Chapter 161 — The Eight Classes of Heavenly Dragons

The instant the divine staff appeared, the whole great hall shimmered with seven-colored divine light. In that moment ten thousand strands of auspicious qi surged to the heavens, and the pure tones of chanting grew ever louder, though their source could not be found—as if they had split straight out of the void. The demonic banners that Elder Ji Yin had sent sweeping forward, the towering yin winds and baleful qi, the demon yakshas and the living souls of ghosts—all were washed away by that seven-colored divine radiance, so dense it seemed it would never disperse.

Bang! Bang! Several explosive reports rang out. The first few demonic banners Elder Ji Yin had released were struck by the seven-colored divine light and burst with thunderclap force; the black qi atop them blew apart, and the banners were beaten back to their original form, shrinking to three inches and dropping to the ground. The banner cloth was neither silk nor hemp, and the countless naked demon yakshas that had once covered them had vanished without trace, leaving only faint, thin black smoke coiling about. To the eye they were nothing but small banners with a touch of evil aura—not the slightest shadow of such a peerless heretical dharma treasure as the Mystic Yin Beast-Gathering Banners.

Elder Ji Yin shrieked, the muscles of his face twitching. He had no notion what magic treasure that divine staff was, so fierce and sharp that a single illumination of its radiant auspicious light had beaten several of his Mystic Yin demonic banners back to their original forms and stripped them of all efficacy. To refine and restore them again, who knew how many living souls of men and beasts it would take. He had only just refined the living souls and primal essences of several fire dragons; the banners' power had already closed on the height of their former glory, their ferocity blazing, and he had been preparing to do some world-shaking deed—only to be dealt this blow square upon the head.

The radiant auspicious light swept over like a towering wave, its force like a tide. Though his demonic banners were destroyed and his heart ached as if cut with knives, Elder Ji Yin did not lose his reason—otherwise he would never have cultivated to such a level. If even the Mystic Yin banners could not withstand it and he still did not withdraw his hand, that would be no different from courting death.

He hurriedly drew back, his great sleeve rolling up, and gathered the banners that had fallen to the ground, beaten back to their original forms, into his sleeve. The materials of those banners were exceedingly rare—back then that heretical master had gathered and condensed the yin baleful qi accumulated over countless aeons in the Black Wind Cave of Extreme Yin, which was why they could directly absorb and refine the living souls of men and beasts. If lost, they could never be refined again. Now, though beaten back to their original forms, their root remained; a full eighty-one days of refinement in Mystic Yin demonic fire to restore their true spirits, then the absorption of enough living souls, and their power could still be recovered.

"Curse it! Where am I supposed to find so many living souls of men and beasts? This treasure is simply too vicious—a mere radiance beats my supreme demonic treasure back to its original form. I fear even the gods in heaven would not escape a single blow. This old Taoist had best be careful, lest he capsize his boat—and that would not be worth it."

Having recovered his banners, Elder Ji Yin turned his whole body into a black shadow and fled outward with all his might, reaching the outside of the altar in the blink of an eye. Seeing that the radiant auspicious light did not pursue, he let out a slight breath of relief and came to his senses—only then remembering that Prince Xuanyuan, the Blue Spirit Ancestor, and the others had come with him. He hastily looked about, only to find that Prince Xuanyuan and Wen Yanlan had long since fled and now stood suspended in midair not far off, faces filled with unconcealed shock. Prince Xuanyuan in particular was wreathed in flickering blood light, muttering to himself. Elder Ji Yin hurried over, wanting to hear clearly.

"The Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree! It's actually the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree!"

"The Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree? What is that—is that the treasure's name?" Elder Ji Yin flew forward and at last made out Prince Xuanyuan's muttering. Puzzled, he hastily asked, for he was utterly in the dark and had never heard of any magic treasure called the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree.

Wen Lanxin had fled fastest and suffered no injury. Having condensed her second primal essence, her spiritual sense and perceptions were greatly enhanced; she knew the ferocity of that radiant auspicious light, and she too had clearly heard what Prince Xuanyuan was muttering—and was likewise puzzled. But she too had never heard what magic treasure the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree was; only, a treasure of such might would not be a nameless thing even in the heavens.

Hearing Elder Ji Yin's question, Prince Xuanyuan came to himself and knew he had spoken out of astonishment. He hastily said, "The shape and might of this treasure somewhat resemble one I remember—only that treasure was lost in the primordial age, and I know but a vague trace of it." The words were vague and left Elder Ji Yin all the more bewildered; but seeing Prince Xuanyuan shut his mouth, he well knew the old demon was hiding something, and a measure of displeasure rose in his heart.

All this is tedious to recount, yet it happened in the blink of an eye. By now the dense radiant auspicious light had wholly wrapped the altar for more than ten li around, and did not spread further—enveloping even Zhou Xuan, Yun Xiuzi, and Xuanwu Cong. Only treasure light gleamed, seven-colored divine radiance rolling like a sea of clouds, not a glimpse of what lay within. The radiant auspicious light rose gradually, pressing upward from below like a sphere—where before it had been the toad's azure light struggling against Zhou Yan's natal golden light, now it was the seven-colored divine radiance contending with the azure light.

But the seven-colored divine radiance was plainly far fiercer than Zhou Xuan's natal golden light. It surged upward and forced the toad's natal pure light steadily back, and in less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea the two had pressed to the center of the stone stele, locked in a standoff.

Prince Xuanyuan's face was exceedingly grim. The divine radiance emitted by the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree simply could not be broken through, and could do Zhou Xuan no harm at all; now there was nothing but to watch helplessly as the two struggled.

"How could the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree fall into that boy's hands? With this treasure brought forth, I fear even those gods in heaven must be wary. Hmph, the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree—even Kong Xuan, the great sage of our demon race, could not withstand this treasure. Today at last I have seen it for myself. What a pity—falling into that boy's hands is like casting pearls into the dark. The boy's arts are strange and uncanny; fierce as he is, his mastery is still shallow. Fourth Brother still has hope!" Prince Xuanyuan raised his head and gazed at the toad atop, sighing inwardly—though in truth he had no confidence either. Prince Xuanyuan, this blood demon who had attained the Way in ages long past and once commanded the demon race under heaven, knew certain long-lost secrets of Xu Xuan.