Chapter 467

Chapter 467: Dai Character Stele

Li Hui summoned the Boundless Cliff Thunder Peak Talisman and advanced to eliminate the Inkui Demon Claw Fish. Each time he sensed the aura of the Ghost Emperor, the opponent immediately used a treasure to escape, leaving Li Hui grasping at emptiness.

"Wait a minute, something feels off…"

"Hahaha, your reactions aren’t slow, but it’s too late. This emperor is using your hand to clear the Inkui Demon Claw Fish to lure that monster out. Now, you will lead the way and experience the terrifying beings arising from ancient times!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a purple light burst forth from the lake ahead.

Strangely, Li Hui felt that he had walked quite far after slaying the schools of fish, but no matter how much distance he covered, every time he glanced back, it seemed as if he was moving further away.

The lake surged, awash with vibrant colors.

From the lake’s depths, a strange fish emerged, its eyes bulging, equipped with a pair of White Wings. Each flap of its wings sent a multitude of glistening water droplets flying; these droplets struck with such force that they exploded upon impact, instantly destroying fifteen layers of substitutes, forcing Li Hui to erect Crystal Shields to bolster the protective barrier of his treasure cabinet.

“Speed up!”

Li Hui unleashed the Boundless Cliff Thunder Peak Talisman, applying his fingers to the silver snake bracelet, and blinding circles of thunder amassed around the winged monster, while the ground rumbled with the raging thunderous evil spirit.

In just thirty moments, four black patterns faded from the back of his silver snake bracelet. It is known that accumulating talisman power is no easy feat, especially when the might of the four fierce formations from the Mysterious Pearl was combined to amplify its power.

A glimmer flashed in Li Hui’s eyes, and he felt waves of awe within: “Unbelievable! What is the origin of this fish? Such an offensive attack inflicted minimal damage. While I can lock onto Zhao Yuxi, I find myself encountering an odd emptiness each time I approach. In that case, I’ll let him dance around this monster! I’ll dive to the bottom of the lake to take a look.”

"Power of the talismans amplified, speed increased by a hundred times, increase, increase, increase!"

Suddenly, countless dotted lines appeared on Li Hui’s body and face, intertwining in intricate patterns. The Dao Principles flourished, and his speed surged to one hundred times faster.

The monster’s eyes shifted, seemingly capable of locking onto him at this high speed. Its form collapsed inward, shrinking from ten zhang to five zhang, becoming even more agile as it tilted sideways to intercept him.

“Is it this quick?” Li Hui’s heart raced as he hastily gestured, shouting, “Increase, increase, increase…”

He utilized the silver snake bracelet to amplify the Seize the Day Talisman until he quickened the flow of time to one hundred fifty-seven times its normal rate, finally outpacing the monster and slipping through its interception to dive into the lake.

The strange fish let out a cry like a mandarin duck, attempting to submerge and pursue him. However, the thunderous aura erupted on the lake’s surface, blocking its path. Each attempt at charging through resulted in another explosion.

Li Hui left the Boundless Cliff Thunder Peak Talisman on the lake’s surface and decisively poured all the talisman power stored in the silver snake bracelet into it, determining to seal it, even at the cost of not being able to reclaim this talisman, for this fish was genuinely formidable.

As he delved deeper, his form settled at the bottom of the lake. Using Bai Ze’s divine eye to observe the surroundings, he suddenly realized.

“Now I see. This place is suppressed by the national fortune; it’s a forbidden ground in Great Xia. Coincidentally, the summer emperor’s misfortune has caused a drastic shift in the national fortune. Zhao Yuxi’s blood sacrifice aims to disrupt the energy here, and he wants to use it against this fish. By rescuing people and entering Zhuang Mountain, I inadvertently interfered with his plans. However, it seems this guy has a strong reason for entering this place.”

Upon closer inspection, he discovered various bizarre plants growing at the lake’s bottom, exuding a cold and bloody aura, where the shadowy realm and the demonic soil coexisted in a Yin-Yang cycle.

In the center of the lake’s bottom stood a mottled stone stele, imprinted with strange patterns. Upon seeing it, Li Hui exclaimed, “I’ve seen this pattern before! It can’t be wrong; it’s identical to the purple-golden lines on the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion’s profound qi ceramic bottle. Bai Ze must recognize these ancient characters. Let’s see what the stele says.”

Suddenly, Li Hui’s left eye turned red, his right eye became golden, his hair turned white, and two spiraled dragon horns sprouted from his forehead. A multitude of characters emerged around his eye sockets, each representing an ancient script.

“代山? No, it’s 岱字!”

“This character alone encompasses a great deal of meaning. The character for ‘mountain’ carries a sense of representing heaven. There is someone on the mountain, and beside the person is a ‘弋’ (yì), which is similar to the character for ‘戈’ (gē) with one stroke missing, implying the practice of stopping conflict; it further indicates shooting arrows, indicating vigilance. Thus, it means the person on the mountain represents heaven, guarding it while simultaneously practicing vigilance, not easily striking unless ready for a decisive massacre. Finally, removing the ‘弋’ leaves us with a character for ‘immortal’.”

“Not for immortals, but to guard heaven?” Li Hui’s eyes sparkled with revelation as he murmured to himself, “What kind of place is this? Or rather, what kind of mountain is this?”

As light and shadow flitted through his mind, the stele’s patterns seemed to come alive, sometimes writhing outward and at other times collapsing inward. Bai Ze’s divine eye focused intently on the core, seeming to glimpse a great mountain approaching.

The mountain was moving—how bizarre.

When Li Hui returned to his senses, he found that the stone stele had shrunk to the size of a baby’s hand and had fallen into his palm.

“Boom…” Energy surged, causing the Heavenly Secrets to collapse into chaos as silver stars danced and light and shadow intertwined. Li Hui recited ancient verses: “How does the Dai Sect stand? The green hills of Qi and Lu seem unresolved. Nature’s beauty is enchanting; Yin and Yang divide the dusk from dawn. Layers of clouds rise in my heart; returning birds darken my gaze. I will certainly stand atop the highest peak and behold all the mountains small.”

“Could this be? The legendary peak of all mountains, Mount Tai?”

“Boom…” The murky qi sank, while the clear qi ascended. Li Hui felt himself transforming, his profound qi cultivation soaring upward.

“How is this possible? I have ascended to the eighth step, and still, I rise.”

If not now to harness profound energy, then when? His body crackled like fireworks, cleansing away layers of dirt, releasing a constant stream of clear and pure qi.

The sounds of the Dao resonated in his ears, and Li Hui experienced extraordinary sensations; half of his mind was lucidly integrating what he had learned, while the other half, somewhat muddled, began to grasp the Dao. It was so profound that it defied description.

He lost track of time; maybe it was mere moments, or perhaps hours, but the profound qi coursed through his entire body, while sounds of flowing water drifted from the treasure cabinet. His body seemed to gain tremendous potential, akin to receiving the miraculous energies of thousands of rare spirits, poised to move from the Bosa Stage to the mid-level.

“Is there truly such a stone stele? Why does the national fortune of Great Xia seal this object?” Li Hui pondered deeply, his mind simultaneously clarifying his acquired knowledge while being vaguely enlightened about the Dao.

“The heavenly path, earthly path, human path, profound path, worldly path! The Buddhist path, demonic path, ghost path, beast path, and also the side paths! All paths are before me, intended to help us break through the veils of ignorance.”

“Clinging to illusions leads to ignorance, while enlightenment leads to the Dao.”

“On the road of cultivation, there are layers of obstacles. Through hard work, one can break them through, with swordplay, through freedom, and through decisive actions!”

“My path is the path of talismans, measuring the heavens and earth, walking smoothly to success, transforming misfortune into fortune, and turning disaster into luck, where all dangers are infused into my talismans! I will make the talisman brush move, shocking the world, suppressing all ghostly beings and demons…”

“Wherever my talismans point, there the Dao reaches. I shall sever the illusory forms of my dantian and awaken the essence of Bosa.” With that, Li Hui pressed the stone stele close to his dantian.

Within the dantian lay a stream of celestial rainbow light, derived from his previous Condensing Essence to Bosa during tribulation, resembling mist, dragon, clouds, and trees, akin to a Bosa world with the power to nourish the soul. He must continuously achieve clarity and truth, parting through layers of fog to pursue his true essence.

For those in the All-Manifestation Realm, the Bosa realm serves as an accumulation phase, which is extremely vital!

The disciples of the Jin Tian Sect cultivated seals precisely to establish a solid foundation before entering the All-Manifestation Realm. Li Hui, however, was not cultivating seals; he only pursued talismans, and at this moment, he had the opportunity to engage in something exceedingly perilous.