Chapter 464: Prehistoric Horror Short Stories

Streaks of light cut across the void, and the 'pressure-bringers' arrived as expected.

The first wave of enemy cultivators to arrive consisted mostly of True Immortals and Heavenly Immortals, numbering around a thousand. Leading them were two Golden Immortals whose cultivation wasn't particularly profound, only possessing a 'Wuyou' level of power.

Li Changshou didn't fully understand the rules of conduct for these immortal factions in the Three Thousand Worlds at the time, but he knew this thousand or so individuals were merely an appetizer. In the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm, not counting those splendid jade talisman holders wielded by powerful beings, even just the old grandmothers of Heavenly Edge Pavilion would be difficult to defeat without one or two dozen Golden Immortals. What's more, their side also had experts like Madam Bian.

In the Three Thousand Worlds, where even top-grade acquired spirit treasures could be called 'supreme treasures,' cultivation realms were almost equivalent to one's combat prowess. Madam Bian, capable of sustaining Heavenly Edge Pavilion's vast enterprise, was naturally not to be underestimated.

Using the paper effigies hidden throughout the void, Li Changshou employed his old trick, forming an 'immortal sense detection network,' and had already detected more enemy experts hiding tens of thousands of miles away, slowly approaching the small world. The opponents were also well-versed in the arts of 'pressure' and 'negotiation.' In the enemy's rear guard, two figures emanated profound auras and dense Dao charm, radiating a sense of completeness, as if disciples of the Western Saints had personally arrived. These circumstances were largely within Li Changshou's expectations.

At this moment, Li Changshou and Lu Yue had ceased their conversation, quietly remaining in a position behind the enemy's first wave of experts. Hidden within a tiny 'Mustard Seed Universe,' they had prioritized locking onto the enemy vanguards burdened with karma, having prepared large doses of sedatives and poison pills.

"Indeed..."

"No wonder a Great Tribulation is descending," Qin Tianzhu sighed softly, standing on the rooftop of a tall building in Heavenly Edge Pavilion and gazing at the streaks of light beyond the small world's grand formation.

Li Changshou chuckled, "Humanity reproduces too quickly, and the human body itself is an innate Dao body, so there will always be those with higher aptitude. Even if treasures are limited in a Great Thousand World, spiritual energy is almost infinite, and now there's no shortage of cultivation methods, allowing a batch of experts to emerge in tens of thousands of years. And as long as one enters the Golden Immortal realm, they can achieve longevity without suffering calamity. Such circumstances are entirely reasonable."

Qin Tianzhu slowly nodded, then added, "The number of Golden Immortal experts in the Heavenly Court is still less than that in a flourishing human Great Thousand World."

"Everything has a beginning process," Li Changshou explained gently. "Since our Heavenly Court's great victory over the demon race, seven human Golden Immortals have defected, though they are only serving as loose immortals of the Heavenly Court. Once the Purple Heaven Palace discusses the matters of the Great Tribulation, what the Heavenly Court will worry about is no longer a lack of experts, but rather tightening its gates, preventing those who wish to avoid the Tribulation or have ill intentions from taking office in the Heavenly Court."

Qin Tianzhu nodded with a smile, sighing, "When the Great Tribulation descends, who knows how many beings will die or be injured? To the Heavenly Dao, what difference is there between living beings and rocks? What the Heavenly Dao desires is the stability of heaven and earth, to prevent the recurrence of disasters like the initial Dragon-Phoenix Tribulation. Recalling the dawn of ancient times, myriad beings cultivated unrestrained, accumulating a large number of experts over countless ages. Towards the end of ancient times, the situation where 'Grand Luo were as common as dogs, and Golden Immortals were everywhere' truly cannot reappear... The heavens and earth now are more fragile than the Primordial Heaven and Earth of ancient times."

Li Changshou nodded thoughtfully, but behind him, a long sigh was heard. It was Madam Bian, seated behind them, who sighed and said:

"What General Qin just said, that the Heavenly Court's experts are still inferior to a Great Thousand World, is truly mistaken. The Heavenly Court is presided over by His Majesty the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother, who are peers of the Saint Lords, overseeing the operation of the Heavenly Dao, receiving its blessings, and are moreover the orchestrators of the current Great Tribulation. This is something that the combined beings of dozens or hundreds of Great Thousand Worlds cannot even remotely compare to. In the Primordial World, having walked the path of cultivation to my current level, I can say I've experienced its hardships. Beings slaughter for survival, cultivators slaughter for opportunities. The rise of a Golden Immortal is accompanied by untold bloodshed. But the Golden Immortal realm is merely a stage of cultivation; longevity and carefree existence are but a jest. Only great powers and cultivators of great divine abilities can attain a modicum of freedom. Above all beings are the Six Saint Lords, who can extinguish a Great Thousand World with a single finger, and remold wind, fire, water, and earth with a flick of their wrist! What can a Golden Immortal do? What can one at Dao Completion do? They are merely ants and blades of grass distinguishing their own heights." (Dao Completion refers to achieving the Grand Luo fruit position.)

Qin Tianzhu smiled, "Madam's insight is profound."

Li Changshou stood with his hands behind his back, gazing beyond the grand formation, where over a dozen enemy figures were pressing forward, each releasing their aura, seemingly ready to provoke...

Heavenly Dao, time, heaven and earth;Saints, the cosmos, ants;The Way of Balance exists between all things; imbalance gives rise to great tribulations.

Insights sprouted in his heart, but Li Changshou quietly suppressed them.

From beyond the heavens came a relatively gentle greeting: "Heavenly Edge Pavilion's spokesperson, would you be willing to step out for a talk?"

"Still playing 'courtesy before force'?" An old woman snorted coldly, her expression greatly displeased.

At this moment, the dozen or so individuals standing or sitting on the rooftop of the tall building all fixed their gaze on Li Changshou. Although the one present was merely an avatar of the Heavenly Court's Water God, and only a paper effigy avatar at the late Heavenly Immortal stage, having only been there for four or five days, yet for some inexplicable reason... he had become the central pillar.

Li Changshou crushed the jade talisman in his hand, and instantly, dozens of streaks of light flew out of the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm's small world. From within, three Golden Immortal realm old women flew out, the rest all being at the late Heavenly Immortal stage. Most of them were women, each clad in battle armor, holding ordinary spirit treasures, and glaring unpleasantly at the 'guests.'

The two Golden Immortals on the opposing side, their eyes filled with coldness, said indifferently: "Does your esteemed pavilion not even wish for a single deputy pavilion master to appear for a discussion?"

An old woman replied, "You are merely the vanguard; why should you meet our deputy pavilion master? Have those behind you come faster! Once your main representative appears, our own representative will naturally show themselves!"

Hearing this, an elderly Golden Immortal from the opposing side couldn't help but frown and say: "Does Heavenly Edge Pavilion truly have the confidence to face today's situation? Do not invite your own demise." He seemed to have some lingering sentiment for Heavenly Edge Pavilion.

The Heavenly Edge Pavilion side did not reply. One person, holding a jade talisman, opened a slit in the grand formation behind them. Immortal music and laughter echoed near and far, scenes of dancing figures casting shadows were visible everywhere. Everything within the secret realm remained as usual, undisturbed by the commotions outside. This was the best answer.

The dozen or so enemy immortals who had come to challenge them no longer spoke much at this point, somewhat unsure of Heavenly Edge Pavilion's true strength. Behind them, the 'great army' that had been slowly advancing began to pick up speed. A river of light appeared in the void, with thousands of streaks of light shooting towards them. Among them was a small contingent of experts temporarily dispatched by the Western Sect.

Inside the small Mustard Seed Universe, Li Changshou's Golden Immortal paper effigy and Lu Yue exchanged glances, each revealing a slight smile. Lu Yue transmitted, "The opponents haven't deployed ordinary immortal soldiers. Today, we can act without restraint." Li Changshou also said, "They must have rushed here. If they had deployed a large army of immortal soldiers, it would likely be difficult for them to arrive here in three days."

"Chang Geng, shall we... proceed as planned?"

"This being our first battle in the Primordial World, and one that might upset Heavenly Harmony, we should at least give them a good scare."

"Hahaha! Your elder brother can't wait! Fighting alongside you, junior brother, is truly a pleasure!"

The two transmitted whispers for a while, then fell silent, quietly lurking.

Half an hour later, more streaks of light arrived outside the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm's grand formation, arranging themselves into a loose battle array, stretching up, down, front, and back. Seventeen or eighteen Golden Immortal experts lined up, their appearances varying, male and female, old and young, each with a trace of karma mixed into their aura. Of course, in the eyes of a certain Saint's disciple, this was only an average of 11.5% of 'Wuyou' power.

Coincidentally, the two experts suspected to be disciples of the Western Sect happened to stop right in the center of the enemy immortal formation, just... half a zhang away from where Li Changshou's Golden Immortal paper effigy and Lu Yue were hiding.

Lu Yue was about to act immediately, but Li Changshou promptly raised his hand and pressed down on Lu Yue's arm, shaking his head with a solemn expression. "Senior Brother, there's no rush right now."

"It's your elder brother who's too eager, too eager," Lu Yue chuckled, "Let's stick to the plan."

Immediately, the two continued to sneakily hide, beginning to subtly release faint traces of the poison pill's potency... like slowly boiling an immortal.

Although these two enemy experts were hidden in the mist, at such a close distance, they naturally couldn't escape Li Changshou and Lu Yue's detection. They were an old man and a young Daoist. The young Daoist emitted a stronger suppressive aura, and he was not any of the Western Saint disciples Li Changshou had previously encountered. But Li Changshou felt an aura on this young Daoist similar to that of Ksitigarbha; their cultivation methods should be alike. Li Changshou secretly instructed Lu Yue that if only one could be left alive later, to kill the old Daoist and spare the young Daoist, letting him take the news back. Naturally, it would be best to eliminate both.

Just as Lu Yue was about to agree, ready to utter a few confident and arrogant remarks, he heard voices from ahead. The two experts muttered among themselves... The old Daoist wondered, "Brother Dao, why do I feel like someone is watching us?"

The young Daoist smiled confidently. "No matter, with the Great Tribulation approaching, most Daoist experts dare not move about recklessly. It must be some highly accomplished individual enjoying themselves within the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm. We are only here to scare Heavenly Edge Pavilion this time, and those highly accomplished individuals wouldn't bother us. The Water God's avatar is currently in Heavenly Edge Pavilion. As long as we mock him today and force Heavenly Edge Pavilion to yield, our mission will be accomplished. There's no need to necessarily kill people or engage in combat."

"The Water God is not easy to deal with."

"Indeed, we must not be careless. We'll just stand here later and shout at them from a distance. What can an avatar do to me?"

"Brilliant." The old Daoist praised, instantly revealing the hierarchy between the two.

Immediately, the old Daoist let out a half-snort, his voice echoing through the mist, accompanied by the tremor of the Great Dao, imposing its might over the entire Heavenly Edge Secret Realm. Madam Bian gently tapped her staff, and layers of grand formations arose around the various pavilions and palaces. However, this would consume an unknown amount of spirit stones... But for the customer experience, Heavenly Edge Pavilion was going all out. The old woman's own suppressive aura spread out, clashing with the old Daoist's aura, and she returned a half-snort.

The old Daoist from outside the heavens reprimanded coldly: "Since this poor Daoist has arrived, why does Heavenly Edge Pavilion Master not come out to meet?" His opening words immediately revealed his Western origins.

On the tall building in the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm, Bian Zhuang, clad in silver battle armor and leaning on his Nine-toothed Rake, was about to step out with two elderly deputy pavilion masters. Li Changshou showed a slight smile, saying gently: "Bian Zhuang, come."

"Yes!" Bian Zhuang quickly approached Li Changshou, bowing with his hands clasped around the Nine-toothed Rake. Li Changshou extended his right hand. Within his palm, wisps of Profound Yellow aura condensed into a phantom image of the Profound Yellow Pagoda. He sent this phantom image into Bian Zhuang's chest, then patted Bian Zhuang's shoulder. "Relax, don't forget your lines. If you do, just mock them at will."

"Understood! Water God, please rest assured, your humble general understands!" Bian Zhuang grinned, saluted again with clasped fists, then looked up beyond the small world, and leaped into the air with his Nine-toothed Rake. Qin Tianzhu and Li Changshou exchanged smiles, quietly awaiting the show to begin.

As Bian Zhuang flew out of the grand formation, the two old women behind him immediately raised their auras to their peak, guarding him on both sides, allowing Bian Zhuang to fly to the front of the formation. Bian Zhuang casually conjured a white cloud, then... plonked himself down. He crossed his legs, pulled out an embroidered handkerchief imbued with a maiden's fragrance from his battle armor, and wiped his hands, completely disregarding the five or six thousand figures and overwhelming pressure before him.

The old Daoist hidden in the mist said indifferently, "Is the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Edge Pavilion truly such an impolite and arrogant fellow?"

Bian Zhuang, however, ignored him completely, put away the handkerchief, and the Nine-toothed Rake beside him quickly shrunk to three inches long, which he used to comb his fringe. Two Heavenly Immortal realm fairies then came forward, carrying tea. Bian Zhuang took a sip, gargled a few times, then turned his head and spat it into the teacup held by the other fairy. Bian Zhuang leisurely remarked, "Who was just shouting?"

In the mist, the old Daoist's eyes flickered with murderous intent, and his suppressive aura swept towards Bian Zhuang, which was barely resisted by the two old women behind Bian Zhuang. The old Daoist cursed, "Do not court death."

"Heh," Bian Zhuang scoffed, "Do you know whom you are threatening? This general is a fifth-rank immortal official of the Heavenly Court, Deputy Commander of the Heavenly River Navy. I have bowed before His Majesty the Jade Emperor in the Lingxiao Palace, received treasures bestowed by the Grand Master in front of the Doushuai Palace, and listened to the Water God's teachings in the Water God's Mansion. As for so-called experts like you, who dare to yelp and bark at my Heavenly Court just because you have a bit of cultivation, there were countless demons like you before. Now, hehe, I'm afraid there are few left."

"Heh, is Heavenly Edge Pavilion truly not afraid of death?" The old Daoist said indifferently, "You are but a small Heavenly Court immortal official; what if we kill you here?"

"Is that so?" Bian Zhuang recalled the lines given by the Water God, and the instruction that no matter what the other party said, he should just continue with his own script without engaging in conversation. But at this moment, Bian Zhuang inexplicably felt that the Water God's lines were perfectly suited for this situation.

Bian Zhuang placed the Nine-toothed Rake in his palm, examining it carefully, and said, "You probably don't recognize what kind of treasure this is, do you? That's right, treasures refined by Grand Supreme Elder are not something everyone gets to see."

As soon as these words were spoken, gazes fell upon Bian Zhuang's palm. Not just the cultivators at the front of the formation, but even the pleasure-seekers within the Heavenly Edge Secret Realm were now paying attention, staring at the Nine-toothed Rake in Bian Zhuang's hand... Indeed, there was a wisp of profound and abstruse Dao charm.

Bian Zhuang chuckled, "Since you suicidal fellows have come knocking today, I have no choice but to teach you a lesson. This rake of mine, just one tooth, if I just flick it like this." Bian Zhuang's finger lightly flicked the silver tooth of the rake, producing a crisp sound. "Within the reach of my immortal sense, anyone who harbors hostility towards me will be randomly chosen by this precious rake, and their inner karma will be ignited."

As his words fell, a silence descended outside the grand formation, the kind where you could hear a pin drop. Someone chuckled first, then laughter erupted from various directions.

Suddenly! Amidst the laughter, among the dozen or so Golden Immortals lined up, a middle-aged man suddenly widened his eyes, and black blood oozed from his eye sockets, mouth corners, and nostrils! He raised his hand to clutch his throat, his body weakly toppled forward, his primordial spirit seemingly melting like wax, and in an instant, his entire being turned into a puddle of black liquid, spilling out into the void...

Between heaven and earth, peace returned.

Bian Zhuang's eyelids twitched slightly. He forced himself to remain calm and continued to follow the script. Immediately after, Bian Zhuang flicked the rake in his hand twice more, continuing to speak calmly and monotonously: "I wonder if the Grand Master will blame me for using this treasure right at my own doorstep. Alas, there's no other way; the Heavenly Court doesn't have many experts, so we can only rely on some treasures for self-preservation."

"Ah—"

"Save me!"

Before Bian Zhuang finished speaking, two more screams rang out. A man and a woman collapsed, in a situation similar to the previous person. Three puddles of black liquid, three long-lived Golden Immortals! Everything happened in an instant, so naturally, yet so incredibly bizarrely! The opponents' formation was in disarray! Three Golden Immortals from different Great Thousand Worlds just melted away like that...

The old Daoist in the mist decisively acted, immediately intending to unleash his divine ability to capture Bian Zhuang! Bian Zhuang's gaze sharpened, and his finger slid across the nine silver teeth of the miniature Nine-toothed Rake, producing a series of light clicks. The old Daoist, who was about to charge forward, was suddenly startled. He hastily looked inward, staring at the black qi that had, unbeknownst to him, already invaded his primordial spirit! He hadn't noticed it at all!

"Poison! Someone poisoned us!" The old Daoist roared, immediately suppressing the poison and turning to flee, but as his immortal power surged, his vision went dark, and the wisp of black qi in his primordial spirit transformed into a dozen multicolored bright lights! Because the angle of attack was too good, the time too ample, and the opportunity too rare, Lu Yue, guided by Li Changshou, experimented with over a dozen types of his Great Dao poison pills on this old Daoist. The effect was clearly good.

The old Daoist quickly raised his hand to grab the young Daoist beside him, only to find that the young Daoist was even paler, slumped in the mist, trembling incessantly!

The sky of the small world suddenly darkened. The thousands of figures fell into chaos, but the confusion lasted only for an instant. Thousands of True Immortals almost simultaneously collapsed, and one or two hundred Heavenly Immortals fell into a coma without any struggle, their primordial spirits wilting. (This was Li Changshou's masterpiece; nearly twenty paper effigies deployed in various locations simultaneously released poison.) The illusionary poison was naturally from Lu Yue's hand, colorless and odorless, and did not need to be very potent. The dozen or so Golden Immortals on the opposing side reacted the quickest. Seeing that something was wrong, they immediately tried to escape, but at this moment, their primordial spirits melted, each turning into a puddle of black liquid. (This was Lu Yue's doing, using his most prized Great Dao poison.)

Peace reigned inside and outside the small world.

On the tall building, Madam Bian of Heavenly Edge Pavilion and the other old women watched Li Changshou and Qin Tianzhu's backs, their eyes filled with a touch of horror. In the various pleasure pavilions, some guests had their Dao hearts shaken, some frowned deeply, and still others... might require prompt intervention and treatment with invigorating elixirs and potent tonics. The dozens of Heavenly Edge Pavilion experts outside the heavens received the greatest impact. Several Golden Immortals turned pale, and dozens of Heavenly Immortals had their Dao hearts tremble. They had painstakingly cultivated for so many years, only to inexplicably turn into puddles of black liquid in an instant...

Bian Zhuang's Adam's apple bobbed a few times, and he sighed faintly, "Why did you have to force my hand?"

In the mist, the old Daoist spat out a mouthful of blood and cursed in a low voice, "Who exactly are you!"

"Deputy Commander of the Heavenly River Navy," Bian Zhuang smiled faintly, put away the Nine-toothed Rake, and calmly delivered his final lines, "And incidentally, also the Young Pavilion Master of this Heavenly Edge Pavilion. Seniors, aren't you going to flee?"

Immediately, the two old women behind Bian Zhuang were about to move forward when the young Daoist's body suddenly shimmered with ten thousand rays of golden light, and a string of prayer beads appeared above his head. The young Daoist opened his eyes, using the treasure to suppress his severely injured primordial spirit, and casually pulled the old Daoist, ready to leave.

Just then! A hand appeared out of thin air, black wind swirling in its palm, striking the young Daoist's chest with lightning speed. Streaks of black qi almost shattered his primordial spirit, destroying his Dao foundation and severing his Great Dao!

"How dare you!" The young Daoist gritted his teeth and roared, but he had already taken the full force of the palm. His figure transformed into a ball of bloody light, and with a whoosh, he vanished into the void, as if using some kind of escape technique. Just as that palm struck, a flash of light flickered to the side. The old Daoist's head flew up and then fell, without the slightest resistance...

The void finally fell silent, eerily peaceful.

Li Changshou's Golden Immortal paper effigy returned his longsword to its sheath on his back, while Lu Yue stood beside him with his hands behind his back, a look of regret in his eyes.

"It's a performance, so naturally, it has to be complete." Li Changshou said loudly, "General Bian, were you startled?"

"Hahaha," Bian Zhuang laughed heartily, though his laughter sounded somewhat strained, "Thank you two."

"In that case, we shall take our leave for now. General Bian, we will reappear if needed." With that, Li Changshou's Golden Immortal paper effigy and Lu Yue transformed into two streaks of light, flying directly into the void and disappearing in an instant.

At this moment, Bian Zhuang felt his mouth dry and was speechless for a while.

On the tall building, Li Changshou turned to Madam Bian, a slight smile on his lips: "As for these invading enemies, let Heavenly Edge Pavilion deal with them."

Madam Bian's eyes gleamed as she smiled and sighed: "The Water God is truly formidable. With a snap of his fingers, an entire faction turns to dust. Come, go and execute all those invaders. Leave no survivors. Post a public notice: Our Heavenly Edge Pavilion is open to guests, but not just anyone can come and cause trouble. And release news to the outside: my great-grandson is merely serving in the Heavenly Court. Let certain major powers not overthink it."

The old women and other women behind her bowed their heads in agreement. Qin Tianzhu pondered for a while before grasping most of the meaning behind the old woman's words. "This..." A hint of emotion flickered in Qin Tianzhu's eyes. He thought, it's probably better for him to simply continue performing his humble duty as the Jade Emperor. Chang Geng's world was perhaps a little too much for him.