Chapter 681: Unity of Will

“Give me a reason not to kill you.” Feeling the punch that had just grazed the tip of his nose, the Divine Vault Sovereign’s heart nearly leaped out of his chest, followed immediately by the joy of having narrowly escaped death.

The Qi Observation Technique was not wrong; this person was a sage who took the safety of the world as his own responsibility, and he would definitely not stand by and watch the myriad heavens and worlds be destroyed.

If he wanted to save the myriad heavens and worlds, then he, the Divine Vault Sovereign, would not die.

“As the Heavenly Dao, the more worlds I rule, the stronger my power becomes. Why would I dig my own grave by letting the Immortal Realm destroy the myriad heavens and worlds?”

“This was all done out of absolute necessity.”

Jiang Li raised an eyebrow; the Divine Vault Sovereign indeed would not destroy worlds for no reason.

“Do you know how I was born?” the Divine Vault Sovereign asked in return.

“People kept shouting, ‘Heavenly Grandfather, please open your eyes!’ So the Heavenly Dao developed sentience, resulting in the current you?” Jiang Li wasn’t entirely sure; this was what Dao Ancestor had told Immortal Elder Changcun, and Immortal Elder Changcun had then told him.

“Yes, a rather laughable reason, isn’t it?”

“And my true form—the Heavenly Dao, the embryonic Heavenly Dao of your Nine Provinces, oh, you people call that thing the Earth Vein.”

“Whether it’s the Heavenly Dao or the Earth Vein, they share the same method of birth, born from the collective will of all living beings.”

“Even your transmigration was the work of the collective will of all beings.”

Jiang Li pondered for a moment before saying, “Are you trying to say that the collective will of all beings is incredibly terrifying?”

The Divine Vault Sovereign shook his head. “No, what I want to say isn’t that the collective will of all beings is terrifying, but that unified will is incredibly terrifying.”

“What’s the difference?” Jiang Li didn’t understand the Divine Vault Sovereign’s meaning.

The Divine Vault Sovereign said seriously, “The difference is immense. Let’s think about it from another angle.”

“If unified will can accomplish things like giving birth to the Heavenly Dao and finding a savior like you, then what is unified will?”

“Unified will means having the same intention, what people often call ‘thinking with one mind.'”

“Then, if only one person remained in the world, wouldn’t any intention of his be considered unified will?”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Li’s pupils contracted sharply.

He had never considered the problem from this angle.

That’s right, if only one person existed in the world, then any of his thoughts would constitute unified will. He could do whatever he wanted.

“What’s the evidence? What proof do you have to support this?” Even though what the Divine Vault Sovereign said was likely true, Jiang Li chose not to believe it completely.

“What He says is true.” The Confucius Sage, Buddha, and Immortal Emperor arrived at the center of the battlefield. Apart from Houtu Huangqi, all the Primordial Chaos and Limitless Immortals knew about the matter the Divine Vault Sovereign spoke of.

They looked at Jiang Li with complex expressions. Jiang Li’s final move had completely overturned their understanding, and judging from Jiang Li’s calm and composed attitude, this wasn’t even his full strength.

How utterly terrifying!

Jiang Li glanced at the Confucius Sage, who nodded in acknowledgment.

Jiang Li knew the Confucius Sage had always resisted the Heavenly Dao. If even the Confucius Sage said so, then this matter must be true.

“If you still don’t believe it, you can ask Dao Ancestor who is within Wuzhi.” The Divine Vault Sovereign said. He was telling the truth and wasn’t afraid of Jiang Li verifying it.

“Continue.”

The Divine Vault Sovereign continued, “Before the myriad heavens and worlds were born, there was only one person in existence. That person was called Taichu.”

“As the sole will, Taichu could fulfill any wish. Anything could be accomplished with just a single thought.”

“Taichu created the nine fundamental rules, including space, time, and possibility. These are the ultimate, foundational laws, the fundamental principles upon which the world operates.”

“Because of this, the concept of space came into being—the place where we live. The concept of time came into being, giving birth to the River of Time. The Convergence of Possibilities came into being, as did reincarnation, cultivation, and also destruction.”

“Then Taichu created many things—the Immortal Realm, the myriad heavens and worlds… and so on. This was a true act of creation.”

“The Immortal Realm was the first world Taichu created.”

“And the last thing Taichu created was humanity.”

“When a second person appeared in the world, bringing a second thought, Taichu no longer possessed the power of creation, because the thoughts of different people would never be completely unified.”

“Then came the third person, the fourth, the fifth… An endless number of sentient beings appeared, leading to the current prosperous myriad heavens and worlds.”

“Where is Taichu now?”

“He died long ago. Taichu did not grant himself infinite lifespan or an immortal body. Not long after the creation of the world was complete, he died.”

The Divine Vault Sovereign looked at Jiang Li earnestly and said, “At first, when I saw you were not bound by the rules, I thought you might be Taichu’s reincarnation. But then I reconsidered. Taichu was merely the first sentient being to appear, which granted him the power of creation. He was nowhere near as powerful as you. Even if he reincarnated, he would still have to abide by the rules.”

“Moreover, it’s uncertain whether Taichu truly reincarnated or perished completely, body and soul.”

“Your level of power is unprecedented in all of history.”

“Taichu only created one world. But due to the existence of the rules of possibility, human choices and the random occurrence of events led to the emergence of parallel worlds.”

“Whether it’s this world, parallel worlds, the River of Time, or the Convergence of Possibilities, all must face the rule of destruction.”

“The Observer World named the rule of destruction the ‘Black Tide.’ For your easier understanding, I will also use that term.”

“Now, the Black Tide has completely devoured the Convergence of Possibilities. There are no living people, nor dead ones—only the Black Tide remains.”

“Just think about it. In the Convergence of Possibilities, human potential was maximally stimulated. Everyone there was a deity, powerful beyond imagination.”

“Ascending to immortality was effortless for the beings there. Celestial Immortals, Golden Immortals, Primordial Chaos and Limitless Immortals… too numerous to count. Therefore, the Heavenly Dao born there was also the strongest.”

“Even so, the Convergence of Possibilities was still swallowed by the Black Tide. Resistance proved futile.”

“The Black Tide has occupied the Convergence of Possibilities, turning ‘possible spread’ into ‘inevitable spread.’ The next step is to devour other worlds.”

“I can communicate with the Heavenly Daos of parallel worlds. From what I know, over a hundred parallel worlds have already been devoured.”

At this point, the Divine Vault Sovereign felt a chill in his heart. The Heavenly Daos of parallel worlds were not much different from himself. If the Black Tide could devour other Heavenly Daos, it could devour him too.

Facing the Black Tide, facing the rule of destruction, no one has any solution.

“The only method now is to pray.”

“Pray that the Black Tide devours other parallel worlds, and we become the sole remaining world.”

“When the Black Tide arrives in our world, I need to ensure I am the last to be devoured.”

“That way, I will be the sole survivor of all worlds. My thoughts will be the only thoughts.”

“At that time, I will change the nine fundamental rules into eight, removing the rule of destruction. The Black Tide will naturally recede and vanish.”

“Then, I will use my will to resurrect our world.”

“This is the only way.”