Chapter 710: Shen Yi, blessed by merit and favored by Heaven's Dao — you wretched beasts

"What exactly happened?"

The Dragon-Subduing, Tiger-Taming Great Ming Wang came alone, propping up the enormous treasure palanquin, as if announcing the outcome of today's affair.

After all, in at most the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, the other party could cross the North Flowing River, and unless a third-rank powerhouse stepped in to slay them, even the eight prodigies from earlier giving chase would absolutely be unable to intercept this great palanquin over such a short distance.

But who could have imagined that, in the end, a Taixu Danhuang would suddenly appear, forcibly dragging the scripture-delivering palanquin into the Taixu realm!

"You all…"

Hong Jing abruptly turned his head to look at the people of Shenxu Mountain.

Jin Lei furrowed his brow: "We had no prior knowledge that Danhuang would make a move."

What had appeared in the heavens earlier was indeed a technique of Shenxu Mountain, but the tribulation-force aura leaking out was rather jaw-dropping, making it truly impossible to connect it with that young man who had quietly refined pills atop the Eighth Peak back then.

But at a time like this, even if it wasn't, then it had to be!

The Puti Sect's scripture delivery being intercepted at the last moment by Shenxu Mountain — this single fact alone could cement the position of foremost among the second-generation disciples of the Sanxian Sect.

The other peak lords of Shenxu Mountain also exchanged uncertain glances.

Though somewhat incomprehensible, counting through all eight peaks, who besides Shen Yi — whom the Master had bestowed the name Tiandan upon — could bear the title of Danhuang?

"We'll take our leave first. Farewell, everyone."

Jin Lei had no intention of explaining further; after all, the Master had personally issued a jade decree instructing them to safeguard Tiandan's life.

Under these circumstances, no matter how dangerous the situation was, or how shameless it might appear to have agreed beforehand not to participate and then suddenly act, there was no time to worry about such things.

Having said this, he strode forward, intending to step into the Taixu realm.

Yet the moment Jin Lei took that step, his entire person remained in place. After a brief moment of stunned silence, he suddenly turned his head to look behind him.

The other peak lords likewise wore expressions of astonishment, their gazes sweeping in all directions.

But in the end, they found nothing unusual amid the swarming crowd.

"…"

Lady Tiandong pressed her lips slightly, having roughly guessed some of it.

Clearly, there was a third-rank powerhouse present at the banks of the North Flowing River!

And it was a certain Bodhisattva of the Puti Sect, who had silently suppressed this group of Shenxu Mountain peak lords.

Yet no trace of fear arose in her heart.

There was only one possible reason the Bodhisattva remained hidden — her own sect also had a Daluo Immortal Venerable present, merely also refraining from showing himself.

"In my view, we should head over there to take a look first."

Lady Tiandong spoke up to defuse the awkwardness for the many peak lords; mainly, she was genuinely curious — even if the Dragon-Subduing, Tiger-Taming Great Ming Wang had temporarily broken free of the prodigies' encirclement, so much time had already passed, so why had those people still not shown themselves?

"We go together, we go together!"

With a single word from Lady Tiandong, every cultivator at the fifth-rank realm present immediately took to the air in haste.

A Great Luo Han covered a thousand li in a single step — a distance that would take even them half a day to traverse, so impossibly far away.

Such a grand occasion, yet they could only observe the ceremony from so far away. Those fourth-rank Taiyi Zhenxian could still use Qi-observation arts to roughly glimpse some shifts in aura, but they themselves could only guess from the changing expressions of those around them.

Their hearts had long felt as if ants were crawling all over them.

In an instant, half of the swarming crowd at the banks of the North Flowing River vanished, most following Lady Tiandong as they hurried forward.

The Shenxu Mountain peak lords' faces were ugly, yet they could do nothing about it.

The Bodhisattva's intervention earlier had been merely a warning; if they failed to read the room, the other party might not be so polite next time.

This was the consequence of their own Ancestor sleeping year-round, with no one to back them up.

Precisely for this reason, the peak lords rarely emerged, not even interested in taking up immortal official posts in the heavens, lest they suffer such indignities.

At this moment, they could only take the steps Lady Tiandong had offered, ascend to the clouds together, and depart the riverbank along with the crowd.

Once this group of second-generation disciples had all departed.

A burly man with thick black whiskers slowly walked out from the remaining crowd. His attire wasn't exactly shabby, but the mismatched magical artifacts pieced together from here and there made him look less like a cultivator of an orthodox immortal sect and more like one of those wandering cultivators. He was even leading a wretched-looking black dog by the hand, which only made the whole picture more comical.

He was just preparing to leave when an old woman slowly ambled up before him, her raspy voice carrying a hint of mockery: "Thousand Arms, since you've decided to play, you have to be able to afford to play. It's clearly a clash of juniors — for you to personally step in is rather shameless, don't you think?"

"Judging by Elder Yu Chi's words, does it seem to this little monk as though I've already lost?"

The black-whiskered man dropped the act and performed a Buddhist salute with one hand.

The old crone called Yu Chi raised an eyebrow: "Isn't it obvious? The true scripture is already lost. Are you planning to haul another palanquin down from Mount Sumeru and send it to the Divine Dynasty all over again?"

As she spoke, a smile spread across her face: "I've lived so many years and never yet seen a Bodhisattva-rank true scripture of the Puti Sect. If I have the time, I might just flip through it — broaden my horizons a bit."

Hearing this, Thousand Arms Bodhisattva showed no haste or anger, and instead laughed as well: "Ten thousand rays of colored light exist only to illuminate the mortal world. It was never truly intended for those common folk to cultivate our great Dharma — merely a damaged scroll. If the Ancestor is interested, help yourself."

He had specifically appointed the Dragon-Subduing, Tiger-Taming Great Ming Wang to escort the scripture before the Buddha. Apart from the fact that Jin Chan Luo Han truly could not spare the time, he had also taken this opportunity to test the Great Ming Wang's strength, and further to see whether this Ming Wang's Buddhist heart remained steadfast.

Although, when he had previously placed a restraint upon him, this Great Ming Wang had shown not the slightest resistance.

But the hearts of men are hard to fathom, let alone those of a Great Luo Han possessing the power to overturn rivers and seas.

If he were truly single-minded in his devotion to Buddha, then from this day forth he would be, among the Puti Sect's younger disciples, second only to Jin Chan Luo Han himself — eligible to serve as a tribulation candidate, and guaranteed at the very least to become a Bodhisattva in the future, worthy of sharing with the likes of themselves this mortal world and the incense offerings of sentient beings.

But if he were merely feigning submission while harboring ulterior motives.

Then the other party would absolutely not let slip this chance to break free of his chains.

He might as well recognize the wolfish ambitions of this Dragon-Subduing, Tiger-Taming Great Ming Wang ahead of time, and deal with him early, to avoid any future disaster that might implicate himself.

A dog that cannot be tamed — what use is there in keeping it?

At this thought, Thousand Arms Bodhisattva gently tugged at the black dog in his hand. Listening to its faint whimpering, he felt much more at ease, and his smile grew more genuine: "Besides, even if it is a damaged scroll, the Ancestor may not necessarily get the chance to read it."

The next moment, his expression abruptly turned solemn, and he transmitted via Buddhist sound: "Retrieve the true scripture at once — let the Sanxian Sect Ancestor see the strength of our Puti Sect's Ming Wang!"

"You certainly have confidence in him."

Elder Yu Chi gave a cold laugh, but she was unfamiliar with both the Taixu Danhuang and the Dragon-Subduing, Tiger-Taming Great Ming Wang, so she couldn't really say much.

She had come here not only to stop this group of old-generation monk scoundrels from losing their composure and bullying juniors, but also to see if she could intercept and slay a third-rank powerhouse from the imperial court outside.

Now that the imperial court had not shown itself, there was no longer any reason to stay.

"Naturally."

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva responded with a faint smile, looking entirely in command of the situation.

Only the hand gripping the iron chain tightened imperceptibly, more and more.

Their own Great Great Ming Wang who Subdues Dragons and Tames Tigers… had not replied.

……

Outside the Divine Dynasty, at the place where the aura had erupted.

Streaks of flowing light shot over at extreme speed.

But before they could truly draw close, those of slightly lower cultivation turned deathly pale.

A fifth-rank Taiyi Immortal had already gained an initial glimpse of the true meaning of heaven and earth, could be considered a proper immortal, free to go anywhere beneath the heavens or above the earth.

But now, even after taking out their dharma treasures to shield themselves, they could still only be forced to stop at a distance of ten thousand li; if they pressed any deeper, their Dao Fruits would likely suffer damage.

Yet this distance was already enough for them to make out some things.

In an instant, every person's body began to tremble uncontrollably, afraid they had seen something wrong.

They saw, in that distant place, eight enormous bodies kneeling prostrate on the ground, like a continuous mountain range, magnificent and grand beyond measure, their entire forms already a silent grey-white, like stone carvings, covered in cracks, with only a few scattered specks of Jin Guang remaining to prove their identity as Great Bodhisattva-rank Arhats.

Facing them was immortal light so dense it could not be dispersed — the mark left after the fall of a powerful Taiyi True Immortal.

So vast and abundant, one could not tell how many lives had been needed to pile it up.

What had once been an obscure, nameless place had now become a graveyard of fallen immortals!

Let alone the others, even Lady Tiandong and the various Shenxu Mountain peak lords had never expected the situation to be so tragic.

Even if the scripture-snatching or scripture-guarding failed, it shouldn't have reached the point of a death fight — if you can't win, can't you just flee?

Could it be that everyone had gone mad with desperation?

Lady Tiandong led the crowd toward the Luo Han corpses; the moment she drew near, she froze on the spot.

Hongjing had an immortal seal protecting his body, and was considerably stronger than the other fifth-rank Taiyi Immortals; he hovered dazed before the eight Luo Han corpses, and at last understood why this group had not fled.

It was not the imagined free-for-all, with each pair fighting on their own, dueling separately.

These eight Arhats had all died at the hands of the same person, and by the same method!

Hongjing stared fixedly at the tiny, insignificant holes between the brows of the eight Arhats — such a small wound that one wouldn't even notice it on close inspection — how could it possibly have killed such powerful Great Bodhisattva-rank Arhats?

But when he overlaid this wound with the memory of his Jin Dan being half-shattered by Qingluan, who had borrowed the power of a heavenly soldier and a fourth-rank immortal seal back when he was in Hongze.

Hongjing instantly felt his hair stand on end, and a nameless chill rose in his heart.

He turned his head stiffly: "It's Taixu Danhuang."

The other party, with the strength of a single person alone, had slain a full eight top-tier Great Bodhisattva-rank Arhats of the Puti Sect.

For the Sanxian Sect, this ought to have been a cause for pleasant surprise.

With such a fierce general, why worry that after pacifying the world, the Sanxian Sect couldn't keep the Puti Sect beneath it.

But the problem was that even though the other party had slain these Great Bodhisattva-rank Arhats, in the end it was the Great Great Ming Wang who Subdues Dragons and Tames Tigers who carried the palanquin away as he left.

Added to that, this dense immortal light.

Led by Lady Tiandong, a shocking scene surfaced in the hearts of everyone present.

On the scripture-snatching side, Taixu Danhuang took the lead; on the scripture-guarding side, the Great Great Ming Wang who Subdues Dragons and Tames Tigers bore the banner.

Two peerlessly powerful experts, as if entering an empty realm, cleanly cut down the remaining forces on both sides, then fought each other to a standstill — and only then did the scene everyone had seen earlier come about.

The matter seemed to have been sorted out.

But not a single expression appeared on any of their faces.

It was only because among that group of people who looked as if they could be casually slaughtered — people not even worth mentioning — there were Great Bodhisattva-rank Arhats like White Elephant and Suanni, and even peerlessly powerful second-generation disciples of the Sanxian Sect like Tianwu Xuanwu.

Yet before these two, they had simply turned into stone statues and immortal light.

Even Daoist Jin Lei now felt his face inexplicably go numb: "……"

If he went all out, he could probably exchange a few moves with Tianwu Qingluan who held an immortal seal, but apart from fleeing into the Grand Void, he absolutely had no means to hard-block a full-strength sword strike from Tianwu Xuanwu.

As for these Arhats, he could probably only suppress the weakest of them, Benlang, by a head; against Evil Lion he would already find it somewhat taxing, and as for the strongest, White Elephant and Suanni, he was most likely no match.

Is the scene before one's eyes the strength a fourth-rank cultivator should possess?

Is this something a disciple of Shenxu Mountain could accomplish?!

Even at this moment, he began to doubt his own thoughts — was that Taixu Danhuang… really a Heavenly Dan?

"Honestly, I'm a little scared."

Lady Tiandong had been stiff for a long time, and finally let out a long breath, but no matter what, she could not squeeze out the slightest smile.

She slowly swept her gaze across the crowd; had it not been for that one fleeting thought earlier, she too would now be part of this sky-filling immortal light.

This so-called great tribulation was actually terrifying to such an extent!

The lives of prodigies no different from pigs and dogs, lying dead in the street like this — this was something they had never imagined in all their years of cultivation since childhood.

Were it not for this great tribulation, she would still be trapped at the bottom of a well to this day.

She had thought the Divine Dynasty's Nanyang was already the pinnacle of the mountains, yet had never imagined there could be people in the world stronger than that general — and not just one, but two at once!

"Mount Tianwu is going to go mad."

Someone, no one knew who, muttered softly.

The crowd instinctively looked over and nodded in deep agreement.

The great tribulation was about to rise; as for who paid the heaviest price, it was undoubtedly Mount Tianwu, the one with the greatest hope before the tribulation in Dananzhou — whether Qingluan or Xuanwu, both were strong candidates to seize the greatest opportunity of this tribulation.

Yet in the span of a short time, these two had fallen one after another.

One wondered what that Shenxu Laozu of Mount Tianwu was thinking.

"Has the great tribulation ended?" someone asked in a trembling voice.

"Hopefully so…" Lady Tiandong swallowed, a vague ominous premonition stirring in her heart.

If one of those third-rank Shenxu Laozu could no longer hold back, this so-called great tribulation would truly turn the world upside down.

Right now, the entire world seemed ready to explode, only waiting for someone to strike a match.

He could only hope that no such reckless fool would appear and drive the situation to an irreversible point.

……

In the clear sky, ripples suddenly began to spread.

In an instant, a figure in dark robes stepped out and took a seat atop the mountain peak.

He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath, only then managing to suppress the turmoil in his heart.

"Huu."

Shen Yi opened his eyes again, lifted a casket with both hands — within it, the ten-thousand-zhang radiant light had already been completely wrapped by tribulation force within the Grand Void realm.

He gazed quietly at this square casket.

He showed not the slightest intention of responding to the Thousand-Arm Bodhisattva's transmission.

Shen Yi had never believed he could fool those lofty gods, buddhas, and immortal sovereigns with such crude tricks.

But keeping the true scripture out of the Divine Dynasty was his bottom line.

And it was precisely this bottom line that had backed Shen Yi into a corner, with no room to retreat.

No matter by what means, once that ten-thousand-zhang radiant light illuminated Dananzhou, the foundation he had painstakingly consolidated would collapse in an instant.

In other words, from then on, he would only be left with two paths: becoming a dog for the Three Sects, or perishing.

Neither path could be called victory.

Shen Yi and Yang Mingli were actually somewhat alike.

Both refused to accept a Three-Sect victory, but compared to mutual loss, Shen Yi — who possessed the panel — barely qualified to fight for that slim chance of survival.

Therefore, he did not need to fool the gods, buddhas, and immortal sovereigns; he only needed to distract them for a while.

As for the remaining opportunity, he would leave it to the casket in his hands.

Shen Yi gently opened the casket. Looking at the ancient, unadorned scroll within — starkly contrasting with the radiant light — he held his breath and reached out to begin flipping through it.

【Third-rank · Spiritual Might Protecting the Dao True Scripture (Incomplete): Not Yet Initiated】

Even though he had long anticipated it, the moment he saw the panel prompt appear, Shen Yi could not help but sigh.

He sat in silence for a long while.

Gazing at the vast quantity of demon lifespan, he let out a self-mocking smile.

【Remaining Demon Lifespan: 4,700 Tribulations】

Apart from the 1,800 tribulations of demon lifespan Lady Qinghua had earned these past days, the larger portion came from the three great demons who, taking advantage of the Puti Sect's scripture-spreading matter, had indeed launched attacks from a full twenty-seven prefectures.

The result, naturally, was that the prepared Suppressing Stones devoured them all clean.

Not only had he successfully recovered his principal of two thousand tribulations, he had nearly doubled it.

Shen Yi, a man of common birth, felt he had calculated everything within his power and done his utmost to perfect what needed to be done.

But sometimes, one simply lacked a little luck.

"……"

Shen Yi quickly adjusted his mindset and began flipping through the incomplete true scripture once more.

Originally it was merely a habitual action, but as he flipped through it more and more, a gradual change came over his eyes, and the curve at the corner of his lips grew more pronounced.

This young master bears the fortune of heaven and earth, a proper Fortune Immortal, shielded by great destiny — why the hell would I lack luck!

It was true that this Bodhisattva-rank great scripture was incomplete.

But it was indeed a true scripture.

Within it, what constituted a third-rank Bodhisattva was explained in detail.

All paths of cultivation lead to the same destination.

Beginning from Qi Refining, it is the process of assimilating the fleshly body into heaven and earth — most evident at the Transformation of Spirit Realm, where the Dao Infant's five viscera cause the cultivator to appear, in the eyes of heaven and earth, as something akin to a heavenly treasure.

And after becoming an immortal, fifth-rank marks yet another turning point.

The so-called initial glimpse of heaven and earth's true meaning — what one glimpses is the order of the Great Dao. And who in this world stands closest to the Great Dao?

Undoubtedly, it is that group of orthodox gods who are embodiments of order.

Therefore, cultivators instead begin to imitate the orthodox gods.

This process is divided into two key points.

First, by what means to forge the body of an orthodox god; second, what form that body should take.

A complete Bodhisattva-rank great scripture should encompass both of these points.

But this Spiritual Might Protecting the Dao Bodhisattva True Scripture contained only the latter, lacking the former.

It was like building a house — having only blueprints, without bricks and tiles, like a clever housewife with no rice to cook.

But bricks and tiles… Shen Yi had long possessed them!

At this moment, even he began to wonder whether there truly was such a thing as the Heavenly Dao, and whether it had truly taken a shine to him.

Since the Puti Sect had given a fake scripture, they must have been guarding against him — and this method truly worked.

By common sense, a fourth-rank cultivator could never possibly obtain these "bricks and tiles" in advance.

Because once a great-rank fruit position was formed, it could no longer digest tribulation force. Since it could not be merged into tribulation force, how could one speak of seeking Jin Dan?

Yet Shen Yi had stumbled into refining a thing like the Grand Void Jin Dan; his realm was not yet complete.

But this alone was not enough.

Because even if tribulation force was merged, ordinary cultivators would not recognize Jin Dan either.

Therefore, one still needed the Four-Arm Divine Ability bestowed by the Thousand-Arm Bodhisattva, which had allowed Shen Yi to comprehend in advance the difference between third-rank and fourth-rank.

Only when the two were combined did the present opportunity to break the deadlock emerge!

(End of this chapter)