Chapter 4734: The Truth of History

Wang Changsheng flicked his finger, and a blue light shot out, striking the gate of Shifang Palace. The gate shattered, revealing a spacious and brightly lit hall.

The hall was spacious and bright, revealing a human-shaped statue holding a gleaming golden long saber.

"Shifang Dao Ancestor, a mutated Primordial Spirit Treasure!" Wang Changsheng exclaimed, overwhelmed with surprise and joy.

The human-shaped statue was indeed Shifang Dao Ancestor, and the golden long saber was a mutated Primordial Spirit Treasure—a supreme-grade immortal artifact.

Shifang Dao Ancestor was proficient in artifact refining; Wang Changsheng wondered how many treasures might be stored here.

Wang Changsheng strode inside. The human-shaped statue suddenly came to life, swinging its saber and striking at him.

A massive golden saber light swept out, appearing instantly before Wang Changsheng.

Wang Changsheng punched out, his right fist colliding with the golden saber light, which then dispersed.

"Shifang Dao Ancestor, is this your contingency plan?" Wang Changsheng asked.

"Not exactly. It's merely a wisp of my remnant soul," the human-shaped statue replied, its voice filled with confusion. "I never imagined a Dao Ancestor would enter this training ground. What a coincidence!"

In fact, even if other Dao Ancestors had received news, they wouldn't have been able to reach this place without a rare treasure like the Ruyi Gate.

The training ground was located in a sea region with sparse immortal qi. It would never have been discovered had it not been for a Grand Unity Golden Immortal engaging in combat nearby. Shifang Dao Ancestor had clearly put considerable thought into choosing this location for his training ground.

"So many years have passed, and your contingency plan still hasn't materialized. It seems you've already perished," Wang Changsheng remarked.

As far as Wang Changsheng knew, the Reincarnation Stone allowed a wisp of a being's remnant soul to enter the cycle of reincarnation. Upon rebirth, it would be a new individual, yet it would possess some cultivation insights and skills from its previous life, leading to faster cultivation and formidable power. However, whether it could fully recover its original cultivation level remained uncertain.

This differed from a clone: a reborn individual possessed a complete soul, merely recalling events from their past life—essentially a new being carrying the memories of a powerful entity. A clone was also a new entity, but its soul was incomplete, remembering only partial information and unaware of the original body's full experiences.

While a clone functioned more like an advanced puppet, utilizing the Reincarnation Stone for reincarnation was akin to experiencing a new life. Even with memories of a powerful past, such an individual might not reach their former peak, potentially perishing midway.

The Reincarnation Stone was incredibly rare, a celestial treasure that might only form once every tens of millions of years.

Shifang Dao Ancestor had clearly set up this contingency plan for his reborn self. Given his absence after so many years, it was highly probable that he had perished.

"It seems my attempt at rebirth has failed," the human-shaped statue stated. "Since you've found your way here, I'll leave all my accumulated possessions to you." It explained that it was now merely a wisp of a remnant soul inhabiting the statue, possessing the power of a Grand Unity Golden Immortal, but no match for a Dao Ancestor.

"What can I do for you?" Wang Changsheng offered. "I could forge a physical body for you."

"There's no need," the statue replied. "My soul power is almost depleted, and it wouldn't be worth the effort. If you truly wish to help me, go to a specific place and help me contact a certain fellow Daoist."

"That fellow Daoist? Who are you referring to? Is he still alive?" Wang Changsheng pressed.

"Qihong Dao Ancestor!" the statue revealed. "He was a powerhouse from the Primordial Chaos Era. He should still be alive, though he sustained severe injuries and has been recuperating."

"A powerhouse from the Primordial Chaos Era? What exactly is the Primordial Chaos Era?" Wang Changsheng inquired further.

"At the dawn of chaos, a group of cultivators emerged," the human-shaped statue explained. "Heavenly treasures were abundant then, and powerhouses were countless. Qihong Dao Ancestor was among them. The Primordial Chaos Beast Ancestor invaded the Immortal Realm! Fellow Daoist Xuanyuan led them to confront the Primordial Chaos Beast Ancestor. After that war, most living beings in the Immortal Realm were annihilated. The current inhabitants and powers of the Immortal Realm mostly appeared later. Haven't you noticed a blank period in the history of cultivation? That's the era I'm referring to."

"Why are other Dao Ancestors unaware of this?" Wang Changsheng asked, puzzled.

"The Primordial Chaos Beast Ancestor did not perish, and it has numerous servants," the human-shaped statue continued to explain. "A powerful middle-stage Dao Ancestor recently cultivated another Dao Ancestor, tasking him with gathering cultivation resources for recovery. This individual publicly announced his efforts, which led to a Dao Ancestor being slain by the Primordial Chaos Beasts. Aware of this powerful figure's existence, the Primordial Chaos Beast Ancestor dispatched a middle-stage Dao Ancestor Chaos Beast to eliminate him. Since then, the powerhouses from the Primordial Chaos Era have vanished, with only a select few aware of their existence, who choose not to publicize it."

"Middle-stage Dao Ancestor? Dao Ancestors are categorized into stages?" Wang Changsheng paused in surprise.

"Opening one to three Fundamental Laws signifies an early-stage Dao Ancestor," the statue clarified. "Four to six means a middle-stage Dao Ancestor, and a late-stage Dao Ancestor establishes at least seven, and up to nine Fundamental Laws. As for the realm of opening ten Fundamental Laws, I am unsure."

Wang Changsheng was dumbfounded. To establish so many Fundamental Laws, one would surely need a Dao artifact to endure the tribulation, as the more Fundamental Laws one established, the more formidable the lightning tribulation would be.

"There's no need to be surprised," the statue said. "During the Primordial Chaos Era, heavenly treasures were abundant, and there were many Dao Ancestors, along with a considerable number of Dao artifacts. It's unlike today, where Dao artifacts are extremely rare. There are always greater masters and deeper realms than one can imagine."

"Aren't you afraid I might be aligned with the Primordial Chaos Beasts?" Wang Changsheng pressed on.

"If you were aligned with the Primordial Chaos Beasts, then I would simply say my luck was truly terrible," the statue responded. "Qihong Dao Ancestor contributed immensely to my advancement to Dao Ancestor. He resides in the Qiantuo Immortal Realm, where there's a perilous region that even Grand Unity Golden Immortals enter at great risk to their lives. Find a way to help him recover. We Dao Ancestors, who can only establish a few Fundamental Laws, are far too weak."

Dao Ancestors wield the power of origin, with every casual strike infused with it. Dao arts, by contrast, merely harness a trace of this power, making the difference immense.

"What is his cultivation level?" Wang Changsheng pressed.

"He is a middle-stage Dao Ancestor and possesses a Dao artifact, making him incredibly powerful," the statue replied. "I can't hold on any longer. This is all I can tell you. Whether you believe it or not is up to you." After saying this, the human-shaped statue shattered into pieces.

Wang Changsheng extended his divine sense to its fullest extent but found no anomalies.

With a single gesture, the golden flying saber flew toward him, landing in his hand.

Wang Changsheng walked down the bluestone corridor to his left, soon reaching its end. Four stone chambers came into view. There were no restrictions on their stone doors, likely because it was assumed that the reborn individual might not be proficient in the art of formations. With the presence of the human-shaped statue and existing restrictions, it would have been difficult for even a Grand Unity Golden Immortal to breach this area.

He opened the door to the first stone chamber, revealing a formation over a hundred zhang in size, upon which a large quantity of Immortal Gathering Jade was laid out.

He opened the door to the second stone chamber, revealing a tall, green display shelf laden with numerous items, mostly artifact refining materials.

"Fifth-tier immortal materials! Ten Thousand Law Stone! Immortal Transformation Clay!" Wang Changsheng exclaimed in surprise, recognizing many of the fifth-tier immortal materials.

There were over two hundred pieces of fifth-tier immortal materials here. While both were Dao Ancestors, the Slaying Immortal Dao Ancestor possessed only a little over twenty such items, whereas Shifang Dao Ancestor had over two hundred. This was not surprising, as Shifang Dao Ancestor was active in a much earlier era and was also a fifth-tier immortal artifact master, capable of refining acquired Dao artifacts.