The Great Snow Mountain, where nine ancient tombs of Heavenly Venerables stood as seals.
“The true Donghuang Taiyi? You’ve seen the true Donghuang Taiyi? Who exactly has He incarnated as?” The existence at the core of the seal, upon hearing Wang Siyuan’s words, erupted into a deafening roar that seemed to pierce through the barrier formed by the nine tokens and the Luo Book, directly resonating in Wang Siyuan’s mind. It shook every thought within him, casting an inescapable shadow of fear, as if his innate spiritual light might dissipate at any moment, turning him into a mindless husk.
Despite his many layers of protection, Wang Siyuan, still far from the Legendary realm, felt his mind buzzing with chaos. His face turned deathly pale, resembling a corpse more than a living being, yet his eyes burned with an intense fire, shining unnaturally bright.
He coughed violently, as if trying to expel the inner world of his Yidao True Body. After a long while, he finally managed a low chuckle: “In the ancient times, Donghuang controlled time and mastered the arcane. How could I possibly know everything? It was only by chance that I caught a glimpse or two.”
Whether it was Donghuang Taiyi or She Qin, the founding patriarch of Zhixu Mountain, the roaring gradually subsided:
“Then why have you come here? What do you truly seek?”
Wang Siyuan, slightly hunched from coughing, suddenly straightened his back. Standing alone, his figure exuded an air of madness:
“I have a way to extract the residual will and flesh of Donghuang Taiyi from you, taking it upon myself to bear it, and help you return to normal!”
“What did you say? Aren’t you afraid of becoming a monster like me?” She Qin roared, his voice laced with resurgent chaos and madness. “With your current cultivation and power, you couldn’t possibly withstand it—you’d probably transform into a clone of Donghuang right then and there!”
Wang Siyuan burst into laughter:
“Have you not heard the saying, ‘Nothing ventured, nothing gained’?”
“If I don’t take such drastic measures, I can foresee no hope of survival in the coming tribulations, let alone the inevitable end of the epoch.”
“Thus, whether I advance or retreat, death awaits. Why not gamble everything?”
His madness laid bare, even the terrifying monster She Qin fell into a long silence.
…
Donghuang Taiyi hadn’t truly perished? Meng Qi was startled, yet somehow not entirely surprised.
Having experienced so much, encountered remnants of the ancient, savage, and arcane, and even holding the eerie blood peach suspected to be part of Donghuang Taiyi’s Dao Fruit, he had long harbored doubts about the true demise of this supreme ruler of the primordial era.
Those at the Other Shore were nearly indestructible, capable of traversing the past and claiming the future, defying all logic. How could they truly perish so easily?
“How did you come to see this, Senior?” Meng Qi kept the matter of the eerie blood peach to himself and asked instead.
The Green Emperor’s robes fluttered as if he might ride the wind away at any moment. Calmly, he replied: “The Fusang Ancient Tree was born from the blood of the Heavenly Emperor Haotian and Donghuang Taiyi. As I emerged from the Fusang, I naturally have a subtle connection to matters related to them. You once saw me borrow the power of the ‘Heavenly Dao Monster.’ The key to that lies in its faint resemblance to Donghuang.”
“The Heavenly Dao Monster is Donghuang Taiyi?” This was unexpected for Meng Qi.
“Yes, and no.” The Green Emperor’s answer was cryptic. “The Heavenly Dao Monster is Donghuang Taiyi, but Donghuang Taiyi is not the Heavenly Dao Monster.”
Meng Qi’s mind raced, thinking of the eerie blood peach in his possession. He ventured a guess: “Could it be that Donghuang, to deceive heaven and escape death, split himself into several parts, with one part devouring and merging with the Heavenly Dao Monster?”
And the small peach formed from a fragment of his Dao Fruit ended up in my hands?
“Very likely.” Even with his realm and status, the Green Emperor couldn’t say for certain.
Meng Qi pondered further: “What, then, is the origin of the Heavenly Dao Monster itself?”
“It is what remained after the Dao Ancestor attained the Dao Fruit, much like the Supreme True Buddha left by the Buddha or the Golden Cicada relic of Tang Sanzang.” As an Other Shore powerhouse, the Green Emperor revealed the hidden truth with a single sentence.
So the Supreme True Buddha and Tang Sanzang were indeed the Buddha’s “products” for reducing his karmic burden… It seems the corpse Sha Wujing carried out from the depths of Mount Ling was Tang Sanzang’s golden relic… Meng Qi took a quiet breath: “Given the omniscience and omnipotence of the Dao Fruit, why would these malevolent remnants persist after transcendence, wreaking havoc in the world?”
The Green Emperor’s voice grew ethereal: “The matters of the Dao Fruit are beyond certainty. I suspect the Heavenly Dao Monster and the Supreme True Buddha were deliberately left behind by their respective attainers to fulfill the meaning of the apocalypse. Perhaps they never truly attained the Dao Fruit, missing the final step—waiting for these remnants to vanish completely in the apocalypse before achieving true transcendence. This is merely my speculation, not to be taken as truth. However, Donghuang Taiyi, who controlled the arcane in previous epochs, likely knew part of the Heavenly Dao Monster’s secrets. When slain by the Heavenly Emperor Haotian, he destroyed his own body, allowing fragments of his will, flesh, and Dao Fruit to merge with the Heavenly Dao Monster, thus escaping death.”
Meng Qi’s thoughts surged, alternating between contemplating the Other Shore and the Dao Fruit, and reflecting on how the ancient past still lingered, waiting for the apocalypse to fully erupt and erase it all.
Tang Sanzang’s Golden Cicada relic, the Supreme True Buddha’s shell—both now in my hands. What purpose might they serve?
If the Buddha did this, the Dao Ancestor’s remnants must extend beyond the Heavenly Dao Monster…
As his thoughts raced, the Green Emperor suddenly shifted the topic:
“I remained here precisely to await your arrival and impart to you an eight-word maxim.”
Was all that preceded merely reminiscence, spoken without deeper meaning? No, the Green Emperor isn’t one to act without purpose… Deeply puzzled, Meng Qi bowed respectfully:
“Please enlighten me, Senior.”
The Green Emperor turned slowly, his transcendent grace marking him as no ordinary man: “Great fortune invites great calamity. You will soon face a disaster beyond even my protection. Thus, I offer you these eight words first.”
A calamity even the Green Emperor cannot shield me from? Meng Qi shuddered, his mind nearly overwhelmed before he regained control.
The Green Emperor is no street fortune-teller—he wouldn’t exaggerate for effect!
“Please guide me, Senior!” Meng Qi bowed again, solemnly.
The Green Emperor’s eyes seemed to hold another Real World within them, deep and unfathomable. Calmly, he spoke: “No way out, certain death.”
No way out, certain death? What kind of maxim is this? Meng Qi stood frozen in shock.
At that moment, the Green Emperor sighed softly, his voice lingering:
“Let all disperse.”
With a wave of his sleeve, a breeze arose, and his figure vanished. The leaves of the Jianmu Tree, each embodying different Daos and hues, detached and flew toward the Tree of Dao in Meng Qi’s hand.
Light surged as the Tree of Dao joyfully absorbed its “nourishment.”
Within the Zhuxian Sword Formation, the Heavenly Lord Duobao displayed his might, while the Buddha of the Present World and the Ancient Buddha Ran Deng suppressed Chijingzi and Yuding Zhenren, forcing Guangchengzi to deploy the Fanyin Seal intermittently to stabilize their formation while coordinating the sword array’s defenses.
Then, a gentle breeze swept through. Amid the formation’s destructive aura, a surge of vitality erupted, dissolving the four-colored lights—even those around the Heavenly Lord Duobao. Before the Buddha of the Present World, time rippled like water. When he steadied himself, he found himself back in the Real World, outside the highest layer of the celestial realm.
The Ancient Buddha Ran Deng’s glazed lamp flickered, distorting his senses. By the time clarity returned, he stood outside his own Pure Land.
The Three Fairies’ Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation dissipated without a trace. Unbidden, they recalled the terror of being at the mercy of an Other Shore powerhouse—an experience of utter helplessness still vivid in their minds.
Their inner demons nearly manifested, as if the Qiankun Diagram, the Primordial Chaos Box, and the Three Treasures Ruyi were right before them. Fortunately, their surroundings shifted back to Sanxiao Island before any danger materialized.
Guangchengzi, Manjushri, and the Heavenly Lord Duobao likewise found themselves inexplicably expelled from the celestial realm’s highest layer, exchanging bewildered glances, their fighting spirit extinguished.
In the eyes of the Other Shore, even the mightiest struggles of beings like them were but child’s play.
Meanwhile, Meng Qi’s figure materialized high above, also sent away by the Green Emperor. Yet the Tree of Dao hidden in his sleeve had grown nine branches, each bearing nine leaves, now exuding an inexplicable divine aura.
What exactly does the Green Emperor intend? Frowning slightly, Meng Qi couldn’t decipher it.
“Never mind. Once I’ve settled matters, I’ll return to the Jade Void Palace and discuss it with Little Sang.” Quickly setting aside his thoughts, Meng Qi recalled another matter and smiled, descending directly into the palace of Eternal Joy.
With the Fengshen Bang restored, it’s time to resurrect Senior Chonghe!
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