Chapter 403: Chapter 348 Transcend the World, Celestial Stars
King Yanluo did not overestimate his abilities and face off against Xuantian God.
Instead, at the very moment he was about to act, he lowered his noble head.
Although the Underworld Emperor held the title of Emperor, in a true fight, he was no match for the Zhenwu Emperor before him.
Seeing King Yanluo concede, the others also ceased their actions one after another.
"Where is the Imperial Jade Seal?"
Xuantian God asked.
"The Imperial Jade Seal is here."
King Yanluo hurriedly conjured the seal.
"And the original text of the Great Three Emperor Sutra."
Xuantian God spoke again.
King Yanluo froze for a moment, then looked slightly puzzled.
"Great Emperor, I truly do not know of the Great Three Emperor Sutra..."
"Sanmao True Monarch..."
At the mention of this, King Yanluo seemed to recall something.
"Great Emperor, please wait a moment."
After a while, King Yanluo brought out a large stone, upon which mysterious characters were inscribed, totaling thirty-six Chapters.
This was the cultivation system of the Great Three Emperor Sutra.
The Celestial Star Pivot Thirty-Six Cloud Seal Talisman.
Xuantian God took the two items into his hands, then swung his right hand.
Whoosh!
The fleet was swept upward by a fierce gust of wind, rising into the sky.
It flew out of Fengdu Ghost Country, out of the Western Regions, and landed directly above the Yangtze River, traversing tens of thousands of miles in an instant.
The fleet stabilized, and the soldiers aboard the ships cheered for the Emperor’s long life.
Jin Bifeng and Heavenly Master Zhang both breathed a sigh of relief.
"It’s finally done."
Jin Bifeng smiled and said, "As for the court’s rewards, this old monk shall skip them for now. Fellow Taoists, let us meet again if fate allows!"
"Mr. Zhang, Mr. Song, if you ever have the chance, feel free to visit Mount Sumeru; the old monk will prepare a modest welcome."
"Of course, of course."
"Farewell!"
Song Lin cupped his hands in salute.
Jin Bifeng waved his hand and disappeared while chanting a Buddhist hymn.
"Mr. Song, this old Daoist shall also return to the mountain—until we meet again someday!"
After Jin Bifeng had left, Heavenly Master Zhang also bid farewell to Song Lin.
Standing in place, Song Lin saluted everyone as they departed.
The Imperial Jade Seal had been obtained; most of the karmic ties were now resolved.
Once he met Xuantian God, he could transcend this world.
In the Great Ming Palace.
Civil and military officials gathered in court, while emissaries from all corners of the barbarian lands sought an audience.
The Golden Lotus Treasure Elephant Country, the Java Country, the Daughter Country... each sent emissaries to express their submission.
After the court session, only Emperor Yongle and Song Lin remained.
"Thanks to you," Emperor Yongle said with a smile. "I never expected King Yanluo himself to intervene; those people were truly despicable. Fortunately, you were able to channel my divine power to descend to the mortal world."
Xuantian God’s descent to the mortal world was not premeditated but rather a last-minute decision.
The Imperial Decree was sufficient to handle ordinary demons, but dealing with powerful enemies required their cooperation. If they refused, there was little to be done.
If not for Song Lin’s research into the North Emperor’s Black Law and his own sufficiently powerful dharma body, it would not have been possible to channel such power.
"Your Majesty overpraises me, it was a mere effort on my part."
Both sides simply had mutual needs.
Song Lin needed to rely on Xuantian God’s power to complete this world, and Xuantian God needed Song Lin to retrieve the Jade Seal and complete his descent and tribulation task.
Xuantian God caressed the Imperial Jade Seal, feeling a sense of accomplishment in his heart.
Ultimately, it had been a success.
From the Late Tang to now, over four hundred years, the Central Plains Dynasty had once again become the center of the world.
This was not the last rays of a setting sun, but rather the dawning light of a new day.
All of this stemmed from this overseas expedition.
The efforts of the Buddhist and Taoist sects during the overseas expedition had disrupted the progress of other powers.
According to the predictions of the Yin Yang Official, the Emperor Star had appeared in the Western Regions, indicating that an imperial destiny resided in the Golden Eye Country—known by the Westerners as Folangji (Frankish lands).
Generation after generation, the Emperor Star shifted in the Western Regions, ultimately influencing the entire world.
Now, with the Imperial Jade Seal in hand, such a possibility had been rendered impossible.
"Would you like to join me? I can confer upon you the title of Ziwei Great Saint."
Xuantian God extended an invitation to Song Lin.
"No, thank you. My cultivation technique remains incomplete; perhaps in the future," Song Lin politely declined.
He had ambitions of his own; his respect for Xuantian God stemmed purely from admiration of strength, not flattery or subservience.
For now, he preferred independence over allegiance.
Declining Xuantian God’s offer and rank, Song Lin immediately left for the overseas regions.
In any case, the treasures bestowed by Xuantian God could not be kept permanently.
It was better to leave a good impression—perhaps such kindness would prove useful in the future.
Returning to the Pure Yang Sect in the Wuchang Country, Song Lin arranged the remaining affairs and appointed Dao Tong as the next Sect Leader.
He also took with him their research methods regarding Qimen Puppets.
The combination of the Five Qi and Qimen Puppets, as well as the complete abandonment of outdated murderous sacrificial techniques, allowed for even more effective control.
Under the gaze of all, Song Lin’s form transformed into a beam of white light and disappeared into the void.
"We respectfully send off our Ancestor!"
The members of the Pure Yang Sect collectively bowed in homage.
After Song Lin’s departure, the world both overseas and inland was at peace.
The Pure Yang Sect established itself in Zhongnan Mountain of the Central Plains, bringing a new variety of Taoist spells and techniques, leading to a flourishing era where many schools thrived and ancient phenomena were revived.
Meanwhile, Song Lin gained many titles: Pure Yang True Man, Donghua True Monarch, Nine Heavens Wind and Thunder True Monarch, Ziwei Great Saint, National Guardian True Monarch, and so on.
If he had heard such titles in the past, Song Lin might have felt some excitement. Now, however, those days were long gone—his aliases and titles were too numerous to count.
A few more titles were merely decorative and redundant, less valuable than tangible benefits.
...
In the real world, within a secret room.
Song Lin slowly opened his eyes.
[World]: Western Ocean Record
[Thirty-Six Heavens]: Mortal World, Heavenly Realm.
[Time Flow Speed]: One to one year.
[Descent Type]: Soul
[Categories]: Near Ancient Myths, Taoist Myths, Buddhist Myths, Myth of Classic of Mountains and Seas.
[System]: Taoist Jade Emperor Divine System, Buddhist Divine System, Eastern Penglai Divine System.
[Karma]: Fulfilled.
"I’ve transcended."
Song Lin thought to himself.
Initially, he had intended to use a Magic Artifact from this world to deal with Tianhe.
Unexpectedly, Zhi Xin and his comrades resolved the matter for him instead.
Song Lin gladly embraced the opportunity for leisure.
"Now, let’s think about what to exchange for."
[Items]: Ruyi Hook, Willow Leaf Divine Spear, Nine Elders Immortal Capital Seal, Canopy Cover...
[Taoist Skill]: "Annotations on the Great Three Emperor Sutra," "Little Three Emperor Sutra," "72 Transformations," "Fire Dragon True Formula"...
There were two things Song Lin now wanted to redeem.
One was the Great Success version of the Nine-Transformation Indestructible Body.
In the story worlds, although one couldn’t exchange for realms, the cultivation of dharma powers could be replicated—albeit subject to time depreciation in the real world.
For instance, a swordsmanship cultivated over a thousand years in the story world would translate to a thousand days in the real world if the time flow ratio was one to one. The essence, nevertheless, would remain unchanged.
A Great Success Nine-Transformation would still be a Great Success Nine-Transformation.
The power of the Nine-Transformation Indestructible Body needed no elaboration.
However, it could also be replicated.
As for the Innate Spiritual Treasure Nine Elders Immortal Capital Seal, it was personally crafted by Xiao Mao True Monarch.
With this in mind, Song Lin had already decided what to exchange for.
A thought arose, and a karmic fruit appeared in Song Lin’s palm.
"Redeem the Nine Elders Immortal Capital Seal!"
Whoosh!
A flash of light.
A three-inch-long and wide seal appeared in Song Lin’s hand.
The seal emitted a profound and mysterious radiance.
After carefully studying it for a moment, Song Lin put the treasure away.
According to the theory of wielding seals to impart techniques, Song Lin had essentially become a core figure in the Sanmao Lineage.
Of course, now was not the time to revel in such achievements.
"Eight days remain until the magic meeting begins, which translates to eighty days within the blessed land. First, I should organize my Taoist Skills."
In the real world, his realm was in the late-stage Purple Mansion.
After Core Formation came the Purple Mansion; after the Purple Mansion was tribulation crossing; after tribulation crossing was the Primordial Spirit.
To reach tribulation crossing, one must unify the Five Qi toward the origin.
Song Lin already had a plan for this.
After unifying the Five Qi, he could consider crossing the tribulation—either attempting it early if confident or waiting another 365 years if uncertain.
Of course, Song Lin planned to wait for the completion of the Talisman Dao.
Song Lin attuned his senses to the Great Three Emperor Sutra’s content.
The Great Three Emperor Sutra contained only one inner text with annotations.
As expected, it was a fragmented text.
The annotations by Sanmao True Monarch detailed how they had created a Thirty-Six Cloud Seal Talisman through their study of the text’s inner workings.
This formed the framework of a talismanic system.
It was divided into twelve, twenty-four, and thirty-six talismans-based frameworks.
Specific talismans were not provided; practitioners were required to fill and craft their own frameworks.
For example, Song Lin could select twelve spells to form a Twelve Cloud Seal, establishing a twelve-talisman framework system.
By using this system, one could arrange and combine techniques to defeat enemies.
Cloud Seals were said to be the symbolic manifestation of the Great Dao.
By transforming spells into Cloud Seals, one could access the essence of power, thereby achieving greater strength.
The Twelve Cloud Seals represented twelve mysterious symbols, endlessly variable like the celestial constellations, hence referred to as Celestial Star Pivot.
"So that’s how it works."
Song Lin marveled at the profundity of this method.
He possessed numerous spells and magic veins that could be integrated into this talismanic system, solving the issue of an overly chaotic framework.
For instance, Thunder Skills, Taoist Soldiers, and Sword Dao could all be incorporated.
However, this process would be challenging, requiring deep understanding and considerable time to simplify and transform spells into foundational Cloud Seals.
He suddenly thought of the Spirit Treasure Celestial Master’s Twenty-Eight Ancient Characters.
Those ancient characters also possessed mysterious powers—could there be parallels between the two?
Of course, this method remained too profound and abstruse to yield immediate results, so Song Lin decided to set it aside for now.
For the time being, his priority was to begin mastery over the 72 Transformations. This would significantly enhance his power.
Song Lin entered seclusion to cultivate his skills.
Time passed little by little, and the external world edged closer to the start of the magic meeting.