Chapter 174: Immortal Artifact
Chapter 174: Immortal Artifact
After Li Si said this, the three Veteran Deities and Demons fell silent. Then, the Middle-Aged Scholar who hadn’t even shown his true form laughed heartily in the distance, said nothing, and left.
As for the Boorish Big Man, he turned his back to Li Si and gave a thumbs-up before taking a step forward, his figure fading away.
That was straightforward.
Only the Scar-Faced Woman remained motionless in place.
“Tell me, why did you make this choice? You can tell the truth, or you can choose not to.”
Li Si cupped his hands and said, “There are three reasons.”
“First, I know that regardless of whether the three elders are good or evil, they are at least people who follow the rules. In that case, the possibility of deception or fraud is ruled out. Under such circumstances, the three elders wouldn’t undercut each other’s offers over a small matter. So, it must be that the three elders each have different methods.”
“The one who offered the lowest price might still achieve my goal, but it would certainly lack thoroughness. Especially since that elder immediately used the Thunderstone as a gimmick, clearly to hide something.”
“On the other hand, your offer was the highest, which means you can handle this matter more perfectly and thoroughly.”
“Second, the three elders are all reclusive masters, and their every move must have a reason. So, I boldly guessed that the three elders wanted to test whether I am qualified to cooperate with them through this method. And this qualification depends on whether I can continue to provide Fortune of Heaven and Earth.”
“I dare not hide it from the three elders. Not long ago, I was fortunate enough to become the Calamity Bearer Human Emperor, so the amount of Fortune of Heaven and Earth I can use is quite generous. I should be able to continue cooperating with the three elders for a while.”
“Third, I think that right now, the master of the Five-Tone Ruins is watching this scene. If I were stingy and only chose 8 portions of Fortune of Heaven and Earth, the other party would realize that I am somewhat weak and might try to cause trouble. Rather than that, it’s better to make him completely despair.”
“Is there a fourth reason?” the Scar-Faced Woman suddenly asked again.
“Yes, I am not short on money. This reason is a bit arrogant, so it doesn’t count.”
“Then do you know why the three of us made different offers?” the Scar-Faced Woman asked again.
“I do not know.”
“It’s simple. These three offers are not for the previous area. They represent our views on this Mortal Realm. You can understand it as giving advice.”
“If you had chosen the lowest offer, he would have promised to help you escape alone.”
“If you had chosen the second offer, he would at most promise to help you and your lover escape together.”
“Now that you have chosen my offer, I can give you three choices. Pick one.”
“First, I can let you take ten people and leave. I am slightly stronger and can ensure you reach the next Mortal Realm, but I cannot guarantee the time. If you die of old age along the way, don’t blame me.”
“Second, within three years, I can prevent Jiuxuanzi from harassing you.”
“Third, I can do my best to protect your Pure Land for ten years.”
After hearing this, Li Si’s eyes flickered. “So, elder means that our Mortal Realm can only last ten more years at most?”
“To be precise, twelve years, nine months, three days, and two hours.”
“What?” Li Si was shocked.
“Don’t count on that stupid dragon. Although in theory, he withstood the previous wave and gave this Mortal Realm 57 years to recover, everything in the world is constantly changing, and there are always unpredictable variables. This variable is a Void Demon Corpse. It will float with the Mist to the edge of the Illusory Realm in twelve years, nine months, three days, and two hours, and then it will destroy this Mortal Realm’s barrier of Fortune of Heaven and Earth like cracking an eggshell.”
“Unfortunately, I had high hopes for you before, thinking you could at least maintain this Mortal Realm for 300 years. Now, I can only say it’s a pity.”
“Void Demon Corpse?”
“Twelve years!”
Li Si stood there stunned, his eyes filled with thoughts of money—wait, no.
“Elder, I can suppress the Void Demon Corpse. I did it not long ago!” Li Si was excited, but the Scar-Faced Woman remained unmoved.
“How much Fortune of Heaven and Earth did you use to suppress the last Void Demon Corpse?”
“About two hundred portions.”
“It was 208 portions. According to our calculations, even with five million people and the foundation of this Pure Land, you can only gather 1 portion of Fortune of Heaven and Earth every ten years. Even with population growth, it would take you a thousand years to gather 200 portions. Do you think you have enough time?”
“Even though you are now the Calamity Bearer Human Emperor and have more authority, Fortune of Heaven and Earth is not something you can borrow from one place to pay another. It represents the balance between a Mortal Realm and the Illusory Realm. If the balance is lost, even the smallest flaw will lead to complete collapse, and the Mortal Realm will turn into an Illusory Void. Do you understand?”
“Right now, you have already used a large amount of Fortune of Heaven and Earth for unnecessary things. Although you successfully lured the three of us Deity and Demon out, everything has its consequences. If you hadn’t consumed large amounts of Fortune of Heaven and Earth early on, you would have been able to suppress the Void Demon Corpse twelve years from now. That way, although life would be miserable, you could at least survive for fifty more years.”
The Scar-Faced Woman spoke calmly, and Li Si listened silently. Only after she finished did he cup his hands again. “Will the elder not help?”
“No. It’s not that I can’t suppress the Void Demon Corpse, but doing so would taint me with Calamity Qi. Do you know what Calamity Qi is?”
“When a person dies, their resentment can turn into a haunted house, Evil Entity, or Evil Spirit.”
“When a world dies, it also generates resentment, which is extremely terrifying. Calamity Qi is the resentment of Heaven and Earth. Being tainted by this Calamity Qi has dreadful consequences, especially for those with greater strength. From this perspective, it is clever of you to keep your cultivation restrained at the Nascent Soul Realm.”
“Although I don’t know how you tricked that stupid dragon into becoming the Tribulation-Bearing Dragon for you, you are undoubtedly a smart young man. It’s just a pity. If this were three hundred years ago, I might have helped you without being tainted by Calamity Qi. But now, make your choice.”
Li Si thought for a moment and said, “Could there be a fourth choice? Or, elder, could you make a bet with me?”
“Speak.”
“If I have no way to kill that Void Demon Corpse, then it’s all over, and the three elders can do as they please. But if I can, please delay your plans to take advantage of the end.”
Li Si spoke seriously. These three Veteran Deities and Demons were neither good nor evil, but they followed the rules. That meant as long as the Mortal Realm didn’t collapse and perish, they would remain detached observers. But once the Mortal Realm collapsed, it would be their turn to plunder the Fortune of Heaven and Earth.
Because when such a large Mortal Realm’s balance with the Illusory Realm is broken, it is beyond saving. But at that time, there would still be tens of thousands of portions of Fortune of Heaven and Earth.
This was the main prize, the so-called taking advantage of the end.
Li Si only needed to think carefully to figure this out.
“Fine! Twelve years, nine months, and three days from now, if that Void Demon Corpse enters the Mortal Realm and you can kill it without breaking the balance between the Mortal Realm and the Illusory Realm, the three of us naturally will not act. Otherwise, don’t blame us.”
“Thank you, elder. Please accept this.”
Li Si waved his hand, and the Yunhua Law Seal flew over. Twenty portions of Fortune of Heaven and Earth were delivered as promised.
He was incredibly generous. Did this create a deficit?
No joke. Li Si had previously deposited 200 portions of Fortune of Heaven and Earth into the Yunhua Law Seal as his personal savings. In any case, the Calamity Qi on him was already so dense it couldn’t be dispersed, and he had no intention of escaping.
This time, it was the Scar-Faced Woman’s turn to fall silent.
She must have been very curious. In fact, at that moment, the other two Veteran Deities and Demons who were silently watching, as well as the Old Dragon and Jiuxuanzi hiding further away, were all utterly confused.
But no one dared to make any further calculations.
Things were different now. Li Si held five positions as Righteous God of Heaven and Earth. He was doing the work of five World Guardian True Immortals. The Heaven and Earth were sentient, and they could sense the impending doom. So, the Heaven and Earth would lament and release Calamity Qi. This Calamity Qi would automatically seek out the person most likely to break the situation. That’s why it was called responding to the calamity.
As the time of destruction drew nearer day by day, this great calamity would also grow stronger.
Even if the Big Fly itself came to kill Li Si now, it wouldn’t dare. It would only dare to engage in guerrilla tactics…
Li Si understood this. If not, just think about that Demonic Dragon.
But if he could pull the Heaven and Earth out of the great calamity, the benefits would be unimaginably great.
After a long time, the Scar-Faced Woman stood up. She reached out her hand, and a dark stone as large as a three-story building flew over from a distance as lightly as a feather, with faint traces of lightning still visible on it.
But when the Thunderstone landed in the Scar-Faced Woman’s hand, it was kneaded like pulling noodles and shaped into an exquisite hairpin. On it was a pair of lotus flowers, vividly lifelike.
She then gently plucked from the void, pulling out a thread of lightning as thin as a hair. But immediately after, thousands, tens of thousands, millions of terrifying bolts of lightning fell, covering an area of ten thousand miles.
In the end, this endless sea of lightning gently merged into the hairpin. A flash of light later, the hairpin returned to normal. Though still exquisitely beautiful, it had lost all traces of its raw power.
As she gently rubbed the hairpin, the Scar-Faced Woman spoke quietly.
“The Mortal Tribulation is something one must go through to obtain the Mortal Dao Heart. There are many ways to pass it. Some cut off their seven emotions and six desires, some kill the one who triggered their Mortal Tribulation, and some follow their heart’s desire and become husband and wife for a lifetime. The last method is the most common. Once a Cultivator reaches the Void Refinement Realm, they can send an incarnation to the mortal world, find a man or a woman, fall in love, marry, have children, and live for several decades. When the mortal spouse grows old and the incarnation follows, the original body has almost passed the Mortal Tribulation.”
“So, the Mortal Tribulation isn’t actually that terrifying. It’s just a part of life, a kind of training, a state of mind. Without the experience, there is no gain.”
“However, the Mortal Dao Heart is not necessary. Although Cultivators have seven types of Dao Heart, as long as they fulfill five, they can advance to the True Immortal realm. And once they become True Immortals and obtain the Immortal Spirit, the chance of triggering a Mortal Tribulation becomes very, very small. As for Ascension to the Land of Infinite Vastness, that possibility is even more minuscule.”
“This matter, I think you certainly didn’t know. But you still managed to make a woman who had already advanced to True Immortal and possessed an Immortal Spirit develop a Mortal Tribulation for you. That is quite a skill. Since I encountered this and you are so generous, I cannot not give something. This Immortal Artifact is my congratulatory gift to you both.”
“Regardless of whether this world is about to perish, beautiful things always bring joy.”
“The Human Race is eternal; hope endures forever.”
“May you have a harmonious union for a hundred years and soon have children.”