Chapter 417

Chapter 417: The Great Xia Cave Heaven

Fortunately, Li Hui had added a layer of safety for himself. Feeling uncertain previously, he called for his avatar to come and assist him; otherwise, today’s situation would have been dangerous. Even if his life was secure, being outwitted by Feng Tianliang near the end would still be unpleasant.

“Buddhist cultivation? External Transformation, mid-stage Bosa, how is this possible? How much have I actually miscalculated?” The Divination Master was horrified. He had always been confident in his innate techniques, but after encountering this young man, he had repeatedly miscalculated.

“Hehe, you have fallen into demonic ways while I follow the path of Buddhism; we are evenly matched. Come, let’s have a good contest.” The handsome monk patted his bald head, and shadows of the Bosa tree appeared in his pupils, symbolic of the Bodhi tree, the tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment.

“Your avatar turned out to be far stronger than your main self?” Feng Tianliang secretly calculated and realized that today did not bode well for him. He hurriedly employed every tactic he had, using the Golden Cicada Shelling technique.

“Smack!” A huge hand, the size of three acres, descended from above, turning a shadow into meat paste.

This was the true form of the Divination Master, the Six-Armed Arhat, who withdrew his hand and scoffed, “What is this? Dare to challenge the Buddha?”

However, moments later, he sighed, “Alas! I shouldn’t harm even the smallest ants while cleaning, and I should cherish a moth attracted to the lamp. I struck too quickly without holding back! At least he is a practitioner. Whether sent to the mines to work or to a fortune-telling stall, this is all money!”

Li Hui facepalmed as the Six-Armed Arhat pressed down heavily and successfully suppressed the Beast-Faced Bronze Cauldron, preventing the Evil God from achieving his goals.

“Endless Life Buddha!” The monk’s eyes filled with joy, forgetting to chant for the Buddha, and dashed over to collect the treasures spilled from the severed coffin. He then unleashed thousands of golden lights, shouting, “You protectors, till the earth for three feet, take anything useful! As the saying goes, ‘when the sun is high, sweat drips into the soil of the rice,’ sages teach us to cherish every grain of food; even a tile here is worth more than rice, so we must double our care.”

“Bald donkey, enough already!” Li Hui felt a headache coming on. What on earth did he slice out?

“My true self! Poor monk, I was just about to ask for your support; obviously, our connection is strong, so you should assist me generously.” The handsome monk expressed a bitter smile, sharing his experiences during this time with his true self.

Li Hui felt dizzy and shouted angrily, “Are you crazy? Why gather so many useless spirits? I shouldn’t have named you that!”

“No choice; what can I do? I have a compassionate Buddhist heart.”

“Stop with the nonsense; I understand your intentions now.”

Li Hui turned to the Beast-Faced Bronze Cauldron and said, “Well, sharpening the knife doesn’t delay chopping wood; you are correct! If it were me, I would do the same. However, constructing a miniature Buddhist nation is not easy. You truly think of a way, using the Great Earthly Xuan Dragon of Reverse Five Elements talisman to move the remaining cave heaven upstream of the Li River. But integrating it with the Primitive Shell Symbol is not an ordinary challenge; it requires a massive amount of treasures, and only in the Great Xia Royal City can this be achieved.”

“Then hurry; our poor Junior Sister Qianyun is stuck in a mess, and there is that whole family outside Nanxun City…”

“Stop! Enough with the chatter, or I’ll cut you down,” Li Hui exclaimed, turning back only to be shocked as the ruins of the Green Copper Hall vanished from sight; those protective spirits really tilled the land and took everything away.

Over a hundred new graves now stood erect, and the guide shamelessly comforted the souls, “In life, many died fighting over wealth; dear friends, do not hold onto past grievances! What should scatter will scatter, what should leave will leave; I have kept your belongings safe, come back for the next life.”

“Let’s go!” Li Hui couldn’t stand it anymore, thinking, “Is it reliable to let this guy return? Or should I personally go back and leave him in the Great Xia?”

Five days later, under the high hanging dark moon, the road leading to the Great Xia Royal City bustled with traffic. No matter how chaotic other places were, the official road to the royal city remained safe and sound.

Military forces surged everywhere, clearing the area.

Many places were under construction for black tall towers, which absorbed dark energy for storage. Every two months, disciples from the Ten Thousand Gu Sect would retrieve the dark energy jars from the tower tops, taking them back to their sect to cultivate the Yin Gu.

It was rumored that for every 999 bug worms put into dark energy to fight, one king Gu could emerge. And for every 99,999 Xuan Yin king Gu that undergo guaranteed kill, one extreme yin Gu could be obtained. Finally, nine extreme yin Gu fighting and devouring each other could create a Yang Gu.

Thus, the Ten Thousand Gu Sect cooperated with the authorities, going to great lengths to promote this matter. In fact, there was a group of practitioners in the Great Xia who walked in darkness, and their demand for dark energy was even greater. The appearance of the dark moon not only caused chaos across the land but also made some practitioners grow stronger.

The Royal City, being the most prosperous and wealthy place on the Wutu Continent, was a melting pot of humans and snakes. Li Hui originally planned to return in half a year, but the troublesome bald donkey kept finding work for him. Fortunately, he had just acquired a windfall, feeling confident in his ability.

The cow cart creaked as it moved forward, passing through the Yongqing Gate into Heavenly Street.

This area was the outer city of the Royal City, crowded with refugees pouring in from everywhere.

With a “thud,” firewood fell from the cow cart, and the driver, somewhat impatient, said, “I tied the firewood tightly! Why did it fall now?”

The driver did not notice that the large pearl rolled away on the green brick road.

This pearl was the Mysterious Pearl, wandering through the outer city like a traveler. When evening fell, it merged into the inner city, as a monk and a Taoist emerged from an alleyway, surrounded by a green light.

The two resembled each other as if carved from the same mold. However, as they stepped out of the shadows, the monk became chubby and genial, holding prayer beads, dressed in a yellow robe.

The Taoist was exceptionally handsome and grand, his hair tied up with a jade hairpin, dressed in a Tai Chi robe, with divine light hidden in his eyes.

The outer city housed common people, while the inner city was where practitioners came and went. Unlike the outer city’s chaotic disorder, the inner city, though filled with practitioners, was orderly.

Before long, the monk and the Taoist entered the Heavenly Treasure Hall.

This was a government office set up by the royal family specifically to handle practitioners’ entry and exit from cave heavens.

The inner city had three cave heavens: Huangting Mountain, Qingyun Cave, and Gulang Sea. It was said that they used to be among the middle-tier cave heavens, but after the summer emperor refined cave heaven treasures, the three have since been downgraded by half a tier, now only slightly better than the small heavenly caves.

“Poor Taoist from Cangsong Temple, Li Xuntian,” Li Hui presented his credentials. As for where the credentials came from, since many practitioners from the Green Copper Hall had died, obtaining an identity wouldn’t be difficult, right?

“Poor monk from the Fanan Temple, Jingyuan.” The monk handed over his certificate.

“Oh? Cangsong Temple, Fanan Temple—I’ve heard of them.” The official nodded, “It seems that both of you understand the rules. This is your first time entering a cave heaven, so you need to register. I wonder what your needs are? Transactions and auctions can take place at Huangting Mountain; for long stays or meditation, you can go to Qingyun Cave; for alchemy or artifact crafting, Gulang Sea is the place.”

“I wish to stay long-term and need a quiet place for meditation in Qingyun Cave,” Li Hui said with a slight smile, as he really did need to cultivate for a while to solidify his foundation.

“Poor monk has a busy life! I need to gather materials to craft Buddhist artifacts, so it will be Huangting Mountain for me!” the monk said while fiddling with his prayer beads, clearly relaxed.

Thus, Li Hui and his avatar parted ways, working together in secrecy to create a splendid universe in the shortest time possible.