Chapter 395
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 396
Chapter Title: Self-Rescue
Everyone thought the sun's darkening followed a pattern, advancing by a quarter-hour every set interval. Even Chen Shi had believed that.
But this time, the sun stayed extinguished for a full day and night before shining again, suggesting that what they took for a pattern might not be one at all!
They were like frogs at the bottom of a well, peering at the sky and mistaking their limited observations for universal truth. On a grander timescale, their so-called patterns and truths would cease to exist.
This time the sun went dark for a day and night. Next time, it might go dark forever!
"The thirteen patriarchs of the Upper Realm's great families must know what happened at the end of the True King Era! They survived and persist to this day. They must know how to face this catastrophe!"
Chen Shi suddenly realized that though he had been to the Upper Realm, he had no idea how to get there.
With the thirteen families scheming for millennia, if the Upper Realm were so easily found, Despair Slope would have eradicated it long ago.
Granny Sha arrived in Huangpo Village. She now looked like a beautiful young woman in her early twenties, elegant and poised. Ever since regaining her youth, she had rarely shown panic, yet now she was utterly distraught.
"Little Ten, I've never seen anything like this in my life."
She was gripped by unprecedented fear, murmuring, "I've never seen————Where's your dad? Don't go to your dad, he can't handle this. We need your grandpa—he's always full of sly ideas————."
She talked to herself, pacing back and forth.
Chen Shi brought her to his home. Chen Tang and Wu Qingyu were both out, leaving only Blackie Pot at home.
Blackie Pot boiled water and brewed tea, bringing her a cup. Granny Sha clutched it with both hands, her gaze unfocused. Suddenly, she said, "Something huge is coming, isn't it? A disaster. So many people will die, won't they?"
Chen Shi was still trying to calm her when Hu Xiaoliang's timid voice came from outside the door: "Granny Sha's here too? Little Ten,
where's your dad? I won't look for him————What do you think about this? I've been feeling uneasy, like something bad's brewing————."
The burly, lice-bearded man was trembling slightly. Blackie Pot poured him a cup of tea too. His hands shook as he took it, his voice quivering.
Chen Shi fetched another small stool and invited him to sit.
Hu Xiaoliang had just sat down when Qingyang's voice rang out: "Big trouble! Little Ten, where's your dad————I won't look for him."
He burst in, saw Granny Sha and Hu Xiaoliang, and breathed a sigh of relief. He poured himself a cup of tea, signaling Chen Shi not to bother with a stool, then downed it in one gulp. "The sun went dark for a full day and night this time—it's no fluke! Without Old Chen coming back, we can't handle this! It's not a calamity mutation, but it's a hundred times worse!"
Du Yiran walked in from outside. "Chen Yindu's full of tricks. If he were here, he'd have a solution."
A spark of clarity returned to Granny Sha's eyes. She looked up. "Right. We need to find Old Chen! I know where he is! I'll go get him! But————"
She hesitated. "Going to him will take several days."
A Zhuo's voice came from outside: "Even if it takes days, we go. The underworld's unstable—we'll all go find him! Good!"
Granny Sha, Hu Xiaoliang, and the others stood up at once, rushing out in a flurry. Qingyang said, "No time to waste,
Granny, cast your spell now!"
Hu Xiaoliang asked, "Is Little Ten going?"
Granny Sha shook her head. "Can't bring him! If he goes there and the owner of the cyan ghost hand gets angry and crushes him————"
They hurried off, leaving Chen Shi and Blackie Pot behind.
Chen Shi thought to himself, "They came to my house asking about my dad, but they really wanted my grandpa. They know he's in the underworld, yet they still came here out of habit. But————"
He felt a surge of anticipation. "Is Grandpa really coming back? With Grandpa here, the family's whole again!"
Upper Realm.
The thirteen patriarchs had explored that shattered world and returned to Jade Firmament Heaven, quietly listening as Yang Bi reported the sun's day-and-night extinction.
"It's beginning."
Gao Xuan recalled the past. "At the end of the True King Era, it started just like this. First, the sun went dark."
Fei Zichong sighed. "Countless died. The scenes from back then are still vivid."
"But we were helpless too."
Xia Gongjin said, "The people will find their own paths to survival and strive to live on. We have only one goal:
Despair Slope! Eliminate Despair Slope and the True Gods to end this all!"
The group rallied their spirits and nodded.
Yang Bi remained silent, listening until the patriarchs finished. Then he asked, "Patriarchs, how long until the sun goes out completely?"
Zhang Longhu said, "First time: a day and night. Second: two days and nights. Third: three days and three nights, then it rose normally. The fourth time, people thought it'd be four days and nights—but it never rose again."
Yang Bi's heart jolted. "How did you patriarchs survive that cataclysm back then?"
Xia Gongjin shook his head. "The True King ruled the world then, not us."
Yang Bi frowned slightly and asked, "Then why did the sun rise again later?"
"No idea."
Fei Zichong said, "West Ox New Continent plunged into darkness, people starving, resorting to cannibalism. The True King went to Despair Slope once. Later, Despair Slope sent back his corpse. Soon after, the sun rose as usual. Yang Bi,
don't dwell on this. Focus on cultivation. Our goal is Despair Slope—don't get distracted."
Yang Bi assented, bowed to the patriarchs, and left.
Back at his residence, he pondered briefly, loaded up his Azure Cloud Grand Climber, and departed the Upper Realm. Soon, it arrived at Huangpo Village.
Chen Shi saw Yang Bi step down from the Azure Cloud Grand Climber and was slightly stunned. He went forward to greet him.
He had been frustrated about reaching the Upper Realm, never expecting Yang Bi to come to Huangpo Village.
Yang Bi dismounted and saluted him.
Chen Shi returned the salute.
Yang Bi recounted his conversation with the thirteen patriarchs verbatim. "That's all I know. After telling you, I'm off to deal with Despair Slope. Who knows if we'll meet again after today."
Chen Shi smiled. "I'd love to see you again, but next time, you'll probably try to kill me."
Yang Bi nodded lightly. "If we meet again, it means I've dealt with Despair Slope—no more threats.
Then, you're no longer my confidant but the thirteen families' greatest enemy. Of course I'd eliminate you first."
Chen Shi laughed heartily. "I hope you die on Despair Slope—and I don't."
He said earnestly, "But I'll say it again: we cultivators must rely on our own power."
Yang Bi smiled. "I've thought hard about that. It doesn't work. The pinnacle now is Great Vehicle Realm—no further. No individual's power rivals the thirteen families'. Only by uniting them can I flatten Despair Slope!"
Chen Shi said, "Never thought of breaking through Great Vehicle to ascend as an immortal? With Dao-Union power————"
Yang Bi cut him off. "Even on the new path, Dao-Union corrupts. Brother Chen, the new path's corruption just comes later than the old."
He bowed deeply in farewell and boarded the Azure Cloud Grand Climber.
Chen Shi suddenly called, "Yang Bi!"
Yang Bi turned.
"If you can't win, run!" Chen Shi shouted.
Yang Bi paused, then smiled. "I get it. Thanks."
Chen Shi waved, watching the Azure Cloud Grand Climber vanish into the distance.
He steadied himself and returned to the yellow earth slope to see Scholar Zhu. He told him about the True King's second trip to Despair Slope and death. "The True King died in battle at Despair Slope—not assassinated, not suicide in despair."
Scholar Zhu gazed into the distance, silent for a long while before saying, "In crisis, the True King would shoulder the burden of protecting the people—not a coward suiciding to dodge disaster. With his grand vision, he reformed the old laws, pioneered new ones, and enfeoffed immortals across the realm. How could such a sovereign die at the hands of the thirteen families' patriarchs? My ancestors didn't disgrace the Zhu line."
"But his descendants hanged themselves here." Chen Shi said.
Scholar Zhu snorted.
Chen Shi pressed on. "That battle at Despair Slope didn't just kill the True King—even my godmother was buried under this yellow earth slope, along with the divine avatars from Huaxia Divine Continent, all entombed in the mountains and rivers. Their statues smashed, their visages slain, their temples destroyed. No less devastating than the True King's death."
His emotions surged. Qianyang Mountain Lord's temple had sunk with the peaks into the earth, hidden until recently emerging from below.
The Mountain Lord's statue and visage had vanished too, until Chen Shi enfeoffed him twice, reviving him from death as Qianyang Mountain's god once more.
Gongzhou Mazu Temple was the same—Mazu's temple merged with the mountains to guard the seas.
Qingzhou Guan Sheng Emperor Lord's temple: statue shattered, temple buried deep.
The gods originally guarding West Ox New Continent were either executed or vanished into hiding.
This event was monumental, rivaling the True King's enfeoffment of immortals, replacement of old laws with new, and his death!
Chen Shi gazed at his godmother's stele, murmuring, "What happened back then? Why was godmother buried under this yellow earth slope?"
Scholar Zhu dangled from the noose, swinging gently. "No idea. I was born too late. By my time, the court was rotten to the core."
Back then, he brimmed with ideals: save the court, change the world, uncover the True King Era's fall, become the savior, restore the True King's golden age!
But reality shattered him.
Despairing, he came to the Tomb of the True King and hanged himself from the old willow.
For all his divine abilities, his heart was dead as ash.
Chen Shi inwardly mocked him for lacking the True King's resolve—he admitted it.
The True King charged Despair Slope amid doomsday; he, crushed by the thirteen families, could only despair and hang here.
Looking back, it did disgrace the True King.
"This damned world!" Scholar Zhu suddenly cursed in fury.
Blackie Pot perked up its ears, eyeing him warily.
Just then, Chen Tang's voice called: "Little Ten, Little Ten! Come quick!"
Chen Shi descended the yellow earth slope to Huangpo Village. Outside stood Situ Wen's treasure, the Pivotal Mechanism—a massive structure of stacked towers and pavilions. Chen Tang, Li Tianqing, Situ Wen, Yu Lingzi, Magistrate Hu, and others bustled around it.
They activated the Heavenly Court Token, opening a portal to the Minor Heavens, ferrying out loads of treasure components.
Ministry of Works cultivators assembled them.
"The instructor's here!" Situ Wen hurried over, beaming.
Chen Shi eyed the busy crowd, watching massive furnaces take shape under their hands. He asked, "What are you doing?"
The furnaces looked familiar.
Situ Wen grinned. "Instructor, remember that damaged Mysterious Mechanism Hundred Transformations Furnace you gave me? You said combining it with the Pivotal Mechanism would let it fly on coal alone."
Chen Shi's eyes lit up. "You made it?"
Situ Wen nodded vigorously, a bit embarrassed. "Luban Sect couldn't alone—we needed Heavenly Court Works brothers to tweak the furnace so the Pivotal Mechanism flies on coal."
Chen Shi examined one furnace. Inside gleamed thin, bright lenses, but the wall runes differed vastly—major changes, even in refining method.
"Will this really fly on coal?" he asked.
Chen Tang approached. "Coal works, but needs the Pivotal Mechanism to channel power. One incense stick: three thousand jin of fine coal. Spiritual power's easier but drains heavily."
He activated one. Runes on the walls blazed, reflecting on the lenses. They spun, and with a whoosh, hair-thin sword light shot from the mouth!
Chen Shi was stunned. "Xuanwei Sword Qi?"
Situ Wen laughed. "Old Chen tweaked the Mysterious Mechanism Hundred Transformations Furnace runes."
Originally, it spewed various true qi forms—immense power, rivaling full strikes from Incarnation God or Spirit Descent Realm cultivators. Now, Chen Tang reworked the runes for Xuanwei Sword Qi, reflecting on spinning mirrors circling the walls. Each rotation loosed barrages of sword qi.
The qi was short—three inches, needle-thin—but grew to a foot after a zhang, three feet at two zhang.
And the volume was huge—the faster the mirrors spun, the more qi erupted!
Chen Shi activated a sword furnace, channeling power. Over a thousand mirrors whirled inside; sword qi gushed out. Thrust-back slammed it down!
He cradled it, boosting power. Sword qi pierced the sky, forming a miles-long flood straight upward!
Immense pressure bore on his arms, sinking his legs into the earth.
He poured in more; suddenly, the ground boomed, cratering four or five zhang wide!
Chen Shi trembled under the strain, slowly withdrawing power. The mirrors slowed; the qi flood ebbed; pressure eased.
Finally, the mirrors stopped; the qi dispersed.
"Good stuff!"
Chen Shi set down the sword furnace, praising it. "Great stuff! Mounted on the Pivotal Mechanism, it could reach beyond the heavens! But it guzzles power—even I can't sustain it long!"
Heavenly Court Works cultivators installed the assembled sword furnaces—eight in total.
The Pivotal Mechanism's buildings weren't dead weight; they hid power conduits, with a massive pill furnace at the core.
Luban Sect disciples hauled coal to the furnace room.
Wu Qingyu brought the Calamity Vessel, soothing the massive half-demon, half-ghost-god. She took some of its black dog blood for Red Mountain Hall talisman masters to redraw the Pivotal Mechanism's runes.
Chen Shi asked, "Assembling the Pivotal Mechanism—what for?"
Wu Qingyu said, "Fly beyond the heavens, see what's wrong with the True Gods out there! We're saving ourselves."