Chapter 2010: Yi River

The Medicine Ancestor acutely sensed an unusual presence.

It was as if an invisible, intangible figure was hiding in his blind spot.

Indeed, he could not see this person.

However, he clearly felt an anomaly: a power was about to be unleashed, causing the person's life pattern to fluctuate.

But...

This was the inner realm of his own life world!

Who possessed such immense capability to sneak in, stirring up trouble, and even begin to act before being slightly detected by him?

“The Demon Ancestor?”

This individual flashed through the Medicine Ancestor's mind.

Throughout the cosmos, only someone at the Demon Ancestor's level could evade detection by a Zeroing Ancestor God.

However, according to the Medicine Ancestor's knowledge, the Demon Ancestor did not possess abilities related to “hiding one's presence”!

“A scoundrel who cultivates a special path of stealth, whose comprehension of the Great Dao is close to that of a Zeroing Ancestor God, but whose direct combat power is far inferior to mine, and thus only dares to strike from the shadows…”

The Medicine Ancestor instantly categorized the person's type.

He quickly deduced that the only way this person could have entered was by following the techniques of Su Yin's Soul Extraction and Possession.

After all, the path into the interior of his life pattern had only been opened once throughout history.

From this, he further inferred that this person was connected to Su Yin, perhaps an ally, or someone with a vested interest whom Su Yin conveniently pulled in.

Who was it?

Apart from the Demon Ancestor, there weren't many other candidates, and none of them quite fit.

However, if one considered a specific prerequisite, a name suddenly came to mind:

“Dao Qiongcang!”

As he recalled, Dao Qiongcang was not originally qualified.

But back at the Dragon's Lair, when Bei Huai met him, perhaps worried about being ambushed by Dao Qiongcang, he deliberately leaked a secret to his A-Yao.

Dao Qiongcang was suspected of having mastered the Way of Memory to a super-Dao transformation, or even to the ultimate realm.

“If not the ultimate realm, then certainly close to it!”

The Medicine Ancestor was astonished. “This person has actually achieved such a level in the Way of Memory…”

Seeing is believing.

From the current application of the Great Dao, a mere super-Dao transformation of the Way of Memory could never escape the notice of him, a Zeroing Ancestor God.

Moreover, this was the inner world of his own life pattern, where he should have complete control. Therefore, Dao Qiongcang…

Truly the ultimate realm?

How could another prodigy emerge from these Ten Venerable Seats?

He had quietly grown stronger in the Five Domains, this "pig farm," while the "keepers" were seemingly blind, only discovering this "pig"—who was now unbearably fat—after realizing there was another one besides pig number eight!

“Buzz!”

The world within the life pattern suddenly vibrated with power.

Su Yin's power and the Medicine Ancestor's power, these two forces—one possessing and one being possessed—were still locked in a stalemate.

Originally, the Medicine Ancestor had the upper hand, and Su Yin, under its unconscious, persistent assault, was about to be fragmented and defeated.

But the moment after the Medicine Ancestor sensed the anomaly, Su Yin's possessing power, like a scattered band of irregulars, found its general.

The offensive changed!

It was as if they had gained consciousness, suddenly choosing to bypass the "diversion" openings in the life pattern's branches to avoid being drawn into the River of Reincarnation and destroyed.

They also began to target the "stones" the Medicine Ancestor used to block the breaching floodwaters, either changing course or combining forces to shatter the stones when encountering insurmountable obstacles.

Just this small change completely reversed the 70/30 balance of power in the possession struggle, turning it into a 40/60 split.

Medicine Ancestor at forty!

Su Yin at sixty!

Su Yin's possessing power was inherently persistent and strong.

With consciousness and guidance, its momentum became even more unstoppable.

So…

Had Su Yin gained consciousness?

Absolutely impossible. Someone was secretly meddling, helping Su Yin with the possession!

If he hadn't immediately identified the mastermind, the Medicine Ancestor would truly have been caught off guard, not knowing where to begin to curb Su Yin's sudden shift in offensive.

But he roughly understood that Dao Qiongcang was behind this.

The only thing capable of influencing Su Yin's consciousness during the possession could only be the Way of Memory, nearing the ultimate realm.

“The problem definitely lies in ‘memory’!”

Having instantly pinpointed the root cause, a countermeasure surfaced in the Medicine Ancestor's mind, which he immediately implemented.

During possession, the two forces converged into one body.

This meant that the Medicine Ancestor and Su Yin were now one, merely contending for control of the body.

In such a situation, there were naturally points of contact in the consciousness. The Medicine Ancestor had already infiltrated Su Yin's possessing power beforehand, and now, with a probe, he could naturally read some of Su Yin's memories.

“Indeed!”

With this targeted reading.

As expected, amidst a great deal of chaos, Su Yin's memories suddenly revealed a batch of 'well-trained' instructions.

Subtle, scattered, and imperceptible modifications to 'memory' that, when pieced together intermittently, were indeed the fundamental reason for Su Yin's suddenly methodical offensive.

“It really is Dao Qiongcang…”

“Then, I will trace it through memory!”

With Medicine and Su Yin as one, at this moment, the enlightened Medicine Ancestor proactively released a part of his mind, integrating it into Su Yin and accepting the manipulation of the 'memory' instructions.

How can one catch tiger cubs without entering the tiger's lair?

Perhaps this would lead to him being influenced by Dao Qiongcang, but with the enemy weak and him strong, the enemy hidden and him revealed, shouldn't it be the insignificant Dao Qiongcang who should be afraid?

At critical moments, the Medicine Ancestor never lost a strategic opportunity due to excessive caution!

And with just this one attempt, a power emerged from a certain part of the life pattern. It was tampering with his own memories, but it quickly detected the anomaly and immediately withdrew the alteration.

“Too late!”

The Medicine Ancestor scoffed, pinpointing the approximate location.

This little lamb was truly too naive, or rather, too confident. Did he really think that it would take him some time to immediately detect the 'memory' anomaly and locate the person?

Little did he know, just by showing a slight weakness, the fish would immediately bite!

“Since you've come, don't even think about leaving!”

In the Great Western Desert, the Medicine Ancestor's true body opened its eyes, an irrepressible joy spreading across his lips.

He struck with lightning speed, tapping his chest three times in quick succession, directly sealing off the entrances and exits of the life pattern within that area.

“The Way of Memory, delivered right to my doorstep…”

“Hahaha!”

“Damn it!”

At the crossroads, Dao Qiongcang's expression drastically changed.

It wasn't that he underestimated the Medicine Ancestor; it was that Dao Qiongcang was prepared for his location to be discovered when he acted, but he never expected it to happen so quickly!

“Impossible!”

“He had no defenses against me…”

His thoughts had just reached this point when they jammed.

The detestable scene of Xu Xiaoshou, in Bei Huai's body, revealing secrets in the Dragon's Lair flashed through his mind—Damn Xu Xiaoshou!

Why had he not considered this point?

Dao Qiongcang, you are in a battle for the Way; how could you be so careless?

In that instant, Dao Qiongcang felt like killing himself.

Clearly, the 'betrayal' wasn't an issue; simply being psychologically prepared and adding an extra layer of concealment would have surely diverted the Medicine Ancestor's attention.

Now, he could only retreat!

However, less than half of his consciousness had withdrawn when his location within the Medicine Ancestor's life pattern world was suddenly blocked and banished.

—Bisected!

Dao Qiongcang's consciousness was split in two.

One part was severed within the Medicine Ancestor's body; although it remained on the reverse side of the River of Memory, where the Medicine Ancestor couldn't find it for now, it was only a matter of time.

While the other part indeed returned, under the sharp pain, his first reaction was remarkably correct: he immediately turned his head, looking for Xu Xiaoshou beside him for help…

“Uh.”

The world suddenly fell silent.

Dao Qiongcang stared at the empty space beside him.

Then he looked at his own location, clearly not the deep pit in the center, but rather the far eastern end of East Street.

In that instant, he suddenly realized why he hadn't taken the 'betrayal' to heart.

At the same time, he also read what had happened to his body, which had remained at the crossroads, during the intense battle within the Medicine Ancestor just now.

—It had suddenly, like a startled bird, erupted with immense power and fled as if for its life, moving far away from Xu Xiaoshou's side.

“Xu Xiaoshou had used his ‘Grand Oblivion Art,’ and my body, under a death command, had fled far away on its own…”

“Ah, damn Xu Xiaoshou!”

Everything was going wrong.

Anyone else would have been despairing and blaming everyone.

Dao Qiongcang blamed no one, nor did he have time to. He only blamed himself for entering the Medicine Ancestor's body without full preparation.

He immediately stepped out of the River of Memory, intending to mend the fence after the sheep were lost.

As he unleashed an art, he spat out a mouthful of vital blood. Veins suddenly bulged on his face, his eyeballs became bloodshot from the strain, and Dao Qiongcang roared out:

“Grand Cleaving Art!”

“Received Curse, Passive Value, 1.”

“Received Censure, Passive Value, 1.”

Xu Xiaoshou, seeing two inexplicable messages pop up in his info panel, was truly baffled.

During the Medicine-Dao battle, he was quite idle.

Having already spotted the Medicine Ancestor's life pattern's sealed location in advance, he had long since moved away from Dao Qiongcang, crouching on the other side.

He then watched, both amused and absurdly, as the flashy old Daoist on the black River of Memory was outmaneuvered by the Medicine Ancestor—another 'dirty trickster'—for the very first time, and experienced such a crushing defeat.

He was literally cut off mid-retreat, his body severed, leaving only half of his consciousness to remain trapped within the Medicine Ancestor's life pattern world.

If not for his reluctance to approach, Xu Xiaoshou would have certainly gone forward to tamper with Dao Qiongcang's lower half of his consciousness—regardless of their cooperation!

It was then that, at the crossroads, as Dao Qiongcang unleashed an art, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly sensed that something was amiss.

His brain convulsed violently, throbbing as if pierced by needles.

His Way of Intent surged wildly, as if someone had burst in with a pencil and eraser, looking around and then trying to change something.

“Memory, being tampered with?”

Sizzle!

The scene before his eyes flickered with errors.

Or rather, it was a past scene, undergoing new alterations.

It was still the scene at the crossroads.

Clearly, after Su Yin unleashed the Soul Extraction and Possession technique, Dao Qiongcang had waited for a moment, then stealthily infiltrated the enemy's ranks, delving deep into the Medicine Ancestor's life pattern world.

Xu Xiaoshou concluded that, under his Way of Intent's ultimate realm, this memory was absolutely flawless.

However, after a blur before his eyes, he saw that Dao Qiongcang had actually rushed towards the deep pit, unleashed an art, severed a portion of his consciousness, and settled it into Bei Huai's body.

“Ugh, ugh, ugh!”

Bei Huai, already possessed once and tormented into an unrecognizable state, cried out in agony.

Soon, Bei Huai's eyes opened, as if temporarily parasitic to Dao Qiongcang, and performed a Heavenly Machine Art.

It turned out that it was Bei Huai's consciousness, aligning with the imprint Dao Qiongcang left in Su Yin's consciousness, that had gone to observe the battle within the Medicine Ancestor's life pattern world.

And what he saw next was that the consciousness standing on the black River of Memory was clearly not Dao Qiongcang, but rather…

“Bei Huai?”

“Grand Cleaving Art…”

“This memory tampering, it can be cleaved like this?”

Xu Xiaoshou's expression changed dramatically. The shock he felt at this moment was no less than when he first witnessed Su Yin planting a reversed oblivion in the past, thereby sealing off his own independent existence.

Both were acting in the present to change the future through the past.

Su Yin could do it because he was an ancient Ancestor God, whose combat power was extraordinary and whose arts were even more peculiar.

Moreover, at that time, he was still weak and powerless to resist.

What realm was this flashy old Daoist, to attempt such a feat?

Furthermore, he was likely tampering with the memories of everyone who had witnessed 'Dao Qiongcang being cut in half,' including himself and, naturally, the Medicine Ancestor!

In other words, Dao Qiongcang wanted to tamper with the Medicine Ancestor's memories, blurring the lines between reality and illusion at the memory level, to forcibly carve out a little breathing room for himself in a desperate situation?

After all, if the Medicine Ancestor's memories revealed that Bei Huai was the one who attacked, his subsequent counter-plan would certainly change, and he wouldn't directly bisect Dao Qiongcang—thus allowing Dao Qiongcang to seize an opening and retreat to the crossroads in advance.

Xu Xiaoshou understood everything about this art, but he couldn't quite read Dao Qiongcang anymore.

This person hadn't absorbed energy from the Life Medicine Pond, and with merely a Half-Saint body, even if using the Heavenly Machine Art to store an immense amount of energy, it wouldn't be enough to sustain his Grand Cleaving Art in successfully tampering with the Zeroing Medicine Ancestor's memories, would it?

“Ugh!”

As expected, there were no surprises.

The moment this art was activated, before it could even last half a breath, Xu Xiaoshou's memories began to cycle between confusion.

One moment it was Bei Huai entering the Medicine Ancestor's body.

The next, it was Dao Qiongcang entering the Medicine Ancestor's body.

The two memory scenes flickered back and forth, indicating that Dao Qiongcang was utterly incapable of sustaining his art.

And once the Medicine Ancestor reacted, perhaps just one strike from a distance would be enough to end Dao Qiongcang's life.

How dare you!

How could you be so reckless!

Xu Xiaoshou truly wanted to scoff, 'An ant trying to shake a tree,' but he soon heard why Dao Qiongcang dared to do it, for that fellow roared across the entire East Street:

“Xu Xiaoshou, quickly help me!”

In that instant, Xu Xiaoshou was truly dumbfounded.

Your trump card, is me?

He wasn't as insane as Dao Qiongcang, nor did he harbor the mad idea of manipulating Su Yin's consciousness with his own to interfere with the Medicine Ancestor's possession process. After all, he didn't want to seize the Medicine Ancestor's Way.

Therefore, it was Dao Qiongcang's entire consciousness that entered the Medicine Ancestor's body.

As for Xu Xiaoshou, he had merely severed a wisp of consciousness that only wished to observe the battle; his true body could move at any time.

With a flash.

He instantly appeared beside Dao Qiongcang on East Street.

My Way… I do wish to help you, but how should I assist?… Xu Xiaoshou genuinely felt willing but powerless.

He was truly amused by Dao Qiongcang, whose veins bulged and composure was lost, and immediately pulled out his memory bead to take a photo as a souvenir.

“Help you?”

Then, he flipped his hand, conjured two bouquets, and waved them a few times:

“Go! Go! Go!”

“I support you mentally. You are the best and bravest baby I’ve ever seen.”

Dao Qiongcang's eyes went black, and he nearly fainted on the spot, roaring:

“Cao Yihan!”

Distant water cannot quench a nearby fire.

To attack the Medicine Ancestor's true body with Kui Leihan—not to mention how long it would take to break through the defenses of the Divine Court's Lament and the Twin Rivers of the Great Dao—

Even if it succeeded, the flashy old Daoist's 'Grand Cleaving Art' would still fail, the Medicine Ancestor wouldn't let him go, and the old Daoist would undoubtedly die!

“You acted impulsively.”

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head, putting down the bouquets, hesitating whether to use Kui Leihan—perhaps the Medicine Ancestor was already prepared for this, and was it worth it for a Dao Qiongcang who was about to die?

As for the Medicine Ancestor's combat power, Xu Xiaoshou had not yet experienced its full extent.

But he had witnessed the Medicine Ancestor's schemes during the Floral Scent Homeland incident, both as the Inheritor of a Renowned Ancestor and as the Renowned Ancestor's true body.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the greatest strategist of all time!

For Dao Qiongcang to play like this, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was seeking death!

“I can lend you power, but I cannot guarantee your salvation.”

After all, it was a cooperative relationship. Whether Dao Qiongcang possessed a sense of contract, Xu Xiaoshou certainly did. “Maintain the Grand Cleaving Art. Whether you win or not, it's up to you.”

Having said that, nine Immeasurable Quietude Orbs appeared.

A single Xu Xiaoshou, in terms of endurance alone, could outlast more than ten thousand Dao Qiongcangs.

As for whether the memory tampering would ultimately succeed, all he could say was, it depended on fate!

“No!”

Dao Qiongcang, however, shook his head resolutely, his eyes bloodshot, his words calm: “It’s not just about self-preservation. Listen to me…”

He knew exactly what kind of person Xu Xiaoshou was.

Simply playing the emotional card might also spur him into action.

But at critical moments, even a single hesitation could determine life or death, which was absolutely unacceptable.

Therefore, he had to appeal not only to emotion but also to interest. Only by providing sufficient leverage would Xu Xiaoshou use Cao Yihan decisively and resolutely.

Dao Qiongcang took a deep breath, speaking at an extremely fast pace, uttering a passage that was incredibly convoluted:

“The Dao is inherently void. Patterns manifest it, diagrams interpret it, arrays apply it, and rivers carry it. These are called mimicry, weaving, technique, and transformation. Technique approaches the Dao but is not the Dao itself. Only when it transforms into one's own being can it reach the ultimate.”

As he spoke, several Heavenly Machine dummies appeared before him, practicing and interpreting his words to help Xu Xiaoshou understand better.

Xu Xiaoshou paused at the sound, seeing the dummies cultivate different forms of the Dao in four states, as if gaining some insight.

This must be one of the fruits of Dao Qiongcang's research, conducted simultaneously with multiple Heavenly Machine puppets across the Five Domains, now fully revealed.

Yet, Xu Xiaoshou still felt a barrier blocking his understanding, unable to fully grasp what Dao Qiongcang was trying to convey.

Dao Qiongcang did not stop, continuing his rapid-fire monologue:

“The Way of Memory: by using others through me, it corrupts and alters truth, acting as a guide. The memory of me alone cannot manifest into a Grand Dao River. However, collecting the memories of tens of thousands of others can achieve the ultimate transformation… Just remember, do not get lost, do not live to regret!”

“Your Way of Intent shares a similar brilliance with my Way of Memory. You have long reached the ultimate realm, yet have never manifested a River of Intent. Why not consider a different approach? Are you limited by the 'borrowing' of the 'Great Dao Diagram,' limited by 'self,' and have not truly considered it your own Way, not daring to widely embrace the intentions of countless generations and people… Have you witnessed too much loss and become too afraid of losing yourself?”

Xu Xiaoshou's heartstrings vibrated; this time, he understood.

This fellow, he was actually teaching him the method to manifest a Grand Dao River?

But at this critical juncture, he actually wanted him to abandon 'self' and cultivate 'others'?

Was it feasible?

The Way of Intent's ultimate realm emphasized discerning the true self and upholding one's original heart.

Reasoning from this perspective, what Dao Qiongcang said might indeed have some feasibility… no, very high feasibility!

Most critically, at this point in time when the flashy old Daoist could barely protect himself, if he still tried to trick him, causing him to cultivate erratically and suffer qi deviation, he wouldn't gain anything and wouldn't receive help!

Dao Qiongcang finished his pronouncements in a few hurried sentences, completely disregarding whether Xu Xiaoshou understood, or perhaps, confident that Xu Xiaoshou, with his Way of Intent at the ultimate realm, already possessed the foundation to form a River of Intent, only lacking a pointer or a direct confrontation with a Grand Dao River.

After conveying his Dao, he abruptly changed tack, his eyes revealing fierce malice, and he began to curse viciously again:

“Kui Leihan, your power, and the River of Intent, all three, lend them to me… It's not about self-preservation; I want to mercilessly crush the Medicine Ancestor. He absolutely cannot succeed!”

“Otherwise, neither of us will have a chance!”