Above the Great Dao

Below the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler stood an old man and a young boy; the old man had white eyebrows and beard but no wrinkles on his face, looking as if he possessed the vitality of youth.

The young boy was only fourteen or fifteen years old, carrying the unique innocence and boldness of youth, brimming with potential.

Their clothing was full of ancient charm, predominantly black and red in color.

The one blocking the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler was precisely the old man's palm.

His hand was thin and boney, yet when the enormous Black Iron column pressed down, it couldn't budge his palm in the slightest!

Suddenly, Chen Shi's voice rang out: "Trying to leave? Can you really escape?"

On the mountain peak where Wang the Spiritual Official's Fire Mansion was located, thunderous tides surged suddenly, with a crack, lightning burst forth, striking towards them!

As the thunderous tides reached above the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler, Chen Shi also arrived at the spot, riding the crest of the tides. He reached out to grab, and the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler rapidly shrank, becoming only three inches long, shooting upwards with a whoosh.

Chen Shi formed a Sword Finger, resting it before his chest, the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler whirled around him swiftly; looking down, the old and young duo's figures came into view.

He had long suspected that this Demon Transformation was deliberately incited by someone.

Though there were many demons in the underworld, their distribution was not fixed, yet this time the Demon Transformation surrounded Wang the Spiritual Official's Fire Mansion completely, clearly aiming to prevent Wang the Spiritual Official from reviving, thus instigating various Demon Transformations, trying to demonize all the divine beings within the Fire Mansion!

The old man with youthful features lifted his head, locking eyes with Chen Shi, and suddenly took a step back with the young boy's hand in his grasp; that one step took them a hundred miles away.

"Stay!"

Chen Shi stomped heavily, triggering the Qiankun Transformation; the old man stepped forward again, as if he had never left!

Simultaneously, Chen Shi's Sword Finger thrusts out, and with a whoosh, the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler pierced through the air, reaching the old man's brow!

The old man looked startled, yet as he took another step back, he actually moved forward instead, colliding towards the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler.

"Amazing Divine Skills!"

The old man with youthful features lightly pinched with two fingers, but as he clamped onto the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler, he realized something was wrong, for the ruler swelled violently, breaking free from his grip; he couldn't compete with its strength!

The Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler crashed towards him at an astonishing speed, at the same time, the Qiankun Transformation pulled him to collide directly with the ruler!

Chen Shi did not attack him.

He never did.

Earlier, Chen Shi had remotely initiated the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler to smash down, merely relying on its incredible weight for the impact. Even now, Chen Shi did not attack him, but instead let the ruler expand and grow, forcing the old man to crash into it!

Yet precisely because there was no direct attack, the old man was flustered, unable to withstand!

The old man praised, "Child Scholar truly lives up to the reputation. Your use of Spell is extraordinarily exquisite! I can only suppress you with Realm."

A radiant arc emerged from behind him, and with a gentle sweep, the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler collided into the arc. The old man with youthful features laughed, "This item is a great treasure of the Immortal Family, which is a waste in your hands. Let me keep it for you!"

Within that arc was concealed a Void Great Realm, stretching for thousands of miles, it looked as if it would swallow the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler, when Scholar Zhu arrived with Little Dun; Scholar Zhu raised a hand to strike him, the old man with youthful features ceased his smiling, waving his sleeve to meet him.

At the moment their palms met, Scholar Zhu's energy shook, and he couldn't help but open his mouth wide, sticking out a foot-long tongue that hung from his chest.

The old man's face reddened, he stepped back, unable to control the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler.

The ruler shrank rapidly, escaping the arc.

Before the old man could steady himself, he saw Chen Shi offering up a woman beside him, heading directly towards him.

Without hesitation, he invoked the power of the Void Great Realm, drawing a circle with his palm, it transformed into purple, misted with Purple Qi, striking towards Little Dun.

Little Dun screeched, flailing her sleeves to resist.

"Boom!"

The old man with youthful features retreated with the young boy, flying a hundred miles, bleeding from the eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. When he looked up again, he saw the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler flying once more towards him, transforming into a towering column, crashing down!

He raised his hand to catch it, and finally couldn't hold back, spitting a mouthful of fresh blood.

"Master!"

The young boy was terrified, never expecting that the previously confident master would now be severely wounded by Chen Shi and the others!

The old man was a Great Perfection existence within the Mahayana Realm, only half a step away from Harmonization, yet this time he brought the young boy out for some experience. Such a powerful master, unexpectedly, was severely injured by a child and two women!

The old man gritted his teeth, absorbing the arc into his body, forcibly entering Unification, and pushed the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler upwards vigorously, taking the young boy along to flee rapidly.

The Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar, then swiftly soared once more.

The young boy turned his head to look back, only to see Chen Shi bringing the hanging ghost and beautiful girl, clearly intending to eliminate them completely!

The old man with youthful features dropped an object, which was a seed over a meter tall.

The seed took root upon landing and grew rapidly, soon transforming into a large flower.

A beam of demonic light shot from the flower bud straight into the skies.

Chen Shi urged the Heaven Measuring Iron Ruler, and with a thunderous boom, heavily smashed it onto the Demon Flower, which hadn't even had time to hatch before being reduced to pulp.

The old man with a youthful face threw out a second Demon Seed and took the opportunity to leave.

Chen Shi crushed the second Demon Seed, then looked for the old man with a youthful face, but he was already nowhere to be seen.

The moonlight was vast and gloomy, making it incredibly difficult to find them.

"They mobilize Demon Transformation, attempting to destroy the Dao lineage of the Huaxia Gods. Who are these people? Are they from the Thirteen Families?"

Chen Shi did not chase, lost in thought, "If this person truly intends to strike against the Huaxia Gods, then he will surely target other gods as well. We will meet again someday."

They returned to Fire Mansion Mountain, where Wang Lingguan had already slain all the demons, absorbing the Demon Soul, making him stronger than before.

"Little True King, you are excellent!"

Wang Lingguan praised Chen Shi endlessly, very satisfied, saying, "You are much more generous than the former True King. I understand your wish."

He recited True Words silently, and the Fire Mansion grew taller and larger, with sunlight pouring forth, illuminating the entire mountain.

Beneath the eaves of the Fire Mansion, it seemed as if there was another world, just as the sun aligned, radiating its glow.

The underworld was dim; though illuminated by the bright moon, not much could be seen. But the sunlit peak stood bright and clear, bringing joy and hope to the people of many nearby villages and towns.

"Little True King, I am merely a clone. The sunlight can only shine across this mountain. When my five hundred brothers awaken, perhaps it can illuminate further, providing fertile land within a hundred miles."

Wang Lingguan gazed around, reminiscing, and sighed, "Has the sun gone out again? Back then, it did appear, and many perished. The weather has already turned cold, and a snow disaster is probably imminent; who knows how many will freeze to death? I can, as I did back then, use my fire to warm and light Fire Mansion Mountain, but I cannot reach further."

He shook his head, as he was merely a clone, and protecting this region was his limit.

"How long did the snow disaster last?" Chen Shi inquired.

"It snowed for about two or three years."

Wang Lingguan said, "Later it stopped. The only places that could survive were those under the coverage of the Huaxia Gods, with the population declining sharply, one in ten surviving. The situation lasted for over forty years before it ended. Those who survived were the second generation after the catastrophe, perhaps only one percent of the previous population."

Chen Shi remained silent; only one percent of the population survived, no wonder much of history was buried.

So many people died, without them, how would the race's memories be passed on?

He steadied his mind, seeking counsel, "Wang Lingguan, after you endured this catastrophe, why did you sleep? Why were your Golden Bodies shattered? What happened back then?"

"Despair Slope struck, destroying the world's Dao orthodoxy. I could not resist; my Golden Body was shattered, and the Golden Bodies of all five hundred brothers were broken."

Wang Lingguan declared, "I had no choice but to descend the Daoist Field, leaving it for the future."

"Despair Slope struck?"

Chen Shi was taken aback, why did Despair Slope want to destroy the gods?

He recalled another matter; when he discovered the first small broken temple, where he cultivated, sunlight streamed from the temple. The next day, a meteor from the heavens destroyed the temple along with the mountain it stood on!

Could the meteor also have been Despair Slope's doing, not the hand of a True God?

Wang Lingguan continued, "Despair Slope's power is strong, but our strength is also not weak. However, Despair Slope has Immortals; we cannot defeat them. The Lady instructed us to descend the Daoist Field, avoiding their edge. In the future, she would send people to awaken us."

Chen Shi's mind raced, his voice somewhat hoarse, "Immortals?"

Wang Lingguan's expression was grave, "True Immortals, far from half Immortals or the polluted Immortals of the True King Era. Immortals came to fight us, saying they gathered incense for the True God and would not allow foreign gods to appear. They are too powerful."

Chen Shi was filled with awe.

In today's world, the Righteous Qi had transformed into Evil Qi, and anyone in Harmonization would be affected, causing evil transformations. The higher the cultivation, the stronger the evil transformation!

How did the Immortals of Despair Slope avoid such effects?

"Little True King, awakening the gods cannot save the people."

Wang Lingguan suddenly spoke earnestly, "Even if you use the West King Jade Seal to awaken all Huaxia Divine Beings, you would only save a portion of lives. The True King proved that we gods cannot save the world."

Chen Shi said, "I want to awaken you, revive Lady."

Wang Lingguan was shocked in heart and mind, slowly nodding, "When you revive Lady, I will lead my five hundred brothers to help you."

Chen Shi expressed his gratitude, hesitating, "Does the Spiritual Official still eat young boys and girls?"

Wang Lingguan laughed heartily, "I stopped eating them long ago. I was initially a City God during the Great Song period, eating young boys and girls. Later, I was subdued by Heavenly Master Sa Tian with teachings, formally cultivating. Now I am a Taoist, how could I still eat young boys and girls."

He paused and added, "But I will eat the wicked."

Chen Shi went down the mountain.

Wang Lingguan sat on the Divine Shrine, looking at the empty Fire Mansion. The Divine Shrine originally housed five hundred Spiritual Officials and Guardian Gods, but now he was the only one left.

"Back in those days, we fought heaven and earth, protected the land and people. Today, demonic atmosphere rises again; when you awaken, we will continue to fight against the hordes of demons!"