Zhang Ruochen fell into deep thought. Tian La’s words were too shocking and heart-stirring. They also resolved many doubts in his heart. He needed time to digest them slowly.
After a long while, he said, “Senior, do you also believe that there truly are immortals in the world who live forever without dying?”
Tian La looked up at the sky and said, “I do not believe it. You are still too young now. You do not quite understand what life and death are. When you live longer, you will realise that the most common law in the world is birth and death. No one can escape it.”
“But I believe in the Great Venerable. Since he is investigating it, there must be a reason.”
That was obvious.
Disbelief was her rationality.
Belief was her sensibility.
Suddenly, everything became quiet.
Only the wind in the distant desert continued to howl.
Xiao Hei, Chi Yao, Yan Wushen, and Gushai Jing, who had all turned into dust, grew back to their original sizes. Their eyes all became extremely serious. They now understood that even after stepping into the divine realm, there were still forces in the world that they needed to revere.
Tian La’s power was like an unclimbable peak. It filled them with longing.
Zhang Ruochen asked again, “How much do you know about the Mingwang Scripture, senior?”
The Mingwang Scripture was the Jiutian Mingdi Scripture, also known as the Thirty-Three Heavens.
Zhang Ruochen had discussed it with the Tribulation Venerable. The Tribulation Venerable once suspected that the Mingwang Scripture did not have only nine heavens. The technique might be incomplete. This could also be one reason why the Zhang family members could not become gods.
However, the era of the Tribulation Venerable and the Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable was separated by countless tens of thousands of years, across countless generations. Everything could only be guessed at.
Guesses were almost always inaccurate.
It was rare to meet a senior expert who had connections with the Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable, and who even counted as half his disciple. With his divine tribulation approaching, Zhang Ruochen would not miss this chance. He naturally wanted to ask clearly.
“What do you want to ask?” Tian La said.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Does the Mingwang Scripture really only have nine heavens? To construct the tenth heaven and break through to become a god, does one really have to comprehend it alone? Is there no path ahead, and one must forge their own road?”
Among the cultivators of the Mingwang Scripture, besides the Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable, no one else had constructed the tenth heaven. They all stopped at the ninth.
The Tribulation Venerable could construct more heavens not because he cultivated them, but because he directly inherited the cultivation of the Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable from back then.
So, Zhang Ruochen was very curious. Was the reason the Zhang family could not become gods only due to the Dao-Severing Curse?
Could an incomplete technique also be a reason?
Tian La shook her head and said, “I know very little about the Mingwang Scripture. I cannot answer your question. But I do know that the Great Venerable’s cultivation indeed has a flaw. It is a regret he could not make up for in his entire life.”
“Where is the flaw?” Zhang Ruochen asked quickly.
Tian La said, “The Great Venerable cultivated a total of twenty-seven heavens, making him invincible across all heavens and unmatched in the world. After that, despite efforts over several kalpas, he could not construct the twenty-eighth heaven. He once thought this was the limit. The sky is high, but it has an end.”
“But later, after an unprecedented breakthrough in his mental power, he made deductions and found that the highest level of the technique he cultivated could reach thirty-three heavens. Twenty-seven was just his personal limit.”
“He once sighed that the ultimate realm of humanity was unattainable.”
“He spent a lot of time researching why he could only cultivate twenty-seven heavens. Was there a problem somewhere? In the end, he reached a conclusion: insufficient foundation.”
“Insufficient foundation?” Yan Wushen said.
Even with Yan Wushen’s divine foundation that was almost unmatched in the world, he questioned this.
Xiao Hei also questioned it and said, “The Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable once dazzled an era. He must have perfected every realm. How could his foundation be insufficient? If even he had an insufficient foundation, then do we have no foundation at all?”
“You are not wrong to say that,” Tian La said.
Did she have to answer so directly?
Xiao Hei felt a bit angry but did not dare to show it. He could only sulk.
Tian La said, “Constructing heavens is like building a tall tower. A tower a thousand feet high rises from flat ground. The stronger the foundation, the more important it is. To make the tower as high as possible, every step must be flawless. Otherwise, a tiny error can lead to a thousand-mile deviation.”
“I do not know what the Great Venerable meant by insufficient foundation, but I think he must have figured out the reason and found a way to compensate for it. If he could live longer, he would surely personally train a disciple with a sufficient foundation who could cultivate to thirty-three heavens.”
Gushai Jing said, “Twenty-seven heavens are already invincible in the world. How strong would thirty-three heavens be?”
“With Zhang Ruochen’s foundation, he might have a chance to surpass the Immovable Mingwang Great Venerable in the future,” Yan Wushen said.
“Right? Not even thirty-three heavens. Twenty-eight would be enough. Then, this emperor would strut across heaven and hell,” Xiao Hei laughed.
Tian La said, “This is exactly why he must cultivate the Absolute Fleshly Dao Transformation. Zhang Ruochen, you being able to cultivate a first-grade holy intent should be related to Sumi, right?”
“I think Sumi has such expectations for you. That is why he hopes you reach the ultimate and perfection in every realm. It is very likely that the Great Venerable told Sumi the method of compensation back then.”
“You becoming his successor is no accident. He entrusted this entire era to you.”
In Zhang Ruochen’s mind, images appeared: Sumi the Holy Monk guarding Kunlun until death, leading him to the Primeval and his body vanishing… and so on. He said, “This is exactly why I must become a god. I have too many people I cannot let down.”
From beginning to end, Chi Yao stood to one side without saying a word.
Only Tian La noticed her. She glanced at her but said nothing more. She said, “Alright. You have learned what I needed to tell you. It is time to leave. The Abyss of Darkness is no place to linger. Although the Ancient Desolate Ruins City is a pure land, once I fall asleep again, it will be full of demons and dangers everywhere.”
Gushai Jing said, “Do I have to leave too?”
“Of course.”
“But?”
Gushai Jing looked toward the seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars.
She had only just begun to comprehend them. Her gains were minimal. Without tens of thousands of years, or even hundreds of thousands, she probably could not grasp the mysteries of the three demonic sources.
“That is simple.”
Tian La raised her hand and spread her five fingers. The entire space collapsed and contracted. The seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars and the entire black desert were instantly drawn into her palm.
Xiao Hei nudged Zhang Ruochen with his arm. His eyes seemed to say, “See that? That is true spatial power. It is not suppressed or restricted at all. It can be used freely anywhere.”
Zhang Ruochen glanced back and said with his eyes, “Our cultivations are worlds apart. How can we compare?”
Xiao Hei’s eyes showed surprise, as if saying, “Heavens. Could Tian La be giving the seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars directly to Gushai Jing? This is a supreme treasure of the world. It is no less than the thirty-six Heavenly Demon Stone Engravings.”
Tian La pressed her palm to Gushai Jing’s fair forehead and imprinted the seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars and the entire black desert into her body.
A strong and brilliant light burst from Tian La’s palm. It twisted space, affected time, altered light and shadow. The distant Witch Hall collapsed. The Heavenly Gate turned to dust…
The world changed with it.
When Zhang Ruochen regained his vision, he found that all around were god corpses and giant stones. A wide river of divine blood flowed with a gurgling sound. Where was the Heavenly Gate? Where was the Witch Hall?
Yan Wushen, Xiao Hei, Chi Yao, and Gushai Jing were all nearby. They too looked dazed, not understanding what had happened.
“Could Tian La have used spatial power to send us to some place in the Ancient Desolate Ruins City?” Xiao Hei guessed.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, “Space did not cross anywhere.”
“What do you know about space? Tian La’s methods are beyond your understanding,” Xiao Hei said without politeness.
Gushai Jing said, “It is a projection.”
“What do you mean?” Chi Yao asked.
Gushai Jing said, “The seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars that the ancestor imprinted into my body are just illusions. From this, it is clear that everything we saw before was just a projection, like a mirage.”
“The Heavenly Gate is a projection. The Witch Hall is a projection. The seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars, including Tian La and the Udumbara Flower, should all be projections.”
“However, even as projections, they possess great power.”
“Otherwise, how could we enter the Heavenly Gate so easily, escape the Witch Hall’s witchcraft so easily? You could not have crossed the black desert to reach the seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars so easily.”
“I think everything we experienced and saw before does exist in some place in the Ancient Desolate Ruins City. But with our current cultivation, we cannot reach it. The true Witch Hall and seventy-two Demon God Stone Pillars are hundreds or thousands of times more dangerous than in the projection.”
“Is Tian La’s true body also hundreds or thousands of times more terrifying than what we saw?” Xiao Hei was very suspicious and did not quite believe it. He thought Gushai Jing had obtained the treasure and was pretending it was only a projection to make up this nonsense.
Gushai Jing said, “How many years have we cultivated? How many years has Tian La cultivated? Do you think you can understand the power at her level?”
“Besides, Tian La is the guardian of the Ancient Desolate Ruins City. The Abyss of Darkness is extremely dangerous. Do you think Tian La would easily expose her true position? For her to descend a projection to meet us is already very good.”
“Let us hurry and leave. Leave the Abyss of Darkness. Leave the Ancient Desolate Ruins City.”
The group set off, all with heavy hearts.
Yan Wushen walked at the front, constantly thinking about where his ancestor had gone. He had clearly left the Abyss of Darkness, so why had he not returned to the Yanluo Clan?
Xiao Hei walked side by side with Yan Wushen and saw his worries. He said, “What kind of figure is Ancestor Yan? Who in the world can do anything to him? In this emperor’s guess, after Ancestor Yan returned to the Infernal Realm, he found that the war between Heaven and the Infernal Realm had fully erupted. He alone could not turn the tide. So, he hid in the shadows, searching for the Nine Cauldrons on one side while investigating the mastermind behind the war. Do you think this emperor’s guess makes sense?”
“It will not be that simple. Since the other side lured Ancestor Yan to the Abyss of Darkness, they must have made careful arrangements. There must be follow-up plans to ensure the old clan leader has no way back,” Yan Wushen said.
Xiao Hei snorted lightly and said, “You unfilial descendant, why do you have so little faith in the old clan leader? What storms has he not seen? What schemes has he not experienced? How could he be so easily plotted against?”
“The one who could trick him into the Abyss of Darkness must be a close kin, someone he trusted the most,” Yan Wushen said with cold eyes. His hands clenched into fists.
…
Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao walked at the very back.
“Are your injuries alright?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Upon entering the Infernal Realm, Chi Yao had encountered strong enemies one after another, each time getting more seriously hurt.
She shook her head gently and said, “A god’s vitality is strong. This bit of injury is nothing.”
Seeing that Chi Yao had no intention of confronting him, Zhang Ruochen pretended to be casual and asked, “That divine sword from over there, where did you get it from?”
