Chapter 1383: Awakening to the Dao

Fayin was surprised. "Oh? What aspect are you referring to?"

Yuwei said, "It's the composure when facing life and death directly."

"In just a short while, to go from despair to calmly facing death is not easy to achieve."

"Many sages have lived for thousands of years, yet when death approaches, they may not necessarily be composed."

"Take me for instance."

"With only a remnant soul left, I still wish to cling to you to survive."

Fayin chuckled. "I've said it before, Brother Jiang is a man of great wisdom."

"That saying, 'if one learns the Dao in the morning, one may die content in the evening,' makes me feel ashamed of my own inferiority."

"My cultivation is still far from enough!"

"Let's go, we'll travel through the Nine Provinces and experience the world!"

The mainland.

Jiang Fan stepped onto his familiar homeland, his eyes showing a thoughtful expression.

"Since I've returned to where it all began, then it's time to find my own Dao."

"It would be best if, before I die, I can break through to the God Transformation Realm and slay a few more Giant Kings for the Central Plains!"

He flew up into the sky, his eyes closed, moving with the wind and clouds.

Meanwhile, his mind sank into deep thought.

"Master Xinyie said that my Dao is on the path I came from."

"And the mainland is the path I came from."

"I lived under the Xu family's roof for ten years. At eighteen, I married Xu Yining, but she broke off the engagement, and I married Xu Youran instead."

"To marry her, I saved up the betrothal gift, broke through my cultivation, fought against Wang Yingfeng, and contended with Lu Zheng."

"Later, I entered the Azure Cloud Sect. No one cared about me, who had no spiritual roots; it was Liu Qingxian and Gong Caiyi who looked after me, Wen Hongyao and Zhao Wuji who showed me favor, and a few Grand Elders who recognized my extraordinary nature, allowing me to integrate into the Azure Cloud Sect."

"Not long after, a beast tide attacked. I carried out missions for the Azure Cloud Sect, rushing back and forth among the Nine Sects, earning honor for the Azure Cloud Sect."

"The beast tide erupted, and the Battle of Boundary Mountain suddenly broke out. Disciples from various sects died tragically, Fu Chaojun left with regret, and I fought desperately, pursuing Yaoyue."

"After the battle subsided, I met Concubine Yunxia. I later fell into the Demon Emperor's Court, and finally, in the Tiger Demon Emperor's cave, to save Concubine Yunxia, I tested a poison on myself, forming a benevolent connection."

"Finally, for Ling Shu, I fought against the Demon Emperor. Fortunately, Priest Lingyin intervened, and Ling Shu was resurrected."

Scene after scene felt like yesterday, surfacing in his mind like a tide.

He slowly opened his eyes and felt a dawning realization in his heart.

"It seems I've always been protecting others."

"Protecting Xu Youran, protecting the Azure Cloud Sect, protecting the lands of the Nine Sects, protecting Concubine Yunxia, protecting Ling Shu."

"Could it be that the Dao I've walked is one of protection?"

The more he thought, the clearer his vision became.

There was a faint sense of clarity, as if penetrating layers of mist and touching the true essence.

"The Dao of Protection."

"Protecting those I love, protecting those who love me, protecting the mountains, rivers, and lands I cherish, protecting the countless human beings I care for."

"Protection is the path I came from."

Jiang Fan murmured, feeling it become increasingly clear.

The Dao that had confounded him for so long finally showed a clear direction at this moment.

The little Qilin seemed to sense something.

It poked its fluffy head out from his embrace, its eyes showing joy.

"Master, have you finally found your Dao?"

Jiang Fan nodded. "It seems so."

"Seems so?"

The little Qilin looked puzzled.

Jiang Fan smiled and said, "Don't rush, I've only just begun to see a glimmer of it."

"Let me thoroughly grasp the Dao of Protection."

He closed his eyes once more and drifted away with the wind.

One day passed.

Morning clouds and evening glow caressed his cheeks; light and darkness took turns protecting him.

Two days passed.

A torrential rain washed over his body, and raindrops clung to his hair and brows.

Three days passed.

The sea of clouds supported his body, as if he were roaming in a celestial palace, free and joyful.

When a wisp of warm, moist air assailed him.

Jiang Fan finally opened his eyes, which shone with flickering light, revealing a profound awakening and understanding.

And also a faint, elusive hint of fanaticism and persistence.

This was precisely a sign of pursuing a certain Dao to its extreme.

"I want to protect everything, and not allow others to destroy it!"

"Protection is my Dao!"

At this moment, having found his Dao, Jiang Fan's anxious heart finally settled.

He looked up at the sky and couldn't help but shout loudly, "I've found my Dao!"

"Now, I will enter the Eight-Orifice Nascent Soul stage and go mad for the sake of protecting everything!"

He took out a spirit pill encircled by lightning.

It was precisely the Grade Six spirit pill Master Xinyie had given him, the Heaven-Shattering Pearl, capable of allowing a late-stage Nascent Soul Realm cultivator to break through!

He eagerly put the Heaven-Shattering Pearl towards his mouth.

However, as it touched his lips, he didn't swallow it.

A hint of hesitation flickered in his eyes.

The little Qilin had been watching Jiang Fan's actions and asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

"Why did you stop?"

Jiang Fan was silent for a moment, then said, "I don't know why, but I suddenly feel hesitant."

"I am clearly very dedicated to protecting everything, and I have indeed done so throughout my journey."

"But, if I am truly to walk this Dao, I hesitate."

He remembered what Master Xinyie had said.

The Dao of God Transformation is like a meteor streaking across the sky.

Elevating oneself to the extreme, burning oneself, exhausting one's life, turning into a brilliant radiance that plunges down upon the vast earth.

Without madness, one cannot achieve transcendence!

Would he truly go mad for the sake of protecting something?

If it were to protect Fairy Yunshang, Master Zhenyan, or Gong Caiyi, perhaps he would.

But if it were to protect the common people of the Central Plains, would he go mad?

It seems, not necessarily.

He would only do his utmost to protect them, but not necessarily go mad!

But if his Dao isn't the Dao of Protection, then what is it?

For a moment, he didn't know how to choose.

Should he force himself to cultivate the Dao of Protection?

Or should he seek a new comprehension?

Suddenly, Jiang Fan remembered Bai Xin's words.

Return to where it all began and ask your own heart.

After a long silence, he lowered the Heaven-Shattering Pearl from his lips.

His heart was hesitant, indicating that this was not the Dao he was most dedicated to.

But if it's not the Dao of Protection, then what Dao is it?

Just then.

A warm and moist current of air blew over him again.

He couldn't help but look down.

An endless expanse of lush green grassland came into view.

A gentle breeze blew, and the green grass bowed low, revealing small beasts grazing among the blades.

"I actually drifted here."

Jiang Fan was surprised and chuckled.

This place was precisely the grassland Ling Shu had always longed for.

She had always yearned to build a house here, chop wood and herd horses, watch the clouds unfurl and disperse, and listen to the silent whispers of the stars.

On a nearby mountain, there was also the grave he had personally erected for her.

A warm smile curved at the corners of his lips as he leaped and flew down to the mountaintop.

He saw the grave, which no longer had a tombstone.

The grave was already desolate, overgrown with weeds.

The tombstone had also been taken by Ling Shu; she had erased the "grave of" inscription on it and treasured it carefully.

He still remembered sitting in front of the grave, filled with sorrow and sadness, accompanying Ling Shu for a month.

Later, when Ling Shu "resurrected," he held her in his embrace, and they spoke to each other through tears.

Everything felt like it happened just yesterday.

Jiang Fan smiled faintly.

However, as if remembering something, his smile suddenly froze.

The little Qilin asked in surprise, "Master, what's wrong?"

Jiang Fan immediately sat cross-legged in front of the grave, a realization dawning in his eyes, and said:

"I think I know what my true Dao is!"