Zhang Kui Asks the Way in Investiture of the Gods

Qishan, the Shang army camp.

The chaotic mist had gradually dissipated, but the residual Daoist energy in the air continued to ripple, like ripples spreading across a calm lake that lingered for a long time.

After returning to the camp, Yang Sen's face remained grim and stern. He stood on the ridge at the edge of the camp, his gaze fixed on the direction of the Xiqi army camp, the veins on the back of his hand gripping the sword bulging, his knuckles turning terrifyingly white.

Of the three powerful auras that suddenly descended just now, he would never mistake one of them—the Venerable Puxian of Baihe Cave in Jiugong Mountain.

Zhang Kui noticed Yang Sen's unusual behavior and slowly stepped forward.

"Fellow Daoist Yang," Zhang Kui spoke calmly, "were those three auras just now those of Golden Immortals from the Chan Sect?"

Yang Sen slowly turned around, a complex expression flashing in his eyes. He hadn't expected Zhang Kui to be able to accurately determine the identity of the person in such a brief exchange.

"Fellow Daoist, you have excellent eyesight." Yang Sen took a deep breath, his voice carrying a barely perceptible hint of despair. "One of them is the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra from the White Crane Cave of Jiugong Mountain. This person is a close friend of Manjushri, and his cultivation is comparable to Manjushri's."

Zhang Kui's heart sank.

"As for the other two..." Yang Sen paused, "Judging from their auras, they should be Ju Liusun from Feiyun Cave on Jialong Mountain and Cihang Daoren from Luojia Cave on Putuo Mountain. Of these two, Ju Liusun is skilled at turning the ground into steel and binding immortals with magic, while Cihang Daoren has the Three Lights Divine Water and the Pure Glazed Bottle. Both are extremely troublesome Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect."

Four Great Immortals have gathered here!

"Great Luo Golden Immortals are one with the Dao, transcending the Three Realms and outside the Five Elements." Yang Sen's voice interrupted Zhang Kui's thoughts. "They have already transcended the constraints of life and death, time and space, possessing inexhaustible magical power. As long as the Three Flowers of Auspicious Clouds remain, their bodies will not perish. We can only barely manage to contend with Manjushri alone. Now, all four of them are gathered..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.

Zhang Kui remained silent.

"However—" Yang Sen suddenly changed the subject, a resolute glint in his eyes, "Fellow Daoist Zhang need not worry. My two brothers and I have our own ways to protect you."

Zhang Kui was taken aback upon hearing this.

Yang Sen turned and walked towards the southeast corner of the camp, gesturing for Zhang Kui to follow. The two walked one after the other across the gravel path and arrived at a naturally formed stone platform.

"Fellow Daoist, have you ever considered," Yang Sen stood in the center of the stone platform, his robes fluttering in the mountain wind, "why this Qiankun Wuji Array is based on the three pearls of Creation, Earth Opening, and Primordial Chaos? And why it draws upon the pure and turbid energies to evolve into a chaotic vortex?"

Zhang Kui's heart skipped a beat.

When he was studying the formation before, he vaguely sensed its extraordinary nature. The flow of pure and turbid energies and the evolution of the chaotic vortex subtly corresponded to the image of the beginning of the primordial world.

"What do you mean, fellow Daoist?" Zhang Kui asked tentatively.

Yang Sen did not answer directly, but instead raised his hand and drew three profound trajectories in the void. Those trajectories seemed simple, but they contained a kind of ancient and boundless Daoist charm—pure Qi rises, turbid Qi sinks, and chaos resides in the center, the three cycling endlessly, regenerating endlessly.

"The creation of heaven and earth, the origin of chaos." Yang Sen enunciated each word clearly. "Fellow Daoist, what comes to mind when these three are combined?"

A sudden inspiration struck Zhang Kui.

The creation of heaven and earth—pure energy rises and evolves into the stars and constellations.

Pidi—turbid air sinks down and condenses into the primordial land.

Hunyuan – Chaos resides in the center, harmonizing purity and turbidity, giving rise to all things.

When these three are combined, isn't that exactly...?

"Pangu created the world!" Zhang Kui blurted out, his voice filled with undisguised shock.

A hint of approval flashed in Yang Sen's eyes, then he raised his hand to stop Zhang Kui from continuing: "It's good that you understand, fellow Daoist; there's no need to spell it out. The deepest mystery of this formation is to simulate the creation of heaven and earth by Pangu, using the pure and turbid energies to evolve into chaos, and then using chaos to return to its origin. If it can be fully activated, its power... is enough to shake even a Grand Luo Golden Immortal!"

Zhang Kui was shocked. He had simply thought the formation was exquisite, but he never expected it to be so profound.

To simulate Pangu creating the world—what a crazy idea!

But on second thought, the Jie Sect was famous for its array formations, and the Tongtian Sect Leader taught without discrimination. It was not impossible that his disciples could develop such a heaven-defying array formation.

"However..." Yang Sen's tone suddenly turned heavy, "To fully activate this formation, a price must be paid. The three pearls—the Heaven-Opening Pearl, the Earth-Opening Pearl, and the Primordial Pearl—must be guided by the blood, flesh, and soul of the one who sets up the formation, borrowing the power of the pearls to evolve the formation. At that time, the one who sets up the formation will..."

He swallowed back the words "body perishes and the Dao vanishes," but Zhang Kui already understood.

Sacrifice yourself to the battle!

"No!" Zhang Kui said decisively, "This method is too dangerous. Although the four Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect are strong, we are not without a way out."

"It's too late." Yang Sen shook his head and smiled bitterly. "Fellow Daoist Zhang, you underestimate the Great Luo Golden Immortals. If they really want to break the formation, they won't give us any time. Manjushri is injured, and Samantabhadra and the others will definitely not give up easily. At the latest, they will join forces to launch a strong attack by tomorrow. By then, we won't even have a chance to activate the formation."

He paused, a hint of reminiscence flashing in his eyes: "Besides, my eldest brother is already gone. The four of us brothers are one. Rather than live a life of ignominy, let's have a glorious battle and let those arrogant Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect witness the sharpness of our Jie Sect's array formations!"

"Second brother is right."

"You and I, brothers, will embark on an adventure together in 'Zhang Kui Asks the Way of the Gods' through the pen of the late-ripening rice, in the world of cola novels. We should advance and retreat together."

Both voices came from not far away.

Zhang Kui turned his head and saw Gao Youqian and Li Xingba standing side by side, both with the same resolute look in their eyes.

"Fellow Daoist Zhang." Gao Youqian stepped forward, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "We are deeply grateful for your help these past few days. However, this battle is beyond the power of you alone to turn the tide. My two brothers and I have made up our minds to sacrifice ourselves for the battle and have a contest with the Golden Immortal of the Chan Sect."

Li Xingba also said in a gruff voice, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to persuade us any further. We must avenge our elder brother! We must also fight for the honor of the Jie Sect! Even if we die, we will make those members of the Chan Sect pay the price!"

Zhang Kui looked at the three people in front of him and didn't know how to start speaking.

He had experienced life and death and witnessed too many sacrifices, but the resolute determination of the three people in front of him still shocked him.

"Fellow Daoists!" Zhang Kui took a deep breath, about to offer further advice...

"Report..."

The sound of hurried footsteps came from afar. A personal guard rushed over and knelt on one knee: "General Zhang, Daoist Yang, there is unusual activity in the direction of the Xiqi military camp. Four golden lights shot into the sky."

Yang Sen and the other two's expressions changed drastically.

"How could this be? So fast?" Gao Youqian exclaimed.

Zhang Kui's Great Yin-Yang Void Eye activated instantly, shooting straight towards Xiqi.

Four golden auspicious clouds, like blazing suns, rose from the Xiqi army camp. Above each cloud, three golden lotuses bloomed with boundless radiance.

Manjushri, Samantabhadra, Julusun, and Cihang Daoren, the four Golden Immortals, actually arrived together.

"It's too late." Yang Sen gritted his teeth, turned to Zhang Kui, and said, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, please lead the army to retreat from Qishan immediately. We will set up our formation to buy you time."

……

Manjushri Bodhisattva stood atop the auspicious clouds, his complexion now rosy, but his eyes held an even stronger killing intent. Beside him stood Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, his hands clasped behind his back, his blue robes fluttering, a faint hum emanating from behind him; Julusun held the Immortal Binding Rope, his gaze sweeping across the area below like lightning; Cihang Daoist held a jade bottle, his expression a mixture of compassion and grim determination.

"Zhang Kui, Yang Sen," Master Puxian spoke, his voice resounding like the clang of a sword, "You have defied Heaven and obstructed the Investiture of the Gods, your sins are grave. Today, we are here by the decree of the Jade Void Palace to quell the demonic forces. If you surrender, you may be spared; if you resist stubbornly, we will annihilate you, body and soul!"

"Set up the formation!"

Yang Sen roared and simultaneously activated his magic technique along with Gao Youqian and Li Xingba.

The Heaven-Opening Pearl, Earth-Splitting Pearl, and Primordial Pearl rose into the sky once more, the pure and turbid energies intertwined, a chaotic vortex appeared, and the Limitless Universe Array instantly unfolded, enveloping the entire Qishan Mountain.

The Heavenly Pearl shone brightly, drawing upon the pure energy of heaven to condense into an invisible barrier outside the formation.

Zhang Kui's figure appeared in the formation like frost, his Dragon Sparrow Blade sweeping horizontally, five-colored blade energy soaring into the sky, transforming into an arc-shaped light curtain that concealed his figure.

"Hmph, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot," Master Puxian coldly retorted.

The countless sword shadows suddenly merged, transforming into a giant azure sword thousands of feet long. Runes flowed across the sword's surface, emanating a terrifying Daoist aura capable of destroying all laws.

"cut!"

The giant sword slashed down fiercely.

This sword strike had already locked onto Zhang Kui's vital energy, leaving him with no way to avoid it.

A cold glint flashed in Zhang Kui's eyes. Instead of dodging, he soared into the sky, raising the Dragon Sparrow Treasure Blade high above his head. The golden core magic power within his body surged wildly, accelerating the circulation of the five internal organs and the five elements. The Great Five Elements Extinction Divine Light condensed to its extreme on the blade.

He roared, and the swords clashed!

"boom!!!"

The terrifying energy shockwave swept outwards like a tsunami. If it weren't for the protective array, the mountains within dozens of miles around Qishan would have collapsed simultaneously.

Zhang Kui flew backward like a meteor, crashing heavily into the great formation. The Dragon Sparrow Blade cried out incessantly, and his tiger's mouth split open, dripping with blood.

But he blocked it!

With the body of a Xuanxian, he withstood a full-force sword strike from a Daluo Jinxian.

"What?!" Puxian Zhenren's pupils shrank suddenly.

Zhang Kui actually managed to withstand that sword strike?

"This child must not be allowed to live!" Manjushri shouted sternly. "Let's join forces to break the formation and finish this quickly."

The four Golden Immortals exchanged a glance and attacked simultaneously.

Manjushri unleashed the Dragon-Hiding Stake, and the Seven-Jeweled Golden Lotus shone brightly, with golden rings flying out and shooting towards Yang Sen, Gao Youqian, and Li Xingba respectively.

With perfect understanding, Master Puxian summoned the Rainbow Rope, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Ju Liusun then threw out the Binding Immortal Rope, the yellowish rope shooting towards Zhang Kui, who was holding a knife, like a serpent.

With a light tap of his jade finger, Cihang Daoren sent a drop of Three Lights Divine Water flying out of his jade bottle. It transformed into a shower of sweet rain, forcefully suppressing the operation of the Qiankun Wuji Array with the power to purify all laws.

The four Great Luo Golden Immortals joined forces, their attack as devastating as the heavens and earth.

Just as Zhang Kui was recovering from his shock, a beam of yellow light shot towards him, and a warning screamed in his heart.

At this critical moment...

"Third brother, fourth brother, may heaven and earth mourn together," Yang Sen shouted to Gao Youqian and Li Xingba.

"Yes, Second Brother!"

As the three cast their spells, a chilling pressure spread out.