Blue Phoenix

by Tinalynge

  "You refer to a few of them as the blue cloud, the red mist, the green pearl. The truth is that these kinds of energies are actually daos. The blue cloud is the dao of devouring. It focuses on devouring the energies of the universe. Any energy can be consumed by you. Even more interesting is it seems that in every life you lived you walked down the dao of devouring."

  "When you were the red wolf you were an asura that devoured soul after soul, life after life, and lived in a world filled with death and despair."

  "The monk devoured energies letting none escape his grasp in his world while he ensured that no person was harmed."

  "While the green witch was not a God, she had already started down the path of a devourer. She devoured lifeforce from the dead and gave it to the living."

  "Although we do not know about your other lives just yet, I can imagine that they too have something to do with this dao as you have already devoured energies, souls, and lifeforce."

  "The devouring dao is a minor dao under the dao of darkness, but although it is a minor dao, it is as strong as the major daos when it comes to attacking. If you comprehend the complete dao of devouring, then you will be able to rip out the soul of your opponents and consume it unless they have astonishing soul defenses."

  "Right now, what you need is to become strong." Huli continued, "you need to be as strong as possible so that you can survive the trip to the Netherworld, and even more so to prove your strength and catch the attention of Yanluo!"

  "There is still some time before we reach the netherworld. This ship is silent and peaceful. It is only natural that you spend the time you have here training and emerging yourself in the daos that you are comprehending."

  "Considering how many of your previous lives have walked the dao of devouring, I am sure that you will be able to comprehend it very quickly."

  Hui Yue's brain was so busy comprehending everything he had heard that he did not notice that Huli was no longer speaking. He was reminded of the word devour and how it had filled him with a feeling of profoundness earlier.

  Now he was filled with confusion. He knew which path to take; he understood that he needed to comprehend and use the daos to fight, but the difference in knowing what a dao was and fully understanding it was as far apart as the heavens and the earth.

  Without delaying, Hui Yue sat down in a lotus position with his eyes closed. He started sorting through every piece of information Huli had given him.

  The dao was everywhere around him. He would be able to understand the dao if he took some time to ponder upon it. Some were harder to comprehend but contained immense power, others were easier to comprehend but contained little power. Some daos required one to already have fully understood others before one could unlock the greater dao associated with them. Understanding a greater dao allowed one to truly become an unparalleled supreme expert. Only a few, including Yanluo, had managed to comprehend a heavenly dao.

  Devouring was a minor dao under the major dao of darkness, whereas darkness was a major dao under the heavenly dao of death. Not many dared to venture into a dao like this, a dao which was so domineering and so evil in nature.

  But Hui Yue was not your usual cultivator. When he thought about how his dao of devouring could be evil and domineering, he also understood that it could be gentle and soft.

  When he thought about the blue monk, he knew that a dao was not what determined one's personality. There was the red wolf, a domineering and coldblooded asura, and the blue monk who would travel the world and do anything in his power to make everyone have a gentle life. He would bless those who he came across and use his powers for good; he never killed, and only took away the energies of those who opposed him. There was also the green witch who devoured lifeforce, but she did so from the dead who no longer needed it and gave it to those in need. She was a healer and a gentle person, but despite her personality, she walked the dao of devouring.

  Thinking of this, Hui Yue understood something. There was no good or evil in this world. Everything could become good just like anything could become evil. It depended on the hands wielding power. It depended on the views of whoever was viewing the topic in question. No one was fully evil just like no one was fully good; even a devil could care for someone while an angel could resent another.

  Realizing this, Hui Yue did not hesitate to let his thoughts wander and thought about devouring.

  Devouring was to consume greedily, to forcefully take something and make it a part of oneself. Hui Yue felt that the more he thought about the word devour, the more complex it became. He thought of how he had absorbed souls and energies time and time again, both out of anger, to pass judgment according to his own desire, and to absorb energies to increase his strength.

  Only then did it click. His desire. His desire was what determined what and when he devoured energies. Controlling the dao had to do with his desire to do so.

  Although the dao and his previous energies were different, they had something in common. Both required his desire to activate them; both required his desire to move them.

  Sitting with his eyes closed, his entire body started to draw in the Ancestral Worldpower from his surroundings, and as time went by this devouring force became stronger and stronger.

  Hui Yue no longer visited the Divine Beast World to tell them what was going on. He did not move at all as his body was constantly absorbing and devouring the energy from the universe around him. Even though he was taking in an enormous amount of energy within this infinite galaxy, there was an unlimited amount of energy. He could keep absorbing for the rest of his life and not even make a change to the galaxy’s energy.

  The first month of their travels Huli only looked at Hui Yue and kept him under her watch, but as the months turned to half a year, she no longer paid attention to the young man who was focused on the dao.

  A year passed by before Hui Yue opened his blue eyes once more. Deep within them, a black whirlwind could be seen, but after his eyes opened, it soon vanished leaving behind no traces of ever having been there.

  "This is the Netherworld?" Hui Yue asked curiously as he moved up to the deck where Huli was standing and looked at the bright star that was right in front of them. The star was clearly closer than any other world; it was right in front of them, and the halo of Ancestral Worldpower and lifeforce was sending ripples from the world so strong that Hui Yue could feel it blazing on his body like the scorching heat from the blue flames of Lan Feng. Bathed in this scorching heat, Hui Yue greedily absorbed the energy with a smile on his face. They had finally arrived at the Netherworld.

  Chapter 505 - Treasure Mountain

  * * *

  Chapter 505: Treasure Mountain

  Looking around, Hui Yue noticed that his was not the only space shuttle moving towards the Netherworld. Everywhere he looked more and more shuttles of various shapes and sizes ripped apart the fabric of reality, exiting spatial tears and entering the world in front of them. To Hui Yue it felt like he was back on the roads outside of Muchuan City. The space surrounding the Netherworld was packed with thousands upon thousands of ships entering and departing the massive world!

  Seeing this many Gods, Hui Yue felt his heart tighten and his body shake.

  "We were lucky that we haven't run into any pirates so far." Huli said as she nodded her head in satisfaction. Her expression showed that she was not the least bit surprised about the amount of Gods present, and when she saw Hui Yue's shocked expression, she chuckled slightly. "You come from a small world where Gods are as rare as the moon in the sky, but in our vast galaxy one finds that Gods are not like moons, but stars. And the amount of stars in the night sky are uncountable; there exists so many that one could never see them all."

  Hui Yue was shocked. He knew very well how hard it was to become a God even more so if you did not have the assistance of the Formation of Life or a similar formation. Still, there were countless worlds in this galaxy, so many that one could never visit them all, not even with their infinite lifespan, and
for them to have produced plenty of Gods was actually not that surprising after some thought.

  When there were so many Gods, naturally some would become bandits. Only now did he realize how lucky he was to have Huli by his side. Although they were lucky not to have been ambushed or attacked so far, but if he were on his own and was attacked then he would inevitably have to draw on the energy of the Divine Beast World to fight. This would wound the world which was already slightly exhausted after its lifeforce was used in the fight against Rong Liang. Though now with Huli by his side, Hui Yue was certain that the two of them could manage on their own.

  "Well no use thinking about it for now." Hui Yue decided as his eyes left the many shuttles and returned to the world in front of them. He had to focus and figure out a way to meet Yanluo.

  "Let me." Huli said as she stood at the front of the shuttle. Her arm reached forward, and Ancestral Worldpower poured forth, and just like the many other ships, they tore a hole in the protective layer around the world. This allowed for Hui Yue, Huli, and their ship to enter into the world.

  As they entered the world, the shuttle shrank in size until it could fit in Hui Yue's palm and with a wave of his hand, was returned to the Universe Box. Now that Hui Yue knew it was in there, he could find summon it any time he needed it.

  Looking around more and more experts were coming through, and he could not help but frown a little. Even Huli was surprised by the sheer amount of people who were appearing in the Netherworld.

  "Although there are many people traveling through space and visiting various worlds, this amount truly is abnormal..." She said with a sigh. "Something must be happening for so many people to be entering the Netherworld."

  Hui Yue just nodded his head. Indeed, it did seem like everyone was in a hurry, and he, who was looking for a way to contact Yanluo, could not help but feel that this was perhaps a chance. Only Yanluo could cause such a commotion within his world and hope sprung to life in Hui Yue's heart.

  Huli, having reached the same conclusion, smiled at him with happiness as she took his hand and led him down to the ground. "Come with me. Let’s find an immortal city and sell all your materials for worldpower stones. That is the currency used by immortals, and we can use some of that wealth to buy the information we seek." Huli quickly said. Hui Yue, who was in a rush to know what was happening, quickly nodded his head in agreement.

  The two, man and beast, flew hand in hand through the skies so swiftly that not even an afterimage was left behind. The Netherworld was at least four thousand times larger than the Divine Beast World, and although they traveled swiftly it took over an hour of flying over normal fields, forests, mountain ranges, and cities before a city floating in the sky appeared in front of them. As they flew, Huli explained the Netherworld to Hui Yue.

  "Half of the Netherworld is like any other world. It is filled with mortals who cultivate and immortals alike. Unlike the Divine Beast World, these mortals know about Gods and the fact that this is the Netherworld. So many Gods visit this world that it would be impossible to hide their existence. These mortals don’t fear the Gods though, they are under the protection of Yanluo, and no one would dare massacre mortals in his world. If they ever needed to resurrect, then they would end up suffering for all eternity in Diyu."

  "A quarter of this world is one large plane called the Plane of Despair. That is where all souls will wander from their death till the day they fully forget their previous lives. When they have forgotten their lives, they will be reincarnated."

  "The last place is the most mysterious place. It is called Diyu. I don't know much about it, just that only sinners are put there, and as for what happens within, no one knows. Those who exit never mention anything."

  "Diyu is controlled by Yanluo's most trusted subordinates, the ten Judges of Hell. These two places, Diyu and the Plane of Despair, are only able to be visited by the ten Judges of Hell and Yanluo or his personal guests. I never entered any of those places before, so I can't help you too much." Huli said while shaking her head with an apologetic expression, but what she said had already helped Hui Yue understand the Netherworld somewhat, and for that he was grateful. Gently petting Huli's head, he smiled at her. "Thank you." He said from his heart before his eyes returned to the city that had appeared in front of them.

  A mountain which was turned upside down was hanging in the air three thousand meters above ground. The peaks pointed down towards the ground while the base was flat. The base of this floating, upside-down mountain was perfectly level, and it seemed as if something had sliced the mountain in half to form the land where a large city had been built. Mist and clouds floated around it making it seem celestial, and the city itself was filled with people constantly arriving and leaving.

  "This is the Skydragon Fortress," Huli explained. "Beneath the city, inside the mountain, is a Skydragon. Should war ever break out within the Netherworld, then this dragon will awaken and fight by Yanluo's side."

  "This is one of the biggest immortal cities in the entire galaxy, and we are going to settle here until we find a way to meet with Yanluo," Huli said, and Hui Yue agreed. The largest city was likely to have the most accurate information and the best resources.

  "Follow me," Huli said, and she tightened her grip around Hui Yue's hand as she dragged him with her into the city. "One cannot fly in Skydragon Fortress, if you do, you will be killed without warning." She continued as they landed in the grassy area just outside the city where many other experts landed.

  Beauty was something everyone wanted and seeing the two, Hui Yue and Huli together many were staring. As a God, there was no longer any racism against magical beasts, and many Gods were, in fact, magical beasts themselves. Thus those who looked at them were shocked by the handsome man and beautiful woman. They looked like a divine couple and seemed heavenly as they landed hand in hand. Those who were looking at them also tried to see if they could gain any understanding of Hui Yue or Huli's strength, however, no matter how much they searched, these two experts in front of them were impossible to see through.

  Hui Yue was completely oblivious to the looks he was getting as he was busy looking at the city in front of him. He was like a child seeing Christmas lights for the first time, and although his actions made him seem aloof, Huli knew that he was trying to take in all the new things that were happening around him.

  "Let’s go to the Treasure Mountain." Huli said smilingly. She had been to Skydragon Fortress before, and she knew her way around the city. It was an immortal city, and because of this, it never changed. Despite the fact that it was thousands of years since she was last here, she moved through the city as if she had been to it just yesterday.

  All the buildings were breathtaking and well maintained. There were no shabby looking houses just like there were no beggars on the roads. There were merchants, but all of them were Gods, and the whole city made Hui Yue speechless.

  Laughing Huli snuggled closer to Hui Yue and was almost hanging on his arm while dragging him with her towards a massive mountain-like pagoda in the middle of the city. Only one building was taller than this pagoda, and that was the core part of the fortress, the location where the City Lord lived.

  This massive pagoda that towered to the heavens was right in front of the fortress. It was obvious that there was some connection between the two, but Huli just laughed when Hui Yue asked about it. "No one knows the truth behind Treasure Mountain. It is in every major immortal city in the entire galaxy. It is as old as the cities themselves, and as for who built this empire of merchants, no one knows."

  Hui Yue nodded his head hearing her words. It made sense that within this vast and ancient world of Gods there were mysteries that others were not meant to know about. This was not something that he cared about, all he wanted was to find someone who wished to buy his materials so that he could accumulate some wealth and buy information. This was what mattered to him.

  Entering the tall pagoda, Hui Yue followed behind Huli. Walking inside, he was still sor
ting and thinking about all the new things that he had learned about recently.

  "Good day, how may I help you?" A gentle female voice suddenly sounded in front of them, and Hui Yue looked at the one who was speaking. It was a woman who was either half beast half human, or a beast in human form. Hui Yue thought this because her body was human but she had the tail of a cat and cat ears. She was incredibly cute, and for some reason, Huli glared at her as she fastened her grip on Hui Yue.

  Hui Yue, who felt the sudden squeeze could not help but sigh. Did this fox woman really think that he was so cheap to fall for any woman he came close to? Still, he said nothing and let Huli take control of the situation much like she had done before. After glaring at the woman for a short while, Huli finally cleared her throat, "We are here to sell some things." She said with a dry voice.