Chapter 382
Chapter 382
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 383
Chapter Title: Sixty-Four Hexagrams Domain
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Wu Qingyu was half-believing, half-doubting. “Which family’s girl?”
Chen Tang thought for a moment. “He hasn’t said. He told me that lone yin cannot give birth, lone yang cannot grow long—clearly, he feels lonely by himself. Only with the mutual aid of yin and yang can he become even stronger.”
Wu Qingyu worried. “I hope he doesn’t end up as much of a philanderer as his grandfather.”
Chen Tang said, “I think he takes after me more—faithful in love.”
“But I hope so.”
Chen Shi continued to study the mutual aid of yin and yang, forgetting to eat or drink. In just a few days, he grew noticeably thinner, which distressed Wu Qingyu greatly. She said to Chen Tang, “How about we betroth that girl from his little shrine to him? She’s a bit older, but our Little Ten isn’t young either. If we count the eight years in the underworld, he’s already twenty-one.”
Chen Tang said, “But that girl is mute.”
Wu Qingyu was about to speak when a strange vibration came from the yellow earth slope, filling her heart with inexplicable panic. She looked toward the slope but saw nothing unusual.
As she puzzled over it, Chen Tang’s expression shifted slightly. He stepped in front of her. “Chen Wu’s Universe Shift!”
His body trembled faintly. All the houses and windows in Huangpo Village shook, rattling noisily before settling down.
Qiongyang Ancestor let out a light chuckle and stepped out from her palace. She gazed toward the yellow earth slope, puzzled. “Chen Yindu’s rebellious son— what’s your Little Ten up to?”
Wu Qingyu’s cultivation was lower, so she couldn’t detect the changes in the surrounding space. But Chen Tang was at the peak of the Void Return Realm, and Qiongyang Ancestor was a consummate Great Vehicle Realm expert. Though Huangpo Village looked normal to ordinary eyes, to them, the heavens and earth around it had become profoundly strange.
They saw Huangpo Village floating in the sky, suspended without support. Floating beside it was the yellow earth slope outside the village!
This was precisely the Universe Shift from the Ghost God Three Shocking Changes among Creation Little Five’s minor creations!
Just now, Chen Tang had stood before Wu Qingyu, using his supreme magic to counter the Universe Shift, sparing the village from its effects.
Originally, only the yellow earth slope should have floated into the sky, without the village. But because he had blocked it, disrupting the shift, both the village and the slope now hovered in the air.
The phenomenon arose because the ground where the yellow earth slope stood had become the sky, and the sky had become the ground.
To ordinary people, however, heaven and earth still seemed normal—mainly because the one who cast the Universe Shift harbored no malice and hadn’t unleashed any attacks. If attacks were employed, the earth could be slammed down onto people directly, crushing everyone to pieces.
Or with a wave of the hand, people could be flung up to the ninth heaven.
“It’s indeed Chen Wu’s Universe Shift, but much weaker. The caster isn’t Chen Wu—could it really be Little Ten?”
Chen Tang was astonished and uncertain. Could he have comprehended Chen Wu’s Universe Shift?
The Universe Shift derived from Granny Sha’s Supreme Eight Trigrams Protective Art, passed down by her to Creation Little Five, who then comprehended the Universe Shift from it—surpassing his master.
The Universe Shift was extraordinarily powerful. Creation Little Five relied on this Ghost God Domain for terrifying control over space, fearless even amid heavy encirclement.
Chen Tang had just thought of this when Huangpo Village and the yellow earth slope suddenly returned to normal. Chen Shi must have dispersed the Universe Shift domain.
“Wasn’t he studying the mutual aid of yin and yang?”
Chen Tang was somewhat baffled. How had studying yin-yang mutual aid led to comprehending the Universe Shift?
“It’s possible.”
Qiongyang Ancestor said, “On the path of cultivation, one often stumbles into unexpected gains. For instance, your father once studied wall-piercing techniques but comprehended the Weeping Ruler’s Endless Miles spell instead. He pondered breaking seals but grasped sealing arts.”
Chen Tang was still puzzled. “Wasn’t it that my father simply learned the wrong things?”
Qiongyang Ancestor took a dim view of him. Bookworm. It was clear the woman who bore him was clever but not wise.
Having comprehended the Universe Shift, Chen Shi still didn’t descend the yellow earth slope. He remained beneath the ancient willow tree. Another day passed, and suddenly wind and fire roiled around Huangpo Village. Wind fueled the flames, blazing fiercely as if to incinerate the earth!
Sunda Wind plus Departing Fire, blanketing dozens of li!
The villagers were terrified, but as long as they stayed within the village, they faced no danger.
Chen Tang raised an eyebrow. “Wind-Fire Shift? Wind corresponds to thunder in the trigrams, fire to water. How can wind and fire form a Ghost God Domain?”
Moments later, the wind and fire subsided.
The villagers of Huangpo Village went outside and saw the landscape unchanged—mountains and clear waters, no trace of the apocalyptic blaze.
In the afternoon, wind roared like thunder, and floodwaters surged. Wind and water merged into a howling storm, swirling and roaring around Huangpo Village, deafening all!
Amid the wind-water chaos, the earth was uprooted and shattered, mountains submerged and eroded thinner and thinner, trees pulverized to dust—utterly horrifying!
The villagers were gripped by fear until the wind-water ceased. The outside world returned to normal: earth intact, mountains unscarred, trees standing.
Chen Tang frowned. “Wind-Water Shift— it doesn’t correspond in the trigrams either. Wind pairs with thunder, water with fire, mountain with marsh, earth with heaven. That’s the proper sequence.”
At dusk, another change: Wind-Mountain Shift!
Gale-force winds hurled mountains crashing about. The little village seemed on the verge of pulverization in the cataclysm!
But the villagers had grown accustomed. Yuzhu Grandma even planned to gather firewood outside, laughing. “It’s all fake! Illusions!”
Nuan quickly tugged her sister’s clothes, shaking her head to warn her against going out.
“Nuan, it’s an illusion.”
Yuzhu laughed. “Don’t believe me? I’ll show you.”
She picked up a duck and tossed it out of the village, chuckling. “See? The duck will come back safe and sound.”
The duck flew into the Wind-Mountain Shift. Suddenly, a thunderous boom—two mountains crushed it flat. Sunda Wind followed, dissolving its remains to nothing.
“Once the wind stops, we’ll see the duck fine outside.” Yuzhu declared confidently.
Moments later, the Wind-Mountain Shift dispersed. Yuzhu went to look for the duck but didn’t find even a single feather.
Only then did she realize the danger.
At that moment, a gentle breeze stirred. Outside the village, the earth began to shift slowly. Cracks snaked across the ground like twisting dragons or serpents slithering in all directions, presenting a scene of eerie unpredictability.
Qiongyang Ancestor gazed at the yellow earth slope, murmuring, “His talent is too extraordinary. Studying yin and yang, he’s comprehended so many variations. No wonder the True Gods Beyond Heaven bestowed upon him the once-in-ten-thousand-ages Innate Dao Embryo—”
Chen Tang sought guidance. “Ancestor Qiongyang, I can understand Universe Shift, Wind-Thunder Shift, Water-Fire Shift, and Mountain-Marsh Shift. But Wind-Mountain Shift, Wind-Fire Shift, Earth-Wind Shift—I can’t comprehend them.”
Qiongyang Ancestor glanced at him. “Why must trigram shifts rely on opposition?”
Chen Tang asked, “What do you mean?”
Qiongyang Ancestor said nothing, secretly smug in her heart: That woman isn’t as clever as me.
Chen Shi’s comprehensions accelerated. Soon he grasped Wind-Marsh Shift, Mountain-Water Shift, Earth-Water Shift, Thunder-Water Shift, and more—a dazzling array, as if mastering one unlocked all!
Qiongyang Ancestor couldn’t help sighing inwardly: “This aptitude surpasses even Chen Yindu’s back in the day.”
Granny Sha, residing in nearby Gangzi Village, sensed the disturbances and arrived early. Witnessing the blooming domains around the yellow earth slope, she was dazzled.
“Sha Qiutong, you cultivated the Supreme Eight Trigrams Protective Art, but you never imagined it held so many untapped depths.” Qiongyang Ancestor’s voice drifted over.
Granny Sha smiled faintly. “Your Thunderous Great Mighty Virtue God Incantation isn’t complete either, is it?”
The two women exchanged glances, both surprised. “How is she still so young?”
Qiongyang Ancestor approached. “Is Chen Tang your son?”
Granny Sha spat in disgust. “Nonsense! He’s yours!”
Qiongyang was puzzled. “I thought he was yours—so dim-witted. If not yours, then whose?”
“Even if you birthed him, he wouldn’t necessarily be clever!”
Granny Sha sneered. “I have no connection whatsoever to Chen Yindu. You’re jealous—don’t drag me into it. Old Chen Head has so many confidantes; who knows which one bore him.”
Qiongyang sized her up, astonished. “Your cultivation has advanced swiftly—Refined God Realm? In your lifetime, you might open the Void Great Realm and achieve Void Return.”
Granny Sha laughed. “Thanks to you, I’ve fully prepared for breaking through to Void Return. I’ve prepared the Three Lives Stone. You’re twenty-four years older than me, right? Cultivated to Great Vehicle Realm—that’s your peak. I’ll slowly catch up, and in the end, we’ll both be at Great Vehicle.”
Qiongyang smiled faintly. “But you’re no match for me now.”
Granny Sha smiled thinly. “In the underworld, I’ll personally send you to reincarnate.”
At that moment, Chen Shi unleashed the final trigram Ghost God Domain, then no more.
The two ceased their bickering. On the yellow earth slope, a sun rose slowly from the far side, illuminating the surroundings and turning Huangpo Village as bright as day. The sun arced across the sky, setting in the west, only for a bright moon to rise, hanging high with pure, untainted moonlight.
On the yellow earth slope, sun rose and moon set, day gave way to night. The sun’s path divided the small slope into seasons; the moon waxed and waned, ebbing and full.
Everything felt utterly natural.
Chen Shi descended the yellow earth slope and returned to the village. Chen Tang approached first. “Have you comprehended the mutual aid of yin and yang?”
Chen Shi shook his head. “Not yet. I can’t achieve yin-yang mutual aid. I can only barely borrow yin-yang tempering to protect myself before heaven and earth’s natural forces.”
Chen Tang nodded approvingly. “Your realm is still low; you haven’t touched higher ones yet—like how to refine the spirit, achieve Void Return, or cultivate to Great Vehicle. Insights into Refining Spirit, Void Return, and Great Vehicle abound, with deeper understanding of the Dao. Once you’ve accumulated enough, it may all fall into place effortlessly.”
Chen Shi praised, “Dad, you know so much. Without your and Blackie Pot’s guidance this time, I couldn’t have comprehended the Ghost God Shifts of the trigrams so quickly.”
Chen Tang’s expression remained unchanged. “I’ve simply eaten a few more years’ worth of rice than you—more experience, that’s all.”
Granny Sha approached. “Little Ten, studying yin and yang, how many Ghost God Shifts did you comprehend from the trigrams?”
Chen Shi said, “Thirty-six.”
Granny Sha was puzzled. “Why thirty-six?”
Chen Shi explained, “First, the eight basic shifts: Heaven, Earth, Wind, Thunder, Water, Fire, Mountain, Marsh. Then twenty-eight more: Heaven-Wind, Heaven-Mountain, Heaven-Earth, Heaven-Thunder, Heaven-Fire, Heaven-Marsh, and so on.”
Granny Sha pondered. “When Old Chen Head and I searched True King era ruins, we found ancient records stating the trigrams divide into innate and acquired: innate are the eight trigrams, acquired are the sixty-four hexagrams. Your thirty-six shifts clearly don’t match the sixty-four acquired hexagrams.”
Chen Shi thought for a moment, eyes lighting up. He laughed. “Got it! There’s yin-yang, so also yang-yin. Heaven-Wind Shift can be Wind-Heaven Shift—from heaven to wind, or wind to heaven; the effects differ entirely. Thus, Heaven-Mountain corresponds to Mountain-Heaven, Heaven-Fire to Fire-Heaven. That makes fifty-six. Add the eight like Heaven-Earth, Wind-Thunder, and you have sixty-four Ghost God Domains.”
Granny Sha sighed. “You’ve grasped the essence of this art far beyond me.”
She felt a twinge of dejection. She had taught Creation Little Five, and Chen Shi too—both had surpassed her in the Supreme Eight Trigrams Protective Art.
Granny Sha glanced at Chen Tang, consoled slightly: I taught A-Tang too, and he didn’t comprehend nearly so many—still not as good as me.
The next morning, a man dressed as a servant arrived in Huangpo Village, seeking the Top Scholar Chen.
Chen Tang said to Chen Shi, “It’s that fellow who’s been surveilling you—we’ve been watching him for ages.”
Chen Shi met the visitor, who claimed to be surnamed Yang, an attendant of Yang Bi. “My young master invites Your Excellency to the Realm Above for the gathering, to fulfill our prior agreement.”
Chen Shi asked, “Has Yang Bi already reached Body Fusion Realm?”
The attendant said, “My young master has been prodigiously intelligent since childhood, acting on behalf of the Realm Above’s ancestors in governance, coordinating all factions—with little time for cultivation. This time, for the duel with the Top Scholar, he entered seclusion. Upon emergence, he had reached Body Fusion. He immersed himself there for a hundred days, consulting past ancestors. Now his cultivation is unfathomably deep.”
Chen Shi laughed. “Yang Bi has put real effort into this fight with me.”
The attendant said, “I’ve never seen my young master so dedicated. He ordered me to monitor the Top Scholar around Huangpo Village and report all your cultivation progress faithfully. Each time he heard of your advances, he felt immense pressure and dared not challenge you. Only today has he resolved to honor the original pact.”
Chen Shi was astonished. Yesterday, studying yin and yang, he had instead comprehended the sixty-four hexagrams’ Ghost God Domains—a massive disturbance the attendant must have reported to Yang Bi. Knowing Chen Shi’s strength had surged, Yang Bi still challenged him. Did he have absolute confidence in victory?
“I already feel invincible in Body Fusion—how can he be so certain of winning?”
Chen Shi raised an eyebrow. Was the Realm Above’s heritage truly that formidable?
“When can we depart?” he asked.
The attendant bowed. “Anytime.”
Chen Shi informed Chen Tang, who grew tense. “One must beware. I’ll go with you!”