Li Yi looked around, his vision filled with a vast expanse of white. Nothing was discernible; or rather, everything was white, making it impossible for Li Yi to tell if anything was there or not.
He searched all around but found nothing. He couldn't help but wonder if his guess was wrong – that he couldn't reach the Heavenly Dao "Qi" through the Great Dao.
Just as Li Yi was falling into self-doubt, a voice suddenly echoed from all directions. Li Yi found the voice incredibly strange; he couldn't discern if it was male or female. It sounded utterly indifferent, devoid of any emotion, as if it couldn't have been produced by a living being.
The voice spoke:
"Who are you? I feel a long-lost aura from you!"
While Li Yi couldn't discern the gender or emotional state of the voice, he was surprised but didn't dwell on it. However, when he searched around and found no one, Li Yi's expression grew serious.
With his current cultivation, Li Yi couldn't detect this person's presence. He dared not be careless and immediately became alert.
Li Yi promptly asked:
"Who are you?"
The voice did not answer Li Yi but instead asked again:
"Who are you? I feel a long-lost aura from you!"
Hearing the voice ask the same question again, Li Yi thought that if he didn't answer, it wouldn't answer him either. So, Li Yi replied:
"I am Taishang, transformed from the primordial spirit of the Great God Pangu!"
After answering, Li Yi immediately added:
"I have answered you. It's your turn to answer me! Who are you?"
The voice did not answer Li Yi but spoke as if to itself:
"Pangu! That's right, it's Pangu's aura. But Pangu transformed into heaven and earth after opening the sky. Why do you have such a strong Pangu aura on you?"
Li Yi heard that the owner of the voice ignored him and became defiant. He had come to find the Heavenly Dao, only to encounter this strange entity.
Li Yi reasoned that since he could hear its voice, the owner of the voice must be within this space. This space was not large. Since it wouldn't reveal itself, Li Yi decided to force it out and see what it was.
With his mind made up, Li Yi immediately unleashed his divine abilities, bombarding the surroundings.
Just as Li Yi thought he could force this "ghost" out,
he was surprised to find his attack disappear as if a clay ox had entered the sea, creating not even a ripple!
Li Yi was shocked. He thought he had never encountered such a situation before. What was this thing that he was utterly helpless against?
As Li Yi was at his wits' end, the light in this space suddenly converged before him, forming a humanoid shape.
Li Yi looked at the humanoid figure before him, entirely white, almost invisible. If one didn't focus, it would be impossible to tell someone was standing there.
Li Yi was drawn by the converging light; otherwise, he wouldn't have realized a person was standing in front of him.
Li Yi asked the silhouette:
"Who are you? Where is this place?"
After speaking, Li Yi felt the person staring intently at him. Although Li Yi couldn't discern the person's facial expression, his intuition told him that he was being stared at.
Li Yi watched the person warily. Finally, after a long silence, the person spoke, still with that peculiar voice.
The person said:
"I am the Heavenly Dao 'Qi'! You are the first person to arrive here. This is my place of cultivation, and it is also my birthplace!"
Hearing the person claim to be the Heavenly Dao "Qi" he had been desperately searching for, Li Yi finally breathed a sigh of relief. Li Yi knew that the Heavenly Dao was just and righteous, and as a part of this Primordial World, it would surely not harm him.
With his heart at ease, Li Yi immediately said to the Heavenly Dao:
"Lord Qi, Hongjun harbors sinister intentions. He might be plotting against you. You must be very vigilant!"
Qi, however, said:
"If not for the Pangu aura on you, you would be dead by now! Who is Hongjun? What is he? And he wants to plot against me?"
Seeing that Qi didn't take his words seriously, Li Yi anxiously explained:
"You must not underestimate this Hongjun. He is a reincarnation of a Chaos Demon God and intends to replace you as the Heavenly Dao of the Primordial World! You truly need to guard against him!"
After Li Yi finished speaking, Qi fell into silence and then said:
"Chaos Demon God? That does have some capital. But I am the Heavenly Dao; what in the world do I not know? With his meager abilities, he wants to harm me? Heh!"
Seeing that Qi still didn't believe him, Li Yi felt a million "grass mud horses" stampede through his mind. If his current strength wasn't insufficient, and he needed Qi to stall that old scoundrel Hongjun for a while, he wouldn't care who became the Heavenly Dao between Qi and Hongjun. Why would he bother?
However, circumstances dictated his actions. Li Yi had to say:
"Do not underestimate Hongjun. He possesses fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation. With the help of these fragments, he can truly replace you and become the Heavenly Dao of the Primordial World!"
Upon hearing about the Jade Disc of Creation, Qi finally regarded Hongjun seriously. He was born from the Great Dao and naturally knew the power of the Jade Disc of Creation!
Thus, Qi spoke:
"You have traveled great distances to inform me of this matter, and you have accumulated great merit for the world. As the Heavenly Dao, I will bestow heavenly merit upon you as thanks! You may return now!"
Seeing that Qi had listened to his words, Li Yi turned to leave, muttering to himself:
"Who cares about your heavenly merit? If I hadn't thoroughly offended that old scoundrel Hongjun and feared his retaliation, do you think I would bother with this troublesome matter?"
Li Yi had barely taken a step when he suddenly realized he didn't know how to leave. So, he sheepishly returned and said to Qi:
"How does one leave this place? I haven't found the way!"
Upon hearing this, Qi waved his hand, and Li Yi disappeared.
When Li Yi regained his senses, he found himself outside that "ghost place," back within the Wuwei Great Dao. Li Yi realized he had been away for some time and decided to return his divine soul to his body.
Just as Li Yi left that peculiar space, in the Taiqing Palace, Yuanshi and Tongtian, who had been weeping uncontrollably, suddenly sensed Li Yi's aura. They stopped crying and immediately turned their sorrow into joy. Before they could inform others, Li Yi had already opened his eyes.
Except for Taiyi, Dijun, Fusang, Yuanshi, and Tongtian, whose cultivation was profound, the others had not yet sensed Li Yi's aura and were still lost in their grief.
The moment Li Yi opened his eyes, he heard Qilin Chen and Jin Jiao crying their hearts out, wailing so mournfully that it would bring tears to any listener's eyes.
Li Yi suddenly spoke:
"What are you all doing? As if someone has died?"
Qilin Chen, Duobao, Jin Jiao, and Yin Jiao heard Li Yi's voice and looked up in disbelief. Seeing Li Yi safe and sound, their tears had not yet dried when they immediately exclaimed:
"Eldest Martial Uncle (Master), you're okay?"
Li Yi looked at them blankly, thinking, "What could be wrong with me?"
Li Yi said:
"What are you doing? You're not sleeping at night and coming to my place to wail like ghosts?"
He then glared at them.
Seeing Li Yi awake, Tongtian and Yuanshi rushed to Li Yi's side and hugged him, saying:
"Big Brother, it's so good that you're not dead!" Suduan Novel Network
Li Yi saw Yuanshi and Tongtian wiping their snot and tears on him, looking disgusted. He pulled them aside and asked:
"What madness is this?"
Dijun and Fusang saw Li Yi's confusion and quickly explained:
"Fellow Daoist Taishang, you are mistaken. On our way back to the peak, Daoists Yuanshi and Tongtian suddenly couldn't sense your aura. We all thought you had perished, so..."
Li Yi finally realized that they were mourning him.
Li Yi was amused and exasperated. He said to Yuanshi and Tongtian:
"I was just cultivating the Great Dao. It's nothing!"