Chapter 1107: Chapter 465: Preparations for Divinity Transformation Breakthrough (3)
"Hmm, everything is already in place." Xu Ping nodded.
Duan Shuang looked at him, her eyes filled with expectation and a hint of nervousness, and asked again, "Then... is Xu Lang planning to immediately go into seclusion and breakthrough to Divinity Transformation?"
However, Xu Ping surprised her by slowly shaking his head.
"No, not in a hurry for now."
His gaze was cast into the distance, as if penetrating the barrier of the array, seeing the mundane world, the myriad of beings, "Before the official breakthrough, I plan to... travel outside, for red dust training."
"Red dust training?" Duan Shuang was slightly surprised.
"Exactly."
Xu Ping explained, "Breaking through to Divinity Transformation is not only a metamorphosis of mana and Divine Sense but also involves the Heart Demon Tribulation."
"Although with my current Divine Sense strength and Dao foundation, the likelihood of the Heart Demon Tribulation being a challenge for me is very, very low." His tone was calm, with immense confidence, but then he turned solemnly:
"However, in the contest of the Great Dao, the slightest error can lead to a massive disparity. I must ensure... nothing goes wrong!"
"By walking in the red dust, witnessing the myriad forms of life, tasting joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, one can purify the Divine Soul, reveal the true nature, making the Dao heart more perfect and flawless, transparent and steadfast."
"Thus, when facing heart demons, it can be like a bright mirror hanging high, untainted by dust."
Divine Techniques can be quickly improved, but refining the Dao heart requires the persistent effort of water wearing down stone.
Red dust training is perhaps more important than mere bitter cultivation.
After speaking, Xu Ping looked at Duan Shuang, his gaze soft, carrying an invitation: "This journey may take several years. Shuang’Er, would you... be willing to accompany me?"
Upon hearing this, Duan Shuang was first stunned, then her extremely beautiful face bloomed into a smile as joyous as the warm sun of springtime.
For her, being able to travel the human world hand in hand with her Dao companion, seeing all the beautiful landscapes, and experiencing the warmth and coldness of human relationships was undoubtedly a much-anticipated, delightful journey, far better than sitting idly in a cave dwelling for secluding and bitter cultivation.
"Of course, I am willing!"
Duan Shuang nodded without hesitation, her eyes full of longing, "Where Xu Lang goes, Shuang’Er will go."
...
Five days later.
Everything was ready.
Xu Ping temporarily bestowed the core control authority of the array to the Water Lake Mouse staying behind and the Spirit Worm underground, instructing them to guard this place closely.
Then, he and Duan Shuang, both concealing the vast majority of their Spiritual Power fluctuations, transformed into a pair of ordinary-looking, modestly spirited Foundation Establishment Stage Dao partners, silently left the Heaven-Suppressing Sect’s ruins shrouded by the grand array, stepping into the bustling, complex, and vibrant red dust of the world.
Five years passed by swiftly, like a white horse galloping by.
In those five years, their footprints spread across every corner of the Nanchuan Realm.
They once transformed into ordinary Loose Cultivators, setting up stalls in Loose Cultivator markets, interacting with various sects and schools, witnessing the struggles and schemes at the lowest level of the Cultivation Realm.
They once concealed their cultivation, infiltrating mortal empires, experiencing the mundane life of the common people in the marketplace, or observing the power struggles, joys, and sorrows within royal courts.
They once climbed snow-capped peaks unreachable for ordinary mortals, watching the clouds churn, understanding the vastness of heaven and earth; they also once dove into the depths of the ocean to witness its wondrous splendor, sensing the miraculous creations of nature.
They witnessed birth, aging, illness, and death, the laments and joys of love and hatred, saw faithful and enduring loyalty, as well as backstabbing and betrayal.
They once listened to old storytellers narrate ancient legends under the moon, and watched children play and chase one another in lively markets.
Xu Ping no longer used his powerful Divine Sense and mana to intervene in anything, serving instead as an "observer" and "experiencer," feeling everything with his heart.
He incorporated what he saw, heard, felt, and realized into his Dao heart, carefully savoring and slowly settling.
Duan Shuang remained by his side throughout, likewise concealing her sharpness, like a truly gentle and considerate wife.
For her, these five years were the most relaxed and leisurely times in hundreds of years, without the constant need to be vigilant against enemies, only needing to follow the footsteps of her beloved, taking in the world’s sights.
Her Dao heart, amid this red dust baptism, also became more transparent and harmonious.
...
One day, five years later.
In a small border town of a mundane kingdom, the setting sun dyed the clouds at the horizon a magnificent orange-red.
Xu Ping and Duan Shuang sat beside a simple tea stall, watching farmers returning home in the distance, listening to the playful sounds of children.
Xu Ping raised a rough clay teacup, and drained the slightly astringent tea in one gulp, his gaze calm and profound, as if containing the entire world.
He slowly put down the teacup, and gave a slight smile to Duan Shuang beside him:
"Shuang’Er, we... should go back."
Duan Shuang, seeing the light in his eyes that had been purified to its essence, knew that his journey of red dust training was complete.
A Dao heart in Perfection await an east wind.
...
Two months later.
Two figures, having concealed all their radiance, silently passed through the nearly fifth-tier grand array shrouded in chaotic light, returning to the thoroughly renewed Heaven-Suppressing Sect ruins.
It was Xu Ping and Duan Shuang, returning from five years of wandering the red dust.
The five years of traversing the mundane world had washed away the last trace of aloofness and isolation belonging to high-tier cultivators, making their aura more restrained and harmonious.
Especially Xu Ping, whose eyes, as they opened and closed, no longer showed any sharpness, only a bottomless tranquility, as if capable of accommodating the eternal starry sky.
However, even though his Dao heart was already complete, the matter of breaking through to Divinity Transformation—a significant event concerning the leap of life itself—still required adjusting the body, mana, and Divine Soul to their most perfect peak state, allowing no half-hearted attempts.
Thus, the first thing Xu Ping did upon returning was to go into seclusion for meditation to adjust his state.
A month later.
The stone door of the cave dwelling slowly opened, and Xu Ping stepped out.
His surrounding aura was as calm as water, his vitality and blood were as full as a dragon’s, and his Divine Sense was perfect and flawless, already at an unprecedented perfect peak.
His gaze flickered, and he walked directly toward Duan Shuang’s chamber.
There was no need for words; when Xu Ping’s figure appeared at the chamber door and she felt the immense, restrained, and perfect energy emanating from him, Duan Shuang, who was sitting quietly on the jade couch, immediately understood.
