Love & Redemption
Chapter 240: The Final Volume: I am Liuli - Two: Enlightenment (Part One)

Chapter 240: The Final Volume: I am Liuli - Two: Enlightenment (Part One)

Chishui River is the only river that leads to the Kaiming Gate of Kunlun Mountain. Legend has it that Kunlun Mountain is eight thousand zhang high, and it houses the Heavenly Emperor’s estate in the Lower Realm, guarded by various gods overseeing this sacred palace. There are a total of nine doors in the palace, and the one facing the sunrise in the east is the Kaiming Gate. It is guarded by a nine-headed Kaiming Beast, with steep cliffs that no ordinary person can scale.

At this moment, everyone was standing on a large bamboo raft, drifting downstream in Chishui River. Xuanji was gazing into the distance, where the sky and water merged as one. They did not know the length of Chishui River; they had been drifting for an entire day and had not reached the end, not even seeing a shadow of Kunlun Mountain. The landscapes on both sides gradually became desolate, with vast forests and mountains fleeting by. Standing on the water, one might wonder whether it was a picturesque scene or if they themselves were part of the painting.

Of course, the idea of drifting downstream on a bamboo raft was Liu Yihuan’s. Normally, as cultivators, they didn’t need to go through such trouble and time-consuming efforts. However, mortals aiming for the Holy Land couldn’t just fly there with Sword Control. They must tread solid ground and walk step by step. This boundary set by the gods for mortals was an insurmountable gulf between gods and humans.

Zi Hu got bored and nagged Wuzhiqi to tell a story. As the oldest among them, he surely knew of some rare and peculiar tales from Ancient Times.

Wuzhiqi then smiled and said, "Alright, let’s talk about an old legend, although I don’t remember it very clearly. The legend says that Heaven and Shura World were continuously in conflict. The Asuras were brave and fierce Demon Gods, while those weak immortals from Heaven couldn’t beat them! Consequently, they kept losing ground until Heaven conceived a strategy and captured a very powerful Demon God."

He suddenly stopped speaking and just laughed, asking, "Can you guess what happened next?"

Everyone just blankly shook their heads. Zi Hu tentatively asked, "They killed him?"

Wuzhiqi laughed and shook his head.

Yu Sifeng thought for a moment and then said, "If it were me, without brave and skilled Heavenly Gods on my side, I would persuade him to serve us. Heaven didn’t punish that Demon God; instead, they recruited him?"

Wuzhiqi rarely showed a look of admiration and vigorously gave him a thumbs-up: "You clever boy! I am impressed by you! Is your heart made of crystal glass? How do you guess right every time?"

"Heaven indeed took that Demon God under their wing, but sadly he refused to conflict with his former companions. The Heavenly Emperor, valuing his martial prowess, didn’t wish to blame him, so he was well kept in Heaven, served with fine wine and meat. Later..."

"Later what?" everyone hurriedly asked.

Wuzhiqi shrugged his shoulders and pursed his lips: "There is no later. That Demon God just vanished one day, and no one ever mentioned him again. Some speculated that he still longed for the Shura World, so he might have secretly returned there. But who really knows?"

"Tsk!" Everyone hissed in unison, frustrated with such a storytelling anticlimax at the most exciting moment.

The raft gradually slid downstream, where the river abruptly widened and the current became rapid, pushing the raft forward as if it wanted to take flight. The verdant forests on both banks seemed to end there, and up ahead at a sharp river bend, the scene suddenly opened up to reveal steep rocky mountains on both sides, towering into the clouds. It was hard to believe that these colossal stone mountains were formed naturally; they stood like majestic guardians arranged with meticulous order. If these weren’t naturally formed, who could have crafted such a magnificent spectacle?

But the oddest feature wasn’t the organized giant stone mountains but the color of the mountainsides; they glowed faintly red, as if bathed in a layer of thin rosy light, growing darker the further back they extended, eventually turning into a vivid blood-red color.

"Something is not right here," Yu Sifeng suddenly spoke up. "After turning the bend, I haven’t heard any birdsong, and there are no fish in the river either. Listen... apart from the sound of water, there is silence."

Wuzhiqi chuckled lightly: "I’m really impressed by you—no anomaly escapes your eyes. You’re right because we are about to enter the realm of the gods, and naturally, the climate and geomancy here are different from before. Birds and fish, all creatures of the mortal world, how dare they come close to this place?"

Upon hearing they were nearing Kunlun Mountain, Xuanji stood up at the front of the bamboo raft and peered into the distance. The blood-like mountainside streamed by, and amidst the swift noise of water, no other sound was heard. Such silence was dignified and solemn, an eternal stillness, where the Heavenly God might be spying from the Upper Realm, whether in pity, admiration, or indifference.

The very presence of this scene instinctively evoked fear. Xuanji pursed her lips, and like everyone else there, at that place and moment, they preferred not to speak, nor dared to.

The water, previously a clear azure, had taken on a dark red hue; the winding river appeared like a massive vein, imbued with blood.

All at once, Wuzhiqi leapt up, cupping his hand around his mouth and playfully shouted numerous times, startling everyone as they stared wide-eyed at him. He chuckled and scratched his head, somewhat sheepishly: "I just can’t stand such a lifeless place. Shouting out a bit feels more comforting."

After saying that, he opened his throat and began to call out louder. Initially, it was just plain shouting, but his voice gradually climbed, resembling dragon roars and phoenix cries. The clear calls reverberated between the blood-like stone mountains, singing as if freeing his heart in a loud call. Xuanji couldn’t help but open her mouth wide and shout out loud, followed by Zi Hu, Liu Yihuan, and even the generally composed Yu Sifeng started messing around. The five of them, like fools, stood on the bamboo raft, shouting and dancing wildly, appearing completely mad.

After shouting for a while, Wuzhiqi yelled loudly, "Heavenly Emperor, old man! Wait for me! I’m coming over for tea!"

The voice echoed back and forth between the two banks, "Time for tea, time for tea," he had apparently mistaken his journey to Kunlun Mountain as merely a tea break. While the echo’s lingering force still remained, a cold, aged voice from the shore spoke, "Which evil spirit dares to act recklessly at the foot of Kunlun Mountain!"

The group had seen no one on their way until suddenly, they heard someone speaking and quickly turned, only to see a figure in blue standing on the distant shore. Though he was as tiny as a sesame seed from afar, his voice carried so far without dissipating, truly admirable.

Wuzhiqi, seeing the raft drift swiftly, concluded he couldn’t catch up and burst out laughing, "Acting recklessly? Then tell me, is the Heavenly Emperor’s tea any good?"

The man didn’t speak but snorted coldly and strode into the Chishui River. As his steps seemed unsteady and he appeared very old, everyone couldn’t help but worry. Zi Hu quickly called out, "Old man! He’s just joking, don’t take it seriously! The river is very rapid, don’t come down! It could be dangerous!"

The man acted as if he hadn’t heard and stepped onto the river water, not sinking at all, and steadily walked towards the raft. Everyone was shocked to see him walking on such a rapid river as if on flat ground. His pace was not fast, and he looked quite unsteady, yet somehow, he was getting closer and closer, the sesame-sized figure now as big as a plum.

Wuzhiqi’s face slightly changed and he whispered, "Not good! It’s a Divine Witch! Damn, weren’t they hiding in the mountains? Why have they come out here today!"

As he spoke, the man drew closer, a clear figure now visible. He donned a fluttering blue robe that seemed almost celestial, with a silver beard more than a foot long and neatly tied white hair at the back of his head, holding a black iron cane in his hand. Most peculiarly, the cane too didn’t sink into the water when set upon it.

Wuzhiqi and Liu Yihuan grabbed their paddles and paddled hard forward. They were already going downstream, and this movement sped them up even more, soon leaving the man far behind. The man pursued a few steps, then stopped, coldly stating, "Now I remember who you are! Wuzhiqi, you truly act recklessly! To think you escaped from the Netherworld on your own!"

Wuzhiqi sneered sarcastically, saying, "I’m really sorry, old man, but I can’t remember who you are! It must be tough being old yet remembering me."

The man did not reply, only raised his hand and threw the black iron cane into the water with a "plop." Liu Yihuan anxiously said, "Uh oh, the old man is angry, he even threw his cane! Wuzhiqi, don’t you know to respect your elders and cherish the young?!"

Wuzhiqi didn’t reply, just paddling hard, and the raft flew like it was airborne, rapidly moving forward. Up ahead was another dangerous river bend, and oddly, the stone mountains on both sides joined at the top, looking like a giant archway, the rocks no longer blood-red but shining golden, speckled with white.

Wuzhiqi looked back to see the old man’s figure back to the size of a sesame, standing there on one leg. Wuzhiqi cried out, "Now I remember! He’s Wu Lv! One of the ten Divine Witches! Quick, hurry! Once we pass the Dragon Gate, he can’t do anything to us!"

Before he finished his sentence, Mr. Wu Lv raised his other foot high and stomped down hard, making the Chishui River boil like water rolling to a boil, shaking violently, and a towering red wave rose high behind them, roaring towards them. With a splash, the raft became like a useless little leaf, pushed up high onto the peak.

The five of them quickly grabbed onto the raft, trying to stabilize it amidst the giant waves. Shockingly, the wave then split open with a "whoosh," and the raft harshly fell through the gap in the water; even Xuanji and Wuzhiqi, with all their skills, couldn’t do anything and obediently dropped into the Chishui River. As the split waves suddenly merged back together, they slammed them deep into the water.

Xuanji struggled under the water, unable to surface due to the strong flow. Countless large and small whirlpools wreaked havoc around her, the force of the whirlpools holding her back. In the dark, murky water, a shadowy figure suddenly pulled on her arm, yanking her out of the largest whirlpool. Xuanji swam furiously and finally surfaced.

The river still churned restlessly, boiling-like. Xuanji looked around and saw Yu Sifeng not far away, waving at her; it was indeed him who had saved her. She quickly swam towards him. Just then, Wuzhiqi, Liu Yihuan, and Zi Hu also surfaced, all five of them soaked and in disarray.

Turning back to look for the raft, it was already smashed into pieces by the giant wave, scattered on the river surface, quickly pulled down by the whirlpools. The five tightly held onto the rocks on the shore to prevent being dragged away by the current. Wuzhiqi wiped the water from his face and said with a bitter smile, "That old man... what a grand welcome gesture!"

Liu Yihuan weakly said, "Weren’t you the one who could flood the Heavenly Court with water? Isn’t Xuanji a War God? How come you both can’t handle one old man?"

Wuzhiqi angrily said, "Didn’t you say to respect the elderly and cherish the young! He’s an old man, how could I bring myself to fight him seriously!"

As soon as these words were spoken, they saw another towering wave rise not far away, and terrifyingly, it seemed as if something huge was hidden within it, thundering their way.

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Recommendation: "Three Thousand Smiles of Beauty," produced by Yun Ni, quality assured.

Book number: 1037166