The Ghost Mother Came from the West, the Copper Furnace Fell from the Sky

As Qiu Yan's gaze followed, his perception also extended, merging with the text "Exhortation to Learning," and entering the consciousness world of the Ghost Mother.

"Hmm? This Ghost Mother has quite a complicated life story. She came from a foreign land and is from the Zhutuolan people. Hmm? This god is quite ferocious!"

Zhutuolan, located in the west of Great Rui, has a long history, but getting there is not easy. The direct passage is blocked by the Myriad-Blade Mountain, and the road involves passing through the tribes of the Barbarians. The road is rugged, crossing snow-capped mountains and deep valleys, making it a place where one is almost guaranteed to die.

Besides this, there is another route, which is to go west to the Western Regions, turn south from Bolü Pass, and make a loop. However, this route is not only long, but also passes through many countries and crosses a vast desert, making it equally arduous.

Therefore, since ancient times, the Central Plains and Zhutuolan have had very little interaction, there are few records in books, and even fewer people mention it. Qiu Yan's predecessor had never heard of it. Qiu Yan was able to learn about it only by absorbing historical classics and enriching his Earthly Soul in Ma Yang's study.

"The geography of this world is extremely similar to that of my previous life. The location of this Zhutuolan is exactly the same as the land of India in my previous life. However, in this world, Zhutuolan has had almost no contact with the Central Plains dynasties and has developed independently. Now it seems that it has also evolved many gods, including the Buddha."

This information was not even mentioned in Ma Yang's historical records, but Qiu Yan entered the consciousness world of Ghost Mother through the writings of Sage. Ghost Mother's consciousness world was stimulated by "Exhortation to Learning" and slowly evolved, revealing her past and present lives, including the customs and deeds of the Kingdom of Zhutuolan, as well as... many gods!

Speaking of which, the fate of Ghost Mother was quite tortuous. She was originally just a shepherdess. At the time, during the grand Buddhist ceremony in Royal Assembly City, a person who was going there met her and lured her to go with him by describing the magnificent scene of the ceremony.

At that time, the shepherdess was pregnant. Her emotions were stirred by the words of the group, and she began to dance without realizing it, which caused her to miscarry. The group then quietly left without a trace.

A lonely and heartbroken shepherdess, seeing others enjoying time with children, was consumed by jealousy and made a wicked wish—

"May I be reborn in the Royal Assembly City in my next life, and devour all the children in the world!"

Filled with malice, she gradually developed Dao Heart, which allowed her Living Soul to undergo a transformation, only to be shattered by a Buddhist Sect monk. After a long period of silence, she captured a glimmer of Spiritual Light in the world. She was reborn as a Yaksha woman, who fed on children. Later, to alleviate her loneliness and sorrow, she used her True Spirit as a guide to give birth to five hundred demon children.

Not long after, the Buddha began preaching, and she happened to pass by. She listened in from the sidelines and thus attained Divine Office, converted to Buddhism, and took in several followers. However, her good fortune was short-lived. Those followers, along with Barbarians foreigners, planned to invade Jiannan. Through their connection through incense offerings, they brought the Yaksha woman with them. Subsequently, the followers died, and she had nowhere to go but to seek out more followers in the Southern Border.

After that, some people intermittently worshipped him. Due to the connection of their thoughts, her appearance changed, transforming her from a foreign deity into a Central Plains figure. She was given the title of Ghost Mother.

However, the good times didn't last long. The Ghost Mother couldn't change her ways and continued to devour children, angering the believers who destroyed temples and statues, leaving her rootless and bound by public resentment, unable to leave Jiannan. To make matters worse, she was exposed to the Underworld Office of Jiannan Circuit, leading to the current situation.

"This Ghost Mother Divine Body is translucent, with an aura of purity. Moreover, from her memories, it can be learned that this goddess did indeed ascend to Divine Grade little by little on her own. However, after becoming a goddess, she had few believers and had to devour children to transform their thoughts into divine power to sustain herself. But in order to conceal her tracks, she mostly devoured the infants of demons and wild beasts, staying away from human children, in order to deceive the Jiannan Divine Path."

Demons rarely become believers, while wild beasts mostly fear the power of gods and have little connection with them. Their offspring are generally not cared for by the Divine Path, unless they are like Huang Jue, who is an anomaly, but even then, the gods only care about their own kind.

Qiu Yan recalled that when he first arrived at this place, he sensed the demons and wild beasts in the Lin Zhong, and most of them made him feel panicked. He immediately understood.

"However, this method of devouring other people's children is not a sustainable solution. Since I've encountered this situation, I might have to take action. Besides, I'm also somewhat curious about what's going on with Zhutuolan."

Qiu Yan certainly remembered the rise of Buddhism among the Marshfolk, which would become his main competitor in the Five Marshes in the future.

"From Ghost Mother's memories, it's clear that the spread of Buddhism in Zhutuolan was not smooth..."

The thought arose, and the essay "Exhortation to Learning" resonated, stirring up the last vestiges of ethics and moral order in the world.

This essay, "Exhortation to Learning," teaches people how to study, also admonishes others to cultivate their character, and even includes the idea of the student surpassing the teacher. Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan immediately sensed a vast and profound spirit within it, as if a terrifying power was gathering around him.

"This power originates from the Order of heaven and earth. In terms of sheer power, even a single Sage might not be able to withstand it. Although Sage are the initiators of this Order, over thousands of years, this Order has condensed the People's Wishes, vast and profound. The reason it can be mobilized by 'Exhortation to Learning' is because this text is the source and origin of this Order, and my purpose does not violate the spirit of this Order."

Suddenly, the world of the Ghost Mother's consciousness changed. She suddenly reverted to human form, living with her child and leading a peaceful life, becoming so immersed in it that she could no longer break free.

"Truly possesses wondrous power..."

Sensing the changes in his conscious world, Qiu Yan couldn't help but sigh, then remembered something.

"The humans in that Land of the Divine Remains are still in the tribal stage. Order, social norms, and ethics are all blank. If I leave behind some rules for the tribespeople to follow and integrate into the culture, thousands of years later, even a simple rule should be able to fill the world of that Land of the Divine Remains and become a form of Order! However, it will take far too long."

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but recall some questions he had when he came across historical materials, and he thought about the origins and whereabouts of Sage. However, these things were still too distant for him, and thinking about them too much would be of no use.

Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Qiu Yan glanced around. Besides the Ghost Mother that were right next to him, there were also 108 terracotta figurines.

After a moment's hesitation, he looked at his hand.

In Qiu Yan's hand, he held a ball of flame, within which a figure was struggling.

"This 'Child-Giving God' is Lü Liang's right-hand man. If I capture him, and the news is exposed, or if I shatter his projection talisman, it will immediately alert the other side. The Yin-Yang Pagoda will quickly isolate itself from the outside world and seal its Domain of Law. That tower has many secrets, not only the projection of the Domain of Law on the third floor, but also the seven gates on the fourth floor which hide Daoism mysteries. Previously, I used the words from the <Yellow Court Scripture> to guide it, and it seemed to have great potential..."

Most of the methods using classical texts as Method Formula were created by Qiu Yan himself, derived from the method of Soul Refinement through calligraphy. Unlike the Sage Manuscript, the words of classical texts can slightly affect the Force of Order, but not to a great extent. They are similar to Dao Arts, using one's own thoughts and emotions as a guide, expressing them in the form of text, and combining them with external Spiritual Qi to fight the enemy.

At first, this method could only affect the enemy's consciousness. It was only after the Heavenly Soul took shape that it began to show signs of interfering with the outside world. However, to truly achieve Great Cheng, Qiu Yan still needed to condense his Divine Soul and stabilize his Daoheart Fist Intent.

Moreover, this method is not without limitations; it requires mental exertion. However, Qiu Yan has the Incense Faith support from his ancestral master to replenish his mental energy, so he does not worry about running out of energy.

"My scholar clone is without a sect or school, and can only follow the path of the Imperial Examinations. It is difficult for the Daoist Sect to join the Daoist sect. Although he has some methods of the Upper Spirit Sect, he lacks the basic methods. If he can comprehend the seven methods, he may gain other benefits."

Not long ago, when facing the seven gates of smoke on the fourth floor of the Yin-Yang Pagoda, Qiu Yan used his thoughts and emotions to transform them into verses of the same origin, thus resonating with the seven gates of smoke and guiding the seven kinds of energy. This can be described as prescribing the right medicine for the problem. Otherwise, it would not have been possible to dissipate the smoke so easily. If it were someone else, even if they had the method of transforming scriptures into Method Formula, it would be useless if they could not think of the corresponding words in a short time.

Ultimately, this is still the path of Nature Cultivation, not an independent branch.

Having made his decision, Qiu Yan didn't delay any longer. With a thought, he transformed his divine power, causing the ground beneath his feet to ripple. His Domain of Law emerged from his Divine Body, rapidly expanding and radiating outwards, instantly enveloping the Ghost Mother and the 108 terracotta figurines.

Within a radius of a hundred feet, a faint light shone through the soil, and a sinister chill emanated from it. Then, the deity itself, the Ghost Mother, and the 108 terracotta figures slowly sank and merged into the soil, quickly disappearing without a trace.

As Qiu Yan and the others left, the forest returned to calm. However, the demons, birds and beasts, and a few scattered hunters in the forest still looked terrified, recalling the scene of red clouds covering the sky and Earthfire, their hearts filled with unease.

After a while, the ground trembled slightly, and a short, white figure emerged from it, hunched over, looking terrified. It cautiously surveyed its surroundings before finally letting out a long sigh of relief.

"They're finally gone..."

He is the land here.

"The commotion was too great, but it's finally over. I wonder if the gods have captured that wild god? If he escaped, it would be disastrous. I'm afraid I'll be retaliated against for tipping him off."

As he was thinking, his expression suddenly changed, and he bent down and burrowed into the ground, transforming back into light and merging into the earth.

No sooner had the local earth god left than a piercing whooshing sound came from the sky above, and a burly man with a bushy beard dressed in a Daoist robe flew rapidly towards them, carrying a Copper Furnace in his hand!

Boom!

With a deafening roar, dust billowed as the burly man stomped on the ground. The powerful impact caused the surrounding soil, which was three zhang (approximately 10 meters) high, to collapse, forming a hemispherical crater.

Then, the burly man who had fallen into the pit, holding the Copper Furnace, leaped out, released his senses, and immediately frowned.

"It seems we're a step too late."

This man has a leopard-like head and piercing eyes; who else could he be but the Flying Leopard Daoist of the Spirit-Sealing Dao?

No sooner had he finished speaking than the Copper Furnace suddenly began to rumble, producing a deep, muffled sound.

"No matter what, you must help this furnace find that deity and reclaim the furnace fire!"

ps:

Thank you to "Most Anonymous" and "Clown Elf" for the generous donations!