Chapter 606: Returning Home in Glory

Chen Shi was brimming with excitement. The Blood-Transforming Divine Blade had only seven forms, and the seven forms were fierce and overbearing. By the time the sequence advanced to the sixth move, Sun Illuminates a Thousand Rivers, it was already extremely domineering. But the seventh move, A Spiral of Blue-Black Brows, turned the blade work delicate once more, extraordinarily refined, possessing a subtle and exquisite momentum.

Then, it came to an abrupt halt.

Previously, every time Chen Shi executed the seven forms of the Tianluo set, after unleashing A Spiral of Blue-Black Brows, he would feel his breath stagnate, unable to continue. He always felt there should be more variations afterward, but according to the Blood Lake Sutra and the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade, there was simply no continuation.

Now that he had comprehended the external Dao of the Western Ox New Continent, he suddenly felt that the seven forms of the Tianluo set could have subsequent variations.

"The Tianluo Blood-Transforming Divine Blade is currently in Chu Feng's hands in the Heavenly Pool Kingdom. I need to retrieve it."

Chen Shi pondered for a moment, then murmured, "I've been away from the Western Ox New Continent for so long and haven't returned once. The Western Ox New Continent is also a Dao Realm. Since I can freely enter and exit other Dao Realms, can I likewise come and go from the Western Ox New Continent as I please?"

With this thought, he first returned to the Celestial Way Residence.

He saw that the Celestial Way Residence was peaceful and serene, without the scene of everyone being torn apart that he had imagined.

Chen Shi relaxed slightly and carefully sensed the Western Ox New Continent, but it remained hazy and indistinct, not as clear as his perception of the Dao Ruins or the Demon Well.

Back when he had achieved Dao Unification with the Western Ox New Continent, the main body had ultimately been the Celestial True God. When the Celestial True God's soul returned to heaven and earth, the main body of the unification was gone, and Chen Shi's personal cultivation hadn't kept pace, resulting in his unstable Dao Unification.

Even with all his effort, Chen Shi could not clearly sense the precise location of the Western Ox New Continent.

"There are only two Fulong Village medicinal pills left. I'll take one more!"

Chen Shi gritted his teeth and swallowed one of the medicinal pills.

Instantly, his ears and eyes became sharp and clear, his thinking became several times more active, and his perception was greatly enhanced!

His connection to the Western Ox New Continent also became intensely powerful. What people called celestial-human resonance was precisely the mutual response between a person and the Great Dao of heaven and earth!

The moment he resonated with the Western Ox New Continent, he pinpointed its exact location through its heavenly-earth Great Dao!

"Descend!"

Chen Shi pushed the celestial-human resonance to its absolute limit, and a phantom image of the Western Ox New Continent even materialized in the sky!

That phantom gradually shifted from illusory to real, as if it were being pulled from another time and space into the Earth Immortal Realm!

Just as he sensed it to the extreme, the darkness surrounding the Western Ox New Continent suddenly seemed to come alive. The darkness appeared to grow countless tentacles, reaching out from every direction of the Western Ox New Continent, as if trying to probe into the skies of the Earth Immortal Realm!

"What is this? Forget it!"

Chen Shi's mind stirred slightly, and with a single step, he walked into the Western Ox New Continent.

His surroundings shimmered with rippling light, as if time and space had become flowing water illuminated by the passage of time, washing over his entire body. He traversed through time and space, accompanied by a slight tremor, and descended into the skies above the Western Ox New Continent.

As he entered the Western Ox New Continent, the strange phenomenon of the dark invasion above the Celestial Way Residence suddenly vanished, and the Western Ox New Continent itself disappeared along with him.

The tens of thousands of heavenly soldiers and generals at the Celestial Way Residence had barely recovered from the horror of the Great Dao pollution when they witnessed this new anomaly. Their faces turned ashen, and they nearly mutinied!

Fortunately, the anomaly came quickly and vanished just as fast.

While everyone was still in shock and confusion, several hundred Tianji Scholars in long robes with stern expressions hurried over, measuring the sky and carefully investigating the source of the disturbance.

Zhong Lin was also a Tianji Scholar. These past days, he hadn't returned to the Tianji Camp but had remained at the heavenly soldier camps "monitoring" Chen Shi. Seeing his fellow disciples, he stepped forward to greet them.

"This matter is of grave importance. It was an external Dao world invading the Celestial Court."

The Grand Commander of the Tianji Camp said with a solemn face, telling Zhong Lin, "These heretical demons grow bolder by the day. Last time they attacked the Celestial Strategy, and now they're trying to attack the Celestial Court. They must be eliminated!"

Zhong Lin said, "That external Dao world just now didn't seem like an invasion. It seemed more like a Dao Realm being summoned and manifested by someone."

"Zhong Lin, do you dare doubt the Grand Commander's judgment?" The other Tianji Scholars berated him one after another.

Zhong Lin lowered his head. With everyone saying so, he no longer dared to be certain that the external Dao world from earlier was indeed a Dao Realm.

Turning an entire world into a Dao Realm was indeed something that could happen, but turning a world in the Dark Sea into a Dao Realm was something he had rarely heard of.

"Moreover, I sensed a peculiar Celestial Way aura, very similar to the Celestial Way aura Fellow Daoist Chen carried when he first ascended."

His expression turned strange, and he thought to himself, "Could this matter have been caused by Fellow Daoist Chen?"

Just as he had this thought, several high-ranking deities walked over, surveyed the area with grave expressions, listened to the Grand Commander and others' opinions, and then left with darkened faces.

Not long after, a divine being descended and instructed, "It's already over. No need to be so tense. The Tianji Camp need not investigate further."

The Tianji Scholars were all taken aback, somewhat at a loss.

The divine being shooed the Tianji Scholars away and departed as well.

A moment later, a small dao attendant clutching a horsetail whisk came running over, panting heavily, and asked Zhong Lin, "Do you know where Chen Shi the heavenly soldier's Celestial Way Residence is?"

"I do."

"Take me there."

Zhong Lin led the small dao attendant to Chen Shi's Celestial Way Residence, but Chen Shi wasn't there, so he had no choice but to wait. Zhong Lin, having nothing better to do, also waited for Chen Shi's return.

At that moment, footsteps sounded from outside, somewhat unsteady. The two looked toward the source and saw several heavenly soldiers supporting Black Pot as they arrived at the Celestial Way Residence.

"Fellow Daoist Black, rest well."

The heavenly soldiers instructed before leaving.

Black Pot staggered in, completely drunk.

The small dao attendant said, "Black Immortal, where is Heavenly Soldier Chen?"

Black Pot squinted with drunken eyes. The small dao attendant said, "You don't know either. Alright, I'll wait a bit longer. Fellow Daoist, rest well."

Black Pot stumbled off to sleep.

The small dao attendant waited obediently.

Zhong Lin's gaze flickered as he carefully examined this small dao attendant. Suddenly his heart skipped a beat, and he thought, "The immortal path aura on him is unfathomably profound... He must be either from the Eastern Prince's sect or from the Queen Mother of the West's sect!"

The small dao attendant smiled at him, with rosy lips and white teeth, but then his face took on a worried expression, and he quietly waited for Chen Shi's return.

Hu Feifei had been thoroughly annoyed by the Directorate of Astronomy these past days. Those Directorate officials were always coming to report, saying that some anomaly had appeared at some place and time. The number of Great Dao phenomena events happening in the Western Ox New Continent during this period was simply too many. Either Great Dao radiant light appeared in various places, or auspicious signs descended from the heavens, or golden springs burst from the earth, or immortal light shone upon some location, and so on and so forth.

During this time, she had also dispatched many scholars to various places to study these Great Dao phenomena and had gained much from it.

The Dao techniques and divine abilities of the Western Ox New Continent could be described as advancing with each passing day, giving birth to many remarkable experts.

Occasionally, she would wonder: all of this happened after Chen Shi's ascension. Could these phenomena be related to his ascension?

But this speculation was too shocking and extraordinary, so she merely entertained the thought.

Just as expected, the Directorate of Astronomy came rushing over again. Hu Feifei set down the memorial and said with some impatience, "What is it this time?"

"Your Excellency, it's His Majesty!"

That Directorate minister was beaming with joy, saying, "His Majesty has returned!"

Hu Feifei was both startled and overjoyed. She rushed out of the Wenyuan Pavilion and looked up, only to see Chen Shi walking forward, surrounded by ten thousand beams of radiant light and a thousand wisps of auspicious energy. He truly looked like a celestial immortal descending to the mortal world, stirring up all kinds of Great Dao phenomena!

Although Chen Shi tried his utmost to suppress his aura, this was, after all, the mortal world and his place of Dao Unification. His own Great Dao still resonated with the heavenly-earth Great Dao, causing his descent to blaze with extraordinary splendor.

Hu Feifei charged forward and hastily bowed in greeting. Chen Shi quickly helped her up and laughed, "Sister Feifei, why so formal? I only ascended a few days ago. It's not like I've become some cold, heartless person."

Hu Feifei smiled and said, "Your Majesty has been away for so long. Have you been well in the Earth Immortal Realm? Did you encounter your esteemed father and mother? Did you see the Founding Ancestor?"

Chen Shi hesitated for a moment, then told the truth: "I'm doing fairly well in the Earth Immortal Realm. I'm serving as a heavenly soldier in the soldier camps, though I did end up on the Immortal Slaying List and am being hunted across the entire Earth Immortal Realm. It's relatively safe staying in the Celestial Court."

Hu Feifei blinked her eyes. It seemed King Chen's days in the Earth Immortal Realm weren't actually that good, and he was deliberately saying he was doing fine so that the folks back home wouldn't worry.

"My parents are still nowhere to be found, and I haven't seen Grandpa and the others either."

Chen Shi said with some concern, "I wonder how they're doing."

Hu Feifei consoled him, saying, "If Your Majesty is unhappy there, then return to the Western Ox New Continent. You'd still be above ten thousand others. Why go be a mere heavenly soldier in the Earth Immortal Realm?"

Chen Shi said, "I'm genuinely doing quite well in the heavenly soldier camps!"

Hu Feifei didn't believe a word of it in her heart, but on the surface, she pretended to believe it all.

Chen Shi knew what she was thinking and said in frustration, "I'm quite respected in the Celestial Court. King Li appreciates me greatly, and the Jade Emperor even made me a landowner with a territory called the Dao Ruins. I've also made new friends, and I..."

Hu Feifei said, "If Your Majesty feels wronged, then just cry it out."

Chen Shi was so choked with anger that his fists crackled as he clenched them, but this woman was a pillar of his government, so he couldn't very well hit her.

The two reminisced for a moment. Chen Shi noticed that Hu Feifei's cultivation was still at the Body Unification realm, having not yet Severed the Three Corpses, and was still extremely far from crossing the tribulation and ascending. His heart stirred, and he took out the last Fulong Village medicinal pill, handing it to Hu Feifei with a smile, "This is a medicinal pill I collected from a tenant farmer in the Dao Ruins. It can unlock wisdom and allow you to comprehend the mysteries of Dao techniques."

This pill was the very last one. Originally, Chen Shi had planned to keep it for himself as a lifesaver in critical moments, but seeing that Hu Feifei had neglected her cultivation for the sake of governance, he brought it out to compensate for her dedication.

"Sister Feifei, take this pill and then cultivate the Great Wilderness Ming Dao Collection. It will be more than enough to ensure you reach the Dao Unification realm within two years." Chen Shi said.

Hu Feifei was skeptical. She had studied the Great Wilderness Ming Dao Collection before and couldn't understand a single word of it, let alone cultivate it. Could taking a single medicinal pill really allow her to comprehend its mysteries?

She swallowed the pill. At first, there was no change, but then suddenly, her mind became incredibly sharp, her thinking incomparably agile. In a short span of time, she reviewed all the Dao techniques and divine abilities she had learned and refined throughout her life, and in an instant, she filled in various gaps and flaws.

She muttered to herself, speaking of the mysteries contained in various scriptures. What she hadn't understood before, what she hadn't been able to do before, had now become so simple. When she reviewed the various immortal techniques she had witnessed, they too became unprecedentedly simple and easy to grasp!

Hu Feifei was both astonished and overjoyed. She attempted to interpret the Great Wilderness Ming Dao Collection, this cultivation technique she couldn't understand at all, and now she was actually comprehending all its various mysteries!

She immediately tried cultivating it, and before long, she had mastered the technique. She even comprehended two or three divine abilities. Her mastery in circulating the technique and the subtlety of her divine ability transformations were such that even if the Celestial Venerable were to be resurrected, he would be no match!

Hu Feifei still had surplus energy. She marched triumphantly back to the Wenyuan Pavilion and, with swift strokes of her vermilion brush, reviewed and approved over a hundred memorials in one continuous flow.

She still hadn't exhausted the pill's power. She went to the Hanlin Academy and deciphered all kinds of immortal techniques stored there. Only then did the medicinal power run out, and her wisdom returned to normal.

When she came to her senses, all the various Dao techniques she had comprehended earlier remained in her mind, not forgotten. As long as she cultivated step by step, reaching tribulation crossing and ascension, achieving Dao Unification and becoming an immortal, would be no problem.

"Where is His Majesty?"

She went to look for Chen Shi again, but he was already nowhere to be found.

Chen Shi had by now arrived at the Palace of Virtue in the underworld. He saw that Daoist Willow had already grown a new willow tree two zhang tall from his original old stump, and Scholar Zhu had chosen the thickest branch to hang himself from, bending the new tree's neck askew.

"Little Ten is back!" Scholar Zhu exclaimed, both shocked and delighted.

Chen Shi stepped forward and offered a stick of incense to Scholar Zhu.

He was now an immortal of the Celestial Immortal Realm, with profound and abundant cultivation and vast merit and virtue. When he bowed with this stick of incense, Scholar Zhu immediately spewed smoke from all seven orifices, unable to withstand a single stick of incense offering. He cried out repeatedly, "Slow down, slow down! You're choking me!"

Chen Shi laughed, "Teacher, how have you been? In the Earth Immortal Realm, I encountered fellow disciples, also of the Master's lineage!"

Scholar Zhu took a deep breath of the incense, mobilizing his Ghost Immortal power to suppress the swelling extraordinary power, and said in surprise, "Fellow disciples?"

Chen Shi smiled, "The Master has his own orthodox tradition in the Earth Immortal Realm, called Golden Turtle Island. When I interacted with the senior martial brothers of Golden Turtle Island, I discovered that they also uphold the Master's teachings!"

Scholar Zhu's face turned ashen, his heart in turmoil, and he thought, "If the Master's true disciples discover that I've distorted his teachings, they'll definitely come knocking on my door and grind my bones to dust! Though I don't really have any bones to grind..."

Chen Shi said excitedly, "What Teacher taught me was indeed the Master's true interpretation! When I debated with that Senior Brother Jiang, he couldn't refute me and even said that Teacher's insights were profound and unfathomable!"

Scholar Zhu looked completely bewildered. He suddenly shook his head and asked, "Are you sure Golden Turtle Island is of the Master's lineage? Not some heretical sect?"

"Your disciple is absolutely certain!" Chen Shi said with complete confidence.

Scholar Zhu became even more confused. He stammered, "You should hurry into the palace to see your godmother. Don't keep her waiting. Mm, mm..."

Chen Shi walked into the Palace of Virtue, then looked back and laughed, "After Teacher ascends, he'll definitely become a distinguished guest of Golden Turtle Island!"

Scholar Zhu grew ever more bewildered: "Could it be that my misinterpretation of the Master's writings is actually the correct one?"

Chen Shi entered the palace and saw Wu Qi.

Wu Qi had already grown bones and developed flesh. Perhaps because only two finger bones remained, and all other parts of his body had to grow from those finger bones, he now looked like an eleven or twelve-year-old youth, dressed in youthful attire.

But his expression was still as stern and rigid as before.

Chen Shi pressed down on his head and tousled his hair, and Wu Qi still wore a thoroughly displeased look.

Chen Shi laughed, "Grand Guardian, I encountered Shang citizens in the Earth Immortal Realm."

Wu Qi's mind shook violently, and he blurted out, "There are Shang citizens in the Earth Immortal Realm too?"

Chen Shi smiled, "Take good care of your body. Once I establish a firm foothold in the Earth Immortal Realm, I can bring you to see them."

Wu Qi was both shocked and delighted.

"Your son pays respects to Godmother!"

Chen Shi hurried to the lotus throne of the Empress of Earth and bowed deeply.

The Empress of Earth quickly rose, descended from her lotus throne, and helped him up, laughing, "Your Majesty, please rise quickly!"

She looked Chen Shi up and down, and the more she looked, the more she liked him. She smiled, "Your Majesty's deeds have already come to the attention of the Earth Sovereign. I am merely one of her ten thousand million avatars, and my thoughts are but a drop in the ocean of her consciousness. It is rare for her to take notice of you. Why doesn't Your Majesty go and pay respects to her?"