this thunder.

The great formation only lasted for a short while before it began to crack uncontrollably, clearly indicating that it could not hold on any longer.

Even more terrifying was that the lightning and thunder that had been spewing out began to absorb the essence of heaven and earth again, giving birth to new strands of Heavenly Thunder, which continued to entwine the great formation like maggots clinging to bones.

It seems that as long as the great formation remains intact and the immortals within it survive, the thunder will never cease.

As expected, the four-colored array was directly destroyed by the lightning, and the talisman was also covered with cracks. It let out a mournful cry and fell back onto Jin Guangxian's head, but it was still trembling, showing that it was seriously injured.

With their minds connected, Jin Guangxian's face instantly turned deathly pale, and his previously radiant golden complexion became much paler, indicating that his very essence had been damaged, and it would be difficult for him to recover in less than a million years.

Seeing the thousands of Dao Chan Heavenly True Lightning regroup and eagerly descend from the sky, Jin Guangxian, though unwilling, was powerless to reverse the situation and could only close his eyes and await death.

The pain he had imagined did not come, and even the blinding lightning gradually dissipated. Jin Guangxian opened his eyes in confusion, only to see Guang Chengzi standing opposite him with a smile on his face.

As if knowing his thoughts, Guang Chengzi laughed and said, "Junior Brother Jin Guangxian, we were merely exchanging blows; how could I possibly harm you?"

Ignoring Jin Guangxian's grief and indignation, Guang Chengzi finished speaking and auspicious clouds rose from his feet. He ascended to the heavens and bowed to the Three Pure Ones, saying, "Please punish me, Master, Grand Master Uncle, and Third Uncle. I did not know my own strength and was unable to control myself when the lightning struck, which is why I injured Junior Brother Jin Guangxian. It is truly my fault."

The Three Pure Ones naturally wouldn't punish Guang Chengzi. After all, it was just a competition, and it was Jin Guangxian who overestimated himself in the first place. Now that he's lost, he can't blame anyone else.

Even Tongtian had nothing to say, but instead gave Guangchengzi a few lotus flowers from in front of Biyou Palace as a reward for his victory.

In front of Biyou Palace lies a vast expanse of blue water, dotted with countless lotus flowers and fairy islands. Sometimes, when Tongtian is in a good mood, he will randomly choose a lotus flower to sit on and preach within it.

Over time, the lotus he often sat on became imbued with the Daoist essence of the Great Dao of Heaven, and listened to the teachings of the Great Dao day and night, thus developing its own spirituality. It was an extremely precious treasure.

Now that Guang Chengzi has obtained it, he feels it is a good opportunity. Laozi also presents him with a Qi-restoring powder. Although the name is vulgar, we should see who made it.

The Qi-restoring powder, personally refined by Lao Tzu, can instantly replenish even the most powerful immortals who have exhausted all their magical power. In battle, it is practically a second life.

With Guang Chengzi's current cultivation level, taking just one or two pills of powder would be enough to replenish his magical power thousands of times, which is much better than ordinary pills that only allow one person to take one pill.

It is clear that Lao Tzu intended to give it away, and did not choose it randomly.

Tongtian, the master, was speechless. On the contrary, Yuanshi Tianzun looked displeased and snorted, "Although you did not do it intentionally, the mistake has been made. Whether it was intentional or not is no longer of any use. As a warning, I will punish you to copy various Yuqing scriptures ten thousand times in the Langhuan Library. If you do not finish one book or even one copy, you will not be allowed to leave. Do you understand?"

Guang Chengzi lowered his head even further, and said respectfully, "This disciple dares not disobey, and thanks Master for the punishment."

The words spoken by Yuanshi Tianzun and Guangchengzi actually calmed down some of the indignant Shangqing disciples.

After all, Yuanshi Tianzun had already punished Guangchengzi, so what else could they say?

Even though some clever people had already guessed that Yuanshi Tianzun was just putting on a show, after all, the reputation of Langhuan Library resounded throughout Kunlun Mountain. It not only contained various supernatural powers and methods, but also Yuanshi Tianzun's lifelong insights.

Even though copying various Jade Purity Scriptures may bring various insights and sometimes cause excruciating pain that would make even immortals writhe, it is a blessing that cannot be obtained through begging. Rather than a punishment, it is more like a reward.

But so what?

Yuanshi Tianzun had already given his explanation, and all they could do was nod and smile in agreement. Otherwise, if they embarrassed Yuanshi Tianzun, they would lose their lives.

Duobao and the other direct disciples maintained a calm and composed demeanor, but Bixiao, the junior sister, seemed somewhat confused. She tugged at Yunxiao's sleeve and whispered, "Sister, why did the lightning suddenly become so powerful? Could it be that Guangchengzi secretly cheated?"

Upon hearing this, Yunxiao's eyebrows twitched slightly. Together with Qiongxiao and Zhao Gongming, she covered Bixiao's mouth. Seeing that the Three Pure Ones were just continuing their sermon without looking in their direction, she breathed a sigh of relief.

What does it mean to say that Guang Chengzi engaged in favoritism and corruption? Does it mean that the Three Pure Ones intentionally favored Guang Chengzi, or that the Three Pure Ones were blind and couldn't see that the other party was making underhanded moves?

Regardless of the interpretation, it was an insult to these three great figures, naturally making Yunxiao extremely wary.

Fortunately, these three great gods didn't pay any attention to Bixiao, otherwise, those words alone would have been enough to kill her a million times over.

Bixiao was just angry at her enemy for being so smug, which is why she said those words without thinking. Now that she realized what she had said, her pretty face turned slightly pale with fright. Fortunately, she didn't cause any serious trouble.

Yunxiao released her hand and said in a low voice, "That thunder is called the True Thunder of Heavenly Elucidation. It is the second master's proud divine power. It emphasizes turning small into large, like an insect turning into a butterfly. It requires one part of strength to unleash ten parts of power."

"How is this possible?" Bixiao asked, puzzled.

Qiongxiao replied, "It is by relying on the power of heaven and earth to enhance it. One's own magical power is just a catalyst. The essence is to draw in the essence of heaven and earth to strengthen oneself, transform from an insect into a butterfly. With the power of heaven and earth within, it is naturally extremely powerful."

Zhao Gongming also shook his head and said, "We originally thought that Guang Chengzi had not learned this thunder technique. We don't know how he did it. In just a short time since he entered the sect, he has already done all sorts of incredible things, which is truly astonishing."

The many immortals of Shangqing also started talking at once, but they all believed that Guangchengzi's future was bound to be limitless.

That makes sense. With Yuanshi Tianzun as his backer, Guangchengzi is at least a Yunxiao level cultivator, and it's not impossible for him to be on par with or even surpass Duobao.

After all, Tongtian has taken in countless disciples, and judging from this trend, even more disciples will surely join him in the future. With more disciples, Tongtian will be more preoccupied and have no time to attend to others.

But since Yuanshi Tianzun only had this one son, he naturally nurtured and protected him carefully. He also allowed Guangchengzi to enter the vast Yuxu Palace, which made things completely different.

Duobao, the subject of the discussion, didn't take it to heart. He had also received joint teachings from the Three Pure Ones, so he naturally had a broader vision for the future and understood that these were just personal opinions and there was no need to pay attention to them.

After all, none of the Three Pure Ones taught them cultivation, yet they were all incredibly powerful. If they could become strong simply through cultivation, then they wouldn't need to painstakingly cultivate themselves.

Once one reaches the stage of enlightenment, external forces become irrelevant, so Duobao naturally doesn't care.

But Duobao cares about his junior brothers and sisters, as well as his personal disciples.

Holy Mother of Fire.

For some reason, the moment Duobao saw Guang Chengzi, he felt a jolt in his soul and a subconscious malice arose in his heart, clearly indicating that he had a premonition.

After being sent back to his own cave by the White Crane Boy, he was thinking of helping the Fire Spirit Mother circulate her cultivation technique when he saw his disciple's blood and qi reverse, causing him to suffer a qi deviation. If he hadn't treated him in time, he would probably have died.

Originally, the Fire Spirit Mother's qualifications were personally recognized by Tongtian, who believed that she was a future figure who could inherit the Duobao Dao lineage.

The Holy Mother of Fire Spirit lived up to expectations. After only a few decades of studying under Duobao, her magical powers and supernatural abilities were already comparable to those of her ordinary uncles and aunts, and her momentum was extremely strong with no sign of stopping.

Duobao was also very proud of the Holy Mother of Fire Spirit, but just when Guangchengzi had just become a disciple of Kunlun Mountain, his own disciple was tormented to the point of almost dying by such a trivial matter.

There seems to be no connection between the two, but a cultivator's sudden whim is the most incredible and also the most sensitive.

With prejudice in his heart, Duobao naturally found it difficult to have any goodwill towards Guangchengzi. In this case, Guangchengzi and the Holy Mother of Fire Spirit were practically natural enemies.

The stronger Guangchengzi becomes, the more displeased Duobao becomes.

After the Three Pure Ones finished their sermon, they all returned to their own homes. Yuanshi Tianzun, having no intention of offering guidance as usual, immediately took Guangchengzi back to his own cave.

Upon returning to the Jade Void Palace, Guang Chengzi felt the Jade Void Treasure Box within his body become active again, constantly revealing various profound truths of the Heavenly Elucidation, allowing him to comprehend even more of the Heavenly Elucidation True Method.

The Primordial Celestial Venerable also noticed this scene, and a slight smile appeared on his usually dignified face. He said, "I obtained this box by chance. Although it is related to me, it is being given to someone else through my hands."

Now that you have become my disciple, it seems to be destiny. There were many people and things were busy just now, so I couldn't bestow anything upon you. However, I have nothing to give you right now, so I will present this apprenticeship gift to you another day.

Guang Chengzi was startled upon hearing this and immediately bowed down on the prayer mat, saying loudly, "It is already a great blessing for me to be a disciple of my master. How could I dare to ask for treasures? Besides, I have already received this box, and I really dare not take any more."

But Yuanshi Tianzun was determined to give it to you, so he naturally wouldn't allow you to refuse. He waved his hand and said, "This box is something you are destined to receive. What does it have to do with me? Since your elder brother and third brother have already given you something to protect you, how can I, as your master, not give you one? No need for further words, just wait for another day."

After speaking, Yuanshi Tianzun, without waiting for Guangchengzi's reply, pondered for a moment and said, "Now, judging from your cultivation, you have already comprehended the most profound and mysterious principles. With the Immortal Jade Elixir, you can also use it to determine the Immortal Venerable Position, and you don't need to care about the Golden Immortal realm."

"Since that's the case, then I will expound the Dao of Taiyi to you, so that you may know the capabilities of a Taiyi Golden Immortal. Don't think that just because you can defeat your peers you can be arrogant and domineering. You should know that the primordial world is vast, and there are places I dare not set foot in."

Upon hearing this, Guang Chengzi sat up straight, his face solemn, clearly intending to listen attentively.

He was the master of Jiuxian Mountain. Although Jiuxian Mountain was not a top-tier grotto-heaven, it occupied one of the seventy-two blessed lands and was blessed with good fortune. As soon as he took human form, he reached the Xuanxian realm.

Although he cannot compare to those top-tier saints who are Great Luo, he is not bad either. The reason why his cultivation is difficult to advance is simply because no one has lit a lamp for him. Now that he has the opportunity to listen to the Great Dao, he should cherish it.

"The so-called Taiyi is the art of divination, and the Taiyi Golden Immortal is a Golden Immortal who is proficient in the art of divination."

When the Primordial Celestial Venerable preached, his demeanor was extraordinary. His voice was like rolling thunder, deafening and thought-provoking, causing all kinds of distracting thoughts to spontaneously dissipate and turn into nothingness, leaving only a pure heart in a jade pot.

The Great Dao he spoke of was even more concise and to the point, dissecting the essence of the Taiyi Golden Immortal in just one sentence.

The Golden Immortal has already condensed the Immortal Golden Nature within his body, enabling him to coexist with the Primordial World and live an endless lifespan. If he loses a little, the Heavenly Dao will immediately compensate him. If there are no external calamities, he is enough to live for countless eons.

However, the calamities are endless. In the darkness, the Heavenly Dao sends down tribulations to test all living beings. Later, the Demon Ancestor Rahu transformed into the extraterrestrial demon realm, evolving into endless demons to obstruct the path. It can be said that there are endless dangers, and the slightest carelessness will lead to the destruction of the path and the annihilation of people.

To survive a calamity, one must first calculate it. Thus, under the operation of Hongjun, the Taiyi Dao came into being, so that all immortals could use Taiyi to calculate calamities, so as to avoid or survive them.