"If the Heavenly Dao is a selection machine...
then where did those not chosen go?
And if there is one who can call them back?
Then... who is the true Dao?"
The Night after the Ash Burial Valley – Myriad Spirits Surge
Lin Mo sat atop a colossal dark gray rock, his gaze fixed on the sky.
Around him – not a ripple of spiritual energy.
But from deep within his blood marrow, a faint chain of vibrations echoed.
Not a call – but empathy.
Across all realms:
In a shattered ancient cave dwelling, the soul of a wronged cultivator trembled.
Beneath the bottom of the Blood Remnant River, ancient grievances of thousands of years awoke.
In the Silent Void Divine Realm – where only those who died resisting heavenly fate resided, soul phantoms turned towards the north.
"Is someone... calling us?"
"Not the sound of a saint. Not a demonic thought.
It's... someone who is not Dao – yet makes me want to return."
From within Lin Mo's ashen Dao heart, a seal spontaneously formed – not through cultivation, nor through learning.
But from the resonance of myriad spiritual thoughts, coalescing into an ancient script:
"Spirit Guiding – Soul Linking – Defying Heavenly Dao."
He had no spiritual power, no divine abilities.
But he was the central nexus connecting all souls ever erased from reincarnation.
A realm never before recorded – beyond the definition of "mortal – immortal – saint."
From afar, a headless figure, clad in tattered ancient Daoist robes, appeared.
On his chest was the "Annihilation" seal – the mark of having been completely destroyed by the Divine Palace.
Yet... he knelt before Lin Mo.
"You... have Dao but are not Dao.
Without fate, yet lead fate.
Please allow me... to be reborn again in your Dao."
"I don't need an afterlife.
Only a single thought... to die justly."
He had no ability to transcend souls.
But the ash Dao within his bloodline was a response of an "unrecorded Dao" – meaning any concept rejected by the Heavenly Dao... found refuge within him.
"If so, come.
This ash and bone... will be a new tomb for you.
And also the foundation for my Dao."
From the nine directions of the heavens, over three thousand rebellious souls gathered.
No resounding cries, no light.
Just... an ashen vortex opening behind Lin Mo.
From now on... I am the "Spirit Guide."
Not transcending. Not transmitting Dharma.
But bringing spiritual thoughts back, to live on in the New Dao.
At the center of the Heavenly Law Realm, Heavenly-ranked Lords gathered.
One old Daoist trembled:
"Never recorded in the heavenly scrolls.
One whose Dao was destroyed... yet becomes the gathering place for myriad souls.
This... is an irreversible mutation!"
"If allowed to continue... he will become a Dao system not of heaven and earth!"
Another voice spoke gravely:
"Immediately summon the Ancient Divine Palace.
This one... cannot be allowed to live another day!"
The moment Lin Mo completed the Spirit Guiding ritual, a spatial crack opened.
From within it – a black-clad woman, her face covered by an ancient mask, her eyes as dark blue as an abyss, slowly stepped out.
She said not a word. Only bowed her head – then knelt.
"You are the Spirit Guide... but not the first.
You are... the last one remaining."