Chapter 760
“If you’ve already attained the Golden Immortal Dao and entered my Underworld, I wouldn’t know how to deal with you.” The Nine Nether Demon Ancestor slowly reined in the complex expressions on his face and said coldly, “But you’re just a True Immortal…”
Lu Yao chuckled, lowering his gaze towards Zhi Tong.
Zhi Tong also smiled faintly.
Sitting cross-legged on the ground, he murmured:
“In a place without escape, how can one find liberation?”
“Take refuge in my Buddha, and ascend to the Pure Land.”
Zhi Tong repeated these two lines over and over.
In the void, it seemed as if millions were chanting along with him.
The sound of the Buddha’s chant grew louder and more distant.
Amidst this chorus, Zhi Tong began to ignite spontaneously.
Golden flames surged from the decaying earth beneath him, spreading from his legs to engulf his entire body.
His flesh and skin burst open, revealing white bones, and he resembled a wick of a lamp.
Countless candle flames illuminated all directions.
The muddy ground transformed into glass in an instant.
In the dead city of the wronged souls, trees sprang up, vibrant and full of life.
The dark Yin Mountain brightened, turning into a holy mountain forged from seven treasures, radiating brilliance.
Clear, pure spring water flowed down from the foot of the mountain, tinkling melodiously.
A wave of indescribable joy surged within Zheng Fa’s soul.
“What is this…”
He looked at Zhi Tong, astonished:
Zhi Tong’s spirit, spiritual power, and physical form had all become fuel.
This hellish realm transformed into a land of Buddhist purity.
He sensed something was amiss and turned to the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor. Sure enough, one half of the Demon Ancestor’s body was shrouded in darkness, while the other half shone with Buddhist light.
It was evident that he was being tainted by the Buddha’s radiance.
Zheng Fa had no idea what method Lu Yao was employing, but he could roughly guess its principle.
Essentially, it was quite similar to Zheng Fa’s control over the Qingping Sword.
The Heavenly River method had its pros and cons.
The greatest advantage was that cultivators could gain combat power far beyond that of ordinary people.
Take Xie Qingxue, for instance; she was merely a Transformation God, yet with the Qingping Sword, she was nearly invincible among those below the Immortal level.
However, relying too heavily on the Qingping Sword meant that if Zheng Fa could control it, he could also influence her in return.
It seemed the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor had not escaped this limitation either.
Just now, as the Book of Life and Death evolved, the Underworld was expanding. It was clear that the relationship between the Underworld and the Book of Life and Death was akin to that of the Sun and Moon Bell and the Nine Mountain Realm; they were originally one entity.
Now, the Underworld was about to transform into a land of Buddhism.
It seemed the Book of Life and Death was also being influenced by Lu Yao.
Thus, the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor appeared to be constrained as well.
…
This sudden change left everyone in the Nine Mountain Realm dumbfounded.
“Is Lu Yao refining the Book of Life and Death?” Elder Yuan furrowed his brow, “This is not good…”
Indeed, it was not good.
“Who would have thought that Lu Yao could make a True Immortal from the Thunder Sound Temple willingly face death?”
It was clear to everyone that the main reason for Lu Yao’s success was Zhi Tong’s sacrifice.
Lu Yao’s cultivation level was merely that of a True Immortal, and he was still an outsider.
The Thunder Sound Temple was actually willing to invest such a significant cost.
With a True Immortal’s lifetime accumulation, they paved the way for Lu Yao.
And then there was the Taishang Dao!
That stingy Xuan Ding!
To be honest, Zheng Fa was starting to consider turning to Buddhism.
…
Sister Zhang’s expression was also grim: “If Lu Yao refines the Book of Life and Death, he might directly attain the Golden Immortal Dao.”
“Very likely…” the Heavenly Emperor’s body agreed, “Previously, when Luo the Loose Immortal fell, he didn’t intervene, which shows how eager he is to attain the Dao.”
“Now that he has emerged, it seems he’s aiming for the Golden Immortal Dao.”
Elder Yuan stroked his beard thoughtfully, muttering, “Perhaps he’s aiming for more than just the Golden Immortal.”
This statement plunged the Heavenly Palace into silence.
According to what Lu Yao had just said, it seemed he looked down on even the Taiyi level.
Yet, a single Golden Immortal was enough to shake the Nine Mountain Realm to its core.
“I wonder if the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor can hold on.”
Everyone watched the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor in the light screen, seeing him sitting cross-legged atop the Yin Mountain, his golden light and the black-and-white radiance clashing fiercely, neither yielding to the other.
It was clear he was strenuously resisting Lu Yao’s refinement.
But everyone could see that the Buddha’s light was gradually intensifying, threatening to overwhelm the original black-and-white mysterious light.
“Xizhou… Lu Yao must be drawing on the incense power of Xizhou!” Sister Zhang seemed to remember something and exclaimed, “Over time, the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor will surely be defeated.”
The people in the Heavenly Palace fell into deeper silence.
Everyone understood that Lu Yao attaining the Dao posed a greater threat to the Nine Mountain Realm than the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor’s success.
“What should we do?” Uncle Pang urged, “Should we attack the Thunder Sound Temple?”
“…”
It must be said, when Uncle Pang got reckless, he was truly frightening.
Yet Sister Zhang furrowed her brows, genuinely contemplating:
“If it comes to that, we have no choice. Even if the Taishang Dao and Yaochi don’t help, our Nine Mountain Sect will spare no effort. With the addition of Lord Shuyu, we might still have a fighting chance.”
As she spoke, she drew the innate Eight Trigrams in the air, but after a moment, she shook her head: “There are great dangers within the Thunder Sound Temple.”
The Heavenly Emperor’s body nodded:
“All four sects should have some hidden trump cards.”
“Moreover, it’s hard to say whether Lord Shuyu is willing to fight for us.”
Uncle Pang’s expression darkened slightly, murmuring, “Then what should we do?”
“Let’s first try to find the treasures of the Heavenly River.”
“…”
“The treasures of the Heavenly River?” Sister Zhang was taken aback, “Are they useful?”
“Let’s just say there’s hope.” The Heavenly Emperor’s body also showed some hesitation, “If we can find the next step of the Heavenly River method, perhaps we can help the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor break free from the constraints of the Book of Life and Death.”
Sister Zhang nodded slightly at his words: “We can only seek life in the midst of death.”
The Heavenly Emperor’s body understood that Sister Zhang didn’t hold out much hope either.
To put it bluntly, whether finding the remnants of the Heavenly River could change the situation was uncertain.
Many things were merely Zheng Fa’s conjectures.
Yet Sister Zhang had always stood by his side, supporting him almost unreasonably.
In truth, Zheng Fa’s need to search for the treasures also stemmed from some plans he couldn’t yet voice:
The best outcome would be if the Heavenly River Venerable had a backup plan to counter Lu Yao.
If not, Zheng Fa also wanted to uncover the origins of the Yin-Yang Fish jade pendant—he wanted to see if he could move the Nine Mountain Realm to the modern world, avoiding Lu Yao’s threat.
In the worst-case scenario, if he and the Nine Mountain Realm couldn’t escape, he would need to find a way to sever the connection between the Xuanwei Realm and the modern world—
At the very least, he needed to protect the modern world and preserve the last glimmer of hope.
He had already prepared for the worst.
Uncle Pang asked a crucial question: “How do we find it?”
The Heavenly Emperor’s body smiled, waving his hand, and a phantom of the Xian Sword appeared before everyone.
“I observed many of the symbols in the previous sword formation, and by comparing them with the symbols on the Xian Sword, I’ve gleaned some secrets of the sword formation.”
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 515: The Method to Break the Formation, A Trace Left by the Passing Goose
Finding the treasures of the Heavenly River is not an easy task.
“While passing through the Zhuxian Sword Formation earlier, I was observing,” the Heavenly Emperor’s body explained to everyone in the Xuanwu Courtyard’s formation laboratory, “I found that the symbols in the sword formation are seven parts similar to those on the Xian Sword.”
Sister Zhang remarked, “That’s to be expected; the Xian Sword and the Zhuxian Sword Formation originate from the same source.”
Xie Qingxue, listening nearby, looked puzzled: “What’s the use of that?”
“Currently, what’s blocking my entry into the Ten Thousand Sword Realm is actually the Zhuxian formation diagram and the Book of Life and Death,” the Heavenly Emperor’s body explained. “These two treasures should possess their own spatial abilities.”
“Now, it seems the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor wants to combine the space of the Book of Life and Death with the Heavenly River Sect to create the Underworld, which is fine.”
“The problem lies with the Zhuxian formation diagram; it obstructs the Underworld from the outside world, limiting my actions.”
Xie Qingxue suddenly understood: “The Ten Thousand Sword Realm is far from… the City of Wronged Souls.”
“So, to find the treasures of the Heavenly River, I must break free from the constraints of the Zhuxian formation diagram.”
In simple terms, the Ten Thousand Sword Realm is not in the Underworld. Zheng Fa must escape the Underworld by breaking free from the Zhuxian Sword Formation’s obstruction.
To put it more plainly, they need to break the Zhuxian formation diagram.
Xie Qingxue finally grasped the concept, yet she still seemed confused, pointing at herself with a dazed expression: “We? Break the Zhuxian formation diagram?”
She looked down at the figures of the Nisha Yuanjun and others in the live broadcast.
If breaking the Zhuxian formation diagram were that easy, what had happened to the four True Immortals trapped in the formation before? Were they just unlucky?
“They just lacked knowledge.”
The Heavenly Emperor’s body made a joke.
He could see that Sister Zhang and the others were feeling quite heavy—Lu Yao’s pressure was indeed immense.
After all, this person not only had profound cultivation but also had the Thunder River Sect and the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor at each other’s throats; he was not someone to be trifled with.
Now, with him as the hypothetical enemy, Zheng Fa felt little confidence, only hoping the Heavenly River Venerable would be a bit more reliable.
Fortunately, the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor was holding the fort.
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