Chapter 2773: "The Military Scroll of the Underworld"
Facing the gazes of Zhang Ruochen and Xue Tu, two renowned and formidable figures, Hai Shui’s expression remained completely unchanged. "Because I know that your destination on this journey is definitely not here."
"What does that have to do with you?" Xue Tu asked.
Hai Shui said, "I am your prisoner now. If one of us suffers, we all suffer. How could it be unrelated?"
"You don't look like a prisoner at all. You're completely fearless," Xue Tu said with a laugh.
Hai Shui closed her eyes and recited, "A Buddhist, without fear or dread, without desire or seeking, without sorrow or joy. Severing the seven emotions and six desires, only the six senses are pure, achieving the fourfold emptiness..."
"Here we go again, here we go again, she's starting to chant again!"
Xue Tu felt that Hai Shui's voice, buzzing in his ears, was extremely irritating and made him feel uncomfortable all over. He quickly retreated far away.
He couldn't afford to provoke her.
If Zhang Ruochen hadn't been protecting her, Xue Tu would have definitely boiled her alive right then!
Zhang Ruochen looked at this stunningly beautiful, composed, knowledgeable, and rational female nun before him, and actually felt a sense of unfathomable mystery. Where else but the Western Buddha Realm could cultivate a cultivator with such profound Buddhist teachings and mental state?
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to discuss with Yan Wushen the matter of leaving immediately, he saw Yan Wushen and Yan Ting approaching.
"Brother Ruochen, what do you think we should do with this stone temple?" Yan Wushen asked.
Xue Tu immediately interjected, "Do you even need to ask? The things in the stone temple naturally belong to us. First, I caught the little nun, and she led us here."
"Second, it was my senior brother who used the Buddha Emperor Relic to open the way, allowing us to enter the stone temple and discover its secrets."
Yan Ting said coldly and fiercely, "That's an entire divine army. Can your Blood Heaven Tribe handle it?"
"Why are you glaring at me? You're glaring at me again. I, the Emperor, saved your life. Even if you don't offer yourself to your savior, you should at least be a bit gentler, right? Brother Wushen, you be the judge. Isn't your cousin going too far?" Xue Tu said.
"Let me reason with you. When did you ever save my life?" Yan Ting said.
...
While Xue Tu and Yan Ting were bickering, Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen communicated.
Yan Wushen said, "If the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army is found by the gods of the Underworld Hall, the Underworld Hall's strength will inevitably increase greatly, which is entirely disadvantageous for you. I think it would be better for the Dark Abyss Yan Clan and the Blood Heaven Tribe to split the benefits from the stone temple."
"I have no objection to that proposal! But, Brother Wushen, doesn't that mean we have to turn back now?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
A clear, crisp voice rang out: "No."
Yan Wushen and Zhang Ruochen both looked at Hai Shui, their expressions curious and strange.
Hai Shui said, "We have already entered the stone temple, but our understanding of its interior is still only ten or twenty percent."
"You should also have realized that relying solely on the Buddha Emperor Relic is not enough to break the various mysterious powers inside the stone temple. That is the power of a Heaven-level existence, far more complex than you imagine."
Zhang Ruochen said, "It only means my cultivation is not high enough, and my use of the Buddha Emperor Relic is still very shallow."
Hai Shui said, "Even if the Seventh Patriarch were alive, would he dare to claim he could definitely defeat Yinsnow Heaven? Yinsnow Heaven stored the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army in the temple, so she would undoubtedly have used all her power to protect them, waiting for the descendants of the Underworld Hall to come and awaken them. How could a single Buddha Emperor Relic break through that?"
"What if the Buddha Emperor Relic were in the hands of my clan's patriarch?" Yan Wushen asked.
Hai Shui, with her red lips and white teeth, looked not like a Buddhist but rather a peerless beauty. She shook her head and said, "Your understanding of the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army is far too shallow. Rashly inviting Wuqing Zong and Xuejue War God here might actually get them killed."
Yan Wushen and Zhang Ruochen exchanged a glance, feeling that this green-robed female nun was being somewhat alarmist.
Hai Shui said, "The power of a Heaven-level existence is something even a God Venerable must revere. Are Wuqing Zong and Xuejue War God even God Venerables? If it were that easy, do you think anyone could control the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army that Yinsnow Heaven refined?"
"If that were the case, what would be the point of her refining this divine army?"
Zhang Ruochen agreed with this point. "Little Master Hai Shui, if you know any secrets, you might as well speak frankly."
Perhaps Hai Shui didn't know the secrets of the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army, but Yuanyi Ancient Buddha might.
Hai Shui said, "I once heard my master say that to control the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army, one must cultivate the supreme mantra from the 'Military Scroll of the Underworld'—the Military Dao Underworld Law Mantra."
Yan Wushen said, "There are eight scrolls of the Underworld Clan. Four are in the Darkness Temple, two are in the Underworld Hall, and two have been lost for hundreds of thousands of years. The 'Military Scroll of the Underworld' is one of the two lost scrolls!"
"The 'Military Scroll of the Underworld' was lost along with Yinsnow Heaven's disappearance," Hai Shui said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "In other words, we must find Yinsnow Heaven, retrieve the 'Military Scroll of the Underworld,' successfully cultivate the Military Dao Underworld Law Mantra, and only then can we control the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army?"
Hai Shui gently shook her head. "That won't work either."
"Won't work either?"
She said, "Only Yinsnow Heaven herself can control the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army."
Zhang Ruochen laughed. "After all that, you're saying this Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army can't be controlled at all? What if we forcefully awaken them?"
"If you forcefully awaken them, they will only have a will to kill. Then, even if Wuqing Zong and Xuejue War God came, they would die in the stone temple," Hai Shui said.
Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen's expressions turned serious.
They didn't doubt Hai Shui's words, because if a divine army refined by a Heaven-level figure were so easy to control, how could Yinsnow Heaven use it to fight enemies?
Hai Shui said, "Actually, the Snow Domain Star Sea Divine Army isn't completely uncontrollable. If you find Yinsnow Heaven's bloodline descendants, or Yinsnow Heaven's Divine Source, along with the Military Dao Underworld Law Mantra, it can still be controlled. Of course, these are just my master's speculations."
Zhang Ruochen was surprised. "Yinsnow Heaven has descendants?"
This caught Zhang Ruochen off guard, as he had specifically researched Yinsnow Heaven's records and found no such information.
Yan Wushen said, "I've heard some legends. It's said that Yinsnow Heaven once fell in love with a Heavenly Venerable and even bore him a son, but was abandoned by him. During Yinsnow Heaven's lifetime, no one dared to mention this, so very few cultivators in the Hell Realm know about it."
Zhang Ruochen's heart stirred. "Which Heavenly Venerable?"
"Who knows? So many years have passed. In fact, many legends can't be taken as truth; they've long deviated from the facts," Yan Wushen said.
Hai Shui said, "This matter is absolutely true. The Heavenly Venerable who abandoned Yinsnow Heaven was none other than the renowned Immovable Wisdom King Great Venerable of the Kunlun Realm, known as the most powerful existence of the ancient era. Benefactor Ruochen was born in the Kunlun Realm. Have you heard of the Immovable Wisdom King Great Venerable's name?"
Zhang Ruochen's expression was somewhat unnatural. He smiled and nodded. "When it comes to the affairs of the ancients, without knowing the truth, who can say who was right or wrong? As Brother Wushen said, legends often distort the truth."
Hai Shui stared at him. "Just like Benefactor Ruochen and Empress Chi Yao, right? If the Chi family's descendants were powerful enough, future rumors would inevitably place all the blame on you. Who would care about what the truth really was?"
Zhang Ruochen couldn't respond. He felt that every word Hai Shui said was like a knife stabbing at him.
Yan Wushen laughed heartily. "What does it matter who Yinsnow Heaven's descendants are? As long as we find Yinsnow Heaven's Divine Source and the 'Military Scroll of the Underworld,' we can still control the divine army, can't we?"
Zhang Ruochen collected his emotions and gave Hai Shui a deep look. "Regardless, we must go to the depths of the Abyss of Darkness. First, let's go to the Ancient Desolate Ruins City and rendezvous with the gods. Little Master Hai Shui, you will stay by my side from now on. I have some things I wish to ask you."
Over the next month, Zhang Ruochen's advantages became fully apparent.
With his Heart of Truth and the Wuji Sacred Intent, Zhang Ruochen's perception of danger was exceptionally keen. Every time a large group of strange beasts appeared, he successfully avoided them.
Although they encountered several crises, they managed to turn danger into safety each time.
Finally, after passing through countless dark space continents, they arrived at a completely dark world.
Here, there was no life, and even no spiritual qi, sacred qi, or death qi.
All cultivators took out divine stones, constantly absorbing the divine qi within to replenish the sacred qi draining from their bodies.
"The matter here is even harder than on the Dark Star."
"The gravity is so strong, it feels like a hundred thousand divine mountains are pressing down on me."
"My spiritual power perception has weakened, and my vision has severely declined. Everyone must be careful."
...
Everyone present had cultivated for many years to reach their current level.
Outside, they could shatter stars with their fists, overturn seas and rivers, look down upon all beings, and stand at the pinnacle of the mortal world. But here, most of the power they had gained through years of cultivation had to be used just to withstand the harsh environment.
Yan Wushen said, "We should have passed through the outer reaches of the Abyss of Darkness. We'll soon reach the Ancient Desolate Ruins City. Barring any accidents, Bore, Guye Jing, Prince Xia, and the true gods of the Yama Clan should have already arrived there."
"True gods are far faster than us. They must have arrived already!"
"As long as we rendezvous with the true gods, it will be much safer."
The Yama Clan's Supreme Realm Great Saints, including Xue Tu and Yan Ting, all relaxed. As long as they reached the Ancient Desolate Ruins City, even if they encountered danger, the true gods would bear the brunt, and they wouldn't have to fight to the death.
Xue Tu lowered his voice and asked, "Senior Brother, I noticed you captured seven serpent-like strange beasts along the way. You must have gotten a lot of Dark Source Liquid, right?"
Zhang Ruochen's expression was heavy, as if he were thinking about something.
"How about sharing some with me? I won't take it for free. I'll buy it with divine stones," Xue Tu said.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes regained their focus. He looked at Xue Tu and said, "Oh? It seems you have quite a few divine stones. How about paying off your debt for the Supreme Sacred Artifact first? What do you think?"
Xue Tu was stunned, his heart collapsing.
He thought that after helping Zhang Ruochen collect the Ten Realms, traveling together harmoniously, and sharing countless hardships, Zhang Ruochen had long forgotten about the debt and wouldn't bring it up again.
But it seemed things were different from what he imagined.
"Wait until I find a great opportunity in the Abyss of Darkness. I'll definitely pay you back, absolutely. Let's go to the Ancient Desolate Ruins City first. I'll scout ahead."
With that, Xue Tu didn't look back and shot forward at top speed.
Yan Wushen came to Zhang Ruochen's side. "What's the situation? It's very dangerous here. Tell Xue Tu to be careful."
"I also find it very dangerous."
Zhang Ruochen's face was stern. "This journey has been too peaceful. Suddenly, all the cultivators who wanted to kill me seem to have vanished. That's definitely not normal!"
"Having Xue Tu scout ahead isn't a bad idea either. That guy is very shrewd. Before coming to the Abyss of Darkness, he must have reported to Death God Venerable. If Death God Venerable allowed him to come to the Abyss of Darkness, how could he not have given him protective treasures?"
(End of Chapter)