Chapter 1033: The Birth of the Demon

Through his observations of the Myriad Heavens, Li Qi seemed to have grasped a clue about the 'Heaven' that existed outside.

First, he had to figure out the relationship and differences between the Buddhist terms like Śrīdevī, Mahakala, and Dakini Heaven, and names like 'Cang Tian' and 'Haotian'.

It was better to ask a Great Power directly about these secrets than to dig them up himself.

Therefore, without further delay, Li Qi put away the Desire Realm and the Myriad Heavens and headed directly to the Shaman God.

He was going to visit Cang Tian.

As a Second Grade, Li Qi obviously had the qualifications to directly visit a Shaman God. Of course, whether the Shaman God would see him was another matter, but generally speaking, Shaman Gods would not refuse.

It was like if a Third Grade came to Li Qi, Li Qi would generally not refuse.

Cang Tian, one of the four Shaman Gods of Shaman Dao, corresponded to Da Tu.

These two Shaman Gods, in a sense, mutually verified each other, and they were also among the ultimate answers in many simple natural beliefs.

According to the Daoist saying, in the realm of Da Luo, there is no true master. Only the Qi of the Great Brahma encompasses all Heavens, and the zenith of these Heavens are Haotian and Cang Tian.

When the Origin Qi is vast, it is called Haotian.

When seen from afar as boundless, it is called Cang Tian.

Cang Tian is the 'Heaven' furthest from living beings, because he is unwilling to interfere in many matters. The Qi of Cang Tian is pure and tranquil, and his own temperament also prefers peace.

As the saying goes, 'Long-lasting Cang Tian,' there's a saying, 'Cang Tian is nine-layered, and its loftiness can be insulted,' meaning that because Cang Tian is so grand and bright, it's fine to curse him; he won't pay attention to you.

This was also the only First Grade whose name ended with 'Heaven' that Li Qi could directly visit.

With virtually no delay, Li Qi instantly arrived above the Heavens and saw the azure color.

The Qi of Cang Tian was incomparably pure and tranquil. Here, calm Qi slowly drifted.

Li Qi gradually flew upwards.

Then, he saw a Great Peng.

That Great Peng bird was so vast and enormous, surpassing all Peng birds Li Qi had ever seen. With a single flap of its wings, it traversed the vast expanse, its back against the Cang Tian, its feet treading on floating clouds. It possessed the qualities of a six-winged creature, and with a single swift dash, it emanated billions of lights, leaving dust behind and tearing through the minute, possessing the speed to soar to the heavens. Li Qi observed, sensing his own inability to match it.

“Who are you?” The Great Peng looked at Li Qi, flapping its wings under the Cang Tian, stirring up countless winds and clouds. All spirits gathered, strong winds vibrated, and strange species like Chilong, swans, Dragons, and snakes emerged from thin air.

Seeing the other party's appearance, Li Qi immediately realized who it was.

One of the Great Sage of the Demon Race, the Buddha's maternal uncle, once one of the Buddhist Dharma Protectors, a naturally born rare species, the ancestor of all Peng birds.

However, with the decline of Buddhism today, even the Western Heaven has become the Western Regions Protectorate of the Human Dao. The Peng bird naturally gained its freedom, and it seems that the first thing he did after gaining freedom was to spread his wings under the Cang Tian.

He must have been stifled before.

Oh… Everyone says the Peng bird likes to spread its wings in the Cang Tian. So it wasn't a metaphor, but he really likes to fly under the Cang Tian?

“I am Li Qi, here to visit Cang Tian. What, Your Excellency, do you have something for me?” Li Qi said to the Great Peng bird.

“Nothing, it’s just that no one usually comes here, so I’m a bit curious. Li Qi… Li Qi… I think I’ve heard that name before.” The Great Peng pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized, “Oh, you’re that monkey’s newly sworn brother, right? He does like to make friends. Six Great Sages, two Heavenly Gods, the ancestor of Earth Immortals, Erlang of Guankou, and over a hundred Daoists are all his sworn brothers or Senior Brothers. Now, you’ve been added to the list.”

Hearing this, Li Qi felt ashamed.

What the Great Peng said was entirely true. Golden Monkey indeed had good connections. It was said that he had a good relationship with Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva, and he even shoved the Dao Ancestor, insulted the Buddha, and beat the Heavenly Emperor with his staff, yet nothing ever really happened to him. He was truly a restless one.

However, he provoked the Heavenly Demon, which led to the Six-Eared Macaque incident, so much so that even now, he hasn't figured out who he truly is.

Is it Golden Monkey? Or someone else?

However, he had already come to terms with it, as those were all insignificant matters.

So, Li Qi said, “Since there is nothing, I shall take my leave now, not to disturb Your Excellency’s pleasure.”

With that, Li Qi made a move to leave.

However, the Great Peng seemed to have taken an interest. He stopped Li Qi and continued, “Wait a moment, I remember you released Xiangliu. You seem to have some connection with the lineage of deities led by Emperor Jun, right? I remember they had a very bad attitude towards Mortals, hoping to exterminate all Mortals.”

“I once had a connection, but it was merely a matter of expediency, an exchange of interests. I helped them unseal, and they helped me during the Human-Shaman War. Now that the Human-Shaman War is over, our ties naturally dissolved. I even fought against Grand Emperor previously because he was involved with the Demonic Dao. Ultimately, we are just passersby,” Li Qi explained.

He didn't want to be associated with Yao Ji, Emperor Jun, and the like. Li Qi had a very friendly attitude towards Mortals, and it would be bad if he were misunderstood by others.

For example, the Great Golden-Winged Peng in front of him.

This thing's attitude towards Mortals could no longer be described as 'unfriendly'; its brutality had reached a level that many Yao creatures couldn't bear to witness.

Later, after being beaten by Golden Monkey and then subdued by the Buddha to become a Dharma Protector, he was relatively well-behaved. However, now that Buddhism has been destroyed… This thing wouldn’t be thinking of starting something like a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood again, would he?

Li Qi had already said this much. If the Golden-Winged Bird were to forcibly detain him, it would likely lead to a test of strength between them. Li Qi didn't think any Second Grade would be so crazy, so after speaking, he intended to leave.

However, just as Li Qi was about to leave, the Great Golden-Winged Peng bird suddenly spread its wings: “Hey… I don’t want to let anyone related to that monkey just walk away, and besides, your relationship with Buddhism isn’t shallow, is it?”

Now that he had finally broken free from Buddhism and was no longer constrained by others…

He was still resentful about what happened back then.

The two forces collided, causing ripples of pure Qi above the Cang Tian.

Li Qi frowned slightly.

No wonder, so he was here for revenge.

Then he could only fight, hoping it wouldn't drag on for too long.

Li Qi reached out, preparing to engage in battle.

But at this moment, in the sky, pure Qi fluctuated.

Scattering pure Qi here, when it permeates the earth, stones become fragrant; when it touches decaying wood and withered grass, they all flourish; when it fumigates dry bones, flesh grows, and fragrance fills the room. When a clear breeze blows, it restores the original form. Spells and enchantments are bewildering, and divine wonders are endless.

The will of Cang Tian descended.

Li Qi restrained his own power.

And the Great Golden-Winged Peng reluctantly retracted, both of them looking up at the sky.

In the sky, the pure Qi had formed a vortex.

“Ah, your family is here.” The Great Golden-Winged Peng sneered, and then, his true form was struck by an invisible force, flying away from the Cang Tian, sent back to the Reality Universe with a single blow, leaving this space-time.

Li Qi, on the other hand, bowed in salute: “Greetings, Shaman God.”

“No need for formalities.” The invisible will of Cang Tian appeared all around.

Li Qi couldn't see where he was, but he could feel that Cang Tian was everywhere.

“I am Li Qi, a Ordained Invoker of the Invoker lineage, here to seek the Shaman God, hoping the Shaman God can help me resolve my confusion.” Li Qi introduced himself.

Although the other party knew, self-introduction was still essential.

Cang Tian then affirmed: “Yes, but… my answer may not be your answer.”

“What I seek is fact, not an answer. May I ask the Shaman God, what exactly is ‘Heaven’?” Li Qi asked.

He continued, “I see that among the First Grade, there are both Cang Tian and Haotian. Besides them, even the Yellow Dragon can be called ‘Yellow Heaven’. And what is the relationship between the Heavenly Demon and Heaven of Others’ Emanations?”

“In Buddhism, there are also various 'Heavens'. Those I know include Dakini Heaven, Mahakala, and the Four Great Heavenly Kings. What is the relationship between these Heavens and the titles of Cang Tian and Haotian?”

“I’ve thought about it repeatedly and found no answer, so I specifically came to ask the Shaman God.” Li Qi said to Cang Tian.

Facing Li Qi's questions, Cang Tian was silent for a short while.

It was only a few minutes, and then he said, “Are you sure you want to know? This involves many secrets.”

For a Second Grade, the true meaning of this reminder was “Are you sure you want to stir up trouble?”

Second Grades would no longer die from knowing secrets; after all, they themselves were the source of most secret events. It was others who had to worry about prying into Second Grades and being crushed by them.

However, knowing a secret itself represents an attitude, representing that you want to, and have already begun to, interfere in a certain matter.

This can easily entangle oneself in many struggles.

For example, if you knew about the conflict between Li Qi and the Heavenly Demon, then you would know about Li Qi's identity as a demon son and the Heavenly Demon's targeting of the Buddha.

Then, when both sides start fighting, it will be difficult for you to remain aloof.

Because you are already involved in the Karma chain, becoming part of the battle. If you say you are just an observer, that is not up to you. Your power already exists in this history; in other words, you are part of the battlefield.

If two humans are fighting in Antarctica, do you still expect penguins not to be accidentally harmed? Perhaps both sides will use penguins to gain an advantage, after all, eating penguin meat will give them more strength.

Of course, if the penguins are willing to help voluntarily, that would be even better.

However, correspondingly, if one is strong enough, one can certainly stay out of it. If both parties cannot afford to offend you, or both find it troublesome to involve you, then you can freely explore secrets.

Unfortunately, a Second Grade does not yet have this qualification; at least one must reach the level of Cang Tian.

Hearing Cang Tian’s question, Li Qi nodded without hesitation.

At this point, if he were still to cower, it would truly be too unseemly.

So, Cang Tian seemed to agree.

Information streams began to permeate the surroundings, and Li Qi was drawn into a segment of history.

Was that… the day the Heavenly Demon was born?

Li Qi entered the information flow, experiencing that precise moment almost as if he were there.

No, not almost as if he were there, but… he *was* there.

The purpose of this information flow was not to transmit information, but to transmit coordinates.

Li Qi directly returned to the past through these secret coordinates.

History itself is fabricated by beings with substantial existence. Li Qi could, of course, return to the past and easily review what had happened.

Just as the Human Dao did to them, the Human Dao could easily come to the events experienced by the Seventh Grade Li Qi and witness firsthand what happened to Li Qi at that time.

So, Li Qi and Cang Tian arrived at a place where something had happened in the past.

Under the protection of Cang Tian, Li Qi was able to witness the moment the Heavenly Demon was born.

Amidst the desires of all living beings, amidst the fear of all things in heaven and earth regarding the reality of the Universe, demonic thoughts was brewing.

Then, a ferocious beast awakened.

This ferocious beast awakened from the spiritual world of all living beings. He was the projection of all living beings, the spiritual aspect of all things, another form of the Reality Universe.

The moment the Heavenly Demon awakened, a wild roar filled every corner of the entire Universe, every branch of every timeline, every corner of every spatial region.

Then, the Heavenly Demon looked in Li Qi’s direction.

For beings of Li Qi and the Heavenly Demon's caliber, they have no past or future; everything is the present.

Therefore, even if Li Qi returned to the moment the Heavenly Demon was born, the Heavenly Demon would still recognize Li Qi and still remember everything between Li Qi and it.

In reality, this was no different from meeting the Heavenly Demon directly, it was just that the setting was the precise moment the Heavenly Demon was born.

The power of the Heavenly Demon swept over.

“Oh my, Li Qi, I didn’t expect you to come looking for me one day. Did you miss me?”

Demonic Qi rose, reaching directly towards Cang Tian.

But Cang Tian’s pure Qi gently repelled the Demonic Qi.

Li Qi seized the opportunity to observe the moment the Heavenly Demon was born.

Although the Heavenly Demon could return to before its birth, or even to the beginning of the Universe, the starting point of all timelines, and be born with the entire Universe, the event of the Heavenly Demon's birth was still fixed by himself.

To modify this event would require tampering with the Heavenly Demon’s history. For now, unless many First Grades surrounded him, the Heavenly Demon would not encounter such a situation.

And First Grades would certainly not be idle enough to seek trouble with the Heavenly Demon.

So, this moment was still extremely valuable.

Without Cang Tian, Li Qi would probably never have found the space-time where this event occurred, and even if he did, he wouldn't dare to come.

Coming here, he would probably be devoured by the Heavenly Demon.

Therefore, this moment was something Li Qi owed to Cang Tian for the favor.

Just as Cang Tian resisted the Heavenly Demon, Li Qi clearly saw that Heaven of Others’ Emanations also emerged.

So that’s how it is.

Heaven of Others’ Emanations was not the Heavenly Demon’s discarded shell, but his ‘egg shell’.

The Heavenly Demon was hatched from within Heaven of Others’ Emanations.

No, that's not precise enough.

To be precise, Heaven of Others’ Emanations, or the ‘Desire Realm’, the spiritual world of all living beings in the Universe, existed from the beginning. But at that time, it was merely a pure spiritual world, a dream world, caused by the unconscious thoughts of living beings.

But now, in this dream world, an ultimate nightmare has appeared.

This nightmare has even become the master of the dream. (End of Chapter)