Northwest Region, deep within the dark starry sky.

A cyan ancient temple drifted slowly, square-shaped, with walls inscribed with obscure runes that were difficult to understand. Many places had cracks, each representing the broken laws of the Great Dao, incomplete.

In every corner stood a dark white pillar, reaching the middle height of the ancient temple.

The temple was nine stories high, about a hundred zhang.

The top was shrouded in thick mist, with faint golden light seeping through.

The temple doors were tightly shut, with a massive bronze ring hanging on them, rusted and peeling.

From a distance, just a glance at the temple would weigh heavily on one’s heart, an oppressive feeling surging up, making one uncomfortable.

Hundreds of people stood in the starry sky, gazing at the ancient temple shrouded in darkness, not daring to approach.

A sense of desolation and sorrow drifted slowly from the end of the starry sky, making it impossible for anyone to remain calm.

Some couldn’t control their emotions, and tears unknowingly streamed down their faces.

On this day, Chen Qingyuan and others arrived.

At the first sight of the ancient temple, Daochen Buddha’s child trembled slightly, his eyes focused, revealing a complex expression.

The sudden surge of emotion within him was indescribable, only a deep pain.

Why is it like this?

Daochen Buddha’s child asked himself.

After pondering for a long time, he couldn’t find an answer.

He looked again, and tears streaked down his cheeks.

“What’s wrong?”

Chen Qingyuan took a few steps forward, gently patted Daochen Buddha’s child’s shoulder, and asked with concern.

Daochen Buddha’s child did not reply, still staring at the ancient temple.

Not long after, Daochen Buddha’s child sat cross-legged in the void, hands clasped together, eyes closed, chanting sutras: “Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva…”

The chanting words fell into everyone’s ears, extremely profound and difficult to understand.

The Buddhist sound spread to the depths of the cold starry sky, reaching the ancient temple.

“Clang—”

Half an hour later, the temple door opened, revealing an ancient bell that had endured endless ages, gently swaying, emitting a heavy, ancient bell sound.

Everyone’s souls trembled, hundreds of eyes stared at the ancient temple, mouths slightly open, faces filled with shock.

Swish—

The thick mist at the top of the temple seemed to dissipate due to the bell’s sound.

Then, everyone saw the scene at the top, horrified.

Some even let out a gasp, expressions of astonishment, unable to hide.

“That is… a head!”

At the top of the ancient temple, there was a Buddha’s head with closed eyes.

The Buddha’s eyes were closed, ears drooping to the chin, solemn and majestic.

Above the head, a fist-sized prayer bead emitting golden light floated, even in the darkness, the Buddhist light was rich, unextinguished.

After finishing a passage of sutras, Daochen Buddha’s child slowly opened his eyes, stood up, faced the ancient temple, and bowed deeply.

“Do you know what’s going on?”

“What does this head mean?”

“I feel suffocated, my whole body cold.”

The Heaven’s Pride from various forces whispered, a trace of fear in their eyes as they looked at the ancient temple.

Driven by intense curiosity, everyone wanted to enter the ancient temple to explore. Even though there were unknown risks inside, they were unwilling to turn back.

“Plop!”

Before anyone else could act, Daochen Buddha’s child had already taken a step forward, walking towards the ancient temple with a solemn and devout expression.

Seeing this, Chen Qingyuan and others immediately followed, staying vigilant.

Soon, the group arrived at the entrance of the ancient temple.

Daochen Buddha’s child stopped, then performed a grand ceremony before proceeding.

Crossing the temple door, breaking through the prohibition.

The interior of the temple and its layout came into view, shaking everyone’s spirits, filling them with reverence. Besides that, there was a hint of horror, striking the soul.

In the center, there was a wooden fish.

Further in, there was an ancient bell covered with Buddhist scriptures.

At the innermost part, a monk sat cross-legged.

The monk wore a dark yellow robe, sitting upright, hands clasped together, very solemn.

The moment they saw the monk inside the temple, Chen Qingyuan and others were shocked.

Because it was a headless ancient monk’s corpse.

“The head at the top of the temple should be this ancient monk’s!”

Anyone could guess this.

“What does this mean?”

But everyone was puzzled as to why the ancient monk’s body was separated and placed in different positions in the temple in such a bizarre manner.

“Was he murdered? Or for some other reason?”

No one present could understand.

Hundreds of people successively entered the temple, while the rest stayed nearby, watching, not daring to enter, fearing danger.

“This humble monk comes from the Eastern Land, paying respects to the venerable monk.”

Daochen Buddha’s child showed no fear, stepping forward, addressing the headless ancient monk.

Though it was a corpse that had been dead for countless years, Daochen Buddha’s child was full of respect, every move adhering to the highest Buddhist etiquette.

Chen Qingyuan and others exchanged glances, remaining silent.

“Clang!”

Suddenly, the black chain holding the ancient bell broke, causing the bell to crash to the ground, shaking the floor, dust flying.

Some timid people thought they had triggered some prohibition and ran out of the ancient temple with a “whoosh,” hearts pounding.

When they found nothing wrong, they still didn’t dare to come back in, standing outside with lingering fear.

As the ancient bell fell, a yellow paper drifted down from the beam of the first floor of the ancient temple.

The yellow paper was covered with ancient Buddhist texts, still bearing extremely profound Dao marks.

Daochen Buddha’s child stared at the falling yellow paper, instantly understanding its purpose, pupils contracting, mouth slightly open.

“Buddha’s child, what does it say?”

Chen Qingyuan glanced at Daochen Buddha’s child, guessing he could understand the contents of the yellow paper, and asked softly.

“I, this humble monk, am willing to use my flesh and blood as a guide, to build a Dharma temple, to dispel the mist, to connect the divine bridge…”

The rest of the content had been eroded by the laws of time, and Daochen Buddha’s child couldn’t decipher it.

This was a forbidden technique of the Buddhist Sect, performing it would inevitably lead to death, without exception.

Daochen Buddha’s child had read all the major texts of the Eastern Land’s Buddhist temples since childhood, except for this forbidden technique.

Although Daochen Buddha’s child didn’t know the cultivation method of the forbidden technique, he could confirm through various traces that the headless ancient monk before him had performed the forbidden technique.

“What does it mean?”

Everyone was confused.

Among those present, Chen Qingyuan understood the most.

To dispel the mist, to connect the divine bridge.

Chen Qingyuan muttered a few words, a trace of shock in his eyes, thinking of Quasi-Emperor Qiyou, who was just a thousand years away from reaching the other shore, leaving endless regrets.

The ancient temple had nine floors, representing the nine realms of the divine bridge.

In ancient times, the Great Dao was broken.

Who was the first person in the near ancient period to break through the limits of the Great Dao?

A monk with earlobes almost reaching his shoulders, bathed in Buddhist light, stepping from the sunlight into the darkness.