Chapter 537: Chapter 443: Mastering the Heart Gate

Above the Nine Heavens, Chen Sheng sat on the Imperial Seat of Nine Dragons, surrounded by countless Dao Runes.

He was pushing the way of luck to its ultimate extremity, interweaving the Emperor Dao Profound Light and the way of fortune, creating an invisible net covering the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

The Spiritual Qi and fortune in the world were all under his control, faintly indicating the signs of integrating with the heavens.

On this day, a mysterious fluctuation emanated from the depths of the primordial source, subtle yet apparent, causing the Dao Rhyme at a critical moment of Chen Sheng’s deduction to slightly stagnate.

This fluctuation was profoundly mysterious, neither the aura of a Cultivator breaking through nor a sign of a cosmic anomaly.

Instead, it carried a trace of ancient desolation and the lament of Tao self-destruction.

A sharp light flashed in Chen Sheng’s eyes, and his form instantly disappeared from the Imperial Seat, without stirring a ripple, as if he had never existed.

The next moment, he appeared in the primordial source of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

In the center, a portal about a square yard in height floated in the void, inscribed with countless ancient, enigmatic characters, each containing infinite mysteries, radiating profound luminous rhymes.

The portal emitted a gentle yet majestic pressure, illuminating all directions, hinting at a supreme phenomenon of suppressing the universe and stabilizing the heavens and earth.

"This is the Taihao’s portal!" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Chen Sheng’s gaze fell on the portal, his heart stirred slightly.

He raised his hand slightly, and a wisp of the Power of the Emperor Dao Origin emerged in his palm, gently tapping towards the Heart Realm Gate across the air.

The portal seemed to respond, and in a flash of light, it transformed into a stream of light, flying straight into his palm, the size akin to a Jade Pendant, warm and cool.

As Chen Sheng operated the Profound Skill to refine it, countless fragmented pieces of information surged into his sea of consciousness like a tide, intermittently:

"Heart Realm Gate... Da Zun’s creation treasure... suppress the universe, define reincarnation... three hundred epochs... generation after generation... seeking Taoists fell..."

"Sever the destiny of fortune... seek reduction and void... Dao Heart transformation... final leap... reaching the other shore..."

"Difficult, difficult, difficult! The path of Tao is perilous! Regret, regret, regret! A single misstep... eternal damnation..."

"Integration Secret Skill... first integrate... then transcend... seeking life in death... a sliver of hope..."

"A slim chance... yet hearing the Tao in the morning, one could die content in the evening..."

The fragmented information was chaotic and complex, but quickly cleared under the sorting of Chen Sheng’s Yin Yang Divine Soul.

A sharp light flashed in his eyes, and he understood:

"It’s Taihao! He failed in his attempt to break through to the Upper Realm, and has already fallen!"

He had long speculated that although Taihao cut across the way of fortune, he had not perished, and now it was confirmed.

With a thought, Chen Sheng no longer hesitated, and the Heart Realm Gate in his palm radiated light, transforming into a portal.

He stepped into it with a single stride, and when he reappeared, he was in a splendid void world.

There were no sun, moon, or stars, no mountains and rivers, only endless particles of light floating, permeating with the primordial source of the Dao, precisely the space materialized from the Dao Seed—Heart Realm.

Just as he stepped into the Heart Realm, a dense fluctuation of Tao self-destruction surged towards him.

This fluctuation was not violent, but carried a profound melancholy and deathly stillness, like a requiem at the end of a song.

Visible to the naked eye, black mist of light pervaded the void, each wisp representing the collapse of the Dao Foundation and the annihilation of the Divine Soul, touching it would feel the sting of the origin being eroded.

Farther away, countless Dao Principle fragments fell like meteors, emitting a sizzling sound, the sound of the Dao Domain crumbling, moving those who heard it.

The traces of Dao Rhyme left by Taihao in the past, now incomplete, like a candle in the wind, were at any moment on the verge of vanishing completely.

"No wonder, I searched throughout the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, traversed countless Small Thousand Worlds, spent countless time, yet still couldn’t find a trace of Taihao."

Chen Sheng surveyed his surroundings, understanding in his heart:

"It turns out under the reflection of the primordial source, there is indeed such a world hidden here. To be precise, this is the true core of cultivation in this world."

Combining the residual information from the Heart Realm Gate, and the permeating Tao self-destruction aura in the Heart Realm, Chen Sheng quickly pieced together Taihao’s cultivation path.

Back then, Taihao also pushed the way of fortune to its extremity, reaching the threshold of integrating with the heavens.

But, holding the Heart Realm Gate, he knew the secret inheritances across countless epochs, aware of the existence of epochal calamity.

Integration, though good, was ultimately constrained by this world, unable to survive the great calamity, let alone transcend.

The appearance of Chen Sheng prompted him to completely abandon the way of fortune, sever past causes and effects, seek reduction and void, choosing the path of proving Tao with the heart, attempting the "final leap" to break the shackles of this world and reach the true other shore.

Unfortunately, he ultimately failed, perishing at the final step, leaving endless regret of "regret, regret, regret" before his death.

Chen Sheng shook his head:

"Borrowing my severance of fortune’s cause and effect was indeed ingenious, but indecisive choices, an unstable Dao Heart, dare to attempt the final leap in such a state?"

He continued to feel the remaining information fragments and inheritance imprints in the Heart Realm.

Quickly, one indistinct figure after another emerged in his sea of consciousness—those were the invincible Cultivators of various eras across countless epochs.

They were all peerless geniuses, on the foundation of the heart path, supplementing and attempting different paths to transcendence.

Some proved Tao with force, intending to break the heavens’ shackles; some evolved life and death reincarnation through the heart, attempting to control the epochal cycle; others evolved destiny through the heart, aiming to transcend the heavens...

Sadly, these attempts ultimately turned to dust, leaving behind only incomplete inheritance imprints and endless regrets, telling the peril of the path.

Chen Sheng showed a trace of astonishment:

"So, the "Nine Volumes of Illusory Heart" actually left no pit, is this the fundamental law passed down by the Taoist Venerable of this world?"

Previously, while cultivating the first seven volumes of the "Nine Volumes of Illusory Heart," he felt this Cultivation Technique was extremely profound, but lacking in places, assuming Taihao had left a pit.

Never did he expect, judging from those predecessors’ attempts, that this Cultivation Technique was indeed passed down by the Taoist Venerable.

Chen Sheng inwardly lamented: "This is just too deceptive!"

The Cultivators of this world had not encountered a complete cultivation system and might not know, but in his eyes, if one were to cultivate to the eighth volume, then attempt the so-called final leap, it would be certain death!

"Those past individuals, though immensely brilliant, aimed to integrate other methods to supplement the heart path, which was a viable route, but sadly..."

Chen Sheng shook his head:

"And this epochal destruction every two hundred thousand years, is also a trap!"

One should know, even a Small Thousand World takes millions of cycles from birth to destruction to complete a cycle.

And this world, as a Middle Thousand World, completes an epochal cycle in only two hundred thousand years.

"Replay and gestation require at least tens of thousands of years, leaving not much time for the earliest beings, barely fitting within the lifespan limits of Void Refining Cultivators."

"For those Cultivators born later, there is simply not enough time."

Chen Sheng gently shook his head, temporarily unable to fathom the true intentions of the Taoist Venerable with such a setup, yet after much thought, there was only one possibility:

"The Taoist Venerable might be selecting appropriate disciples."

Passing down an incomplete fundamental law to test the Cultivators’ comprehension and insightfulness.

And the crisis of epochal destruction is to maximally pressurize the potential of Cultivators, forcing them to seek breakthroughs in dire situations.

Only true geniuses can rise within such a short time to meet the standards set by the Taoist Venerable.

"If it truly is as I think, the Taoist Venerable’s standards are indeed exceedingly high."

Upon the Heart Gate, Chen Sheng saw many extraordinary people’s legacies and Secret Techniques.

These individuals, whether of exceptional understanding, unwavering will, or heaven-defying fortune, stood at the apex even in the Spirit Realm, yet ultimately failed to pass the test of the Taoist Venerable, falling to their demise.

In the void, the aura of Tao self-destruction still permeated, the imprints of past legacies sparkling like stars.

Chen Sheng stood in the center of the Heart Realm, the Emperor Dao Profound Light flowing around him, isolating the tao self-destruction aura. He whispered to himself:

"First integrate, then transcend... seeking life in death, and hearing the Tao in the morning, one could die content in the evening."

"To this world’s Cultivators, it may be a path worth trying, but I am different..."

He was not a Cultivator of this world, the epochal destruction would only cost him an incarnation; in the next epoch, he would still have a chance to integrate with the Tao.