Chapter 496: After the Grand Ritual

"The wondrous sight, this old man has already entered it!"

Dragon Demon Daoist shot him a glance: "The wondrous sight is formed from the principles of Heaven and Earth. A person born through the wondrous sight must possess a special constitution."

Li Yuan lowered his head, digesting the Dragon Demon Daoist's words!

Following the meaning of his words, the present him is a wisp of divine soul left behind from a self-inflicted severing in years past, all for the sake of awaiting the person born through the wondrous sight he spoke of.

"Born as a human"

Regarding things beyond his own understanding, Li Yuan found it

somewhat difficult to comprehend. There is no talk of reincarnation in this world — how exactly does this 'being born' work?

"May I ask, Master, how can the Eight Directions Temple be born as a person? If it were a person, what characteristics would it have?"

"

Li Yuan bowed and inquired; he was gradually grasping this old master's rules!

Etiquette, and one must speak with substance — what is asked and answered must center on what he has said!

"The wonders of the world, who can know them all? This person will inevitably be born, sooner or later. But you are mistaken — it is not the Eight Directions Temple being born, but rather…"

Dragon Demon Daoist paused slightly, as if organizing his words: "or

rather, it is the traces of the Eight Directions Temple, captured by Heaven and Earth, transformed and born as a person."

Li Yuan's mind was somewhat in disarray, finding it hard to understand!

The feeling was like when he had long ago seen Old Longtou's true qi take form as a person — without sufficient realm or foundation, one cannot fully comprehend it!

"The characteristics of this person."

Dragon Demon Daoist thought for a moment: "A special constitution, extremely high innate talent, yet like a divine object that conceals itself — hard for ordinary people to discern. But, with flourishing fortune, extremely lucky!"

This was far too vague!

Li Yuan committed each point to memory!

Silence fell within the room!

Li Yuan was digesting and pondering in his heart, while Dragon Demon Daoist seemed somewhat distracted, lost in unknown thoughts!

The two sat facing each other in silence. Outside the door, Han Han Chuijun was fine, but Qin Li Shixian could hardly stand still — being alone would be one thing, but standing outside a door together with someone else was rather embarrassing!

Yet if she were to just leave like this, she was also unwilling

!

As she was hesitating, another voice came from inside the room:

"Fate has brought us together; your being able to come here means you are fated with this old man."

Is he about to transmit the art now?

Qin Li Shixian's expression shifted. Outside the door, Han Han Chuijun focused intently, but soon the two could no longer hear any sound from within the room — only through the crack of the door could they faintly see mysterious light flashing!

Hum!

Within the room, mysterious lights intertwined, transforming into scripture after scripture suspended in midair. The characters were the size of rice grains, yet this in no way hindered reading them — seeing their form, their meaning naturally arose in the heart!

This was an extremely masterful method of transmitting the art; the wondrous control and application of true qi within it was astonishing!

"The perfect union of true qi and divine soul — what the mind intends, where the spirit reaches, qi must transform into it!"

Li Yuan took the opportunity to switch his palm control, and relying on his photographic memory, he had soon committed all those scripture passages formed from true qi to memory!

"Ten Thousand Beasts Dragon Demon, Sitting-Forgetting Heart Scripture!"

This scripture was created by Dragon Demon Daoist himself — a peerless Qi Gong that could vie with the Bai Shen Fa for first place among the Shi Da Mo Gong through the ages.

Li Yuan merely committed it to memory for now, but with a cursory glance, his heart skipped a beat!

The opening of this heart scripture was precisely Sitting-Forgetting!

It meant forgetting one's own physical form, thereby breaking free from the body's constraints, achieving a profound state of three-element unity!

The opening directly points to the Yuan He Yi Jing.

"This heart scripture was created by this old man. Since fate has brought us together, I shall transmit it to you!"

As Li Yuan bowed in thanks, Dragon Demon Daoist slowly rose and walked toward the wooden door: "Follow me!"

Li Yuan hurriedly rose. Before stepping out, he glanced back at that wall — within the painting, wind flowed and clouds shifted, and that dark-colored azure dragon roamed through the sea of clouds as if alive!

Outside the door was a long corridor!

Han Han Chuijun stood with his hands at his sides; not far behind him, Qin Li Shixian bowed in greeting!

"Who is this again?"

Li Yuan was startled. From that white-robed woman, he caught a whiff of intense threat — far more ferocious than even Chi Chi Zhuiyang.

"Grand Master."

Is this the master of Star-Plucking Tower?

Li Yuan's thoughts churned, and his feet involuntarily stopped. The Dragon Demon Daoist walking ahead, however, frowned:

"Keep up!"

Li Yuan's heart gave a jolt, and he hurriedly quickened his pace, though he cast a sidelong glance at Old Han!

"Oh, he can move now?"

Outside the wooden door, sensing Li Yuan's gaze, Han Han Chuijun hesitated briefly, but still bowed first: "Your subordinate Asura, greets the Tower Master!"

Qin Li Shixian casually acknowledged him, then turned to follow the two. Feeling somewhat stifled — her patriarch hadn't even glanced at her

once!

"Is this to go observe the ritual?"

Li Yuan's thoughts turned. The long corridor passed, and his view suddenly opened up — streets stretched and extended before his eyes, with orderly pavilions and towers coming into view!

But this place?

Li Yuan's brows furrowed, a flash of doubt and surprise in his eyes!

This was once a magnificent Dacheng; amidst the broken tiles and ruined walls, one could still faintly discern its former grandeur, but now, whether pavilions or towers, all lay in utter desolation!

Gazing into the distance, he could barely see lingering smoke and traces of dried blood everywhere; on the smooth roads beside the path, weeds grew thick, revealing the desolation!

"Is this the capital of Great Zhou?"

Qin Li Shixian, who had lagged a few steps, also saw this great city; she glanced around briefly and immediately recognized its origin!

"This is the capital of Great Zhou, after the Great Sacrifice!"

Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren walked slowly along the long street; his voice echoed through this ruined city, carrying a unique flavor of ancient desolation!

Great Zhou fell due to the Great Sacrifice.

Li Yuan suddenly recalled the words Zhou Ying had spoken, but the impact of the words was far less than seeing it with his own eyes!

Great Zhou's reign lasted longer than the current Great Yun's, and it had once reached the peak of prosperity; yet this prosperity was not buried by a change of dynasty, but destroyed by a Great Sacrifice!

On the long street, Han Han Chuijun quietly observed the surroundings; he was uninterested in the fall of Great Zhou; what startled him was the ruined city itself!

He gently touched the broken houses and towers, feeling that the touch was just like Yi Ru Wai Fa Jie; paired with the intense aura of desolation, he even had

the illusion that he had traveled through time and descended to over a thousand years ago!

This was too real!

Li Yuan's peripheral vision swept over the white-robed woman suspected to be the owner of the Star-Picking Tower; he quickly caught up with Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren; passing street after street, all he saw was ruin and desolation!

Occasionally, one could see the earth deeply sunken, with trenches several li wide; amidst the lingering smoke, there were numerous broken soldiers and armor; even, he saw several corpses!

Clad in armor and holding weapons, they died without falling, heads raised in anger, unwilling and terrified!

"Great Zhou Imperial Guard Commander."

Qin Li Shixian followed up and also saw these remains: "In years past, the Great Zhou used this powerful army to suppress the world; eight thousand men, all with their blood exchanged, including over a hundred Grand Masters and six Supreme Grand Masters."

Great Zhou Imperial Guard!

Scanning the corpses one by one, Li Yuan recalled Zhou Ying's words and had to admit that with such a powerful army, Great Zhou indeed still had the possibility of survival!

Before this Great Sacrifice, Great Zhou still possessed the power to suppress the world!

In fact, Great Zhou valued martial arts, treating various martial arts experts far better than the current Great Yun; as for ordinary people, it did not affect the imperial court's rule!

"Supreme Grand Master."

At a certain moment, Li Yuan suddenly stopped!

Not far away, there was a deep pit, several li in circumference; amidst the lingering smoke within, a towering giant stood, dead yet unfallen!

"Jin Yuanji, Great Zhou Imperial Guard Grand Commander!"

These words came from Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren; this old master paused before the pit: "When the Cloud Demon descended, he fought to the death without retreating and was slain here!"

"

"Cloud Demon?"

Qin Li Shixian seamlessly chimed in: "Ancestor, could this Cloud Demon be the sole reason for Great Zhou's destruction?"

"The imperial court mobilized the entire nation's strength to perform the Great Sacrifice at the Eight Directional Temples; perhaps something went wrong. Although the Eight Directional Temples briefly appeared, what descended was a sinister realm; I call it the Cloud Demon's Sinister Realm."

Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren paced forward, his voice echoing in the ears of the few present!

"The Cloud Demon: its origin is unknown, its gathering and dispersing formless; swords and blades cannot harm it; when it moves, a sea of clouds follows; in an instant, it can claim ten thousand lives for itself; extremely ferocious!"

"It descended along with the sinister realm; various evil beasts scattered like a tide; within half a day, the capital became a battlefield of flesh and blood!"

The Great Sacrifice indeed carried risks!

Li Yuan instinctively touched the belt wrapped around his waist, the Conch Shell Dragon Belt; at this place, the divine weapon also broke free from its slumber, and the little female dragon was carefully observing the surroundings!

"Great Sacrifice, Sinister Realm, Cloud Demon."

Han Han Chuijun was completely confused, but having learned his lesson, he dared not ask; he simply moved closer to Li Yuan; with a single glance, Li Yuan transmitted his voice to explain!

"Using incense as a guide, aided by various heavenly treasures and the flesh and blood of living beings, a ritual is called a Sacrifice!"

"Nonsense; I am asking about the Sinister Realm and the Cloud Demon!"

"Uh."

Li Yuan felt slightly speechless; he was a bit unsure how to explain it to Old Han; the existence of You Jing, without taking him inside to walk through, was truly hard to describe!

"You, just consider that Sinister Realm as a Divine Realm, and that Cloud Demon as an extraterrestrial visitor, a demonic outsider!"

"Like that?"

This was very intuitive; Han Han Chuijun nodded, feeling quite shocked in his heart; one person's power destroyed the Great Zhou dynasty; could this Cloud Demon be an Unsupreme-level Supreme Grand Master?

"Ancestor."

Qin Li Shixian asked faster than Li Yuan; the latter did not contest this priority, only listening as she inquired:

"Where is the Cloud Demon now?"

Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren paused slightly, did not answer, but simply raised his head to look forward!

Wooo!

It seemed as if waves of cold wind blew past!

Li Yuan followed his gaze; that place, suspected to be the Great Zhou royal city, had a giant tower rising from the ground, piercing the clouds; now, the giant tower along with the royal city were all shrouded in gray-black mist!

"Is this the Eight Directional Tower?"

Everyone present recognized this tower!

"This Cloud Demon was ferocious and bloodthirsty, possessing no intelligent mind capable of communication; I had no choice but to split and kill it; afterwards, using the remaining incense, the Sinister Realm, plus the ownerless weapons in the city, and heavenly treasures!"

Speaking thus, Long Mo Fuxiu Daoren pointed at that giant tower:

"This is the origin of the Eight Directional Tower!"

Ownerless!

Li Yuan and Han Han Chuijun looked at each other, both feeling a chill!

According to Zhou Ying's account, the root of this Great Sacrifice was an old master within the Imperial Academy!

Looking at the Dragon Demon Daoist still holding the disciplinary ruler in his hand, Li Yuan's heart went a bit cold; he suspected all of this was being manipulated from behind the scenes by this very person!

His thoughts scattered, and the more he thought about it, the more possible it seemed!

Inciting the Great Zhou Emperor to hold the grand sacrifice — if it succeeded, one could spy on the Eight Directions Temple; if it failed, then take the ghostly land and add the Great Zhou's three-thousand-year foundation to forge the Eight Directions Pagoda!

Too ruthless.

Even Qin Li Shixian felt a bit of unease in his heart; no wonder the old man always said he was soft-hearted — this patriarch was truly too ferocious!

Nightfall — Divine Capital City!

"Ah—"

A furious roar exploded, echoing for dozens of li, jolting half the city awake!

At the Jingping Si Master's residence, lights flared up at once; dozens, even over a hundred figures shot up from within the compound, landing on high ground,

warily scanning their surroundings!

"Infuriating!"

In the Jingping Si's rear courtyard, a row of houses instantly crumbled to dust; a fierce surge of qi and blood shot up to the heavens like raging flames, illuminating the night!

"Si Master?"

A group of Jingping Si experts rushed to the rear courtyard; hearing that furious roar, their hearts pounded with dread, unsure what had happened!

"Fine Star-Plucking Tower, fine Qin Yun."

Stepping out from the shattered houses, the Jingping Si Master's brows and eyes brimmed with killing intent; his golden python robe billowed without wind — clearly he was furious to the extreme, leaving every one of his subordinates utterly terrified!

Even his several direct disciples were shocked, having never seen their own master lose composure like this!

"Master, what happened?"

A disciple asked in a low voice.

The Jingping Si Master did not answer; with a flick of his sleeve, he transformed into a streak of red light and shot into the sky. In a single flicker, he had vanished into the night!

Whoosh.

Divine Capital City covered an enormous area — any single district was no smaller than other provincial cities. In just a few rises and falls, the Jingping Si Master had already reached the outside of the Imperial City!

The Imperial City was sealed at night; even ordinary ministers could not come or go. But the Jingping Si Master needed no announcement; he strode through swiftly, and very soon, had arrived before a certain Piandian!

"Your Majesty."

The Jingping Si Master bowed and requested an audience!

"Minister Zhang comes to see Us so late at night — has some great matter occurred?"

Inside the Piandian, Emperor Qian was playing chess with Wu Wu Yingxing; he raised a hand to summon him in: "It's rare to see you so enraged. What — does that Star-Plucking Tower have some other expert stationed there?"

That furious roar, naturally, he had heard!

"I have failed Your Majesty's great trust — I, this minister, am ashamed!"

The Jingping Si Master lowered his head and recounted, one by one, the full cause and effect of this trip — except for the matter of having been beaten with the paddle!

"Dragon Demon Daoist?"

Emperor Qian pinched his chess piece, no longer in the mood to play; Wu Wu Yingxing also furrowed his brow!

"That should be the Eight Directions Pagoda Spirit, but this minister suspects that pagoda spirit is being manipulated by someone — otherwise it would absolutely be impossible to suppress this minister!"

The Jingping Si Master declared firmly: "This minister suspects this person must be Qin Yun

!"

"Brother Zhang, you believe Qin Yun is still alive?"

Wu Wu Yingxing set down his chess piece, picked up a copper coin, and secretly began divining!

"My spirit-image's grade may not match Brother Wan's, but after years of nurturing, it is absolutely not something just anyone could suppress — that Qin Li Shixian does not yet have that ability."

The Jingping Si Master was utterly certain!

He absolutely did not believe that Qin Li Shixian could have suppressed him to such an extent!

"Qin Yun — a great thief of the realm."

Emperor Qian's face was dark as water: "The grand sacrifice is imminent. If this fellow truly has not died and is lurking in the shadows, hmm — Minister Zhang, be seated!"

"Thank Your Majesty!"

The Jingping Si Master cupped his fists in thanks and sat down across from the two of them!

Emperor Qian frowned in deliberation, waiting until Wu Wu Yingxing opened his eyes, then

asked: "What does Master Wu think?"

"

The grand sacrifice is imminent — it is not fitting to take up arms again!

Wu Wu Yingxing, however, shook his head: "Moreover, this minister divined a hexagram, and within the hexagram, there is no such person as Qin Yun!"

Saying so, he looked toward the Jingping Si Master: "Does Brother Zhang have any lingering qi-signature, permitting Wu to take a look?"