Chapter 240
Chapter 240
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 240
Chapter Title: Chrysanthemums Everywhere, One Person Missing
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Everyone hurriedly looked over, and sure enough, they saw two legs in the boat woman's fishing net—two legs that were still struggling to move!
They were Sima Xi's legs!
The legs that Sima Xi had lost to A Zhuo's fishing line had been scooped up into the net by the boat woman as she made her way toward them.
"
Boat woman, hand over those legs!"
Registrar Tang Balin suppressed his injuries and shouted loudly.
The painted boat drifted toward them, and the boat woman smiled warmly.
Xuan Saintess suddenly sensed something wrong.
"Chen Shi seems to be the Jieyuan from Xinxiang and Gongzhou. That woman just now said that offending a Jieyuan means no escape. Could she have meant offending Chen Shi?"
Sima Xi also felt something amiss.
"My legs, even severed, shouldn't be something an ordinary boat woman could haul into her net."
"This boat woman is suspicious!"
Chancellor Dou Qi, Registrar Tang Balin, Merit Officer Fang Tan, and Wei Xize all tensed up. They suppressed their wounds, positioned themselves in front of Sima Xi, and warily eyed the painted boat.
On the painted boat, the boat woman chuckled softly.
"Our father and daughter finally tracked down Chen Jieyuan and the upright officials. If you're set on ruining our futures, then don't dream of living!"
She stomped her foot heavily, and the world spun wildly. Yin winds howled, massive waves surged, and the surrounding heavens and earth plunged into the underworld, vanishing into the Southern冥 Sea!
As everyone stared in shock, they looked up—where was the painted boat or the boat woman? Only a towering horse-faced yin god stood on the Southern冥 Sea, holding aloft a lantern made from a child's heavenly spirit!
"
You ruined our futures—now I'll take your lives!"
She raised her hand, and the Southern冥 Sea overturned. Above the冥 Sea, ghostly divinities stood in ranks, all reaching out in unison.
The冥 Sea transformed into a colossal hand of the yin god, pressing down on them.
"She's one of Chen Shi's people!"
Everyone was horrified, staring desperately at the sky-obscuring palm strike of the raging sea.
"Get out of the way!"
Sima Xi activated his primordial spirit in the Void Great Realm, drawing on its power. He raised his hand to meet the ghostly divine might!
"
Boom!
A terrifying shockwave rippled out. Everyone grunted in unison as the surrounding mountains and rivers shattered, the underworld's phenomena crumbled, and the scene abruptly changed. Sunlight poured down once more—they were back in the yang world.
The horse-faced yin god from before had vanished without a trace.
Sima Xi's robes fluttered wildly as he coughed up blood in great gulps. Blood poured from the stumps of his legs like streams. He rasped,
"That strike of mine didn't kill her. She's just momentarily stunned."
"Let's go—quickly!"
Mai Qi hurriedly hoisted him onto his back, and the group skimmed across the waves.
They fled over a hundred li, heading straight for the shore.
A gust of yin wind swept across the lake surface, and the painted boat emerged with it. The boat woman stepped forward, her face twisted in fury. Behind her loomed the apparition of the horse-faced yin god once more. Standing on the lake, she towered a hundred zhang tall, scanning all around for their whereabouts.
But by now, Mai Qi and the others had escorted Sima Xi ashore, arriving at the southern bank of Great South Lake. Not far off lay Xuan Yan County.
From here, they could see the massive Xuan Yan rock floating in the sky like a levitating island, tethered by iron chains to prevent it from drifting away.
One such chain connected to the earth right beside them.
At the base of the chain, a pitch-black dog without a single stray hair was fumbling beside a cart, trying to dress itself in a vest.
Nearby stood a wooden cart, and beside it, an old woman carrying a basket smiled at them.
Dou Qi and the others paid it no mind and hurriedly rummaged for hemostatic spirit medicines to staunch Sima Xi's bleeding.
Sima Xi had already been gravely wounded. At first, he could suppress it, and the leg stumps weren't bleeding badly. But after clashing with that boat woman, his injuries erupted. He could no longer contain even the vessels at his leg stumps!
His situation was dire. He was already advanced in years, his flesh far from what it once was. If this severe injury wasn't treated promptly, he might perish before his lifespan ran out.
As they busied themselves, the old woman with the basket laughed.
"Blackie Pot, they say even a dog has to defend its master when he's attacked. And you, as the dog, don't even bark when your master's being bullied."
The dog named Blackie Pot was in the middle of pulling on pants, standing upright like a person.
Dou Qi and the others instantly sensed danger. This dog was so bizarre, yet they hadn't found it strange until now—far too odd!
"Woof woof!"
The black dog barked.
Everyone tensed, eyes shifting between the black dog and the old woman.
The basket-carrying old woman reached into her basket and laughed.
"Chen Yindu just won't let things rest. Leaving his grandson in the world—if those two grandsons both died and went merrily to the underworld, this old lady wouldn't have to work so hard."
Sima Xi caught his breath, his face darkening. He sneered coldly,
"Who are you?"
"
Heavenly Court, Divine Witch—known as Granny Sha."
Granny Sha drew a sheep-horn heavenly spirit lantern from her basket. The tiny basket somehow held a lantern half the height of a person. She smiled.
"Old Chen Tou entrusted me with a task that's hard to fulfill, but protecting his grandson's safety? This old body will give it her all."
"Especially since Little Ten paid far more than Old Chen Tou."
"
Her face lit up with delight. Suddenly, she stomped her foot, and a path of bluestone slabs unfurled from beneath her feet, rattling forward straight to them!
Behind her materialized an Imperial Daughter primordial spirit, straddling the yin-yang divide, siphoning ghostly divine power from the underworld. Yin qi surged wildly, empowering her form!
"
You've come this far—stay in the underworld forever!"
She shouted, raising the sheep-horn heavenly spirit lantern. With a buzz, its light blasted out. Dou Qi, Tang Balin, Fang Tan, and Wei Xize shuddered violently as their primordial spirits were blasted a hundred li away.
Granny Sha took a step back, her body merging with the Imperial Daughter primordial spirit. Her flesh swelled section by section, rapidly rejuvenating to appear in her twenties. Lantern in hand, she charged at Sima Xi!
Around the Imperial Daughter, massive hexagram seals spun, forming a world of heaven, wind, thunder, mountain, marsh, wind, and fire—like a Void Great Realm in the Eight Trigrams Furnace, clashing against Sima Xi's own.
Sima Xi's face was pale, but utterly calm.
This old woman's soul arts were exquisite, but her realm wasn't high—likely having severed three corpses and manifested a yin god, at most reaching the Refining God Realm. Her cultivation fell far short of his.
Even gravely wounded, even legless, he could still easily take down this little old lady!
At that moment, on the bluestone path appeared a mountain-sized dark hound, wreathed in demonic flames and billowing smoke, charging forth.
The Imperial Daughter leaped onto the dog's head and closed in for the kill!
Sima Xi felt the pressure mount. No time for hesitation—his primordial spirit hidden in the Void Great Realm descended, reuniting with his flesh!
As the primordial spirit fused with his body, flesh rapidly regenerated at his leg stumps, bones growing swiftly. Severed limbs were regrowing—he was sprouting new legs!
But simultaneously, his body cracked under the horrific power stored in the Void Great Realm. His skin split like parched earth, fissures spiderwebbing out before curling and peeling upward!
His flesh hadn't been refined to that level—it couldn't yet harmonize with the Void Great Realm. But against Granny Sha and the black hound, he had no choice but to risk his life with a forced fusion.
Without it, he would die!
Not just him—everyone behind him would die too!
He roared, standing upright. In that instant, his flesh reached its zenith!
He glimpsed the Great Vehicle Realm.
This was the cultivator's Great Vehicle Realm!
Flesh fused with Void Great Realm and primordial spirit—every aspect perfected, utterly immortal!
But one step from true immortality, from eternal life!
This was the realm every cultivator dreamed of, the pinnacle of aspiration!
Yet he knew he couldn't sustain it.
Though a Void Return Realm expert, standing here risked his flesh shattering.
The Imperial Daughter bore down with her inner Eight Trigrams world and the black hound's demonic might.
Sima Xi bellowed, raising his hand to clash head-on with their supreme strike.
The bluestone path exploded. The Eight Trigrams world shattered. The Imperial Daughter reverted to an old woman, and the hound was blasted back to the underworld, turning into a black dog.
Sima Xi stood firm, majestic and awe-inspiring. Dou Qi and the others recalled their primordial spirits, standing pale-faced at his side.
Sima Xi led them in retreat, then suddenly soared into the air, fleeing far away without tangling further with the little old lady and the black dog.
Granny Sha and Blackie Pot didn't pursue, instead steadying their churning qi.
In the yang world, they weren't Sima Xi's match. In the underworld, they could contend—but Granny Sha had committed too many crimes there to linger, lest she face encirclement.
Sima Xi carried Dou Qi and the others through the air for over a thousand li. Suddenly, a rainbow light pierced the sky ahead from the ground. A bearded burly man lounged with his delicate wife and beauties on a cloud, amid pools of wine and forests of meat, reveling in pleasure.
Spotting them, the bearded man slowly rose, chest bared. He waved for his beauties to withdraw and laughed.
"Heavenly Court, Heavenly Fox, greets Sima Xi."
Sima Xi knew trouble when he saw it. Ignoring all else, he charged straight ahead.
Behind the bearded man emerged a nine-tailed heavenly fox primordial spirit, its nine tails reared like layered blue heavens. It raised a hand, clashing palms with him. The burly man's frame shook slightly. He said in surprise,
"No wonder you dared provoke Little Ten and A Zhuo."
"You're injured but took my palm. I won't bully the weak."
"Go."
Sima Xi said nothing, veering away.
He hadn't gone a few hundred li when a patch of blue clouds appeared ahead. They shifted into a sheep-headed humanoid monster, all rippling muscle. It yanked the sheep horns from its head like twin daggers and charged in a whirlwind, wordless.
Sima Xi kept his Void Great Realm and primordial spirit fused within, clashing brute force with the blue sheep monster. In a mere instant, they crossed and struck dozens of times—each blow lethal, every cut drawing blood.
His earlier fights—with the boat woman, Granny Sha, and Blackie Pot—were battles against underworld divinities. With the bearded man, a clash of primordial spirits.
But this with the blue sheep monster was a sun-world divine showdown, raw yang might on full display!
The blue sheep monster staggered back, sheathing its twin blades into its forehead. It laughed.
"Heavenly Court, Blue Sheep, honored to cross paths."
"In life, you were no match for me."
"Pity... Old Chen Tou got me killed..."
It sighed, then transformed into a blue sheep, flicking its stubby tail. A streak of blue light shot into the mountains below.
Sima Xi's face was grave. He didn't pursue the blue sheep, instead silently leading Mai Qi, Xuan Saintess, and the others onward through the air.
His speed mounted, his aura surging stronger, locked at his peak, radiating an aura that suppressed all.
Sima Xi brought the five across thousands of li to his abode at Lingjue Ridge's True Dragon Cave Manor, descending.
He set them down, and the gatekeeping disciples rushed over, kowtowing.
"Master, what brings you home?"
Sima Xi waved him off, signaling silence. He fetched a rush cushion, sat, summoned all disciples, and instructed,
"The Five Dragon Cave Manor passes to senior disciple Zong Xuan from now on. Zong Xuan is kind-hearted, my longest follower, with profound cultivation—fit to inherit."
Everyone heard this with shock and uncertainty.
Zong Xuan kowtowed, choking,
"Master, why speak such ill omens?"
Sima Xi's face was expressionless.
"In the rear mountain's cliff wall, I've hidden a stone chest. Inside is a scripture I've compiled of my life's learnings and insights: Lingjue True Method."
"Lingjue is my name."
"After I pass, retrieve the True Method, study it diligently, pass it to your junior brothers and sisters—no hoarding."
Zong Xuan wept bitterly, kneeling in assent.
The other disciples knelt in droves, tears streaming like rain.
Dou Qi and the others felt boundless sorrow, standing at a loss.
Sima Xi sighed.
"Chancellor Dou, Registrar Tang, Xuan Saintess—please tell the Young Master that this old man cannot aid him in ascending the throne."
Tears poured down his face. A series of crackles erupted within him, like something bursting. In an instant, blood gushed from beneath him.
"I wanted to die with some dignity..."
Sima Xi forced a smile on his face and rasped,
"But I couldn't hold on. In this life, standing in the Great Vehicle Realm even briefly, glimpsing grander vistas—it's enough."
"
Tsssk!
His flesh exploded, blood and meat splattering everywhere!
On the rush cushion, nothing remained but a pool of blood.
He had been gravely wounded by A Zhuo, then lost his legs. Along the way: boat woman, divine witch, black dog, heavenly fox, blue sheep. He was spent, barely holding on by a thread to maintain Great Vehicle state.
Sustaining it granted immense power—but exhausted his life force.
Now, lamp oil spent, he perished untimely!
Dou Qi and the others wailed in grief, kowtowing to the cushion.
"Farewell, Dao brother..."
Xuan Saintess stood silently, not kneeling, instead reciting the Rebirth Mantra.
Fuzheng Pavilion's second strongest, Xi Lingjue—Sima Xi—had been worn down and forced to death by Heavenly Court's handful of men, women, and a dog.
Had he not saved them, Sima Xi might have escaped.
With his strength, surely.
Alas...
A long while later, Xuan Saintess emerged from Five Dragon Cave Manor, gazing at the vast mountains and rivers below.
She looked up at the lofty blue sky. Far off, where mountains met heavens, blue mists blurred the line between earth and sky.
"Will Heavenly Court be Chen Shi's Fuzheng Pavilion?"
She murmured inwardly.
"Fuzheng Pavilion is the Young Master's foundation for claiming the world."
"Could Heavenly Court be Chen Shi's foundation? But the Young Master is nominally Ren, actually Zhu."
"Chen Shi is just Chen."
"Without legitimacy, even with these experts, he can't vie with the Young Master."
She gazed afar, where lightning flashed, thunder rolled, winds and clouds gathered—harbingers of storm, treacherous waves and clouds.
Before her eyes floated Chen Shi's face, overlapping with the Young Master's image.
"Entering monastic life severs worldly ties, free from mortal distractions."
"But Master sent me down to sever my bond with the Young Master."
"Yet Master never said: if one bond ends, and new affections arise, what then?"
Moments later, thunder and rain arrived as promised.
Distant green mountains swayed in the gale.
End of chapter.