Chapter 823: Yang Realm Celestial Venerable

Ouyang Feng craned his long, swan-like neck and peered into the dark abyss, asking, "What did you see down there?"

"Let's go, we'll talk about it once we're out of here!"

Chu Feng's expression was grave. He explicitly told them that the place was unusual and that external speculations were wrong. It wasn't until they had walked a considerable distance that Chu Feng explained in detail.

"What?! An old Vermilion Bird, almost completely bald, with no detectable breath or life fluctuations, and most importantly, several little red birds?! Oh my god, what an incredible opportunity!" Ouyang Feng was practically drooling.

"You missed the main point," Chu Feng said with extreme seriousness. "Those young Vermilion Birds were gnawing on the flesh and blood of a Quasi-Saint level python!" This implied that although the old Vermilion Bird appeared lifeless, it was certainly still alive and incredibly formidable, given the outrageous choice of food for its offspring.

"Wow, a Quasi-Saint beast as food? I rarely get to eat that on a normal day," exclaimed the silver-haired loli.

Chu Feng massaged his forehead, thinking that Jun Tuo's son and the silver-haired loli were too carefree. What were those two even focusing on?

Qin Luoyin spoke, "There's no doubt the old Vermilion Bird is in its twilight years. It's conserving energy, much like hibernating, to minimize life consumption. It only revives when it needs to hunt for its young." She revealed the essence of the situation: the old Vermilion Bird truly didn't have much life left.

After his recent beating, the young Taoist priest had been listless for days, but now he finally perked up. "What a tremendous fortune!" he exclaimed. "Once the old Vermilion Bird passes away, we'll go down and adopt a divine bird! Imagine, each of us riding a Vermilion Bird! Limitless Celestial Venerable, just thinking about it excites me! You know, such divine birds are incredibly rare, with noble bloodlines. They are beings capable of fighting head-on with deities!"

The young Taoist priest grew more excited as he spoke, "Then I'll remain unmoving, seated cross-legged on the Vermilion Bird's back, soaring through the nine heavens! At that point, I'll have the nascent bearing and grandeur of a Celestial Venerable."

"Good point! I'll have the Vermilion Bird pull my carriage then!" Ouyang Feng nodded.

The silver-haired loli blinked her big eyes at him and said, "Aren't you a divine bird yourself? Oh, and you're female, right? When the time comes, we'll find a young male Vermilion Bird to be your companion. You'll be so happy."

Ouyang Feng: "!!!" He truly wanted to quarrel with Ying Xiaoxiao, but seeing the grim-faced, sister-obsessed Ying Wudi glaring at him, ready to defend his sister, he restrained himself.

"I'm a male! And Ying Wudi, you used to be a pretty boy. Have you been eating dead children lately? Your face is so dark all the time."

Ying Wudi, with a serious expression, retorted, "Are you as dark as me? You're dark from head to toe."

"Ugh, I don't want to talk to you anymore!" Ouyang Feng took swan-like steps, turning his head away in anger and ignoring him.

"It will be difficult; that place is very dangerous," Qin Luoyin stated. She was wary of the abyss and not optimistic about their idea of adopting a Vermilion Bird.

Chu Feng nodded in agreement. This was an old Vermilion Bird, ridiculously powerful. It would certainly have paved a path for its offspring; otherwise, how could it peacefully depart?

Ouyang Feng's heart stirred. "Oh, I just remembered something," he said. "Recently, other groups have been frequently inquiring about the Vermilion Bird Abyss. Last time, some people passing by our dwelling even asked about it." This made everyone pause, sensing the gravity of the situation.

"The divine beasts from other abysses, or perhaps the deities from the Fierce Beast Highlands, have detected something here. They're likely gathering information and may well make a move!" Ying Zhexian deduced. A dying divine bird would possess an immense amount of treasures. Coupled with the divine medicines and scriptures stored in its abode, even deities would be tempted. Most crucially, once a divine bird chick is subdued and nurtured, its combat power would be unimaginable, potentially surpassing that of a deity itself in the end.

"So, does that mean we're out of the game?" the silver-haired loli asked, unwilling to accept it.

"How could that be? Where there's a will, there's a way! We'll create an opportunity and snatch a Vermilion Bird chick!" Ouyang Feng rubbed his hands together.

"Limitless Celestial Venerable, we still have a chance in this matter! From my experience traversing the world, this old Vermilion Bird is no simple creature. It might just give all the deities and divine beasts a 'surprise.' We might not necessarily be able to adopt a Vermilion Bird chick then, but we'll certainly be able to collect a lot of divine blood!" The young Taoist priest made his assessment, believing that a divine war was likely to erupt there, with the blood of divine beasts and deities spilling across the land.

Ying Zhexian nodded. "The old Vermilion Bird might feign death, or proactively trigger a crisis beforehand. I think that before it dies, it will likely drag some divine beasts and deities down with it." A future scenario unfolded before their eyes: the old Vermilion Bird had offspring and was nearing death, a major event that would spark a bloody conflict.

Ouyang Feng exclaimed, "Oh no, we need to go back quickly and tell Sister Yao Yao not to come and plunder near the abyss! This place is about to become a hotbed of trouble!" According to their earlier contact, Yao Yao might come to the abyss. Although it wasn't yet confirmed which divine beast's offspring she intended to plunder, the divine medicines here were definitely a huge temptation.

On the way, Chu Feng said, "Be prepared at all times. When deities, divine beasts, and divine birds erupt into a great war, heads will certainly roll, and divine blood will splatter everywhere. We need to carefully consider whether it's more worthwhile to lie in wait here and collect divine blood, or to directly raid the deities' lairs or other divine beasts' abysses."

"Dad, as expected, old ginger is spicier! You're filled with criminal genes from head to toe, bad from top to bottom. We're still figuring out how to cause trouble here, but you, with your foresight, have already used your keen criminal vision to see millions of miles away. Impressive!"

"Rebellious son, get over here! I'm going to beat you within an inch of your life!" Chu Feng chased after him.

"Limitless Celestial Venerable, this humble Taoist will go first!" The young Taoist priest, sticking out his bottom, darted off on his short legs, running like mad. He possessed secret techniques from his past life and had always been very proud, believing himself to be no weaker than anyone, even as a newborn.

Seeing this, the others had no choice but to chase after him.

"This big nephew is truly something; those short legs run incredibly fast!" After flying for half a day, Ouyang Feng was panting like an old yellow dog, tongue hanging out, utterly exhausted and a bit fed up.

The young Taoist priest could harness the earth's energy, covering dozens of miles with a single step. He was truly too fast; despite his short legs, he was incredibly swift.

The others were very tired. If Ying Xiaoxiao hadn't been carried by her sister's five-colored divine light, she would have definitely fallen behind and vanished long ago.

Along the way, they chased and were chased, accompanied by the young Taoist priest's screams. After all, he was too young in this life and lacked stamina, so when Chu Feng caught him, he inevitably got strung up and beaten.

By the time they returned to their original dwelling, six days had passed, faster than their journey there. They decided to wait there to meet with the people from Immortal Mountain, inform them about the abyss's current situation, and advise against rash actions, believing that profiting from others' conflicts was the correct path.

"Wait, something's here!" Ouyang Feng alerted. Then, they saw a crippled old fox. One front leg was missing, and a hind leg was only half-there. Its eyes were golden, but its fur was dull and nearly all fallen out. Furthermore, the latter half of its body was almost petrified, with certain parts, including its lame leg, turning into rock.

"What kind of demon is that?!" The young Taoist priest jumped up. Instinctively, he felt that this old, nearly bald fox was extraordinary.

"Limitless Celestial Venerable, this humble Taoist greets you with respect." The crippled, yellow-furred old fox's face was full of benevolence.

The young Taoist priest felt a deep sense of aversion. He was also from the Taoist clan, but now a crippled fox with golden eyes was chanting the same Taoist epithet as him, which truly bothered him.

"Great Immortal Hu, why don't you try chanting 'Amitabha' instead!" The young Taoist priest said, his teeth aching. Looking at the yellow-furred fox, he himself felt too embarrassed to chant "Limitless Celestial Venerable."

"This humble Taoist suffers," the old fox sighed. "Now... even my identity as a Taoist clan member is about to be stripped away." As it spoke, its eyes welled up.

What was going on? For a moment, none of them could grasp the situation.

"Alright, don't cry. I'll allow you to chant 'Celestial Venerable.' Now tell me, what exactly is your identity? How did you end up in our dwelling, and what's your purpose?" the young Taoist priest asked.

"Alas, my identity is better left unsaid. Even if I told you, you wouldn't believe it," the crippled fox shook its head.

"Tell me! This Taoist Lord has thick skin. No matter how absurd your claims are, I, this humble Taoist, can face them with a smile."

"Very well, believe it or not as you wish. This humble Taoist was once a Celestial Venerable of the Taoist clan, who looked down upon the world's tides and watched all beings struggle. I never imagined that one day, I too would become an ant in the mortal world. How sorrowful, how lamentable." The yellow-furred old fox looked very melancholic, its face etched with the marks of time. Its golden eyes, in particular, exuded an aura of immense age, as if they had witnessed eons.

"Speak human!" Ouyang Feng was the first to shout.

"Great Immortal Hu, are you trying to use your enchantment spell on us? It won't work!" The young Taoist priest was also fed up. He chanted "Limitless Celestial Venerable" every day, and now an old fox came up to him claiming to be a Celestial Venerable. Wasn't that like kicking him in the face?

"This humble Taoist knew you wouldn't believe it. It's better not to mention it. Let bygones be bygones. Even a Celestial Venerable turns to dust eventually. What is there to be upset about?" The crippled old fox shook its head.

The young Taoist priest and Ouyang Feng naturally didn't believe him. However, Chu Feng was shocked. He saw that besides a petrified broken tail, there were eight other scars on the crippled old fox's back. This meant it was at least a Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox! Therefore, Chu Feng asked, "Since you are a Celestial Venerable, why have you fallen to this state?"

"A discarded piece," the old fox laughed miserably.

"Why were you discarded?"

"Not only was I discarded, but even this entire world has been abandoned. Being born into this world is your suffering; landing in this world is your hardship. If you reside here for too long, you will all die terribly in your old age."

The young Taoist priest curled his lip. "Charlatan! Your tricks are leftovers from my younger days, not worth mentioning. Who doesn't know that practicing unorthodox arts leads to a bad end in old age? Stop pretending to be a Celestial Venerable."

"Very well, since we've met, it's fate. This humble Taoist will perform a divination." The yellow-furred old fox squinted its eyes, pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up and said, "Not good! There will be great chaos near the abyss. Within three days, a divine war will erupt, affecting a vast area. It would be best for you all to avoid it. By then, an unparalleled divine bird will likely sweep across the land!"

Everyone was stunned. If this crippled fox had dared to make such a divination six days ago, they would have refused to believe it even if it meant their lives. But after Chu Feng had personally witnessed the old Vermilion Bird's state in the abyss, he couldn't help but feel a tremor of fear.

"Hmm, this young layman will likely face a bloody calamity today," the crippled fox said, staring at the young Taoist priest.

The young Taoist priest lifted his head, scoffing, "Who are you trying to fool? Are you going to say next that you can help me resolve it if I give you some incense money? I know all about these tricks. You don't even know who this humble Taoist was in his past life! My professional knowledge is far superior to yours!"

"This humble Taoist never lies. In the mortal realm, various divine kings wished to seek divination from me but could not. Yet today, I voluntarily offer a divination, and you treat me with disdain. Enough, enough, our fate is exhausted. Let us part ways here."

As it spoke, it struggled to move the petrified latter half of its body, preparing to leave.

"Moooo!"

Just then, a colossal ox roar echoed from the horizon, shaking the entire area.

"Heh heh! Lü Feiyang, the generational genius of the scholarly family from the Water Country of Nanjiang, is here! I ask the world, who dares contend with me? All you petty thieves, come prostrate yourselves!"

Fighting had erupted at the edge of the land. Clearly, it was the people from Immortal Mountain.