At this moment, Black Wind Mountain was surrounded by countless beasts, while the sky resounded with the cries of hundreds of birds paying homage to the phoenix. This bizarre scene left not only the lesser demons stunned, but even Mo Fan, a demon king, stood frozen, unable to comprehend what was happening.
In the past, because the demonic aura of Black Wind Mountain soared into the heavens, birds and beasts alike kept their distance. Their survival instincts warned them that drawing too close to the mountain would likely result in becoming someone’s dinner.
It was precisely for this reason that the current scene appeared utterly abnormal.
These wild creatures had suddenly lost all fear of the mountain’s demonic aura. Instead, they surged forward as if on a pilgrimage, leaving Mo Fan deeply shocked.
Just then, You Er flew over, his face filled with delight.
Compared to more than a year ago, the fellow had grown even sturdier.
“Great King, this is an auspicious omen!”
“What auspicious omen?”
Mo Fan glanced at You Er, then raised his hand to point at the strange phenomenon in the sky. “Is it related to these auspicious signs?”
“Exactly. Just a moment ago, I performed a divination for our Black Wind Mountain, and the result was an unprecedented great fortune!”
You Er landed in front of Mo Fan, beaming with joy.
Hearing this, the tension in Mo Fan’s heart immediately eased. Since You Er had already divined the future, nothing bad would happen.
Although You Er’s character remained questionable, his divination skills were absolutely trustworthy to Mo Fan. Curious, he looked at You Er and asked, “What was the hexagram?”
“Great King, the hexagram showed auspicious beasts gathering in great numbers, fortunate clouds filling the sky, hundreds of birds paying homage to the phoenix, golden characters sweeping across the heavens, and a golden figure reflected across the nine skies!”
You Er spoke with great excitement.
“Isn’t this exactly what is happening on our Black Wind Mountain right now?”
Mo Fan frowned slightly, not fully understanding. He knew that as the owner of the Destiny Compass, You Er possessed some ability to interpret hexagrams. He promptly asked, “Stop beating around the bush with this king. Just tell me directly what the hexagram means!”
“Heh heh, Great King, think about it. What do auspicious beasts and hundreds of birds represent?” You Er grinned and asked in return.
“They should represent the beasts of the land and the birds of the air, I suppose.”
Mo Fan pondered briefly.
“Correct!”
You Er chuckled, then continued, “Actually, Great King, you only got half of it. Beasts and birds in fact also symbolise the demon race. The fortunate clouds represent great luck and prosperity, a sign of rising fortune!”
“And in the hexagram, golden characters appeared. I even observed them closely and discovered that those characters were the very ones you created, Great King!”
“As for the golden figure, I am not entirely sure.”
“But I am certain that this auspicious omen is connected to the characters you created, Great King. Perhaps that golden figure even represents you!”
Connected to creating characters?
Upon hearing this, Mo Fan suddenly understood.
Characters were not merely an important medium for transmitting information and communication. They were also one of the key channels for passing down knowledge. Their greater role lay in the inheritance of civilisation.
The reason the human race had prospered and endured for so long was due in large part to possessing their own unique writing system.
It was precisely because of writing that humans could, within their short lifespans, pass down the civilisation and wisdom accumulated across generations. The most obvious example was the scripture pavilions in the various sacred grounds.
The demon race was different. Although their history was ancient, they lacked their own unique writing system. The fundamental reason was that demons had a different method of inheritance from humans: bloodline inheritance.
However, bloodline inheritance carried a severe drawback. It required the awakening of the bloodline, and the methods of awakening varied. Moreover, as generations passed, demon bloodlines gradually thinned. The so-called bloodline inheritance naturally weakened over time, causing many powerful demon legacies to vanish into the river of history.
Now, Mo Fan had taken the simplified characters from his previous life as the foundation and created a writing system unique to the demons of this world. Naturally, this touched upon certain heavenly rules.
Though Mo Fan had not yet reached that level, he vaguely sensed something.
Characters were not created for a single demon, but for the entire demon race. Therefore, they would naturally influence the fortune of the whole demon race.
Having thought this through, Mo Fan understood everything. He was merely unsure what effect this fortune, beneficial to the entire demon race, would have on him personally.
If this were truly an auspicious phenomenon generated by heavenly rules due to rising fortune, what benefit would it bring him?
As Mo Fan pondered, he suddenly noticed the auspicious phenomena in the sky beginning to change. They gradually turned pale gold, forming countless densely packed characters. However, they were too blurred to make out clearly.
At the same time, a great sun slowly rose in the east. Wisps of purple qi, visible to the naked eye, drifted out like a vast ocean, sweeping majestically and sprinkling over the entirety of Black Wind Mountain.
While Black Wind Mountain displayed this astonishing phenomenon, far away on an inverted mountain overseas, an elderly Taoist stepped out from his abode.
He stood at the edge of a sheer cliff, ignoring the terrifying storms around him. His eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed into the distance. Though his eyes appeared somewhat cloudy, flashes of sharp light emerged, as if he could pierce through layers of clouds and mountains to see that endlessly distant place.
At that moment, a figure suddenly appeared beside him: a middle-aged man dressed in green robes, with stubble covering his face, carrying a wooden sword on his back.
“Purple qi travels east for ninety thousand li. Has a supreme sage emerged among the demon race?”
The middle-aged man frowned slightly and spoke slowly.
“I am not certain.”
The elderly Taoist shook his head, then said, “A celestial phenomenon of this magnitude is already a manifestation of heavenly rules.
To my knowledge, such phenomena have appeared on our Nine Provinces continent only three times. Once in the primordial era, when the supreme sage ancestor of the human race created writing.
Once in the ancient era, when the Human Emperor ended the dark turmoil.
And the last time, more than a thousand years ago, when that astonishingly talented female emperor ascended to the throne.
Apart from these, no one else has ever caused heavenly rules to manifest a sage phenomenon. Even the so-called celestial beings descending from the upper realm could not achieve it!”
“Hiss…”
After hearing the elderly Taoist, the middle-aged man could not help drawing in a sharp breath. He then frowned and said, “Does that mean a great demon comparable to those three has appeared in the Hundred Thousand Mountains?”
The elderly Taoist immediately shook his head and smiled faintly. “The manifestation of a sage phenomenon does not necessarily mean a sage has been born.
With that treasure in existence, if a truly extraordinary being were born in this world, we would be the first to know. He could not bypass us!
Although the demon race’s fortune has slightly tilted the balance due to Bai Xiaosu’s wager with us, it is still insufficient to produce a great power comparable to those three predecessors.
In other words, the demon race’s fortune is not yet enough!
Of course, the sage phenomenon manifested by heavenly rules cannot be false. This indicates that a new star is rising within the demon race. However, the tallest tree catches the most wind. Whether he can grow remains to be seen!”
“Better to believe it exists than not!”
The middle-aged man raised his brows slightly and said gravely, “Our world can no longer withstand further upheaval. The situation we spent a thousand years stabilising, if destroyed just like that, would give us endless headaches. I had best make another trip and eliminate the threat in its infancy!”
“You have already gone once. Although it did not greatly alter the overall fortune of the demon race, it already violated our agreement with Bai Xiaosu. You cannot act again!
Moreover, unless you undo the seal, do you truly believe you can defeat those saint kings?”
The elderly Taoist shook his head slightly. His gentle words caused the middle-aged man to fall silent.
“Are we to simply watch the demon race rise?”
The middle-aged man gritted his teeth, somewhat unwilling.
“The affairs of the world are ever-changing. Everything is determined by heaven. Do not forget that people like you and I have long transcended worldly disputes. We act for the safety of the entire Nine Provinces!
Though demons are different, in the end, they are still part of the Nine Provinces!
Sometimes, we must look further ahead!”
The elderly Taoist’s words calmed the middle-aged man. He gave a helpless, bitter smile, cupped his hands slightly towards the Taoist, and said, “Mountain Lord, I understand!”
“Good that you understand. Let those below the mountain handle matters below the mountain!
What we must do is deal with the people above the mountain and resolve matters above the mountain!
Perhaps one day in the future, we may even need to borrow the power of the demon race!
As for the being who caused heavenly rules to manifest the sage phenomenon, it will depend on his own fortune!
If possible, this poor Taoist would actually like to see the day he climbs the mountain!”
