Starting Cultivation During a Trip-Chapter 75 - 74: Strange Inner Scenery, Wu Ma Appears
Dim, mysterious light arises in the dark chamber; within the Zhenwu Sect, the true self is revealed.
At the instant the viscous, fetid meat tendril pierced Zhang Fan’s chest, a terrifying pressure erupted from within him, a horrifying current raging like a furious storm, shaking the soul.
"Impossible... Profound Sect... Profound Sect... How could you have something like this on you?"
Shen Xiangrong’s twisted face grew even more ferocious, his bulging eyes full of deep disbelief.
He sensed an incredibly mystical fluctuation, akin to the orthodox Daoist techniques, as if directly transmitted from the Ancestral Master, untouched by the mundane Red Dust, existing beyond the three sacred mountains.
Such a fluctuation should never appear on a child’s body.
"Who the hell are you?" The old, distorted face howled madly, the massive mass of flesh shuddered and twisted, as if trying to withdraw that meat tendril.
Weng...
How could Zhang Fan let him succeed? He grabbed that tendril in one motion; the bizarre runes, like nutrients, transferred through the tendril and branded themselves onto Zhang Fan’s body.
Rumble...
In that instant, his Primordial Spirit seemed to connect to a central server...
"What is this..."
"Inner Scenery!?"
The Primordial Spirits of Shen Xiangrong and Shen Yinfeng, gazing upon this unfamiliar realm, were overflowing with shock.
At this moment, darkness and chaos surrounded them, not a hint of light could be seen; only before them was a faintly glowing mirror-light, letting them glimpse a fraction.
That cluster of mirror-light was the radiance of the Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman.
"Grandfather, is this the Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery? That brat’s Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery?"
Shock crawled across Shen Xiangrong’s face; confronted with boundless, unfathomable darkness, he felt a fear never before known, his very Primordial Spirit shivering instinctively.
"Impossible..."
Shen Yinfeng’s withered skin trembled, faced with such a bizarre Inner Scenery, the answer in his heart seemed about to cry out aloud.
"Great Night is not bright!?"
"How can this be!?"
Their gazes met; Shen Yinfeng and Shen Xiangrong could hardly believe it.
If the Primordial Spirit enters the Great Night, it is doomed to be severed from cultivation, just like the ordinary, how could one possibly wield Daoist Techniques!?
"Who exactly is he..." Shen Xiangrong’s voice was hushed and uncertain.
That day, he had merely had a fleeting encounter with Zhang Fan, not even regarding him at all. But now it seemed... in the entire Shen Family, the one hiding deepest might well be this person.
"No matter who he is... whoever blocks my path to immortality must die!"
A ruthless gleam flashed in Shen Yinfeng’s eyes; with a sudden movement, his right hand seized Shen Xiangrong’s Primordial Spirit directly.
"Grandfather, you... what are you doing?"
"Soon you will naturally merge with my Primordial Spirit... Now, take it as sacrificing for the Shen Family."
As these words fell, Shen Yinfeng ignored Shen Xiangrong’s wailing, forcibly pressing his Primordial Spirit into the mirror-light before him.
Rumble...
Unexpectedly, the once-faint mirror-light suddenly burned with intensity, and then, a gigantic meat-worm leaped forth, its body lined with sinister runes bulging like pulsing veins, hideous and terrifying.
This was the Original Rune of the Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman.
At this moment, it manifested within Zhang Fan’s Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery.
Roar...
The bloated worm let out a thunderous howl, the wind it raised seemed about to overturn even this pitch-black night.
"Kacha... Kacha..."
Just then, an ear-piercing chewing echoed out; the monstrous worm had begun devouring Zhang Fan’s Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery.
"Eat... Eat... Swallow it all... even his Primordial Spirit..."
Shen Yinfeng’s withered skin shuddered violently, his eyes flashing with feverish excitement.
Now, his Primordial Spirit had already merged with the Original Rune of the Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman, thriving as one; in this Inner Scenery, the Original Rune wielded ultimate power, and thus so did he...
"Brat, I don’t care who you are—today, you can only die and vanish." Shen Yinfeng said coldly.
The labor of three generations of the Shen Family had just barely fused this Original Rune; his confidence was unshakable.
Roar...
Yet at that moment, an alien roar echoed from the vast darkness, making Shen Yinfeng’s gaze tremble.
He looked up, and then came the rush of water—using the faint mirror-light, he saw golden currents swirling and merging, forming the shape of a monstrous being, as if crawling up from the deep...
A domed turtle’s back, entwined with a black Profound Nether serpent; together, they seemed as one seamless entity.
"This... this is..."
Shen Yinfeng’s eyes widened impossibly; disbelief gripped him.
That terrifying behemoth had just broken the surface, stomping hard; the entire Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery trembled in its wake...
"Turtle and serpent, the twin spirits... You... you have the Zhenwu Mountain’s Jade Scroll!?" Shen Yinfeng shrieked hoarsely.
Rumble...
That horrifying beast stepped forward, and before it, the huge meat-worm instantly shrank to a helpless worm.
The next moment, the beast lifted its colossal leg and, with the gentlest press, crushed the monstrous worm into a splatter of flesh, its immense power grinding it utterly to dust. In an instant, all that remained of its tongue was gone—before it could struggle or howl, it dissipated into nothingness.
"No... you, just who are you really..."
Shen Yinfeng’s expression twisted; the collected efforts of three Shen generations, before the power of the Zhenwu Jade Scroll, were merely useless refuse.
He had fused his Primordial Spirit with the Original Rune—now that the latter was utterly destroyed, he too could no longer endure.
"Brat..."
Shen Yinfeng’s eyes widened as he peered into the endless blackness, as if desperate to see Zhang Fan’s Primordial Spirit.
"Father, one day, I will surpass the Dragon Tiger Zhang Family." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
The words of that distant night rang in his ears—keeping vigil at the bedside, he had watched over his father, sent him on his final journey, and made a vow to strive with all his life.
"Dragon Tiger..."
Rumble...
Before Shen Yinfeng could finish, his Primordial Spirit collapsed utterly into oblivion.
Golden currents surged; the beast manifested by the Zhenwu Jade Scroll grew even more real as it fully emerged within Zhang Fan’s Inner Scenery.
Dang... dang... dang...
Suddenly, heavy chains clattered from the blackness, and a thick chain shot forth, seized in the jaws of the primordial beast—it howled at the sky, yanking mightily, as if to tear out whatever was hidden in the darkness.
Roar...
Suddenly, an equally mighty force pulsed along the chain, resisting the beast’s strength—balance was struck between the two.
Simultaneously, a peculiar, thunderous roar resonated, like a tiger’s bellow or a dragon’s song.
Within the Refining Talisman Temple, the swollen flesh orb decayed visibly, quickly rotting into ruin; inlaid upon the chest, the Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman broke open with webbing cracks, the turtle shell bearing the Original Rune splintered apart...
Next moment, the runes pulsing faintly on the foreheads of surviving Talisman Masters dissipated to smoke and vanished.
With the source destroyed, the child runes lost all support.
"We... we’re saved..."
All who lived through the tribulation looked at each other, eyes glistening, finally exhaling a breath they didn’t know they’d held.
They looked about in confusion, and saw before the decaying flesh-mud, only a lone youth stood—Zhang Fan.
...
Rumble...
A moment later, the great doors of the Refining Talisman Temple opened again, and people burst forth in a rush.
"Damn!" Qi Ji’s face changed, struggling to his feet.
At that moment, Jiang Hu awakened as well, alert and on guard.
"We’re saved... We’re safe... We made it out alive..."
The first flock of Talisman Masters shouted at the top of their lungs, their joy of survival wild and raw.
Qi Ji furrowed his brow, staring hard at them—his Primordial Spirit Observation detected nothing odd.
These people were no different from ordinary mortals—no runes planted on their bodies.
"So it failed?"
Shen Qingli watched this scene, murmuring softly, her beautiful face marked by an indescribable loneliness and sorrow, yet her body at last felt an enormous sense of relief, as if a great weight lifted.
"He... he actually succeeded?" Qi Ji couldn’t believe it as he regarded those who’d escaped, his eyes alight with fear and amazement.
"Zhang Fan..."
Jiang Hu clenched both fists, but his eyes shone with a strange, proud gleam.
Since joining, this seemingly clueless newcomer had astounded him time after time; not long ago, he’d even mastered the Northern Emperor Technique, and, teaming up with Jiang Lai, prevented the Dragon Fang Sacrifice at Taoyuan Square.
Now, not only had he saved all these people—he had also rescued him from the very edge of the abyss.
"Damn it, just who is he really?"
Crystals shimmered in Jiang Hu’s eyes; he couldn’t help but speak with excitement.
"The Shen Family is finished."
Just then, a languid, world-weary sigh rose at their ears.
"Mr. Qiu!?"
Jiang Hu turned, seeing Qiu Zhengdao approaching; wearing only a loose coat, both arms dangling empty, his deep gaze fixed upon the firelit Refining Talisman Temple.
"On the Yangtze, each wave sweeps away the last—there is always another to replace the old." Qiu Zhengdao muttered.
"Jiang Hu, this friend of yours really isn’t ordinary."
"Zhang Fan? He’s truly extraordinary." Jiang Hu nodded.
"In these years... you’ve grown quite a bit too." Qiu Zhengdao shifted his tone suddenly.
"Hm?" Jiang Hu paused, looking toward Qiu Zhengdao beside him.
"We’ve met before... haven’t we?"
"Jiang Hu...I told you, didn’t I?"
"Someday, we would meet again."
Qiu Zhengdao turned, a faint, layered smile playing on his lips; in his eyes lingered the memory of that tumultuous night at the grave-pit...
"You... you are..."
"Wu Ma!?" Jiang Hu’s eyes went wide, a cry tearing from his lips.
