Thirty-three heavens hold thirty-three worlds, and innumerable sentient beings possess three thousand great daos.
Mighty beings emerge from the heavens, some walking alone, ten forming a multitude, hundreds then becoming a tide!
They are the great powers of this era, they will face the great dao, ascend the firmament, enter the chaos, and stir the primordial tide!
Within the thirty-three heavens, the three Pure Ones entered the chaos. In a world ravaged by wind, earth, water, and fire, a majestic Daoist awaited them.
The three Pure Ones bowed, saying, "Greetings, Senior!"
The Daoist's expression was serene. Without returning the bow, he said, "My name is Haotian. I am here to guide fated guests to Zixiao!"
As his words fell, he lightly waved his sleeve, and the three Pure Ones knew the location of Zixiao.
The three Pure Ones bid farewell and hurried to the front of Zixiao Palace. Upon entering the Dao Palace, they saw the Dao Ancestor sitting with closed eyes on a high platform.
The three Pure Ones bowed deeply, "Greetings, Teacher!"
The Dao Ancestor's eyelids fluttered open. He pointed a finger and said, "Sit down."
The three Pure Ones obeyed his command and sat at the head of the three thousand Dao cushions.
Laozi, being the eldest, naturally took the first seat. Yuanshi was second, and Tongtian was third.
After taking their seats, the three closed their eyes to meditate.
Subsequently, amidst the swirling neon lights of the chaos, Nuwa entered Zixiao Palace and also bowed, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor!"
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes, nodded, and gestured with his hand, "Sit down!"
Nuwa respectfully agreed and sat beside Tongtian, the fourth seat at the head of the first row.
Seeing that the three Pure Ones had arrived first, Nuwa merely offered a slight bow and remained silent.
Next, golden light erupted in the chaos. Zhunti and Jieyin arrived, panting and appearing utterly exhausted. They respectfully bowed, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor!"
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes, observed their travel-worn state, and pointed, "Sit down and recuperate."
The two naturally complied, bowed to those who had arrived earlier, and then took their seats.
There were no disputes, no scenes of the Western pair throwing tantrums and crying their way to sainthood later on.
The six Saints of the Heavenly Dao were established peacefully and simply, as it should be.
Afterward, amidst the ebb and flow of the primordial tides and the ravages of wind, earth, water, and fire, Kunpeng entered Zixiao Palace. Since the first row was already full, he took the first seat of the second row. Across the six people in front, he offered a half-bow to the high platform, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor."
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes, nodded faintly at Kunpeng, and spoke not a word.
Kunpeng paid it no mind, sat down by himself, and closed his eyes, though his thoughts dwelled on the six individuals before him, feeling as though something was slipping away.
He did not bow to the six in front, nor did they turn to bow to him.
Following them, Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun arrived together, bowing respectfully, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor!"
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes again, glanced at the two, nodded, and closed them.
Seeing the solemnity of the palace, Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun dared not speak further and simply sat down quietly.
After them came Fuxi. He had sent his magical artifact ahead for Nuwa, and now Fuxi himself had arrived.
He paid his respects to the Dao Ancestor, who glanced at him. Fuxi then sat behind Nuwa.
The siblings exchanged a look and smiled silently.
Following them were the four celestial beings of Taiyin and Taiyang, Dong Wanggong, Houtu, and Minghe.
...
One by one, great powers gradually arrived, and the seats in Zixiao Palace grew fewer, while the number of seated Daoists increased.
Each Daoist who entered Zixiao Palace bowed to the Dao Ancestor.
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes for each, as if returning the greeting.
There was no prostration of three thousand great powers, only one proclaiming the Dao Ancestor, and one imparting the great Dao.
When the thousand-year period arrived, the cushions in Zixiao Palace were precisely filled, not one more, not one less.
At this moment in Zixiao Palace, it was truly a place where Da Luo beings were as common as walking, and Golden Immortals were as plentiful as stray dogs.
Within Zixiao Palace, not everyone was a great power.
For instance, beside the Ancestor Qing Xuan, there were four Taiyi-level snake clan members seated on cushions.
And behind Patriarch Minghe were the four great Asura Kings.
Qi sat beside Minghe, neither joyous nor sorrowful, patiently awaiting the lecture.
The three thousand Daoists in Zixiao Palace, and the Dao Ancestor opened his eyes three thousand times.
Each great power was reflected in the Dao Ancestor's gaze.
Three thousand great daos, corresponding to the three thousand guests in Zixiao Palace!
Zixiao Palace was solemn and silent. The three thousand great powers did not kneel, did not make a sound, and did not quarrel.
Before the Dao Ancestor, no one dared to move.
As the fourth great power stepped inside, the doors of Zixiao Palace slowly closed, the two portals sealing the palace.
The four spoke in unison, "Greetings, Dao Ancestor!"
The Dao Ancestor opened his eyes, observed the four, and then closed them again.
Tai Yi, standing before them, saw these four and felt a pang of disappointment. That person had not come!
This was because these four were the four boundary-guarding envoys of Duguan.
Qing Ling had not come, but he had not restrained his subordinates.
The Da Luo beings of the Eastern Wilderness had all entered Zixiao.
The primordial land was silent.
Qing Ling sat alone by the Jianmu tree, like the Queen Mother standing solitary in the Western Kunlun, or the Xuan Turtle still slumbering in the north.
A strand of Pangu's residual hair circled Qing Ling, multiplying and gradually forming a cocoon. A purple light cocoon enveloped Qing Ling's Dao body, growing and transforming into a giant purple egg.
Qing Ling sat cross-legged with closed eyes, sealed within the purple giant egg, much like Pangu.
In Zixiao Palace, the Dao hearts of the three thousand Daoists, through the tranquility of entering the palace, gradually became still.
The Dao Ancestor was silent, and Zixiao Palace was silent.
The heavens were silent, the earth was silent, and the people were silent.
Within Zixiao Palace, the three thousand great daos were all in stillness.
An ancient stillness washed away the joy of the Daoists upon seeing the Dao Ancestor, dissolved the weariness of their hearts, and purified their agitated spirits.
Heaven and earth, all things, all daos and all origins, returned to stillness.
The Dao Ancestor had not spoken, yet the Dao entered their hearts.
Unknowingly, the Dao Ancestor spoke leisurely.
"I established Zixiao, and I impart the three thousand great daos to ferry the rolling red dust travelers and to complete the heavenly Dao treasury.
Following the three thousand great daos, you shall each establish one hundred and eight thousand minor daos.
The primordial chaos is boundless, and the principles of Dao are endless.
Today, I, as the Dao Ancestor, shall pass down the various daos.
Henceforth, when you establish the one hundred and eight thousand minor daos, you shall all be creators, and you shall all be ancestors of Dao.
Three thousand great daos, three thousand Dao Ancestors. I have only arrived first; you must be diligent to attain great dao early!"
The three thousand Daoists below were all shocked, countless thoughts churning in their minds, yet they dared not voice them.
Kunpeng frowned. Being the oldest, he possessed greater boldness and directly asked, "But heaven and earth are fixed, and chaos is vast. To speak of three thousand Dao Ancestors, even a second Dao Ancestor would be difficult to appear! Moreover, to attain the Hunyuan realm, only the Dao Ancestor has succeeded throughout the ages. Where will three thousand come from?"
The Dao Ancestor's eyes were without ripple or emotion, and he said, "The three thousand great daos have no high or low, no strength or weakness, no principal or auxiliary, no honor or inferiority, no precedence.
Each Dao has its own unique path to attainment. Hunyuan is not the only path to enlightenment."
Kunpeng's brow furrowed even deeper, finding it difficult to comprehend.
The three thousand Daoists below were all shocked and bewildered.
And just as doubt filled the Daoists' hearts and their thoughts churned, the Dao Ancestor began his lecture.
"The Great Dao is formless, giving birth to heaven and earth;
The Great Dao is emotionless, governing the sun and moon;
The Great Dao is nameless, nurturing all things;
I know not its name, I call it Dao.
Now, Dao has clarity and turbidity, movement and stillness;
Heaven is clear, earth is turbid; heaven moves, earth is still. To master it, one must observe the heart within; the heart has no heart; observe the form without; the form has no form; observe the object afar; the object has no object.
Having entered the true Dao, one is said to have attained Dao, though in name one has attained Dao, in reality, nothing is attained; for the sake of transforming sentient beings, it is called attaining Dao; those who can comprehend it can transmit the Saintly Dao..."
The Dao Ancestor expounded the Dao, one Dao is Dao, this is the three thousand Daos!
The three thousand Daoists, listening to the Dao Ancestor's Dao, each received something different.
And these were the Daos heard by Qing Xuan.
The Daos heard by each great Daoist were immersed within them.
One Dao transmitted to three thousand, one Dao reached three thousand, one Dao gave birth to three thousand Daos, and yet it was three thousand Daos.
When one law is understood, ten thousand laws are understood.
When one Dao is perfected, it is Dao!
Qing Xuan felt his primordial spirit trembling. His Qi sea, his Dantian, his primordial spirit, his world, all trembled, all overturned by the Dao Ancestor's Dao.
So, this was what attaining Dao felt like!
At this moment, Qing Xuan was truly convinced. He was worthy of being the great Dao Ancestor, Hongjun.