Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword
Chapter 323 - 311 Zhou Heng’s Bloodline (3/3)

Chapter 323: Chapter 311 Zhou Heng’s Bloodline (3/3)

By the time Zhou Heng returned to the Martial Pavilion, Feng Lianqing had already taken over a table. With a pig knuckle in her left hand and three greasy chicken legs in her right, she was eating with great relish, not showing the slightest guilt for not waiting for Zhou Heng to come back, relishing her food to the fullest.

This wild girl is truly heartless!

Seeing her carefree appearance, Zhou Heng did not want to tell her about Helian Dong’s matter. It’s better to let her stay heartless, as ignorance can also be a blessing.

He went back to the inner room, planning to sort out his thoughts, but the moment he stepped inside, he felt a breeze from behind, and something fiercely struck at the back of his head.

With his telekinetic force, he instantly formed a golden fist behind his head that with a clang, parried the sneak attack from behind, forcefully repelling the attacker.

Zhou Heng turned around, only to see the attacker with arms crossed leaning against the wall, sporting a donkey head, a donkey neck, donkey hooves, and donkey body, with a donkey tail dangling behind...

Well, it was indeed a donkey!

"Black Donkey, I knew it was you!" Zhou Heng gritted his teeth and said.

"Hahaha, seeing Donkey Master makes you this happy?" Black Donkey laughed out loud, wiggling its bottom and rushing toward Zhou Heng, "Kid, did you miss your Donkey Master that much?"

Whoosh, boom!

Getting close, the donkey suddenly launched a double peak ear-piercing strike at Zhou Heng, who did not yield and instead kicked towards Black Donkey’s crotch, striking first despite being later, forcing the donkey to abandon its attack and parry with its front hooves.

Zhou, are you trying to make me childless?" Black Donkey screamed strangely.

Zhou Heng laughed heartily, saying, "You donkey should have been castrated long ago, a beast pretending to be human, dreaming of the Saintess of the East Spirit Immortal Pond all day long. Aren’t you afraid of defying the natural order, to be struck by lightning five times by the heavens!"

"Ptui ptui ptui, I am gallant and powerful, a dragon among men, the king of donkeys, a dragon among humans! Whichever woman I fancy, it’s her good fortune!" Black Donkey walked past Zhou Heng, and with a swish, also kicked out a groin strike.

Zhou Heng also threw a kick in response, and with a bang, their great forces collided, both man and donkey retreating three steps: "Black Donkey, switch it up next time, all those are outdated moves!" Zhou Heng couldn’t stop laughing; although the donkey could be infuriating, it was also hilariously entertaining.

"I only used a tenth of my strength, just probing your cultivation level, kid. You think you can’t be taken down by Donkey Master?" Black Donkey rolled its large donkey eyes.

A thought struck Zhou Heng, and he preempted Black Donkey by saying, "Donkey, I have a question for you!"

"What?" Black Donkey looked quite impatient.

"You know about the Purple Flame Heavenly Dragon bloodline, don’t you?" Finally, Zhou Heng found someone he could ask, and it was a donkey, no less.

"Nonsense, how could I not know about it? That’s the deity of the Great Eternal Emperor!" Black Donkey curled its lips dismissively.

What!

The Great Eternal Emperor!

Zhou Heng’s heart thundered. The Purple Flame Heavenly Dragon was actually inherited from the Great Eternal Emperor, so could he be the descendant of that world-renowned peerless figure? That would explain it, the Great Eternal Emperor’s connection with the East Spirit Immortal Pond seemed natural now, and it’s no wonder Helian Dong blushed. When it comes to noble bloodlines, he really was out of his league!

"Stinky kid, why suddenly ask about this?" Black Donkey’s eyes shifted, being a slippery creature, it quickly caught on, "Zhou, you’re not the descendant of the Great Eternal Emperor, are you? Ah, no wonder I felt your purple flame seemed familiar, so that’s how it is!"

Zhou Heng nodded, yet his heart was filled with confusion.

What kind of person was the Great Eternal Emperor?

With one hand, he suppressed the ancient world, becoming the only Great Emperor of the Xuanqian Star, his merits rivaling creation, nearly akin to a High Immortal! How could such a powerful person not produce one or two exceptionally talented descendants?

Like the Mao Family, Sang Family, and even the Ying Family of the Bright Moon, it is said they descend from that era of the Great Emperor. Even these "lesser families" could continue and prosper, so why had the lineage of the Great Eternal Emperor declined?

"Kid, don’t look at me with those puppy dog eyes; I’ve been sealed in the Temporal Origin Liquid by the Mysterious Venerate a long time ago and have no idea what has happened in this world!" As Black Donkey spoke, it also became serious.

Zhou Heng remembered what Helian Dong said, in ancient times, the Great Eternal Emperor and several peers vied for Immortal Fate, leading to the depletion of spiritual energy on the Xuanqian Star, putting martial artists above the Heaven-Opening Realm in danger of cultivation regression. Moreover, with the talk of Immortal Fate, numerous great powers chose to seal their distinguished individuals for future contention!

He furrowed his brow and asked, "Donkey, who is the Mysterious Venerate you mentioned?"

"Heavenly Venerate Xuanying, a peerless talent of the same era as the Great Eternal Emperor!" Black Donkey said with great pride, its head held high.

"He hasn’t been sealed alongside you until now?"

The Black Donkey showed a hint of sorrow and said, "The Divinity Transformation Realm is too powerful, the Temporal Origin Liquid couldn’t seal it!" But it immediately laughed again, "However, the Mysterious Venerate is an unparalleled prodigy, he must have ascended to the Immortal Realm long ago!"

If Zhou Heng had not witnessed the formidable power of Nalan Yaoyue’s heaven-rending gesture, he might have doubted the existence of immortals. But seeing is believing, and if immortals exist in this world, then it’s not impossible for experts of the Divinity Transformation Realm to take that step as well.

Zhou Heng nodded and said, "It’s possible that the Great Eternal Emperor has long since left the Xuanqian Continent and has broken through to becoming an immortal somewhere else!" Back then, the Xuanqian Continent was depleted of spiritual energy. To cultivate, one had to leave and go to other planets, whereas a lineage that remained might have declined as a result.

"Zhou, you’ve sidetracked me and almost made me forget the main business!" The Black Donkey slapped Zhou Heng’s shoulder with its hoof, "I came here to find you so we could make a fortune!"

Zhou Heng gave the shameless donkey a disdainful look and said, "Come on, you definitely encountered a bone too hard to chew, and that’s why you’ve come to me. Otherwise, you’d have already quietly made a fortune on your own!"

The cultivation level of this shameless donkey had risen extremely quickly, and it had now reached the peak of the Spirit Sea Third Layer Heaven, vaguely showing signs of forming its own deity presence, with a faint imposing aura emanating from it. To say it hadn’t encountered great fortune these days would be strange, yet it hadn’t called upon Zhou to join it, had it?

The unabashed Black Donkey chuckled, "This time it’s a big deal. It’s a relic from the ancient Three Yang Sect, and there’s a secret cave that can only be opened with a Domain. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have cut you in on the deal, kiddo!"

A relic of the Three Yang Sect?

"The Three Yang Ancient Land?" Zhou Heng was surprised. He recalled the Falling Snow True Scripture and a diary he had obtained in Ma Buqian’s cave dwelling earlier. The diary narrated how Ma Buqian had entered the Three Yang Ancient Land, obtained the Falling Snow True Scripture, and encountered a so-called Peerless Heavenly Maiden, causing his dao heart to falter and preventing him from forming his own deity presence, stopping at the peak of the Spirit Sea Third Layer Heaven.

"Yes, that’s what people are calling it nowadays! But Zhou, Donkey Master won’t let you be deceived. Although many people have entered the Three Yang Ancient Land, the most valuable place has never been discovered. However, with my nose, I found it right away!" The Black Donkey was smug.

"I have already arranged to go to a secret realm in a few days—that—" Zhou Heng suddenly hesitated. The secret realm mentioned by Sang Qingshan couldn’t possibly be the Three Yang Ancient Land, could it? After all, the other party had also mentioned that a Domain was necessary to open the passage.

"Tsk, Zhou, there are too many people with a yin-yang face in this world, pretending one thing on the surface and doing another behind the scenes. Only I wouldn’t trick you, why bother with others?" The Black Donkey started its smooth-talking tactics.

Zhou Heng burst into laughter and said, "You, an ancestor of tricking people, have the nerve to speak ill of others?" He paused and then said, "How about this, we’ll go to the other people’s secret realm first. If it’s not the Three Yang Ancient Land, then it will be like working an extra job!"

"Then what is my identity?" the Black Donkey asked, naturally the fewer people going to the secret realm, the better, and it wasn’t easy for it to sneak in.

"What identity can you, a donkey, have? You’re obviously my mount!"

"Woof, I’ll bite you to death!"

"Shameless donkey, let go! Let go!"

"Ptui, such foul-tasting flesh, I wouldn’t want to bite it!"

Though the greedy donkey was reluctant, it decided to act as Zhou Heng’s mount for the sake of treasure. Of course, if Zhou truly dared to mount it, the donkey would surely rage and bite Zhou Heng to the point his butt bloomed with flowers.

"All right, you’ll stay here for these few days!" Zhou Heng arranged a room for the Black Donkey. After all, the courtyard was absurdly large and could accommodate dozens more people.

For the upcoming trip, Zhou Heng did not plan to take the women with him. Staying at the Martial Pavilion was not only safe but also allowed them to receive guidance from the experts there, which was extremely beneficial for their progress on the Martial Path.

Zhou Heng didn’t need to listen to these teachings, but that didn’t mean the women didn’t. Although the instructors in the Martial Pavilion might not all be geniuses of the Martial Path, their rich experience could provide great insight to the women.

Thinking of Zhou Heng’s impending departure, the women were moved and spent several nights sharing the same quilt with him, seemingly wanting to drain him completely.

On the last day before departure, Zhou Heng finally had half a day to himself. He sat by the pond, quietly watching the falling leaves stir the water into ripples. Nature and the universe followed the Dao; everything could teach him.

Forming one’s deity presence is an extremely complex process, involving many aspects and constant understanding.

Two days ago, an Old Ancestor from the Nascent Soul Realm came to the Martial Pavilion to teach. He shared how he had formed his deity presence by living as an ordinary person in a small town for thirty years, eventually gaining enlightenment on life, old age, sickness, death, and the impermanence of the world, thereby transcending the mortal to become divine.

Zhou had mastered the Sky-soaring Nine Forms and had no problems in comprehending the Dao, but forming his deity presence was different. It demanded a grasp of much more, perhaps just the tiniest of details—a step that had stymied many a prodigy to death.

Experts like Zhao Duotian and Ying Cheng’en had previously advanced swiftly in their cultivation, yet hadn’t each of them stagnated at this barrier for at least five or six years? Although Zhou Heng was still some distance from the peak of the Spirit Sea Third Layer Heaven, he certainly did not want to wait that long.

He sat there for a day and a night, completing his inner enlightenment and sparking numerous realizations. (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets on Qidian. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)