733: Break free from attachments! Clarify your understanding! Return to oneness!

Yao Delong stepped into the light screen flowing with deep radiance. His body felt as if it were gently enveloped by flowing water. The scene before him blurred abruptly and then instantly became clear!

He found himself within a vast, ancient, and magnificent hall permeated with the aura of ages.

There were no ornate decorations or dazzling lights. Only a massive Yin-Yang Double Fish diagram rotated slowly and eternally overhead,

casting a flickering, rhythmic glimmer like breathing, shrouding the entire hall in a mysterious and solemn atmosphere.

In the air was the scent of ancient sandalwood settled over ten thousand years, mixed with the fragrance of time itself.

Inhaling it into his lungs, even his Divine Soul felt a sense of tranquility, as if it had been cleansed.

Beneath his feet was a bluestone floor, polished smooth as a mirror, exuding a cold texture.

Not far ahead of him, three seemingly ordinary prayer mats were quietly placed in a triangular formation.

A foot in front of each mat, a profound ancient seal composed of pure light patterns floated in mid-air:

Left mat: Breaking Obsession

Right mat: Clear Discernment

Center mat: Returning to One

The moment Yao Delong's gaze swept over these three mats and the ancient seals, an aged, peaceful voice, as if coming from the opposite bank of the long river of time,

rang out directly in the deepest part of his Sea of Consciousness, carrying a wisdom and tolerance that saw through everything:

"Latecomer..."

"The true essence of the Dao lies not in the mystery of Yin and Yang techniques, nor in the great power to move mountains and fill seas..."

"But in... the heart of equilibrium."

"These three questions do not test the depth of your cultivation or the strength of your Divine Abilities..."

"They only verify... your original heart!"

"Choose your own order, but only by passing all three trials shall you see the true scripture."

The voice faded, its resonance echoing in his Sea of Consciousness. These were the true words left by the founding Ancestral Master of the Yin Yang Sect—the Yin Yang Daoist!

Yao Delong's heart trembled slightly.

He instantly understood that this so-called Heart Questioning Hall trial was by no means about fighting and killing, but was aimed directly at the choices and persistence in the deepest part of his nature!

It was the tempering of the Dao Heart!

"Breaking Obsession... Clear Discernment... Returning to One..." Yao Delong chanted softly, his gaze shifting between the three.

After a moment's thought, a flash of determination crossed his eyes. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and walked straight to the prayer mat on the left marked with the words "Breaking Obsession."

He sat cross-legged, palms and soles facing the sky, and his mind sank into a state of empty clarity.

Buzz—!

It was as if time and space had been distorted and replaced!

Yao Delong felt his consciousness sink. The next moment, he was in a deep, damp, moss-covered ancient and mysterious cave.

The air was cold, and only a faint light emanated from deep within the cave.

He walked quickly toward the light source and saw two ancient books floating quietly above a black stone platform that was smooth as a mirror.

They emitted completely different yet Soul-stirring auras!

The book on the left was entirely red-gold. Its cover seemed outlined by eternal Pure Yang True Fire, branded with five large characters that seemed capable of incinerating the sky—"Pure Yang Universe Art"!

A scorching, overbearing, and extremely masculine aura rushed toward him, as if a great sun were close at hand, wanting to incinerate everything!

The book on the right, however, was like carved ten-thousand-year-old mysterious ice. A deep, dark, cold light flowed on its cover,

inscribed with five characters that made one's heart and Soul freeze—"Mysterious Yin Extinction Scripture"!

A cold, deathly, and extremely feminine aura permeated the air, as if it could freeze time and space, returning them to eternal nothingness!

The two auras repelled each other yet were faintly attracted, forming a strange force field that made the entire cave feel as if it were on the edge of a world of ice and fire.

Just as Yao Delong was shocked by the power of these two supreme Cultivation Techniques, the aged and peaceful voice from before echoed in the cave like a Sanskrit chant:

"Trial-taker, this is an unparalleled Opportunity."

"You have ten years to choose one as your primary cultivation, to meditate on it with devotion, and reach the entry level."

"The one not chosen will dissipate forever along with this illusion."

"Make your choice!"

Ten years! To a Cultivator, it was but the blink of an eye, yet it was also a sufficiently long time.

The choice! The Pure Yang Universe Art or the Mysterious Yin Extinction Scripture? One was the Great Dao of Absolute Yang that incinerated the eight desolations, and the other was the True Essence of Absolute Yin that froze all things!

For anyone else, even a great expert, facing such a choice between two temptations and the pain of decision, their Dao Heart would likely waver, and they would struggle immensely.

Choosing one meant giving up another equally enticing supreme path! This in itself was an "obsession"!

However, as Yao Delong looked at these two books emitting the auras of extreme Yin and extreme Yang, a trace of realization flashed in his eyes, and a knowing curve even formed at the corner of his mouth.

He did not immediately rush toward either technique as the voice guided. Instead, he stood in place and spoke loudly to the empty cave:

"Senior, this Junior has a question."

"These two methods, one of extreme Yang and one of extreme Yin, complement and counteract each other, serving as each other's root."

"Since this Junior bears the destiny of Yin and Yang, this body and this heart can both accommodate the Qi of Yin and Yang."

"May I ask, Senior, if this Junior has... the foundation to simultaneously meditate on both scriptures and merge them?"

His voice was clear and carried strong confidence, directly exposing the "trap" of this stage—

The binary opposition of choosing one over the other was itself an "obsession" that needed to be broken!

The cave was silent, with only the energy emitted by the two books in silent confrontation. The aged voice gave no answer.

But Yao Delong did not mind. He already understood in his heart:

How could this trial be a simple choice of Cultivation Techniques?

This "Breaking Obsession" stage tested whether one could see through the superficial "choose one of two" dilemma and jump out of the binary thinking cage!

The true words left by the Yin Yang Daoist still rang in his ears: "The true essence of the Dao lies in the heart of equilibrium!" Balance and harmony were the Great Dao of Yin and Yang!

"No answer is a tacit admission that there is a way!" A sharp light burst from Yao Delong's eyes.

He no longer hesitated and strode forward, actually extending both hands at the same time, one pressing toward the Pure Yang Universe Art and the other toward the Mysterious Yin Extinction Scripture!

Buzz!

Two violent and completely opposite torrents of energy instantly rushed into his body through his arms!

The scorching heat of Absolute Yang and the icy erosion of Absolute Yin were like two out-of-control vicious dragons, rampaging and colliding wildly in his Meridians and Sea of Consciousness!

It was as if they wanted to tear his body and Soul in half!

"Hmph!" Yao Delong groaned. His face turned pale instantly, the veins on his forehead bulged, and cold sweat poured down. Intense pain surged like a tide!

This was a hundred times more difficult than he had imagined!

But he did not let go!

In the depths of his Sea of Consciousness, the Rosy Seal Yin Yang Art operated frantically! Above the Dantian dao foundation, the Yin Yang Dao map and the Five Elements divine rings simultaneously radiated light!

The power of the "Yin-Yang Harmony System" was triggered and intervened forcefully. Like the most precise furnace, it began to laboriously harmonize and comb through these two violent, alien energies!

He sat cross-legged, placed the two books in front of him, and opened them both at the same time!

Miraculously, the unselected technique that was supposed to "dissipate forever" did not disappear!

Ten years! The long and painful ten years had begun!

Yao Delong was like walking on the edge of a blade where Yin and Yang met!

He had to endure the tearing and pain of two completely opposite forces while also dividing his attention to simultaneously meditate on the Profound Truths of two supreme Cultivation Techniques as vast as a sea of stars.

The overbearing and fierce nature of the Pure Yang Universe Art emphasized incinerating all obstacles with absolute power and moving forward indomitably!

The deep and treacherous nature of the Mysterious Yin Extinction Scripture pursued freezing time and space with extreme cold, returning to eternal silence!