Li Qingshan silently digested the information here. The most important piece was that the buddha had secretly permitted his actions to happen.
If that was the case, many things now made sense.
Back then, he had gone to the Asura realm to help Rāhu Xiaoming with waging war. Originally, he was supposed to escort a kiṁnara princess back to the Heaven realm, but he ended up becoming a sangharama guardian in Sukhāvatī for some odd reason.
From Li Liehuo’s experiences, it seemed that becoming a divine general was not that easy, not to mention the fact that he was not a buddhist disciple. Despite that, he had actually been directly chosen as a sangharama guardian. The matter was truly quite odd.
Afterwards, he encountered the Upraised Light abbot, who requested for Li Qingshan to escort him to Great Thunderclap temple. Only then did he accidentally enter the temple and sniff up the pond of lotus flowers in front of the grand hall.
No, this was no longer granting secret permission. It was basically guidance.
The buddha had virtually destroyed Sukhāvatī through his hands!
But why?
Li Qingshan was unable to understand it. Perhaps the buddha really did possess great benevolence and compassion, finally willing to share some of it with the demonfolk?
It was not just the buddha. Many of the heavenly emperor’s actions reeked with strangeness. If that man draped in bear skin wanted war, why did he not nip him in the bud? Yet if he wanted peace, why did he send that tally stick and provoke him again and again?
As paramount existences of the current day, their wishes could influence the fate of countless living creatures, whether it be lowly mortals or honoured and respected emperors.
However, what exactly was their wish?
As he thought about that, Li Qingshan’s breath was suddenly taken away from him. He subconsciously gasped for air as a deep sense of weakness filled his body. He felt like his body had turned into water and flowed away, yet also as if it had turned into a bubble, on the brink of popping.
By now, the colourful cloud had completely entered the Primordial World, with a sea of clouds right beneath them.
The sky was an azure-blue. It was currently daytime. The stars had all faded away, not daring to contend with the sun.
Li Qingshan glanced at the sky and immediately understood the source of this feeling of weakness. He had never expected it to be so intense.
Li Liehuo furrowed his brows. He pressed down on his chest and felt the fire in his Origin Soul shrink drastically, but he did not experience any external pressure. He could not help but ask, “Master, this is…”
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes nodded. “That’s right, this is ‘mortalification’! We’ve already entered the Primordial World. All abilities and techniques are affected, even if you’ve condensed a Golden Core and forged a Soul Nascence. Apart from a sturdy body and a lengthy lifespan, you’re not much better than a mortal.”
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes glanced at Li Qingshan and continued, “However, if you want to cultivate, this is the best place too. Even those of mediocre talent can establish a foundation or condense a core here without difficulty as long as they’re somewhat fortunate.”
Li Liehuo sensed the surroundings slightly and discovered that to be true. The purity and density of the spiritual qi in the Primordial World was well beyond anything that the Human realm could match. He felt like he was cultivating with each breath he took.
If the Primordial World had not “mortalified” all of the wonders, this place should have been a sea of spiritual qi.
As it turned out, remaining in the Primordial World to cultivate was the correct path!
However, he felt slightly reluctant, reluctant to return to mediocrity here.
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes then said to Li Qingshan, “Your clone technique originates from the spirit turtles. It’s extremely profound, but it’s also an ability at the end of the day. Your main body isn’t around either, so the influence you face won’t be little. Do you need to rest a moment so that you can consolidate your clone before we attend the banquet?”
The Spirit Reverend of Ocean Returnance said slowly, “At the end of the day, a Watermirror’s Image is still an illusion.”
Li Qingshan smiled and was about to answer when his face suddenly changed drastically. His forehead bulged with veins as he curled up like he had been punched in the gut. His large body trembled uncontrollably, while his face became particularly twisted as well. It was as if he was in great pain, yet also as if he was fighting against an invisible enemy.
Demon qi rampaged about, filled with intense, maddening hatred and killing intent.
Li Liehuo and Chao Tianjiao had spent half of their lives fighting, so their reactions were extremely sensitive. They immediately left the cloud, drawing their blade and spear, looking back in surprise. All they saw was Li Qingshan, who was still talking and smiling leisurely earlier, suddenly becoming a vicious beast that could eat people alive. His thick back arched up in the sky as his long, dark hair rose like black flames. Pale-white teeth extended out from the corner of his lips.
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes was taken aback too. After a period of close observation, he suddenly realised what was going on and let out a sigh. “Little bro, why must you do this?”
Only when they saw how Li Qingshan had no intentions of harming anyone did Chao Tianjiao and Li Liehuo slowly return to the cloud, enduring the either icy-cold or scorching-hot killing intent that had been triggered.
Chao Tianjiao asked softly, “Master, what’s wrong with him?” She had never seen Li Qingshan like this before, almost to a point where she felt sorry for him.
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes said, “He is using the belief of demonfolk as resources, so he needs to endure everything that the demonfolk experience.”
“Is he mad!?” Chao Tianjiao understood what that meant.
The Spirit Reverend of Ocean Returnance said coldly, “Not yet, but it won’t take long.”
He had read countless books. Examples of this were not actually particularly rare. There were fake deities from low-level worlds or demonic cultivators who were after swift success that attempted this, but without any exceptions, their final fate was insanity.
Actually, it was not impossible to use the power of belief for cultivation, but it required practising a special cultivation method, followed by numerous steps of refinement, elimination and purification, such that only a tenth or even a hundredth of the original quantity remained.
Most importantly, they had to selectively choose their followers and carefully nurture them. They could not develop too many negative emotions to guarantee the quality of the power of belief.
The cultivation process was like a gardener tending to his nursery. It required tremendous effort, and any carelessness could lead to the accidental consumption of “poisonous herbs”, regularly facing the danger of cultivation deviation. After all, the minds of people were subtle and came in all forms and shapes. As a result, this cultivation method was ultimately eliminated.
However, Li Qingshan’s followers were all demonfolk. That was basically consuming poisonous herbs only. It was no different from seeking death.
However, the determination behind that was also shocking.
The Spirit Reverend of Ocean Returnance said, “Master, looks like you can’t complete your duty now!”
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes shook his head in disagreement. “He might learn to turn back once he’s suffered a little.”
Li Qingshan pointed down and squeezed out a few words from between his teeth, “Head… down…”
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes controlled the cloud. Immediately, they tore through the sea of clouds and arrived in a forest in the south of Uttarakuru.
Li Qingshan basically rolled off the cloud, barely able to maintain the mirror clone and prevent it from collapsing.
“Now is still not too late! Accept the enlistment!” The Elder of Heavenly Tomes stood with his arms behind his back. He showed much pity. “If you devour too much belief from demonfolk, you’ll go insane even as a True Immortal.”
Li Qingshan slowly made his way over to the side of a cluster of bamboo. He tapped a bamboo gently and seemed satisfied.
With a swish, he severed it at the base with his finger before patiently stripping away the branches, only leaving behind a bare bamboo pole.
The Elder of Heavenly Tomes asked, “What are you doing?”
“The bamboo here is not bad. They’re perfect for banner poles…” Li Qingshan grinned towards him. “Don’t worry, big bro. Seeing how we’re acquainted, I’ll definitely save a good spot for you.”
At that moment, even the Elder of Heavenly Tomes felt a slight chill, like he was facing an injured tiger alone in the flickering jungle. Pain would not make it yield. It would only make it even more violent!
