Upon seeking knowledge from the hallowed collection, one finds it ever more convenient to consult.

What, then, is the Zang Xing Hai?

While the Five Fu Hai correspond to the torso, the Zang Xing Hai corresponds to the four limbs. However, just as the Five Zang do not perfectly align with the five seats of the inner Fu, the Zang Xing Hai does not simply map to the four limbs; it is a complex entity integrated within the body.

Initially, the Tong Tian Palace resides in the spinal sea, also known as the Tong Tian Hai. From there, one pushes open the Gates of Heaven and Earth, allowing the Dao Pulse to ascend like a dragon, venturing into the Five Fu Hai. Opening the Gates of Heaven and Earth brings forth a resonance from heaven and earth, which coalesces into a Heaven and Earth Isolated Island. This island floats upon the surface of the Five Fu Hai and requires Dao Yuan to sustain it, serving as the abode of the ascending Dao Pulse. The cultivator guides the ascending Dao Pulse, delving deep into the mists of ignorance, clearing the way and successively knocking open the Five Fu.

What happens after the Five Fu are complete?

The ascending Dao Pulse, having accumulated sufficient power, must then depart the Heaven and Earth Isolated Island and venture into the next sea of the human body’s Four Seas – the Four Limbs Sea, which is the Zang Xing Hai.

What is a Li Sheng Lou? What is a Xing Guang Sheng Lou?

The Inner Fu realm is a cultivator’s exploration of the self. The Outer Lou realm, conversely, is a cultivator’s extension from within to without. Through arcane secret methods, practitioners establish contact with the distant star dome, projecting their will into its vastness. They then manipulate the power of the stars to erect what are called “Sheng Lou.”

What is a Li Sheng Lou? It is a cultivator’s feedback to the external world after exploring the self and achieving clear cognition. It is the establishment of their influence between heaven and earth. In the distant star dome, they expand their own “Dao,” illuminating their understanding of “Dao,” of “heaven and earth,” and of “self.”

Contemporary practitioners often summarize the transition from the Inner Fu to the Outer Lou realm as the “Ascent of the Four Sacred Spirits.” This is because the star domains of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, and Black Tortoise within the distant star dome are those which practitioners have, thus far, explored most completely and in greatest detail, the most comprehensive, and the most stable for establishing contact. They are also the ancient star domains with the deepest “ties” to the present world. To a certain extent, the Four Spirits star domains are reflections of the Four Directions of the present world’s heaven and earth. The Azure Dragon star domain holds the essence of Wood, the White Tiger star domain holds the essence of Metal, the Vermillion Bird star domain holds the essence of Fire, the Black Tortoise star domain holds the essence of Water, while the essence of Earth is held within the central present world.

The great significance of the Four Spirits star domains requires no further elaboration. Generally, human cultivators establish their Xing Guang Sheng Lou primarily within these Four Spirits star domains. This, in itself, is the illumination of the present world’s human radiance within the cosmos. And the most crucial step in advancing from Inner Fu to Outer Lou lies precisely in anchoring the first trace of star power in the distant star dome, leaving one’s own mark in that ancient, distant realm, or one’s own “Dao.” This is the most perilous step, the one most prone to losing one’s way.

However, not every practitioner possesses their own “Dao.” Or rather, even if they do, the vast majority of cultivators find it exceedingly difficult to clearly, thoroughly, and firmly project it to the distant star dome, to the extent of reflecting the Four Directions. Yet, just like the grand scenes that have unfolded throughout the long river of history, those most difficult, most arduous, and most perilous places have long since been trodden smooth by predecessors. Problems such as reflecting the distant star dome and establishing a Xing Guang Sheng Lou were explored by human predecessors long ago, and they have cleared away the mists for those who follow.

Corresponding to the Four Spirits star domains, different cultivation schools have different paths. One could say they each have their differences, yet they broadly adhere to the same framework: the four spirits of Azure Dragon, Vermillion Bird, Black Tortoise, and White Tiger. The Daoist sect takes its cue from the four characters of Wei, Cheng, Ren, and Sha; the Confucian sect from Xin, De, Ren, and Sha; the Legalist sect from Wei, Lie, Zheng, and Xing; the Buddhist sect from Wei, De, Rong, and Mie; the Military sect from Shi, Lie, Yu, and Sha… Regardless of which one, all are grand and magnificent paths. All are compatible with the smooth paths of a practitioner’s personal small Dao. In a sense, they have also become a form of “public order and good customs,” restricting this world and preventing it from becoming worse. Of course, this does not mean that establishing a “Ren” character Sheng Lou necessarily makes one a benevolent person. It merely signifies that when you erect a Sheng Lou in the distant star dome and broadcast it to the universe, what is being disseminated is the glory of the “Ren” character. As for whether the benevolence is true or false, that still depends on the cultivator themselves.

The “Dao” already exists. Those who come after only need to cross the bridge; they do not need to swim across alone. A large part of the reason why contemporary Inner Fu cultivators without divine abilities can still reach the Outer Lou realm is precisely due to the stability of the Four Spirits star domains and the unfolding of the “Dao” by the major cultivation schools. The cultivation practiced by today’s practitioners is walking upon the great paths opened by countless predecessors. Thus, the present world can become increasingly prosperous. Erecting a Xing Guang Sheng Lou means expanding one’s “Dao” in the distant star dome. And the distant star dome, through the Xing Guang Sheng Lou, will also provide feedback in the form of star power. Cultivators use this to temper their bodies, and in the process of the Xing Guang Sheng Lou’s illumination, they truly seek, approach, and condense their own Dao… the Dao that belongs to them. This is the path to Shen Lin.

Star light body tempering is the foundation of the Outer Lou realm; all Outer Lou cultivators can strengthen themselves through star light body tempering. But to advance further… one relies more on their own “Dao,” and only then can they receive more feedback from the Xing Guang Sheng Lou. The cultivator themselves also becomes stronger. This is why cross-realm victories by Inner Fu cultivators over Outer Lou cultivators are so common. It is precisely because in these two realms, whether it be divine abilities or the Xing Guang Sheng Lou, the fluctuations between the upper and lower limits are simply too vast. The difference between Inner Fu cultivators with divine abilities and those without is almost equivalent to crossing a realm. And the gap between Outer Lou cultivators who can only use Xing Guang Sheng Lou for star light tempering and those who have clarified their own “Dao path” is like a chasm.

Take Bao Bo Zhao, to some extent, he is an Outer Lou cultivator who knows where his “Dao path” lies. Chao Yu’s hidden knife and drawn knife also approach the Dao of knife technique. Even Xie Bao Shu, being well-versed in Confucian classics, understands what “Dao” is. However, they either lack sufficient cultivation or insufficient experience, far from reaching their limits. The role of their Xing Guang Sheng Lou is only similar to their own divine abilities, and not even as strong as those divine abilities that have been developed for so long. Meanwhile, Zhong Xuan’s Five Fu shine in harmony, each divine ability is potent and perfectly developed. Furthermore, he has also reached the Outer Lou realm…

The changes that occurred on Xing Yue Yuan began with a certain Xing Guang Sheng Lou in the distant star dome… At that time, Jiang Wang was still accumulating star power. The accumulation of Yu Heng star power gave him a certain foundation, allowing him to explore more possibilities for the Chi Huo Gu Lian. For example, could he accumulate star power faster and reduce his reliance on Xing Yue Yuan? Could he expand the capacity of the Chi Huo Gu Lian to accumulate more star power? Could he gain a deeper understanding of the Huo Yuan Tu Dian…?

It was at this moment that he “heard” a voice. Given his immortal state ability to hear sound, this voice certainly did not originate at his ear. Nor was it the voice of Grandmaster Guan Yan. This voice abruptly resonated from the depths of his heart, yet seemed to originate far in the heavens. It gave one a feeling of profound intimacy, of fervent passion.

“We need a fair future!”

Jiang Wang almost subconsciously recalled the sentence spoken by “Zhang Yong” in the tomb of the Marquis of Jiu Fan: “This world… should not be like this.”

What kind of world is this? Jiang Wang involuntarily began to ponder these questions. The monarch and ministers of Zhuang Country watched idly as tens of thousands were refined and killed by an evil god, all for the sake of seizing a White Bone True Dan; Tian You Country, to keep the Turtle Beast, sacrificed its most excellent talents to its maw every year… All the ugliness and darkness he had seen, heard, and experienced in this world floated before his eyes one by one.

Then, what kind of world is this? Jiang Wang’s calm, clear eyes gradually began to lose focus.

What kind…

Standing at the closest point to the distant star dome, Xing Yue Yuan felt like a place where one could reach out and pluck the stars. Above his head, within the vast star river of the night sky, a square star flickered slightly.

On a nameless small mountain outside Xing Yue Yuan. If one were to sigh for Li You Jiu, hoping to exclusively occupy Xing Yue Yuan…

Yue Leng, while intently staring at the compass, casually remarked, “How could it be so simple?” He watched Jiang Wang’s movements closely, yet detected nothing.