Chapter 307: Nearly the Dao! Enshrining the Divine, the Chaos Great Saint

Though his body dwells in the mortal world, he erects a divine statue to stabilize the void.

Day and night he endures, never dying—a peerless, eternal divine art.

The Zhang family of Long Long Hu Shan are called the Zongliu of the Daoist sect, a divine lineage, and their most distinctive trait is the method of 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】.

Once a Zhang family member receives a Daoist title and erects a divine statue, they become fundamentally different, able to receive incense offerings from mortals and cultivate the path of immortals amid the swirling mortal realm.

This is the reason the Zhang family reigns supreme under heaven.

Only those who receive 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】 and gain the Ancestors' approval are truly Zhang family members; all others are mere offshoots, unworthy of a name—in the past, anyone who reached twenty had to leave Long Long Hu Shan and return even the Zhang surname.

Before this, such people were often given titles like 【Hidden Name】, 【Concealed Name】, 【Fallen Name】, or 【Evil Name】.

In the history of Dragon Tiger Zhang, the most famous among such people was the Hundred-Year-Old Three Corpses Daoist, whose deeds shook mountains and seas and earned him the title of Number One Under Heaven.

At that time, his name was 【Zhang Zhang Kongming】; the Ancestors showed no mercy and granted him an empty name.

"Zhang Wuming…"

Zhang Fan stared at the young Daoist before him, who showed great prudence, and remained silent.

In the Zhang family, disciples who have not received 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】 are as different from heaven and earth—even in the eyes of those Zhangs who receive incense offerings, they are unworthy to bear the Zhang surname.

Yet though Zhang Wuming has not gained the Ancestors' approval or received 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】, he is still a Zhang family member, possessing the High Merit realm and profound magical arts, far stronger than ordinary Daoist disciples.

"Brother, if you don't understand the meaning of 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】, I can explain it to you…" Zhang Wuming forced a smile.

Long Long Hu Shan has been absent for eighty years—who in this world still remembers its former glory?

Moreover, 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】 is a secret technique of Dragon Tiger Zhang; ordinary Daoist disciples cannot even know of it.

Zhang Wuming feared Zhang Fan might misunderstand his status in the family, so he hurried to clarify.

"No need." Zhang Fan said coolly.

According to Zhang family rules, strictly speaking, the Zhang Wuming before him cannot be counted as a disciple of the North Zhang lineage.

"Brother, we've just met, no grudges between us—no need for fighting, right?" Zhang Wuming chuckled nervously.

As a Zhang family disciple, he displayed a rare virtue: "A true man knows when to yield and when to advance."

This stems from his experience of never receiving 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】; in the Zhang family, without such status, one cannot survive unless one bows low and begs for mercy.

After all, only those who successfully receive 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】 are truly Zhang family members, truly the chosen of heaven.

As for us, we are merely hangers-on and ornaments.

"You're right—we have no grudges, no debts. So letting you live or killing you makes no difference to me."

Zhang Fan regarded Zhang Wuming with interest and said coolly: "You ask me to spare you. Give me a reason."

"I want to live!"

Zhang Wuming paused briefly, then spoke only three words.

"That's it?" Zhang Fan blinked.

"That's it."

Zhang Wuming shook his head: "Whether I want to live is up to me; whether you let me live is up to you…"

"If you let me live, I live; if you kill me, I have nothing to say."

As he spoke, Zhang Wuming closed his eyes.

Sincerity is always the deadliest killing technique.

Zhang Fan's realm was such that he heard Zhang Wuming's breath remain slow and steady, his blood flow unchanged beneath his skin.

This meant he spoke with perfect calm—as if he accepted life or death equally, truly willing to surrender his fate into Zhang Fan's hands.

One who accepts life and death with such equanimity does not seem as sycophantic or slippery as he appears.

"You're interesting. Live for now."

Zhang Fan's lips curled slightly as he released Zhang Wuming's wrist.

"Thank you, brother." Zhang Wuming exhaled in relief.

Almost instantly, his breathing quickened, his blood surged, his heart pounded wildly.

"Brother, with your strength, you must be from one of the Ten Daoist Sacred Mountains—or perhaps from a Pure Yang lineage?" Zhang Wuming looked at Zhang Fan with reverence, asking cautiously.

"Trying to pry information from me?" Zhang Fan glanced sideways.

"How could I dare?" Zhang Wuming chuckled awkwardly. "Pure admiration."

Zhang Fan didn't even look at him, his gaze falling on the girl beside him.

The girl flinched slightly as Zhang Fan looked her way, her eyes revealing a trace of astonishment.

She had seen Zhang Wuming's strength, but this man was even more terrifying—he subdued him without a trace of fury, his cultivation depth unimaginable.

Most crucially, she couldn't gauge Zhang Fan's temperament—just moments ago they were fighting to the death, now he spared Zhang Wuming.

"Demon?" Zhang Fan glanced once and saw through the girl's true nature.

"She's a demon from Yellow Skin Cave," Zhang Wuming leaned in, whispering.

In an instant, he seemed to have become Zhang Fan's ally, fully immersed, with not a hint of psychological burden.

"Yellow Skin Cave!?" Zhang Fan's heart stirred slightly.

Li Li Miaoyin had said Yellow Skin Cave was a formidable force among the myriad spirits and demons of the Ten Thousand Mountains.

The Yellow Six Lang he had killed that day was from Yellow Skin Cave.

"Why was he chasing you?" Zhang Fan asked the girl.

"I was commissioned to clear the way for Yellow Three Lang of Yellow Skin Cave, so he could dominate alone," Zhang Wuming leaned in again, whispering.

Struggles among demons and spirits are bloody and primal.

The old demons in the cave rarely interfere in the younger generation's battles—killing by cultivation is skill; borrowing fate and external power is also skill…

Unless it truly concerns the survival or downfall of the cave, only through life-or-death struggle can a true leader emerge.

After all, they were originally animals that attained spirit and transformed into demons and ghosts.

"Commissioned? By whom?" Zhang Fan raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, by the Zong family," Zhang Wuming said solemnly.

The Dragon Tiger Zhang family does not judge by bloodline—regardless of origin, anyone who gains the Ancestors' approval and receives 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】 is a Zong family bloodline.

The capable rise, the weak retreat; nature selects the fit.

"North Zhang people…" Zhang Fan's gaze sharpened.

As Lin Jianyue had said, North Zhang had indeed sent someone—not someone like Zhang Wuming, but a true North Zhang disciple, one who had received 【Enshrining and Naming the Divine】, with profound cultivation.

North Zhang had allied with Li Li Changgeng; this man didn't merely want to ambush Zhao Zhao Jiexuan—he wanted to subjugate Yellow Skin Cave.

Zhang Fan suspected Yellow Skin Cave was merely Li Li Changgeng's stepping stone; this heir of White Crane Pavilion had immense ambition—he might intend to subjugate all the demons and spirits of the Ten Thousand Mountains.

"Li Li Changgeng's ambitions are vast."

Zhang Fan murmured inwardly, his gaze fixed on the girl before him.

"What's your name?"

"Shut up."

Before Zhang Wuming could speak, Zhang Fan glared at him, silencing his words.

"I'm Huang Huang Jiumei."

"Is what he said true?" Zhang Fan asked again.

"Mostly true," Huang Huang Jiumei nodded.

"Your bones are hard. If your cave has powerful allies, why risk your life resisting?" Zhang Fan said coolly.

Huang Huang Jiumei's face shifted, her teeth clenched, her voice firm: "Relying on outside power is like a floating weed without roots…"

"You humans say greed blinds wisdom—I see Third Brother has been blinded by this opportunity, unaware he's inviting wolves into the house. Even if he becomes cave lord, he'll only be used as a tool. My entire cave kin will be doomed."

"Oh? I didn't expect a Yellow Skin rat, living deep in the mountains, to have such insight." Zhang Fan was surprised—he'd underestimated this girl.

"You humans have a saying: 'Remember the past, guide the future…'"

"When the Daoist sects and the Wu Wei Sect fought, it swept across the world, shaking mountains and seas—my Ten Thousand Mountains demons and spirits were nearly exterminated; it took a hundred years to recover their primordial energy…"

Huang Huang Jiumei sighed: "Since ancient times, when war breaks out, whether victor or vanquished, it is always the weak who suffer."

"I've always believed we should avoid entanglement in human conflicts—cultivate good karma externally, refine Daoist methods internally, and strengthen ourselves to survive."

"Unfortunately, I'm lowly and my words carry no weight."

At this, a shadow of gloom crossed Huang Huang Jiumei's face.

"You have some insight. If a disaster ever comes and you must choose between the Daoist sects and the Wu Wei Sect—who will you choose?" Zhang Fan asked, intrigued.

"Choose?" Huang Huang Jiumei paused, then laughed bitterly.

"I'm just a minor demon—how could I have the right to choose?"

Choice requires status and strength; most people merely drift with the tide, at the mercy of fate.

"If you had the right to choose—if you sat upon the throne of Yellow Skin Cave," Zhang Fan said softly but firmly.

At these words, not only Li Li Miaoyin, but even Zhang Wuming beside him looked at Zhang Fan with unusual expressions, studying him deeply.

"Me?" Huang Huang Jiumei blinked, then shook her head.

"I don't know."

"Don't know?"

"You humans say: 'Affairs arise from people; people grow through affairs.' Doing anything still depends on the person…" Huang Huang Jiumei gritted her teeth.

"If among humans there is someone worthy of trust, I would entrust the fate of my entire cave to him."

"What kind of person is worthy of your cave's life and death?" Zhang Fan asked.

"One who is near the Dao."

"Do you even know what the Dao is?" Zhang Fan laughed in disbelief.

Huang Huang Jiumei's eyes glazed over with a dazed expression as she murmured softly.

"Life is Dao, death is Dao, success is Dao, failure is Dao…"

"The Dao of Heaven is formless and vast, precisely because it is natural."

"Hmm!?" Zhang Fan's eyes brightened, his expression turning unusual.

The Dao of Heaven operates in chaos and boundlessness; whether success or failure, life or death, yin or yang, good or bad—all lie within the Dao of Heaven, precisely because it is spontaneous, untouched by human interference, in accord with the most fundamental, primordial laws.

Such words sound simple, but how many truly comprehend their mystery? And how many can actually live by them?

Those who do, in every gesture and word, naturally align with Dao—without thought, without intention.

"I never expected someone with such shallow cultivation could grasp this truth and speak these words," Zhang Fan couldn't help but praise.

"I didn't say this," Huang Huang Jiumei shook her head.

"My grandfather told me. Many years ago, a guest came to the Ten Thousand Mountains and sat with the Demon King to discuss Dao…"

"He was the one who said this."

"Oh? What guest?" Zhang Fan grew curious and asked.

"His Dao name is San Shi!"

"San Shi Dao Ren," Zhang Fan murmured, his gaze sharpening.

Li Li Miaoyin's eyes shimmered with unusual light, while Zhang Wuming's face flickered with an almost imperceptible expression.

"Good. We are destined to meet. I shall grant you a boon," Zhang Fan nodded, helping Huang Huang Jiumei to her feet.

"What boon?" Huang Huang Jiumei asked instinctively.

"I want you to take the throne in that cave. From now on, no one will dare question you."

Zhang Fan's words stunned her; Huang Huang Jiumei's expression changed slightly.

"Why are you helping me?"

She knew well there was no such thing as a free meal—hence her earlier words: relying on external power was like a rootless floating weed. If someone lifted her up, they would surely have their own agenda; once bound to them, she would drag the entire Huangpi Cave into irreversible ruin.

In that case, she would be no different from Huang Huang Sanlang.

"Merely because I wish to," Zhang Fan said lightly.

"Are you of the Daoist school, or of non-action?" Huang Huang Jiumei hesitated.

"Don't worry. I ask for no repayment, no allegiance—only that you remember today's words and never forget your true heart," Zhang Fan said calmly.

The mountain wind drifted gently, stirring the tall grass and brushing the girl's hair. She looked at the man before her and felt his stature as high as mountains, his depth as vast as oceans.

"If this succeeds, in the future… I will repay this debt with my life."

Huang Huang Jiumei was decisive; once she decided, she knelt and bowed, striking three heavy bows toward Zhang Fan.

"You—"

Beside them, Zhang Wuming stared in shock. Zhang Fan's actions were clearly smashing the reputation of the Northern Zhang lineage, standing utterly opposed to them.

"Do you have an objection?" Zhang Fan noticed the subtle shift in Zhang Wuming's expression and spoke lightly.

"Of course I support my brother! This feudal relic of the Zhang family deserves to be thrown into the dustbin of history," Zhang Wuming pressed close to Zhang Fan, his eyes burning with righteous conviction.

"I am sworn to destroy the remnants of feudalism."

In truth, he himself had been a victim and casualty of the Zhang family's rigid system.

"Then come along," Zhang Fan gestured invitingly.

"Brother, don't make a scene—I'll lead the way."

Zhang Wuming understood at once and walked ahead; Huang Huang Jiumei followed closely behind.

The two who had just been chasing and killing each other had instantly become companions—such was the mystery of fate.

"Why are you bringing him?" Li Li Miaoyin fixed her gaze on Zhang Wuming and said sharply: "I feel he's no good."

"I feel the same, but don't you find him interesting? Keep him for now—he might prove useful," Zhang Fan replied casually.

Zhang Wuming was the first person from the Northern Zhang lineage he had met; through him, he might learn the true nature of the Northern Zhang branch.

Along the way, Zhang Wuming remained obedient; had one not known better, one might have thought he had followed Zhang Fan for years.

"Brother, what's your name?"

"Does it concern you?"

"Brother, aren't you a disciple of the Pure Yang Clan? Only such a lineage could produce a disciple as outstanding as you."

"Trying to extract information from me? Wanting to uncover my origins?"

"Brother, do I even need to dig into your origins? You stand there—you are my origin now."

"What's the name of the high-ranking expert from the Northern Zhang lineage who came this time?"

At that moment, Zhang Fan changed the subject abruptly.

Zhang Wuming paused, then answered.

"His name is Zhang Zhang Huntian!"

"Zhang Zhang Huntian!" Zhang Fan's gaze sharpened into a single thread—he committed the name to memory.

"Zhang Huntian is his Dao name," Zhang Wuming said gravely.

He and Zhang Zhang Huntian shared the same clan and lineage, even participated together in the 【Divine Enthronement Grand Rite】, yet the latter succeeded in becoming a deity, received his Dao name, and since then their fates diverged—now they were worlds apart.

"The statue he established is called the Great Holy Zhang Huntian!" Zhang Wuming murmured solemnly.

(End of Chapter)