txolops Chapter 67 Lord of Black Mountain
Chapter 67 Lord of Black Mountain
"This is... Lord Black Mountain?!"
The three figures touched the painting with their hands, carefully observing the scene. It seemed to stir up deep-seated memories, and the expressions on their three faces all froze, revealing an unusual solemnity.
"Does Master recognize this person?" Fang Chen keenly observed the change in his expression and immediately asked.
The three immortals did not respond immediately, but fell into a long period of contemplation, and the look of fear on their faces grew stronger and stronger.
After a long silence, he slowly opened his mouth, his voice as deep as stone:
"You should know that there is a saying in the world that when a person dies, their soul returns to the underworld, and that 'in life, one belongs to Chang'an; in death, one belongs to Mount Tai.' The underworld reveres the Lord of Mount Tai, who oversees the register of all dead souls, commands ghost messengers, and holds sway over Mount Tai, one of the Five Sacred Mountains, and all the mountains of the mortal world… This is the lineage of the Lord of Mount Tai, who alone wields power over both the yin and yang!"
"And this Lord of Black Mountain is a renowned and powerful deity within this pantheon. He is not only the lord of the Black Mountain in the mortal world, spanning three thousand miles, but also holds a portion of the authority over the City of the Unjustly Dead in the underworld. His power is immense, and his presence is illustrious. Even in the old world, he was a formidable figure among the most powerful beings in the universe!"
At this point, he seemed to have realized something:
"No wonder those three evil cults have become increasingly arrogant in recent years, and they even acquired a flying zombie that failed its tribulation from who-knows-where. Now it seems they are probably connected to this Black Mountain of the Old World!"
"Master, could this place... serve as a refuge for the Zhengyang Dao?" Fang Chen asked in a deep voice. "Even if we survive a great calamity, the foundations of this three-thousand-mile Black Mountain—a blessed land in the mortal world and a base in the underworld—should still remain. If the Dao City truly collapses, it wouldn't be impossible to transform and develop this place into a new grotto-heaven Dao realm to continue our lineage!"
Upon hearing this, the three immortals fell into deep thought once again, their expressions shifting unpredictably.
After pondering for a long time, he finally shook his head slowly and sighed softly:
"Chen'er, your thoughts are not without merit. But the key is... no one knows whether this Lord of Black Mountain truly perished completely with the collapse of the old world."
"Hmm?" Fang Chen was slightly taken aback. "With the collapse of heaven and earth and a great calamity befalling the universe, the gods, who are most closely connected to heaven and earth, should be the first to perish. Even the ancient righteous gods would find it difficult to escape, let alone a mountain lord?"
"This theory only applies to the earth deities who are born innately, and to those acquired deities who rely purely on the power of incense and vows, and the authority of heaven and earth."
Three immortals shook their heads, revealing a long-forgotten secret:
"But the Lord of Black Mountain is neither a primordial deity nor a deity bestowed by imperial decree. His true form is a high-ranking Taoist priest who, through a fortuitous encounter, performed great merit and was thus granted the authority over Yin and Yang in this region, and thus enjoyed this divine position."
"According to secret records, the original form of this Black Mountain in the old world was formed from the lingering gloom of heaven and earth, the bloodlust of battlefields, and the endless resentment of the dead near the City of the Wrongfully Dead in the underworld, condensed and transformed over countless years. After cultivating for thousands of years, it actually developed sentience and took on the form of a demon, becoming both a peerless demon king and an unparalleled ghost hero. At that time, it was known as—the [Black Mountain Old Demon]!"
"No one knows its true form. Some say it is the ruins of an ancient city that was massacred during the Warring States period, which absorbed the resentment of millions of souls. Others say it is the skulls and bones of countless people who died unjustly and with their eyes wide open, which accumulated for thousands of years, their resentment reaching the heavens, and finally gave birth to a terrifying being."
"In the old world, it was an unparalleled demon. It enjoyed abducting people, skinning them, tearing out their tendons, and devouring their souls. It successively annihilated several small surrounding countries, plundered treasures and beauties, and indulged in unrestrained pleasure. Furthermore, it was skilled at bewitching people's hearts, creating inner demons, and inducing true Taoist cultivators and high-ranking Buddhist monks to fall into the demonic path, becoming bloodthirsty and refining them into puppet demon heads. It can be said that its evil deeds were too numerous to count."
The three live vocals grew increasingly deep, carrying an indescribable solemnity:
"Therefore, in the ancient world, there was a great virtuous man from the Pure Land of Buddhism, who was a Bodhisattva transformed from a branch of the Bodhi Tree. With a compassionate heart, he once ventured alone into the Black Mountain, wanting to use the boundless Dharma to subdue this demon, relieve the calamity of the region, and redeem all sentient beings."
"Who would have thought that the old demon was so insidious? Instead of confronting the Bodhisattva head-on, it brazenly opened the barrier between Yin and Yang, releasing all the vengeful spirits and vengeful ghosts that had been accumulating in the City of the Wrongfully Dead in the Underworld for thousands of years into the mortal world."
"In an instant, ten thousand ghosts roamed the night, bloodshed was rampant, countless lives were lost, and the area around Black Mountain was transformed into a ghost realm. In order to protect all living beings, the Bodhisattva had no choice but to use his great supernatural powers and great vows to forcibly convert the almost endless resentment of those who died unjustly, and with his supreme Buddha body, he guarded the gap between Yin and Yang, thus preventing the calamity from spreading."
"However, after this battle, the Bodhisattva was severely weakened. While desperately suppressing the Yin-Yang Rift, she was ambushed by the Black Mountain Demon, whose extremely Yin and evil demonic energy invaded her heart. In the end, the Bodhisattva's Buddha-heart was clouded, her golden body faded, and she was corrupted and transformed into a terrifying demon—the Tree Demon Granny—who was half Buddha and half demon and took pleasure in devouring living beings!"
"This demon became even more ferocious and rampaged across the region. After this incident, the various sects of Taoism were filled with fear, knowing that this fiend was not only incredibly powerful but also had no bottom line. He would threaten the lives of millions of people at any time and acted by any means necessary. He was truly an unprecedentedly ferocious demon."
"But this move also thoroughly angered the underworld and enraged both Buddhism and Taoism. Thus, with the tacit approval or even the secret instigation of various forces, a high-ranking Taoist master who cultivated both the human and ghost immortal paths and whose combat power was comparable to that of a primordial spirit immortal made his move."
"Deep within the Black Mountain, this master warrior fiercely battled the old demon, ultimately sacrificing himself to shatter its millennia-old demonic body with a single sword strike, burning away the very foundation of its overwhelming resentment and utterly annihilating it!"
"Because the merit of eliminating this unparalleled evil demon was immeasurable, it was recognized by Heaven and Earth. Therefore, after its fall, the underworld granted it a special pardon, and Heaven bestowed its favor upon it, bestowing upon its remaining spiritual essence the title of a righteous god of a region, who would hold the power of Yin and Yang in Black Mountain, in order to guard and resolve the ancient malevolent energy of this place."
"Thus, the revered position of the Lord of Black Mountain exists!"
How come these old legends are so similar to the story of "A Chinese Ghost Story" from the previous life?
Fang Chen couldn't help but feel a sense of unease.
Not only are the remnants of the old world's light and shadow left over from this turbid and evil world, but the pure and spiritual world connected by the Kunlun Mirror also seems to have countless connections with the myths, legends, and Taoist scriptures it contains, as well as the knowledge it possesses from its previous life.
Was it illuminated by the light of a higher civilization, or was there some secret between these two worlds that he had not yet figured out, a secret connected to his past life?
Suppressing all his doubts, Fang Chen said solemnly:
"Master, things have come to this point, we have no other way out. We must either face the Dao Realm's demonic tribulation head-on and gamble on a sliver of hope within the Dao City, or we can only try to seek refuge in this Old World Black Mountain and take a desperate gamble!"
Upon hearing this, the three immortals remained silent for a long time, finally letting out a deep sigh:
"What you say is absolutely right. Rather than sitting here in this dead end and waiting for our doom, we should take the risk and explore."
"After this period of rest and recuperation, we of the Zhengyang Path will, as you have suggested, attempt to explore this... Old World Black Mountain!"