Chapter 2010: Lin Bone Spirit Orchid
Yun Che had received too many opportunities in his life, but none had come so easily, yet so heavily.
Behind this massive gift was the nature of the Qilin clan, the gratitude and respect for the Evil God Ni Xuan.
A slight sense of guilt and sin arose in Yun Che's heart... but it was immediately and completely erased by him.
He could not be influenced in his clarity by any living being, any emotion, any!
"How much of my source blood and source marrow can harmonize with your body depends on your fortune. For ordinary people, complete refinement would take ten years... at least several years. But since you possess the profound vein of a Creation God, perhaps a short few months will be enough."
"A few days would be enough..." Yun Che thought in his heart, and heavily nodded toward the rapidly dimming Lin God's eye: "Lin God Senior, rest assured, I will make the Lin God lineage's Lin light shine most brilliantly in this world."
He said "this world", not "the abyss".
"Good." The Lin God smiled, and at this moment, the divine light in his Lin God eyes completely dimmed, leaving only a pair of turbid old eyes like withered rocks: "Thus, I have no regrets... only a little lingering concern."
Yun Che raised his eyes: "Senior, can you tell me what your concern is?"
After a long silence, he finally let out a gradually distant whisper: "In the fierce battle between gods and demons, the Lin God clan withered to near extinction. The ancestral Lin God was forced into the Tai Chu Divine Realm. In a desperate situation, unwilling to die at the hands of the Demon God, he and a group of clan members jumped into the abyss... but were saved by the Abyss Emperor and survived in this world."
"So that's it..." The doubt in Yun Che's heart was suddenly resolved.
"In the Age of Gods, only true gods who had committed unforgivable great sins would be cast into the abyss. Given the nature of the Qilin clan, no matter what, they wouldn't have committed such a great crime."
"So they jumped down themselves."
"But the erosion of the abyss dust is like an inescapable nightmare. Once completely eroded, one becomes an abyssal beast with only the desire to destroy."
"Watching helplessly as one's closest kin, respected elders, and yet-to-grow children were eroded into abyssal beasts... That pain and despair are millions of times more terrifying than death. The nightmares of that time, even today, still cling to my body and bind my soul. If not for the ancestral Lin God's entrustment, if not for waiting for the miracle to come, I would have already chosen to end this body."
"..." Yun Che could not find words to comfort.
He had personally experienced the pain of losing all his loved ones, pain that had once made him completely give up the thought of living.
And what the Lin God described... that was definitely a kind of extreme despair that one could never empathize with unless they had experienced it themselves.
"But in just a few short generations of inheritance, the Lin God clan had completely withered... leaving only the ancestral Lin God and me."
"The ancestral Lin God was once incomparably powerful, even surpassing the current six kingdoms and seven gods."
"But the abyss back then was far more terrifying than now. The erosion of the abyss dust on our beast clan was also far greater than on you humans. As strong as the ancestral Lin God was, he was gradually eroded by the abyss dust, his divine power constantly dissipating, his divine body constantly decaying. In the end, his divine power dissipated to below the divine realm, and the remaining power was only comparable to... the Divine Extreme Realm."
"And at that time, the ancestral Lin God's erosion level had reached over ninety percent."
Yun Che's heart shook. To remain clear-minded while eroded over ninety percent, and still have the power of the Divine Extreme Realm — how powerful was this ancestral Lin God!
He did not interrupt the Lin God's words and quietly listened on. The rapidly dissipating life aura, and the gradually fading 'Qilin Sacred Hall', both indicated that his time was almost gone.
"This elemental seed was obtained by the ancestral Lin God. If the ancestral Lin God had kept it for himself, it would have extended his life for a long time. But he chose to give it to me."
"The ancestral Lin God instructed that this is the power core of the Elemental Creation God, a gift of heaven's mercy, but it ultimately does not belong to this world. Perhaps one day, someone will bring it back to the world where it should be."
"Thus, while receiving this blessing, the last guardian mission of the Lin God lineage is to guard it. Never let this Creation God's power and blessing fall into the hands of evil spirits and become stained with filth and sin."
Yun Che couldn't help but be deeply moved.
In the God Realm, the ancient Lin God had completely perished, leaving no inheritance or bloodline in the world. The remaining qilin, with the ink qilin led by Qi Tianli as the strongest, were all mortal race qilin.
And the scattered records about the Lin God were all different, hard to distinguish true from false, but only one point was the same: that the Lin God clan existed for protection.
"This guardian mission is also the reason why the ancestral Lin God wanted me to live long... and the ancestral Lin God's final order was for me to completely annihilate him before he was completely eroded and turned into an abyssal beast."
Yun Che sighed lightly and said: "Senior, in the end, you couldn't do it, right?"
"The ancestral Lin God removed all his protective power, but I... ultimately could not do it."
Even though hundreds of thousands of years had passed, his voice still carried deep pain, though it was hard to tell if there was regret in it.
"I chose to severely strike the ancestral Lin God unconscious, and then... brought him deep into the Mist Sea."
At this point, Yun Che had roughly understood what the Lin God's final concern was.
He could not judge whether the Lin God's choice was right or wrong.
Rationally, the Lin God should indeed annihilate him. But that was the ancestor, that was the close relative who left the hope of survival to himself — how could one be rational?
Knocking him unconscious and placing him in the Mist Sea... at least one could think that he still existed in the world in another way.
Yun Che said: "This ancestral Lin God, is he still in the Mist Sea now?"
"That's right." The Lin God's voice narrated slowly: "He is now one of the strongest abyssal beasts in the Mist Sea."
Yun Che: "..."
"The ancestral Lin God was majestic and kind throughout his life, with benevolence and protection as his beliefs. Even at his strongest, he was unwilling to harm the weakest innocent beings. Yet over the years, who knows how many profound practitioners who ventured deep into the Mist Sea have died because of him."
"His prestige was revered by all beings, but now, only a fearsome reputation remains. All of this is my fault. I am ashamed before the ancestral Lin God. Even in death... I have no face to meet him in the underworld."
"So," Yun Che said: "You hope that if I encounter him in the Mist Sea in the future, I will... give him release?"
The pair of huge Lin God eyes had closed to only slits, and his voice was as ethereal as a candle flickering in the wind: "My gift was only to repay grace, not to bestow grace. I have no right to entrust this wish to you... only... to... beg..."
"Good, I promise." Yun Che nodded heavily, his gaze clear: "If one day in the future, I have the ability, I will let him rest in peace."
The Lin God's eyes completely closed, then slowly disappeared, and the last voice gently seeped into Yun Che's soul:
"A thousand words cannot express thanks... Even without today, my lifespan had little left. My death and this realm's collapse are all within reason; the Abyss Emperor has no reason to suspect... Or perhaps, my existence has long ceased to occupy his heart."
"In three hours, this realm will surely collapse. Leave now... May your future shine as brilliantly as the ancestor's Lin light."
The last trace of yellow Lin light at this moment eternally vanished with the fading voice.
The Qilin Sacred Hall that had isolated everything also completely disappeared at this time.
The quicksand resumed its rolling, the dust and mist resumed their dancing... but immediately, everything underwent drastic changes.
The earth spirits in the dust seemed frightened, no longer dancing quietly but moving chaotically.
The direction of the rolling quicksand underfoot also became obviously chaotic, and then it began to sink.
At first it sank very slowly, then gradually faster and faster, as if in the unfathomable depths below, an abyssal giant beast had opened its devouring maw.
Those sky-supporting rock pillars that had stood proudly for who knows how many years, one after another developed cracks, then broke and collapsed piece by piece, bringing rumbling sounds of calamity.
The Creation God's elemental seed had returned to Yun Che's hands, and the earth element of this world had undoubtedly completely lost its source and order.
The Lin God had fallen, and this small world connected to his life source was about to collapse. The source blood and source marrow left to him by the Lin God were wrapped in a gentle small barrier, without any trace of dispersion. Yun Che carefully placed them into the Heavenly Poison Pearl, bowed deeply to the front, then turned and flew straight westward... which was the direction of the exit.
The only thing he had to do now was to leave the Lin God Realm and then find a sufficiently safe place.
As for the reason for leaving immediately after entering, that was even simpler.
He had not flown far when a strange glimmer suddenly flashed in his pupils.
What was that?
At the same time...
Changes occurred in every corner of the Lin God Realm.
In the distant south, Long Jiang, bathed in the dust, slowly moved eastward like a lone sail on an endless sea.
But extreme loneliness and unknown risks could not stop her persistence at all.
The yellow Lin light in the northeast suddenly became dense, and a huge palace appeared. She thought she had been discovered and stopped in her tracks.
But after a long time, no aura touched her, so she continued forward, becoming even more cautious and slow.
She watched the glowing yellow palace shine continuously, then begin to dim not long after... until it dimmed to complete disappearance.
What also disappeared was the yellow Lin light that had originally covered the entire eastern sky.
She was stunned there... because in her understanding, the disappearance of the Lin light represented the fall of the Lin God.
Then, she saw the earth spirits in panic, the quicksand sinking... and her soul strings were chaotic like the earth spirits, her heart suddenly sinking like the quicksand. A deep sense of powerlessness accompanied by gradually intensifying pain spread through her body.
Why...
Why of all days today...
It was only a little short...
Could it be that even the last hope...
And just then, in this originally barren and monochrome world, a strange glimmer suddenly appeared.
Accompanied by an aura... that made Long Jiang feel as if she had fallen into an illusion in an instant.
It had originally been deeply hidden underground, with thick earth elements sealing its divine radiance and concealing its aura.
But with the collapse of elemental order and the sinking of the sand layer, it was completely exposed to the light of day.
Even though it was extremely far in the line of sight, its divine light was reflected with incomparable clarity in her pupils.
Here, not only was there abyss dust, but also thick sand and dust, both of which greatly attenuate spiritual perception and aura. But that aura actually crossed such a great distance and struck her spiritual perception and heartstrings with incomparable clarity.
An extremely intense surprise instantly replaced the pain. She no longer cared about concealment, released all her profound energy, and rushed straight toward that glimmer.
At the same time as well.
The people of the four major forces — Helian, Bai Lin, Pan Xuan, and Wan Ren — were all in shock and panic caused by the changes.
When they tried to find the source of the changes, an aura from the east heavily touched everyone's spiritual perception.
As the aura entered their bodies, their five senses seemed to suddenly become several times clearer. And what shocked them the most was that the earth profound energy around them spontaneously circulated, as if uncontrollably leaping in joy.
"What... is that!?"
Helian?, Zhai Kexie, Wan Wei, and Ximen Borong all showed deep shock on their faces. In their gazes toward the east, there was a yellow light that was obviously extremely faint, yet so eye-catching it stabbed into their souls.
"This aura... so far away, yet so rich and pure to this degree?" Ximen Borong exclaimed in shock.
As soon as these words were spoken, almost instantly, the exact same four words appeared in their sea of souls.
"Could it be..."
Ku Xian slowly opened his mouth: "Purifying the soul for ten thousand miles, the profound vein heavily palpitating... The only possibility is the legendary..."
"Lin Bone Spirit Orchid!"
Boom!!!
As if ten thousand thunders had struck together, Ximen Borong, Wan Wei, and Zhai Liancheng had already burst forward, rushing straight east.
Helian? was stunned for a moment, then as if waking from a dream, let out a strange roar and also pounced straight ahead.
"Follow! All elders, hall masters, and disciples stay in place and await orders! Do not act rashly!"
The three strongest elders of Pan Xuan Sect followed quickly, followed by Wan Ren Sect and Bai Lin Alliance.
On the Helian Imperial side, under Helian?, the strongest was Ku Xian. Pan Xuan Sect and Wan Ren Sect each had three Half-step Divine Destruction Realm elders, and the Bai Lin Alliance's chief hall master was also Half-step Divine Destruction. But on the Helian Imperial side... Helian? was alone and weak. Even if he was the fastest and snatched the Lin Bone Spirit Orchid into his hands, it would be hard to keep.
He had to go even if he didn't want to.
Just as Ku Xian was about to move, Mo Cangying flashed to his side: "Master, I'll go too."
Ku Xian paused for a moment, but had no time to hesitate. He nodded slightly, picked up Mo Cangying, and headed straight east.
"Master, Ninth Senior Brother!"
Helian Lingzhu's voice was completely swallowed by more than a dozen violently erupting profound energies. She could only watch, along with other stunned disciples, as they shot straight east at a speed that seemed to risk their lives.
Yun Che went west, Long Jiang went north, the four major forces went east... The intersection of their directions was exactly where that yellow glimmer was located.