Chapter 235: The Past
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Staring at the fish inside the storage bag, Qi Yuan fell silent for a moment. He picked up one of the fish, his gazeplex.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"After all these years, it shouldn''t have gone bad, right?"</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"This girl… she even saved some fish for me."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">He picked up a piece of the fish with chopsticks, ced it in his mouth, and slowly chewed and savored it.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">At that moment, a young, innocent voice echoed in Qi Yuan''s ear.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"Hehe, actually, my name isn''t Wu Shi. I don''t even have a name."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"When I first met you, I knew we would meet three times."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"Why? Because not only could I hear your voice, I could also hear your thoughts."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">The girl''s voice brought Qi Yuan back to the recent past, to the moment he saw the young Wu Shi, thest time he would see the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Her voice was tender, as if she was saying something she had wanted to express when they first met.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Qi Yuan had a moment of realization.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">No wonder… she had seemed so strange—because she could hear his thoughts.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">This meant she must have known that they would meet again in the future and that she would eventually die at the hands of a Yang God.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">As Qi Yuan ate the fish, the girl''s incessant voice continued.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"When I first saw you, I was very cautious. I even thought you might eat me. I misjudged you."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"But hehe, I wanted to eat you, too, but I was too scared to do it."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">The girl began to recount her past, as if she were writing in a diary,menting her lonely life.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Qi Yuan continued eating the fish, savoring each bite, as the voice in his ear gradually lost its childish tone and became more mature.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"The second time I saw you, I was a little happy because I finally got to eat some delicious fish."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"I was so, so hungry."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"Compared to eating fish, nothing else mattered."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"The scent on your body became even more enticing. I… really wanted to eat you back then."</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Qi Yuan couldn''t help but recalled the second time he met the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother. She had been curled up on the ground in a red dress, her face pale, and when she looked at him, there had been a hint of greed in her eyes.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Butter, she had eaten the fish, her expression turning cold as she distanced herself from Qi Yuan.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">"So, her attitude changed back then because she wanted to eat me?"</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Qi Yuan''s gaze remains calm.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">From the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s words, he now understands that she possessed both the Innate Primordial Body and the Devouring Primordial Body.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">These two terrifying constitutions were in constant conflict with each other.</font></font>
No wonder, whenever he saw the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother, she always seemed strange, as if she were suppressing something.
She was suppressing her desire to devour him.
"A chance encounter… you gave me fish to eat, so I helped you guard the Heaven Pir. We''re even. But you harbored ill intentions; if I devoured you… it wouldn’t be unfair, would it?"
The Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s tone was light-hearted.
But Qi Yuan knew the deep-seated struggle within her.
The Devouring Primordial Body’s desire to devour was immensely strong.
Back then, when the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother, a being of mythic power, ate ordinary fish, the pain had been so unbearable that she had trembled all over, lying on the ground.
She was a mythic being, and even when her body was riddled with wounds while facing a Yang God, she had not cried out in pain.
Yet, merely eating a piece of fish had caused her such agony.
"Luckily, Iter realized that what I had been eating all along was… your blood."
The Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s voice carried a hint of nonchnce.
It seemed she had convinced herself not to follow her instincts and devour Qi Yuan.
Qi Yuan’s gaze grew moreplicated. "So, she really could have eaten me back then?"
Even though they had been separated by time and space, there had been moments when Qi Yuan had felt a faint sense of danger around the Venerable Wushi Mother.
He recalled the first time he saw her, when she had quietly eaten the fish in front of him.
At that time, the fish had not been purified by his blood, yet the Venerable Holy Mother Mother had still eaten it with relish.
Previously, Qi Yuan had not understood why.
He had assumed that each time he met the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother, it was a different person.
Now, he understood that she had eaten the unpurified fish, enduring the extreme pain to suppress her urge to devour him.
Qi Yuan’s emotions were conflicted.
He hadn’t imagined that their three simple meetings, where nothing earth-shattering had urred—just eating, drinking, and chatting—had such profound implications behind them.
"I wandered the Mortal Heart Realm for tens of thousands of years. This world is much more interesting than my old home, and it smells much better…"
The Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s voice was filled with a certain cheerfulness.
Qi Yuan remained silent.
The Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s childhood had indeed been tragic. Like a caged canary—or perhaps more urately, like a piece of merchandise—she had been kept at home.
When she arrived in the Mortal Heart Realm, the people there were like Qi Yuan, ignorant of her terrifying dual constitutions.
The way they looked at her was much more normal.
It was understandable that she had lived a happier life in the Mortal Heart Realm than in her old home.
Her time in the Mortal Heart Realm had been the happiest of her life.
As Qi Yuan finished thest piece of fish, a voice rang in his ear.
"Since we met by chance, how about a deal?"
"I helped you guard the Heaven Pir, and you help me… protect the Mortal Heart Realm."
Qi Yuan ate thest piece of fish.
He recalled how he had exchanged one fish for the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother''s help in guarding the Heaven Pir.
Now, the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother had returned the fish to him.
After their second meeting, when she realized the fish contained Qi Yuan’s blood, she had stopped eating them and left them for him.
These fish contained the purest blood.
After finishing the fish, the blood Qi Yuan had lost was replenished, and his aura deepened.
"Venerable Foodless Holy Mother, you’ve been too generous," Qi Yuan sighed.
Because, without making any deal with her, he was already obligated by the game to protect the Mortal Heart Realm—or more specifically, to protect Qingshui Vige.
This deal left the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother at a loss.
Qi Yuan felt at peace, lost in thought.
Suddenly, his expression changed.
For some reason, he felt the sr true fire within the golden core of the celestial star re up intensely.
"What’s happening?"
He was surprised, examining himself.
The golden core of the celestial star, which had always been calm and steady, had been following Qi Yuan’s n, slowly devouring other stars.
Ning Tao sat within, time seemingly frozen.
Due to the Great Forgetting Sutra, the divine seed that Ning Tao had awakened was connected to time.
Now, after eating the fish, a sudden change urred in Qi Yuan’s celestial golden core, as if it had suddenly gained a devouring ability.
"Devouring Primordial Body!"
Qi Yuan was startled.
He nced at the now empty storage bag, his mind racing with thoughts.
In the past, he had purified the fish with his wless blood before giving them to the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother to eat.
Now… did the Venerable Foodless Holy Mother not want to owe him anything, and so she added her blood to the fish?
Now, his body had gained a trace of the devouring essence.
This devouring essence was neither a divine attribute nor a divine domain.
A wry smile appeared on Qi Yuan''s face. "With such a great favor, are you asking me to protect this world… for a lifetime?"
...
"Zhu Zhuangshi, from now on, you’re not allowed to bully Dahei anymore!" Shi Chongshan red at the burly Zhu Zhuangshi, a vertical eye seeming to appear on his forehead.
The big ck dog sat at Shi Chongshan’s feet, as if it had found a protector, barking furiously at Zhu Zhuangshi.
"Damn it, even though it’s my dog, why did Eng Shen choose you?" Zhu Zhuangshi was seething with jealousy.
Shi Chongshan’s second Visualization was of Eng Shen, the Mighty and Illustrious True Lord!
This god’s power far surpassed that of Marshal Tianpeng.
You have to respect the owner when dealing with their dog.
He could no longer bully the big ck dog like he used to.
"The Mighty Eng Shen is too noble to let someone like you visualize him!" Shi Chongshan said smugly.
He had already visualized a powerful god before, andter visualized several more. Finally, he had visualized Eng Shen, the Mighty and Illustrious True Lord, and now he had reached the level of a mythic being.
Zhu Zhuangshi had also improved significantly in strength, but he was still far behind Shi Chongshan.
"You wretched dog!" Zhu Zhuangshi cursed.
At that moment, two figures approached: Vige Chief Yuli and the god official Shentu.
Vige Chief Yuli was dressed in coarse cloth, with patches on his clothes. The priest Shentu, on the other hand, wore a brown robe and a hat, looking much more dignified.
When the two men arrived, Zhu Zhuangshi’s yful expression vanished, reced by a serious demeanor.
"Come on, let’s go have a feast. Tomorrow… the great battle begins," Vige Chief Yuli’s voice was hoarse, tinged with a deep sense of mncholy.
Shi Chongshan’s eyes shed with excitement.
"Three months ago, who would have thought that in our two viges… everyone would be a god!"
Qingshui Vige, Shijia Vige, and Chenxi Vige were the first viges Qi Yuan had taken under his rule.
"I still remember back then, we didn’t have enough to eat, and we were bullied by your Shijia Vige to the brink of extinction. Who could have imagined this day woulde!" The god official Shentu reminisced about the past, his voice full of emotion, as if he were in a dream.
At that time, Qingshui Vige had been on the brink of copse, and even Zhu Zhuangshi had been starving.
Shi Chongshan also wore a look of reminiscence. "The Heavenly God''s grace is unforgettable, even unto death!"
Back then, his child had been selected to be sacrificed to the evil gods.
He had been pinned to the ground, unable to move.
It was the Heavenly God who had arrived, ying the evil gods with a single sword, giving Shi Chongshan a new lease on life and bringing hope to Shijia Vige.
Chenxi Vige was no different.
These vigers all remembered the Heavenly God''s kindness.
Although they had not spent much time with the Heavenly God, they were ready to die for him.
"Let’s go, feast and kill the enemy!"
The four men and a dog were filled with fervor as they walked towards the banquet, talking as they went.
"Old Zhu, about the matter I mentioned before…"
"Don’t worry about my integrity, hehe, the results are in."
"Good…"
As night fell, all the ancient gods stopped their meditations and gathered in Feiwu City to feast.
Thousands of true gods gathered together, feasting.
The scene was incredibly awe-inspiring.
What other city could boast thousands of ancient gods feasting together?
Drinks were poured, and the atmosphere was lively.
Everyone’s spirits were high, with no fear of the future.
It was just death, after all!
For them, who was truly afraid of death?
...n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om
Within the Heaven Pir.
The sound of chewing echoed continuously.
The Devouring Incarnation of Blood Sun Great Saint continued to consume the Heavenly Dao.
Suddenly, Blood Sun the Great Saint’s movements halted.
"Devouring…"
Inside the Heaven Pir, she looked towards the north.
Her chaotic eyes became clear in that moment.
Countless memories flooded back into her mind.
A crazed look shed in Blood Sun the Great Saint’s eyes.
"The Innate World… the Devouring Primordial Body… Is this Heaven’s favor for me?"
If she obtained the Innate World and fully devoured it, her realm would rise to new heights.
Now, she had even caught the scent of the legendary Devouring Primordial Body.
Among all the Devouring Incarnations, the Devouring Primordial Body was the supreme form!
Her current body was a Devouring Incarnation.
Now, she had caught the scent of the Devouring Primordial Body?
How could she not be excited?
For her, the Devouring Primordial Body was even more precious than the Heavenly Dao of this world.
Because it was the most suitable constitution for her!
Without any hesitation, she awoke from her slumber, halting her devouring of the Heavenly Dao, and emerged from the Heaven Pir.
Boom.
Suddenly, a loud, heart-pounding sound reverberated.
This sound was like a heavy drum, striking directly at everyone’s hearts.
All the ancient gods in the Mortal Heart Realm, as well as ordinary cultivators, were startled in that moment.
A strong sense of hunger gripped their bodies.
They clutched their stomachs, wracked by the conflicting sensations of pain and emptiness. It was as if a piece of their consciousness had been carved out, leaving them dazed.
All living beings in the Mortal Heart Realm couldn’t help but look up at the sky.
High above, beyond their sight, a towering and terrifying figure appeared in everyone’s vision.
No matter the angle or distance, that figure was clearly visible to all.
"A being… above the True Gods!"
"The Heavenly Dao… She’s devoured most of the Heavenly Dao!"
"She is the undisputed ruler of the Mortal Heart Realm!"
"Ahhh, how can such a being be defeated!"
Seeing that figure, everyone felt an overwhelming urge to worship.
It was as if they wanted to tear themselves apart and offer their pieces to her.
Just a single nce told them she was invincible!
The Mythic n seemed utterly ridiculous!
Some had blood-red eyes, tears of blood streaming down their faces.
Some knelt, driven mad, losing all reason.
Only those who had seen a Yang God could understand the immense power of a Yang God.
"Evil gods… go to hell, ahhh!"
"Ravaging our Mortal Heart Realm, the evil gods must be destroyed!"
At that moment, seven or eight figures shot up into the sky from the southernnds.
Each figure shone like the brightest stars!
Eight pirs of light, filled with the utmost courage, charged straight towards the figure in the sky.
For eight Grand Venerables to act simultaneously was an event of monumental proportions in the Mortal Heart Realm.
All the followers watched, filled with anticipation.
They hoped that these eight Grand Venerables could at least hurt—just hurt—that evil god in some way.
The evil god in the sky looked at the eight pirs of light, her expression unchanged.
She spoke, her voice cold and emotionless, like a deity issuing a decree from the Nine Heavens.
"How dare firefliespete with the sun and moon for glory!"
Blood Sun Great Saint didn’t even lift a hand. With just a slight shout, her voice rang out.
It was as if a divine decree had been issued, or as if her words alone held the power of thew.
Boom!
What no one had expected was that with just Blood Sun Great Saint''s voice, the eight pirs of light, like arrows that had exhausted their strength, suddenly stopped in mid-air.
In the next moment, the eight pirs of light exploded, and the brilliant light disappeared, turning into scattered starlight.
Eight Grand Venerables had attacked simultaneously, yet they hadn’t even forced the Yang God to act. With just a shout, all eight Grand Venerables were in!
The Mortal Heart Realm was left in a state of shock.
Was this… the power of a being above the True Gods?