Chapter 1543

"Crack!"

The wake-up block struck the table, its sound shaking the whole hall; the storyteller took a sip of tea, flicked up his sleeve, pressed two fingers together, and pointed a sword-finger at the vault of heaven: "Ladies and gentlemen, we continue from last time — it is said that the Whale Emperor lay dormant for three thousand years, secretly gathering the momentum to swallow like a whale, taking advantage of the East Sea Grand Hunt —"

"Oh! Another load of cartwheel talk; this routine, this segment, how many times have you gone over it back and forth? Just move on — always rehashing the old stuff, what's the point? I pass by every day and just hearing one segment has given my ears calluses; no wonder you can't make any money!"

At the alley mouth, trouser legs caked in mud, a fellow just back from transplanting rice seedlings in the fields and now heading home to repair his house shouldered a plank and led a group of men in loud shouts, at once drawing a chorus of agreement.

"Right, right, start from the beginning again, just go straight ahead."

"Yes, go ahead — pick up from last time when they fought to the edge of the universe, the Great Dao itself worn away. Chicken turns into dog, dog turns into chicken, men turn into women, women turn into men."

The men behind passed by one after another; hearing someone call out, they stopped step by step to join in, every one of them coated in mud, dressed for hard work.

"All right, all right." The storyteller sighed helplessly, gathered his thoughts anew, gave a light cough, and said: "As I was saying last time, the Great Dao worn away, men turning into women, women turning into men! The Great Li Founding Emperor shook and transformed — and became the Great Li Empress Dowager!

That fellow, what heavy makeup and slender waist, hips big as a green gourd, breasts swaying with more waves than the Huaijiang — a sight to make one scratch ears and claw liver —"

"Good!"

At the alley mouth, the crowd of passersby grew larger, roaring with laughter.

"What nonsense is this person spouting."

Long Pinghe trembled with rage at the words and instantly stepped around to turn.

"!" Long Pingjiang caught him at the intersection: "What are you doing?"

"Big brother, didn't you hear? What rotten vulgar trash he's spouting!" Long Pinghe pointed at the alley mouth, furious. "The Great Li Founding Emperor is beneath mention, but his wild talk — doesn't it drag down my lord's present glory of transforming into a rainbow, fighting two alone, defeating the Great Li Founding Emperor and the Whale Emperor? My lord knows how much hardship it took to protect this world, and he still hasn't returned!"

Long Pingjiang smiled: "Didn't the Southern Border Immortal and the Dragon-Elephant King say so? Just too tired and fell asleep — only sleeping longer than ordinary people. Besides, a message was specially sent; if my lord were really here, he'd be squatting in the front row, the first to clap and reward silver, laughing right along with everyone."

Long Pinghe froze, for a moment actually unable to find a retort.

Thinking it over carefully, it really seemed like something the Elder would do — even going up himself to embellish the tale.

Long Pinghe instantly lost most of his steam, no longer in the mood to argue.

"What do you care about them? You shut things up here, but will they stop behind you?" Long Pingjiang dragged Long Pinghe away, continuing to persuade: "Men have always liked listening to this stuff; it's not the first time ashore — if the opera troupe doesn't show some thigh, who's going to watch?"

"Watch?"

Long Pinghe sighed, no longer obsessing, merely tilting his head to gaze at the sky, staring at the blue heavens.

White clouds gathered and scattered.

A month had passed.

The three-way Transformation-into-Rainbow battle broke through the nine heavens and ten earths, reaching the boundless void, yet the aftershocks still seethed across the world.

The Great Li Founding Emperor transformed into a rainbow; countless people were forced into a dream, comatose for a full month, and upon waking could not even walk the road.

The Whale Emperor held the Grand Hunt; deaths in the East Sea Arena were beyond count; to this day corpses on the sea surface have gathered into floating islands, too many to salvage or identify.

After that the moon shattered; every day fragmented meteors fell from the sky; although Martial Saints intercepted them, the tides ran wild, and even more coastal towns were submerged.

Simply —

Not counting that, after spring began, planting was needed; people had no time even for grief before they had to hurriedly roll up their trouser legs and step into the mud fields, busy filling their bellies.

Even fertile places like Pingyang and Yixing fared badly, let alone elsewhere. Not to mention the many follow-up disasters in between — rebellions, bandits, roving brigands, floods, all kinds of extreme weather — not collapsing completely was already no small feat.

Traveling back and forth from the Jianghuai Great Marsh to the Prince of Huai's Mansion, what Long Pinghe saw most every day was villagers finishing the rice paddies, unable to rest before turning around to haul bricks and repair their shattered houses; if luck was bad, they had one more funeral to arrange.

Everyone was busy off their feet; every time they reached the Prince of Huai's Mansion, Su Guishan was rarely in the kitchen eating with everyone; the occasional one or two times they ran into him, he was complaining.

"Wonder when the Elder will be back —"

Thinking this far, Long Pinghe finally let go completely, no longer caring what the storyteller said.

If they can get a bit of joy, never mind whether it's vulgar or refined, highbrow or lowbrow — if it can make people laugh right now, it's a good thing, period.

"Let's go, still plenty to do today; go get the appropriation from Hedgehog, then head to Peng Ze — bandits are everywhere now, but at least on our Huaijiang there can't be any; don't let the Elder come back and scold us."

"Here I come! Brother, you say — is Transformation-into-Rainbow really undying and indestructible? Then we don't have to worry anymore —"

"Little Hedgehog, Big Beast —" Chen Zhaoan entered the public hall trembling.

Hedgehog sighed, set down official business: "Old Chen, what brings you again? The temple-building matter — talk later; in the current situation, the Great King certainly won't agree to waste the people's labor and money."

"Fangzhu Big Fish, trouble you to coordinate supplies."

"Wangfei, Her Majesty the Empress requests an audience —"

"Cheers for Big Fish Hei!"

April.

Heaven and earth deep green, Huaijiang vast white; Great Shun, Southern Border, Northern Court — all set about post-disaster reconstruction; everyone busy, Bai Yuan sleeping soundly.

May.

Heaven and earth deep green, Huaijiang vast white.

Post-disaster reconstruction in full swing, Bai Yuan still sleeping soundly, incidentally rolling over.

June —

"Hah-hu, hah-hu —"

Bai Yuan scratched his butt, grinned wide.

"Hehe, hehe — this one's good, this one's good, just wear this one —"

"Bang!"

Sparks shot forth; crimson gold-water molten poured down from the sky like the Tianhe, cascading into the Great River, stirring rolling white mist; the gold-water cooled into a bronze great mountain, pressing down.

Above the nine heavens.

One deity after another, one strange beast after another, smeared their own blood on the bronze great mountain, advancing and emitting boundless light.

Bai Yuan roared desperately in the river water; no matter what, he could not break free, and finally sank —

"Hiss!"

Liang Qu snapped his eyes open and sat up, heart palpitating in panic, drenched in sweat; only after a long while did he realize it was a dream.

Staring blankly at his surroundings.

Dead silence, vast emptiness, cold yet scorching.

The side facing away from the sun is chilled, the side facing the sun is scorching hot.

Still in the void.

"Strange, suppressed by Great Yu, why would I dream of this? Daylong thoughts bring nightly dreams—damn, must be the trauma left by the Great Ancestor of Great Li and the Whale King."

For a long time after the college entrance exam, Liang Qu occasionally dreamed of sitting in the examination hall.

The bodies of the Great Ancestor of Great Li and the Whale King still drift scattered in the void.

Scratching ears and cheeks, letting out a yawn.

The massive white ape's body gradually shrank, shedding its fur, Liang Qu still feeling weak, "How long have I slept? Well—there's still so much to do."

Taking a breath, Liang Qu rose to his feet, communicated with the Ze Ding, then his gaze was drawn to the changes on the Ze Ding.

After a long while, he sat cross-legged again.

The image on the Ze Ding changed.

Originally, the pattern on the Ze Ding should have been a human deity on one side, a beast deity on the other, the human deity foremost, the black-robed emperor, the beast deity being Wu Zhiqi.

Now, aside from Wu Zhiqi, the other divine patterns have faded considerably, and the originally fierce, roaring white ape is now seated in meditation, displaying a hint of divinity.

When did it change?

During the smelting?

Liang Qu recalled his third meeting with Wu Zhiqi.

He had met Wu Zhiqi three times in total.

The first was after Entering Zhen Xiang, when he went to the Hanging Temple to pray to the Buddha within the Six Heavens of Desire.

The second was during the Ying Long era, when he and the white ape mutually gnawed and tore at each other, disintegrating flesh and blood.

The third was not long ago.

The Ze Ding is absolutely not an object of this world; the tales of Wu Zhiqi, Ying Long, and the River Lord—this era knows nothing of them, repeated speculation has gradually narrowed down.

Among the Ze Ling capable of fusion, only Wu Zhiqi from beginning to end; the rest are merely favored.

"Only I am inside the Ze Ding; it is none other than Guishan."

Liang Qu lay down, recalling the answer from his first encounter with the monkey, his mouth twitching.

Social rehabilitation of convicts?

Setting that aside.

Who am I, then?

Spreading his five fingers, Liang Qu silently stared at the palm lines above, dazed, watching them radiate from the main trunk like tributaries along a river, or like the divergence of various possible thoughts.

Allotrope?

Good-Evil Tiger Talisman?

The chosen child?

The wall-facer?

Several of the most plausible answers gradually emerged.

After a long while.

"Damn, what's the point of thinking so much? Now the things are mine, hehe."

He flipped upright, sat up, no longer drowsy.

"Transforming into Rainbow—"

Liang Qu clenched his fist, left hand grabbed, pulling out a steaming-hot bag of potato chips, right hand grabbed again, pulling out a cup of freshly made ice cream.

Grab a handful of chips, take a bite of ice cream.

Never mind Transforming into Rainbow—even in the Smelting, one can go without food or drink, but after a great battle, having a meal is often a pleasant thing.

So refreshing.

【Pangu】

【Authority: Easy Dominion】

【Ying Long】

【Authority: Breath Dominion】

With the two authorities in hand, at will, one can pull out whatever one wishes, take out whatever one desires.

Even non-existent things!

Mirage Dragon Authority, transforming the illusory into the real!

Heaven and Earth have soaked and stained the Dream Dynasty, unable to wield the Dream Dynasty's authority, yet, similarly, it is Pangu!

The Giant Spirit has already turned the heavenly chasm into a passage, reducing various obstacles; needing to Transform into Rainbow to open a realm for Pangu's ascension is even more exaggerated.

But as for eating and drinking, transforming the illusory into the real always feels strange, as if one is pinching air to eat air.

Huai Wang Fu, the Monkey King stood on the roof, head raised to gaze at the sky, brows furrowed in worry.

Kitchen, potato slices soaking in brine, bamboo ladle lifted to drain, Otter Kai prepared to lower them into the pot, suddenly noticed the basket beside was empty, startling him greatly.

Pausing.

Flipping left, flipping right.

Lifting the basket and placing it over his head, reaching inside to look.

The kitchen rang with a violent roar.

The golden-furred monkey cried out in surprise, turning his head, a bamboo pole shot out violently, striking squarely in the face!

The Monkey King toppled headfirst, rolling down with gurgling sounds, Otter Kai leapt into the air.

Ice cellar, Long Yao and Long Li had just finished preparing drinks, ready to deliver to the Empress and E Ying, turned heads to see the table bare, faces dazed.

I thought it over.

"Mao!"

Long Li's finger, at a glance, saw the black hair on the ice block.

"Wu! Long!!!"

After cooling off in the ice cellar, the oolong that had rested in the hallway perked up its ears, immediately excited and rose, walking toward the ice cellar.

The Huaijiang Prince's Mansion was in chaos, monkeys running, otters chasing.

The scar-faced man wore a yellow robe, stepped out from the pond, saw the Monkey King fallen, clasped his hands, shook his head and sighed.

"Burp!"

The salty taste exploded on the taste buds, awakening the whole body, he gulped down the drink in one breath, Liang Qu belched, sent the trash back, and began to explore.

Without the hindrance of the Great Li Taizu and the Whale Emperor, his form flashed, he leapt into his own heaven and earth.

The Marsh State underwent a great change.

The rivers were vast, the lands boundless, above were stars, sun and moon——

A thought turned.

The temperature plummeted, spring turned to winter, then turned again, it was midsummer, vitality flowed endlessly, flowers bloomed and withered, fell and bloomed again, mountains rose, rivers widened, the world followed the heart.

"Power is still growing——"

Liang Qu exclaimed.

He could feel the temperature of the potato chips, roughly thirty-odd? Close to normal human body temperature, indicating Huaijiang's temperature had already reached midsummer, he had slept for at least two months, yet the expansion after promotion had not vanished at all, seeming to continue indefinitely.

He could feel it.

Transforming into a rainbow, a sight utterly different from the smelting furnace, perhaps the true "End of the Dao."

Because of this feeling of infinite growth!

The seed of the world!

A single seed of the world, once cultivated, can grow endlessly.

Before, it was merely speculation; the furnace could not self-nurture, not because it was impossible to cultivate a second or third trait, but because its connection to heaven and earth was tenuous.

Now the speculation is thoroughly confirmed.

After transforming into a rainbow, the connection with heaven and earth tightened once more.

Yao Long, its own trait, resonates with the great heaven and earth.

Transforming into a rainbow, its own trait, resonates with its own heaven and earth.

As long as Liang Qu wishes, he can fully cultivate the remaining authorities slowly, or due to the initial cause, time is generally measured in hundreds, thousands of

units?

"What a magnificent heaven and earth藏!"

Liang Qu was excited.

He had never thought he could open up such a world, pure chance and coincidence, the original purpose was merely a Heavenly Yuan, plus four御属, to thus open up the Heavenly Yuan.

Making preparations was always for things with certainty; how the Ze Ling fusion would turn out, whether there would be a great position fruit, Liang Qu himself was utterly unsure, naturally not included in the battle plan.

The initial plan was to first Cangming, delay a month, aided by opening a realm, just completed the Giant Spirit's Opening Heaven and Earth promotion ceremony, letting the Giant Spirit ascend to Pangu, letting Pangu and the River Lord, let the earth stem, which already half belonged to himself, ascend to the great position fruit, thus gathering the four御.

One Heavenly Yuan, five premium great fruits, on paper strength was equally sufficient to suppress the Great Li Taizu and the Whale Emperor, just not as clean and decisive as the Heaven and Earth藏.

Who would have thought a Wu Zhiqi would appear midway, letting him avoid such trouble, and furthermore, the Heavenly Yuan and Earth Stem, instantly corresponded symmetrically, creatively using one set of four御 to construct two special worlds like the bases of two pyramids stuck together.

Heavenly Yuan and Earth Stem, constructing the framework, Yinglong's flow let the world brim with vitality, Pangu let everything proceed smoothly, the River Lord let everything elevate, Wu Zhiqi let everything happen.

The most crucial——

Drew a deep breath.

Liang Qu's eyes flickered.

"Other worlds——"

Yao Long "River Stone", Smelting Furnace "Riverbed". Now, Transforming into a Rainbow, Liang Qu faintly could——only more blurred than the riverbed, Yao Long precisely locates, Smelting Furnace only knows the state's location, Transforming into a Rainbow is even only direction, number, distance.

Unlike Yao Long and Smelting Furnace which can approach, in every direction there is exactly a layer of dimensional obstruction, normal Transforming into a Rainbow perhaps cannot proceed.

But Liang Qu holding Pangu, Yinglong, and Wu Zhiqi is different!

"First attend to business!"

The future is long, not in a hurry to explore, Liang Qu raised a hand and grabbed.

"Liang——Huai——"

In the darkness, a human shadow flickered, light and shadow scattered, accompanied by approaching, gradually becoming clear.

"Yo! Dragon Elephant King! Good morning hey!" Liang Qu waved, laughed heartily, nothing compares to seeing an old friend after battle to excite people, he looked at Zhang Dragon Elephant, "How about it, Liang Qu? Huai Wang? Huai Xian? Don't know how to address me anymore?"

Zhang Dragon Elephant, who had been hesitant just now, smiled foolishly: "There are some, you woke up?"

"Yeah, just woke up, what time is it now?"

Zhang Dragon Elephant let out a long breath: "June, over two months, you like that, we dared not wake you, the Cloaked Old Man guarded Linchuan, I came every day to check, see if anything happened."

"Over two months, not bad, not too long, hey, rest easy, it's over."

Zhang Dragon Elephant's expression moved: "Great Li Taizu and Whale Emperor——"

"Here!" Liang Qu seized Great Li Taizu's neck and lifted him up.

"Dead?" Zhang Dragon Elephant examined him up and down, incredulous.

The venerable Great Li Taizu, the first Smelting Furnace cultivator.

From ancient times to now, within one day, three Transforming into a Rainbow, in the blink of an eye two fell——

A small town, one day may not even sell two pigs.

"No, but almost as good as dead." Liang Qu closed his eyes, deeply sensed, "Transforming into a Rainbow is neither dead nor extinct, these two fellows haven't died in the conventional sense," merely I knocked them unconscious, they'll likely be out for a few hundred years?"

"Only a few hundred years, and there's no way to kill them?" Zhang Longxiang frowned.

"Hmm, they can't be killed by Huahong, no exceptions, unless we knock them down from Huahong."

"Can you do it?" Zhang Longxiang believed in eradicating the roots when weeding.

"It can be done, but I currently have no intention of doing so."

"Why?" Zhang Longxiang frowned, worried that Liang Qu might be arrogant.

The founding emperor of Dayi, the Whale Emperor, none lacked wolfish ambitions, with such a nature, controlling and devouring, destined to be enemies of the world, if left alive, would only become future troubles.

"Because it's a waste, these two fellows still have great use, found them!"

Liang Qu opened his eyes.

"Found?"

"Didn't many people die in this battle?"

Zhang Longxiang fell silent for a moment: "Innumerable."

"After Zhen Xiang dies, there will be remnants; after Ya Long dies, there will be remnant souls, almost retaining a certain consciousness. The Dream Dynasty of Dayi's founding emperor is based on this, and later, with the expansion of the Dream Dynasty, Souhu, Langyan, and Benma gradually could enter and be preserved——"

Zhang Longxiang's heart suddenly jumped, his eyes widened instantly, he stared fixedly at Liang Qu: "You mean————"

"Wherever one passes, traces must be left; ordinary people actually have remnants too, only unable to perceive them, like fireflies in the bushes wandering between heaven and earth.

Dayi's founding emperor's Huahong world is exceptionally favorable; ordinary people within half a year should be able to, with the aid of the Dream Dynasty, all be reborn." Liang Qu raised his eyebrows, "I said, I haven't slept too long, just right."

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