Ascension Day

This was because one had to maintain inner peace and absolute rationality when cultivating the Primordial Dao All Heavens Sensing. Otherwise, one could be influenced by the various ancient consciousnesses drifting through space!

Worse still, when their Divine Sense made contact with the heavens, it could be invaded by demonic entities!

Therefore, restraining desires and maintaining rationality was the only way to preserve one’s life during Cultivation.

This was why the Yuans gave off a cold and distant impression, as if keeping people a thousand li away. They were not a warm people.

’Most likely, many disciples of the Yuan Family died inexplicably while practicing their Cultivation Technique,’ Xu Ying thought.

’No wonder the Yuans are so few in number.’

He activated the Taiyi Guiding Skill. His Divine Sense became ethereal as he held fast to the Taiyi, leaving no opening for external evils to invade. The Yuans, however, were not so lucky.

However, the Yuans’ misfortune likely stemmed from the curse brought by the Primordial Dao All Heavens Sensing technique. It had nothing to do with the Yellow Court Secret Treasury or the Yellow Court Immortal Elixir. If they had switched to a different, top-tier Cultivation Technique for the Yellow Court Secret Treasury, they might have been able to avoid this fate.

’If I strengthen my Divine Sense, can I really perceive the gods of another world?’

Xu Ying’s heart stirred. He took a long breath and activated the Taiyi Guiding Skill, simultaneously mobilizing the power of his Mud Pill, Jiang Palace, and Yellow Court, his three great Grotto Heavens.

His Physical Activity, physical strength, and Divine Sense were constantly increasing.

Xu Ying let his Divine Sense fly free, amplifying his perception. It swept through all the heavens, attempting to locate the Wei Ruins that Beichenzi had mentioned.

Just then, he sensed an evil and powerful consciousness walking up the mountain!

The moment this consciousness touched his Divine Sense, Xu Ying felt his own Divine Sense fall into chaos. The world spun around him, and all sorts of distracting thoughts rushed in, causing strange and bizarre images to appear before his eyes!

"A Celestial Demon!"

Xu Ying held fast to the Taiyi, consolidating his myriad strands of Divine Sense into a single point and pulling them back into his body.

"Hmm, you’re also very interesting. No less so than an Immortal Elixir," the consciousness said in surprise.

Xu Ying opened his eyes and said in a low voice, "Senior Beichenzi, the enemy is here!"

Beichenzi picked up a white Go stone, held it between his index and middle fingers, and gently placed it on the board. He chuckled, "Excellent. I’ve sensed it as well."

As his piece fell, the sky instantly brightened. A mountain-sized white stone descended from the heavens, crashing down the mountain wreathed in roaring flames!

This move made both Xu Ying and Da Zhong exclaim in admiration, "Worthy of an old monster who cultivates both Qi and Nuo Techniques! His Divine Power is truly masterful!"

SNAP!

The white stone had just landed on the board when it exploded, making Beichenzi’s two fingers tremble.

Beichenzi’s expression changed instantly. He hurriedly picked up another white stone and placed it down again. This time, he cast aside his disdain and went all out.

The white stone contained immense power. As it fell into the mountains, a world-destroying shockwave spread out!

When Beichenzi’s stone landed on the board, it exploded with another SNAP, and the old man’s two fingers started to bleed.

Beichenzi cried out in alarm, "Little girl Chanchan, what is the background of this nemesis of yours?"

Zhu Chanchan poked her head out from behind Xu Ying and whispered, "A Celestial Demon..."

"A Celestial Demon?"

Beichenzi’s face changed drastically. ’This is bad,’ he cursed inwardly. The force from the Celestial Demon walking up the mountain almost made him vomit blood. The old man’s face flushed red. No longer daring to be arrogant, he quickly stood up and began pacing around the stone table and chessboard. With a flurry of movements, he ignored the strategy of the game, grabbing white stones and slamming them onto the board!

’If I had known this girl’s enemy was a Celestial Demon, I would never have tagged along to get in on the action! This is a complete disaster!’ he inwardly cursed his luck.

The RUMBLE RUMBLE of explosions from down the mountain was incessant. Go stones continuously fell from the sky only to explode, sending terrifying shockwaves pulsing out in all directions, battering the mountain forest!

Fortunately, this was the heart of Song Mountain, a vast and mountainous region, so there was no need to worry about affecting Mortals.

White vapor steamed from the top of Beichenzi’s head. Behind him, the Nine Great Cave Heavens materialized amidst swirling Purple Qi. He had pushed his Qi Refining and Nuo Technique to their absolute limits.

He no longer cared if the pieces landed in the right positions. He grabbed black and white stones indiscriminately, slamming them onto the board as if his life depended on it.

However, judging by where the stones were landing on the mountain, he had failed to stop the person at all. The figure was still steadily advancing up the mountain!

Soon, Beichenzi’s hands were dripping with blood, and almost all ten of his fingers were injured. Blood was even beginning to trickle from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.

Seeing this, Xu Ying was startled and quickly called out, "Lord Zhong!"

Da Zhong immediately understood. It stopped shielding the group, whistled as it shrank, and soon became the size of a Go stone before diving into the stone container.

Beichenzi’s two bloody fingers picked up the shrunken Da Zhong and he attempted to use a Divine Power, but Da Zhong’s might was too great for his Divine Power to control.

Beichenzi coughed up blood and let out a furious roar. His Primordial Spirit appeared behind him, also extending two fingers to pinch the shrunken Da Zhong and cast the technique together!

He finally managed to pick up Da Zhong. As he lifted it, his arm trembled as if it were incredibly heavy, as if he were lifting the entirety of Song Mountain with its three thousand peaks!

A rumbling thunder echoed from the sky. Lightning darted through the air, illuminating a vast, dark shadow.

Xu Ying and Zhu Chanchan looked up and saw the winds and clouds converging in the sky. The lightning revealed a colossal, ancient bell.

The bell stirred the winds and clouds, crowding the air with lightning. With a speed that seemed slow but was actually incredibly fast, it descended to cover the mountain peak where they stood!

CLANG!

A loud yet muffled sound came from the sky. Xu Ying and Zhu Chanchan saw the space beneath the bell’s mouth suddenly lurch and come crushing down!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The tolling of the bell caused the highest peak to sink with a RUMBLE by over a hundred feet, and then it sank by another hundred feet!

The person walking up from the base of the mountain still hadn’t fallen. Suddenly, beams of Immortal Light shot up, colliding with Da Zhong.

One beam of Immortal Light after another soared up, preventing Da Zhong from fully descending.

Beichenzi was no longer just bleeding from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose; he was now spraying blood. He roared with all his might, trying to press Da Zhong down onto the chessboard, but it was an extremely difficult struggle!

His white robes were stained red, soaked through with his blood. The skin on his right arm burst open, and beneath it, his bulging veins throbbed, emitting the sharp TWANG of snapping bowstrings.

"HII-YAA—"

Beichenzi screamed, reaching out with his other hand to press down on his own right arm, struggling to push it toward the chessboard!

CLANG!

With a final toll of the bell, he finally managed to press Da Zhong down. The huge bell in the sky finally descended with it, smashing the entire mountain peak a thousand feet into the ground with a thunderous CLANG! The violent tremor sent the surrounding mountains toppling over!

The howling gale stirred up by this Great Divine Power swept through the mountains in an instant, leveling countless clouds. Even the great river flowing down from the mountain was lifted straight into the air by the bell’s toll, blown a hundred li away before the water finally came crashing down!

Beichenzi spat out a mouthful of blood, fell backward, and passed out.

Before he lost consciousness, only one thought remained in his mind: ’I’m done for. But that’s fine. When a man is dead, all his troubles are over. Once the Celestial Demon catches that boy and eats him, everything will be settled...’

Da Zhong landed on the chessboard, its form growing larger. The impact had caused its old wounds to reopen. Cracks appeared on the Bell Wall as it cried out, "Ying, my power is exhausted!"

From behind Xu Ying, Zhu Chanchan suddenly jumped out and hammered on the bell with a few punches, shouting, "You can still hold on!"

Da Zhong shouted, "It’s my Qi Blood that’s exhausted!"

Xu Ying circulated his Qi Blood and formed a Palm Seal with a flip of his hand. He struck Da Zhong with one palm after another, and the giant bell that had smashed the mountain began to turn transparent!

Xu Ying unleashed all his Cultivation in one go, pouring it out until the giant bell completely vanished. Only then did he stop!

"It’s not dead yet!" Zhu Chanchan cried in terror.

Xu Ying looked down. The highest peak of Song Mountain had now become its lowest. Near the new summit, a figure lay face down in a large crater, a mangled mess of flesh and blood.

The flesh and blood on its body were still writhing, constantly reassembling and reconstructing itself!

Xu Ying’s heart leaped. He kicked Yuan Qi’s body and shouted, "Lord Qi, wake up!"

Yuan Qi awoke from his slumber and asked groggily, "Ying, what’s wrong?"

Xu Ying picked up Zhu Chanchan and tossed her onto his head, then picked up Da Zhong. Zhu Chanchan shouted, "Don’t leave the little white-haired old man behind! We’ll need him to save our lives next time!"

Xu Ying reached out, tucked the unconscious Beichenzi under his arm, and quickly ran to the top of Yuan Qi’s head. "Let’s go—"

"I’m not awake yet..."

"We’re running for our lives!"

"Right!" Yuan Qi was suddenly energized and slithered away at high speed.