Chapter 218: Inheriting the Douzi Secret, Refining Mount Xumi
Time passed.
He didn't know how long.
A ray of sunlight fell on his face.
Chu Xiu opened his eyes.
He found that he was no longer on the fishing boat or near the Sansheng Stone Tablet. At some point, he had drifted to the riverbank.
"Have I reached the other side?"
He sat up, rubbing his temples. His gaze swept across his surroundings.
The ground ahead remained shrouded in darkness.
However, there was now a square not far away.
At its center stood two statues.
Strangely, both statues were headless.
Judging by their physiques, they appeared to be male.
The statue on the left was dressed in Taoist robes, gripping a straight blade in his right hand and pointing it toward the sky.
The one on the right wore a cloak, his upper body bare, muscles sculpted like steel. His arms were crossed behind his back, exuding an air of dominance.
Chu Xiu's eyes flickered.
Carrying the Three Lives Stele, he walked forward.
He pondered in silence.
"Could these be the two great figures the old tree spoke of?"
It was highly possible.
Otherwise, why would their heads have been deliberately removed?
They must be forbidden existences, beings whose very names could not be spoken.
Even glimpsing their faces might induce terror.
Chu Xiu advanced step by step toward the square.
A cold, mechanical voice echoed in the air.
"Congratulations, Trialist Chu Xiu."
"You are the only cultivator to arrive with the Three Lives Stele."
"You will receive the inheritance of the Douzi Secret."
"It has been detected that you are qualified to refine Mount Xumi."
"Please follow the next set of instructions after receiving the Douzi Secret."
—Buzz!—
The Three Lives Stele on Chu Xiu's shoulder trembled violently.
A soft, fist-sized glow emerged from it, shooting toward the chest of the statue on the right—the one standing with his hands behind his back.
—Click. Click. Click.—
A strange phenomenon unfolded.
The statue moved.
Its body stretched as if awakening from a long slumber.
Chu Xiu narrowed his eyes, his body tensing instinctively.
The headless statue turned toward him.
Then, slowly, it raised its right hand and extended a single finger.
A ray of golden light shot from its fingertip, piercing into Chu Xiu's altar.
—Hummm—
A deep resonance filled the air.
Ancient chants echoed within him.
It was as if a supreme being from the distant past was personally imparting divine knowledge.
Mysterious and profound Daoist principles condensed into golden Dao runes, engraving themselves onto his very soul.
These Dao runes would never fade with time.
They could never be stolen.
Chu Xiu set the Three Lives Stele down.
He sat cross-legged, beginning his comprehension of the Douzi Secret.
Meanwhile, the Sansheng Stone Tablet melted before him, dissolving into a wisp of black light that surged into his chest.
Unbeknownst to Chu Xiu—who was deep in his comprehension of the secret art—everything was changing.
Three days passed.
Chu Xiu opened his eyes.
A smile curled on his lips.
With a single hand gesture, he formed a Dao seal.
A radiant blue lotus bloomed above his head.
With a flick of his fingers, the lotus disintegrated into an endless cascade of azure light.
Like a waterfall spanning thousands of miles, the energy surged forward, slamming into the distant black mountains.
—BOOM!—
The mountains collapsed with a deafening roar.
If the Saint of Yao Chi and the others were here, they would be utterly shocked.
This technique—Blue Lotus Ten Thousand Immortal Lights—was one of the secret arts recorded in the Snow Qing Emperor Sutra.
It was a move once used by Ming Yaozi in battle against Chu Xiu.
Now, however, Chu Xiu had recreated it through the fusion of the Douzi Secret and his Guiyi Dao Seed.
Its power was even greater than when Ming Yaozi had used it himself.
"Hahaha!"
Chu Xiu burst into laughter, tilting his head back in joy.
After all his struggles, he had finally obtained the Douzi Secret.
It had all been worth it.
Just then, the mechanical voice rang out again.
"The trial participant has successfully comprehended the Douzi Secret."
"Would the trial participant like to proceed to Mount Xumi immediately?"
Chu Xiu nodded and glanced at his feet, noticing that the Sansheng Stone Tablet had vanished.
He didn't dwell on it.
"I want to refine Mount Xumi. How do I get there?"
"Establishing transmission channel..."
. . .
"Transmission channel established."
A brilliant white beam of light pierced through the dark clouds above and descended upon Chu Xiu, enveloping him completely.
Beneath his feet, intricate Space Dao patterns began to form, pulsating with ethereal energy.
Five breaths later—
Whoosh!
Chu Xiu vanished.
An Old Friend Left Behind
Not long after Chu Xiu's departure, a figure emerged from the void.
A hunched old tree man, draped in a black raincoat and wearing a wide bamboo hat, stepped forward, his gait slow and deliberate.
He stopped beneath the two statues.
Tilting his head, he opened his bark-like eyelids, revealing cloudy, aged eyes.
His gaze fell upon the left statue—the one standing with his hands behind his back.
Tears, thick and heavy, slid down his wrinkled cheeks.
A mixture of sorrow and relief.
"Your plan succeeded."
"He truly came here."
"The task you entrusted to me is complete."
His voice trembled.
"It has been too long... too long."
"All our old friends perished in that battle, and I alone remained."
"It's unbearable."
"That existence is still fighting alone... on the other side of the Blood River."
The old tree man turned his head, his turbid eyes scanning the surroundings.
This place...
He had spent an unknown number of years here.
Every flower, every tree, every rock, every mountain—he knew them all.
His gaze shifted to the distant Wangchuan River.
Then, to the towering silhouette of Mount Xumi.
"It's time to leave."
"Time to go there."
He sighed deeply.
"Chu Xiu... I'll call you by that name."
"I hope you can find the path."
"Alas... the way is not the way, and the person is not the person..."
His voice faded.
And so did his figure.
Vanishing into the void.
Arriving at Mount Xumi
On the other side—
Chu Xiu stood at the foot of an enormous, green mountain.
His head tilted back, mouth slightly open, eyes filled with disbelief.
"...I've never seen a mountain this massive before..."
Even the legendary Wangshan was said to be enormous—
But surely, even it couldn't compare to Mount Xumi.
It was rumored to be the sacred mountain of Buddhism.
"I wonder if it has any connection to that group of bald monks in Ximo?"
He chuckled.
"Well, it doesn't matter."
"Once I refine it, even if it does have ties to them..."
"It'll still be mine."
"No one can take what belongs to me—not even the King of Heaven himself."
His gaze swept across the vast landscape before him.
"To refine this mountain, there must be a core somewhere."
"If I find the core and bind it to myself, that should do the trick."
His thoughts drifted.
"I wonder what grade of treasure this mountain is?"
"A Quasi-Imperial Weapon? Or an Imperial Weapon?"
"Or... something beyond that?"
His curiosity burned as he stepped onto the path leading up the mountain.
An Unexpected Surprise
Suddenly—
A cold, mechanical voice rang out.
"Congratulations, Trialist Chu Xiu."
"You have successfully refined Mount Xumi."
...
???
Chu Xiu froze.
"Wait. What?"
His mind blanked for a moment.
"I HAVEN'T EVEN STARTED YET!"
"Are you telling me I just got a free treasure!?"
Before he could process what had just happened—
The entire mountain trembled.
With a deep, earth-shaking rumble, the gigantic Mount Xumi rose from the ground.
The Shock Across the Secret Realm
At the same time—
In the void, atop a gigantic ancient tree, countless monks felt the disturbance.
Heads snapped up.
Eyes widened in horror.
The ground quaked beneath them.
From their position, they could see the immense mountain rising into the sky.
Rocks. Trees. Soil.
All of it began to peel away from the surface, crumbling into nothingness.
And beneath it—
A smooth, golden surface was revealed.
A golden mountain.
Blindingly brilliant.
Its radiant light illuminated the entire secret realm, casting everything in a golden hue.
At the base of the mountain, three colossal characters were engraved.
But before anyone could read them—
WHOOSH!
The mountain shrunk in an instant.
And then—
Vanished.
The Aftermath
Silence.
Then—
"Was that... a treasure?"
"It disappeared in an instant!"
"Where did it go?"
"Could it have... flown away!?"
No one had an answer.
But one thing was certain—
Something unprecedented had just occurred.
And it involved Chu Xiu.