Chapter 1595: Shadow Born in the Solitary Abyss and Departure, Ancestral God Descends to the Realm to Search for the Former Enemy

"Achoo!"

In the Zhan Shen Gong of the Si Ming Shen Dian, a sudden wave of dust erupted.

This palace, filled with an atmosphere of solemnity and reverence, had its bluish-brown stone slabs covered in dust, with spiderwebs hanging at the corners where beams met columns. The oncoming dust wave was not only choking but also carried an air of ancient desolation.

"Someone..."

Hua Yuan stood with his sword at an angle, listening to the sneeze echo through the giant palace until it faded away.

After about ten breaths, just as he was about to move, a loud muttering came from inside the palace:

"This is so annoying—who's thinking about me?"

"If you want to see me, just come in directly. Don't mess around with those sneaky tricks outside—it's pointless!"

Have I been discovered...?

Hua Yuan held his breath and focused his mind, not letting the bluff make him step forward.

He was in a ghostly state, like a goose leaving no trace, so under normal circumstances, anyone below the level of Sheng Di would have a hard time detecting him.

Looking back along the path he came, the giant palace's bluestone slabs showed only a long trail of human footprints, which weren't his. They were probably from that sneezing fellow inside the palace.

"The only one who arrived first."

"Yue Gong Li..."

The voice of that sneeze was all too familiar—it had to be Yue Gong Li, the former shadow of Yue Gong Nu.

Unfortunately, Hua Yuan had bravely ventured into the Si Ming Shen Dian alone and encountered countless illusions along the way, seeing at least ten versions of Yue Gong Li.

After being tricked and stabbed the first time, he wised up and successfully assassinated all the subsequent illusions of Yue Gong Li.

"Will the Yue Gong Li in the main palace be an illusion too...?"

Hua Yuan lifted his gaze upward. High above the main palace gates hung a plaque inscribed with: Si Ming Ping Deng.

He stopped overthinking, deliberately making a footstep sound. He split off a ghostly version of himself to walk through the main door, while his true self passed through the wall and vanished on the spot.

"Who's there?"

A sharp shout rang out from inside Zhan Shen Gong.

From the perspective of Hua Yuan's ghostly projection, following the dust-covered bluish-brown floor forward, atop eighteen grand steps stood a massive, elongated black desk.

Behind the desk was a huge high-backed throne belonging to the Zhan Shen official Ran Ming, but now it held only one relatively small human figure.

And one oversized Liu Sui Shi Wang.

"Huh?"

The Liu Sui Shi Wang turned back to ask for instructions on whether to attack.

But Yue Gong Li on the high-backed throne leaped onto the desk, excitedly pointing at the newcomer below:

"Hua Yuan, you've finally arrived. I've been waiting so long that the flowers have wilted."

Just then, Yue Gong Li sensed something wrong behind him, as a chilling wind arose.

Whipping around, he saw a massive Gate of Hell cracking open above his head.

A Fengdu Zhi Jian, gleaming with a fierce ghostly light, slashed down mercilessly from the sky, aiming to cleave his soul body on the spot.

"Hua Yuan, have you lost your mind? How dare you attack me!"

Yue Gong Li's face was filled with shock. He never imagined he'd have to guard against this absolute ally, only to find him striking to kill.

"Xu Xiao Shou?"

In the nick of time.

Yue Gong Li had no chance to confirm the true identity of the Hua Yuan in front of him.

He quickly grabbed the Yin Ling Jiu, flipped open the coffin lid, and threw himself inside while his hand seals changed completely.

"Descend! Sui Yin Xie Shen!"

With a thunderous boom, the Fengdu Zhi Jian struck the Yin Ling Jiu hard, but a surge of majestic and pure purple mist erupted from within.

The mist pushed back the great sword, transforming into a three-headed, six-armed purple giant covered in long fur.

The Sui Yin Xie Shen giant bit the Fengdu Zhi Jian to pieces with its mouth, and one of its hands reached out to seize the Hua Yuan who had wielded the sword, grabbing him into its palm.

"Xu Xiao Shou?"

"Die!"

Under the Sui Yin Xie Shen's crushing palm, "Hua Yuan" didn't even get a chance to scream before being shattered to pieces.

Something's off...

After disposing of Xu Xiao Shou, Yue Gong Li realized the situation wasn't right.

First, Xu Xiao Shou wasn't that weak. Second, the Fengdu Zhi Jian hadn't been wielded by the "Hua Yuan" who just died—there was no connection between the two.

The one who struck is still hiding!

Something's wrong...

On the other side, Hua Yuan, concealed in the soul path, also sensed something amiss.

Normally, if this were an illusion of Yue Gong Li manifested in the Si Ming Shen Dian, his sword would have ended it.

But now, the Fengdu Zhi Jian hadn't even breached his defense.

And this illusion of Yue Gong Li wouldn't summon his most powerful three corpses technique, the Sui Yin Xie Shen, right off the bat.

"Xu Xiao Shou, come out. I've found you."

Yue Gong Li shouted loudly, narrowing his fox-like eyes to scan the void, spotting the hidden figure in the soul path at a glance.

But using such a shallow hiding technique against me?

No, no, that's not like Xu Xiao Shou at all.

This must be a decoy, maybe even a trap to lure me... As if I'd fall for it?

"Huh!"

In the soul path, Hua Yuan confirmed the identity and directly revealed his true form, letting out a long sigh:

"Yue Gong Li, I've finally found you."

Oh, we just parted not long ago, and you're already holding such a grudge, hell-bent on killing me?

Yue Gong Li found it amusing. In the Si Ming Shen Dian, who could kill him anyway?

"Where's Hua Yuan?" he asked casually.

Hua Yuan?

Hua Yuan was stunned by the question, pointing to himself uncertainly: "I... am right here?"

Pretending so well?

Yue Gong Li raised his eyebrows high, staring at the "Hua Yuan" in the nearby void, sighing with a mix of admiration:

"I never thought you'd kill Hua Yuan without me noticing..."

Yes, Xu Xiao Shou doesn't know Hua Yuan—that much Yue Gong Li was sure of.

The fact that he could transform into Hua Yuan meant he had entered the Si Ming Shen Dian, encountered Hua Yuan, witnessed his abilities, and then killed him to imitate him perfectly.

The only thing Yue Gong Li couldn't figure out was...

When did Xu Xiao Shou's power reach this level?

Hua Yuan wasn't weak. He had been Hua Chang Deng's sword attendant since childhood, one as the person, the other as the shadow.

The shadow stays unnamed.

But if the master is a certain way, the shadow roughly follows that outline.

Aside from Hua Chang Deng, who had become a Sheng Di, the Hua family had no extra Sheng Di positions for this shadow sword attendant. So, Hua Yuan was essentially a half-Sheng level version of Hua Chang Deng.

A half-Sheng Hua Chang Deng...

From a results perspective, he was a powerful existence who could go toe-to-toe with Ba Zun An, who had half a head and two fingers disabled!

And such an existence had been silently assassinated by Xu Xiao Shou?

"I'm not Xu Xiao Shou." Hua Yuan finally figured out what was odd about Yue Gong Li and explained:

"I entered through the Si Ming Shen Dian plaque and encountered countless illusions of you along the way—some wounded me, some I killed—which is why I had to be on guard."

"You said Xu Xiao Shou is here?"

Hua Yuan looked around warily, his eyes scanning Yue Gong Li up and down several times. "Are you really Yue Gong Li?"

Xu Xiao Shou...

According to Ai Cang Sheng's Sheng Ling order, he possessed the ability of "one person deriving thousands, hard to discern if the technique is righteous or evil," with extremely strong imitation skills—never underestimate him.

Upon hearing this, Yue Gong Li wrinkled his nose, took a couple of sniffs, and realized that his suspicions might be overblown.

The Si Ming Shen Dian wasn't that small, but it wasn't huge either. With dozens of subsidiary palaces and the main one beneath his feet, Yue Gong Li's sacred thoughts could cover most of it.

With Hua Yuan's abilities, if Xu Xiao Shou had killed him, it would have caused a massive disturbance.

But he hadn't detected any fluctuations at all...

"It's not Xu Xiao Shou!"

This was an inexplicable judgment, perhaps a man's intuition about another man.

Yue Gong Li didn't catch that familiar, roguish scent from Hua Yuan that reminded him of Dao Qiong Cang, so the person in front of him shouldn't be Xu Xiao Shou.

He grinned and said:

"Let's do a password check!"

Password?

Hua Yuan frowned. There's a password?

Yue Gong Li pulled out a jade slip, pressed it to his forehead, and said with a hint of expectation:

"Wang Di Fei Shou..."

What on earth is this? What kind of password is that? I came here to help you—how would I know? Hua Yuan's brows furrowed even more.

"Say it! Wang Di Fei Shou, what's the next line?" Yue Gong Li urged.

"I don't know the password." Hua Yuan stood straight, unafraid of his shadow being cast askew, sword in hand, ready for battle.

"Wang Di Fei Shou, Ba..." Yue Gong Li prompted a word, gesturing with his chin. "Go on, just that one!"

What about Ba and whatever? Yue Gong Li, can you stop with this nonsense?

Before he could speak, Yue Gong Li prompted another word: "Ba Yan something—say it."

"I don't know, just don't know." Hua Yuan was getting frustrated. "If you don't believe me, let's fight!"

"Congratulations, Hua Yuan, you've passed!"

Yue Gong Li finally showed a look of relief, letting out a long breath:

"The message on this jade slip stopped half a day ago, meaning something's happened to the Tai Xu outside."

"I've been waiting forever, and since neither you nor Xu Xiao Shou showed up, I naturally assumed the worst. Don't hold it against me, Hua Yuan."

Only then did Hua Yuan lower his sword. "So, the password was..."

"Oh? You really don't know?" Yue Gong Li looked surprised. "The password can't be said out loud. Didn't the Tai Xu outside tell you?"

Hua Yuan's expression shifted slightly, looking a bit odd. "The Tai Xu outside—I didn't talk to them when I came. They wouldn't dare face the Sheng Di, so where would a password come from?"

"Congratulations, Hua Yuan, you've completely passed!"

Only then did Yue Gong Li dare to pat his chest and laugh heartily, jumping over to throw an arm around Hua Yuan's shoulder with a playful grin:

"To be honest, I already instructed the Tai Xu outside not to make eye contact or talk to you."

"If you said they looked at you or chatted with you, then you'd definitely be Xu Xiao Shou."

"Sorry about that, brother—it's just necessary caution."

Hua Yuan fell silent after hearing this.

Again with Xu Xiao Shou...

He couldn't help asking: "Is Xu Xiao Shou really that big of a threat?"

"Oh, absolutely!"

Yue Gong Li pulled Hua Yuan onto the massive throne, sat down, and set up a small table with fine wine and meat.

Hua Yuan subconsciously wanted to decline.

In his eyes, the person before him was more than just a red-robed Zhi Dao master—he was the confirmed next Sheng Di of the Yue clan.

There was a clear distinction of status.

Just as he accompanied Hua Chang Deng, how could Hua Yuan, as the shadow, deserve to sit and drink with Yue Gong Li?

But before he could say anything, Yue Gong Li had already pulled him to the table and shoved a piece of meat into his mouth.

In his bewilderment, Hua Yuan's sword was taken away, and a wine cup was placed in his hand instead.

"Clink!"

Yue Gong Li clinked cups, downed his in one go, tore off another piece of meat, and launched into his endless chatter:

"Hua Yuan, you have no idea—Xu Xiao Shou is no ordinary person, just like that showy old Daoist..."

From the dark forests of Sheng Lin to the embryonic form of the Shen Ting with Di Ying Sheng Zhu, from the Si Xiang secret realm to the Shen Zhi Yi Ji, from the Han Gong emperor's realm to the Gui Zhe Sheng Mountain...

Yue Gong Li recounted everything in reverse order, jumping from one story to another, all the way back to when he first emerged as the red-robed Zhi Dao master.

In his telling, Hua Yuan heard about the bizarre and wondrous world outside the Sheng Di secret realms—the true essence of human life, so different from the monotonous, endless days in the Yun Shan emperor's realm.

Hua Chang Deng roamed the outside as a traveler, while Hua Yuan managed the inside.

Hua Chang Deng entered the Ping Feng candle grounds, and Hua Yuan managed the inside.

Hua Chang Deng became a Sheng Di, and Hua Yuan managed the inside.

As the shadow, in the Yun Shan emperor's realm of the five great Sheng Di families, Hua Yuan had lived out the first half of his life.

This time, without Ai Cang Sheng's Sheng Ling order and Hua Chang Deng's sudden approval, Hua Yuan might never have stepped out of the Yun Shan emperor's realm.

A half-Sheng in self-imposed isolation.

The Yun Shan emperor's realm was his prison.

Yue Gong Li seemed to know exactly what stories people like them, trapped in isolation, wanted to hear, and he was quite the talker.

"...You have no idea, back then your brother Hua Chang Deng set up that Ping Feng candle ground for thirty years—who could move him? And look at him now, daring to become a Sheng Di—it's all because I stirred his worldly heart!" Yue Gong Li boasted with hands on his hips.

"But then, that showy old Daoist deliberately messed with me, making his sister the third emperor. I turned around and walked away!" He looked dejected.

"Ha ha ha, well, now he's got what he deserved. Letting his sister be the third emperor meant even the palace lord position got snatched. When I heard Jiang Na Yi come to the Shen Zhi Yi Ji looking for me and dare use Dao Xuan Ji's name to order me around, I thought it was hilarious—I struck back and chopped off one of her legs and one arm!" Yue Gong Li gestured animatedly.

As Hua Yuan listened, a rare smile crept onto his face.

In Yue Gong Li's version, the stories were pure exaggerations and comedies, with him as the eternal protagonist.

But Hua Yuan enjoyed listening.

They sat there for half a day, until...

Buzz buzz!

Hua Yuan wiped the drool from his face and looked toward the palace doors, frowning. "Do you hear that sound?"

"...The eighteen-year-old showy old Daoist, ha ha, you wouldn't believe how funny he was. All talk and no action, scared to death, not daring to reveal heavenly secrets. He just hung up a fortune-telling sign to talk about marriages, like some street charlatan!" Clearly, Yue Gong Li heard nothing and kept rambling.

Buzz buzz!

The faint rumbling was definitely not an illusion.

Hua Yuan stood up to check outside the palace, but Yue Gong Li grabbed his wine cup and pulled him back, still laughing:

"A twenty-something telling fortunes and matching marriages—how could that get any business? That fool sat there all day without earning a single Ling Jing. So, I set up my sister to help him out, taking his little Ba over to boost the business. Back then, my sister didn't even know Dao Qiong Cang, that newbie just starting out..."

Hua Yuan couldn't take it anymore: "Are you really not hearing any sound?"

"The fortune-teller said, 'You'll have a calamity in your youth...' Ha ha ha, him, giving marriage advice and then saying that? Ba Zun An didn't give him a single Ling Jing and slapped him instead. I was in the back and burst out laughing... That grudge probably still burns for the showy old Daoist. Ba Zun An might not even know he offended Dao Qiong Cang back then..."

"Yue Gong Li!" Hua Yuan shouted.

Yue Gong Li's drunken haze vanished in an instant, his eyes sharpening as he exclaimed:

"Hua Yuan, do you hear that sound?"

Hua Yuan: "..."

So, you were just monologuing and not listening to me at all!

Boom—

Before they could think further, the wall behind the high-backed throne shattered with a crash, and dense black branches surged in.

"Shu Mu!"

Yue Gong Li grabbed Hua Yuan and bolted.

"Shu Mu? What Shu Mu?"

Hua Yuan had never seen such eerie branches, which contained an extremely terrifying Zu Yuan Zhi Li, seemingly a blend of three different types—this was similar to the Di Ying Sheng Zhu in Yue Gong Li's stories.

"It's exactly the Di Ying Sheng Zhu!"

They couldn't escape.

Branches erupted from all sides, including the ground, sweeping toward Yue Gong Li in overwhelming numbers.

The Yin Ling Jiu appeared just in time, hiding the two inside and turning into a drifting coffin amid the waves of branches for a second voyage.

"Huh?"

The Liu Sui Shi Wang was pulled into the spatial turbulence, letting out a bewildered sound that might or might not have been pain, and instinctively touched its belly upon seeing the branches.

"Save it, save it!" Yue Gong Li jumped anxiously in the Yin Ling Jiu, as if he'd lost all his powers. "My corpse king!"

"Got it."

Hua Yuan nodded, flipped his sword, and thrust it into the air.

His eyes glowed with a ghostly light, his aura rising steadily as a dark green sword path mystical array spread beneath his feet.

"Sen Gui Dao · Yan Zhao Fengdu!"

With a massive boom, grand Sen Luo palaces rose from the earth, along with mountains of knives and seas of fire, and icy prisons of frost...

Countless ghosts wailed, filling the air with piercing screams.

In one sword strike, the entire ten-thousand-li radius was replaced by the horrific scenes of eighteen layers of hell.

Atop Fengdu, a massive ghost king with a green face and fangs materialized, holding a talisman and bellowing:

"Arise!"

Another thunderous roar echoed, and the ten-thousand-li Fengdu locked onto the Yin Ling Jiu and the Liu Sui Shi Wang, breaking through the boundaries of the branch waves' attack.

"We can't stop!"

Yue Gong Li clung to Hua Yuan's leg and yelled, "The entire Si Ming Shen Dian has been invaded by the Di Ying Sheng Zhu! Wasn't it in the thirty-third heaven? Had the ancestral tree already descended when you came in?"

No, it hadn't...

Hua Yuan didn't know how the situation had escalated so suddenly and could only press on, forcing his way through the Si Ming Shen Dian with the ten-thousand-li Fengdu.

After breaking through all obstacles, he finally leaped out from the plaque with the Yin Ling Jiu and the Liu Sui Shi Wang.

"Dao! Qiong! Cang!"

The moment they returned to the eighteenth heaven, a shrill scream exploded in their ears.

It was almost enough to shred their soul bodies, causing unbearable pain.

Fortunately, Yue Gong Li possessed the power of three ancestors, making his soul body unusual, and Hua Yuan, like Hua Chang Deng, specialized in ghost sword techniques, allowing him to resist with Fengdu.

What deep-seated grudge...

The two exchanged glances and heard in that call—whose voice it was—the level of hatred akin to killing one's father.

"Something's wrong!"

"Has that showy old Daoist come in?"

It wasn't scary if someone was calling for Dao Qiong Cang—who could it be, not the ancestral gods, right?

What delighted Yue Gong Li was that Dao Qiong Cang seemed to have entered the Shen Zhi Yi Ji and stirred up trouble.

This was perfect.

Find him, cling to his leg, borrow his brain, and sweet-talk him as compensation—then he could escape the Shen Zhi Yi Ji without lifting a finger.

"Let's find Dao Qiong Cang!"

Yue Gong Li suggested what was undoubtedly the best idea in the Shen Zhi Yi Ji—no one would argue it was second-best.

Hua Yuan nodded without hesitation and helped push open the lid of the Yin Ling Jiu.

Clunk!

In the next breath, both were frozen in the coffin.

From their sacred thoughts, the entire eighteenth heaven was covered by branches dangling from the heavenly realm, turning it into a dark world.

And in this embryonic Shen Ting, a thick layer of purple mist had gathered—the power of the Xie Shen.

The most familiar Xie Shen power to Yue Gong Li converged and took shape, forming massive, twisted faces.

Each face had its features pushed outward, dominated by a single demonic purple eye in the center of the forehead.

As soon as the Yin Ling Jiu's lid opened, the writhing world fell silent.

In the next instant, countless branches hung in the air, pointing at the two in the coffin.

The faces floating in the sky, which had been searching for something, all turned in unison, fixing their gaze on Yue Gong Li.

A scream like an infant's wail echoed in their minds:

"Do you know where 'Dao Qiong Cang' is?"