Chapter 369: Chapter 258: Target! The Duodenum of the Great Mother Goddess!
Just like the Jade Book Tower is a tower, there’s not just one Jade Book Tower.
There weren’t many, only about seventeen or eighteen back then.
These Jade Book Towers are spread across the East Continent, serving as landmarks while fulfilling their respective functions.
Moreover, they don’t all look like towers. Like the half-star disc here, its main body is actually a city.
Not only do they look different, but their functions are also diverse.
The Thousand Mechanism Pavilion’s tower is used for exams, while the Jade Book Tower in front of Zhang Ze, just like the half-star disc, is used for battles.
According to it, during the ancient war between east and west, it accompanied the Emperor on his expedition, beating everyone it encountered, invincible in the world.
As for whom it beat, it’s almost forgotten.
Even the comrades are nearly forgotten.
Gazing at the half-star disc in front of him, Zhang Ze paused for a moment and asked, "But you’re a disc."
The half-star disc seemed to realize this problem too. It suddenly grew silent.
"No, where’s my shell? Who stole my home!"
Seeing this, Zhang Ze raised his hammer again, and this half-star disc immediately silenced itself.
"So, you’re actually the core of the Jade Book Tower?"
"Yes."
"Your core was refined by the Celestial Sect, and the shell was pounded out by Dongqi?"
"Yes, that’s how it is, I suppose..."
[Heh, shell-less turtle]
In a spot unseen by the half-star disc, a small line appeared, a quip from the Profound Identification Treasure Mirror.
For some reason, the Profound Identification really did not like this half-star disc.
"So what do you remember? Why are you inside that Cultivator Li Yu’s body?"
The half-star disc was silent for a long time, as if this question was important to him, but he couldn’t quite remember.
[Pitiful.]
Also suffering from amnesia, the Profound Identification Treasure Mirror seemed to look down on the half-star disc.
It controlled the internal space and called Li Yu over.
After expelling the disc from his body, Li Yu became much more normal.
He seemed to remember many things.
"I am Li Yu, Sect Leader of the Wooden Fish Sect, Dark Helm Leader of the Hundred Demons Sect."
Li Yu bowed to Zhang Ze, then got straight to the point.
Sincerity is the best weapon, and the sincerity of this Helm Leader of the Hundred Demons Sect left Zhang Ze a bit at a loss.
This was quite straightforward, wasn’t it still the Hundred Demons Sect?
Seeing Zhang Ze’s expression, Helm Leader Li sighed and explained.
"You only see half of my Divine Soul, the other half is with that Sect Leader of the Wooden Fish Sect, I..."
"I remember now! It was the Great Mother Goddess’s innate Divine Technique!"
The hyperactive disc suddenly recalled some important details.
Afterward, in Li Yu’s calm narration and the half-star disc’s sudden interjections, the events that happened to Li Yu were explained clearly.
The two of them talked about three or four thousand words, discussing the Path of Yin and Yang and some unspoken Secret Techniques.
Zhang Ze understood it, but still found it troublesome, so he decided to summarize it simply.
"Got it, the innate Tao Embryo of the Great Mother Goddess is actually a Tiger Talisman, playing with Yin-Yang balance, which separates a person’s bright and dark sides. Now you are the sunny and cheerful Mr. Li, and you are the righteous half-star disc."
Zhang Ze summarized.
However, the half-star disc seemed... it should be shaking its head, anyways it trembled a bit.
Helm Leader Li interjected, "You’re wrong, how can all things be simply summarized by day and night, so-called Dao..."
The half-star disc bumped into Helm Leader Li, "Stop explaining, I’m tired of listening."
It turned to face Zhang Ze directly, "Although I don’t know what a Tiger Talisman is, if you go by your bright side and dark side classification, I’m actually the dark side."
"Huh?" Zhang Ze, lacking in culture, was surprised.
[Our magical artifacts differ from your Human Race, we emphasize Yin-Yang harmony, the Path of Balance.]
"Yes, this broken mirror is right. Artifact Spirits aren’t about good or evil, the two principles cannot be without one."
"Understood, so you yourself have hyperactivity." Zhang Ze’s attention, however, veered towards something else.
Though not understanding what hyperactivity meant, it was clearly nothing good.
The half-disc was a bit speechless, and the intuitive Helm Leader Li found a chance to speak.
"This matter is entirely my fault, ultimately, I harmed this Artifact Spirit."
Due to being split in two by the Great Mother Goddess, Helm Leader Li lost some memory but also saw some other things.
Taoist Wooden Fish extended his hand, sharing those fragmented pieces he saw with Zhang Ze.
Charred earth, a reddish-brown sky, mountains and rivers reduced to ruins, vortexes caused by the fall of High Tier cultivators spread across the land.
This was Central Continent after the ancient war between east and west.
Amidst this wasteland, a dilapidated solitary city floated in the air.
It seemed to want to fly east but stopped.
Because a massive stone statue suddenly appeared behind it, the statue quietly gazed at the world, basking in the ruin and desolation...
The statue took a deep breath, flames ignited in its chest, absorbing the aura left by the deceased cultivators.
It was growing.
Seeing this, the solitary city began to move, an array unfolded, and the splendid starry sky replaced the reddish-brown sky, sealing the world.
The solitary city also pressed down toward the statue.
As the solitary city fell, the already ruined buildings within the city rapidly restored.
However, just as the city returned with renewed splendour, everything shattered like a mirage.
The solitary city sacrificed itself to suppress that stone statue deep underground...
After the war between East and West, the experts of the Human Race and Western Barbarians were almost fully exhausted, when this Tao Embryo suddenly appeared. It’s this half Star Disc’s doing—it melted its own shell and sealed it beneath the Central Continent.
Yet, the sealing by the half Star Disc was somewhat hasty, and over tens of thousands of years, it instead became eroded by the Innate Tao Embryo.
Fortunately, whether it’s the Great Mother Goddess herself or this leftover Innate Tao Embryo, neither possessed wisdom or spirit.
All the sealed Tao Embryo could do was drag the half Star Disc underground.
Occasionally, when it got close to the surface, or when the stars aligned, people would see that Ghost City.
It’s the illusion left behind by the Jade Book Tower, which transformed itself into a seal.
"I have a peculiar constitution, many righteous techniques are beyond my learning, otherwise I wouldn’t have veered onto the wrong path, practicing that Hundred Demons Technique."
Helm Leader Li raised his hand and summoned a wisp of black smoke, which, paired with his innocent expression, looked rather peculiar.
Due to Helm Leader Li’s unique constitution, he was then influenced by the Innate Tao Embryo, attracted to it.
And from the Innate Tao Embryo, he acquired some astonishing knowledge.
Knowledge for helping the revival of the Tao Embryo.
As for the details, those parts of the memory are inside the other half of the Wooden Fish Taoist’s mind.
"Hold on, didn’t you say the Innate Tao Embryo had no knowledge? How could it impart knowledge to you?" Zhang Ze asked.
"I’m sorry, poor Taoist doesn’t know, but that’s the reality, I..."
"It was me." The half Star Disc suddenly sighed.
"The first to be eroded wasn’t him, it was me. I wanted to leave—by your Tiger Talisman theory, it’s the bright side of me wanting to leave..."
"Sealing the Tao Embryo was also sealing me. Perhaps this self-imposed imprisonment was too harsh—I still long for those bustling days..."
The half Star Disc reminisced about the Dongqi era, when it, as a city, carried the everyday moments of people’s lives.
[That must be it—this guy clearly can’t stand loneliness, he couldn’t endure even a measly few tens of thousands of years, fine—it’s suffering, so let’s not bash it, alas...]
The King of Prisoners, Profound Identification Treasure Mirror, commented as such.
The half Star Disc was unaware of Profound Identification’s plotting, and continued narrating the erosion process.
"The other me wanted to leave, but only thoroughly merging with the Mother Goddess Tao Embryo was possible. For this purpose, the other me split the Yin Yang aspects of Taoist Li Yu and infused them into the clay embryo, merging with them respectively.
"The Yin side of me was stuffed into the Yang side of the Wooden Fish Taoist’s body."
[What are you doing? Just watching? Attack it!] Profound Identification began complaining again.
Zhang Ze blinked at Profound Identification, using a spell to whisper to it.
"Because they’re too weak, this half can’t even beat the two of us, being crushed by the other half is normal."
[Indeed.]
The half Star Disc neither saw nor heard, and continued its earlier topic.
"Due to temporarily borrowing Taoist Li Yu’s harmonizing of itself, both halves fell into slumber, everything depending on the Yin side influenced by the Mother Goddess in the Wooden Fish Taoist.
"But that’s enough.
"Once the ritual is completed, and the other me thoroughly combines with Taoist Li Yu’s Yin side, this me shall disappear. The new entity can then refine this Innate Tao Embryo here, seeking to return to the world."
The half Star Disc finished speaking, its mood somewhat subdued.
But Helm Leader Li remained optimistic.
"Perhaps this dark entity was destined to meet its end here—encountering a fellow Daoist, and with your magical artifact so wondrous, harmonizing Yin and Yang within, the Artifact Spirit brother now has a chance to leave this clay embryo of mine."
[I am impressive, it was I who helped stabilize this half-disc’s existence.]
Profound Identification as it was praised, felt rather pleased.
"What about these clay embryos? Did you truly gather over five hundred Nascent Souls?" Zhang Ze inquired.
"There weren’t that many Nascent Souls; Li Yu isn’t an Immortal." The half Star Disc still seemed somewhat unhappy.
"These clay embryos, they were refined from fragments of my Jade Book Tower, it’s easy to mold them into hundreds of Nascent Soul bodies."
"The ritual involves continuously absorbing and consuming the Yin Yang Two Qi from these clay embryos, repairing and nourishing the other me. Making it complete again."
Zhang Ze smacked his lips, feeling like he might have messed things up.
Indeed, if this were the case, then his assembly line and the Mother Goddess blood sacrifice melee seemed even more advantageous to the enemy?
This part, the half Star Disc was unaware.
However, after Zhang Ze admitted his mistake, the half Star Disc relaxed.
"You have good luck—even mistakes can turn into success."
"How so?" Zhang Ze inquired.
"The essence of that ritual is still a ritual for refining a magical artifact; every step requires extreme caution and precision. You managed to deceive the Wooden Fish Taoist, speeding up the ritual, which was actually detrimental to the other me."
"I noticed your technique while attacking me seemed like Sword Sect’s. You should understand this principle—just like forging swords, if the procedure is incorrect or stuff is added haphazardly, the sword would shatter."
Zhang Ze pinched his chin; in this case, it shouldn’t be a problem.
He did add quite a few things.
"Moreover, not sure what you did—but this supposedly mindless Tao Embryo started to change, those statues came to life."
In stirring trouble, the half Star Disc genuinely admired Zhang Ze, worshipping him with full zeal.
Zhang Ze blinked his eyes, concocting new ideas.
If this transformation in the Tao Embryo was outside the other half’s plans, then it might be a good thing.
Three-sided chaos is better than two-sided confrontation, but if a move is to be made, one should consult the half Star Disc’s advice.
"What’s your plan?" Zhang Ze looked at the half Star Disc.
After all, the one who tied the knot should untie it.
"Go to the intestines of the Tao Embryo! Retrieve some things first."
The half Star Disc formed a vague human shape in front of them, displaying a rough map of the Tao Embryo’s interior.
The duodenum position was marked, currently emitting a faint golden glow.