Chapter 144: Chapter 124: Sacrificing the Divine Fire Circle, the Demon Ancestor Taints [Sheji]

Jiang Yi gently pressed his forehead. Although he hadn’t yet entered the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer or passed the Divine Barrier, his accumulation of Merit was already ninety-nine percent complete.

He could vaguely feel the stirrings of a "Heart Tide."

He had just sat down when the spot between his eyebrows began to throb violently, as if threatened by the cold glint of a sword’s edge. The Brain God residing in his Primordial Gate also grew restless, unable to find peace.

’Something’s wrong! Something is very wrong! Could the Huang and Wang Families in Hanyang Prefecture be hiding a "danger" that threatens Senior Brother Han Li and even me?’

According to Han Li’s analysis, the Huang and Wang Families were both Fifth-Grade Qi Cultivation Clans. Their clan elders were, at most, at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer. It would be highly unlikely for a Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer cultivator to emerge from their ranks.

Even if one did exist, facing an Inner Sect Dharma Lineage would be as futile as a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

’This means the clan rebellion isn’t simple. There’s something strange about it.’

Jiang Yi’s eyelids drooped as he held the softly snoring True Master Xuanmiao.

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, a sheet of golden paper had appeared.

When in doubt, beg the Celestial Book!

’As long as it’s a query about myself that doesn’t involve the karma of others, the Celestial Book always responds extremely quickly.’

Jiang Yi mulled it over for a moment, carefully formulating his question.

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me if I will face mortal danger by appearing in Hanyang Prefecture?]

The golden paper trembled slightly, letting out a few soft hums.

After just two or three breaths, the ripples gradually subsided.

[No.]

’Since any danger to me has been ruled out, could the "danger" befall Senior Brother Han Li?’

Jiang Yi feigned deep meditation, secretly untangling the threads of the situation.

’But if he really met with disaster, what would that have to do with me? It makes no sense that I would have a Heart Tide for no reason.’

’Could it be Hanyang Prefecture? That’s it! I’m near Hanyang Prefecture. If I’m not the one facing danger, then it must be that Hanyang Prefecture itself is about to face a great danger. That’s why my Heart Spirit is so uneasy!’

The realization struck Jiang Yi like a bolt of lightning, his thoughts clearing instantly. He immediately posed another question.

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me if Hanyang Prefecture will face a great and terrible calamity in the coming days?]

He still only asked for a direct answer to get the result as quickly as possible.

[Yes.]

’Just as I thought. The danger lies with Hanyang Prefecture, not with Senior Brother Han Li or me.’

Jiang Yi hesitated. He was considering whether to keep probing. Hanyang Prefecture and its surroundings had a population of no less than a million mortals; using the Celestial Book to investigate would take an unknown amount of time to deduce.

If he wanted to know immediately and avoid any delays, he would surely have to pay a price.

’I’ll ask first and worry about it later.’

Jiang Yi repeatedly mulled over his questions, refining them in his mind.

Then, he posed a series of questions to the Celestial Book!

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me the most dangerous place in Hanyang Prefecture?]

[Deduction Time: One hour.]

[Deduction Result: Lengsong Hall.]

...

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me the most dangerous place outside Hanyang Prefecture?]

[Deduction Time: Eight hours.]

[Deduction Result: Goose Mountain.]

...

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me if Han Li, Disciple of the Qianji Sect’s Guanlan Peak, is in mortal danger?]

[Deduction Time: Six hours.]

[Deduction Result: No.]

...

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me if I might encounter an Opportunity by being drawn into the Hanyang Prefecture affair?]

[Deduction Result: Yes.]

...

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me a way to reduce the deduction time that is within my means?]

[Deduction Result: Sacrifice a Spiritual Object. Yin and Yang are supreme, the Five Elements are secondary, the Five Qi are middling, and miscellaneous qi is unacceptable.]

...

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me who is the mastermind behind the suspected great calamity in Hanyang Prefecture?]

[Additional Condition: If the karmic entanglement is too severe, please omit any existences at the Foundation Establishment True Master Level or above, and provide a relatively suitable answer.]

[Deduction Time: Fifteen days.]

’Senior Brother Han still hasn’t returned.’

After repeatedly begging the Celestial Book, time passed without him noticing, and it was soon early the next morning.

Jiang Yi looked outside the City God Temple. The sky was faintly lit, and the sounds of chirping insects and birds filled the peaceful surroundings.

He waited silently until the glow of the golden paper flowed once more, then he posed his final question.

[I beg the Celestial Book, show me which of the Magical Artifacts on my person is most suitable as a sacrifice?]

[Deduction Result: The Divine Fire Circle. It can reduce the time by fourteen days and eighteen hours.]

’The Celestial Book really knows how to pick!’

Jiang Yi grumbled to himself:

’I only have two valuable Magical Artifacts on hand, and both belong to the Five Elements with a high grade.

’This Divine Fire Circle was originally Elder Sui’s most prized treasure...’

Jiang Yi pondered for a moment but still decided to part with it. If the Celestial Book had chosen the Bright Flame Mirror, he probably would have given up immediately and fled back to the Qianji Sect.

After all, that item could withstand a killing blow from a Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer cultivator; it was a genuine life-saving trump card.

The Divine Fire Circle, on the other hand, despite its considerable power, couldn’t change the outcome if he encountered a Qi Cultivation High Cultivator he couldn’t defeat.

’A Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer cultivator who has condensed Innate Qi can slaughter Seventh or Eighth Layer cultivators as easily as eating or drinking.’

Jiang Yi shook his head and reluctantly took out the Divine Fire Circle, which he had only just received. It was a shame, as his Grandpa Yang Xun had spent so much effort refining it overnight.

Now, he was giving it away to the Celestial Book for free.

This was the first time he had sacrificed a Spiritual Object to empower the Celestial Book.

The process wasn’t complicated. He didn’t even need to chant a True Words Spell. He just grasped the Divine Fire Circle, activated the Celestial Book, and with a flash of thought, a short line of tadpole-like script clearly leaped from the paper.

[I, the supplicant Jiang Yi, offer a spiritual sacrifice and beg the Celestial Book to show me the complete karmic chain.]

CRACK!

It sounded like the faint, crisp shatter of glazed glass hitting the floor.

The Divine Fire Circle instantly disintegrated, transforming into wisps of scorching red light that first surged into Jiang Yi’s body before converging into the golden paper.

[Deduction Time: Six hours]

Seeing the Celestial Book’s display, Jiang Yi knew the sacrifice had worked. The great weight on his heart finally lightened a little.

With nothing else to do, he turned his thoughts to careful speculation:

’Judging from all the information the Celestial Book has given me, my life isn’t in danger, and Senior Brother Han won’t die from some sudden calamity.

’This shows that this isn’t a plot targeting Senior Brother Han Li and me. We’ve just stumbled into it by mistake.’

Doubt flooded Jiang Yi’s mind. Who would go to such great lengths to plot against a small place like Hanyang Prefecture?

What could they be after?

The two Fifth-Grade Clans?

Or the lives of a million mortals?

To dare to have such an idea, one would have to be at least at the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer and have the backing of a Dharma Lineage.

Otherwise, causing the deaths of a million mortals and disrupting the Dharma Lineage’s great examination would create a blood feud that would not end until death!

’Thinking about it more deeply, I really only have two choices.’

Jiang Yi’s Brain God grew increasingly active. With each appeal to the Celestial Book, the unsettling feeling from his "Heart Tide" had vanished without a trace.

’The safe option would be to flee back to the sect. But given the current state of the Qianji Sect, with Xu Yan and Zhou Fu unavailable, Sui Liushu dead, and only Elder Xu of the Skill Transmission Institute, Elder Lin of the Qi Gong Institute, and a few Second Generation Disciples left, they might still end up sending me to handle it.’

He continued to think:

’Assuming there’s an Opportunity to be seized, investing one Magical Artifact to understand the whole situation isn’t really a risky, losing proposition.

’It won’t be too late to make a decision after the results are in.’

His thoughts were a tangled, chaotic mess.

While Jiang Yi was lost in thought, True Master Xuanmiao stretched out a front paw and tugged at his collar, its round eyes filled with worry.

"Xiao Jiang, are you racking your brain for a way to avoid a calamity?"

’So the Cat Master thinks I’m worried about the tribulation of breaking through the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer Divine Barrier.’

’No wonder it’s been so well-behaved, not rolling all over the floor demanding Snacks for a whole day.’

Jiang Yi smiled faintly.

"That’s not what I’m worried about. I saw Senior Brother Han Li summon a Land God and call a City God with just Talismanic Incense, and I couldn’t help but get curious. I got lost in thought."

True Master Xuanmiao tilted its plump head, studying Jiang Yi carefully as if to confirm whether he was telling the truth.

After a few breaths, its spirits lifted and it said:

"Xiao Jiang, why don’t you ask this all-knowing True Master!"

Jiang Yi played along:

"This Disciple begs the Cat Master to reveal the mystery to me."

Seeing that Jiang Yi was no longer silent and withdrawn, True Master Xuanmiao immediately perked up:

"Yesterday, when I heard that kid surnamed Han rambling on, this True Master almost couldn’t hold back!"

’The Cat Master can’t stand it when others act like seasoned experts in its presence.’

Jiang Yi laughed inwardly and immediately fed it a line:

"Of course. How could Senior Brother Han’s knowledge possibly compare to the Cat Master’s profound wisdom?"

True Master Xuanmiao felt pleased all over and couldn’t help but let out a "meow." It hadn’t spoken for a full day, afraid of disturbing Xiao Jiang, and had been forced to just sleep. It was about to burst from holding it all in.

"How could *he* possibly know that among the techniques of the [Five Elements], the ’Earth Element’ is exceptionally rare? That’s thanks to a certain Elder Ancestor of the Demon Dao.

"That person attained a Golden Position twice, first achieving [She] and then [Ji]. He single-handedly elevated and propped up the orthodox Demon Dao. His Merit was immeasurable!"

Jiang Yi had been up all night begging the Celestial Book and was starting to feel a bit drowsy, but the Cat Master’s words jolted him wide awake.

’Attained a Golden Position twice?’

’Did I hear that right?’

’In the entire Yanfu Vast Land, across the Five Domains Under Heaven, such a peerless, brilliantly talented figure actually existed?’

"Wu Earth is of Yang, embracing the one and guarding the center. It resides in the middle, still when closed and active when open, commanding the destiny of all things, thus it becomes [She];

"Ji Earth is of Yin, which can be extended to mean ’to record’ or ’to rise.’ It harmonizes heaven and earth, gathering life and fostering growth, capable of both storing and hiding, thus it becomes [Ji]!

"That Demon Ancestor, born in ancient times, held both [Sheji]. He forcefully struck down the Immortal Dao’s most prominent figure at the time, the [Thunder Core], and nearly seized all the fortune of the four continents of the Yanfu Five Domains. It was truly the Demon Dao’s most glorious era."

Jiang Yi never would have imagined that the Demon Dao, currently so suppressed by the Immortal Dao that it could barely hold its head up, had once had such a brilliant and illustrious golden age.

"But for some unknown reason, the [Sheji] positions later became vacant, and the whereabouts of that Elder Ancestor became unknown.

"The Immortal Dao, Buddhist Dao, and Demon Dao worked together to ensure it would never again appear in the world. This is the fundamental reason why it is so difficult for All Cultivators under heaven to come into contact with Earth Element legacies.

"Long, long ago, all the First and Second Grade Earth Element Techniques in the world capable of condensing Innate Qi were burned and destroyed.

"Even my former master had to rely on rare and precious spiritual objects to build his foundation when he cultivated ’Wu Earth’ and ’Ji Earth’."

Jiang Yi clicked his tongue in amazement. Attaining a Golden Position was already as difficult as ascending to heaven, yet someone had managed to do it twice in a row. The Daoist Lineages were truly filled with outstanding talents and geniuses as numerous as the clouds.

’Looking at it this way, Emperor Ji, who has been manifest in the world for five thousand years and is hailed as truly invincible, isn’t so unprecedented after all.’

Time flew by as True Master Xuanmiao chattered endlessly.

By mid-afternoon, the sun was high in the sky.

The golden paper appeared again, covered in densely packed, tadpole-like script—

[Deduction Result: The Ancient Demon Cultivator Dharma Lineage, Youquan Sect... the Lujiang Huang Clan and Wang Clan... the Zhao You Sect... a Hidden Daoist Lineage... Fengdu...]