Chapter 21: Chapter Twenty-One: The Dharma Contract

The situation changed in the time it takes to flip a palm.

The yellow-robed youth who called himself Tu Shan Ge did not even dare to lift his head; the red-and-white Yuan Pearl hovering above him was erupting with countless bolts of thunder and lightning, roaring fiercely as if ready to fall at any moment and blast him into flesh scattered across the sky.

For most demon creatures, nothing was more feared than this heavenly thunder and lightning.

Refining the horizontal bone invites lightning strikes; transforming the body and shedding form invites lightning strikes; even advancing one's Mei Mei Gongxing still invites lightning strikes.

Having been struck by lightning all the way thus far, even an old demon of many years would feel a tremor in their heart and a brief lapse of awareness upon hearing the thunderous boom.

Seeing their elder subdued in a single exchange.

Ten-odd foxes immediately rushed out from the pavilion, surrounding Chen Heng and yipping chaotically, wanting to rescue Tu Shan Ge, yet fearing the awe-inspiring radiance emitted by the Thunder-Fire Lightning Yuan Pearl, they could only pace frantically in place, their fur standing on end.

"Where is this place?"

Chen Heng glanced around in a circle.

This space was not large, covering merely ten mu of land, yet the houses were neat and the decorations carved beautifully, clearly showing that considerable effort had been expended.

But what interested Chen Heng the most.

Was the faint surge of Jin Jin Guang circling at the far end of the space, seeming to mark the boundary... that ring of Jin Jin Guang sometimes slowed to a halt, sometimes leaped nimbly; as this ring of Jin Jin Guang expanded forward, the ten-mu space also vaguely seemed to stretch out by a few fractions.

Yet this change was imperceptible, merely a few fractions or li, and unless one deliberately paid attention, it was difficult to notice.

"This... this..."

Seeing Chen Heng ask.

Tu Shan Ge's eyes rolled, and suddenly a new scheme arose in his heart.

"This is the great Fan Fan Dongtian of the Chiming Sect! Have you heard of the 'Nine Yu Yu Huangchang Yang Jin Que Fan Fan Dongtian'? This is but one piece of land within that Fan Fan Dongtian, and I am the spiritual pet of this place! Since you have intruded into the Fan Fan Dongtian and injured the spiritual pet, you have already committed a heinous crime! Hurry up and release your lordship, or else beware that when my master returns and reports to the Daoist Lord, he will have the Daoist Lord cast you into the Nili Path, where you shall suffer for life after life—"

"Your mouth is sharper than a knife."

Chen Heng, too lazy to pay him heed, lowered the Thunder-Fire Lightning Yuan Pearl another inch, startling Tu Shan Ge into screaming incessantly.

"Where exactly is this place?" he asked again.

"The... the Nine Yu Yu Huangchang Yang Jin Que Fan Fan Dongtian!"

Chen Heng said nothing.

He only gazed faintly at him, watching until the fox felt his heart turn hollow and his hands and feet began to tremble.

"Fellow... Fellow Daoist..."

Tu Shan Ge endured his terror and spoke gently.

"Fellow Daoist? You practice the Divine Path, while I seek the Immortal Path; how can we be of the same Dao?"

Chen Heng waved his sleeve to cut him off:

"Though I am a rustic fellow from the wilds, I also know that a Fan Fan Dongtian is used to shelter one from the three disasters of wind, fire, and thunder; once the three disasters pass, one merges with the Dao to attain truth, and proving oneself an immortal via feather ascension is not far off. Are you trying to tell me that in such a barren land as Yang Mountain, there hides a Fan Fan Dongtian, and moreover one originating from the Chiming Sect, one of the Eight Great Sects of the Profound Gate?"

"The Immortal Path and the Divine Path are both the Great Dao; since we both study the Great Dao together, how can we not be considered Fellow Daoists..."

Tu Shan Ge gave an embarrassed laugh, trying to gloss over it, but soon he was so shocked by Chen Heng's next words that his eyes widened in disbelief and his limbs turned ice-cold.

"If you continue to pester me with nonsense, I will kill you first, then kill half of this den of foxes and force the remaining half to reveal the truth. If one refuses, I kill one; if all refuse, I kill the entire den. I do not believe they all have mouths as stubborn as yours!"

"... Aren't you a cultivator of the Immortal Path? How the hell do you act like someone from a Demonic Sect!"

Tu Shan Ge cried out in grief and indignation.

"True Person Yan Xi once said that the Profound and the Demonic are one Yang and one Yin; one Yin and one Yang constitute the Dao."

"You've grown up looking so good for nothing! With the Daoist Lord above! What a heart of snake and scorpion you possess!"

The Thunder-Fire Lightning Yuan Pearl suddenly sank downward; feeling that scorching, blazing aura pour over him, his Divine Path Golden Body, which had not yet fully healed, immediately began to melt.

No longer caring whether Chen Heng was bluffing, Tu Shan Ge's liver and gallbladder shattered in terror, and he hurriedly spilled his thoughts like pouring out beans.

"Divine Domain; this is a Divine Domain I opened up using divine power! It was where I previously received incense and vowed strength; my clansmen and I relied on it to dwell within Yang Mountain!"

Divine Domain?

So, this is a Divine Domain...

Chen Heng understood in his heart and asked another question.

"It seems you are that Divine Path white fox who fought with the Yang Mountain Daoist; apparently, after being defeated back then, you brought this den of foxes to dwell here ever since? But since the Divine Domain is ultimately within Yang Mountain, did the Yang Mountain Daoist never detect it?"

"Let alone him; didn't even you fail to discover it..."

Tu Shan Ge subconsciously wanted to retort.

But catching sight of that red-and-white Yuan Pearl hovering above his head, he forcibly changed his words and explained honestly:

"The Divine Path differs from the Immortal Path; although it is considered a minor path and an external path in Xudu Xudu Tianyu, in other Xudu Tianyu it is nonetheless a mainstream cultivation tradition, naturally possessing some marvelous functions; take this Divine Domain, for instance, which is extremely secretive... Although I am merely a minor earth deity whom any Qi-Refining cultivator holding a talisman weapon could kill, a mere Qi-Refining cultivator lacks my ability to create internal landscapes; even a Qi-Refining cultivator from one of the Eight Great Sects of the Profound Gate could absolutely not achieve this."

"That Yang Mountain Daoist is a wild cultivator who has not obtained the Five Zheng Fa; he knows only a single Daoist technique. Based on what ability does he think he can find my Divine Domain? It's a fool's dream! After he falls asleep, this Yang Mountain still belongs to me; Laozi eats when I want to eat, goes out for fresh air when I want to, joyful and free!"

"Oh?"

Chen Heng said with a smile that was not quite a smile: "If your Divine Domain is as formidable as you claim, why was I able to enter? Does it not have gates or prohibitions?"

"Seen a big ghost!"

Hearing Chen Heng say this, regardless of the Thunder-Fire Lightning Yuan Pearl still hovering above his head, Tu Shan Ge's nose twisted in anger, and he began to curse loudly.

"I sent these cowards to deal with you, but they were nearly scared to death by you! After running into the Divine Domain, they were so frightened they forgot to close the prohibitions, allowing you to break in; otherwise, how would I have ended up like this? How would I have ended up like this!"

Among the fox pack.

A large-tailed white fox with an arrow in its rump silently turned its head; seeming to feel ashamed, it covered its ears with two paws and curled into a ball.

"Why did you disturb my quiet cultivation? Did you want to seize Yang Mountain back from me?"

Tu Shan Ge hemmed and hawed, clearly admitting it.

"With just this little divine power of yours? Where did you get the audacity?" Chen Heng asked, puzzled.

"If my Golden Body had still been intact..."

Tu Shan Ge argued unwillingly, before finally hanging his head in dejection:

"Our fox clan is born with a divine ability that allows us to absorb Yang energy upon contact; Tu Shan Zhuang is the one among us most skilled in the art of transformation, especially in transforming into beauties... I assumed that since you were young, you would naturally be lustful and admiring of beauty, unlike that old dog of a Yang Mountain Daoist whose schemes are so deep, so I sent him to seduce you; who would have known he couldn't even get near your person..."

A fox skilled in illusion and transformation was actually utterly surpassed in appearance by someone else.

Where is the logic in that?

To whom can one appeal for logic?

Tu Shan Ge felt like crying but had no tears.

"Daoist Yangshan Daoist, he counts as having deep scheming? It seems you truly were frightened out of your wits."

Chen Heng shook his head.

He pointed a finger, and the Thunder-Fire Pilgrimage Pearl slowly generated a layer of flames, searing downward.

Tu Shan Ge was burned until he wailed continuously, his body flickering uncertainly, as if he might explode on the spot at any moment.

"Do you wish to live?"

Only after a few more breaths did Chen Heng speak indifferently.

"I want to live, I want to live... I beg this Daoist to spare my life."

Tu Shan Ge rolled all over the ground, yet dared not roll too far, fearing the pearl would strike directly down.

"Sign a legal contract, become my spiritual pet, and I will spare your life."

"What?!"

Tu Shan Ge snorted coldly: "I already have a master! My master is a disciple of the Chiming Sect! This old fox serves one master loyally and does not serve two; if you want me to submit—"

Before his words had finished.

The flames intensified by several degrees.

Tu Shan Ge screamed in agony, finally unable to endure, clasped his hands to beg for mercy, and produced a legal contract.

After Chen Heng drafted the clauses on the contract, signed both parties' names, and sealed it with essence blood, he casually withdrew the pearl into his sleeve.

"Doesn't this mean being someone's slave for a lifetime?"

Tu Shan Ge held the contract, his heart weeping blood: "How harsh are these clauses; when this person dies, I might even have to continue serving his children and grandchildren for generations. Damn it! Have I truly become a clan-guarding spiritual beast?"

"You are mistaken. Firstly, my ambition lies in the Great Dao, leaving no room in my heart for romantic entanglements; secondly, you may not even outlive me."

Before Tu Shan Ge could indulge in further wild thoughts, a faint voice sounded in the depths of his mind, startling him into immediately reining in his thoughts.

Seeing this, Chen Heng nodded.

After signing that legal contract, he and Tu Shan Ge shared a mystical connection; this person's life, death, words, and actions were all under his control, and with a single thought, he could manipulate him at will, kneading him round or flattening him flat.

"What is this? Having just arrived in your precious territory, will you, as the host, not even offer tea?"

Chen Heng smiled slightly, looked around, and seeing that the other white foxes dared not meet his gaze, they hastily lowered their heads.

"Spoken so nicely! This is just the start of plundering my wealth accumulated over many years!"

Tu Shan Ge's heart ached even more.

He also lowered his head and, in a muffled tone, guided Chen Heng toward the main building.