Volume 4: The Revelation Unveiled Chapter 488: Sealing the Furnace of Creation

Has it worked? Though Xuan Nu had doubts, Yuan Shi had spent over 300 years refining the Furnace of Creation, mastering more than 1,400 extremely complex arrays—something that truly earned her deep admiration.
Xuan Nu said, “Congratulations, junior brother!”
Laojun also stepped forward and said to Yuan Shi, “Senior brother, you’ve worked hard.”
Yuan Shi sat in midair, circulating his energy throughout his body; his expression soon returned to normal, yet he still couldn’t hide his excitement. He said, “Back when I entered this era using this furnace, I already knew the arrays within were mysterious. But at that time, my knowledge was insufficient, and I couldn’t even leave the small chamber. Fortunately, fate favored me, giving me this opportunity. Haha!”
Laojun asked, “Senior brother, what’s the use of mastering these arrays?”
Yuan Shi glanced at Laojun and said, “To others, it seems I had to understand these arrays just to refine this furnace. But I know clearly that even if I couldn’t refine it, with so many rare and intricate arrays in the world, I would still seek to understand them thoroughly.”
Ling Bao said, “You two—one is a ‘fanatic for elixirs,’ the other a ‘fanatic for arrays.’”
Xuan Nu asked, “Are you sure you’ve truly mastered this furnace?”
Yuan Shi replied, “Of course.” With a wave of his sleeve, he severed the connection between the Furnace of Creation and the Peach Tree on the ground. Then, with another gesture, the furnace was drawn toward him like by a magnet and slipped into his sleeve. Yuan Shi said, “This furnace now belongs only to me. No one else can take it away, unless it’s the Tathagata…”
“What about the Tathagata?” Xuan Nu asked.
“Originally, this furnace belonged to him, so he naturally knows these arrays well. But if he wants to take it, he’ll have to seize it by force,” Yuan Shi replied.
Xuan Nu asked again, “I’m a bit worried. It seems the Tathagata didn’t go all out to fight for this furnace. Could there be some trap?”
Yuan Shi said, “Sister, don’t worry. I’ve used your Xuan Kong secret technique, combined with the principles of arrays, to understand this furnace completely. There’s no way the Tathagata can outwit me!”
Xuan Nu seemed thoughtful and said, “I still feel something’s off.”
Yuan Shi laughed and said, “Since you think something’s wrong, let’s put this furnace aside and never use it again. How about that?”
Xuan Nu agreed, “That’s great!”
Laojun said, “Senior brother, please tell me more about this furnace later. If used to make elixirs, might it yield amazing results?”
Ling Bao mocked, “You’d better study the art of arrays for a million years first—maybe then you’ll be able to use this furnace!”
Laojun snorted, “A million years? How much good elixir will that delay me from making? I won’t study it!”

Yuan Shi was in an extremely cheerful mood. Laughing, he said, “Having lived here for so long, it’s time to visit my Jade Clear Palace.” The four of them arrived at the Thirty-Six Heavens. Yuan Shi looked around and was somewhat astonished. He asked, “What’s this? Why is the Heavenly Court so empty? Where have your Tushita Palace and Mirocha Palace gone?” Xuan Nu explained how the Heavenly Court had been dismantled. Yuan Shi nodded and said, “Well, since now all people live on earth, there’s no longer any distinction between high and low.” Yuan Shi headed to his own Jade Clear Palace, while Xuan Nu took Lao Jun and Lingbao Daozun to the Mother Peach Tree. On the Thirty-Six Heavens, only this one Mother Peach Tree stood alone at that moment. Upon reaching the tree, Lao Jun said, “This tree hasn’t had an easy time either. It’s been taken back and forth; it can’t settle in one place.” Xuan Nu said, “The Mother Peach Tree can’t grow without the nourishment of natural energy. Where do you think it should be placed?” After thinking for a while, Lao Jun said, “There are many sacred mountains in the world, but when it comes to natural elegance, aside from the Five Sacred Mansions, it’s the Flower-Fruit Mountain in Eastern Victory Continent.” Xuan Nu looked at Lao Jun, smiled mysteriously, and said, “Then let’s place it on the Flower-Fruit Mountain, how about that?” Lao Jun smiled sheepishly and said, “Sister, you see clearly.” Lingbao laughed heartily and said, “You think you’re clever by hiding the Peach Garden on the Flower-Fruit Mountain. Do you really think Sister won’t know?” Lao Jun’s face turned red. He said, “Even if you didn’t tell me, I would still inform Sister. With the secrets of the Xuan Kong Dharma, what can’t be concealed? Don’t judge a gentleman by a petty mind!” Xuan Nu said, “If the Mother Peach Tree is planted in the Peach Garden and Yuan Shi sets up a formation to gather natural energy, there’s no need to worry about its growth. But the task of protecting it must fall on you two.” Lao Jun said, “Of course, we owe it to ourselves to take on that responsibility!” In the Peach Garden, peaches would sometimes ripen. Although Lao Jun had his Tushita Palace in the Five Sacred Mansions, he spent nine out of ten years on the Flower-Fruit Mountain. The three of them worked together to lift the entire courtyard where the Mother Peach Tree stood and flew together to the Flower-Fruit Mountain. After settling it in place, Xuan Nu said, “You two take care of matters here. I need to go see those monkeys. Why have they been in seclusion for so long?” Xuan Nu got up and left, already planning a major task for herself. Yuan Shi had mastered the formation of the Creation Furnace. Although this matter seemed trivial, it actually gave Xuan Nu an idea: the force of opposing creation came from beyond the heavens. And this opposing creation seeped in through the formations on the Pillars of Heaven and Earth. Yuan Shi’s mastery of formations had improved greatly. It was unknown whether he could see through the formations on those Pillars. If he could block the source of this opposing creation force, hehe, then what would the Tathagata rely on to form his body as the Great Sun Tathagata?

This matter was of great significance. As for matters beyond the heavens, Xuan Nu lacked the cultivation to understand anything about them, so she had to seek advice from the Yin-Yang Divine Ape, who possessed the highest cultivation. Upon arriving at Qitian Ridge, Xuan Nu truly felt her horizons broaden. On the flat ground east of the ridge stood dozens of palaces, which resembled those in the celestial court. As she walked among them, she felt as if she had entered a fairyland. Looking up at the peaks, they were colorful and magnificent. The most eye-catching was the Guanghan Palace atop the peak next to Hou Yi’s residence. Among the more than a hundred splendid palaces, it exuded a unique sense of serenity. Xuan Nu smiled bitterly. The Qilin was quite amusing—almost having moved the entire celestial court to Qitian Ridge. Without disturbing anyone, she went straight to look for Yin and Yang. When she reached their cave dwelling, she glanced inside and immediately showed an expression of disbelief. The cave was shrouded in mist, leaving her unable to see anything. Even when she tried to use her spiritual senses, they couldn’t penetrate the mist at all. This mist must have been created by Yin and Yang—who else could have such power? Xuan Nu tried several more times but achieved nothing, so she shook her head and left.

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In the territory of Beiju Luzhou, there was a nameless high mountain with houses and buildings built on it, all arranged quite neatly. In the highest room, several people sat around a table, holding cups, sharing their sorrows. These were no ordinary people; they had all been famous in the days of the celestial court. The one in the middle was Wang Lingguan, the former left-hand aide of the Sacred Emperor. Even three hundred years ago, he had been the ruler of the fifth hall in the Yama’s ten halls, commonly known as the King of Hell. The four others were the four great heavenly kings of the celestial court: the Eastern King of Protection, the Southern King of Growth, the Western King of Wide Vision, and the Northern King of Great Hearing. Back then, Ksitigarbha King reevaluated the underworld, categorizing the rulers of the ten halls based on their merits and demerits and determining their punishments. Although Wang Lingguan was arrogant, he also had a sense of integrity, and his actions weren’t particularly reproachable. Ksitigarbha Buddha made a fair judgment, simply expelling him from the underworld without imposing severe punishment. After leaving the underworld, Wang Lingguan naturally wanted to return to the celestial court. But to his surprise, he found the ten continents and three islands in chaos, and the celestial court was also in turmoil. Though straightforward, Wang Lingguan wasn’t foolish. Realizing that the celestial court had faced its greatest disaster, he hid somewhere, waiting for the storm to pass before seeking a way to make a living again. To his dismay, the celestial court vanished overnight, leaving him deeply saddened. Thinking back to the glory of the heavens, he felt truly heartbroken. A once noble heavenly general, now without a place to go.

Most of the world belonged to Qi Tian Ling. Wang Lingguan, unwilling to conflict with him, came to the sparsely populated Beiju Luzhou. Coincidentally, he encountered the Four Heavenly Kings who had taken control of a mountain peak. The Four Heavenly Kings were in a similar situation to Wang Lingguan, except they had fled from Kunlun Island in the midst of battle. Originally under Buddha’s command, Buddha treated them as disposable figures and ignored them in the Heavenly Court. When Buddha attacked the Heavenly Court, he naturally didn’t inform them either. With the destruction of the Heavenly Court, the Four Heavenly Kings had nowhere to go. They dared not join Qi Tian Ling, and the Western Spiritual Mountain was now under Maitreya’s control—going there likely wouldn’t bring any good outcomes. Thus, these once-mighty guardian deities became bandits who ruled over mountains. The vast lands such as Dongsheng Shenzhou, Nanshan Bushou, and Xiniu Hezhou were either under Qi Tian Ling’s control or occupied by Buddhism and Taoism. Only Beiju Luzhou, with its vast and uninhabited expanse, provided them a place to live. It was said that Hou Tu and Dayu built a Rain God Temple and a Hou Tu Goddess Temple every thousand miles, but in reality, this wasn’t strictly followed based on population distribution. In frozen regions where not a single person could be seen for miles, what was the use of building temples? In densely populated areas of the Central Lands, there were nearly four or five temples within a thousand miles. Over time, the Four Heavenly Kings gathered a group of minor demons. These demon soldiers were actually qilins who had fled from the Heavenly Court and refused to join Qi Tian Ling. With their cultivation levels, Wang Lingguan and the Four Heavenly Kings could survive without food, but the minor demons couldn’t. In the Heavenly Court, abundant spiritual energy supported their cultivation, but Beiju Luzhou was the most barren land in the world, with scarce spiritual energy, making cultivation extremely difficult. Therefore, these minor demons often went out to hunt for food when they had nothing to do. The mountain they lived on was far from human settlements, so each raid took several days. But if they lived too close, they feared being discovered by Qi Tian Ling’s forces guarding the Rain God Temple. Wang Lingguan and the others naturally didn’t care about the survival of these minor demons—whether they existed or not didn’t matter to them. They only used them when it was convenient. One day, as the five of them sat inside drinking, they casually talked about the past in the Heavenly Court. Seeing the current dominance of Qi Tian Ling’s demons, they felt that the world was full of change and chaos. As they sighed, suddenly a minor demon shouted from outside, “Qi Tian Ling’s forces are coming!” The five were shocked and drew their weapons, going outside. They saw a giant white rhinoceros floating on clouds atop the mountain, holding no weapons. It shouted, “You who plague mortals deserve no forgiveness!”