Chapter 1037: Wu Yuan's Return (1)

"Fifteen thousand?" Wu Yuan murmured to himself.

It was a large number indeed, but the Long Shan Saintdom of the Immortal Court, as the preeminent power in the Long Shan Universe, held dominion over more than five thousand macrocosms, with approximately a hundred thousand Sovereigns under its command.

In the nearly twenty thousand years since this inter-Saintdom war began, over ten thousand Sovereign mana bodies had fallen, yet more than twenty thousand Sovereigns remained scattered throughout the Creation Dao Realm.

After a moment's reflection, Wu Yuan shook his head. "Two hundred years is far too long. Even if that many Sovereigns could be gathered, I'd struggle to handle them all."

Though his full power now approached that of a fourth-stage Overlord, Wu Yuan was reluctant to reveal his true strength unnecessarily. Doing so would certainly arouse suspicion from the Immortal Court and send shockwaves through the megaverse. However, the time wasn't right.

Most crucially, if the entire scheme took two hundred years, it would be enough time for the Overlords of Spacetime from various Saintdoms across the Long Shan Universe to arrive.

The Creation Dao Realm was fraught with dangers and harbored great 'malice' towards Overlords, making them hesitant to venture in. Furthermore, most opportunities within the Creation Dao Realm held little value for beings of their level, and they preferred to roam the endless cosmic sea. However, they would likely take the risk of entering if news of a Xiantian artifact's emergence reached them.

Facing an Overlord in combat? While Wu Yuan didn't fear the prospect, it would introduce too many variables.

"Eighty years," Wu Yuan declared. "The plan will unfold over eighty years, and the focal point must be as far from the Creation Dao Realm's borders as possible. How many Immortal Court Sovereigns could we attract then?"

Previously, when Overlord Huan Jin and Overlord Zi Wu intended to retrieve Wu Yuan from deep within the Dao Realm, they estimated that it would take them a century to make the journey. That was because Overlord Huan Jin was an Overlord of Spacetime. For ordinary Overlords? Under the suppression of the Creation Dao Realm's essence, their travel speed differed little from that of Sovereigns.

"Wu Yuan, you'd prefer not to encounter the Immortal Court's Overlords?" Hong Qin discerned his thoughts.

"Indeed," Wu Yuan nodded.

"As far as possible, you say?" Bai Sui pondered briefly before suggesting, "Then let's choose the Windstorm Labyrinth. It's not far from the Well of Life and lies deep within the Dao Realm.

"Moreover, foreign Sovereigns mostly congregate in nearby areas," Bai Sui added.

The inter-Saintdom war between the Eldritch Court and the Immortal Court had begun with the pursuit of Wu Yuan's true self. Consequently, the main battlefield where tens of thousands of Sovereigns clashed centered around the vast region surrounding the Well of Life.

"Eighty years," Bai Sui said solemnly. "That should draw at least six thousand Immortal Court Sovereigns. With luck, it could attract over eight thousand."

"Six thousand?" Wu Yuan nodded firmly. "That's sufficient. Let's proceed with the Windstorm Labyrinth then. I'm counting on you, Bai Sui."

"Haha, it's a small matter," Bai Sui’s laughter rang brightly. "I'll grant you additional authority to boost your speed when traversing the Dao Realm."

With that, Bai Sui raised his chubby little hand and pointed at Wu Yuan. Instantly, a flood of information surged into Wu Yuan's mind. Had Wu Yuan wished to reject it, a mere thought would have sufficed, but he didn't resist. Swiftly, Wu Yuan fully absorbed this vast wealth of knowledge, his eyes flashing with surprise.

I had no idea the Creation Dao Realm contained so many undiscovered spatial passages.

Wu Yuan marveled.

The Eldritch Court's intelligence archives held extensive records on spatial passages within the Creation Dao Realm, accumulated over countless ages by numerous Sovereigns who explored the area.

But now? The intelligence Wu Yuan received about the Creation Dao Realm surpassed the Eldritch Court's archives tenfold. This was the power of insider information from an administrator.

An Overlord of Spacetime needs a century to leave the Dao Realm from its innermost region.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

With my body refiner self's mastery of the Law of Space and utilizing these secret spatial passages, I could likely exit the Creation Dao Realm in merely twenty years.

Armed with this intelligence, Wu Yuan's chances of successfully executing his plan increased dramatically.

"Wu Yuan, do you wish to depart now?" Bai Sui inquired. "You now know every detail of all corners of the Dao Realm. Name your destination, and I can send you there directly.

"However, this is a one-time opportunity. As per the Dao Master's instructions, we've given you all we're permitted to. Once you leave the Dao Realm's Core Region, you cannot return unless you achieve eternity."

Unable to return without achieving eternity? Wu Yuan nodded inwardly. This aligned with his encounter with the Spacetime Dao Master. From their perspective, they had provided all the assistance they could. If the individual they selected couldn't even attain eternity, they likely saw no reason to offer further aid.

"Please send me directly to the Windstorm Labyrinth," Wu Yuan requested. With only eighty years to complete the plan, there was no need to venture elsewhere.

"Very well," Bai Sui agreed, waving his hand.

With a thunderous rumble, a spatial vortex materialized behind Wu Yuan. Through it, one could faintly discern powerful currents of qi streams flowing on the other side.

"Bai Sui, Hong Qin, farewell," Wu Yuan said with a smile, clasping his hands.

The white-robed child and red-robed girl nodded, smiling as they watched Wu Yuan step into the spatial vortex and vanish without a trace.

The vortex dissipated moments later.

"Bai Sui, why did you help him so much?" the red-robed girl asked. "According to the Dao Master's instructions from back then, we shouldn't assist him too much before he achieves eternity."

"Assist?" Bai Sui shook his head. "What extra help did I provide? I merely gave him a Sempiternal Creation Pill, which falls well within the scope of the rules. As for the authority I granted him? I didn't actually bestow any additional privileges—I simply provided some intelligence. Those spatial passages already existed; anyone who discovered them could use them.

"Surely there's no issue with sharing information," Bai Sui said with a faint smile.

Hong Qin was taken aback.

"But you also promised to act in the Windstorm Labyrinth..." Hong Qin couldn't help but point out.

"I'll only trigger the Dao Realm's essence once, not provide any additional treasures," Bai Sui said nonchalantly. "In the past, we've often induced fluctuations in the Dao Realm's essence. We would have done so even without Wu Yuan's involvement.

"It just so happens that this particular essence surge will occur in the Windstorm Labyrinth. Wu Yuan chose to go there of his own accord—how is that my responsibility?" Bai Sui chuckled.

Hong Qin listened, eyes wide and mouth agape as she stared at Bai Sui.

She wanted to argue but, upon careful consideration, realized that Bai Sui's actions indeed fell within the realm of what was permissible for a realm keeper.

"Hong Qin," Bai Sui suddenly sighed wistfully. "Don't you understand? The Dao Master won't return, and even if he did, he would no longer be the Dao Master."

Hong Qin froze.

"Wu Yuan will either perish," Bai Sui said softly, "or he'll succeed and achieve eternity, becoming the Dao Master. Given that he already possesses power equivalent to a peak third-stage Overlord, how far do you think he is from attaining eternity?"

Hong Qin's pupils constricted. She vaguely grasped Bai Sui's meaning—he wanted Wu Yuan to feel indebted to them.

"We might be realm keepers, but in reality, we're merely Perennial Eternals," Bai Sui shook his head. "In the future, when Wu Yuan becomes the Dao Master and those slumbering within the Pillars of Creation awaken, the Creation Dao Realm will once again stand tall amidst the endless cosmic sea. When such a time comes, will there still be a place for us?

"We've guarded the Dao Realm for so long. With a new Dao Master on the verge of emergence, it's not unreasonable to make some plans for our future."

...

The Creation Dao Realm was vast and magnificent. One could find numerous exploration sites within, such as the Well of Life, Heavenly Wolf Mountain, and the Aquaflame Chasm, each varying in their levels of danger. The most perilous could threaten even Overlords.

The Windstorm Labyrinth wasn't considered exceptionally dangerous among the Dao Realm's many exploration sites. Typically, late-stage Sovereign powerhouses faced no risk of perishing as long as they didn't deliberately venture into the heart of the Windstorm Sea.

The Windstorm Labyrinth's most defining characteristic was its chaotic nature. The relatively safe wind channels within the Windstorm Labyrinth were in constant flux. Consequently, no guaranteed safe routes were recorded in the intelligence archives of various Saintdoms. One might be traversing a wind channel one moment, only to find oneself in a gale zone the next. Thus, over the long years, it had earned the moniker of 'labyrinth'.

The number of Sovereigns exploring the Windstorm Labyrinth was not particularly high, as the treasures unearthed here paled in comparison to many of the exploration sites in the Dao Realm's Core Region.

Today, a celestial body over ten million li in diameter hurtled through space at an astonishing speed within the Windstorm Labyrinth. On its surface, a figure clad in black robes appeared out of thin air.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Terrifying gales, sweeping across millions of li of void, assailed him from all directions, attempting to erode Wu Yuan's body.

The winds here are truly ferocious.

Remarked the black-robed figure, who was none other than Wu Yuan's body refiner self.

These winds actually contain the fluctuations of the Great Dao

. Wu Yuan marveled inwardly. It was only through firsthand experience that he realized just how special these gales were. It was as if countless Sovereigns of Wind were collectively casting arcane arts throughout this vast expanse.

If an ordinary Astral Monarch stood here, they would likely perish in the blink of an eye.

But with Sovereign-level strength, one should be able to withstand these raging winds.

Wu Yuan silently assessed the power of the gales.

It would merely consume a small amount of mana or ether.

With late-stage Sovereign power, one could ignore them entirely.

My current position should be near the center of the Windstorm Labyrinth. I'll first take a look at the Windstorm Sea.

Wu Yuan took a step forward, flying away from the celestial body beneath his feet, effortlessly resisting the endless onslaught of fierce winds. He headed towards the innermost region of the Windstorm Labyrinth.

Two hours later, Wu Yuan came to a halt, his gaze falling upon the distance, a hint of astonishment flickering in his eyes.

Windstorm Sea? No! What lay before him should clearly be called Windstorm Abyss. Terrifying gales, each strand of wind pitch-black, surged forth with heart-stopping power from what appeared to be an abyss-like sea of wind. They crashed outwards in all directions of heaven and earth.

The entire Windstorm Sea spanned over two light-years at its widest diameter, boundless and infinite. At least, with the capabilities of Wu Yuan's body refiner self, he couldn't sense the far edge of the Windstorm Sea.

In terms of perception and detection, even if I employ the Law of Space, my body refiner self is still weaker than my qi refiner self.

Wu Yuan mused silently. His two true selves each had their own strengths. There was no such thing as an all-rounder.

It was precisely because the Windstorm Sea constantly released gales, crashing outwards in all directions over countless years, that the Windstorm Labyrinth had formed, turning into this exploration site.

According to the intelligence from Bai Sui, this Windstorm Sea is actually an eternal-level array casually laid by the Dao Master during the process of creating the Dao Realm.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

It operates eternally, with endless energy circulation. Unless one possesses fifth-stage Overlord strength, it's impossible to destroy the array.

At the deepest point of the Windstorm Sea lay the array core.

With Wu Yuan's current strength, relying on his formidable defenses as a Matter Sovereign and the Azure Origin Armor, he could withstand the layers of raging winds to reach the array core.

If one wished to comprehend the Law of Wind, they could enter the array core to gain some insights. But for Wu Yuan? It held no significance.

Eighty years? I'll just wait patiently here.

Wu Yuan took a step into the Windstorm Sea.

Within the Windstorm Sea, countless celestial bodies spun rapidly amidst the howling gales. These celestial bodies were incredibly sturdy.

Randomly choosing one of the celestial bodies, Wu Yuan concealed his aura, hid himself, and silently waited.

Subsequently, a strand of his consciousness entered the Eldritch Court Voidrealm.