The unprecedented hunt was underway across the land of the Beast Pen.
Most cultivators obtained black goat hides merely to refine them into Dharma Robes for emergencies, but some cultivators had indeed chosen to venture into the Buddhist World and explore the opportunities hidden within.
Although the Buddhist World's resources were scarce, some cultivators discovered that the ashes left after Corpse Fuel burned out could suppress the aberrant loss of control in their bodies and souls.
This material had an effect similar to Weird Dust, though it was somewhat weaker.
Groups of two or three rogue cultivators wandered around the outskirts of the Buddhist World with clearly defined roles. Every few meters, they would set up a triggered artifact beneath their feet.
The artifacts could produce a cacophony of noise, thereby attracting the attention of the black goats.
However, the artifacts were rather crudely refined, so once discovered by the black goats, they would be completely destroyed within moments.
After skillfully setting up the artifacts, they affixed lightness talismans to their legs, doing their best to move without making a sound.
Someone among the rogue cultivators was clearly responsible for listening for sounds. After all, Corpse Fuel was accompanied by the sound of a wooden fish being struck, making it relatively easy to distinguish in the silent darkness.
Once a target was located, they did not communicate with one another. They tacitly moved to the side of the Corpse Fuel, then each grabbed one of its limbs and hurried toward the edge of the Buddhist World.
Their detailed understanding of the Buddhist World's rules was entirely thanks to the Restraint Officers' Hall.
The Restraint Officers' Hall had thoroughly explored the five hundred li surrounding the Buddhist World's outskirts. Going any deeper was restricted by the limitations of the black goat Dharma Robes.
There was also no need to worry about Corpse Fuel running out. This strange resource would continuously appear.
It was like a malignant growth born from the Buddhist World, forming a mutually restraining relationship with the black goats. Somehow, it seemed to be luring others inside.
After figuring out the Buddhist World's rules, the Restraint Officers' Hall deliberately spread them by word of mouth through the black markets frequented by rogue cultivators. Otherwise, how could any rogue cultivator have dared to venture inside?
Even the effect of Corpse Fuel ashes had actually been discovered by Ren Qing.
Ren Qing guessed that after Dipankara Buddha completed its transformation, it would very likely continue expanding the Buddhist World. Regardless of whether his preparations would prove useful, it was better to prepare in advance so that he would not be caught off guard when the time came.
The bonfire distorted the air, its gray-white flames dancing continuously.
The rogue cultivators breathed sighs of relief and each removed the black goat Dharma Robes stuck to their bodies. A tearing pain still came from their skin.
If a black goat Dharma Robe was worn for too long, it would gradually fuse with the skin and even connect to the blood vessels. With the slightest carelessness, it could tear away a layer of flesh.
Their Dharma Robes were not even complete. Every time they took them off, they ended up covered in blood and had to immediately apply healing ointment.
As rogue cultivators, they simply could not afford to purchase black goat Dharma Robes.
The inferior Dharma Robes were pieced together from scraps of hide, which should have been leftover material from artifact refiners making Dharma Robes.
With the bonfire beside them, they recovered some courage and began chatting in hushed voices.
Their conversation consisted entirely of negative news about the worsening situation. After all, within just a few short years, True Immortal Buddhas had emerged one after another.
Now even cultivators above the Earth Immortal realm were no longer uncommon. How could mortals possibly protect themselves?
Many forces were already secretly excavating hidden cultivation caves, intending to hide underground and survive the disaster, whose duration was unknown.
Of course, disasters would certainly come with opportunities. Only when the major and minor forces underwent another reshuffling would rogue cultivators have a chance to rise.
"Yue Laowu, what is that?!"
Pang Tong, who was responsible for keeping watch over the group, looked extremely tense and could not help shouting out. His cry caused countless black goats nearby to erupt into a frenzy.
It seemed as though black mist were surging. Those were invisible black goats crashing against the light.
"What are you doing? Keep quiet."
Yue Laowu frowned as he watched the bonfire's consumption rate suddenly soar. He hurriedly covered Pang Tong's mouth with his hand and followed the direction the other man was pointing.
"This..."
He sucked in a cold breath. The technique he cultivated was an ocular technique, and relying on the bonfire's light, he could barely see within ten meters.
Yue Laowu noticed a figure walking through the darkness as though no one else were there.
If he had not mistaken it, it should have been a black goat unique to the Beast Pen. However, its body was at least a little over two meters tall, with two long, narrow dragon horns atop its head.
The black goats of the Buddhist World were affected by Dipankara Buddha Qi. Their forms were formless, colorless, and indefinite, making them more akin to the legendary Supreme Heavenly Demon.
The black goat transformed from Ren Qing was different. It clearly possessed a physical body.
Although the Buddhist World bordered the Beast Pen, no one knew why a Beast Pen black goat had appeared here. It seemed to foreshadow some kind of connection.
The black goat glanced back at the blazing bonfire before quickening its pace.
Yue Laowu swallowed hard. Without hesitation, he gathered his belongings and intended to leave the Buddhist World immediately. Otherwise, he would not even know how he had died.
Someone among them cultivated a fire-type technique. He opened his mouth and inhaled a small amount of the bonfire, causing his teeth to swell until they resembled glowing pieces of jade held between his lips.
The rogue cultivators hurriedly put on their Dharma Robes and fled the Buddhist World with the aid of the Corpse Fuel's aura.
"Ah Lin, stop looking. You could lose your life..."
Yue Laowu noticed that a cultivator had inadvertently fallen several steps behind and immediately warned him.
They were only a few minutes away from escaping the Buddhist World, but if they became separated, it would be very easy to become lost in the darkness.
Ah Lin nodded blankly before quickening his pace.
The exposed skin of his body was bluish-purple. He was clearly cultivating the Dead Man's Sutra, which was not particularly unusual among rogue cultivators.
Ren Qing had chosen to approach the group because of Ah Lin. In his eyes, the other man was very likely under Wuming's control.
He merely wanted to see how Wuming would behave in the face of the Buddhist World.
With the skin pouch covering him, the black goats no longer paid any attention to Ren Qing. However, the skin pouch's advancement remained an unavoidable problem.
The skin pouch was firmly stuck at the peak of the Martial Practitioner realm. No matter how much it absorbed Heavenly Demon aura, it could not shake the solid bottleneck.
Every time Ren Qing breathed, dense Heavenly Demon aura poured from his mouth and nose. This was mainly because the Dreamflower could only digest a limited amount of Heavenly Demon aura, while the skin pouch could only absorb ten to twenty percent of it.
A skin pouch at the Martial Practitioner realm would have a hard time supporting him all the way to Jingzhou.
Ren Qing realized that the skin pouch could collapse at the slightest mistake. The corrosive nature of the Heavenly Demon aura was displayed to the fullest.
He had tried many methods, but none were suitable for the skin pouch.
The skin pouch existed between an artifact and a living creature, yet it possessed none of the advantages of either. Instead, it seemed to combine the shortcomings of both.
When cultivators broke through a realm's bottleneck, their bodies and souls would undergo the baptism of a leap in life, otherwise they could not bear techniques of a higher realm.
Artifacts, on the other hand, were not living things, so they required external forces to assist their own transformation.
For example, the aberrant fetus artifact refining method created by Ren Qing could allow ordinary artifacts to possess the conditions for undergoing multiple transformations.
Ren Qing did want to fuse an aberrant fetus into the skin pouch, but what kind of Restraint Officer artifact could possibly be compatible with Heavenly Demon aura?
One option was to forcibly advance it, instantly devouring a huge amount of Heavenly Demon aura, then replacing the Ghost Immortal Office with the higher Human Immortal Office or Earth Immortal Office.
It was theoretically feasible. The concern was that the skin pouch might be unable to control the excessive Heavenly Demon aura, causing flesh-transformation and turning it into a genuine black goat.
Ren Qing fell into deep thought. After continuing onward for more than ten li, the skin pouch unknowingly reached its limit, and the Heavenly Demon aura gradually began to spiral out of control.
Through the Immortal Office, he discovered that the skin pouch had become extraordinarily active.
Ren Qing was somewhat helpless and could only try refining the skin pouch into a Ghost Embryo Artifact, selecting strange items that were as compatible with the black goat as possible.
If the skin pouch could not advance any further, he could only rely on Dreamflowers to reach Jingzhou.
If there were enough Dreamflowers, they could also block the erosion of the Heavenly Demon aura, but how could that compare to transforming into a black goat and acting without restraint?
With the skin pouch covering him, Ren Qing could cast techniques without attracting the black goats.
He found an open area and lit a bonfire. The ghost shadow beneath his feet spat out piles of Corpse Fuel, all of which he had collected along the way.
However, Ren Qing was now a full six hundred li from the outside world, and the bonfire consumed two pieces of Corpse Fuel every breath. His reserves would not last long.
His consciousness entered the Treasure Pavilion of the Stomach World, where all kinds of strange items came into view.
Besides these, there were several rows of bookshelves filled with books. They contained forbidden techniques that could not be passed on, and which could easily incite slaughter.
Ren Qing's thoughts stirred, and he suddenly remembered the Beast Pen Method he had obtained in the past.
[Spirit-Entering Technique]
[The Spirit-Entering Technique was created by the Supreme Heavenly Demon. To cultivate it, one had to use the body as firewood to ignite the soul's spiritual flame and absorb the remains of Heavenly Demons. Only by abandoning the body and refining the soul could it be mastered.]
Heavenly Daozi had originally suffered the permanent fall of his body and soul into the abyss because of the Spirit-Entering Technique, ultimately becoming part of the Supreme Heavenly Demon.
Although Ren Qing had resurrected Heavenly Daozi in the Stomach World, that was merely a false soul nurtured from a remnant soul. It was difficult to say whether it possessed any of his memories from life.
After hesitating for a moment, he decided to read through the Spirit-Entering Technique.
If the skin pouch could master it, perhaps it could solve the problem of its inability to advance, allowing Ren Qing to indirectly control the black goat skin pouch.
Ren Qing held a copy of the Spirit-Entering Technique and carefully examined it beside the bonfire.
The countless bacterial souls within the Mud Pellet Palace were also analyzing the contents of the Spirit-Entering Technique.
He had never seriously studied the Spirit-Entering Technique before. His impression of it had remained at the level of a Beast Pen Method that caused the soul to undergo aberration by burning the body.
But unexpectedly, the Beast Pen Method was more complicated than he had imagined.
How should he put it? The Beast Pen Method was very similar to the divine spirit invocation techniques of his previous life. In essence, it guided the aura of an immortal or deity into the body, thereby strengthening oneself.
At the same time, part of the soul would undergo deification, drawing closer to the immortal or deity being visualized. The Supreme Heavenly Demon took advantage of this opportunity to begin assimilation.
The Spirit-Entering Technique invoked the "Ghost Metal Goat" of the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions. Perhaps the image of a "goat" was relatively compatible with the Daode Heavenly Venerable.
The Ghost Metal Goat was also known as Yu Gui. Yu Gui governed fright and was therefore mostly inauspicious.
"The four stars of Gui are called Yu Gui. They form the head and eyes of the Vermilion Bird. The white object resembling powder or cotton at the center of Gui is called Accumulated Corpse, also called Heavenly Corpse. It is like a cloud but not a cloud, like a star but not a star. Only its aura can be seen."
The information recorded in ancient texts was extremely compatible with the black goat. Yu also carried the meaning of "the multitude," so Yu Gui could be understood as meaning the multitude of ghosts.
Ren Qing hesitated for a moment before putting on the skin pouch and extinguishing the bonfire.
His consciousness descended into the Stomach World and arrived at the mountain guarded by Heavenly Daozi. The tranquility and peace of the village were completely incomparable to the Buddhist World.
A statue of Heavenly Daozi stood firmly at the entrance of the village, protecting the mortals from attacks by wild beasts.
Chen Changsheng had long since reincarnated. His soul had disappeared in an extremely mysterious manner, and unraveling the mystery within the womb could only depend on him.
Heavenly Daozi remained unmoved, as though he did not possess even the slightest trace of intelligence.
Ren Qing wanted to ask Heavenly Daozi's opinion regarding the Spirit-Entering Technique, so his consciousness transformed into the appearance of Huang Qi from Wuwei Daoist Temple and arrived at the mountain village.
The village lived an isolated existence, with traces of techniques visible everywhere. They should all have been the result of Heavenly Daozi making use of his Immortal Office.
For example, the spring halfway up the mountain was connected to a tributary of a water source within the mountain.
In theory, it should have dried up five years ago. At that point, the villagers would have needed to travel twenty li to a lake to fetch water.
The lake was certainly less safe than the spring. After all, the wild beasts in the forest would also go there to drink.
Under the influence of Heavenly Daozi, the spring continued to produce water without end, merely switching to another tributary in an extremely ingenious manner.
With Heavenly Daozi's protection, the self-sufficient mountain village had actually achieved a life free of worries over food and clothing.
Without the pressure of survival, the villagers lived extremely simple lives and could even leave their doors unlocked at night.
"Pairing off, ospreys cry, upon the islet in the river..."
Ren Qing watched as a scholar in the village shouldered his luggage and bid farewell to his family before walking toward a town a hundred li away, intending to pursue an official career through the examinations.
A firefly emitting a faint glow rested on the scholar's shoulder.
It was transformed from Heavenly Daozi's aura. Although the other party had not cultivated any techniques, his Immortal Office provided something resembling the ability to make words follow the Dao.
Heavenly Daozi was like the parent of a wandering child, accompanying the scholar until he was sent out of the mountains.
When Ren Qing had originally taught Dao births Dao to Heavenly Daozi, it was not because he wanted the latter to cultivate it, but because the technique could allow him to comprehend an Immortal Office.
He suddenly felt a trace of guilt about disturbing Heavenly Daozi.
Before Wuwei Daoist Temple was destroyed, Heavenly Daozi had ruled the entirety of Jingzhou. What he had yearned for should have been a life in which his Dao lineage was passed down through generations. Was he really supposed to disturb him?
Ren Qing stood at the entrance of the village for a long while, finally intending to withdraw his consciousness.
At that moment, countless fireflies gathered around the statue of Heavenly Daozi, and an elderly white-haired Daoist emerged from the statue.
"Dao births Dao, Wuwei Dao..."
The villagers were completely accustomed to the strange phenomenon surrounding the mountain god statue. It seemed that only Ren Qing could see it.
Heavenly Daozi looked at Ren Qing with a smile, his eyes filled with an indescribable complexity. Ren Qing had only ever seen such a look in his long-deceased mother.
Ren Qing opened his mouth several times, unable to speak. In the end, he forced out a single sentence.
"Grandmaster, I have not failed you. The Dao lineage is still here."
"Hahahahaha..."
Heavenly Daozi stroked his white beard and laughed until his entire body trembled.
His memories seemed to return to the sealed cultivation cave, where he had pried open coffin after coffin belonging to the people of Jingzhou, desperately searching for a way to break the Heavenly Dao Method, only to find endless despair.
Heavenly Daozi's life had been far more tragic than Chen Changsheng's.
He had lived in a lie his entire life. From the moment he first set foot upon the path of cultivation, he had actually been a puppet selected by Fortune Virtue Earth Immortal. Even his consciousness had been subtly altered.
It was only after coming into contact with the Beast Pen Method, the very technique Chen Changsheng had disdained, that Heavenly Daozi cultivated it without hesitation in order to gain control over his body and soul.
He wanted to fight for a chance for tens of thousands of Daoist temple disciples to escape the Heavenly Dao Insect.
Ren Qing already knew the outcome. In the presence of Fortune Virtue Earth Immortal, even if Heavenly Daozi used the Beast Pen Method, he could not change anything.
"Huang Qi, have you been well all these years?"
"Grandmaster, this disciple has already reached the Heavenly Aberration realm. I suppose I have obtained longevity and escaped death."
Heavenly Daozi said with relief, "Truly excellent. What a pity that I am only a soul body. Otherwise, I could have accompanied you for a drink."
"This disciple will drink with you."
Although Heavenly Daozi was merely at the Yang Soul realm, he was the person Ren Qing admired the most.
His entire life had been one of contending with Heaven, contending with immortals, and contending with humanity. Relying on limited means, he had nearly escaped the control of a True Immortal.
Ren Qing put the Spirit-Entering Technique out of his mind. With a wave of his hand, a wooden table appeared beneath the banyan tree, with several small dishes and a few liang of fine wine upon it.
The food and wine were both created through the Zhili Technique. Not only did they taste almost identical to the real thing, they could also help stabilize Heavenly Daozi's soul body.
Heavenly Daozi happily sat down and took a sip from his wine cup.
The fiery wine churned across his tongue, but as it flowed down his throat into his stomach, it transformed into the freshest and purest nectar.
"Good wine. What is it called?"
"Drunken Dream, Mortal Life."
"Drunken Dream, Mortal Life... Drunken Dream, Mortal Life..."
Heavenly Daozi murmured the name with a bewildered look in his eyes. Ren Qing had no idea what he was thinking, perhaps he was recalling memories from the past.
The two remained silent. In the end, Heavenly Daozi spoke first.
"Huang Qi, tell me about Wuwei Daoist Temple these past years."
Ren Qing understood that Heavenly Daozi was, after all, a false soul nurtured from a remnant soul. His memories were certainly incomplete. The fact that he could recover his intelligence was already remarkable.
"It has to begin with a cultivator named Ren Qing. He was Chen Changsheng's junior and also a member of the Restraint Officers' Hall..."
Ren Qing omitted the information he should not reveal and began with the time when he had still been a Corpse Burner, weaving in matters concerning Wuwei Daoist Temple.
Heavenly Daozi's expression changed several times. Upon learning of the tragic state of Jingzhou under the rule of the Heavenly Dao Insect, he could not help downing several cups of Drunken Dream, Mortal Life.
At least the Dao lineage had been preserved, and with the assistance of the Restraint Officers' Hall, it had escaped the control of the Heavenly Dao Insect.
The great weight in Heavenly Daozi's heart finally fell away. Under the stimulation of the wine, he coughed repeatedly before finally exhaling a long breath of wine.
He raised his wine cup above his head and gazed at the rising full moon.
"To Ren Qing."
"To Ren Qing..."
Ren Qing made the same gesture. The two looked at each other and could not help smiling. There were many things that did not need to be said. Everything was understood without words.
"Grandmaster, shall I take you to see the current state of Wuwei Daoist Temple?"
Heavenly Daozi was like someone who had been away from home for many years, unexpectedly hesitating over whether he should agree.
Seeing this, Ren Qing directly used the Zhili Technique. The wooden table rapidly rose into the sky, disappearing into the clouds in the blink of an eye. The full moon seemed within arm's reach.
Before Heavenly Daozi could react, they had already arrived at the Heavenly Dao Palace.
Dense Nether Yuan rushed toward them. An incomparably magnificent city appeared not far away, covering an area at least ten times larger than Wuwei City.
Tens of thousands of Daoist temple disciples rode flying swords through the air.
The streets of the city were bustling, and the Daoist robes of the disciples bore the words "Dao births Dao."
Regardless of their primary cultivation technique, they would always cultivate the Netherworld Heavenly Insect Method as well, and their shadows took on the appearance of Heavenly Dao Insects.
At the center of the city stood a statue several thousand meters tall.
The statue bore the appearance of Heavenly Daozi, its long hair spreading behind its head, its face carrying an unchanging arrogance. One hand pointed toward Heaven while the other pointed toward Earth.
If Heavenly Daozi had not been a soul body, he would probably have been shedding tears at this moment.
Was this not precisely the independent Dao lineage he had sought back then, one independent of the Heavenly Dao Insect? Now that he was witnessing later generations achieve it, the greatest wish of his heart had finally been fulfilled.
Heavenly Daozi suddenly felt somewhat unwilling to leave it at that. He wanted to see the future of Wuwei Daoist Temple.
He also wanted to see just how terrifying the Fortune Virtue Earth Immortal buried within Jingzhou truly was, and contend with the disciples of his generation from Wuwei Daoist Temple once more.
Ren Qing canceled the Zhili Technique, and the two returned beneath the banyan tree in the mountain village.
Without needing Ren Qing to say anything, Heavenly Daozi took the initiative to speak.
"Huang Qi, once I choose a mountain god to inherit my position, I will reincarnate."
Heavenly Daozi looked toward the children playing after finishing their evening meal. Back then, his own disciples had also joined Wuwei Daoist Temple as young Daoist novices.
Now, with only himself being controlled by the Heavenly Dao Insect, perhaps he would simply accept his predetermined fate.
"Very well. This disciple will await Grandmaster."
With Heavenly Daozi's cultivation experience, retracing the path and advancing to the Yang Soul realm would not be difficult. If he established a sufficiently solid foundation, he might even have a chance to challenge the Heavenly Aberration realm.
"This disciple will teach you the techniques..."
"No need. Once I unravel the mystery within the womb, I will naturally seek out the Dao lineage of Wuwei Daoist Temple. It will not take more than a few years."
Ren Qing could foresee that, given the flow of time within the Stomach World, perhaps only several decades would pass in the outside world before Heavenly Daozi returned to the Yang Soul realm.
He no longer concealed anything. He filled Heavenly Daozi's cup with wine.
"Grandmaster, do you still remember the Beast Pen Method?"
Heavenly Daozi's pupils widened, and his fragmented memories gradually formed a complete whole.
The pain originating from instinct caused his entire body to tremble. The Beast Pen Method inflicted endless torment upon the body and soul.
As one's tolerance for pain increased, the Beast Pen Method would become even more severe, continuing until the cultivator's mind collapsed and the Supreme Heavenly Demon seized the opportunity to enter.
"Huang Qi!!"
"Do not touch the Beast Pen Method, no matter what. It is something even more bizarre than the Heavenly Dao Method."
Heavenly Daozi spoke solemnly. Only now did he realize how naive he had been back then. The Supreme Heavenly Demon could devour a living being completely, leaving nothing behind.
"I have no intention of cultivating it. The situation outside now requires the Beast Pen Method."
Ren Qing told Heavenly Daozi about Dipankara Buddha's transformation into a Heavenly Demon. He also explained that he had used black goat hide to create artifacts to resist Heavenly Demon aura.
Heavenly Daozi's brows drew tightly together upon hearing this.
"My memories are too fragmented. The Trance Method should have been obtained from the Beast Pen, but I have completely forgotten the details."
"Before Chen Changsheng reincarnated, he once came to Apricot Blossom Village to find me. At the time, we actually discussed the Trance Method. The two of us had both cultivated it."
Ren Qing hurriedly asked, "What is the fundamental principle of the Trance Method?"
"Hiss..."
Heavenly Daozi held his wine cup and fell into a daze. Only after a moment did he answer.
"According to what you, Huang Qi, have said, immortals and deities all possess Immortal Offices, but the Supreme Heavenly Demon is probably an exception."
"The Trance Method visualizes an existence similar to the Supreme Heavenly Demon. Once mastered, it attracts Heavenly Demon aura to descend, assimilating the body and soul."
Ren Qing licked his lips.
"Grandmaster, you mean..."
"If one does not visualize the Ghost Metal Goat, can one avoid the drawbacks of the Beast Pen Method?"
Heavenly Daozi was rendered speechless. He smiled and said, "If you do not visualize the Ghost Metal Goat, is that still the Beast Pen Method? Unless you, Huang Qi, can find an existence similar to the Supreme Heavenly Demon."
An existence similar to the Supreme Heavenly Demon...
Ren Qing could not help falling into thought. With the information flow, he was confident that he could perfect the Beast Pen Method. At the very least, he would not have to fear hidden flaws remaining within it.
He did not know what the Supreme Heavenly Demon and Dipankara Buddha were plotting, but there was certainly no force capable of preventing the upheaval from occurring.
If he could truly create a Beast Pen Method distinct from the Supreme Heavenly Demon, perhaps he could thrive like a fish in water amid the disaster sweeping across the world.
"Huang Qi, do not act recklessly."
Seeing Ren Qing's expression, Heavenly Daozi knew that he still intended to experiment and hurriedly tried to stop him.
"Rest assured, Grandmaster. This disciple is famous for being cautious."
Ren Qing already had a rough plan. If he could make proper use of it, the Heavenly Court would become the primary faith of this world.
The immortals and Buddhas are dead. The Heavenly Court shall rise.