Chapter 82: The Great Calamity of Jade Toad Palace

Xu Cheng had not expected that the Ancestor of the Polar Star would ask for his opinion, leaving him momentarily at a loss for words.

“I… I agree with Jade Crow’s suggestion!” he stammered. Jade Crow wore a look of proud satisfaction, as if to say, “See? Even the Messenger of the Underworld agrees with me. If you don’t listen to my advice, what other methods could possibly resolve this catastrophe?”

The Ancestor of the Polar Star furrowed his brow. “I have no desire to cower here like a turtle hiding in its shell.”

“Ancestor, please reconsider! Their combined strength is formidable, perhaps even surpassing that of ordinary immortals!” Jade Mist grew anxious; she did not want the Ancestor of the Polar Star to confront the enemy alone, for that would be no different than courting death.

“Though we practitioners follow the will of heaven, we are not cowards who cling to life. Moreover, I have divined that the method to overcome this calamity lies with the Messenger of the Underworld. Yet it seems he himself is unaware that he holds the key to our salvation,” the Ancestor of the Polar Star said coldly.

Xu Cheng was stunned—could the solution to Jade Toad Palace’s crisis truly be found within himself?

All those present in Jade Toad Palace turned their gaze upon Xu Cheng. If even the Ancestor of the Polar Star, whose cultivation reached the heavens, said so, surely it must be true.

Before Xu Cheng could speak further, outside the palace appeared a monstrous figure with sixty-five heads, towering over ten yards tall, and boasting one hundred and thirty arms. Their hair and beards billowed as hundreds of golden dragons circled about them, a display so imposing it seemed a demonic god had descended from the heavens, ready to crush all beneath him.

Fortunately, Jade Mist had already activated the mountain-guarding array; those below the Primordial Spirit realm were not greatly affected, or else the mere aura of the intruders would have decimated most of their side.

“People of Jade Toad Palace, deactivate your array and you shall be spared!” The sixty-five heads spoke in unison, their voices amplified by magic, grand and overwhelming.

The Ancestor of the Polar Star’s pent-up energy surged within him, eager for battle, but Jade Mist clung tightly to him, refusing to let go.

“Obstinate fools! Fist to shake mountains and rivers!” The sixty-five experts of the Primordial Spirit realm unleashed a collective punch that shook the mountain-guarding array to its very core.

At this critical moment, as Xu Cheng watched the summer dynasty cultivators merge into a giant body with sixty-five heads, he suddenly recalled the merging technique he had developed through supreme wisdom.

“I understand now, Ancestor! It’s the merged Dharma Aspect!” Xu Cheng exclaimed. The Ancestor of the Polar Star, just freed from Jade Mist’s grip, halted in mid-motion.

Ignoring the imminent collapse of the mountain-guarding array, Xu Cheng carefully explained the method to the assembled crowd.

The nineteen elders of the Primordial Spirit in Jade Toad Palace broke into smiles—if the Ancestor of the Polar Star, Jade Mist, themselves, and the Messenger of the Underworld all merged their Dharma Aspects, they might match the strength of the foe overhead, or perhaps even surpass it.

The merging technique required a primary Dharma Aspect, with others supporting it, thus creating a formidable new form. Given their cultivation, the Ancestor of the Polar Star was the obvious choice as the main aspect, followed by Jade Mist, then the nineteen elders, Xu Cheng, Yan Butterfly, and Chrysanthemum, who were the weakest.

With the array barely holding, the Ancestor of the Polar Star summoned his Dharma Aspect—a colossal ape, mirroring his true form.

Under its guidance, the surrounding practitioners’ Dharma Aspects transformed into streams of light and fused with the ape, Xu Cheng among them.

Gradually, the massive ape shrank, becoming nearly corporeal, transforming into a monkey wearing a golden crown, clad in golden armor, boots of gilded silk, a red cape billowing behind, and wielding a black staff entwined with golden patterns.

In that instant, Xu Cheng heard a voice: “I, Old Sun, have arrived!”

Indeed, the merged form resembled the legendary figure from a classic novel of his previous life—Sun Wukong.

As soon as the merged Dharma Aspect was formed, the mountain-guarding array shattered.

Let us call this merged form “Sun Wukong.”

The monkey raised its staff and charged at the summer dynasty cultivators, striking them with a mighty blow. As it soared, the staff grew to hundreds of yards in length, crashing down upon the foe.

With a thunderous boom, the collision reverberated even in the high skies, making the ears of those below ache from the shock.

Jade Mist quickly instructed her disciples to retreat from the center of battle.

The Dharma Aspect Sun Wukong moved swiftly, each strike landing on the summer dynasty cultivators. Yet their fused bodies were extraordinarily resilient, brimming with vitality; though their skin split under the blows, it healed in an instant.

While Jade Mist was distracted, the two combatants in the sky exchanged over three hundred moves, locked in a fierce struggle.

“Who would have thought Jade Toad Palace possessed such a technique! Brothers, continue merging!” one of the attackers shouted.

“For the Grand Xia Dynasty!” they cried in unison, golden light flashing around them. Sensing the shift, Sun Wukong retreated several steps. When the light faded, the sixty-five heads had fused into a single massive head, and the one hundred and thirty arms into two. Their height soared.

This enormous figure now resembled the Buddha from Xu Cheng’s previous life—the Tathagata.

Sun Wukong versus Tathagata.

But this Tathagata was no master of Buddhism; he knew nothing of the Five-Finger Mountain.

“Everyone, lend me your strength!” the Ancestor of the Polar Star shouted. The surrounding Jade Toad Palace cultivators poured more power into the merged form, causing Sun Wukong’s body to grow even larger.

In the end, he stood over thirty yards tall, far bigger than the Tathagata of the summer dynasty.

“Size means nothing!” The summer dynasty’s cultivators seemed to realize that Sun Wukong was controlled by the distant practitioners below, so they struck at them directly.

Their cunning was unexpected—they had devised such a strategy.

However, Sun Wukong was not to be outdone. His figure blurred, and he used his enlarged staff to block the blow.

After the Tathagata delivered a palm strike from afar, he lunged at Sun Wukong.

Despite taking the hit head-on, Sun Wukong seemed little affected. Perhaps because of this, the Ancestor of the Polar Star realized his true strength lay in spells, not brute force.

He suddenly roared, “Polar Star—Ten Thousand Fathoms!”