Chapter 273: The Relic Turtle Shell, A Difficult Choice

Huai River, Shuimu Yifu.

Amidst the shade of pines and bamboo, emerald green enters the quiet chamber.

The windows on all four sides are wide open, and the color of the leaves and the essence of the water permeate inward together, blending into a single hue.

In the center, a verdant Turtle Shell hangs suspended.

It appears as if carved from fine jade, with interwoven textures, ancient and weathered, emitting immeasurable golden light of merit.

Fang Longye sits cross-legged on a Cloud Couch, his eyes slightly closed, his expression solemn.

Above his crown, auspicious clouds drift and sink, and blossoms of Green Lotus bloom.

Fragrant and lush, rich and sweet.

As the Green Lotus bloom and fall, they scatter a radiance of glazed jade, unstained by a single speck of dust.

Ineffable Purple-Green Qi emerges from the void, falls into the pistils, and then slowly flows out, silent and noiseless, mysterious and unfathomable.

Then, in a mysterious manner, it resonates with, tempers, and merges into the Turtle Shell above his head.

Every instant, the Turtle Shell hanging above ripples with ten thousand auspicious lights, magnificent and beautiful.

After a long while, Fang Longye withdraws his auspicious clouds.

Hearing a series of wondrous sounds, this Turtle Shell, permeated with an ancient and weathered air, spins rapidly, lands before him, and trembles incessantly.

Reaching out to catch it and stroking the textures upon it, Fang Longye sighs: "Now I am entangled with the Shangqing Lineage as well!"

However, it is worth it!

"Hidden in the world, it knows the nature of heaven and earth; quietly stored, it understands the secrets of ghosts and gods.

Once it sat in the court accompanying Fuxi; Cangjie created characters based on turtle scripts.

Golden threads are woven into the shell; dots are adorned like colorful tortoiseshell.

The Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams robe is draped tight; scattered pieces cover the green, radiant garment."

This Turtle Shell is, shockingly, the relic of that disciple of the Jiejiao, Turtle Spirit Holy Mother, and can absolutely be called a heavy treasure.

As everyone knows~

In the days when the Sage Emperor Fuxi was on the throne, a dragon-horse emerged from the Yellow River, bearing the 'River Map', and a divine turtle appeared from the Luo River, bearing the 'Luo Book'.

From this, the Fuxi Eight Trigrams appeared in the world.

Later, when the Human Race's Sage Emperor Fuxi attained the Dao, that dragon-horse followed Sage Emperor Fuxi, accompanying him by his side.

As for that divine turtle, after assisting Sage Emperor Fuxi in deducing the Eight Trigrams, it was picked up by the passing Shangqing Saint and raised in the Shangqing Palace.

Later still, the Human Clan's Historian Cangjie created characters, and thus there were the forms of turtle scripts and bird wings.

That divine turtle took this opportunity to attain the Dao and cultivate a human body; she was originally a female turtle, hence she was called "Turtle Spirit Holy Mother".

That is correct, this Turtle Spirit Holy Mother is the very divine turtle that bore the Luo Book on her back.

One can imagine what kind of heavy treasure this Turtle Shell of hers would be! Stained with such merit, it is enough for her Turtle Shell to become a Merit Treasure.

Furthermore, because she once bore the 'Luo Book' on her back, and the Luo Book is a top-tier Innate Spiritual Treasure with immeasurable creative divine power.

Therefore, although Turtle Spirit Holy Mother only bore it on her back, she left traces of Dao seals upon her Turtle Shell.

And the Turtle Shell is itself an object for deducing Heavenly Secrets, and it received the nourishment of the 'Luo Book's' Dao essence.

With the two combined, this Turtle Shell possesses three-tenths of the power of the 'Luo Book' in the way of deduction.

Such a Merit Treasure that combines defense, deduction, and enlightenment is absolutely no less than an Innate Spiritual Treasure.

How could it not make people look twice? As for why such a treasure, which has deep origins with the Yurong Wang, was discarded by him like worn-out shoes and turned over to him?

Fang Longye can only say that his Brother Yuan is truly a person of deep feeling and true nature.

Previously in that treasure vault, he had heard the Yurong Wang's muttering with his own ears.

Although it was only a few words, the Yurong Wang was left with nothing but wringing his hands and sighing.

But the implication behind those words was already self-evident—

This Turtle Shell, having such a history, naturally possesses the characteristic of a divine object concealing itself.

And what the Yurong Wang sighed about was that his own mother did not recognize this Merit Treasure.

Otherwise, his mother would never have fallen at the hands of the Guoshi Wang!

Thus, facing this Turtle Shell, the Yurong Wang had no joy at all, only inexplicable displaced anger.

Seeing the object brings pain to the person; since he could not face this Turtle Shell with equanimity, it was better to give it to Fang Longye, treating it as a gesture of friendship~

And Fang Longye, after weighing the pros and cons, accepted this Merit Treasure.

Nothing else; one does not fear more lice when one already has many.

At present, what he must do is to let himself grow as quickly as possible. As for the debts he can carry, he will carry as many as he can.

As for the rest, that is for later.

"There is just one thing,..." Fang Longye looks at the Turtle Shell in his hand.

Verdant as if carved from fine jade, countless profoundly mysterious runes cover the Turtle Shell, suffused with the divine radiance of merit. From time to time, strands of strange Dao essence diffuse from the Turtle Shell...

The only flaw is that in the very center of this Turtle Shell, there is a small hole, and peerless sharpness and baleful aura linger within this small hole.

Concentrated and not dissipating~ This not only greatly reduces the power of this Turtle Shell but also prevents this Turtle Shell, which has left Turtle Spirit Holy Mother, from nourishing Merit Divine Prohibitions.

No matter how the Xuanhuang Merit within this Turtle Shell surges, it cannot give birth to a single prohibition.

Yes, there is not a single prohibition existing within this Turtle Shell.

Therefore, it can be called a Merit Treasure, but it cannot be called a Merit Spiritual Treasure.

It is easy to understand; this Turtle Shell originated from the body of Turtle Spirit Holy Mother, and before she fell, it always grew on her true body and did not exist independently.

How could it give birth to prohibitions and become a Spiritual Treasure? Do not mention those cultivators who refine their shed skin, hair, scales, or horns into Spiritual Treasure divine weapons.

Those people do so only after severing the connection between these skin, hair, scales, and horns and their bodies before refining the treasure.

Furthermore, Turtle Spirit Holy Mother's Turtle Shell carried the legacy and creation of the Luo Book; keeping the Turtle Shell as a part of her true body was the best choice.

What a pity~

It encountered the unreasonable Mosquito Daoist.

Not only did she perish and her Dao dissipate, but even the remaining Turtle Shell was affected.

Originally, after detaching from her true body, even without anyone refining it, this Turtle Shell would have spontaneously generated Merit Divine Prohibitions under the influence of Xuanhuang Merit.

However, it is very obvious.

This attack from Mosquito Daoist was truly terrifying and lingered for a long time, causing this Turtle Shell to have failed to generate any Restrictions even until now.

Thinking of this, Fang Longye could not help but touch the small hole in the center of the Turtle Shell.

The moment his fingertip touched it, a fierce and murderous intent that devoured everything surged toward him.

Fang Longye's brow immediately reflected a patch of crimson. The crisscrossing textures looked like a blood-stained chessboard; it was somewhat terrifying and somewhat shocking to the eye.

The murderous intent was chilling, alarming, and fierce.

He only felt that his vital blood, Dharma power, primordial spirit, origin, and even his True Spirit... and so on and so forth, everything he had, were all being stirred up.

It wanted to devour him completely.

It was truly a sight to look up to.

At this time, more than ten million years have passed since the Conferring of the Gods Tribulation~ The attack mark left by Mosquito Daoist has survived to this day, and it is actually still so fierce and terrifying! How could it not make one feel admiration and longing?

He did not immediately move his finger away, but instead endured the erosion and devouring of this residual attack, constantly sensing something.

"As expected, I did not sense it wrongly just now! It really is like this!"

I do not know how much time passed, but Fang Longye's face turned deathly pale, losing every trace of color, and his body swayed.

The whole person looked just like a poor scholar in the secular world who had studied by the window until he was plagued by illness. But his eyes were unusually bright. They were as bright as the stars in the sky, burning with brilliance, shining with light, and he muttered to himself with a sense of enlightened satisfaction.

"I never imagined that Mosquito Daoist and that person from the Blood Sea had such a relationship!"

Fang Longye moved his finger away, and while mobilizing 'Nine Breaths Serving Qi' to recover his vitality, he thought to himself.

He had come into contact with the power of the Yuantu and Abi swords several times, so he had not misidentified it.

From this residual attack mark, he sensed the same characteristics and true intent of both.

Especially that high and lofty will—viewing all living beings as ants, killing heaven, killing earth, killing all living things, slaughtering gods and saints, and slaughtering all the Great Dao in the world.

It was exactly the same as the will within the projection of the Abi sword at the Rakshasa Sea Market! This is mind-boggling!

That projection of the Abi sword, according to Yang Chan, had a will that came precisely from that Minghe Laozu of the Blood Sea.

One must know that the world knows Mosquito Daoist to be the second creature conceived in the Blood Sea, belonging to the mortal enemy of Minghe Laozu.

But looking at it now, it is clearly an avatar and a mask for that person from the Blood Sea.

"Perhaps, this is an open secret! It is just not known to the lower levels of Honghuang."

After Fang Longye finished regulating his breath, he shook his head secretly, cast these speculations aside, and began to think about how to deal with this relic shell of Turtle Spirit Holy Mother.

"It's a dilemma! I already have decision paralysis~ It would be great if this Turtle Shell hadn't been damaged, or wasn't so precious!"

Then I wouldn't have a headache!

Fang Longye stroked the relic shell of Turtle Spirit Holy Mother, caught in a dilemma.

A Merit Spiritual Treasure is a special kind of Spirit Treasure.

The key point is that the internal Restrictions belong to Merit Divine Prohibitions evolved from merit, which are very different from ordinary Post-Heaven Divine Prohibitions.

There are usually two ways for a Merit Spiritual Treasure to form.

One is for a cultivator to forge a Spirit Treasure beforehand and then pour their own merit into it.

The power of merit will transform the ordinary Restrictions in the Spirit Treasure into Merit Divine Prohibitions.

The other is a direct reward from heaven and earth for a certain object, such as the Sui Fire of the Human Race's Sui Renshi, or the History Emperor Brush held by Cangjie.

It might have been an ordinary object at first, but under the power of merit, its material changed, it became no longer ordinary, and it spontaneously evolved Merit Divine Prohibitions.

These two seem to have different methods, but in the end, there is no essential difference.

Perhaps when the Merit Divine Prohibitions have not formed much, the former has some advantages. But in the later stages, there is no difference.

Merit Spiritual Treasures formed from ordinary objects can also be re-refined by adding divine materials.

For example, the Sui Fire of that Human Race's Sui Renshi was refined by the grown-up Sui Ren into a precious lamp, called the Sui Human Lamp.

All things reach the same destination by different paths; they may have different scenery along the way, but there is no difference in the end.

Even in the initial stage, these two have many common points.

For example, whether it is the merit painstakingly accumulated on oneself or the merit bestowed directly by heaven and earth upon an object, once it is transformed into Merit Divine Prohibitions, there is no way to reverse it.

It is easy to understand; merit is equivalent to a kind of certificate, a certificate of contribution to heaven and earth.

Although it possesses various miraculous powers itself, after all, this Xuanhuang Merit is actually a kind of material energy transformed from the origin of the world.

But the reason why merit is regarded as a "cure-all" by people in Honghuang is that one can consume merit to obtain various fortunes.

For example, you can evolve Merit Divine Prohibitions to refine treasures; you can increase Dharma power, you can improve your Dao cultivation,... and so on and so forth.

But no matter what, this is an irreversible consumption.

It is impossible for you to have converted all your merit into Dharma power and improved your Dao cultivation, and then still claim that you possess merit.

In short—

At the moment, he has two choices.

One is to take advantage of the fact that the Xuanhuang Merit in this Turtle Shell has not yet evolved into Merit Divine Prohibitions, and extract the merit to use for his own cultivation.

The second is to try to remove the attack mark left by Mosquito Daoist; there is a high probability that he could obtain a top-grade Merit Spiritual Treasure.

To be frank~

If it weren't for the fact that the prospects for this Turtle Shell left by Turtle Spirit Holy Mother are so good—removing that attack mark has a high possibility of directly evolving into a Supreme Merit Spiritual Treasure—

He would not be in a dilemma at all and would definitely extract the merit immediately.

The truth is, he currently has a desperate need for a massive amount of merit! To advance from Golden Immortal to the Taiyi Realm, one must leave behind a complete imprint of oneself within the Dao Source Sea.

And to leave behind one's imprint, one requires Primordial One Qi.

The thicker and more substantial the Primordial One Qi, the easier and simpler it is to brand one's imprint into the Dao Source Sea.

After consumption, it is also easier to recover.

Therefore, if he wants to quickly advance to the Taiyi Realm, he needs to strengthen his Primordial One Qi.

So, how does one strengthen Primordial One Qi?

There are many methods, such as enhancing one's cultivation of essence, energy, and spirit, strengthening one's own origin, or gaining insights into more and deeper laws and principles, and so on and so forth.

But the best and simplest method is to consume Merit and Luck.

This is also the reason why both Dao and Brahma followers must scramble for merit and luck.

It is not just that others dare not easily kill those with great merit and luck; it is also because, in higher-level cultivation, the assistance of merit and luck is indispensable.

Actually~

If Fang Longye did not possess the Golden Finger, Equivalent Balance, he would not be facing this dilemma.

Because, for an ordinary person to use merit directly on themselves, that merit must belong to them, or have been bestowed because of them.

Yet, the merit within this Turtle Shell, despite not having evolved into a Merit Divine Prohibition, has not the slightest connection to him.

If he did not have the Golden Finger.

Even if he extracted it, he could only use it to refine treasures. It would be better to try and repair the damage, allowing this Turtle Shell to evolve its own Merit Divine Prohibition!

But who told him he has a Golden Finger? Merit is, in essence, the origin of the world. He had already tested it with the merit on his own body, and it worked perfectly.

Moreover, he had even calculated it.

If he were to extract this merit and exchange it through the Golden Finger to use on himself, he would have a ninety percent chance of entering the Taiyi Realm directly! On one side is direct entry into the Taiyi Realm, and on the other is a Supreme Merit Spiritual Treasure.

This question is too difficult!

(Yuan Hua looks up to the sky and lets out a long howl)...

"Damn it!"

"If I die, I die; if I don't, I live for ten thousand years!"

After wavering back and forth for a long time, Fang Longye gritted his teeth, drew out the Panlong Spear, and summoned the Zhanxian Gourd.

"Laozi doesn't believe that with the Golden Finger, I would really be stuck at the Golden Immortal realm just because I lack the merit inside this Turtle Shell!"

If it were a stroke of fortune to instantly become a Great Luo, that would be another story; he would definitely choose to raise his realm.

Right now, it is merely an opportunity to enter the Taiyi Realm directly, and the Supreme Merit Spiritual Treasure is even more enticing! It won't be outdated even when he reaches Great Luo~

Furthermore, with the Turtle Shell, which is equivalent to a weakened version of the 'Luo Shu', his speed in comprehending the Great Dao will definitely surpass ordinary people, even after reaching the Taiyi Realm.

These two choices are actually equivalent to one being a one-off deal, and the other being a long-term investment.

Forget it! "I haven't reached the point where I need a one-off deal!"

Fang Longye brandished the Panlong Spear, unleashing its full power, shook the Zhanxian Gourd, and activated the Slashing Immortal Flying Knife.

He pointed it directly at the small hole in the center of the Turtle Shell.

He began to clash head-on with the lingering marks of the Mosquito Daoist's attack~

(End of chapter)