“Brother Li, don’t you want to just give it to me? Throwing it away would be such a waste!”
Murong Xiao quickly bent down to pick up the sketchbook, dusting it off with exaggerated care.
He then looked up to meet Li Mo’s suspicious glare.
Brother Murong, you’re giving me a strange vibe.
So you came here specifically to buy this thing, huh?
Murong Xiao chuckled awkwardly:
“I’ve recently been studying Buddhist martial arts.”
“And then?”
Li Mo looked baffled.
The Golden Bell Shield is indeed a Buddhist technique, requiring one to practice alongside Buddhist doctrines.
So this is your excuse for buying the Emperor’s uncle’s work?
Murong Xiao explained with a serious face:
“The scriptures say, ‘Form is emptiness, emptiness is form.’ As long as your mind is clear, looking at a beautiful face is as mundane as staring at desiccated bones.”
“If you don’t resist temptation, how can you ignore it? If I don’t descend into hell, who will?”
“So, I’ve decided to challenge my own weaknesses!”
“……”
Li Mo fell into thought.
So that’s how you interpret ‘form is emptiness’?
Is this how ‘pure of six roots’ is meant to be understood?
But surprisingly, it kind of makes sense, and he couldn’t refute it.
Puzzled, Li Mo could only nod and say:
“Fine, just remember to return it after you’re done.”
“Great, Brother Li, I’ll take my leave now.”
Murong Xiao happily accepted the sketchbook.
Just as he was about to dive into his challenge, Li Mo called out from behind:
“Oh, Brother Murong, your understanding of Buddhism is for you to know alone. Please, don’t go spreading it around.”
“Ah? Why not?”
“I’m afraid that if it reaches the Buddhist sect, the masters will come looking for you to challenge your weaknesses regarding killing.”
……
At the main peak’s shrine.
The shrine was located at the center of the mountain, guarded quite strictly. Ying Bing followed a few elders, trekking a long distance before finally arriving.
Along the way, Ying Bing felt several waves of consciousness sweep past her.
The power of the Qingyuan Sect was definitely not just the elders on the surface.
Moments later, they arrived at a large door, where a drowsy old man was dozing off.
“Master Uncle.”
Shangguan Wencang respectfully bowed with cupped hands.
“Oh, Wenyuan! It’s been a while, hasn’t it? What brings you to visit this old head of mine?”
The old man, as if waking from a dream, opened his cloudy old eyes.
“Master Uncle, I’m Wencang.”
Shangguan Wencang forced a smile.
“Oh, oh, you’re Wencang… my old memory.”
The old man patted the back of his head and asked:
“Well, what brings you…?”
“To bring the true disciple Ying Bing to meet our ancestors.”
Shangguan Wencang produced the sect leader’s token.
“True disciple…”
The old man’s gaze passed over several elders and landed on Ying Bing, standing quietly. A glimmer of light flickered in his cloudy eyes.
“Good, very good…….”
He praised a few times before taking the token, merging it with the one in his hand.
The combined token was inserted into the center of the heavy ancient door adorned with mysterious bird patterns, and the door finally creaked open.
Ying Bing raised her eyes towards the shrine, her gaze sharpening.
In her last life, she had never set foot in this place.
Before her stood bronze pillars supporting the dome; the style resembled that which she had seen in the bl**d Phoenix Secret Realm. The offerings there were all birds, steeped in a sense of time and age.
They stood atop a segment of the Bronze Divine Tree.
Because of this, for a moment, she almost felt as if they were still alive, vibrant and full of spirit.
Whoosh—
The candles spontaneously ignited, illuminating the divine tree.
“That’s the celestial artifact of the Da Shang’s heavenly fate…..”
“More accurately, it’s just a part of it.”
Shangguan Wencang clasped his hands behind his back, gazing at the shimmering Bronze Tree, and sighed lightly:
“You are destined to take on my burdens in the future; there are some things that you should know now.”
“The beings on this divine tree are all powerful figures from the Da Shang royal family, their forms etched with conscious souls.”
“You must be curious why this artifact ended up here.”
Shangguan Wencang’s eyes glimmered.
After a pause, he continued:
“Our ancestor of Qingyuan Sect was not only a meritorious subject of Great Yu but also the last member of the Da Shang royal family.”
“She helped the Martial Emperor stabilize the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, but she didn’t accept rewards; instead, she returned to Ziyang Mansion, guarding the spirit of the former capital of Da Shang.”
“That’s why beneath the Qingyuan Sect is…..”
“The Da Shang royal tomb.”
Listening to Shangguan Wencang’s enlightening words, Ying Bing furrowed her brows, re-examining the Bronze Divine Tree.
It was curious, really.
Time-worn, glorious, dilapidated, exquisite—
all manifested in one single object.
She noticed a significant vacancy above the tree.
That spot should have been surrounded by a multitude of birds; it shouldn’t be empty.
Shangguan Wencang seemed to understand her confusion and explained:
“That’s where the ancestor’s symbolic imprint should be. After that, she went to the imperial city and never returned.”
“So, the image of this golden crow has been left vacant.”
“The imprints upon it are all extreme representations, profound and enigmatic. You have a heavy responsibility ahead, so ponder them carefully.”
Shangguan Wencang had only comprehended one during his lifetime, which was the form of the ‘Mang Sparrow swallowing the Dragon.’
Consolidating the forms of all birds, gathering the essence of the phoenix—that was the path left by the ancestor.
He had thought that it was a fantasy for him in this lifetime.
Only Ying Bing’s appearance shed light on it for him.
After praying at the divine tree with Shangguan Wencang, Ying Bing took careful steps closer to the broken Bronze Divine Tree.
“Little Ice Girl, this divine tree is incredibly imposing; you can’t just approach it like that….”
Xue Jing had just started to speak when Shangguan Wencang stopped him with a look.
“Elder, these symbolic imprints are all left by the Da Shang royal family; their wills remain here.”
Xue Jing got a bit anxious.
Those wills once belonged to the most revered beings.
Each will was inviolable, excessively proud.
If that little Ice Girl just rushed up to connect with them, she might even get injured by their wills….
“Let’s observe for now.”
Shangguan Wencang said unperturbed, squinting to watch.
He saw Ying Bing standing before the divine tree, her black hair and dress swaying, like a snow lotus amid the winds.
Her cold gaze never wavered, as if the vast presence around didn’t exist at all.
She seemed to stand even taller than the divine tree.
Thud thud—
Like a heartbeat, the broken divine tree suddenly released a series of ringing sounds.
A blue luan perched at the top suddenly ‘came to life.’
The blue luan flapped its wings and descended, leaving behind mystical trails in the void, seemingly transcending time and space.
It stood in front of Ying Bing and bowed in salute.
“Qingluan….”
Ying Bing fell into a trance.
Based on this shape, she began to carve her own consciousness soul.
Then, various bird forms began to flutter down from the branches.
Buzz—
A supreme aura flowed around Ying Bing, as if she were receiving the worship of the True Phoenix.
In the midst of it all, celestial music seemed to flow, echoing around.
Xue Jing’s eyes widened, almost believing he was witnessing an illusion.
The other elders wore similar expressions.
Mind-blowing.
