My Longevity Simulation - Chapter 1237: Borrowing Fortune to Devour the Heavenly Thought
“Words alone carry no proof. How can it be proven?”
Even though Xu Ke had already sensed the familiar aura on the other party, the Xuanhuang evil thought sealed behind him was far too important. If entrusted to the wrong person, it would undoubtedly cause unimaginable calamity.
This was also why Xu Ke had spent so many years sealing it alone.
He simply could not find anyone both capable and trustworthy.
Li Ping saw Xu Ke’s extreme caution and his outright refusal, yet he did not grow angry. His laughter echoed continuously.
“It is not for me to prove it to you, but for you to see the truth clearly!”
With Li Ping’s words, the ceiling of the Holy Emperor’s throne hall and even the sky of the Great Qi small world seemed to tear open.
Xu Ke’s vision instantly returned to the Xuanhuang Realm. Scene after scene unfolded before his eyes without pause.
In the endless night, specks of golden light emerged from nowhere. They stirred invisible waves across the dark sea.
Above the boundless ocean, golden chains crisscrossed like a giant net. Within the golden net echoed sharp, unwilling, hate-filled wails. A consciousness was slowly being ground away. At the center of the golden light, the Faceless Holy Emperor stood in the void, his aura cold and forbidding.
In a rather desolate prefecture, powerful heavenly might blessed the Faceless Holy Emperor. Beside him, a pitch-black shadowy figure flickered in and out of view. Though nothing stood before them, Xu Ke instinctively felt unease.
…
These successively flashing images all showed the close connection between the Faceless Holy Emperor before him and the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao.
Meanwhile, the Xuanhuang evil thought in the coffin behind Xu Ke struggled even more violently, as if desperate to return to its main body. This basically confirmed the judgment.
Yet for some unknown reason, Xu Ke still felt some hesitation in his heart.
“Perhaps I have stayed with this Xuanhuang evil thought for too long and have unknowingly been influenced?” Xu Ke suddenly felt a jolt in his heart.
The image of the Faceless Holy Emperor was simply too upright. As a result, Xu Ke, who stood on the opposing side, could not help but begin doubting himself.
“The Xuanhuang evil thought has been sealed for far too long. It has nearly exceeded the limit that ordinary cultivators can control. Since it is one with the current Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, if it suddenly returns, even the Heavenly Dao itself may undergo extreme and unpredictable changes.”
“Only by first suppressing it and then slowly grinding away the evil thought completely can the Dao be returned to Heaven. In this process, I will probably still need your assistance.” After a brief stalemate, Holy Emperor Li Ping spoke again.
These words elicited two completely different reactions in the Holy Emperor’s throne hall.
Xu Ke was overjoyed.
Yet the coffin lid behind him, after a brief quiet, shook even more frantically.
Li Ping even vaguely saw, on that pale figure’s face, a gaze a hundred times more venomous than before.
“Come with me for now.”
Li Ping did not press Xu Ke to hand over the Xuanhuang evil thought. Instead, he brought him to a certain location high above the Great Qi small world.
“Can you sense anything different here?”
“The fluctuations of the Xuanhuang evil thought are suppressed and almost imperceptible. Not only the Xuanhuang evil thought, but this small world itself and even the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao…” A trace of astonishment flashed in Xu Ke’s eyes.
“This is the eye of the Grand Formation of the Myriad Spirits of Heaven and Earth. This formation seals the heavens and cuts off the earth. Let alone a world consciousness, even a True Immortal descending could be resisted to some degree.” Li Ping said in a calm tone.
In his memory and understanding, this formation could indeed hinder a True Immortal’s descent to a certain extent.
Although Xu Ke had lived a very long time, he had never truly witnessed the might of a True Immortal. Thus he harbored no doubts about Li Ping’s words.
“With this formation present, even if it is released directly, it will have no way to escape.”
Xu Ke also possessed some understanding of formations.
The more he observed, the more alarmed he became.
This Grand Formation of the Myriad Spirits of Heaven and Earth was indeed as profound and wondrous as Li Ping had described.
“If I had possessed this formation back then, I would not have needed to suppress it personally for several thousand years.” Amid his shock, Xu Ke felt a momentary daze.
After touring the Myriad Spirits Grand Formation, Li Ping brought Xu Ke to Yin Shangren’s location.
It resembled a schoolroom filled with children studying earnestly. The innocent, pure faces pulled Xu Ke’s thoughts back a thousand years to the small, rundown temple in Ningyuan City. The scene from back then overlapped somewhat with the sight before him, leaving Xu Ke slightly stunned.
Yin Shangren’s reaction, however, was rather alarming.
While teaching the children, he suddenly froze completely.
After that instant of stillness, he shot to his feet and stared fixedly at the coffin behind Xu Ke.
His body trembled violently before it split open, revealing another self that had been hidden all along.
All four eyes were filled with unprecedented greed.
Xu Ke frowned slightly. That gaze, as if looking at prey, made him very uncomfortable.
What concerned him even more was the reaction of the Xuanhuang evil thought in the coffin behind him.
It was very strange.
It had suddenly fallen silent. The curses and temptations that had constantly echoed in Xu Ke’s ears vanished once more.
Yet unlike earlier in the Grand Formation of the Myriad Spirits of Heaven and Earth, where the Xuanhuang evil thought itself had remained unaffected, this time it seemed startled and had quieted down on its own.
Moments later, the Xuanhuang evil thought resumed pounding the coffin lid, asserting its presence.
But in Xu Ke’s eyes, it now looked more like bluster.
Only when Li Ping’s body stepped between Yin Shangren and the Xuanhuang evil thought did both sides return to normal.
Yin Shangren’s split body closed once more. He grinned and said, “I never expected that the mighty Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao would one day be reduced to this state.”
“If my brothers knew, who knows how delighted they would be.”
Yin Shangren smacked his lips. “I have eaten plenty of those worthless world specters. But I have never tasted a complete world consciousness. I wonder what it would be like.”
Xu Ke felt a chill of horror upon hearing this.
Instead, Li Ping transmitted a voice introduction of Yin Shangren’s origins.
“A world specter left behind after being devoured by the Xuanhuang Realm, and one that greatly admires Mr. Bai?”
At first Xu Ke still harbored some doubts. But after seeing the white rib bone that Yin Shangren treasured, no other thoughts remained in his mind.
Even though it looked like an ordinary rib bone no different from any other.
Xu Ke recognized at a single glance that it belonged to Mr. Bai.
Mr. Bai’s smiling face appeared once more before Xu Ke’s eyes, only to shatter abruptly in the next instant.
All that remained was this white rib bone.
A wave of grief suddenly surged in Xu Ke’s heart.
After learning of Xu Ke’s special connection to Mr. Bai, Yin Shangren put away his earlier ferocious expression and became gentle.
His eyes, however, still swept across the decaying coffin from time to time.
“With Yin Shangren present, even if it escapes the layers of restrictions, it will at most end up as food on a plate.” Li Ping said indifferently.
With his emotions somewhat calmed, Xu Ke finally believed in the identity and plan of this Faceless Holy Emperor.
The moment he let go of the obsession in his heart, Xu Ke felt an unprecedented sense of relief.
“I have persisted for so long. From now on, let the Xuanhuang Realm handle it itself.” Xu Ke thought this way.
“Why, are you also interested in it?” Yin Shangren looked at Li Ping with some surprise.
Li Ping briefly recounted what had happened in Luoyan Prefecture before adding, “It has helped me greatly.”
Yin Shangren shrugged. “Then I will not compete with you for it. Even if I eat it, at most it will satisfy my appetite before being expelled again.”
Li Ping remained silent and did not respond.
“That silver needle…” Yin Shangren suddenly displayed an image to Li Ping.
“Does it look like this?”
Li Ping nodded. “Why? Have you seen it before?”
“It seems somewhat familiar, but it was a very long time ago.” Yin Shangren narrowed his eyes, recalling something.
“Right, a long time ago I saw it in this location. But at that time it was not me; it was a remnant memory from a portion I once devoured. So the specific details are not very clear. If you are interested, you can go take a look. You might find something useful.”
Yin Shangren transmitted a location to Li Ping.
As a world specter, he still retained a faint sensing to his original body. The location Yin Shangren conveyed turned out to be the precise current position of the Xuanhuang Realm.
“I understand. Let us finish handling this matter first. With my current strength, even if I truly discover something, I would find it difficult to investigate deeply.” Li Ping spoke with complete honesty and no reservations.
“The Xuanhuang Realm truly has far too many evil spirits and monsters.” Yin Shangren snorted softly.
At this moment Li Ping turned to Xu Ke. “Yin Shangren and I previously planned to gather and bury Mr. Bai’s scattered remains so he may rest in peace. After this matter, if you are willing, you may assist us.”
Xu Ke agreed without the slightest hesitation. His voice even trembled slightly. “Good, good.”
Having successfully persuaded Xu Ke, the guardian, the next step was to release and absorb the Xuanhuang evil thought.
Although Li Ping possessed absolute confidence, he did not act carelessly.
Instead he made thorough preparations.
The following day, a piece of news spread throughout the entire Holy Dynasty.
Seven days later, the Supreme Holy Emperor would bestow grace.
All citizens who prayed sincerely within these seven days would receive the Holy Emperor’s reward.
The more sincere the heart, the more generous the reward.
Praying to the Holy Emperor was already a required practice for the people of Great Qi. Now that the Holy Emperor had explicitly promised rewards, how could anyone dare to slack off?
Thus, within merely half a day after the holy decree was issued, Li Ping sensed the fortune of the Holy Dynasty Great Qi condensing to an unprecedented degree.
Even the power of fortune formed within his body by the Qi of Heaven and Earth’s Myriad Spirits showed signs of transforming from purple toward gold.
“This method offers only temporary effect and cannot last long.”
“If the promise is broken, it will bring backlash, and even a drop in realm is not impossible.”
Li Ping felt his strength continuously climbing toward its peak, yet his heart remained perfectly calm.
Golden source power was drawn forth as the will of the masses focused into one.
The Grand Formation of the Myriad Spirits of Heaven and Earth began to operate slowly.
It severed all connections with the outside world.
At this moment, not only could the Xuanhuang Realm no longer observe the existence of the Great Qi small world, but even Daoist Hundred Flowers, who was right beside it within the Five Elements Great Cave-Heaven, suddenly lost all connections to the Great Qi small world.
Had Li Ping not notified her in advance, Daoist Hundred Flowers might have mistaken it for some terrifying calamity striking Great Qi.
The process of devouring the Xuanhuang evil thought still required blocking the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao outside.
Otherwise something unpredictable might occur.
Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
Li Ping’s state, after seven days of brewing and preparation, had reached its peak.
At this moment, within the eye of the Myriad Spirits Grand Formation, Yin Shangren, Xu Ke, and Yi Shu stood in a triangular formation.
Li Ping sat cross-legged in the air at the center of the three.
As part of the Taiyan Dao Deviation Stone, Yi Shu had naturally sensed the unusual changes occurring in the Great Qi small world.
He had come of his own accord to inquire.
Li Ping hid nothing and directly informed him of the plan to devour the Xuanhuang evil thought.
After a brief daze, Yi Shu immediately offered to help.
He even proposed that the Taiyan Sect and the Holy Dynasty Great Qi could deepen their cooperation further in the future.
After pondering for a moment, Li Ping agreed to Yi Shu’s request.
He had invited these three merely for appearances.
Within the Grand Formation of the Myriad Spirits of Heaven and Earth, everything remained under his control.
As long as Yi Shu behaved himself it would be fine. If he made any unusual move, Li Ping could refine him with a single thought and devour him together with the Xuanhuang evil thought.
“Formation, activate!”
Li Ping shouted coldly.
The three inside the formation felt the sky suddenly turn chaotic.
Purple star points flickered within it from time to time.
It was as if they had entered the endless void and left the real world behind.
All three tensed.
At this moment Li Ping pointed gently at the decaying wooden coffin placed beside him.
There was no violent sound of destruction.
The wooden seal layer dissipated like a wisp of black smoke.
A figure gradually clarified from blur, appearing within the formation before Li Ping.
Unlike the venomous appearance Li Ping had seen earlier.
What stood before him now was no different from the Mr. Bai in his memories.
Smiling faintly, it asked, “Do you want to eat me?”
There was no hatred in its eyes, only comfort and relief.
“Mr. Bai?!” Xu Ke could no longer hold back and cried out in alarm.
It was not that Xu Ke lacked composure; this figure simply resembled Mr. Bai far too closely.
Li Ping remained unmoved and nodded calmly. “Correct.”
“Being able to merge with me can also be considered a fitting end for you.”
These simple words caused the originally calm and composed Xuanhuang evil thought’s expression to freeze abruptly.
“What are you?!”
The Xuanhuang evil thought could no longer maintain its disguise and screamed in panic.
It suddenly transformed into a wisp of black qi and lunged toward Li Ping.
Yet before Li Ping there seemed to be an infinite distance.
No matter how hard it tried, it could not draw near at all.
“Noisy.”
“Once you merge with me, you will know what I am.”
Li Ping glanced at the Xuanhuang evil thought.
A vast and mighty force descended from the sky.
It instantly bound the black smoke that the evil thought had become.
“Will of the myriad spirits of all beings, grand millstone of heaven and earth!”
Li Ping chanted softly. A purple-gold vortex slowly formed above everyone’s heads.
