Chapter 434 – World Shocking Appearance
Stone Village obviously prepared a sumptuous banquet, and it began as soon as the sun set over the mountains. A bonfire jumped about next to the blue gemstone like lake. All types of fine food released their fragrances.
The villagers were full of smiles and incredibly enthusiastic as they received these guests. A group of children ran back and forth, startling the unicorns, four-colored cranes, and other creatures on the soft meadow. This place was extremely lively. Golden roasted meat spread its fragrance, and the enticing smell of wine wafted far into the distance. Everyone exchanged cups in a lively manner. The atmosphere was extremely festive.
However, everyone quickly noticed that Shi Hao was acting strange. He was always zoning out, and his mouth would constantly be muttering something. The fragrant dried meat was almost pushed against his nose.
“What is this fellow thinking about? He shouldn’t be having some marriage syndrome, right? He is about to leave adolescence and become like us, so what is there to be reluctant and reminiscent of?” Pihou winked as he spoke. He was already a father, yet he was still as mischievous as in the past.
“I feel the same way. He is thinking about too much. Even though it isn’t a formal wedding, there shouldn’t be much of a difference.” Ermeng laughed and said in a straightforward manner.
Shi Hao was talking to himself, and only Qingfeng who was closest could hear him. He seemed to be saying things about the Willow Deity, something about an outstanding existence in both past and present and showing disdain for everything under the heavens. Shi Hao looked like he had lost his soul or something.
“Little big brother, what is going on with you?” Qingfeng asked with a small voice. His facial features were delicate and pretty, but in Stone Village, aside from Shi Hao, he was the number one expert.
When he was young, he experienced bitter pain and suffering within Stone Clan’s second ancestral land. When he was rescued, he treasured everything before his eyes and worked hard to become strong. Within the great wasteland region, he could also be considered a young expert.
“Qingfeng, you are being short sighted. You should hurry and move out of the way so that little Hao and the two sisters can sit together,” Dazhuang said.
“Oh!” Qingfeng immediately stood up and allowed Shi Hao, Huo Ling’er, and Yun Xi to sit together. He didn’t want to be a ‘hindrance’ here anymore.
“That stinky brat is acting all absent-minded. His mind is wandering too much. He looks like he’s lost his soul or something.” Shi Linhu stuck out his lips, hinting for everyone to look in that direction.
Many great dishes wrapped in fragrant lotus leaves were brought before everyone. They were placed on the grass for everyone to enjoy. The nine-headed lion and the others all appreciated Stone Village’s food quite a bit. They were all in admiration of these delicacies.
At this time, Shi Hao made a clumsy movement, causing everyone to roar with laughter.
As he spoke to himself with a frown, he absent-mindedly reached out towards Huo Ling’er’s silver plate and grabbed the sparkling fruit on it, placing it into his mouth.
“You…” Huo Ling’er was completely embarrassed. Why was this bastard so hateful? She thought that the roast meat was a bit oily, and as a result, she took a bite out of a scarlet berry. The remaining half was just put down, yet it was seized by that fellow.
“Haha, little Hao, is your mouth full of fragrance? Sister here had just taken a bite out of it, and the flavor of her lips should still be on it, as well as her sweet saliva.” Huzi, Pihou, and the others jeered noisily.
He was thinking too deeply about the matters with the Willow Deity. When he snapped back to reality, he looked at everyone in confusion, especially Huo Ling’er who was angrily staring at him. He asked in a rather puzzled manner, “What’s wrong with you? Why are you looking at me stupidly?”
When everyone heard this, they fell over from laughing. Who was the one that was daydreaming? He actually blamed the other person instead.
“Little Hao, does it taste good?” Snot baby giggled. He was a bit younger than Shi Hao, and he always spoke his thoughts.
“Tastes good. It’s sweet.” Shi Hao nodded.
“Haha…” Everyone couldn’t stop laughing.
Huo Ling’er was the only one with her face completely red. That red berry still had her teeth marks on it, yet it was picked up by that fellow and eaten in a few bites.
“Can you stop daydreaming and focus?!” She berated him out of humiliation.
“En, I got it.” Shi Hao nodded and replied half-heartedly. It was because the figure he saw not too long ago was too shocking. It left an unforgettable impression on him.
The Willow Deity was actually so outstanding and extraordinary. It had a perfect flesh body, not limited to its tree form. Moreover, what was most shocking was that near it, there were divine flames jumping about, and within each of those flames was a supreme deity-like image. They were all kneeling and worshiping towards its head.
What kind of might was this? It truly was enough to shock the past and present, a magnificence unrivalled!
In that split second, the figure in the center of it all was deeply engraved within Shi Hao’s memory. It might not disappear even after many, many years had passed.
He or she; was it a female? Shi Hao pondered over it continuously. He only saw that tall and slender figure shine. He wasn’t able to see it clearly. If it was male, then it was definitely an exceptionally beautiful individual.
Right now, the more he thought about it, the more indistinct it became. There were actually signs of it disappearing. Only the shining body remained in his heart, being hard to forget.
“What kind of power is that?” Shi Hao said to himself. He was greatly stirred up emotionally. He clearly saw it before, but how was the true appearance erased, and the impression he had becoming more and more faint?
He was not calm at all. Why couldn’t he even recall its true appearance, and why did it vanish on its own? Was it because an unrivalled existance’s image couldn’t be tainted? Was it something that could not be reflected by the mere hearts of mortals?
Shi Hao was frightened. He had heard of a few legends that unless it was derived from the will of every clan, a forbidden existence would not willingly stay within the hearts of the masses. It would automatically erase itself.
“Little pagoda, did you see the Willow Deity?” Shi Hao transmitted sound secretly and asked it.
“I saw it.” The inch tall pure-white small pagoda said. Its reply was short, not willing to say too much.
“What does it look like? Male or female?” Shi Hao was extremely curious.
“The answer to this question would require you to exchange over a hundred great treasures,” the little pagoda slowly said.
“What? Why don’t you just rob me then?!” Shi Hao gave it a condescending look. When it fought against the mysterious magical disk, this was the same price it stated.
The little pagoda seemed extremely calm as it said, “It is worth the price. You do not understand what kind of chaos would break out if the appearance is drawn and released into the world. I dare say that if someone descended into this world and learned about this appearance, it might bring about a crazy disturbance that will even involve the higher realms.”
Shi Hao’s eyes widened. He was able to become famous despite being so young and even experienced all types of great disturbances, so he had long become unperturbed when facing these types of situations. However, right now, he was inwardly experiencing all types of fluctuations and he couldn’t calm down at all.
At this time, he felt an aura that carried a type of wooden fragrance. There was also a type of sweet scent that emerged from his side.
“Willow Deity!” Shi Hao turned around. The Willow Deity reappeared close to him. However, he couldn’t see it clearly.
This tall and slender figure sat there with wisps of otherworldly flames throbbing in mid-air around it. Each divine flame was like a divine realm that contained all things that paid respects to it.
This was an incomparably astonishing scene. The sparkling lights were like three thousand realms as they revolved around him or her. The radiance was hazy. This figure was the sole existence of this world, eternal and everlasting.
Shi Hao understood that the little pagoda wasn’t lying. If the true figure of this kind of extraordinary existence was revealed to the world, it would truly bring about a huge storm.
An appearance too shocking for this world!
The Willow Deity entered by descending realms. It did not belong to the heaven, earth, mysterious, void, space, outer, flood, or wasteland eight region.
It was worth mentioning that Shi Hao’s skin was thick beyond belief. Soon after, he became calm again, and he wormed his way in quietly. “Big sister?”
The peaceful fluctuation released by the hazy light was something only Shi Hao could see. No one else could sense the slightest bit of difference. The hazy light continued to calmly rest at his side.
“Big brother?” Shi Hao tried again. He felt like no matter what, this was more intimate than calling senior.
“Your skin is truly thick!” The little pagoda grimaced and spoke realistically.
“You are the one with thick skin!” Shi Hao refuted.
“Too infuriating!” An embarrassed and angry voice woke Shi Hao up, bringing him back to reality.
He noticed that he had become the focal point of everyone’s attention, and they were all smiling strangely. Only the purple-clothed young lady Yun Xi’s eyebrows were slanted in anger as she glared at him with killing intent.
She was extremely angry. This fellow first called her big sister, and so she was originally rather proud. She thought that this fellow might have finally showed his true colors after drinking several cups of wine and lost his reasoning, so he began to fawn over a goddess like herself.
However, after speaking once, he then uttered the words big brother, making her so mad that she immediately became petrified on the spot. Was this on purpose? She wanted to ridicule him just now, yet in the end, this fellow directly slandered her by saying her skin was thick.
It truly was… preposterous! Yun Xi was so angry that her delicate body was shaking all over. There was actually such a hateful person!
Everyone wanted to laugh, but they found it too embarrassing to laugh too loudly. The expression on Shi Hao’s face immediately froze. Just now, he had gone on a mental journey and continuously zoned out. He unexpectedly ended up becoming a laughing stock.
The main reason was because the Willow Deity’s origins and the aura it released were too astonishing. Its appearance was too world-shocking. If it was leaked outwards, it would definitely shake everything under the heavens.
Fortunately, the villagers were extremely passionate and inviting. The group of people continuously toasted, and the atmosphere was lively. Soon after, this embarrassing moment passed.
Apart from the wild animals in the great wilderness, there was also the pure-blooded creature that Shi Hao brought back — the flame python. The soup that was slowly simmered was sparkling and translucent. A single bowl would immediately make one’s entire body feel comfortable and peaceful, as if even their tongues were going to melt. It was truly a delicacy, an amazing nourishing dish.
Stone Village’s children would undoubtedly clamor noisily the entire night, because the pure-blooded precious medicine’s efficacy was too great. The greedy little fellows had to pay for their actions. They ran around the village, tossing and turning for an entire night. However, the benefits were tremendous, allowing them to make breakthroughs.
Early the next morning, a group of people went on their way. They didn’t stop at Stone Village, because time was pressing. The great calamity was going to descend at any time.
The void beast skin travelled a seemingly endless distance through the void. After a long time had passed, it finally rushed out. It had travelled several million li at the very least.
The sound of birds chirping rang through the air. The ground was full of rich vegetation, and the fragrance of flowers surged in waves. This was a divine mountain region that was full of spiritual essence. Quite a few auspicious beasts and precious birds could be seen roaming about.
Yun Xi walked in front, while everyone else followed behind as they made their way through this outer region. They quickly approached the true central region, where they could see spiritual essence surging and multicolored light curling around mountains. It was becoming more and more holy and peaceful.
When he saw three octadic treasure chickens pacing back and forth, Shi Hao really wanted to rush out and catch them. Once they entered the Celestial Race’s pure land, the number of unique and precious beasts and precious medicines increased greatly in numbers. It was truly envious.
Finally, they began to ascend the mountain. It was actually different from the last time he came. Yun Xi opened a formation, and a grand and imposing mountain range appeared. Clouds rose and multicolored lights weaved about resplendently.
It was surrounded by a formation, which under normal circumstances couldn’t be seen. The outer world didn’t know that this was the deepest part of the Celestial Race’s divine mountain.
“Yi, fairy Yun Xi returned.” A silver flood dragon beast spoke. It coiled around an enormous rock that was several tens of thousands of jin in weight, guarding the mountain path.
Soon after, news travelled to the mountaintop. Several figures broke through the skies and landed on the road. The leading individuals stood stood on top of a bluestone stairs and gazed below.
“Haha, good, Yun Xi, you actually brought him back. Were you able to suppress him into doing so by borrowing the strength of others?” The middle-aged male in the front laughed loudly.
Yun Xi blushed with shame. How could she have captured him? She herself was almost carried away and turned into a wife. Whenever she thought of her experience at Stone Village, she would always become ashamed and resentful.
“Fourth Uncle, it isn’t like that. You’ve misunderstood,” Yun Xi said.
“What misunderstanding? This little thief stole our ancestral magical artifact and wouldn’t return it all this time. Now, no matter how you say it, he ended up in my Heavenly Divine Mountain. Let’s see how he’ll escape now,” said the middle-aged male on top of the blue stone stairs. He didn’t have any good opinion of Shi Hao.
“Why is there also a stupid bald bird?” Someone asked, because Second Baldy was too weird looking to ignore.
“You group of hairy brats should stop speaking nonsense. Hurry up and get your elders to quickly welcome this great uncle.” Second Baldy spoke arrogantly.
The middle-aged man revealed a strange look. Who didn’t know him, the Fourth Master, in this Heavenly Divine Mountain? What kind of background did this strange naked bird have? It actually dared to speak like that to him.
However, he didn’t dare act too presumptuously, because when he searched carefully, he found that he couldn’t discern any cultivation from Second Baldy. He thought that it was because it was deep and immeasurable and difficult to understand, and that this naked bird was the one who helped Yun Xi capture Shi Hao.
“Can I ask who this senior is?” Heavenly Divine Mountain’s Fourth Master humbly asked.
“Fourth uncle, he is that peacock from back then.” Yun Xi spoke. She didn’t have any good feelings towards Second Baldy and was rather discontent.
“What? You thief, you actually dare to return?!” Fourth Master immediately became indignant. Many people in Heavenly Divine Mountain knew how vile that peacock was back then. It caused all types of chaos here, swindling and stealing through this place. It truly committed almost any crime imaginable.
Second Baldy sneered and said, “Hairy brat, you shouldn’t speak such nonsense. That year, I’ve even hugged you before, and you’ve pooped before in my arms.”
“Ahpu…” The middle-aged man almost coughed out blood. He pointed at Second Blady. He was so angry he couldn’t say anything.
Yun Xi was even more dumbstruck. This vile old thief had muddled with Heavenly Divine Mountain back then to such an extent?
“Old thief, if you dare to speak anymore nonsense, I’ll kill you on the spot!” Fourth Master was so angry he was shaking uncontrollably.
Second Baldy raised his head high and said, “Hairy brat, watch your attitude. Don’t disrespect me. Hurry up and call your dad, that old thief, to see me and apologize. Otherwise, you won’t be able to thoroughly understand the formation. I am the only one that knows its secret in this present age.”
“Old thief, you won’t be able to leave after coming today. See how I’m going to crush you.” The middle-aged male fumed with anger.
“Hairy brat, you don’t understand the gratitude and grudges that happened back then, so you should stop talking nonsense. Treating me with such disrespect will result in your aunt beating your mouth!” Second Baldy looked like it was beneath his dignity to argue with this middle-aged man.
“What did you say?!” Fourth Master’s eyes shot out flames. The words this scoundrel uttered had crossed the line.
“I said that back then, your grandfather and your father interfered with our love, forcing me and your aunt apart. I was even hunted down, so today, I’ve returned to collect my debt.” Second Baldy seemed extremely mad, and at this time, it widened its eyes.
Heavenly Divine Mountain’s people were struck dumb. What kind of nonsense was this? What was going on? Even Yun Xi was stupefied.
Shi Hao, the nine-headed lion, and the others were even more confused. They were all baffled as they watched from the side.
“Back then, you owed me a marriage predestined by fate. This time, you will pay back with a girl. I’ve decided, it’ll be this one. Betroth her to my brother.” Second Baldy said, pointing first at Yun Xi, then at Shi Hao.