The Dao Meridian is the foundation of cultivation.

This “Dao” is not the Dao of the Daoist sect, but the Dao of the Great Way. Whether cultivator of the Buddhist, Daoist, Confucian, military, legalist, Mohist, or any other school, all must manifest their Dao Meridian as the first step on the path of cultivation.

In ancient times, the so-called seeds of cultivation were those born with naturally manifest Dao Meridians. But humanity does not determine destiny by talent alone; the Meridian Opening Pill is one method to solve the problem of cultivation aptitude.

By borrowing the power of the pill, the human Dao Meridian can be revealed. It can also trigger the vitality of heaven and earth to nourish the flesh. Qi and blood feedback, thereby nurturing Dao Essence and embarking on the road of cultivation.

Speaking of which, compared to the instruments destroyed by Zuo Guanglie’s explosion, the Meridian Opening Pill should not be considered precious.

But for this beggar trapped in a desperate situation, it is the only key to unlocking the treasures within the human body.

Since ancient times, the greatest difficulty is death, when fate reaches its end, one begs for Heaven’s grace!

Now, the beggar has grasped his key of hope.

He is so devout.

With trembling hands, he holds the jade bottle, presses his chattering lips to the opening, and throws his head back!

Beside him is the silent, dilapidated temple; in the distance, the corpses of the beggar gang; at his side, shattered bones and flesh.

At this moment, the setting sun casts its last rays, and the clouds dissipate across the sky. Corpses lie strewn across the wilderness, while the sickly beggar swallows the pill.

The Meridian Opening Pill rolls onto his tongue, transforming into a warm current flowing down his throat and spreading into his limbs.

The beggar closes his eyes slightly, and in this instant, a thousand scenes flash through his mind.

Years of diligent study, springs and autumns of sword practice.

Chasing down great thieves, fighting fierce bandits.

Finally, he walked down from the bandit-infested West Mountain, his body covered in blood, alone with his sword.

Only then did he earn this Meridian Opening Pill.

How many years has he spent approaching the world of transcendence?

He strives with all his might, struggles and advances at every moment; how did he reach this point?

His mother died early, and his father’s later illness nearly exhausted the last of the family’s wealth.

Alone, he is his own support.

He passed the Dao Academy entrance exams, succeeding against many competitors, and excelled in the highly competitive outer courtyard, finally seizing the key to transcendence for the first time.

But immediately afterwards…

There was poisoning, and ambush.

He fought desperately to carve out a path to survival and, to avoid being hunted down, mingled among the beggars.

He had hoped to wait for an opportunity, but his body could no longer hold on.

He grew weaker and weaker, until he could only lie hopelessly on a pile of straw, awaiting death.

He dragged his sick body out to search the battlefield, only because of a heart that refused to give up, but he never expected to find a Meridian Opening Pill!

Why a figure as powerful as Zuo Guanglie would carry a Meridian Opening Pill, that reason has ended with his legendary end, and no one will ever know.

But the beggar’s story is thus continued with a new chapter.

Fate is unpredictable, nothing is more apt.

The beggar returns his mind to his body, feeling the indescribable changes taking place within.

He feels a warm power emanating from every corner of his body, “swimming” through him in a way he cannot understand, finally converging towards his spine.

The process is slow and clear.

He doesn’t know how long has passed, but a weak force rises from his tailbone, moving upward, upward along his spine. It feels as though an earthworm is swimming upstream in a river.

The process is difficult, but the warm power coming from every part of his body constantly supports it… the “little earthworm” finally swims the long journey, runs through his spine, and goes straight to his crown!

A miracle occurs.

He seems to see light within his body.

Warmth bursts forth from his limbs, every corner of his flesh.

He no longer feels cold, no longer feels weak, no longer feels pain.

The Dao Meridian has been manifested, nurturing life.

The beggar opens his eyes, his gaze shining brightly.

He feels that his body is full of strength, he is finally in control of his fate once again!

His Dao Meridian has been revealed, even though the true spirit of his Dao Meridian is only a tiny, low-grade earthworm, it also means that he can officially step onto the path of transcendence.

Flying through the sky and escaping into the earth, entering the Azure Heavens, is no longer an unattainable dream!

One day, Gongyang Bai, Mo Jingyu, and even Zuo Guanglie, Li Yi… the things that these thunderous figures can do, he can do too!

……

The beggar stands up, staring at the pile of minced meat beneath his feet.

Life gazes at death, a beginning connects to an ending.

He buries Zuo Guanglie and the beggars outside the dilapidated temple. Even with his Dao Meridian newly manifest and his energy abundant, it takes until midnight to finish.

This is a small matter, perhaps useless, but it is a principle he puts into practice.

Although the beggars chose to abandon him when danger came, they did not abandon him in the wilderness during his days of near death. Although they could not find medicine for him, they at least gave him a few mouthfuls of water to drink.

For these reasons, to the best of his ability, he should bury them for peace. So that they would not suffer in this life and still have no support in the next.

People believe that only burial can bring peace. In the embrace of the vast, boundless, thick and compassionate earth, the souls of the dead can rest.

Finally, the beggar stands before Zuo Guanglie’s grave.

“The one who buried you is not an unknown person, I am from Fenglin City, Qinghe County, Zhuang Kingdom…” Under the moonlight, the beggar stands before the small grave, dirty and greasy, his hands covered in mud, but he straightens his back and says his name with incomparable calm: “Jiang Wang.”

The tiger has yet to have its stripes, but it has the spirit to devour cattle.

“You did not die in an unnamed place either. This place is called Still-True Temple. Although the words on the broken plaque are unrecognizable, and it is unknown, it will become known to the world because of you!”

After saying these words, Jiang Wang bows, bowing respectfully: “May you rest in peace in heaven.”

This bow is not only because of the Meridian Opening Pill left by Zuo Guanglie, but also because of the compassion, integrity, and valor he displayed.

A figure like Zuo Guanglie deserves all respect.

Tonight is a full moon, and the bright moonlight shines on the new grave.

In the darkness, a breeze seemed to stir.

Jiang Wang saw, that from Zuo Guanglie’s grave floated spots of silver light, rising slowly in the moonlight, gathering into a small, silver crescent moon. It floated above the new grave, within Jiang Wang’s reach, appearing mysterious and noble.

“This is…”

Jiang Wang realizes this in a flash of inspiration.

He reaches out and grabs the silver crescent moon.

Darkness fills his vision.

In the seemingly endless darkness, a gentle voice sounds. This voice seems to contain the ultimate truths of heaven and earth, the mysteries of the Great Way, and hearing it brings clarity and enlightenment.

“Welcome, master of the Cave-Truth Void Blessed Land!”

In the next instant, a point of light appears, and countless points of light appear.

Countless lights obscure his vision, and when Jiang Wang’s vision returns, he sees that in the vast darkness before him, a brilliant galaxy is surging!

And before the galaxy, stands a youth.

This person has bright eyes, a high and straight nose, and an expression as gentle as if he possessed no aggression, with the only hint of stubbornness being his slightly pursed lips. He wears nothing other than a Daoist robe of an unidentifiable material.

Jiang Wang is stunned.

Because this youth is himself. Although his clothes are different, and he is much cleaner and neater than he currently is, how could he mistake himself?

And he is “looking” at himself, in a way that he cannot yet understand, in a non-visual sense.

“Insufficient Dao Essence feedback, sealing of the nineteenth level of the Dao Evolution Stage.”

The gentle voice sounds again in the vast starry sky.

“Sealing of the eighteenth level of the Dao Evolution Stage.”

……

“Sealing of the second level of the Dao Evolution Stage.”

Each time this sentence appears, the galaxy before him dims.

Jiang Wang tries to understand what he is observing, then hears:

“Sealing of the third-grade Sword Debate Stage.”

“Sealing of the fourth-grade Sword Debate Stage.”

As before, it continues until “Sealing of the eighth-grade Sword Debate Stage” before stopping.

Jiang Wang does not understand the significance of this, but it must be related to his low strength. The so-called “master of the Cave-Truth Void Blessed Land” should be Zuo Guanglie, not him.

At the same time, he observes a line of text floating within his field of vision, text he has never seen before.

This text is completely different from the characters of the Zhuang Kingdom that he has learned. To him, they are extremely foreign, but he clearly perceives the meaning of these characters.

“Merit: 1850 points.”

As Jiang Wang ponders, the self he is “seeing” suddenly takes a step forward and merges with him.

The process is so short as to be almost omitted. Jiang Wang moves his limbs, finding everything to his liking. In this mysterious world, he finally has some form of substance.

And in the next moment, the stars in the vast void suddenly surge, and an entire brilliant galaxy rushes towards him!

He is drowned in the galaxy.

Time seems to lose its meaning, and when Jiang Wang comes to his senses, he has appeared in a space filled with immortal Qi, and many messages flow through his mind.

This is the world of the Illusory Great Void, and the Cave-Truth Void Blessed Land where he is located is wrapped within this world.

The silver crescent moon he grasped is called the Void Key, and it is the key to entering this place. It uses the power of the Taiyin star to pull the host’s spiritual consciousness into the Illusory Great Void.

Here, everything is realistic; apart from not causing harm to the host’s physical body in reality, everything is no different from the real situation.

The Dao Evolution Stage is a place for deducing techniques and Dao arts, and the consumption required for deduction is “Merit.”

The Sword Debate Stage is dedicated to traversing the Illusory Great Void and sparring with other cultivators.

The generation of “Merit” mostly comes from battle. In battles between equals, victory adds Merit, and defeat deducts Merit. There are corresponding bonuses for challenging those of a higher level.

In addition to that, there are some other ways. For example, the corresponding Blessed Lands regularly produce “Merit.”

Among the seventy-two Blessed Lands, the lowest-ranked East Sea Mountain Blessed Land produces one hundred Merit per month. The lower thirty-six Blessed Lands add ten Merit for each level of ranking. The upper thirty-six Blessed Lands add one hundred Merit for each level of ranking.

The Cave-Truth Void Blessed Land occupied by Zuo Guanglie is ranked twenty-three, and can produce 1850 points of Merit per month.

This is Jiang Wang’s current resource.

Although he does not yet know its specific uses, Jiang Wang can already hear his own heart beating wildly.

This place… this place!

This world of brilliant galaxies seems to hide enormous secrets.

Merely the Dao Evolution Stage and the Sword Debate Stage that it reveals have unfolded a vast and stirring world.

To evolve Dao within the Blessed Land, to debate swords within the galaxy, how grand!

And before today, Jiang Wang had not even heard its name.

His emotions were stirred up for a moment, until he cast his gaze upon the shadow of a sundial and saw this line of text:

The master of the Blessed Land will, in thirty days, accept the challenge of the master of the twenty-fourth Jade Altar of the Blessed Land.

Failure will result in demotion.

Five words, as black as ink, each word weighing a thousand pounds.