The sudden upheaval had unfolded far too quickly; even Young Master Yuchuan had failed to notice it in time. Master Fire Dragon, however, had been keeping a close eye on the arch-fiend Xu Ying all along, and had caught on the moment the change occurred.
When the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron came crashing down, it had looked exceedingly perilous, yet Xu Ying, Master Fire Dragon, and Han Zekang had encountered no pressure at all. In the midst of the clash between water and fire that had blocked everyone's sight, Xu Ying had executed a wondrous divine ability, stuffing this supreme treasure of the Heavenly Dao directly into Master Fire Dragon's Realm of Xiyi!
That ability was none other than Perfected Yuhu's Gourd Heaven Dao Verification Scripture!
Noticing Master Fire Dragon's gaze, Xu Ying gave him a wink.
*Xu Ying! He isn't the Purple-Robed Demon Marquis, Chu Tiandu—he's Xu Ying! The infamous villain, Xu Ying!*
Master Fire Dragon's head spun. Xu Ying's true appearance flashed through his mind, and comparing it to the faces of the three Xu Yings in green, yellow, and white robes from earlier, how could he fail to guess the truth?
The great villain Xu Ying had been right by their side all along!
The master nearly fainted on the spot. He recalled how, at the foot of the mountain, Xu Ying had introduced himself by that very name, and how he and his disciple had even laughed, wondering why anyone would choose such an ominous name.
Thinking back on that scene now, master and disciple had truly ridden a broomstar straight into a patch of blooming plums—their misfortune reached straight to the heavens.
*Being a lackey to the villain Xu Ying is even worse than being a lackey to the Purple-Robed Demon Marquis, Chu Tiandu!*
Master Fire Dragon did not dare utter a sound, his face the color of dirt. He thought, *What do I do? The Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron is sitting right inside my Realm of Xiyi. Should I hand it over, or keep my mouth shut?*
His heart was in his throat. If he surrendered it, he feared the cauldron might detonate within his body before he could even get a word out, costing him his old life. If he didn't, wouldn't that make him Xu Ying's lackey? If so, all the merit he had accumulated throughout his entire life would vanish into thin air!
*Even if I do hand it over, people will probably still think I'm Xu Ying's lackey,* Master Fire Dragon lamented inwardly. *After all, the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron is inside my body, not Xu Ying's.*
Young Master Yuchuan was both shocked and infuriated. Leaping into the air, he swept his gaze across his surroundings. The Imperial Monarch had deemed the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron a must-have prize, and the task of seizing it had fallen squarely upon his shoulders.
The Imperial Monarch had bestowed immortal talismans and ordered the gods of the Heavenly Dao and the God Kings to assist him. Young Master Yuchuan had originally arranged for three God Kings to snatch the cauldron and lure Xuankong away, after which he himself would intervene against Xuankong's merit avatars of water and fire, matching immortal talisman against immortal talisman, and then have the other nine Immortal King sects step in to take the treasure. However, the appearance of the three Xu Yings had allowed him to go with the flow, letting Xu Ying draw away Xuankong's merit avatars while God King Xuanyu came to seize the cauldron, sparing Yuchuan the need to reveal himself in person.
Who could have guessed that after practically grasping the cauldron in their hands, the whole plan would still end in complete ruin!
What was even more infuriating was: where on earth had the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron gone?
High in the sky, the gods guarding the Four Sumeru Realms were enraged, rising to clash with the Heavenly Dao gods descending from above, and the two sides engaged in fierce combat.
The gods of the Four Sumeru Realms also cultivated the Heavenly Dao. Though their magic power was not as vast and surging as that of the Heavenly Dao gods, their attainments in the Heavenly Dao far surpassed them.
The Heavenly Dao gods were artificial deities who needed neither cultivation nor comprehension; they only needed to activate the Heavenly Dao runes inscribed upon their bodies to unleash Heavenly Dao divine abilities. The gods of the Four Sumeru Realms, on the other hand, had cultivated step by step, comprehending the Heavenly Dao on their own to grasp the Heavenly Dao runes. Consequently, in the application of Dao techniques, they held the upper hand.
Rivers of blood flowed as the two sides slaughtered each other, divine corpses plummeting from the sky one after another. The three God Kings of the Heavenly Dao world were furious and joined the fray themselves, intent on wiping out all the mortal, extraneous gods.
"Scum of the Heavenly Dao world! To disrupt my grand sacrificial ceremony, ruin my merit, and steal my magical treasure!"
Suddenly, the enraged voice of God King Xuankong echoed across the heavens. His two merit avatars of water and fire charged into the fray, mercilessly slaughtering the Heavenly Dao gods. These two avatars possessed the merit of having refined demons in the Taishi Great World, gathering boundless incense smoke qi transformed into immense divine power. Even heavenly gods could not withstand a single exchange before being struck down!
For a time, the sky seemed drenched in blood, and chunks of flesh rained down like a tempest.
Xuankong's two merit avatars were terrifyingly fierce, quickly inflicting heavy casualties among the heavenly gods. The three God Kings could not restrain their wrath and moved in to besiege the two avatars.
God King Xuanxing, known for his fiery temper, sneered, "Xuankong, we left you a path of survival back then by merely driving you out of the Heavenly Dao world and sparing your life. Who knew you would actually dare try to forge another Heavenly Dao world? You cannot be tolerated!"
The two avatars were inferior in strength to the three God Kings and immediately fell into a disadvantage, their aura of merit battered to the brink of shattering.
"Fellow Daoists, it has been a long time. Do you only dare bully my avatars?"
Xuankong's voice carried from afar. Before his person even arrived, the force of his palm struck first. The sheer pressure caved in the surrounding space, forming a gigantic hand that swiped toward the three God Kings!
The expressions of the three God Kings shifted slightly. Each thrust forward pairs of palms to meet the blow. The instant their palm energies collided, brilliant Heavenly Dao runes surfaced around all three God Kings, blanketing the sky.
With muffled groans, the three God Kings staggered backward. God King Xuanyu barked, "All heavenly gods, retreat to the Heavenly Dao world! Fetch the Heavenly Dao divine artifacts to bolster the battle!"
Before the rift in the vault of heaven could seal shut, the heavenly gods fought as they retreated, returning one after another into the Heavenly Dao world.
The three God Kings confronted Xuankong, buying time for the gods to safely withdraw.
The three God Kings and Xuankong were old nemeses who had fought tens of thousands of years ago. Now, however, Xuankong's strength was far greater than before; with his Heavenly Dao having been mended, even the three God Kings fighting together felt strained and could barely hold their ground.
The three God Kings were inwardly alarmed: *If he gets his hands on the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron, even if Xuanhao were resurrected and all four God Kings attacked together, we probably still wouldn't be a match for him!*
Though the three God Kings found it difficult to disengage, the heavenly gods who had returned to the Heavenly Dao world promptly activated their Heavenly Dao divine artifacts. In an instant, more than three hundred Heavenly Dao divine artifacts filled the sky, their heavenly majesty boundless and awe-inspiring!
It seemed as though the entire weight of the Heavenly Dao world was about to crash down.
Seeing this, Xuankong suddenly pulled back, unwilling to fight to the bitter end.
The three God Kings breathed a sigh of relief. Xuanchen and Xuanxing seized the opportunity to return to the Heavenly Dao world, ordering the gods to put away the divine artifacts. God King Xuanyu trailed a step behind, declaring, "Xuankong, we indeed intended to seize your Heavenly Dao supreme treasure, but our move fell short. The Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron is not in our hands!" Having spoken, he too returned to the Heavenly Dao world.
Xuankong looked up at the sky, his face dark as thunder. Flicking his sleeve, he turned and returned to the summit of Mount Sumeru.
He descended upon the altar that had enshrined the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron. Previously, water and fire had intertwined here in refinement, creating an anomaly of a sea of flames and a surging ocean jointly bearing the massive cauldron. Now, that water and fire had become his two merit avatars, while the Huntian Cauldron had vanished without a trace!
The Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron had always been the sacred relic used to pacify demons and quell disorder. When the demonic realm invaded all those years ago, Xuankong had held the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron to suppress the chaos, gathering the Great Dao of the demonic realm into the vessel.
Naturally, his achievements were immense, saving all living beings in the Taishi Great World, so receiving the worship of the world's mortals was beyond reproach. However, if even the lineages left behind by true immortals were to worship him, it would be nothing short of an old man hanging himself—seeking his own doom.
Therefore, Xuankong had claimed none of the credit for himself, attributing it all to the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron. The cauldron received the worship of the world on his behalf, so the great immortal sects had no reason to refuse, coming to pay homage to it as well.
Having undergone forty thousand years of sacrificial refinement, the Huntian Cauldron had grown formidable beyond measure. With its Heavenly Dao perfected, it had become a supreme treasure of the Heavenly Dao—the key to his resurgence. Who could have imagined it would be stolen!
Xuankong's gaze turned sharp as lightning, fixing upon Young Master Yuchuan.
*The Heavenly Dao world is under the Imperial Monarch's control. Since Xuanyu already took the Huntian Cauldron, Bai Yuchuan would have had no need to step in and seize it from him again. The one who took the cauldron must be someone else.*
With that thought, his eyes drifted toward Xu Ying. This masked Chu Tiandu was indeed highly suspicious.
*For Chu Tiandu to steal my Huntian Cauldron seems somewhat improbable. First of all, he isn't Xu Ying,* Xuankong pondered silently. *The Huntian Cauldron corresponds to Xu Ying's realm; only Xu Ying could possibly wrest the cauldron from my grasp.*
He frowned slightly. The appearance of three Xu Yings all at once was truly bizarre.
When he had chased after Xu Ying earlier, he was on the verge of catching him when that Xu Ying abruptly vanished into thin air.
The same had happened when his two merit avatars pursued the white-robed Xu Ying. The white-robed Xu Ying had suddenly disappeared without a trace. The experts from various sects pursuing the green-robed Xu Ying had likely encountered the same thing.
*Just who could have stolen my Huntian Cauldron?*
Xuankong swept his gaze over Master Fire Dragon and Han Zekang, dismissing them immediately. He knew their background inside and out.
*Divine Vulture Palace has fallen into decline, reduced to a tiny sect of just master and disciple in this generation. They lack the ability to steal such a treasure.*
Xuankong tapped his toe lightly against the ground. Instantly, a wisp of green smoke rose from beneath the earth, transforming into a local earth deity. The earth deity had short limbs, looking like a large dressed-up potato. He first bowed toward Xuankong, then stepped onto a puff of green smoke that carried him up to God King Xuankong's ear. Whispering quietly, he kept casting glances toward Xu Ying and Young Master Yuchuan.
God King Xuankong was astonished. According to the earth deity, Xu Ying had stood there calmly ever since offering incense, showing no abnormalities whatsoever. On the contrary, Young Master Yuchuan had spoken cryptically, and an immortal talisman had flown from his sleeve to contend against the talisman inside the Huntian Cauldron.
God King Xuankong looked deeply at the two of them and said, "Young Masters, the theft of the Heavenly Dao supreme treasure is a matter of great gravity. Why don't the two of you stay on Mount Sumeru for a few days?"
Xu Ying replied earnestly, "The God King speaks with reason. Now that the supreme treasure has been stolen, everyone on the mountain is under suspicion. It will not be too late to depart once the thief is uncovered."
Young Master Yuchuan said, "Yuchuan abides by the God King's arrangements."
God King Xuankong summoned a deity and instructed, "Arrange accommodations for both young masters in my Brahma Pavilion."
The deity assented and led the way. Xu Ying and Young Master Yuchuan followed behind him. Master Fire Dragon hesitated for a moment, then braced himself to follow Xu Ying.
Han Zekang hurried to whisper, "Master, why are we joining in the commotion?"
Master Fire Dragon groaned silently, but whispered back, "People currently mistake us for having sided with Chu Tiandu. If we leave now, we'll be beaten to death. It's safer to stick close to him."
The experts who had pursued Xu Ying earlier returned one after another, their voices raised in clamor.
God King Xuankong took to the sky and announced in a resounding voice, "The Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron has been stolen. I must trouble all fellow Daoists to remain as guests on my Mount Sumeru for a few days. Once the culprit is found, I shall see you all off!"
A chorus of murmurs and uproars broke out among the crowd.
Xu Ying and Young Master Yuchuan arrived at the Brahma Pavilion and settled into their respective quarters. Master Fire Dragon and his disciple were housed in the same courtyard as Xu Ying. The thought of the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron resting inside his Realm of Xiyi left Master Fire Dragon feeling deeply uneasy.
Suddenly, three streaks of vital qi—green, yellow, and white—flew through the air and drilled straight into Master Fire Dragon's bald pate.
Not daring to move, Master Fire Dragon quietly looked inward, only to see the three-colored vital qi enter his Realm of Xiyi and condense into three Xu Yings: one in green, one in yellow, and one in white.
"Master Fire Dragon, there's no need to hide," the green-robed Xu Ying said with a grin, acting entirely at ease. "Just manifest yourself and watch me refine the treasure."
Hearing this, Master Fire Dragon mustered the courage to manifest his Primordial Spirit and warned, "Xu Ying, you are stranded on Mount Sumeru; your doom is already sealed! God King Xuankong possesses vast divine abilities, and the other immortal sects have no shortage of experts. It is fundamentally impossible for you to escape with the Huntian Cauldron!"
The yellow-robed Xu Ying chuckled. "If I cannot escape, you master and disciple will be buried alongside me." Master Fire Dragon dared not say another word.
The three Xu Yings approached the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron to inspect it, each frowning. The white-robed Xu Ying said, "Xuankong forged this treasure using my Intertwined Refining realm. The verse for the Intertwined Refining realm goes: *Water and fire intertwine in refinement to birth the crucible cauldron; within the cauldron, the Golden Core shines with radiant light!* Right now, we have the cauldron, but no water and fire!"
Master Fire Dragon hurriedly interjected, "The water and fire transformed into God King Xuankong's merit avatars of water and fire!"
The yellow-robed Xu Ying praised, "The master speaks truly. We cannot simply leave after getting this cauldron; we must slay Xuankong's water and fire merit avatars and claim the water and fire. Only then will the Water-Fire Huntian Cauldron be complete!"
Master Fire Dragon mumbled timidly, "I never said anything about slaying Xuankong's avatars... don't go slandering me..."
The three Xu Yings sat cross-legged around the Huntian Cauldron, speaking in unison: "Today, we shall first refine this cauldron to raise our cultivation and strength, then seek an opportunity to strike down Xuankong's avatars!"
Heavenly Dao runes danced around the three of them, continuously imprinting themselves into the Huntian Cauldron.
Fidgeting uncomfortably, Master Fire Dragon suddenly noticed that some of the Heavenly Dao runes Xu Ying was using looked remarkably familiar: *Wait, Netherworld Dao arts?*
He was adept at exorcising demons and warding off evil, and he immediately recognized that many of Xu Ying's Heavenly Dao runes belonged to the Heavenly Dao of the Netherworld, and were even more exquisite and profound than those handed down in Divine Vulture Palace. Comparing these Heavenly Dao runes to his sect's foundational classic, the *Scripture of the Yin Spirit*, many concepts he had previously failed to grasp suddenly clicked into place!
The green-robed Xu Ying smiled. "Master, observing your path, you walk the lineage of Yin Spirits. As it happens, the four emperors of the Netherworld—Dongyue, Cangwu, Beiyin, and Lunhui—are all quite close with me. I could introduce you to them."
Master Fire Dragon was both startled and overjoyed. He quickly replied, "Our Divine Vulture Palace's *Scripture of the Yin Spirit* is precisely the text documenting the four emperors of the Netherworld. If I could meet these four venerable patriarchs, Fellow Daoist Xu's kindness to my Divine Vulture Palace would be like giving us new life!"
Reaching this point, his heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he thought, *Dongyue, Cangwu, Beiyin, and Lunhui seem to be wanted felons hunted by the Immortal Realm. If I connect with them, um...*
Master Fire Dragon gritted his teeth. *If a man hears the Dao in the morning, he may die content in the evening! Either way, I'm dead meat; if I die after learning the Dao, at least my death will have meaning! It's just a pity for my foolish disciple...*
He opened his eyes and glanced at Han Zekang, who remained utterly oblivious, his heart welling with pity.
Inside the Brahma Pavilion, Xu Ying closed his eyes and gathered his mind, diligently refining the Huntian Cauldron. As long as he fully mastered this treasure and applied it as an external realm, he would possess four of his first life's great realms—realms that had been tempered by an Immortal King-level powerhouse for forty thousand years!
His combat prowess would bound upward significantly!
Just as he was completely lost in his cultivation, absolute darkness suddenly engulfed his surroundings. The boundless blackness seemed to freeze time and space. Within that darkness stood a young monk, frozen as he reached out toward him in a frantic shout.
This young monk was the very "ghost" he had encountered in the ruins of the Great Thunderclap Temple!
*Have I been pulled into the illusion again?*
Xu Ying was startled. Just as he prepared to break free from the vision, the young monk's voice finally pierced through the layers of frozen spacetime, echoing into his ears!
"Flee the other shore...!"
Chapter 381