Da Xuan Martial Saint Chapter 1524 - 731: Primordial’s Invitation_2

Even though the seven united their strengths, they were no match for Chen Mu in his present state.

Should Chen Mu decide to ignore their earlier pact and seize all the gathered treasures for himself, they would lack the power to oppose him and would simply have to yield.

As Venerable Wutian and his companions grew uneasy, Chen Mu at last directed his attention their way.

With his face remaining steady, he addressed them steadily, "Fellow Daoists, as per our deal, feel free to select what you require from the treasures we've obtained and share them as you see fit. I'll claim just this Primordial Marvel for myself. How does that sound to everyone?"

With those words spoken,

Chen Mu flicked his wrist, causing the assortment of items gathered before with Venerable Wutian and the rest—including numerous bodies of Venerable Level Exotic Beasts and various Great Dao marvels—to materialize in the emptiness.

At the sight of this, Venerable Wutian and his group felt relieved and chorused back:

"We have no objections."

Though they were barred from the Primordial Marvel, causing a touch of regret, they fully realized that the whole effort to secure this Primordial Marvel involved none of the seven and was solely Chen Mu's doing. Even should they snatch it, they couldn't hold it against the Primordial Palace Master and would surely forfeit it.

Securing a Primordial Marvel demanded far more than control over one kind of Great Dao; even a figure like Black Blade Venerable, who commanded two kinds of Great Dao, would struggle immensely to grasp a Primordial Marvel by himself.

Essentially,

Across the cosmos, beyond the Primordial Palace Master and the five Supreme Venerables such as Chen Mu, just the veteran Venerables who wielded three kinds of Great Dao possessed the means to seize one independently, thanks to their ability to fend off Supreme Venerables somewhat.

Besides that, solely a collective of numerous Dao Venerables forming a full faction could rightfully pursue a Primordial Marvel. In these times, countless Primordial Marvels get allocated through such methods.

Swish.

Venerable Wutian and his allies advanced, promptly beginning to split up their individual shares and spoils. Though the Source Sea had completely crumbled and some time lingered, they had reaped sufficient rewards, and none intended to venture deeper into peril.

Chen Mu observed as Venerable Wutian and the others sorted their plunder, paying little heed to their allocations or quarrels. After stowing the Primordial Marvel with ease, he moved ahead and vanished soundlessly from view.

...

Beyond the Source Sea.

Amid the boundless void, Chen Mu's form emerged silently.

This area was meant to form a domain inside the universe, yet with the universe now fractured, it had become an expanse of utter void, absolute emptiness devoid of substance, dimension, or duration.

Just Dao Venerables were capable of traversing such absolute void.

Chen Mu exited the Source Sea, then pivoted, surveying the whole of the Source Sea. Through his vision, the Primordial Sea—formed from three varieties of Origin Dao in disordered state—could be seen steadily disintegrating and dissolving.

All the Origin Dao essence housed in the full Source Sea was gradually drawn into the Origin River, reshaped from disorder to structure, and consumed, transforming into minor flows inside the Origin River.

At the same time, while Chen Mu examined the Source Sea's transformations.

In a certain spot within the Source Sea.

Deep inside a brilliant silver sea, a golden-armored silhouette meditated in lotus position.

Before him, in the silver sea's profoundest core, loomed a grand and immense swirling maelstrom, where roaring Primordial Power kept surging and gathering at its heart, nurturing a wonder.

Suddenly,

The seated figure, with his spear laid over his knees, lifted his eyelids, the glow of Origin Dao shining in his irises.

"Another fellow Daoist..."

The Primordial Lord whispered gently, "Within a single cosmic cycle, two fellow Daoists have arisen. Might there exist a link between him and Cang Mang Venerable?"

As a Supreme Venerable and timeless being, the Primordial Lord understood well that producing a Supreme Venerable in the immense universe proved rare, seldom occurring even across scores of cosmic cycles.

Yet in this Reincarnation Era, Cang Mang Hall Master first attained awakening, then Chen Mu abruptly rose to prominence.

Had the Supreme Origin experienced some alteration?

Or did a unique circumstance bind these two?

Swish.

A thread of radiance mirrored in the Primordial Lord's eyes as his stare delved into the Origin River, seeking details on Chen Mu.

Yet his vision spanning history and tomorrow met only turmoil, unveiling no secrets.

As fellow Supreme Venerables, built upon command of three forms of Origin Dao, they had delved deeper into Dao's essence, attaining a preliminary merging of the Great Dao, which made peering into one another inherently arduous.

In truth, the Primordial Lord monitored the realm's Dao Venerables, and upon Chen Mu reaching Dao Venerable rank, he deliberately scrutinized him. However, beyond noting Chen Mu's remarkable gifts and potential in cultivation, nothing unusual appeared.

"Everyone has their chances, who knows who will take that step in the end."

Following the unproductive probe, the Primordial Lord gave a faint head shake and redirected his focus to the swirling vortex before him.

Boom!

In the instant that followed, the maelstrom quivered, silver radiance streamed forth, and a finished marvel surfaced from its midst.

"Just a Great Dao marvel."

The Primordial Lord eyed it briefly and felt disinterest, lightly gesturing to compel its seizure and collection, then rose, hefting his Divine Spear, and strode away into the silver sea's profound depths.

...

River of Time.

Tucked in the fissures of time and space, upon an isolated isle.

A senior clad in a straw cape perched at the isle's rim, gripping a plain angling pole that looked like a mere branch plucked from a tree, the cord loosely attached to its end.

He seemed merely a common senior angling in the ordinary realm, but a nearer look revealed that each tiny twitch of the pole stirred waves in time, and the emptiness warped in sync with the cord.

He served as the Island Master of Time-Space Island, ranking among the pinnacle Supreme Venerables alongside the Primordial Palace Master, of comparable antiquity.

Indeed,

Legends claimed the Island Master of Time-Space's age exceeded that of the Primordial Palace Master.

"Another one..."

The Island Master of Time-Space remained seated, undisturbed while surrounding time-space wove and floated ceaselessly, though his presence exuded pure isolation, with a faint spark flickering in his gaze.

Only the Island Master knew his days were nearing their close.

Although he commanded time-space and had even blended time with emptiness, he had endured countless Universe Silences, his essence worn down by Origin Dao until little persisted, evolving into something akin to unadulterated time-space laws.

Folks assumed the Island Master of Time-Space shunned meddling in cosmic affairs and never formed a group like the Time Temple. In fact, reluctance wasn't the issue; he had turned into a slowly rotting fragment of flotsam.

In earlier days,

Time-Space Island wasn't secluded; it teemed with countless lives, including his kin and comrades who often kept him company, along with certain Dao Venerables who pledged loyalty to him.

But across scores or hundreds of cosmic cycles, everything dissolved. Be it his former allies or the Dao Venerables who once aligned with Time-Space Island for Dao discourse, their essences vanished into the Dao, merging with the Origin River to join the ultimate laws.

Now,

The Island Master of Time-Space had even forsaken curiosity about the Source Sea. He realized that claiming any number of Primordial Marvels from it wouldn't help him. He grasped that the divide from him to Transcendence lay not in the enigmas of Primordial Marvels.

He may have strayed on his course, yet recognizing it at this stage proved far too delayed.