The True Lord has arrived

Chapter 209 The Master of War, the Seal of Mount Hua

Nuwa underwent seventy transformations, fundamentally changing into other forms.

In times of such change, one must firmly guard one's own moral compass.

He didn't know how much time had passed; it was so long that Zhou Yan's own sense of existence had been diluted. For a moment, Zhou Yan felt like a fish, and for another moment, he felt like a bolt of lightning.

If there were only one long-term change, Zhou Yan's own existence might be diluted, and he might experience a misalignment in his self-awareness. However, if there are too many changes, the feelings of each change overlap and balance each other, which gradually makes his self-existence clearer.

Zhou Yan's consciousness slowly re-formed.

He has already grasped the principle of primordial chaos from the original text of the Tao Te Ching.

Then I understood that all these changes were nothing more than the “three giving birth to all things”, and the so-called “birth” meant the “transformation and creation”. The most basic knowledge of the original text of the Tao Te Ching flowed through my mind.

Tao produces one, one produces two, two produces three, and three produces all things.

Yin and Yang are the two polarities.

If I remain steadfast in my original intention, then I can freely generate countless variations, which is perfectly acceptable.

Thus, after all these ever-changing experiences, Zhou Yan felt as if he had just woken up from a dream. When he slowly opened his eyes, he found himself lying on the stone table in the courtyard of the Old Mother of Lishan, seemingly having just fallen asleep.

He had no idea how much time had passed.

He only saw smoke rising from the house of the Old Mother of Lishan. The pot of rice she had cooked before imparting the Dharma to him was not yet fully cooked.

The Old Mother of Lishan looked at him gently: "You're awake?"

She was somewhat surprised. She had thought she would need to give him some pointers herself, but Zhou Yan had actually woken up on his own. His mental fortitude was much stronger than she had anticipated.

Zhou Yan shook his head and said, "Yes, I'm awake."

The Old Mother of Lishan looked him over and asked with a smile, "So, you just had a dream. How much do you still remember? Have you learned it?"

Zhou Yan seemed eager to try: "I think I've learned it."

The Old Mother of Lishan smiled and said, "Then why don't you give it a try?"

With a thought, Zhou Yan transformed into a bird, flapping his wings and soaring into the sky with a clear cry. The white jade lion cat, eager to pounce, lunged at him. Just as it was about to seize the bird Zhou Yan had transformed into, Zhou Yan's body shifted and he transformed into a coiled python.

The white jade lion cat swayed and grew larger, trying to grab him.

Zhou Yan simply transformed into a flying eagle and flapped his wings.

Soaring into the air, the Old Mother of Lishan stood up with her cane. She watched as the young Taoist transformed into a flying eagle, which then folded its wings and pierced down like a sharp sword, landing on the ground. A cloud of white mist rose up and transformed into a slender bamboo, its green leaves rustling like white jade carvings, casting layers of shadows.

The Old Mother of Lishan laughed and said, "Good, good!"

Zhou Yan was also experiencing the wonders of the art of transformation.

Li Zhiwei had just come out and saw the bamboo grove. She was surprised and said, "Grandma, how come there's an extra bamboo here? I don't remember seeing it before. Did I see it wrong?"

Zhou Yan wanted to show off his skills in front of Li Zhiwei and planned to scare her on purpose, so he stood still. The white jade lion cat yawned while lying on the wall. Li Zhiwei walked over, looked at the bamboo, and suddenly reached out and grabbed a bamboo leaf and tore it.

“We can pick a leaf from this bamboo and make bamboo leaf cake.”

"Hmm? Why can't I take it off?"

Ripples spread across the bamboo stalk, suddenly transforming into a young Taoist priest dressed in a dark blue robe with graying temples. The petite Miss Li was stunned, realizing that her fingers were pinching the young Taoist priest's cheeks and pulling him forcefully outwards.

Li Zhiwei asked, "The art of transformation?"

She sighed, withdrew her finger, and said, "Master Zhou, you shouldn't use such transformation techniques lightly; they can easily frighten people." Miss Li was quite composed, which made Zhou Yan feel a little embarrassed.

Before summoning Zhou Yan, the Old Mother of Lishan asked him about the situation.

The transformation technique passed down by the Old Mother of Lishan is completely different from the Jade Talisman Technique obtained from Zhu Zicheng. The latter can only make slight changes, and it can be seen through by those with higher cultivation levels. The technique that Zhou Yan has now learned has almost unlimited transformation capabilities.

From changing your appearance to mimic someone else's aura, to altering your form and transforming into anything, you can do almost anything.

The Old Mother of Lishan was quite satisfied. Leaning on her cane, she said, "Not bad. It seems that you have experienced a lot on your journey and have a solid mind. This transformation technique is just a legend to you for avoiding danger. I will also tell you a few rules."

Zhou Yan noticed that the old lady's breathing was noticeably weaker than before.

Her face was somewhat pale, clearly indicating that teaching Zhou Yan this method had taken a great toll on her, touching upon the very essence of the Lishan Old Mother. So, she helped the old woman sit down, and the old lady patted Zhou Yan's arm, saying, "Such methods are infinitely versatile."

"You can transform into almost any kind of thing in the world, such as things acquired later in life. However, innate beings require some special means. For example, if you obtain a drop of blood from the Candle Dragon, you can also transform into the Candle Dragon and possess its supernatural powers."

Zhou Yan's eyes lit up, but the Old Mother of Lishan said, "Don't be too happy yet."

"Everything has its gains and losses, there are never any exceptions. The greater the difference between what you transform into and yourself, the more magical power you consume. For example, if you transform into someone else, you can almost stay that way forever."

"Whether you intend to become a mountain or a candle dragon, even if you exert all your strength, it may only last for a moment."

"Secondly, you can transform into the form of the Candle Dragon and possess some of the Candle Dragon's own supernatural powers, but you cannot possess the true realm and abilities of the Candle Dragon. It is impossible for you to obtain a drop of blood and then possess the great supernatural power of making the sky dark with your eyes closed."

"Thirdly, when you encounter an opponent of extremely high skill level, they can see through your true form, rendering your transformation techniques ineffective."

"Fourth, and most importantly."

The Old Mother of Lishan stroked the young Taoist's head with her palm, and said, "Do you remember what I said? You must remember who you really are, know your 'self,' and uphold your 'self.' Then, no matter how you change, you will always stay true to your principles. But once you lose your 'self,' you will be lost."

“Using this transformation technique as a means to show off their power.”

"Then you will lose your true self and eventually become lost in all things and phenomena, unable to change back, do you understand?"

"In this world, there are thousands of methods and boundless supernatural powers, but the only thing I seek is [me]."

"Apart from me, all others are heretics."

"This one sentence contains the true essence of cultivation and the profound mystery of all methods. Knowing this means you will never perish. Forgetting this means that even if you have all sorts of supernatural powers and wonders, they will only last for one lifetime. You must remember this firmly and never forget it."

The Old Mother of Lishan spoke with a solemn yet caring tone, and Zhou Yan felt a chill run down his spine. He said:
"I will definitely remember." The Old Mother of Lishan nodded with a smile: "Okay."

She was, after all, a great deity from ancient times. When Zhou Yan appeared before her, seeing the calamities entwined around him and his status as the god of Mount Tai, she knew that this young Taoist would inevitably encounter all sorts of calamities in the future.

The very concept of the "Mount Tai God" attracts all sorts of hostility.

The calamities that caused Buzhou Mountain to break and the gods of Kunlun Mountain to fall will continue to haunt him. When the sky falls, there is always someone tall enough to hold it up, but this young Taoist is the one with the highest status in the world right now.

The decisiveness Zhou Yan displayed and his sense of responsibility in the face of the great calamity and disaster made the Old Mother of Lishan feel pity for this child. Although she herself was not good at fighting, she tried to teach him some methods of self-protection.

Zhou Yan has mastered Nuwa's transformation technique, the unreasonable escape technique, and the incarnation method of the great monk Manjushri. With these three great supernatural powers, he can at least have a means to protect himself and avoid disasters in this turbulent world, if not to be invincible.

At least, Lord Zhou realized that he wouldn't die so easily.

However, after trying the transformation, he discovered that his body had a limit to the transformation technique. Once the transformation lasted too long, he would feel extremely tired, and it would become increasingly difficult to maintain the transformed state. In the end, he would lose control and revert to his true form.

"He's still too physically weak."

"Is it similar to metal fatigue? If your physical strength isn't high enough, and you use powerful supernatural abilities, you won't be able to withstand it for long, and you'll revert back to your original state."

Zhou Yan seemed to be deep in thought.

Seeing Li Zhiwei and the others take out the steamed rice made by the old mother of Lishan, he flipped his hand and made the purple aura rise. At the same time, the drop of scarlet Chiyou blood and the drop of Manjushri blood with golden Sanskrit characters appeared.

"Grandma, do you recognize these three items?"

“I received these three things from Manjushri…”

The Old Mother of Lishan pointed to the ball of purple energy and said, "This purple energy is a natural gift from heaven and earth. It can be used to refine and forge treasures, but I am not good at this. If we can find a successor of the Zhu Rong lineage, we should be able to forge it."

"As for these two drops."

Zhou Yan said, "Hypothetically speaking, just hypothetically speaking, if I swallow this drop of Chi You's blood, could I transform into Chi You in a short time?"

The Old Mother of Lishan said, "That's fine, but in that case, you will truly become Chi You, your own consciousness will be suppressed by the Lord of War, and you will become the shell for Chi You's resurrection." The Old Mother of Lishan's voice was gentle, but her words were actually very stern.

She felt that the young Taoist priest in front of her was obviously a bit eccentric.

"Do not easily attempt to transform into various innate deities or ancient heroes."

"Even if you want change, the first time, it has to be in front of me, understand?"

Zhou Yan nodded obediently in agreement. Suddenly, he sensed something was wrong. A chill rose from his back, giving him a creepy feeling. The young Taoist's pupils contracted slightly. He said, "Wait a minute. You said that if we rashly devour Chi You's blood, our bodies will be taken over, and Chi You will be revived?"

The Old Mother of Lishan nodded.

Zhou Yan recalled the information he had obtained from the monk Kongkong.

An Lushan is dead, but his obsession, desires, and resentment are resurrected through the method of insect molting and resurrection deduced from the incident at the Reclining Buddha Temple. He also takes the remaining Taishan Gongdao Fruit and the blood of Chiyou and heads to the Shu region where the descendants of Chiyou live.

"Chi You's blood, revival, insect molting."

Zhou Yan suddenly realized that all the major events from the past to the present were connected.

"May I ask about Chi You's stance?"

The Old Mother of Lishan replied, "Chi You was a human. Over this long period of time, the descendants of his tribes have become the descendants of Yan and Huang. However, for Chi You himself, his memories and obsessions should still remain from the time he was beheaded."

"Even if we fight for humanity, it will definitely not be in the way you understand it."

"Moreover, given his resurrection through this blood, he should be filled with obsession and hatred."

Zhou Yan took a deep breath.

During the An Lushan Rebellion, the Duke of Taishan died, and An Lushan was resurrected as a being of desire and karma. He then appeared in the place where the descendants of Chiyou gathered, holding the blood of Chiyou. Everything pointed to what the Reclining Buddha Temple had researched.

Has Chi You, filled with hatred and madness, been resurrected?

Zhou Yan instinctively realized that he had to stop all of this.

"So, how strong is Chi You?"

The Old Mother of Lishan said, "You have already experienced the Weaver Girl, who is the incarnation of Manjushri. How did you feel?" Zhou Yan said, "She is very strong. If Manjushri had not appeared in person to restrain her, this area would probably have been devastated."

The Old Mother of Lishan said, "At that time, she was at the level of the Four Fiends. The real Four Fiends are more powerful and insane than her. The Four Fiends were banished by Ji Xuanyuan. Chi You is Ji Xuanyuan's nemesis in this life."

“Even in one-on-one combat, he surpasses Ji Xuanyuan.”

Zhou Yan's brow was throbbing.

I'm fighting the berserk Chi You?

I?
Damn it, we have to go and kill An Lushan right now!

I must, immediately, destroy him!
Ancient exotic mountain spiders, Manjushri's disguised spider demon, now the ancient war lord Chiyou, and what other extraordinary enemies are there? Please bring them on quickly.

Zhou Yan almost felt like giving up, but he exhaled and said, "I understand, I'll try to find a way to investigate." There's the Nine Elders Cave Master from Mount Emei in the Taishang Tower Taoist Temple now, we can go and investigate.

The Old Mother of Lishan looked at the drop of Chiyou's blood, and then at the drop of Manjushri's blood.

"However, although you cannot absorb Chi You's blood, it is, after all, the essence of the human race's military lord. I think it might be possible for you to gain some benefits from it."

Zhou Yan nodded. At that moment, he suddenly felt something break. The young Taoist raised his eyebrows slightly.

In conclusion, one of his incarnations found the seal of the Western Mountain Range.

then.

He was killed.

(End of this chapter)