Chapter 257: Fate

Ahead, at the end of the canyon, a towering, majestic mountain appeared, stretching and undulating across the horizon, with steep peaks rising like giant pillars straight into the pitch-black Cangming.

After entering the mountainous region, both of them breathed a sigh of relief and slowed their pace.

The environment here was exceptionally complex; flickering and flying through it was like moving through a giant labyrinth. To avoid getting lost, the two walked and stopped, continuously pushing deeper into the mountains.

As they ventured deeper, the terrain ahead grew higher, and the variety of plants became denser and more diverse. Strange, gloomy forests began to appear, and there were even waterfalls, springs, rivers, and lakes.

In these forests, not only were there Demon Beasts carrying fluctuations of Yuan Qi and Spirit Qi, but there were also pitch-black Nether Beasts, as well as a large number of strange creatures bearing the dual aura of the Underworld and the Mortal World, all flying, running, roaring, and fighting in these endless mountains that resembled a labyrinth.

The two continued on their way, and Xu Chen released his Divine Sense to sweep across the path, taking in the entirety of this strange land.

Here, both animals and plants were entirely unique and peculiar existences.

They were neither like those of the Mortal World nor those of the Underworld; according to Youtong, this was the true appearance of Minghuang.

It was only because of the constant erosion by Underworld Qi that the entire Minghuang eventually lost its vitality and completely turned into a land of deathly stillness.

In reality, the depths of the Underworld were not like this; there were also large numbers of special Underworld plants and animals, which were completely different from a place like Minghuang where the two worlds intersected.

Xu Chen felt deeply moved.

Recalling the significance of the nine ancient human clans guarding Minghuang and the Mortal World, he felt that things might not be so simple.

Because in his view, the nine ancient clans might all be divine slaves to certain ancient gods.

Who they were fighting for, and what hidden secrets might lie behind it, remained unknown.

The layered mountains were like giant steps, each level having a drop of hundreds of miles, and as the two flew higher and higher, they felt they were getting closer to the zenith of the sky.

Until at one moment, Xu Chen's eyes flickered, and he actually saw a twinkling white dot on the pitch-black sky. He immediately stopped his movement, pointed at the firmament, and said, "Look, is that a star?"

Youtong also stopped, took a look, nodded, and said, "It is indeed a star. It seems we have truly reached the boundary between the Mortal World and the Underworld."

Xu Chen let out a long breath, his face full of joy, and said, "It seems there is hope for me to escape."

Youtong was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Do not think of it too simply. The Underworld and the Mortal World are separated by a vast distance, and there is a boundary wall. To return to the Mortal World, there are only two paths: one is to cross the Cangming and search for a rift in the boundary wall, and the other is to find the teleportation channels left behind by the human race during the ancient war."

Xu Chen smiled bitterly and said, "Neither of these methods seems easy."

Youtong nodded with a solemn expression: "It is not that they are not easy; it is that the hope is slim. Even in my prime, both of these paths were nine deaths and one life."

Xu Chen suddenly felt his heart shake violently, frowned, and asked, "The Demon Lord is equivalent to a human True Immortal, right? Isn't it said that one can roam the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths? Why is it still so difficult?"

Youtong said, "Actually, a Demon Lord is not just as simple as a True Immortal; it is equivalent to a human Great Vehicle Golden Immortal. Each one is a powerful force within the Wuxingtian and cannot be mentioned in the same breath as an ordinary True Immortal. Corresponding to the three human realms of Refining Spirit and Returning to Void—Yang Spirit Void Breaking, Body Integration Void Charging, and Great Vehicle Jade Void—we of the Demon Race have three levels: Demon Venerable, Demon King, and Demon Lord. At the Demon Venerable realm, one can only enter the lowest level, Yueluntian; at the Demon King realm, one can enter Wuxingtian; at the Demon Lord realm, one can touch Qingweitian. Only by reaching the Demon Emperor realm can one be considered truly immortal and indestructible—what you humans call Refining Void and Combining with Dao, eternal life, and living as long as heaven and earth."

After listening, Xu Chen said with a strange expression, "Then what about the White Bone Demon Emperor?"

Youtong said, "I do not know how he died, but to kill a Demon Emperor, the opponent must at least reach the Dao Venerable level. That was something from a Five Elements epoch ago; I am not clear on it either. Perhaps Heitian knows more."

Xu Chen could not help but frown again: "Aren't you also a Demon Lord? Could it be that you and Heitian are not from the same era?"

Youtong shook his head: "I am not clear on Heitian's background either. His lifespan is ancient; he has lived for at least several epochs. Some say he is the reincarnation of a Nether God, and because he violated heavenly laws, he was suppressed in the Underworld by the God-Demon Dao Ancestors of the Upper Three Heavens to guard the boundary gate. My memory is currently very chaotic, and I cannot recall many things about the Underworld, so I cannot answer this question. As for my own background, it is not yet appropriate to tell you, otherwise, I fear it would bring you more trouble."

Xu Chen could not help but smile bitterly: "It is already too late to say these things now. I am not trying to pry into your background, but I am just curious: with such powerful strength, why were you killed, and how were you brought to the Mortal World?"

Youtong sighed gloomily, glanced at Xu Chen lightly, and said, "If a supreme-level Heavenly Demon like the White Bone Demon Emperor can be killed, what is strange about my death? You don't really think that by cultivating to become an immortal, you can be immortal and indestructible, do you? Immortality is just a beautiful wish. Which expert who has grown to such a realm has clean hands? Every step is taken with caution; one can say they all crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. In the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, there are countless living beings; none are truly deserving of death, but none are innocent either. Even a mortal, to survive, must eat grains, chickens, ducks, pigs, and dogs. Killing a person is killing, but is killing a living creature not killing? The Demon Race and the human race are both living beings. Having slaughtered each other for countless epochs, the blood feud has accumulated to the point where it cannot be erased even by the extinction of a race. Naturally, I have countless enemies—not only human experts, but even more so, powerful members of the Demon Race in the Underworld. Furthermore, we of the Demon Race and the God Race are mortal enemies; we fight to the death upon meeting. I was killed precisely because I trusted the Demon Race too much."

Speaking of this, Youtong gently pressed his brow, his face looking somewhat pale and pained.

"After I died, a wisp of my demon soul escaped to a hidden place on the border between Minghuang and the Mortal World, parasitizing a Nether Soul Flower to maintain my intelligence and wait for the opportunity to slowly resurrect. But I did not expect to be discovered by human cultivators and brought into the Mortal World, where I was imprisoned in a cave. They attempted to use the power of my demon soul to refine and absorb it, to break the void and become real. However, although my consciousness was constantly extinguished by the Nether Spring water they introduced, the power of the Demon Eye within the Ancient Demon Bloodline I awakened did not completely disappear. In the end, their souls slowly fell into the illusions of the Demon Eye, and they eventually killed each other. I, having lost my intelligence, turned into the demon creature you called the Mysterious Water Nether Lotus, until I was finally taken into that bottle by you."

After listening, Xu Chen suddenly realized the truth. Now, he had finally unraveled the cause and effect of the destruction of the Taiyuan Sect.

However, he was still very curious and asked, "Since you lost your intelligence at the Taiyuan Sect, why do you know everything that happened afterward so clearly?"

Youtong said, "I naturally knew these things after I woke up. Everything the Mysterious Water Nether Lotus you spoke of experienced was actually everything I experienced. Although my intelligence was gone, my memories remained, though they were all intermittent fragments. In reality, I truly regained my intelligence only after the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele appeared not long ago. When the suppression of that bottle on me dropped to its weakest point, I was able to communicate with you and escape the seal."

Xu Chen felt embarrassed and said dryly, "Actually, this cannot be blamed on me; I was also just trying to survive."

Youtong shook his head gently and said, "Actually, I should thank you. If I hadn't been refined by you for such a long time, slowly grinding away the Underworld aura that polluted my intelligence, it would be unknown whether I could have woken up. Otherwise, according to my previous temperament, how could I have spared your life? The first thing I would have done upon coming out was to kill you."

Xu Chen suddenly felt cold sweat on his back and laughed dryly: "It seems this is fate. When I went into that mine, it was just out of curiosity; I never thought a terrifying Great Demon Lord like you was hidden inside. Otherwise, even if I were beaten to death, I wouldn't have gone in."

"Fate... it can indeed be considered fate. The Demon Ancestor once said that fate and luck are the most elusive forces between heaven and earth. These two are always intertwined and entangled, and no one can crack them. If someone succeeds, they will surely step onto the true path of the supreme, ascend to the Jile Jingtu, and look down upon the Nine Heavens." Youtong's expression was distant, and his voice was filled with something strange.

Although Xu Chen did not understand, he was full of yearning.

Above the Nine Heavens, the Jile Jingtu—what kind of realm must that be?

But a moment later, he suddenly remembered a question he had been thinking about and wanted to ask, so he said, "Demon Lord Youtong, I have a doubt that I need you to answer sincerely!"

Youtong turned his head, his face carrying a hint of strangeness, and asked, "I have always been sincere, from the moment I woke up and prepared to help you!"

Xu Chen awkwardly picked his nose and said, "Regarding the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele, I hope to get the most detailed answer."

Youtong was silent for a moment, his face began to turn pale again, and finally, rubbing his brow, he said, "Regarding the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele, I actually do not know much either. This is an extremely mysterious thing between heaven and earth, which should have been left behind when the ancient gods and demons created the world. It is mainly used to suppress heaven and earth. There is more than one, but how many there are is unknown. As long as we descendants who have awakened the Ancient Demon or Ancient God bloodline encounter one, we can recognize it. As for other uses, I am sorry, I truly do not know. I only know that this stele is very ancient and very mysterious. There were experts in the Demon Race who tried to collect the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele to study it, but unfortunately, they all ended in failure. This kind of stele has its own will; even if it falls into one's hands, it will disappear on its own after a period of time."

Xu Chen was left between laughter and tears: "Then why are you helping me so diligently?"

Youtong shook his head: "I am not helping you; I am helping myself. Because even if I wake up, I must borrow your bottle to reside in it and recover my strength; otherwise, if I am targeted by an expert like Heitian, I would have almost no chance of escaping. Besides, you saw it at the time: if the divine stele had not been subdued, that bottle, along with you and me, would have been dragged into the chaos of the Void. Once trapped inside, death would be certain. The matter of the divine stele is not a secret among the experts of the Nine Heavens; many people know it. Therefore, if you want to understand it, it will not be difficult to inquire after you cultivate to become a True Immortal. My memory is chaotic now, and I cannot give you too many answers. Additionally, that bottle of yours is not simple; even a Dao Venerable-level expert might not possess one. Therefore, you must never take it out casually in the future, or you will bring yourself countless troubles."

Xu Chen was suddenly startled.

It seemed he had underestimated that bottle. As he came into contact with more and more high-level experts, the definition of the bottle's grade seemed to be getting higher and higher, as if it had no peak.

From what he initially thought was a Grade 6 Pseudo-Immortal Artifact, to the later True Immortal Artifact, and now to the well-intentioned warning from Youtong, he felt that the origin of the Blue Jade Bead he picked up was becoming increasingly mysterious.

A Magic Treasure that even a Dao Venerable who has refined the void and combined with the Dao does not have—what grade is that?

He could not imagine it at all.

Because the highest level of Magic Treasure he could imagine was a True Immortal Artifact with an artifact spirit and consciousness.

Above an Immortal Artifact, what is that?

It is said that those who have refined the void and combined with the Dao can make things happen with a word, destroy the world with a thought, and create the world with a thought. Their Magic Treasures are the ones that truly destroy heaven and earth.

However, what left him speechless was that the Blue Light Treasure Bottle and the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele had already merged together; there was no way to take it out even if he wanted to. Moreover, he began to worry.

According to Youtong, this Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele seemed even more disobedient than the Blue Light Treasure Bottle and could actually run away on its own. What if it ran off with the Blue Light Treasure Bottle?

For a moment, Xu Chen felt somewhat uneasy and restless.

However, this short and simple conversation also resolved many of the puzzles he had long held, and also clarified the hierarchical relationship between the Demon Race and human experts, which could be considered as greatly broadening his horizons and increasing his knowledge.

Therefore, although this journey to Minghuang was full of crises, and he even broke two dantian and nearly lost his life several times, after truly passing through it, he found that not only had his experience and knowledge surpassed what the so-called great cultivators of the Mortal World could hope to reach, but his state of mind and cultivation had also left his peers far behind.

It is said that reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles.

This is true for ordinary mortals, and even more so for those who cultivate immortality and seek the Dao.

Although closed-door cultivation is safe and peaceful, if one wishes to become a true powerhouse, one must still endure hardships and dangers, and pass through various life-and-death barriers; otherwise, how can one speak of pursuing and comprehending the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth?

Because the so-called Great Dao of Heaven and Earth exists within all things.

Only by experiencing more can one gain deeper insight, eventually accumulating sand into a pagoda to see through the Great Dao.

(End of this chapter)