Chapter 263 – Supreme Divine Power, Turning the Wheel of Fate

Lu Yan infused the final wisp of the World-Destroying Rule into the complete set of destruction laws he now commanded. In that instant, time and space seemed to freeze, and the laws of the Great Dao trembled.

In that moment of stillness, Lu Yan seemed to glimpse the long river of time, a wondrous painting interwoven with past and future.

That final wisp of the World-Destroying Rule was like the last drop of water falling into an already full cup—it tipped the balance, transforming and sublimating the whole.

As the illusory yin and yang energies merged into one, the World-Destroying Grindstone formed from the World-Destroying Rule finally began to solidify.

It was not a physical object, but the embodiment of a fundamental principle of existence—an incarnation of the Dao. Mysterious and profound Dao Rhythms emanated from the grindstone, like the stars of the endless cosmos condensed into a single point, or the first ray of dawn from the primordial chaos.

The Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, and Three gives birth to all things. This is the evolution of the Dao, the law by which all life grows.

The yin and yang energy within the grindstone represented the “Two” in that progression—the first division born from the One. Their interweaving crushed all things, reversing the process of the Three birthing all things, reducing all existence back to the most fundamental One.

This was the essence of destruction—not simple obliteration, but a reversion of complexity into simplicity, of flourishing into stillness, of endless transformation into original stasis—a return to the source.

Before, a single strand of World-Destroying Rule could not disrupt the restoration of worldly order because its yin and yang were hollow, without the true meaning of the Dao. Like a picture of food—seemingly complete, but in truth empty. Destruction without essence is but superficial collapse, unable to reach the roots of the world.

But now, with the rule completed, Lu Yan’s soul resonated with a sudden, profound enlightenment.

In his perception, this complete World-Destroying Rule could tear through this very world and manifest true annihilation. No longer a surface-level power, it was now a principle capable of touching the essence of all things—a law that could reverse the workings of heaven and earth.

The grindstone slowly turned in Lu Yan’s palm, and with each rotation, it seemed to crush a layer of the world’s laws, reducing complex principles to their primordial core.

Without hesitation, Lu Yan guided the complete World-Destroying Rule into the Supreme Divine Power Seed within him.

As the destruction law was gradually infused, Lu Yan could clearly see the rule forming Dao patterns shaped like the grindstone, filling the final gap in the Supreme Divine Power Seed.

As the seed was perfected, the engraved grindstone Dao patterns began to shift.

The once two-dimensional Dao patterns now rotated, just like in countless cycles of world-ending destruction, grinding down all gathered Dao principles into their purest essence, feeding them back into the Divine Power Seed.

It was a marvelous process—destruction giving birth to renewal, chaos brewing order, disorder concealing law.

Each turn of the grindstone sent a pulse through the seed like a heartbeat. Amid destruction, the seed—like a chaotic sun—shone even more brilliantly, its radiance seemingly illuminating the myriad realms.

Crack!

With all Dao patterns crushed into their primal forms, the sturdy Supreme Divine Power Seed emitted a crisp sound. Cracks began spreading across its surface.

Lu Yan understood—the seed of divine power that belonged to him was about to be born.

Without delay, he circulated his cultivation technique. The vast power from his Ten-Layer Dao Foundation surged like divine nectar through his meridians, rushing toward his spirit.

Under the reflection of his powerful soul, the purest of mana began condensing into a Golden Core.

At the moment of its initial formation, it had already reached the Third-Grade level—and that was only the beginning.

As more soul power and mana flowed in, Lu Yan’s comprehension of the Dao nurtured the Golden Core like spring rain. Dao Rhythms flowed across its surface, emanating an otherworldly glow.

This was no shallow understanding accessible to ordinary cultivators. It was the ultimate truth seen across countless versions, the chaos glimpsed in the movements of stars. Through this refinement akin to Samadhi True Fire, the Dao patterns etched on the Golden Core became more intricate, as though an ancient tome containing countless galaxies was slowly unfurling.

The Golden Core absorbed these insights and energies, its internal structure refining, its exterior glow evolving—from gentle jade, to blinding red-gold, and finally to a brilliance like starlight itself.

It wasn’t just a change in appearance, but a transformation in quality—a leap in realm.

Second Grade… First Grade… The core’s level continued rising, each step triggering a violent fluctuation in heaven and earth’s vitality, as if the entire Great Collapse Domain was rejoicing in this miraculous birth.

At the same time, the cracks across the Supreme Divine Power Seed grew deeper, as if some lifeform was breaking free from the shackles of all creation.

At last, the chaotic sun-like seed shattered completely, and the Supreme Divine Power that had been gestating for years emerged like a butterfly from its cocoon, soaring into the Golden Core.

The shattered seed turned into countless starlight particles, each carrying a piece of the Dao, each holding the mysteries of the world. They swirled around the Golden Core and finally merged into it.

The Dao Golden Core was formed.

In that instant, Lu Yan once again entered a state akin to replacing the heavens during the Urban Version.

He had once forged an unparalleled Dao Foundation by replacing the heavens. Now, in forming the Dao Golden Core, that residual authority resurfaced. All the truths of the world, every great Dao, unfolded before him.

The boundaries of past and future blurred. He seemed able to see the origin and end of time’s river, the network of fates formed from countless possibilities, and the infinite outcomes behind every choice.

In that sacred moment, Lu Yan’s consciousness transcended all limitation, merging with every inch of land, every gust of wind, every drop of rain in the Great Collapse Domain—and at the same time, rising above it all.

He was no longer Lu Yan—he was the embodiment of the Great Dao.

At that moment, his gaze pierced into the past.

He saw the gathering of all version powerhouses at the central hall over a month ago. Time froze at the instant before he had agreed to destroy the Immortal Cultivation Version fragment first.

Observing the scene, near-Daoself Lu Yan raised his right hand and, across the timeline, touched the Supreme Divine Power Seed.

Under this temporal interference, all karmic ties were severed—except one: the seed suddenly dimmed.

This change disturbed the Lu Yan of the past, prompting him to reconsider and abandon the plan to destroy the Immortal Cultivation Version first.

“So… that’s how it was.”

Lu Yan murmured with realization.

He finally understood why the Supreme Divine Power Seed had mutated back then. It was caused by interference from his future self.

He wanted to explore that mystery further, but the next moment, Lu Yan exited the omnipotent state.

Though brief, and not enough to fight Longevity Celestial Venerable directly, in that instant, Lu Yan had glimpsed countless futures—and found a thread of hope.

—

Outside World — Upon the Heavenly Dome

The newly awakened Great Collapse Heavenly Dao was rapidly crumbling. Despite holding some advantage from being native to this realm, it could not withstand an entity who had corrupted multiple versions.

Especially since it never fully controlled the Collapse Domain’s order, and under suppression from Longevity Heaven, it couldn’t even manipulate its own world.

The earth burned with war. As countless beings fell, so too did the Great Collapse Heavenly Dao fall into decline.

All seemed fated… until, at one moment, a strange ripple spread from a forgotten corner of the realm, like a ripple from the edge of time itself, touching every inch of reality.

The resonance of the Dao Golden Core finally drew the attention of the supreme existence within Longevity Heaven.

A pair of eyes projected into the Collapse Domain. With the fragments broken and the Heavenly Dao suppressed, there was now nothing left to resist the will of the Longevity Celestial Venerable.

Time came to a halt—birds frozen mid-flight, water suspended in midair, winds ceased, clouds stilled, and all became silent.

There was no sound, no image, only a will more direct than any sense, etched into Lu Yan’s soul.

Then, like the sound of the Dao itself, a voice echoed—not in his ears, but within his very mind.

“Found you, little friend.”

Now having achieved the Dao Golden Core, Lu Yan no longer felt the fear and helplessness from their last encounter.

He slowly raised his right hand. His index finger slashed through time, not just breaking the frozen moment, but also shattering the chains of the Celestial Venerable’s will. Time resumed its flow.

“A Dao Golden Core?”

There was a trace of surprise in the voice of the Celestial Venerable.

Even for a being who had witnessed the birth and death of countless worlds, a Dao Golden Core was nearly a mythical existence.

Its appearance marked the arrival of a variable, a threat to the status quo.

Yet the moment passed. The ripples in those ancient eyes calmed.

A Dao Golden Core had potential—perhaps one day it could rise to the level of a “This World’s Sole Existence,” joining the vast chessboard of many versions.

But that was only a possibility. How could future potential compare to an eternal being of the present?

To the Longevity Celestial Venerable, Lu Yan was but a newly born child on the true path of cultivation, while he himself was the eternal witness of infinite cycles.

Their difference could not be measured by mere realms, but was a gulf of essence.

Staring down at Lu Yan, the Celestial Venerable chuckled lightly.

“I hold no malice toward you, little friend. I merely wish to invite you into the Longevity Version for a debate on the Dao.”

Lu Yan’s expression grew serious. He didn’t believe a word of it.

If it were truly just a debate, why would the other pursue him across versions so relentlessly?

If he stepped into the Longevity Version and faced a true “Sole Existence,” the opponent would have countless means to decipher the hidden traits of version updates and the Unchanging One’s nature.

At that point, he would be completely at their mercy.

The Celestial Venerable didn’t wait for a response—he had already sensed Lu Yan’s rejection.

“Still so stubborn, little friend. But this time, it’s no longer up to you.”

With a soft laugh, the hand from the heavens shattered the Great Collapse Heavenly Dao completely, scattering its rules into the void.

That massive hand, vast enough to cover the entire Collapse Domain, descended heavily toward Lu Yan.

Its palm was large enough to hold stars, its lines etched with eternal laws. Each motion trembled the void.

The oppressive might crashed down, shaking Lu Yan to his core.

He could not resist. He could not oppose it.

In that moment, he finally understood why even the native Heavenly Dao could not withstand the Celestial Venerable’s will.

It was not a contest of power, but of rank—a crushing difference in dimensional existence.

To the hand of the heavens, stars were specks, and the river of time but a flicker.

Lu Yan recalled a strange metaphor: a three-dimensional giant smearing away a dot of ink on a two-dimensional page. No matter how thick the ink, it could not resist a being from another dimension.

He realized—

“Only a Sole Existence… can counter a Sole Existence!”

Facing the descending divine hand, Lu Yan finally moved.

He raised his right hand, and the void twisted. In his palm appeared a rusted, broken iron shard.

It was the token given to him by Jiang Zhiwei at the end of the Immortal Cultivation Version, a marker to anchor himself in the Collapse Version.

Lu Yan had examined it many times, and aside from that function, it held no power.

But now, having formed his Golden Core and claimed Supreme Divine Power, this insignificant token could form a cause and effect.

Within the Dao Golden Core, the Supreme Divine Power Lu Yan claimed began to shine.

Supreme Divine Power — Turning the Wheel of Fate!

Tracing cause and effect, reversing time—the rusted shard in his hand began to restore itself, flowing backward through history until the fragment reclaimed its true form: a simple, unremarkable broken sword.

Jiang Zhiwei’s sword.

Of course, before forming his Golden Core, Lu Yan could have done nothing with this knowledge.

Jiang Zhiwei might be mighty, but a powerless shard was useless.

But with Supreme Divine Power, even such a sliver could forge a causal chain.

In the sky above, the Celestial Venerable’s projected eyes trembled. That ocean-deep calm shattered—like a stone dropped into dead water.

A wave of crisis surged—some preordained fate had been altered. The divine hand accelerated, trying to crush this change in the cradle.

But it was already too late.

The humble broken sword shone with boundless sword intent, crossing infinite time and cause to appear here and now.

In that moment, the Celestial Venerable seemed to hear Jiang Zhiwei’s lazy voice in his ear:

“The karma between you and him is already set. Next time… it’s his turn to cut you down.”
(End of Chapter)