Xu Qing sat in the arena in the Immortal Skills Hall, frowning slightly. After taking in his surroundings, he focused on the bone cauldron. A moment ago he had sensed something very peculiar, as if something that belonged to him had suddenly appeared. Unfortunately, when he focused on that sensation, it became vague. He just couldn’t pin down what was causing it.
What’s going on?
No amount of thought would clear up the matter, though, so he put it aside and kept looking at the cauldron.
Eldest Brother should be wrapping things up with a success shortly. I wonder how he managed to turn things around with the grand elder. I bet it has something to do with the cauldron. By the time this is over, it should be very close to when the empress opens Grand Emperor Netherflame’s secluded meditation facilities.
Xu Qing’s eyes glittered. He was fully aware that when it came to his cultivation base level, he was at a standstill thanks to his fleshly body. He had put a lot of thought into how to proceed, but currently only had two good ideas.
The first was to use that white dust and the Mask of Wishes. However, that was only the backup plan. The other option, which seemed more likely to succeed, was to find a destined opportunity in the secluded meditation facilities.
I hope that place has something that can help me achieve a breakthrough! But if not, then when I get out of the Devilbird holy land, I’ll go back to South Phoenix and go into seclusion. I’ll use the Mask of Wishes to make a clone, and then use the white dust to wipe out any karma from it.
He continued to think about those matters as time passed.
The immortal adepts were doing much the same thing. They were wrapped up in various thoughts as they watched the pill cauldron. Slowly but surely, the immortal adepts were starting to get really nervous. Some wanted the grand elder to succeed. Others were rooting for Yue Dong. Regardless of who came out on top in the end... the eastern Devilbirds’ Immortal Skills Hall was going to have a new grand immortal adept soon.
Of course, the atmosphere was a lot more intense inside of the cauldron. The grand elder was nervous as he struggled, shouted, and constantly attacked Erniu. Erniu’s head exploded and formed again repeatedly, and he was just as nervous. And yet, even though he was nervous, he was also giving full reign to his craziness.“You’re dead,” he said through gritted teeth. “Dead, dead, dead!”
The five items he had spat out that conformed to metal, wood, water, fire, and earth were bolstering the refinement process. And thanks to the outworking of his will, the interior of the cauldron was burning with great intensity. The will of refinement was growing increasingly shocking.
As far as the grand elder was concerned, that meant that death was looming. He was having more and more trouble standing strong. That was especially true considering that Erniu was calling on all sorts of ancient magics. It didn’t even matter how effective they were, he was throwing them out. Some were ancient curses that not even the grand elder could possibly know about.
At this point, the grand elder had already slapped his opponent to death dozens of times. But no matter how many times he shattered bones, shredded flesh, and scattered the resulting ash, Erniu would form anew.
This time, after he formed, he said, “Great daos are naturally occurring preheaven phenomena; from the amorphous ultimate to the supreme ultimate, the dao is hidden in the formless; the supreme ultimate as well as heaven and earth are made manifest in the self. Therefore... the will of the dao is in my own body!” [1]
A mysterious will began to gather in the cauldron thanks to Erniu’s ancient enchantment.
The grand elder was shaken. However, after a short time, that mysterious will didn’t seem to be doing anything. In fact, maybe it had never been there to begin with. It was as if the person uttering the enchantment either lacked the power to complete it or... had uttered it incorrectly.
“It didn’t work?” Erniu said with a scowl. “That’s fine! I got more damn enchantments!
“ Yin and yang birthed the five elements, and the five elements gave forth one nature. One nature leads to good fortune and one form creates the cosmos and the human form. That is the refining of the five elements: be refined! ”
Another mysterious will appeared, causing the grand elder to reel from a sensation of imminent death. And yet, that mysterious will quickly disappeared.
The grand elder’s face was pale, and his heart was pounding. He was now becoming less and less suspicious about the identity of this opponent. He was now fairly convinced that he was actually that ancient megavillain. Only someone like that could possibly utter such unheard-of and terrifying ancient enchantments.
I can’t let this go on! Gritting his teeth, the grand elder fought back against the refinement power of the cauldron, all while sending more attacks at Erniu.
Erniu’s head exploded. When he formed anew, it became clear that he was getting worn down. Though he recovered, it didn’t happen instantly. Instead, it took some time. And yet, his level of craziness only seemed to increase.
“I won’t accept this, you old codger! I’m going to put you to death for sure! But maybe I should just refine you first!”
As he navigated this narrow space between life and death, he shouted, “ The brilliant double yang brings sunrise in the east; those who hear the curse will die; those who encounter the curse will perish!”
This enchantment sounded very dangerous, except... it didn’t do anything.
“One: sever the path of plague in heaven. Two: sever the road of pestilence in earth. Three: sever the path available to men. Four: sever the invisible gate of ghosts. Five: seve….”
“Cry out to the constellation. Sunset brings gods and immortals. The turtle god combines virtues, commanding myriads of ghosts. Assistants of the left and right, stand before the altar and heed mine command to... go to... shit, I forgot!”
“In the dim and dark, heaven and earth were born together; when they disperse they become energy, when they gather they form. They are the ancestor of the five elements and the quintessence of the six combinations!”
As Erniu went increasingly crazy, the cauldron rumbled loudly. The mysterious will would form, then disappear. It was the same with extermination and refinement.
Because of everything that was happening, the grand elder was reaching a pinnacle of mental torment. In fact, he was starting to suspect that his enemy was doing all of this on purpose. The refinement power of the cauldron only grew more intense, burning him, his soul, and everything else about him.
Dammit, why hasn’t the first mountain emissary opened the cauldron yet?
The grand elder’s hair was disheveled, and his eyes were bloodshot as he charged again toward Erniu.
Glaring at the grand elder, Erniu howled, “Meteoroid ancestral art: the way of heaven complete, three and five multiplied, sun and moon together; all dying together!”
“Dark Night! I hereby summon the emissary of death into this cauldron to devour the flesh and blood in front of me!”
“Moonfire god magic! Let all who see me go blind, and all who hear me go deaf!”
“Dao of Ghosts! In ancient times, ghosts were closer than gods. Remember my true name for all to know. One: if you know the ghost’s name, evil will not encroach. Two: if you call the ghost’s name, you can exorcize them rightly; ghosts high above and down below will be slaughtered. Three: state the ghost’s name and myriad ghosts will heed your command!”
“Ancient Spirit ancestral magic! Enter the netherworld, preach of the energy. Those who dare plot against me will suffer calamity!”
“Hark to me! The just give grace. The rebels avenge. If the latter lags in life, he will die beyond the shadow of a doubt!”
***
Erniu was going crazy. At this very difficult time, at this moment of crisis, all he could do was toss out every enchantment he could think of. They included daoist magics, god magics, immortal skills, nonhuman arts, and even ghost techniques. All were magics that he had secretly learned. He was going all out in every way possible, shaking the grand elder and inflicting incomparable torment on him.
As the interior of the cauldron rumbled continuously, the grand elder struggled to breathe. With every moment that passed, he got more and more confused. He had fought many opponents throughout his life, but had never faced an opponent like this before....
If the magical techniques had been equally effective, it wouldn’t have been as maddening. But what was actually happening was that several in a row wouldn’t work, only for the next to work very effectively. It was exhausting trying to defend against something like that.
“Green is the wood of the east. Crimson is the fire of the south. White is the metal of the west. Black is the water of the north. Let the metal, wood, water, and fire, that which belongs to the wind of the four seasons, combine with earth to make a furnace!
“Refine! Refine! Refine!
“Refine, damn you!!”
The nine-colored flame in the cauldron surged, entering Erniu’s eternal flame. Now it was a ten-colored flame, and it raged with terrifying intensity.
The fire was so hot that there was no need for the grand elder to do anything to Erniu’s head. It burst into flame. And as the grand elder howled in agony, the head collapsed.
Yet Erniu was laughing madly. “You think you can refine me , jackass? Bring it on! I’ve never seen anyone in my entire life that feared death less than me!”
***
Ten hours passed.
Outside of the cauldron, Young Lord Yun and the immortal adepts were nervous and restless. A killing air was building up again.
Then, all of a sudden, a deafening booming rang out from the cauldron.
The Imperial Sovereign mountain emissaries, who had been sitting there with their eyes closed, all looked up. That included Xu Qing. His eyes contained anticipation. And as he looked at the cauldron... the booming grew louder.
The lid of the cauldron clanged open. Ten-colored flame erupted from within, climbing high to the top of the arena, where it made a flame vortex that swirled out in all directions.
At the same time, a blurry figure floated up from the inside of the cauldron! Upon emerging fully into the open, the figure grew clear. It was Yue Dong, clad in a red gown. Her hair drifted around her beautiful face, and in the light of the flame, it looked like it was dancing.
The immortal adepts were all shaken to the core, the reason being that there were people behind her! Astonishingly, the middle-aged, young man, and boy forms of the grand elder were there. As for his true form, it was nowhere to be seen. Apparently he had been devoured and replaced by Yue Dong!
Yue Dong’s eyes opened. The moment they did, the emotions of the crowd were stirred like the strings of an instrument.
It was the immortal skill of Six Thieves Deceive Life! As the emotions stirred, Yue Dong coldly waved a hand, causing the cauldron below to rise up into the air. It grew smaller and smaller, until it was the size of a hand. Then it floated over to hover above her right palm, where it spun endlessly. Incredible pressure rolled out.
Xu Qing calmed himself. He was now certain that the cauldron must be related to one of his Eldest Brother’s past lives. He was about to look away from Yue Dong, when he suddenly frowned and looked more closely. At her forehead.
Though nothing looked out of the ordinary about that spot, Xu Qing got the feeling that there was something extremely familiar there. Something that came from him.
Young Lord Yun took a deep breath. His gaze softened as he faced Yue Dong, bowed, and loudly said, “Well met, Grand Immortal Adept!”
The immortal adepts who had backed Yue Dong were finally reacting. They were excitedly bowing. Yue Dong’s success meant that, going forward, they would be the driving force in the Immortal Skills Hall. The immortal adepts who had backed the grand elder looked bitter. They knew that they had lost and had no choice but to bow their heads and clasp hands.
The only people who qualified to not clasp hands and bow were the emissaries from the Imperial Sovereign mountains. However, out of respect for the new grand immortal adept, they stood and inclined their heads.
“Many thanks to all of you for coming to the ceremony,” Yue Dong said calmly. “The formalities are over, so all of you can feel free to take your leave. However, I would like one of you to stay for a moment.” Her gaze shifted to Xu Qing, whereupon it turned very cold. “Sir Blood Dust, the time has come to sort out our issues.”
Xu Qing looked calmly at her, focusing on her forehead. “That’s just what I was thinking.”
1. Erniu’s words contain a lot of real-life Daoist terminology. Much of it seems to come from a text written by Huo Jizhi, a Southern Song Dynasty Daoist who I can’t find any information about in English. From this point onward in this chapter, there is A LOT of fancy-sounding stuff similar to this, in other words, bits and pieces of things taken from real life texts. At a certain point, I just stopped doing research on each one, because A) they don’t relate to their “real-life” applications and B) the point is not to understand what they mean; they are just supposed to sound cool. ☜