Chapter 147: Chapter 141 - The Decree of the Heavenly Emperor, Jade Emperor’s Supreme Token【Looking for Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets】_1
Li Changgeng smiled and said, "I have a mirror here that can show the situation at the Flowing Sand River. Why don’t we take a look at how Kui Mulang is stirring up trouble?"
Then, without waiting for Wen Zhong and Lei Zhenzi to agree, he took out the mirror and threw it, transforming it into a standing mirror.
The mirror displayed the scene at the Flowing Sand River: Kui Mulang, transformed into an extraordinary demon, was swallowing clouds and spouting fog, cleaving waves and parting waters.
In the sky among the clouds, there were Celestial Gods from the Thunder Department, as well as patrolling Roaming Gods and immortal attendants.
They all feared Kui Mulang’s strength and dared not approach him.
Lei Zhenzi said, "It’s Kui Mulang indeed. He transformed into the Yellow Robe Fiend, declared himself king over a mountain in the mortal world, and is acting recklessly. Should we capture him to set an example?"
Wen Zhong said, "Let’s see what Sir Li has to say."
Li Changgeng secretly cursed Wen Zhong as an old fox.
On the surface, however, he smiled and said, "I’ve said before, there’s no need. Everyone has their own fate, and Kui Mulang’s fate includes this calamity of descending to the mortal world as a demon."
Lei Zhenzi fell silent.
Wen Zhong then asked, "Sir Li, won’t Kui Mulang’s actions have a negative influence?"
Li Changgeng replied, "Actually, the area within a hundred-mile radius of the Flowing Sand River is desolate and rarely visited by anyone, so the impact isn’t significant."
He laughed and said, "This is a grudge between Kui Mulang and the Great General for Folding the Curtain. Even as their superior, it wouldn’t be right for us to intervene."
Seeing Lei Zhenzi hesitate to speak, he casually said, "Focus on your own tasks and don’t ask too many questions."
Then he turned to Wen Zhong with a smile and asked, "Heavenly Master, do you think Kui Mulang can force the Great General for Folding the Curtain to show himself?"
Wen Zhong replied, "I don’t have much understanding of the Great General for Folding the Curtain, and I haven’t had much contact with Kui Mulang either. However, I’ve heard that he is a formidable cultivator, already a Daluo Golden Immortal."
Li Changgeng said, "He’s not there yet, but even a peak Greater Primordial Golden Immortal wouldn’t be his match."
Wen Zhong said, "The Great General for Folding the Curtain is the Jade Emperor’s personal guard, but I’ve heard his strength is average. He’s likely not a match for Kui Mulang, who is battle-hardened."
Li Changgeng asked, "Master Wen, tell me, can he really destroy the Flowing Sand River and force out the Great General for Folding the Curtain?"
Wen Zhong said, "He cannot."
Li Changgeng was startled.
He said in surprise, "Heavenly Master, you just said you didn’t understand them, and you even praised Kui Mulang. Why do you now say he cannot?"
Wen Zhong replied with a faint smile, "If it were possible, Sir Li, you wouldn’t be here right now."
Li Changgeng paused, then chuckled. Truly an old fox.
He genuinely believed that Kui Mulang couldn’t force out Sha Chen, nor could he destroy the Flowing Sand River, but he imagined Kui Mulang might cause some trouble for Sha Chen. This very mischief was his doing; he had deliberately arranged it through the Matchmaker to make Kui Mulang and Sha Chen sworn enemies. He initially believed that Sha Chen’s cave dwelling was nothing remarkable and that Kui Mulang could surely break through, leaving Sha Chen with no way out. But unexpectedly, the Flowing Sand River was so easy to defend and hard to attack; perhaps even Kui Mulang was at a loss. However, causing trouble for Sha Chen wasn’t a problem. With a peak Greater Primordial Golden Immortal assaulting the formation every day, Sha Chen probably couldn’t cultivate in peace and would live in constant unease, right? Moreover, maintaining such a powerful formation required a vast amount of resources. How much could Sha Chen afford, and for how long? An undisturbed formation doesn’t consume much when kept active, but under attack, its resources deplete at a visibly rapid rate. As Kui Mulang battered the formation, it surely wouldn’t last long. Sha Chen must be in constant distress.
「Inside the Flowing Sand River.」
At that moment, Sha Chen was leisurely practicing alchemy, not taking Kui Mulang seriously at all.
Indeed, his formation consumed resources, but what truly provided protection was the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji.
This Magical Tool consumed mental energy and Mana.
Sha Chen’s mental energy and Mana were always replenished, so there was no chance of his powers being depleted and his barrier being breached.
Unless Kui Mulang’s cultivation was much greater than his, and he battered it for a year or half a year; that might cause Sha Chen to panic. Even if the barrier couldn’t be broken through, it could keep him too busy to cultivate or focus on other matters.
But Kui Mulang’s cultivation level was the same as his; even given ten thousand years, he wouldn’t break the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji’s defense, unless he had a special Magical Tool. Clearly, Kui Mulang did not.
Kui Mulang, who had been attacking outside the Flowing Sand River for days and nights, grew tired and cursed bitterly.
In the end, he decided to leave.
"You coward, I won’t let you go! You have no idea! The Jade Emperor has brought your case before the Lingxiao Palace. The people who want to deal with you are more numerous than ox hairs!"
"One day you’ll find it’s better to die by my hand than by others’!"
Sha Chen glanced at Kui Mulang outside the Flowing Sand River and frowned.
This matter, even Kui Mulang, who had descended as a demon, knew about!? Could it be that everyone already knew? Was everyone in the world intent on demolishing his Flowing Sand River? Or was it that only Kui Mulang knew because he was one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions? Even as a demon, his actions were merely out of self-interest. He must still have connections to the Heavenly Court. Maybe his underlings kept him updated with news from the Heavenly Court while he rampaged in the mortal world.
After venting his bitterness, Kui Mulang departed.
「Half a day later.」
Sha Chen received a notification and was granted a reward: Earth Element Qi.
He immediately extracted it and began refining it on the spot, further strengthening his physical body.
「Half a year later.」
Sha Chen suddenly opened his eyes and furrowed his brows, looking up at the sky.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The sky thundered mightily, with ferocious winds howling.
Sha Chen felt currents of electricity flickering and creeping across his body.
Thunder was condensing in the sky; dark clouds gathered, and amidst them, an eye of lightning opened, unleashing thunderbolts that burst forth and plummeted down.
Sha Chen was wondering which demon the thunder was striking. He never expected it to fall directly upon his Flowing Sand River, heading straight for his cave dwelling.
BOOM.
The thunder struck the formation, causing it to wobble as if it were about to collapse.
Sha Chen’s face changed dramatically. "Is a Celestial God from the Thunder Department striking at me? Could that be the Nine Heaven Divine Thunder Formation, a divine punishment from heaven!?"
He ground his teeth and muttered, "Why would the Heavenly Court punish without instruction? Or could it be that this is not the Jade Emperor’s intent but the doing of Wen Zhong!?"
He thought for a moment, then shook his head, feeling it was unlikely. Wen Zhong, although loyal, was rather rigid; he probably wouldn’t punish without instruction. Then who could it be?
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The thunder continued to fall, and as if it had eyes, it homed in on Sha Chen’s location and struck down directly.
It was, however, blocked by the formation.
Sha Chen furrowed his brow, glancing toward the water spring in his cave dwelling, the core of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart formation. It seems the Nine Heaven Divine Thunder uses it to determine my position. Thankfully, the formation can withstand the thunder. However, as the thunder doesn’t cease, the formation needs to consume a massive amount of resources at all times.
Sha Chen frowned; the formation was the outer protection of his cave dwelling.
If the thunder shattered it, he’d be forced to reveal the existence of the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji, the ultimate defense of his cave dwelling. Though this defense was extremely powerful, claimed to be invincible under a Saint, Sha Chen dared not be sure it was truly that strong. Moreover, if the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji were exposed, it might attract too much unwanted attention, and that could spell trouble. Much of what he’d acquired, in fact, couldn’t bear scrutiny.
As Sha Chen pondered his difficulty, his eyes suddenly lit up. Let me test the power of the Nine Heaven Divine Thunder! If I can withstand it, perhaps it can become a part of my cultivation process. Perhaps he could also convert the power of thunder into cultivation power. If successful, he would gain another source of cultivation resources. Moreover, if the Thunder Department had enough patience, he would have a steady supply. However, the power of this thunder seems rather weak, not even as potent as the high-level Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart.
Sha Chen glanced at the water spring of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart, and immediately, sand and soil condensed to form a lightning-attraction platform.
He tossed his Fengshui Futon over and then sat down steadily on it.
With a thought, he relaxed some of the defenses in his cave dwelling, allowing the Nine Heaven Divine Thunder to enter and strike him directly.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Thunderbolts, arcs of lightning.
The Nine Heaven Divine Thunder in the sky seemed like lightning dragons descending upon Sha Chen, as if seeking to devour him.
Sha Chen activated his full physical resilience, fiercely resisting the Nine Heaven Divine Thunder’s heavenly punishment.
In the sky, the eight gods of the Thunder Department, led by Taoist Master Gou, were paying close attention to the punishment.
Initially unable to breach the formation, they were concerned. They were about to seek instructions from a higher-up on whether to increase the power of the thunderbolts.
Then, cracks appeared in the formation, allowing the heavenly punishment to enter and strike Sha Chen squarely.
They could sense that the punishment had struck Sha Chen, but they did not know the specifics of the situation.
However, they knew Sha Chen was not dead.
Taoist Master Gou laughed heartily and said, "This boy’s formation can’t withstand the heavenly punishment! We’ll bombard him for seven times seven, forty-nine days, then talk to him."
Taoist Master Bi chuckled, "I’m afraid he won’t endure forty-nine days before he starts begging for mercy."
The other Heavenly Masters also laughed. Taoist Master Gou added, "The point is to make it unbearable for him, so he comes out begging for mercy, and then we cannot spare him."
With that, they all burst into hearty laughter.
At this moment, Sha Chen was indeed unharmed.
In fact, not only was he unharmed, but his expression also turned strange. Such weak Nine Heaven Divine Thunder! The Power of Five Elements Transmutation can indeed convert it into cultivation power, but it provides less Divine Power than the high-level Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart.
Enduring the heavenly punishment, he looked up at the eight gods of the Thunder Department in the sky. He saw they were only using a lightning-attracting needle and a few formations.
This was the same setup they had used against Sun Wukong previously.
Had they used this against Sha Chen from the start, he might not have been able to endure it.
But with his body now strengthened to the Great Perfection Realm of the Greater Primordial Golden Immortal and on the verge of achieving the Da Luo Dharmakaya, he could perfectly withstand it, even without using the Power of Five Elements Transmutation. Now, he only wished for the thunder’s punishment to be stronger.
Therefore, he watched the sky eagerly, hoping the eight gods of the Thunder Department would put more effort into it and bring out their other thunder-based Magical Tools.
And so, after forty-nine days.
Taoist Master Gou and the others would unleash thunder for an hour each day, but they failed to make Sha Chen submit.
They grew restless; their expressions became unsightly.
"Who would have thought he’d be such a tough nut to crack! Let’s use the Electric Mother’s Thunder Drum and intensify the heavenly punishment tenfold!"
「Right at that moment.」
The chief god of the Thunder Department, Wen Zhong, arrived. He rode a dark Qilin, wielding the Double Dragon Whip, with thunder illuminating the clouds around his head as he approached.
The gods immediately reported the situation to him.
Wen Zhong said, "Perhaps he’s already been so battered by the heavenly punishment that he lacks the strength to beg for mercy. Let me go question him and, while I’m at it, announce his crimes. We of the Thunder Department do not punish without teaching; we act according to the edicts of heaven."
He then urged his dark Qilin down toward the Flowing Sand River.
Meanwhile, he proclaimed loudly, "By the imperial edict of the Jade Emperor, the Supreme Ruler of the Golden Celestial Pinnacle of Haotian! Great General for Folding the Curtain, Sha Chen, come forth and receive the decree!"