Chapter 2149: Old Man Lives Happily

Normally, Lu Ye wouldn't need to do this. His Talent Tree serves as both his Dao Foundation and his Dao Bone, but it is ultimately not a part of his physical body. His current ability to wield Dao power is entirely due to the Talent Tree, and it doesn't count as truly entering the Dao Realm. So he felt it was better to be cautious.

His essence, energy, and spirit slowly surged, pouring into the Dao Flame. The illusory Dao Flame suddenly burned with incredible intensity; if the initial spark was a small flicker, it now transformed into a massive fireball. Lu Ye was slightly stunned.

He had a nagging feeling that his Dao Flame was somewhat unusual. While in the Star Abyss, he had inquired with Jiuyan and others about the details of their Dao Foundation creation. Although he didn't know what others' ignited Dao Flames looked like, based on their descriptions, the Dao Flame should not have been so fierce when first ignited. This intensity was almost equivalent to the final stage of Jiuyan's Dao Flame burning. An intense burning sensation emanated from within his body, making Lu Ye steaming hot all over.

Although he sensed something was amiss, the arrow was already on the string, and there was no turning back. He could only continuously pour his essence, energy, and spirit reserves into the Dao Flame. The Dao Flame burned even more fiercely. Where he sat, a faint fiery glow emanated, as if his entire body was ablaze. The pervasive Star Abyss aura around him was even incinerated completely.

Indeed, something was wrong. By this point, Lu Ye could finally confirm it. His Dao Flame was much fiercer than others'. The reason for this was very likely related to the essence, energy, and spirit he poured into it. Unlike him, others hadn't pushed themselves to their limits in all three upper cultivation realms. His blood, magic power, and soul power were all incredibly pure and condensed. A Dao Flame ignited with such highly refined essence, energy, and spirit was indeed extraordinary.

Gradually, as more essence, energy, and spirit were poured in, Lu Ye felt his entire body transform into a true furnace, with the terrifying Dao Flame burning everything within. According to the normal process, at this moment, he should have chosen one of his bones, burned it with the Dao Flame, and transformed it into a Dao Bone. However, given the current situation, Lu Ye couldn't do this at all. Because the Dao Flame was too fierce, he couldn't control it effectively; it was burning every inch of his flesh and every bone in his body.

Jiuyan noticed the situation and turned to look with some concern, but she dared not leave the vicinity of the Star Abyss Gate. From a distance, she saw three peculiar patterns flashing and alternating on Lu Ye's forehead. These were patterns she had never seen before, but she quickly realized what they represented.

“Three Flowers!”

She knew a little about Lu Ye's affairs, though not in detail. But Lu Ye had mentioned the 'Three Flowers' to her before, so she recognized them at a glance. The manifestation of the Three Flowers undoubtedly meant that Lu Ye was fully activating his essence, energy, and spirit. However, Lu Ye's current state was clearly different from when she created her Dao Foundation. Jiuyan didn't know what was happening, but she couldn't intervene at this moment; she could only watch patiently.

Lu Ye was in great pain. The fierce Dao Flame was burning him, making him feel as if he was about to be completely incinerated. The accumulated foundation from years of arduous cultivation had, at this moment, become the source of his suffering, which was truly somewhat ironic. All he could do was grit his teeth and persevere...

As a slight pain pricked his arm, a somewhat unruly voice reached his ear: “Kid, what are you doing?”

Lu Ye was startled. He couldn't afford to be disturbed at such a critical juncture, and with Jiuyan guarding nearby, he couldn't imagine who would come to speak to him. But the next moment, he knew who was speaking.

“Senior Liao?”

As his mind sank inward, he saw that within his body-turned-furnace, the illusory image of Liao, the blade spirit, lay horizontally, undergoing the Dao Flame's refinement alongside him.

“How could you...” Lu Ye was momentarily stunned. Only then did he realize that the sheath of the Crag Mountain Blade had melted away at some point, due to the terrifying high temperature emanating from his body. This sheath was crafted by Han Tong years ago when Lu Ye went to the Jade Snail Realm. At that time, both Lu Ye and Han Tong were only Moon Refiners, so compared to the advancements of cultivators today, the quality of the sheath was naturally not good. At this very moment, the tip of the Crag Mountain Blade was pressed against his body, creating a small cut. Blood flowed out and seeped into the blade itself. It must have been through this contact that Liao's projection was able to appear within his body-furnace.

Liao had always been in a state of slumber. This was a characteristic of the Weapon Clan: once they recognized a master, they would go into hibernation, only to awaken after their master's death. But Liao had awakened at this moment. Clearly, the commotion from Lu Ye's side had startled it awake.

“Although I don't know what you're doing, it seems like a tremendous good fortune...” Liao chuckled. “Ah, this feels great, kid! What kind of fire is this? It's burning me so happily!”

Lu Ye was caught between laughter and tears; while he was suffering immensely, Liao was experiencing boundless joy.

“Push harder! I feel like I'm about to advance, hahaha! It turns out I made the right choice by picking you all those years ago. I'm finally going to break through my shackles! I'll become the number one Weapon Clan member in the world!” Liao shouted wildly, and Lu Ye's heart stirred.

It seemed the Dao Flame's refinement was greatly beneficial to the Crag Mountain Blade; otherwise, it wouldn't have been startled awake. If it were to break through its shackles, what kind of transformation would occur? Ever since he obtained the Crag Mountain Blade in the Constellation Realm, it had been under layers of seals. As his own strength increased, the seals gradually opened. After reaching the Sunlit Realm, it had already reached the level of a top-tier magic treasure. This should have been the state of the Crag Mountain Blade after all seals were removed, and also its peak state. He never imagined that the Dao Flame he created today could help it break through.

The Weapon Clan was indeed a peculiar race. They weren't flesh and blood, nor could they cultivate on their own; all their improvements depended on their master's growth. If he were to enter the Dao Realm, what level would Liao grow to? This was probably a level that no Weapon Clan member in the starry sky had ever reached. He put aside thoughts of Liao for the moment. What he needed to do now was to persevere through this terrifying incineration; if he could endure it, all would be well, but if not, everything would be lost.

Time passed. The Dao Flame continued to burn fiercely, its intensity undiminished, and Liao was still shouting wildly, utterly ecstatic. At a certain moment, Lu Ye suddenly felt the discomfort slowly diminish, eventually disappearing completely. It was replaced by a sense of clarity from within. The Dao Flame burned for a while longer, then suddenly dissipated into nothingness.

“Kid, next time there's a good thing like this, remember to call me in advance. Just drip three drops of your blood onto the blade, and I'll wake up.” Liao's voice entered his ears, then fell silent.

“Lu Ye.” Jiuyan's voice sounded the next moment, tinged with faint worry.

Lu Ye slowly opened his eyes, meeting Jiuyan's concerned gaze from not far away.

“You...” Jiuyan stared at Lu Ye, her eyes wide and full of emotion. For a moment, she actually forgot how to speak, because she noticed that compared to before, Lu Ye seemed to have undergone a tremendous change. His appearance, of course, hadn't changed; what had changed was his aura. After thinking for a moment, Jiuyan felt that 'spotless' was the most fitting description. Lu Ye's aura was as clean as a blank sheet of paper, perfectly clear and flawless.

“Did it succeed?” Jiuyan asked, but quickly realized her question was somewhat foolish, because if it hadn't, Lu Ye wouldn't be sitting there safely.

“It seems so...” Lu Ye raised his hand, clenched his fist, and subtly activated his Dao power to empower himself before punching out. “It succeeded.” But something still felt off...

“That's good,” Jiuyan said, relieved. “You should consolidate it first. A newly formed Dao Foundation still needs more accumulation.”

Lu Ye nodded, remaining cross-legged. He placed the Crag Mountain Blade, now without its sheath, horizontally across his lap and sank his mind inward to examine himself.

This time, forming his Dao Foundation involved some unexpected events. Mainly, Lu Ye had never anticipated that his supremely pure and condensed essence, energy, and spirit could cause such a change in the Dao Flame. Throughout the entire process, he had no control over anything except pouring his own reserves into the Dao Flame. Not to mention using the Dao Flame to refine a chosen Dao Bone. The fiercely burning Dao Flame had burned him through and through, from the inside out.

From the outcome, this Dao Foundation creation was a failure, because a true Dao Bone belonging to him had not been formed. But if it had failed, he shouldn't have been unharmed. Lu Ye couldn't figure out the situation at the moment. Nor could he ask others. Starry Sky cultivators had too little exposure to these matters; even in the Mechanized Starry Sky, it had only been a few hundred years. Even if he wanted to ask, no one could answer him.

However, Lu Ye perceived his own body and knew one thing for certain: this time, he had truly stepped into the Dao Realm, unlike before, when he could wield Dao power but wasn't truly in the Dao Realm. This was a genuine elevation in realm. From this perspective, the endeavor was a success.

The only troubling thing for Lu Ye was that he hadn't managed to form a true Dao Bone of his own. Could it be that from now on, he would truly only be able to use his Talent Tree as his Dao Bone? Could he then refine a second Dao Bone?

Lu Ye had considered this question before, because at the Dao entry level, nine Dao Bones were the peak, and beyond that was Dao Fusion. But he himself already possessed nine Dao paths, and with a bit more effort, he could even control ten. If he could refine a second Dao Bone, what would that entail? He had never had the chance to verify this before. Now that he had successfully entered the Dao Realm, he could finally test it.

After a brief contemplation, Lu Ye selected a bone within his body. He then slowly channeled Dao power into it, using the profound mysteries of Dao power to transform the chosen bone into a Dao Bone. Jiuyan and others had done this more than once, accumulating rich experience. Through observation and learning, even though it was Lu Ye's first time, he knew how to proceed to minimize risk.

Refining a Dao Bone was a delicate task. A slight mistake could shatter the bone being refined. Although such an injury was nothing to a Dao Realm cultivator, it would inevitably result in a loss of Dao power. Moreover, the newly formed bone would need to be re-tempered to become stronger and meet the standard for refinement. In the Mechanized Starry Sky, there were specialized cultivation methods for Dao Bones, which could make the selected Dao Bones tougher, thereby increasing the success rate of refinement.