Chapter 493: Chapter 432: Dust Settles, Defying the Heavens to Strike Down the Gods
Three years
Three years have passed since the last great war in this realm.
In three years, the influence of the West Queen Mother Country has spread across the four continents.
The forces of the Dali Dynasty and the Buddhist Sect have been entirely cleared away.
Of course, not all of them were killed; some who sincerely pledged allegiance were allowed to join, not limited to the Dali Dynasty or the Buddhist Sect.
Song Lin used to have strong biases against the Buddhist Sect, but after meeting high monks like Randeng Buddha, although Song Lin still had his sectarian prejudices, he no longer exhibited as much disdain as before.
The Divine Capital of the Kunlun Empire.
This place is located at the center of Dongsheng Divine Continent. The Divine City is majestic, stretching for thousands of miles, controlling the lifeblood of hundreds of billions of lives in the Human Clan in the surrounding areas.
Song Lin walked along the street, the crowd bustling like waves, the air filled with the aroma of street food and the shouts of vendors.
People instinctively moved aside when they encountered Song Lin, as if he were a fish moving freely through the sides of the street.
Following behind him was Ju Mang, a young girl in a green dress.
During the battle that day, the Four Spirits did not participate but instead led the Four Direction Army to attack the Dali forces and the Buddha Soldiers.
The two walked silently, observing every aspect of the Divine Capital.
In places invisible to the mortal eye, many day-and-night wandering spirits floated, while in various corners, Ghost Soldiers patrolled to maintain the order of the underworld.
"Where is it, where is it?"
"Quickly, Lingdu Square, eleven miles."
"The culprit is there."
At that moment, a group of constables dashed through the crowd.
This was a government office enforcing the law and apprehending a mortal criminal.
Ghost Soldiers do not interfere in mortal affairs; they generally only deal with ghosts and demons. If a mortal committed a crime, they would immediately notify the constables or the historical records officials in the government office.
The time since the West Queen Mother settled and unified the realm has not been long; the influence of the City God and Mountain God has yet to fully extend beneath the county-level towns. Even with the assistance of the Heaven and Earth Rivers and Mountains Map, this process will take at least several decades to centuries to establish preliminarily.
However, above the county level, the basic configuration of City God, Mountain God, and Water Master has been implemented; the cooperation of these entities has restored order to the Mortal World, greatly winning over the hearts of the people.
In a way, the public security here is significantly better than Earth in a previous life.
Earth may have surveillance cameras, but cameras lack intelligence and the ability to discern evil.
The two walked along the street, observing that every grass and tree, the structure of the city and the names of all its systems, bore traces of Song Lin’s presence.
Kunlun stood tall amidst the four continents.
Over a dozen Magic Veins had been spread and taught; even if Song Lin departed, the influences he brought to Kunlun would persist here.
Song Lin and the Queen Mother of the West shared profound mutual understanding, each grasping portions of authority. Song Lin could leave Kunlun at will, though Kunlun’s rise to prominence was inseparable from him.
From this perspective, Song Lin clearly held the initiative.
Song Lin suddenly paused, and Ju Mang accidentally bumped into his back. He reached out to pat her small head and smiled:
"I shall soon depart from this realm. Perhaps the next time we meet will be in thousands or tens of thousands of years. You all must comprehend the Great Dao of the Four Spirit Divinities, such that the Queen Mother can confer the title of the Four Direction Emperors."
The Queen Mother of the West’s loyal followers included the Kunlun Bird, Kunlun Snake, and Sanqing Birds.
Song Lin’s loyalists were equally formidable, with the Four Spirit Divinities—the Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise—suppressing all rivals.
Although they were like brothers, even kin must deal with matters clearly. The Queen Mother controlled the Innate, while Song Lin mastered the Acquired; this universal truth remains unchanged across eternity.
Of course, Song Lin retained absolute authority over his Magic Veins.
The two toured the scenery and then flew toward the overseas regions.
Overseas lay three Divine Mountains:
Fangzhang, Penglai, and Yingzhou.
Song Lin’s Dao Field was established at Penglai, where he founded three sects.
Across the three locations, there were a total of twenty thousand cultivators; this number would grow endlessly over time to provide the Heavenly Court with Acquired Immortals.
The only thing Song Lin felt regretful about in this location was that there weren’t many exceptional talents capable of taking the lead.
Perhaps part of it was due to environmental factors.
With the deaths of the Eight Masters and the Buddhist forces, the Heaven and Earth Essence Qi had returned to the world, though it had become much thinner than before.
Perhaps it might improve a bit in a few years.
Song Lin descended, as people nearby greeted him with salutes.
Judging by the Dharma Seal and talismans they carried, the hierarchical structure appeared to be modeled entirely after the Donghua Taoist Sect.
"It still needs a leader."
Song Lin thought to himself.
Perhaps Zhengyang and Ann Qi would be suitable candidates.
This realm still had lingering matters, as the Four Heavenly Kings had, thousands of years ago during King Wu’s era, eyed this place and sent down the Four Great Dragon Kings.
It was uncertain what level of cultivation these fellows had achieved or which worlds they currently resided in.
Song Lin had once asked the Queen Mother of the West to investigate the four corners of the realm, yet the traces of the Four Great Dragon Kings remained elusive.
Perhaps they were hiding in other minor worlds, Song Lin speculated.
Song Lin stayed here for several days before boarding the Sun Jade Carriage to return to Kunlun.
Kunlun Mountain had regained its ancient grandeur, stretching for tens of thousands of miles and piercing the clouds above.
This was a terrain crafted by the Queen Mother of the West using the Heaven and Earth Rivers and Mountains Map, surrounded by countless Heavenly Phenomena shrouding the mountain’s midsection.
Numerous colossal beasts guarded these mountain gates.
Upon seeing Song Lin approach, they promptly stepped aside to clear a path, while the Heavenly Phenomena dissipated automatically.
Song Lin held partial management authority over Kunlun Mountain and could even mobilize Kunlun and its two Acquired Magical Treasures.
Under the Peach Tree, its leaves lush and green yet barren of fruits.
Seated beneath the tree was the Queen Mother of the West.
Song Lin instinctively sat beside her, inhaling the Undying Essence Qi. The blending of Yin and Yang caused the sun and moon to shine brightly in tandem in the sky.
His Spirit Platform consciousness returned to the World in the Pot contained within the gourd at his waist.
In the Floating Island’s Longevity Palace rested a semi-transparent jade coffin.
Within the translucent coffin lay a set of purple-golden skeletal remains, its skull adorned with sharp black horns, its teeth like pointed nails—one glance felt suffused with overwhelming ferocity.
The Heavenly Burial Coffin buried all things, burying all life.
This item embodied the Acquired Dao of "Burial" as an Acquired Magical Treasure.
Once something was sealed within this coffin, it signified an absolute conclusion, leaving no trace of life nor death, as everything reverted back to its primal state and raw Essence Qi.
The primal nature of Chiyou was encapsulated within this Purple-Golden Skeleton, imbued with the Acquired Military Dao.
Even in close proximity, Song Lin could sense its boundless vitality and blood.
It was astonishing.
It seemed as though this being had amassed the vitality of billions—just how many lives had it taken?
Moreover, it could even absorb the vitality and blood of others.
If not for the indestructible and flawless defenses of the Nine-Transformation Mysterious Skill, ordinary people would have been devoured to death by Chiyou while both battling and draining them simultaneously.
"Two items equivalent to two Acquired Magical Treasures—which one should I choose?"
Song Lin chose both!
The Heavenly Burial Coffin must be acquired, and the Chiyou Purple-Golden Skeleton must not be missed.
But Karma permits only one—what should be done?
Of course, convert it into Taoist Realm cultivation. It must be noted that Song Lin cultivated the Human Immortal Martial Way and reached the level of a True Immortal; the next step, Yang Immortal, had cultivation techniques only possessed by Chiyou.
It is rumored that cultivators of the Human Immortal Martial Way, due to the excessive demand for blood vitality, even had Secret Techniques for absorbing and refining blood vitality by devouring other cultivators with potent blood energy.
Now, Song Lin’s intention was to "devour" the item—though to say "devour" might sound crude, perhaps "refine" was more appropriate.
Afterward, Song Lin cultivated in Kunlun Mountain.
Summoning Pure Yang Golden Fire from the Spirit Platform, he refined and gradually absorbed its vitality and Qi.
The entirety of Kunlun was illuminated by the brilliance of the sun.
The unruly Undying Clan felt deep reverence for Song Lin in their hearts.
His cultivation was of such supreme stature, dazzling like the sun, making others dare not gaze directly.
Song Lin’s cultivation might exceed the Queen Mother of the West, though this was inconceivably terrifying.
The grand sun lingered for three months.
The penetrative strength of the golden light was so powerful that it affected the Mortal World.
Though Song Lin withheld the destructive force from the golden light, the absence of nighttime still made it difficult for mortals to endure.
On an island of the West Sea, a bronzed, bare-chested warrior stared at the towering, insurmountable Kunlun Mountain. Resolutely, he bade farewell to his fellow villagers and embarked on the arduous journey to ascend the mountain and challenge the gods.