Chapter 690: Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity (2)
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Chapter 690: Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity (2)
Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord and Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord each take their stance and draw out their Immortal Treasure.
: : Udumbara. Bloom. : :
At the same time, they reveal their divine natures of destruction and creation, splitting Heaven and Earth with their Immortal Treasures.
Kaaaang!
The sword of the Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord and the spear of the Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord seem to collide, and from their clash, a colossal river of thunder and lightning bursts forth, pouring toward the Radiance Hall faction.
: : Ten Thousand Laws and Eastern Brilliance... Were they not the disciples of the True Martial Great Emperor? : :
Then, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord steps forward, forming a sword seal and thrusting her sword of radiance ahead.
[TL/N: Sword seal as in middle and index fingers stuck together and pointing.]: : Filling the Heavens Sword Rain. Converge! : :
From behind Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, countless swords of light are summoned, rushing in one direction and shooting into the river of thunder and lightning unleashed by the two Spiritual Lords.
Kwagwagwagwang!
The rain of swords bursts through the river of thunder and lightning, piercing through and surging toward the Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord and the Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord.
The gathered stream of swords becomes like a waterfall, pushing away the lightning river and reaching the two Spiritual Lords.
Then, the Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord and the Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord simultaneously spin in different directions, combining their strikes to parry the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's technique.
Kugwagwagwang!
The shockwave causes the entire Heavenly Domain created by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity to shudder.
: : The Sword Spear of this generation is strong. : :
: : Different from the previous era. Clearly of Supreme Deity level... : :
Among the Jade Pivot Forty-Eight Lightning Heavenly Great Immortals,
The Jade Sea White True Person and Setting Sun Sattva True Person of the Human Race,
The Eastern Black Founding Spiritual Lord, who has yet to reach Immortal Lord among the True Immortals,
Divine Firmament Teaching True Immortal Zhongli,
And others who have attained Manifestation of the Heart Tribe or Triple Divinity, begin to step forward.
The Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord, the Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord, and the Eastern Black Founding Spiritual Lord, all holders of divine nature, move to the front and form a battle formation. Ṙα₦ŎꞖËȿ
Those who have only reached the sixth stage of Manifestation, the realm that Seo Eun-hyun calls Severing Heaven, form a formation behind them and restrain the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.
The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord gazes down at them, swiftly completes her judgment, and commands the Radiance Eight Immortals.
: : Pearl Jade, assist me. Great Forest, those ones at present are essentially undying due to the prophecy of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity. Find an interpretation that breaks the prophecy of 'do not die before the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity'. As for the remaining Envoys of the Final Age of Dharma and all other divine spirits of Radiance Hall...set your aim on killing the main body of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, and pour all your power into finding a way to slay that Lightning God. : :
Kururururung!
Of course, the Jade Pivot Forty-Eight Lightning Heavenly Great Immortals do not simply watch. They begin moving all at once.
Excluding the holders of Manifestation restraining the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, all Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals position themselves throughout the Heavenly Domain created by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, altering its rules.
As the rules of the Heavenly Domain begin to change, the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity adapts to it and begins to spark with lightning.
Kururururung!
The form of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity changes.
Their form, once that of a colossal Lightning God, seems to gradually expand, and soon becomes a wall vast enough to engulf the entire universe.
That wall appears to merge with the new Heavenly Domain and, in an instant, fills half of the new domain.
: : I shall become the pen that protects my subjects. : :
It is a fortress.
The fortress wall that fills half the universe looks like a sea of thunder and lightning, or perhaps the skin of a massive living creature.
Then, the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals begin connecting to that wall and lightning one by one, using the wall as terrain to push back against Radiance Hall.
The Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals are constantly pushed back by the True Immortals of Radiance Hall, but whenever pushed too far, they hide within the wall of thunder and lightning and emerge from another place.
The wall of lightning accepts the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals, but the True Immortals of Radiance Hall are attacked by lightning in return.
And that is not the end. From all over the wall, cannon-like objects emerge and begin intercepting the divine spirits of Radiance Hall.
Kwang, kwang, kwang, kwaaaang!
At the center of Do Gon, who transformed their body into a fortress to protect their subordinates, Zhengli whirls in the form of a banner, directing the battlefield with the motion of its folds and begins healing the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals.
The counterattack of the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals toward Radiance Hall begins in earnest.
Then, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, supported by the Pearl Jade Heavenly Lord, raises the [Silver-White Snake Biting Its Tail] behind her head and flies toward the holders of Manifestation.
Kugugugugu!
Countless waves of light swords seem to be summoned behind the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, and soon the waves of light swords become a waterfall that wraps around her, charging forward with her toward the Lightning Immortals.
The sight resembles a snake made of swords targeting its prey.
The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord and Pearl Jade Heavenly Lord take the vanguard, guarding the rest of the Radiance Six Immortals, while the Great Forest Heavenly Lord declares a command.
: : Great Sun Heavenly Lord, seize dominion over the newly created Heavenly Domain. : :
The arbiter between Heavenly Domains, the Great Sun Heavenly Lord raises one hand and makes a gesture as if grabbing the void.
Immediately after, as they pull their hand back, an enormous attraction force distorts Heaven and Earth and begins to summon something from the distant dimension.
It is the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.
The Heavenly Domain newly created by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity and the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, previously governed by Radiance Hall, are drawn to each other by the Great Sun Heavenly Lord's gesture and soon collide.
Kwarurururung!
As the two Heavenly Domains crash into each other, the shockwave causes all the True Immortals present, except the Radiance Eight Immortals and the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, to spit divine blood and groan.
: : Stop it!! Do not let the Great Sun Heavenly Lord take control of the Lord's Heavenly Domain! : :
The Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals shout urgently, but the Great Sun Heavenly Lord merely looks down on them coldly and speaks.
: : I am the arbiter of Heavenly Domains, the Great Sun (太陽). : :
Kugugugugugugu!
A giant sun seems to rise behind them, and as the sun grows endlessly, it erases the boundary between dimensions through attraction force.
It looks as though the sun is melting the barriers between dimensions.
Then, the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain and the newly created Heavenly Domain completely merge.
: : All Heavenly Domains of Mount Sumeru shall move along the trajectory defined by Radiance... : :
Kwaaaang!
From the fusion of the two Heavenly Domains, another shockwave spreads, and the [emblem] within the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain begins to exert its power.
The emblems originally engraved into the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, including the corpses of the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals, awaken.
The emblem of the [Black Snake Biting Its Tail] begins to take root even within the new Heavenly Domain, seizing dominion over it.
: : Great Sea, Rain Dew. : :
: : Understood. : :
At the same time, the Great Sea Heavenly Lord and the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord, the two Heavenly Lords closest in nature to the [Black Snake Biting Its Tail], step forward.
Behind them, navy blue and black [Snake]s rise, accelerating the takeover of the new Heavenly Domain.
Soon after, the name of the new Heavenly Domain is fixed as the 'Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain'.
The dominion of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, previously seized by the Radiance Eight Immortals, is beginning to absorb the new Heavenly Domain.
: : Block the Eight Immortals! : :
: : Stop the takeover! : :
The Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals attempt to adjust the rules while hiding in various places within the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, but they are gradually pushed back by the power of the Great Sea Heavenly Lord and the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord.
Then, the Flower Plant Heavenly Lord steps forward.
: : As the healer of Radiance Hall and administrator of living beings, I command: Emerge, Thunder Beasts of the Golden Divine! : :
Kururururung!
At the same time, three monstrous beasts made of thunder and lightning appear before the Flower Plant Heavenly Lord.
Each wears a collar of thorny vines, and the Flower Plant Heavenly Lord grips the end of those vines and begins to swing them.
: : Thunder Beasts, seek out all the Lightning Immortals that carry your same scent. : :
Two Thunder Beasts, Thunder Whales, cry sorrowfully as they swim through the Heavenly Domain, soaring away in search of Lightning Immortals.
The Thunder Beast, Golden Elephant flares its long trunk and bellows.
: : Divine spirits shall follow the Thunder Beasts and begin the capture of the Lightning Immortals at their end. : :
The divine spirits numbering six thousand move all at once, following the three Thunder Beasts and diving into the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain to begin the pursuit of the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals who are sustaining the fortress of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
The Great Forest Heavenly Lord watches them, then turns to face the remaining dozen or so Lightning Immortals at the level of Immortal Lord.
And behind those Lightning Immortals, they gaze at the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity who is drawing out power.
: : All remaining Envoys of the Final Age of Dharma and Radiance Eight Immortals, confront the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity and their direct Immortal Lords. Torch Candle, are preparations complete? : :
: : I T I S D O N E ! : :
The newly risen Torch Candle Heavenly Lord steps forward with gleaming eyes.
At the same time, the two shadows summoned between the Radiance Eight Immortals grow even clearer.
The two shadows each wear a golden mask, engraved respectively with the characters Mu (戊) and Gi (己).
: : The last Castle Wall Heavenly Lord. The last Field Garden Heavenly Lord... Their histories have been projected. : :
Borrowing the power of the Head Realm, the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord has summoned the traces of those who were once part of the Radiance Ten Heavens in ancient times and shouts.
: : From this moment on, during the times of Mu and Gi of each day, the powers of the Radiance Ten Heavens will be able to be summoned for sixty seconds! Issue your orders! This must be resolved in the short term! : :
Pasasak—
Then, perhaps due to using the power of the Head Realm, the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord's body begins to split apart and be absorbed toward somewhere.
They are gradually being devoured by Myeong Woon.
Seeing this, the Great Forest Heavenly Lord shouts loudly toward a somewhere.
: : Yeong Seung and the Northern Dipper Seven Heavenly Lords shall respond to our call. : :
Kugugugugu!
At that moment, two gates of light seem to open behind the Great Forest Heavenly Lord, revealing the landscape of the Source River beyond.
And then, one of the gates instantly collapses, while from the other, seven Heavenly Lords begin to descend.
: : Yeong Seung... Have you truly decided to betray Radiance Hall? How foolish. Northern Dipper Seven Heavenly Lords, hear me. From now on, adjust the time of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain and distort it accordingly so that only the times of Mu and Gi exist within that domain. : :
: : Wait, O Great Forest Heavenly Lord. If this is done, the flow of time will become twisted and the Source River will fall into chaos. : :
: : It might be acceptable if we only distort time on this battlefield...but if we twist the time of the entire Heavenly Domain... : :
Then, as the Great Forest Heavenly Lord signals, the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord nods and issues a command to one of the summoned projections.
Simultaneously, the projection of the Field Garden Heavenly Lord moves and stretches out a hand toward the Giant Gate Heavenly Lord and the Breaking Army Heavenly Lord among the Northern Dipper Seven Heavenly Lords.
Kwadudeudeuk!
An invisible, massive attraction force grabs them. As the projection of the Field Garden Heavenly Lord gestures as if seizing and pulling the void, the Giant Gate Heavenly Lord and the Preserving Wealth Heavenly Lord are instantly dragged toward Castle Wall and Field Garden.
—Let me help you know who you truly are.
—Die.
At the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord's command, the projections of the past compress the Giant Gate and Preserving Wealth Heavenly Lords into small pills in an instant and are swallowed whole.
At the too quick and abrupt killing of two Heavenly Lords, the rest of the Northern Dipper Seven Heavenly Lords stiffen.
The Great Forest Heavenly Lord looks upon them and speaks.
: : We are in the midst of a Supreme Deity War. What nonsense is this about a battlefield? For beings at the level of Supreme Deities, the entire Mount Sumeru is the battlefield, and it is we who are barely confining it within this Heavenly Domain. I will not hear foolish objections. If you do not follow our words, Giant Gate and Preserving Wealth you just saw consumed by the projections will be thrown to the Emptiness Supreme Deity as food, so act properly! : :
At the Great Forest Heavenly Lord's words, the Northern Dipper Seven Heavenly Lords tremble and lower their heads.
: : Understood. Please forgive... : :
Kiiiiiiing!
At that moment, the time of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain warps wildly.
The Torch Candle Heavenly Lord and the Radiance Eight Immortals, together with the projections of the last Castle Wall and Field Garden Heavenly Lords, begin to summon the form of the [Black Snake Biting Its Tail] once again.
Kugugugugugu!
Great Forest and Flower Plant command and coordinate the field from the rear.
Great Sun and Torch Candle respectively adjust the Heavenly Domain and maintain the projections of the past.
Sword Spear and Pearl Jade guard the rear Heavenly Lords as vanguards.
Great Sea and Rain Dew steadily seize dominion over the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.
Together, they summon an overwhelming power of light to this place.
Then, all the divine spirits of Radiance Hall, including the Envoys of the Final Age of Dharma, launch a full-scale assault.
The Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity and the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals also begin a full-force counterattack against such a Radiance Hall.
At the vanguard of the Radiance Eight Immortals, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord leads with her sword of light and shouts.
: : I shall pierce a single point in the Wall of Heavenly Punishment. Everyone, brace for impact! : :
Kugugugugugu!
The form of the [Black Snake] that had briefly appeared when Seo Eun-hyun was pursued in the Heavenly King Heavenly Domain now shrouds them, and the power of the Radiance Ten Heavens concentrates at the tip of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's blade.
: : Let's go! : :
Flash!
They quickly surpass light speed and charge toward the wall made from the flesh of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
A flash of light flickers, and once again, the entire Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain shakes.
Kwarururung!
And at last, a hole is pierced through the body of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
: : Now!!! : :
The cry of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord echoes, and countless True Immortals begin to rush toward the hole in the Supreme Deity's flesh.
Among them is, as expected, one True Immortal cloaked in red lightning.
It is Jeon Myeong-hoon, together with Oh Hyun-seok and Kang Min-hee.
'Thanks, Sword Spear!'
He secretly slips through the path pierced open by the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.
Oh Hyun-seok covers them with his body, hiding their presence.
"Hyun-seok Hyung-nim, please come with me. Kang Min-hee, you..."
"I know. I'll move through the body of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity and install rules that collapse the balance of Taiji within their body. Send the signal when it's time. I'll activate those rules along with Karmic Fire."
"Alright. See you soon."
Exchanging brief words, they quickly enter the interior of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity's fortress wall and scatter.
Oh Hyun-seok advances while concealing Jeon Myeong-hoon and his presence using a spell he learned from the Naming Supreme Deity, while Kang Min-hee openly reveals her main body and draws the gaze of the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals, diverting attention and moving away.
Inside the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity's wall is a massive 'net'.
Jeon Myeong-hoon realizes that this entire net is the advancement ritual of the Immortal Cultivation system seized by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
The advancement ritual under the control of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
Heavenly Tribulation.
As he steps along each strand of the net, he is able to read the lives of countless beings.
'Heavenly Tribulation is...'
With every step he takes, enlightenment regarding Heavenly Tribulation and the interpretation of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity who saw through its essence flood into Jeon Myeong-hoon's mind.
'Heavenly Tribulation is the fleeting instant shown by the world to Heaven-Defying Ones...is it?'
The essence of the Heart Demon and the Heavenly Tribulation are remarkably similar.
Existences that appear before those who long for eternity, becoming an absolute [wall] that informs them nothing is eternal.
Existences established by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity to grant the enlightenment that all things in this world are but fleeting instants.
That is the Heavenly Tribulation.
Therefore, the Heavenly Tribulation is both a wall and a mirror.
'I see. Heavenly Tribulation...reflects the anger of all cultivators...'
He finally understands why he has never been able to absorb the Heavenly Tribulation of the Heart Tribe, yet has easily consumed the Heavenly Tribulations sent from the heavens.
The Heavenly Tribulation of the Heart Tribe reflects the life of the single individual from the Heart Tribe.
But the Heavenly Tribulation governed by Do Gon—
It reflects the heart that yearns for eternity within all living beings of the world.
It reflects the anger toward their own mortality that all cultivators possess.
The life of a single Heart Tribe individual becomes poison if Jeon Myeong-hoon devours it.
Unless one is a being like Seo Eun-hyun, consuming an individual Heart Tribe's life would pollute Jeon Myeong-hoon's mind with that individual's life and heart.
But Do Gon's Heavenly Tribulation reflects the lives of all.
And the 'anger' contained within that 'all'...
...is nearly identical to the fate of anger that Jeon Myeong-hoon possesses. Thus, he has been able to so easily devour Do Gon's Heavenly Tribulations all this time.
With each step he takes, he comes to understand just how much debt he has accumulated to Do Gon while using the Immortal Cultivation system, and what kind of authority a Supreme Deity holds as a creditor.
'All the Heavenly Tribulations I've faced until now...have been processed to a softer level by Do Gon...'
In a world without Do Gon, Heavenly Tribulations would not just reflect a cultivator's 'fleeting instant' or 'anger,' but would reflect the very 'anguish' of all beings in existence, and descend as Heavenly Tribulation.
That is why the difficulty of cultivation before and after Do Gon differs immensely.
Without Do Gon, Jeon Myeong-hoon would probably never have been able to devour Heavenly Tribulation at all.
The 'anguish' of all beings in this world would be no different from the Heart Tribe's Heavenly Tribulation, unbearable for the fate of anger he holds.
'Heavenly Tribulation is...the instant. And that instant is ultimately anguish...and anger.'
Anger is a cycle.
All beings in this world rage against one another, suffer, and live like lightning...then fade away.
But in such a way...
All beings cycle.
That is...
The very principle established by the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity.
As Jeon Myeong-hoon grasps the principles of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, he reaches the depths of the net.
"...This is the first time we are meeting directly."
Jeon Myeong-hoon sees a massive ferocious beast-like being there.
It has no clear shape.
It is merely burning lightning.
Yet, Jeon Myeong-hoon clearly feels it.
That existence is the very being he has longed for.
The one he has pursued his entire life as his goal.
It is the soul of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity Do Gon.
Cheok—
Jeon Myeong-hoon takes his stance.
Though he senses infinite power from the being before him, he does not retreat. He merely utters a single line.
"Owner of Heavenly Punishment."
Do Gon's soul takes shape before Jeon Myeong-hoon, who has come face to face with it while hidden within the presence of Oh Hyun-seok.
Sensing Jeon Myeong-hoon's rising momentum breaking through Oh Hyun-seok's concealment, Zhengli flies toward them from afar, screaming like mad.
"Leave her to me and settle your grudge, Jeon Myeong-hoon!"
Oh Hyun-seok gradually reveals his true form, his body swelling as he prepares to face Zhengli, while Jeon Myeong-hoon silently nods and approaches the spirit of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity that is starting to take form.
What soon appears is the figure of a man whose entire body is shaped like trees of lightning and thunder.
In a way, they look somewhat like Baek Woon.
Do Gon, taking a form similar to the Tall Tree Race, slowly grips a halberd of lightning and merely gazes at Jeon Myeong-hoon.
"I've come...to settle the grudge between us."
Taking advantage of the gap created by the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord piercing through the body of the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, Jeon Myeong-hoon now has the chance to fight not the Supreme Deity's body, but their soul.
Jeon Myeong-hoon steels his lifelong resolve and faces Do Gon.
And the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity Do Gon silently grips their halberd, standing off against Jeon Myeong-hoon, who holds his spear.
A moment of stillness passes,
And at last, Jeon Myeong-hoon becomes lightning and charges toward Do Gon.