Chapter 535: Dark Bird Emperor Pattern
The small temple sat atop Sky Measuring Cliff, the Purple Heaven Vine swaying before it. Stone Ji Your Ladyship and the others had flown past this area several times without noticing anything unusual.
They searched for weeks but never found the one who had nearly claimed Qianyang Mountain, and were forced to give up.
Only after they had dispersed did a startled cry come from within the Purple Heaven Vine: "You're crushing my hair!"
The spirit herb children looked toward the sound, but only saw the vine leaves stirring, no one visible.
Quite some time later, Chen Shi and Little Duan Immortal emerged clutching their clothes, poking their heads out to peer around, looking utterly furtive.
Above them, many spirit herb children were also poking their heads out to peer down at them, faces full of excitement and curiosity.
"Look again, and I'll shave your heads flat," came King Chen's voice from below.
The spirit herb children quickly withdrew their heads. Being spiritual herbs, if their heads were shaved flat, they would likely be harvested along the ground and find it hard to survive.
The vine leaves curled and wrapped around Chen Shi and Little Duan. When the leaves unfurled, both were properly dressed once more.
Chen Shi said, "They're not looking anymore. We can come out now."
Little Duan followed behind him, and the two drifted upward gracefully.
Their expressions were calm, just as before, but their brows and eyes still held lingering tenderness, unable to conceal the traces of spring.
Chen Shi said, "No rush to return. Godmother said the purple qi on this vine is called Grand Supreme Purple Qi, nothing ordinary. Earlier I had to reserve three strands of purple qi for Daoist Willow and didn't refine the Grand Supreme Purple Qi myself. Now that there's a fourth strand, it's perfect for the two of us to cultivate together."
Little Duan agreed.
The two came to a strand of Grand Supreme Purple Qi and sat on the vine leaves. Little Duan Immortal looked up and saw the purple qi descending from the heavens, bringing with it a sense of tranquility and peace. It calmed the heart and mind, and things that were usually difficult to comprehend suddenly became clear. Principles that had never quite made sense suddenly clicked into place.
She hadn't even refined the Grand Supreme Purple Qi yet, and merely observing it brought tremendous benefit!
"Godmother said Grand Supreme Purple Qi is extremely rare, a type of innate spiritual qi named after the Grand Supreme Sage," Chen Shi said, also gazing up at the purple qi. "But what exactly it does, I don't know. However, I once witnessed a Gold Immortal refining Grand Supreme Purple Qi, and he was extremely cautious."
Back when he had entered Purple Heaven to steal treasures, he discovered that Purple Heaven Immortal Lord collected Grand Supreme Purple Qi by having a great sun circle around the Purple Heaven Vine, drawing strands of purple qi into the sun to be slowly refined. The reason Purple Heaven Immortal Lord was so cautious was twofold: first, he had planted the Purple Heaven Vine in his own small world, where the spiritual energy it could absorb was limited; second, refining Grand Supreme Purple Qi was likely somewhat dangerous or difficult.
Chen Shi recounted the steps Purple Heaven Immortal Lord used to refine Grand Supreme Purple Qi. Little Duan Immortal raised her hand and carefully drew over a strand of Grand Supreme Purple Qi. Chen Shi said nervously, "Still too much! He was a top-tier Gold Immortal of the Earth Immortal Realm, with a cultivation realm far beyond ours!"
Little Duan Immortal split the strand in two. Chen Shi shook his head. "Still too much!"
Little Duan divided it again and again until only a hair-thin wisp remained. Chen Shi hesitated for a moment, then raised the Yin Yang Qi Bottle and said, "Refine it with your pure yang great sun. If anything goes wrong, I'll immediately use this treasure to suppress it and protect you."
Little Duan Immortal's mind stirred, and a sun flew out, drawing the wisp of Grand Supreme Purple Qi into it as she attempted to refine it.
Her cultivation realm was far above Chen Shi's. She was already an immortal who had achieved Dao Unification, except her Dao Unification had taken place in Chen Shi's small temple, and the space inside the temple was limited, so her achievement was constrained.
However, her Realm of Emptiness was not small, and her great sun had long been refined into pure yang.
Having cultivated to this step, one would normally be a Celestial Immortal, but because she had unified her Dao in a place that wasn't true heaven and earth, she could only be called a false immortal.
Even so, such cultivation was still extremely rare in the world.
Yet the moment she drew that wisp of Grand Supreme Purple Qi into her great sun, she saw the pure yang great sun suddenly surge and expand, growing larger and larger. The sun's color shifted from pure yang gold to purple!
Little Duan Immortal marshaled every ounce of her cultivation, exhausting all her power to suppress the sun, but it continued to swell without end.
Chen Shi was about to activate the Yin Yang Qi Bottle to help her suppress the sun when Little Duan Immortal shook her head. "No need!"
She let out a clear cry, and from behind her came a crisp, stirring phoenix call. Countless Dark Bird Dao patterns formed a Dark Bird wreathed in dark flames that spread its wings and rose. Its fire blazed fiercely, surpassing even the pure yang great sun.
The Dark Bird flew around the sun, and with each beat of its wings, surging vitality flew into the purple sun. Gradually, the purple sun stabilized.
Chen Shi was deeply moved.
The Dark Bird Dao patterns that Little Duan Immortal displayed were also a type of shamanic ritual markings, but they were the most powerful kind of shamanic ritual markings, also called Emperor Patterns.
It was by relying on these patterns that successive Shang Kings became the most powerful beings of their era, ruling over heaven and earth. Indeed, the Shang King was the Human Emperor!
Although after their exile the Great Shang royal family had turned to cultivating immortal techniques and walking the path of immortality, unable to bring the Emperor Pattern to its fullest potential, it remained extraordinary nonetheless.
By combining the Emperor Pattern with immortal techniques, Little Duan Immortal could at most bring out less than one-tenth of the Emperor Pattern's power, but even that was enough to refine Grand Supreme Purple Qi.
"If she could comprehend all the mysteries of the Dark Bird Emperor Pattern and convert it into an immortal technique, even the Celestial Venerable would be left in the dust by her achievements," Chen Shi thought to himself. "The Great Shang's shamanic ritual markings truly are an immense treasure trove. No wonder they're said to be the origin of immortal techniques."
Little Duan Immortal's aura continued to rise. After a long while, she finally finished refining that wisp of Grand Supreme Purple Qi.
She opened her eyes, a hint of astonishment flickering in them. In such a short time, her cultivation had actually increased by a great deal!
"Husband, I sense that the Demonic Energy in the world poses far less of a threat to me now!" she said, shocked and delighted.
Previously, to avoid demonic corruption, she had been forced to unify her Dao within Chen Shi's small temple, which limited her cultivation and kept her from making any progress for a long time. But now she felt that if she refined a few more strands of Grand Supreme Purple Qi, she could unify her Dao with heaven and earth without being assimilated by the Demonic Energy!
Chen Shi was greatly astonished. "Grand Supreme Purple Qi is that powerful? It can even ward off Demonic Energy?"
Little Duan Immortal nodded eagerly, wanting nothing more than to immediately free her Realm of Emptiness from Chen Shi's small temple and re-unify her Dao with heaven and earth.
But she held back. Having just refined a single wisp of Grand Supreme Purple Qi, recklessly unifying her Dao with heaven and earth might still prove insufficient against the Demonic Energy drifting through the world.
She steadied her mind and continued refining Grand Supreme Purple Qi.
Seeing this, Chen Shi also drew over a strand of Grand Supreme Purple Qi and attempted to refine it.
His cultivation was inferior to Little Duan Immortal's, and he lacked the Dark Bird Dao patterns. However, his yin-yang arts were extremely profound, and with the Yin Yang Qi Bottle to suppress any danger, the risk was greatly reduced. But he soon discovered that he had still underestimated Grand Supreme Purple Qi.
Within his Realm of Emptiness, sun and moon revolved, heaven and earth transformed, seas shifted and fields changed. Yet no matter how he refined it, he couldn't disperse the power of that tiny wisp of Grand Supreme Purple Qi.
Chen Shi felt that any moment now he might be torn apart by the force of the Grand Supreme Purple Qi. Making a snap decision, he activated the Yin Yang Qi Bottle, and the Dao power of an entire overturned world pressed down, finally suppressing the Grand Supreme Purple Qi's might.
He steadied himself, his heart still racing.
Without a magic treasure like the Yin Yang Qi Bottle, he likely would never have been able to refine Grand Supreme Purple Qi at all!
"Good thing I completed the Three Births of All Things that were missing from the Yin Yang Qi Bottle. Otherwise, even with the bottle in hand, I couldn't have refined the Grand Supreme Purple Qi."
Chen Shi slowly channeled the Yin Yang Qi Bottle, mobilizing the yin-yang Dao power to transform the Grand Supreme Purple Qi's force into mountains, rivers, sun, moon, and all things in the world, then converting all things back into yin and yang qi. His cultivation surged by leaps and bounds!
With the Yin Yang Qi Bottle at his disposal, his speed of refining Grand Supreme Purple Qi was actually somewhat faster than Little Duan Immortal's. However, whether it was due to enlightenment from the purple qi, Little Duan Immortal's comprehension of the Dark Bird Emperor Pattern was deepening with each refinement, and her own refining speed was gradually increasing as well.
The two cultivated on the vine. None knew how long passed before Chen Shi woke and said to Little Duan Immortal, "It's been a long time since I attended court. I need to make an appearance, or I'll be an absent emperor."
Little Duan Immortal rose and said, "I'll go with you."
They were about to leave the Purple Heaven Vine when they remembered the tender moments on the vine leaves, and their hearts burned hot.
Chen Shi looked up at the sky and said, "If we go to court now, no one will be there. Let's not rush. Better to do something else first."
Little Duan Immortal, her hand held in his, nodded shyly.
On the Purple Heaven Vine, the spirit herb children were awakened by the commotion and poked their heads out to look. They saw the vine swaying back and forth as if it were about to turn into a demon, and they were so startled they couldn't get back to sleep.
When dawn came, Chen Shi and Little Duan went to attend the morning court.
Hu Feifei rarely managed to catch them. As soon as court was dismissed, she immediately dragged Chen Shi to Wenyuan Pavilion to review memorials.
"Your Majesty, don't be an infatuated fool!"
The fox spirit could see what was going on and warned Chen Shi, "Your Majesty should distance yourself from women's charms and draw close to worthy ministers. Do not do evil because it is small, and do not neglect good because it is small."
Chen Shi barely managed to extricate himself from the mountain of affairs and immediately fled the Imperial Capital with Little Duan Immortal, returning to Sky Measuring Cliff.
"My beloved consort, you've worked hard these past few days. No rush to cultivate. Let's do something else first," Chen Shi suggested.
Little Duan Immortal nodded shyly. The two rolled up a vine leaf and concealed themselves.
"Your Majesty, this vine leaf is quite cool. It's very comfortable to lie on," Little Duan said, rolling around on the leaf with a laugh.
Chen Shi found the vine leaf most excellent. It made the fairy maiden look absolutely enchanting, her gossamer robes thin, her skin like ice and jade, snow-white and fragrant.
The Purple Heaven Vine began to sway again. The spirit herb children poked their heads down and babbled among themselves, discussing whether a demon was haunting the vine, since why else would it keep swaying for no reason?
Chen Shi had long since tossed Hu Feifei's warning to the wind, and enjoyed himself thoroughly with Little Duan.
Satisfied, the two came to cultivate beneath the purple qi.
In just a few days, not only had the purple qi not diminished, but another strand had appeared.
As the two cultivated beneath the purple qi, Chen Shi felt his cultivation growing stronger and stronger, his Realm of Emptiness expanding ever wider, but what improved fastest of all was his physical body.
Grand Supreme Purple Qi's enhancement of the body was beyond compare. Chen Shi discovered that especially when he activated Wu Qi's Immortal Art of Immortality, the enhancement became even more astonishing. His body was like parched earth that had been dry for ages, crazily drinking in the power of Grand Supreme Purple Qi!
When he finished refining a strand of purple qi that day, he suddenly felt his physical body become a bottomless pit, and involuntarily, his Realm of Emptiness was drawn into his body!
As the void entered his body, the sun and moon merged with his pupils, the starry sky merged with the thoughts in his mind, mountains became his bones, the earth became his skin, rivers became his blood vessels, oceans became his qi and blood, and forests became his hair. Chen Shi's body grew taller and taller, larger and larger!
In that brief moment, he had actually merged his Realm of Emptiness, Primordial Spirit, and physical body into one!
This meant he had officially stepped into the Great Ascension Realm!
For the first time, Chen Shi felt that cultivation could be this simple!
In the following days, his progress was nothing short of meteoric. One could clearly see the Realm of Emptiness behind his head gradually shrinking, from thousands of li in expanse, slowly contracting to a hundred li, ten li, tens of mu, and finally half a mu in circumference!
The speed of such cultivation advancement was truly beyond comprehension!
Chen Shi was utterly absorbed in his cultivation, completely forgetting the morning court. All he wanted was to surge forward, climbing higher and higher realms again and again.
One day Chen Shi woke and looked up. Two more strands of Grand Supreme Purple Qi had appeared.
He quickly rose, thinking, "This seclusion must have lasted over ten days. I wonder how things are at the Imperial City."
Little Duan Immortal was still cultivating. Chen Shi didn't wake her. He put away the small temple and first went to the Palace of Virtue to pay respects to the Empress of Earth. "Godmother, I've come to deliver three strands of Grand Purity Qi to Daoist Willow."
The Empress of Earth summoned Daoist Willow and said with a smile, "Little Willow, did I lie to you? His Majesty is indeed a man of his word."
She personally plucked three strands of purple qi and handed them to Daoist Willow. "Your cultivation is exquisite, but you can only refine this much purple qi at a time. Do not be greedy for more."
Daoist Willow attempted to refine one strand and was deeply shaken. The spiritual power contained in this Grand Supreme Purple Qi was simply too immense. A single strand nearly blasted through the bottleneck in his cultivation, almost pushing him to a breakthrough!
The Empress of Earth said, "These three strands of purple qi can help you undergo a complete transformation, greatly enhancing your innate talent and giving you boundless prospects. You used three willow leaves to gain such a great benefit. Aren't you going to thank His Majesty?"
Daoist Willow hurriedly bowed to Chen Shi in thanks.
Chen Shi helped him up, not letting him complete the bow, and said with a smile, "This was all thanks to Godmother's guidance. That's how I obtained this treasure. I should be the one thanking Godmother."
He took his leave of the Empress of Earth and Daoist Willow, then returned to the Imperial Capital. Before he could even catch his breath, Hu Feifei hurried over. "Your Majesty, Zhong Wuwang has come to visit. He's waiting in Yonghe Hall!"
Chen Shi's heart stirred. "Zhong Wuwang coming at this time... Could it be that he's ready?"
He rushed to Yonghe Hall, where Zhong Wuwang and Fang Zhenxiu were waiting. Seeing him arrive, Zhong Wuwang waved his hand, signaling Fang Zhenxiu to withdraw. He looked Chen Shi up and down, then said in surprise, "King Chen, your cultivation has actually advanced rather than regressed. I find that puzzling."
Chen Shi smiled. "Er Niu, why do you say that?"
Zhong Wuwang said solemnly, "The True King reigned for thousands of years, yet his cultivation advanced slowly, because the burdens of state left no time for cultivation, making progress nearly impossible. With the True King's intelligence and talent, had he applied it to cultivation, he might have matched the Celestial Venerable, rather than being struck down in a single blow. As the new True King, you should be neglecting your cultivation, with your progress stagnating or even regressing."
Chen Shi laughed heartily. "I am exceptionally gifted. I handle state affairs and cultivate at the same time, advancing by leaps and bounds."
Zhong Wuwang snorted. "The True King was also someone who obtained the Innate Dao Embryo. If he couldn't do it, neither can you. You must be neglecting state affairs! You are an infatuated ruler!"
Chen Shi's face darkened. "Er Niu, have you come here to mock me?"
Zhong Wuwang said flatly, "I've come to tell you that there's now an opportunity to enter Despair Slope. When do you plan to go?"
Chen Shi's heart trembled. "We leave immediately! Wait, I need to bring a few people with me to Despair Slope!"
Zhong Wuwang frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, then said, "You can bring people, but the total cannot exceed eight. In the recent battle between Despair Slope and the Demon Emperor of the Demon Capital, eight Celestial Way Immortals were killed."