Chapter 742: Self-Cutting a Slash to Sever Heaven's Secret

In the livestream, countless players were brimming with excitement.

Defying the heavens and striking down the Dao – the moment was now!

This was the realization of their long-cherished dream, the embodiment of true masculine fervor.

"Charge!" cried voices. "When the cycle of reincarnation is disrupted, I shall stain the azure sky with my demonic blood!"

Many players began to act.

This was to be a colossal online gaming event, one that concerned the future of the entire Six Paths of Reincarnation world. Lord Youshan was about to make his move once more!

No one knew what he intended to do.

Yet, Lord Youshan was a formidable individual; he never acted without certainty and was bound to create a "miracle" that would shake the entire world.

Everyone who knew him, who had witnessed his astonishing methods, instinctively believed this. It was a unique personal charisma that always offered a sense of reliance in despair; they trusted Lord Youshan's potential for the unexpected more than the cruelty of reality itself.

Screenshots, high-definition images detailed enough to be posters, were quickly released.

One image showed the figure of the Reincarnation Lord, a gentle young man in black robes, hazy and indistinct as if veiled in chaos, his eyes incredibly profound. Behind him followed a stooped, white-haired old woman.

Facing him in confrontation was a tall, handsome scholar in white robes. His feathered fan lay discarded on the ground, his physique robust, and his black hair wildly danced in the wind, like a peerless ancient hero awakened. Behind him followed a treant with five-colored spiritual roots.

Boom!

Gusts of wind howled.

The two stood opposite each other at a distance, each accompanied by a single attendant.

This tableau conveyed a sense of turbulent change, as if they stood at the eye of a storm.

"Holy hell, how did that female treant livestream player suddenly get involved and become part of the scene?"

"A hidden adventure quest? She connected with Lord Youshan? Why didn't I encounter that?"

"Argh, I'm furious."

No one knew Pan Xiexian's true identity.

She had hidden her identity very well; even Speed of Mount Akina and others in the Wizard World hadn't known she was a player, thinking the demonic sword was an indigenous artifact.

Now she had officially revealed her player identity, but no one knew her true origins, simply assuming she was an unexpected newcomer.

At this moment, Xu Zhi also felt a surge of curiosity, watching Lord Youshan with interest. "Are you going to create another miracle?" he asked.

Lord Youshan did not answer. Instead, he fell into a long reverie and spoke softly, "Reincarnation Lord, do you know that for a very long time, I've been pondering how to defeat you and break through this sealed immortal path?"

He slowly poured out the grievances of the past, but then took a step forward. Suddenly, his voice grew sharp: "Finally, after years of roaming the land, visiting mountains, rivers, and diverse cultures, and observing the growth paths of countless powerful individuals, constantly analyzing, I finally discovered why, in the era of talent... why those with innate talent have always been unable to defeat you?"

"Because talented individuals are, in the end, weak..."

"Those without innate talent, conversely, are extremely powerful and possess infinite possibilities."

"Talent is both their making and their undoing."

As soon as Lord Youshan's words fell, the entire livestream audience was instantly confused, their faces filled with disbelief.

—Talent is both their making and their undoing?

Within the Six Paths of Reincarnation, the hidden Great Sages trembled, their expressions changing dramatically.

"How is this possible?"

Everyone knew how enormous the advantage was for those born with talent when embarking on the path of cultivation!

It was beyond the reach of ordinary people, impossible to catch up to!

Even in this current era of Buddhist and Daoist cultivation, the disparity wasn't as great. But if it were the previous era of pure talent, those without talent couldn't cultivate at all; they could only remain ordinary people!

And ordinary people are stronger than those with talent?

It was an utter fallacy.

"Why?" Xu Zhi asked calmly, as if questioning an ordinary friend, speaking softly and gently, "What shortcomings are there in the era of reincarnation that I established?"

"No, not your shortcomings. Your rule is perfect, your methods formidable. Rather, it is our own inadequacy, the inadequacy of the talented, which is insufficient to overthrow your rule."

"It's simple: for those with talent, one can see their personality through their talent! For instance, the Emperor of Form's obsession with shrinking himself smaller and smaller is what gave birth to his talent..."

Lord Youshan stood with his hands behind his back on the mountain peak before the thatched hut, amidst swirling clouds and mist, his tone like that of a philosophical discourse.

"For example, Li Sansheng: it was his obsession with being with a certain person in the next life that gave birth to his vengeful flame, allowing him to remember his past life's reincarnation."

"Each individual's talent is forged from the accumulated obsessions of their countless reincarnations. In other words, every talented individual is a person with extremely extreme or flawed personalities."

"In this regard, it's not entirely bad, because radical and persistent courage can motivate one to advance, leading to the birth of many powerful individuals. However, many talented individuals with personality flaws simply cannot utilize their formidable talents. For instance, the Emperor of Form... isn't it a great pity that such terrifying talent is held by such a timid person?"

"Such people have no ambition! No drive to forge ahead! They account for 50% of all talented individuals—how enormous is that? Most talented individuals are, because of their talent, destined to guard a treasure mountain in vain, achieving nothing!"

His voice grew increasingly impassioned, imbued with the aura of a decisive reformer.

"Therefore, the era of talent has ultimately proven to be a failure, and for hundreds of years, I've been contemplating how to bring about change."

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhi smiled serenely: "How daring. You actually intend to bring reform to this world?"

"The world desperately needs a method of change. Without change, it will remain stagnant and lifeless. How can we overthrow reincarnation? Reverse the cosmos? Overthrow a world of the dead? Overthrow the master of reincarnation?"

He stood tall, pacing back and forth, his face etched with worry: "Emperor, tell me, if we do not reform, how can we living beings overthrow your rule?"

His tone evoked the image of a formidable emperor pointing to the rivers and mountains, possessing an aura of unmatched supremacy and 'who else but I' authority.

"For all these years, I have roamed the Path of Beasts, secretly observing their culture and their governance. I saw that their cultivation system astonishingly used the body as a so-called 'plugin'. This enlightened me, and I conceived a new method: talent plugins."

"Yes, talent organs."

His eyes held astonishing coldness. "I will seal away all these talented individuals, suppressing them, preventing them from entering reincarnation, so they can be controlled by ordinary people!"

He revealed in his hand a gleaming golden Bodhi Dao Fruit, growing within it—precisely the fruit born from his true form, the Bodhi Tree. "I am the ancient Reincarnation Bodhi Tree, and this is my fruit. I will seal talented individuals within its core, transforming them into divine power fruits!"

Everyone was greatly shocked.

Emperor of Form...?!

Inside the fruit, the figure of this being was surprisingly the Emperor of Form after his reincarnation.

Ever since the battle years ago, the Emperor of Form had reincarnated and disappeared without a trace. It turned out he had been found first by the Reincarnation Lord, surprisingly detained, and refined into an evil fruit.

"By refining talented individuals into divine power fruits, ordinary people can then use their innate divine abilities without the constraints of their personalities," Lord Youshan said with a calm expression. "They can forge ahead courageously."

"You're insane!"

Suddenly, a thunderclap exploded in the sky.

This was an ancient Great Sage who had also awakened from the dark restricted zone—the Long-Armed Ape, known for its short temper. "You are subverting our rule, defying our status, pushing us into a pit of fire!"

Lord Youshan's actions were practically digging their own graves.

Although ordinary people could now cultivate, the advantage of those with talent remained absolute when both sides cultivated, maintaining their dominant position.

The fact that many Great Sages of top combat power were still talented individuals showed how enormous the advantage conferred by talent was; under comparable Heavenly Emperor levels, their combat power was unimaginable. But what lay before them...

Once he created this method, the era of talent would be completely overturned!

This was a terrifying revolution.

Ordinary people would hunt powerful talented individuals, refine and imprison them, turning them into a talent organ fruit to be implanted into their bodies, allowing them to use their innate divine abilities...

The future era...

A grand calamity was approaching, one that even Great Sages might not escape.

Countless Great Sages broke out in goosebumps. They already envisioned a bloody era of carnage, where talented individuals would be hunted everywhere, and even they themselves would find it hard to escape this universal catastrophe!

What's more, Lord Youshan himself was a talented individual, and the most powerful one: possessing countless avatars, fragmented consciousness, the ability to split reincarnation, and being the Bodhi Mother Tree.

"No, wait. If this happened to the Emperor of Form, then others must have..."

Even many ancient beings' expressions changed drastically. Only now did they realize that over the past few decades, many powerful talented beings had met tragic ends through various 'accidents.'

It was all Lord Youshan's doing!

"Youshan, you are ruthless!"

"How could you be so cruel?"

Another Great Sage roared in anger.

At this moment, a majestic supreme being from the Heavenly Human Path slowly descended from the sky and bowed slowly to Xu Zhi. "Emperor, please allow us to deal with this rebellious individual ourselves!"

"The living in the mortal realm are free. I only manage the underworld's reincarnation; all matters before death will be settled after death. Please proceed as you wish." Xu Zhi merely stood calmly in the distance, his expression still gentle.

In the distance.

Players also began to arrive successively.

Their minds raced as they realized the situation was grim.

Previously, they had been very optimistic about this statistician, this grand orator who always spoke of miracles. After all, Lord Youshan's personality and tactics had already gained countless fans online!

"Lord Youshan, is he looking for death?"

Players were utterly baffled, discussing among themselves: "He actually stole our techniques! Emperor Qi did bloodline plugins, we did limb and organ plugins, and he's doing talent organ plugins!"

"Everyone getting cheat-like plugin mods?"

"Divine power fruits?"

"Isn't that just a Devil Fruit?"

"He's too ruthless, a truly merciless individual! He actually personally pioneered a path that pushes the talented race to a dead end. He's researched how to imprison and confine talented beings, refining them into living organs to be installed on one's body. It's simply cruel, evil, and against all principles!"

All players believed that Lord Youshan, before even making a move against the Emperor, would likely be beaten to death by the surrounding Great Sages.

This was driving all talented individuals to a dead end!

How could they tolerate this?

This was making an enemy of the entire world!

However, some players' expressions changed. "Brothers, not necessarily!" one exclaimed. "Let's think back to before, when Lord Youshan was at the Heavenly Human Inn; the situation was similar at first. We all said: he hadn't even made a move yet and would be besieged and killed by the Heavenly Humans. But what happened next? What about the Heavenly Humans then? They were all forced by him to oppose the Reincarnation Lord!"

Goosebumps rose on everyone's skin.

Could this also be part of his scheme?

Rumble!

Majestic and vast Great Sages descended one after another, like countless celestial beings standing on a cliff, immortal light surging, vast as an ocean.

They angrily shouted at him, questioning him.

Some Great Sages even glared, eyes wide with fury, intending to join forces to kill him.

"What if I subvert? What if I overthrow?"

Lord Youshan's face was cold and detached: "Not only will I imprison talented individuals, but ordinary people can treat them as peerless treasures, continuously hunting and pursuing them, refining them into evil magical artifacts."

"I will also ensure that talented individuals are confined from birth until they die of old age and enter the Six Paths of Reincarnation, completely unaware of the world's structure. Thus, Truth Listener, by examining the memories of the deceased, will no longer be able to know the major events happening in the Six Paths of Reincarnation!"

"It is precisely because we talented individuals hold the top positions in various sects that our memories after death are invariably probed by Truth Listener, allowing it to hear all within the six realms! And know all their secrets!"

"Thus, with all secrets in the enemy's ears and eyes, how can we defy the heavens and strike down the Dao?"

"With this action, Reincarnation Lord will lose his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth! The Six Paths of Reincarnation will no longer be able to see the world of the living! He will be utterly blind!"

"Severing his arms, blinding his eyes and ears—that is the first step!"

As Lord Youshan's voice fell: "Gentlemen, hear my words—To strike down the Heavenly Dao, first strike down your own Dao!"

Boom!

To! Strike! Down! The! Heavenly! Dao! First! Strike! Down! Your! Own! Dao!

These eight characters struck like a bolt from the blue, exploding in everyone's hearts. Too cruel, too radical, yet instinctively they resonated with some.

"You!" The Long-Armed Ape was enraged. "What a sin! What a sin! You're pushing us into a pit of fire! You are severing our lives, eradicating our race!"

Meng Po, standing nearby, subtly changed her expression.

Lord Youshan was terrifying, truly an unimaginable revolutionary. He was too ruthless, intending to kill off all the talented elites of his own era!

But it had to be said, placing oneself in a desperate situation to find a way out was an extremely viable method.

This man's wisdom was almost demonic.

Lord Youshan scanned his surroundings, then spoke softly: "Do you know why we, throughout countless ancient eras, have been unable to defeat the Reincarnation Lord?"

"Because we stand on the stage he built for us, we use our own talents as a means to contend with him. If we don't overturn this stage, if we don't push ourselves into a pit of fire, and use our bones, our will, our blood to forge a new era, then we will never truly triumph."

As these words were uttered, heaven and earth seemed to crack.

"What?"

Countless Heavenly Emperors of this era instantly found their minds blank!

Xu Zhi also held his breath, sensing Lord Youshan's resolve. After the death of Emperor Yun years ago, the style and integrity of an era, its very spirit, had been carried by Lord Youshan. This was a terrifying man, with an incredibly firm will to overthrow the supreme Emperor and fight for the freedom of future generations.

Xu Zhi suddenly smiled. "Youshan, do you know Emperor Qi?"

"Emperor Qi?" Lord Youshan asked.

"The Outer-Territory Sky Demons we hunt in our world were originally Emperor Qi's prey. He is the World Master of the Seven Realms' Chongming Mythical Heavenly Court," Xu Zhi said softly. "But Emperor Qi also experienced a similar era back then."

The surrounding Great Sages and countless Immortal Emperors all pricked up their ears.

Xu Zhi spoke softly: "This is an ancient myth. Long ago, when heaven and earth were first created and Dao Lords lectured, the Primordial Ancient Gods ushered in an era of prosperity, governing the great divine authorities of heaven and earth, such as the Sun, Moon, Wind, Rain, and Thunder. Emperor Qi was the chief of the Primordial Ancient Gods."

"But as Post-natal Beings increased day by day and the Primordial Ancient Gods ruled tyrannically, the Post-natal Beings were filled with grievances yet were unable to overthrow them. After all, Post-natal Beings couldn't possibly manage the world's order in place of Primordial Ancient Gods like the Sun, Moon, Wind, and Rain."

"Another hundred years passed, and an Ancestor of Humanity emerged. Xuyounian pioneered the method of the Sea of Consciousness and Dantian, which could kill Primordial Ancient Gods, refining them into Dantian Primeval Spirits to replace the Primordial Ancient Gods and take over the order of heaven and earth. From then on, the Ancient Gods were no longer irreplaceable, and the great calamity of the Primordial Ancient Gods was upon them!"

As the story reached this point, the expressions of countless Great Sages trembled.

They were profoundly shocked.

Killing Primordial Ancient Gods and refining them into Dantian Primeval Spirits?

How similar was that to the current slaughter of talented individuals, imprisoning them and turning them into talent organs?

The players' expressions changed even more.

This Reincarnation Emperor was utterly mysterious, so clearly aware of the developments in other worlds, even knowing about Emperor Qi. He had probably been observing in secret for a long time.

Truly unfathomable.

Xu Zhi continued: "During the great calamity, Emperor Qi descended to the mortal realm, becoming a woodcutter among Post-natal Beings. He led the Ancestral Shamans of the Post-natal Beings to overthrow his own rule and established a new Heavenly Court for Post-natal Beings. Like a plum tree replacing a peach tree, he himself remained high above, becoming the master of Post-natal Beings, and still secretly protected the Primordial Ancient Gods."

Everyone's expressions changed completely.

This Emperor Qi was indeed a terrifying figure, overthrowing his own rule.

Xu Zhi looked at Lord Youshan. "Emperor Qi went to great lengths to maintain the rule of the Primordial Ancient Gods, while you are overthrowing the old rule of the talented, actively pushing yourself into a pit of fire?"

Listening to the Emperor's current myth, many Great Sages felt the entire heaven and earth tremble.

Unlike Emperor Qi's feigned overthrow, Lord Youshan intended to personally overthrow the era of the 'Primordial Ancient Gods,' burying them all in a pit of fire.

A great calamity was descending, and no one would be spared.

"There is no revolution without bloodshed."

Lord Youshan's expression was utterly calm. "If I must use my blood and bear the stigma of destruction, then so be it?"

"Do you know? I always find humanity's so-called miracles quite laughable."

He looked at the surrounding Great Sages, whose faces were anything but calm, and said indifferently, "They always curl up in the dirt after falling. They are poor yet huddle in dilapidated thatched huts, lying on the ground, gazing at the sky, numbly watching the outside world, secretly hoping for a one-in-ten-thousand miracle, expecting destiny to take a turn...."

"However, there are no miracles that come from waiting; they are all stained with blood."

Lord Youshan stood up, looked around, and shook his head. He took a step forward, his gaze fixed on the Reincarnation Lord with blazing battle intent. He reached out and produced countless divine power fruits, dozens of them floating in the air, brilliantly beautiful. "This is the final incarnation; win or lose, it all ends in this era," he declared. "Gentlemen, the divine power fruits are here. Are you willing to fight with me?"