Chapter 348: Innate Sword Wood Gains Spiritual Awareness, Chen Ku Emerges from Seclusion!

Time is in chaos!

This is an extremely terrifying thing, and also an extremely shocking sight.

In an instant, amidst the reversed flow of the river of time, various chaotic scenes appeared.

Hongmeng, Chaos, Huanghuang......

The sea turning into mulberry fields, the shifting of stars and constellations, the birth and extinction of all things......

Even if a sage were here, witnessing this scene, they would inevitably have their scalp explode and their heart turn cold with fear.

However, Chen Ku sat calmly, allowing the river of time to flow and surge around him without being affected in the slightest.

After all, the river of time moves merely with a thought of his.

Immediately after, he stirred his divine sense again.

"Stillness!"

As this thought arose,

the previously raging and extremely chaotic river of time instantly came to a halt.

Every drop of water in the river of time seemed to have been suddenly frozen.

And with time standing still, everything in the entire Chaos world also solidified accordingly.

Not even Chen Ku's breath was an exception.

It seemed as if no one could break this fixed state.

After a while, as Chen Ku retracted his thoughts, the river of time surged forth once again, mighty and unceasing.

Chen Ku smiled with considerable satisfaction.

"Fortunately, I have the support of heaven-defying comprehension."

"Only then could I, within a single yuanhui, have comprehended the laws of time to great accomplishment."

Not bad!

Chen Ku felt greatly fortunate, not arrogantly pleased.

Know that the laws of time are how vast? Unfathomably deep.

If it were someone else, no matter how astonishingly talented they were, they would likely need hundreds of thousands of years to merely glimpse some of the mysteries of the laws of time.

But Chen Ku has heaven-defying comprehension supporting him, which is why he can progress at divine speed.

Moreover, if this achievement were placed in the outside world, it would be even more shocking.

After all, in the outside world, less than ten thousand years have actually passed.

However, although comprehending the laws of time to great accomplishment is a good thing,

immediately afterward, Chen Ku's face could not help but fall.

"Although I have comprehended to great accomplishment, yet if I were to fuse the spacetime laws, there would still be a bottleneck."

Alas... bitter, bitter...

He sighed again in this manner.

Comprehending and fusing are worlds apart.

The former is ultimately an external force, relying on the Pagoda of Time to mobilize the power of spacetime.

But if one could fuse them, then this power would belong to oneself, imprinted in every inch of flesh and blood.

Nevertheless, prior to this, Chen Ku had already tried every possible way to fuse them.

But in the end, they all ended in failure.

After a moment, Chen Ku cleared his distracting thoughts, and no longer dwelled on this matter.

Haste makes waste; given time, perhaps the opportunity to fuse the spacetime laws will mature.

And this retreat should also come to an end now.

Chen Ku rose to his feet, and thus exited seclusion!

However, just as he was preparing to leave this Chaos world,

suddenly, in his sea of consciousness, a voice with no prior indication sounded.

"Master... Master......"

Instantly, Chen Ku was startled, feeling greatly astonished.

Know that this is the Chaos world within the Chaos Pearl.

Apart from him, there should logically be no other living beings.

Moreover, the other party even called themselves "Master"!?

Chen Ku immediately looked around in all directions, and after a moment, his gaze suddenly tightened.

He saw that the innate spiritual root, the Sword Wood, which he had initially harvested, was now shining brightly, emitting an ineffable spirituality.

All things in the world can communicate with spirits.

Obviously, that previous voice was precisely the divine sense of this Sword Wood being transmitted.

Indeed, immediately after, the Sword Wood swayed, and another voice came.

"Master, I have now become able to attempt to take human form."

"Master, quickly take me out of this Chaos world."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ku was startled again, somewhat surprised.

This Sword Wood is already able to attempt to take human form so quickly!?

As expected of a top-grade innate spiritual root.

I fear it is not inferior to the foundation of my own innate bitter bamboo.

However, there is no need to say more; this Sword Wood is also a restless master, unwilling to remain in this ancient, deathly silent, and utterly quiet Chaos world.

Chen Ku shook his head and smiled wryly.

However, after pondering for a moment, he refused the request of the Sword Wood.

"Coming out into the world... not in a hurry for now!"

"Your following is after all extraordinary; once you emerge, it will surely cause a great commotion."

"Better to nurture yourself a while longer; wait until you have fully transformed, then speak of emerging—it will not be too late."

Chen Ku's considerations were quite thorough.

Hearing such a reply, the originally blazing light on the Sword Wood dimmed accordingly.

At the same time, a deeply human sense of disappointment also spread forth.

Chen Ku could not help but chuckle, yet he no longer paid attention to the Sword Wood.

With a thought, he emerged into the Chaos world.

And the Chaos Pearl was also hidden within his sea of consciousness, unseen.

Looking around, Chen Ku saw the figures of Ksitigarbha and the Ten Kings of Yama, among others.

Moreover, upon emerging from seclusion at this time, he clearly sensed that, as his own doppelgänger, Fengdu the Great Emperor had likewise returned to the Western Buddhist realm.

"Eh?!"

"During my seclusion these past times, what exactly has happened?"

Chen Ku felt somewhat puzzled.

Although Fengdu the Great Emperor is his doppelgänger, the two do not share complete spiritual awareness, after all, he was previously in seclusion.

Thereafter, Chen Ku gazed toward the location of the Mahavira Hall.

To inquire of his own martial uncle, that would do.

In an instant, Chen Ku descended into the Mahavira Hall.

However, at this moment, Zhunti was frowning deeply, appearing lost in thought, his face showing a gloomy and depressed expression.

Even Chen Ku's arrival went unnoticed by him.

"Hehe, why is my martial uncle so troubled and furrow-browed?!"

Chen Ku also wasted no words, directly speaking to ask.

Upon hearing this, Zhunti finally startled awake.

Following the sound, he looked up; upon seeing Chen Ku's figure clearly, Zhunti instantly rejoiced.

"Martial nephew... you have finally emerged from seclusion?!"

He could not help but exclaim thus.

Chen Ku nodded slightly, yet said nothing more, merely waiting for Zhunti to respond to his inquiry.

Zhunti also came to his senses, immediately adopting a solemn expression.

"Alas... martial nephew, you have been in seclusion for nearly ten thousand years; many things have occurred in the outside world."

"Previously, the Wu Clan intended to imprison humanity; the dragon clan's beings, seeing injustice, rushed to help righteousness."

"Who would have thought that, by accident, the Yinglong caused the death of the Wu Clan's great witch, Chuyu?"

Zhunti spoke, recounting everything in detail, informing Chen Ku.

And upon hearing Zhunti's narration, Chen Ku also understood the full context of this matter.

However, he took it lightly, with an expression of calm indifference.

"So that is how it is......"

"But, that was merely the Wu Clan bringing misfortune upon themselves."

"Not to speak of accidental death; even if the Yinglong had intentionally killed him, what could be done?!"

"Hmph.... nowadays, my Western Buddhist realm fears nothing!"

Majestic!

Arrogant!

Chen Ku rarely displays such an unruly side.

However, the current Western Buddhist realm absolutely has the confidence to say such things.

Moreover, upon hearing that the Wu Clan has abandoned its initial pledge, not only failing to protect humanity but instead seeking to imprison them, Chen Ku also felt a surge of anger in his heart.

Therefore, regarding Chuyu's death, he felt neither pity nor the slightest worry.

Chen Ku's such domineering and overflowing response eased Zhunti's expression somewhat.

However, he still spoke with some solemnity:

"Before I acted in the Underworld, a sudden, inexplicable throbbing came through my spiritual awareness."

"Faintly, it seemed as if I had a premonition that my Buddhist realm would forge an irreconcilable enmity with the Wu Clan."

Clearly, that prior spiritual throbbing still weighs on Zhunti's mind, unable to be let go.

After a pause in speech, he continued:

"Furthermore, the relationship between my Buddhist realm and the Underworld has been broken."

"Ksitigarbha, the Ten Kings of Yama, and others have likewise been left without a way forward for the time being."

"This is extremely detrimental to their cultivation."

In fact, Zhunti is not afraid of the Wu Clan.

This is what truly worries him most.

Moreover, not to mention other matters, simply speaking of Ksitigarbha—his initial vow, "If hell is not empty, I will not become a Buddha," has now become a great trouble.

He originally belonged in the Underworld, but the Wu Clan's interference has prevented him from liberating vengeful souls, and his cultivation progress has also been greatly affected.

Upon hearing Zhunti's such worries, Chen Ku instead burst into louder laughter.

"Haha... There's no need for you, Uncle Master, to worry about this matter anymore."

"With just the Wu Clan, they also want to manage the Underworld? Nothing but the talk of a fool dreaming."

"Those Wu Clan members merely hold the position of Underworld deities in name, yet lack the ability to manage the Underworld; in the end, they are merely binding themselves."

"It won't take long before someone naturally seeks our Buddhist sect to take over the management of the Underworld again."

Chen Ku spoke with full confidence, his chest filled with assurance.

As for the Wu Clan's abilities, he understood them better than anyone.

Know that even Ping Xin, as the Lord of Reincarnation, dares not claim to fully comprehend everything about the Underworld.

Let alone the other Wu Clan members!

Upon hearing this, Zhunti's originally dim eyes also brightened at once.

Exactly!

For cultivators of the Primordial Wasteland, no matter what position they hold, they must possess "virtue matching their position."

How could I have failed to consider this point earlier?!

In that case, the matter that previously caused him immense distress and constant worry is utterly insignificant.

Zhunti couldn't help but laugh at himself.

"Hehe, I was overthinking it!"

The knot in his heart untied, Zhunti felt completely at ease.

His expression shifted slightly as he thought of something else, and he asked Chen Ku with anticipation:

"Junior Nephew, regarding your earlier deduction, have you come up with any solution?!"

What Zhunti referred to was naturally the matter of tracing the mastermind behind the scenes.

Chen Ku lightly laughed and nodded.

"I already have some clues......"

Instantly, Zhunti became even more curious.

However, Chen Ku had no intention of saying more.

And just then, another light laugh echoed out.

"Haha, truly worthy of being my disciple!"

"Using the law of cause and effect to trace back, I too have gained some insight."

Upon hearing this, Jieyin and Chen Ku both showed smiles, turning toward the sound.

Without a doubt, this is Jieyin also emerging from seclusion.

Moreover, Jieyin has also sensed some profundity.

As they spoke, master and disciple exchanged a glance, both smiling knowingly.

Only Zhunti nearby looked bewildered, not understanding what riddle they were playing.

Not even comparable to my own senior brother Jieyin—well, never mind.

Now even my own junior nephew seems somewhat unfathomable.

Zhunti felt utterly speechless, his head full of black lines.

Just as he was silently complaining, Chen Ku suddenly spoke with deep meaning:

"Master, Uncle Master!"

"In my view, we can first proceed to the Sun Star."

"Investigate... whether the ancient calamity of ten suns appearing in the sky was heavenly tribulation or human disaster."

Upon hearing this, Zhunti expressed no opinion.

Jieyin, however, nodded with great relief.

"Good, Master also had this intention!"

Clearly, in the sensing between Jieyin and Chen Ku, there are some similarities.

And perhaps the Sun Star is precisely the key.

Without further words, the three immediately set out for the Sun Star.

The Sun Star, spanning across the ancient universe.

Its location stretches for hundreds of millions of li in all directions, a sea of true solar fire spreading everywhere.

Gazing out, blazing flames cover the sky and earth, endless and boundless, like velvet.

The firelight burns fiercely, illuminating the nine heavens and ten earths, consuming all things.

The intense heat radiating out even makes the surrounding stars barren, with not a blade of grass growing, desolate and wasted.

This shows the power of the true solar fire, one of the ten ancient divine fires, is astonishing.

As one of the main stars of the universe, and also the ancestral land of Emperor Jun and Taiyi's three-legged golden crow, ordinary strong cultivators naturally cannot set foot here.

But this naturally cannot stop Jieyin, Zhunti, and Chen Ku.

Not long after, the three arrived at this place.

Gazing intently, they couldn't help but reveal a hint of solemnity in their eyes.

"This Sun Star, truly worthy of being the great star capable of giving birth to top-tier innate divine beings like Emperor Jun and Taiyi."

"Such aura is indeed extraordinary!"

Zhunti exclaimed in awe, not denying the extraordinariness of the Sun Star.

Meanwhile, Jieyin's gaze fell upon a spirit root glowing with divine light on the Sun Star.

That spirit root, despite being scorched and baked by the ancient true solar fire, only grew more vigorous in aura, showing no sign of withering.

There's no other reason!

That is precisely one of the ten supreme innate spiritual roots, the Fusang Divine Tree!

Of course, Jieyin merely glanced at it briefly, with no covetous thoughts whatsoever.

This Fusang Divine Tree is the foundation of Di Jun and Taiyi.

If I were to act upon it, Di Jun and Taiyi would inevitably sense it, leading to unforeseen complications.

After a moment, the three withdrew their gazes and instead extended their divine sense to perceive.

Not long after, Jieyin reached a conclusion.

"Outside this sun star, there is an innate great formation laid down by Di Jun."

"Only those at the quasi-sage level or higher can break this formation."

As soon as the words fell, Zhunti nodded in agreement, greatly approving.

"Not bad!"

"If so, how exactly did the ten golden crows of old fly out of this sun star?!"

"Back then, they were all existences at the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm."

The more Zhunti comprehended the profundity and power of the innate great formation, the deeper his doubts grew.

The initial ten suns appearing in the sky must have been suspicious!

Jieyin remained silent, immediately forming hand seals, preparing to continue using the law of cause and effect to investigate its mysteries.

However, at this very moment, Chen Ku beside him softly said:

"Master, wait!"

"The law of cause and effect probably has no effect here."

"It would be better to... directly reenact the scene from back then!"

Immediately afterward, Chen Ku let out a low shout.

"Time reversal!"

Thereafter, a supreme divine ability great technique was unleashed accordingly.