The Way of The Dao

Ling Tian took the step forward, following his intuition and the slight stirring of his soul that seemed like a call. His sight was filled with a distant memory, making him unable to see what was currently in front of him. Ling Tian responded to the sensation that was originating in his being.

As he took the step forward, he came back to himself and blinked rapidly, regaining the sight he had lost for a few moments.

"What?!"

Ling Tian was dumbfounded as he appeared somewhere else!

Turning to his surroundings, he could find no trace of the others, not even a trace of the places that were nearby from before.

The environment was empty, dark, with nothing around him that could tell him anything.

There was only a haze covering everything around him, like a cloak covering his eyes, preventing him from seeing further than his arms were stretched out.

Ling Tian did not despair and tried to feel his connection with Yun Mengxin.

"Hmm?" He was more surprised when he could feel the connection expressed to him that Yun Mengxin was by his side, as well as with the other women.

"But there's nothing and no one nearby..." Ling Tian moved his arms to the side, in the direction of where Yun Mengxin should supposedly be, but he couldn't touch or feel anything.

His spirit sense expanded, but it was useless; he couldn't see more than a meter away from him.

There seemed to be a subtle draft as the layer of mist was constantly moving, but Ling Tian did not feel any wind at all.

"Where am I...?"

His mind had been filled with a distant memory, so he had momentarily lost himself, causing him to end up in this strange place.

It was as if it was a gloomy dimension, something similar to where he had encountered Linqi.

Ling Tian tried to move, but no matter how much he moved forward, he felt like he was still in the same place, as if he hadn't moved in the first place.

Even his feet, he felt like he was standing on a ground, but at the same time he felt like there was nothing there, as if he was just floating. A completely strange sensation.

However, this strange sensation conveyed a slightly familiar feeling to him.

"Huh?"

Ling Tian was suddenly startled as he looked down at the ground again and saw that the layer of mist had shifted slightly, making like a small path.

"This is... crystal?"

Ling Tian muttered in astonishment as he realized that he was now standing on what appeared to be a strange path composed of transparent, glowing crystals. This path led through the intense mist.

Ling Tian opened his eyes completely filled with shock as his heart began to beat wildly, his soul shaking in equal measure as he stood stupefied on the spot.

When he turned to look back, he found that the path made of crystals also came from the mysterious mist, unable to find a beginning or end.

Suddenly, the space rippled subtly, but Ling Tian could hardly notice it!

Filled with more surprise and agitation, his breathing quickened as he noticed that there was now water on his sides, as if he was in the middle of the sea and the path made of crystals was precisely a bridge of crystals!

"There's no doubt anymore..." Ling Tian tried to calm his breathing, as he understood what was really happening right now in front of his eyes.

"This is just like that time..." He calmed down and as if it was a subconscious movement, Ling Tian looked straight ahead and stared.

A beautiful glow could be noticed in the distance, trying to lure him to that place.

Even his instincts expressed to him to go there.

Ling Tian stared for a long time before he slightly lifted the corner of his lips and began to walk towards the glow, walking across the path of crystals.

Although he seemed to take a step, he felt like he wasn't making much progress, but when he stopped and let himself go, he felt like he had covered a great distance and that glow was getting bigger and bigger.

His heart began to pound again as he could no longer hide that long-ago feeling.

The closer he got, the more agitated his breathing became. The more he took a step, the more his soul shook fiercely, as if it wanted to leave his body.

After a strange lapse of time, Ling Tian finally arrived and stopped, observing what was in front of him.

"The mountain of crystals..."

Ling Tian muttered, observing what his eyes were seeing at this very moment.

A large mountain, which, in turn, seemed to be endless if one sought to measure it, but at the same time it only seemed to be a small mountain without much height. The water around it was calm, without any ripples on its surface while there was no cloud in the sky, being empty and without any sound other than its own breathing.

But what had Ling Tian amazed, was that this mountain, was composed only of pure crystals, which produced that glow from afar.

A mountain, an island of crystals in the middle of an endless sea, with nothing else in sight to interfere with this view.

"This was where it all began..."

Ling Tian looked nostalgically at the mountain of crystals remembering what had happened long ago.

This mountain of crystals was what made him actually take the path of cultivation when he was hesitating whether to try to become the legendary Immortals or live a normal life since he only had a low cultivation.

After surviving when the old man and the skeleton soul were killed for the treasure that was his medallion and before being teleported to a Cultivation World, he had found this mountain of crystals and the three objects mentioned in the legend that resided in his Knowledge Sea for 10 thousand years, and a voice would fill his soul every so often or every time he performed a difficult or simple action.

"What is the Dao?"

Ling Tian muttered to himself, smiling bitterly as he asked himself the same question he heard all this time because of this unimaginable event in front of him.

Although he had not found an exact answer to this question so far, Ling Tian was beginning to vaguely understand what this voice wanted to convey to him, finally voicing answers to him after having almost died and his cultivation being sealed.

But now, he was here again, in front of the mountain of crystals where it all began.

Ling Tian moved again, slowly climbing the mountain of crystals and heading towards the top. Curiously, the crystals that seemed so delicate and fine, would not be destroyed even if he walked on them.

Once Ling Tian reached the top, a glittering crystal sphere on top of a natural stone pedestal came into his vision. This stood in the middle of the mountain of crystals, conveying a strange feeling, as if it belonged to antiquity and time flowed strangely in it.

"According to the owner of the ring, who was the skeleton in front of the stone pedestal containing the crystal sphere, he had won the chance to understand what the Dao meant, but as he was dying and because of the various actions he had committed due to his greed and arrogance for the most part, he had lost his chance and this place called him back again, taking back the objects he had received before as well..."

Now there was no longer any skeleton like the first time he had entered. Only he and the mountain of crystals along with the sphere were there.

Ling Tian remembered the testament that had been left by the owner of the ring. And according to what that ring had, Ling Tian gained great knowledge and riches, allowing him to grow faster, which made him think that that previous owner was a Supreme as well...

"If this place called me back, does it mean that I have missed the opportunity also to learn about the true Great Dao?"

He paused, hesitating for a moment whether these objects would return again to that crystal sphere that seemed to hover above the stone pedestal.

One of the three objects had become that mysterious and strange Little World, while another had become a strange Vine beneath his Consciousness Sea, slowly recovering after accidentally unleashing its power the first time he checked it.

The third object was left floating above his Consciousness Sea, but, although it hadn't transformed into something different, it was cracked, as if it was about to shatter and expel all that horrible power inside it.

"If I touch it, wouldn't it take these objects away from me?" Ling Tian kept looking at the crystal sphere, thinking about what might happen. His hand was half outstretched towards the sphere, stopping completely in mid-air.

His Little World would be gone, that strange Vine would be gone too. The only thing he wasn't so worried about, was the third sphere that contained that strange power.

He knew that, if that power was ever unleashed, it could destroy his Consciousness Sea and even die instantly.

Ling Tian suddenly scowled in annoyance and became exasperated, "Why should I care if these things are lost! Yes! I may have missed the chance to comprehend the Dao, but that doesn't mean I won't be able to learn it in the future! Besides, these objects didn't help me at all from the beginning, only that strange voice would emerge inside my head before disappearing without another word! If so, then I'll search for the meaning of the Great Dao myself!"

Yes, he had fought for himself all his life, crawling from death's door countless times with barely a faint breath, all for the sake of having enough strength to protect his own family and not lose them again...

The objects just remained floating in his Consciousness Sea all his life, without doing anything about it. It all happened once he fell to this small world after almost dying and being saved allegedly by the Great Dao itself, transforming those objects into what they currently are.

If he had to fight the Great Dao again, then he would do it again no matter what!

He didn't believe that there was no other way he could break through the true boundaries of immortality and become one with the heavens without the sacred objects of legend...

Besides, his instincts were so calm and expressed nothing wrong...

Finally, Ling Tian hesitated no longer and reached out his hand, touching the crystal sphere.

* FLASH!!! * * LIGHTNING!!! * * RUMBLE!!! *

The mountain of crystals rumbled violently as a powerful light shot out from the crystal sphere, covering the entire place and completely blocking Ling Tian's view. At the same time, he felt a strange mysterious energy enter his body and cover him completely, as if trapping him.

Even lightning and thunder flashed across the clear sky, looking for a target to attack!

Suddenly, when Ling Tian wanted to move at once, he felt a violent agitation in his Soul as a violent and horrible energy was unleashed and shattered his entire Consciousness Sea, causing every last trace of spiritual energy to disappear.

Immediately, the same horrible power surged towards every bone and organ within him, piercing through every meridian and finally his Dantian, causing Ling Tian's body to expel large amounts of blood when pieces of flesh and bone flew out by the huge and powerful burst of force!

A blood red mist had formed around Ling Tian before disappearing.

Ling Tian was paralyzed unable to think of anything else let alone move, feeling every inch in his body fade away as his consciousness began to fade.

Is this the end?

Memories of his entire life flashed instantly in front of him, as if he was given the right to be able to see his life before he disappeared...

His beloved women, his beloved disciples, his friends, his family...

Ling Tian tried to maintain his consciousness as slowly those images slowly faded away, becoming completely blinded unable to see anything but darkness.

His eyes closed and his consciousness finally fell, closing in on the infinite darkness while its last vestiges disappeared.

As Ling Tian felt he was finally going to disappear, he glimpsed a distant, small light in the distance in the darkness, being able to feel even its familiar warmth.

The light grew larger, like a great sun beginning to shine with everything he had until it reached him and illuminated all the darkness and emptiness, filling his vision with a majestic and powerful light.

When he finally felt that his consciousness had detached from his body and he had only a little strength left before being consumed by the mysterious light, a familiar voice was soon heard....

"What is the Dao...?"