I have Immortality In The Cultivation World

Chapter 625: Chapter 466 Heaven’s Will Like a Knife
 

“What is ‘Old Heaven’?”

Zhou Yi looked up at the sky, his face showing disbelief.

At his level of power, splitting mountains and diverting rivers was but a flick of the finger and he no longer believed in legends of Immortal Gods, naturally, he also didn’t believe there was an ‘Old Heaven’ in this world.

“‘Old Heaven’ is the will of Heaven!”

Old Deer’s voice turned gradually more stern, each word slicing through the air like a knife: “I act on behalf of Heaven to exterminate you who has leaped out of the Three Realms.”

“So it is Heaven’s will that targets me!”

After pondering for a moment, Zhou Yi asked, “Then, King of the Northern Defense, Tang Mingyuan, Emperor Longqing… do they represent Heaven’s will?”

“Of course.”

From Old Deer’s body emerged a ghostly entity’s skull, looking somewhat similar to the once Tang Zhiyuan, its eyes morphed into ghostly fires, and it opened its mouth, letting out a ghastly wail.

“It’s a pity their power falls short, only acting on their nature, unable to truly comprehend Heaven’s will!”

Zhou Yi saw Tang Mingyuan, gained enlightenment, then looked carefully at other ghastly faces, indeed there were several old acquaintances who had died, obviously having cultivated the Immortal’s Longevity Scripture and been devoured by Old Deer.

“What merit and ability do I have to provoke ‘Old Heaven’ to assassinate me? Regardless of life or death, victory or defeat, to have this honor makes me die without regrets.”

“Hehehe…”

Old Deer let out a series of eerie laughs, his figure shimmered, and dozens of ghastly faces attacked like a tidal wave, each one terrifying and fierce, their presence far surpassing that of a Martial Arts Grandmaster.

“Young Yi, I will always remember you!”

Zhou Yi’s eyes opened and closed, shooting out strands of True Qi, easily eradicating the ghostly faces, waving his hand and casting countless Sword Qi, like surging relentless rivers.

The Sword Qi swept through, slicing Old Deer into pieces, then rose into the sky tearing apart the overcast clouds.

The cold moonlight poured through the gaps in the clouds, illuminating the imperial palace, which was mostly wrecked by a single hit; Zhou Yi stood amongst the ruins, attentively sensing his surroundings.

Old Deer’s presence dissipated, seemingly truly dead.

Since their last encounter, Zhou Yi’s martial arts cultivation had grown by two hundred years, reaching a realm even he found hard to gauge.

Even the most elusive and intangible supernatural entities could be easily wiped out.

“This Heaven’s will, doesn’t seem to be much, does it?”

Zhou Yi’s face emotionless, he stepped towards the Diligent Administration Hall, planning to summon the officials to repair the palace and thoroughly investigate the arsonists of the night, implicating the Nine Clans.

In over a hundred years on the throne, he had repeatedly revised the laws of the Zhou Dynasty, inching ever closer to justice.

Maybe influenced by the unknown, the penalty of punishing the Nine Clans remained unchanged. Some officials born during the Orthodox Dynasty frequently petitioned Zhou Yi to abolish this cruel punishment, claiming it was inhumane.

“Today, having eliminated a great enemy, my heart is joyous, so we will only execute three Clans…”

Zhou Yi paused in his steps, suddenly feeling his soul writhing in agony, a pain from the deepest part of his soul that was a thousand times worse than any harsh torture.

Zhou Yi’s physical body was now formed from True Qi, no longer made of flesh and blood, capable of regenerating from severed limbs, but, unfortunately, he had no defense against this soul-deep pain.

Deep within his soul, a black fog roamed wildly.

The surface of the fog showed dozens of ghastly faces, led by Old Deer, emitting an endless eerie laugh.

Although Old Deer made no sound, Zhou Yi’s soul heard him speak, as thoughts and soul communication was much faster and efficient.

“Your martial arts have reached an unfathomable realm, even with ‘Old Heaven’s’ assistance, I stand no chance against you. Since I cannot break you from the outside, I will break you from inside, directly devouring your soul.”

As he spoke, the black fog split into dozens of ghastly faces flying in every direction, with only Old Deer remaining within the mist.

Each ghastly face occupied a piece of the spiritual territory, then began to decompose on its own, making Zhou Yi’s originally pure soul turn murky and gray.

Zhou Yi’s soul witnessed all of this, yet didn’t know how to eradicate them, helplessly watching the ghastly faces erode his soul, the extreme agony causing him to feel faint.

The mighty True Qi flowed through his meridians, trying to wash away the ghostly faces attached to his soul, to no avail.

These ghostly entities eroding his soul seemed to exist on a different dimension than his physical body and True Qi, no matter how capable Zhou Yi was at reshaping the landscape, he was powerless against them.

“Heh heh heh…”

Old Deer cackled, “Stop wasting your effort, I’m already dead, how can you kill someone who’s already deceased?”

“What exactly are you?”

Zhou Yi’s expression remained calm and unruffled. Having been an emperor for over a hundred years, he had long learned to hide his emotions. Even facing death did not induce fear in him.

“What am I…”

With the upper hand, Old Deer hesitated, and only after a long while spoke up.

“I am now but a fleeting and illusory memory, existing by the grace of the heavens above, soon to dissipate should the heavenly will be lost!”

“Memory?”

Zhou Yi didn’t need to ask any further, as he understood Old Deer’s meaning. Many bizarre images appeared in his mind, as though they were experiences he had personally gone through.

Such as learning the sword from his master since childhood, enduring hardships, and becoming a Sword God…

Such as transmigrating to this world and relying on memories from his past life to compose poetry and engage in scholarly debates…

And such as being born with a Buddha nature, becoming a revered monk…

An endless stream of memories was forcibly infused into Zhou Yi’s mind, as if living through the lengthy lives of dozens of people at once, with the events of every day and month vividly clear.

“So, the heavens cannot kill me, and now they wish to change me?”

Zhou Yi guarded his spirit, attempting to resist the invasion of memories, but they sprung from the depths of his heart, leaving no room for rejection.

“I am Zhou Yi, the supervisor of the Eastern Depot, not some damn Sword God, nor some bald monk… Could it be that Xuan Yun was my past life? Or maybe one of my previous lives?”

Zhou Yi had lived for more than two centuries, his experiences far beyond what ordinary people could comprehend.

The memories of three or five people could be integrated while still maintaining a clear sense of self, but the simultaneous fusion of dozens of people soon began to sow doubt about his own identity.

What’s more, each owner of these memories was a prominent hero of their time, their memories far more contaminating than those of ordinary people.

“It’s almost complete!”

Old Deer, looking at the darkened soul, couldn’t help but show a smug expression. As long as all the memories became chaotic, he could take over and dominate them all.

Even if he was no longer purely himself by then!

The duration of memory fusion felt both lengthy and brief; in just a few breaths’ time in the outside world, Zhou Yi experienced the long lives of dozens of people and could no longer distinguish which was truly himself.

“Who am I?”

Zhou Yi murmured to himself, “Is my surname Tang? Huo? Or is it Li…”

Seeing this, Old Deer knew the time was right. A ghostly face flew out of the black mist, charging towards the last bit of bright soul remaining within the darkened spirit.

This gleaming soul seemed unfathomable in origin, exceedingly bright amid the dark soul, resistant to being extinguished by the flood of memories, and the radiance it emitted was an irresistible temptation for Old Deer.

In life, Old Deer was cautious and would have restrained himself from the allure of the bright soul, sticking to the plan to merge and dominate the memories.

Now Old Deer was merely a cluster of memories, devoid of any ability to make conscious decisions, and upon sensing the allure of the bright soul, he charged towards it.

“Once I swallow it, I will achieve eternity!”

Old Deer plunged into the bright soul and saw a floating piece of green wood, plain and unremarkable as though it were a branch randomly cut from a tree.

“What is this?”

Before Old Deer could approach, the twig erupted with dazzling light, and memories spanning thousands of years surged forth.

Whether it was the supervisor of the Eastern Depot or a Sword God, a monk or a priest, within the torrential flood of memories, they all counted for less than a drop of water and were instantly washed clean.

Outside.

Zhou Yi moved his hands and feet, quickly refining the True Qi within his body into Mana, then lifted his head to gaze at the sky.

“I have returned!”