Chapter 98: Another Page of the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter

A host of demons peered and lurked, their aura gloomy and terrifying.

Yet on the dharma altar, Cave Lord Master Huaiwu remained with eyes closed, expounding the Dharma; at points he deemed profound, he would occasionally pause slightly, as if savoring the deep meaning within, a hint of self-satisfaction subtly appearing on his face.

On the two adjacent meditation cushions, the rogue cultivator Lu Yu and that Qi-refining practitioner from the Blood Lotus Sect were completely unaware, listening with rapt attention.

This time.

Cave Lord Master Huaiwu was expounding a talismanic scripture named the "Hu Gong Su Ling Qiang Ji Lu."

Once this talisman was inscribed and activated, it could cause one's "mind to open, enabling one to read without forgetting, acquiring three thousand words daily; long-term ingestion could strengthen the blood," yet it merely enhanced memory, possessing no function of enlightening wisdom, and offered little benefit to a cultivator's comprehension of the Dao and Dharma.

To practically demonstrate this Fu Fa, a strand of cyan-blue true qi leaped forth from Cave Lord Master Huaiwu's crown, differentiating into various cinnabar, gold paper, large brushes, and spiritual ink, step by step tracing the talisman and drawing the register; amidst this, spiritual light spiraled and circled, soaring into the firmament, creating a scene of brilliant, dazzling radiance.

"This old scoundrel still reveals nothing, quite skilled at hiding..."

Chen Heng sneered slightly in his heart, lowered his eyelids, yet his facial expression remained feigned as quite bewildered.

On one side was the full demeanor of the Xue Xuan Gate, immortal qi swirling, misty clouds emitting rosy xia.

Whereas what he saw on the other side was a sorrowful and terrifying scene of myriad monsters bowing in prostration, with resentful qi and deadly qi nearly rushing up to pierce the heavens.

Especially that giant golden figure; while kneeling in prostration, half its face was embedded into this palace, and as the golden slurry flowed within, the stench was so unbearable it made one wish to cut off one's own nose.

Chen Heng attempted to communicate with these demon types via voice transmission, yet there was no reaction whatsoever.

Even that red-skinned dwarf, which seemed to possess spiritual intelligence and had addressed him as "Demon Son," at this moment merely appeared wooden and dazed, as if he had heard nothing.

He probed by flicking a wisp of fetal breath from beneath his sleeve, touching the skull of a nearby large snake with a human face, yet there was no sensation of flesh and blood whatsoever.

It passed straight through, as if it were merely a bubble or an illusion.

"..."

Chen Heng's eyes flashed slightly.

The two people beside him did not notice, but this action could not deceive Cave Lord Master Huaiwu, who sat upright on the dharma altar.

As early as when that first skin-peeled blood corpse appeared, although he could not see it, he naturally had a mysterious sensation, and his expression quietly tightened.

As for the subsequent human-faced snake, red-skinned dwarf, and various others, his fingers clenched even tighter, nearly cracking his fly-whisk from the grip, crushing quite a bit of spiritual light.

Only now, seeing Chen Heng still sitting properly on the meditation cushion, his qi mechanism normal, and although his expression showed shock and suspicion, he had not lost a single strand of flesh or blood, did he finally set his heart at ease, exhaling a long breath from his chest.

"Two hundred years! A full two hundred years! Finally, a hero capable of resonating with the 'Ji Ran Tiangong Zhi Sheng Qi Dao Da Fa' has emerged; this page of the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter is simply too difficult to cultivate; Lady Liu and I have bitterly waited for two hundred years, and finally, we have seen a turning point!"

At this moment, Cave Lord Master Huaiwu's heart was filled with myriad complex, indescribable emotions; even the words of his Dharma exposition unconsciously paused somewhat, his gaze a mix of joy and sorrow, fluctuating between dim and bright:

"Fortunately, I took the risk of potentially angering the Flower God Manor afterward and insisted on inviting this Chen Heng to listen to the Dharma exposition; the blood corpse was one thing, but could he have truly passed the obstruction Dharma of the Six Dust Demons so easily? Without the slightest damage?

He is indeed a remarkable figure; no wonder Xie Tan, hailing from the Changyou Xie clan, would look upon him with favor!

Pity that the 'Ji Ran Tiangong Zhi Sheng Qi Dao Da Fa' is a Heaven Demon Dharma created by the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen... unless one is of the Heaven Demon race, even if one achieves a heart-field resonance with this great divine power, it is absolutely impossible to cultivate it successfully."

At this thought.

Even while feeling fortunate, Cave Lord Master Huaiwu felt considerable posterior fear.

If Chen Heng currently possessed the body of a Heaven Demon, judging by his performance of passing the Six Dust Demons' obstruction Dharma without a scratch, nine times out of ten, he would be able to cultivate the "Ji Ran Tiangong Zhi Sheng Qi Dao Da Fa" successfully and become the Demon Son of the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen.

If he truly became the Demon Son of the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen and reached the heavenly ears of the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen.

Even though he himself was a Dongxuan cultivator, plus Lady Liu, who was an E Chen Yin Sheng Demon.

Although they could win.

Yet if Chen Heng was determined to flee, they would fundamentally be unable to stop him...

"If only you had been born two hundred years earlier, allowing this old man to encounter you two hundred years sooner, why would these two hands of mine have needed to stain themselves with so much killing sin, ruining my entire reputation for purity?"

Cave Lord Master Huaiwu felt deeply melancholic:

"If it were two hundred years earlier, this old man would have long ago crossed the gang qi layer with Lady Liu and fled far away beyond the heavens, becoming a carefree mandarin duck couple; why would I need to be like a rat in a gutter here in Xu Du Tian, with everyone shouting to strike me down..."

While his mind surged with these emotions on the dharma altar.

Chen Heng attempted to transmit a message outward, and as expected, the surrounding heaven and earth had long been suppressed and locked, making entry or exit impossible.

Thus, his face timely added a few more degrees of terrified expression, appearing even more fearful than when the demon types had appeared previously, nearly trembling in both legs, terrified to the point of being unable to remain seated on the meditation cushion.

"Let me first try this divine power..."

He thought silently, using his consciousness to communicate with the Golden Cicada, instantly entering the Yi Zhen Fa Zhi Jie.

It was still that vast heaven and earth, chaotic, murky, and boundless.

"The 'Ji Ran Tiangong Zhi Sheng Qi Dao Da Fa'; I want to see exactly what strangeness resides within it."

Chen Heng did not hesitate; sitting cross-legged on the ground, he projected that great divine power within his heart-field, carefully examining each character.

In less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, he had memorized it all thoroughly, yet his brows could not help but furrow.

"A Heaven Demon Dharma? After communicating with the Ji Ran Heavenly Palace and becoming the Demon Son of the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen, one can then conduct transactions with this father god to exchange for infinite creative power? Even seizing the sun and moon or wandering suspended in the netherworld would not be presumptuous; quite a bold claim, similar to the Tai Su Yu Shen.

However, how is it that this Heaven Demon Dharma created by the Chong Yu Shouzun Moshen is also listed within the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter..."

Chen Heng pondered silently, thinking:

"Furthermore, should not this type of Earth Deficit Golden Chapter have Ting Fa prohibitions? Where there is Dao, it appears; where there is no Dao, it hides; only those with fate may see it. I clearly have not yet seen the original text of the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter, so how did I so easily obtain the divine power upon the Golden Chapter?

What exactly does Cave Lord Master Huaiwu intend to do with this Golden Chapter? Does he intend to refine me into a demon follower?"

The Earth Deficit Golden Chapter.

Where there is Dao, it appears; where there is no Dao, it hides—

Just as Tong Gaolu and Daoist Daoist Yangshan were able to obtain the Tai Su Yu Shen, these two were clearly recognized by the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter as people with fate.

Furthermore, the Golden Chapters are all set with Ting Fa prohibitions by the Dao Court, forbidden from being transmitted externally.

Tong Gaolu repeatedly wished to transmit the Tai Su Yu Shen to his several brothers and offspring, yet due to the Dao Court's Ting Fa prohibitions, he repeatedly failed.

If Chen Heng did not have the Golden Cicada in hand, he would surely never be able to catch even a glimpse of the wonders of the Tai Su Yu Shen.

Yet observing the annotations by the Dao Court's Grand Historian on its scripture and the unique classification method of the Dao Court, this great divine power was clearly a scripture from the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter.

Yet he had clearly merely listened to Cave Lord Master Huaiwu's Dharma exposition and mysteriously memorized it.

He had not seen the original golden page of the Earth Deficit Golden Chapter.

Nor had he used the Golden Cicada to simulate any mind-image.

In that case...

Chen Heng pondered no further; suppressing the confusion in his heart, within the True Yizhen Yizhen Fa Jie, he began to circulate the "Silent Heavenly Palace Sage-Subduing Prayer Great Art" on his own, following the method's guidance.

But not long after.

He emerged from meditative stillness and slowly let out a sigh.

As expected.

Just as stated in this great divine ability, there is no second way...

The "Silent Heavenly Palace Sage-Subduing Prayer Great Art" is a Heavenly Demon technique; a human body is utterly incapable of cultivating it, and only the Heavenly Demon race can attempt it even slightly.

Could it be that Cave Lord Master Huaiwu intends to refine my body into a Heavenly Demon form before attempting possession? Is such a thing even feasible?

Chen Heng shook his head, connected his mind with the Golden Cicada, and returned to the Present World.

Although the process seemed long, under the rule of "one day in the Present World equals ten days in the Yizhen Yizhen Fa Jie," it had taken only a few breaths.

He glanced toward the ritual altar; at this moment, Cave Lord Master Huaiwu had ceased his sermon and was looking at him with a complex expression, his face utterly silent.

"Lady Liu, are you satisfied now?"

He spoke not to Chen Heng, nor did he look at those eyes wide with shock yet forcibly maintaining calmness, unsure whether he felt guilt or harbored some other inexplicable intention.

He merely sighed slowly, then shouted into empty air.

"Satisfied! Satisfied! Extremely satisfied!"

A mad female voice suddenly rang out joyfully, immediately followed by bursts of loud laughter.

"Praise Great Demon King Chongyu! There is hope! There is hope! In this life, I finally have hope of leaping out of this damned Nine Provinces and Four Seas! Ai Yuan, when I return next time, it will be you who lives in perpetual terror, it will be you who becomes a homeless stray dog!

Indeed, only a giant like Demon Lord Chongyu possesses such vast powers, actually breaking through the Dao Court's legal prohibitions; our Heavenly Demon race is no inferior to those immortals, Buddhas, and divine saints! Hahaha, that Crown Prince Changming surely never imagined even in death that the measures he imposed on the Nether Golden Charter would be erased again and again; this time, I am the new Demon Son of Chongyu! I too shall enter the Silent Heavenly Palace!"

After this cry, lightning spawned in the void; hidden within the boundless depths somewhere, a vague figure emitted wild laughter, poised to leap out.

"Crown Prince Changming? Who is this senior? Is he the Crown Prince of the Dao Court?"

Chen Heng pondered silently, yet the expression he feigned on his face was perfectly crafted; upon seeing that figure in the dark depths of the void, he acted even more terrified, nearly unable to maintain that final thread of composure.