Chapter 392 - 162: Sealed Space, Life and Death Yin Yang Qi, I’ll Beat You to Death
This is why many believed they had long since entered the Ascension Immortal Realm—and not just the First Realm of the Spirit Immortal, but quite possibly the Second Realm: Celestial Mandate!
But this deduction was merely speculation.
It was like a frog in a well, assuming the small patch of sky it could see was the entire heavens.
But the true sky was far, far vaster than what it could see.
The name "Seven Heroes and Three Li" was just a title given to them by Cultivators throughout the ages; in reality, no one knew their true origins or names.
Cui Yanliang had also discovered a secret rumor: these ten Great Demon Ghosts were said to be hounds from beyond the heavens.
In other words, these ten Great Demon Ghosts were all hounds with a master.
If the hounds were this terrifying, their master must be...
’That scruffy old Daoist wants to make a play for this thing?’
Wang E’s scalp tingled, and his limbs felt weak.
If something that massive truly came back to life, the consequences would be unimaginable!
He feared that even if everyone present attacked at once, it would be as futile as a mantis trying to stop a chariot. They would all die.
"The Netherworld Venerable Master achieved the Dao through Life and Death Yin and Yang. Where his life force spreads, he can make flesh grow on bare bones. Where his deathly aura spreads, all things wither, and even the Feathered will decay."
"If not for this power, how could he have sealed the Seven Heroes and Three Li?"
From high above, thousands of feet away, the Celestial Secret Sect Master’s voice echoed across the heavens:
"This realm contains the Dao Essence of life and death. Unless you have transcended the boundary between life and death, no one can break through its confines and escape..."
The Celestial Secret Sect Master stood high in the air, his sleeves fluttering. A smile graced his lips, and he still possessed the bearing of a transcendent immortal.
Yet the sight of him sent a chill through the heart.
"The bodies of the Seven Heroes and Three Li are this massive?"
Farther in the distance, treading upon a river that seemed to be made of stagnant water, Monk Taixuan clicked his tongue in amazement.
The mountains and rivers here formed the boundaries of the Sealed Space.
Below was death; above was life.
The Life and Death Yin Yang Qi was used to suppress a terrifying Great Demon as vast as the moon and stars.
The sheer size of this Great Demon was enough to shake even a well-traveled Feathered Strong People like himself to the core:
’Indeed. A monster born of the world, coalesced from Yin Sha Resentment Qi, is beyond all human comparison.’
"It seems the Daoist Master has been paying quite a bit of attention to me."
From thousands of feet away, perhaps even farther across the void, Cui Yanliang looked directly at the Celestial Secret Sect Master and suddenly laughed.
"Your skills in Divination and Deduction are truly remarkable, Daoist Master."
The Fist Scripture says that all things under heaven are interconnected, one generating the next, one overcoming the other.
This principle is embodied in Yin and Yang, the Five Elements, and the transformations of all energies.
In this Sealed Space, life was above and death was below. The true key...
...was how to shatter the boundary between them.
If this energy of life and death were to be inverted, the Sealed Space would collapse on its own.
And to break a Sealed Space where death energy converged and the aura of the Netherworld permeated everything, neither Buddhist Golden Light nor Daoist Skill could compare to his Divine Thunder.
Ever since his Thunder Skill reached Great Success, Monk Taixuan was the only person in recent years to have survived a direct hit from it.
The Celestial Secret Sect Master had been plotting over this place for many years, and his long wait was clearly because he had been secretly watching Cui Yanliang.
His mastery of Divination and Deduction was likely second to none in the current age.
"Enough talk. What is your decision, my young friend?"
The Celestial Secret Sect Master’s ancient face was devoid of expression, perfectly calm and undisturbed:
"Will you break the seal, or will you remain trapped here for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years, only to then personally face a freed Toad Wrath and its eons of accumulated fury?"
As his words faded, Monk Taixuan also looked over, a supposedly compassionate smile playing on his lips:
"For the past five years, you have pushed your new methods, claiming to seek peace for all living things. I wonder, how will you choose now?"
But his smile was laced with undisguised killing intent.
Two years ago, Cui Yanliang had brought his new laws to Qing Province, sweeping the land of all Demon Ghosts. He had even personally ascended to Zheyun Temple and used his Divine Thunder to grievously wound the monk, turning thousands of years of tradition to ash in a single day.
How could the monk not burn with hatred?
’The death energy within this Sealed Space is unimaginably dense. If it were to erupt, Ling Province and many other places would be transformed into a living hell...’
’If those two attack, you’ll have no choice but to retaliate. In the clash of such powerful energies, you’ll be playing right into their hands, whether you want to or not...’
Jin Yunfeng’s heart grew heavy.
He possessed a White Bone Body. Even though he had undergone several transformations and found his own path to advancement, he was only a step or two away from growing true flesh and blood and returning to the world of the living.
But in the end, he was still a being of bone.
His perception of death energy surpassed even that of the Feathered.
He could sense the terrifying death energy within the mountains and rivers that sealed the Great Demon, Toad Wrath.
This death energy had been gathering for untold years, a vast and tranquil Dead Sea.
But if the three of them were to fight and disturb the balance here...
...there was no telling what cataclysmic changes might be unleashed!
Wang E’s expression was grim. He wordlessly clutched Jin Yunfeng’s cloak, sensing the immense danger as well.
Cui Yanliang’s expression, however, remained unchanged.
Even as the two Feathered Transformation Great Powers flared their auras, seemingly ready to join forces and compel him to act, he remained as calm as a cloudless sky.
He spoke calmly:
"There are only so many Feathered True Masters within the borders of Da Yu. Most walk the mortal realm or live in seclusion in the mountain forests. Only you, Daoist Master, love to stir up trouble. Did you really think I wouldn’t be prepared?"
Hearing this, the Celestial Secret Sect Master frowned slightly. He ran through his deductions several more times in his mind but still found no flaw. He couldn’t help but sneer:
"Then this old Daoist would like to see!"
"What preparations have *you* made?"
WHOOSH!
With a great wave of his sleeve, Cui Yanliang stretched out his hands. His body suddenly seemed to swell, and in an instant, his once-loose Daoist Robe became taut against his frame.
An indescribable, wild aura poured from his body, as majestic as a mountain, his presence exploding with power!
Having cultivated the latter parts of the Fist Scripture, the resilience of his Physique had long surpassed what most could imagine.
The latter parts of the Fist Scripture, which Su Bai had deduced, not only incorporated numerous Divine Techniques and Cultivation Techniques but also integrated the many insights and applications of the Fifth Immortal Golden Body Transformation.
This made the knowledge contained within the latter parts of the Fist Scripture so detailed as to be nearly boundless.
But once mastered, its power was naturally terrifying.
Jin Yunfeng, who was beside him, drifted back. He watched as the very void of the Sealed Space seemed to wrinkle and warp, scorched by a suddenly rising golden flame.
"Th-This is..."
Wang E stared, dumbfounded, at Cui Yanliang. Though Cui Yanliang’s body hadn’t become as tall or burly as his own, the power radiating from him was overwhelmingly greater.
’A Physique like that...’
Although it was absolutely not the time or place to be speaking, Wang E couldn’t stop himself from cursing out loud:
"You scruffy old bastard! I fell right into your trap..."
Before he could finish, Jin Yunfeng clamped a hand over his mouth and dragged him far away.
"’Is this... hiding thunder within the body?’"
"’No, it’s nurturing thunder *with* the body!’"
The Celestial Secret Sect Master’s pupils shrank, as if he were witnessing the impossible.
In his eyes, Cui Yanliang was no longer there. Standing in the sky was not a man, but an ocean of incomparably violent lightning, compressed to its absolute limit!
And what swelled his body, what stirred his monstrous Blood Qi, was an uncountable amount of Divine Thunder Purple Lightning!
CRACK!
His Blood Qi washed over the void like a tide. Cui Yanliang stood high in the sky, his presence majestic and powerful. From thousands of feet away, he spoke faintly:
"My countermeasure is quite simple, really."
"I’m going to beat you both to death without even using my Thunder Skill!"
The world fell silent. Within the vast Sealed Space, you could hear a pin drop.
ROAR!
An enraged roar instantly shook the heavens.
Monk Taixuan took a step into the void, and the very air rippled like water, churning into a monstrous wave!
His face darkened as he roared at the sky:
"Beat *me* to death?"
"With your paltry few years of Cultivation? You must be dreaming!"
"Mighty Celestial Dragon!"
"World Honored One Ksitigarbha!"
"Prajna Mantra!"