The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS-Chapter 1149 - 174: A Dialogue on the Extreme Dao
"Ding, congratulations to the host for reaching the supreme peak, and the BOSS level has been unlocked."
The mechanical sound of the system timely echoed in Qing Yu's ear, indicating his achievement.
However, at this moment, Qing Yu's attention was not on the system, his mind entirely focused on the new discovery after exiting seclusion.
After being in seclusion for a long time, Qing Yu finally achieved success, reaching great success in the Mystic Universe. His realm and strength had ascended to the highest point below the Tao Realm.
Above it was the blockade of the Heavenly Domain; without the power of the Tao Realm, it was difficult to break through, but if one had the power of the Tao Realm, there would be no need to break through.
"So that's how it is..."
Qing Yu slightly closed his eyes, a trace of spirit mechanism touching the invisible shackles and sensing the two consciousnesses on the other end of the shackles.
"Although the Divinity Realm means the Martial Arts Divine, ultimately, it does not become godly. Even if this realm is cultivated to its extremity, it only approaches divinity, not truly becoming divine. The strongest is also the supreme human."
The strength of the supreme may greatly exceed Divine Communication, but it itself is within the domain of the Divine Communication, just elevating its realm and strength to the pinnacle of humanity, infinitely approaching another world of the martial artist.
That world is the ultimate for martial artists—the Tao Realm.
"The existence of the Tao Realm is the ultimate realm. Its existence is itself a significant threat to the heavens and earth. However, due to its formidable strength and already transcending human levels, it's extremely difficult for the Heavenly Dao to obliterate the Tao Realm. Not to mention, there are two Tao Realms."
"That is why the Heavenly Dao created the Limit of Human and God, separating me from the Buddha."
A mysterious voice came from an unknown place. Although it was said to be a voice, it was not a voice but a pure perception, pure fluctuations.
It was fluctuations emitted from the existence on the other side of the Heavenly Dao blockade, the so-called Limit of Human and God.
Judging by its meaning, it is...
"Dao Ancestor," Qing Yu spoke the name of this existence.
"It is I," Dao Ancestor responded, "Qing Yu, you indeed did not disappoint me, reaching this Ultimate Realm, connecting with our consciousness. Throughout history, those who have reached this realm, except for me and the Buddha, don't even amount to the number of fingers on one hand."
The peak realm, so close to the Tao Realm realm, had been a rare accomplishment throughout history. Most people, even if they achieved supreme strength, could not climb to the highest peak of the supreme, achieving such grand success.
Even for Qing Yu, possessing the potential to reach the peak, he was only able to shorten the time significantly by receiving the insights bestowed by the Dao Ancestor, reaching this point today.
Of course, having adopted a fraction of the Dao Ancestor's insights is unspeakable, as everyone understands in their hearts. Anyway, Qing Yu believes if the Dao Ancestor truly thought he had completely adopted all the insights, he would definitely give the Dao Ancestor quite a surprise then.
"Ultimate Realm, this term is indeed quite appropriate," Qing Yu said.
Ultimate, ultimate, reaching the extreme of one's martial arts yet not truly elevating to Tao, this should be the term thought out by the forerunner, the Dao Ancestor.
"According to what the Dao Ancestor said, besides myself, there should be four more achievers of the Ultimate Realm. Who are these four people?" Qing Yu asked with some curiosity.
Dao Ancestor didn't beat around the bush and said, "Before the Human Race truly established themselves on Earth, the strongest were essentially Exotic Beasts. They did not cultivate martial arts, nor did they have distinct realm divisions. At that time, there were no written records among the Human Race, and I know nothing much about it, so I won't speak of it. I will speak about the supreme strong ones of the Human Race."
"The first one, my understanding of him is limited to word of mouth. After all, when he passed away, I was still a youth in terms of age, not knowing martial arts.
He was the First Generation Human Emperor Tian Xi, the greatest achiever of the Blood Refining Martial Way, his strength absolutely reached the extremity of human, which is the Ultimate Realm."
Speaking of the First Generation Human Emperor, even Dao Ancestor showed a trace of fluctuation, "According to my later research, the First Generation Human Emperor should have been the first qualified to ascend to the Tao Realm, but unfortunately, martial arts were too rudimentary then, without a developed system, it was unfortunate for the First Generation Human Emperor.
Moreover, the Blood Refining Martial Way was too brute, only pursuing strength while neglecting other aspects, even the longevity couldn't be guaranteed, the First Generation Human Emperor was already frail at two hundred years old, finally passing away at Wind Ridge.
However..."
Dao Ancestor's words grew more profound, "In the late years of the First Generation Human Emperor, with his vigor and blood exhausted, he could no longer wage wars, having more and more time to calm his mind. After entrusting the throne of the Human Emperor, he went into seclusion to cultivate, thoroughly exploring the Heavenly Dao, and truly touched upon the Tao Realm.
"I have become the first in the Human Realm Dao, thanks to the legacy of the First Generation Human Emperor. The transformation of the Human Dao Dragon Vein originates from the foundations laid by the First Generation Emperors."
Although the method to transform the Human Dao Dragon Vein was refined over generations of Human Emperors, had it not been for the First Generation Emperor's initial creation, the Dragon Vein might never have come into being.
Whether friend or foe, the human emperor lineage's inception of the Human Dao Dragon Vein laid the groundwork for human dominance, a fact that Qing Yu greatly admired.
Of course, admiration is one thing; necessary destruction is another. Qing Yu, a person devoid of sentimentality, especially towards enemies.
"What about after the First Generation Human Emperor?" Qing Yu inquired.
"The one after, you might have seen in Taixuan's memories, the enemy of the Ninth Generation Human Emperor, the founder of the Witch Clan, Xinglie Clan. He gained inspiration from both the Heavenly Demon and Human Emperor methods, absorbing Earthly Evil Qi to refine the body and forging his will through powerful battle intent. If he could attain the Realm of Dao, there might be another path to Body-Refinement Martial Arts alongside the current True Qi Martial Arts."
True Qi Martial Arts prevailed because the Dao Ancestor achieved Dao Realm through it, paving the path for martial arts. Other benefits, such as applicability and longevity over Blood Refinement Martial Arts, were secondary.
If Xinglie Clan could pave a path to the Realm of Dao, the world might have had two competing paths: Body Refinement and True Qi.
Unfortunately, as Body Refinement's path advances, its resource demands grow. For Xinglie Clan to achieve Dao Realm, the quickest and best method would be absorbing an almost perfect Dragon Vein of the eighth generation.
Such a move, damaging the foundation of humanity, destined him to be opposed by all beyond the Xinglie Clan. Ultimately, the Ninth Generation Emperor used the Dragon Vein power to defeat Xinglie Clan at Zhuolu Plains, erasing his will and sealing his battle body within the Southern Border's Earth Veins, becoming a contingency for the Human Emperor lineage.
This revelation made Qing Yu ponder deeply, 'If Xinglie Clan were an Ultimate Realm, then the nine emperors' combined Dragon Vein power must also be at the Ultimate Realm. Otherwise, the Ninth Generation Emperor couldn't have defeated Xinglie Clan. It's even possible that if the Nine Emperors united with the Xinglie battle body, they might achieve Dao Realm capacity.'
Thinking of this, Qing Yu couldn't help but commend the Human Emperor lineage's strategy.
Xinglie Clan sought to absorb the Dragon Vein to break through, yet his battle body became someone's trophy. The Human Emperor lineage, advancing along the path pioneered by Xinglie Clan, was now not far from the destination.
"And what about the Heavenly Demon?" Qing Yu queried again, knowing the First Generation Primordial Sky Demon was also an astonishing figure.
Primordial Sky Demon founded the Heavenly Demon Path, which is the Heavenly Slaughter Technique, absorbing the fierce Evil Qi from above the Heavenly Vault to achieve the Heavenly Demon body. Its influence surpassed Xinglie Clan's, producing a Heavenly Demon every two to three millennia, each rampant in the world, leaving countless legends.
"Primordial Sky Demon was indeed brilliant, yet regrettably, he lacked fortuity. The demon path he founded was exceedingly harsh, pursuing power as the supreme creed, hence making numerous enemies. He was eventually besieged and killed without reaching the Ultimate Realm.
However, he did teach a good disciple, Li Sha of the Fifth Generation Human Emperor, who supported the Heavenly Demon Daoist line post-ascension, ensuring its survival," the Dao Ancestor stated.
Summarily, Primordial Sky Demon failed to recognize the value of staying discreet. Before being invincible under heaven, he made enemies everywhere and failed to eliminate those threats, eventually being worn down by overwhelming forces.
Still, keep this in mind; Primordial Sky Demon's era was post-First Generation Human Emperor, before the Dao Ancestor reached Ultimate Realm. In those times, the highest combat strength was that of the Supreme. With Primordial Sky Demon's strength being unmatched by most, it's no wonder he felt emboldened to make enemies everywhere.
Compared to the First Generation Heavenly Demon, the Dao Ancestor understood the subtle art of growing discreetly, surviving from the First Generation to the Ninth Generation Human Emperor, finally achieving the Dao.
Though early generations of Human Emperors who cultivated Blood Refinement Martial Arts died young, the latter emperors merged their will into the Dragon Vein when at their peak. Even if each emperor reigned for only a hundred years, the Dao Ancestor would have been over nine hundred years old when attaining the Dao.
'Nine hundred years allowed the Dao Ancestor to master the Qi Cultivation Technique, creating a legacy of True Qi Martial Arts and achieving the Dao Realm impeccably. Truly, longevity is the greatest fortune,' Qing Yu admired inwardly.
Despite the Dao Ancestor's accomplishments being inseparable from his talent, aptitude, and fortune, time was merely the condition for realizing his potential. Yet—
Consider the First Generation Human Emperor and Primordial Sky Demon, both possessing potential akin to the Dao Ancestor for pioneering martial arts but lacking longevity. They were denied the chance to become founders and ancestors, a genuine pity.
Especially Primordial Sky Demon, the pioneering sage of the demon path, yet he fell without reaching the Ultimate Realm, an unjust end indeed.
"Can you guess who the other two are?" the Dao Ancestor asked.
The First Generation Human Emperor and Xinglie Clan are both historically renowned figures, naturally lending their names to those in the Ultimate Realm.
Add to that the relatively well-documented post-imperial history following the era of personal rule.
"I suppose one of them..." Qing Yu softly continued, "might be the Demon Buddha, or perhaps the predecessor to the Demon Buddha, the Three-faced God. Their union undoubtedly reached the Ultimate Realm; otherwise, the Peacock Dynasty wouldn't have fallen due to their war with Buddha. Buddha himself wouldn't have taken the final step under their pressure."
The tale of the Three-faced God, although only told among the Peacock Dynasty's survivors, was made more familiar to Qing Yu thanks to the current Demon Buddha, making him one of the best-known among the four Ultimate figures.
