txolops Chapter 49 The Great Ruler
Chapter 49 The Great Ruler
When the last core restriction was completely refined and imprinted with Zhen Yuanzi's unique primordial spirit mark, the central Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner emitted a satisfied soft sound, like a long sigh coming from the depths of the earth.
The divine light of Xuanhuang completely subsided, making the entire flag simple and unadorned, yet exuding a supreme majesty that returned to simplicity.
It transformed into a gentle yet profound stream of light, voluntarily entering Zhen Yuanzi's palm.
The light felt slightly heavy in his hand, as if it were holding a small world. Then it disappeared into his body, sinking into his dantian and merging with the vast and pure source of earth-guarding magic power, becoming one with it.
Within the Qi Sea, the apricot-yellow flag floated above the illusory image of the Earth Book. The two were connected by Qi, nourishing each other and together forming the core of Zhen Yuanzi's Dao Foundation.
At this moment, Zhen Yuanzi's aura suddenly changed. His already imposing, mountain-like aura became even more profound and restrained, as if he had shed all his external brilliance and become completely integrated with the boundless earth beneath his feet, inseparable and unshakeable.
He stood there, like a pillar of the primordial land, an eternal and unchanging sacred mountain.
An invisible, majestic Daoist aura, seemingly capable of encompassing all the heavens and myriad realms and stabilizing earth, water, fire, and wind, naturally emanated from it.
This Daoist aura was not ostentatious, yet it made the entire Penglai Immortal Island seem even more stable, and the surging chaotic air currents at the island's edge seemed to become gentler.
The exotic flowers and rare herbs, the jade-like trees on the island, seemed to have been nourished in some way, becoming more vibrant and imbued with a deeper spiritual light.
His mastery and understanding of the Way of the Earth has reached a completely new and immeasurable level.
Previously, the direction of the earth's veins and the flow of earth's energy required the aid of geomancy to be clearly perceived. Now, with just a slight thought, one can perceive them as clearly as reading the lines on one's palm.
He could even faintly sense the aura of some nodes or special entities closely connected to the origin of the earth in other areas of the primordial world—these were other possible innate earth essences, or some innate spiritual objects containing the laws of the earth.
The bottleneck of the Great Luo Golden Immortal peak, which had been stagnant for so long, seemed to loosen a little under the nourishment of the treasure that matched its origin and the erosion of the Great Dao. The path to the Primordial Chaos Realm seemed to become clearer.
The Primordial Chaos Realm is not simply about accumulating magical power, but about a complete understanding and mastery of the laws of the Great Dao. The arrival of the Apricot Yellow Banner was like opening a door for him that led directly to the core of the laws of the earth.
He slowly opened his eyes, which were no longer a simple dark yellow color, but seemed to contain countless miniature mountains, rivers, and earth veins, their energy rising and falling within them, as deep as an abyss, bearing the endless weight of the primordial world.
Wherever that gaze swept, the essence of the Earth beneath their feet seemed to come alive, pulsating slightly, and the surrounding Xuanhuang Qi became even more docile.
He slightly clenched his fingers, feeling the immense power and supreme Daoist charm emanating from the Central Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner within his body, which was intertwined with his life and mind.
That power was profound, stable, and inexhaustible, as if connected to the primordial sea of the ancient land. That Daoist essence was mysterious and profound, expounding the ultimate principles of bearing, stabilizing, nurturing, and returning to the source.
On Zhen Yuanzi's usually calm face, a gentle smile, indescribable and as warm as the earth returning to spring, finally appeared.
This smile was not one of ecstasy, but rather a serene peace that comes after a long wait, a certainty that the path ahead has been proven.
During this trip to the Three Immortal Islands, the abbot obtained the Bitter Bamboo and, amidst the solitude and bitter cold, comprehended a trace of the Daoist heart that seeks to save all living beings and is steadfast and unyielding.
Yingzhou gathers white lotuses, and through purification and holiness, it masters the supernatural power to cleanse impurities and protect the source.
And Penglai, in the end, allowed him to find the most perfect treasure of the earth that was in harmony with the origin and pointed directly to the core of the Great Dao—the Central Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner.
These three treasures—bitter bamboo for calming the mind, white lotus for purifying the world, and apricot yellow flag for suppressing the earth—complement each other, laying a solid foundation for him to reach the Primordial Dao Fruit.
The profound heritage of the Wuzhuang Temple lineage on Longevity Mountain, after this trip to the three islands, has become so profound that it is enough to make the entire prehistoric world take notice.
The ginseng fruit tree, the four-symbol banana tree, the gourd vine, the earth book, plus the apricot yellow flag, the first of the five innate flags, as well as the bitter bamboo and the pure white lotus, such a foundation is something that even those great beings who have existed since the beginning of time may not be able to match.
The seeds of his ambition to find the other four treasure flags and to lay down the mighty Five Elements Array that would shake the primordial world were quietly sown in his heart.
With the apricot-yellow flag in hand, as the pivot of the five elements, his ability to sense the other four flags has greatly increased.
The vitality of wood in the Azure Lotus Banner of the East, the blazing fire in the Flame Banner of the South, the sharp metal in the Plain Cloud Banner of the West, and the gentle water in the Xuan Yuan Water Control Banner of the North... These unique and powerful auras of law, like stars in the night, though distant, have left a vague yet clear imprint on his perception based on the Apricot Yellow Banner.
If the five flags could be gathered together in the future to set up the innate five elements grand formation... Zhen Yuanzi's thoughts stirred slightly, as if he could see the five elements rotating, forming a world of their own, with unparalleled defense and earth-shattering offense.
That would be the power that truly stands at the pinnacle of the primordial world, one of his ultimate reliances in protecting his dojo and proving the Great Dao.
He was not in a hurry to leave. For him, the core of Penglai Immortal Island was the best place to attain enlightenment at this moment.
He sat cross-legged on the jade platform of the Earth Essence, his mind sinking into his body, carefully experiencing every change after completely merging with the Apricot Yellow Banner, and sorting out the profound truths of the earth that surged in like a tide.
The Earth Book floated in the Sea of Consciousness, echoing the apricot-yellow flag in the Sea of Qi. Countless pieces of information about the primordial earth veins, the terrain of mountains and rivers, and the flow of earth qi became clearer and more profound.
He attempted to communicate with the earth's veins of Penglai Island using his divine sense. Wherever his thoughts went, the earth's energy deep within the island surged like a gentle river, nourishing the creatures on the island and even subtly influencing the direction of the chaotic airflow around the island.
This control is not forced, but rather an extension of the earth's own will, a resonance and guidance at the level of laws.
Time slipped by quietly amidst deep contemplation. Zhen Yuanzi's aura grew increasingly concentrated, and his connection with Penglai Immortal Island became ever stronger.
He seemed to have become part of the island, and the island seemed to have become an extension of his Dao body. Only after he had completely settled what he had gained and had initially integrated the power of the Apricot Yellow Banner did he slowly rise.
His gaze swept over the core of Penglai once more. Due to the departure of the Apricot Yellow Banner, the concentration of the Earth Essence seemed to have decreased slightly, but the heavy and solid aura of the earth's origin had not dissipated. On the contrary, it had gained more spirituality and order because of his refining and presiding over it.
He knew that this place might give birth to new Wu Earth spirits in the future, becoming a sacred land of Wu Earth.
Zhen Yuanzi took a step forward, and his figure disappeared from the spot.
When he reappeared, he was already on the edge of Penglai Immortal Island. Looking back, the entire immortal island was no longer a simple overseas fairyland in his eyes, but a huge and intricate aggregate of the laws of Wutu. The direction of the earth veins, the nodes of spiritual energy, and the source of life were all clearly visible.
This is the new perspective he was given after taking control of the Apricot Yellow Banner—the perspective of the ruler of the land.