Chapter 2663 - Beneath the Auspicious Clouds

In the endless spacetime void.

Old Daoist Crow’s true body stood beside a seemingly youthful man with hair streaked with gray and a fiery feather coat.

“Once I’ve captured Su Yi, Cang Ji will protect my clone and leave Red Pine Mountain immediately,” transmitted Old Daoist Crow. “Once we make it out of Red Pine Mountain, my clone will go into hiding. Then...”

Here, the man in the feather coat interjected, “Enough. I know what you want to say. There are indeed Heavenly Sovereigns watching from the endless spacetime void, but this lofty one guarantees that, so long as your clone captures Su Yi, I have means of helping you escape with him undetected!”

Old Daoist Crow inwardly sighed in relief, then inclined his head. “I feel reassured knowing that.”

The whole world had been watching this battle, even the experts of the River of Destiny. Many of them had intervened and started making arrangements.

Never mind the rest. Even Heavenly Sovereigns’ avatars of will and clones were watching from the shadows.

With so many eyes on Su Yi, even if they somehow managed to capture him, escaping Red Pine Mountain with him would be incomparably difficult.

Fortunately, Old Daoist Crow made arrangements in advance. He’d asked an unparalleled heretical cultivator to assist him!

The graying man with youthful features and a fiery feather coat was famed throughout the River of Destiny. He was a top expert amongst those beneath the Heavenly Sovereign level.

Yao, demons, and heretics called him Ascetic Fire Crane.

He was the owner of the Sky-Cutting Cloud.

Moreover, rumor had it that Ascetic Fire Crane had an extraordinary connection with Heavenly Sovereign E of the Eternal Heavens Domain.

It was for this reason that Old Daoist Crow went into this operation with complete confidence.

But then, Old Daoist Crow suddenly stiffened and hacked up a mouthful of blood. His aged face instantly paled.

Ascetic Fire Crane’s pupils constricted. He was just about to say something when he let out a muffled grunt and staggered backward as if he’d suffered a heavy blow.

“How is this possible!?” Ascetic Fire Crane seized Old Daoist Crow by the throat, his youthful face instantly hideously contorted. “Didn’t you say that if you used the Sky-Cutting Cloud to trap Su Yi, nothing could possibly go wrong? How is it that someone ran off with my Sky-Cutting Cloud?”

The Sky-Cutting Cloud was a treasure he’d spent half a lifetime nurturing. When someone seized it, he suffered the resulting backlash. His wounds weren’t at all light.

Old Daoist Crow’s face filled with horror. “Daoist Brother, don’t be angry. Su Yi...”

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Whap!

Old Daoist Crow took a brutal slap to the face.

Ascetic Fire Crane’s face filled with murderous intent as he said slowly and clearly, “This isn’t as simple as a failed mission and a lost treasure. Thanks to you, I owe Heavenly Sovereign E a favor as grand as the heavens themselves!”

Old Daoist Crane shuddered from head to toe. Only now did he realize that Ascetic Fire Crane had asked Heavenly Sovereign E for help!

“Let him go.” Suddenly, a voice as mellow as a spring breeze rang out. “So many people are watching. Cause a disturbance, and you’re both doomed.”

Ascetic Fire Crane’s expression shifted. He set Old Daoist Crow down, straightened his clothing, lowered his head, and clasped his fist in greeting. “Understood!”

Old Daoist Crow looked dazed.

That unfamiliar voice was as mellow as a spring breeze, yet its words were utterly tyrannical and unreasonable.

Combined with Ascetic Fire Crane’s show of respect, and Old Daoist Crow quickly realized who the owner of the voice was.

Heavenly Sovereign E!

......

Red Pine Mountain.

Di E, now possessed by Heavenly Sovereign E, seemed to sense something. He couldn’t help but shake his head.

You cannot plan with a fool.

With every step he took, he flitted through the mountains like an antelope. No matter what dangers he ran into, he passed them by in a single bound.

He left no trace behind.

Perhaps something exciting will finally happen on the Five Elements Altar on the peak.

Di E looked into the distance, his gaze seemingly piercing the endless void to lock onto the distant Five Elements Altar.

When the time comes, I might well discern a few hints. I’ll also see just who decides to stand with Su Yi.

As Di E pondered, he continued ahead at a leisurely pace. From time to time, he passed hidden treasure, but he ignored it all.

It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy such things, but that his ambitions were currently elsewhere.

......

Meanwhile, on another path to the Five Elements Altar, the Dipankara Buddha sat cross-legged, sipping water.

His monk’s robes billowed in the wind, lending him an extraordinary air.

The Mountain Guardian Beast, Fei Hong, hovered not far away. It said softly, “Cang Ji broke the rules of Red Pine Mountain and was executed by the Esteemed Patrolling Spirit.”

Fei Hong looked like a mosquito, but its typically ten-thousand-foot frame was now just the size of a grain of rice. It perched on a blade of grass, looking utterly ordinary; you would never have noticed it if you weren’t looking carefully.

The Dipankara Buddha said softly, “You needn’t be afraid. I’ve never broken the rules of Red Pine Mountain. All I want is for you to serve as my eyes and tell me what’s happening on the other paths. That isn’t against the rules.”

“What do you want to know, Buddha?” asked Fei Hong.

“Did the yellow finch ever tell you anything about the tripod cauldron Beneath the Nine Abysses?”

“Never,” said Fei Hong.

The Dipankara Buddha frowned. “I’ve never understood why Red Pine Mountain has so many rules, or who created them. Even if the Laws here were born of the primordial chaos, they should be traceable, but... it seems there are no traces to be found.”

“Buddha, do you perhaps suspect that the Laws of Red Pine Mountain are connected to that mysterious cauldron?” asked Fei Hong.

The Dipankara Buddha glanced at Fei Hong, clearly surprised. “I wouldn’t have guessed that you’d be so perceptive. That’s right. Everything has its own inherent principles. That’s true of the natural order and the Laws, too.”

His gaze was distant, his voice soft and slow. “The God Domain is not of the River of Destiny, and Eternal power should not exist here, yet the power of Eternity exists on Red Pine Mountain.

“That’s the strangest part of this.”

Red Pine Mountain was the source of the myriad Daos of the God Domain, the cradle of its Laws, and the chaos source of the present epoch!

Places like it weren’t exactly rare; places just like it had existed in previous epochs.

But Red Pine Mountain was special in that unlike other similar places, it contained Eternal power!

Even the treasures and good fortune available here were imbued with an Eternal aura.

That was far too unbelievable!

Were that not the case, how could the Laws of Red Pine Mountain have been powerful enough to force even experts of the River of Destiny to obey them?

“If Heavenly Sovereign E wants that cauldron, it must be connected to what makes Red Pine Mountain so special,” murmured the Dipankara Buddha.

From beginning to end, Fei Hong didn’t interject. Its eyes were full of confusion.

It was a Mountain Guardian Beast born of Red Pine Mountain, but its grasp of the mountain’s secrets was severely lacking compared to this Buddha of the Western Paradise Spirit Mountains!

“How much longer until I reach the Five Elements Altar?” the Dipankara Buddha asked suddenly.

“At your current rate, you should reach the altar within four hours,” Fei Hong said respectfully.

“No, I can make it there in an hour,” said the Dipankara Buddha, rising to his feet.

Fei Hong was briefly stunned. A moment later, he realized that this Buddha of mysterious origins had been holding back. He’d yet to display his full strength!

“And what about Su Yi? How much longer will his path take him?” asked the Dipankara Buddha.

Fei Hong did a few quick calculations. “His path is full of good fortune, but that will surely delay his ascent. I estimate that he’ll need at least six hours to reach the altar. That is, assuming he makes it there alive.”

The Dipankara Buddha didn’t miss a beat. “Such trivial dangers cannot possibly hold him back. How could he possibly die along the way?”

He paused, a jeering smile tugging on his lips. “As for the good fortune he gathers along the way? Ultimately, it will belong to whoever kills him.”

With that, the Dipankara Buddha took a step forward and vanished into thin air.

Fei Hong inwardly sighed in relief.

But then, a yellow finch appeared out of nowhere, its bright eyes gazing coldly at Fei Hong.

“Esteemed Patrolling Spirit!” Fei Hong looked stricken.

“When did you start colluding with that old monk?” asked the finch.

Fei Hong lowered its head and said in a quavering voice, “As I’m sure you remember, that Buddha visited Red Pine Mountain in ancient times. When the Great Extinguishing erupted, my life hung in the balance. It was he who saved my life.”

Fei Hong paused, then explained, “I never broke the rules!”

“If you’d broken the rules, I’d have killed you already,” said the finch.

Fei Hong quivered, as silent as a cicada in winter.

“The human heart is impossible to fathom. Your benefactor might well turn out to be a villain hoping to use a good deed to his advantage. You’d best be careful,” said the finch.

It beat its wings and flew off.

Fei Hong’s expression shifted erratically, and it sank into a long silence.

......

Crunch!

Su Yi took a bite out of a shiny green spirit fruit. It was crisp, sweet, and refreshing as immortal dew.

This was a rare treasure full of dense chaos power. Su Yi had just picked it from a vine growing on a cliffside. There were just six fruits in total.

He’d already eaten three. Together, they’d restored his depleted cultivation base to beak condition. Even his knife wound had knit back together.

That should be the Five Elements Altar up ahead.

As Su Yi ate spirit fruit, he gazed into the distance.

Five different colored auspicious clouds hovered beneath the distant dome of heaven, resplendent and bright. Together, they dyed the firmament with their radiant hues, holy and transcendent.

A peak towered beneath the auspicious clouds, like a pillar supporting the sky. It was enormous and steep, its tip piercing the firmament and swathed by five-colored auspicious clouds on all sides.

They called this place Five Elements Peak. It was the highest point on Red Pine Mountain, as well as its most sacred and transcendent forbidden zone.

The Five Elements Altar stood atop the peak.

I wonder how much danger lies in wait for me near Five Elements Peak.

Su Yi finished the spirit fruit in a few quick bites, took out a jug of wine, and drank. He wasn’t in a rush.

On the contrary, he casually found a boulder and sat down, then gazed down the path he’d taken to get here.

“You’ve been following me all this time,” said Su Yi calmly. “I’ll reach the Five Elements Altar soon. You still don’t plan to come out and see me?”