Chapter 360: The Wedding Procession Finally Returns, the Dowry Dazzles the Eyes

"Minghe Laozu is certainly generous; well, then again, when all is said and done, it is merely a 'fragment'~"

Inside the great hall, as Fang Longye thanked him repeatedly, he could not stop stroking the object Minghe Laozu had tossed to him, his thoughts surging and his heart pounding.

Now, regarding this Primordial World, while Innate Spiritual Treasures are not exactly numerous, they are not exactly few either; some are formed innately, while others are forged later by seizing the wonders of creation...

There are quite a few of them, all told.

Only the finest among the Innate Spiritual Treasures—the Innate Supreme Treasures—are, when all is counted, no more than a scant dozen or so known to exist thus far.

Among them, the treasures formed after the shattering of the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe and the Chaos Green Lotus account for the majority.

For instance, the Pangu Banner, Taiji Diagram, and Chaos Bell formed after the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe shattered, and the several Innate Supreme Treasures formed after the Chaos Green Lotus decomposed...

And that very lotus stem that nurtured the Chaos Green Lotus, having also absorbed the Heaven-Opening baleful aura, became one of the few supreme treasures of slaughter in the world.

The Innate Supreme Treasure, the God-Slaying Spear.

It is just that, according to rumors in the Primordial World,

this treasure fell into the hands of Mozu Luohou at the very beginning of the creation of the world, and later, during the struggle between the Dao and the Demon, it went missing following the defeat of the Demon Ancestor.

Some say this treasure has already escaped into the Chaos, while others say it was long ago shattered and destroyed in that struggle between the Dao and the Demon...

In short, everyone holds their own opinion, and there is no consensus.

However,

as things stand, it seems this treasure was indeed shattered and destroyed in that struggle between the Dao and the Demon.

That is right, the object Minghe Laozu tossed to him is nothing else but a fragment that fell from that Innate Supreme Treasure, the God-Slaying Spear.

No, to be precise, it should not be simply called a fragment, but rather a part of the Innate Supreme Treasure, the God-Slaying Spear.

Fang Longye spread his palm to see a palm-sized, sharp object, shimmering with a chaotic color, lying quietly in his hand.

It was neither gold nor jade, neither copper nor iron.

Looking closely, one would discover that this sharp object was, shockingly, a broken spearhead; the tip was intact, but the section below was covered in cracks.

Even the cross-section was quite uneven.

He estimated it to be about two-thirds of a complete spearhead.

But regardless, one could still call it a 'God-Slaying Spear' spearhead.

And as a part of the Innate Supreme Treasure, the God-Slaying Spear, even if it was only a broken spearhead, it still possessed an essence surpassing most Innate Spiritual Treasures.

If one observed it carefully, one could see

that inside it was a light deeper than darkness, contracting and expanding, expanding and contracting, as if breathing, containing some marvelous pattern.

A brief moment of contemplation revealed that it contained the profound mysteries of heaven and earth, the ultimate principles of the Great Dao, and the wonders of the universe.

Moreover, he could feel

that while this spearhead looked plain and unremarkable, it actually contained a destructive Aura so vast it filled the heavens and earth, lurking within like volcanic magma~

It was only because Minghe Laozu had placed a seal upon it that he could hold it in his hand and stroke it so easily~ In any case, this gift from Minghe Laozu was definitely precious~ Whether he melted it into his own Panlong Spear or kept it for the future to see if there was a chance to find the main body of the God-Slaying Spear and let it reappear in the world,

both were good choices~

"Many thanks to the Old Ancestor for the generous gift~"

After a thorough inspection, Fang Longye raised his head and expressed his gratitude to Minghe Laozu once more.

"Haha!"

Minghe Laozu finally opened his mouth to respond:

"Enough~ From now on we are family, no need to be so polite."

He glanced at Fang Longye and said, "I have bestowed this God-Slaying Spear spearhead upon you; what tricks you can play with it in the future will depend entirely on your own fortune~"

Having said this, this leader of the Ashura Jiao did not say anything more to Fang Longye; with a flick of his sleeve, he sent him out of the hall~...

"Whew~"

Outside the hall doors, Fang Longye stood steady, let out a breath, and put away the God-Slaying Spear spearhead.

He had not forgotten what he needed to do; this was not the time to study this spearhead.

He immediately bowed three times toward the hall,

turned to reunite with Gu and the others, left the Blood God Palace, and headed toward the Dao Palace of his future father-in-law, that Bojun Mozhu.

According to what had been agreed upon,

the bride, Princess Tie Shan, was to depart from her father's Dao Palace~

It did not take much effort to arrive at another Dao Palace adjacent to the Blood God Palace.

One could see pavilions and towers standing in rows, lanterns and colored streamers hung everywhere, precious carpets covering the ground, all in a joyous atmosphere.

Clearly,

some arrangements had been made here for the happy occasion of Fang Longye coming to marry Princess Tie Shan today.

Without rushing to see the bride, Fang Longye naturally went to pay his respects to his father-in-law first.

Following the attendant who welcomed him into the Dao Palace, he passed over a rainbow bridge, went through a water pavilion, wound through a curved corridor, and finally arrived before a great hall.

The azure Glazed Tiles, paired with the zoomorphic ornaments placed at the four corners, emitted visible scriptures that shot out, blooming with light that filled the sky.

It was like a tree of fire and silver flowers, never-ending.

Crackle, crackle,

the scriptures fell to the ground, colliding with the polished brick surface, blooming into ripples of light like flowers, gathering at his feet, looking like glazed jade, magnificent and beautiful.

Unexpectedly, although his father-in-law was the Bojun Mozhu who made all beings in the Primordial World shudder, the place where he resided was exceptionally transcendental.

There was not a trace of Demon Aura; instead, it was filled with the flavor of the Xuanmen Immortal Dao everywhere~ The attendant led Fang Longye to the front of the great hall, turned, and left, leaving him alone.

Fang Longye took a deep breath, straightened his clothes and hat, collected his thoughts, and pushed the door open to enter.

The moment he stepped into the hall, he was stunned, and then a look of "as expected" appeared on his face.

Perhaps in response to Fang Longye's earlier thoughts, the scene inside the hall was completely different from the immortal paradise outside; what met his eyes was a vast expanse of black water, with no bottom in sight.

Jagged light and shadow were cast, manifesting into withered bamboo and pine, mountain rocks and tall trees, yet they were devoid of life, with only cold water gurgling, casting a frosty white light.

It made one feel a chill—raising one's head, one saw before them a cold radiance as bright as frost and snow, and further up, in the dark void, it supported an inconceivable black lotus.

The lotus grew nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine petals,

On the massive lotus petals, spaces formed of their own, some with pavilions overlooking water, some with winding deep ravines, some with hermitages amidst clouds, some with red towers and green tiles, some with twin peaks piercing the clouds, ……

And so on and so forth, in a thousand different postures.

The further toward the center, the more magnificent and majestic the scenes on the lotus petals became, and the more incomparably powerful the Aura of the figures praying and chanting scriptures upon them, each sitting with hanging tassels, forming various Dharma seals.

Everything was clustered around a single figure at the very center of the black Dharma lotus. This figure was incomparably towering, with a blurred face, radiating an aura of being high above and looking down upon all living beings, holding an unfathomable scripture in their hands.

Scriptures rained down from the sky, every word expounding profound truths, neither the Dharma of the Profound Gate nor the essential meaning of the Buddhist gate, but rather supreme truths of the Demonic Path that differed from all others.

It was none other than his convenient father-in-law, the Demon Lord Pojun who once obstructed the path of Rulai.

……

Boom—, above the black lotus, Pojun suddenly lowered his head, and the space faded away in a bizarre manner.

Fang Longye saw at once that this convenient father-in-law of his had a Dharma body as high as a mountain, draped in black Dharma robes, upon which were the faces of billions of living beings.

These faces were either howling, or in pain, or twisted, or shrill, changing at every moment.

"Greetings, Bojun Mozhu—"

Fang Longye dared not be negligent and hurriedly bowed to this convenient father-in-law of his—at the same time, he muttered in his heart, why did it feel like this convenient father-in-law of his was far more terrifying than his master, Minghe Laozu—it seemed the rumor circulating in Honghuang that "Bojun Mozhu has already surpassed his master" was not without foundation!

Thinking of this, his expression became even more respectful.

It was true, this was an existence capable of contending with Tathagata Buddha, how could he be simple? Even if his strength was inferior to Minghe Laozu, after all, when all was said and done, this father-in-law of his was initially nothing more than a creation of Minghe Laozu—

But his achievement alone, which exceeded the framework of the Asura Demonic Path, had already allowed him to form his own lineage—

It could be said that within the entire Asura clan, this convenient father-in-law of his was the absolute number one, far exceeding the other several Asura Demon Kings.

It was no wonder that now the other several Asura Demon Kings all followed his lead.

Of course, this was not surprising, as this father-in-law of his had been the absolute boss among the Asura clan from the moment he was born—

It is said that in the past, Minghe Laozu imitated Nüwa in creating humans and derived the Asura clan, and several of the outstanding ones among them were subsequently taken as disciples.

And his own convenient father-in-law, Zizaitian Bo Xun, had from the very beginning suppressed Yusetian, Dafantian, Shipo, and others, becoming their senior brother.

In short, this Bojun Mozhu before him was the absolute leader in the Demonic Path; in terms of pure essence, even Minghe Laozu was somewhat inferior—if one regarded that former Mozu Luohou as the first-generation Demon Ancestor, and Minghe Laozu as the second-generation Demon Ancestor.

Then there was no doubt,

This Zizaitian Bo Xun Mozhu before him was the third-generation Demon Ancestor of Honghuang—

Perhaps seeing Fang Longye's restraint in front of him, Zizaitian Bo Xun shook his head and laughed, saying:

"No need to be so polite, you are about to marry Luochaner, why is your form of address for me still so distant?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Longye hurriedly changed his words:

"Greetings, Father-in-law!"

"That's more like it!"

Zizaitian Bo Xun clapped his hands and laughed—……

After a familiar conversation between the two, Zizaitian Bo Xun smiled: "The time is getting late, you and Luochaner should also set off, I will give you a gift as well!"

Immediately, as the thought arose, various demonic sounds echoed in the void; a moment later, divination signs of a thousand postures fell, transforming into blooming and falling black lotuses—ghostly light suddenly opened, layers of halos generated, accompanied by demonic sounds, appearing like dark flames, burning silently.

A short while later,

The flames receded, revealing a scripture.

This scripture was square, with mysterious black pages, deep and ancient, its colors obscure, as if it were eyes slightly opening, swallowing people into them, causing them to fall within.

On the cover, the strokes were strange and twisted, glowing with a bizarre and ever-changing ghostly light, every word as if engraved:

"Panduoluo Jing".

Fang Longye reached out and took the scripture, feeling it as if it were both void and real, difficult to describe.

"Panduoluo Jing?"

He could not help but stroke the seal script on the cover with his fingers, feeling an inexplicable texture, as if touching embossed ancient bronze, cold—"That's right, Panduoluo Jing—"

Zizaitian Bo Xun explained:

"This 'Panduoluo Jing' is something I created by studying all the Buddhist scripture principles of the past and future of the Buddhist gate, and verifying them against the supreme truths of the Demonic gate—"

He glanced at Fang Longye and said:

"I observe your temperament, it is quite compatible with my Demonic Path; this scripture contains the supreme truths of both Brahma and Demon, and will be of some benefit to your cultivation—"

Hearing this, Fang Longye could not help but want to roll his eyes. What temperament compatible with the Demonic Path? If you want to preach, just preach, why slander someone's innocence for no reason? And to make such a big scene, I thought you were going to give me some kind of gift!

It turned out to be just a scripture? It would have been better to give me a few Spirit Treasures! However, facing this Demonic Path bigwig, he dared not talk back or say anything else—

He quickly put the scripture away.

After some thanks, he naturally left the great hall and headed toward where the bride-to-be, Iron Fan Princess, was staying—……

Cangmang Mountain, floating pavilions and high platforms, kiosks and towers reflecting each other, filled with joy, decorated with lanterns and colored streamers everywhere, rainbows forming bridges, shrouded in auspicious energy.

A crowd of guests gathered together, lively and bustling, waiting for the groom to return with the bride—

At this time, Fang Longye's subordinates were extremely busy.

They shuttled back and forth, moving frequently, patrolling everywhere, and there were even Qingli and the other women acting as managers, entertaining guests from all sides.

Of course, there were some true distinguished guests whom Qingli and the others were simply not qualified to entertain.

Even though they could all be considered Fang Longye's women, they were after all nameless and titleless, and their status and position were just so.

Fortunately, Fang Longye now held the title of Young Lord of the Dragon Clan, and naturally, there were Daluo arranged in advance by Yinglong Laozu to help preside over the scene.

There was no fear of slighting the distinguished guests—time passed bit by bit, and finally—

"They're here, they're here, they've returned!"

Soon, a cry of surprise startled the entire Cangmang Mountain, and some guests with lower cultivation realms looked toward the sound one after another.

In the distance, one could see waves of incense condensing, bells and drums sounding in unison, as processions draped in red and adorned with colors approached in a grand, mighty force, beating drums and playing sheng pipes.

At the center of the procession, a Treasure Chariot pulled by eight dragon-horses led the way, followed by three phoenix chariots traveling side-by-side, surrounded by auspicious vapors and canopies of purple and green.

Auspicious and fulfilling, vibrant and flourishing.

It was none other than the returning wedding procession.

Compared to when it had departed, the entire wedding procession had grown far too large; it was packed densely with members of the Human Clan, covering the heavens and the earth, with no end in sight at a single glance.

The dowry processions for the three brides alone accounted for more than half of the entire group, winding on for who knows how many miles, resembling a wave of red fire.

Most crucially, these dowries were by no means ordinary items; almost every single one was a rare treasure beyond the imagination of common cultivators—the swirling purple and green precious light rose incessantly, brilliant and radiant, gathering together enough to rival the sun and moon in the sky.

"Damn it, what kind of methods did this young lord of the Dragon Clan use to actually make three brides scramble to marry him at the same time?"

Gazing at these jaw-dropping dowries, let alone those ignorant little demons, even some Golden Immortals and Taiyi cultivators could not help but burst out with profanities—truly, wealth makes people envious! And that is not even mentioning those Golden Immortals and Taiyi cultivators who only had a superficial understanding of Fang Longye's situation.

Even those in the know, hailing from various major powers, could not help but click their tongues in wonder as they gazed at this dowry procession that wound on for who knows how many miles.

They were incredibly jealous of Fang Longye. (End of chapter)