Chapter 242: Venerable Dharma Seal
Ge Ye stepped forward and slowly opened the violet-gold wooden box. A jet of golden light shot toward the sky.
Shen Daoxing saw a golden Jade Talisman float out from inside, slowly spinning in the air.
Shimmering golden characters flowed across its surface. Shen Daoxing was captivated after a single glance, as if it held some peerless mystery.
"This is the Huangliang Immortal’s inheritance. It records all the knowledge the Huangliang Immortal acquired in his life."
Ge Ye pointed at the Jade Talisman and looked at Shen Daoxing. "Shen Daoxing, it’s yours now. I hope that in the future, you will not fail to live up to the Huangliang Immortal’s expectations."
Shen Daoxing nodded, cautiously stepped forward, and reached for the Jade Talisman.
The moment Shen Daoxing’s hand touched the Jade Talisman...
BOOM!
A clap of thunder from a clear sky.
It was as if something had exploded in Shen Daoxing’s mind. In a trance, he saw mountains crumble and rivers flow backward as countless earth-shattering cries echoed between heaven and earth.
Shen Daoxing saw a sizeable town shake and collapse, torn apart as a tsunami of river water swept in, drowning everything. The cries were endless.
And this town was one Shen Daoxing knew well—it was Taoyuan Town.
Snapping out of his daze, Shen Daoxing looked at Ge Ye in confusion. "Mr. Ge, what was that just now?"
Ge Ye smiled faintly. "You have passed the Huangliang Immortal’s test. This entire tomb will belong to you. This tomb is not only an inheritance but also the source of the Huangliang Secret Realm’s power. The secret realm has been sustained until now entirely by the Immortal’s power within this tomb. Now that you are to take it all away, the Huangliang Secret Realm will naturally fall apart and cease to exist."
"Are you saying that if I accept the Huangliang Immortal’s inheritance, all the ordinary people in this secret realm will die?"
Shen Daoxing asked, stunned.
"That’s right."
Ge Ye nodded calmly. "We cultivators seek the Great Dao and eternal life. We compete with millions for a single path. Sacrifice is inevitable."
’Sacrifice is inevitable?’
Shen Daoxing muttered the words to himself. He thought of He Tian, waiting anxiously back in Taoyuan Village. He thought of the mischievous He Yi, the old couple in Taoyuan Town who had rented him a room, and the neighbors he had barely met but who were so friendly. If he left like this, they would all die.
’It’s true that many, many people will be sacrificed on the path of cultivation in the future, but I’m not willing to let so many innocent people die because of me.’
Suddenly, Shen Daoxing pulled his hand back.
Beside him, Ge Ye was taken aback and looked at Shen Daoxing in surprise. "You’re going to give up?"
Shen Daoxing nodded.
"This world has always been about the strong preying on the weak. On our path of cultivation, countless people have died over thousands of years. This small sacrifice is nothing!"
Ge Ye said again.
Shen Daoxing replied calmly, "Mr. Ge, I set foot on the path of cultivation to break free from the shackles of fate, to hold my destiny firmly in my own hands, so that no one can control me. It’s true that countless people will be sacrificed on this path, but who lives and who dies... that should be my decision! If I must betray my own heart in the pursuit of power, what freedom is there to speak of? How can I claim to have broken free from the shackles of fate?"
Ge Ye was astonished. He stared blankly at Shen Daoxing and confirmed once more, "Are you really going to give up? This is an Immortal’s inheritance. If you obtain it, your future will be limitless once you leave this place."
Without hesitation, Shen Daoxing nodded. "I give up!"
’I have the Venerable Bloodline and even the Venerable Domain, which contains the inheritance of a Venerable Supreme. To be honest, I don’t really think much of this minor Immortal’s inheritance.’
Following Shen Daoxing’s firm answer...
CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!
The crisp sound of applause rang out.
Puzzled, Shen Daoxing looked toward the sound and saw Ge Ye smiling faintly at him. "Congratulations, Shen Daoxing. You have passed the final test."
"There was a final test?"
Shen Daoxing was momentarily stunned, not yet processing what was happening.
"That’s right!"
Ge Ye laughed heartily. "The Huangliang Immortal’s legacy is of the utmost importance and is tied to all of Taoyuan Town. This old man had to be cautious! I have no desire to hand it over to someone with a corrupt heart."
As he spoke, he flicked his elegant sleeve, and the violet-gold wooden box and the Jade Token on the table vanished.
Immediately after, a soft glow lit up, and a crystal-clear Jade Seal materialized above the table, spinning slowly in the air.
The Jade Seal was small and exquisite, able to be held completely in one’s palm. It was crystal clear, and when light shone on it, a magnificent, five-colored brilliance appeared within. Its aura seemed ordinary, yet Shen Daoxing sensed something unusual about it with just a single glance. A closer look, however, revealed nothing more.
"Mr. Ge, what is this?"
Shen Daoxing asked Ge Ye, puzzled.
Ge Ye slowly began to explain, "Actually, the so-called Sword and Saber Dao, Path of Array, Path of Talisman and Seal, Alchemy Dao... the Five Paths of Huangliang, they are all minor paths. The Huangliang Immortal’s true inheritance is this Jade Seal."
"The true inheritance?"
Shen Daoxing looked at the Jade Seal in confusion, but he still couldn’t make out anything special about it.
Ge Ye nodded. "I don’t know what this Jade Seal is called; even the Huangliang Immortal himself didn’t know. He only knew that it contained a supreme power. Back then, the Huangliang Immortal comprehended a sliver of the Power of Law from it, which is how he achieved the title of Immortal. Therefore, what this Dharma Seal contains is the true Great Dao. This is what the Huangliang Immortal truly wanted to pass down."
"’The Power of Law... it actually contains the Power of Law.’"
Shen Daoxing was shocked and stared blankly at the Jade Seal. ’What in the world is this thing?’
"This is a Venerable Dharma Seal!"
The Blood Dragon’s voice suddenly rang out in Shen Daoxing’s mind.
’A Venerable Dharma Seal?’
Shen Daoxing was stunned and asked inwardly, ’Could it be that this Jade Seal was also left behind by a previous Venerable Supreme?’
"Mm!"
The Blood Dragon’s voice was calm. "How do you think this Huangliang Secret Realm came to be? And why do you think you came here and met these people from five hundred years ago? It’s because this secret realm itself was created by a previous Venerable Supreme using the Space-Time Law. That’s why you fell through a distortion in space-time and ended up here, meeting these people!"
’So this secret realm was created by a Venerable Supreme of the past and possesses the Power of Space-Time.’
Understanding suddenly dawned on Shen Daoxing.
"A Venerable Dharma Seal! To think it was here. Your finding it is both a coincidence and an inevitability. Well, I suppose it has been returned to its rightful owner. Cherish it, kid."
The Blood Dragon’s voice echoed in Shen Daoxing’s mind, and then it seemed to fall into a distant memory, speaking no more.
Shen Daoxing nodded and slowly reached out. The instant he touched the Jade Seal...
He felt the clouds part and the heavens shatter as a massive, translucent, jade-white hand reached down from the sky.
A single one of its palms was larger than the entire East Continent.
With a gentle reach, it pierced through the entire continent, deep into the mantle. Then, with a light squeeze—BANG! The entire planet shattered.