Undying Life

Chapter 959: Innate Eight Trigrams

A cyan glow enveloped Zhong Shan's entire body. In the comforting environment, his exhaustion and fatigue were relieved, causing him to involuntarily fall into unconsciousness.

It was unclear how long he had been unconscious, but Zhong Shan slowly awakened. Instinctively opening his eyes, he immediately saw an expanse of endless stars. However, after a moment, Zhong Shan sensed something amiss and quickly closed his eyes again to inspect his body.

The exhaustion had vanished, and his injuries were completely healed! Even more astonishingly, his cultivation had inexplicably advanced by an entire level.

Great Immortal Realm! Third Heaven!

Moreover, two True Dragons circled within him—these were the Golden Dragons of Da Zhen's fate.

Opening his eyes again, Zhong Shan began to survey his surroundings.

The Demon-Summoning Banner still lay on his chest, as if it had never moved. At that moment, Zhong Shan found himself lying on a massive stone step.

Was this within the starry sky?

A celestial staircase, with one step after another, extended into the distant heights. Zhong Shan was in the middle of this celestial staircase, with countless stars below him, even higher than where the stars resided.

Stars were below, around, and above him. However, the stars here were peculiar; instead of being spherical, some were elongated into strips—oddly stretched!

Additionally, in some areas, the stars moved exceptionally fast but never seemed to get far.

A bizarre environment indeed.

Only this staircase seemed normal.

A hint of doubt arose in Zhong Shan's heart. He retrieved a crystal ball and threw it over the railingless edge of the celestial staircase.

The crystal ball flew quickly into the starry sky, but as soon as it left the staircase's range, its flight seemed to suddenly slow down.

It wasn't that the ball was flying slower; rather, time seemed to slow down! This phenomenon reminded Zhong Shan of the time manipulation abilities exhibited by Luo Xingchen. Furthermore, the perfectly round crystal ball oddly elongated into a strip shape. The crystal ball, though fragile and prone to cracking with even a slight deformation, did not break at this moment. It was as if it were made of rubber.

Zhong Shan's expression changed slightly—it was clear this was a spatial issue.

Time slowed down, and the spatial laws were chaotic? What kind of place was this?

Retrieving the Demon-Summoning Banner, which had returned to its original state with no peculiarities, Zhong Shan pondered how this banner had brought him here.

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, a white light flashed, shooting from above Zhong Shan's head straight towards the top of the celestial staircase.

Perhaps due to the chaotic laws here, the person flying left a trail of afterimages.

"Mi Tian Saint?"

Though Zhong Shan couldn't recall Mi Tian Saint's face, he remembered the figure clearly. It was indeed him!

What was at the top of the celestial staircase?

Without hesitation, Zhong Shan started ascending rapidly towards the top of the staircase.

The celestial staircase was incredibly high, but Zhong Shan's speed was also very fast. After the time it took to burn an incense stick, he finally reached the top.

There, suspended in the void, was a magnificent and solemn palace complex. The central main hall was towering, reaching ten thousand feet high. The grand hall bore no plaque, exuding an aura of desolation. Even from nearly ten thousand miles away, Zhong Shan could feel the overwhelming presence emanating from the hall. It was majestic beyond measure.

On the square in front of the unnamed grand hall stood six people.

Saint Mi Tian, Ying, Gui Guzi were all present, and among them was someone Zhong Shan recognized—Feng Xingyun, the Daoist Lord from the Snake Queen's domain. However, judging by his appearance, Feng Xingyun seemed not to have come voluntarily but was forcibly brought.

The remaining two individuals included one in a black robe, exuding a familiar aura that Zhong Shan immediately recognized.

"A Saint, Mozi?"

It was definitely Mozi. Zhong Shan could never forget that aura after encountering him before.

The other individual was clad in a cyan Confucian robe. Even from a distance of ten thousand miles, a grand aura of a Confucian scholar bathed Zhong Shan, eliciting an inexplicable feeling of reverence and support in his heart.

Could it be?

Zhong Shan didn't know him personally, but from the back, he could guess—Confucius!

Three Saints, two Ancestor Immortals, and one Ancient Immortal?

Standing miles away, Zhong Shan decided not to approach. He understood that the matters at hand were beyond his current capabilities.

The presence of Saints implied that he, a mere Great Immortal, could not influence the situation.

The distant group seemed aware of Zhong Shan's arrival, yet none turned around, their focus remained on the grand hall ahead.

"Saints are the paragons of the world, yet you, a dignified Saint, resort to grave-robbing? How disgraceful!" Feng Xingyun shouted angrily, glaring coldly at Saint Mi Tian.

"Why so much nonsense? Will you come willingly, or shall I refine you?" Saint Mi Tian replied indifferently.

At that moment, the other two Saints and the two Ancestor Immortals remained silent.

Feng Xingyun, with a look of resentment, took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Turning around, he approached the grand hall.

Kneeling before the grand palace, Feng Xingyun suddenly bowed in deep reverence.

Three bows and nine kowtows!

"Unworthy descendant Feng Xingyun, forced by circumstances, must disturb the ancestors!" Feng Xingyun declared as he bowed.

The three Saints and two Ancestor Immortals waited patiently.

After a moment, Feng Xingyun forced out nine drops of his blood from his fingertips, which he slowly directed onto the grand hall's door.

The nine drops of blood immediately stained the door red.

"Indeed, the ancestral tomb can only be opened with the blood of Nuwa's descendants. Saint Mi Tian has calculated well!" Ying suddenly remarked.

Saint Mi Tian glanced at Ying but remained silent, ignoring him as if an Ancestor Immortal was beneath notice.

Ying, unperturbed, turned his gaze back to the door.

As the blood stained the door, the entire void plaza began to shift. The surrounding palaces rotated in concentric circles with a strange rhythm, even the spot where Zhong Shan stood moved, soon displacing him by a hundred miles.

"Boom!"

The grand doors thundered open.

In that instant, an explosion of countless golden rays emanated from within, illuminating the void as if it were daylight, blindingly bright.

Amidst the golden light, a large golden diagram became faintly visible. The diagram had eight sides and was shrouded in dense golden mist, obscuring its details. As the golden rays shot out, the deformed stars in the surrounding void abruptly halted their motion, as if time itself had frozen.

"The Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram! Truly deserving of its reputation!" Saint Mozi exclaimed.

None of the assembled powerhouses rushed to seize it immediately, for here, no one could overpower the others.

"Fellow Daoists, how about I comprehend it for a hundred years and then hand it over to you?" Confucius suddenly suggested.

"Not so. The hall was opened because of me. Let me study it first for fifty years, then I'll hand it over," Saint Mi Tian replied indifferently.

The three Saints engaged in discussions, each aiming to be the first to comprehend the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram. Persuasion was preferred over forceful contention, which would be a last resort.

Meanwhile, Feng Xingyun remained kneeling, head bowed, his fists clenched with bulging veins.

"How about leaving it in my custody?" Ying suddenly proposed.

His suggestion immediately silenced the three Saints, who all turned to look at Ying. Especially Saint Mi Tian, though acknowledging Ying's strength, considered him far inferior. How dare a mere Ancestor Immortal challenge the three Saints?

"The Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram is unique, containing Fuxi's 'Inheritance of Fate Alteration.' Only one can inherit it! Is there any point in further discussion?" Ying said calmly.

Saint Mi Tian looked at Ying with indifference. "Then what do you propose?"

"Each uses their own means. Whoever obtains it, owns it!" Ying suggested nonchalantly.

"You, an Ancestor Immortal, wish to compete with us? Your Tianji seems to be something I left in the Small Thousand World!" Saint Mi Tian retorted.

"The Great Qin? Your audacity is growing!" Confucius remarked calmly.

Ying glanced at Confucius, a slight smile on his face, revealing no hint of emotion.

"Saint Mozi!" Ying called out again, this time addressing Mozi directly. The other two Saints were slightly taken aback.

"Ying!" Mozi acknowledged with a nod.

"Ying has overstepped and needs Saint Mozi's assistance!" Ying said directly.

"As long as it's not excessive, consider it repaying that old favor," Mozi replied.

An old favor? The others were puzzled. How did Mozi owe Ying a favor?

Mozi's words were clear—he wouldn't help Ying seize the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram.

"Thank you. What I need is... to ensure Confucius does not obtain the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram!" Ying said with a faint smile, staring at Confucius.

The scene fell silent. Ying's statement was audacious!

Ying was clearly here to seize the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram. He asked Mozi to restrain Confucius. Did he have confidence in dealing with Saint Mi Tian?

Saint Mi Tian didn't know whether to be pleased or angered. A Saint being underestimated by an Ancestor Immortal?

"As you wish!" Mozi agreed.

Mozi didn't say he wouldn't compete for the diagram himself, only that he wouldn't let Confucius get it.

"You plan to stop me?" Saint Mi Tian glared at Ying.

"This is the end of time and space, not within heaven and earth. Saints? Here, a Saint cannot freely manipulate the powers of heaven and earth! I wish to see how strong a Saint is without the heavens!" Ying said sternly.

"You are truly ignorant!" Saint Mi Tian sneered.

"In the future, within heaven and earth, I await you at Xianyang of Great Qin. But for now, here at the end of time and space, if you can defeat me and my ministers, we shall forfeit the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram!" Ying's tone grew serious and resolute.

"Whoosh!"

In an instant, Ying, Gui Guzi, Saint Mi Tian, Mozi, and Confucius vanished from the plaza.

Zhong Shan vaguely saw them entering the distorted stars outside.

The contest of the powerful, the Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram!

To Feng Xingyun and Zhong Shan in the plaza, the mighty figures paid no heed. In their eyes, crushing these two would be effortless. However, their focus remained on the plaza.

Zhong Shan stayed still, as did Feng Xingyun, who knelt before the unnamed grand hall, head bowed, fists clenched, eyes flashing with resentment.

It was a feeling of intense humiliation. Forced to open his ancestral tomb and witnessing discussions about distributing its contents, all while powerless. The humiliation was overwhelming, and Feng Xingyun felt his heart bleeding.

When Fuxi and Nuwa were alive, who dared to disrespect the Feng family? But now, with the family in decline, they were oppressed by a group of robbers, enduring such humiliation.

To read the manga version, please click the YouTube link https://youtu.be/GnU613H6xm8