Chapter 205

The marvel of the Scripture of Longevity lies in quickly unlocking the human body's hidden secrets and then developing them; it is the most powerful internal cultivation method under heaven.

Before the royal ancestor spoke of the Scripture of Longevity, it existed only in ancient myth.

The royal ancestor could determine that Chen Yi He leapt from the fourth heaven to the seventh heaven in three months because he saw the great power within Chen Yi He's body and vaguely perceived that pitch-black great hand inside him.

The gulf between the fourth heaven and the seventh heaven is greater than that between heaven and earth; ordinary people spend their whole lives and still cannot see its edge, and even a heavenly gifted genius would need at least a thousand years of cultivation—but how could a mortal live a thousand years?

If not for that pitch-black great hand within Chen Yi He's body, the royal ancestor would never dare claim he could help Chen Yi He accomplish such a splendid reversal. This is also a gamble for the royal ancestor; he knows the power within Chen Yi He's body, which even the seventh heaven cannot fathom, and if it could be harnessed, heaven and earth would be changed.

What plans the royal ancestor has are known only to himself. His worry is simply that he cannot control this power, which cannot be used by him.

Chen Yi He sat cross-legged on the mat, eyes tightly shut, cheeks tense, maintaining a tense expression; hot vapor continually rose from the top of his head, thick and dense, filling the roof of the top floor of the Scripture Pavilion. He was silently chanting something; only by listening closely could one faintly hear phrases like 'accumulated yang becomes spirit, accumulated yin forms shape, yin and yang halves combine to form the body,' and so on.

Immediately thereafter, specks of golden light emanated from Chen Yi He's body, outshining the specks of white light from his previous cultivation method, the Scripture of Withering and Flourishing, as if about to devour it.

This is the Scripture of Longevity! It is initially effective.

The royal ancestor watched Chen Yi He warily; seven days passed, and Chen Yi He successfully entered the fifth heaven from the fourth heaven! He used only seven days, with no extraordinary encounter nor major battle, naturally arriving at the fifth heaven. At just over twenty years old, he became a master of the fifth heaven.

Moreover, it is likely that Chen Yi He will soon reach the sixth heaven.

That would be a speed unattainable by anyone!

The royal ancestor gazed at Chen Yi He, his feelings mixed, thinking, 'This kid, given time, will surely become a powerhouse recorded in history; with the same Scripture of Longevity, he has actually mastered it so quickly—ashamed am I, for I spent a full ten years merely grasping its superficialities, whereas this kid spent only seven days total.'

During these seven days, he was not idle; he kept observing, observing that pitch-black great hand within Chen Yi He's body, wanting to study it, for only through study could he master it, yet it lay dead‑silent, giving no opportunity at all.

The royal ancestor noticed nothing, but Chen Yi He felt it.

'How can my body be possessed by your soul?' that profound voice came from the depths of the abyss.

'You always say that, aren't you tired?' Chen Yi He countered with his divine sense. He hadn't expected an answer, but this time he received one.

'Tired? Heh, how could I not be tired? You're always occupying someone else's body—aren't you tired?'

'Occupying someone else's body?' Chen Yi He exclaimed in shock.

That was merely his divine sense startling; his body remained like a cold statue, with no reaction, and the royal ancestor could not see such a great disturbance in his state of mind.

Chen Yi He could not believe, no matter what, that he was occupying someone else's body!

This is clearly Chen Yi He's own body!

'Quickly relinquish the king's body!' the pitch‑black great hand gradually appeared before Chen Yi He's eyes, uttering an angry cry.

'This is clearly my own body; why do you say I've taken yours? Eyes, ears, nose, mouth, tongue, hands and feet—all are mine, Chen Yi He's, unchanged.' Chen Yi He retorted.

'Where do you come from? Do you know? You don't belong here! The king belongs here, and you are occupying the king's body.'

'The king? Who are you, daring to speak to me like this? Clearly it's you who's occupying my body!' Chen Yi He questioned.

'Heh, who is the king? The king is the sovereign of heaven! You, a mere mortal, are not worthy to know; does the king occupy your body? Heh, if it weren't for the king, you'd have died ten thousand times already!' the pitch‑black great hand mocked mercilessly. His voice was exactly the same as Chen Yi He's. 'Where exactly do you come from, that you have the ability to forcibly seize the king's body?'

'Forcibly taking your body, you person—are you boasting without a draft?' Chen Yi He felt guilty, especially when he heard the words 'Where exactly do you come from,' his heart suddenly tightened; how could someone know he came from another world?

Isn't this the world inside a book? Isn't everything here illusory?

But everything is actually so real; when Long Yue died, it was that real; when he was being hunted down, it was that real!

Chen Yi He had never before been able to sense the existence of that pitch‑black great hand; only after these few days, upon entering the fifth heaven, did he feel it, likely as his strength increased, he gradually approached it.

Then, it sensed a sense of crisis.

'Looks like we have nothing to talk about,' Chen Yi He said fearlessly, having roughly figured out what was happening—like a parasite in ordinary fantasy, that pitch‑black great hand is parasitizing his body! Yet it still dares not do anything to him; given the present situation, the two of them must either live together or die together.

That pitch‑black great hand has not yet reached the point of being able to detach from Chen Yi He's body, or perhaps it will continue to reside in his body; it might also be dormant, waiting for a suitable opportunity, then forcibly seize Chen Yi He's body, become a new individual, and cause Chen Yi He to vanish in smoke and ash.

All sorts of endings from online stories flashed through Chen Yi He's mind in an instant; he felt a chill run down his spine, unable even to imagine such a thing happening to him.

He also didn't care whose body this was; now that he's using it, it's his. No one can take it away, no one should even try. 'Who exactly are you?'

'The King of Loulan.' That was the answer Chen Yi He received.

'Loulan? King?' Chen Yi He had heard the four words 'ancient kingdom of Loulan' in the real world; legend says it was a mysterious ancient state existing in China's northwest, which ultimately, under unknown circumstances, suddenly vanished, taking its people with it, becoming a legend passed down through word of mouth.

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