Chapter 1424: Mixed Yuan Golden Dipper Acquired

In his astonishment, Chen Mobai quickly recalled that before True Lord Yiyuan achieved harmony with the Dao, he had given a wisp of Dao spiritual light to the Primordial Bell.

Although the Primordial Bell did not have the chaotic bell loop that suddenly appeared now when it returned, this was the only possible reason.

However, what did True Lord Yiyuan intend by leaving this behind?

Why did it manifest at this particular moment?

Had he successfully integrated with the Primordial Dao?

As Chen Mobai was filled with doubt, the chaotic coloration of the bell loop at the top of the Primordial Bell began to spread across the entire white jade bell.

“Master, I feel a powerful energy converging upon me…”

The spirit of the Primordial Bell conveyed what was happening to itself through a spiritual connection.

Chen Mobai was even more astonished by this.

Because he, who controlled the void, had not detected any energy flow around him.

So what was the meaning of this energy surging towards the Primordial Bell?

Chen Mobai did not believe the Primordial Bell would lie, which left only one possibility.

It was a Seventh-tier power orchestrating this phenomenon.

At his current cultivation level, Chen Mobai might not be able to detect the actions of a Seventh-tier being.

But this anchor point clearly had a cultivation limit of only Peak Sixth-tier?

Just as Chen Mobai found this incomprehensible, the Primordial Bell vibrated eighty-one times in rapid succession. With the final peal echoing throughout the cosmos, a sigh resonated in the ears of every living being in the Celestial River Realm.

The sigh was filled with regret.

Crack!

A sound like a cracking eggshell reached Chen Mobai’s ears.

Standing on the chain, he turned to look and saw spiderweb-like cracks appearing on the Primordial Cocoon that had previously enveloped True Lord Yiyuan.

Streaks of chaotic-colored Dao spiritual light permeated through the cracks. The void, upon contact, melted away layer by layer, like talisman paper catching fire.

Chen Mobai, whose body was the void itself, immediately felt his Void Dharma Body vibrate, showing signs of falling from its Grand Perfection state.

This greatly startled Chen Mobai.

One must understand that his cultivation level originated from the Tortoise Treasure. Theoretically, with sufficient cultivation, he could control the void of all Three Realms. In the Celestial River Realm, with its inherent cultivation limits, he could be said to be invincible.

Even Minglong, the Lord of the Underworld, was powerless against him.

Yet now, facing these chaotic-colored lights, he could not withstand them.

This was undoubtedly a Seventh-tier power.

But if True Lord Yiyuan had successfully integrated with the Dao, shouldn’t he have been forcibly ascended under the rules of heaven and earth?

Could it be that he failed?

“Hmph, that junior truly was bluffing. Did he really think Dao integration was that easy?”

At this moment, Minglong’s disdainful voice came from behind the Gate of the Underworld. The waters of the Yellow Springs surged forth, once again forming a dragon’s head, which gazed coldly at the shattered Primordial Cocoon.

Although Chen Mobai had anticipated this outcome, he still couldn’t help but sigh upon hearing Minglong’s words.

“Ultimately, the Grand Dao was flawed, and the foundation insufficient…”

Within the Primordial Cocoon, True Lord Yiyuan’s voice resonated. This materialized Primordial Grand Dao, after the failure of its integration, shattered and rippled, then began to fade away.

“Farewell, True Lord!” Chen Mobai, following ancient etiquette, straightened his attire and solemnly bowed towards the dissipating Primordial Grand Dao.

“Farewell, Daoist friend!” In the distance, the Patriarch of Nine Heavens Demonic Extermination, who had endured until this moment, also rose and bowed.

Another streak of light flew over; it was Yuan Qingque’s primordial spirit. After Chen Mobai purified his worldly karmic flames with the Grand Dao of Sacred Virtue, at Yuan Qingque’s level, he broke through the last illusion and awakened halfway through their evacuation with Ye Qing.

Upon learning the situation, Yuan Qingque felt it was too dangerous to leave Chen Mobai alone here. Moreover, as he could now exert his Sixth-tier strength, he flew back.

After landing beside the Patriarch of Nine Heavens Demonic Extermination and greeting him, Yuan Qingque learned of True Lord Yiyuan’s failed Dao integration. With a solemn expression, he turned and bowed: “Farewell, Senior!”

As a cultivator from the Eastern Continent, Yuan Qingque had been instilled with the ideal of striving to emulate True Lord Yiyuan since he began his spiritual cultivation within his clan as a child. He eventually succeeded, becoming another ascended cultivator from the Eastern Continent after True Lord Yiyuan.

Yuan Qingque had initially thought he had caught up with his former idol, but now that True Lord Yiyuan had taken the step of Dao integration, Yuan Qingque understood that he was still far behind.

Recalling True Lord Yiyuan’s brilliant life, from his sudden rise in the Eastern Continent to his dominion over the Celestial River, and now his ultimate end in transforming into Dao, Yuan Qingque couldn’t help but compose a verse for him:

The Cloud Dream Long River severed by a single palm,The Celestial River hung solitary for six millennia.The Primordial Dao unfinished, heaven and earth shattered,Bell tolls, evening sleet, dust and smoke disperse.

Yuan Qingque's words were evidently heard by True Lord Yiyuan’s final will. A hearty laugh rang out: “Yiyuan’s path ends here, but the Heavenly Venerate’s path still has a journey to complete. If there is an outcome, I ask you, young friend, to help complete it.”

After speaking to Yuan Qingque, True Lord Yiyuan then sent a telepathic message to Chen Mobai: “Little Martial Uncle, I am about to transform into the Dao and disappear. I still have a bit of power left, and I want to try refining an unprecedentedly powerful artifact to verify my ideas on Seventh-tier artifact forging.”

As soon as his voice fell, True Lord Yiyuan did not wait for Chen Mobai’s reply. His will had already completely dissolved into the Primordial Grand Dao.

This statement made Chen Mobai realize that True Lord Yiyuan had indeed left something behind in the Primordial Bell.

Amidst a thunderous roar, the Primordial Cocoon also completely shattered at this moment.

Freed from the constraints of the Grand Dao, the Wheel of Life and Death began to involuntarily fall towards the Underworld.

Creak!

Minglong and the Nine Sons of the Ghost Mother naturally wouldn’t miss this opportunity. They pulled on the chains, attempting to drag the Wheel of Life and Death into the Netherworld.

Just as Chen Mobai, witnessing this scene, was about to act, the Primordial Bell suddenly vibrated violently.

Amidst the trembling, the chaotic coloration that had spread from the bell loop now covered the entire white jade bell.

Meanwhile, the shattered pieces of the Primordial Cocoon, like eggshells, at this moment, under the guidance of True Lord Yiyuan’s final will before his transformation into the Dao, splattered onto the Primordial Bell like meteors, adhering tightly to various parts of its body.

“Wuwu, Old Master…”

The spirit of the Primordial Bell felt the boundless Primordial Grand Dao surging into itself, yet its heart was filled with profound sorrow.

Because it understood that this power belonged to its Old Master. And since it was given to it, it meant that its Old Master’s Dao integration had completely failed, and he had vanished!

“Now is not the time for sorrow. Nephew Yiyuan entrusted his Grand Dao to you in the end. You must not fail his expectations.”

Chen Mobai, sensing the sorrow of the Primordial Bell’s spirit, immediately spoke True Lord Yiyuan’s final words.

True Lord Yiyuan had vanished, but his existence could be perpetuated through the Primordial Bell, lasting forever throughout the Three Realms.

Provided the Primordial Bell could be promoted to a Seventh-tier Dao-achieving Artifact.

“I will not disappoint Old Master.”

Artifact spirits are generally simple-minded. Upon hearing Chen Mobai’s words, the spirit immediately suppressed all its inner sorrow and began to actively absorb the Primordial Grand Dao.

The Primordial Grand Dao, which had dispersed due to True Lord Yiyuan’s failed Dao integration, suddenly materialized and re-solidified with the bell as its center.

Buzz, buzz, buzz!

After the Primordial Grand Dao, the outer wall of the bell body lit up with five-colored radiance; this was the Grand Dao of Five Elements.

After the Five Elements, the inner wall of the bell body shimmered with brilliant silver light like a galaxy; this was the Grand Dao of the Void.

Finally, in the deepest part of the silver galaxy, gray light flickered, and the power of Doomsday Karma emerged.

The four Dao powers entrusted to the Primordial Bell, though uneven in strength — with the powerful Primordial Grand Dao equivalent to the entire Grand Dao of the Celestial River Realm, and the weak Doomsday Karma almost imperceptible if not for Chen Mobai’s acute sensitivity through his Sacred Virtue — it was precisely these four Dao powers that began to merge and intertwine, using the chaotic bell loop left by True Lord Yiyuan as a nexus.

At the moment of integration, the Grand Dao of Severance, which would have originally taken a long time to grasp and entrust, was directly pulled out from this anchor point by the chaotic bell loop, appearing as wisps of golden flowing light that converged towards the bell loop.

Gradually, these golden flowing lights formed a ruyi-shaped handle, as if the Primordial Bell had extended a hilt from its bell loop.

And as this ruyi-shaped handle fully formed, the Primordial Bell, which had originally emanated the imposing aura of a Peak Sixth-tier artifact, suddenly seemed to vanish from this realm.

However, in Chen Mobai’s eyes, the Primordial Bell was still there; only its aura was no longer perceptible.

This was because the Primordial Bell had broken through its acquired shackles and ascended to become the Seventh-tier Primordial Golden Dipper.

At the Seventh-tier, it was no longer merely an artifact, but a Grand Dao in itself, and one of the foundations of the world.

Impressive.

Chen Mobai had witnessed the Primordial Bell’s transformation throughout, using the Cantong Qi. After confirming its ascension to the Seventh-tier, he couldn’t help but be greatly amazed.

Under the circumstances of a failed Dao integration, he had used his final will and power to refine his own Dao-achieving Artifact. Moreover, to do so within the Celestial River Realm’s environment, True Lord Yiyuan’s artifact forging skills were simply far superior to his own.

Evidently, True Lord Yiyuan only thought of leaving this move when he had just reunited with the Primordial Bell.

After all, if the Dao integration had succeeded, this would certainly not have happened.

However, if it failed, he could, before transforming into Dao, infuse the final Dao Fruit into the Primordial Bell, using the previously left imprint as a catalyst.

Nevertheless, this was extremely perilous, as the Primordial Bell would also fail if it could not withstand the process, directly shattering into pieces.

Moreover, the chance of failure was certainly higher than that of success.

According to Chen Mobai’s cautious nature, had he known in advance, he would never have agreed to such a risky endeavor.

After all, they had fought side by side with the Primordial Bell for so many years, and their bond was deep.

But True Lord Yiyuan had not given Chen Mobai a chance to stop him; he had already activated the fallback mechanism left within the Primordial Bell before his final notification of Dao transformation.

Fortunately, the Primordial Bell was now Chen Mobai’s artifact, sharing in his good fortune, and had indeed successfully ascended.

It could only be said that in the Celestial River Realm, many cultivators and beings would attempt something with only a ten to twenty percent chance of success, precisely because of such examples.

Chen Mobai only hoped that future generations of cultivators in the Three Realms would not be led astray by such instances.

Whether in cultivation or artifact forging, prudence should always be prioritized.

“Congratulations, young friend.”

The voice of the Patriarch of Nine Heavens Demonic Extermination came through. He and Yuan Qingque gazed curiously at the now Seventh-tier Primordial Golden Dipper.

For a Dao-achieving Artifact to form despite a failed Dao integration—this event was destined to change the landscape of the artifact forging industry in the Three Realms.

From this day forward, all artifact forgers would raise their aspirations to the Seventh-tier.

“With this item in your hands, young friend, you will be invincible unless a True Immortal or Dao Lord intervenes.”

Yuan Qingque looked at the Primordial Golden Dipper, his face a mixture of envy and shock.

As a fellow member of the Eastern Land’s sacred sites, he had heard whispers of this content recorded in the Dao Sutra of Yiyuan. However, whether it was the Nine Heavens Demonic Extermination Sect, the Morality Sect, or even the Grand Void Ethereal Palace, they all considered refining the Primordial Golden Dipper to be a fantasy, absolutely impossible to succeed.

But unexpectedly, this artifact had now come into existence right before his eyes.

“True Lord Yiyuan is truly remarkable.”

As Chen Mobai spoke, he was about to grasp the ruyi-shaped handle of the Primordial Golden Dipper to test the power of this Seventh-tier Dao-achieving artifact, but the latter evaded his hand.

This scene made Chen Mobai’s expression freeze.

Had the Primordial Bell risen to prominence and no longer recognized him as its master?

Just as Chen Mobai thought this, the Primordial Bell’s spirit’s panicked telepathic message resounded in his ear: “Master, another will is controlling me. I cannot break free.”

“Who is it?”

Did True Lord Yiyuan not transform into the Dao?

Or did he, by using the process of refining the Primordial Golden Dipper, preserve a remnant of his spirit within the artifact, and begin to contend with the artifact spirit for control?

In an instant, Chen Mobai mentally deduced the most probable answer.

Creak!

And at this moment, the sound of chains tightening rang out.

Earlier, Chen Mobai had been fully focused on the Primordial Bell’s ascension and had no time to attend to the Wheel of Life and Death. Coupled with True Lord Yiyuan’s transformation into Dao, Minglong and the Ghost Mother’s Sons had already dragged the Wheel of Life and Death to the entrance of the Gate of the Underworld.

Watching half of the wheel already enter the Netherworld, just as Chen Mobai was wondering how to act, a golden light flared beside him.

The Primordial Golden Dipper, without anyone controlling it, automatically flew up. As its mouth rotated, an inconspicuous golden light flew out, landing on one of the chains binding the Wheel of Life and Death.

Silently, the chain was severed by the golden light.

“Huh?”

Minglong saw this scene and couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.

At this moment, after having tested the power of the Primordial Golden Dipper, the golden light spun out once more.

This time, it directly enveloped all the remaining chains that had flown out from behind the Gate of the Underworld.

The same result appeared in Chen Mobai’s eyes.

The power of the Dao manifestations projected by Minglong and other Seventh-tier existences from the Netherworld was as fragile as tofu before the Seventh-tier Primordial Golden Dipper.

And after all the chains binding the Wheel of Life and Death were severed by the golden light, the Heavenly Venerate's vortex in the sky, which had been silent since True Lord Yiyuan’s Dao integration failed, once again erupted with overwhelming suction.

Freed from its restraints, the Wheel of Life and Death spun, swirling out black and white spiritual light, and flew towards the vortex.

Minglong and the Ghost Mother’s Sons naturally would not idly watch this scene. Even thicker chains burst forth from behind the Gate of the Underworld, attempting to seize the Wheel of Life and Death once more.

However, the Primordial Golden Dipper gently shook, and a large expanse of golden light descended, directly sealing all the Gates of the Underworld. The chains, upon striking the golden light, couldn't even exit the gates, were stripped of their form, and transformed into swirling yellow smoke that rolled back into the Netherworld.