Yuan's Ascension

Chapter 637: The Final Gambit (2)

Soon after, Eldritch General Zhu Yan packed his belongings and left for the border army's station without taking any of his subordinates with him.

Within the hall, the numerous Eldritch Warriors had already departed.

"Veteran Elder, what exactly happened?" The purple-robed man finally couldn't hold back his curiosity. "Who was that mysterious senior who killed Zhu Ren?"

Even now, he was still bewildered. It was too bizarre. He had been hastily summoned by the black-robed elderly man and was still unclear about the specifics of the situation.

"They are supreme existences of our Huanggu eldritch race," the black-robed elderly man's eyes filled with reverence before he added, "As for their details, there’s no need to ask.

This time, you can consider yourself lucky. In my younger days, I only caught a glimpse of them from afar," the black-robed elderly man recalled the Eldritch Deity celebration from a hundred years ago.

He had been fortunate enough to see Wu Yuan and Eldritch Deity Hou Tu, and memorized their soul auras.

So, when his Soul Will swept the area earlier, sensing the auras of Wu Yuan and Eldritch Deity Hou Tu that were deliberately released, he had been greatly startled.

"Supreme existences? Eldritch Deities?" The purple-robed man's eyes widened in terror.

Such super powerhouses had arrived at his tribe without anyone noticing?

He now understood that he had indeed been incredibly fortunate this time around.

...

Hundreds of millions of li from the Ju Hong Tribe lay a rather prosperous civilization of a certain race.

Wu Yuan, Eldritch Deity Hou Tu, and the others hovered high in the sky, gazing down at the land below.

"The erudite dragon race? Interesting," Wu Yuan smiled faintly.

"Among the myriad races, many civilizations have their own unique characteristics. That's why although our eldritch race dominates the land, we haven't exterminated them," Eldritch Deity Hou Tu explained. "This erudite dragon race, though appearing to be dragon-like, is actually extremely weak. It's rare for them to produce immortal cultivators. However, they have a fondness for nature, and their civilization itself is quite unique, especially in the art of painting."

Wu Yuan nodded lightly and smiled, "Then let's stay with this erudite dragon civilization for a few days."

"Continuing to sculpt stones?" Eldritch General Hou Tong teased.

"Not stone sculpting, but cultivating," Wu Yuan glanced at Hou Tong and smiled. "This time, let's paint. Painting is also a form of cultivation.

But Little Tong, you'll continue to be my maidservant. Every time I finish a painting, you'll be responsible for auctioning it off," Wu Yuan said with a smile.

Eldritch General Hou Tong frowned, "It's always me."

"If not you, then who else? You're the weakest in our group," Wu Yuan chuckled. "Not satisfied? Try defeating any one of us if you can."

Eldritch General Hou Tong grumbled but said nothing more.

Within the eldritch race, might makes right. This was the norm.

...

Wu Yuan and the others settled comfortably within the erudite dragon race, transforming their appearances to blend in as unremarkable painters.

In just two years.

"Grandmaster Wan Liu's paintings have truly transcended mere paintings." [1]

"Painting Saint."

"Wan Liu, the Painting Saint." Wu Yuan's artworks became renowned throughout the entire erudite dragon race, attracting countless scholars and artists who eagerly sought his pieces.

“Divine Beast Diagram.”

“Indeed, Grandmaster Wan Liu's Divine Beast Diagrams are the most lifelike. Though merely paintings, they seem to come alive before one's eyes. It's truly inconceivable."

The so-called Divine Beast Diagrams were, in fact, Thunder Beast Diagrams.

Another year passed, and Wu Yuan quietly departed with Hou Tong, Eldritch Deity Hou Tu, and the others, continuing their journey to other regions.

And so, Wu Yuan traversed the vast lands of Huanggu. For the first hundred years, he mostly wandered and paused at leisure, observing mountains and rivers across the land.

During the next hundred years, he began to engage in 'creation' - wood carving, stone sculpting, painting, calligraphy, equipment forging, pill refining, and more.

Various forms of so-called art became his means and methods for researching the Life Dao. Inadvertently, he created countless legends.

The myriad races and all forms of life scattered across the vast lands displayed unique characteristics and traits in the evolution, growth, and development of their civilizations. Wu Yuan’s horizons were broadened with each new encounter, immersing him in wonder.

Life is the purest creation in heaven and earth. Without life, how lonely would all things be? Wu Yuan increasingly understood this point.

It was life that brought wonder and mystery to heaven and earth.

In the blink of an eye, several decades passed. Wu Yuan changed his approach once more, delving into several mortal civilizations.

No longer pursuing the path of art, he took on various identities - a general, a merchant, a carpenter, and more, disguising himself each time.

When in power, he engaged in political maneuvering and intellectual battles. As a general, he led his troops from the front.

And when part of the lower class, Wu Yuan seemed to truly lose his mana, enduring all manner of humiliation and injustice like an ordinary person.

His actions left Eldritch Deity Hou Tu and High Eldritch Hou Zhi, who observed him in secret, in awe. They all admitted they couldn't have done the same.

They were filled with confusion - what exactly was Eldritch Deity Hou Feng trying to comprehend? Why would he demean himself in such a way? This method of cultivation was unheard of to them.

To experience the wonders of different lives, having one's heart at peace, only then can one understand the greatness of life, as well as its insignificance. This was the Dao that Wu Yuan sought to grasp in the depths of his consciousness.

Though he didn't seem to be deliberately practicing any secret arts or consciously comprehending the Law of Life, Wu Yuan's progress in understanding the Law of Life was not slow at all. In fact, it showed signs of accelerating.

Dao comprehension was cultivation. Experiencing the mortal world, too, was cultivation.

As his understanding of the Dao progressed, Wu Yuan's spirit grew increasingly powerful and complete, showing subtle signs of transformation.

...

Time flowed like water. Approximately 160 years after leaving the Archeldritch tribe to wander the lands, Wu Yuan finally returned to his starting point.

He no longer took on different identities, nor did he continue to live in different civilizations and tribes.

Instead, he began to traverse the vast lands anew, witnessing various wonders. Occasionally, when passing by a mountain range, he would stop for ten days or half a month. Sometimes, when crossing a great river, he would fish for a while. At times, when passing a large tree, he would sit beneath it for a long time, seemingly in deep thought or perhaps sound asleep.

These various methods of cultivation left the accompanying Eldritch Deity Hou Tu and High Eldritch Hou Zhi increasingly perplexed.

However, from beginning to end, Hou Tong, despite her verbal complaints, had always followed Wu Yuan without truly considering leaving.

Finally, on a vast grass plain, while passing by a towering mountain that rose from the earth, Wu Yuan halted his steps and ascended to the mountain's peak.

He sat down in lotus position. For the next ten years, he did not rise.

One day, a hazy aura of the Dao enveloped Wu Yuan, awakening Hou Tong, Eldritch Deity Hou Tu, and the others who were meditating nearby.

They stared at Wu Yuan, dumbfounded.

Around Wu Yuan's body, faint Dao patterns flickered into existence. Immediately after, spiritual qi gathered, coalescing into the shadowy form of a beast-like figure.

It growled softly, nuzzling affectionately against Wu Yuan, like a child reunited with its mother. But as quickly as it had formed, the spiritual qi dissipated.

"What was that?"

"A thunder beast!"

"Spiritual qi, coalescing into a living thunder beast?"

"It looked exactly like the thunder beast carved by Eldritch Deity Hou Feng." Even Eldritch Deity Hou Tu, the strongest among them, was utterly astonished.

This scene, reminiscent of the creation of life itself, left them all bewildered.

Life! It was supposed to be nurtured by heaven and earth, born from the workings of nature. Even when powerful beings created life, it was usually done by improving upon existing life forms, not creating it from nothing.

"What are you all looking at?" Wu Yuan stood up from his spot, the Dao aura around him dissipating. He smiled at them.

The group exchanged glances.

"That thunder beast just now?" Hou Tong couldn't help but ask.

"Merely an illusion. I imbued it with a touch of spirituality," Wu Yuan said with a faint smile. "It cannot last long, nor is it truly alive."

The group exchanged glances once more.

"Has Eldritch Deity Hou Feng made progress as well?" Eldritch Deity Hou Tu asked hopefully. "Are you able to breach Heavenly Pillar Mountain?"

"Mm. After over a century of cultivation, I have indeed gained some success," Wu Yuan said with a smile. "However, I’m still far from able to breach Heavenly Pillar Mountain.

Let's wait until I reach the Earth Eldritch phase before discussing that," Wu Yuan added.

After the third great war between the eldritch and immortal races, Eldritch Deity Zhu Jiu had spread intelligence revealing that the three Imperial Majesties of the immortal race could unleash Archimmortal-level power within Heavenly Pillar Mountain.

Wu Yuan naturally learned of this and didn't dare underestimate them.

"Let's go. On to the next location," Wu Yuan said. After over a century of secluded cultivation, he was certain he had found the right path.

Using the thunder beast from the Creation Essence Diagram as a core, and this profound artistic conception as a source, he could imitate, comprehend, and create.

Without realizing it, his mastery of the Law of Life improved constantly, already propelling him to a whole new level.

...

The divine hall of the Thirty-Three Heavens atop Heavenly Pillar Mountain was devoid of servants or guards. Only the three Imperial Majesties were present.

"By expending the last of the essence power to peer into the bronze mirror, I've identified Hou Feng’s general location.

He's less than eight hundred million li from our Heavenly Pillar Mountain," Imperial Majesty Da Yan said, his face ashen.

Imperial Majesty Nan You and Imperial Majesty Lei Fu looked at Imperial Majesty Da Yan, their faces filled with concern.

During the last great battle, the immortal race had suffered a crushing defeat. The eldritch race had demolished the lower seventeen heavens, achieving an unprecedented victory.

Though the three Imperial Majesties of the immortal race were grief-stricken by their heavy losses, they had not given up. While recovering from their injuries, they continued attempting to gather intelligence on Wu Yuan.

However, it had become far more difficult than before. Those Earth Eldritches and Eldritch Generals who had acted as their spies in the past now turned their backs on them, unless their souls were under control.

Left with no choice, Imperial Majesty Da Yan had expended a great number of treasures accumulated by the immortal race. Once his injuries had mostly healed, he attempted to divine Wu Yuan's whereabouts directly. But the cost was immense.

"I can only confirm the general area, not the specific location," Imperial Majesty Da Yan said, shaking his head slightly. "As for anything else, it's too difficult to divine more."

"He's not staying in the Archeldritch tribe?" Imperial Majesty Lei Fu was puzzled, "Could this be a deliberate ambush, a plot to lure us there? For all we know, that old beast and Zhu Jiu might be lying in wait right beside him.

"Big Brother, Second Brother," Imperial Majesty Da Yan said softly, "The guidance of destiny shown in the ancient mirror cannot be wrong. We have only two paths before us.

First is to flee while we can, using our divine weapons as vessels to leave this world. Though our chances of perishing are extremely high, there's still a glimmer of hope. The Archeldritches came from beyond the world, proving that it is indeed connected to the realms beyond.

The second is to abandon all thoughts of escape, give up Heavenly Pillar Mountain, and make one last attempt to kill Hou Feng with everything we’ve got.

Perhaps, it’s a trap. Perhaps, even if we kill Hou Feng, having lost the foundation of our race, failure is still the most likely outcome for us," Imperial Majesty Da Yan said calmly. "But at least there's still a sliver of hope. For us, there are no other paths left to take."

Imperial Majesty Lei Fu and Imperial Majesty Nan You fell silent, realizing there truly were no other options.

"Very well," After a long while, Imperial Majesty Nan You spoke, a hint of resolve in his eyes. "Then let us prepare for our final gambit."

1. yup, another recycled alias. ☜