Chapter 436: Stone Slab

Completely devoid of pain at this moment, Li Huowang looked at the giant vertical pupil before him without the slightest hesitation.

Immediately, he hoisted his own paralyzed body, which was lying on the ground, onto his shoulder. Then, he rushed to Zhuge Yuan's side, lifted him, and sprinted backward.

This place was far too dangerous, not somewhere mortals should be. He had to get Zhuge Yuan out of here!

But just as he turned to leave, his body felt as heavy as a mountain, weighing thousands of pounds, and an invisible suction pulled him relentlessly backward from behind.

From Li Huowang's wide-open chest, continuously writhing tentacles surged out, wrapping around his legs and helping him desperately crawl forward.

As he moved inch by inch, the maggots on Li Huowang's body rapidly died off, as if silently resisting something.

After more than half of the maggots on him had died, Li Huowang's body suddenly felt lighter, and he finally broke free from the suction.

Having regained his freedom, Li Huowang was about to take Zhuge Yuan away from this troubled place when, after only a few steps, a massive ball of fire suddenly erupted in front of him, nearly singeing his hair.

After quickly retreating a few steps, he finally discerned the Emperor of Daliang in the distance, along with his Imperial Advisor and the Divination Bureau officials.

They were clearly employing every trick in the book, having brought out all sorts of magical artifacts. Li Huowang even saw a junior official from the Divination Bureau holding a square stone slab upside down, performing a ritual.

He remembered that slab; it was the same one Dan Yangzi had once used in his futile attempt to achieve immortality. It seemed this person had also acquired one.

"So, you're supposed to hold it upside down?" Li Huowang was startled, but then vigorously shook his head. This was no time to be thinking about that!

Li Huowang first looked up in astonishment at the gigantic burning golden tree before him, then lowered his gaze to Zhuge Yuan on his shoulder. "What's going on? Where's your Great Qi?"

A circle of Great Qi's history should have constantly surrounded the Heart Coffin, yet for some unknown reason, it had inexplicably vanished.

This was bad news for Li Huowang, once again throwing him directly into the center of the conflict.

Recovering, Zhuge Yuan quickly flipped over and dismounted from Li Huowang's shoulder. His expression was grim as he surveyed everything before them. "Where is this?!"

"Where else?! This is Daliang! It doesn't matter where it is! Just get out first!!" Li Huowang grabbed Zhuge Yuan's long sleeve and rushed to the side.

A burst of maniacal laughter made Li Huowang look at the Emperor of Daliang, who stood before the giant tree. With his laughter, the imperial crown on his head vibrated rapidly.

The Emperor of Daliang suddenly waved his hand, pointing decisively at the distant giant eye. "Sitting Forgetfulness Sect! The Divine Mountain Ghost Eye has risen! Your dog-like existence is over! This is the perfect chance to capture all of you in one fell swoop!"

No sooner had he spoken than Li Huowang felt the golden bricks on the ground rapidly soften and flow swiftly towards the giant eye behind him.

Not just the golden bricks, but the distant golden palace too. All this gold converged, rapidly gathering before the terrifyingly radiant giant eye, gradually forming a golden mask as huge as a mountain.

This mask had long, beast-like ears, a wide mouth stretching to its ears, three layers of lips, and upturned corners forming a smile. It was identical to the mask at the entrance of the Divination Bureau.

The only difference was that the mask outside the Divination Bureau had outwardly protruding cylindrical eyes, while this newly forming mask had an empty left eye socket and the previous gigantic vertical pupil lodged in its right eye socket!

Li Huowang shivered uncontrollably. He didn't know what the "Divine Mountain Ghost" referred to by Daliang was, but he knew only one thing: something massive was about to happen! The strange chanting, which had disappeared due to the "leap placement of the Five Elements," had returned with a vengeance.

As he anxiously urged himself to go faster, the worms within his chest incessantly writhed, intertwining to form two new legs for Li Huowang, allowing him to move even quicker.

The Dice, observing the gradually forming golden mask and the increasingly strong oppressive aura in the air, all had their pips turn to six.

One of the Dice spoke. Facing such peril, there was not the slightest trace of worry in his tone; in fact, his voice even held a hint of glee.

"Very well, it must have taken you considerable effort to retrieve the eye of this destiny-controller, dead for over a thousand years, wouldn't it? If so, then we will gladly accept it."

"Hmph! Do you truly believe this sovereign would fall for your incessant lies? No matter what you say! This sovereign's plan, meticulously crafted over a decade, is absolutely not something you can disrupt!"

After all four Dice simultaneously spoke the same words, they once again sat cross-legged, and their overlapping voices resumed.

"Vacuum, marvelous form, King of Dharma, supreme Mysterious Prime, Heavenly Mother Lord. Where golden light shines, sun and moon conceal their brilliance; when the precious pestle whirls, ghosts and gods lose color. Manifesting traces in the mortal world, guarding the holy carriage in Jambudvīpa."

Though not loud, this sound traveled far and grew increasingly distant.

When the sound reached the Emperor of Daliang, the stone slab in the junior official's hand suddenly cracked.

Along with the cracking sound, a mocking laugh emanated from the stone's fissures.

"Hahaha! Was it good practice? It's all fake, actually! All of it was just to mess with you! Big fool!"

No sooner had the words finished than the stone slab rapidly split apart, completely disintegrating into a pile of broken Pai Gow tiles and mahjong pieces.

"What?! How is this possible!!" As the deceived junior official stared in shock at the stone slab in his hand, a spectral purple light emerged from his glabella, swiftly burrowing into the pips on the Dice.

This was only the beginning. As the Sitting Forgetfulness Sect's voices spread further and further, they even reached Oxheart Village.

Gao Zhijian, asleep, heard voices inside his room and immediately became alert. When he rushed into the side room, clutching a sharp weapon, he saw that the stone slab Brother Li had given him as armor had cracked.

If he remembered correctly, this slab was something Brother Li had brought from Qingfeng Temple, from Master Dan Yangzi.

"Hahaha! You want to become an immortal?! You can't even read a single character, and *you* want to become an immortal?! Let me tell you! I tricked you! This immortal cultivation method is fake!! Hahaha!!"