Chapter 1378: Entering the Tao

The energy was like an ocean, incredibly intimidating. The humanoid mountain range within the Taishang terrain trembled, and rolling black smoke surged skyward, becoming increasingly violent.

The Taishang, that humanoid mountain range, was shaking, on the verge of a complete eruption. Faint flickers of flames were vaguely visible, signaling a potential catastrophe.

Meanwhile, in the outer area, after Chu Feng bisected Qi Feng, he picked him up and made a throat-slitting motion, intending to end his life immediately.

Chu Feng's hand did not fall, and this suffocating tension tormented Qi Feng even more. While enduring the intense pain, he was also anticipating the arrival of his final moments, a torment that could make one collapse.

He thought it would be better to have his life ended swiftly by an opponent's blade. His breathing was rapid, his bisected torso was covered in blood, and he felt immense suppression and pain.

At this moment, everyone was shocked. Within these unique mountains and the terrain imbued with domain symbols, Zhou Zhengde seemed almost invincible.

Chu Feng made a cutting motion with his hand, and Qi Feng's head flew off diagonally, blood spurting high. However, he did not die; a large hand suddenly grabbed his topknot and lifted his head.

Originally, Chu Feng's glowing finger and the rules emanating from it would have been enough to crush the opponent's soul light, but now they were nullified.

It was a sturdy bull spirit with rough horns and a full head of thick green hair that cascaded over its chest and back. Its large, round, brass-bell-like eyes glowed with a green light.

It was him—a creature from the depths of this forbidden land, the minotaur who had pushed a wheelbarrow earlier. An absolute powerhouse!

Not only was Chu Feng stunned, but everyone else was also surprised. A creature from the Taishang Forbidden Land had emerged to intervene in the fight and save Qi Feng at a crucial moment?

"Talent is rare," the minotaur said. "Qi Feng of Hundred Paths Mountain has remarkable domain accomplishments. How about giving me face and sparing his life? If you still want to kill him, wait for a while."

The thick green-haired minotaur shook its large horns and grinned at Chu Feng, speaking in a consulting tone. Yet, no matter how he looked at it, the minotaur seemed a bit creepy, like a chaotic demon king.

Chu Feng was speechless. What else could he do when the minotaur had spoken in such a manner? He had requests of the Taishang Forbidden Land and sought great opportunities there, so he naturally couldn't offend its master.

However, he was very displeased. He had exerted great effort to capture Qi Feng, only for him to be saved by a casual remark from someone else.

The minotaur said, "Don't worry, we will protect you too. I declare here: if you are maimed or severely wounded by others, we will also step in to preserve your life."

Chu Feng grumbled internally, "Damn it, you only step in after I'm maimed?"

However, he could sense that the Taishang Forbidden Land had an exceptional desire for researchers proficient in domains, hoping to preserve top-tier talents.

This was good news for Chu Feng; being valued by the fire essence tribe of the Taishang Forbidden Land meant he would have greater opportunities and achieve greater fortune.

After saying this, the minotaur's face fell again, showing some displeasure towards Chu Feng. "Do you know what you've done?" he asked. "Trying to set the forbidden land on fire? Destroying this land? You are truly audacious. If we didn't cherish talent, we would have already attacked you and left you dead here!"

He pointed towards the Taishang terrain, which was shaking violently. The thick smoke was terrifying, surging like an ocean, and tiny flames flickered, almost bursting forth.

"Do you know what that is? The power of Taishang!" he exclaimed. "It's contained beneath this terrain. If truly ignited, it would be a catastrophe, capable of burning through even the Thirty-Three Heavens. You should know, it fell from above all those years ago!"

The minotaur's warning was extremely serious.

Finally, his face twitched again as he pointed to the distant Taishang terrain. "You've caused great trouble this time," he said. "Do you know how much effort we put into calming it down?"

Then, Chu Feng saw someone emerge from the depths of the Taishang terrain, holding a crystalline white bottle and continuously sprinkling water to extinguish the flickering flames.

It looked like… a Jade Nectar Vase?!

"That is the True Water of Creation, the mother of all waters," the minotaur explained. "Born before the creation of heaven and earth, it's extremely difficult to collect even a drop. Today, we spilled some because we were worried about Taishang's revival. This is a great cost!"

"True Water of Creation?" Chu Feng was surprised. He had collected some in the Reincarnation Pond in the Fourth Forbidden Land that led to the Soul River, condensing it into the supreme rare substance he needed for his Seven Treasures wondrous art. He hadn't expected the fire essence tribe in the Taishang Forbidden Land to possess some as well!

"Fortunately, Taishang didn't revive, and only some stray flames emerged," the minotaur warned. "Otherwise, absolute disaster would have struck!"

Earlier, Chu Feng had been wondering why, after such a long time, there was only smoke and no visible fire. It turned out that the creatures within the forbidden land had prevented it.

The minotaur continued, "It's best if Taishang remains neither dead nor alive. Once it revives, even if incomplete, this species would be virtually unrivaled in the world!"

Chu Feng was stunned, and all other cultivators were equally shocked!

They were truly dumbfounded. Could it be that a creature named Taishang was actually buried in this terrain, and not just something related to fire?

The minotaur retreated, but before leaving, he melted a crystalline pill glowing with fire and refined it into Qi Feng's head, causing a body to slowly grow back.

Chu Feng really wanted to say, "Give me one too!"

This Taishang Forbidden Land was incredibly wealthy, casually giving out all sorts of powerful medicines. Qi Feng's soul had been severely wounded, but now it was gradually recovering.

For a time, silence fell. The thick smoke from the distant Taishang mountain range gradually subsided, and sunlight shone down, bringing a gentle serenity, as if the previous battle had never happened.

Chu Feng said nothing, walked to the pile of domain books, and began to study again.

The silver page nestled within the Silver Heavenly Book was naturally his focus for breakthrough. This was a true supreme secret text, and to find a single page here was a great fortune.

Back then, a single silver page falling into the Lesser Underworld could create a Saint Master with world-shattering abilities.

The fact that there was a continuation here was truly beyond Chu Feng's expectation.

He secretly placed this silver page into his body, handing it over to his Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit—the Divine King level Chu Feng—for study.

Meanwhile, he used his Yang Realm Dao Fruit to study other books, simultaneously sending some of the most profound scriptures into his body to his Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit. This was akin to two versions of himself comprehending the domain secret texts, greatly increasing the speed.

In fact, over the years, the Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit, Chu Feng at the Divine King level, had already advanced significantly in the field of domain research!

Having been in the Yang Realm for over ten years, the Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit Chu Feng's domain attainments had soared significantly. He had already delved very deeply into the Divine Master realm, continuously exploring and advancing on his own.

For several consecutive days, Chu Feng was utterly engrossed. In a trance, he forgot the passage of time, as if wandering at the ends of heaven and earth's mysteries, continuously exploring and absorbing domain knowledge.

Chu Feng's domain talent had long been appraised; it surpassed his evolutionary talent and was rare even in ancient times.

In the past, he lacked systematic and higher-grade domain books, but now there were piles and sets of them here, compensating for his shortcomings. He was like a withered plant in the desert encountering sweet dew, constantly replenishing and absorbing nutrients, becoming vibrant and radiating astonishing brilliance.

It was said that the difficulty of studying domains was more than ten times that of cultivation, requiring accumulation over time. Yet, Chu Feng now seemed to have pushed open a grand door, revealing a dazzling golden light within. He stepped into a sacred hall, and his comprehension of domains rapidly increased, causing his strength in this field to surge!

Chu Feng felt that one day here was almost equivalent to several years in the past!

This was primarily because his cultivation level was higher; his Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit, residing in the Divine King realm, was more sensitive to perceiving the rules of heaven and earth.

Simultaneously, his Lesser Underworld Dao Fruit had been in secluded cultivation for many years, remaining hidden. For all these years, even his own Yang Realm Dao Fruit had been unaware of its true depths, while it had consistently been studying this very subject.

Many areas of research were only a thin veil away from complete understanding; a slight nudge would reveal everything.

However, in the past, he lacked secret manuals and had no access to heavenly scriptures, which is why he never made further significant breakthroughs.

But today, everything had changed; it was completely different.

Chu Feng read greedily, wishing he could digest and absorb all the domain secret texts, moving them all into the depths of his mind to instantly become the strongest domain expert.

For several days straight, Chu Feng forgot everything else, concentrating on his research. He perused a vast number of secret texts, and various domain symbols swirled around his body.

Moreover, everyone was astonished to hear chanting sounds coming from within him. This signified "entering the Dao," a completely new realm of enlightenment.

When one falls into this state, time itself seems to freeze for them, allowing some to seemingly pass decades in a single morning, immersed in the deepest level of Dao enlightenment.

The Buddhist practitioners were shocked. They had methods of "enlightenment by pouring," where a secret transmission overnight could equal a hundred years of arduous effort, but only disciples with great fortune in their lifetime could use it once or twice.

But now, they saw Zhou Zhengde, someone not of the Buddhist clan, actually falling into such a similar state of Dao enlightenment on his own in the field of domain research. This truly astonished and awed them.

The Daoist practitioners were also alarmed, their expressions solemn. Their outstanding clansmen also had special encounters and secret methods that could achieve overnight Dao enlightenment. The most powerful legend among them was: "Seven days in the cave, a thousand years on earth!"

Of course, that so-called "thousand years on earth" actually referred to the thousand years of cultivation gained while in the Dao-entering state, not a thousand years passing in the real world.

This was incredibly terrifying; in seven real days, he could gain a thousand years of cultivation.

Now, they saw Chu Feng also entering such a legendary state.

Cultivators from all races were shocked without exception, all of them staring at Chu Feng.

Now, Chu Feng's entire body glowed. After several days of cultivation, though his progress wasn't as extraordinary as the Buddhist and Daoist clans—where one day could yield a hundred years of cultivation progress—

But the Dao-entering state he had reached through his own efforts was also astonishing: his daily progress had escalated from years to decades!

Unfortunately, he didn't understand the legendary supreme secret methods of the Buddhist and Daoist clans; otherwise, his current gains would be even greater!

A hundred years of cultivation in one day—how incredible was that?!

Of course, his current Dao-entering state was limited to the domain field, not cultivation, which further highlighted how terrifying his talent in this aspect was.

Without the Buddhist clan's "enlightenment by pouring" secret method and not mastering the Daoist clan's "Seven days in the cave, a thousand years on earth" true transmission, he could still remain in this state!

Everyone saw Chu Feng flipping through books, one after another. In just a few days, he seemed to have perused and comprehended most of this large pile of secret texts!

His body glowed, and various runes shone brightly. The chanting sounds grew increasingly grand, revealing profound sacredness. His appearance was solemn and majestic, like a Buddha, and also like a Daoist Ancestor!

In fact, at this moment, the Dao Ancestor substance outside his body was dense, showing a tendency to defy common sense and affect the cultivation realm, thus enhancing his physique!

The dense Dao Ancestor substance became even more astonishing.

Many people were shocked, and some couldn't sit still any longer!

Qi Feng's eyes were cold and dark. He truly couldn't remain calm and couldn't help but want to act, but then he felt a jolt of fear remembering the severe consequences.

This was because the minotaur had declared he would protect Chu Feng's life!

"I'll risk it," Qi Feng thought. "Even if I can't kill you, I will interfere with your progress, disrupt your state of enlightenment, and force you out of this Dao-entering state!"

Qi Feng became determined. He decided to interfere and destroy Chu Feng's Dao-entering state, a rare opportunity in a thousand years, forcing him out of this extremely rare and life-precious special state.