286: Fifth Incarnation: Heavenly Physician (78)

Su Yun cried out in alarm, the color draining from his face as his eyes filled with unbelievable terror.

The Nine Heavens Heavenly Tribulation had already passed, with a might comparable to the Late Golden Core Stage; this was already unheard of!

Why was the tribulation cloud not only failing to dissipate, but instead becoming increasingly terrifying?

Atop the lonely peak, Xu Yuan's broken body stood proudly. Beneath his charred skin, new flesh was wriggling and healing at a pace visible to the naked eye, emitting a shimmering, precious glow.

The majestic pressure radiating from his body was as vast as the sea and incredibly pure, its intensity having already surpassed an ordinary Mid-Golden Core Stage and directly approaching the Late Golden Core Stage!

But this was not the end. The 'humanity seal' inside him was undergoing a fundamental transformation, establishing an unprecedented, bone-deep connection with a certain mysterious Origin of the world!

Memories and insights from his past lives surfaced clearly at this moment.

"A Foundation Establishment Cultivator crudely controls Qi, like a Mortal wielding a weapon, borrowing the power of an object."

"A Golden Core Immortal Master has initial control over Law, like obtaining authority; they can draw upon the power of heaven and earth to bless themselves and perform Divine Ability."

"Golden Core cultivation, from the Early Stage to Perfection, is essentially the continuous deepening of the connection with the 'Dao Branch' that suits oneself, upgrading 'key' permissions to borrow more and more primal Law power. One first glimpses the surface, then draws a flood, and only at the Late Stage or even Perfection can one gradually trigger or even control the Origin power of a complete branch."

This was the path of cultivating existing Daos.

It was like climbing a mountain along a path opened by predecessors and recognized by heaven and earth, step by step, gradually obtaining higher permissions.

But what Xu Yuan was doing in this life was opening a new path!

The 'Human Dao' he walked was not an extension or variation of any existing Dao Branch in the world, but a brand-new, never-before-seen broad road pointing directly to the Origin of 'Order'!

He was the pioneer, the definer, and the sole source of this Dao!

Therefore, his Golden Core tribulation was by no means a test of gradually obtaining 'branch permissions,' but a ceremony for the 'Dao Foundation'!

It was the ultimate judgment by heaven and earth on whether this 'New Dao' was qualified to exist and whether it could integrate into the existing Dao system!

Once passed, the results would be completely different:

An ordinary Cultivator forming a Golden Core is like obtaining a 'key' to open a certain 'room' (Dao Branch); they need to slowly upgrade their permissions from 'visitor' (Early Stage Golden Core) to eventually become the 'room administrator' (Perfection Golden Core), who can utilize all items in the room (branch Law power).

But for Xu Yuan, as long as he successfully passed this tribulation and formed the 'humanity golden elixir,' he would not just be obtaining a key to some 'room'—he would directly become the creator and sole Dominator of this brand-new Dao called 'Human Dao'!

From the moment the Golden Core was formed, his control over this 'Human Dao' would be complete, supreme, and as natural as moving his own limbs!

There was no need to upgrade permissions step by step from Early Stage to Perfection like others; his application of the 'Human Dao' Law was born with Perfection-level control!

In terms of status, Xu Yuan, having successfully opened a path and condensed the Dao Origin Golden Core, had essentially transcended the scope of ordinary Golden Core Immortal Masters, leaping to the same height as those Dao Lords who governed a branch of the Great Dao in heaven and earth!

They were all the source or Dominator of a certain 'Dao'.

Xu Yuan was the Lord of 'Human Dao,' while other Dao Lords were the 'Slaughter Dao Lord,' 'Karma Dao Lord,' 'Five Elements Dao Lord,' and so on.

This was the most fundamental difference between a Path-Opener and a Path-Seeker!

One step to the heavens, with a status equal to a Dao Lord!

However, equal status did not mean equal strength.

Those ancient Dao Lords had their Daos existing for countless millennia, with many practitioners, perfected Laws, unfathomable foundations, and the ability to mobilize vast, boundless power.

But Xu Yuan's 'Human Dao' was newly opened. Aside from himself, no one else practiced it yet. This Dao itself was like a newborn baby, with only the initial prototype of its Laws, urgently needing refinement and growth.

The 'Human Dao' power he could mobilize was currently limited to the 'Dao Origin Golden Core' he had condensed and the range his philosophy could influence; its 'quantity' was far from being able to compare with those deep-rooted Daos.

It was like the difference between a monarch who had just founded a country with a tiny territory and everything waiting to be built, and an emperor of an ancient Empire who ruled over billions of territories with a Legacy of ten thousand years.

Although both held the status of 'Emperor,' the national power, resources, and armies they controlled were completely incomparable.

"So that's how it is... the merit of opening a path actually allows one to ascend to the status of a Dao Lord in one step!"

Xu Yuan felt the 'humanity golden elixir' within him, which was establishing a connection with the Origin of 'Order' and was about to completely take shape, as understanding flooded his heart like a tide.

"No wonder the Heavenly Tribulation is so terrifying. This is heaven and earth being wary, scrutinizing, and preventing the birth of a new Dao that might challenge the existing pattern!"

He looked up at the sky, watching the tribulation cloud evolve again and emit an even more terrifying aura. Instead of fear, his eyes burned with even more intense Battle Intent and conviction!

"In that case, I must succeed! Let this 'Human Dao' stand upright and honorable among the forest of the ten thousand Daos of heaven and earth!"

"This tribulation beyond the Nine Heavens... is it the final tribulation of recognition from heaven and earth for the New Dao? Come then!"

In the sky, the tribulation cloud was no longer just an image of destruction, but began to evolve various bizarre scenes: there were scrolls of a prosperous age where people worshipped and Order was well-maintained; there were threads of fate where contracts were made and Karma was linked; there were long rivers of history with the rise and fall of civilizations and the change of systems... In these scenes, there was both the glory that the 'Human Dao' Order could bring and the terrifying dark side of Order collapsing and human hearts being lost!

This final Heavenly Tribulation was no longer simple destruction, but a Dao Heart Inquiry!

In the sky, the tribulation cloud that evolved the birth and death of all things and the rise and fall of Order suddenly came to a standstill.

In the next instant, it was neither thunder nor storm, but an invisible and intangible flood of intent that seemed to contain the Origin of heavenly principles. Like the Nine Heavens' Milky Way pouring down, it silently and completely submerged Xu Yuan atop the lonely peak!

This was not destruction aimed at the Physical Body, nor was it a demonic barrier corroding the Divine Soul, but a questioning—pointing directly at the root of the Dao!

Xu Yuan only felt his mind go into a daze, as if he had left his shell and broken free from the shackles of time and space, pulled by an irresistible force into a mysterious realm that could not be described in words.

Here, there was no up, down, or four directions, no past or future.

There was only endless Chaos and the unceasing flow of Law Origins.

In his daze, he seemed to become an Incarnation of this world itself, experiencing the birth and evolution of this world from a perspective that transcended time.

He saw that at the very, very beginning, there was a deathly silent void.

After an unknown number of hundreds of millions of years, a single point of initial 'vitality' sprouted in absolute 'nothingness,' like a spark ignited in the darkness.

Stars began to condense, and galaxies began to spiral, but everything was cold, material, and completely devoid of spirituality.

After another unknown number of hundreds of millions of years, amidst endless Chaos and chance, in the deep seabed, the first glimmer of light containing 'life' and 'spirituality' bloomed with difficulty!

That was the Origin of life, the first rebellion of 'motion' against 'stillness,' the initial horn of Order against Chaos!