Volume Twelve: Invitation to Hell Chapter Fifty-Six: The Returning Deity

Everyone returned to the Heavenly Sword Sect, and Die Wuying was directly led to the Heavenly Sword Chamber for interrogation. Die Wuying poured out every single detail regarding the Hell Invitation Case without holding anything back. However, because this was yet another bizarre and supernatural case, after conferring with Bureau Chief Jia, it was decided that the case files would be sealed, and even Die Wuying's trial would be held behind closed doors.

Once Die Wuying's situation had been properly settled, Yaoguang brought Huangquan and Shang Liye back to the Spiritual Peak of Mount Phoenix. Bound by the contract made in the Underworld Ghost Market, Yaoguang needed to guide Huangquan to re-enter the path of immortality.

Standing upon the Gazing Immortal Terrace of Mount Phoenix, Yaoguang channeled her spiritual energy into Huangquan's body, and her brows instantly knitted together in a frown. "Losing your spiritual core is one thing, but how are your meridians completely dried up? What on earth did you do?"

"It was a punishment from the Asura Realm," Huangquan sighed.

"What kind of punishment?" Yaoguang asked.

"I can't really explain it," Huangquan shook his head.

Speechless, Yaoguang had no choice but to leave the spiritual mountain to find Biluo. She might not be familiar with the punishments of the Asura Realm, but Biluo certainly would be.

Finding Biluo, Yaoguang gave her no room to refuse and dragged her straight back to the Spiritual Peak of Mount Phoenix.

Upon returning to the peak and seeing Huangquan's condition, Biluo did not dare to delay. She immediately stepped forward to take his pulse, and the moment her fingers touched his wrist, her expression shifted drastically. Before Huangquan could even offer the slightest resistance, Biluo abruptly stripped off his outer garments.

The instant Huangquan's upper body was exposed, Yaoguang's eyes widened in shock. His chest and back were densely covered in dense, circular scars.

"A thousand cuts and myriad holes? Is this the trial you faced in the Asura Realm? Can you even call this a trial? This is outright murder!" Biluo's voice was already trembling.

"What is a thousand cuts and myriad holes?" Yaoguang asked.

"It involves driving ten thousand venomous Gu bees into a person's body to gnaw on their meridians and devour their soul power, and then planting lethal toxins to make the victim suffer beyond imagination," Biluo explained.

"What? I thought the punishment you suffered in the Asura Realm was merely having your spiritual core stripped, your immortal bones extracted, and being banished to the mortal realm. But you? Why did they do this to you?" Yaoguang asked in astonishment.

"Because the executioner and I never saw eye to eye. How could they pass up such a wonderful opportunity?" Huangquan said with a self-deprecating smile.

"Fine. You've got some nerve. Once you're healed, I'll take you back to settle this score. The Asura Realm, is it? I'd like to see just how ruthless they can be right in front of me," Yaoguang said, then turned and walked down the Gazing Immortal Terrace, leaving Biluo and Huangquan staring at each other in dismay. In each other's eyes, they saw the exact same conclusion: We are doomed...

After all, Huangquan was an outcast stripped of his status by the Asura Realm. To guide him back to immortality, a formal petition had to be submitted to the Divine Realm. Without hesitation, Yaoguang traveled directly to the Divine Realm and explained the whole sequence of events clearly—especially the fact that the Asura Realm had deployed forbidden arts to punish Huangquan.

Upon hearing the account, the deities furrowed their brows repeatedly and asked Yaoguang, "What do you intend to do?"

"An eye for an eye. Settling personal grudges under the guise of justice—has the rule of law completely vanished? Huangquan made mistakes: taking his spiritual core, stripping his immortal bones, and casting him down to the mortal world were not enough for them; they had to use the forbidden Gu bees to torture him! For all these years, I've wondered what kind of punishment could turn Huangquan into a creature that is neither human, immortal, demon, nor god. It turns out it was the Gu bees! These Gu bees devour soul power and immortal energy while planting various toxins in the host's body. Not only do they alter the host's entire meridian system, but they also distort the host's spiritual power, rendering them incompatible with any known form of cultivation. This is not mere poison; it is sheer madness, because these are not just venomous insects—they are a curse. Such Gu bees are forbidden even in the Demon Realm, so how could they appear in the Asura Realm?"

Faced with Yaoguang's inquiry, a shadow of doubt arose in the hearts of the deities. Without further ado, they issued a divine decree to Yaoguang. The decree was simple, consisting of just four words: "Act as you see fit."

This left Yaoguang somewhat dumbfounded. It was practically giving her carte blanche to do whatever she pleased.

The Divine Realm gave only a single sentence in response: "As a dignified venerable deity whose status is no lower than that of the primordial gods, to be restricted and constrained at every turn—what kind of decorum is that? Does this mean they take the Divine Realm for a pushover?"

Left both amused and exasperated by these old fogies, Yaoguang took the divine decree and returned to the Spiritual Peak. The next step was to clear and dredge Huangquan's dried-up meridians.

***

Yaoguang looked at Huangquan with a mischievous grin. Seeing that expression, Huangquan developed a very ominous premonition...

Sure enough, the very next moment, Huangquan was tossed by Yaoguang into a crimson pool. Before he could even react, his entire body was swarmed by dense clusters of red, thread-like worms that immediately began burrowing into his skin.

"What are these?" Surrounded by the writhing mass of crimson worms with only his eyes exposed—and shortly thereafter, even his mouth filled with them—Huangquan panicked.

"Red-phosphor Gu worms, or you can call them red-thread worms. They are specifically used to dredge and nourish meridians. Just lie there and don't use any strength to resist, otherwise the red-phosphor Gu worms won't be able to integrate into your meridians, and you'll be the one suffering. Oh, I forgot to tell you, it's going to hurt a little bit," Yaoguang said.

The next instant, an agonizing, bone-piercing pain engulfed Huangquan's entire body, making his breathing ragged.

"You call this hurting a little bit?! Phoenix, you, you, you..." Huangquan felt like bursting into tears.

"What about me? Just endure it," Yaoguang said, seating herself gracefully by the edge of the pool. She watched as Huangquan thrashed back and forth in the water—not because he wanted to move, but because the massive swarm of red-phosphor Gu worms was burrowing deep into his flesh. These worms could nourish parched tendons while simultaneously fusing into them. Because Huangquan's meridians were completely dried up and still harbored the toxins left behind by the Gu bees, the red-phosphor Gu worms were the only creatures capable of countering the bee venom without harming his meridians. Only by neutralizing the Gu bee toxin could Huangquan's meridians be successfully reopened; otherwise, even a ten-thousand-year-old golden elixir would be completely wasted inside him.

For a full hour, Huangquan felt as though he could no longer feel pain, left only with numbness. In a hazy, semi-conscious state, he was dragged out by two figures and thrown into another large pool.

The pool water was lukewarm and exceedingly comfortable, but the very next moment, Huangquan let out a scream fit for a slaughtered pig.

He saw countless tiny, transparent fish swimming toward him, beginning to bite and nibble at his entire body.

The fish bites did not hurt, but they caused an unbearable, maddening itch that clawed at his soul. Huangquan was at his wits' end.

"What's wrong with this child?" Shang Liye drifted over, looking at Huangquan in the pool.

"Bone-free fish. They nibble away at the entire body, removing decayed flesh to regenerate new tissue while nourishing the entire meridian network. This fellow was subjected to the 'thousand cuts and myriad holes' punishment in the Asura Realm, leaving all the meridians in his body completely dried up," Yaoguang explained.

"A thousand cuts and myriad holes? How did such a heretical cultivation method find its way into the Asura Realm?" Shang Liye asked in surprise.

"I'd like to know that as well. Once this fellow recovers, I'll make a personal trip to the Asura Realm. Senior, I suspect that from Zhu Qinghuang utilizing Die Wuying to steal Huangquan's spiritual core, all the way to Huangquan undergoing the Asura Realm's trial of a thousand cuts and myriad holes, this entire series of events is a conspiracy. I suspect that the heretical cultivators in the mortal realm are in cahoots with someone in the Asura Realm," Yaoguang said.

"Now that you mention it, I have that feeling too," Shang Liye agreed.

For a moment, the two shared a tacit understanding.

By this time, Huangquan was down to his last breath in the pool. Weak and limp, he was dragged out once more, only to be tossed directly into the Thousand Carp Pool where Jin Lin resided.

In the next moment, Huangquan's body was swept down to the bottom of the pool by Jin Lin's massive coils, not surfacing for a long time.

"Will he be all right?" Biluo asked worriedly.

"He'll be fine. There is still a lingering fire toxin in his body, likely left by the Gu bees, and only the chilling Qi from Jin Lin can dissolve it. Do you have any idea how many of my treasures this fellow is wasting?" Yaoguang sighed.

After more than two hours, Huangquan was finally spat back out onto the wooden flooring of the Gazing Immortal Terrace by Jin Lin.

***

"Damn, he's practically been reborn. All the scars on his body are gone," Biluo exclaimed in amazement at Huangquan's smooth skin.

Without a word, Yaoguang shoved a thousand-year spiritual elixir straight into Huangquan's mouth. "The heavenly tribulation is coming soon. Get ready to face it. Remember to guide the lightning into your body to reshape your spiritual meridians. Otherwise, you'll be scattered into ashes and dust, you fool. The elixir will help you, but I cannot interfere. Once the heavenly lightning passes, I will canonize you."

"Canonization? You actually have that ability?" Biluo asked, astonished.

"Duh! Can't a venerable deity of the primordial divine realm canonize someone as a god? Do you have an objection?" Yaoguang demanded angrily.

"Not at all," Biluo shrank his neck back.

Rumble— At that moment, a thunderclap exploded across the clear blue sky.

"So soon?!" Huangquan felt like crying.

"Stop wasting time with nonsense!" Yaoguang immediately kicked Huangquan right off the edge of the Gazing Immortal Terrace.

*CRACK!* A bolt of heavenly lightning struck squarely down upon Huangquan, sending up a puff of white smoke.

"Well... roasted pig trotter..." Shang Liye chimed in from the side.

Yaoguang and Biluo both turned to glare at him. But the next instant, Yaoguang slapped her hand over Shang Liye's mouth. "Senior, please don't get excited. You're next in line. When your physical body turns to dust, your trotter will have to be braised in brown sauce."

Shang Liye lay flat on his back, thinking: This girl completely plays by her own rules...

Suspended mid-air and tossing amidst the lightning, Huangquan looked remarkably like a roasted duck inside an automatic rotisserie.

Yet this fellow possessed quite a stubborn streak. When the eleventh bolt of heavenly lightning struck, he began channeling the lightning current directly into his body, allowing the thunder to scour his entire being. Because he had consumed Yaoguang's thousand-year spiritual elixir, the heavenly tribulation struck only forty-nine times before dissipating entirely.

Seeing that Huangquan's body was now radiating a faint blue glow, Yaoguang flicked the tips of her toes and flew up right in front of him, instantly manifesting her true form as a venerable deity: "Immortal Huangquan, by my divine authority, I hereby seal your spirit, granting you entry into the Divine Realm. As a primordial venerable deity, I officially confer upon you the title of Upper Deity Guisi. From this day forward, you must perform great acts of benevolence, guide all living beings in the world under heaven, and receive this decree!"

"Guisi receives the decree!" Huangquan—no, Guisi—knelt suspended in mid-air. A stream of golden light flew forth from Yaoguang's palm, enveloping Guisi entirely. His appearance began to transform: his original gray robe shifted into a light-blue gown, his graying hair turned pitch black, his hair-binding divine crown pierced straight into the firmament, and his ashen, haggard visage transformed into a spirited and handsome countenance.

Smiling, Yaoguang looked at Guisi, her eyes and smile brimming with boundless compassion.

"This girl is truly extraordinary," Shang Liye sighed.

Down in this mortal world, Yaoguang had already landed back on the ground and was looking at Shang Liye. "Senior, it's your turn next."