There are many regrets in life. When Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) thought this was the end, in fact, things were far from over. After Nezha turned into golden light and disappeared.
Many people built temples for him so that he could receive incense offerings. Among them, Taiyi Zhenren secretly orchestrated the construction. Of course, the temples were built by the families of the children he had saved before. They told the people of Chentang Pass Nezha, and the people of Chentang Pass were deeply moved and contributed their own efforts.
And so, the temple was quickly completed, Nezha's ( Huo Yuhao's ) soul resided within it. "So things weren't over yet; I'm going to live again?"
He suddenly realized. "The temple built by the mother of the Third Prince in the Investiture of the Gods List has now become a spontaneous project by the people. The changes are truly significant. Speaking of which, he has very few memories of this mother over the years, almost none at all."
(This is based on the Nezha, but his mother, Lady Yin, is not mentioned here. Therefore, I do not plan to write about the character of Lady Yin. It is not a long-term solution to keep her in this trial. I want to end it quickly because there may not be many people who have read about Nezha's trials.)
Nezha's deeds are celebrated in Chentang Pass, but one person thinks differently: Li Jing.
Li Jing realized that Nezha was a monster, and the people must have been bewitched by him. Therefore, he led his servants to Nezha's temple.
The late spring sunlight slanted across the vermilion plaque of the " Nezha Temple," making the glazed tiles shimmer. As Li Jing stepped into the temple, the people burning incense put down their prayer cushions, bowing respectfully in greeting. He nodded slightly, the rustling of his robes mingling with the sandalwood incense wafting from the burner. "Please return first, everyone. I wish to spend some time alone with my son."
Before the words were finished, everyone consciously retreated outside the temple. The moment the door closed, it shut out the noise from the outside world, with only the copper bells on the eaves emitting a soft, mournful sound in the breeze.
Li Jing, carrying his hands on his back, slowly stepped forward, staring at the statue. Suddenly, he let out a cold laugh, his voice like that of a night owl. " Nezha, Nezha, you are nothing but a bastard born from a ball of flesh. What right do you have to be revered and loved by thousands?"
He abruptly drew his sword from his waist, pointing the blade at the statue. "I know, the Immortal Master Taiyi wants to resurrect you using the incense offerings of the common people, but you beast are a scourge, how can I allow you to be resurrected!"
"Today, I will rid the people of this scourge, smash your dilapidated temple, and ensure you have no chance of ever rising again."
Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) finally understood why the Third Prince was so determined to eliminate Li Jing. He realized where that overwhelming hatred came from. Some people's wickedness was even more despicable than that of demons. Indeed, he should have killed Li Jing sooner.
Huo Yuhao, whose spirit resided within the statue, felt a tremor, his phantom flickering between the beams and pillars. He stared at Li Jing's distorted and ferocious face, and a voice boomed from the statue's throat. "After my death, I should have no further connection with your Li family. Now, someone is offering incense to me, and you smash my temple, cutting off my path to life. What is the meaning of this?"
"What do you mean?" Li Jing suddenly burst into laughter, the sound so loud it made the candles on the offering table flicker violently. " Nezha, you deserve to die! You shouldn't have come into this world! I won't give you any chance to be resurrected, nor will I watch some ignorant people do foolish things. Do you even deserve a temple for you?" His sword slammed heavily into the statue's shoulder, sending shards of stone flying. "Today, I will act on behalf of Heaven!"
With each frantic roar, the sword fell like raindrops. "Beast! Beast! Monster! Monster! Damn it!" Li Jing's robes were soaked with sweat, his eyes filled with obsessive madness, each swing carrying the resentment accumulated over the years.
The statue's glass eyes shattered in the flash of the sword.
Amidst the violent tremors, Huo Yuhao's spirit gradually became transparent, his last wisp of consciousness coalescing into a chilling voice. " Li Jing! I will remember this grudge! From this moment on, we are sworn enemies!"
Before he finished speaking, the spirit transformed into a golden light and soared into the sky, leaving behind only a mess of broken stones and Li Jing's heavy breathing echoing in the empty temple.
At dawn the next day, the streets and alleys of Chentang Pass were torn apart by deafening screams. The people flocked to the high ground on the outskirts of the city, only to find that the Nezha Temple, which had been solemn and majestic the day before, was now nothing but a mess of white marble fragments.
Broken glazed tiles were soaking in rainwater mixed with incense ash; the carving of the Wind Fire Wheels was broken in two; and the glazed eyes of the deity statue gleamed coldly in the mud.
"General Li has gone mad!" The old stonemason trembled as he picked up half of a broken stele Red Armillary Sash" symbol. "The little hero saved our lives, but he..." Before he could finish speaking, cries of grief and indignation rose and fell.
The woman selling steamed buns slammed her bamboo basket to the ground. "That's our savior! Li Jing is just jealous of Nezha's popularity!" A thunderous roar of curses erupted from the crowd, the sound almost lifting the banners atop the city wall.
The news spread like wildfire. In the teahouse, the storyteller slammed his gavel. "Ladies and gentlemen! That Li Jing, ostensibly a general protecting the people, is actually a venomous snake! Under the cover of night..." the listener deliberately lowered his voice, "He used a thirty-pound black iron axe to shatter the statue of the young hero!"
On the shores of the East Sea, a salty sea breeze swirled fallen leaves past the vermilion gates of the General's Mansion. Inside, Li Jing stood with his hands behind his back in the training ground, a cold smile playing on his lips as he listened to the faint shouts and curses coming from outside the wall. A servant, holding a newly delivered document, trembled as he said, "My lord, someone in the west of the city has written a blood oath on the wall... saying that you are..."
"Let them be." Li Jing abruptly swept his sleeve, knocking the military treatise on the table to the ground. "If this demon dares to rise again, I will personally kill him once more!"
Deep within the Dragon Palace of the East Sea, a luminous pearl illuminated the coral dome as if it were daytime. A long jade table was laden with nectar brewed by mermaids, and various seafood delicacies were piled high like small mountains. The laughter of the Four Sea Dragon echoed through the hall, causing the pearl curtains to jingle. Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the East Sea, wearing a nine-tasseled golden crown, his gilded scales gleaming blood-red under the lamplight, slammed his fist on the table, splashing the nectar in his cups. "If not for the help of my three virtuous brothers, how could I have personally killed that wicked creature who harmed my son!"
The Sea Dragon, Ao Run, swirled the jade cup in his hand, a cold glint flashing in his azure dragon eyes. "That little beast overestimated himself, daring to pull out Ao Bing's dragon tendons! Today, it will be blood for blood!"
Ao Guang laughed loudly, "Once Chentang Pass presents us with young boys and girls, we'll drink three hundred cups of wine!"
He tilted his head back and gulped down the entire jug of strong liquor, the amber liquid dripping down his dragon whiskers and leaving dark stains on the jade floor tiles. His scarlet vertical pupils swept over the dancing sea monsters in the hall, and seeing this scene, he finally burst into a hearty laugh, saying, "Good, good!"
Inside the Jade Pearl Hall, deep within the Dragon Palace, the stark contrast between desolation and clamor is striking. The Dragon Girl curls up on a coral couch, clutching a conch shell in her hand—the Nezha left behind when he committed suicide.
The merman's gauze curtains were lifted by the draft, revealing her reddened eyes. The laughter of a victory celebration drifted in from outside the window, but it felt like silver needles piercing her heart.
"Why... why does it have to be this way, Nezha..." She pressed the conch shell to her heart, her voice choked with sobs.
Clouds and mist surged atop Qianyuan Mountain, while in the White Lotus Pond before the Golden Light Cave, golden lotuses absorbed the essence of the Sun Moon.
Taiyi Zhenren stood by the pond, whisk in hand, gazing at the soul enveloped in seven-colored lotus petals. His long brows furrowed slightly. "Look how cruel Li Jing is, treating Nezha like this. Nezha, Nezha, my disciple, I will use the golden lotus to revive you."
Before he finished speaking, the gourd in his sleeve suddenly flew up on its own, tilted its mouth, and poured down like a silver river.
Nezha ( Huo Yuhao )'s consciousness slowly awakened in the warm, ethereal dew, and in his hazy state, he felt his body being gently lifted up by a soft force.
As the lotus blossoms unfolded layer by layer, he was surprised to find himself suspended in the void—lotus roots emerged from the pond, intertwining in the celestial dew to form a crystalline body, each lotus leaf shimmering with starlight.
Seven-colored light surged across his body like a tide. In a daze, he seemed to see himself transformed into a god who created the world, with every move he made possessing the power to destroy the heavens and the earth.
(The lotus flower, nourishing the soul, blooms once more, its light constantly shifting. The floating lotus root serves as its body, emanating an aura of divine incomparability. The seven-colored light continuously transforms, and its ever-changing posture further amplifies its divine nature.)
The resurrected Nezha detached himself from his mortal body and existed like an indifferent god.
Thus, Nezha was resurrected.
"Disciple, are you adapting well?" Taiyi Zhenren's voice carried a hint of amusement. Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) lowered his head, kneeling on one knee, his voice no longer carrying the childishness of the past. "Thank you, Master, for your life-saving grace."
Taiyi Zhenren said, "Get up, get up, Nezha!"
Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) said, "Master, the Dragon King has committed many evil deeds. I will eliminate him completely now and take revenge."
Taiyi Zhenren grunted, and with a light flick of his whisk, the magical treasures in the cave swarmed towards him as if summoned. The Red Armillary Sash transformed into a crimson rainbow that coiled around his back, the Universe Ring automatically slipped around his neck, the tassel of the Fire-Tipped Spear trembled as if it wanted to drink blood, and the Wind Fire Wheels emitted an excited buzzing sound.
Once Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) got his hands on the Fire-Tipped Spear, he could wield it with incredible skill and ease, as if it were a weapon tailor-made for him.
"Old Dragon King, wait for me!" Nezha ( Huo Yuhao ) was engulfed in raging flames, turning the clouds crimson. "Today you'll know how powerful I am!" With that, he rode his Wind Fire Wheels straight into the sky, thunderclaps echoing wherever he went.
As he passed the Dragon King Temple in Chentang Pass, he raised his hand and fired a shot, causing the entire temple to collapse with a deafening roar. Amidst the flying debris, the Red Armillary Sash) had already stirred up a monstrous wave, surging towards the Dragon Palace of the East Sea.
The Wind Fire Wheels drew two crimson trails across the sky, like Lie Yan tearing the heavens apart. Huo Yuhao was surrounded by an aura of Destruction; wherever he passed, clouds shattered and thunder roared. As he approached the East Sea, he formed a hand seal, and the seawater parted automatically, forming a passageway beneath his feet leading directly to the Dragon Palace. The salty sea breeze, carrying waves, lashed against him, but was instantly evaporated by the protective divine light.
The plaque of the Crystal Palace gleamed coldly under the illumination of the luminous pearl. A cold glint flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes, and the Fire-Tipped Spear flew from his hand, transforming into a golden streak of light. "Boom!" The plaque shattered in response, and countless crystal fragments fell into the deep sea like meteors, startling the entire Dragon Palace into trembling.