txolops Chapter 143 A Snap of the Finger, A Divine Transformation as the Guidance
Chapter 143 A Snap of the Finger, A Divine Transformation as the Guidance
After Gu Yan went into seclusion, the three letters he wrote himself, filled with sincere words, stirred up a huge wave.
Inside the Discipline Hall of the Flowing Cloud Sect, Ye Gucheng held the letter, looking at the detailed list of compensation listed on it. Even this sword master, known for his cold demeanor, couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his mouth.
But he was very clever and extremely protective of his own; after only a moment's thought, he understood the deeper meaning behind it.
He acted decisively, not only acknowledging all the losses in Changning County, but also issuing a strong letter in the name of the Liuyun Sect, denouncing the Qinglong Sect and Wandu Valley for "lax governance, condoning the elders' violent acts, and causing widespread suffering," intending to use this as a pretext for external expansion.
Inside the Azure Dragon Sect's main hall, nestled in the clouds, the sect leader, upon seeing the letter demanding payment for pacification, was so enraged that his beard and hair stood on end. He slammed his palm down and shattered the thousand-year-old sandalwood table before him.
"This is outrageous! He killed my elder, robbed me of my property, and now he wants me to pay compensation and appease the people? This Gu Changsheng is nothing but a leech sucking blood from my Azure Dragon Sect!"
The roar echoed through the sky, but in the end, the sect leader slumped back into his chair.
After all, the reason for Qingmu Zhenren's death was not honorable, and his body was still being held by others. If war broke out, Ye Gucheng of Liuyun Sect would have a reason to draw his sword.
The Azure Dragon Sect swallowed their anger and turned their rage towards the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley, which had also suffered heavy losses.
Subsequently, the two sides clashed several times at the border, resulting in losses for both.
The Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons is suffering in silence. Not only did the corpse of the Yin Serpent Venerable turn into blood due to his special constitution, but it also has to bear the infamy of polluting the earth's veins and is being sued for compensation.
They could only grit their teeth and send over large quantities of antidote pills, hoping that Changning County would stop issuing those death warrant-like official documents.
A major battle that should have erupted was cleverly averted into a three-way stalemate thanks to Gu Yan's meticulous planning, and thus vanished without a trace.
……
Time is both the most ruthless and the most fair; it heals wounds and ages faces.
In the first year, the dilapidated walls and ruins in Changning County were completely renovated.
The people were still talking about the battle between the gods, their words tinged with a sense of relief at having survived a calamity.
The following year, the Xuanwu Grand Formation was fully integrated into the earth's veins.
The wilderness outside Changning County is no longer a mass grave for burying corpses, but is now covered with many wildflowers, filled with spiritual energy, attracting many low-level spirit beasts to stop there.
The market on South Street has been expanded three times, attracting a constant stream of independent cultivators. Even traveling merchants from afar have come specifically to purchase a bottle of Changning's specialty elixir.
There are no arrogant sects exploiting people here, and no murderous and thieving cultivators running rampant.
As long as you abide by the rules of the Demon Suppression Bureau and pay your commercial taxes on time, anyone can buy and sell here with peace of mind.
……
Spring breezes bring rain, autumn frost brings ice.
The snow in Changning County fell and melted, and the green moss in the cracks of the bluestone slabs withered and grew again.
Winter snow covered the blue bricks and black tiles of Changning County, and then melted into water droplets dripping from the eaves under the warm sun of early spring.
July 7th of the fifth year.
Song Hong sat in the newly built accounting office of the Demon Suppression Bureau, holding a wolf-hair brush in her hand, quickly sketching on a thick ledger.
She was no longer the impetuous and naive young female cultivator she once was.
At this moment, she was wearing a dark red brocade dress with golden flame patterns embroidered on the cuffs. Her long hair was simply tied up with a blood jade hairpin, and the spiritual energy flowing around her was becoming more and more powerful and profound.
Over the years, Gu Yan had been in seclusion, but the rules he left behind, the vast resources, and the numerous spiritual herbs and treasures that Changning County obtained after the earth veins were awakened allowed Song Hong's cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds, reaching the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
"Head Manager."
A middle-aged cultivator who appeared to be in charge bowed as he entered, carrying a storage bag in both hands, his attitude extremely respectful.
"This is the final payment for the healing herbs purchased by the Green Bamboo Sect this quarter, totaling 80,000 low-grade spirit stones, all of which are included here."
Song Hong didn't look up, but paused her pen, scanned the storage bag with her divine sense, and said calmly, "Three thousand is missing."
The steward broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly explained, "The procurement department of the Emerald Bamboo Sect said that the sect's cash flow has been hampered recently. Could you please make an exception...?"
"Make an exception?"
Song Hong put down her pen, raised her head, and her bright eyes held an undeniable coldness.
"The rules of Changning County were set by Commander Gu. If the Emerald Bamboo Sect can't afford it, there are seven or eight other sects waiting in line to buy it. Tell them that the price will increase by another 10% next month, take it or leave it."
"Yes! I'll go and report back right away!"
The steward, feeling as if granted a pardon, bowed and withdrew.
The door closed, Song Hong rubbed her aching temples, and turned to look out the window.
The gaze passed over the layers of rooftops and landed on the entrance to the artificial mountain in the backyard, which was sealed off by layers of arrays.
"Junior brother, your seclusion has lasted quite a while. I'm almost overwhelmed by the legacy you left behind."
……
In the depths of winter of the eighth year, heavy snow blocked the mountain pass.
The city wall of Changning County resembles a black dragon lying on the snow-covered plain, majestic and awe-inspiring.
Large, fluffy snowflakes fell in a flurry, turning the world into a vast expanse of white.
At the highest point of the city gate tower stood a dark figure.
Xiao Chen held the broken sword in his arms, like an ancient and unchanging sculpture.
The raging snowstorm landed on his shoulders, but just three inches from his body, it was silently shredded by an invisible, sharp force, turning into shimmering powder that drifted away.
His current cultivation level is at the peak of Foundation Establishment, and he is only missing a suitable opportunity to reach the Golden Core path that many people dream of.
Over the past eight years, countless people with ill intentions have tried to challenge the rules of Changning County.
There were once roaming bandits who attempted to raid the city at night, and several evil cultivators who thought themselves highly skilled tried to force their way through the formation.
Xiao Chen never used the Xuanwu Formation that Gu Yan left him.
He only drew his sword three times.
The first time, he beheaded three late-stage Foundation Establishment bandits.
The second time, they nailed a half-step Golden Core cultivator to the city gate tower.
The third, and most dangerous, time, he forced back a rogue cultivator in the early Golden Core stage who was trying to take advantage of the chaos with a single sword strike.
Since then, the city walls of Changning County have become an absolute forbidden zone in the eyes of all independent cultivators.
The black-clad killer holding the broken sword became the door god in the mouths of the people of Changning County, who could suppress all evil spirits.
"Click."
A sound of snow cracking came from below the city wall.
Xiao Chen gently flicked the sword guard with his right thumb, and a streak of frosty white sword light pierced the night sky like a thunderclap, disappearing straight into the withered forest a hundred feet outside the city.
A muffled groan rang out, and a scout dressed in coarse cloth fell to the ground, lifeless.
Xiao Chen sheathed his sword, his eyes as cold as ice.
He knew who had sent them.
That old madman Zhao Wuji has become increasingly impatient over the years.
……
A thousand miles away, on a solitary peak of Spirit Sword Mountain.
Inside the cave, the flickering candlelight illuminated a face covered with wrinkles and age spots.
Zhao Wuji, the once spirited Grand Elder of the Liuyun Sect, now has a full head of white hair, sunken eyes, and bloodshot eyes.
On the table in front of him were more than a dozen broken life spirit tablets.
Those were all the assassins he had sent to Changning County over the past eight years.
"Eight years... Gu Changsheng, you've been hiding underground like a coward."
Zhao Wuji's withered fingers dug into the stone table so hard that his nails broke off and bled profusely, yet he felt no pain.
His only son, Zhao Lingfeng, died in Sunset Valley, his body never to be found.
Although all the evidence pointed to the Blood Swordsman of the Demonic Sect, Zhao Wuji's venomous intuition remained fixed on the inner disciple named Gu Changsheng.
He had wanted countless times to personally descend the mountain and use his late-stage Golden Core cultivation to raze Changning County to the ground.
But he can't.
Because Ye Gucheng's sharp sword intent was always subtly locking onto his cave.
The sect leader explicitly ordered that the huge amount of spirit stones that Changning County pays as tribute every year is the foundation for the sect's development over the next hundred years, and no one is allowed to neglect public duty for private gain or interfere with the internal operations of Changning County.
"I'll be waiting for you."
The exquisite jade porcelain teacup in Zhao Wuji's hand turned into powder in his palm, and the scalding tea flowed over his hand.
"When you emerge from seclusion, when you form your core, when you reveal a flaw, I will surely extract your soul and refine your spirit, so that you may never be reincarnated!"
……
Under the same vast night sky, deep within a great rift valley that runs across the western part of Dongzhou, a sinister aura lingers.
On a colossal throne made of countless bones sat a blood-red robe and a bronze mask.
Ten years of slaughter, ten years of devouring.
Relying on the divine and demonic foundation shared with his physical body and the rules of the Paper World, the Blood Swordsman carved a bloody path through the cruel Demonic Sect.
Afterwards, he even devised a scheme to kill a renowned mid-stage Golden Core demonic cultivator, and used his corpse to forge a Blood Bone Demonic Sword with overwhelming demonic energy.
Now, he is the uncrowned king, feared by all within thousands of miles of demonic forces.
Beneath the throne, hundreds of Foundation Establishment stage demonic cultivators prostrated themselves on the ground, holding their breath and daring not to breathe too heavily.
Through the holes in his mask, the Blood Swordsman gazed into the distance toward Changning County.
"Soon..."
He murmured softly, using his mind as a bridge to transmit all the pure malevolent energy and malice he had accumulated over the past ten years to his distant self without reservation.
……
Time has passed, and the people of Changning County have changed generation after generation. Children have grown into young adults, and young adults have grown gray hair.
The children who used to run around in the streets are now married with children; the strong men who used to hawk their wares have long since put down their carrying poles.
Li Ji Steamed Bun Shop in the west of the city is steaming hot, and its aroma fills half the street.
Old Li passed away peacefully on a quiet night three years ago, with a smile on his lips and the longevity lock that Gu Yan had given him by chance in his hand.
His grandson, Xiao Li, took over the craft. Every morning before opening, without fail, he would respectfully offer the first basket of the hottest buns in front of the small clay sculpture on the street corner.
The clay sculpture depicts a young scholar with gentle features, holding a folding fan.
Even though ten years have passed, their faith in Gu Qingtian has not faded with time. Instead, it has become even more unbreakable with the passage of time, becoming part of the very essence of this land.
"May the heavens bless us with favorable weather and abundant harvests this year."
"Thanks to Lord Gu's protection, my son passed the county school exam, bringing honor to our family."
Countless trivial, grateful, and devout thoughts transformed into pure white incense flames invisible to the naked eye in the sky above Changning County, converging into a mighty river that penetrated the soil and headed straight for the secret chamber beneath the Demon Suppression Bureau.
……
In the underground chamber.
Gu Yan's appearance has changed drastically.
His hair was waist-length, jet black and shiny, casually draped behind his head like a black waterfall.
The black robe he wore had long since been weathered into strips of cloth, revealing his bare upper body, which was as translucent as mutton fat jade, yet covered with strange divine and demonic patterns.
On the floor of the secret chamber, the once mountain of mid-grade spirit stones had long since turned into a thick layer of white ash, reaching above the ankles.
Inside Gu Yan's body, the towering structure had solidified to its absolute limit.
On the left side of the tower, a pure white divine light emanates, a light that radiates compassion and mercy. This light is the result of ten years of accumulated incense offerings in Changning County, warm and sacred.
On the right side of the tower, a ferocious, pitch-black dragon is tightly coiled, which is the endless karma and evil energy fed back from the Blood Swordsman's slaughter of the demonic path.
The intertwining of gods and demons, the coexistence of solemnity and violence, have reached a perfect balance on this tower, a balance that is about to be reborn from destruction.
Gu Yan's cultivation level remained at the limit of the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, and he could no longer advance any further.
His eyes were closed, his brows were furrowed, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
According to the ancient books and secret techniques sent by Ye Gucheng, he learned that the so-called Core Formation is to use the power of the rules of heaven and earth to continuously compress and collapse the liquid spiritual power in the Qi Sea, and finally condense it into a flawless golden core containing the laws of the Great Dao.
The foundation of an ordinary cultivator is nothing more than gaseous or liquid spiritual energy, which is not difficult to shatter.
However, Gu Yan's Dao foundation is a massive physical tower formed from the incense offerings of countless families and the demonic energy that slaughtered countless lives.
The addition of the Xuanwu Earth Vein Pearl further enhances the tower's incredible hardness.
He tried countless times, and each time he attempted to compress the Tower of Babel, the divine and demonic forces would generate an extremely terrifying repulsive force, threatening to blast his dantian and physical body into cosmic dust at any moment.
"Ordinary spiritual fire is simply not enough to forge this Tower of Gods and Demons."
Gu Yan murmured to himself.
He needs a higher-dimensional power, a domineering rule that can disregard the sacred and the evil at this stage and forcibly combine the two together.
He slowly opened his eyes.
His left eye shone like the blazing sun, while his right eye was as still and lifeless as an abyss.
Two distinct auras flickered alternately in his eyes, eventually settling into a calm indifference.
Gu Yan reached out and picked up the cracked jade box from the stone platform beside him.
This is what he risked his life to bring back from the Sunset Valley underground palace back then.
Ten years have passed, and the sealing runes on the jade box have become dim and almost completely disappeared.
Gu Yan gently opened the lid of the jade box.
A charred, seemingly ordinary severed finger lay quietly inside.
The moment the lid was opened, the gravity inside the sealed chamber increased exponentially.
A terrifying pressure, seemingly surpassing the limits of heaven and earth and capable of reducing all things to nothingness, slowly emanated from the severed finger.
These are the remains of a Nascent Soul stage expert. Even after the vicissitudes of time, and even though the master's soul has long since perished, the power of the rules contained in these bones is still enough to make any cultivator below the Nascent Soul stage tremble with fear.
Gu Yan ignored the pressure, staring intently at the severed finger, his breathing becoming heavy.
In his vision of the paper world, it was no longer a piece of withered bone, but a crazy, twisted, and ever-changing ultimate rule.
The rules contained a deathly stillness that could destroy everything, yet in the deepest depths of that stillness, a vitality that transcended the cycle of reincarnation was being nurtured.
"To destroy and then to build, to face death and then to live."
Two beams of light suddenly flashed in Gu Yan's eyes.
He finally understood the true use of this severed finger that had transformed into a divine artifact.
This thing is not meant to be used as a suicide weapon, nor is it a treasure for simply absorbing spiritual energy.
It is a furnace or cauldron.
A furnace of heaven and earth constructed from the rules of the God Transformation.
Gu Yan revealed a maniacal smile, the ecstatic joy of seeing the path to heaven in his desperate situation.
He had been struggling because he didn't have a powerful enough flame to forge the Tower of Gods and Demons.
And now, the high-level rules of destruction contained within this severed finger of the Nascent Soul stage are the most perfect furnace fire in the world.
As long as he dares to invest his divine sense and the foundation of his divine and demonic path into the rules of this severed finger, and with the help of the remaining destructive intent of the Nascent Soul stage, he can forcibly crush the Tower of Heaven in his Qi Sea.
Then, by utilizing the hidden vitality deep within, the shattered divine and demonic power will be reassembled.
If successful, the golden core he produces will no longer be the ordinary mortal golden core produced by the cultivation world.
Instead, it was a supreme golden elixir imbued with the aura of a Nascent Soul cultivator, perfectly blending divinity and demonic nature.
"The risk is extremely high. If you are not careful, you will be crushed into dust by the rules of the Nascent Soul stage."
Gu Yan murmured softly, his tone filled with excitement, without a trace of fear.
Cultivating immortality is inherently defying the heavens.
After ten years of preparation and accumulation, the path that Gu Yan was going to take was never a smooth road paved by others.
Gu Yan extended his long, strong fingers, a point of scarlet life essence blood condensing at the fingertip, and pressed it without hesitation onto the charred, severed finger of the Nascent Soul stage.
"Today, I, Gu Yan, shatter the cage."
He tilted his head back, his long hair dancing wildly in the sudden burst of spiritual pressure, his eyes a mixture of divine light and demonic flames.
"Ningdan."
As the essence and blood were absorbed, the severed finger of the Nascent Soul stage, which had been dormant for countless years, suddenly erupted with a terrifying dark red light, completely engulfing Gu Yan's entire body.
After ten years of hard work, the moment of true transformation has finally arrived.