Shushan Earthly Immortal

Chapter 381 The Three Corpses Dharma Form, Ghostly Script Demon Crow (6.2K words presented, please support with monthly votes)
Diyin Island.

A crack appeared in the void, and a blood-red figure flashed out from within—it was Gu Chen.

The demon corpse looked unwell, its face ashen, the effects of casting two secret techniques in quick succession having taken a heavy toll on it. However, it had no time to catch its breath; upon its return, it saw that Earthly Yin Island was on the verge of being breached.

Gu Chen roared and spat out the Corpse Pill. The Corpse Pill emitted a dark red demonic light, which surged in the void like clouds, but the color was strange, like blood that was about to dry. Then the demonic light contracted and transformed into a giant dharma image.

The statue was eighty-three zhang tall. It was roughly human-shaped, with a thin and bony frame, but its shoulders and back were unusually broad. Its back was deeply hunched, and the purple veins on its body were twisted and undulating, constantly writhing as if they were about to crawl out of its skin.

The giant had a blue face and red eyes. His bluish-gray skin looked like it had been cast in bronze. His forehead was prominently raised, and his eye sockets were deep-set like chisels. His pupils were as red as cinnabar, and a bloody light flowed between them. His lips were dark purple, and four blood-red fangs protruded outwards, giving him a truly eerie appearance.

Blood Corpse General Chen Faxiang.

Faxiang stretched out his hand, and the main banner of the "Mysterious Yin Gathering Beast Banner" in Cui Ying's hand flew out on its own. Then, it grew longer in the wind, transforming into a giant banner a hundred feet long, which landed in Faxiang's hand. Faxiang waved the banner, which was like rolling dark clouds that covered the sky and sun.

This treasure was personally crafted by Gu Chen, who was at the fifth level of cultivation. Now, activating it with his Dharma form, its power surged dramatically, sending out countless plumes of black smoke that enveloped the entire Earth Yin Island once again.

Wu Lao and Cui Ying, both injured, gathered around him.

"I'm sorry."

Gu Chen said to Wu Lao.

"Let's focus on surviving today first, then we can talk about these things."

Wu Lao replied.

"We've been fighting for so long, and not a single demon king from the surrounding area has come to our aid. Don't they understand the principle of 'brothers fighting amongst themselves, but uniting against external threats'?"

Cui Ying cursed.

Gu Chen was speechless. He hadn't expected retribution to come so quickly. Not long ago, he had even allowed his disciple to lead the people from Hidden Dragon Mountain on the mainland to seize Red Cloud Island.

"The Great Sage has arrived!"

Perhaps because of the Dragon Ball incarnation, Akashi was the first to sense the aura of the Great Sage Overturning the Sea and exclaimed in surprise.

Gu Chen and Cui Ying were a step behind, but they immediately noticed and their faces lit up with joy.

The True Man Cheng Chu, who was fighting Gu Chen, and the Zen Master Zhen Xie, who had just arrived, also sensed the dragon's might rushing from the distant sea. Their expressions became solemn, but they did not back down. Instead, they fought even more fiercely.

But soon, the expressions of the two groups changed—just as Mo Qi was delighted, the Great Sage Overturning the Sea and the demon kings did not come here, but went straight to Fire Dragon Island.

The three corpses showed disbelief on their faces, but after a moment's thought, they immediately understood. Compared to the righteous path's relentless attack on the near-shore Yin Island, the righteous path's sudden occupation of the Fire Dragon Island deep in the sea was a challenge to the Great Sage's authority.

Master Chengchu and Zen Master Zhenxie laughed loudly. They were not worried about the situation on Fire Dragon Island and joined forces to attack.

Gu Chen felt the pressure mounting and had no choice but to play his trump card again. He let out a low roar, and then a dark light emanated from his chest, radiating out and enveloping the entire Yin Island.

Subsequently, the scenery on the island of Earth Shadow changed:

A gloomy and desolate scene unfolded, devoid of sunlight and moonlight, with only eerie green will-o'-the-wisps hanging high in the sky, swaying up and down like lanterns from the underworld. A black wind swept across the land, chilling one to the bone; the damp, cold wind carried dew and the stench of decaying earth.

All around were withered, strange trees, their bark cracked like rotting bones, their branches gnarled and twisted like ghostly claws. The ground was covered with dead branches and fallen leaves, exposing white bones. In the distance, majestic palaces stood on the mountains, but under their eaves hung heads as lamps, and human skin as roof tiles.

Shadows loomed between the valleys and palaces, filled with the grotesque figures of the living dead. Beyond the island, the vast ocean was a blood-red expanse, littered with millions of corpses and flowing blood.

A scene of utter carnage.

This is Gu Chen's Nascent Soul Dao Domain.

After the Dao Domain appeared, its magical energy immediately connected with the Yin Island, Jiang Chen's Dharma Image, the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner, and the aura of all the Yin Corpses on the island. The Dao Domain amplified the power of the Dharma Images and magical treasures, and the ghosts and Yin Corpses on the island seemed to have consumed miraculous elixirs, their auras surging and becoming fearless. In turn, these Dharma Images, magical treasures, and Yin Spirits influenced the Dao Domain, making it even more real and eerily ghostly.

Cheng Xinzhan hid far behind, not daring to get involved in the battle between the five realms, but he still saw Gu Chen's Dao Domain appear clearly and was greatly surprised.

Because Gu Chen's Dao Domain does indeed resemble the original appearance of Di Yin Island by about six or seven points!
Fortunately, the Emperor's corpse was taken away and the altar was destroyed today. If the situation is already this bad, what would happen if the Emperor's corpse and the altar were complete? Moreover, I have long heard that Gu Chen has been reclaiming land from the sea and expanding the island, changing the topography and spiritual atmosphere of the Yin Island in preparation for the Dao Integration. It is already so powerful even before it is completed. Who knows what it will be like when he has finished setting it up?

After emerging from the Corpse Kingdom's Dao Domain, Wu Lao and Cui Ying finally dared to spit out their inner cores and unleash their Dharma forms. The power of Bixia Yuanjun's Dharma form was simply too terrifying; it stood hundreds of feet tall, and under Bixia's radiance, the two dared not use their Dharma forms against it, fearing damage to their corpse cores.

Wu Lao's Dharma form is indeed the fierce corpse drought demon. Outwardly, it doesn't look much different from Qing Bo's drought demon Dharma form. No wonder he looks favorably upon Qing Bo. Such a connection means that he can inherit the Daoist lineage.

Cui Ying's Dharma form was quite strange. Thick green smoke spewed from her dark green corpse core, and the green smoke spread and changed, transforming into a towering, hundred-foot-tall tree.

The giant tree had extremely lush foliage, with leaves shaped like human mouths that seemed to emit human voices, chattering incessantly like demonic chants. Moreover, the leaves were so dense that no light could penetrate them. Countless, incomprehensible vines were also wrapped around the tree trunk, dancing wildly in the air like the tentacles of a giant vine.

Even more strangely, there was a person lying on the tree root!

Judging from its size and build, this person resembled a young girl, appearing exceptionally small beneath the giant tree, yet it was actually three or four zhang long. This ghostly creature was entirely mottled with bluish-black, its claws hooked and gripping the tree roots tightly, its body arched like a cat with its fur standing on end. Its long, tangled, bluish-green hair hung down to its feet, further emphasizing its pale, stiff face. The ghostly creature's eyes shone brightly, like candlelight, scanning its surroundings.

Monsters?

Cheng Xinzhan could barely make out that this was an ancient wooden ghost, which had disappeared from the human world. He never expected that Cui Ying would use it as a form of magic.

After the appearances of the Drought Demon and the Wraith appeared, they merged with Gu Chen's Corpse Kingdom Ghost Realm, complementing each other and greatly increasing their demonic power.

The battle had reached its climax, and even with the Three Corpses' advantageous terrain, it was impossible for Master Cheng Chu and Zen Master Zhen Xie to retreat. Moreover, their current terrain was probably the worst they had ever been on Earth Yin Island, so if they couldn't break through today, it would be even less likely to succeed in the future.

Then Zen Master Zhenxie formed a Buddhist mudra on his chest, and a great light shone from the center of his body, which was also displaying his Dharma domain, transforming into a golden Buddhist kingdom on the sea.

The Buddha Kingdom and the Corpse Kingdom were like needles clashing against wheat awns, golden light and dark light touching, bursting forth with countless rays of light, and the Dharma waves struck the sea, rolling up thousands of piles of snow.

The Dao Domain of True Person Cheng Chu belongs to the mountains, making it unsuitable for use at sea. Not only would its power be greatly reduced, but it would also consume additional spiritual energy, which is not worthwhile. However, True Person Cheng Chu has many methods, and since it is not advisable to create a Dao Domain at this time, he summoned the Shangqing Talisman, manifesting his inner divine realm externally, becoming another hundred-zhang-tall Bixia Yuanjun!
The two Yuanjun, like twins or mirror images, stood side by side, their auras echoing each other, as if gods had descended to earth, truly terrifying.

Both the True Man and the Zen Master possessed formidable magical powers, but the True Man followed the path of the Mountain God, which prevented him from fully utilizing his strength at sea. The Zen Master, hailing from the Sea Heaven Buddhist Temple, was unaffected by the terrain, but Zen Buddhism is traditionally known for its defensive strength rather than offensive prowess, thus falling short in some aspects as well. Furthermore, while the True Man and the Zen Master, one Taoist and one Buddhist, coordinated in their individual techniques, they lacked coordination in their spiritual intent and domain, and there was even a subtle antagonism between them.

On the other hand, the Three Corpses, although only one is at the Fifth Realm, has two at the Fourth Realm and an external avatar of equal Fourth Realm. Moreover, they have the advantage of the island they have cultivated for many years. In particular, the Three Corpses' paths are similar, and the Corpse Kingdom Dao Domain has completely integrated the Earth Yin Island, the various demonic treasures, and the Three Corpses' Dharma Forms together, making perfect coordination. Therefore, they can fight on equal terms with the True Person and the Zen Master.

While the group was exchanging blows, they noticed another change on Fire Dragon Island. As the restrictions on the various islands were lifted, a 1,500-mile-long dragon of earth energy became clearly visible. Gu Chen and Wu Lao's expressions changed drastically, and they exclaimed in unison...

"how come!"

Red Cloud Island belongs to the Earth Yin Sea, and Yellow Sulfur Island belongs to the Fire Li Sea. How could these two large islands be connected to the land veins?
"Are there traitors within the family, both of you brothers?"

Cui Ying revealed the secret in one sentence.

The two men's faces turned extremely ugly. At this moment, they could imagine how ugly the Great Sage Overturning the Seas must look.

Just then, Wu Lao remembered something and said,

“Brother, we made an agreement that the array bases and flags on the newly occupied islands must contain the ‘Mysterious Yin Ghost Script,’ which can be combined to form the ‘Heaven and Earth Reversal Mysterious Yin Netherworld Prison Array,’ transforming the vast sea into a ghost realm. However, only your Mysterious Yin Beast Gathering Banner can be activated. I think now is the time!”

Gu Chen hesitated. This formation could be considered the biggest trump card of the Earthly Yin Sea. Once it appeared, it would surely arouse people's vigilance and make the Great Sage of the Overturning Sea realize that the Three Corpses were still connected. It would also affect the spiritual atmosphere of the East Sea's water transport, which would probably be more of a loss than a gain.

Red Corpse guessed what Gu Chen was hesitating about, and advised him,
"The Fire Dragon Flags on Fire Dragon Island and Yellow Sulfur Island both contain Ghost Script, and I presume they also exist on Red Glow Island, which you recently acquired, Brother. Once we activate the formation, the three islands will change hands instantly, and severing the earth veins will be a piece of cake, which should be enough to quell the Great Sage's anger. Moreover, we are currently at a critical juncture of life and death, and the Great Sage and the demon kings have no intention of helping us. Activating the formation will also alleviate our current crisis!"

Gu Chen wavered upon hearing this.

"Let's begin the battle."

Cui Ying also advised that although Changqing Island is currently unharmed and the formation will still draw spiritual energy from it, if Fire Dragon Island and Earth Yin Island are gone, how good can the fate of Changqing Island be?
Hearing that Cui Ying also agreed, Gu Chen no longer hesitated. He chanted an incantation and shook the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner. Dark light appeared on the banner, then became clearer and clearer, condensing into one large ghostly seal character after another.

These large, ghostly characters floated out of the banner, then the characters changed, separated, and recombined, eventually transforming into crows made entirely of the characters!

These crows, their bodies gleaming black, circled and soared in the air, emitting a sharp "caw-caw" sound.

These sounds carried far and wide, and soon, on all the earth energy nodes of Diyin Island and its surrounding small islands, where array flags were planted, ghostly characters flew out and then all transformed into crows, circling and cawing in the sky.

Then, the sound waves traveled further and further, and the flock of crows grew larger and larger, soon covering the entire Earth Yin Sea and continuing to spread outward, eventually reaching the Changqing Sea and the Li Huo Sea.

The crows first invaded Changqinghai from the southwest corner, then Lihuohai from the northwest corner, and then spread to the opposite corner.

These crow-shaped ghostly scripts, at first glance identical, are distinct upon closer inspection. They echo each other, forming a massive array that weaves together a vast demonic cloud covering three seas. Beneath this cloud, the demonic atmosphere is unprecedentedly active, with demonic forces rising and Daoist influence declining. The golden Buddhist kingdom has been significantly diminished, while the Corpse Kingdom and Ghost Realm have become increasingly realistic. The walking corpses in the Dao Realm swarm towards the image of Bixia Yuanjun like flies, endlessly multiplying as many as die. The three Yin Corpse Dharma Images also wield immense demonic power, daring to attack the True Person and the Zen Master. The situation suddenly shifts dramatically.

This is the function of the mountain-protecting formation, or the suitable place for cultivation. And this is precisely why the powerful sects and clans of the world today are so difficult to conquer. There is a similar saying in the secular martial arts world: "It is easy to defeat a person, but difficult to break through a city." It is easy to settle a score when you meet on the road, but the difficulty of attacking a city that has been built up over generations is incomparable.

The mountain-protecting formation works like this: it waits for the enemy to tire themselves out, uses the unfamiliar to bully the familiar, and uses the many to bully the few.

If the Dao Domain were to coincide with the Mountain-Protecting Array, the Dao Field, or the Place of Dao Integration, the situation would be even more different and spectacular.

At this moment, the three corpses' confidence soared along with the demonic aura as they looked towards the three islands of Fire Dragon, Yellow Sulfur, and Red Glow.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Fire Dragon Island.

Master Baoyuan stood with his sword in his arms, facing him with pride.

The Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas stared at the sword with its surging power in the arms of the True Man Protecting the Origin, his face grim.

Xu Tianjun's Dragon-Slaying Sword.

How did this old Taoist priest manage to bring such a powerful weapon to the sea?

In this silent confrontation, everyone saw the flock of crows spreading in.

A look of surprise flashed in the eyes of the Great Sage Overturning the Sea, and his ugly expression quickly returned to normal. He then looked at the True Man of Preserving the Origin with a leisurely air.

Master Baoyuan's face naturally darkened, and then he looked at Cheng Xinzhan, signaling with his eyes whether they should strike first.

Cheng Xinzhan naturally saw the flock of crows as well, and he saw through the ghostly essence of the black crows at a glance, instantly sensing the intentions of the Three Corpses. He smiled and shook his head slightly at Baoyuan Zhenren, indicating that it was alright.

Soon, the flock of crows arrived.

At this moment, Cheng Xinzhan released a talisman.

It was more accurate to call it a list than a talisman, as it was densely covered with talismanic characters. At that moment, Cheng Xinzhan flicked out a wisp of spiritual light and struck the talisman. The talisman suddenly exploded, scattering into countless talismanic characters that fell onto the island like a rain of light.

The array flags at the various ley line nodes on the island, bathed in this rain of light, immediately emitted a red glow. At this moment, no matter how much the crows outside the island cawed, these flags did not react.

Upon seeing this, Master Baoyuan immediately cast an approving glance his way.

Cheng Xinzhan dared not take credit, and offered a brief explanation to the True Man Baoyuan through his heartfelt words.

This talisman was actually the work of his own sect leader and Juqu Mountain. Several months ago, he discovered the ghost script hidden in the Fire Dragon Island command flag, and through Che Liangcai, he found out the origin of the ghost script. He then took several of them back to the palace and handed them over to the sect leader. The sect leader invited True Person Chengchu to study it together, and they determined that the ghost script came from the Profound Yin Gathering Beast Banner, and discovered that the ghost script in the command flag was restrained by the Fire Dragon Island's own restrictions.

This outcome wasn't hard to predict. Since the Crimson Corpse obtained the flag from the Earthly Yin Island and deliberately avoided using the Ghostly Script during the deployment, it meant that the Crimson Corpse was aware of the situation and agreed to let its own array base become a subsidiary flag of the Profound Yin Beast Gathering Banner. However, one should always be wary. To avoid being used as a pawn, the Crimson Corpse had a backup plan: if Gu Chen used the Ghostly Script to harm Fire Dragon Island, the Crimson Corpse could extinguish it at any time.

Juqu Mountain is one of the three mountains of talismans, so it is naturally familiar with ghost script. After some research, Master Chengchu discovered that if the ghost script is activated, it is indeed difficult to break. However, if the ghost script is still hidden in the command flag, then triggering the Fire Dragon Island's restriction to extinguish the ghost script is not difficult.

So they crafted this talisman to lift the seal for Cheng Xinzhan.

The same applies to Huangliu Island; Huang Laosan also released a talisman, which averted the crisis.

As for Red Cloud Island, it's even simpler. Although the command flags didn't contain any restrictions to extinguish the ghost seals, those flags were all personally inserted into the earth's veins by Cheng Xinzhan, and he had already switched them.

So at this moment, the crows are cawing loudly, stretching across Diyin Island and Changqing Island, but it is unusually quiet around Huohai and Hongxia Island.

Seeing this, the Great Sage Overturning the Sea shook his head in disappointment. "Two idiots, they don't even know their house has been emptied out."

Then, the Great Sage of the Overturning Seas shifted his gaze from Bao Yuan to the back of Fire Dragon Island, a different thought forming in his mind: This dragon of earth energy, stretching over 1,500 li from the mainland, was destined not to be very thick or large, and should be easy to cut down. Anyway, he wasn't going to the mainland, so what difference would it make if he offended the earth energy?
Cheng Xinzhan kept his eyes fixed on the Great Sage Overturning the Sea, and by observing the changes in his gaze and expression, he immediately guessed what he was about to do.

A slight smile played on his lips. How could the righteous masters not have considered such a significant weakness? How could they possibly allow this hard-won bridge to the sea to be so easily severed?
As if in response to the Dragon King's thoughts, two more streaks of light, one black and one purple, entered the sea from the land.

The purple one landed on Yellow Sulfur Island and proclaimed:

"A descendant of Sazu sends his greetings to the Dragon King!"

The dark brown streak landed on Red Cloud Island, and proclaimed:

"A descendant of Ge Gong sends his greetings to the Dragon King!"

Upon hearing this sound and seeing this scene, the Great Sage Overturning the Sea naturally felt uneasy. The four Heavenly Masters and the three lineage leaders had all come to the sea. What were they planning to do? Overturn the East Sea?
"What are you three sirs doing? Are you going to start a war on land and sea? I was unaware that the Daoist sect would have such leisure time amidst the combined attacks of the Northern and Southern Demonic Sects."

The Great Sage Who Overturned the Sea spoke in a chilling tone.

Master Baoyuan, who was in charge of guarding Fire Dragon Island, was at the forefront. He then spoke on behalf of the other two masters, saying with a smile,

"Dragon King, you misunderstand. We have been sitting in the mountains for a long time and have grown tired of the green hills. So we decided to come to the sea to sit and enjoy the blue sea and white waves. That's all. We would never start a war lightly. You can rest assured, Dragon King. However, if you also feel bored and tired in the sea and want to stretch your muscles, you are welcome to come and spar with us at any time. We do not plan to leave in the short term."

The Great Sage Who Overturned the Seas had a calm and composed expression. His words were quite sophisticated. What did he mean by "not to lightly start a war"? He meant that the time was right to start one.

At this moment, Cheng Xinzhan noticed that the Dragon King's mood was off. He also understood that the sea-land strategy had only just taken shape, and now was not a good time to start a war. Since the three True Immortals were currently firm, he himself had to take the initiative. Therefore, he offered a way out, saying...

"Dragon King, we had a very good talk just now. We are all willing to abide by the rules, and you are a man of principle. The three of you are just here to sit on the sea. Please don't misunderstand, Dragon King. I think it would be best if we didn't make a big fuss and ruin the peace that has lasted for thousands of years between the land and sea."

The Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas scrutinized Cheng Xinzhan, looking at her intently for a long time, before suddenly bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha, yes, you are right, sir. You are Mr. Guanghong, right? You are indeed a rising star, truly remarkable! If you have the time, sir, you should visit my Canghai Dragon Palace when you have some free time."

Cheng Xinzhan smiled and agreed.

"sure."

The Dragon King turned and left.

There's too much of a mess to clean up right now. We still need to protect the Three Corpses; it's definitely not the time to act. Besides, these three old Taoists are all sect leaders; their paths to Dao Integration are all on land. I don't believe they can stay in the sea guarding the ley lines forever. To put it bluntly, you can't guard against thieves for a thousand days if you're a thief for a thousand days. Who can outlast whom is still unknown!
Cheng Xinzhan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the Dragon King turn and leave.

The earth's veins are newly formed, and everything needs to be rebuilt. There is still much to be done. If a war breaks out, it will only result in mutual destruction. Not fighting today is the best outcome. Moreover, it is unrealistic for the three sect leaders to stay at sea for long. We must take advantage of their presence to consolidate the earth's veins and construct the grand formation.

Cheng Xinzhan invited Baoyuan Zhenren into the great formation.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

On the other side, the Great Sage Who Overturned the Seas did not return to the distant sea, but instead led a group of demon kings towards the Yin Sea.

"Golden Armor, Xuan Ye, Dushan."

The Great Sage Who Overturned the Seas called out three names.

"My subordinate is here."

The King of Alligator, the King of Viper, and the King of Ao responded in unison.

"I was caught off guard today, so I can't really make a move. The families in Yuzhang are very united, and three of their leaders came at once. Baoyuan brought the Dragon-Slaying Sword, and I don't know what the other two brought. As for the Mirage Mother, she's been fighting fiercely with the Green Robe of the South Sea lately, so she probably can't spare the time. I can only swallow this anger for now."

"They've paid such a high price; they can't just be holding their ground. They're definitely going to expand outwards. But if I don't make a move, those three won't make one either. So for the foreseeable future, you and the three families adjacent to Fire Dragon Island have to guard your territory well. Especially the Golden Armor; that 1,500-mile stretch of ley lines happens to be right on the northern border of your Great Belly Sea."

"As ordered!"

The three of them said in unison.

After saying this, the Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas stopped to the east of the Yin Island and did not approach it.

Seeing this, Han Wang took the initiative to ask a question.
"Great Sage, aren't we going to save the Three Corpses? Cheng Chu and Zhen Xie are there. They seem to have a way to counter the formation of the Earth Yin Island. Those three seem to be struggling to hold on."

Upon hearing this, the Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas scoffed. Looking at the scene of countless fish and shrimp dying due to the Ghostly Demon Crow Formation's contamination of the seawater, he replied...

"They're all idiots, thinking they have some amazing backup plan, but in the end, the enemy didn't lose a single hair, while countless of their own people died. Never mind that for now, they won't learn their lesson without suffering some physical pain. Besides, who told you they couldn't hold out? They can hold out, it just depends on how much they're willing to pay."

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(End of this chapter)