The graceful silhouette of Goddess Lakshmi flickered, passing through the profound, mysterious radiance as if it were nothing, striking directly at the face of Ancestor Black Stone.

Ancestor Black Stone let out a strange laugh, and suddenly, a seven-colored rainbow swept out from within him. Its colors were pure, utterly devoid of any wicked energy, clearly signaling a Buddhist divine art of profound attainment. The seven-colored rainbow instantly covered an area of a thousand miles, and a scent of sandalwood slowly rose in the void. The demons covered by the rainbow light instantly felt their bones soften and their tendons go numb, collapsing onto the ground, unable to move a finger.

If it were merely numbed bones and tendons, that would have been the end of it, but these demons’ cultivation and magic power dissolved like flowing water. In the blink of the rainbow light, twelve hundred years of magic power vanished without a trace. The rainbow flashed dozens of times, and some low-level demon immortals simply reverted to their original forms, dissolving into clumps of fur.

Ancestor Yinghua, Immortal Lord Four-Eyes, and the other demon powerhouses were deeply shaken. Ancestor Black Stone had actually cultivated the profound arts of Buddhism, and with such deep skill! What was the origin of this old monster who habitually remained secluded, only exercising tyranny within his own domain?

Goddess Lakshmi moved lightly and skillfully through the rainbow light, letting the Buddhist radiance ebb and flow like tides, yet she could never pin down her figure. She was only heard to sneer sweetly, “The Great Brightness Divine Light of the Boundless Fragrant Glorious Buddha—you have actually inherited seven or eight parts of the true tradition. Who are you?”

Ancestor Black Stone’s face was grim, and he continuously stirred the Buddhist light, vainly attempting to capture Goddess Lakshmi.

But Goddess Lakshmi was the powerful goddess whose true form was manifested by the two Western Sages, using the immense power of the Origin Heavenly Dao Rules to seal her. All seals and restrictions were illusions before her. Ancestor Black Stone exerted his utmost strength, but the boundless Buddhist light only swirled wildly around Goddess Lakshmi, failing to touch even a single strand of her hair.

With a roar of anger, a streak of white light shot from between Ancestor Black Stone’s brows, and a white hair a hundred zhang long shot out, instantly transforming into boundless white light scattering in all directions. As this white light appeared, the rapidly spinning Great Vortex of the Immortal Trapping Pool suddenly paused. The pillar of black qi above the bottomless pit of the Immortal Trapping Pool solidified instantly, then exploded with a deafening roar. Countless fierce winds shot out everywhere like iron shovels, causing all the mountains and ridges within hundreds of millions of li of the bottomless pit Immortal Trapping Pool to turn to dust once more.

“Good, the Great Wisdom Establishing Buddha Light of Amitabha, but sadly, it only has half the required mastery. Interesting, where did you learn these Buddhist techniques?”

Goddess Lakshmi circled Ancestor Black Stone with great interest amidst the light show. At this moment, she was no longer in a hurry to punish him, but was entirely focused on seeing just how many Buddhist arts Ancestor Black Stone could display.

This display astonished not only Goddess Lakshmi greatly, but even Gu Yechen, who had learned nearly all the secret Buddhist scriptures and divine arts from the Monkey, felt immense surprise. Ancestor Black Stone, piecemeal, actually unleashed the Buddhist techniques cultivated by hundreds of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The sky was full of dazzling light spinning furiously, and golden lotuses erupted in every direction. The boundless Sanskrit chanting shook the bottomless pit Immortal Trapping Pool, making it tremble faintly, nearly causing the vast pool to be lifted away by the sound.

Goddess Lakshmi danced lightly and nimbly amidst the boundless treasure light and golden lotuses, yet she sustained no injury at all. Let alone her, not a single hair on the Gandharva maidservants she brought along was harmed by the Buddhist light.

Ancestor Black Stone roared in repeated fury. The light from the Spiritual Vulture Lamp above his head grew even fiercer. Ancestor Black Stone suddenly stilled his form, transforming into a colossal, pitch-black rock, ten thousand zhang high, standing erect in the void. The left side of this giant rock spewed forth boundless golden light, with tides of Buddhist light of all colors surging out; the right side released cyan, crimson, and white immortal lights, with various Daoist immortal techniques roaring forth as well.

Taiqing, Yuqing, and Shangqing—Ancestor Black Stone also displayed many scattered techniques from the Three Teachings. Not only various immortal restrictions and seals, but also various thunderous curses, and even small arts like sword control, artifact manipulation, curse casting, and demon subduing from the Three Teachings were all utilized.

Gu Yechen watched, marveling at the spectacle. He fully deployed his Samsara Dharma Eye, trying to discern the origin of Ancestor Black Stone, why he could wield such incredible divine powers. Cultivating both Dao and Buddha, and in such a mixed fashion, it was evident that the Buddhist and immortal arts practiced by the demons in his Iron Water Black Stone Mountain were all taught by him.

The hidden wealth of this old monster was truly substantial!

Goddess Lakshmi gazed thoughtfully at Ancestor Black Stone. She lightly evaded several piercing sword strikes, suddenly clapped her hands, and laughed, “I remember now. You weren’t just a piece of black stone outside the Leiyin Temple back then? You’ve just grown much larger! Back when the Buddhas were debating the Dao at the Leiyin Temple, any living being near the Spiritual Vulture Peak could learn one or two Buddhist divine arts. I suppose you stole them?”

After a moment of thought, Goddess Lakshmi chuckled again, “I recall now, outside the Zixiao Palace, there was a paving stone, shaped similarly to that black rock outside the Leiyin Temple. I suppose that was a manifestation of yours? You are incredibly bold, stealing Buddhist meditation arts and then daring to eavesdrop on the Dao Ancestor preaching in the Zixiao Palace!”

Ancestor Black Stone’s enormous body continued to spew forth vast amounts of Buddhist and immortal light, yet he remained silent, focused only on attacking Goddess Lakshmi ruthlessly.

Goddess Lakshmi shook her head and sneered, “However, regardless of your origin, daring to speak disrespectfully to me means you must suffer some lesson!”

With a flash, Goddess Lakshmi suddenly appeared above the giant black rock formed by Ancestor Black Stone. A pair of Blazing Lotus Wheels suddenly appeared in her hands, carrying overwhelming karmic fire as she fiercely smashed down upon the black rock. With a tremendous boom, the boundless seawater of the Immortal Trapping Pool surged up hundreds of li high. The roar caused by the enraged surging seawater made nearly half the assembled demons spurt blood from all seven orifices; it was a near thing that they weren't shaken to death on the spot.

Innumerable sparks flew off the giant black rock formed by Ancestor Black Stone, and his massive body plummeted heavily for a hundred li, nearly crashing into the bottom of the Black Water. A cold snarl was heard from within the black rock, and thirty-six stone beads, the size of human heads and pitch black, shot out.

“Innate Spirit Treasure! Natal Spirit Treasure!” Gu Yechen’s eyes lit up, staring intently at the thirty-six head-sized stone beads.

To possess Innate Natal Spirit Treasures meant that Ancestor Black Stone was also a being born during the Primordial Chaos. His innate foundation was extraordinary. Though these thirty-six stone beads appeared pitch black with no luster, they actually contained countless starlight and auspicious energy, faintly shrouded in a latent, restrained radiance—truly top-tier Innate Spirit Treasures.

As soon as these thirty-six stone beads emerged, they swiftly formed a small Innate Heavenly Cycle Star Formation in the void, drawing upon minute amounts of Heavenly Cycle Star Power. This power transformed into a shower of silver light banners that enveloped Goddess Lakshmi.

Goddess Lakshmi never dreamed that Ancestor Black Stone possessed such Natal Spirit Treasures imbued with Heavenly Dao Rules. She herself had been sealed by the true forms manifested by the two Western Sages using their Natal Heavenly Dao Rules; Ancestor Black Stone’s actions now mirrored theirs exactly.

Even though Ancestor Black Stone’s Innate Spirit Treasures were billions of times weaker than those of the two Western Sages, Goddess Lakshmi was caught off guard and trapped for a tenth of a finger-snap. For a pinnacle Great Luo Golden Immortal like Ancestor Black Stone, a tenth of a finger-snap was enough time to annihilate trillions of beings.

As black light flashed everywhere, a sturdy figure erupted from the giant black stone, a hundred zhang tall, entirely covered in black stone armor. This black giant held a heavy black stone sword and brought it down in an arc toward Goddess Lakshmi’s head.

The sword light flashed, and the Black Stone Sword stopped just grazing Goddess Lakshmi’s scalp.

The enormous black figure spoke coldly, “Goddess Lakshmi, you have already died once!”

Goddess Lakshmi gently flicked a lock of hair hanging near her forehead and smiled softly, “Are you sure?”

The black figure retorted coldly, “Unless you possess an Adamantine Body capable of taking my strike head-on.”

After a moment of contemplation, Goddess Lakshmi smiled faintly, “At worst, it is the loss of a physical body. What can you do to me?”

The black figure laughed loudly, “With your current cultivation, how many years of arduous effort would it take to reforge a physical body capable of unleashing all your divine powers and magic after losing one? Heh heh, you owe me a favor!”

Goddess Lakshmi narrowed her eyes, pondered for a while, and then suddenly nodded happily and laughed:

“Very well done. I never expected that in such a desolate place as the Icy Hell, I would encounter such a marvelous person as you, Daoist friend. Were you born in the Primordial Chaos?”

The black figure slowly shrank, gradually returning to the original appearance of Ancestor Black Stone. He opened his mouth, and the thirty-six stone beads flew back into it one after another. He said faintly, “Indeed. When the Great Pangu shattered his body to create the vast universe, this old ancestor was fortunate enough to obtain a drop of the Great God’s vital blood, which is how I took human form.”

Gu Yechen grinned, hearing that such a monster was thriving in the Icy Hell. To be born at the beginning of the Primordial Chaos was one thing, but to forge a human form with a drop of Pangu’s blood—it showed how potent his foundation was. However, judging by his current cultivation, it utterly failed to live up to his innate foundation; it was a disgrace to the Innate Great Sages!

This was not a question Gu Yechen needed to ask, as Ancestor Black Stone frankly recounted his entire history.

Having obtained a drop of Pangu’s vital blood, Ancestor Black Stone successfully took human form. But Ancestor Black Stone was different from other Innate Great Sages; after transforming, his brain capacity was somewhat lacking. In other words, he possessed an overwhelmingly powerful physique but was as simple-minded as an idiot.

In the early days of the world’s creation, various powerful creatures vied for supremacy. Those as formidable but unintelligent as Ancestor Black Stone were the best cannon fodder for charges and battles. He didn't know how many times he was exploited, how many life-and-death struggles he participated in. Besides suffering countless grievous injuries and being betrayed repeatedly, he gained nothing else.

Later, Ancestor Black Stone finally realized something was amiss. Why was he always the one rushing to the front lines to risk his life?

And why were others' cultivations rising while his was declining? The probability of him being severely wounded was increasing. Everyone else had innate cultivation secret methods, but he did not!

At this point, Ancestor Black Stone developed a bit of cunning. He simply transformed into a black stone and hid near the doors of several foremost powerful figures in the world, tacitly stealing eavesdropping on their sermons. From the Dao Ancestor Hongjun to the two Western Sages and the Three Pure Ones, Ancestor Black Stone relied on his innate concealment ability to hide near their preaching grounds and stole countless strange and obscure techniques, both Daoist and Buddhist.

Afterward, Ancestor Black Stone focused entirely on secluded cultivation, never again acting as cannon fodder or a pawn for others.

But another problem arose: this old monster actually cultivated thousands of different techniques spanning Buddhism, Daoism, Witchcraft, Demonology, Ghostcraft, and more, all simultaneously!

Cultivating thousands of techniques at once threw Ancestor Black Stone straight into the blissful period of deviation and madness. If he didn't suffer deviation or madness seven or eight times a day, he felt something was wrong. If his original body hadn't been exceptionally robust, and if he hadn't obtained that drop of Great Pangu’s vital blood, granting him endless vitality, no matter how good his foundation, he would have ruined himself.

Yet, relying purely on his formidable physique and the drop of Pangu’s blood, he inexplicably cultivated his way forward.

He endured days of suffering deviation or madness seven or eighty times daily for countless Kalpas. His cultivation level rose and fell erratically. At his lowest, his cultivation even regressed to the Golden Core stage; at his peak, his attainment far surpassed his current level, even rivaling the Primordial-level great divine powers that survived from ancient times.

Stumbling along this path, Ancestor Black Stone’s physical body grew increasingly mighty. Eventually, he transformed into the Iron Water Black Stone Mountain; the vast mountain, spanning two hundred million li, was his true form! When the various Sages jointly established the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, Ancestor Black Stone relocated to the Icy Hell and established himself as the king of the mountain here.

Ancestor Yinghua gasped sharply. No wonder his extremely heavy strike had not harmed the Iron Water Black Stone Mountain in the slightest!

In the end, Ancestor Black Stone vaguely mixed thousands of techniques into a single hodgepodge Daoist method—neither Buddhist nor Daoist, neither demonic nor spectral—and cultivated along this path.

This method, while seemingly miraculous, encompassing everything and possessing immense power, progressed extremely slowly. After suffering for countless years, Ancestor Black Stone had only managed to cultivate his power back to the pinnacle level of Great Luo Golden Immortal.

Furthermore, due to the aftereffects of mixing these techniques, Ancestor Black Stone had essentially turned into a lecher. Regardless of gender, upon seeing anyone handsome or beautiful, he had only one thought: to capture them and bring them back to his harem.

Gu Yechen’s eyes widened. The life experience narrated by Ancestor Black Stone was utterly unbelievable; this old monster was truly beyond description.

Goddess Lakshmi looked thoughtfully at Ancestor Black Stone and chuckled merrily, “Ancestor, now that you’ve explained your origins, do you have a request?”

Ancestor Black Stone nodded heavily.

It was clear that he could not defeat Goddess Lakshmi, but neither could she defeat him. Continuing the fight would only be a waste of energy; it was better for both sides to state their terms and talk things out.

Ancestor Yinghua gnashed his teeth beside her. This ancient, primordial monster from the beginning of the Chaos was hidden in the Icy Hell, and he hadn't heard the slightest rumor about him. Fortunately, he hadn't clashed with Ancestor Black Stone over the years, otherwise...

Ancestor Yinghua suddenly shivered.

Ancestor Black Stone gave Goddess Lakshmi a strange look, and said slyly, “Immortal Lord Four-Eyes belongs to me!”

Goddess Lakshmi glanced lightly at the ashen-faced Immortal Lord Four-Eyes, saying dismissively, “Ancestor, please help yourself... Since the Ancestor has explained his origins so clearly, are there any other demands?”

Ancestor Black Stone nodded deeply. He said in a heavy voice, “Akshmi, since you are here, where are the other Dharma Protector Heavens?”

Goddess Lakshmi smiled faintly, “They are busy with their own matters. Ancestor, state your needs.”

With a cold laugh, Ancestor Black Stone stated gravely, “I require one flame of the Brahma Heaven’s Creation Fire, one flame of Vishnu’s Guardian Fire, and one flame of Shiva’s Destruction Fire. Give me these three flames; I need them to refine my original body.”

The pitch-black face of Ancestor Black Stone flushed slightly, and he chuckled with a touch of shame, “My original body is too gigantic and too formidable. Currently, I have no way to deal with the body myself, and can only cast the secret three-life reincarnation method of Buddhism to forge a new Dharma Body. The life-essence flames of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are precisely what I need!”

Goddess Lakshmi’s eyes darted, and she clapped her hands and laughed, “Very well! We also have matters that require the Ancestor’s assistance!”

Smiling, she casually pushed the several Gandharva maidservants beside her toward Ancestor Black Stone and said sweetly, “The purpose of coming to the Icy Hell this time was originally for Ancestor Yinghua to issue invitations to various strong experts to join a grand undertaking. Now, with the help of a powerhouse from the time of the world’s creation like the Ancestor, our chances of success are much greater.”

Gu Yechen moved forward imperceptibly, wanting to hear the reason Goddess Lakshmi had gathered such a group of demons and monsters in the Icy Hell.

Ancestor Black Stone embraced the several Gandharva maidservants, who giggled flirtatiously, groping them for a while before saying with a strange laugh, “I accept the favor... Also, send me ten or eight thousand beauties from the Asuras and the Dragon Clan, and no matter what you plan to do, this old ancestor will offer his full assistance.”

Goddess Lakshmi nodded in satisfaction, happily clapping her hands and laughing, “That’s all negotiable. In front of so many Daoist friends here, Lakshmi will speak plainly.” She swept her enchanting eyes around and chuckled, “This matter brings tremendous benefits to everyone. If successful, the wonders derived are endless. But before success...”

Ancestor Black Stone and Ancestor Yinghua shouted in unison, “If anyone dares to leak the news, we shall join forces to denounce them!”

The two glanced at each other, and both Black Stone and Ancestor Yinghua snorted coldly.

Unbeknownst to him, the title of the foremost demon of the Icy Hell held by Ancestor Yinghua was about to be snatched away by Ancestor Black Stone.

Goddess Lakshmi said happily, “That is excellent. Speaking of which, it’s nothing major. It’s just that during a past upheaval of the world, the cave-mansions of certain great divine powers were left behind in this realm, containing countless benefits. We simply intend to join forces with everyone to break the constraints and seize that cave-mansion.”

Ancestor Black Stone hurriedly asked, “The cave-mansion of a great divine power? Whose dwelling did you set your sights on?”

Goddess Lakshmi smiled sweetly, showing a hint of shyness, “We wouldn’t dare covet the residences of the Sages. However, the Heavenly Emperor Haotian sealed the Thirty-Three Heavens Palace before he left; we only intend to occupy that Heavenly Palace!”

The countless demons present gasped in collective shock!

To seize the Heavenly Palace ruled by the Heavenly Emperor Haotian over the Three Realms!

Goddess Lakshmi and her group had truly made a grand plan! (To be continued, for future developments, please log on to H)