Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Grand Art of Sealing the Realm with Nine Dragons

The three of them, accompanied by Xu Cheng and his companions, appeared once more atop the city wall. At the center of the city, the massive black dragon coiled on the ground seemed to sense something, shaking its head incessantly and spewing sparks from its nostrils.

“The sealing is complete. What comes next is up to you,” Dao Wu whispered, his voice full of warning.

“Understood,” Xu Cheng replied with a firm nod.

The trio then rose into the air, golden flames enveloping their bodies.

“Supreme Immortal Art—Nine Dragons Sealing the Realm!” they cried in unison.

From their burning forms, dragons emerged—nine golden dragons in total—converging to form an enormous inverted dome that swiftly descended, trapping the black dragon beneath.

Roaring wildly, the black dragon leapt in desperation, only to crash against the barrier forged by the nine golden dragons.

At that moment, Dao Wu, Dao Yang, and Dao Ning burned brighter than ever.

“Seal!” they shouted with their remaining strength.

The giant Nine Dragon Dome began to shrink rapidly, pressing the black dragon within. Its furious howls echoed across the city as it struggled in vain.

When the trio’s bodies were finally consumed, only their golden souls remained, and the black dragon was reduced to the size of a man.

Their souls turned to Xu Cheng, silently urging him to take action.

Xu Cheng transformed into a streak of black light and appeared beside the golden sphere, within which the miniature black dragon still writhed, though its efforts were futile.

He summoned the Gate of the Yellow Springs. With his cultivation increased, the ancient patterns on the gate had multiplied, and its height doubled, now towering nearly ten meters.

Nine chains of Netherfire, each thicker than Xu Cheng’s arm, suddenly bound the golden sphere, dragging it into the gate.

The pitch-black sky was finally torn apart by sunlight, golden rays pouring down. Wherever the light touched, the black snowflakes melted instantly, and the brilliance grew ever stronger.

Until the entire sky became a clear blue.

With the storm passed and the sun shining anew, Xu Cheng, Yan Mengdie, Chrysanthemum, Cen Ningyue, Niu Dazhuang, and the others felt their spirits lighten, their oppressive mood lifted.

But their joy was short-lived, for the souls of Dao Yang, Dao Wu, and Dao Ning were now ready to reincarnate.

As he watched them depart, Xu Cheng pondered: these three had given their lives. If he were to sacrifice them, would that not be wrong?

While he mused, a flash of inspiration struck him. Two words appeared in his mind—Reincarnation!

It was a fragment of the ultimate principle of the Heavenly Dao: the truth of reincarnation.

“Friends, with this, we can rest easy and proceed to reincarnation,” Dao Wu said cheerfully, striding first into the Gate of the Yellow Springs.

Then Dao Ning and Dao Yang followed.

Through that sliver of reincarnation’s truth, Xu Cheng opened the cycle.

In his perception, the three entered a vast, circular black hole—the legendary wheel of reincarnation.

In a home in Lianzhou City, triplets were born.

The black dragon had not yet been sacrificed; Xu Cheng wanted to see what rewards would come from offering it.

He invoked the power of sacrifice. In an instant, the black dragon was consumed by flames. Once dominant in the mortal world, it now seemed no more than an infant in the Yellow Springs.

A brilliant light burst forth from the gate, bathing Xu Cheng. His golden core spun rapidly, merging with the myriad runes in the golden radiance—it was the Immortal Art of the Yellow Springs and Forgotten River.

Immortal Art of the Yellow Springs and Forgotten River: once cast, the body transforms into endless waters of the Yellow Springs, with countless wondrous applications.

Now, with the immortal art on Yan Mengdie’s face, Xu Cheng possessed three immortal arts.

“At last, the clouds have parted and the sun and moon are revealed!” Chrysanthemum exclaimed.

“Lord Right Envoy, where do we go now?” Cen Ningyue asked impatiently.

“Why don’t you come with me to Gunzhou? I hear there’s a rebel force there,” Yan Mengdie suggested.

“I agree!” Xu Cheng replied at once.

If nothing else, the immortal art on Yan Mengdie’s face alone was reason enough for him to accept her proposal.

“Then it’s settled. I’ll take you to Gunzhou right away,” Yan Mengdie said, blowing out a breath that transformed into a white cloud upon reaching the ground. She stepped onto it.

This was the art of riding clouds and mist; with her cultivation at the Dao-forging Realm, their speed would surely be impressive.

Xu Cheng, Chrysanthemum, and the other four all boarded the auspicious cloud, sitting or reclining comfortably.

The cloud soared skyward, and when they peeked down, they saw the beautiful landscape below.

On the cloud’s crest, Xu Cheng lay back with his hands behind his head, legs crossed, enjoying the gentle sunlight at high altitude.

Perhaps this was the true path of immortality.

Before long, Yan Mengdie halted the cloud.

Xu Cheng’s hearing was keen, and he faintly caught the sounds of a battle.

“Xia Qingman, I advise you to return with us! Why struggle any further?” a middle-aged man’s voice called out.

“I’d rather die than go back with you!” came a woman’s voice, presumably Xia Qingman.

Xu Cheng was struck by how familiar the voice sounded, when Yan Mengdie descended the cloud.

“Who are you? The Grand Xia Dynasty is conducting official business—leave at once!” In their view, a bearded, armored man raised his blade, pointing it directly at Yan Mengdie and Xu Cheng’s group.

Yan Mengdie snorted coldly and acted. Clouds of color spread around them, and as the colorful clouds descended, every soldier they touched was corroded to nothing—even their clothes vanished.

Such was the savagery of the immortal arts of the demon-immortal lineage.

“Demon!” As the colored clouds rushed toward the bearded man, he shouted angrily, swinging his blade and carving a fierce slash through the clouds, instantly shattering them.

He then accelerated, charging at Yan Mengdie. In a flash, his blade was poised to strike her.

Xu Cheng’s Netherfire chains split into nine, then merged, forming a shield in front of Yan Mengdie.

The ferocious blow was blocked, and sparks flew as the blade struck the chains.

Seeing no chance, the man retreated several steps.

But Xu Cheng was not about to let him go. The chains quickly converged and shot toward the man.

“Split Hua Mountain—Slash!” the burly middle-aged man intoned, wielding his blade with deliberate slowness. The oppressive force alone prevented Xu Cheng’s chains from advancing.

When the blade finally came down, a gigantic silver arc appeared out of nowhere.

This stroke seemed truly capable of cleaving Hua Mountain. It struck Xu Cheng’s chains, shattering them into fragments.

At first, the silver light moved slowly; Xu Cheng hastily gathered more chains to defend himself, but he was already too late.

In the next instant, the blade’s radiance became swift as lightning.

Before Xu Cheng could react, he was split in two, and the small Xutu Creation Art on his body was dispersed, his bones crushed.

“Cough, cough! You think killing me, Gao Meng, is that easy? This is the fate of those who oppose the Grand Xia Dynasty…” The bearded man, whose name was Gao Meng, was jubilant, certain that Xu Cheng was dead after suffering such a powerful blow.

But before he could finish his boast, Xu Cheng’s bones began to reassemble. He cast the small Xutu Creation Art upon himself and returned to his original form, startling Gao Meng into a stupefied silence.

With a soft sound, Gao Meng discovered a blade had pierced his heart.

The attacker was a delicate-looking youth who had been standing before Xia Qingman all along, hiding behind Yan Mengdie when she arrived.

Seizing the moment, he used some stealth technique to deliver a fatal blow from behind.

“You—” Gao Meng was not blessed with Xu Cheng’s undying nature, and his earlier attack had exhausted all his power, leaving him defenseless against this mortal strike.

Gao Meng, slain.