ATEG Chapter 79.1

By the time the loach child had rejoiced enough and come back to his senses, he finally noticed the white-robed deity beside Old Turtle.

The little otter that had been whimpering in its dream was now somehow in the deity’s arms, its two front paws clutching tightly at the deity’s sleeves, crumpling that fabric until it was full of wrinkles. The deity slowly stroked the little otter’s spine, his lowered brows and eyes appearing compassionate and gentle.

“This is…” The little loach involuntarily lowered his voice and quietly tugged at Old Turtle’s arm to ask.

“This is…” Old Turtle suddenly hesitated, not yet knowing how to address this deity.

“My name is Li Chi,” the deity’s voice sounded.

“This High God Li Chi is the Divine Lord’s friend,” Old Turtle continued. “It was the High God who saved me.”

“Is the Divine Lord’s mansion also unharmed?” the little loach asked joyfully.

“That, well,” Old Turtle said slowly, “that wasn’t the Divine Lord’s mansion.”

“Not the Divine Lord’s mansion? Then where is the Divine Lord’s mansion?” the little loach asked.

“Would you like to see the true Huai River Lord’s Mansion?” Li Chi suddenly looked at him and asked.

The little loach was somewhat timid, yet also carried a hint of familiarity as he asked, “May I?”

“Naturally.” Li Chi curved his lips and said slowly, “I also came for the Huai River Lord’s Mansion’s treasury.”

“Oh… what?!” The little loach’s eyes suddenly widened.

Li Chi laughed once, swept his sleeves, and disappeared with Old Turtle, the little loach, and the little otter.

When the little loach came to his senses again, they had already arrived at another section of the Huai River. The little loach pulled at Old Turtle’s arm, nervously whispering, “He, he…”

Old Turtle patted his head, looking quite composed. The deity at their side stood upon the river, his wide sleeves flowing in the wind and his robe hem brushing the waves, just like when he had first seen the deity appear with cold, sharp eyes looking down at the cultivators below who were driven mad by greed. But the deity at that time had seemed aloof and indifferent, whereas now the deity smiled lightly with a teasing air—he was merely playing with the little loach.

Old Turtle still remembered the gentleness and compassion between the deity’s lowered brows when he had earlier stroked the little otter in his arms.

This was a very good deity.

With the little otter in his left arm, the deity pinched a hand seal with his right fingertips. The great river surged up, waves splashing like flying snow, and a water droplet splashed out but did not fall back into the river. It flew to Li Chi’s fingertip, crystal clear and translucent in the sunlight.

“This is the Huai River Lord’s Mansion,” Li Chi said.

The little loach, clutching Old Turtle’s arm, curiously craned his neck to look.

“Hiding wood in a forest, concealing water in the sea. In the vast river, the Huai River Lord’s Mansion can be any single drop of water.” Li Chi lifted his finger, and the water droplet rolled into his palm. The sunlight flashed—within this crystal-clear droplet, there seemed to be a magnificent mansion; another flash, and it seemed to have vanished again.

Li Chi turned his palm over and collected the water droplet.

The little loach nervously tugged at Old Turtle. “Turtle Grandpa, he…” He took away the Divine Lord’s mansion! Was that water droplet really the Huai River Lord’s Mansion?

Li Chi looked down at him with a smile. “Come, I’ll take you to meet the Huai River Divine Lord.”

His long sleeves aided the wind, mist rose and clouds surged, and after one step, amid the retreating clouds and mist, bamboo gradually came into view.

In the center of the ground paved with bluestone slabs, an Eight Trigrams well opening exuded cool water vapor. A swimming dragon condensed from the water vapor, coiling its body with lowered head.

Old Turtle looked up, in a trance seeing the Dragon Lord who had once ridden the waves and walked the river. The little loach hid half his body behind Old Turtle, both amazed and admiring.

“What is this, High God?” Meng Huai asked.

Li Chi swept his robe and sat cross-legged before the well, tossing the water droplet in his hand into the well. “I have already taken half of the mansion’s treasury. This trip also brought some additional news—over a month ago, at the border between Liang and Sui in the lower reaches of the Huai River, the Huai River Lord’s Mansion appeared in the world.”

A heavy, murderous aura suddenly arose from the swimming dragon’s body. He naturally knew that the “Huai River Lord’s Mansion” that had appeared in the world could not possibly be his mansion. “Who dares use my name to cause trouble?”

“Divine Lord, do not be hasty.” Li Chi’s right hand traced the patterns on the well’s edge, saying slowly, “That mansion appeared extremely realistic. Upon hearing that the Huai River Lord’s Mansion was under siege, your former subordinates rushed there one after another. To protect the Huai River Lord’s Mansion, they clashed with those cultivators.”

The murderous aura on the swimming dragon’s body grew heavier, the heavy pressure making even the wind in the bamboo forest cease to move.

“It was a mirage demon, once also one of the Divine Lord’s subordinates.”

The little otter suddenly whimpered. Its eyes remained closed, its four limbs struggling and moving as if having a nightmare. Li Chi paused his narration and raised his right hand to stroke the little otter’s spine. The little otter quieted down again, its front paws tightly hugging his arm as it fell back into sleep.

“He was refined into a gu,” Li Chi continued. He placed his right hand back on the well’s edge, his fingertips tracing the patterns on the rim.

Meng Huai listened in silence, not saying a word, as if he had long suspected as much.

Li Chi unhurriedly continued his narration until he finished telling of the mirage demon’s demise and the water demon’s dispersal. He lifted his right hand from the well’s edge, extended his arms and swept his sleeves—the hem like flowing clouds lifted several bamboo leaves from the ground, landing at the feet of Old Turtle who had been quietly standing to the side.

“The task the Divine Lord entrusted is complete,” Li Chi said.

The seal on the well had been adjusted. Meng Huai sighed—this High God had said nothing, merely told a story, but after hearing the story, how could he not speak?

He looked at Old Turtle. “You were not my subordinate. Why did you destroy your foundation completely?”

The little loach’s heart jumped, and he looked up at Turtle Grandpa.

But Old Turtle was very calm. When he was severely injured, he had forcibly gathered his qi intending to shake his turtle shell. Though saved by Li Chi, he had destroyed his cultivation foundation. His cultivation would never increase again in the future, and might even gradually decline. However, that single note from the qin had already allowed him to glimpse a more profound dao and break through to a new realm of cultivation. Even if his cultivation remained at this level in the future with no way to advance, he was already very content.

“Three thousand years ago, the Divine Lord saved me and taught me cultivation methods. Without the Divine Lord of the past, there would be no Old Turtle of today.”

“Foolish!” Meng Huai couldn’t help but scold.

But Old Turtle broke into a grin.

A golden-red water droplet suddenly shot out from the well, entering Old Turtle’s body and disappearing from sight.

Old Turtle’s eyes widened suddenly. He felt his destroyed foundation being rebuilt. That power was mighty and imposing, forcefully devouring his originally shattered foundation completely, then rebuilding a more solid, more substantial foundation. This was… this was… a drop of dragon blood!

After initially rebuilding Old Turtle’s foundation, the power of the dragon blood fell dormant. The remaining power would require a long time to gradually digest.

“Divine Lord…” Old Turtle’s lips trembled twice. He was just an ordinary water turtle who had fortunately gained spiritual awareness. Relying on his long lifespan, he had accumulated bit by bit to reach this point, cultivating step by step to his current state. But no matter how solidly he had built his foundation, how could it compare to a dragon-bloodline foundation?

“Enough prattle,” Meng Huai said impatiently.

Old Turtle snapped his mouth shut with a click, his two eyes bright as they stared at the swimming dragon condensed from water vapor above the well opening.

Li Chi smiled. “This matter is concluded. I should return now.”

“High God, wait,” Meng Huai said. “Won’t you take them with you?”

Li Chi raised an eyebrow. “Will the Divine Lord not keep them?”

Both Old Turtle and the little loach looked up at the swimming dragon, their gazes full of expectation.

Meng Huai said with a headache, “What would I keep them for? Go! Go!”

“But they came for the Divine Lord. Won’t the Divine Lord care for them?” Li Chi said with a smile.

Meng Huai sighed. “What does the High God wish to know?”

If he merely wanted to inform him of what had happened on this trip, he need only pinch a seal to condense the scene from that time into a spell and throw it into the well. Yet Li Chi chose to narrate slowly to him, clearly not out of idle interest in conversation.

But Li Chi turned to ask Old Turtle instead, “You remember the appearances and auras of those people?”

Old Turtle nodded. “I remember them all.”

“Until the power of the dragon blood is fully digested, you should stay at my place for a while. Perhaps afterward, there will be opportunities to follow the Divine Lord.” Li Chi smiled slightly, then swept his sleeve.

The little loach felt his vision blur, as if shrouded in clouds and mist for a moment. When his vision cleared, he was already standing before a tranquil manor. He felt something heavy on his arm. Looking down, the little otter had somehow ended up in his embrace, enveloped by a gentle divine power, sleeping soundly.

“Turtle Grandpa?” The little loach turned to look at Old Turtle beside him. Everything had happened too quickly. He felt as if he was in a fog, not quite understanding what had happened before being sent here.

“It’s fine. This should be High God Li Chi’s residence,” Old Turtle said. “Let’s knock on the door and go in.”

He had roughly figured it out—there were secrets in the matter of the mirage demon. The Divine Lord probably knew something but hadn’t said. High God Li Chi wanted to know, so he used them as a topic to probe the Divine Lord. Though the Divine Lord seemed helpless, he showed no displeasure, which meant what High God Li Chi wanted to ask wasn’t something unspeakable. It was just that they weren’t suitable to know, so they were sent here.

Perhaps this was how the Divine Lord got along with friends?

…

The Huai River Divine Lord did not think so.

The deity across from him appeared gentle on the surface, but that was only when he was willing to be so. His gaze was too sharp—when he was pleased to see through but not expose things, it was very comfortable to interact with him, but when he wanted to know something…

“The ones who refined the mirage into a gu, and the ones who created that Dream-Eating Tapir—are they the same force? High God, what you wish to know is them, isn’t it?” Meng Huai said.

“Their auras have parts in common,” Li Chi said. “One hundred and twenty thousand years ago, the Xuanqing Sect was not this form.”

“Xuanqing Sect… Xuanqing Sect…” The first half of Meng Huai’s sentence was a sigh, the second half turned to mockery. “Do they even deserve to inherit this name?”

“One hundred and twenty thousand years ago, the Xuanqing Sect was indeed not this form, but after that great calamity one hundred and twenty thousand years ago, the Xuanqing Sect had already… been completely destroyed.” Meng Huai said slowly, as if already sinking into memory.

“One hundred and twenty thousand years ago, a cracking sound suddenly rang out through heaven and earth. That sound was louder than thunder, more startling than a tsunami. Every living being in heaven and earth heard that cracking sound, and every living being who heard it felt tremendous panic in their hearts, as if some irresistible disaster was about to descend.”

“That premonition was correct.”

“That cracking sound was the great roar produced when Tianzhu Mountain collapsed. Tianzhu Mountain—the peak where the sun rises, the source of earth’s veins, the pillar supporting heaven… No one had imagined that Tianzhu Mountain would one day collapse. The upper half of the fractured Tianzhu Mountain toppled westward, crushing one-third of the earth. Seawater roared and swept wildly, carrying the fractured Tianzhu Mountain and one-third of the earth, plunging westward into the endless void.”

“But at that time, I still didn’t know what had happened. I only saw that after that cracking sound, the sun star suddenly went out.”

“The spiritual essence between heaven and earth ran wild. Almost no cultivator could still properly cast a single spell. At that time, everyone was fleeing for their lives, yet didn’t know where to flee. The source of earth’s veins had fractured—the earth shook endlessly. The pillar supporting heaven had fractured—the sky was turbulent and restless. The peak where the sun rises had fractured—heaven and earth were dark without light. Great and powerful beings fought in heaven and earth. I could sense it but couldn’t see clearly. Heavenly deities fell, and heaven and earth’s mourning was hidden within the rampaging spiritual essence. Gradually, even I couldn’t distinguish whether those suddenly descending fire rains, those suddenly chaotic wild winds… were disasters produced by the rampaging spiritual essence, aftereffects from the battles of great and powerful beings, or heaven and earth’s mourning when heavenly deities fell.”

“Compared to that great calamity, the current strange great calamity is merely a few splashes when a stone rolls into water. After that great calamity…” The well fell silent for a moment. “I don’t know how many foreign species went extinct, how many powers collapsed, how many legacies were severed. The Xuanqing Sect was merely one among them. Right after that great calamity ended, there were still traces of them on the earth, but not long after, they completely disappeared. In the end, even those few figures who had survived all vanished one by one.”

“In the many years afterward, many powers using ‘Xuanqing’ as their name also appeared, but they all had no connection to the original Xuanqing Sect—the names were merely similar. But this current Xuanqing Sect has indeed inherited some things from the ancient Xuanqing Sect.”

A vast fog shrouded the entire bamboo forest. Meng Huai’s voice echoed low within the mist. “In ancient times there was a strange beast called Que—red-skinned and hairless, it loved to steal the fur and hide of beasts to wear.”

“This so-called ‘Xuanqing Sect’ of today only appeared within the past ten thousand years. Like Que, they somehow dug up some remnant relics and old objects left by the Xuanqing Sect from somewhere and draped the name of Xuanqing Sect over themselves. Because of these things, they truly do have a connection with the ancient Xuanqing Sect, but their conduct…” Meng Huai made a sound of disgust.

Meng Huai still had some things he hadn’t said, but Li Chi didn’t ask further. He could guess what Meng Huai had left unsaid.

Chi Zhenzi’s ancestral master, in order to divine that half-wisp of aura from the Dream-Eating Tapir, had suffered great losses and entered seclusion. Behind this current Xuanqing Sect, a great and powerful being was laying plans. That person behind the scenes didn’t rebuild a new power, but instead dragged out the long-extinct Xuanqing Sect to use this connection to do something.

The Xuanqing Sect had been destroyed for nearly one hundred and twenty thousand years. All relics and objects should have disappeared under the erosion of time, yet someone could find things left by the Xuanqing Sect. Perhaps they weren’t found at all—rather, when the Xuanqing Sect was destroyed, that person had already preserved what they wanted, precisely for now, to be able to wear Xuanqing Sect’s skin.

Perhaps even the Xuanqing Sect’s complete destruction bore that person’s handiwork. No matter what struggles they went through, the Xuanqing Sect’s destruction was inevitable. After all, in that great calamity one hundred and twenty thousand years ago, the deity they worshipped had already fallen.

Fallen, awakened, transmigrated, revived… Now his most abundant memories were those obtained from dreams—memories from one hundred and twenty thousand years ago when the deity wished to establish the Underworld. As for before transmigration… he probably only remembered that he used to eat food.

Li Chi half-lowered his eyes, his expression bland, but in his heart he suddenly thought of that ink-robed figure holding a brush…

“High God.” Meng Huai suddenly called out.

Li Chi looked up toward the well.

“In that great calamity one hundred and twenty thousand years ago, after witnessing with my own eyes countless cultivators stronger than me fall, even after the Great Celestial Venerable established the Divine Court, I thought this world was approaching its end. Like a boulder on a mountaintop—that mountain was becoming thinner and steeper, and that boulder would eventually roll down. Even if someone pushed against it, how long could they hold on?”

“But perhaps the mountain can be rebuilt.”

Li Chi glanced at the well. “It seems that about to escape from the well has put the Divine Lord in a very good mood today.”

Meng Huai understood this reminder—he had already said a bit too much.

But…

“Perhaps it’s because of today,” he vaguely responded.

Li Chi said nothing more. After glancing once more at the Shuigu Well, he walked out of the bamboo forest.

After the deity left, Meng Huai was slightly lost in thought.

Sometimes saying a bit more might not be such a bad thing.

….