Chapter 653: The South Sea's Hallowed Mother

"This is an image of the South Sea Hallowed Mother."

Yuan Zhuo, with his square, resolute face, carefully examined the painting for a long time before speaking seriously.

Moments earlier, Chu Liang and Wen Yulong had been happily exploring Xuan Yinzi’s hidden realm, only to find there was barely any treasure—just scraps. It wasn’t until they unrolled the scroll that something unusual happened. Chu Liang felt light-headed, while Wen Yulong fainted.

Chu Liang quickly rolled the scroll shut and woke up Wen Yulong.

Thankfully, no harm was done. When Wen Yulong sat up, he spoke of a strange dream—one where he saw his mother.

However, he didn’t recognize the woman in the painting, so the two of them went to the Hall of Conservation to consult Yuan Zhuo.

When it came to knowledge, no one on Mount Shu surpassed Yuan Zhuo. After all, he had read countless books and traveled across the nine provinces. His square head was filled with the wisdom of the world.

Yuan Zhuo recognized the woman at first glance, but he scrutinized the painting for so long because it was no ordinary painting.

"Where did you obtain this painting?" he asked. "It contains extraordinary spiritual energy. There's a chance that this painting might have originated from the Ruins of Return Cult."

Chu Liang briefly explained Xuan Yinzi’s background, then he asked in confusion, "I know about the Ruins of Return[1], but what is the Ruins of Return Cult?"

Legend had it that the Divine Ruins was the Immortals' Storehouse, hidden high in the heavens. In contrast, the Ruins of Return lay deep beneath the sea, an underwater kingdom of treasures.

Both were places immortal cultivators yearned to find, but danger lurked within them. Many powerful cultivators had ventured into the Ruins of Return, drawn by promises of wealth and power, yet few ever returned. Most ended up dying in the boundless waters of the South Sea.

"Well..." Yuan Zhuo hesitated for a moment before continuing. "I’ll have to start by explaining the South Sea’s Hallowed Mother."

Chu Liang and Wen Yulong had never heard of this figure before. Quietly, they sat down, ready to listen. Stacks of heavy, dust-laden books surrounded them as Senior Brother Yuan began recounting stories from ages long past.

"The South Sea’s Hallowed Mother was said to be a powerful ninth-realm cultivator at the Profound Realm that existed during ancient times. Some believe she was human, while others claim she was the descendant of sea demons. There are even whispers that she was a Hallowed One who descended from the heavens. The era is so distant that no one can say for certain. Whether she ever truly existed remains a mystery.

"Ancient texts speak of a time when the mortal realm faced a great calamity—earthquakes split the land, mountains crumbled into the sea, floods swept away kingdoms, and fire rained from the skies...

"The South Sea's Hallowed Mother used her power to let the sea rise and swallow the sky itself. She submerged the entire world beneath the ocean’s surface, protecting all living beings from the catastrophe.

"In this submerged world, the surviving land-dwellers built a new home—a place we now know as the Ruins of Return."

As Yuan Zhuo spoke, Chu Liang and Wen Yulong listened attentively, though they didn’t entirely believe it.

Ancient legends were always shrouded in mystery, especially those that had something to do with religion. It was inevitable that they would be exaggerated, and the line between truth and myth blurred over time.

Yuan Zhuo continued, "What happened afterward remains unknown. But if she truly existed, the South Sea’s Hallowed Mother predates even the Dragon God. The dragons left behind their own stories, claiming that humans—once weak and fragile—emerged from the sea. This aligned with the history and legends of humans. It is likely that when the humans were living in the Ruins of Return at the bottom of the sea, the dragons became the rulers of the world above the ocean.

"But since the Dragon God and the other Hallowed Ones emerged long after, it implies that if the South Sea's Hallowed Mother was real, she must have fallen."

Yuan Zhuo paused briefly before saying, "However, not everyone believes this.

"There are those who call themselves followers of the Ruins of Return Cult—the self-proclaimed children of the South Sea's Hallowed Mother. They believe, without doubt, that she will return one day. Until then, they vow to guard the treasures in the Ruins of Return in her name."

"These followers mercilessly slaughter any cultivators who dare to explore the Ruins of Return," Yuan Zhuo said grimly. "There are even accounts of them wiping out an entire island nation for offending the South Sea's Hallowed Mother.

"Their ruthless methods angered the immortal sects, prompting multiple attempts to eliminate the cult. However, each attempt only forced them deeper into hiding, making it impossible to eradicate them completely.

"Successive dynasties have labeled the Ruins of Return Cult as heretical, banning their teachings across the nine provinces.

"Ancient texts occasionally mention that the South Sea's Hallowed Mother was a staunch advocate of blood sacrifices. The Ruins of Return Cult inherited this practice, often performing brutal rituals. This was the key reason why they had been suppressed."

"If the South Sea's Hallowed Mother truly existed, then perhaps the actions of the Ruins of Return Cult would be justified—that those who seek the treasures of the Ruins of Return should be seen as the greedy ones. Therefore, for the sake of those treasures, the sects of immortality cultivation must deny the existence of the South Sea Hallowed Mother. And so, with each passing year, fewer people remember her name," Yuan Zhuo said thoughtfully at the end.

Chu Liang listened quietly, his thoughts lingering on Yuan Zhuo’s words.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to the story—surely those were not the only reasons.

The more he learned, the clearer it became. It felt as if some unseen force in the world was deliberately erasing all traces of the legacies left by the ninth-realm cultivators, unwilling to let their influence linger.

Aside from Hallowed Li and Hallowed Yang of the human race, and the more recent Demon God, the figures of the ninth realm felt like shadows of the past—distant, elusive, and half-forgotten.

It might simply be due to the passage of time...

However, Hallowed Li was the first human to break through mortal boundaries and ascend to the Profound Realm, the ninth realm. He was the one who overcame the limitations of the human world, paving the way for those who came after him.

Yet his deeds, the oldest of all, remained well known, while the legacies of those who followed faded into distant, fragmented myths.

Chu Liang couldn't shake the unsettling thought that this was no mere coincidence.

It felt deliberate.

Someone, somewhere, was erasing these records.

But who could wield such power—enough to alter the very fabric of history?

And more importantly, why?

...

There was blood and fire, wails and roars. Beneath the endless stars, the distant landscape burned like a vision of the netherworld.

This was Mount Mang, a land located at the southern border of the Yu Dynasty. It was a barren yet thriving land.

When the Demon God descended, the northwest was the first to fall, becoming a land ruled by countless demons. In time, the demon race withdrew to the Far West, but they left behind humans across the Western Continent—many of whom carried demon blood in their veins.

These half-demons were seen as ticking time bombs, shunned by common folk in other regions. Fear and distrust pushed them to the fringes of society.

However, if this kind of behavior by the common folk continued, it would only drive those people potentially with demon blood to the demons' side.

Thus, the dynasty of the human world launched a massive relocation effort, moving large numbers of Western Continent citizens to the Southern Regions. Though it was merely a shift from one frontier to another, leaving behind the old land brought new hope.

A driving force behind this migration was the fear that those left behind might one day reconnect with the demon race in the Far West.

The entire Western Continent was nearly emptied. After arriving in the Southern Regions, many struggled to adapt to the harsh life and perished. Over thousands of years, those who survived turned the region into the most chaotic part of the Yu Dynasty.

Successive dynasties attempted to bring order to the region, but the Southern Regions were nothing like the Western Continent. The area was mountainous and rugged. Once someone fled into the peaks, capturing them was nearly impossible.

After years of attempts to govern the place, the mountains instead became home to many esteemed heroes. Their ties to the commoners were deeply rooted, making it impossible to eradicate them. If anything, their influence only grew stronger.

The imperial court’s heavy-handed measures only strengthened the bond between the people and the heroes, forging a relationship that surpassed their trust in the officials.

Even so, the commoners far outnumbered the rebels.

In recent years, Mount Mang had been ravaged by earthquakes and shrouded in poisonous mists, leaving the land barren and harvests scarce. Floods and heavy snow followed, drowning or freezing countless refugees.

Disaster after disaster struck without mercy.

Amid the chaos, the people of Mount Mang rose up—raiding nearby regions, pillaging and burning. Yet, much of what they seized was redistributed among the suffering refugees.

After repeated raids, the court could no longer stand by. Troops were dispatched to quell the unrest.

Under the cover of night, mounted soldiers stretched across the horizon like dark clouds smothering the moon. Their oppressive presence hung thick in the air. On the ground below, rows of armored troops formed tight battle lines, encircling the dense forest.

Their might loomed like a mountain, unshakable and heavy.

Atop a jagged peak, a ragged young man stood tall. His frame was thin, but confidence flickered in his eyes like fire.

"You dogs of the imperial court, come into the mountains if you dare!" he shouted.

The armored soldiers responded in unison, "Surrender and you shall live! Surrender and you shall live!"

"Surrender, my ass!" the young man shouted. "We are as good as dead anyway. Better to die standing than live kneeling!"

Boom!

Heavy footsteps resounded. A giant beast, as large as a hill, emerged from the depths of Mount Mang.

For a moment, silence gripped the battlefield.

Then, a banner toppled within the soldiers’ ranks.

The entire army roared in unison, "Kill! Kill! Kill!"

...

Not far away, in another part of the forest, two figures stood silently, their eyes fixed on the distant glow of blood and fire.

A beautiful woman, wrapped in a heavy cloak, frowned slightly as though the sight before her was too much to bear.

Beside her, a defiant-looking young man smiled cruelly. "How delightful. Watching these humans tear each other apart is truly entertaining. I only regret I’m not down there myself."

His long hair drifted lazily in the wind, while three purple, scale-like markings stretched across the left side of his face.

The woman glanced at him, her expression full of disdain.

"Don’t give me that look, Caiyi." The man chuckled. "You deserve more credit for this mess than I do. I had no intention of helping those fools, but you were quick to agree."

"I’ll do whatever it takes to find the Demon God," Caiyi replied.

The man’s sneer widened. "Is it the Demon God you’re after... or that human lover of yours?"

"Changfeng," Caiyi said, her voice turning cold. She locked eyes with him and enunciated each word clearly. "Don’t make me kill you."

1. Refer to Link. ☜