"Isn't the one who proves the Dao to the Seventh Step through their own Daoist words the Master of the Universe?" Ding Huan asked in confusion.

Shi Changxing paused for a moment and said, "Those who prove the Dao to the Seventh Step with their Daoist words surely have the name of the Great Dao, but they are not the Master of the Universe. This is not what I say, but what Mo Wuji said."

"Could you please enlighten me?" Ding Huan clasped his fists.

Shi Changxing said, "Actually, I don't understand what the Daoist Saint of the Seventh Step is really called. Brother Mo believes that no matter what they're called, the Seventh Step could never be the Master of the Universe.

If there must be a title of Master of the Universe, then only the strongest existence in the World of Gods qualifies as the Master of the Universe."

Ding Huan was even more puzzled, "Mr. Shi, isn't the strongest existence in the World of Gods the Daoist Saint of the Seventh Step, who is also the Master of the Universe?"

Though Ding Huan now knew that the strongest existence in the World of Gods was that old schemer at the center of Chaos.

Mo Wuji and Lan Xiaobu probably don't know this, right?

Neither Mo Wuji nor Lan Xiaobu has ever entered the World of Gods.

Under the siege of four Seventh Step Masters of the Universe, they eventually fled into the Fog Realm.

Without ever entering the World of Gods, how could they know there is such a powerful being in the Chaos Zone?

Shi Changxing shook his head but did not continue speaking.

Ding Huan knew Shi Changxing still didn't trust him and had to say:

"Mr. Shi, my name is Ding Huan, and I also came in from outside. I saved you not for other reasons but because I have a friend named Guan Huan and another friend named Bai Yue.

Guan Huan and Lan Xiaobu are very good friends, and Bai Yue is Mo Wuji's junior brother.

You must be from the Great Universe, right? So I guessed you might be a friend of either Mo Wuji or Lan Xiaobu, which is why I helped you.

I was actually forced to escape into the Fog Realm, and I came here intending to find Mr. Mo and Brother Lan. If we can join forces, maybe we can enter the World of Gods again."

Upon hearing Ding Huan's words, Shi Changxing was taken aback, then quickly nodded, "I believe you."

He had always wondered why Ding Huan had saved him.

In a place like the Fog Realm, no one would do such a thing without self-interest.

Rescuing someone at the Dueling Platform Square and even casually killing a Sixth Step of the Great Dao.

Any one of these actions would violate the unwritten rules here.

Hearing Ding Huan's words, it meant Ding Huan also came from the Great Universe, and since they both came from the Great Universe, saving him was not surprising.

"You also come from the Great Universe?"

"Yes, although I am not a native cultivator of the Great Universe, I have cultivated there for a period."

"Does the Great Universe still exist after the Calamity?"

"After the Calamity, the Great Universe had long collapsed, but the Tian Meng people still partially exist. Later, the surrounding Chaos of the Great Universe retreated, giving rise to a new Great Universe."

Hearing this, Shi Changxing let out a long breath, "You know the Tian Meng people, so you undoubtedly come from the Great Universe.

Since you came from the Great Universe and also entered from outside, you must have been to the World of Gods and heard of Brother Mo and Brother Lan's affairs?"

Ding Huan nodded, "Yes, I've heard about it. I heard Mr. Mo and Brother Lan were besieged by four Masters of the Universe and had to flee into the Fog Realm stepping on the Seven Realms Stone."

Shi Changxing chuckled coldly, "Four Masters of the Universe? Are they even fit to besiege Brother Lan and Mr. Mo? Moreover, at that time, besides me, there were seven or eight others who were no weaker than me.

A mere four Seventh Step Daoists from the World of Gods? What right do they have to besiege us?"

Because Shi Changxing knew Ding Huan was unfamiliar, he didn't mention the names of Seven Cosmos Heaven, Chang Yi, Ding Chongchen, and others.

"Is there some other reason?" Ding Huan asked.

"Yes."

Shi Changxing's voice carried a hint of unease:

"That expert's power had long exceeded our perception, capable of suppressing the Heaven and Earth Rules, causing all of us to become indefinitely weakened before those Seventh Step experts of the World of Gods."

"Can you perceive that?"

Shi Changxing shook his head, "No, we simply couldn't perceive it and genuinely thought the gap between us and those experts in the World of Gods was significant.

Brother Mo and Brother Lan immediately sensed something amiss and instantly fled controlling the Cosmic Pot. Because in front of such an expert, both Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji were no match.

It was only later that Brother Mo and Brother Lan informed me, and I realized that the Heaven and Earth Rules were being suppressed.

That meant our hands and feet were tied in battle against those World of Gods' cultivators, yet we still managed to slay a bunch of them.

But that expert's methods indeed made it impossible to muster a confrontational thought; this place is the Universe's center, the place of vast origin, one who can suppress the Heaven and Earth Rules here, is he not the one of vast origin?"

Ding Huan thought to himself, so they indeed encountered that expert as well.

The difference is, Mo Wuji and Lan Xiaobu and others only dealt with the suppression of Heaven and Earth Rules by the opponent, while he was directly attacked by a hand seal from that person.

It must have been when he destroyed the Barrier of the World of Gods, that person had to take action personally.

"You mean that a cultivator of the same level, with the power of a Daoist Saint, can be matched by one without it?"

Ding Huan was a bit skeptical.

Although earlier he witnessed Shi Changxing and a Seventh Step of the Great Dao fight with comparable strength, Shi Changxing was of the Ninth Step of the Great Dao, acting against a Seventh Step, which was outright bullying.

Shi Changxing sighed: "At that time, even without the rule suppression from that strong person, I couldn't defeat the Seventh Step of Dao Yan, whom they referred to as the Master of the Universe.

But whether it's Mo Wuji or Lan Xiaobu, they can prevail against the Seventh Step individually. Even with four people besieging them and us aiding from the side, it's impossible for them to lose."

So that's how it is.

It seems that Shi Changxing has significantly improved his strength since arriving in the Fog Realm.

The reason the Taoist Ancestor was able to bring people from the Nine Heavens to the World of Gods and establish a place was because the strong person at the center of chaos did not intervene.

Otherwise, the Taoist Ancestor wouldn't have been able to do it, right?

From this, it can be seen that the standard for that strong persona's intervention is whether or not the barrier of the World of Gods is destroyed.

He, Lan Xiaobu, and Mo Wuji all attempted to destroy the barrier, which is why they were forcibly stopped by the strong person's hand seal.

As the two spoke, they once again walked into Ducheng.

Many people saw Shi Changxing and Ding Huan entering Ducheng again and quickly avoided them.

It is clear that everyone knows Shi Changxing and Ding Huan are in big trouble, and no one wants to provoke them.

Shi Changxing's residence is quite secluded, at the edge of Ducheng.

The cave mansion is not considered small, and the restrictions outside are all top-notch Dao prohibitions.

The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi is acceptable but much weaker compared to the center region.

As soon as they entered the cave mansion, Shi Changxing said, "Friend Ding, I'm afraid we can't stay here for too long.

Previously, when we left Ducheng, there was no Seventh Step of Dao Yan to manage us because they didn't want to cause trouble. Now that we've entered, it's equivalent to provoking them, and they're bound to come."

Ding Huan smiled slightly, "Don't worry, there's a lot I need to ask you. Once you're healed, we'll talk."

Shi Changxing shook his head, "My injury was inflicted by a strong person, who warned me that without his permission, if I dared to privately strip away the Killing Dao Rhythm within me, he would annihilate my divine soul upon my return."

"So you're just going to let yourself be threatened like this? And let it corrode your own Great Dao?" Ding Huan looked at Shi Changxing with some disbelief.

That's a bit too cowardly.

Shi Changxing laughed self-deprecatingly, "That guy thinks too highly of me. If I could strip away this Killing Dao Rhythm, I would have done so long ago. I wouldn't be trapped here while my daughter is being bullied."

Ding Huan frowned, surely it can't be?

Shi Changxing mentioned that the strongest here is just the Seventh Step Daoist Saint.

Shi Changxing himself can match the Seventh Step Daoist Saint in a fight, and isn't far behind, so why can't he strip away this Killing Dao Rhythm?

"Let me take a look." Ding Huan raised his hand and his finger pointed at Shi Changxing's brow.

Shi Changxing remained still.

If Ding Huan wanted to kill him, he would have done so already.

While Ding Huan was examining the Killing Dao Rhythm within him, Shi Changxing spoke up, "Even though in Ducheng, the strongest is the Seventh Step Dao Yan, this person is different.

This man is named Wen Shi, extremely terrifying. Though he's likewise a Seventh Step Daoist Saint, he can easily crush the other Seventh Step Daoist Saints.

He was the guy I previously fought with on the Fighting Platform. If he encountered Wen Shi, Wen Shi could easily imprison him with a domain and smack him to death, but I..."

Shi Changxing's tone abruptly halted here, looking at Ding Huan with disbelief. After a few moments, he finally said, "Mr. Ding, did you just... help me strip away the rampaging Killing Dao Rhythm within me?"

If the Killing Dao Rhythm within him were stripped away, his recovery would be a matter of moments.

Ding Huan chuckled, "What else? Although the Killing Dao Rhythm left by Wen Shi is very strong, to me, it's nothing special."

"Your strength..."

Shi Changxing felt a sudden surge of excitement; if Ding Huan's strength was comparable to Wen Shi, wouldn't that mean he could help him?

Ding Huan had so easily stripped away Wen Shi's Killing Dao Rhythm, suggesting that his power and talent are probably top-tier.

Ding Huan shook his head, "My strength is likely far inferior to Wen Shi, but when it comes to stripping away the Killing Dao Rhythm, I wouldn't say I'm the best, but ordinary people can forget about using it to trap me."

This is something he realized after millennia.

Even the Killing Dao Rhythm of the strong person from the World of Gods was stripped away by him; as strong as Wen Shi may be, he's not worthy of being mentioned.

Feeling his strength recovering again, Shi Changxing's confidence soared.

He suddenly stood up because he needed to go rescue his daughter.

Ding Huan asked, "Mr. Shi, do you know where Mo Wuji and Lan Xiaobu might be?"

Shi Changxing affirmed, "I know, if you want to find them, I will take you there. But before that, I need to rescue my daughter first."

"Your daughter?"

"Yes, the reason I fought with Luo Kaisi was because of my daughter."

As soon as Shi Changxing finished speaking, the restriction of his cave mansion was suddenly struck, violently shaking the entire space.

"Haha, they are here." Now that Shi Changxing has recovered, he no longer fears the visitors as before.