Shushan Earthly Immortal

Chapter 382 The Five Elders' Secret Instructions, Heavenly Dragon Chanting (5.4K words presented, please support with monthly votes at the end of the month~)

"How can it be!"

Looking south, seeing that the three islands of Fire Dragon, Yellow Sulfur, and Red Cloud remained unmoved by the crows, Gu Chen and Red Corpse cried out in alarm once again.

How could outsiders know the secrets of the Ghost Script?

Gu Chen suddenly turned to look at Wu Lao.

Wu Lao sensed the change in Gu Chen's gaze, turned to meet his eyes, and glared angrily.

"What are you looking at me for? If I leaked secrets and betrayed you, would I abandon the island to help you?!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen also realized what was happening. The doubt in his eyes turned into grief and indignation. He felt a tightness in his chest and a splitting headache. He looked up to the sky and roared.

"Who! Who is plotting against us, orchestrating such a grand scheme to cut off our path to survival?!"

"Ha ha ha ha--"

Seeing this, Master Chengchu laughed heartily. She watched the demonic crows soar through the sky, the demonic aura surging like a tide, and observed the wisps of primordial energy clinging to the ghostly scripture. She thought to herself:
They finally decided to spend the money.

If we're talking about who knows the most about Earth Yin Island and the Profound Yin Beast Gathering Banner in this world, Juqu Mountain definitely ranks among the top. Ever since the Three Corpses established their sect, which cultivator on Juqu Mountain, regardless of their cultivation level, age, or gender, hasn't come to fight Earth Yin Island?

Because he was so familiar with the aura of the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner, when Ji Hehe passed on the Ghost Seal stolen by Cheng Xinzhan to Yu Chengchu, this True Man immediately connected the eerie aura emanating from the Ghost Seal with the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner.

It was through further research into that ghostly script that Cheng Chu Zhenren gained a deeper understanding of the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner.

For a long time, to be precise, since the 438th year of the Ming Dynasty, for the past 31 years, Master Cheng Chu and everyone on Juqu Mountain have been thinking about how to restrain the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner and the Di Yin Island Grand Array. Do not underestimate the determination of a contemporary immortal sect to seek revenge, and even less should you underestimate the ability of an immortal mountain that bears the name of the Three Mountains of Talismans.

At this moment, seeing that Gu Chen had revealed his most hidden trump card, the Profound Yin Gathering Beast Banner, True Person Cheng Chu finally stopped holding back. He spread his left palm flat in front of his chest, made a hand seal with his right hand, and then a beam of spiritual light flew out from his left palm, manifesting in the air and condensing into a scroll.

The scroll is one foot wide and twenty feet long. The scroll handle is made of white jade with floating clouds, and the scroll surface is made of three-colored brocade. Judging from its shape, it looks just like an imperial edict.

The imperial edict unfurled in the air, radiating a brilliant light. On it, meticulously and densely written, were ten thousand characters in crimson ink. These characters were neither cloud-patterned clerical script nor thunder-seal script, neither dragon-patterned nor phoenix-patterned, neither insect-script nor bird-script, but rather the true text of the Five Elders' Crimson Jade Chapter from the Shangqing Secret Records, obscure and difficult to understand. Ordinary people, let alone recognize it, had never even seen or heard of it.

This is the magic weapon specially crafted by Juqu Mountain to counter the Xuan Yin Ju Beast Banner, named "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Instruction".

Considering that the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner was forged from the extremely yin and evil elements such as the souls of 100,000 ape bears, 100,000 walking corpses, and 100,000 strands of earthly evil yin threads, and was further refined in the yin and evil qi of the earth's core in Juqu Mountain, it is one of the most powerful and evil magical treasures in the world. Therefore, the "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Instruction" from Juqu Mountain was also extremely painstakingly crafted. It took ten years to observe the banner, ten years to develop the concept and prepare the materials, and ten years to begin the forging process before it was finally completed.

When Juqu Mountain first began refining this treasure, he took into account the earth veins and sea veins beneath Diyin Island, as well as the enhancement that the Jitu Emperor's corpse within the island would provide to the Yin Banner. Therefore, he prepared for a long time. Originally, it was estimated that it would take another two years to complete. However, after Cheng Xinzhan revealed that he could steal the Emperor's corpse and offered up the Ghost Seal, Juqu Mountain's refining speed greatly increased. Even taking the influence of the Ghost Seal into account, he finished the refining ahead of schedule, catching up with the great battle.

This is the moment when the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner is at its most powerful. The Demonic Crow Ghost Script, the core restriction of this magical artifact, is fully released, gathering the power of the Three Seas and Hundred Islands to construct the Ghost Realm Corpse Kingdom. However, at the same time, this is also the banner's most vulnerable moment. Releasing the core restriction, the Ghost Script, is an extremely risky move. If the Ghost Script is destroyed, the ape-bear's soul will be unable to be suppressed, the walking corpses will be unable to be controlled, the Earthly Fiend Yin Silk will be unable to coalesce, and the Earthly Lung Xuanhuang will have nowhere to reside, causing the banner to self-destruct.

Finally, the moment that Cheng Chu Zhenren had been waiting for arrived. She activated her magic weapon, and the "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Decree" shone with a bright red light. The five ancient red jade characters on it detached from the decree one by one. Each red character burst forth with flames and danced in the air, like phoenixes riding fire and clouds, swooping down on the ghostly demon crows.

At the same time, amidst the cries of phoenixes, a sacred and grand chanting arose.
"With sincere devotion, I take refuge in you."

The Yuan Emperor, the supreme ruler, is surrounded by stars in the divine capital.

Holding to the virtue of earth, thus establishing the foundation of the earth.

His achievements matched those of Heaven, and his rule was proclaimed.

It governs from the center and controls the external world, governing the four seasons and eternally guarding the central plains;
Subdue monsters and demons, summon thunder and rain to eradicate the black poison.

Great compassion and great vows, great holiness and great mercy.

Central Yellow Emperor, Xuanling Huanglao,
"The Primordial Lord of Qi, the Master of the Profound Purity Dao."

Amidst the chanting of the sacred proclamation, the yellow-crowned phoenix formed from the Crimson True Text burst into flames, then split into two, and then into four, layer upon layer, staining the void. The flames intertwined, forming a fiery glow that scorched the heavens and boiled the seas. And within this fiery glow, a gigantic human figure, a hundred feet tall, was faintly outlined:
Wearing a five-colored flying crown, a nine-colored brocade robe, a yellow brocade cloud-patterned fur coat, a divine tiger talisman, and a yellow silk seal, he rode a yellow dragon, raised a yellow flag, and commanded 120,000 phoenix officers and generals.

It is the divine form of the Central Yellow Emperor, the Mysterious Spirit, the Yellow Elder, the One Qi Heavenly Lord.

One hundred and twenty thousand phoenixes with crimson script reached from the sky to the sea, swooping down on the demonic crows and ghostly script. Along the way, any spirits of gorillas, walking corpses, and yin threads of earthly evil that tried to obstruct their path vanished upon contact.

"Bang—bang—bang—"

Like a meteor falling to earth, the Crimson Phoenix swooped down on the Ghostly Demon Crow, instantly exploding into a fireball. The Ghostly Demon Crow was burned to nothingness in the true fire, not even escaping the black smoke. The escaping Earthly Primordial Qi was absorbed by the fireball, and then a new Crimson Phoenix was born from the fireball, continuing to swoop down on other Ghostly Demon Crows.

At first, two or three Crimson Phoenixes attacked and killed a Ghostly Demon Crow, but later dozens or even hundreds of Crimson Phoenixes surrounded and attacked the Ghostly Demon Crow. Moreover, this process developed extremely quickly, like a storm that came at sunset in summer. After the rain stopped, the clear wind swept in, the dark clouds were quickly blown away, and the sky was filled with brilliant fiery clouds, with shimmering flames and flowing rosy clouds.

The Ghostly Script Demon Crows quickly collapsed and perished. By the time Gu Chen realized what was happening and tried to retrieve the Ghostly Script, it was too late. The blazing Crimson Phoenix surrounded the Ghostly Script Demon Crows from all directions. No matter how the latter tried to escape, they could not break free and were eventually destroyed.

"boom!"

With a deafening roar, as the last demonic crow and ghostly seal were extinguished, the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner in Gu Chen's Dharma Image exploded, immediately triggering a hurricane-like spiritual roar that swept outwards from the Earth Yin Island, causing the sea waves to surge and the turbulent waves to rise into the sky.

"puff!"

Gu Chen coughed up a large amount of blood, soaking his clothes, and swayed precariously before falling to the ground.

"Red Cloud Scattering Flower Needle!"

"Heavy Rain Pear Blossom Needle!"

Wu Lao and Cui Ying attacked simultaneously, each releasing a set of magical artifacts, all of them flying needles. One set was as red as fire, like a red cloud or a mountain full of azaleas; the other was as white as water, like pear blossoms dancing in the spring rain.

The two sets of flying needles numbered in the tens of millions, combining into a rain of clouds, and struck at the approaching Cheng Chu Zhenren. The two corpses seized the opportunity to catch Gu Chen.

At this moment, the demon banner was destroyed, and the countless bear spirits and walking corpses in the sky were left uncontrolled, standing blankly in the void, at a loss.

Just then, the sound of chanting a Zen prayer suddenly rang out:
"All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows."

Like dew and like lightning, they should be viewed in this way;
You beings of the netherworld, clinging to your suffering, are sinking in the sea of ​​misery;
All the deeds we have done in the past are inherently empty and have no self-nature.
Now that we have encountered the light of Prajna, we can resolve the knots of karmic debts.
The fire of ignorance and afflictions transforms into a red lotus platform;
Greed, anger, ignorance, pride, and doubt are all seeds of Bodhi.
When the karmic winds of the three evil paths cease, the cycle of rebirth in the six realms ends…

As the chanting began, golden clouds emerged in the sky, from which golden lotuses bloomed, and within the lotuses, golden dragons danced in the air, their roars echoing the chanting.

The sound waves surged like a tide, and the Buddha's light shone like a rosy cloud, showering upon the countless spirits of the ape bears and the walking corpses in the sky. In addition, because the island's protective formation had completely perished with the collapse of the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner, the disciples of the Three Corpses Sect on the island and the Yin corpses in the various corpse houses all heard the chanting and were bathed in the Buddha's light.

Guided by this, the spirits regained their light, ascended into the sky, and, stepping on the golden bridge of guidance, left the island of Yin in groups, heading west.

That's the direction of Mount Putuo.

"Heavenly Dragon Chant!"

Gu Chen cried out the name of the chanting voice with a mournful tone, looking at Zen Master Zhenxie with resentment in his eyes.

Zen Master Zhenxie seized the opportunity perfectly, converting countless Yin spirits, completely extinguishing any hope of reforging the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner, and destroying the foundation of the Earth Yin Island in one fell swoop. At the same time, the chanting, falling into the ears of the Three Corpses, was no less than a death-dealing thunderclap, especially shocking the severely injured Gu Chen, causing his internal organs to rupture and blood to flow from his seven orifices.

"Big brother, let's run!"

Cui Ying, also with blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, came to see Gu Chen.

Gu Chen was still putting on a brave face, as if he were immortal. He said viciously,
"Escape? Where can we escape to?"

At this moment, Wu Lao looked behind him and said happily,

"Look, the Great Sage is coming this way! He still wants to save us!"

Gu Chen and Cui Ying turned their heads to look and, sure enough, saw the Great Sage Overturning the Sea leading five demon kings. Their faces lit up with joy. However, their joy didn't last long before it froze again, because they saw the Great Sage Overturning the Sea stop not far from Earthly Yin Island!
"What does it mean!"

Cui Ying cried out in despair.

Gu Chen was taken aback at the sight, then seemed to understand, his eyes gradually turning fierce and resolute.
"I understand."

"What has Big Brother understood?"

Wu Lao and Cui Ying asked at the same time.

"The Great Sage wants me to immediately merge with the Dao of the Yin Island."

"Now?" Wu Lao and Cui Ying asked in surprise.

"Right now, the Blood Lord is in the north, but the southeast coast is dominated by Buddhist and Taoist forces, so we can't cross it. The sea behind us is vast, but it's blocked by the Great Sage, so we have nowhere to go. I can only merge with the Dao on the spot; this is the only way out that the Great Sage has given me!"

Gu Chen said hurriedly.

"But elder brother, you haven't finished transforming the Earthly Yin Island, and you're already seriously injured. If you force yourself to merge with the Dao at this time, the hope is extremely slim, unless you cut off your own path to immortality and do that..."

The Crimson Corpse suddenly stopped speaking. He looked at Gu Chen, then at the Great Sage in the distance, then back at Gu Chen, and said with difficulty,

"Is that what he meant?"

Gu Chen smiled bitterly and nodded.

"Yes, I want to merge with the Dao and become a local immortal."

Time was of the essence. Seeing that Master Cheng Chu had already broken through Wu Lao and Cui Ying's Cloud and Rain Needle Formation, Gu Chen stepped forward again, saying nothing more, only saying,
"This is the only chance for the three of us to survive. I must now merge with the Dao. You must protect me! Hold on for as long as you can!"

After saying that, Gu Chen pushed the two aside and landed on the ground of the Yin Island.

Upon seeing this, the two corpses exchanged a glance, let out a mournful wail, and desperately tried to stop Master Chengchu.

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.

Now let's look at Gu Chen.

After the demonic corpse landed on the island, it sat cross-legged, chanted incantations, and then pressed several acupoints on its body. Immediately, a bizarre scene unfolded:
The corpse of the demon was like a snowman exposed to light, or solidified wax exposed to heat; it slowly melted away!
The corpse fluid flowed slowly and then dissolved into the soil. In no time, only a seated skeleton remained on the spot. A nascent soul sat in the skeleton's chest cavity, and a primordial spirit floated in the skull.

But this did not stop there. After the flesh melted away, the skeleton continued to melt, and the primordial spirit and nascent soul began to slowly merge, transforming into an embryo-shaped ball of light, which sank into the earth along with the melting flesh.

At the same time, it began to rain, a dark and chilling rain.

The rain thoroughly soaked Diyin Island, and at the same time, the island began to slowly transform into Gu Chen's Corpse Kingdom Dao Domain, becoming more and more like it. Meanwhile, his Dao Domain was also slowly solidifying, gradually merging with Diyin Island, making it impossible to tell whether the Dao Domain first became the island, or the island first became the Dao Domain.

A sinister and decaying aura permeated the island, as if it were nurturing some kind of evil.

"what!"

In the midst of this transformation, a scream rang out from Cui Ying. She had been struck by the "Northern Star Measuring Ruler" unleashed by True Immortal Cheng Chu. In an instant, everything below Cui Ying's neck turned to dust. Even her nascent soul didn't have time to escape, instantly dissipating. Only her head fell onto the Yin Island, its fate unknown.

"Madam Cui!"

Seeing this, Wu Lao cried out in pain. However, he himself was also in grave danger. His avatar was surrounded by the six Buddhist beads of Zen Master Zhenxie, while his true self was enveloped by the "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Decree" of True Man Chengchu, which still had some power left after destroying the Xuan Yin Gathering Beast Banner. His room for maneuver was becoming increasingly limited.

At this moment, Wu Lao saw that after Cheng Chu Zhenren knocked Cui Ying down, he walked towards the island. It was unclear whether he intended to kill Cui Ying or to prevent Gu Chen from achieving Dao.

Fight!

Wu Lao knew he had reached a dead end, so he hardened his heart and made a decision.

Immediately, Wu Lao's avatar, which was surrounded by the Dragon Girl's six pearls, suddenly shone brightly, then trembled violently, emitting an aura of world destruction.

"Oh no, he's going to destroy his Dragon Ball avatar!"

Zen Master Zhenxie immediately realized what was happening and hurriedly removed the six Dragon Maiden Pearls. These were not his own treasures, but the most prized possessions of Hidden Dragon Mountain; damaging them would be difficult to explain. At the same time, the Zen Master himself conjured a brocade kasaya, which transformed into a giant curtain hanging down in front of him.

Seeing the Dragon Girl's six pearls fly away, Wu Lao used his last bit of willpower and the fastest speed to fly towards True Person Cheng Chu, blocking his way. Seeing this, True Person also dared not easily intercept them, and immediately withdrew the "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Decree," also blocking in front of himself, while flying backward.

"boom!"

With a deafening roar, Wu Lao's avatar, forged from the Four Realms Brocade Dragon Pearl, exploded. Black cracks appeared in the void, which then immediately recovered, creating visible ripples that rippled outwards, followed by flames and lightning.

The Dharma Waves struck the sky, scattering the flowing clouds; they struck the sea, stirring up giant waves. They struck the brocade kasaya and the "Shangqing Jade Treasure Primordial Spirit Secret Decree," forcing the two fifth-realm great cultivators back hundreds of feet.

The protective magical artifacts of the True Man and the Zen Master were damaged to varying degrees, but the man himself was unharmed. After the aftershocks subsided and he calmed his surging blood and qi, he launched another joint attack. They had all seen that Gu Chen was forcibly merging with the Dao, attempting to transform into a local immortal. Although this was a dead end, they were determined to eliminate the demon completely, killing it if possible, and naturally did not want the demon to continue to live.

At this moment, two Fifth Realm experts attacked, while Gu Chen was in the Dao Integration stage, and Cui Ying's fate was unknown. Chi Shi was truly in despair.

Just then, a dark shadow suddenly appeared in the void and blocked the way for the True Man and the Zen Master.

"You two should have vented your anger enough. Why don't you give me face and leave now?"

The visitor was none other than the Great Sage Who Overturned the Seas.

Upon hearing this, Master Chengchu flew into a rage and began to curse.

"You old dragon, how come your face is so valuable? I gave you face thirty years ago, and now I have to give you face again thirty years later?"

After saying this, the real man had no intention of saying anything more to Dai Yuxiang and continued to swing the measuring ruler to strike.

The Great Sage of the Overturning Sea felt a slight headache, because True Person Chengchu was the youngest of the five realms among the various clans, and also had the most explosive temper; he really did want to fight whenever he wanted. As for the other clans, they were older, and when they fought, they always had too many concerns. Some were afraid of leaking their energy and not being able to suppress the Ascension Tribulation; some were afraid of depleting their essence and affecting their lifespan; some were afraid that if they were injured, it would affect the inheritance of their sect; and some were afraid that the battle would be too loud, destroying mountains and rivers and incurring karmic consequences.

Only Cheng Chu Zhenren of the Shangqing School could fight in the sea without any worries.

Last time they threatened to stir up waves, but this time they have no other options.

The Dragon King sighed inwardly, waved his hand, and retreated—he also had his concerns, and was reluctant to take action unless absolutely necessary.

"clang!"

A pair of golden maces held up the real person's ruler.

The alligator king's golden armor rustled, radiating a powerful dragon aura. At sea, as a descendant of dragons, the alligator king was truly not afraid of a True Person of the Fifth Realm when it came to strength.

"Shh!"

A bit of cold light arrived first, and then the gun came out like a dragon.

Han Wang, wielding a gleaming silver spear, took the initiative to attack, thrusting it at the True Man.

At the same time, a golden dragon and a white dragon also appeared to block the two dharma forms of the true man.

The King of Ao also summoned his Dharma form, which was a Baxia dragon, but he did not participate in the battle; he simply protected the Yin Island firmly.

On the other side, the King of the Snake and the King of the Loach blocked Zen Master Zhenxie's way.

However, Zen Master Zhenxie showed no intention of making a move. He simply stood behind True Person Chengchu, ready to support him at any moment. The Zen Master felt he was getting old and didn't want to engage in meaningless and fruitless fights. To be honest, it was truly a difficult situation for the Dragon King to protect someone at sea unless he forced all the righteous masters to come out.

After about fifteen minutes, the black rain on the island gradually subsided, but the eerie, decaying atmosphere on the island grew stronger. Finally, the scenery on the island stopped changing and became completely fixed.

At that moment, a flash of blood-red light appeared on the island and solidified into a human shape.

It was Gu Chen.

At this moment, Gu Chen seemed as if he had never been injured. His aura merged with that of the Earthly Yin Island, and he returned to his peak.

Gu Chen was fully aware of the situation on the island, but after reappearing, he did not go to fight Cheng Chu Zhenren. Instead, he flew to the Great Sage Fu Hai behind him and respectfully bowed.
"Thank you for your help, Great Sage."

The Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas felt that something good had finally happened today. He nodded with a smile, helped Gu Chen up, and said with a laugh.
"Alright, alright, from now on you can focus on your cultivation at sea. I'm getting old and don't want to deal with trivial matters anymore, so I'll have to rely on you to do more."

"As ordered."

"Alright, alright, it's just a short-lived dog, why are you so happy? That laugh is disgusting. That's enough, we've had our fun today, let's go!"

Master Cheng Chu made a mocking remark, then laughed three times, collected all the magical treasures, and turned to leave.

Zen Master Zhenxie smiled, chanted a Buddhist prayer, and then departed as well.

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(End of this chapter)