From a martial arts disciple to a god through countless trials and tribulations

Chapter 369 Tao Hongchen (Part 2)
Smoke curls from the main hall of Qingnang.

Chen Xuan gazed at the statue of the Nine Heavens Mystic Goddess in the hall. Her face was perfect, sacred and inviolable. After a moment, Chen Xuan withdrew his gaze and looked at Old Zhang again.

“Senior Zhang, it seems you have something you want to say to me,” he asked.

Old Zhang, as sluggish as a piece of rotten wood, thought for a moment, then gave a thumbs up and finally said, "You lad, you have good comprehension; you already have the potential to become an immortal."

"Just immortals?" Chen Xuan asked with a smile.

"Hmm??" Old Zhang stared at the arrogant Chen Xuan with a strange expression: "Young man, you have quite the big mouth."

"I was just joking," Chen Xuan said, waving his hand.

Old Zhang stared at Chen Xuan, who looked confident, and after a long silence, said, "As everyone knows, Xinzhai cannot become an immortal... Abandoned Xinzhai is still Xinzhai."

This is the fundamental reason why the Celestial Palace once paid attention to Chen Xuan, but didn't care too much about him.

"So?" Chen Xuan asked.

"Good luck," Old Zhang said after thinking for a moment. He had something to say... The Mountain Spirit's path has now only reached the level of a True Lord. And Chen Xuan is destined to never become an immortal; he has almost no chance to push the new path that the Mountain Spirit keeps trying to take to a higher level.

But now that things have come to this, there's no need to say it... In the end, the other party has decided to ascend to godhood, and the die is cast.

"Thank you for your kind words. Get some rest." Chen Xuan then waved his hand and left.

As he stepped out of the main hall, he glanced back and saw that Old Zhang was weak and had been clinging to life with the Longevity Water, but he probably wouldn't make it through the autumn.

"I may not follow the path that the Empress Mountain Spirit hoped for. Her path is far from perfect. Let's see how it goes."

This is what Chen Xuan was thinking as he descended the mountain.

He found the draft of the Divine Travel Sutra in the Empress's "Mountain Spirit Law" quite appealing, and he agreed with some of its ideas, so he used it first.

"This method takes itself as a blessed land and does not rely on the land of ascension... It is not a good path to rely on external lands of ascension for spiritual travel."

Chen Xuan knew that this path originated from ancient mountain gods such as celestial deities and earth gods, but the world of mountains and seas had long since collapsed and times had changed, making this method of cultivation somewhat out of touch with the times.

Of the methods he obtained from the Imperial Daughter, the Mountain Spirit's Journey was still rather crude.

However, the Mountain Spirit Goddess of today should have been improved to a more complete state.

After all, the Mountain Spirit Goddess once built a temple in Guyao Mountain, but Guyao Mountain is now in Chen Xuan's hands, and he no longer needs to ascend to the sacred ground.

"Although the Divine Body of the Cauldron is strong, it cannot bear much immortal energy. The disadvantage of the Mountain Ghost Path is very obvious."

Chen Xuan thought to himself, "Fortunately, I have the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body as my foundation. Even without ascending to the Divine Land, I am still not afraid of any divine journey."

Seven or eight out of ten of the strength of a Divine Traveler lies in the Ascension to Godhood realm. But Chen Xuan can forgo this advantage because the Five Treasures Martial Immortal Body gives him enough confidence.

"The Mountain Spirit Scripture is the same as the Great Karma Technique of Xinzhaitian. It belongs to the one-person method of the 'immortals' and is difficult for outsiders to cultivate."

However, in the past two months, Chen Xuan has fully digested the draft of the Divine Travel Scripture and made extensive revisions to make it a personal law that suits him.

"This is the path I want to take."

Chen Xuan muttered to himself, "The Mountain Spirit Scripture, after extensive revisions, only perfectly suits me for now. Perhaps it should be renamed the Chen Xuan Scripture."

……

Yan Yushu had been waiting for a long time in the teahouse.

"I didn't expect you to be so impatient." She said, knowing that Chen Xuan was about to undergo the tribulation of the mortal world, so she had never left and was determined to "protect" Chen Xuan.

At this moment, she wore an elegant black dress, like a bewitching enchantress, untouched by the world's grime. Her skin was so smooth it seemed to drip with moisture, and her pair of shimmering fox eyes were captivating and alluring, possessing an irresistible charm that could make anyone fall for her.

“There’s no time like the present, let’s begin.” Chen Xuan replied with a smile. He has been practicing Qi cultivation for five years now.

Achieving godhood in five years—that speed is astonishing.

It should be noted that in the past, it would take at least ten years for immortals to escape the mortal world, but Chen Xuan succeeded in just five years. Moreover, he rose step by step from humble beginnings, which is truly astonishing.

"Your comprehension is so high that it's the envy of others. If it were me, it would take at least two or three years to have a chance to master the Divine Travel Scripture," Yan Yushu sighed. Moreover, if she encountered an insurmountable hurdle, it might take even longer.

In fact, she was unaware that Chen Xuan had not only mastered, but had also completely modified the Empress's Divine Travel Scripture to suit his own needs.

"I'm going into seclusion," Chen Xuan replied calmly, displaying the demeanor of a grandmaster.

At this moment, the sky is bright and clear, and when the breeze blows, the bells under the eaves of the teahouse ring out crisply and melodiously, creating a peaceful and serene atmosphere.

Soon, Chen Xuan returned to his secluded meditation room.

Yan Yushu remained where she was, keeping a close eye on Chen Xuan's progress toward godhood. Once she sensed the impending calamity in the mortal world, she would immediately "enter his dream" to protect him.

"As long as he survives the tribulation of ascending to godhood, he will be out of danger for the time being." Hua Liuli came over and muttered to herself meaningfully.

Her face was bright and dignified, her eyes sparkling. She wore a semi-transparent, hazy gauze dress, her breasts high and firm, wrapped in a plain white bodice outlined with gold thread. Her slender waist was tied with a jade belt, making her a captivating and breathtaking sight.

Yan Yushu turned her gaze back and asked, "You heard the sounds of those things too?"

“We, the chosen ones, are fortunate to have avoided some risks thanks to the blessing of Xinzhai. However, those malicious intentions are always a lingering shadow. Xinzhai has been lost, but it will one day make a comeback.”

Hua Liuli continued, "In the Destiny Space, I often hear the whispers of things. This is our destiny, which we cannot avoid."

Despite countless deductions, the correct solution remains elusive, and no one can stop the malice of destiny from descending.

“During the Mountain and Sea Banquet, the Chosen Ones have repeatedly ‘lost control,’ and they have already taken notice of Chen Xuan,” Yan Yushu said.

She also sensed the approaching malice of destiny once again, so for more than a year after the Mountain and Sea Banquet ended, she dared not use her destiny ability at all, and almost never went in.

"They've prepared a way to take revenge on Xinzhai," Hua Liuli muttered to herself. She had vaguely heard the distant malice of destiny discussing "Xinzhai's remains," and so on.

"But once Chen Xuan ascends to godhood, things will probably get better."

Both of them spoke to themselves, gazing at the quiet room where Chen Xuan was in seclusion, their expressions both serious.
Yan Yushu patiently awaited the arrival of the tribulation in the mortal world.

however.

The tribulations of the mortal world have yet to arrive.

……

In a quiet room.

Chen Xuan was about to complete the final step of the Divine Travel Scripture. The moment the scripture was completed, he would immediately step into the new realm of Tao Hongchen.

"Finally, it's time to take the last step."

Chen Xuan murmured to himself as his body glowed, scattering Daoist energy. The Heavenly Mandate Immortal Scripture and the Mountain and Sea Immortal Scripture resonated together, jointly propelling the new method forward.

"When chaos opened up the nine orifices, the nine true beings of Niwan all had their own chambers, which are called the responses to emperors..." He murmured the true meaning of the scriptures.

At this moment, within Chen Xuan's heart, kidneys, and internal organs, the Five Elements Gods sat cross-legged, golden characters flowing like rain of light, the power of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth operating in perfect harmony, endlessly regenerating.

In the left eye, the sun hangs high in the sky; in the right eye, the dark moon is hazy.

On his spine, a deity of the Dipper Gods exhaled clouds and mist, emitting the sounds of dragon roars and tiger howls.

Within the soul, a deity of the Plague Department took root, his banner fluttering, solemn and dignified.

Nine celestial deities sat high on the throne, accompanied by a blue dragon riding on auspicious clouds, a phoenix singing in the heavens, and more than ten other mythical beasts from the mountains and seas, as if mountain gods resurrected from ancient history were about to come to the present world.

"hold head high!"

At this moment, Chen Xuan's physical body and soul were like a miniature version of a blessed land. If someone were to sense it carefully, they could see his blood vessels flowing like a surging river and his bones resembling a winding mountain range, which was incredibly magnificent.

"With my body as a blessed land, the place where I stand is the place to ascend to godhood." Chen Xuan felt his heart becoming more and more expansive. This method could free him from the endless suffering of being confined to one place, allowing him to roam freely and unrestrained.

"boom!"

Chen Xuan finally mastered a scripture of the fourth realm. In an instant, the scripture within his body expanded outwards like a ritual, covering an area of ​​over a hundred miles, and the scope of the scripture continued to expand.

The Two Realms Market had long been cleared out by Hua Liuli, but the commotion caused by Chen Xuan's completion of the scripture was still too great. It not only enveloped the entire Two Realms Market, but the radiance of the scripture even penetrated the mist and spread to the Qingnang Mountain in the outside world.

On the mountainside, Yuan Yang and a group of Qingnang disciples stared blankly up at the sky. The young girl Yuan Yang said excitedly, "After Xuan Nu, another Qingnang disciple is about to ascend to godhood. It must be the handsome and dashing Chief Guest Elder!"

About two years ago, her cultivation level was similar to Chen Xuan's when he first arrived in Yunmeng, but she never expected that in such a short time, he had reached a level that was far beyond her reach.

During Chen Xuan's time in Yunmeng Prefecture, he became famous far and wide. Even the Immortal Seed of Sword Inquiry and the Destiny of Azure Bag could not match his prominence. Yuan Yang heard rumors about Chen Xuan every day, leaving an indelible impression on her heart.

"Lord Chen is so amazing, the most amazing!" A group of young disciples behind Yuan Yang shouted excitedly, following their senior sister Yuan Yang.

Inside the teahouse, Yan Yushu stared at the scene, her heart pounding with tension, her body taut like a bowstring. She murmured, "Chen Xuan, he's here. I'm coming in."

Without a doubt, if the other party says they will ascend to godhood today, then they will ascend to godhood today.

however.

She gradually felt deeply puzzled because she still hadn't sensed the arrival of Chen Xuan's mortal tribulation.

……

A thick gray fog, filled with a desolate, decaying atmosphere.

"I'm undergoing my tribulation in the mortal world," Chen An muttered to himself. In a daze, he sensed that everything around him had changed drastically, indicating that he had entered the tribulation. He had once been an outsider who had interfered in Yan Yushu's tribulation in the mortal world, but now his position had probably been reversed, and he had become a participant, which gave him a rather strange feeling.

"Fellow Daoist Yu Shu, where are you peeking from?" He surveyed his surroundings with his gaze.

But a thick, gray fog, radiating golden light, enveloped everything.

Soon after, Chen Xuan did not find Yan Yushu, but instead sensed a familiar scent. He looked down at himself: "Xin Zhai?"

In the darkness, Chen Xuan seemed to see a faint crimson power. Xin Zhai seemed to be sad, as if he was making a final attempt to hold him back before he ascended to godhood.

"My path to immortality in the mortal world is intended to open up new avenues, but that does not mean that I will abandon other things."

Chen Xuan muttered to himself that he thought it would be more interesting to become the most brilliant rosy light in the world, but that did not mean that he thought all ancient things were dregs and needed to be discarded.

"Or is my mortal tribulation, the 'inner demon,' related to Xinzhai?"

Chen Xuan pondered. Although the current tribulation of the mortal world is fast and has a high degree of danger, it requires directly facing the greatest "inner demon." Many geniuses have perished in the tribulation, making it a very difficult challenge.

So, Yan Yushu was too scared to come in?

Chen Xuan muttered to himself, then lifted his foot and walked along the stone path into the gray fog, actively seeking the test of the mortal tribulation.

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, Chen Xuan felt a chill run down his spine. In the thick fog, a figure loomed, and black ash fell from the sky, as if ancient scriptures were being burned. The seal script fluttered and quickly turned into ashes.

This scene was incredibly chilling, even more terrifying than the underworld.

"Who is burning scriptures? Is this an implication that I have cultivated new scriptures and should not ascend to godhood?" Chen Xuan guessed wildly, always feeling that his mortal tribulation was very different from others.

Soon after.

Chen Xuan traversed the sky filled with black ash and saw a faint light ahead, flickering like a bonfire guiding the way.

Furthermore, he sensed a faint sense of familiarity, which was the aura of the Six Desires Heavenly Jade Book.

"Yan Yushu, I've finally found you, the one who's been playing tricks on me. I'm really going to train you properly!" Chen Xuan felt much relieved, having found the familiar Yan Yushu amidst this bizarre mortal tribulation.

Soon, as he approached the fire, more images appeared, causing Chen Xuan's pupils to shrink and a chill to rise in his heart.

"Wow!"

Beside a flickering fire stood a giant obelisk, bound by black chains that tightly secured the obelisk and a slender figure on it. Crimson blood dripped down the stone wall.

Chen Xuan gasped. Yan Yushu was tied to the stone tablet, her head tilted to the side, her face obscured by her disheveled, waist-length hair.

Her delicate body was suspended in mid-air in a cross shape, her black clothes torn and bloodstained, revealing some skin. Her body, as perfect as a work of art, was presented to Chen Xuan in a poignant and broken way.

"Playing role-playing games with me? How dare you! This is my tribulation in the mortal world!" Chen Xuan said unhappily. He was clearly the only protagonist here, and Yan Yushu was stealing the spotlight!
However, he also noticed that Yan Yushu seemed to be in a bad state.

"Wake up?!" Chen Xuan immediately went to the obelisk and shoved and tugged at the other person.

But Yan Yushu was lifeless and unresponsive, with only her disheveled hair fluttering in the wind.

"You..." Chen Xuan brushed aside Yan Yushu's long hair, stretched out his large hand and slapped her face, trying to wake her up.

Suddenly, his pupils contracted, and beneath Yan Yushu's cool hair, there was a cunning fox mask on her face!
"External evil!"

The white fox's mask has an expression that is both smiling and crying, with a beauty mark at the corner of its eye, and the number "thirty-six" is engraved on the edge of the mask.

Chen Xuan's heart pounded: "This isn't Yan Yushu, but an evil spirit who stole the power of the Six Desires Heaven?!"

He immediately took out a Tianlong mask engraved with the number "thirteen" and compared it with the mask. The text and material on the two masks were exactly the same!
Has Yan Yushu been possessed by an external evil?
"These ghosts, they've dared to play tricks on me?" Chen Xuan's thoughts were in turmoil. He roughly ripped off the white fox mask from the woman's face.

Unfortunately, the other person's face was shrouded in a hazy mist, making it blurry and impossible to see clearly.

Chen Xuan frowned, put his hand into the mist, and began to examine the person's features by feeling their bones. After a while, he breathed a sigh of relief: "It's not Yan Yushu."

The other person has beautiful features and is a rare beauty, but she is not as beautiful as Yan Yushu, who is one of the most beautiful women in the Southern Region. They are not the same person.

However, Chen Xuan noticed that the other person's face bore a strange resemblance to Yan Yushu.

"What are you doing!" Suddenly, a surprised voice rang out from behind Chen Xuan.

A figure carrying an octagonal sandalwood lantern flew out from the gray fog. Upon seeing Chen Xuan "desecrating" the beautiful woman with the white fox mask, he was greatly shocked and shouted to stop him.

Chen Xuan tensed up, then covered his face with the Heavenly Dragon Mask in his hand, and then covered his face with the White Fox Mask. After that, he turned his head and looked at the newcomer.

Tiger mask.

Number eleven.

"You're number thirteen, Dragon?"

The man wearing a tiger-shaped mask did not seem to recognize Chen Xuan. He asked sternly, "Linghu and Jiufeng failed in their mission and ruined a great undertaking. They were punished by Lord Xiangliu and suffered the torment of having their hearts devoured and souls rotten. What are you doing here?"

"Hmm..." Chen Xuan recalled the Heavenly Dragon Masked Evil that he had seen and killed with his Heart Fasting in the Extreme Path Divine Fate, and nodded slightly, imitating its voice.

"What are you humming about?" The tall, fierce-looking man in the tiger mask immediately scolded, "Spirit Fox is a great beauty, and you dragon are really too lewd! Don't play dumb, I clearly saw you touching her!"

He was very angry, and it seemed that he had a special relationship with the white fox mask.

"..."

Chen Xuan was stunned. Then, while walking towards the other person, he asked in the same voice, mimicking Tianlong's, "Are you alone?"

A thick gray fog obscured the view, making it impossible to see the distant scenery.

"Lord Xiangliu has summoned me, and I have been ordered to escort the spirit fox back!" the fierce tiger said irritably, carrying his lantern as he walked forward.

"Hmm..." Chen Xuan slowly nodded, then stopped and withdrew his hand that was about to strike.

"Wow!"

On the obelisk, the layers of heavy chains loosened, and the bound fox spirit fell down.

Chen Xuan saw a beam of light fly from the lantern in the ferocious tiger's hand, and the beautiful fox spirit suddenly awoke, lying on the ground, panting heavily, and murmuring, "Six Desires Heaven... you slut..."

The ferocious tiger stood like an iron tower, and said reproachfully, "It's all because you have big mouths and can't keep secrets. The Six Desires Heaven guessed what you were saying about Xinzhai!"

Chen Xuan listened intently, feeling that Yan Yushu and Hua Liuli were acting strangely lately, as if they were being maliciously entangled by fate again.

He once resolved the "external evil" in the Supreme God's destiny, but for the Six Desire Heaven and the Lord of the Two Realms, he only used fasting of the mind to remove some traces of involvement, without solving the root problem.

"Who are you, and why are you here?!" The spirit fox, covered in wounds, stood up, leaning on the obelisk, and turned to stare at Chen Xuan.

"Hmm..." Chen Xuan was unaware of the situation, and adhering to the principle that the more he said, the more mistakes he would make, so he nodded slightly to her.

"Huh?" The spirit fox was taken aback. Was the other party an idiot?

"Enough talk, let's go back to the meeting!" the fierce tiger said, picking up his lantern and turning to leave; "Stay close to me, lest you lose your way in the fog."

Chen Xuan hurriedly followed. Were the evil spirits holding a meeting in his mortal tribulation?
He was very curious about what tricks these "external evils" were up to.

Chen Xuan didn't know how long he had walked, but gradually the outline of a magnificent palace came into view.

"here it is……"

Upon seeing the massive hall, Chen Xuan suddenly realized where he had arrived. The Immortal Shangyang had once noted it down on paper—the empty, deserted [Hall of No Form].

Although the plaque above the main hall is not the Hall of No Form.

But Chen Xuan had a gut feeling that this was the place where the Immortal Shangyang had once seen.

"Don't keep Lord Xiangliu waiting. Many people have arrived. Let's go in!" At the entrance of the hall, a woman covered in wounds waved. She had a large chest, a slender waist, and long legs, and possessed a graceful and noble demeanor.

Chen Xuan believed that this was "Nine Phoenixes" because it was quite similar to the two realm lords, with very obvious characteristics, and the other party had also been punished.

"Brother Tiger, what is the purpose of Lord Xiangliu's meeting this time?" the spirit fox asked the fierce tiger in a low voice, trying to find out the information.

"You need to be careful what you say!" The fierce tiger kept his mouth shut and turned to walk into the main hall.

The fox spirit had no choice but to follow her inside. Suddenly, she turned around and shrieked at Chen Xuan, "You lewd dragon, get out of here! Stay away from me! Don't think I don't know what you're planning to do to me!"

"Huh?" Chen Xuan was taken aback, staring at the other person's graceful departing figure. Why did these evil spirits always like to slander people's innocence out of thin air? Immediately, he followed them into the giant hall.

"Destroying the world is to save the world; this is the [Crossing the Heart Hall]..."

Not long after, Chen Xuan learned some news about this place from the "external evils".

……

Inside the teahouse at the Two Realms Market.

Yan Yushu waited anxiously for a long time, but the tribulation of the mortal world still did not arrive, so she became worried and her expression became slightly uneasy.

"Chen Xuan hasn't accumulated enough experience to overcome the tribulation of the mortal world?"

(End of this chapter)