Chapter 970: Fifth Godly Authority!
The holy lands were coming! As of this moment, species throughout Revered Ancient reacted. Some trembled, some got excited, some seemed confused. Regardless, at this point in time in Revered Ancient... the holy lands arrived and took center stage.
Ever since the departure of Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity, stories about the holy lands had circulated among the species of Revered Ancient.
The emperors of the species that had left, as well as the chosen they took with them, established numerous holy lands. And in the tens of thousands of years that had passed since then, those holy lands had been vilified by some, but looked to with anticipation by others. Some people believed them to be cowards who had betrayed and abandoned Revered Ancient at a critical moment. Some people thought they embodied hope, and that when they returned, the suffering of Revered Ancient would be turned into the dawn of a new era.
Regardless of the reality, they were coming.
Why were they here? It wasn’t clear!
Were they friend or foe? It wasn’t clear!
Out over the Forbidden Sea, Xu Qing looked up into the canopy of heaven. Revered Ancient is like a cage that’s easy to enter but hard to leave.
Ever since running into Feng Lintao and his companions, and thus learning that the holy lands were coming, Xu Qing had been wondering why the holy lands were returning.
I wonder if they have a way to leave....
As Xu Qing contemplated the situation, he got a voice message from Huang Yan via the feather.
“Are you seeing this, Xu Qing? It’s not just holy lands cultivators who are coming. These are the actual holy lands themselves. It’s not a good sign. My guess is that they’ve figured out a way to leave.
“Based on information I’ve gained from you humans, plus things I know, I can tell you that there are over a hundred holy lands. They organize themselves into four categories. From highest to lowest, they’re: heavenly, earthly, celestial, and terrestrial.
“Given the aura of the five that just arrived, I’m fairly certain they’re terrestrial-level holy lands, in other words, the weakest variety. Holy lands like that make up something like fifty or more of the total number. In terms of the celestial, earthly, and heavenly categories of holy lands, it’s hard to say how many there are and which species control them.
“That said, the empress can probably confirm that the Dark Serenity holy land was once heavenly-level. But now... who knows if it’s still that strong.
“Looks to me like, going forward, more and more of the holy lands are going to be coming down. Starting now, Revered Ancient is going to be a chaotic place. For the time being, I’m going to stay here in South Phoenix to watch over things. You keep working on your cultivation in the Forbidden Sea. Just be careful.”
Xu Qing sent a quick response, then looked in the direction of Sea-Sealing County. By means of a unique magic, he could stay in touch with Sea-Sealing County even at great distances, and now he was being asked for instructions about how to treat the holy lands.
Xu Qing thought about it briefly, then replied, “Stay on guard. Observe only.”
After that, he sighed. But only a moment later, his eyes glittered. Given that he had no idea what the holy lands were doing here, Xu Qing knew that there wasn’t much he could do about the situation. All he could do was keep getting stronger and react to whatever developments occurred.
Therefore, he dropped back down into the water and once again went to the dilapidated pagoda in the marine trench. Before long, he was back in front of the bubble. With the help of the god vine, he returned to the pagoda, where he unhesitatingly sent some soul threads into the cracks in the black jade. A moment later, he retracted the soul threads.
My senses were accurate. That thing has a vestige of godly authority in it! It’s the same type of vestige that exists in my void soil as a faint vestige.
Just before leaving earlier, Xu Qing had sensed that faint vestige in his void soil flickering slightly. Now he had confirmed his suspicion from earlier thanks to his soul threads.
The big question is who originally controlled that godly authority.
Xu Qing’s eyes shone as his heart filled with anticipation.
He was well aware that it was going to be extremely difficult to light up all 1,000 of the faint vestiges in his void soil. It would require him to devour a lot more gods, or at least, things connected to gods. That was why it had been so beneficial for him to hunt godly entities and absorb their godliness. Unfortunately, the process had been going very slow.
The fact that he could sense this particular godly authority indicated that he had a big destined opportunity at hand. Therefore, he didn’t hesitate at all to sit down cross-legged in front of the black jade and use his soul threads to seek enlightenment.
Time passed.
A few days later, he opened his eyes.
It seems to be connected to sound in some way....
Xu Qing still wasn’t sure of the details, despite the days spent immersed in what had seemed to be successful enlightenment. He felt like he was looking at flowers in fog, or the moon reflected in water. He wasn’t ready to give up though. Instead, he took out the bottle of holy fardark nectar. He swallowed some. All of a sudden, his mind filled with a profound sensation, and he continued to seek enlightenment.
A month passed, slowly but surely.
Xu Qing was deep in meditation, and pulsed with an ethereal sensation. In that mysterious state, he was certain he could hear something.
It was like chanting. It seemed far but near. Then near but far. Apparently, it was describing something, except he couldn’t hear it clearly. The echoing chant stirred the godsource within him, causing that faint vestige in his void soil to start flickering more dramatically.
A second month passed.
Xu Qing had now been seeking enlightenment in a sustained manner for two months.
***
During the two months that passed, the newly arrived holy lands behaved in different ways.
The holy land that landed in the central part of Revered Ancient exterminated a minor species, but the other four didn’t do anything like that. They didn’t make contact with any outside forces, and instead sent out teams to collect resources. They seemed interested in gathering mutagen, especially objects that had been deeply infected with mutagen.
Their actions were noted by many. In the west, there was one species that relocated to the spot where the holy land had descended. The reason was that the holy land was filled with members of their own species who had left back in the day.
The most sensational event played out in the central region, after the statue-shaped holy land wiped out the minor species. A month after they arrived, the top species of Revered Ancient, which was extremely mysterious, and operated in the central region, took action. Two gods emerged from their territory and went to the holy land. When they left the holy land, it was dead silent. All living beings in the holy land had been killed. Then the statue crumbled into ashes that vanished into the air.
Afterward, a voice echoed through Revered Ancient.
“The holy lands may not step into the central regions!”
That incident shook all of Revered Ancient, and it also shook the other holy lands that had arrived. In the blink of an eye, the holy lands suddenly weren’t as untouchable as they had seemed. In fact, the other holy lands started being even more cautious in their actions. The reactions from the various species in Revered Ancient were mixed. Some weren’t sure what to think, while others were relieved. Some seemed confused....
Then another event took place that was similar to when the first five holy lands had arrived.
This time, six holy lands descended like falling stars into different locations.
In the days to follow, more events like that occurred. Every so often, a group of holy lands would show up and fall down into Revered Ancient. Whenever the ancient holy lands of different shapes and sizes arrived, rumbling sounds filled heaven and earth. Great pressure would weigh down.
Eventually it reached the point where twenty-three holy lands had arrived.
The strange thing was that all of the holy lands seemed interested in gathering mutagen and mutagen-related objects, and nothing else. It was as if the only purpose of their return was to collect those things.
***
In the pagoda at the bottom of the sea, Xu Qing was reaching a critical point in his enlightenment.
The vague chanting got stronger, but at the same time, he still couldn’t hear clearly what it was saying.
However, he could tell that the same chant was being repeated. There was an ancient power within the chanting, something extremely domineering that was slowly filling him, entering his mind and replacing his perceptions. From the look of it, it was trying to take away his concept of sound. It almost seemed like it was attempting to enslave him. To strip away his sense of self, and make him a servant of the chant.
It was a very dangerous state to be in. At the same time, there was something very enticing that was taking over his perceptions, subtly attempting to tell him that, as long as he continued, he would gain control over this godly authority.
Suddenly, Xu Qing’s eyes opened. They were bloodshot. Godly authority erupted within him. Especially noteworthy was the fact that Hellfei’s eye appeared on his forehead, shining with bizarre light. In an instant, Xu Qing gained complete lucidity. Then, without any hesitation, he ended the session of enlightenment.
A sound like a string being snapped echoed within his mind. A tremor passed through him, and he coughed up a massive mouthful of blood. A serious look appeared on his face as he struggled to control his breathing.
The same feeling of trying to be enslaved!
He scowled. During the two months that had passed, he had reached this dangerous state every time he tried to seek enlightenment. Without Hellfei’s eye, and his extensive experience with altered perceptions, it was highly likely that he wouldn’t have survived the first time it happened.
“But why...” he murmured. He had considered that this godly authority might contain some sort of life force of its own, and that it was trying to possess him.
But after numerous experiments, he noticed that the chanting never changed. It always proceeded in exactly the same way. That certainly didn’t seem like the behavior of a living thing.
Don’t tell me... that I’m seeking enlightenment in the wrong way?
When all was said and done, this was technically his first time trying to seek enlightenment of godly authority. All of his current understanding of godly authority was based on pure instinct. He acquired both the violet moon and the misfortune by devouring them, not by seeking enlightenment. As for the godly curse, he had gained it more in the manner of learning a technique.
For the moment, he decided to stop seeking enlightenment, and take a few days to review what he had experienced over the past few months. At a certain point, a tremor passed through him.
Perhaps my method of seeking enlightenment isn’t at the right level. That could explain why I keep dealing with the enslavement attempts. I’m being influenced by the godly authority, except that what I really want is to seize control of it! But how to seize control...?
After some more thought, his eyes glittered.
Maybe I shouldn’t be listening. Maybe listening is what’s allowing me to be influenced.
With a determined expression, he rose and left the mysterious bubble. This time, instead of getting help from the god vine, he tried to force his way back inside.
After taking a few steps, the mountain-toppling, sea-draining force of resistance slammed into him. Xu Qing ignored it, braced himself, and took another step forward. When the backlash attack hit him, he redirected the force to his ears. All of a sudden, his head thrummed, and intense pain filled him. His ears started to bleed, his eardrums shattered, and his ear bones crumbled.
Xu Qing tumbled backward, the world spinning around him. He could no longer hear. That said, his expression was calm. Enduring the pain, he called on the confused god vine, then hurried back into the pagoda.
The moment he was inside, he sat down cross-legged and sent soul threads into the black jade to seek enlightenment. This time, he wasn’t listening. Instead, he was sensing with his mind.
Gradually, he could ‘hear’ the chanting again. The chanting came from the black jade, but it was also coming from the faint lineament within him, as well as the godsource sea within him. A flash of understanding appeared. All of a sudden, he realized that things were different compared to before. Godsource raged, stimulating his senses. It was as if some sort of shackle had been broken, allowing him to reach a new level.
He understood.
As long as he didn’t listen, but ‘sensed’ instead, then he could still hear. And when he used his senses and stepped into the realm of godliness, he could activate power that came from that state. It was something boundless and primeval that originated in primal-chaos itself. Or perhaps it was a very ancient power that existed in the world.
Cultivators couldn’t control or acquire that power. The only way to do so was to use godsource. The reason was that the source of the power was too profound. By seizing it, one acquired the qualifications to use it. And it would form a sealing mark. That... was godly authority.
However, that was only related to using it. To delve into its substructure was something that ordinary gods couldn’t do.
The faint lineament that had flickered months ago was calling out to the black jade from Xu Qing’s void soil. And now, it started glowing brightly as it turned into a god talisman.
It was Xu Qing’s fifth god talisman.
A god talisman of sound!
Control of all sound in the world was an essential element of omniscience.