Chapter 61 The Secret Realm in Jiu Zhai

The scenery in Jiu Zhaigou was dream-like, and people called it a fairytale land. Its charm was legendary and nearly on par with that of the Yuxu Pure Land. In Wang Bugui's eyes, it was also a paradise. Even nightfall could not conceal its beauty from one's eyes. The springs, waterfalls, rivers and beaches glittered under the moonlight and formed a multi colored basin.

"So, this is the legendary Jiu Zhaigou. It's really scenic. We're obviously in the human world, but I can feel that the natural aura here is stronger than that of other places. I believe that there are still secret realms here, for it to emanate such levels of aura in the era of late arts," Wang Bugui said as he halted. He could not help but be awestruck.

This place was world famous for its scenic views of the waterways, and one had to see it personally to understand why. Along his journey, Wang Bugui walked through primitive jungles. The Rainbow Forest, one of the six wonders of Jiu Zhaigou, was situated here, and over 2000 types of undocumented plants grew here. It was a very captivating sight to behold. There was also the renowed Nuo Rilang Waterfall. Streams of water fell from it like countless dragons, forming layers. As one looked at it, one would marvel at its exquisiteness.

Next up was the Green River. The water was dark blue and clear, and one could see the bottom of the river clearly all year round. It would give off different colors and hues as the surrounding lighting and seasons changed. At this moment, the river of the lake was a purplish-green, and the sight from the river bank was reflected clearly in the water, causing the viewer to be confused where the top and bottom of the river were. It was extremely dream-like.

Wang Bugui and Puppet Chiou sat cross legged in the lake, and he used his powers of Tao to create a tower of ice. They sat suspended above the center of the lake and he took out his wine flask for a sip. It was strange to see someone drinking under the moonlight by himself. A life-like puppet sat on his shoulder, and it reclined against him without showing any expression. They sat like this, enjoying the wonderful scenery all by themselves.

Everytime they passed by a scenic spot, Wang Bugui would release Puppet Chiou to let her take in the sights. Even though he knew that her memory was still hazy, he did not want her to remain within the small pendant by herself. It was extraordinary, as its looks had transformed into exactly the same as that of Hanae Chiou once infused with her primordial spirit.

When Wang Bugui was with the puppet, there was no sign of any devilishness in him; he treated her very tenderly. Hanae Chiou could already open both of her eyes fully when Wang Bugui's level of cultivation reached the God of War level, and there was a little life in those hollow, azure eyes of hers now. Today, there were even signs that most of her consciousness would be awakened.

"We should move on to the next spot now," Wang Bugui said softly to Puppet Chiou.

He carried her on his back and traversed the air until they arrived at a spot filled with ice crystals. It was an extremely beautiful waterfall that had frozed up, and it was also one of the six wonders of Jiu Zhaigou. The natural ice sculpture hung on the steep rock face, and it looked like an exquisite piece of precious jade or crystal. It gave off a variety of colors as light shone upon it, and one could observe different aspects of its structure from different angles. Everything here was encased in a dazzling layer of ice crystal, and from afar this entire area of the forest looked like it was carved out from ice.

The surface of this part of the lake also gave off an azure glow, as if it were a part of the sky. They passed through a forested area covered with hoarfrost and ice formations, until they arrived at the center of the lake. This was the place where his father had found the little pendant, and Wang Bugui could sense that the aura around here was still much more abundant than that in other areas of the world. He believed that the secret cave still existed, and it was also his reason of coming here.

There were 108 peaks and lakes in Jiu Zhaigou, and they spanned across the entire length of the canal; there was no other place like it on Earth. Wang Bugui unleashed his will, allowing it to envelop the entire area, as he tried to discover the location of the cave.

"That's strange. I can't find a trace of the cave anywhere, and there isn't even something that resembles a barrier," muttered Wang Bugui as his will swept through the entire area in an instant. He did that for dozens of times, but still to no avail. He paused and thought about his fruitless search for a while before taking out the pendant and activating it with his blood prana power.

"Ding!"

The pendant gave out a clear sound, as well as a bright flash, as his blood prana power was infused into the artifact. A blue ray of light shot out pierced directly into the bottom of the lake, before another similar ray of light shot straight into the skies. Both lakes turned azure instantly, and the light they gave out illuminated the entire Jiu Zhaigou.

In the next instant, 106 rays of blue light emerged from both lakes, and they shot toward the other lakes in the region. Shortly after that, 108 blue rays of light appeared from the entire expanse of Jiu Zhaigou, corresponding to the 108 constellations. Upon seeing this, Wang Bugui immediately used his Taoist skills to block off Jiu Zhaigou from the world. From the outside, the entire region seemed to be quiet and enveloped in darkness.

In reality, Jiu Zhaigou was like a dreamscape now. 108 stars swooped down from the skies, reflecting the colors of the water back at it and vice versa. To prevent anyone from noticing this phenomenon, he used his powers to neuter the six senses of all ordinary folk within the Jiu Zhaigou region.

The divine lights formed into a huge gate between Cuihai and the frozen waterfall. It opened slowly, and an ancient aura was released from within. The pendant returned to Wang Bugui's hand, and he looked at it before turning his attention to the gate. He strode calmly toward it, and the gates shut themselves automatically the instant he stepped inside. It disappeared out of sight from the outside world, and the entire region reverted back to its original appearance.

"Thud, thud, thud..."

Wang Bugui used his will to scan around his new surroundings as he walked forward slowly. He could feel that it was not especially huge; it probably had a radius of less than 50 kilometers. The interior the cave automatically lit up as he walked deeper inside, and after he had traveled for about five kilometers, the entire cave was already illuminated. He realized that the light came from a code carved into a huge slab of stone in front of him. As he drew nearer, he could make out the words 'Jiuhua Paradise' giving off a bright blue glow.

"Jiuhua Paradise?" Wang Bugui muttered as he looked at the huge stone, before wandering into the wondrous place. Divine aura was more abundant in this part of the cave, and even though it was smaller in amount than that of the Yuxu Pure Land, many kinds of amazing medicine could still be found here. He followed the herbal scent and gathered many ancient medicinal plants along the way. He was a little pertubed as to why his father had not done the same thing.

After passing through the paradise, he arrived at the Jiuhua Cave itself. Its vermilion gates were wide open, as if inviting Wang Bugui in. He paused and used his will to survey the interior of the cave, only stepping inside upon making sure that there were no hidden booby traps within.

It was completely empty in the cave except for a Taoist altar. A painting of Nuwa mending the Heavens could be seen hanging above it, and there was a mat placed beneath it. Wang Bugui walked closer to the mat and observed the person in the painting quietly. It was a woman as tall as the Heavens itself, and she had the body of a snake and the head of a human. Her impossibly beautiful face was filled with compassion.

Her eyes, however, were filled with a tenacious spirit, as she held a large, multi-colored rock in her hands up towards the broken skies. It looked so realistic that Wang Bugui suspected if the painter had experienced the historic event himself or herself, and painted what he or she saw. Anyone who saw it would feel as if Nuwa herself was really standing in front of him or her.

"This painting is really marvelous!"

Wang Bugui could not help but exclaim in amazement. He noticed that he was close to receiving a little enlightenment after he finished viewing the painting. He knew how precious such moments were, and he immediately sat down on the mat and cleared his mind, so that he could be at one with Tao. As expected, he entered a state of enlightenment within moments. His Innate Prana Power was reabsorbed back within the void, and his primordial spirit cruised around the Great Emptiness.

Wang Bugui's primordial spirit wandered around and traversed the Great Emptiness until it arrived at a vast sea of stellar systems. One of them contained many ancient planets, and they were circling around a huge blue planet. It looked evidently like Earth, but its size was much larger, so much so that it could rival the Sun. There were a total nine planets surrounding it, just like the solar system.

The Sun's mass remained unchanged, but that of the Moon was as huge as the Earth in its current state. Wang Bugui walked toward the planet with a surprised expression on his face. It looked to be in the primordial era, and the legends had spoke of various immortal and ferocious beasts, as well as a few extremely powerful and ancient deities that resided on this planet. Here, one could hear the Hou's shrieks shatter stars, the Peng's huge wings smashing space open, while dragons roamed the skies and various birds paid homage to the immortal phoenix.

The terrain of the ancient planet was shaped like that of a giant human, which Wang Bugui believed to be Pangu himself. His frame became the mountains and plains of the planets, while his meridians served as its roads. His blood transformed into the rivers and seas that covered the planet, and his hair became the stars that filled its night skies. After Lady Nuwa created humans, there were many different factions that began practicing Tao.

Wang Bugui saw Mount Sumeru, the holy mountain of Buddhist tradition, Mount Kunlun, Taishan, one of the five sacred mountains, as well as many other famous peaks. They were taller than those on Earth by many times, and they rose up to the skies of this ancient planet. There were some people who had traveled West as well to set up different schools of thought.

However, this planet, which had vast potential, could not be sustained for long. A group of demons, which did not belong to any known type of sentient beings, had appeared out of nowhere. Their only desire was to kill, and they were extremely powerful. The forces of good fought against them, and there were heavy losses on both sides. Their terrible war caused most of the ancient Milky Way to be destroyed.

During the last days of the primordial era, dozens of extremely powerful demonic gods fought against 10 ancient gods who had created this world, and the ensuing battles caused the planet to shatter. The other ancient planets circling around it were also impacted in the same way. Before all life was about to be extinguished, Lady Nuwa appeared and used her multi-colored stone to patch the Heavens up.

What was left of these planets were then refined into smaller ones that could sustain life and placed at various galaxies of this plane. Those that had immortals and gods living on them were then allocated to other planes.

The primordial Earth was damaged the most badly, and only bits of it were left. Lady Nuwa refined it in the image of the Earth, and placed it at the center of nine other planets, so that life could continue to be sustained. She also left behind many systems which formed into the larger Solar System, as well as the teachings and studies from ancient, primordial times.

During the Ancient period, two deities known as Zhurong and Gonggong had a huge fight after having a disagreement. The latter lost and knocked down Mount Buzhou in embarrassment, which was actually a pillar used to support the Heavens. As the skies came crashing down, the planet broke apart again, and the manifestation that Lady Nuwa left behind reappeared amongst men to repair the Heavens again with the last divine stone she had.