Journey to the West: Signing in for 500 Years-Chapter 294 - 288: Wordless Heavenly Scripture [Request for Subscription and Monthly Tickets]_1
Sha Chen had comprehended the Nine-character True Words, and his combat power had greatly increased. Not only that, but his cultivation had also made substantial progress, leaving him just half a step away from becoming a Peak Daluo Golden Immortal. In these ten years, his Da Luo Dharmakaya and Primordial Spirit had likewise improved. They hadn’t progressed spectacularly, yet they did not lag behind. In fact, Sha Chen’s cultivation hadn’t taken a huge leap during this time, but his actual combat power had become much stronger.
My Nine-character True Words are still not good enough. If I could reach the Great Achievement Realm, their power would surely be infinite. If I had the same strength as Tathagata and mastered the Nine-character True Words, I too could create a Five Finger Mountain with a flip of my hand, suppressing everything.
The Tathagata Buddha’s palm held a Buddha realm, capable of trapping a person as if they had entered a nation, rendering them unable to escape. However, the Five Finger Mountain that trapped Sun Wukong was later imbued with the Six-character Buddha Verse. The Six-character Buddha Verse might seem impressive, but compared to the Nine-character True Words, it was like a minor witch encountering a Great Witch. This was why Sha Chen believed that if he mastered the Nine-character True Words, he would surely surpass Tathagata Buddha.
Every soldier in a battle array advances to their position.
The Nine-character True Words—each word carried infinite Dao meaning, each was endowed with infinite divine power, capable of transforming into countless divine spells. However, Sha Chen had currently only mastered them to the Small Achievement Realm. To become stronger, he would need to spend much more time in contemplation; otherwise, progress would be difficult.
In fact, that he had reached the Small Achievement Realm in such a short time was already remarkable, thanks to the aid of the Tea of Dao Comprehension, the Phoenix Tree, the Taiqing Colored Glaze Cup, and the Tai Chi Diagram. Otherwise, it would have been impossible even in ten thousand years.
「On this day.」
Sha Chen had reached a bottleneck in his comprehension of the Nine-character True Words, unable to advance any further for the time being. He thus stopped, planning to think things through, relax a bit, or cultivate something else.
In any case, one should not focus solely on studying the Nine-character True Words. It would not be sufficient given the limited time, and one might easily get stuck on trivial problems, wasting even more time to no avail.
Suddenly, Sha Chen’s eyes lit up, and he said, "That’s right! I can use the Wordless Heavenly Scripture to see if I can do even better."
The truth was that Sha Chen had obtained the Wordless Heavenly Scripture a long time ago. It could make reflected Cultivation Techniques and Divine Powers evolve more perfectly. Sha Chen hadn’t used it before because the Nine-character True Words he had mastered were already the best—perfectly flawless. And because of his talents, he had done quite well practicing the initial parts of the Nine-character True Words, so he hadn’t needed the Wordless Heavenly Scripture then, nor had he had the time to use it.
Had he not reached this bottleneck, he wouldn’t have resorted to the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. This was not only because it was unnecessary, but also because it was one of his trump cards. As long as he didn’t use it, it remained his. If he did, he might reveal it to others, especially now that he had garnered so much attention.
The Tongtian Hierarch had surely noticed him by now. Given the arrivals of Jiang Ziya and Yin Jiao, even Lord Yuan Shi might have taken notice. Not to mention that Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad had once visited as well. Now that all three of the Pure Ones had taken note of him, if those two shameless Saints from Buddhism also paid attention, what would happen if they coveted the Wordless Heavenly Scripture? The Wordless Heavenly Scripture was, by far, the most extraordinary divine object Sha Chen possessed; to say it was exceptional would not be an exaggeration. An object capable of developing perfect Cultivation Techniques was definitely tempting; even Saints might not be able to contain themselves. This was indeed another reason why Sha Chen hadn’t simply brought it out before. After all, wealth stirs human hearts.
But now, having reached this bottleneck, Sha Chen felt that if he didn’t seek a breakthrough, he might remain stuck at this level for thousands, even tens of thousands of years. He couldn’t wait that long. He also wanted to thoroughly explore the Wordless Heavenly Scripture to see if it had greater uses and what benefits it might hold for him in his current state.
After some hesitation, Sha Chen decided to take out the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. If the Saints set their sights on it and reached out to claim it, then he would simply hand it over without a moment’s hesitation. This was because standing against a Saint could cost him his life if he refused, and he might also attract even closer scrutiny from them. But Sha Chen vowed that if he became a Saint himself, he would seek revenge. With his system, once he became a Saint, even if not the strongest, he would still command the respect of the strongest Saints. Repaying the slight was a must.
However, Sha Chen seemed to have worried too much. Although the Wordless Heavenly Scripture was valuable, it hadn’t reached the point where Saints would stoop to asking a junior like him for it. Moreover, Saints didn’t monitor him constantly; it wasn’t as if every little thing he did would catch their attention. Saints being aware of him was like surveillance, but even security personnel slack off, let alone aloof Saints. How could they possibly pay constant attention to such a minor character as him?
Even the Tongtian Hierarch, who had high hopes for Sha Chen, hadn’t appeared for a long time, as the Hierarch had more important matters to attend to. Unless Sha Chen achieved a major realm breakthrough or encountered trouble serious enough to warrant the Tongtian Hierarch’s attention, he wouldn’t be a concern. Frankly, Saints weren’t that idle. It would only be an issue if they happened to notice, took an interest in what he had, and then lowered themselves to ask for it. But such a chance was incredibly small, almost impossible. Besides, if Saints truly desired something, they would prefer the three Phoenixes over the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. The ability to evolve perfect Cultivation Techniques also had its limits. In the eyes of the Saints, the utility of the Wordless Heavenly Scripture was truly insignificant, much like the Taigong Tactics were to Sha Chen.
Sha Chen summoned the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. Then he waited for its arrival, but after a long time, there was no change nor any sign of it. He frowned, then returned to the storage room and took out some resources, planning to cultivate while waiting.
Sha Chen couldn’t afford to waste all his time waiting; he always knew that becoming stronger himself was what mattered most. What belonged to him would remain his; no one else could lay claim to it. With greater strength, he could obtain even more.
"Huh?"
Sha Chen rummaged through the storage room’s resources, intending to take out a piece of God Jade to augment his Primordial Spirit. However, he noticed this God Jade was somewhat different. It appeared exceptionally smooth, and its divine light was concealed, making it look like a mundane jade stone. The Divine Power seemed to have vanished.
But Sha Chen was certain that when he had placed this God Jade in the storage room, it was imbued with potent Divine Power—a piece that could enhance the power of one’s Primordial Spirit. Yet now it had changed, become ordinary. Anomalies often suggest something unusual is afoot.
A gleam flashed in Sha Chen’s eyes. He smiled, took out the God Jade, and directly embedded it in a niche on the stone wall beneath the Taiqing Colored Glaze Cup and the Sky Covering Umbrella.
Although he didn’t know whether the Taiqing Colored Glaze Cup and the Sky Covering Umbrella could shield against Saints, with their combined protection, it would likely not be easy for Saints to notice it. Besides, even if it couldn’t prevent detection by Saints, it should still ward off those beneath them; probably even Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad would not be able to detect it.
The God Jade lay flat. Upon inspection from different angles, Sha Chen didn’t find anything more peculiar. But he was confident that this piece of God Jade was probably the Wordless Heavenly Scripture.
After contemplating for a moment, Sha Chen began to recite the Great Da Luo Chapter of the Tao Te Ching. His words blossomed into lotuses, and golden lotuses rose from the ground, but still, the God Jade showed no change. Sha Chen frowned again and then began to drip blood onto it, Refining it as if it were a common Magical Tool. He immediately noticed some different aspects of the Wordless Heavenly Scripture; it seemed to become even more brilliant.
And within Sha Chen’s heart, after connecting with the Wordless Heavenly Scripture, it felt as if this God Jade was not just an ordinary piece, but a vast and boundless world unto itself. Inside, it was a hazy, greyish mist, with neither the end of heaven and earth in sight nor the beginning of the world perceivable. But existing within, he felt not fear but a sense of exceptional tranquility in his soul.
With a thought, Sha Chen once again recited the Great Da Luo Chapter of the Tao Te Ching, and this time something was different. As Sha Chen recited the Chapter, he noticed strange and extraordinary characters beginning to manifest on the surface of the God Jade. Sha Chen felt he had never seen these characters before, yet now, at a glance, he understood them completely. And although the Wordless Heavenly Scripture was right in front of his eyes, Sha Chen had a feeling he could absorb it into his spiritual sea at any moment.
Sha Chen tried to absorb the Wordless Heavenly Scripture into his spiritual sea. Suddenly, the God Jade vanished from the outside, yet it appeared before his Primordial Spirit.
Outside, Sha Chen sat cross-legged. His Primordial Spirit was focused, staring directly at the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. He immediately saw the complete text of the Great Da Luo Chapter manifest there. It differed slightly from what he had recited because he had intentionally mispronounced some parts, but they were all corrected accurately within the Wordless Heavenly Scripture.
And Sha Chen saw that the Great Da Luo Chapter seemed to be evolving into a more complete text, with additional characters appearing beyond it. These were divine inscriptions he had never seen before, yet now he could understand them. The content beyond was actually the Quasi-Saint Chapter of the Tao Te Ching!
HISS.
Sha Chen inhaled sharply, carefully observing. He then saw the Quasi-Saint Chapter of the Tao Te Ching manifesting on the Wordless Heavenly Scripture, each word and sentence becoming complete. After an hour, the entire Quasi-Saint Chapter was fully realized on it—it contained The sage Laozi’s insights on the Quasi-Saint Realm! It had been evolutionarily manifested by the Wordless Heavenly Scripture.
Sha Chen’s scalp tingled with excitement and surprise. He had considered the Wordless Heavenly Scripture to be heaven-defying, but he hadn’t imagined it could be so to such an extent.
Sha Chen quickly tried to memorize it, but then he found his spirit growing somewhat faint. He was shocked and suddenly discovered that his Primordial Spirit had suffered severe consumption.
To think that manifesting a Quasi-Saint Chapter of the Tao Te Ching would deplete all the power of my Primordial Spirit! he thought with alarm.
Sha Chen hurriedly looked at the Quasi-Saint Chapter, but his spirit became increasingly faint. He had only read one line before collapsing.
「The next day.」
Sha Chen slowly awoke to find the White Bone Demon massaging his temples. Seeing him awaken, she was overjoyed.
"Master, you’re awake! That’s great. I was afraid that you... you... you—you had caught a cold."
Sha Chen’s face twitched. Couldn’t she have just said it straight? Why pause for so long over a cold!?
Afterwards, the White Bone Demon said, "Master, you’ve been unconscious for a day and look very exhausted. You’ve overexerted yourself in cultivation. Please, rest well."
Sha Chen, however, did not heed her words and instead began to ponder the situation with the Wordless Heavenly Scripture. When he rushed to examine it, he discovered that the Quasi-Saint Chapter was no longer there. But he was not alarmed and even stroked his chin in thought.
I understand now. The content on the Wordless Heavenly Scripture requires the consumption of my spiritual power to manifest. Once my spiritual power is completely drained, it will disappear. Replenishing my spiritual power will make it reappear.
Sha Chen tried again, and it was indeed as he had conjectured. After cultivating for a day and a night, his spirit was replenished. Upon reciting the Tao Te Ching’s Great Da Luo Chapter once more, the Quasi-Saint Chapter indeed emerged. Then, his spiritual power was once again utterly exhausted. This time, however, he was able to read the second line, as he did not look at the first, having read it previously. After reading it, Sha Chen fainted once again.
This left the White Bone Demon in a panic once more. She rushed to him, exclaiming, "Master, Master, what’s wrong with you? Wake up! If you don’t, I might just have to take some liberties!"
