Chapter 358: The Sky-Lifting Giant Hand! The Ghost Gate Opens! The Temple of the Great Emperor of Eastern Peak! Is the Dragon King Manifesting or Devouring People?

And indeed, the robed elder was dead.

The greedy Old Ghost Wusheng, who sought to profit from others’ struggle, was dead! The thousand-year yin tree of Fengdu was dead; the ghostly face born from the remains of some mighty being in the great chasm was also dead; the sealed evil eye in the city’s altar was dead as well[1]!

Su Shunqing drew a long breath and patted her chest, still shaken.

“That damned Daoist... what a terrifying killing aura he has!”

With a thought, she gradually veiled her presence, slipping away into the shadows of the ancient city.

To cultivate to the third realm, and still preserve contingencies within her corpse-body even after disaster, Su Shunqing relied not merely on ferocity, but on a keen sense of timing and circumstance!

At this time, Li Yanchu’s heart stirred. His cold gaze swept in the direction Su Shunqing had disappeared with a thoughtful glint in his eyes. He was one who had entered the Dao through martial cultivation, and his fleshly body and primordial spirit were both equally formidable and, above all, tempered with a warrior’s instinct honed through countless trials. Unless one used a special means to conceal themselves, it was near impossible to escape his perception.

Su Shunqing’s cultivation was not yet restored to the third realm, and had let slip a trace of aura just now.

Still, at this moment the ghost city was teeming with sinister presences, and its air choked with resentful gazes, so he did not dwell on it.

***

Roaaar

!

At this time, a deafening roar split the heavens. Every ghost within the city felt terror seize them, the dread born of facing something far greater than themselves. From within Fengdu, an ancient aura awakened.

On the distant horizon, a massive black silhouette took shape. It was neither quite ox nor not, but so enormous that its head alone rivaled the size of the entire ancient city. Utterly horrifying!

Li Yanchu’s brows knitted. “So... even the ancient presences within Fengdu have been stirred.”

That colossal shadow gazed coldly downward, its mere presence suffocating to behold. Countless ghosts fell prostrate upon the ground, trembling violently. Even Fang Qinglan felt the crushing weight of its oppressive might; her delicate face drained of color.

Involuntarily, she glanced at Li Yanchu, only to see him standing tall and straight, his features set in stern resolve while he met the gaze of that vast and ancient being without the slightest fear.

Boom!

Boom!

The heavens and earth resounded with thunderous detonations, the sheer crushing pressure this ancient existence exerted upon Fengdu itself. It was not the true body, but rather a projection-like manifestation. Even so, its power was terrifying beyond reason!

“Let’s go! This thing’s ghostly aura soars to the skies, it’s clearly one of Fengdu’s forbidden beings. It cannot be faced head-on!” Fang Qinglan’s tone was calm, yet her heart was filled with concern. She feared Li Yanchu would get hot-headed and charge in recklessly!

But Li Yanchu remained utterly composed. He turned to Fang Qinglan with a faint smile. “No hurry. For something like this to appear, someone will surely come to clean up the mess.”

Fang Qinglan froze for a moment at his words. Could it be that Li Yanchu had come prepared, with a hidden trump card? Her gaze grew complicated as she looked at him.

When did he start moving through the world so fearlessly...?

Sure enough, a colossal hand vast enough to blot out the heavens suddenly emerged from the void.

“Impudent!” a majestic and overwhelming voice thundered, as though a deity had awakened.

Roaaaar

!

The ancient forbidden being let out a roar, seething with boundless wrath and resentment. Yin qi in Fengdu erupted in a tidal wave, surging like a raging sea.

But that sky-covering hand struck down without hesitation!

Boom!

The earth quaked violently, and the very fabric of space seemed to tremble as a massive shockwave blasted outward in all directions. The weaker ghostly beings were instantly shattered and reduced to ashes, wiped from existence!

The ancient city’s buildings collapsed with thunderous crashes, the earth splitting open into deep chasms. Even the thick, solid walls crumbled into ruin; everywhere lay wreckage and devastation. That massive dark silhouette had vanished, suppressed and sealed once again by an irresistible force!

With that, the entire scene fell silent. Fang Qinglan stared at Li Yanchu in shock, as that majestic and immense aura just now clearly belonged to a supremely powerful being. Could it be that such a peerless existence... was on intimate terms with Li Yanchu?

Li Yanchu only smiled at her. “Don’t overthink it. I was just guessing.”

Fang Qinglan looked doubtful, unable to believe it. However, Li Yanchu smiled faintly and offered no further explanation. But inwardly, his heart grew solemn, as the depths of Fengdu were far greater than he had imagined. His curiosity about this place only burned brighter.

Earlier, when the ghostly soldiers of Fengdu’s underworld passageway had forced back even the likes of Old Ghost Wusheng and Su Shunqing, he had already wondered could there truly be some mighty presence in Fengdu, laying down laws and rules? Especially since so many wraiths and forbidden beings had not awakened, but instead lay slumbering in Fengdu’s depths!

It was highly likely some supreme existence had sealed those monstrous souls in this forbidden land. And now, it seemed that was indeed the truth.

At this time, the ancient city was deathly quiet. The ghostly creatures that had swarmed in now stood frozen in petrified stillness.

Just then, Li Yanchu was about to lead Fang Qinglan toward the Little Bridge of Helplessness, when suddenly a majestic and commanding voice rang out, “Yin and Yang must remain in order, life and death apart. Leave this place at once!”

A radiant divine light descended upon Li Yanchu.

Boom!

Just then, an ancient, profound Ghost Gate appeared, and it exuded an aged, awe-inspiring aura. Suddenly, the Ghost Gate opened, and then a mighty suction force surged forth! Li Yanchu and Fang Qinglan’s bodies were pulled along, and in almost an instant, the two of them vanished without a trace.

Li Yanchu only felt himself enveloped by a vast, warm power. After a wave of intense dizziness, he slowly opened his eyes, only to find himself inside a temple, incense burning in thick clouds. His expression flickered with surprise.

“We’re... out!?”

He could hardly believe it. It was far too easy. Just who was the master of that colossal hand from before!? And why had that being directly sent the two of them out!?

At this time, Fang Qinglan was also in utter shock. What had just happened!?

When they walked toward the front hall of the temple, they finally realized it was a temple dedicated to the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak. The deity sealed here was the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak formally titled the Benevolent and Holy Emperor of Eastern Peak and Mount Tai, also known as the Lord of Mount Tai. He was the supreme ruler above the Ten Kings of the Underworld and the Eighteen Levels of Hell.

Li Yanchu drew in a deep breath.

Just who was it in Fengdu earlier, who suppressed those fiends and seized ghosts?! And why send the two of us straight to this temple of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak!?

Feeling the overwhelming incense and human vitality around him, a thoughtful look flashed in Li Yanchu’s eyes. This secret realm of Fengdu concealed far too many mysteries, and his interest in the place only grew stronger!

Soon after, he and Fang Qinglan paid their respects before the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak’s statue, then set off to leave the temple. After inquiring around, they finally learned exactly where they had ended up, Yingchuan Prefecture City!

Yingchuan bordered the prefectures of Beifeng and Feiyun. Its prefectural city was densely populated, and shops lined both sides of the bustling streets; the place was vibrant and prosperous. In the center of the prefectural city’s main square stood a stone carving of the Vermilion Bird[2]. Majestic and divine, it was said to be the guardian beast of Yingchuan, blessing the land with favorable weather and peace.

This grand square had been constructed by the former Prince of Yingchuan, who had invited feng shui masters, eminent Buddhist monks, and Daoist immortals to build it. The project had consumed tremendous wealth, manpower, and resources.

However, after leaving the Temple of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak, the stories Li Yanchu and Fang Qinglan heard most along the streets were not of the Vermilion Bird legend... but of the Dragon Palace and its water clan. There was a true dragon’s manifestation.

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Just days earlier, the Xia River, branching from the Chu River that flowed past Yingchuan, had swollen with floodwaters. The levees nearly burst, and countless lives had been on the brink of disaster. Fortunately, the Dragon King of the Chu River had manifested in divine glory, quelling this calamity from the heavens!

When the two found an inn to stay at, the stories they heard most were all about the Dragon King’s manifestation. The tales spread ever deeper and were told with vivid, dramatic detail.

Only outside the inn sat a mad old beggar, raving incoherently. He muttered that the Dragon King wanted to eat people, and once he had devoured a hundred thousand, he would ascend to the heavens in broad daylight. Soon, all Yingchuan would be drowned in misery.

For spreading such talk, the old beggar was quickly driven out.

1. T/N: I deliberated over if I should condense these 3 sentences into one to make it sound smoother in English, but since the author wrote it this way, I thought it best to convey it this way as it was originally written. ☜

2. The Vermilion Bird {朱雀; Zhūquè) is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. According to Wu Xing, the Daoist five elemental system, it represents the Fire element, the direction south, and the season of summer correspondingly. Thus it is sometimes called the Vermilion Bird of the South (南方朱雀, Nán Fāng Zhū Què). It is described as a red bird that resembles a pheasant with a fire-colored plumage and is perpetually covered in flames. It is known as Suzaku in Japanese, Jujak in Korean and Chu Tước in Vietnamese.

Here is a reference

image

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