Eternal Saint Monk

After midnight, my first time recommending, feeling nervous.

Su Qingqiu had always believed the Snake Abyss was the eighteenth layer.

After all, that's what the memories of the Evil Remains indicated.

However, after comparing them with the memories of the Ox Demon, he suddenly realized that at least 360 years ago, the Snake Abyss didn't have an upper layer. This Second Layer Serpent Pit Abyss was the first layer back then.

Su Qingqiu frowned.

Was the current first layer of the Snake Abyss established after the Dragon-Raising Temple? Or was it possible that the Snake Abyss itself was growing and transforming?

Had it grown an entire new layer in 360 years?

If it was the latter...

Su Qingqiu shivered involuntarily.

If it was the latter, then the trouble would be immense. The Snake Abyss as a whole might be a living creature, and they, the Spiritual Snakes, were merely parasites on this creature.

No, he had to figure out what was going on. It would be best to find other Spiritual Snakes and ask them.

The remains of the Ox Demon were incredibly difficult to digest.

It took a full three days for the Exorcism and Blessing to be completed.

[Gained 780 years of Daoism Cultivation]

[Acquired Shape-Shifting Illusion]

[Acquired Spirit Void Order]

The Daoism Cultivation was directly converted into Spiritual Light, and Su Qingqiu was getting closer and closer to ten thousand years of Spiritual Light.

As for the Shape-Shifting Illusion...

This was a very peculiar type of Spiritual Power. Like the Rain Accumulation Technique, it was a lower-tier spell from the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits Transformations.

When not in combat, it could temporarily transform into a certain object, capable of confusing the senses and making it difficult to distinguish between reality and illusion.

In essence, it was a form of illusion magic.

"A decent spell. Although it's not a method for transforming into a human body, with this spell, it will be much more convenient to travel in the human world in the future."

Su Qingqiu nodded with satisfaction.

The origin of this spell was likely based on the Ox Demon's Five Ding Livestock Creation technique, but one was for external use, and the other was for internal use.

Currently, he could only transform into one item. Su Qingqiu tried it and surprisingly transformed into a man with a feminine appearance, a red mark on his forehead, and snake scales covering his cheeks.

Most bizarrely, he had no feet, but a giant snake tail instead.

This made Su Qingqiu's forehead break out in black lines.

He had just acquired the spell and was not yet proficient, so using it abruptly resulted in this. With diligent practice in the future, it would surely improve.

"Indeed, my body hasn't changed at all. It's just that others perceive a virtual image."

"A deception of the senses."

Su Qingqiu frowned. He could even feel his massive body still pressing against the surrounding rock walls, causing deep imprints to appear on them.

Even when moving, he could hear the sound of crushing gravel.

These were all due to his lack of proficiency in practicing the spell. If the Shape-Shifting Illusion were to reach a profound level in the future, these flaws that exposed his illusionary abilities would naturally disappear without a trace.

"Oh, and there's the Spirit Void Order... What is this thing?"

Su Qingqiu muttered to himself.

Before him appeared a white snake scale, about the size of his palm, inscribed with the characters "Ling Xu" (Spirit Void).

He seemed to have seen this item before. It was almost identical to the snake scale token obtained from Hundred-Eyed Devil's twenty-fifth split soul, except the latter did not have "Ling Xu" inscribed on it.

Could it be that Ling Xu was related to the Dragon-Raising Temple?

Just as Su Qingqiu was about to examine it closely, his expression suddenly changed. His entire body's Spiritual Light surged, forming a massive shield.

The next second...

He felt the air around the cave being enveloped by a powerful pure Yang magical power.

Inside the cave, Buddhist light shone everywhere.

"Amitabha, to think I've encountered a Spirit Lord in person. Well done, well done. Please forgive this humble monk for his uninvited intrusion."

A monk with long eyebrows, radiating white light, actually passed through the pile of stones Su Qingqiu had stacked at the cave entrance and walked in.

Standing before the shield of Spiritual Light formed by Su Qingqiu, the long-browed monk gave a wry smile and said, "Spirit Lord, could you please retract your Spiritual Light? This humble monk's soul body cannot withstand the erosion of your Spiritual Light. I have only come to see who it is that has resolved my lingering obsession before ascending to the Western Paradise."

Su Qingqiu's Eyes of the Spiritual Snake fixed on the long-browed monk.

The person before him was actually a wandering soul, meaning it was merely a lingering obsession that had died an unknown time ago.

Did he come because of the Ox Demon?

The soul fragment before him, with a face strikingly similar to a monk in the Ox Demon King's memory, stirred Su Qingqiu. He withdrew his Spiritual Light shield and asked, "Are you the long-browed monk Puzhi?"

Hearing this, Puzhi showed a hint of surprise. He then clasped his hands together and said, "Amitabha. I'm surprised that after so long, a Spirit Lord still remembers this humble monk. It is truly an honor. I am merely a fragment of Puzhi's obsession, not truly Puzhi himself. I ask for your understanding, Spirit Lord."

It was indeed Puzhi!

The eminent monk from Dragon-Raising Temple who ended the Ox Demon King's rampage was the long-browed monk Puzhi, known as the Eternal Saint Monk.

To think he would encounter his soul fragment here.

"What do you want from me?" Su Qingqiu asked. He had initially intended to ask why Puzhi's soul fragment was here, but he reconsidered. Asking directly might make him seem too ignorant. It was better to be cautious.

Simultaneously, Spiritual Light gathered within him, ready to strike and annihilate Puzhi if he made any sudden moves.

"Spirit Lord, would you allow this humble monk to tell you a story first?" Puzhi did not answer directly but made a request.

Su Qingqiu frowned. After a moment of silence, with no danger alerts, he nodded, signaling Puzhi to begin his tale.

After all, with Shape-Shifting Illusion active, Puzhi couldn't see his true form. Su Qingqiu didn't mind hearing the story from this great monk. He was, after all, an ancient figure from three hundred and sixty years ago.

"Thank you, Spirit Lord!"

Puzhi began to narrate.

Three hundred and sixty years ago, two suns hung in the sky, and a drought descended.

The people of Zhaoyang Country suffered immensely.

In a remote village deep within the Great Wasteland, cannibalism occurred.

A naive young boy, to escape being sold as food by his own parents, fled towards Dragon-Raising Temple with the yellow ox he had raised since childhood.

He hoped to join Dragon-Raising Temple, learn the methods to combat the drought, and bring peace back to the world.

"The boy gnawed on roots and ate clay to stave off hunger, relying on the yellow ox for company. Even in the direst moments, when he couldn't find food for over ten days, the boy never laid a hand on the yellow ox."

"In his heart, it was his only family."

"Finally, after wandering for three years and six months, just as he was about to reach Dragon-Raising Temple, the boy was rejected at the gates. He was accused of being tainted by Demon Demon energy from his prolonged association with the ox."

At this point, Puzhi paused, sighed with a hint of sadness, and continued:

"The boy died of hunger and cold before the temple gates, and the yellow ox vanished thereafter. For the next seven years, the Great Wasteland was plagued by rumors of a Demon skilled in the art of 'Five Divinities Creating Beasts,' transforming countless refugees into cattle and sheep. The temple dispatched Monks to secretly investigate the truth and eliminate the rampaging Demon."

"Eventually, the unassuming long-browed monk within the temple discovered the Ox Demon's whereabouts. After a fierce battle, he eliminated the Ox Demon. From then on, the long-browed monk became known as the Eternal Saint Monk, was rewarded by the imperial court, and became a key figure in Dragon-Raising Temple."

"Spirit Lord, this is the story I wished to tell. Did you glean anything from it?"

Facing Puzhi's question, Su Qingqiu frowned. He replayed the story in his mind and a realization struck him: "That Ox Demon was the yellow ox that accompanied the boy and shared his hardships?"

"Wait, how do you know all these details... You're not just the long-browed monk, you were also that child from back then!"

Only then did the long-browed monk's story make sense.