Chapter 2177.2: Immortal Potentate
“Hahaha, Lu Yun?! So it’s you, young master Lu. You came to watch the show, didn’t you? Even the heavens are on my side!” The draconic shadow was Yong Heyu after he deployed the Eighteen Cerulean Sword Dragons. He roared with laughter when he saw that it was Lu Yun in his grasp.
He hadn’t recognized Lu Yun at the Ling Clan, but with his wits, he quickly realized after the fact.
“It’s been a very long while, Terra Demon. Haven’t you become a brazen one, eh? You dare send people against me!” Lu Yun suddenly sneered. The shadow of a large seal floated over his body and easily blocked an attack from Yong Heyu.
The Seal of the Multitude was a connate treasure. With Lu Yun calling upon it, Yong Heyu couldn’t touch him, even though he was inside Iron Pagoda Mountain and aided by the mysterious person.
Meanwhile, the mysterious person was almost scared out of his wits when he heard the name “Terra Demon”! It was once a name known throughout the world of immortals in a certain era. In fact, it was the subject of many a nightmare. But since the world of immortals had long vanished, the name had also disappeared into history with it.
“Who are you?! Are you someone who survived from that time?! How do you know about me?!” shrieked Terra Demon inside the mountain.
Yong Heyu had been flung backward by the Seal of the Multitude. Cracks were developing on his dao weapon. Using a dao weapon against a connate treasure was no different from smashing an egg into a rock.
Whoosh!
Yong Heyu was drawn into the mountain with a flash of black light, replaced by a black shadow that approached Lu Yun.
“A connate treasure?! Who are you to have a connate treasure protect you??” The black shadow was the Terra Demon. He was flabbergasted by the seal around Lu Yun.
“Terra Demon, Terra Demon Immortal King, aren’t you something, huh! Do you even remember who saved you, who taught you cultivation, and who helped you become an immortal? Do you not recognize this seat even now??” Lu Yun saw only a tattered will in the black shadow, but its features were clear. It was one of his immortal kings from when he reincarnated into the world of immortals—the Terra Demon Immortal King!
“You… you are…” Terra Demon stared at Lu Yun. The young man was just a foundation establishment cultivator, but wielded a connate treasure and spoke these words from his past. Tongue-tied, he didn’t know what to say.
“Your… Grace…?” he ventured carefully.
“Who else would recognize you apart from me?” Lu Yun snorted. During his time in the world of immortals, he’d reached the peak of cultivation and was listed as one of the five titans of the world. He was the High Lord of the Northern Sky and called the wind and rain with a flip of his hand. Being one of the greatest in the world of immortals, not even the central immortal emperor had dared try to impose too many restrictions on him. The Terra Demon Immortal King was one of his many immortal king subordinates.
When the Mindful Immortal Potentate fell, Lu Yun had not yet become a high lord. That would come to pass several hundred thousand of years later. He’d sent Terra Demon to investigate the immortal potentate’s death and locate where the potentate’s pagoda had gone to.
So Terra Demon had indeed found it!
As for Lu Yun in that life, he broke through to the peak limits of immortal emperor not long thereafter and prepared to enter the next stage. However, what he set foot in next was the second reincarnation out of three thousand.
He’d been in his first reincarnation when he sought out the immortal potentate—his memories hadn’t been fully sealed then. Therefore, his command to Terra Demon must have something to do with the past him.
“Subordinate Terra Demon greets Your Grace the High Lord!” Terra Demon had sensed the aura of Lu Yun’s core origin—the same Lu Yun had experienced all three thousand Lu Yuns. Thus, the one standing in front of him was the first and truest Lu Yun.
As one of Lu Yun’s most competent subordinates, Terra Demon naturally detected his lord’s aura. Not to mention, it didn’t make sense that anyone other than the High Lord of the Northern Sky, invincible in the world of immortals, would be able to manipulate a connate treasure with the strength of foundation establishment.
“That’s enough, what happened after I left? Where’s the world of immortals?”
Where’s the world of immortals?
That was the biggest question in Lu Yun’s heart! He’d risen to immortality in all of his reincarnations, but never took the ascent protocol to the world of immortals. He didn’t even hear of that world.
“The world of immortals…” Terra Demon responded blankly. “Your Grace, I was died the sword pagoda after I found it. Thanks to protection from the origin of water as bestowed by Your Grace, I salvaged my will and fell into a deep slumber. I do not know what happened afterward.
“But in my sleep, I vaguely sensed the quaking of mountains and earth, the breaking of rules, the destruction of laws. The world of immortals… must have been destroyed.” Emotion filled his voice.
“But Your Grace, the High Lady was protected by the laws of water origin as well, so she must be fine after the demise of the world of immortals. See, Your Grace survived!” Terra Demon quickly added when he saw the less than pleasant expression on Lu Yun’s face.
The young man waved him off, fully believing the other’s words and loyalty. He’d raised Terra Demon from youth and knew his character like the back of his hand. If he wanted Terra Demon to commit suicide right now, the latter would do it without question.
As for this High Lady that he spoke of… the heavenly dao had likely shoved the woman at him. He didn’t want the woman and never touched her.
“How is the sword pagoda?” he asked instead.
“Your Grace, I attempted to claim the pagoda when I awoke one hundred years ago, but its core origin was so strong that I was unable to draw near it without my physical body,” Terra Demon sighed. “Therefore, I needed to nurture a cultivator and borrow his hand to activate the pagoda, then take possession of him and come back to life that way. Once I recovered my cultivation, I would claim the sword pagoda and go in search of Your Grace.”
“So Yong Heyu was one of your pawns.” Lu Yun didn’t fault his subordinate for inciting a blood sacrifice. Terra Demon himself was an inauspicious star of the cosmos. He brimmed with the air of violence that was greater than that of Seven Kills, Greedy Wolf, Army, Taisui, and Yinghuo. He’d been a keen sword in Lu Yun’s hand when in the world of immortals.
“Now that Your Grace is here, it won’t take any effort to seize control of the pagoda.” Terra Demon looked at the young man with great emotion.
“Hurry and take possession of Yong Heyu. The disturbance here has been so big that there will be many cultivators and immortals here before long,” Lu Yun frowned.
Terra Demon understood. He only had a lingering will left to his name and Lu Yun was latter foundation establishment. They wouldn’t be able to withstand stronger cultivators. Thus, he darted back into the mountain and sank into the unconscious Yong Heyu’s body.
Although Terra Demon’s will was tattered, it was one of an immortal king rather than an ordinary immortal. He’d also left behind many contingencies on Yong Heyu and perfectly primed him to be possessed.
Thus, Terra Demon easily took control of Yong Heyu and benefited from the young man’s hard efforts in cultivation. He’d surreptitiously helped the young man ascend beyond latter soul projection a long time ago, but used certain methods to conceal the breakthrough so that the heavenly book in the Celestial Realm Battlefront didn’t detect it.
When Terra Demon next appeared, he was a handsome young man three meters tall, dressed in white robes with silver hair and eyes. It was what his true self looked like. Since his physical body was lost and nascent soul crushed, his current level of cultivation was just that of Yong Heyu’s latter soul projection.
“This subordinate greets Your Grace!” Terra Demon knelt on one knee and bent his head. His waist length silver hair swept the ground.
“The world of immortals no longer exists and I am not the High Lord of the Northern Sky anymore. You do not need to hold to these rules of etiquette,” Lu Yun waved him off. Dense goodwill emanated from Terra Demon—the goodwill of faith!
Lu Yun was his faith!
“Let’s go to the sword pagoda.” The sword pagoda was what Lu Yun wanted the most. He thought of it constantly even when he was the High Lord of the Northern Sky.
The Mindful Immortal Potentate had withstood five immortal kings with it in his hands. He’d ensured they died with him, a testament to the might of this pagoda. More important was that Lu Yun vaguely sensed that the world of immortals hadn’t vanished due to a great cataclysm. There were certain unspeakable truths behind it.
Not only was the sword pagoda related to it, but it also seemed to be the key to unlocking his memories. That was the most important. With the key in hand, he could save it for the most appropriate time. Otherwise, he would forever drift through this life.
Terra Demon nodded and formed a hand seal with one hand. Both of them vanished at the same time. He knew the mountain like the back of his hand after one hundred years of preparation. The mountain itself was the sword pagoda, and the fine metal on its surface was one of its byproducts. Not even an immortal weapon would leave a mark.
“This… is…?” Lu Yun’s eyes widened as a massive ray of sword qi in front of him.
It was empty without end inside the sword pagoda, like it was a massive clearing. The only thing within it was this ray of sword qi nine meters tall. It was nine meters tall, one meter wide, three inches and three minutes of time. Completely unmoving.
It wasn’t particularly strong, but it gave one the feeling of eternity. Indeed, undying and eternal, it would outlast heaven, earth, and all living things.
“Your Grace, this is the core origin of the sword pagoda. It might also be a doorway to its true heart. You might be able to fully control the sword pagoda if you refine it,” said Terra Demon.
“No,” Lu Yun shook his head. “Where is the Mindful Immortal Potentate’s corpse and the core origin of the Seven Kills, Greedy Wolf, Army, Taisui, and Yinghuo Immortal Kings?”
Something was wrong—there was no sign of the immortal potentate and the five immortal kings suppressing him. All was empty inside the sword pagoda.
etvolare's Thoughts
Terra Demon's name is the first two characters for the Demonic Vine. The sword pagoda's characters are the same as the Sword Pagoda. Does everyone remember what these two were?
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢