Outside Of Time

1605  Space-Time Xu Qing Descends

The aurora in the sky of the Western Starfield flowed like a river, evoking a sense of rippling waves.

 Its crimson hue, reminiscent of blood, painted the heavens while simultaneously creating a dazzling beauty.

"That's also an Ordinance."

Xu Qing looked at the aurora.

Before this, in his eyes, the aurora was just an astronomical phenomenon in the Fifth Star Ring. But now… it was different.

That aurora clearly contained countless marks and runes. They intertwined and were faintly discernible, forming rules and laws, transforming into traces of origin and Dao source. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

They interwove into one authority after another.

Nourishing all living beings and guiding the path of cultivation.

"That's an existence that's similar to the Heavenly Dao but surpasses it."

"It's the manifestation of the Ordinance."

"It's also the guardian of the cultivator system of the Fifth Star Ring."

"If the Fifth Star Ring chooses to expand and fight other star rings, then there will definitely be this aurora flowing wherever the battlefield covers."

"Because it has become the symbol of the Fifth Star Ring."

Xu Qing's eyes were clear. He couldn't see this essence previously but now, they were very clear.

At the same time, he also saw twelve stars in the aurora!

Those were twelve vast figures.

They couldn't be seen clearly and couldn't be described.

"Twelve Sky Patrollers."

Xu Qing knew their identities and their cultivation levels. They were twelve Lower Immortals. They had transformed into stars and were moving in the aurora, guarding various places and patrolling the world.

In the entire Fifth Star Ring, outside of the Immortal Capital, there were sixteen known Immortals.

The orthodox forces in the north, south, east, and west each had one, and the remaining twelve were all in the aurora.

However, this did not mean that there were only sixteen lower Immortals within the Fifth Star Ring.

Whether it was the Ferryman or those guarding other regions of the Fifth Star Ring, there were indeed more Lower Immortals. The place with the highest concentration of them was, evidently, the Immortal Capital.

That place that everyone in the Fifth Star Ring yearned to enter.

After a long time…

Xu Qing withdrew his gaze, lowered his head, and looked at the earth below. His steps were unhurried, his mind calm.

He walked across the plains.

On the plains, the flow of time surged. Grass and trees grew wildly in an instant, only to wither the next. All things followed this pattern, and the birds and beasts on the plains experienced various sensations in that brief moment.

Some with sudden fear, others with fleeting confusion.

After Xu Qing left, everything returned to normal.

He flew past mountains.

The mountains blurred, as though erased and then reformed. Cracks on the rocks mirrored this phenomenon, with time and space becoming distorted wherever Xu Qing passed.

All the cultivators from the sects and clans felt their hearts palpitating.

Xu Qing clearly didn't move fast as he flew past them.

However, they couldn't see Xu Qing. No matter how they raised their heads and probed, they couldn't see Xu Qing's existence.

They could only see a vast black shadow that seemed to blot out the sky passing by the mountain range.

It was like they were in a painting and Xu Qing had walked across the painting, his shadow flashing past the painting.

He exceeded their understanding.

"My integration into the state of space-time elevated my status to a point where they could no longer perceive me… just as, before I attained the state of space-time or possessed my own 'Ordinance,' I could only gaze at the aurora without seeing its true essence, nor the stars within it."

"Because at that time, I was the same as them. I couldn't understand higher levels."

"It's the space-time state and the Ordinance, allowing me to have the qualifications to 'see'."

Xu Qing pondered and continued forward.

He passed through many areas, causing everyone to be horrified.

However, Xu Qing didn't interfere. It was also because of this that after he left, the places he passed by returned to normal.

These scenes caused Xu Qing's thoughts to spread and he gradually familiarized himself with his current state.

Gradually, he felt that in this state of space-time, his soul and mind felt more at ease.

Though still bound by higher-level Ordinance, compared to before, he was far more liberated.

However, at the same time, he also sensed that he couldn't maintain this state for too long.

It wasn't that the strength of his space-time form was insufficient, but because of his physical body.

He could sense that if he didn't have a physical body, then the current him could forever be immersed in the space-time state of the eighth extremity.

However, because of his body, he couldn't stay in the space-time state for too long.

His body seemed to have become a burden.

Moreover, as the mind and soul remained in the space-time state for an extended period, the physical body would gradually wither, vitality would dissipate, and the connection between the body and oneself would become increasingly faint.

This caught Xu Qing's attention.

Hence, he thought about it and used the space-time state to look at his own body.

A long time later, Xu Qing retracted his mind.

He saw the many futures of his body.

 In most of them, this body slowly ceased to belong to him.

It withered away into the vastness of the heavens and earth.

"However, I see that all immortals have physical bodies. They didn't abandon their bodies and leave only their consciousness."

"Also… if I want to advance to the Ruler realm, I need a body, and I need to mold an immortal embryo to advance to the Quasi-Immortal Realm. Only then can I become an immortal."

"Then… what's the reason for my current state? I should have an answer."

"It's my eighth extremity. Under the eruption of my accumulation, it almost transcended and reached an extremely high level. My body can't keep up, so it's like this."

Xu Qing pondered as he walked.

"The solution is to increase my cultivation base as soon as possible. The moment I step into the Ruler Realm, I should be able to resolve it. Even if it's not enough, it should at least alleviate my situation."

"I need to advance to Soul Accumulation Nine Worlds to reach the Ruler Realm."

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"Then, my ninth extremity…"

He wasn't in a hurry to appear in front of Li Mengtu.

If he was in a hurry, he could arrive in one step.

However, he chose to slow down the process.

On one hand, he needed to adapt to the eighth extremity and think about his current path and the future path.

On the other hand, it was because Xu Qing had seen from Li Mengtu's traces that the other party was currently engaged in an intense hunt.

To be precise, it was a battle between two clans.

Both sides were going all-out and suffered many casualties.

The decisive battle was taking place in Li Mengtu's side.

His enemy was an old man at the late-stage Ruler Realm. The intensity of the conflict made the outcome uncertain, as the hunt could be reversed at any moment, with the hunter potentially becoming the prey in an instant.

Xu Qing did not interfere in this battle.

Compared to the various sordid battles Xu Qing had witnessed in the past, the Dao fight between Li Mengtu and him could be considered honorable.

Hence, Xu Qing also treated the other party with integrity.

 It wasn't until the battle neared its conclusion that Xu Qing finally arrived, unhurried.

He entered the valley where the two great clans were fighting in a way that the vast majority of cultivators didn't understand.

His soul fused with space-time, concealing his body.What descended upon this scene was merely his consciousness.

In this state, his mind existed within the space-time, manifesting in the valley without a discernible form—unseen and unperceived by others. The only sensation of his presence was a shadow.

This shadow did not fall upon the ground. Instead, it enveloped everything, spanning across space and time, touching the past, present, and future of all living beings.

It enveloped life itself.

As it swept through, every member of the clans locked in battle trembled. A sudden and inexplicable sense of dread surged through their hearts, uncontrollable fear taking root deep within them.

Li Mengtu's expression instantly changed drastically.

The pupils of the late-stage Ruler old man who was fighting with him suddenly constricted. His breath quickened in an instant, and he was overwhelmed with terror, causing his body to retreat rapidly.

He spared no expense to flee.

Like others, he didn't have the ability to understand the specifics of this scene and could only sense the shadow. However, he wasn't an ordinary cultivator after all. Even though he didn't understand, he knew about the Ordinance.

Just like a blind person who couldn't recognize or understand colors but knew the existence of colors.

The difference was that color wasn't dangerous to the blind but Ordinance could decide life and death for the old man.

Hence, he chose to escape without hesitation.

He was very clear that for those mighty figures with Ordinances, his life and death could be decided with a single thought. Facing such an existence, all he could do was instinctively retreat.

At that moment, Li Mengtu's expression changed rapidly. He looked at the omnipresent shadow and took a deep breath.

He naturally knew what kind of existence had arrived.

When he had no Ordinance, although he couldn't understand it, he knew what it was just like the old man.

Now, although the inheritance on his forehead was incomplete and he couldn't grasp it, this inheritance gave him a certain extent of 'sight'.

For example, right now, what the other cultivators here saw and sensed was the omnipresent shadow. However, in his eyes, amidst the blurriness and distortion, he could vaguely see an indistinct outline.

It was as though they were staring at him from outside the world.

Hence, he suppressed his palpitations and bowed.

"I'm Li Mengtu. May I ask which senior has arrived and what brings you here?"

"Fellow Daoist Li, the Dao contest between us isn't over yet."

Xu Qing's voice echoed in this space-time, causing a storm and the mountains to sway like heavenly rhythm.

The moment it landed in Li Mengtu's ears, thunder rumbled in his mind. His expression briefly showed disbelief, followed by confusion and ultimately, complexity.

A hoarse voice rang out from his mouth.

"Xu Qing?"

Almost at the instant he shouted Xu Qing's name, Xu Qing stirred spacetime.

The power of space-time silently circulated around Li Mengtu. In just an instant… Li Mengtu's state went from being injured from the battle with the old man to before the battle.

His injuries were completely healed.

"You once said that in our Dao fight, life or death, there would be no grievances or regrets, and the formation of my Ordinance has a karmic connection with you."

"So, should we continue now?"

Xu Qing's voice seemed to come from beyond the skies.

Li Mengtu bitterly closed his eyes. A few breaths later, his eyes opened, revealing determination and persistence.

"Ordinance… I know it's supreme, but I've never experienced it firsthand. The inheritance is incomplete, so I have never truly felt it."

"However, in this life, I don't fear death. I only fear not hearing the Dao!"

"This Dao contest… Even if I die, I still want to fight!"

Li Mengtu's voice echoed with extreme determination. His figure sped toward the blurry outline in the void like a moth to the fire!