Chương 77: Incense Fire Shapes Perception - A God’s Fall Shakes Heaven and Earth

The Immortal Cauldron of Creation grew restless and uneasy. Like a child whose five-viscera temple was nigh starving, it ceaselessly urged Su Zhe onward. Su Zhe held his breath and gathered his spirit, then of a sudden opened his mouth wide.

"I inhale!" Su Zhe drew in a fierce breath. A wild gale arose! Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Su Zhe's eyes flew wide. Five-colored immortal radiance blazed forth from the Immortal Cauldron of Creation. A portion of that power flowed into Su Zhe's eyes. Thus did Su Zhe "see" with far greater clarity. He could see— Upon that blood-colored altar, there had originally been strands upon strands of transparent energy, traveling along a black-and-white thread toward the sea of blood above the firmament.

Su Zhe was greatly astonished. This black-and-white thread was divided into two hues, black and white, much like an NDA sequence, intertwined together. Within thee was me; within me was thee. Through this black-and-white thread, Su Zhe beheld many things. For instance: the Blood-Refining Divine Venerable had handed down the God-Inviting Method, aiding no few ant-like mortals in obtaining the power of a "god," thereby freeing themselves from the straits of reality.

The god aided men, and men, having received divine power, thus believed all the more in the wild god. The wild god received the power of men's belief, which was incense fire. With incense fire, he shaped a golden body and preserved one wisp of remnant soul from extinction.

"This black-and-white thread… is it… karma?" Su Zhe could not help but murmur to himself. Karma: a word profound and abstruse. Yet it existed in all things and every place. All dharmas are empty; karma alone perishes not. Would one know the causes of a former life, then behold what is suffered in this life; would one know the fruits of a future life, then behold what is done in this life. Karma was as though thou hadst casually planted a seed, then long since forgotten the matter.

Who could have thought that, upon the day when mountains were exhausted and waters spent, thou wouldst discover that the seed of that year had become a towering tree, laden with fruit, and in the end had saved thy life? Plant a good cause, receive a good fruit; plant an evil cause, receive an evil fruit. This was an exceedingly shallow principle. Yet as Su Zhe gazed upon the strands of karma between the blood-colored altar and the Blood-Refining Divine Venerable, a wholly new thought suddenly arose within him.

A good cause need not bring a good fruit; it might also bring an evil fruit. One may hold fast to one's original heart and act kindly toward others, believing oneself to do good, yet with good intentions accomplish ill. How could the mysteries of karma be fully comprehended by Su Zhe, one who had only newly stepped upon the path of martial dao? As he pondered, the Immortal Cauldron of Creation proved rather domineering. Five-colored immortal light swept across, directly severing the karmic thread.

Thereafter, within the cauldron, as though a taotie had opened its maw, it began to devour and swallow like a whale drawing in the sea.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Su Zhe, standing at the center, felt endless incense fire surging toward him. Though the greater part of that incense fire was absorbed by the Immortal Cauldron of Creation, there yet remained no small amount of incense fire lingering within Su Zhe's sea of consciousness. Countless streams of golden incense-fire power scattered throughout that sea. Su Zhe felt as though his skull were about to split apart. Countless messages poured in.

Yet at the same time, Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. the thoughts within his mind transformed within his sea of consciousness into transparent bubbles, appearing one after another without cease. Thoughts were ideas. Men often spoke of a sudden flash of inspiration. That referred precisely to the passing of a single thought. The more abundant one's thoughts, the more lively one's mind.

Yet when the mind was lively, the heart found it difficult to be still, and from this arose many outward emotions. But Su Zhe's thoughts flashed by one after another, and under the premise that he pursued martial dao with single-minded devotion, they transformed into innumerable stirrings and notions concerning martial dao.

"Right, it may be done thus… by using the method of Spirit Snake Strength to drive the Flood Dragon Method…"

"Would that not also nurture a wisp of Flood Dragon Strength?"

"Blade arts are of one vein. The Baleful Tiger Blade and the Dark Sickle Blade are both blade arts; they merely differ in blade intent…" At this moment, Su Zhe felt himself clever to the utmost. His comprehension soared. Places where once he had pondered bitterly and failed to grasp the key were now, one after another, pierced through at their crucial points.

What the Buddhist schools called enlightenment poured through the crown, and what the Daoist schools called seeing the heart and illuminating one's nature, were no more than this.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Having obtained incense fire, the Immortal Cauldron of Creation also trembled unceasingly, becoming ever more greedy. From the blood-colored altar, ten parts of incense fire dispersed; nine parts surged toward Su Zhe, and only that pitiable single part went toward the Blood-Refining Divine Venerable. …… Above the firmament, Yushen had already sunk deep into the mire. Her combat strength shook the heavens, and her fleshly body was invincible.

Yet that sea of blood poured forth without end: destroyed, it could not be exhausted; destroyed, it was reborn. This caused Yushen to suffer bitterly.

"Little girl, when this Venerable was in Sword-Casting Manor, I fear even thy great-grandfather had yet to be born!"

"With a seventh-grade cultivation, thou wouldst slay a god? Laughable!"

"Today… this Venerable shall have thee trapped to death in this place, then swallow thy martial dao Yang God to aid my return to the peak!" The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable held the upper hand. Within the sea of blood, a blood-colored face condensed, madly arrogant, looking down upon all, and laughing in triumph. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Yet who, in the end, was the mantis, and who the oriole?

Or could it be that all this was none other than an open stratagem devised by the cicada? To enter the game with one's own body is to gain half a move upon Heaven! The victories and defeats of this world—until the final instant, who can speak of them clearly? Yushen was confident in her invincibility and desired, with her seventh-grade body, to slaughter a wild god and temper her martial dao.

Little did she know that the Blood-Refining Divine Venerable could likewise swallow Yushen's martial dao Yang God and strengthen himself.

"May the sun upon thy mother!" Yushen flew into a towering rage. At that very moment, the sea of blood began, at a speed visible to the naked eye, to wither and retreat. The incense-fire power within it, like seawater rolling backward, departed with just as much resolve as it had arrived in ferocity. The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable had already been no match for Yushen, and had merely intended to rely upon his reserves to grind her to death. Who could have known that fire would break out in his rear!

"Haha! Thy strength fails to continue! Old monster, Heaven would have thee perish!" A cold gleam pierced forth from Yushen's eyes, as though it would tear heaven and earth asunder. One saw hammer-shadows flying and wheeling, the wind howling, their momentum astonishing. Caught unprepared, the Blood-Refining Divine Venerable had ten blood-colored giant avatars shattered in succession; when he condensed himself again, it was already exceedingly difficult.

"It is thee! Boy…"

"This Venerable, mindful that thou wert the one who released me, had meant to spare thy life!"

"I never thought thou wouldst seek to cut off this Venerable's household entire!" The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable lowered his gaze. Just in time, he saw Su Zhe transformed into a taotie, wantonly drawing away his incense fire! The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable knew that, were Su Zhe not stopped, then this day would be the day of his divine fall! At once, he rolled up the sea of blood and reached toward the direction of the blood-colored altar.

"How can he possibly absorb incense fire?"

"If he is no wild god, how can he tread the incense-fire divine path?" The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable was filled with dread. This absorption of incense fire was the deed of the Immortal Cauldron of Creation. Su Zhe's consciousness, however, remained clear. Seeing the boundless sea of blood spreading toward him, even though Su Zhe's present strength already allowed him to run unhindered through Lu County, he was absolutely no match for a wild god.

"I inhale! I inhale!" Su Zhe absorbed the incense fire with yet greater effort, while crying loudly:"Venerable Master Yushen, save me! My life is forfeit!"

"If I die, the matter is small; but if Venerable Master loses the face of the Shura Child Matriarch, the matter is grave!" This cry Su Zhe sent forth by driving his inner strength and stirring his throat. His voice was like muffled thunder, spreading throughout the whole of Yandang Mountain. ……

"Impudent!" Yushen crossed the empty air, taking a single step of over a hundred zhang, and appeared before Su Zhe. Yushen threw back her head and laughed wildly, her voice shaking the clouds:"What of a sea of blood? I shall break it!" Within her words, tyranny overflowed, as though between heaven and earth she alone reigned supreme. Behind her, the martial dao Yang God took shape as a savage dragon, and then actually transformed into the Twelve Forms of Xingyi.

The so-called Twelve Forms referred to twelve beast forms: dragon form, tiger form, monkey form, horse form, alligator form, chicken form, sparrowhawk form, swallow form, snake form, tai form, eagle form, and bear form. Each possessed myriad changes: moving like waves, still as a mountain, rising like an ape, descending like a magpie, standing like a pine, poised like a crane, turning like a wheel, bending like a bow, light as a leaf, heavy as iron, swift as the wind, precise as an eagle.

Her figure was like lightning as she charged into the sea of blood. Her hammer arts were fierce and keen; with every hammerfall, heaven-surging waves of blood were stirred up. The Twelve Forms evolved into twelve martial dao Yang Gods, roaring to the heavens and shattering the sea of blood. Many experts upon Yandang Mountain felt their scalps go numb at the sight. Yushen's face was charmingly childish, her eyes bright and clever; she was simply a little girl not yet grown into herself.

Those unaware of her methods would surely be deceived by her appearance. Yet偏偏 she was domineering and savage, her martial flames towering to the heavens. She roared again and again; the more she fought, the braver she became, until she slaughtered the sea of blood into wailing and caused wind and clouds to change color. The Blood-Refining Divine Venerable attacked for long and failed to prevail; instead, Yushen slew him till he cast away armor and helmet.

Added to this, his own incense fire was being continuously stolen by Su Zhe. His aura declined at tremendous speed.

"I! I am unwilling!"

"How can ye mortals defy a Divine Venerable?!" Boom! As Yushen's final hammer fell, the Twelve Forms of martial dao condensed back into one and descended upon the heavy hammer. A peal of thunder exploded through Yandang Mountain. The mountain body shook. Above the heavenly dome, wild winds raged, as though the sky itself had been smashed open into a great breach! Rumble, rumble! The blood sea that had before covered heaven and blotted out the sun was cleared away in a single instant.

For ten thousand li there were no clouds; heaven and earth were bright and pure. A god had fallen. The God-Devourer: the Shura Child Matriarch, Manor Lord Yushen!