Fuxi’s face fell, and he quickly left Shi Hao’s home without daring to linger. He simply couldn't believe that his trip out of the Fire Cloud Cave had gotten him entangled in such a huge karmic debt!
What bad luck!
He was truly brave, having actually eaten Laozi’s Qing Niu. If Laozi, the Saint, found out, who knew how he would blame Fuxi.
But why did he only recognize it after he finished eating the beef? The ox was clearly Laozi’s mount; the collar was the best proof.
No wonder the steak was so delicious, making Fuxi unable to resist. After all, how could beef from a Da Luo Jinxian not be delicious?
But delicious as it was, it was a bit life-threatening. If he wasn't careful, Laozi would come knocking on his door.
The identity of a Saint's mount, though not as significant as a direct disciple, represented the Saint’s face.
What exactly was Shi Hao’s identity? How dare he kill Laozi, the Saint’s mount, Qing Niu? Wasn’t he afraid of the Saint’s wrath?
What Fuxi couldn't understand most was that the other party seemed to be a mortal, and he even got confirmation of this. But how could he possibly kill Qing Niu, who had the cultivation of a Da Luo Jinxian?
Even though Qing Niu had no spiritual awareness or magical power, the physical bodies of demon beasts were incredibly strong. Forget ordinary mortals; even celestial immortals would find it hard to harm Qing Niu.
Furthermore, Fuxi couldn’t figure out the cause of the Fire Cloud Cave’s transformation. He might need to go out again.
Being able to leave the Fire Cloud Cave meant he was slightly freer than before. But for some reason, he couldn’t shake off the unsettling feeling in his heart. It was like a constant uneasiness.
…………
In the Xuan Du Cave, several thousand miles away from the Fire Cloud Cave, Laozi, the Saint, who was sitting cross-legged on the Tai Chi Diagram, meditating and wandering outside the mundane world, suddenly opened his eyes.
After making a few calculations, he called his disciple Xuan Du before him.
“I wonder what instructions my Master has for his disciple?” Xuan Du knelt before Laozi, his heart filled with surprise. Had something major happened? His Master had only entered seclusion not too long ago.
“Where is your junior brother, Qing Niu?” Laozi inquired pointedly.
“Master, my junior brother was still in Xuan Du Cave a few days ago. I don't know where he is now, but he shouldn't be too far from the cave,” Xuan Du replied truthfully.
When facing the Saint, there was no need to hide anything. The Saint could directly perceive all truths.
Laozi sighed and said, “Qing Niu has fallen. His spiritual essence has already ascended to the Conferred God List.”
“My junior brother Qing Niu ascended the Conferred God List? Impossible. There aren’t many disciples in my Human Religion, and when we went to the Purple Cloud Palace to sign the Conferred God List, Master directly signed his own Good Soul. How could any of the disciples of the Human Religion possibly be on the list?” Xuan Du exclaimed in disbelief.
“The Conferred God Tribulation has arrived. Disciples of the three religions are all potential candidates for the list. Not only Qing Niu, even Saints may be affected by this,” Laozi added. What he couldn’t understand was that he couldn’t find out the root of the matter, couldn’t find out how Qing Niu died.
“Master, who killed my junior brother? The killer knew Qing Niu was your mount, yet they still took his life. The karmic debt owed to my Human Religion can't be left unresolved.”
“Because of the Conferred God Tribulation, the Heavenly Mandate is chaotic. I don’t know who it is,” Laozi said.
That was why Laozi called his disciple Xuan Du. The main reason was to send him to Kunlun Mountain to borrow the Conferred God List from his junior brother, Yuanshi, the Saint, and use it to question Qing Niu to find out what happened.
After receiving the Saint’s decree, Xuan Du immediately departed for Jade Void Palace on Kunlun Mountain!
Xuan Du was now truly the only disciple of the Human Religion. Though his cultivation had also reached the level of Quasi-Saint, the pinnacle of cultivation in the primordial world, Laozi still bestowed the supreme innate treasure, the Tai Chi Diagram, for his protection, lest any unforeseen incidents occur.
If Xuan Du fell, the Human Religion would truly become a one-man show. He would be the only one left, and if he wanted to find someone to serve him or run errands, there wouldn’t be anyone.
Upon arriving at Jade Void Palace, Yuanshi, the Saint, seemed to have already known Xuan Du’s purpose, and ordered his two attendants to bring the Conferred God List to Xuan Du.
Actually, Yuanshi was also somewhat surprised. When he telepathically chatted with his senior brother, he found out that his senior brother’s mount, Qing Niu, had actually been on the list!
The Conferred God Tribulation was mainly targeting his Interpretation Religion and his junior brother’s Interception Religion. Yuanshi wouldn’t be surprised if anyone from either religion was on the list.
But who could have imagined that the first person to be on the Conferred God List would be his senior brother’s mount!
Unfortunately, the Heavenly Mandate was chaotic, and Yuanshi couldn’t fathom what had happened. Otherwise, he would also be curious to know who dared to ignore the face of a Saint and kill his senior brother’s mount, incurring such a large karmic debt with his senior brother.
Taking the Conferred God List, Xuan Du returned to his Eight Scenery Palace in Xuan Du Cave after a few breaths.
“Master, since my junior brother’s spiritual essence is attached to the Conferred God List, can we detach it and then reforge his physical body?” Xuan Du asked the question that had been weighing on his mind. The reforged body wouldn’t be comparable to the original, and his cultivation would probably be unable to break through again. But it would be better than having his spiritual essence forever controlled by the Conferred God List.
Laozi said calmly, “If it were easy to detach spiritual essence from the Conferred God List, who would be willing to ascend the list?”
Xuan Du sighed after hearing this. It seemed like his junior brother Qing Niu couldn’t be revived.
Then, Laozi opened the Conferred God List. It was like he had untied some restraint, releasing a brilliant beam of light.
The phantom of a green ox emerged from the Conferred God List.
Xuan Du understood. That was his junior brother’s spiritual essence.
“Moo!”
Upon seeing Laozi, Qing Niu cried out excitedly and bowed his head, crouching in front of Laozi!
Xuan Du couldn’t help but ask, “Qing Niu, tell us, who harmed you? According to reason, with your cultivation as a Da Luo Jinxian, ordinary cultivators wouldn’t be a match. Those Quasi-Saints would recognize your identity and wouldn’t dare harm you.”
“Moo.”
At this moment, Qing Niu’s eyes were full of grievance. He had simply been greedy for a spiritual plant and had eaten some “heavenly treasures” belonging to the other party. Who would have thought he’d be killed by a single strike from a stick?
Even now, the terrifying power of that strike, which seemed to carry the power to erase all rules, still filled Qing Niu with fear.
Qing Niu recounted his experience, including how the man had killed him!
“He was killed in the Fire Cloud Cave, thousands of miles away. Could it be the Three Sovereigns?” The only beings in the vicinity of the Fire Cloud Cave who could kill Qing Niu were the Three Sovereigns.
Qing Niu hurriedly shook his head and manifested Shi Hao’s appearance.
Laozi glanced at it, remembering his appearance, and immediately scanned the Fire Cloud Cave with his spiritual awareness. He scanned half of the primordial world, but still couldn’t find the other party.
It was as if he had vanished under his very nose or was being protected by another Saint!
“I can’t find him. Unfortunately, the Heavenly Mandate is chaotic and I can’t calculate it. But since this happened around the Fire Cloud Cave, it must be related to the Three Sovereigns,” Laozi said.
Even if it wasn’t them who did it, it was impossible for them to be unaware of what happened in the Fire Cloud Cave.
Immediately, Laozi considered personally visiting the Fire Cloud Cave to find out what happened.
The Three Sovereigns of the Human Race held an extremely high status. Though not as high as the Six Saints, they were considered immortal and had achieved an alternate path to immortality.