The old man gazed at the tomb forest, his eyes deep and profound. “The Great Venerable has surely fallen.”
“Why are you so certain?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The old man said, “Because a peerless genius of the Zhang family once cultivated the Great Venerable’s technique to its pinnacle, reaching the Supreme Great Saint Realm. To break into divinity and revive the Zhang family, he ventured alone into this ancestral land, seeking the missing parts of the technique.”
“In the depths of this ancestral land, he didn’t find the technique, but he stumbled upon a divine source.”
“That divine source was the Great Venerable’s.”
“By a stroke of fortune, this genius refined the divine source and broke through to the Divine Realm.”
“Was this peerless genius the Calamity Venerable?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The old man replied, “Exactly.”
Curious, Zhang Ruochen said, “How do you know the divine source you refined was the Great Venerable’s?”
“Ha, of course… it wasn’t me, it was the Calamity Venerable,” the old man said, glaring.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Fine. How did the Calamity Venerable know the divine source he refined was the Great Venerable’s?”
“Different gods leave divine sources with distinct auras. The Great Venerable was a Heavenly Venerable, revered by all. Could any god’s divine source compare to his? Don’t I have that much discernment… I mean, didn’t the Calamity Venerable?” The old man showed no embarrassment, maintaining his composure.
Zhang Ruochen agreed with this point.
After all, refining divine sources of different levels results in varying combat power for pseudo-gods. Yet, even the strongest pseudo-god struggles to defeat a true god.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “Logically, the Great Venerable’s divine source should contain boundless power, far surpassing the destructive force of a star. Could a Great Saint refine it?”
In both the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm, divine sources of top-tier powerhouses never end up in pseudo-gods.
First, no Saint Realm cultivator can refine such a potent divine source.
Second, such divine sources are valuable even to true gods.
“That’s why I said it was sheer luck that this Zhang family genius refined the Great Venerable’s divine source,” the old man said. “It must have been the Great Venerable’s indestructible divine soul aiding him in some unseen way, hoping he’d uphold the Zhang family and restore its ancient glory.”
Hands behind his back, the old man spoke with fervor. “You can’t imagine the pain of a Heavenly Venerable family falling into ruin. I’m unwilling to accept it. The Great Venerable left his divine source to me, yet I couldn’t revive the family. Every time I think of this, my heart breaks.”
“Wasn’t it the Calamity Venerable?” Zhang Ruochen said.
“Right, the Calamity Venerable. He failed the Great Venerable’s trust, though the Great Venerable might not have intended to entrust him,” the old man said.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. “No, the Calamity Venerable was only a pseudo-god, able to live one eon. How could he survive from medieval times to now?”
Gods nearing the end of their lifespan, sensing rapid aging and declining vitality, may enter slumber to extend their lives if they fear failing the eon’s tribulation.
Slumber is akin to suspended animation.
But the Calamity Venerable, over these hundred thousand years, stayed in Wang Mountain’s depths, claiming to heal injuries and refine deathly energy, not slumbering.
How could a pseudo-god still be alive and well?
The Calamity Venerable’s eyes dimmed, tears welling up. “I’ve calculated it. This year is my final limit. I won’t survive it!”
“Ruochen, pity this old man. My life for the Zhang family has been tough, exhausting, and dutiful. Before I die, let me see a few more Zhang descendants with divine potential. Is that too much to ask?”
The words “Is that too much” carried a mournful sob.
Though it should have been touching, Zhang Ruochen found it hard to believe coming from him. “You’re admitting you’re the Calamity Venerable?”
“Yes, I admit it. It doesn’t matter now, I’m a dying man,” the Calamity Venerable said, eyes red, nodding sincerely.
Zhang Ruochen said, “If this year is your final limit, even if I wanted to contribute to the Zhang family, you might not live to see it.”
The Calamity Venerable perked up, pointing at Zhang Ruochen. “You agreed! I take it as a promise! As long as you produce heirs, this old man can keep going.”
His words rang with vigor.
Where was the frail, dying old man?
Zhang Ruochen felt tricked. This old man seemed like a master actor.
But if he was truly just a pseudo-god, his lifespan might indeed be nearly spent.
“I didn’t agree,” Zhang Ruochen said.
The old man insisted, “You clearly did! I don’t care, you promised, and reneging won’t do. If you back out, you’re breaking your word, betraying your ancestors, a cowardly scoundrel. Don’t blame me for using extreme measures then. Remember, I’m not forcing you. You agreed first.”
Zhang Ruochen finally understood why the old man claimed he never forced Zhang Shaochu or King Mingjiang.
With his relentless tactics, who could resist?
Zhang Ruochen didn’t take his words to heart. “You said you cultivated the Great Venerable’s technique to its peak, yet only reached the Supreme Great Saint Realm? Even you don’t have the later parts of the technique? Did the Great Venerable only pass down nine layers of the *Thirty-Three Heavens*?”
The old man’s expression grew rare and solemn. “I don’t know if the Great Venerable’s technique is truly incomplete, causing no Zhang descendant to reach divinity.”
“The technique greatly impacts breaking into divinity, but it’s not absolute.”
“The greatest factors are mindset, Saintly Way rules, divine tribulations, and, of course, Holy Will.”
Zhang Ruochen took a long chair from his spatial ring. “Sit and explain slowly.”
They sat on the chair.
The Calamity Venerable said, “In truth, *Thirty-Three Heavens* isn’t the name of the Zhang family’s inherited technique. That’s what outsiders call it. Within the Zhang family, it’s called the *Ming Wang Scripture*. After the medieval era, the Shengming Central Empire renamed it the *Nine Heavens Ming Emperor Scripture*.”
“Why do outsiders call it *Thirty-Three Heavens*?” Zhang Ruochen asked, intrigued.
The Calamity Venerable said, “Legend has it, in his ultimate combat state, the Great Venerable Immovable Ming Wang’s celestial realms above his head could grow from twenty-seven to thirty-three. In that state, he was invincible.”
“Why was he called the Immovable Ming Wang? Because, in that state, standing still, he could suppress all with just the thirty-three heavens.”
“I thought ‘Immovable’ referred to his unshakeable heart,” Zhang Ruochen quipped.
The Calamity Venerable said, “Did you also think *Thirty-Three Heavens* meant thirty-three layers of technique?”
Zhang Ruochen smiled.
The Calamity Venerable continued, “In fact, the *Ming Wang Scripture* is more about laying a foundation, a bridge to divinity. It teaches how to open meridians and the qi circulation routes for each realm, cultivating supremely powerful holy qi. That’s all.”
“How it’s applied depends on the cultivator.”
“Like how you chose to cultivate the Five Elements Chaos Body, split your holy soul into six, reached Saint King perfection, and developed a Second-Grade Holy Will. That’s your unique application of the technique. No other Zhang descendant cultivating the *Ming Wang Scripture* can replicate your achievement or walk your path.”
“The *Ming Wang Scripture* provides a vital foundation, but you, the cultivator, matter more.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “So, every Zhang descendant cultivating the *Ming Wang Scripture* achieves different results?”
The Calamity Venerable replied, “You could say that. The *Ming Wang Scripture* is the best paper, ink, and brush, but whether you paint a masterpiece depends on the cultivator.”
“Does that mean, after divinity, one must create their own technique?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Calamity Venerable said, “All techniques, even those on the *Taiyi Divine Techniques List*, are most crucial before divinity, when cultivators rely on them heavily. After divinity, reliance on techniques diminishes.”
“At best, a technique explains the characteristics of each divine realm and how to break through faster. These are largely similar.”
“As for divine qi circulation, if a god still needs a technique to guide their qi, that’s a cosmic joke.”
“The only advantage might be the insights, cultivation notes, and divine abilities left by gods who practiced the same technique, which greatly aid new gods.”
“Is the difficulty of Zhang descendants reaching divinity really due to an incomplete technique?” Zhang Ruochen muttered.
The Calamity Venerable shook his head gravely. “Not necessarily.”
“Why not?”
The Calamity Venerable said, “The Zhang family has many talents, especially in ancient and medieval times. How could a mere incomplete technique stop them from divinity? I suspect the Nether Clan cursed us!”
“Would the Nether Clan dare curse the Great Venerable?”
“When the Great Venerable was alive, no one dared. But after his death, his enemies could have targeted his descendants to prevent another Great Venerable-level powerhouse from rising, suppressing the Hell Realm, including the Nether Clan.”
“Does my theory make sense?”
Zhang Ruochen chuckled, thinking the old man was making excuses for his failure to reach divinity. “My father broke into divinity in the Hell Realm.”
The Calamity Venerable, believing his theory sound, snapped, “Ten eons have passed. Even the strongest curse would weaken. The one who cast it is likely dead! Besides, your father might have cultivated another technique in the Hell Realm, or the Lord of the Death God Island might have lifted the curse. There are many possibilities!”
Uninterested in this, Zhang Ruochen, confident divinity wouldn’t stop him, asked curiously, “How many divine seat planets did the Great Venerable condense? Since you refined his divine source, can you wield their power?”
The Calamity Venerable stood, pointing to the sky. “Cultivating the *Ming Wang Scripture* doesn’t involve condensing divine seat planets, only building celestial realms above the head. One realm, one world.”
Zhang Ruochen looked up, faintly seeing the shadow of eighteen celestial realms above the Calamity Venerable’s head.
The Great Venerable had twenty-seven realms, yet he inherited only eighteen?
What a waste!
The Great Venerable’s divine source was squandered on him.
Zhang Ruochen kept this to himself, knowing he couldn’t defeat him now.
Looking again at the tomb forest shrouded in nine-coloured divine light, Zhang Ruochen said, “Who helped you refine the divine source back then? I don’t believe you did it alone!”
