Chapter 367: The runes of the Way

Chen Xiao and Mo Xian had never faced any great storms before; their relationship was merely ordinary. Yet, the love that arose from this ordinariness was incredibly firm.
Now, someone called Mo Xian his woman right in front of Chen Xiao—how could Chen Xiao tolerate such thing?
Anger.
Chen Xiao was now truly enraged, his furious flames nearly burning up the entire space. He raised his head, and the Eye of Reincarnation emitted beams of light that instantly pierced through the chaos to gaze at that inexplicably powerful being.
“Hm?”
In the chaos, at the heart of an enormous chaotic realm, a handsome yet eerily beautiful young man suddenly opened his eyes. This eerie youth was the one who had just stopped the Immortal Lord Ling Yue from killing Mo Xian.
He had merely sent his thoughts to the heavens, allowing him to see all beings in that world, even the Immortal Lord hidden in the City of Chaos. Yet, his thoughts could not detect Chen Xiao’s presence.
Chen Xiao’s fate had been obscured by the cycle of reincarnation; even a split consciousness could not sense him.
But through the Eye of Reincarnation, Chen Xiao could instantly see through the chaos and perceive his true form. A torrent of rage was unleashed toward him without any concealment.
“What terrifying anger… What exactly is it…”
The eerie youth frowned slightly, unconsciously filled with doubt.
“Could it be another old monster like me, who escaped the destruction of that terrifying being and has lived in the chaos for who knows how long? But what did I do to offend him?”
The eerie youth didn’t even know why he had drawn such furious attention. He stretched out his long, pale fingers and began to rub them together.
“Anyway, the end of the cycle of reincarnation is approaching. It’s another calamity—how much longer can I survive? But that chaotic realm is strange; there are seven Immortal Lords there… and also a peculiar being at the Immortal Lord level who hasn’t grasped the rules. If, in a short time, I could travel through all the chaotic realms, gather the Immortal Lords hidden there by various means, take that woman who possesses the Way of Life, perfect the rules of life and death, become the supreme being of life and death, and unite all those who understand these rules—could I then have a chance to destroy that terrifying thing?”
The eerie youth began to talk to himself involuntarily.
Boom!
At that moment, storms suddenly arose in the chaotic realm he was in. Black lightning, carrying immense rage, roared as if trying to tear apart the realm.
This eerie youth, who had survived five chaotic calamities and the destruction of worlds, felt terrified.
“Damn it! I’ve always kept a low profile—who on earth have I offended? Why such anger…”
As he grumbled, a black lightning bolt descended from the sky and struck him directly.
Boom!
In an instant, the once graceful and handsome man turned into a charred beggar.

“Chaos Thunder Tribulation! The Chaos Thunder Tribulation recorded in the ancient celestial books! The legendary judgment of the Great Dao… I@￥#%#%… Who on earth have I offended?!”
The eerie young man screamed as he tore through space and fled into chaos. In an instant, he passed through countless layers of chaos and numerous chaotic realms. Yet, the fierce Chaos Thunder Tribulation pursued him relentlessly, striking him thousands of times before finally retreating and slowly dissipating.
…
“Emotions… I actually used my own anger to awaken my Dao heart and achieve unity with the Dao in an instant?”
At that moment, Chen Xiao regained consciousness. Just earlier, upon hearing the eerie young man’s words about devouring Mo Xian, he felt an uncontrollable surge of anger rise within him.
It seemed he had grasped the trajectory of the Great Dao. In an instant, he transformed into the Dao itself and unleashed the fierce Chaos Thunder Tribulation upon the eerie young man.
But Chen Xiao’s unity with the Dao was only temporary; otherwise, the Chaos Thunder Tribulation would not have stopped striking until it killed that eerie young man.
By now, the eerie young man’s consciousness, which had been sent to the heavenly realm, had returned, but the expression on Lord Ling Yue’s face was extremely complex.
Although he did not know what had happened in another chaotic realm, the fact that someone could knock him down from the sky merely with a single consciousness showed just how powerful that person was.
“Enough. It was our shortsightedness. A being of such strength after going through countless cycles… We must inform the other immortal lords of this.”
Lord Ling Yue paid no attention to his own dignity. Being knocked down by such a being was not shameful; in the eyes of the immortal lords, life came first.
“From now on, cease the pursuit of Mo Xian.”
After saying this, Lord Ling Yue soared into the air and vanished instantly, returning to the City of Chaos.
The warning from that eerie young man had taken effect, and Lord Ling Yue was truly afraid now.
When Moon Zhi Tianzun heard Lord Ling Yue’s words, she was not surprised at all. Since others had also heard that warning, they naturally dared not touch Mo Xian anymore.
But she was not willing to give up easily.
Mo Xian couldn’t move, but Chen Xiao was different.
“Young man, what you showed just now was nothing but reliance on formations. Now that the formations are broken, I wonder what else you have to rely on.”
Moon Zhi Tianzun’s eyes gleamed viciously, turning a dark, sickly green.
Whoosh!
The next moment, Mo Xian appeared in front of Chen Xiao.
“Xiao, you protected me just now. Now it’s my turn.”
A serene calmness appeared on Mo Xian’s face, with determination flashing in his eyes.
“Mo Xian, huh? I don’t understand how you met such a powerful being. But with that person by your side, yet still staying with someone as insignificant as this worm, it’s only inevitable that both of you will be destroyed together.”
At this point, Moon Zhi Tianzun dared not say anything too harsh. If she angered that person again, no one could save her life.
But she also couldn’t understand why that terrifying being, having declared Mo Xian as his woman, could tolerate Chen Xiao’s existence without interfering.
“If I can die with him, I’ll have no regrets in this life.”

At this moment, Mo Xian’s entire demeanor had undergone a dramatic transformation. The radiant glow of life that had always shone within her vanished instantly, replaced by a different kind of lightness and grace. If Mo Xian had been the spirit of life in nature before, then at this moment, she was like a lively, dancing note in the universe. Sound. Mo Xian’s true essence, her true Dao, was not life, but sound. In fact, her understanding of the Dao of Sound had reached perfection—she had grasped the heart of this Dao. Yet all along, her sound had been suppressed by the Key of Life, allowing it to be revealed only under necessity. Now, Mo Xian’s Dao of Life had truly become her Dao, though originally, that Dao of Life should have consumed the Dao of Sound and made it part of itself. But just now, Chen Xiao proclaimed to Mo Xian the sound of the Dao, the sound of the Great Dao—the sound of the Dao itself—which fully awakened her understanding of the Dao of Sound. That sound had completely merged with her understanding of it. Her Dao of Sound had even surpassed her Dao of Life. Seeing Mo Xian’s change, Moon Orchid Heavenly Lord, Scorching Sun Heavenly Lord, and the dark-haired man, Night Terror Heavenly Lord, all wore solemn expressions. They could sense that Mo Xian’s strength now far surpassed theirs. To hear the sound of the Dao, to receive its teachings, and to comprehend its essence—probably, since the dawn of chaos, only Mo Xian had ever done so. If she continued to strengthen her realm, she would surely surpass even the current Heavenly Lords and rival the nine great Heavenly Lords who once ruled the heavens. Although Scorching Sun Heavenly Lord, Moon Orchid Heavenly Lord, and Night Terror Heavenly Lord were also Heavenly Lords, they were merely ordinary ones. There were many more powerful Heavenly Lords in the heavens. The heavens were vast and infinite; no one knew how many hidden powerhouses existed. As Chen Xiao said, throughout countless cycles since the heavens appeared, many strong beings had emerged as heroes of their era. But where were those once mighty ones now? Some had indeed died, but others had hidden themselves, continuing to cultivate and improve, hoping one day to break the cycle of life and death and achieve immortality. To survive was the ultimate goal of cultivation; gaining great strength was merely one condition for survival. “Let’s go!” Moon Orchid Heavenly Lord snorted coldly, her body instantly turning into a streak of light and disappearing. Scorching Sun Heavenly Lord and Night Terror Heavenly Lord exchanged a helpless glance before floating away with ten other Heavenly Lords. “Huh…” Seeing their enemies leave, Chen Xiao and Mo Xian both breathed a sigh of relief. “Am I dreaming?” Suddenly, Mo Xian touched her own cheek, unable to believe it. The shackles that had weighed on her all this time had been broken. She herself found it hard to believe and couldn’t accept it right away. “I’ll be in your dreams.” Chen Xiao laughed heartily and pinched her cheek lightly. Looking at Chen Xiao’s face, Mo Xian fell silent. “Xiao…” “Hehe, don’t worry.” Chen Xiao understood what Mo Xian meant—she was worried about the being who had appeared just now and saved them. If that being was truly as Moon Orchid Heavenly Lord said, then Chen Xiao would be in danger.

Yet, Chen Xiao wasn’t worried at all. Being struck by thousands of chaotic thunderstorms and fleeing in the chaos for who knew how long—if that eerie young man still had the courage to face Chen Xiao, then that would truly be a problem.
“Xiao, I’m afraid of dragging you down,” Mo Xian lowered her head. She felt she always brought trouble to Chen Xiao and couldn’t offer him any help.
Mo Xian had already seen Chen Xiao’s skills. Although his strength wasn’t great, he possessed extraordinary powers. Even the Three Great Heavenly Sovereigns and the Ten Divine Sovereigns didn’t stand a chance against him.
“Heh, is it really necessary to say such things?” Chen Xiao curled his lips, somewhat dismissive.
“Mm…” Mo Xian bit her lip but ultimately didn’t say the words to leave.
“Xianxian, I want to go find my mother. Would you like to come with me?” Chen Xiao looked at Mo Xian’s face and spoke.
“Mm,” Mo Xian nodded slightly without hesitation.
Now, the Heavenly Sovereigns in the heavens had stopped pursuing Mo Xian. She was free and could walk openly in the heavens without hiding. With her current strength, she could definitely help Chen Xiao.
Moreover, after all those years of fear and hiding, freedom suddenly made her feel extremely lost. Although a new burden weighed on her heart—related to that eerie young man—she felt safe looking at Chen Xiao’s confident gaze.
…
The clear night sky was filled with brilliantly shining stars. On a silver mountain peak, Mo Xian sat quietly on a boulder. The voice of the Dao, like heavenly music, transformed into tangible syllables that reached deep into her soul, explaining the ultimate principles of the Dao.
Mo Xian’s understanding of sound, life, and the Dao continued to deepen.
Meanwhile, Chen Xiao, also in a meditative pose, transformed the intangible Dao into tangible sounds and sent them to Mo Xian. At the same time, his mind entered the celestial maps left by the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns.
The Heaven of Freedom, the Heaven of Great Luo, the Heaven of Purple Mist, the Heaven of Great Burning, the Heaven of Separation and Sorrow, the Heaven of Darkness, the Heaven of Transforming Dampness, the Heaven of Langya, the Heaven of Desire—the Dao of the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns was repeatedly expounded in Chen Xiao’s mind, resonating with the Dao heart he had grasped himself.
Although the true Dao heart of the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns couldn’t be activated due to the incompleteness of the celestial maps, within the Cycle Array, Chen Xiao could even recreate a celestial heart using the maps at hand to complete them.
The Dao of the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns held no secrets to him.
“The Dao of the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns…”
Chen Xiao murmured to himself. Having truly understood their Dao, he also realized what kind of beings the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns in the heavens had been back then.
The Dao of the Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns actually represented nine different emotions, nine different feelings!
Though in reality, each of their Dao was a different kind of rule—none of the original Nine Great Heavenly Sovereigns had realized what their own Dao truly was.
Yet, these nine rules truly described the emotions that beings should possess.

It corresponds to the Way of Sentient Beings as understood by Chen Xiao. Whether it is the Way of Sentient Beings or the Way of Insentient Beings, both are aspects of the Dao, leading to the same ultimate truth.
Joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, worry, greed, delusion, hatred, desire.
The Heaven of Freedom corresponds to happiness.
The Great Luo Heaven corresponds to joy.
The Purple Sky Heaven corresponds to anger.
The Heaven of Separated Hatred corresponds to hatred.
The Great Burning Heaven corresponds to delusion.
The Desire and Color Heaven corresponds to desire.
The Langya Heaven corresponds to greed.
The Heaven of Transforming Dampness corresponds to sorrow.
The Netherworld Heaven corresponds to worry.
In an instant, Chen Xiao’s mind began to frantically calculate these things. Within his body, the laws of water and the laws of life and death emerged once again, attracting and repelling each other.
The realm of Mystery reappeared. This time, as Chen Xiao’s state of mind changed, his level in the realm of Mystery also improved. Even Mystery, which should have remained within a certain realm, seemed to break free from its original boundaries and take on a tangible form, vaguely forming a portal. Within this portal, a strange kind of consciousness kept fluctuating.
Mystery— the Gate of Wonder.
Chen Xiao’s mastery of the realm of Mystery had reached perfection. Beneath this perfected state of Mystery, the power of his mind soared rapidly. The Eye of Reincarnation opened once again, shattering, reorganizing, shattering again, and reorganizing the paths of the nine Heavenly Sovereigns.
Finally, the false was removed, leaving only the most fundamental nine emotions—the emotions of living beings, human emotions, and the emotions of the Dao.
Immediately afterward, these nine emotions were devoured, digested, and absorbed by Chen Xiao’s soul flame. The next moment, they transformed into nine runes, appearing in his sea of consciousness, glowing with nine different colors.
The nine emotions, the nine feelings, had gone from intangible to tangible.
Although the emotions of living beings and humans are infinite and countless, these nine emotions are the most basic ones.
Yet, Chen Xiao felt that something was missing. Though these nine emotions were important, they were far from sufficient to sustain the Way of Sentient Beings. In other words, the emotions and feelings contained within the Way of Sentient Beings were not just these nine.
“Love…”
Suddenly, this word flashed through Chen Xiao’s mind.
“Without love, this world truly lacks love… What is love?”
Chen Xiao opened his eyes and looked over at Mo Xian, who was closed in meditation, trying to comprehend the voice of the Dao.
One can speak of loving someone, but what exactly is love? How can it be expressed?
Chen Xiao knew he deeply loved Mo Xian, and her presence had awakened love in his heart, completing his state of mind and bringing it to perfection.
But how can love be expressed? What exactly is love?
At that moment, Chen Xiao felt slightly lost. Even in the realm of Mystery, he could not figure it out.
“What is love? Can it be calculated…”
Slowly, such a thought flowed through Chen Xiao’s mind.
“Is love calculated to be true love…”
“Mo Xian, I love you, but how can I prove it… How can I demonstrate it…”
It seemed as though he was separating his thoughts from his heart, using his thoughts to question his heart.

Suddenly, Chen Xiao remembered what had happened during the day. The anger he had felt when he heard another man call Mo Xian his woman right in front of him…

The next moment, Chen Xiao seemed to understand.

The realm of Mystery gradually dissipated, but the gate that emerged from it remained forever in Chen Xiao’s mind. The once tightly closed gate now had a slight crack.

A completely new state of mind flowed into Chen Xiao’s heart—the realm of Wonder.

“I love you… I am happy because of our fate together…”
“I love you… I am joyful because you are by my side…”
“I love you… I am obsessed because of your beauty…”
“I love you… I am desirous because of your charm…”
“I love you… I am worried because I fear losing you…”
“I love you… I am saddened by your suffering…”
“I love you… I am angry at your injuries…”
“I love you… I hate it when I misunderstand you…”
“I love you… Even if the world ceases to exist and the Way is erased, my love will endure… The only eternity in the world, I express through my obsession…”

Over the past three years, everything Chen Xiao and Mo Xian had experienced kept swirling through his mind.

Finally, the nine emotions flashed through his mind one by one, until a new emotion gradually emerged.

Love was born.

All emotions can arise from love and vanish because of love. Conversely, the nine emotions can also give rise to love.

If you experience nine or even more emotions because of one person, then you truly love her.

Just now, the emotions Chen Xiao felt because of his attachment to Mo Xian were not nine, but eleven—surprise and fear!

With the birth of the love runes, two more emotions, surprise and fear, also emerged.

The twelve emotions, the twelve feelings, instantly strengthened Chen Xiao’s heart of the Way. Gradually, he truly entered the path of emotions. Emotions are feelings, and emotions are the expression of feelings.

Chen Xiao had entered this path, and his state of mind had been elevated, achieving a qualitative leap.

Yet, Chen Xiao knew well that the core of the path of emotions was love. But the word “love” is far too broad.

The true path of emotions, the love of the Way, extends to all beings, to all existing things, even to the rules themselves.

The Way is originally emotionless; all beings under the Way are equal. No matter what kind of existence, it will eventually decay, wither, and die.

Yet, the Way also has emotion; through endless reincarnation, all things can achieve eternity within it.

Moreover, beneath the Great Way, there is still a glimmer of hope, which is why beings practice to see a chance at permanence.

Chen Xiao’s love was merely affection for Mo Xian. But no matter what kind of love it is, love is love. Even self-love is an emotion and an expression of the path of emotions.

Joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, worry, greed, obsession, love, hate, surprise, fear—these twelve primal emotions already exist. Now, what Chen Xiao needed to do was connect himself with the Way and reincarnation, using the realm of the Way to continuously purify and strengthen these twelve emotion runes.

……

“Xiao…”

Mo Xian looked at Chen Xiao, her heart trembling slightly. How could she not feel the deep affection and intense love emanating from Chen Xiao at that moment? Yet she didn’t know how to express her own feelings for him.
“Xianxian, what’s your current level?” Chen Xiao asked with a chuckle.
“Hmm, I don’t know either,” Mo Xian pouted, slightly annoyed. “The Key of Life has suppressed my Path of Original Sound for too long. Although I have the support of the Sound of the Dao, I still can’t turn nothing into something in such a short time and refine the Path of Sound into runes.”
“…”
“Uh… okay, no rush. Let’s take our time…” Chen Xiao rubbed his nose, not knowing what to say.
In fact, Chen Xiao and Mo Xian had been cultivating in this Cycle Array for nearly a thousand years, but everything within this array was controlled by Chen Xiao. Although a thousand years passed inside the array, only a short year went by in the outside world.
Even after a thousand years, refining the originally intangible Path of Rules to its extreme—just one step away from creating tangible runes of the Dao—was something that would likely make countless ancient gods in the Heavenly Realm so ashamed they would commit suicide.
Even with the help of the Sound of the Dao, this speed was already astonishing. Undoubtedly, Mo Xian was an absolute genius.
Not even the nine most powerful gods in the Heavenly Realm back then had managed to refine their own paths into runes of the Dao.
After a thousand years of cultivation, both Chen Xiao and Mo Xian had reached extremely high levels. What remained to be done was to go and pick up Chen Xiao’s mother.
That’s right—pick her up, not search for her or just meet her.