Chapter 288: The Southern Dipper
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Thunder rolled across the heavens, while demon blades swished about. The two heaven-shaking magical powers were intertwined into a ball from Nine Peaks Mountain. Wen Leyang sprinted down the mountain, escorted by the Demon Blades. Soon after, he ran out of the thunderclouds’ range. Only at the foot of the mountain did he remember that he was not familiar with Jilong Mountain…
Wen Leyang was anxious and annoyed; he wanted to slap himself. He did not even bring a cellphone. Just when he was contemplating to snatch a phone from a passing car, the life vitality scattered around him vibrated. A dozen cultivators were executing their body movements and were rushing towards Nine Peaks Mountain with great speed.
Wen Leyang was quickly elated and ran up to meet them. The ones who came were old friends. The big and little demon rabbits were leading a big group of Great Mercy Temple good hands and closed in on them. Ji Fei and Shui Jing were among them.
In the last few years, Chang Li, Cone Nail, and the others had been waiting on Nine Peaks Mountain. Ji Fei and Shui Jing always felt their skin crawl whenever they dealt with these eccentric demon immortals. They simply decided to descend the mountain and loiter around. Although the two brothers did not manage to become The Great Virtue, their status rose alongside the flourishing of the people of the Tuo Xie sect. Everywhere they went, people greeted them with smiles.
Recently, the brothers lodged with Great Mercy Temple. They were just in time for the phone call from the Wen family informing Wen Leyang’s return to the mountain. They went with the high monks back to Nine Peaks Mountain to pay respects to their master.
From afar, all hell seemed to have broken loose on the entire Nine Peaks Mountain. The group of cultivators from Mount Emei were either in shock or in rage. Suddenly, their vision blurred. Wen Leyang had already appeared in front of them!
The two parties had only exchanged a few sentences when Wen Leyang carried old monk Ji Fei on his back and went on his way. Old demon rabbit waved and ordered his subordinates, “The First Seats of the Five Supreme Monasteries, follow me to build a formation to block the thunder magic. Shan Duan, Hope Voice, lead the others to seal the road. If there’s any resistance, kill them without fail!”
The group of Buddhist disciples shouted in agreement. The practitioners of the Five Supreme Monasteries followed Bu Le into the mountain. They had not gone far when they could not go any further and cast the magic formation. They helped their Grand Master bear the burden of the thunder magic from afar. The little demon rabbit and the others scattered and guarded the road into the mountain. Only fat monk Shui Jing was left without anything to do…
Jilong Sect was one of the Five Blessings. The location of their sect was no secret. Old monk Ji Fei had asked around in the few decades before this, thus, of course he knew the way.
Even if old monk Ji Fei’s method of practice were to be exhausted one day, he was still a well-experienced man. He pointed out the way Wen Leyang ran along the train tracks. If there was a train that went in the same direction, Wen Leyang would hitch a ride on it. When the train changed directions, Wen Leyang would jump down and continue on foot.
After a day and a half, at midnight, Wen Leyang finally arrived at the headquarters of Jilong Sect from the Five Blessings, whose name had shocked the cultivation world for a thousand years and more. The first mountain north of the Yangtze River, Jilong mountain!
Wen Leyang stood on top of a nameless small hill and looked at the nearby Jilong mountain. The entire Jilong mountain was shrouded with night mist. He could only roughly make out the great mountain’s outline. It truly looked like a giant chicken pen. There were steep cliffs on all sides. He could still faintly make out some metal wires which extended from the mountain’s peak which led to some unknown place under the mountain.
There was an endless silence all around them. There was not even the sound of the summer bugs’ buzz or the mountain’s breeze. This strangely shaped queer mountain even gave the impression that it had died.
There was a ruckus on Nine Peaks Mountain right now, but the place where the thunder magic originated from was so silent it was hard to breathe.
Old Monk Ji Fei was slightly uneasy. He pointed at Jilong mountain with a shaky finger, “Jilong sect’s headquarters is on the mountain’s peak…” As he spoke, he mumbled in puzzlement, “Since when have there been so many metal chains on Jilong mountain?”
Wen Leyang did not have the time to ponder over the nature of the metal chains, “Other than Jilong Sect, is there anyone else on the mountain?”
Ji Fei did not quite understand what Wen Leyang meant. After being stunned for a while, he chuckled, “Of course not. This is an important place for their sect. Jilong Sect had long chased everyone else away. This mountain is theirs…”
The old monk had not finished when Wen Leyang burst into laughter, “That’s the best!” His voice barely faded when wind and thunder rolled. The devil fetus rock tower appeared out of thin air. Like a meteor that shattered the sky’s edge, it was covered in blazing heavenly flames as it crashed towards Jilong mountain!
Wen Leyang showed no mercy. If Chang Li and Cone Nail were not home, Nine Peaks Mountain would have been a pile of dust right now. He had finally reached the enemy’s headquarters. He was too lazy to talk nonsense and summoned the rock tower. He would only rest when this big chicken pen full of chains was crushed.
Old Monk Ji Fei sat on the ground. His two hands had not reached his ears in time when a deafening eruption sounded in the world. The entire big mountain was like a burly man who was suddenly stung by a poisonous scorpion while he was sleeping. It jumped up with an angry howl.
Dust flew everywhere; it covered the heavens and earth!
Under the full impact of the rock tower, the resulting huge force was like a terrifying wave as it rolled towards all directions. Everywhere it went, life withered. Giant trees were uprooted, giant rocks were split, the nameless little hills around Jilong mountain gained cold wounds amidst muffled crackles.
Wen Leyang seemed to have taken roots. He stood riveted on the high grounds. His clothes rippled in the gale and made loud flapping sounds.
It was unknown whether he was shaken or shocked, tears and snot streaked down Old Monk Ji Fei’s face. All his bones went numb. He opened his mouth wide as he cried and cursed, “You could’ve given me a heads-up…”
His voice had just left his throat when it was drowned out by the booms.
Wen Leyang chuckled, he did not look like he had just directed a meteor towards the Earth. He pulled Ji Fei up and wanted to talk when suddenly, a familiar voice came from afar, “You little demon who does not know his own strength.”
Wen Leyang found the voice familiar, it was undoubtedly the enlightened person, Qing Niao, who had lost both his arms, but this tone was not sonorous and full of vigor like what Qing Niao used to sound like back then. It even had a hint of cold seductiveness.
Then, a strong wind blew out of nowhere. It swept the dust which covered the world clean in the blink of an eye. Jilong mountain which should have been destroyed by the devil tower was still intact!
In the sky, six spots of lights which looked like stars swiveled and cruised. Their tails of light left dazzling marks in the night sky and formed a giant talisman script. Like a fishing net, it firmly stood on top of Jilong mountain. Wen Leyang’s devil tower had just attacked, but it was completely blocked by the six starlight talisman script.
Old Monk Ji Fei sounded like a duck whose neck was stepped on. He held his breath until he flushed red. He shouted with all his might, “Six stars of the Southern Dipper, protective great script, it’s the protective great script!”
The Southern Dipper governs life, while Northern Dipper governs destruction. Someone among the Jilong Sect had cast a spell. Someone had used the heart of god to trigger the Southern Dipper’s merciful heavenly power to protect themselves!
Whether it was Nine Peaks Mountain’s destructive thunder spell or the protective great script on Jilong mountain, they were some of the most powerful formation magic among the profound orthodox sect. If two days ago, someone had said that Jilong Sect was capable of casting these two spells, old monk Ji Fei would have laughed until his teeth fell out. If Jilong Sect had such abilities, how could they have suffered defeat in Wen family village, lose their magic weapons, and their supreme leader as well?
The rock tower’s attack was useless. Following Wen Leyang’s intentions, it slowly returned to the sky. It swiveled steadily and rocked up a tempest as it readied itself for another strike. Enlightened person Qing Niao smiled coldly, “You dare come make a scene on Jilong mountain with this chunk of rock?” As he said this, he paused. Suddenly, he gave a sharp cry, “Stars turn, life and death cycles, endlessly repeating themselves!”
Amidst his scream, thousands of giant magic talismans suddenly rose from Jilong mountain temple. Like a school of fish that disregarded their own safety, they flailed and surged towards the devil tower. The six Southern Dipper starlight in the sky gave an ear-piercing shocking cry at the same time. Its stance changed suddenly and converged with the thousand talismans. They circled around the devil tower in a frenzy.
At the same time, dozens of silver lines also leaped from Jilong mountain. Like lightning, they howled as they charged towards Wen Leyang. Wen Leyang had no intention of using Bong Ning Jiao yet. He threw Old Monk Ji Fei onto his back. His body swayed and he fought with the dozens of flying swords.
Although these flying swords were quite powerful, they were far inferior to Jilong Sect’s heaven-shocking thunder magic and Southern Dipper Star Art. They were struck down by Wen Leyang’s Faulty Punch in no time.
Flying swords flew past him. Old Monk Ji Fei’s teeth started to chatter and he started to shake. After a while, he realized that Wen Leyang was able to go up against these cold weapons. He was secretly relieved and looked up at the battlefield in the sky.
The devil tower suspended in midair seemed to be in shock. Under the pincer attacks of the countless talisman scripts and Southern Dipper, it did not struggle, nor did it run away. It only shivered. Mottled cracks swiftly emanated on the rock tower’s body. By the looks of things, it would be crushed in no time.
Wen Leyang was anxious and annoyed. Not only was the rock tower his magic weapon, it was also Guo Huan’s body. This largest magic weapon under the skies was alive. Wen Leyang never had to worry about such a small scale battle like this before, as Guo Huan would have taken care of it. However, today… Guo Huan did not seem to be home.
Just when Wen Leyang wanted to summon the dragon-shaped bony Ning Jiao to help the rock tower, Old Monk Ji Fei seemed to have suddenly thought of something. He grabbed Wen Leyang by the shoulders and exerted force with his hands. He shouted with a strange voice, “Quick, return the rock tower to where it was! Quick quick quick! Or else, Guo Huan will die!”
Wen Leyang did not have the time to ask why. He hastily willed the rock tower to throw itself back into the depths of the big mountain…
There was Guo Huan’s split body inside the devil fetus rock tower. These few years, Guo Huan had also progressed smoothly in his cultivation. His primordial spirit improved in its stability and strength. He had finished cultivating the Art of ‘Fugue State’ not long ago. His primordial spirit could wander outside his body under a full moon. He could cultivate demonic primordial energy under the form of primordial spirit.
At first, Guo Huan was still worried. He was worried that Wen Leyang would hit someone with the rock tower while he was ‘not at home’. However, Wen Leyang showed no signs of action all these years; he slowly felt relieved.
Today, thunder rumbled on Nine Peaks Mountain in the Southern Sichuan province, fierce battles unfolded on Jiangsu’s Jilong mountain, but the moon was full and bright on Mount Hua; its silver glow was akin to snow. Guo Huan had happily leaped outside his body to cultivate his demonic primordial energy. He never would have expected that in the blink of an eye, his own rock tower would suddenly uproot and fly away…
Guo Huan even had the resolve to die, but he could not catch up to the great mountain which broke the void. He could not stay for more than two hours under his primordial spirit state. Now, he could only squat at the edge of the huge pit left behind by the rock tower and stared into the sky above him as he looked forward to the return of his body.
Near Jilong mountain, when the rock tower disappeared, the talisman scripts which covered the sky and the Southern Dipper starlight suddenly turned. They rained down towards Wen Leyang like a storm.
Wen Leyang could only felt the pressure mounting on him. He did not care about concealing his prowess anymore, and summoned his set of Ning Jiao magic weapons. He managed to hold his ground amidst the bony Dragon’s roars, but it was impossible for him to attack Jilong mountain once again.
Old Priest Ji Fei was not especially gifted in his method of practice, but he was very knowledgeable. Staying on Wen Leyang’s back, he briefly explained the matter regarding the rock tower and Guo Huan to him. Although he was not completely correct, his guesses were on point. In the end, when he saw that countless giant forces tore around him, he squalled as if his buttocks were on fire, “After the rock tower returns, Guo Huan can return to his body in a second. Summon him here after that…” As he said this, he retracted his neck and dodged a magic talisman that shot past him.
Wen Leyang was worried that Guo Huan was having more complications. He gritted his teeth and endured it for ten more minutes, only then did he summon the rock tower.
This time, when the rock tower appeared at the edge of the sky, a rigid yell was heard, “Demon! Motherf*cking Body Breaking Spell!” Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake suddenly appeared and crashed towards Wen Leyang with a fierce mannerism.
Wen Leyang was only relieved now. He quickly hopped and skipped to dodge Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake. He laughed and shouted towards Guo Huan, “A misunderstanding. It’s definitely a misunderstanding!”
Enlightened Person Qing Niao saw that the devil tower had returned, and grunted with spite. A loud and clear Taoist chant rang throughout the skies. The six stars of the Southern Dipper led the thousands of magic talismans and pounced towards the giant tower again.
This time, Guo Huan was in charge of the rock tower. It acted completely different than it did before. It roared in the air, shot to the left and right, unable to be stopped. Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake flanked it as it fought with Eyang Sect’s Southern Dipper Star Art; the results were uncertain.
The pressure around Wen Leyang went away in an instant. He put old priest Ji Fei down. He wanted to instruct him a little when the old priest ran away. He disappeared in the blink of an eye. He only left one sentence, “Just kill the enemies to your heart’s content; I’ll not be in your way…”
The dragon-shaped bony Ning Jiao tucked and flipped as it butchered the remaining flying swords into countless fragments in the blink of an eye. Then, it buzzed sonorously. It slithered as it shot towards the sky.
The devil tower which regained its soul, with the help of Bony Ning Jiao and Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake, had the upper hand in the entanglement with the Southern Dipper Star Art. Just when the six starlights were dimming, suddenly, three golden beams of light shot out from the top of Jilong mountain. They hit Yin’s Error, Yang’s Mistake and the devil fetus rock tower at the same time!
Guo Huan howled thunderously. The rock tower as huge as a hill crashed to the side in a lopsided manner. It only managed to steady itself after falling for hundreds of meters whereas Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake hid themselves in the air amidst soft wails.
It was only during this moment when three blunt ‘twangs’ of a bowstring came from the faraway mountain peak. On the body of the rock tower, a large, savage-looking hole which looked like a tunnel appeared suddenly.
Guo Huan squalled in frustration, “Wen Leyang, go up the mountain and kill that arrow-shooting small fry!” After he finished, he summoned Yin’s Error Yang’s Mistake again and busied himself with the entanglement with the Star Art and talisman scripts. However, his mannerism was much milder compared to before. Guo Huan had no choice but to focus on two things at once. He had to fight with the enemy’s magic spell as he guarded against the sneak attacks of the divine arrows from the mountaintop.
Guo Huan did not need to instruct anyone when the golden great light shot towards the sky. Wen Leyang had already ran like the wind into Jilong mountain from the nameless hill.
Jilong mountain had activated their mountain-sealing Prohibitions long ago. The moment Wen Leyang entered, the dark clouds tumbled in the sky. Streaks of shocking lightning sprawled across the sky and shot towards him from all directions. However, these Taoist thunder magic was like the dozens of flying swords that attacked Wen Leyang just now. It was not at the level of the annihilation killing formation or Southern Dipper Star Ar. It was still alright if it was used to stop the average cultivator, but it was useless to block Wen Leyang.
Wen Leyang did not even have to dodge. He only relied on his Ning Jiao armor which covered his whole body which steadily negated the energy of the heavenly thunder. His body, on the other hand, did not stop. He sprinted like the wind towards the Jilong Sect headquarters on the mountaintop.
Shortly after, Taoist priest Qing Niao’s voice sounded anxious. He passed out orders ceaselessly. Other than the heavenly thunder attacks which filled the entire mountain, another large group of Jilong disciples brandished their flying swords as they tried to stop Wen Leyang’s momentum of ascending the mountain.
Compared to when the Five Blessings gathered on Nine Peaks Mountain, the improvements in these Jilong disciples were not obvious. Their sword formation could not even slow Wen Leyang down for half a pace.
The more Wen Leyang thought about it, the stranger it seemed. Outside Jilong mountain, the magic spell was shocking. It was even more powerful than peerless demon immortals, but inside Jilong mountain, it was still the same. Over these magic spells and Prohibitions, even old demon rabbit Bu Le would not trouble himself too much for these, let alone him.
Even when he reached the top of Jilong mountain, he was not met with any decent resistance. The elite who fired three consecutive shots just now seemed to have exhausted himself, as he did not even show up.
The sight after he reached the mountaintop surprised Wen Leyang even more. There was no blazing Magic altar on the mountaintop, nor were there countless Taoist priests sitting on the ground as they chanted the mantra to activate the magic spell. There was only the enlightened person, Qing Niao, who had lost both his arms and dozens of frightened little Taoist priests.
Qing Niao’s mannerism was like a mad devil; his expression was extremely shrilling. He squalled irritably as he led the group of Jilong disciples around him and pounced towards Wen Leyang like a swarm of bees. Wen Leyang lifted his spirits and flitted among the Taoist priests like a phantom. He did not even have to use his weapon Snake Knife. None of the Taoist priests present could withstand a single punch from him. In the span of a few breaths, the Jilong disciples had their bones broken and tendons torn; all they could do was lie on the ground and wail.
Victory seemed to have come too easily. It made Wen Leyang feel uneasy. He took a deep breath and suppressed all the killing intent that filled his heart. He quickly went into the Taoist temple in the center of the mountaintop. At the same time, his telegnosis ability emanated all around him like water. He sensed everything around him in detail.
Jilong Sect’s headquarters’ mannerism was extensive. Temple after great temple still enshrouded in the fragrance of incense stood erect. Clay statues of unnamed gods bore the air of learned erudite persons or looked extraordinary. They stood silently among the heavy shadows and gave off an icy coldness. Wen Leyang slowed his pace. He went through the big hall in silence. After a long while, he suddenly stopped. Then, he clearly rejoiced over his good luck. He flashed and went into an insignificant-looking side hall.
Little supreme leader, Liu Zheng’s face looked like hell’s banknote and his spirits were drained. There were some dried bloodstains on his chest. His eyes were shut tight as he leaned on the wall at the corner.
When Wen Leyang moved the rock tower to attack the mountain, he had forgotten that Liu Zheng had gone lost in Jilong mountain…
Liu Zheng heard the noise and managed to open his eyes. When he saw clearly that the person who came was Wen Leyang, he first showed a puzzled expression, then he laughed strenuously, ‘Wasn’t it… ten years?”
Wen Leyang was not in the mood to discuss whether it was ten years or four years with him. He stooped down and helped him up, “How’re your wounds?”
Liu Zheng shook his head with some effort and smiled, “I won’t die…” He had not finished when he bared his teeth and took a cold breath, “But it’s very painful!”
Wen Leyang smiled as well, “Give me a second, there’re still some powerful enemies hiding on the mountain. I’ll leave with you once I’m done killing them.”
However, Liu Zheng held onto him and did not let go. He shook his head forcefully, “You’re wrong. It’s not powerful enemies!” Then, he gave Wen Leyang no chance to explain as he put his full weight on Wen Leyang’s body. He pointed at the courtyard of Jilong Sect’s headquarters, “There, let’s go together!”