No taboos

Chapter 480 Shanhaiguan

"I'll charge in!"

If someone is unfamiliar with this, they would definitely think that this is just the recklessness of a martial arts practitioner.

Mr. Feng knew, however, that his senior brother's disciple did indeed possess such abilities.

For Zang Tianlan, this was the quickest and most effective way to solve the problem.

Moreover, once the extraordinary phenomenon is activated, he will gain an additional layer of protection and a divine power!
This "protection" lasted long enough for him to storm into the corrupt world, resolve the problem, and then calmly withdraw without being corrupted by it.

But Mr. Feng still shook his head.

"Our primary task now is to guard this gate and prevent evil spirits from passing through."

Mr. Feng Si pointed to the surging waters of the River of Oblivion and said, "Take a closer look."

Zang Tianlan stared wide-eyed at the layer of gray-blue light behind him.

In fact, Xu Yuan had already discovered that a whirlpool would occasionally appear in this River of Oblivion.

Xu Yuan didn't understand why this was happening.

The waters of the River of Oblivion are said to sink everything.

Once the soul falls in, it will sink to the bottom of the river forever, with no chance of reincarnation.

This vortex, however, seems to be created by something stirring the water.

After observing for a moment, Zang Tianlan saw through the muddy water and discovered a circular black shadow hidden within.

He roared in fury, "It's the Forgotten River Turtle!"

Mr. Feng continued, "That's what makes it unusual!"

Xu Yuan suddenly remembered that his father had mentioned something called "Wangchuan Turtle" to him a long time ago.

It is the only "living being" in the River of Oblivion, and also part of the Underworld's government.

In fact, the "Forget-River Turtle" was a tacit understanding between the Heavenly Court and the Underworld in the early days; it was a backdoor in the rules.

If some unusual souls are cast into the River of Oblivion—for whatever reason—then the River of Oblivion turtles will carry them on their backs.

They may drift in the vast River of Oblivion for countless years, but they will eventually be rescued.

Therefore, there were various legends among the people of the Ming Dynasty, such as a kind couple who had no children who would by chance fish a wooden basin out of the river, and in the basin was a chubby, clever and cute baby.

In the future, the infants who grow up will be exceptionally intelligent and will achieve the highest honors in the imperial examinations.

People say that the baby was the reincarnation of a star deity from heaven.

Whether it is the Star Lord is unknown. If the Wangchuan Turtle carries a soul, it will drift along and inexplicably drift into a river in the mortal world.

Therefore, the Wangchuan Turtle looks just like a broken wooden basin.

When it retracts its head, feet, and tail, anyone who sees it will think it's an inanimate object.

However, the City God of Lucheng has completely degenerated into an evil spirit.

It's plausible that it secretly brought out a portion of the River of Oblivion from the underworld back then.

The fact that the Forgotten River Water contains the Forgotten Turtle is already somewhat problematic.

The Forgotten River Turtle is a loophole in the rules of the Forgotten River!
In the entire underworld, only a handful of beings at the highest levels can command the respect and assistance of the Forgotten River Turtle!

To put it bluntly, if the City God of Lucheng were to stand by the River of Oblivion and want to see the River of Oblivion Turtle, he would have to "beg for an audience."

Moreover, the Forgotten River Turtle will almost certainly ignore him.

After the City God of Lucheng fell from grace, it became even less likely that he could command the Forgotten River Turtle.

The underworld officials also deeply abhor evil spirits.

Yin energy is the foundation of everything in the underworld.

Both the underworld and the mortal realm believed that evil spirits had stolen the yin energy and allowed it to flow into the turbid and mortal realms.

After these yin energies were stolen, some terrible changes occurred.

Although the underworld officials can cleanse the filthy realm, if they stay there for too long, they too will fall into evil and become malevolent spirits.

It is because of these changes.

The underworld needs to purify the stolen yin energy to reclaim it.

But now, the Forgotten Turtle has appeared in the Forgotten River waters of the Turbid Realm!
"Who from the underworld stands behind the City God of Lucheng?!"

Xu Yuan uttered an angry question, but had no one to question him.

With a stern face, Mr. Feng quickly sorted out the five highest-ranking officials in the Underworld, for only they could command the Forgotten River Turtle!
But it's impossible to determine who it is.

This matter must be reported to the teacher.

This will seriously affect the teacher's judgments about the underworld.

Mr. Feng slowly said, "No wonder the City God of Lucheng is so ambitious, wanting to drag three cities and nearly a million people directly into the mortal realm."

The Forgotten River Turtle also possesses immense strength.

"It will bear the weight of these three cities; once this gateway is opened, neither Champa, Lucheng, nor Liancheng will be able to withstand it."

Even Zang Tianlan dared not boast about "rushing over" anymore.

The Forgotten River Turtle is simply the nemesis of martial arts practitioners.

Mr. Feng said again, "Block this door!"

He felt fortunate: "Luckily, the Forgotten River Turtle is on our side. If it were in Lotus City... Lotus City probably wouldn't have been able to be defended."

Zang Tianlan stepped forward, grasped the coffin piled up like a memorial archway with both hands, roared and exerted all his strength to pull the coffin out.

This portal is made up of coffins, so if these coffins are dismantled, the portal will fall apart.

But on the other side of the gate, in the turbid chamber, the waters of the River of Oblivion surged up with a whoosh.

It submerged the side of the entrance hall.

This time, everyone clearly saw a giant turtle shaped like a wooden basin appear in the waters of the River of Oblivion.

Zang Tianlan's veins bulged all over his body, but he couldn't pull the coffin out.

Even in terms of strength, he was no match for the Forgotten River Turtle.

The Forgotten River Turtle swayed its enormous body.

Inside the mortuary, the coffin archways shook violently with a rumbling sound.

The gray-blue barrier light began to loosen.

Mr. Feng's face changed drastically: "You beast!"

He quickly took out a transparent glass concave mirror. Then he took out a lantern.

The lantern was lit, and its warm yellow light shone through the concave mirror onto the door.

This layer of light finally helped stabilize the portal.

However, the Wangchuan Turtle, which had already appeared in the turbid space, charged towards the gate barrier a second time without any hesitation.

boom--

Mr. Feng's face grew even uglier, wondering how much longer his craftsmanship could last.

Zang Tianlan gritted his teeth and said, "Let me go. At least I can hold out for a while."

Mr. Feng glanced at him. This disciple of the eldest brother could have gone there and come back alive.

Although he was no match for the Forgotten River Turtle, it would not be easy for the Forgotten River Turtle to kill a third-rate martial artist who had cultivated an extraordinary form.

But if Zang Tianlan goes and comes back, I'm afraid his standards will drop drastically!
There is no hope of ever returning to the upper class in this lifetime!

But the senior disciple had said that his prized disciple had the potential to break into the second tier.

Mr. Feng was caught in a dilemma.

"Gentlemen," Xu Yuan, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up, "Can the City God of Lucheng and the Wangchuan Turtle represent the will of the entire Underworld?"

Mr. Feng instinctively replied, "Of course not. If the underworld held this attitude, the world would have been in chaos long ago. As long as they stop accepting souls, the souls of the dead lingering in the mortal world will all turn into monsters after a few nights!"
Moreover, they won't accept gold or silver, and we've long since lost the means to control the evil spirits of the mortal realm…”

At this point, Mr. Feng suddenly realized something, turned to look at Xu Yuan, and saw that the other man's eyes were strange and gleaming.

“You mean…” Mr. Feng probed.

Xu Yuan nodded: "They do not represent the entire underworld, but are merely the private actions of the entity behind the City God of Lucheng."

We can then send the golden seal back to the City God Temple and ask the underworld soldiers to cleanse the filthy world!
Then the Forgotten Turtle will inevitably be exposed, and the entire underworld will know that someone is secretly plotting something!

The underworld will surely recall the Forgotten River Turtle.

Zang Tianlan was overjoyed, and his impression of Xu Yuan improved greatly: This kid is smart!

“That’s a good idea!” Zang Tianlan immediately agreed.

Mr. Feng glanced at his junior apprentice again and said slowly, "But it will take time for the City God to take office and for the ghostly soldiers to pass through. I'm afraid we won't be able to hold out for long."

In other words, before the Underworld recalls the Forgotten River Turtle, they need to find a way to withstand another wave of attacks.

Zang Tianlan patted his chest without hesitation: "I can hold this beast off!"

Mr. Feng's voice was deep yet clear: "Do you know what this trip means?"

Zang Tianlan thought for a moment and then said, "If the underworld is slow to arrive, I might be severely injured by this beast and have to be forced to retreat."

Then his skill level dropped, and he remained a fourth-rate person for the rest of his life.

Mr. Feng: "Do you know the pain of a drop in skill level that can never be improved again?"

"I know." Zang Tianlan's voice lowered a bit: "With my personality, I don't know how many people I've offended over the years."

Those who were originally inferior to me could only endure it, but from now on, they'll probably all jump in front of me and humiliate me in every way possible.

Zang Tianlan scratched his head in frustration: "Just thinking about it is infuriating enough!"

Mr. Feng: "Then are you still going? You are a disciple of the Imperial Censor, the third generation of pillars of the family. If you don't want to, no one can force you."

“Go! Of course I’ll go!” Zang Tianlan replied without hesitation.

Why go?

Zang Tianlan's reasoning was simple: "If I don't go, we won't be able to hold on."

Xu Yuan's opinion of Zang Tianlan also improved significantly.

He doesn't have that many grand principles.

It looks like the usual behavior of martial arts practitioners: reckless!
But there is another, more glorious way to put it: righteousness!

Zang Tianlan moved his body, his aura rising steadily, the skin on his forehead twitching, and his horizontal eye about to open!

"Fourth Uncle, Junior Brother Xu, don't look so sad." Zang Tianlan was optimistic: "Maybe the underworld will come soon and I won't be in such a bad situation. The way you look at me now makes it seem like I'm never coming back."

Neither Mr. Feng nor Xu Haoran spoke.

When it comes to matters involving the Forgotten Turtle, things won't be quick for the Underworld.

Moreover, the City God of Lucheng has rebelled, and the one who resides at Diqiu has degenerated into an evil spirit, which has been going on for decades.

Those in the underworld knew perfectly well what was going on.

Why haven't we sent troops to fight this?
In retrospect, it was the person behind the City God of Lucheng who used tricks to cause the underworld to turn a blind eye to the City God of Lucheng.

So this time, the one behind it will definitely cooperate with the City God of Lucheng.

To delay the time for the City God to take office.

After a long silence, Lord Xu suddenly said, "Brother Zang, please wait."

Xu Yuan arrived at the door: "Let me try it first..."

"You?" Zang Tianlan's tone was clearly skeptical.

But unlike Dong Daiyun's disdainful questioning, Zang Tianlan's questioning was immediately clear, stemming entirely from a consideration of both parties' levels of competence.

Xu Yuan is only a fifth-rate person on the surface.

It's difficult enough to protect oneself in the turbid realm, let alone stop the Forgotten Turtle in the past. Xu Yuan didn't make any definitive statements, only saying, "I'll try, perhaps I can buy some time."

But we might still need Senior Brother Zang's help.

In any case, Mr. Feng never intended to go up himself.

Mr. Feng firmly believes that the greatest value of our craftsmanship lies not on the battlefield.

A living craftsman is far more valuable than a dead one—regardless of why he died.

Zang Tianlan warned, "This beast is no ordinary creature. Without the physical strength of a fourth-rate martial artist, you wouldn't be able to withstand even a single blow."

Moreover, this thing possesses special, unorthodox techniques at the soul level…

Xu Yuan knew that no matter how much he explained, it wouldn't be as effective as showing them the facts.

Then, from the shadows behind, the "Dream Come True" carriage creaked and groaned its way out.

Xu Yuan connected with "Lingxiao" and forcibly injected his thoughts into the mind of the Wangchuan Turtle.

Just as the Forgotten River Turtle was about to launch another attack on the barrier between the two sides, a thought suddenly popped into its head: it didn't want to do that.

Then the enormous body slid down, and even the waters of the River of Oblivion that had submerged the gate on the other side of the Necromancer's Gate receded.

Mr. Feng and Zang Tianlan suddenly realized: "So it's Lingxiao!"

Even those from the highest echelons of society know of Lingxiao's existence.

However, not all those at the top three levels have the means to influence Lingxiao.

For example, Zang Tianlan only has defensive measures against Lingxiao.

Anyone who tries to influence Lingxiao's will by starting with him is destined to fail.

However, martial arts practitioners, whether in terms of methods or temperament, are not adept at controlling the heavens.

Zang Tianlan had no means of attacking from Lingxiao.

But Mr. Feng Si has it.

He once crafted five artifacts capable of interfering with the heavens.

I only brought one item this time.

Unfortunately, due to limitations in the quality of the materials, although Mr. Feng Si's craftsmanship was superb, the power of these few crafted items could not be described as great.

The Forgotten River Turtle is clearly a top-tier creature and must possess corresponding methods.

Mr. Feng had never planned to start with Lingxiao to resolve this crisis.

When Xu Yuan did this, Mr. Feng shook his head inwardly: "A newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger..."

Facing the top three, do they want to launch a sneak attack from "Lingxiao"?
Xu Yuan probably thought that since he had used Lingxiao's methods before and was invincible, he could conquer the world.

But the Forgotten River Turtle was not one of the opponents he had encountered before.

Mr. Feng reached into his pocket and took out a silver needle.

These silver needles can pierce through the void barrier and penetrate into the "Lingxiao" (a celestial abode).

It was the most powerful of all the artifacts he crafted related to Lingxiao.

He secretly prepared himself to intervene if Xu Yuan was injured by the Wangchuan Turtle's counterattack, so that Xu Yuan could retreat safely.

The Forgotten River Turtle was caught off guard and was successfully ambushed by Xu Yuan.

But with preparation, the second time shouldn't happen...

Then, the Forgotten River Turtle shook its head and swayed, its sinister eyes gleaming coldly, before crashing into us again with waves of water.

Then it felt like being hit on the head with a club.

Suddenly, I lost my sense of direction and almost fell into the underworld messengers and evil spirits next to me!

"Huh!" Mr. Feng exclaimed in surprise, suddenly realizing something: Xu Yuan's interference with "Lingxiao" was different from his own craftsmanship.

Or rather... he's different from the vast majority of the top three tiers!

For example, the silver needle in Mr. Feng's hand needs to pierce through the barrier of the void before it can enter the "spirit realm".

However, the barriers between the Heavenly Palace and the various chambers far exceed those between the chambers themselves.

In other words, the greatest effort in crafting these silver needles was focused on this step.

All the best materials were used for this purpose.

Therefore, less effort and resources were naturally invested in the second part, which involved interfering with Lingxiao.

It's not that we don't want to invest, but the materials that can be used to craft this type of item are simply too rare.

The top three ranks all have corresponding defensive measures against Lingxiao.

It is in a state of "insufficient offense, but no worries about defense".

Mr. Feng felt that wasting energy and resources in this area was not worth the effort.

He assumed that the Wangchuan Turtle, which was of equally high quality, must be the same.

However, Xu Yuan's two successes changed Mr. Feng's opinion.

"That's it!" Mr. Feng suddenly understood: "To put it bluntly, the Wangchuan Turtle is a beast in the underworld."

People use animal power to work, but they don't teach animals anything too advanced.

Even if someone were bored enough to want to teach it, it would be incredibly difficult for the Wangchuan Turtle to understand the concept of 'Lingxiao'...

Those in power in the underworld must also have methods to target Lingxiao.

But the Forgotten River Turtle did not.

For the first time, Xu Yuan inserted a thought into the mind of the Forgotten River Turtle, disrupting its train of thought.

The second time, the Forgotten River Turtle learned its lesson and was wary of Lord Xu's trick. So Lord Xu changed his methods and used the power of Lingxiao to deliver a "slap on the head" to the Forgotten River Turtle's consciousness!
Unlike Mr. Feng, Zang Tianlan did not see through so many intricacies.

But he knew that Xu Yuan's method was effective!

"It works!"

Xu Yuan then tossed out the golden seal of the City God of Champa: "Quickly send it to the City God Temple!"

Zang Tianlan grabbed it: "I'll go myself!"

He strode away and arrived in an instant, solemnly placing the golden seal in the hands of the City God statue.

Then a force, like the gentle strumming of a zither or the rippling of waves, travels towards the unknown and mysterious.

An ancient agreement has been activated.

Zang Tianlan thought for a moment, stood under the statue, clasped his hands and bowed deeply, and said in a booming voice: "I bow to you to ask you to set off quickly and help the head of the Exorcism Bureau in Champa."

I advise you not to be ungrateful!
Otherwise, if I ever reach the highest level of cultivation, I'll come find you in the underworld!

After saying that, Zang Tianlan stopped looking at the statue on the shrine, turned around abruptly, and stepped out of the City God Temple.

He hasn't used "I" to refer to himself for a long time; he only speaks with that accent when facing his teacher and grandmaster.

Inside the mortuary, Xu Yuan used various methods to repeatedly thwart the Forgotten River Turtle at the level of consciousness.

These methods, however, seem to make it look like they're toying with the Wangchuan Turtle!
This enraged the Forgotten River Turtle and the surrounding underworld officials and evil spirits.

Mr. Feng Si also noticed something else: Xu Yuan's methods in "Lingxiao" are extremely powerful!

It far surpasses his own craftsmanship.

The top three factions of the Imperial Ming Dynasty did not have powerful "Lingxiao" attack methods, firstly because it was difficult to break through the barrier between "Yangjian" and "Lingxiao", and secondly because... the top three factions all had their own foundations.

They were already accustomed to their existing skills and methods.

They felt awkward and thought it was a waste of their energy to put so much effort into the "Lingxiao" level.

But Xu Yuan has clearly invested a huge amount in Lingxiao.

The "Dreams Come True" carriage merely served as a bridge of communication between Xu Yuan and Ling Xiao.

The real agents who carried out Xu Yuan's orders were his other methods within "Lingxiao".

But Mr. Feng couldn't figure out what method it was.

I didn't intend to investigate it in detail.

Knowing that Xu Yuan could restrain the Forgotten Turtle was enough.

The evil spirit of the underworld had reached its limit. Suddenly, it brandished more than a dozen deformed "limbs" on its body and roared at the Wangchuan turtle.

This action enraged the Forgotten River Turtle.

The cold eyes suddenly turned to the evil spirits of the underworld.

Inside the body of the evil spirit from the underworld, the soul was immediately scorched by a cold, emerald-green flame!

It collapsed to the ground in agony, rolling around.

But because of this, a powerful consciousness suddenly appeared, like an invisible octopus, stretching out its thick tentacles from afar.

In an instant, even through the barrier between the two rooms, everyone in the mortuary saw a powerful figure casting a concerned glance at them.

He was dressed in the official robes of the City God, and his long arms, which were so distorted that it was impossible to tell whether they were claws or tentacles, held a golden seal of the City God.

It is slightly smaller than the one in Champa.

Its features are now blurred and indistinct, constantly radiating outwards messages of madness, evil, and distortion.

It stands on a huge mound of earth, with various broken stone tablets and tomb guardian beasts faintly visible below.

The burial mound has collapsed countless times, and in some places, even the corner of the ancient tomb chamber beneath the earthen mound has been exposed.

In the distance, the mountains are steep and the towering peaks form a formidable pass.

Above the gate are three large characters: Shanhaiguan!

The walls were covered with dark, sticky, wriggling plants.

It's hard to tell whether it's ivy or some kind of thorn.

Above the wall, several huge shadows rose, with strange eyes constantly emerging from within them.

It could be blood red, emerald green, or dark yellow!
The same cold gaze swept over this place.

On the wall below, countless bizarre and deformed creatures crawled up in dense swarms.

They even incorporate various weapons that were used in the past.

Some of them were exceptionally large, even incorporating bronze cannons and warships!
As the City God of Lucheng paid attention, Xu Yuan suddenly felt that a passage had been torn open between Zhuojian and Lingxiao.

A malevolent thought from the City God of Lucheng crept in!
Mr. Feng seemed to sense something, and his expression changed as he said, "Xiao Xu, if you can't hold on, get out quickly!"

Never let your consciousness be impaired!

Zang Tianlan rubbed his hands together, eager to get started: "You've held on for so long, now it's my turn!"

Xu Yuan did not retreat.

Since the battle was to be decided in the Lingxiao Palace, Xu Yuan felt that he still had the strength to fight.

The reason why Xu Yuan dared not fight the Great Sage Equaling Heaven was that his consciousness in the Heavenly Palace was originally formed by stealing the power of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

He was born to be suppressed by the Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

However, they did not have this weakness when facing the City God of Lucheng.

The evil thought of the City God of Lucheng rushed in with overwhelming force, but suddenly Xu Yuan's consciousness disappeared.

But then I felt that Xu Yuan's consciousness seemed to be everywhere and high above!
Supreme Self!
Xu Yuan speculated that the "Supreme Self" was formed because of "no taboos".

The City God of Lucheng was immediately filled with fear and hurriedly tried to withdraw that evil thought, but it was too late!

It didn't even know how its evil thought had been annihilated by Xu Yuan!

Suddenly, the City God of Lucheng adopted a posture of listening intently, as if something was giving it a command.

(End of this chapter)