A master of comedy!

Pain! Excruciating pain!

In the darkness, when Zhou Sheng woke up again, he felt an unbearable pain in every bone of his body, as if he were being pricked by needles. His body, which had once been able to subdue dragons and tigers, now seemed extremely difficult to move even a finger.

He tried to open his eyes, but found that he couldn't see anything.

Fortunately, the elixir he had taken was still working, its medicinal power continuously flowing to his limbs and bones, repairing his battered body.

Time passed slowly, and as a contemplator of the Great Dao of Time, he keenly sensed the unusual speed of time flow around him; here, time seemed to flow exceptionally fast.

It even made him wonder if he was in the legendary Heavenly Court, where one day in Heaven is equivalent to one year on Earth.

Fortunately, the surrounding spiritual energy was incredibly rich, which greatly benefited his recovery. So he activated the "Dragon Sleeping Immortal Technique," absorbing the astonishing spiritual energy around him. Combined with the medicinal effects, his injuries began to heal little by little.

It took him about five or six days before he was finally able to move with difficulty, and he opened his eyes and got up from the ground.

Everything in sight was blood red, and only a blurry, indistinct image could be vaguely seen.

At this moment, Zhou Sheng realized that he had gone blind, and this was not a simple injury, but a backlash from viewing the Heavenly Book for a long time with a mortal body.

Furthermore, he cannot yet separate his primordial spirit from his body because the injuries to his physical body are too severe. If his primordial spirit is gone, he will easily collapse.

With the last sliver of his faint vision, Zhou Sheng managed to take in his surroundings.

This looks like a temple?

Because he seemed to vaguely see the flickering candlelight and a huge statue in front of him. Although his eyes could not see clearly, his keen sense of spirit and sense of smell were still there, and he could feel the unique incense smell of the statue.

There are usually inscriptions on the stone walls around the base of the statue or next to the shrine. Zhou Sheng reached out and touched there, and sure enough, he found a line of words.

"The Great Vow Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva..."

When Zhou Sheng touched these seven characters, his heart tightened, but he wasn't too surprised. After all, he had been guided here after putting on the Ksitigarbha mask, so this place was most likely related to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

But when his hand touched the last two words, he was suddenly jolted, causing a huge uproar.

"The remains of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, the Bodhisattva of Great Vows."

He was struck dumb, then seemed to understand something. He suddenly looked up at the blurry statue, and cautiously reached out his hand to it. The moment he touched it, his hair stood on end.

It's not a statue of a deity, but a relic of Buddha!

These are... the golden remains of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva after his passing?

In an instant, he understood why the spiritual energy here was so abundant and why time was so chaotic. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is the deity in Buddhism who governs hell, and the place where he fell was naturally extraordinary, with many unusual phenomena.

And the force that brought him here, if nothing unexpected happens, is none other than these remains.

Despite his injuries, Zhou Sheng bowed and said, "Zhou Sheng, the master of Yin-Yang magic, greets Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva!"

The surroundings were empty and silent, with only his own voice heard; there was no other response.

"Thank you so much, Bodhisattva, for saving my life. I will never forget it. Do you have any instructions, Bodhisattva? I will do my best to fulfill them!"

He spoke again, but there was still no response from those around him.

Zhou Sheng tried several more times, but eventually had to give up. However, he discovered something exciting: the closer he got to the golden remains, the faster his injuries seemed to heal.

Especially within a three-foot radius of the golden remains, a mysterious energy seemed to emanate, nourishing his entire body. Strands of invisible golden light seeped into his bone marrow, causing some unknown changes to his physical form. Zhou Sheng subconsciously activated the "Medicine Buddha's Lapis Lazuli Golden Body" technique, and then was pleasantly surprised to find that the golden light was penetrating his body much faster, almost dyeing his flesh, bones, and meridians a pale gold.

He felt a long-lost sense of comfort; the pain receded like a tide, and he felt completely relaxed, as if every pore was leaping with joy.

"Bodhisattva, may I come closer to you to practice?"

Zhou Sheng suddenly spoke up and asked.

After a moment, he continued to mutter to himself, "If you don't speak, I'll take that as a yes. Thank you, Bodhisattva. I will definitely build a temple and establish a shrine for you in the future, so that your incense will never cease to burn!"

After saying that, he mustered his courage and moved closer to the golden remains, inching closer until he finally sat down at the feet of the Bodhisattva, almost touching the golden body.

The invisible golden light, like countless stars, entered his body, and Zhou Sheng's state of mind began to become more peaceful, serene, and tranquil than ever before.

The worries about going blind, the fear of the golden core cracking, and the confusion of being trapped in the unknown all seemed to have vanished like smoke, leaving only an indescribable sense of peace and freedom.

In this strange state, he gradually fell into a long-lost sleep state, not the half-asleep state of the Hidden Dragon Sleeping Immortal Technique, but a complete dream.

……

"How dare you! Who told you to sleep!"

"Get up quickly, let's get going!"

Zhou Sheng suddenly awoke to find himself in the underworld, surrounded by Ox-Head and Horse-Face, and he was a soul being escorted away.

He wore shackles on his head, and his hands and feet were bound with heavy chains.

He frowned. Even when he graduated, the Black and White Impermanence had never dared to treat him like this. As a human immortal who had survived four heavenly tribulations, when had he ever been treated like this?
But at this moment, all his magical power had vanished without a trace, and he could only lie dormant for the time being.

He tried to communicate with the Luoshu (a magical book) to figure out what was going on, but was horrified to find that even the Luoshu was gone.

Zhou Sheng was shocked. This was the first time he had encountered a situation where even the Luo Shu had disappeared. His biggest trump card was gone. He took a deep breath and forced himself to stay calm.

"The Ksitigarbha Hall is just ahead. Although the Bodhisattva is compassionate, he has often gone into seclusion in recent years and no longer interferes in the affairs of the underworld. You shut up and don't say a word, understand?"

Horse-faced demon raised his steel fork and threatened.

Zhou Sheng nodded without saying a word, but his eyes flickered slightly.

The Ksitigarbha Hall? No longer involved in the affairs of the underworld?

Could it be that the underworld I am in now is not the underworld that Yama has occupied for hundreds of years, but the underworld a thousand years ago, where the Ten Kings of Hell were present and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was in charge?

Wait, I couldn't have traveled back a thousand years in an instant. Before that, I think I was... asleep?
This... is a dream!
Once Zhou Sheng realized this, he immediately understood that the Bodhisattva had brought him into the dream to tell him something.

The golden remains cannot speak directly; they can only be accessed through dreams.

But these Ox-Head and Horse-Face...

Zhou Sheng glanced at them, and a thought suddenly struck him. Could it be that not only the Bodhisattvas had entered his dream, but another force had also entered his dream, transforming into Ox-Head and Horse-Face, trying to prevent him from meeting Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva?

He lowered his head and remained silent, but a resolute glint flashed in his eyes.

Although there was no Luoshu (Lo Shu Square), his intuition told him that this was very likely the case!
He now has to find a way to shake off Ox-Head and Horse-Face when he passes by the Ksitigarbha Hall and break into the hall to see Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva!
...(End of this chapter)