Chapter 527: You’re Awake?
Chen Shi arrived at the Palace of Virtue. The Empress of Earth was just walking out of the palace, having changed into a light yellow Daoist robe with golden trim and a blue inner lining, very simple in style.
Her long hair fell loosely over her shoulders, her face was free of makeup, but from her earlobes hung earrings woven from tassels, giving her a very fresh appearance. In her hand, she carried a golden shovel only three feet long, quite small and delicate.
"Godmother, where are you going?" Chen Shi asked.
"Staying cooped up in the palace doing accounts all the time is dull. I thought I'd take advantage of this free time to plant the Purple Heaven Vine."
Your Ladyship smiled. "Your Majesty, come along."
Chen Shi followed her. The two arrived at the high mound. Your Ladyship looked for a suitable place to plant the Purple Heaven Vine and said, "The Purple Heaven Vine is truly domineering. It needs to be planted a bit farther from little Willow, or else it might strangle him to death."
Chen Shi weighed his words before speaking. "I followed Godmother's instructions and planted Wu Qi and the gourd seed. Now Wu Qi has grown. But when I checked today, two Wu Qis had sprouted."
"Only two?"
The Empress of Earth looked surprised. "Wu Qi is that powerful? Only two grew. Was he a Tai Yi Golden Immortal in his past life?"
Chen Shi's heart skipped a beat. "Are there more Wu Qis going to grow?"
The Empress of Earth picked a spot and was about to start digging the yellow earth when Chen Shi grabbed the golden shovel and volunteered to do the work.
The Empress of Earth had changed into these light, comfortable clothes precisely because she planned to plant the Purple Heaven Vine herself. But since Chen Shi was doing it for her, she was happy to take it easy. She laughed. "In the Earth Immortal Realm, there was once a Tai Yi Golden Immortal who died at the hands of an enemy. He relied on the gourd seed of the Purple Heaven Vine to be reborn. Two Tai Yi Golden Immortals grew from the vine. It's thought that the immortal gourd seed contained the power of the Purple Heaven Vine, and its life force was so strong that it produced a spare. Later, this person found his enemy and took revenge, exchanging life for life. He and his enemy perished together. But unexpectedly, after he died, he was reborn from the other body on the vine. This incident caused quite a stir, and the Purple Heaven Vine attracted attention because of it."
Chen Shi finished digging the hole and said, "If the person born from the Purple Heaven Vine can come down when ripe, wouldn't there be two of himself?"
The Empress of Earth said, "No. Only when the main body dies does the other self on the vine become the main body. What realm is Wu Qi?"
Chen Shi guessed, "Wu Qi shouldn't be a Tai Yi Golden Immortal, just a Gold Immortal."
The Empress of Earth took out the gourd seed, bent down, and planted it in the hole. "Then it won't be two avatars. It might grow twenty or thirty."
"Twenty or thirty?" Chen Shi was startled.
The Empress of Earth took the shovel from him and covered the seed with soil herself. "The gap between a Gold Immortal and a Tai Yi Golden Immortal is too vast; they are not comparable. Saying it would produce twenty or thirty Wu Qis is already a conservative estimate. If Wu Qi's strength weren't so high, producing a hundred or so would be no problem at all."
Chen Shi heard this and felt deep envy. "If only I could be immortal and indestructible like that too."
The Empress of Earth laughed. "Being like him has both pros and cons. Whatever cultivation and strength he had when planted is what he'll have when reborn. No matter how much your cultivation progresses in the meantime, the reborn you will have the same strength, unchanged."
Chen Shi smiled. "Having twenty or thirty extra lives is still better than having none."
The Empress of Earth smiled. "That's true."
Just then, the soil stirred. A tiny sprout grew out of the earth, swaying as it climbed upward.
The Empress of Earth murmured an incantation. Divine light swirled around her body, like streaks of colorful clouds, pulling the power of the great Dao from heaven and earth toward her.
Under the nourishment of the great Dao, the Purple Heaven Vine grew faster and faster. It extended slender tendrils that pierced the void and climbed upward.
Unlike the Purple Heaven Vine Chen Shi had planted, this one absorbed the yin energy floating freely between heaven and earth. Connected to the great Dao, it grew even faster than Chen Shi's vine.
Chen Shi looked up. The Purple Heaven Vine stretched upward. Its leaves grew larger and larger, its branches thicker and thicker, its height already exceeding a hundred zhang.
The root and stem of the Purple Heaven Vine were already four or five zhang thick and still growing. The aura emanating from the vine grew stronger and stronger!
The Purple Heaven Vine grew thicker and thicker, forcing Chen Shi to keep backing away.
In just a short moment, the Purple Heaven Vine had already reached a thousand zhang in height and was still growing.
"The geography of the underworld is complex. There are two layers of the underworld, the Buddhist Hell built by the Buddhist Sect, the Divine Capital, the Demon Capital—the jurisdiction of the underworld's administration covers only twenty or thirty percent of the entire underworld's territory. It's impossible to manage it all."
The Empress of Earth floated up and said, "So I plan to use the Purple Heaven Vine to unify the great Dao of the underworld into one. I will use the Purple Heaven Vine to merge the great Dao of heaven and earth, making the vine the vessel for the underworld's great Dao. Then, I will use the great Dao of reincarnation to string it all together, thereby evolving the principles of the underworld and establishing the orthodoxy of the underworld."
Chen Shi's heart stirred. He floated up with her to watch how she drew in the great Dao.
Suddenly, heaven and earth trembled violently. Chen Shi looked into the distance. Mountains appeared out of thin air. The world extended in all directions!
It was the other layer of the underworld hidden beneath the original one—the underworld where the Ten Thousand Mountains were located. Now, under the influence of the Purple Heaven Vine, the two underworlds began to merge.
At the same time, the Buddhist Hell within the underworld also surfaced amid the violent tremors. The Immortal Capital, the Divine Capital, the Demonic Domain, and other incredible places were all affected by the Purple Heaven Vine.
The surrounding mountains and rivers sped away into the distance. New mountains and rivers kept emerging. The territory of the underworld grew larger and larger, shocking beyond words.
The Purple Heaven Vine grew all the way to the sky and still didn't stop. Its branches began spreading in all directions.
The Empress of Earth used the Dao patterns of reincarnation to ritual-refine this Purple Heaven Vine, incorporating the entire underworld into the cycle of reincarnation.
"Your Ladyship uses the Purple Heaven Vine for the common good, while I use it for my own selfish purposes. I am far inferior to Your Ladyship." Chen Shi was deeply impressed.
This Purple Heaven Vine grew too fast. Even with the Empress of Earth's power, refining this vine was no easy task.
"Your Majesty, please return."
The Empress of Earth said, "Refining this vine will take some time. You don't need to stay here to keep me company."
Chen Shi thought for a moment and said, "Godmother, Can'er's mulberry leaves are almost gone. I want to pick some more, but I don't know the way. Can Godmother show me the path?"
"Can'er is the silkworm raised by Immortal Qin. He wants to borrow her ability to survive Opening the Calamity. You stole his silkworm, and now you want to go back to fetch mulberry leaves? Isn't that walking right into a trap?"
Your Ladyship said, "If you go again, Immortal Qin will surely kill you."
Chen Shi frowned slightly. Without the mulberry leaves, wouldn't Can'er go hungry?
The Empress of Earth said, "That girl is at the age where she's growing. She really can't go without food... I'm busy refining the Purple Heaven Vine right now and can't get away. How about this? Let Wu Qi go with you. I'll show you the way. What do you think? His skills are high, and he's not afraid of being killed."
Chen Shi's heart stirred. That was actually a good idea.
He returned to the Imperial Capital and excitedly walked toward the imperial garden. Just as he arrived at the garden, he saw a middle-aged man standing under the Purple Heaven Vine. The man was looking up at another version of himself hanging on the vine, his face full of confusion.
The middle-aged man raised his hand and touched the scar left by the gourd stem on his own head. Then he looked at the other self on the vine, even more bewildered.
"Grandpa!"
The other self on the vine saw Chen Shi and called out excitedly.
Chen Shi's heart skipped a beat. Wu Qi turned around to look. Chen Shi walked up to him and smiled. "Brother Wu Qi, you're awake?"
Wu Qi's eyes fell on him. "And you are?"
Chen Shi said, "I am Chen Shi, the True King of Western Ox New Continent. It has been sixteen thousand years since you fell in battle."
Wu Qi frowned slightly. "You are the Shang King of this era? I can't detect any royal bloodline in your body. Where is your Dark Bird imperial blood?"
Chen Shi said, "Wu Qi, the Great Shang ended sixteen thousand years ago. Over ten thousand years ago, our Ming Dynasty people landed on this continent. We didn't find any Shang people. The entire continent was only infested with evil spirits and demonic beasts."
Wu Qi stared blankly. Suddenly, tears streamed down his face. He muttered, "Great Shang... is gone?"
"Now, the Shang people have turned into the ghost clan and dwell in the underworld. I humbly serve as their ruler."
Chen Shi said, "I am currently trying to turn the ghost clan back into Shang people, and I've already made some progress. So now, I can also be considered the Shang King..."
"Presumptuous!"
Wu Qi snorted. His voice was like thunder, shaking Chen Shi's blood and qi. "By Heaven's decree, the Dark Bird descended and gave birth to Shang! The Shang royal family rules the world by heavenly mandate! You are spreading lies. According to Shang law, you should be punished by burning to death!"
Chen Shi said calmly, "Wu Qi, the Great Shang has long since disappeared. I am the one who saved you. Is this how you treat your benefactor?"
Wu Qi said coldly, "I will repay you for saving my life. But I will never allow you to be the Shang King! Only those with royal blood can be the king of Great Shang! Great Shang will never be destroyed! I will awaken those sleeping Shang immortals and revive Great Shang!"
Chen Shi smiled. "Awaken them and let them turn into evil beings? Without me to purify the demonic energy, anyone who wakes up will only turn evil and become an evil immortal."
Wu Qi frowned. After a moment, he said, "You don't have shamanic ritual markings. In Great Shang, that makes you a slave. There has never been a slave who became the Shang King... However, I am in charge of all shamanic ritual markings under heaven. I can grant you a very high bloodline and appoint you as the Great Life Officer."
"Great Shang is gone. What would I do with being a Great Life Officer?"
Chen Shi shook his head. "The Great Life Officer shamanic ritual markings you speak of—I also understand them. In fact, I even know the Elixir Heaven Life Ruling Divine Art that goes with them."
Wu Qi frowned deeply. "I can appoint you as a regional lord and grant you a large piece of land."
Chen Shi shook his head. "I am already the lord of the entire Western Ox New Continent, both the yin and yang realms. All of it is my land. Why would I need your appointment?"
Wu Qi looked up to the heavens, tears streaming down his face. He muttered, "Such a beautiful land has fallen into the hands of a slave. What a waste! Is Great Shang truly out of luck?"
"Stubborn fool!"
Chen Shi cursed under his breath. Then he explained everything—how he had gone to the ruins of the Great Shang Celestial Court, found Wu Qi's remains, and clashed with the Celestial Venerable. "Wu Qi, do you still remember when you and the Celestial Venerable fought to a mutual destruction?"
"You mean Xun Jiangmu?"
Wu Qi's face darkened. He ground his teeth. "He's still alive? Where is he?"
Chen Shi said, "He's in Tiandao City, at Despair Slope. He is now the Celestial Venerable of Despair Slope..."
Wu Qi's hair flew wildly. He leaped into the air and shouted, "Despair Slope? He dares to hide in Despair Slope! Where are the Shang ministers of Despair Slope?"
Chen Shi said, "He killed them all."
Wu Qi was both furious and grief-stricken. Bloody tears fell from his eyes. "Hateful! Hateful! Slave King, help me kill him, and I will not hold you responsible for your crime of being the Shang King!"
Chen Shi was furious. "My name is Chen Shi! I am the True King appointed by the Ming Dynasty! I am not a slave! I became the ruler of the Heavenly Pool Kingdom because the Shang people themselves elected me! This is the will of the people!"
Wu Qi fell silent. Clearly, he still believed that without the ritual markings, Chen Shi was a slave.
Chen Shi snorted. He wouldn't bother arguing with him about it. "You want to avenge Great Shang. I also want to get rid of the Celestial Venerable so the world can return to normal. I won't argue with you. Wu Qi, didn't you say you would repay me for saving your life? I don't want your shamanic ritual markings. I don't want to learn your Immortal Art of Immortality either. I just want you to do one thing for me, and then the debt of saving your life will be settled."
Wu Qi's heart stirred. "What is it?"
Chen Shi revealed a smile. "Help me carry a tree back from the sea."
Wu Qi returned the smile. "Is that a deal?"
"It's a deal!"
Wu Qi let out a breath and thought to himself, "Once I repay the slave king's favor and eliminate the Celestial Venerable together with him, I will awaken those self-sealed Shang immortals. Surely among them will be someone with royal blood. Then I'll kill the slave king, and Great Shang will have hope for revival!"
Chen Shi took him to the Palace of Virtue in the underworld to seek an audience with the Empress of Earth.
When Wu Qi saw the Empress of Earth, he was startled. He quickly stepped forward and bowed. "Unworthy descendant Wu Qi pays respects to Ancestral Mother, Earth Mother Ladyship!"
The Empress of Earth glanced at him and smiled. "So you know you are an unworthy descendant. When you moved here, you did not even make offerings to me. No wonder your clan was exterminated."
Wu Qi's face flushed red. "Ancestral Mother may not know this, but we were exiled by the Great Zhou and branded as criminal subjects. A ban was placed in our bloodlines, forbidding us from worshipping any deity. We could not contact any ancient gods."
The Empress of Earth said, "Jiang Ziya did go a bit too far. But then again, you did use the Qiang people for sacrifices. Using his tribesmen as offerings—not wiping you out completely was already an act of mercy. You were brought back to life, and you owe the True King a great debt. The True King is key to reviving your Great Shang. You must protect him well, understand?"
Wu Qi acknowledged. "Qi will definitely repay the True King!"
The Empress of Earth gave him a deep look. "Also, when you're out and about, keep your eyes open."
Wu Qi didn't understand but didn't dare to ask further.
The Empress of Earth casually pointed. "Your Majesty, I have already pointed out a path for you. Follow it, and you will find that mulberry tree."
Chen Shi thanked her and said to Wu Qi, "Brother, please follow me."
Wu Qi followed him into the Palace of Virtue. The two arrived before the lotus platform. Sure enough, behind the platform, there was a brilliant path of light stretching all the way to the Sea of Darkness.
Daoist Willow walked over. "Your Ladyship instructed me to steer the boat for you two."
Chen Shi thanked him.
Daoist Willow took out a willow leaf and placed it in the beam of light. The willow leaf grew with the wind. Daoist Willow said, "Please, you two."
Chen Shi and Wu Qi boarded the willow-leaf boat. Daoist Willow personally punted the boat, sailing along the light.
There was no conversation along the way.
In the darkness, there were no sun or moon. They didn't know how long they traveled. Finally, the willow-leaf boat emerged from the Dark Sea and entered the Mysterious Yellow Sea. Two more days passed, and they saw the mulberry tree in the sea from afar.
Chen Shi told Daoist Willow to stop the boat. "Wu Qi, that tree over there. Bring it back to me, and the debt of saving your life will be considered settled."
Wu Qi rose to his full height and shot straight toward the mulberry tree.
On the mulberry tree, two fairy maidens were hiding in the Jade Truth Palace, keeping watch on their surroundings. They thought to themselves, "The Immortal said that this man who stole the Heavenly Silkworm would definitely come back to steal mulberry leaves. But it's been days. Why hasn't he come back yet?"
Just as they were thinking this, a bolt of lightning shot toward the mulberry tree. It suddenly stopped at the base of the tree, revealing a tall man.
The next moment, the man at the base of the tree crouched and then straightened, his body swelling to several thousand zhang. He wrapped his arms around the tree and started pulling it up!
The mulberry tree was towering and mighty, but it was shaken by this man. It wobbled!
"The thief who stole the Heavenly Silkworm is here after all!"
The two women laughed in anger. "He didn't come back to steal leaves—he wants to steal the whole mulberry tree!"
The two women immediately lit incense to notify Immortal Qin.
Immortal Qin descended at once. Seeing that the mulberry tree was about to be uprooted, he sneered. "Fellow Daoist, you stole my Heavenly Silkworm, ruined my plan for Opening the Calamity, and now you want to take my mulberry tree too? You go too far!"
He drew his sword and charged. Seeing this, Wu Qi immediately flew up to meet him. They exchanged three or four moves. Immortal Qin cut him down with a single stroke. Then, with a palm strike of lightning energy, he blasted Wu Qi's corpse into dust. "A half-baked Immortal Art of Immortality, and you dare to show off!" he sneered. He sheathed his sword hatefully and left.
The two fairy maidens also retreated into the Jade Truth Palace.
Daoist Willow watched, stunned.
Chen Shi let out a breath. "Daoist Willow, let's go back."
Daoist Willow was uneasy, but he saw that Chen Shi had a pleased look on his face.
The two returned to the Palace of Virtue. Chen Shi immediately hurried away. Daoist Willow was full of questions but dared not ask.
Chen Shi returned to the Imperial City and went to the imperial garden. There, another Wu Qi stood under the Purple Heaven Vine, hands clasped behind his back, looking up at another version of himself hanging on the vine. —This Purple Heaven Vine had produced another Wu Qi. The one hanging on the vine saw Chen Shi in the distance and called out excitedly, "Grandpa!"
Chen Shi walked up and smiled. "Brother Wu Qi, you're awake?"