Chapter 486

Thunder is the ultimate expression of yin and yang, the pivot of all things, governing matter and beings, presiding over life and death.

From the highest heavens to the lowest earth, without thunder, no command can be executed; whether in matters of great life and death or small withering and flourishing, none but thunder may govern them!

This is a supreme method capable of making all evil spirits flee and all demons bind their forms—vast and boundless, beyond measure!

The Western Zen school also has praises, saying thunder possesses the power to shatter delusion, awaken insight, and protect the Dharma; its might shakes the great myriad worlds and subdues all heretical paths, like the vajra club striking the earth to split mountains and burn away all forests of affliction!

In the ancient Dao Court, the immortals and gods of the Thunder Department were always tasked with sweeping away cosmic misfortune and acting on Heaven’s behalf.

Whenever the thunder soldiers and spirit officials appeared, impurities would vanish, true yang would spread, and the hidden demons and monsters lurking in darkness would tremble in terror, frantic as mad things.

When the Thunder Department’s divine generals or departmental lords appeared in person, they would cause yin and yang to grind against each other, heaven and earth to surge and clash—even the ancient demonic gods deep in the underworld could no longer sit calmly in their halls.

The Great Manifest Ancestor was the director of the Immortal Capital Thunder Department, one of the Three Departments of the Thunder Department; his status ranked just below the Thunder Department’s supreme seal-bearer, and he was the eldest of the Five Elders of Thunder, personally appointed by the Heavenly Emperor with the title “Great Immortal Who Breaks the Underworld and Subdues Evil,” commanding him to dwell within the Supreme Golden Palace Realm, ruling over billions of troops and generals, free to enter and exit the Profound Heaven—also known as the Xuanjie Heaven—his authority and rank towering high!

The Taiyi Divine Thunder, painstakingly created by the Great Manifest Ancestor, was naturally one of the supreme thunder arts in all heavens and universes, not to be lightly revealed or discussed.

When the Grand Historian Mei Gongxing forged the “Golden Chapters of the Earthly Underworld,” Taiyi Divine Thunder was nearly unanimously rated “Top-Grade” by the celestial officials, placed at the very head of the Thunder Arts section.

There were hushed rumors that when Mei Gongxing came to demand the “Taiyi Divine Thunder,” the Great Manifest Ancestor, fearing he might refuse, incited the immortals and gods of the Immortal Capital Thunder Department—who had long harbored grievances—to rise in rebellion, then allied with the entire Thunder Department to add a fierce blaze to the chaos of the time.

Mei Gongxing first used the Heavenly Emperor’s imperial edict to secretly summon the True Martial Heavenly Lord and the Wu Xiang Heavenly Lord.

After these two frontier commanders arrived with countless troops and surrounded the surrounding heavens, Mei Gongxing entered the Immortal Capital Thunder Department alone to personally read the Heavenly Emperor’s jade decree to the Great Manifest Ancestor.

Yet most Yucheng disciples regarded such rumors as baseless, mere outside gossip, unworthy of belief.

Since the founding of Yucheng, through to the collapse of the ancient Dao Court, the Great Manifest Ancestor had fulfilled his duties to the Court with utmost loyalty; no one could find fault with him.

Capturing Teng Bing, slaying Chi Chong, quelling the rebellion of ten thousand demons in Yin Spring, lifting the siege of Fa Sheng Tian Yi Xiao…

Whether personally leading his disciples to confront the Tianyi Yan faction, or joining the Eight Immortals of the Dipper Department to repair the ancient, world-shattering raft.

His glorious heavenly merits, even across the vast Thunder Department, were matched by few immortals or gods!

Had it not been so, the Court would never have specially granted the precious “Plum Blossom Divination” to enrich Yucheng’s inner foundations—this was precisely to reward the Great Manifest Ancestor’s lifetime of achievements.

As for after the sudden collapse of the Dao Court, though the Great Manifest Ancestor used immense power to obliterate all Yucheng teachings recorded in the “Golden Chapters of the Earthly Underworld,” leaving not a single trace,

this does not prove he harbored hatred toward the Dao Court or showed it no mercy.

He was not the only one who did this.

All other Xuan sects and demonic clans—the Tai Chang Dragon Clans, the Huangji Heavenly Palace, the Wu Xiang sects, and the pure meditation groves of the Infinite Light and Ultimate Bliss heavens…

At that time, every major power capable of such an act acted in unison; nearly none were exceptions.

Even the Court’s trusted elders—Shangluo Gong, the Great Xuan Primordial Mother, and others—secretly erased their own sect’s teachings and powers from the “Golden Chapters of the Earthly Underworld.”

In comparison, the Great Manifest Ancestor’s actions were truly unremarkable…

At this moment, Chen Hang felt as if wrapped in thin mist, drifting upward endlessly.

All he saw was profound darkness; he seemed to be within a void of blackness, unaware of where he was headed.

In this state, his thoughts gradually scattered involuntarily.

At first, Chen Hang could still recall the key points of wielding Taiyi Divine Thunder, then think of the famed Great Manifest Ancestor.

But finally, even summoning thoughts became difficult; his body was exhausted, his strength long gone.

Thus, half a year had passed in the mortal world, yet Chen Hang, in deep meditation, had long lost any clear sense of time.

The earlier joy had faded; he felt as if only a stick of incense had burned, or as if a hundred years had vanished in a flash.

This uncertainty bred fear in his heart—he worried he had been misled by cultivation, sitting in a Dao barrier until death without ever escaping.

Yet now, even if he wished to withdraw, it was utterly impossible; instead, he would only sink deeper, lost in delusions.

“If you force stillness, the water grows harder to calm; stillness is not true stillness, movement is not false movement; the sage’s way of controlling thunder is to nurture movement through stillness, and prove stillness through movement…”

In a moment of daze, Chen Hang suddenly had a flash of insight—he suddenly understood these words.

As soon as this thought arose, all confusion vanished from his heart; he relaxed his mind, his spirit sinking instantly into drowsiness, no longer sensing anything else, as if in a daze.

But after several months passed, Chen Hang’s spirit suddenly became clear again, like waking from deep drunkenness.

He smiled inwardly, paid it no mind, and simply waited.

To Fu Lao and the old monk outside, his behavior seemed utterly inexplicable.

The latter even set down the Pure Karma Nectar he had raised to his lips, muttering two “tsk” sounds.

His heart was filled with indescribable emotions.

“When cultivating Taiyi Divine Thunder, one can manifest such strange phenomena?”

The old monk looked at Fu Lao, seated opposite him, and asked with a complex expression.

In his vision, Chen Hang—who had been sitting motionless—now suddenly changed in aura, as if about to awaken from meditation, yet also sinking deeper into oblivion.

Lightning flickered around him, appearing and vanishing unpredictably, like flowers blooming and withering in an instant.

Movement and stillness came and went, impossible to grasp…

A fist-sized core of pure qi surged from the crown of his head, rising into the air before slowly dissolving into drifting fluff, a single breath obscuring dozens of li of mountains and rivers, still expanding outward, possessing a majestic aura that seemed to invade heaven and earth and press upon all four directions!

The old monk saw that this vast qi seemed dim and mysterious, yet could rival the light of sun and moon, chaotic and boundless, majestic and exalted!

Deep within the qi, a deep, rumbling vibration occasionally emerged, instantly causing heaven and earth to resonate, valleys trembling, mountains shaking.

It seemed that at any moment, wind and rain would arrive, changing the face of heaven and earth.

Though such grandeur could not move the old monk, accustomed to the world’s wonders,

let alone was he himself a master of sublime Buddhist treasures, endowed with great power and skill; even while accompanying the Jingcang Bianji Buddha, he had witnessed the collapse of heavens and the rebirth of voids dozens of times.

Yet within the heavenly qi, that faint, terrifying essence—capable of piercing the primordial chaos and reducing all stars and constellations to dust—suddenly reminded the old monk of a past he wished never to recall, and his face darkened without his awareness.

“The sun and moon have brightness and darkness; cold and heat carry the breath of life and death; thunder has its times of emergence and retreat…

Ha! Only thus does one begin to grasp the way of Taiyi Divine Thunder!

It seems he has already comprehended the movement and stillness of the divine thunder; to break through this barrier so swiftly—no wonder he is a true heir of Yucheng! Too bad the Dao Court has collapsed; otherwise, a touring inspector would surely have reported this to Heaven, and the boy might have been granted a fire jujube or golden blossom.”

Fu Lao’s face radiated unhidden delight, proud and honored.

Then he glanced at the old monk’s expression, as if remembering something, and suddenly clapped his hands in mock epiphany:

“I thought your face looked so grim—did you just recall being struck by lightning before? When my master fought the Jingcang Bianji Buddha, he held back, wanting to subdue you, so he never used Taiyi Divine Thunder against you. But the Great Manifest Ancestor was different.

To be fair, you were the one who acted foolishly, going to meddle in that mess.

Luckily, the Great Manifest Ancestor only meant to shatter Zongjing Tian; you merely suffered collateral damage—otherwise, you’d have no life left!”

Fortunately, Great Xian Patriarch only sought to sink Fang Zong Jingtian; you were merely collateral damage—otherwise, you wouldn’t have survived!

…

Long ago, when the Eight Sects and Six Clans united under the Xudu Heavenly Lord to suppress Tianyi Yan’s rebellion,

because the Great Wisdom Sheng Monk was allied with Tianyi Yan, many Zen factions secretly joined Tianyi Yan’s camp under his call, all acting against Heaven.

At that time, the Jingcang Bianji Buddha was still undergoing tribulation, too occupied to attend to external affairs, and the old monk, uncontrolled, was deceived by a Zen friend into going to Zongjing Tian.

The old monk thought he was merely accepting payment for a service, as usual.

But he never imagined Zongjing Tian had been forged by Tianyi Yan’s ministers of the Heavenly Craft Department into a piercing drill to breach the heavens.

They intended to use it to pierce the “Taiyi Inverted Nine Palaces Reverse Array” of Xudu Heaven, seizing the initiative to establish a foothold across the Ten States and Four Seas.

The reason they summoned the old monk was to use his divine ability to awaken the soul and intelligence of the carefully forged drill.

But their scheme was detected by the Xudu Heavenly Lord, Xie Gongzai.

At that time, the Great Manifest Ancestor personally manifested, using supreme power to activate Taiyi Divine Thunder and shatter Zongjing Tian!

Countless rebels within Zongjing Tian perished; the old monk, also inside Zongjing Tian, suffered terribly, nearly having his true consciousness ground to dust.

After investigation, it was found the old monk had not participated in the rebellion—he had merely been deceived.

The Dao Court’s punishment was lenient: they merely reprimanded the still-tribulating Jingcang Bianji Buddha and sentenced the old monk to a thousand years of imprisonment in the Heavenly Prison—truly a trivial penalty.

The old monk cared little for the imprisonment, but the terrifying memory of nearly having his true consciousness erased by Taiyi Divine Thunder haunted him endlessly.

Even now, recalling it sent shivers down his spine…

Now, by chance, Chen Hang was attempting to cultivate Taiyi Divine Thunder; the old monk’s nerves were tugged, and he felt irritable and suffocated, wishing he could simply slap away the strange phenomenon above his head and be done with it.

“What a twist of fate… well, well…”

Since resistance was impossible, the old monk knew he was now merely a thread of spiritual energy; his true form had been firmly suppressed by Fu Lao and Donggaozi’s power.

No matter how unwilling, he could change nothing.

“If your Yucheng disciple succeeds in comprehending Taiyi Divine Thunder, isn’t that my merit?”

Turning his thoughts, the old monk felt somewhat better, and chuckled coldly:

“Without me, how could he ever have such glory? In that case, he ought to present me with a generous gift and bow to me!”

Fu Lao glanced at him and shook his head: “If you had willingly helped Chen Hang, I might grit my teeth and accept your boast—but you were forced by me. Still, you dare ask for a generous reward? Such greed and lust—back then, you deserved to be struck dead by the Ancestor’s thunder in Zongjing Tian.

And do you think Chen Hang could not have cultivated Taiyi Divine Thunder without you?”

The old monk crossed his arms behind his back, proudly said: “Without me, he’d have wasted at least a hundred years!

My ability to aid others in awakening to the Dao is the foundation of any sect’s establishment—your thunder tablet may allow him to practice, but how could you possibly understand this?”

“If you’re so powerful, then Baoya Temple must be a great Zen monastery teeming with talent?”

Behind him, he said proudly: “Without me, he would’ve been delayed by at least a hundred years!”

“Yet until the collapse of the ancient era, Baoya Temple never produced any notable disciples?”

“Monk, if you’re this powerful, then Bao Ya Temple must be a great monastery teeming with talent?”

The old monk’s face stiffened; he wanted to retort but didn’t know how to begin.

“Your stubborn mule nature remains unchanged—if you don’t rein it in, someday you’ll get struck by lightning again.”

Fu Lao chuckled and pointed at Chen Hang:

The old monk’s expression stiffened; he wished to refute, but did not know how to begin.

“Your donkey-like temper remains unchanged; if you don’t rein it in, you’ll surely be struck by lightning one day.”

Fu Lao chuckled and pointed at Chen Hang.

“Who knows? In the future, it will be this very person who cuts you down!”

The old monk smiled slightly: “Though this man may deserve the title of outstanding talent, to stand against me is still far too premature—don’t boast so rashly!”

Fu Lao waved his hand, too weary to argue further; as he returned to his seat, he looked up at the strange phenomena in the sky, feeling a quiet pang of emotion.

“To comprehend the interplay of motion and stillness so swiftly—not only am I surprised, but even he himself may never have anticipated it?”

Fu Lao mused inwardly: “At first, I thought five years would barely suffice; now it seems he may not even need five years?”

Even as Fu Lao pondered this.

At the same moment, Chen Hang, immersed in meditation and insight, also perceived another realm.

After an indeterminate time, he finally emerged from that dark void; before him, light shone like crystal, slowly descending from above.

In an instant, he was swept upward; before his eyes, a single flash of lightning merged with countless raindrops, pouring down in torrents, plunging the thick clouds into darkness.

Before he could grasp further insights, he found himself unwittingly buried deep beneath the earth; amid the rumbling thunder at his ears, he suddenly burst forth, first sending forth a tender sprout.

He was sometimes rain, sometimes vegetation, sometimes charred pine, sometimes stone marrow.

Birds, beasts, insects, mountains, rivers, seas, sun, moon, stars, the boundless void.

Amid the rumbling thunder, he felt himself shifting and transforming along with it, awakening boundless mysterious perceptions.

He drifted in a daze, forgetting his own existence, merely following the guidance of that obscure, primordial will, spontaneously initiating the method of Taiyi Divine Thunder.

All things sense qi, naturally and effortlessly, each becoming one with that realm—

Thus, after yet another indeterminate span of time, Chen Hang suddenly felt everything fall silent.

Only a mighty voice echoed from the heavens, as if ready to cleave this world apart, like axes and blades descending, thundering a question:

“The Great Void is inherently without form—how then can myriad things arise?”