Yuanshi and Tongtian were originally paths that countered each other, but the kinship between them as Sanqing still held some sway. Moreover, as both were saints, it was impossible for them to defeat each other. Thus, they chose Qing Ling.
If Qing Ling were to step into the Hunyuan realm, the consequences for him would be unpredictable!
Nanjixian Weng paved the way for Qing Ling, who did not conceal his presence. The wood element's aura in the heavens drew the Azure Radiance energy into Kunlun.
All the great powers in the world saw Qing Ling being invited into Kunlun by the saints.
Those great powers who held grudges against Qing Ling secretly thought, "This old monster has his day too!" They gloated, but also began to worry about themselves. The saints had already started dealing with these old fellows!
Qing Ling was led into Kunlun Mountain. This was his first time entering East Kunlun. The dense spiritual energy of heaven and earth assailed him. At the entrance to Kunlun Mountain, a flock of cranes flew past Nanjixian Weng's head. The ancient Kunlun emerged before him, with strange beasts like lions and tigers perched on the peaks. Immortal deer and rare birds roamed at ease. Several of the mythical beasts from the Classic of Mountains and Seas had been tamed into spirits, and once renowned mythical beasts now served as guardian spirit beasts.
A divine and wondrous white crane landed and transformed into a young boy, who smiled and said, "Welcome, honored elder, to our sacred land of Kunlun."
Qing Ling nodded faintly, offering no reply, and merely said to Nanji, "Lead the way."
Upon hearing this, Nanji responded affirmatively and said to the white crane boy, "Accompany me and the honored elder up the mountain."
The white crane boy was ignored, but could only agree.
Qing Ling paid no attention to the white crane at all. For a mere third-generation disciple to come and greet him was either an intentional slight or a sign that the mountain was short of personnel!
He surmised that given Yuanshi's utmost respect for etiquette, he would not intentionally act this way.
They proceeded without a word. Qing Ling did not let his mind wander to appreciate the scenery of Kunlun; he was not here for sightseeing.
Finally, they reached the summit, the Jade Void Palace. Three ancient Dao patterns adorned the palace, exuding solemnity and majesty, as well as a noble and grand aura like jade radiance. The magnificent Jade Void Palace stood before Qing Ling.
Merely looking at these three Dao patterns of "Jade Void Palace," an Earthly Immortal could gain insights sufficient to reach the rank of Mystic Immortal. If one could comprehend a few points, Golden Immortal could be attained.
The immortal birds, spirit beasts, divine realms, spiritual herbs, rare treasures, and palace inheritances encountered along the way were all testaments to the profound heritage of the Chan Sect.
As they approached the palace gates, Yuanshi was nowhere to be seen.
Qing Ling paid it no mind. Seeing the empty space before the palace entrance, he said to Nanji, "Lead me into the Jade Void Palace. He is a saint, and I am a great power. Ultimately, it is I who should seek him out."
Nanji's heart trembled and he said, "Yes!"
Saying this, he walked alongside and opened the palace gates, entering the great hall.
The white crane boy was disdainful. His master was a disciple of a saint, so why should he bow and scrape to a mere great power? Even the renowned great powers outside would show him politeness.
Nanji led Qing Ling into the hall and then retreated.
He cast a cold glance at the white crane boy and said, "Where has what I've taught you on a daily basis gone?"
Upon hearing this, the white crane boy grumbled discontentedly, "He is merely a great power. Master, do you need to smile so fawningly? Which of the great powers outside doesn't fawn over us?"
Hearing this, Nanjixian Weng's anger flared, and he roared, "Insolent!"
*Slap!*
The white crane boy was slapped hard by Nanji, his face a picture of bewilderment.
Nanji chuckled coldly, "These great ancestral powers have all lived thousands of times longer than you, perhaps even longer than your own grand-master.
Their smiles and kind demeanor towards you are merely out of respect for the face of the saint I teach; they are not for you, a mere celestial crane.
If they wish to smile at you, they can elevate you to the heavens, and if they don't wish to be kind to you, they can cast you down from on high, crushing you to powder.
These great powers, if you anger them, can crush you with one hand. Even if they respect the saint's face, they have a thousand and one ways to make your soul scatter, and even a saint cannot protect you!
You have followed your grand-master closely, and while your cultivation hasn't increased much, your arrogance has certainly grown. You had better take heed!"
Hearing Nanjixian Weng's words, the white crane boy felt a chill rise within him. As soon as his sentience awakened, he was taken as a disciple by Nanji and protected by his master. Later, when the saints established their teachings, he followed them closely, and thus had never experienced the profound calculations and horrors of the Primordial World.
He stood alone outside the great hall for a long time.
Inside the great hall, Qing Ling saw Yuanshi Tianzun seated cross-legged on a cloud bed, his temples tied neatly, his robes properly arranged, the majesty of a saint evident in every word and action.
As Qing Ling stepped into the hall, Yuanshi's eyes, which had been closed in meditation, suddenly opened. "Daoist friend, would you be willing to play a game of Go with me?"
Qing Ling replied with a faint smile, "Very well!"
The saint waved his sleeve, and a stone jade carving table appeared before him, divided into heavenly and earthly patterns. A tray of white stones materialized before Yuanshi, and a tray of black stones before Qing Ling.
Yuanshi extended a finger and said, "Please!"
Qing Ling sat down, facing him, a saint and an enemy of the Great Dao facing each other across a chessboard.
Yuanshi said, "All things in heaven and earth are like this game of Go. The Heavenly Stars and Earthly Fiends, numbering three and nine, all follow rules and order."
Qing Ling smiled and said, "But is not this world, its rules and rites, created by the saints themselves? One vertical stroke becomes the warp, one horizontal stroke the weft, nineteen intersections vertically and horizontally, with three hundred and sixty-one black and white pieces to establish the principles of heaven and earth."
Yuanshi shook his head, "Even saints cannot create the order of heaven and earth; even saints must abide by the laws of heaven and earth."
Qing Ling raised his eyes, "So, is that not why this game is before us?"
Yuanshi was taken aback and chuckled, "Indeed, Daoist friend, your words are profound.
Today, shall we use the board of heaven and earth as our ground, the beings as our pieces, and in placing black and white stones, decide a victor, how about it?"
Qing Ling nodded, "Since the saint has spoken, I shall obey!"
At this moment, they seemed like true fellow Daoists, friends discussing a lifetime, sitting and discoursing, meeting through the game. The saint had the magnanimity of a saint, and the great power had the bearing of a great power.
"Daoist friend, you first!"
Yuanshi was white, Qing Ling black. Black played first, a concession from the saint. Black had one hundred and eighty-one stones, one more than white, which was also the saint's humility.
Qing Ling smiled in acknowledgment, picked up a black stone, and looked at the intersecting lines of the world. "Then let everything begin from the start, and everything be centered. This stone, I shall place on the Celestial Yuan!"
Qing Ling, as black, placed his stone on the Celestial Yuan, the heart of the nineteen by nineteen intersection.
In the distance, atop the Jianmu tree in Dugang, Ke watched his vast clan ascend the heavenly ladder, his heart filled with emotion. The Jianmu of the past was now the heavenly ladder.
Countless clan members began their migration. Great pythons climbed upwards, as did half-human, half-serpent ancient serpent soldiers who had not fully transformed, using their tails to crawl and escorting young serpents, or carrying luggage and the aged, as they crawled towards higher ground.
At the forefront of the migration, spirit flowers and herbs leaped lightly up the Jianmu. They possessed a natural affinity for the Jianmu and were the most agile spirits of flowers and plants, thus they were the fastest. They were members of the Beixu clan.
Giant crocodiles with short limbs crawled rapidly. There were hundred-zhang, thousand-zhang, and even ten-thousand-zhang giant crocodiles, all ascending. A ten-thousand-zhang crocodile would step over the small snake and crocodile bodies, like a dark cloud obscuring the sun as it passed above them.
Giant apes rapidly climbed the branches of the giant tree, leaping and darting above and below the Jianmu, occasionally letting out excited cries from the high clouds.
"Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp!"
Bats with spread wings flew over the snakes, crocodiles, and lizards crawling on the ground. These creatures, usually nocturnal, flew out of their long-occupied caves in broad daylight, heading towards the sky. They flew in flocks, and when tired, they would rest on the broad backs of the giant crocodiles.
Further behind were incomparably swift leopards. They maintained a steady pace because their stamina was short, so they could only advance at this steady but enduring pace. The mother leopards protected the cubs in the center of the herd to prevent any unforeseen events.
Throughout the Jianmu, there were also fully transformed clan members, some flying to guide the way, others directing the animal herds, coordinating the progress of thousands of beast groups.
At the very rear of the procession, giant puppets, their every step causing the Jianmu's ground to tremble, clearly walked with great weight and slowness. This was because these puppets carried many humans within their bellies.
Humans were the weakest of the Nine Clans' physical bodies. Fortunately, after hundreds of thousands of years of preparation, humans had combined with the You Clan's puppets. Humans had even created flying puppet ships and carried followers of various clans.
Such a magnificent scene of migration stunned all living beings in heaven and earth. The Jianmu could not conceal its form and reappeared in the eyes of all things.
And all of this was because of the Jianmu, Qing Ling's foundation for defying heaven, his root of existence, the beginning of the Dao struggle, its center!
In the Jade Void Palace, Yuanshi was momentarily stunned but unhesitatingly dropped the first white stone. The stone landed on the third row, the position of water in the northwest.
The stone fell, stirring up wind and clouds. In the northwest Netherworld, within the Sea of Blood, wind and clouds converged, and the heavenly secrets of the Great Dao manifested.
Minghe looked in shock at the Sea of Blood. A peerless sharpness split open the Asura Sect's Zhenhai Grand Formation, manifesting above the Sea of Blood.
A long saber, cleaving the horizon.
Saber intent coalesced, the Saber Dao manifested. Qi Yuan Shen held the saber, saber intent empowering him, standing in the sky above the Sea of Blood, suppressing the myriad Asuras who dared not emerge.
Minghe exclaimed in shock, "This, even after severing one corpse, it should not look like this."
Indeed, before Qi Yuan Shen could grasp the Saber Dao intent, Qi's physical body below in the Sea of Blood also stepped out. However, at this moment, Qi's physical body had a pair of blood-red wings on its back, and its muscles bulged as if its body would explode at any moment.
A demonic aura emanated from him. In his blood-red, terrifying eyes, reason was lost.
Qi Yuan Shen saw this and quickly returned to his physical body, suppressing the abnormal movements.
The Yuan Shen and the demonic will of the physical body clashed. The Saber Dao intent condensed in the sky above the Sea of Blood, like a deadly saber suspended above the heads of the beings in the Sea of Blood.
Minghe's expression changed slightly, and he waved the Asura banner. The Sea of Blood Grand Formation was activated once more, trapping Qi and that Saber Dao intent within the formation.
Qi's fundamental bloodline Dao had a problem. Minghe dared not intervene rashly. It was clear that Qi was being controlled by a powerful bloodline will. If he intervened again, a third bloodline would enter, and Qi's body would likely not be able to withstand it and would explode instantly!
In the Jade Void Palace, Qing Ling frowned. The northwest, a three-by-three enclosure. The white stones were trapped, and the black stones were surrounded.
If he needed to break the deadlock, he would have to create an external force.
Qing Ling dropped another stone. The black stone entered the third and fourth rows, the position of "harmony."
In the Heavenly Court, within the Demon God Palace, Qing Xuan rose and descended to the northwestern Sea of Blood!