Chapter 1 Acknowledging a Master

When Jiang Xuan regained his senses, everything before him had changed. He found himself in a Taoist temple. The temple wasn't large, and wasn't much different from those in the mundane world, except that it didn't enshrine any immortals or gods. After all, its master was one of the most supreme existences in the Three Realms.

At that moment, Jiang Xuan was sitting on a futon in the open space of the Taoist temple, while Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster was on a step opposite him, sitting cross-legged on a futon. He seemed to be one with the heavens and earth, without any aura leaking out, yet he brought peace to the heart.

"From today onward, you will be a nominal disciple of my lineage. When you transcend the tribulation to become a Celestial Immortal, you will become my direct disciple."

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster looked at Jiang Xuan and smiled. Although Jiang Xuan was the disciple to whom he would pass on his mantle, some rules could not be abandoned. Before Jiang Xuan became a Celestial Immortal, although he was his disciple, he could only be considered a nominal one. Only when he became a Celestial Immortal could he be considered a direct disciple.

"Disciple respectfully obeys your command," Jiang Xuan said respectfully.

In fact, this was normal. Which of these Dao Ancestors didn't have endless lifespans? Their lives were too long. In comparison, those at the Returning Void stage still had to endure the trials of the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations. If they failed to transcend the tribulation, they could only enter reincarnation.

Therefore, no matter how much Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster valued Jiang Xuan, it was impossible for him to designate him as a direct disciple from the start, because transcending the tribulation was full of unknowns. Even with the Dao Ancestor's guidance, the possibility of failure was very small, but it wasn't absolute. Therefore, only when Jiang Xuan transcended the tribulation to become an immortal, stepping outside the Three Realms and no longer being within the Five Elements, could he be considered his true disciple.

"Good," Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster nodded. "You have quite a talent in the Dao of Time and Space. Merely comprehending the Great Dao of Time and Space to the level of the Dao Domain has already touched the threshold of the Door of Time and Space. Very good."

In reality, this was more than just good. In the entire Three Realms, apart from those True Gods and Dao Ancestors, there were no cultivators who had truly touched the Dao of Time and Space.

Not to mention those below Celestial Immortals, even among True Immortals and Heavenly Gods, no one had stepped into the threshold of Time and Space. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been unable to find a successor for his mantle for so long.

"However, you must not be arrogant. The most taboo thing for cultivators is to aim too high. You must know that only by being grounded and cultivating step by step can you have the day to soar through the nine heavens."

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster exhorted. In his view, Jiang Xuan's talent in the Dao of Time and Space was very high. If nothing unexpected happened, Jiang Xuan would truly inherit his methods in the Dao of Time and Space. He naturally didn't want to see Jiang Xuan fall on the path of cultivation due to arrogance.

"Disciple will definitely remember Master's teachings," Jiang Xuan said respectfully.

"Mm, entering my lineage, there aren't many rules, only two that you must remember."

"First, you must not be rebellious."

"Second, without my permission, you must not tell others that I am your master," Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said. "If you disobey, at best I will kill you, erase your memories and send you to reincarnation. At worst, I will directly destroy your soul, and even make your soul suffer the pain of being burned by true fire for eternity."

"Disciple remembers," Jiang Xuan naturally knew Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster's rules, especially the second one, which to some extent created his reputation as the most mysterious Dao Ancestor.

"Of course, I won't interfere with whether you do good or evil in the future, as long as you follow your heart in everything."

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said. This was how he accepted disciples. For example, among his disciples, there was a Silver Moon Heavenly God, who was once an unparalleled demon god, causing endless slaughter, even attracting the descent of karmic fire. But even so, this Silver Moon Heavenly God had never been expelled from the lineage of Fangcun Mountain.

"Yes," Jiang Xuan replied.

"Come forward, come to me," Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said with a smile.

Jiang Xuan had a guess in his heart, and immediately stepped forward, walking up the steps and directly to the Founder-Grandmaster's side.

Very suddenly—Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster suddenly pointed a finger at the center of Jiang Xuan's brow. It was a simple point, but Jiang Xuan couldn't react at all before the finger had already touched his brow.

"Buzz~~~" Jiang Xuan's whole body went limp. He sat down on the steps and closed his eyes at the same time.

In his mind, a desolate corridor suddenly appeared. The rules of time and space were imprinted on both sides of the corridor. Every step he took, the rules of time and space became more profound. They were merging, wanting to blend with each other, constantly evolving.

That was the mystery of Time and Space. Before his eyes, he seemed to see worlds stacked upon each other. He could clearly only see one world, but stepping into it would reveal that it was a world formed by the overlapping of worlds, each in a different time and space, with different time flows and different internal spaces.

Jiang Xuan continued to walk along this corridor. He saw the various evolutions of Time and Space, becoming more and more profound, even exceeding the level they had comprehended.

He was completely immersed in the sea of Time and Space, walking in the corridor, his mind completely filled with the mysteries of Time and Space. More and more profound mysteries flashed through his mind. In the end, although he didn't understand, the baptism of countless mysteries allowed Jiang Xuan's understanding to reach a higher level. He was confident that, given some time, he would take another step forward in the Dao of Time and Space.

He didn't know how long had passed, as if thousands or tens of thousands of years had passed. Jiang Xuan finally saw the end of this passage. There, it was vast and empty, with fragments of time flying by and waves of space crashing, like a world purely composed of Time and Space, infinitely mysterious and infinitely profound.

Jiang Xuan didn't know why he walked over, nor did he know whether he should stop. Just like that, he walked into the end of the corridor, his body entering that world of Time and Space.

"Boom~~~"

Vast and endless mysterious insights surged into his heart. The vastness of Time and Space, all the mysteries were remembered by Jiang Xuan. The countless evolutions of Time and Space in the corridor also flashed through his mind, making his heart closer to the Dao of Time and Space.

"Hoo~"

After a long time, Jiang Xuan opened his eyes again, seeing that he was still sitting on the steps. On the futon in front of him was Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster, wearing a loose Taoist robe, smiling at Jiang Xuan at this time.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master!" After a moment, Jiang Xuan finally regained his senses. It was as if he had spent tens of thousands of years before. Even though he had shared memories several times, none were as long as this one, which made him slightly dazed.

"It's just a small trick. I merely used the 'Thousand-Year Dream' spell to let you truly experience a complete 'Dao of Time and Space' once. As for what level you can comprehend after this, it depends on your own destiny."

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said with a smile. The Dao of Time and Space was comparable to the Heavenly Dao, especially for him, who had reached the fifth level of the power of Time and Space. Even some Dao Ancestors who controlled the Heavenly Dao wouldn't be able to find his traces if he didn't want them to.

"Yes."

Jiang Xuan said respectfully. A complete view of the Dao of Time and Space, even if it was just of one chaotic world, was definitely a great fortune, allowing him to comprehend the Kun Peng Precious Technique faster and deduce it to a more profound level.

"Mm." Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster once again gently pointed out a finger, and a stream of light flew directly into Jiang Xuan's mind. Immediately afterwards, a large amount of information entered his mind.

"《Star Moon Bodhi Sutra》? 《Crimsonbright Nine Heavens Diagram》?" Two cultivation methods had appeared in his mind.

Among them, Jiang Xuan was very familiar with the 《Crimsonbright Nine Heavens Diagram》, which was a method of demon god body refinement. He was already cultivating it himself. This 《Crimsonbright Nine Heavens Diagram》 had four volumes in total, with the first volume corresponding to the Acquired, Innate, and Violet Palace stages, the second volume corresponding to the Myriad Phenomena, Primordial Spirit, and Returning Void stages, the third volume being the Heavenly God volume, and the fourth volume being the True God volume!

"The 《Crimsonbright Nine Heavens Diagram》 was created by Crimsonbright. This method has also been praised by Nuwa as a rare method that can be cultivated all the way to the True God level," Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said. "As for the 《Star Moon Bodhi Sutra》, it is a method of Qi refinement that I created, which can be cultivated to the Grand Luo Dao Ancestor level."

The Grand Luo Dao Ancestor level was the Ancestral Immortal level. This 《Star Moon Bodhi Sutra》 was created by Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster and could be cultivated all the way to the Ancestral Immortal level.

"Containing the Water and Wood elements…"

There were ten Heavenly Daos in the Three Realms: Chaos, Life, Destruction, Yin-Yang, and the Five Elements. All Qi refinement methods that could be cultivated to the Ancestral Immortal level had to be based on these ten Heavenly Daos. This 《Star Moon Bodhi Sutra》 contained two Daos, which was indeed remarkable.

Of course, if one were to talk about the most powerful Qi refinement method, it should be in Buddhism. After all, the Buddha of Buddhism comprehended the Five Elements Heavenly Dao, with the five Heavenly Daos generating and restraining each other, greatly increasing his strength, allowing him to compare with an Ancestral God with the body of a third-class Ancestral Immortal.

"Master, this disciple has a question." Jiang Xuan seemed to have comprehended the cultivation method in his mind for a moment, and then opened his eyes, looking at Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster and asking.

"Speak," Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster said calmly, waiting for Jiang Xuan to ask.

"Master, this disciple wants to ask, why are Celestial Immortals weaker than Heavenly Gods? Celestial Immortals need to transcend tribulations, and Heavenly Gods also need to transcend tribulations. Why is the gap between these two realms so large?"

Jiang Xuan looked puzzled, seemingly truly puzzled.

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster smiled, not expecting Jiang Xuan to ask this question. He sighed and said, "You come from the Shennong lineage, so you must know that the Three Realms were originally the Pangu Chaos World, and this Pangu Chaos World was opened up by the ancient Pangu God in the Chaos."

Jiang Xuan nodded, and Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster continued, "Before the opening of the Chaos, there were already Innate Gods and Demons born. The current cultivation methods of demon god body refinement are all created by Innate Gods and Demons referring to themselves. However, the methods of Qi refinement only slowly took shape after the opening of the Pangu world. But it is precisely because of this that, although Celestial Immortals and Heavenly Gods should belong to the same realm, Celestial Immortals are far weaker than Heavenly Gods. Even some monstrous Returning Void demon gods can kill them."

"We have also deduced it, but ultimately gained nothing. Perhaps only when living beings reach the level of the Pangu God with the methods of Qi refinement can all the mysteries be revealed."

Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster also sighed. They naturally knew that Celestial Immortals and Heavenly Gods should belong to the same realm, but the Qi refinement methods created by the Dao Ancestors of the Three Realms were like this. The gap was small in the early stages of cultivating Qi refinement methods, but after transcending the tribulation, the gap truly became apparent, completely one above and one below. Celestial Immortals were like ants in front of Heavenly Gods.

Jiang Xuan was silent for a long time, and finally looked at Bodhi Founder-Grandmaster and said, "Master, this disciple has an idea, I don't know if it is feasible, please give me guidance, Master."