Day of Ascension

The frowning old man hurried down the parasol tree and descended Mount Jiuyi, shock and dread filling his heart.

“This is a disaster. The Meng Po Soup has become ineffective!”

Xu Ying had downed ten bowls’ worth of the soup in one go, yet he had not fallen into a baby-like sleep as he had before. He still remembered that great bell.

He should have forgotten everything that had happened since he was six years old, just as he had every previous time. He should have remembered only the great fire at Xujiaping Village, and that he was an orphan who had escaped the fire.

The seal in his mind should have quickly generated new memories, allowing him to begin a new life.

This time, however, the Meng Po Soup was clearly nothing more than plain water with a little coloring. It had completely lost its effect.

“I must report this matter at once!”

Just then, the old man saw Zhou Qiyun. The white-browed youth looked at him impassively, his hands behind his back.

Feeling a jolt in his heart, the old man slowed down, the frown still hanging on his face. “We meet again.”

With an indifferent expression and somewhat cold voice, Zhou Qiyun said, “I chose to undergo my tribulation in Yongzhou Prefecture. Not only because this is my hometown, but because this is a new land. It has fewer entanglements, fewer complications, and therefore, fewer experts.”

The old man listened silently.

“Undergoing my tribulation here allows me to focus without worrying about experts emerging out of nowhere to backstab me. In preparation, I’ve swept through twenty-six ancient tombs and thirty-four immortal mountains, gathering all treasures. The old fossils of the other noble clans are already mocking me, calling me a tomb raider who specializes in robbing tombs and digging graves.

The old man replied, “You must have huge ambitions to endure such notoriety. Ascension has become your obsession.”

“I will crush anyone who threatens my ascension, no matter who they are or where they come from.”

The old man sighed. “And I’ve appeared before you twice now. You tolerated me the first time, but not the second.”

Zhou Qiyun revealed a faint smile. “You’re very clever, but you shouldn’t have come too close to me, or Xu Ying. He’s a crucial piece in my ascension. I need him to decipher and complete Qi cultivation techniques for me. I’ll kill whoever dares to sabotage my plans!”

Realizing the situation had turned dire, the old man stepped back several times before leaping into the air. He transformed into a streak of green light and shot toward the horizon.

Those few steps left no openings. Zhou Qiyun cannot strike!

Just as he thought of this, the world spun. The direction of his flight reversed, sending him hurtling straight toward Zhou Qiyun.

His heart skipped a beat. He wasn’t my match at Homeward Pavilion! By the time we met again at Mount Wu Wang, he could already pressure me as an equal. Now he’s even stronger!

As the distance closed, a vast Primordial Spirit emerged behind the old man. It summoned all its power and struck out with a finger.

His true primordial shook as he gave it everything he had. You couldn’t have fusedQi cultivation techniques so soon to create a new divine art! Eat my Immortal-Slaying Finger!

His strike carried brilliant, immortal light. Immortal qi coiled around his finger as the fingertip trembled, creating countless phantoms. Some moved slowly, others swiftly, attacking Zhou Qiyun from seemingly different points in space-time.

Zhou Qiyun retaliated with a finger of his own.

The old man’s eyes widened in horror. Immortal-Slaying Finger? Where did he learn it from? Right, he became a grave robber and plundered numerous graves. He must have even desecrated my master’s grave!

A series of dull thuds rang out. All of the immortal light phantoms vanished. Only the two fingertips collided.

With a snap, the old man’s finger broke. He cried out in pain and turned to flee. He has refined all of the vigor of his Mud-Pill Secret Trove into his physique. His physique is comparable to that of an immortal. Definitely superior to mine!

He leaped up, only to see heaven and earth invert again. Instead of escaping, he charged directly toward Zhou Qiyun again.

He already possesses the means of an immortal!

Shocked and furious, he was forced to attack Zhou Qiyun again. They exchanged a single blow. The old man sustained further injuries and tried to retreat once more. Yet, heaven and earth turned upside down, sending him charging toward Zhou Qiyun for the third time!

They exchanged another blow. The old man’s injuries worsened, and he leaped into the air again, attempting to flee.

This time, Zhou Qiyun’s cultivation technique stalled for a split second, allowing the old man to escape!

Spewing blood, the old man tore through the air, utterly terrified. Zhou Qiyun is improving at a terrifying rate. Xu Ying must have given him the true techniques without trying to deceive him! After practicing Qi cultivation techniques and the nine heavens of his Mud-Pill Secret Trove, he has surpassed me.

He fled, sweeping past mountains. Suddenly, he spotted people playing chess on a mountain ahead. They were the white-robed elder and the red-robed woman. Delighted, the frowning old man quickly landed!

These two had intercepted Xiao Fengxian. They were also surprised to see the frowning old man injured and approached to check on him.

The red-robed woman asked, “Who hurt you?”

Spewing blood, the old man cried out, “Zhou Qiyun!”

Before his voice faded, the two sensed danger approaching; they had no time to turn around. The white-robed elder’s Primordial Spirit leaped up and thrust its palm backward, meeting Zhou Qiyun’s Immortal-Slaying Finger.

Though it was only a finger, all of Zhou Qiyun’s power was gathered in this strike. Not even the Primordial Spirit could withstand it. The strike pierced through its palm, penetrated its back, and burst through its chest!

The white-robed elder spewed blood, staining his robe crimson.

He was not weak; Zhou Qiyun’s sneak attack had caught him off guard, severely injuring him in one strike!

Zhou Qiyun’s voice rang out. “Two more experts, but what do I have to fear?”

The red-robed woman leaped away, only to see heaven and earth turn upside down, pulling her back in an instant. She leaped and somersaulted repeatedly, but it was as if an extremely elastic rope bound her. She would be pulled back every time, forced to clash head-on with Zhou Qiyun.

After about a dozen such exchanges, the red-robed woman spewed large mouthfuls of blood, looking in terrible shape.

Summoning all his strength, the frowning old man lunged at Zhou Qiyun and finally forced him into revealing a flaw. Seizing the opportunity, the three turned into streams of light and fled.

Zhou Qiyun did not give chase. His surging aura gradually calmed as a trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

He stood silently atop the mountain for a long time before his vital energy finally subsided.

“It’s still not enough. The immortal art still cannot fully connect with the Secret Trove. There are still flaws when channeling them.”

He swallowed the surging blood in his throat. Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang must decipher the immortal book as soon as possible! I cannot wait any longer!

Sitting before the chess table, he studied the half-finished game of chess and moved a chess piece absentmindedly. His gaze turned fierce.

Ever since I found Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang, obstacles have kept popping up. I’ve never encountered this many experts in the past hundred years, yet they’ve all emerged within a few days!

Looking up at the sky, he thought, Could it be that Heaven has sensed my impending tribulation and unleashed a human tribulation ahead of time to destroy my immortal affinity before ascension? Even if Heaven sends calamity upon me, I have nothing to fear!

Zhou Qiyun stood up, put the chessboard away, and tucked all the pieces into his robes. After packing away everything, he set off toward Mount Jiuyi.

The chessboard and pieces are all artifacts. I can’t let them go to waste.

On the other side, the frowning old man and the two others fled more than ten thousand li before finally stopping to rest. After confirming that Zhou Qiyun had not pursued them, they let out sighs of relief.

The three exchanged glances, each still shaken by the encounter.

“Given Zhou Qiyun’s strength, he must have developed his Secret Trove to the pinnacle realm.” The white-robed elder frowned. “When the Exorcism arts were created to replace Qi Cultivation, no one expected the system to become this powerful.”

Shaking his head, the frowning old man said, “Secret Troves are indeed formidable, but Zhou Qiyun himself is even more remarkable. He already reached our level through Exorcism arts before switching to Qi Cultivation. Now, he’s achieved results in both paths simultaneously.”

The red-robed woman carefully wiped away the blood at the corner of her mouth. “More importantly, he’s learned a top-tier Qi cultivation technique. He’s dug too many graves.”

The white-robed elder suddenly cried out in alarm, “My Green Cloud Chessboard is still on that mountain!”

The frowning old man replied nonchalantly, “Just leave it there. We’ll retrieve it later. Who’s going to steal it from you? There’s a more important matter at hand here.”

He sighed and continued, “Ten bowls’ worth of Meng Po Soup only gave him a fleeting dream. Everyone, the Meng Po Soup has become ineffective.”

The white-robed elder and red-robed woman were deeply shaken. The latter blurted, “Did Meng Po dilute the soup with water?”

The frowning old man said, “Even diluted soup should have knocked him unconscious after ten bowls. Meng Po Soup no longer reinforces his seal. If this continues, he won’t be far from breaking through it.”

The other two’s expressions darkened, even revealing hints of fear.

The three fell silent. No one spoke for a long while.

Later, the red-robed woman said dryly, “So, Zhou Qiyun has become his Dao Protector? No wonder Zhou Qiyun blocked you time and again. What’s his goal exactly?”

The white-robed elder’s expression turned grave. Judging by his behavior, he did seem like Xu Ying’s Dao Protector, shielding him from powerful enemies.

With a genius of Zhou Qiyun’s caliber protecting Xu Ying, finding an opportunity to strike would be exceedingly difficult.

He murmured, “What should we do now?”

The frowning old man replied, “We have no choice but to report this matter. You two, come with me!”

The two others exchanged glances. The white-robed elder hesitated and said, “But my Green Cloud Chessboard... Fine. This matter is important. We’ll go with you first, then come back to retrieve the board later!”

The trio moved like the wind and quickly arrived in Daozhou.

Daozhou was also affected by the new lands. Many mountains and rivers emerged, significantly changing the geography. The three arrived at an unremarkable craggy hill that stood no taller than twenty zhang. At its base was a small earth god shrine, only half a person tall.

On the sides of its door hung a pair of couplets: A small shrine yet with immense divine abilities; the heavens high, yet the sun and moon shine bright.

The frowning old man recorded the matter of the Meng Po Soup losing its effectiveness on a sheet of paper. He rolled it into an incense stick, lit it, and planted it before the shrine. The three of them bowed and waited for a reply.

The tiny earth god shrine seemed unremarkable, yet it was a place of ascension. As the incense burned, the smoke curled upward and floated to the top of the shrine, which was connected to another space-time. Through the thin barrier, the scent drifted into that space-time.

When the incense paper had burned out, an earth god jumped out from the shrine. Unlike other earth gods, this one had no incense qi on him.

“You may return.” That earth god held a piece of yellow ritual paper—a reply letter— in his hand and said, “The higher-ups have received your report. Keep this reply letter safe. Once the decree comes down, words will appear on it. You’ll know how to proceed then.”

The frowning old man said, “This matter is of grave importance. May I know the higher-ups’ plans? That way, we can prepare ourselves.”

Losing his patience, the earth god snapped, “Silence. The higher-ups must follow proper procedure when handling matters. Since when does a matter get resolved the moment a report is submitted? How do we know your documentation is complete? If something is missing, you’ll have to make several more trips.

“Go back for now. Let the orders come down level by level. Who knows, you might have to wait a few years.”

“A few years?” The three exchanged glances, feeling despair.

The red-robed woman said, “This is a special matter. Special tasks have to be handled specially. Please expedite the matter!”

The earth god sneered coldly. “So many people handle such matters; who am I supposed to urge? And what authority do I have to pressure anyone? Go, go!”

The three had no choice but to leave dejectedly.

“Let’s wait for now.” The white-robed elder said, “We’ll return to the mountain to retrieve my Green Cloud Chessboard first.”

The three hurried back to the mountain, though the Green Cloud Chessboard was nowhere to be found. Not even a single chess piece was left behind.

The trio stood silently as a cold breeze swept across the mountain. The white-robed old man’s lips twitched slightly, his robes still stained with blood.

The frowning old man consoled him, “Someone also swiped away my green paper umbrella. I can’t even go reason things out. You lost your Green Cloud Chessboard, just refine another.”

***

At Wutong Palace on Mount Jiuyi, Xu Ying was still a little groggy. It felt like he hadn’t drunk tea, but hard liquor. Did that frowning old man drug the tea?

Noticing his poor complexion, Dazhong said, “I’m afraid the drug was tea-ed[1]. What happened?”

Xu Ying recounted the series of events that happened last night. Dazhong and Yuanqi, coiled atop the bell, were astonished. Neither had expected so much to occur while they were away.

Each event sounded very interesting.

Dazhong asked, “So, you did see that black mole on Xiaodie? Is it on the left or right? The left, huh...”

He pondered aloud, “So, what you saw when you entered Dao immersion was real. The stupid snake saved you while he was sleeping, too. That’s strange. Why would one encounter great terrors when they entered Dao immersion?”

Recalling the scene from his Dao immersion, Xu Ying voiced his guess. “I think the great terrors in the abyss are blocking people from entering Dao immersion. If someone goes too deep, those entities will devour them and kill them on the spot.”

Yuanqi’s heart skipped a beat. “Luckily, I don’t know how to enter Dao immersion. Ah Ying, how did Guo Xiaodie end up in your bed? Not to mention she was naked. Something’s off about this.”

“That’s not important!” Xu Ying said with a grave expression, “What’s important is the second matter. Not even Xiao Fengxian could break the seal within me. She said that my seal has loosened, but I don’t feel anything. We have to shake off Zhou Qiyun as soon as possible!”

Dazhong and Yuanqi remained silent, blinking at him repeatedly.

Startled inside, Xu Ying maintained his expression, “Therefore, we have to finish deciphering the Granny Tuo Immortal Book as soon as possible! We have to decipher it exactly as it was written and help Old Ancestor Zhou ascend. We’ll be free once he ascends!”

Turning around, he discovered Zhou Qiyun had come to Wutong Palace at some point and was standing right behind him.

Xu Ying gasped. “When did you arrive, Old Ancestor Zhou?”

1. Dazhong is speaking in reverse to point out how potent the drugs were. ☜