「That night.」

The moon shone bright, stars were few, and crows and magpies flew south.

The cold moonlight sprinkled down upon the human world, illuminating Hong Yuan’s face.

He looked upward, gazing at the bright moon alone, dressed in a black Taoist robe, standing silently in the moonlight.

As the one in charge of the Rainbow Fire Peak Lineage, the funeral arrangements for his Master, Lin Daoyan, were all completed that afternoon.

The funeral lasted a total of seven days and nights.

Thanks to Hong Yuan’s status as one of the nine True Disciples of Phoenix Creek, countless True Disciples came to pay their respects at his Master’s funeral.

Even many respected Elders made an appearance to offer their condolences, including Baixiang Xuanjiang, the Supreme Elder of the Refining Equipment Hall.

The scale of the funeral was remarkably high. It was not as humble as that of Le Congsheng and his master, Elder Niu!

The people of Rainbow Fire Peak also did not become distant and cold due to their Master’s departure, unlike Le Congsheng and his peers, where affections faded once he was gone.

Life and death... Hong Yuan sighed softly.

He remembered his Master, Lin Daoyan, and he also thought of the Gate of Life and Death in the Heaven Earth Secret Realm.

Suddenly, Hong Yuan’s ears twitched, and his sword-like eyebrows raised slightly.

Without showing any reaction, he quietly awaited the arrival of his visitor.

TAP. TAP. A series of faint footsteps sounded.

Lin Yiru walked out from the Peak Master Great Hall of Rainbow Fire Peak and came to stand beside Hong Yuan.

"Yuan," Lin Yiru called out softly, drawing Hong Yuan’s gaze downward.

Lin Yiru’s face bore a light sorrow, her eyes revealing a helpless melancholy.

Clad in a plain white mourning dress, she seemed enveloped in this sadness.

Even the cold moonlight could not compare to a tenth of her sorrow.

She was like a wounded little deer, so pitiful to see that one could not help but want to hold her close and comfort her.

"What’s wrong?" Hong Yuan asked softly.

Lin Yiru said nothing, lifting her head to stare into Hong Yuan’s deep eyes.

Their gazes met, and a slight ambiguity, a subtle emotion, spread between them.

Hong Yuan’s heart trembled. That look in her eyes... he knew it all too well. It was just how Han Kui and Kun Rong used to look at Han Jiuming!

"Alas..." Hong Yuan sighed softly. "Yiru, these days of toiling have tired you. Get some good sleep."

A cool night breeze blew by.

Lin Yiru’s almond eyes closed, and she fell asleep immediately, collapsing into Hong Yuan’s arms.

"Have a beautiful dream," Hong Yuan murmured softly.

A stream of pink luminescence flowed from Hong Yuan to Lin Yiru, vanishing in an instant.

Lin Yiru’s furrowed brows smoothed out at once, becoming serene.

The sorrow and melancholy on her face dissipated, replaced by happiness.

Dream Tao Sub-Divine Power—Dream Comes True!

"The swallows leave, but they return. The willows wither, but they turn green again. The peach blossoms fall, but they bloom once more."

"But, oh clever one, tell me, why do our days, once gone, never return?"

Time, unspoken, marches ever forward, yet it quietly dilutes emotions along its path.

The people of Rainbow Fire Peak returned to their everyday lives.

Hong Yuan deliberately kept them busy with tasks to numb their feelings. They became extremely occupied, quickly burying their sorrow and starting anew.

Hong Yuan made full use of his status as one of the nine True Disciples of Phoenix Creek!

Mo Yue’er, with his assistance, began to explore the Slave Array Confluence.

Lin Yiru, with his support, became an Elder candidate for the Elixir Refining Hall.

Zhu Wushang, helped by him, flourished in both family and business.

Even Le Congsheng benefited from their good relations, and the greedy wolves temporarily gave up their plans to seize the Hundred Joy Tavern.

As for Hong Yuan himself, he remained in the Peak Master Great Hall on Rainbow Fire Peak.

He regarded the Eagle Immortal Blessed Land merely as a resource-producing location, with no intention of making it his primary base.

「One day.」

In the cultivation retreat of the Peak Master of Rainbow Fire Peak, Hong Yuan’s main consciousness returned to his Original Body.

WHOOSH... Hong Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. His eyes opened, a hint of dreamy luster passing through them—the Dream Tao Mark he had painstakingly refined.

The second Dream Tao Divine Power... it’s complete!

A moment of deep sensing within, Hong Yuan’s face lit up with joy.

This was a Divine Power called "Dream Comes True."

Its effect was to create beautiful dreams or to forcefully define illusions as reality—terrifyingly potent!

This Divine Power involved not only the Dream Tao but also seemed to include the Temporal Tao. It even incorporated the power of wishes from the Heaven and Earth Grand Power Flow of the Power Tao.

However, the aftereffects of deploying this Divine Power were severe, as it was directly linked to the foundation of one’s soul!

The more beautiful the dream, or the more forcefully reality was twisted, the stricter the demands on the user’s Soul Foundation.

Merely defining and materializing an ordinary porcelain soup spoon was a significant drain. For Hong Yuan, with his Soul Foundation of the Ten Thousand Dragon Soul, it already caused a pounding headache.

This move can only be used in moments of life and death!

Disregarding Tao Marks and Holy Artifacts, and considering only the enhancement from the Dream Tao to my Original Body, I probably possess a quarter of the combat strength of a Power Tao Incarnation now, Hong Yuan quickly made a judgment. Even if there were some deviations, they couldn’t be too far off.

But what Hong Yuan needed to do now was not to continue delving into the Dream Tao. Instead, he planned to decide what kind of Incarnation to create to fill the vacancy left after the Power Tao Incarnation achieved sainthood.

The Original Body was certainly not to be moved. Once the Power Tao Incarnation became a saint, it would not be able to enter and exit Phoenix Creek Sect or act freely within it.

Therefore, it’s imperative to create another Incarnation to handle miscellaneous trivial matters!

Which Disciplines should I choose for it?

Hong Yuan closed his eyes, introspecting his Aperture.

Above the Energy Sea of his Aperture, the Nine-tailed Worm, with seven remaining blood-red tails, idled in a corner, awaiting Hong Yuan’s summons.

Before long, Hong Yuan opened the proficiency panel.

[Name: Hong Yuan]

[Life Span: 32,564/6,342,451]

[Talent: 95]

[Realm: 5th Order Peak]

[Disciplines:

Tao of Great Moon (Grandmaster 50%), Food Tao (Grandmaster 30%)

Water Tao (Grandmaster 12%), Power Tao (Grandmaster 2%)

Transformation Tao (Grandmaster 1%), Dream Tao (Grandmaster 61%)

Soul Tao (Grandmaster 50%), Sword Tao (Grandmaster 30%)

Ice Tao (Grandmaster 35%), Luck Tao (Grandmaster 3%)

Refining Tao (Master 13%), Wisdom Tao (Master 13%),

Blood Tao (Master 11%), Fire Tao (Master 5%),

Array Tao (Master 3%), Star Tao (Master 1%)

...]

Soon, Hong Yuan had an idea.

His idea was to create an Incarnation that primarily used Water Tao, with Luck Tao and Wisdom Tao as secondary supports.

Let inspiration and fortune flow like a river, constantly bringing Creation and enhancement to myself!

"Come out, my Incarnation..." Hong Yuan softly chanted.

On the surface of the Sea of True Essence, the Nine-tailed Worm, with its seven remaining dim, blood-red tails, looked up to the sky.

It emitted a fox’s cry, its seven dim blood-red tails raised high. A blood-red waterfall surged upward, greedily absorbing the True Essence from Hong Yuan’s body.

Yet, no matter how much it absorbed, the level of the Sea of True Essence within Hong Yuan’s body did not diminish. His True Essence seemed inexhaustible.

The next moment.

The Nine-tailed Worm’s blood-red tails decreased by one, leaving only six dim, blood-red tails.

A blood-red Essence Qi embryo suddenly appeared in front of Hong Yuan, floating up.

Hong Yuan’s fingers danced, casting numerous intricate seals as three Mysterious Talismans fused into the blood-red Essence Qi embryo.

Water Tao Divine Power—Ten Thousand Heavy Water!

Wisdom Tao Divine Power—Seven Star Beads!

Luck Tao Divine Power—Destiny Lamp High Illumination!

PFFT! As the blood-red Essence Qi embryo fully absorbed these three Divine Skill Talismans, Hong Yuan spat out a mouthful of vital blood.

In an instant, the blood-red Essence Qi embryo began to stretch and transform.

After a quarter of an hour, a naked Incarnation with azure hair, a "blank slate" version of Hong Yuan, appeared.

Having done all this, Hong Yuan slowly closed his eyes, allowing his Original Body to absorb the Dream Butterfly Flower and continue researching the Dream Tao.

He then shifted his main perspective to the Power Tao Incarnation. Facing the newborn Incarnation, he extended a large hand, and the power of thunder immediately manifested.

He was using the Heaven and Earth Grand Power Flow to forcibly open the new Incarnation’s Aperture and rapidly elevate its realm.

Very soon, a quickly formed, somewhat "off-brand" Incarnation emerged, its realm already at the 5th Order Peak!

Following Hong Yuan’s will, the Water Tao Incarnation walked towards the Original Body and returned to the Nine-tailed Worm.

And the Nine-tailed Worm still had seven blood-red tails.

This time, however, one of the blood-red tails shone with a blue light, clearly marked with Water Tao, Wisdom Tao, and Luck Tao Marks.

The matters of Phoenix Creek Sect are temporarily resolved. It’s time to head towards Central State,

Great Emperor Mark, you gave me quite a thrill. This time, let’s see you handle my full strength!

"WAHAHAHAHA—" Hong Yuan’s main perspective switched to the Power Tao Incarnation, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

A puff of black mist arose, and his figure dissipated within the cultivation cave dwelling of Rainbow Fire Peak’s Peak Master.

His destination: Central State, where the Single-horned Ding, a Power Tao Holy Artifact, was located.

The glory of the Heavenly Horned Ant of the Chosen Imperial Clan—Hong Yuan would be the one to display it to the world!