Lei Fa emphasizes the ultimate purity and firmness. Although there is some soft and gentle Lei in the world, the essence of soft and gentle Lei is still ultimate firmness. This is like water that has condensed into ice—its essence does not change.
At this moment, the dark purple Heavenly Lei lingered in Chen Xia's Heart Lake without moving.
Chen Xia lightly lifted his hand, and the dark purple Heavenly Lei suddenly surged out and hung upside down outside the pure white Heart Lake.
These two Daos could be said to be entangled with each other.
Chen Xia was completely ignorant about the Lei Thunder Dao and had never comprehended anything about it. Now that he had gained comprehension, it was because the remnants of the Great Saint's memory was of the Lei Dao. Therefore, he did not expect to be able to comprehend too deeply. It would be enough to just gain entry.
As for the Time Dao, it was Chen Xia's strong point. He had already entered the hall in the Time Dao. If he were to gain enlightenment again now, it would be to take a further step and become transcendent and sagely in the Time Dao.
But how should he comprehend it?
Chen Xia also did not know. Gaining enlightenment only provided an opportunity. As for how much one could actually comprehend depended entirely on one’s own ability.
This was an extremely demanding test of a cultivator's cognitive talent.
Some cultivators were able to gain deep comprehension in the Dao with just one enlightenment, while others struggled unsuccessfully to even enter the gate.
Chen Xia had always been bright. He naturally thought of the small inner world within himself. This was the best place for gaining enlightenment.
Chen Xia closed his eyes. After a while, his divine sense floated high up in the air on the same level as the blazing sun.
There were not many changes in the small inner world. It was the same old fights and killings between cultivators. Natural disasters were also common occurrences, but because there were so many, they seemed commonplace.
Chen Xia hovered high up in the air, observing only the timeline.
To transcend and attain sagehood in the Time Dao, the most important thing was the past, present and future.
Specifically, it was to trace back the past, control the present, and glimpse the future.
If one could accomplish these three points well, it would be considered taking the first step towards transcendence and sagehood.
Chen Xia focused his mind to comprehend.
As long as things existed between heaven and earth, time would be omnipresent. Flowers, birds, fish and so on were all moving about on the timeline. Things like rain and sunlight were no exception.
However, time and seasons were illusory and intangible. Things that kept track of time like candles and hourglasses were merely vessels for time. Even the river of time Chen Xia saw was not time itself.
The sages who had attained the Dao by observing time and seasons understood one truth. One should not be attached to the concept of time. Everything you saw and felt was the passage of time.
Chen Xia’s divine sense merged completely with the entire small world, feeling every subtle change that occurred within it.
These were the transformations of the passage of time.
Trickle by trickle.
Chen Xia’s divine sense sank into the small world—one day, one month, one year.
Flowers bloomed and bore fruit. Old trees sprouted new buds.
In the village, a young child beneath a tree strained on tiptoes in an attempt to catch a cicada chorusing loudly in the height of summer.
Come next year, the child was under the tree again but no longer needed to stand on tiptoes.
The passage of time was a concept. Speaking only of this concept, it could be spoken of, seen and even felt.
It was omnipresent.
What Chen Xia had to do was to take control of this omnipresent passage of time, even if only for an instant. That would also count as transcendence and sagehood.
At some unknown point in time, a drizzling rain started to fall from the sky. The raindrops connected heaven and earth like silken threads.
Pedestrians opened their oil paper umbrellas; farmers donned their rain capes woven from straw.
Ripples formed in ponds; lakes stirred with tiny waves.
All of these were caused by the rain.
Looking at it superficially, this was just the effect of rainfall. But if one wanted to gain enlightenment from it, one should also be able to comprehend the Water Dao of the five elements.
However, Chen Xia understood one thing. The passage of time was omnipresent.
It was also present within the rainwater.
His divine sense abruptly focused, condensing into a figure standing tall in the air. He lowered his head slightly, gazing at the rainwater for a long while without speaking. Then he suddenly raised his hand, pinching his index finger and thumb together to form an “eye”.
Chen Xia placed this “eye” in front of himself and looked through it.
Glimpsing the leopard through a small pipe.
Observing the rain to know the passage of time.
Chen Xia just watched silently this way.
The rain continued falling until it gradually petered out.
Night had already fallen; the pond had risen slightly in water level. Tree leaves floated down.
These were the transformations.
The “eye” Chen Xia had placed before him was abruptly lowered. He spread open his palm and fiercely snapped his finger at the heaven and earth in front of him.
It was often said that time flowed like water.
His actions were meant to reverse the flowing water.
The rainwater that had caused the pond to rise slightly now floated up and flowed backwards.
Where rain had previously fallen to the ground, it now fell back up into the firmament, connecting into threads of silk.
The scenery reverted back to exactly what it was before.
Chen Xia stood there, a hint of comprehension in his raised brows. He seemed to have gained some enlightenment. He stood at the highest point in the firmament, no longer watching the rain, but instead looking down at the entire small world. With his palm facing down as if covering the entire small world, he softly said,
“Rewind.”
Everything in the small world began to reverse, continuously and without stopping. Flowers turned back into buds; chicks returned into eggs; ripples disappeared from the water’s surface.
Those meant to die from illness tomorrow now struggled to cling onto life today.
This was viewing the future through the past.
Chen Xia stood calmly with a look of realization. He had succeeded in gaining enlightenment, though he did not know if it counted as transcendence and sagehood. But his mastery of divine abilities had undoubtedly reached another level.
He withdrew his outstretched hand. There was not the slightest change to his person.
This was common for cultivators who had comprehended the Time Dao. There were no traces of time left on their bodies.
It seemed to have been a success.
Chen Xia let out a breath. Next, he had to gain enlightenment regarding the ultimate firmness of the Heavenly Lei Dao.
He was completely ignorant when it came to Lei Dao and had never specifically studied Lei Fa either. In the past, he had read some books about divine abilities, but only knew basic Palm Lightning at the foundational level.
Asking him now to comprehend the supreme firmness of the Heavenly Lei Dao was like asking a player who had just finished going through the tutorial to jump straight into a match with the top ranking players.
To put it nicely, it was daring attempt. To put it bluntly, it was seeking death.
But Chen Xia had no choice. This was a rare opportunity he had finally obtained, so he had to at least try to gain some enlightenment, even if it was just a little.
Gaining enlightenment was a matter of affinity.
But affinity could also be cultivated.
If he did not understand Lei Fa, then he should first observe the small thunder between heaven and earth and feel that aura.
Chen Xia endlessly gathered thunder in the small world, only striking at a place devoid of people. He himself sat amidst the thunder, even personally taking thunder strikes head on.
Perhaps the might of the thunder was insufficient. After striking down, there were no other peculiar feelings, let alone any enlightenment.
Chen Xia then increased the might and quantity of the thunder. He used his own body to take the strikes without allowing harm to befall the small world.
And it was precisely because there was too much thunder that within a radius of ten li, the small world was filled with the roars and howls of thunder and lightning, crowded together to form an enormous Thunder Pool.
The first person to discover the Thunder Pool was a mid-stage YuanYing elder from a nearby sect. At first glance from afar, he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but taking a closer look left him completely dumbfounded.
He stared blankly at the entire Thunder Pool, too scared to even speak.
Even cultivators crossing tribulation at the Mahayana stage did not produce such a spectacle!
After the YuanYing elder discovered it, more and more cultivators successively rushed over to surround and observe this Thunder Pool. In their shocked state, they came to the conclusion—
Heaven and earth have gone mad!
This conclusion was not impossible. The main reason was that the spectacle was truly too astonishing and terrifying in scale. Even YuanYing stage cultivators did not dare approach for fear of being blasted into flying ash.
Mahayana stage cultivators only dared to watch from afar, inwardly trembling with fear.
The thunder rumbled continuously for half a year.
Then it suddenly ceased.
The observing cultivators watched in bewilderment as an indistinct figure emerged within the Thunder Pool. It lingered for the time it took to breathe three times before abruptly vanishing.
The cultivators were stumped. They stared blankly at the remaining Thunder Pool. Suddenly, one cultivator cried out loudly,
“It’s the Grand Celestial Venerable! The Grand Celestial Venerable has bestowed his blessings!”
With just this one yell, the crowd of cultivators was immediately roused into excitement. They felt that such a heaven-defying spectacle could only have been accomplished by the Grand Celestial Venerable and were overjoyed even more.
“I have actually witnessed the Grand Celestial Venerable reveal his saintliness with my own eyes. This is truly the blessings of my elders and great fortune accumulated over three lifetimes!”
“The Grand Celestial Venerable left behind this Thunder Pool to bless us and take pity on all cultivators in the world. This is an opportunity of extremely great serendipity!”
“...”
Excited exclamations continued without end. Some cultivators had already rushed into the remaining Thunder Pool with frenzied expressions on their faces. Thunderclaps exploded on their bodies followed by spurts of fresh blood.
Fortunately, Chen Xia had dispersed most of the power when he departed earlier so the remaining might was not enough to be fatal.
The cultivators who coughed up blood soon felt the circulation of thunder within their bodies. Although it was excruciating pain, their physiques were strengthening and spiritual power seemed to flow more smoothly.
More and more cultivators surged into the Thunder Pool with fanatical looks.
In the next few thousand years after, this place became the tempering holy land for cultivators in the small world. Moreover, every year, the Grand Celestial Venerable would be commemorated and worshipped here.
It was called seeking the gods!