Yang Xizhi took out the eerie straw figure, still holding the Five Flames and Seven Birds Fan in his left hand, seemingly fearing that Meng Qi might return, and thus drew the Divine-Beating Whip.
At a critical moment, no caution could be excessive!
Beside her, Gu Heng took corresponding pills, picked up his severed hand, and pressed it against the wound. The flesh and blood slowly writhed and began to fuse. At the same time, with a wave of his right hand, he gathered Meng Qi’s scattered flesh and blood, hurling it toward the straw figure, where it seeped in.
Gradually, the bloodlight exuding from the straw figure grew thicker, making it appear increasingly eerie and sinister. Eventually, the three blood-written characters “Su Zi Yuan” seemed to come alive, radiating a strange, eerie glow.
“This way, there’s no need to build a sacrificial altar or wait twenty-one days,” Yang Xizhi said with a hint of joy, genuinely expressing her relief.
Gu Heng looked at the straw figure, murmuring, “Master possesses Su Zi Yuan’s name and birth details. Why didn’t he directly build the altar to shatter his soul?”
This question had long lingered in his mind, and he had never been able to understand why his master, a great cultivator, would choose the harder path over the easier one.
“Perhaps Master is trapped within the Black Nest and faces certain restrictions, preventing him from acting personally. As for us, we cannot fully control the true ‘Seven Arrows of Nail Head Technique.’ If we relied only on the straw figure and merely used the name and birth details, the opponent might have countermeasures,” Yang Xizhi speculated.
After speaking, numerous red-threaded palace lanterns flew from her ring, forming a ritual altar on the spot. Threads formed the walls, and lanterns became gates, crisscrossing like a net.
After placing the “Seven Arrows of Nail Head Technique” at the altar’s center, Yang Xizhi stepped back, her expression turning solemn. She handed the Five Flames and Seven Birds Fan to Gu Heng, then began forming hand seals with her left hand, wielding a sword with her right, and stepping in a mystic pattern with her feet, circling the altar rapidly while chanting incantations and occasionally drawing talismans, which she burned and cast into the altar.
…
Black and white light flashed. Meng Qi felt a karmic pull, as if something deeply connected was drawing him in. The space twisted, and his soul grew dizzy.
When the karmic glow around him finally dissipated, Meng Qi found himself standing firmly on the ground, still sensing that he remained within the Jade Void Palace.
Looking around, he stood in a deep, silent hall. The walls and pillars on both sides were entirely black, except for rows of bronze pillars that emitted a strange glow.
On these bronze pillars, ancient glass lamps burned quietly, seemingly having illuminated the hall day after day since ancient times, never extinguishing.
Following the rows of radiant glass lamps, Meng Qi saw a weathered ancient wall in the distance. The upper portion was obscured in darkness, but on it stood a tightly closed bronze gate.
Where the two door rings should have been were instead two connected deep hollows, yet nothing lay within.
“My spiritual senses cannot penetrate this wall or this gate…” Meng Qi extended his consciousness throughout the hall, making his judgment.
What karmic object had used the “Dao Yi Seal” to guide him here? Or had the “Dao Yi Seal” actively responded to karmic entanglements and transported him here? Thoughts and doubts surged in his mind, but Meng Qi had no time to dwell. After briefly assessing his surroundings, he immediately took out and swallowed his last Jade Void Golden Pill.
At the same time, he looked at his hand and was startled to find that the “Dao Yi Seal,” which had appeared black and white, neither one nor the other, was gone!
As his flesh and blood slowly restored and golden light returned, Meng Qi calmed his mind, recalling past events and attempting to circulate his soul essence.
His mind emptied, and a golden Buddha appeared in his consciousness, embodying the true meaning of “I alone am the honored one,” towering between heaven and earth. Opposite it, within the “boundless void,” floated a small seal, half black and half white, radiating chaotic light. It transformed into black and white hues, which intertwined into a myriad of colors, extending into the void, as if all worldly karmic connections and matters could be traced back to this very point!
The true meaning of the “Dao Yi Seal” had entered my soul, but it didn’t seem like a one-time inheritance… Observing the silence around him, Meng Qi pondered while feeling his injuries healing instantly and his power surging to new heights.
As thoughts swirled, he vaguely began to understand. Unlike the “Yuan Xin Seal,” the “Dao Yi Seal” was the primary embodiment of the “Cause of All Effects.” And from any perspective, the “Cause of All Effects” could only be singular—two “First Causes” could not coexist. If such a situation arose, an unending battle to the death would inevitably ensue.
While the Primordial Celestial Venerable still existed in the world, he was the living embodiment of the “Cause of All Effects.” No matter how deeply others might comprehend the “Dao Yi Seal,” they could never reach that level of karmic cultivation. Thus, the “Dao Yi Seal” allowed anyone to grasp its essence. But now, with the Primordial Celestial Venerable’s whereabouts unknown, seemingly vanished from the heavens and earth, the “Dao Yi Seal” had, upon being obtained by Meng Qi, actively severed others’ chances of inheriting it, ensuring the singularity of the “Cause of All Effects.”
Of course, there remained the possibility that others might ascend to the level of the “Cause of All Effects” through other cultivation methods. In that case, a confrontation might be inevitable, or one side might choose to withdraw.
“This is truly both lamentable and joyous…” Meng Qi stepped forward, sensing every minute detail of the hall, seeking to discover where he was and how to leave.
His lament stemmed from his original plan to charge others like Duke Huan of Qi and members of the Fairy Trace for experiencing the “Dao Yi Seal,” just as he had with the “Dao Spreads Across the Universe” technique. This would earn him merit and materials while strengthening his allies’ power. But now, he could only rely on the “Yuan Xin Seal.”
His joy, however, came from the feeling of being “unique.” As someone who enjoyed displaying his prowess and seeking glory before others, having a truly unique cultivation method was deeply satisfying.
The hall was empty, containing only bronze pillars and glass lamps. Meng Qi’s thoughts returned to his earlier questions.
Had it been the karmic pull from the Primordial Golden Scroll or the Eight-Nine Mystic Body Cultivation?
Or had it been a divine artifact?
At that moment, Meng Qi stood before the bronze gate, his senses keen. He suddenly detected a familiar presence from the connected hollows where the door rings should have been!
A familiar presence?
In his dazed state, Meng Qi’s mind involuntarily conjured the image of a jade Ruyi—purple, white, gold, and yellow—solemn and tranquil.
It was that jade Ruyi!
The jade Ruyi that King Zhuang of Chu had obtained from the Jade Void Palace—the one that had always given Meng Qi the sense of seeing himself, yet with a subtle difference.
Did Duke Huan of Qi, King Zhuang of Chu, and Duke Mu of Qin once vie for treasures in this very hall? Was this jade Ruyi once set within the hollow of the bronze gate?
Meng Qi roughly reconstructed the scene. Perhaps they had entered through another door, or perhaps each time the gate opened, the restrictions changed, so they had not passed through the Yuan Xin Hall or the Dao Yi Hall, arriving here first.
“I wonder if they managed to open this bronze gate,” Meng Qi mused, as a figure appeared before him—a clone—stepping forward to push the gate.
Creaking, a heavy grinding sound echoed, and the bronze gate slowly swung backward. There were no restrictions here?
Meng Qi felt a vague disappointment. Without any restrictions, the interior must have already been looted by King Zhuang and others, leaving little of value.
As the creaking continued and the gap widened, the scene inside was revealed.
…
The Law-body experts who had entered from various gates suddenly slowed their flight, sensing an indescribable change in the Jade Void Palace and the world outside. The feeling of life force draining had weakened, and the numerous restrictions had also lessened.
“Has someone taken away the palace’s guardian treasure?”
“Or has that bronze gate, which could never be opened before, finally been opened?”
Thoughts surged, and Duke Mu of Qin and others immediately accelerated.
…
Within the Dao Yi Hall.
Yang Xizhi completed the ritual in about ten breaths, her pretty face glistening with sweat. Her sword was sheathed, and now she held an ancient bow.
“He’s definitely dead. Even if he escaped the Jade Void Palace, he’s still doomed,” Yang Xizhi exhaled in relief. Her master’s task was finally nearing completion.
“From the highest heavens to the netherworld below, none can escape between heaven and earth!” She drew her bow and loosed an arrow, hitting the straw effigy squarely on the forehead.
Thud! The arrow sank into the straw, but not a drop of blood emerged.
“How could there be no blood?” Yang Xizhi widened her eyes.
Shouldn’t it be that after the soul was shattered through the ritual, wherever the straw figure was struck would equate to injuring Su Zi Yuan himself? How could there be no blood after hitting his forehead?
Gu Heng was equally shocked. He had full confidence in the power of the Seven Arrows of Nail Head Technique. Even before they became masters, he and his senior apprentice sister had used it to “kill” a master known as the “Xuan Tan Zhen Jun.” Now, however, it was as if nothing had happened.
Just then, a sudden impulse struck his heart. He turned his head toward the entrance of the Dao Yi Hall and saw a mysterious figure, entirely shrouded in a black robe, staring at them with eyes crackling with electricity, hand pressed to his forehead.
Pressing his forehead? Gu Heng and Yang Xizhi felt a chill run through them, their hearts pounding rapidly.
Ignoring everything else, they tried to fan the Five Flames and Seven Birds Fan, but the black-robed figure’s eyes suddenly grew deep, revealing images of Gu Heng and Yang Xizhi within them. Then, their “figures” began to grow larger and more transparent, revealing their flesh, then structures smaller than a drop of blood, down to particles almost indescribable in normal language.
With a crackling sound, the electric arcs leaped, and the “figures” of Gu Heng and Yang Xizhi disintegrated from the smallest structures into countless dust particles.
Within the Dao Yi Hall, Yang Xizhi and Gu Heng vanished. Their presence filled the hall, fragmenting into countless pieces before rapidly dissipating into the world.
The treasures on their bodies, as well as the Seven Arrows of Nail Head Technique before them, vanished the same way, leaving only the Five Flames and Seven Birds Fan, made from various feathers, floating midair.
Flames arose, and the Five Flames and Seven Birds Fan transformed into a streak of light, flying out of the Dao Yi Hall, departing from the Jade Void Palace, heading who-knows-where.
The black-robed figure made no attempt to retrieve the fan, whether out of disdain or inability. He gazed at the center of the Dao Yi Hall and muttered in a low voice:
“Where did they get transferred to?”
His tone held confusion, surprise, and a strong sense of inquiry.
His eyes grew even deeper, with arcs of electricity swirling within, as if sensing and deducing something. His right hand extended from the black robe, pale and lifeless.
…
The bronze gate creaked open, revealing a small rear hall a few zhang across, similarly adorned with bronze pillars and glass lamps. Under the lamplight, a heavy black coffin rested silently at the center.
A coffin? Just one coffin? Meng Qi calmed his mind, his clone leading the way, his true body following as he stepped into the rear hall and stood before the coffin.
Its lid was tightly sealed, seemingly untouched by anyone.
“What could be inside?” Curiosity and wonder filled Meng Qi. His clone checked ahead, finding no restrictions or traps, though the lid was extremely heavy, beyond even “his” strength to lift.
Meng Qi inhaled deeply, placed his hands on the lid’s edge, flexed his muscles, and pushed upward.
The lid shifted. Meng Qi stepped back, the Divine-Beating Whip in hand, his clone shielding him in front, fearing some ominous creature might leap out.
Meng Qi had encountered enough coffins to remain composed no matter what lay inside—whether it was the Eight-Nine Arcane Art and the body cultivation section of the Primordial Golden Scroll, the genuine Three Treasures Ruyi, or even the Primordial Celestial Venerable himself. Nothing could shock him anymore, for he had already imagined it all.
The light shone into the coffin, dispelling its eternal darkness. Inside lay a person.
As the lamplight illuminated the person’s face, Meng Qi’s expression abruptly changed—shock, disbelief, panic, and confusion, nearly making him leap back.
The person’s features were ordinary yet pleasant, his body unremarkable, lacking any sign of supernatural power. To most in the world, he would be unimpressive. But not to Meng Qi.
Because it was himself!
His former self!
The Earthly Meng Qi!
“Why is my own body lying within the Jade Void Palace?”
Familiarity surged, karmic threads connected, and Meng Qi sensed subtle changes in his Earthly body. His inner landscape was evolving, his flesh gaining spirit, everything aligning with his current self.
At the same time, a resonance of energies occurred, and Meng Qi naturally ascended the second tier of the Celestial Ladder—effortlessly, as if it had been destined!
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