Chapter 7, there is an old Taoist here
It was neither painful nor itchy; it was merely a moment of daze. Soon after, when his vision became clear again, Su Jing found himself in another place: the sky was stained with blood, a shocking red that caught the eye. Su Jing was certain that the true color of the sky was crimson, not caused by the clouds at sunset, for he could see the sun, the moon, and the stars.
The催灵灯 and 遁黑窟 consume an immense amount of true essence. Even someone as profound as Lu Yajiu appears pale at this moment, extending his hand to put away the青灯: "The realm beyond the world, I do not know its specific name, so let us tentatively call it the青灯境."
The lamp has no wick and cannot burn; only the incantation brings forth light. After a moment, a beam of light the size of a bean leaps up from the lamp
Su Jing was unaware that when Lu Ya Jiu began to absorb the essence, everything in the Illusory City—bricks, stones, rubble, grass, trees, and all living beings—withered and decayed before the naked eye, transforming back into strands of true essence, which were then drawn back into the master's body
Su Jing could not understand what he was chanting, but he could see that with every word of incantation spoken by Lu Ya Jiu, the sound not only did not dissipate, but instead coalesced into a tangible form, transforming into a shimmering blue talisman, resembling a butterfly, fluttering up and down in the air, incredibly agile
After having warned Su Jing not to move, Lu Yajiu took out an ancient, exquisite oil lamp made of unspun copper from his sleeve and placed it in front of him. Following that, he straightened his back and began to inhale... For a full half an hour! At first, Su Jing did not feel much, but soon he felt as if the heavens were shaking and the earth was moving, as if the entire world was about to be completely drained by Lu Yajiu's breath
The incantation grew increasingly urgent, and the light on the lamp swelled and intensified, resembling beans, fists, plates, and grinding stones... until it filled the stone chamber, enveloping Su Jing and Lu Yajiu.
From this, Su Jing also roughly understood that he had likely already left Middle-earth. There is no place in the Middle-earth world where there is a black sun
A thin, emaciated old monk with unkempt hair sat cross-legged on the ground, holding a medium-sized porcelain bowl in his hands, and was slurping noodles.
A mundane youth suddenly encountered the bizarre and colorful world of cultivation, filled with curiosity in both his eyes and heart. Lu Ya Jiu, clearly impatient, said, "Follow me." As he spoke, he vanished in a flash of azure light, taking Su Jing to fly over ten miles, far away from the noodle-eating Taoist, before landing again. The old man and the young boy sat facing each other.
The essence of heaven and earth stored within hundreds of miles has all been absorbed by Lu Heipao in one breath. If it were not for Lu Ya Jiu's deliberate protection, Su Jing, Liu Liang, and Da Hei Ying, who are nearby, would also have vanished without a trace
The Thousand-Character Great Spell emerged from the nine mouths of Luya, releasing a thousand azure light talismans that scattered and floated throughout the stone house
What grows on the lamp is a gaping hole that tears apart the universe
In this space created by the unwound copper lamp, although it remains within the vast universe, it forms its own world with its own dimensions, having no connection whatsoever with the outside world
The black cave swallowed everything in the stone house.
In a land of red skies and white earth, a filthy old Taoist priest holds a treasure bowl while eating noodles, unaware of how long he has been eating and how much longer he will continue to eat
Upon the mention of the term "Tongtian," Su Jing began to blink. Is the most superficial level of attainment "Tongtian"? Is this truly the extent of reaching the heavens? What is there left to practice afterwards?
... ...
Su Jing whispered, "How can the noodles not be finished?"
Within the realm of the green lamp, the terrain is entirely flat, with hardly any undulations; only in the far distance stands a towering mountain, solitary and seemingly somewhat stubborn. A grim mist envelops the heavens and the earth, and Su Jing can only barely discern the outline of that mountain.
Su Jing took a moment to gather his thoughts and asked Lu Yajiu beside him: "Senior, where is this place?"
Su Jing could no longer see, as the Illusion City vanished like a bubble. The surrounding desert, near and far, began to change slowly. The grains of sand, though small, were still tangible and substantial, but now they gradually weathered and vaporized, transforming into a wisp of yellow smoke. One grain of sand was like this, and the entire desert was the same. When Lu Ya Jiu let out a long breath, a vast expanse of desert also turned into a sky filled with yellow mist
At the moment the black light enveloped him, Su Jing once again realized belatedly that it was not a radiance; the blackness came from a leak
Despite the myriad of astonishments, it did not hinder Su Jing from promptly speaking up and asking the ancestor, "Where are we headed?"
The blood-red sky, the pitch-black sun and moon, the pale earth
The sun, moon, and stars coexist in the firmament, and every celestial body is of a heavy, dark hue
Su Jing nodded in agreement, but his thoughts and gaze had always been sharp, and he quickly discerned the problem:
Black radiance
If viewed from a different perspective, Lu Ya Jiu only needs to take a breath to claim the life of someone weighing six taels. What kind of cultivation is this
With a sound of "ding-dong," the green lamp from the illustrated book fell beside me
Lu Ya Jiu replied lightly: "That is a treasure basin, which the Taoist uses to hold noodles. It would take ten thousand years to even think of finishing it."
Seeing the serious and solemn expression on Su Jing's face, with a hint of yearning, Lu Yajiu smiled slightly: "There is no need to be so formal; these are merely superficial matters. Although they are related to cultivation, they do not aid in the practice. You can just listen casually. Once I finish discussing the realms, it will be easier to talk about my matters. Among these twelve realms, the first level, which is the lowest and most superficial, is called 'Tongtian'"
The ground stretches from beneath my feet to the distance, exuding a stark and pale desolation
Although it was somewhat abrupt, the senior expert spoke of it as a rare opportunity. Su Jing's spirit was invigorated, and he immediately sat up straight, listening attentively. Who does not yearn for longevity? Who does not long for freedom? Su Jing was no exception.
Without any preamble, Lu Yajiu directly said to Su Jing: "In terms of cultivation, it is divided into twelve realms, from the lowest to the highest."
As the incantation concluded, Lu Ya Jiu suddenly opened his hands, intertwining his fingers to form a peculiar hand seal. He pointed at the ancient lamp and bellowed like thunder: "Hah!" With his shout, the myriad characters of the incantation that had been drifting in the stone house suddenly converged, and in an instant, a brilliant blue light filled the stone house. The runes linked together to form an ancient spell, encircling the ancient lamp and beginning to rotate in layers.
This bronze lamp was an unexpected acquisition for me. I have visited this place twice before, but there are still many details that I have not been able to clarify. With this single statement from Lu Yajiu, Su Jing's impending barrage of questions was effectively silenced.
Although the Taoist was small and thin, he opened his mouth wide while eating noodles. Normally, with such a method of eating, he would likely finish the entire bowl in just a few bites. However, the bowl of noodles remained full, no matter how quickly he ate, it never seemed to diminish.
After taking a deep breath, Lu Yajiu half-closed his eyes, opened his mouth steadily, and recited the great incantation in a clear voice
The filthy old man did not even glance at Su Jing or Lu Ya Jiu, focusing all his attention on his bowl of noodles, eating with beads of sweat on his forehead
Lu Ya Jiu's expression was relatively relaxed: "He was also eating noodles when I came here before, indifferent to external matters, so he shouldn't disturb us. This person is inscrutable; you must never provoke him. It is best for everyone to coexist peacefully like this"
In the world of the mundane, transcending to the realm beyond.
At that moment, Su Jing suddenly heard a strange sound of "hulu hulu" coming from behind him. When he turned around, he was astonished to see a person standing just a few meters away from him.