Chapter 1085: Thirty-Six Ancient Wells

Dang!

The mottled, ancient bronze bell swayed, emitting a crisp, melodious sound that spread across the Heavens and vibrated through myriad worlds, attempting to summon the immortals of the Jade Void Sect to rekindle the grandeur of the past at the summit of Kunlun.

Yet, whether it was Han Guang, Bi Jingxuan, or Zhao Qian, all were greatly astonished. Legends spoke of powerful beings whose very breath could reach and engage opponents, yet Su Meng made no attempt to set up formations, activate the forbidden techniques of the Jade Void Palace, or quickly enter the main hall to utilize the terrain advantage to both contend with the legendary expert and search for clues regarding the Chaos Lotus Seed. Instead, he struck the ancient Kunlun Bell?

In ancient times, when the immortals of the Jade Void Sect were mighty, the sound of the bell would indeed summon legendary experts or even great cultivators to come to their aid, making it an effective method against formidable enemies. However, in the present day, not to mention those who have clearly perished or passed away, the remaining Jade Void immortals, even if still alive, were likely relying on various techniques to slumber or self-seal, waiting for the right moment to return, and might not hear the bell’s sound.

If so, why engage in this futile act, wasting precious time?

Amidst their astonishment, Zhao Qian, the incarnation of Maitreya, suddenly had a flicker of realization in his eyes, as if he had thought of something. At that very moment, as the Kunlun Bell’s vibrations rippled through the myriad worlds, the entire Jade Void Palace suddenly experienced a violent tremor, seemingly losing its physical form and becoming dim and obscure, deep and mysterious, like the purest and truest Chaos!

In an instant, the vast and terrifying legendary aura was completely isolated from Su Meng.

Su Meng’s act of ringing the bell was not premeditated. His original plan was exactly as Han Guang, Zhao Qian, and Bi Jingxuan had predicted: if confronted by a legendary expert sent by the Eternal Mother, he would immediately enter the main hall and the vast immortal garden behind it, using his status as half-master of the Jade Void Palace to leverage the terrain advantage to contend with the legendary expert while relying on the Divine-Striking Whip to make the opponent cautious, creating an opportunity to search for and obtain the Chaos Lotus Seed that Gu Xiaosang might have left behind.

However, upon seeing the ancient bell, recalling his previous reflections on how the layout of the palace had changed during his last two visits, and his concerns about whether the three people beside him were friends or foes, Su Meng devised a bold new plan.

The Jade Void Palace itself belonged to a higher-level existence, beyond the myriad worlds. Even legendary or cultivator-level experts found it difficult to see its entirety, perceiving only a certain aspect of it that had collapsed and manifested due to specific people or events. Therefore, aside from situations where Yang Jian secretly manipulated it or made minor changes, each time one entered, the layout naturally differed depending on one’s own cultivation level and circumstances.

Conversely, if a significant change occurred, could it cause the Jade Void Palace to collapse again and reveal a different layout?

For example, ringing the ancient Kunlun Bell, which had been silent for eons, not hoping for Jade Void immortals to come to his aid, but simply willing the bell’s sound to stimulate the Jade Void Palace into transformation, causing it to collapse anew and take on the layout of welcoming immortals to gather and listen to lectures!

As for what the final outcome would be, Su Meng didn’t care in the slightest. All he needed was that moment of “re-collapse” to break free from the legendary expert’s qi lock, shake off the unpredictable intentions of Han Guang and the other three, and then rely on supreme techniques like the Cause of All Effects, the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, and the Chaos Infinite to completely conceal his presence—shifting from overt to covert, from passive to active!

At this moment, the Chaos dispersed, severing all connections between things. Su Meng’s heart surged with joy, realizing his prediction was accurate and his plan had halfway succeeded. The mud pill atop his head opened, releasing the Primordial Celebration Cloud. Rather than shielding him from above, it transformed into a layer of chaotic dark radiance, clinging to Su Meng’s body like a watery film. The Dao Yi Glazed Lamp flickered, its light waxing and waning as it concealed the threads of karma, while the Eight-Nine operated naturally, obscuring the heavenly mechanisms and shielding from prying eyes.

At this moment, Su Meng seemed to vanish from the world, making him difficult to perceive or sense in every sense.

Suddenly, the scattered Chaos became thin, no longer pure. Thirty-six ancient wells surrounded by jade railings eerily appeared in an unknown direction, deep and dark, black and swirling, like ancient and terrifying vortices leading to indescribable, terrifying places.

Was this the collapse into a new layout? As soon as this thought arose in Su Meng’s mind, he noticed the thirty-six ancient well vortices rapidly expanding, spinning wildly, suddenly swelling, swallowing the heavens and earth, all things, including himself!

First into the ancient well, then into the Jade Void? This layout was truly bizarre!

Su Meng’s thoughts suddenly became fuzzy, feeling as though he were being simultaneously washed by time and space. When his awareness returned, he found himself in a strange realm.

All around was pitch black, boundless and endless, as if it contained countless galaxies and star systems. Without finding a channel through time or another way, even with the extraordinary speed of the somersault cloud, it would be like a drop in the ocean, too small to matter, and one might spend a lifetime without ever finding another living being.

Unlike the structure of galaxies and star systems in the universe, the darkness here had a strange stillness, like the beauty of sleep, and floating within it were countless shimmering objects. They looked like bubbles, shimmering with a rainbow of colors, dreamlike and beautiful, yet liable to burst at any moment.

These bubbles occasionally burst, disappearing into the quiet darkness, only to reappear again, creating a delicate balance.

Looking far into the distance, Su Meng saw different scenes within these bubbles. Some contained pieces of land, others vast starry skies, all with living beings existing and developing different civilizations. As the bubbles burst, these civilizations met their end, collapsing and vanishing.

Such a realm… Su Meng slightly furrowed his brows. Was this the universe of dreams and illusions?

His senior apprentice uncle, Xiao Bai, had once told him that the realms connected to the thirty-six ancient wells were ever-changing. Sometimes they led to the Nine Nether Heavens, other universes, ancient ruins, various mysterious places, or the depths of the river of time, concealing all kinds of legendary wild beasts. Once someone fell into a well, even if they weren’t killed, they would be lost in the myriad worlds, never knowing where they had ended up… Could it be that the ancient well he entered this time led to the dream universe of a great Buddhist adept?

But how could the layout of the Jade Void Palace, meant to welcome immortals to gather and listen to lectures, allow the thirty-six ancient wells to become passageways?

Could there be something unusual about the wells at this moment?

Su Meng flew closer to a bubble and found it only as big as his palm, yet within it, five landmasses and seven seas were clearly visible. He could even see farmers tilling the fields, soldiers riding into battle, and priests worshipping deities.

Since he was not in the Real World, he wondered whether he could use the essence of the Real World to alter the rules here and thus find a path back to the Jade Void Palace. This strange change was unexpected, so he pondered ways to get through.

He activated the Cause of All Fruits, sensing the existence of the Real World, but found it hazy and difficult to use the karmic connection to directly return to the Real World, as if he were still within the Jade Void Palace.

He could slightly borrow the essence of the Real World, but when trying to use it to alter this realm, he found it insufficient, only able to manipulate it slightly, similar to the level he had achieved in the Southern Wilderness, slightly better than that.

Could this realm resist the influence of the Real World’s essence? Could it belong to a part of the Real World?

Or was it another Real World? Different Real Worlds cultivated within the bodies of the ultimate beings? Or a sealed world extracted from the Investiture of the Gods?

Su Meng took a light breath, slightly fearing that the ancient well had sent him into Amitabha Buddha’s dream universe. However, if the ancient wells outside the Jade Void Palace could easily lead to the “Real World” within other ultimate beings, then Yuan Shi Tianzun would be so overwhelmingly powerful that no one would believe he wasn’t the Dao Fruit itself.

Or could this be Yuan Shi Tianzun’s own Real World?

Infinite and embracing all, his Real World encompassing dream universes would be normal…

Did this mean he was about to meet Yuan Shi Tianzun, the oldest of the ultimate beings?

His thoughts in turmoil, suddenly the scene before him transformed, unveiling no fewer than fourteen celestial layers—a rough fusion of the Immortal Realm and the Nine Nether Heavens. Suspended above them was a colossal deity as vast as the universe itself, eyes shut in deep slumber. From his navel sprouted a lotus, blossoming to encircle a solemn divine figure with four faces and four arms. The tranquil darkness radiating from him merged seamlessly into the cosmos!

Was he the creator god of this realm? Su Meng’s heart trembled.

This was very similar to the Hindu creation myth of Brahma, yet fundamentally different: when the giant deity slept, the universe should have been destroyed, and the lotus should have withered, waiting for the next cycle.

The four-faced, four-handed figure resembling the creator god Brahma looked at Su Meng, his voice deep and magnetic: “He sleeps forever, but destruction has not come. I have won the final victory and am about to become eternally indestructible.”

“Are you Brahma?” Su Meng asked solemnly.

“You may call me so, but the name is irrelevant to my essence. I am the beginning of all, the creator god.” The four-faced, four-handed deity spoke slowly.

Just then, another familiar voice came from the other side: “Actually, you should call Him the ‘manifestation’ of Yuan Shi Tianzun.”

The Marquis of Demons? Su Meng turned and saw Han Guang, his expression leisurely but his eyes slightly heavy.

The “manifestation” of Yuan Shi Tianzun?

The four-faced, four-handed deity smiled slightly, looking at Su Meng and said, “What he said is correct.”

As soon as these words were spoken, Su Meng had no more doubts, and a guess quickly formed in his mind.

Were the creator gods of other universes and different mythologies all “projections” or “manifestations” of Yuan Shi Tianzun, continuing some struggle with corresponding projections of other ultimate beings like Amitabha Buddha that he did not yet understand? This universe was one where Yuan Shi Tianzun’s “projection” had achieved ultimate victory, thereby establishing a closer connection to its original form, improving its essence to near that of the Real World, surpassing ordinary universes?

The realms connected to the thirty-six ancient wells may change, but they all lead to similar universes. Could Jiang Ziya have misunderstood and only described them superficially, missing their true nature?

What other universes exist like this? The “Old Universe” projected from Yuan Shi’s evil aspect?

Zhao Qian, Bi Jingxuan, and that legendary expert should have also entered similar universes. The reason the Jade Void Palace did this was because Yuan Shi Tianzun had withdrawn from the world, nearly disappearing completely, so it changed its layout, sending them each to listen to lectures before Yuan Shi Tianzun’s manifestations?

What level do these projections or manifestations possess? Are they false legends or false ultimate beings within single or nested multiverses without the Real World?

As Su Meng’s thoughts raced, the deity resembling Brahma looked at Su Meng and Han Guang, smiling peacefully: “Yuan Shi Tianzun’s disappearance is a true disappearance, and he no longer has any influence over me. After countless eons, I have gradually developed consciousness and my own thoughts, no longer just a projection.”

Such a disappearance… Su Meng furrowed his brow. If Yuan Shi Tianzun had perished, his projection should have died too. If he had hidden away to wait for an opportunity, why had he severed all contact with his own projection? What exactly was his state?

At this moment, the deity spoke solemnly: “I can sense your Cause of All Fruits, which is the completeness I lack.”

“Merge with me, and we shall return to the Ultimate, becoming Yuan Shi once more!”

His aura suddenly surged, filling every corner of this universe, reaching back into the past and spreading into the future!

Did he want to become the true “Yuan Shi Tianzun”? Su Meng was startled and immediately drew his dazzling purple Ultimate Blade and the Divine-Striking Whip. In this universe, he not only lacked past and future lives but might even lose his past and future altogether!