Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 491: Eternal Blood Demon Body

In fact, even without witnessing the strange phenomena of the blood moon on this sacred mountain, Zhao Changhe could roughly infer what had happened here before he arrived.

It was nothing more than the fact that Venerable Duoluo, who had been expelled from the Blood Ao’s body and escaped, had fled here to stir up trouble.

From his past experiences at Kunlun, Zhao Changhe knew that the secret realm created by the Heavenly Tome encompassed the entire Spirit Tribe’s vast territory. It would not create a nested smaller secret realm within it. The reason the small, isolated space had formed was due to Venerable Duoluo making use of the celestial phenomenon and the mountain structure to create an array.

Through this unique array, Duoluo not only concealed the Ao Pool but also shrouded the presence of the Heavenly Tome, which he had hoped to retrieve right after his own revival. Therefore, he must have been aware of the Heavenly Tome’s existence from the beginning and, after his defeat yesterday, had immediately fled in the direction of the Heavenly Tome.

It was difficult to say whether his concealment was detrimental to the Spirit Tribe or somewhat beneficial.

If the Heavenly Tome had been laid bare in front of the Spirit Tribe people, it might have empowered the tribe immensely. However, Zhao Changhe felt that the aura of this specific page of the Heavenly Tome was particularly distinct and would more likely draw the covetous eyes of other beings, potentially bringing disaster instead.

For instance, when Xia Longyuan was conquering Miaojiang, if he had sensed the presence of the Heavenly Tome here, he would likely have stormed in. Or perhaps, Ying Five’s brothers, who were constantly on the lookout for such artifacts, might have stumbled upon it. The page’s concealment allowed the Spirit Tribe to flourish naturally until today—blissfully unaware of its existence.

Yet, there was still one thing that Zhao Changhe could not figure out.

Based on his knowledge from Kunlun, these gods and demons could not directly approach the Heavenly Tome. That was why the existence at Kunlun compelled Yuxu to retrieve it. Of course, Yuxu refused and instead sought evildoers to do the job, eliminating them in the process. Even the blind woman was the same, hoping Zhao Changhe or her former “minion” Xia Longyuan would obediently help her gather the Heavenly Tome, which implied she could not do it herself. If she could, she would have probably done it long ago.

It was highly likely that a physical body was needed for this task. It was reasonable to believe that Venerable Duoluo had merged with the Blood Ao to acquire a suitable body in order to retrieve the Heavenly Tome. A lone soul simply would not be able to obtain it, as was the case with the blind woman and the god or demon at Kunlun.

Even earlier, when Venerable Duoluo’s fusion with the Blood Ao was incomplete, he could not retrieve it. That was why he annually sent emissaries to the Spirit Tribe during the Dragon Boat Festival, demanding sacrifices. On this day, the Azure Dragon constellation was at its zenith, filled with vitality, making it the most favorable day for the merging of body and soul.

Although Zhao Changhe did not understand how souls took over another being’s body, he knew the Rejuvenation Art, the intent of the Azure Dragon, and also understood the art of tempering the flesh and blood. In this aspect, he might even surpass Duoluo in expertise, and he was confident that his judgment on the matter was accurate.

Therefore, Zhao Changhe had not been particularly worried when Venerable Duoluo fled toward the Heavenly Tome. If he could have taken it, he would have done so long ago.

Yet somehow, Duoluo still managed to stir up trouble, and now he could not help but wonder how the spirit managed to do such a thing.

As Zhao Changhe placed his hand on the blood moon, others watching thought he appeared calm and composed, analyzing the situation with expertise as the sacred envoy who understood everything. But internally, he was calling out to the blind woman, “Hey, open the door.”

“Scram!”

“?” Zhao Changhe was puzzled. “Is it that time of the month?”

The blind woman sneered and said, “I reminded you about the Heavenly Tome last night, yet you had the time to hang out and have someone pleasure you with their feet. Why don’t you continue with that now?”

Zhao Changhe was stunned. “Wait, was that really you last night?”

“You can go die for all I care!” With a heavy kick to his backside, he was sent tumbling into the blood moon.

“Damn it! I still have to wait for Hongling!”

“She doesn’t need you to wait!”

To outsiders, it appeared as though the sacred envoy simply flashed into the blood moon.

Shortly afterward, Yue Hongling came rushing in, urgently asking Sisi, “Why did he go in without explaining anything?”

Sisi was equally bewildered. “I don’t know why he suddenly acted so decisively. Maybe something urgent is going on inside.”

Yue Hongling paused for a moment and then dashed toward the blood moon.

Surprisingly, she was also able to go in... It seemed as though the barrier that isolated the Spirit Tribe people did not exist for the two of them.

Sisi scratched her head and tried to enter herself, only to be bounced back by the blood moon, nearly falling on her butt.

“What’s going on... Does Big Sis Yue also have an affinity with the ancestral spirit?”

Of course, there was affinity involved, though it was not exactly with their so-called ancestral deity.

If Zhao Changhe had not called out to the blind woman and just tried to rush in himself, he still would’ve gone in easily due to his long-term possession of two pages of the Heavenly Tome, which had allowed him to foster an affinity with the Heavenly Tome.

It also happened that this affinity could be somewhat transmitted through dual cultivation. Not everyone practiced dual cultivation with Zhao Changhe, but Yue Hongling happened to be the one person who did.

* * *

Inside the blood moon, Zhao Changhe was falling helplessly.

Ahead of him, the mountain loomed. Looking up, he could see its peak, where a golden page floated, radiating a mysterious and vast aura. This aura gave Zhao Changhe a sense of familiarity, and he instantly recognized the nature of this particular page of the Heavenly Tome.

If the initial golden foil could be considered the general outline of martial arts, and the page at Kunlun detailed the various natural elements, such as mountains and rivers, flora, sound manipulation, and the use of the five elements, then the page before him was related to life itself. It encompassed the power of dragons and elephants, the secrets of witchcraft and gu, the giant Ao treading the four seas, its legs reaching the sky, the Kunpeng spreading its wings across the heavens, its wingspan covering the sky and blotting out the sun.

Strength, speed, agility. The tempering of the body, the flow of bloodlines, and the ethereal energies within the human body—true qi, blood qi, vicious qi—all of it.

The Heavenly Tome was a martial arts compendium. It was not a display of creation but a collection of all things related to martial arts. Just a glance could provide any martial artist insights unique to their path, or, for the fortunate, an understanding of divine arts.

Unfortunately, at this moment, Zhao Changhe was not interested in insights. Rather, his main concern was that he was about to crash headfirst into the mountain.

Bang!

Zhao Changhe slammed straight into the mountain and slowly began sliding down, in a display that would have made a certain coyote proud.

“Oh, the second layer of the Blood Asura Body, not bad! Your resilience has noticeably improved. This should be the work of that Heavenly Blood Jade, right?” The blind woman clicked her tongue in amusement. “When you can slide down and leave a mark on this rock, you might have attained mastery.”

Zhao Changhe, exasperated, retorted, “We’re not here to sightsee!”

Of course, they were not there to sightsee. He could see a blood-soaked figure before the Heavenly Tome, clutching it and screaming in agony.

The figure’s body was being torn apart and reformed, a terrifying sight. Zhao could not even make out their face, but he could guess that it was Shi Wuding.

Shi Wuding had not fallen far from the sacred mountain, so it was not unlikely that Venerable Duoluo, fleeing in the direction of the sacred mountain, had encountered him. Both were Zhao Changhe’s enemies, so they would naturally join forces. Whether Duoluo had taken over Shi Wuding’s body or, like the blind woman, was inhabiting him in some other form, they had found a way to approach the Heavenly Tome.

Beside Shi Wuding, a blood-like bubble pulsated on the ground as if it were a beating heart.

Is that Venerable Duoluo?

The blind woman said coldly, “They tried to take the Heavenly Tome page but were strongly repelled. That is how they ended up this way.”

Zhao Changhe asked, “The Heavenly Tome rejects people? Why doesn’t it reject me?”

The blind woman sneered. “You’re welcome to test that theory.”

Zhao Changhe: “...”

“The other pages are more forgiving, but this page deals with the path of life. One is incomplete, and the other is just a remnant soul. It would be a miracle of this page of the Heavenly Tome accepted such things.” The blind woman continued indifferently, “Of course, this rejection isn’t absolute. Once they become complete lifeforms, this page of the Heavenly Tome would naturally accept them.”

Incomplete... Does that mean Shi Wuding is seriously injured? If that’s the case, am I also considered incomplete...?

Zhao Changhe asked cautiously, “How do they become complete?”

“Duoluo has mastered the Buddhists’ transformative arts, the divine power to reanimate flesh and bones. With the flesh and blood techniques that he has learned over the years from residing in the Blood Ao’s body, combined with the Heavenly Tome’s assistance, Shi Wuding can be reborn anew. And the same goes for Duoluo himself; as long as he can acquire flesh and blood, he has the opportunity to transform into a complete person. The blood-red sky and the blood moon before you are both celestial phenomena attracted by a divine art!”

“Divine art...”

“It’s, of course, a unique divine art, combining Duoluo’s two types of abilities. It may even be called the Eternal Blood Demon Body. If Shi Wuding can integrate his sword qi with the concept of rebirth, he could probably form an Eternal Sword Body. In the presence of the Heavenly Tome, the birth of any divine art is not surprising. But here you are, carrying two pages of the Heavenly Tome for a year, yet still clueless, fumbling around like a novice.”

Zhao Changhe: “...”

Swish, swish, swish!

As her words fell, the blood-soaked figure’s screams gradually faded, a blood mist gathering around him like a forest of sharp sword qi.

The blood-soaked Shi Wuding gasped, slowly saying, “Zhao... Changhe...”

“They’re almost finished... Once they complete the transformation, not only will they be able to claim the Heavenly Tome, but Shi Wuding will also break through the third layer of the Profound Mysteries and kill you all.” The blind woman sneered. “The fire’s practically licking your heels, and you still have the nerve to think about being pleasured?”

“They haven’t finished yet, right?” Zhao Changhe drew Dragon Bird, leaped forward, and struck at the blood-soaked Shi Wuding.

Roar!

Shi Wuding let out a bestial roar, turning and countering with a powerful slap that struck the side of Dragon Bird.

It was clearly just a slap, yet it contained a sharp sword qi that entered Zhao Changhe’s meridians. Zhao Changhe, still not fully recovered, stumbled slightly, and behind him, sword qi whistled as Yue Hongling arrived just in time, swinging her sword past Zhao Changhe to block Shi Wuding’s strike.

Shi Wuding, panting, looked at the two, fighting side by side seamlessly. A wave of frustration surged within him.

Fighting one of them was never a problem; fighting both was always exasperating.

Swordsmen were solitary by nature. Sword slaves were merely tools; the only true trust lay in one’s own sword.

At that moment, Shi Wuding felt a pang of regret. If he had brought his sword slaves into this secret realm instead of leaving them outside to guard against intruders... he might have already won, and it would not have come to this.

Or perhaps, if Han Wubing had not turned on him, his loyalty would never have allowed him to watch his master suffer so.

But regret was meaningless now.

It does not matter, though. This time, I have help too.

From the blood bubble pulsing like a heart, an intensely sinister blood qi suddenly surged out, sweeping over Yue Hongling.

When Buddha’s Radiance was converted into flesh and blood witchcraft, would it cast death and decay?

Yue Hongling felt suffocated and dizzy, her heartbeats slowing, and even her fair skin seemed on the verge of withering.

Whoosh!

Zhao Changhe threw the bone sword, sending it straight at the blood bubble. “You hold off Shi Wuding. I’ll handle this thing.”