Chapter 282: Obtaining the Yu Emperor Stele, Yet Failing to Escape

Wuzhiqi stretched out his furry ape palm and kept rubbing the iron chain on his neck, chuckling coldly: "I imagine you know this, nephew."

"The one who first cultivated that secret Dharma of the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' was no other than the nine ancient flood dragons that pulled the carriage for Di Jun."

"That woman, Yinglong Laozu, was merely a latecomer who usurped the position."

"Even this secret Dharma in her hands was obtained from those nine ancient flood dragons."

"And as for the process! Heh~"

"In any case, from then on, she became the mortal enemy of these nine ancient flood dragons."

"Later on, of these nine ancient flood dragons, eight died at her hands and one escaped."

"And this 'Five Dragon Demon-Refining Stele', which you call the Yu Emperor Stele, as well as this Binding Demon Rope, were refined from the remains of those eight ancient flood dragons."

Fang Longye nodded.

If he were merely a wild dragon who only understood Yinglong Laozu through bloodline inheritance, or a die-hard Yinglong loyalist like Long Xuan.

He might not truly understand how much truth there was to what Wuzhiqi said.

After all, one must show deference to one's superiors! But who told him that from the very beginning, he had obtained this secret Dharma from the handwritten notes of one of those nine ancient flood dragons.

Furthermore, he had settled in Beiju Luzhou and had even half-joined the Demon Master Mansion.

Neither of these two parties would give Yinglong Laozu any face, nor would they have any taboos; naturally, they said whatever there was to say.

That Lao Jiao he had met twice in the East Sea had not lacked mockery and resentment toward Yinglong Laozu in those scrolls of handwritten notes.

In truth, Wuzhiqi was somewhat wary of his identity as a member of the Dragon Clan, so he had not spoken too explicitly.

The process by which Yinglong Laozu obtained the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' was indeed not so glorious; it could even be called a stain.

Regarding this, the Demon Clan, who had always looked down upon the Human Race and the Dragon Clan, would not let such a golden opportunity to write extensively about it pass, so they naturally recorded it in great detail.

How should one put it?

This story, as Fang Longye summarized it himself.

It was about a green tea girl of humble origins who, relying on her own methods and without paying anything, bewitched a whole family of brothers until they were head over heels, offering everything they had with both hands.

Then one day, the green tea girl, having grown up thanks to these nine brothers, met a tall, rich, and handsome man, and immediately kicked her suitors to the curb and threw herself into the arms of the tall, rich, and handsome man.

That family of brothers turned love into hate and came to seek revenge, but the green tea girl did not hold back; instead, she dealt lethal blows and killed them all.

Does that sound very vulgar?

In any case, Fang Longye was half-believing and half-doubting; after all, this kind of embellishment was not something only the Human Race did—everyone knew how to do it.

But one thing was certain: Yinglong Laozu did indeed obtain the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' from the hands of those nine flood dragons.

And there were indeed some entanglements that existed.

As for whether it was "love, hate, and enmity," or whether there was any "love" or "affection" within that "love, hate, and enmity," that was unknown.

Fang Longye did not care about that either.

Therefore, he immediately caught the implication in Wuzhiqi's words and said: "Uncle's meaning is that I can control these two Spirit Treasures through the common point of the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' that I cultivate?"

Wuzhiqi nodded and smiled: "Nephew is indeed clever! You understand it at once~"

"The main materials for these two Spirit Treasures are the remains of those eight ancient flood dragons."

"And those eight ancient flood dragons had already cultivated the secret Dharma of the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' to a very deep level during their lifetimes."

"Even though their remains were refined into Spirit Treasures, the principles of this secret Dharma still remain within them."

"Since you, nephew, also cultivate this secret Dharma, you have a deep karmic connection with these two Spirit Treasures, and there is a high probability that you can control them."

Fang Longye was noncommittal about this; after all, it was only a high probability, not a certainty.

Of course, Wuzhiqi had also said that regardless of whether it succeeded or failed, there would still be a precious treasure offered.

It was just a try, and he had nothing to lose.

He immediately closed his eyes, intending to attempt to contact these two Spirit Treasures with his Yang Spirit and Dharma power.

However, he quickly opened his eyes again and asked: "If I manage to collect these two Merit Spiritual Treasures, they should belong to me, right?"

As expected, the Dragon Clan is still this greedy!

Wuzhiqi muttered to himself in his heart.

He could not help but roll his eyes and said testily: "If you, nephew, can collect these two Spirit Treasures, they shall naturally be yours to handle!"

That's good~ Fang Longye nodded, his eyes slightly closed, and he began to concentrate fully on communicating with these two Merit Spiritual Treasures~...

As his Yang Spirit circulated, fully stimulating the Aura of the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture' secret Dharma, only the sound of dragon roars could be heard, and these two Spirit Treasures immediately reacted.

One could see the Yu Emperor Stele radiating five-colored light, with five divine dragons faintly visible clustering together, in red, white, cyan, black, and yellow.

And the iron chain on Wuzhiqi's neck also produced a strange phenomenon, with Yin and Yang divine light flowing, resembling a coiled Yin and Yang dragon, baring its fangs and brandishing its claws.

Whether it was the Yu Emperor Stele or the Binding Demon Rope, both faintly revealed a sense of closeness to Fang Longye.

However, it lasted only a few breaths.

The divine light stimulated by these two treasures quietly faded, and there were no more strange phenomena.

Fang Longye frowned, opened his eyes, and looked at Wuzhiqi.

He spread his hands and said: "Uncle, you saw it too; it really isn't that I, your nephew, am not trying my best. With the Restrictions laid down by Dayu, I truly can do nothing with them."

These two treasures were, after all, used to suppress Wuzhiqi, and there were naturally layers of Restrictions and Dharma arrays all around, interconnected with each other.

They cooperated with the two treasures to exert their power of suppression.

In addition to enhancing the power of the Spirit Treasures, they also created no small obstacles to collecting them.

The Yu Emperor Stele was still alright; just now he had faintly shaken it, but his own power was insufficient, and he could not yet resist that obstacle.

The Binding Demon Rope, however, did not budge at all; his power could not penetrate this Spirit Treasure in the slightest.

This was because this Merit Spiritual Treasure was connected to this Great Thousand World, and to resist that vast power and refine the Spirit Treasure, even if he were to ascend to the Taiyi realm, he would still be unequal to the task.

Wuzhiqi, however, did not feel the slightest bit of dejection; instead, a glimmer of brilliance flashed in his eyes, and he laughed loudly: "It seems that this time I truly have hope of escaping!"

He immediately flicked out an object and threw it toward Fang Longye.

Fang Longye reached out to take it, only to see that this object was a piece of ink-colored hemp rope.

It was seven or eight feet long, twisted together from individual ink-colored hemp threads, looking very rough and ordinary.

Fang Longye circulated his Dharma, only to perceive that this hemp rope was stained with a trace of merit. It was not much, not even enough to give rise to a Merit Divine Prohibition; it was very thin.

It also possessed no special power.

Aside from being able to change its length and thickness at will, it had no other supernatural abilities.

"This is?"

Wuzhiqi smiled and introduced it: "This is a section of the plumb line used by that scoundrel Dayu when he was controlling the floods."

Fang Longye understood and knew what this object was.

"No wonder this hemp rope is stained with merit."

It turned out to be a piece cut from the Ink Line Plumb Line that Dayu used to measure the river channels of the world.

However, the main body of this hemp rope, that Ink Line Plumb Line, was most likely already in the treasury of the Tushan clan—all because the main body of this rope, the Ink Line Plumb Line, originally came from the hands of the Tushan clan.

Whether in the records of the Demon Master Mansion or the records of the Human Race, there were accounts of this Ink Line Plumb Line.

In the past, when Dayu wished to use the method of dredging to control the floods, he needed to survey the terrain and measure the river regions in order to properly plan the waterways and guide the flow into the sea.

Therefore, the Tushan clan took old hemp from Chong Mountain, soaked it in the clear springs of Youling, and after washing and refining it, twisted it into the Ink Line Plumb Line and presented it to Emperor Yu.

Yu was greatly pleased, so he held this ink rope to measure the river channels of the world, and later even used it to bind water beasts that were causing chaos.

This Ink Line Plumb Line was originally a product of the Tushan clan sharing in the merit of Dayu's flood control; naturally, with the success of Dayu's flood control, it returned to the Tushan clan.

"It seems this section of the ink-colored hemp rope has another purpose?" Fang Longye looked at Wuzhiqi and asked.

He believed that Wuzhiqi would not shoot without a target, throwing him such a seemingly useless piece of hemp rope for no reason.

"Haha!"

"That's right!" Wuzhiqi explained with a smile: "This section of the ink rope was originally just a piece that the scoundrel Dayu casually cut from that Ink Line Plumb Line to use as a hanging cord for that Ten Thousand Beast Bell."

"On its own, it has no other function. But combined with you, who practices the Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture, it has a miraculous effect."

Seeing that Fang Longye was still somewhat confused, he continued: "The Yu Emperor Stele you mentioned, which is the Five Dragon Demon-Refining Stele, although its power of suppression is peerless and it possesses formidable offensive strength, its essence is a boundary marker used to measure the rivers of the Nine Provinces, and it has always been used in conjunction with that Ink Line Plumb Line."

"Over time, the two have developed a special connection."

"Although this hemp rope is only a section of that Ink Line Plumb Line, it also possesses this quality. Plus, you already have a deep karmic connection with that Yu Emperor Stele. Combining the two will surely allow you to take the Yu Emperor Stele into your hands."

Having said this, he signaled for Fang Longye to try and collect the Yu Emperor Stele again.

Fang Longye did not hesitate; he refined this ink-colored hemp rope completely with his heart fire and swung it through the air toward the Yu Emperor Stele in the void.

The ink rope surged in the wind and instantly coiled around the earth-yellow Yu Emperor Stele.

In an instant, his connection with the Yu Emperor Stele increased by an unknown number of times.

No matter how the surrounding restrictive Dharma arrays operated, they could no longer pose any major obstacle to him collecting this treasure.

His primordial spirit power merged into the Yu Emperor Stele, soaking into it bit by bit, and while bearing the obstruction of the restrictive Dharma arrays, he began to refine this treasure with unwavering determination.

A short while later, Fang Longye gave a tug in the air.

The Yu Emperor Stele immediately emitted five-colored divine light.

"Collect!"

With a thought, the ink rope immediately shrank and became smaller, and the divine stele also shrank synchronously, moving toward him.

In the end—

He opened his hand, and the Yu Emperor Stele transformed into an inch-long object, like a jade tablet carved from yellow precious jade, lying quietly in his palm.

The Yu Emperor Stele was successfully collected! ……

"Uncle, I have not failed your mission!"

Fang Longye played with this 'Yu Emperor Stele' which had forty Merit Divine Prohibitions, and said respectfully.

"Good, good, good!"

Wuzhiqi said excitedly: "You truly did not disappoint me!" He stood up abruptly, stretched his body, and laughed loudly: "Comfortable! It has been so long since I felt this comfortable!"

After stretching, he dragged the large iron chains on his neck and began to leap and jump in this space.

"Not enough! Still not enough!"

Wuzhiqi roared.

An incomparable momentum erupted from his body, enough to crush a Taiyi Golden Immortal to death alive.

Fortunately, the Profound Spirit Escape Armor appeared, allowing Fang Longye to escape unscathed under Wuzhiqi's sudden outburst.

Clatter—

The iron chains rattled and rang out with a metallic clang.

The entire world was trembling and shaking violently.

Fang Longye looked up at the firmament.

He saw Wuzhiqi leaping through the world, shrouded in divine light, his figure not even clearly visible; one could only see him struggling incessantly.

The various patterns on those iron chains seemed about to be shattered, and he might break free at any moment.

But at this very moment, a bolt of purple thunder descended instantly.

"Dayu!"

Wuzhiqi roared, his voice actually drowning out the sound of the thunder, as if to pierce through the heavens and earth, causing Fang Longye's eardrums to buzz.

However, responding to Wuzhiqi were continuous divine thunders, each one enough to slay a Taiyi Golden Immortal, and even a Daluo Golden Immortal would be wounded.

Boom—

The thunderous sound filling the sky was like the creation of the world, shattering the void; clouds and mist churned, thunder intertwined, and purple light shot into the sky.

Endless divine thunder submerged Wuzhiqi entirely, like a vast ocean; the thunder was like a tide, electric light surged, shattering everything, incomparably blazing.

The world was a vast expanse of purple.

Fang Longye stood below, watching in fascination, not daring to even blink.

This was no ordinary divine thunder; it was an interweaving of Dao and principles, manifested by that Great Divine Ability practitioner, Dayu, by borrowing the will of heaven and earth.

Every bolt of thunder was sufficient to annihilate any living being below the Great Vehicle realm in this world, making even his True Spirit tremble uncontrollably.

Although he could not see through it at all, merely catching a glimpse of a scale or a claw was enough for him to benefit immensely.

A long while passed.

The thunder dissipated, revealing Wuzhiqi's massive ape body, his entire form shimmering with a crystalline luster; it appeared he had not been injured in the slightest.

Only a trace of dejection lingered on his body. The iron chains on his neck remained, the divine radiance of merit flickering; occasionally, one could see the metallic luster, brilliant and intimidating.

Clearly, he had not broken free from this imprisonment.

A short while later, he shook his body, transformed to the height of a human, and arrived before Fang Longye.

"Uncle—"

Wuzhiqi waved his hand and said, "Nephew, you have already done your best; I do not blame you~"

This Binding Demon Rope is connected to the Great Thousand World; it is indeed not something a small fry like Fang Longye could control by relying on so-called causal connections.

Furthermore, besides this, there were six or seven layers of unrevealed restrictions upon his body.

Just the fact that one Yu Emperor Stele was missing, allowing his body to loosen up, was already quite rare~ He felt no frustration.

"Since the agreement has been fulfilled, I should naturally honor my previous promise!"

"Nephew, look!"

After speaking, Wuzhiqi immediately reached out into the void and retrieved a large cauldron.

This cauldron permeated with a bronze-like, ghostly light; the cauldron body was square, thick, and solemn, with a circular upright ear on each side of the rim, slightly flared outward, and the entire body was covered in intricate patterns, with reliefs of various exotic beasts layered upon it.

"Yu Emperor Cauldron?"

Fang Longye caught sight of the three Daoyuan imprinted on the cauldron body by the Xuanhuang Merit and spoke.

"Correct!"

Wuzhiqi tossed it casually to Fang Longye.

After Fang Longye caught it, he did not rush to examine this precious cauldron, but instead looked at Wuzhiqi with confusion.

As a Merit Spiritual Treasure, the Yu Emperor Cauldron was naturally a heavy treasure, but to say it could be of great benefit to his own cultivation was not necessarily true!

Seeming to see through Fang Longye's confusion, Wuzhiqi smiled and said, "The Yu Emperor Cauldron may not be related to your cultivation, nephew, but what if it were the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon?"

"You are, after all, cultivating the 'Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture'."

"Although those nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon are not in dragon form, in terms of Bloodline, they are more noble than ninety-nine percent of the Dragon Clan under heaven."

"Moreover, these nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon are all innate living beings; if you were to swallow them all, one can imagine what kind of fortune you would have~"

Hearing this, Fang Longye's breathing could not help but shorten.

"Does Uncle know the whereabouts of the Human Nine Cauldrons?"

According to what he knew, when Dayu cast the Nine Cauldrons, the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon "voluntarily" transformed into the divine beasts that suppress the cauldrons and were cast into them~ Although the 'Yu Emperor Cauldron' has a connection to the Human Nine Cauldrons, to say that after refining it, one could directly find the Human Nine Cauldrons through this connection...

He did not believe it.

The levels of the two were too far apart.

Plus, the Human Nine Cauldrons had been nurtured by the fortune of the Human Race for countless epochs, long ago severing causality, with Heavenly Secrets hidden.

If it were really that easy, and one could find the Nine Cauldrons by relying on a single Yu Emperor Cauldron, the Human Race would have found them long ago.

Back when the Nine Cauldrons were forged, it was not as if there were no divine materials left over. The Human Race even used these leftover divine materials to craft several divine weapons and Spirit Treasures.

For instance, the top-tier divine weapon passed down by the Great Xia Dynasty—the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow, and so on, still exist in the world! These divine weapons and Spirit Treasures are of the same origin as the Human Nine Cauldrons; aren't they much closer than the 'Yu Emperor Cauldron' in his hand? At most, after refining this Yu Emperor Cauldron, once the Human Nine Cauldrons are found, one could use the special connection between them and the Yu Emperor Cauldron to do some things.

For example, extracting the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon who serve as the cauldron-suppressing beasts and finding them a new home.

And facing Fang Longye's inquiry, Wuzhiqi naturally nodded.

He affirmed, "That is only natural!"

(End of chapter)