Chapter 936: Going to the Shinto

It was a summer night.

The night air was not cold, but rather muggy; the chirping of insects was about to reach its peak, growing louder and more pleasant.

The various flowers blooming throughout Mystic Radiance Mountain were in full splendor, their fragrance filling the night air.

In this Mystic Radiance Mountain, the waters were clear, the rocks strangely precipitous, and it was spacious and open for fishing, with trees whose leaves formed emerald canopies and branches coiled like red Dragons, and one could only see green mists enshrouding the majestic stream.

There were trees of phoenix, toon, oak, elm, willow, and mulberry.

There were beasts of swallow, sparrow, mouse, leopard, tiger, Flood Dragon, fish, and deer.

The lush canopy covered the lesser yin, complementing the sun to create Life Qi; the sheer cliffs and forests undulated with the mountain slopes, a vast expanse of emerald waves, misty and cloud-like, ever-changing with dawn and dusk.

And the small river in the middle, even more so, flowed and splashed, spraying and scattering, its water murmuring, most delightful; two people fished by the river, and their presence within the scenery also became part of the scenery.

Of the two people fishing, one was constantly catching fish, dozens of pounds of large fish one after another, as if they would never stop; the river, only a li wide, had an inexplicable abundance of large fish, as if all the Fish Kings in the river had rushed over.

The other person couldn't catch any fish, so he simply stuck his tree branch fishing rod into the ground and went to talk to the person on the other side.

It was a chat-and-disturb tactic: if you can't out-fish them, talk to them and interfere so no one can play.

However, if one listened carefully, they would discover that the two were discussing mysterious topics.

“Xiangliu doesn't stand on the side of Mortals, so does Shaman Dao stand on the side of Mortals?” Shen Yijun said carelessly, his fishing rod still casting.

“Shaman Dao stands with no one. No matter who you are, Shaman Dao is a neutralizer, a mediator. We just want to maintain the balance of all things, so that every living being and every Dao Orthodoxy has its own space to exist,” Li Qi said.

This was indeed the attitude of the Shamanes.

Shamanes indeed did not stand on the side of Mortals, but on the surface, the Shamanes helped those Mortals who had no means of survival the most.

Mortals were simply too fragile in the face of Great Powers and higher civilizations; if Shamanes did not intervene, then everyone would have no space to exist.

And the Human Race was the most extreme in this regard; they attempted to replace the heavens with humans, directly eradicating the right to exist for all things other than humans.

If they succeeded, from then on, whether something had meaning to exist would be defined by humans.

Therefore, the Dao conflict between Shaman Dao and the Human Race was irreconcilable, with no room for compromise or retreat.

Admittedly, Shamanes were not good people, nor were they saints; Shamanes killed people without mercy, but they at least ensured that the 'whole' progressed towards greater diversity.

Therefore, the relationship between Shamanes and Xiangliu was actually the same as with the Human Race.

The Human Race wanted to invade and occupy all things other than humans, while Xiangliu wanted to destroy all Mortals; for Shamanes, these two only differed in degree, not in nature.

Shamanes also greatly disliked Xiangliu; Shaman Dao had a good relationship with the Haotian lineage, but its relationship with the faction of Gonggong and Xiangliu was quite hostile.

“So, Li Qi, you are unwilling to meet Old Ancestor?” Shen Yijun asked.

“No, I'm just stating my position. To be honest, I still don't know which Great Power is behind the Heavenly Gods of the Xiangliu lineage,” Li Qi said: “Xiangliu is a subordinate of Gonggong, and Gonggong is only a Second Grade…”

“Also of Second Grade should be the 'Four Fiends,' namely Chaos, Taotie, Qiongqi, and Taowu. They should also be the faction that opposes Mortals, right? I don't know if they are Heavenly Gods or Di Qi (Earthly Qi), but they are definitely Deities.”

“Then, who is the First Grade behind them? If there isn't a First Grade supporting them, I'm afraid they wouldn't be able to cause so much trouble, right?” Li Qi said.

“I don't know about that. Forget First Grade or Second Grade; I haven't even figured out Fifth Grade matters yet, otherwise I wouldn't be stuck here for hundreds of thousands of years without moving,” Shen Yijun said with a laugh.

Talking to him about First Grade or Second Grade, wasn't that a joke? If he understood, would he still be here to deliver messages?

“Hmm… So, I can go meet Xiangliu and talk to him face-to-face, but I don't guarantee I'll unseal him, after all… Xiangliu was Seal by a Shaman back then,” Li Qi said.

That's right, although Xiangliu was defeated by a True Dragon, it was the Shaman who ultimately performed the Seal.

After Emperor Yu killed Xiangliu, he buried his body north of Kunlun Mountain, then built the 'Five Emperors' Platform' on top, carving statues of Emperor Xuanyuan, Emperor Gaoyang, Emperor Ku, Emperor Yao, and Emperor Shun, suppressing Xiangliu's corpse to completely Seal him.

And the 'Platform' was actually a place for sacrifice; the construction method of the Five Emperors' Platform was actually proposed and built by the Shamanes under Emperor Yu.

“That's fine,” Shen Yijun nodded.

Seeing that the serious business was done, Li Qi couldn't hold back anymore.

He kicked Shen Yijun into the river: “Stop fishing! You'll make them extinct! You've fished all the Fish Kings dry!”

Shen Yijun fell into the river, quickly grabbed his fish basket, weighed it, estimated it to be over ten thousand pounds, said nothing more, swiftly put it into his Spiritual Artifact, the Jianghai, and then fled in a flash.

Li Qi was speechless, then looked at the small fish he had caught, only three or four pounds, and no more than five or six in number.

Forget it, just roast them and eat them.

Li Qi had three hobbies: reading, eating, and fishing.

Now, he could satisfy all three at once.

By the river, he gutted and scaled the fish he had caught earlier, rinsed them in water to clean them, then roasted them on the spot, sprinkling a little salt for seasoning.

He took a bite.

Hmm.

As expected, it was really bad.

Compared to any immortal delicacies or rare treasures, this fish was simply too ordinary, and he had even put too much salt.

However, just then, a group of monkeys appeared nearby.

They were just ordinary monkeys, not demons, and not yet intelligent, rather clumsy.

But as monkeys in the Shaman God Mountain territory, they were much smarter than their counterparts outside.

They saw Li Qi and excitedly ran over, holding a pile of sour, unripe fruits, which seemed to be freshly picked.

They placed the fruits near Li Qi, pushed them, and then pointed at the fish.

Li Qi handed the roasted fish to them.

It was too bad to eat; he didn't want it anymore, so he gave it to them.

However, in return, Li Qi took a fruit, washed it in the river, and took a bite.

Ah…

Equally bad, it wasn't just sour, it was bitter.

Looking back, he saw that the monkeys had already run far away with the fish; it seemed they also knew the fruit wasn't good.

Darn it, these cunning monkeys.

Li Qi chuckled, put the fruit down, and took only one, walking while gnawing on it.

When he reached halfway up the mountain, he suddenly threw the half-eaten bitter fruit into the air!

These cunning monkeys actually went and collected all the bitter fruits Li Qi didn't want!

Li Qi absolutely could not let them profit so greatly; the bitter fruit he threw violently made a circle in the air and smashed onto a monkey's head.

The monkeys panicked and scattered, naturally abandoning the bitter fruits.

Seeing this, Li Qi left contentedly.

He walked all the way down the mountain.

At the foot of the mountain, there were some Human Race settlements, but as always, they were the Human Race of Shaman God Mountain, so they were not industrialized.

However, Shaman God Mountain had abundant natural resources, so they were all strong and healthy, lived long lives, and were free from disease and suffering; their lives were quite prosperous, they ate and drank as they pleased, and if they had talent, they could even cultivate.

In the future, whether they went out to explore or stayed here, it would be easy, with almost no pressure.

After all, pressure is self-imposed; as long as you don't feel pressured, there is no pressure. To live, one only needs a place to sleep and something to eat, which is actually very simple.

In the Shaman God Mountain territory, how could one lack food and clothing? Even eating bananas wouldn't lead to starvation.

Li Qi walked to the edge of the village and happened to encounter an old man.

The old man wore animal skins and was full of vigor.

People here wore all sorts of things; if they found it troublesome, they wore animal skins, and if they liked nice clothes, they wove their own cloth and made clothes; anyway, they were skillful, and the clothes they made were actually not bad.

They were not isolated mountain dwellers; in fact, traveling was not difficult. The elder of this village was an Eight Grade, capable of moving mountains and rivers, very knowledgeable, and frequently interacted with the outside world. It was common for young people here to go out and explore.

“Oh, just passing by? Haven't seen you before,” the old man greeted Li Qi.

While greeting, he drank wine from a gourd; the aroma of the wine was strong and smelled particularly good.

“Yes, just arrived, haven't been here in a long time,” Li Qi smiled and asked curiously: “Elder, what kind of wine are you drinking? It smells so good.”

“Oh? This? This is my homemade village wine; I learned it from the monkey wine in the mountains, it's very good, the monkeys themselves don't have much of it!”

“Is it difficult to brew?” Li Qi asked.

“The brewing method isn't difficult, it's just that the ingredients are rare, only those monkeys in the mountains have them. The ingredients are a very bitter fruit, I don't know what it's called,” the old man said.

Then, the old man watched as the young man in front of him took off running, looking puzzled.

“Young man, young man, where are you going?!” he shouted.

Li Qi waved his hand, running wildly: “You drink, old man, I'm going up the mountain to find monkeys!”

The old man stroked his beard.

This young man, his speed is quite fast, probably not low in cultivation, likely already entered a Grade. I wonder where he came from, he looks a bit familiar…

Why does he look a bit like the portrait hanging in the ancestral hall?

— — — — — — — — — — — —

In any case, by the next day, Li Qi was ready to go find Xiangliu with Yao Ji.

Xiangliu was buried north of Kunlun Mountain, where the Five Emperors' Platform was located.

And Kunlun Mountain was in the Divine Dao region of the Nine Lands Under Heaven.

The Kunlun Void within the seas is in the Northwest, the capital of the Emperor.

That's right, the Northwest of the Nine Lands Under Heaven is the region where the Divine Dao is located.

The Nine Lands Under Heaven: East, West, South, North, Central, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest, Northeast.

The Central Land is occupied by humans, and the Eastern Sea in the East belongs to the True Dragon.

Due West are countless Buddhist nations, due South are the Demonic Dao hot sands, City of Dreams.

The Northern Ice Ocean is the territory of the Spirit Dao, and the Southeast archipelagos are all demon dens.

The Southwest mountains are where Shamanes gather, and the numerous blessed lands in the Northeast are where the Daoist sect's Penglai Three Islands are suspended.

And the Northwest, where the Emperor resides and Kunlun Mountain is located, is the Divine Dao's territory in the Nine Lands Under Heaven.

At the rocks of the eight corners, by the Red Water, on the banks of the flowing sands, before the Black Water, there is a great mountain named Kunlun.

The Kunlun Void is eight hundred li wide and ten thousand ren high.

On it are Wooden Grains, five xun long and five wei thick. And there are nine wells, with jade railings, and nine gates, each guarded by an Enlightened Beast, where a hundred gods reside.

Li Qi came here with Yao Ji the next day.

Upon arriving at the heart of the Divine Dao, a strong 'Divine Dao' Qi immediately enveloped them.

Although saying this sounds redundant, in Li Qi's opinion, it was truly the only way to describe it.

It was really very Divine Dao.

The first thing they saw was an 'incense Qi'; yes, it was the 'incense' needed by those Incense Gods.

For true Heavenly Gods or Di Qi (Earthly Qi), they actually didn't need incense.

Mortals needed deities, not deities needed Mortals.

Deities didn't need your incense; incense and golden bodies were merely a cultivation method invented by 'Mortals attempting to become gods.'

However, here, the incense Qi was very strong.

Deities here could almost be described as bustling.

Various Deities, most of them Incense Gods, some native to the Nine Lands Under Heaven, but also some who had ascended from outside the realm, all gathered in this place.

There were even no Mortals!

That's right, where the Divine Dao gathered, there were no Mortals, and the lowest cultivation was Seventh Grade; this place was probably similar to 'Heaven' or the 'Divine Realm.'

Here, gathered were all the gods who had already attained longevity, who had their own believers, or other foundations, and then gathered here to live within the Nine Lands Under Heaven.

Normally, they would handle their affairs within the Nine Lands Under Heaven, respond to believers, or project their Dharma bodies.

And in this area of the Nine Lands Under Heaven, they were safe, not needing to worry about anyone being able to Breakthrough into the Nine Lands Under Heaven and kill their main bodies.

So…

When Li Qi first arrived at the Northwest Divine Court, he almost thought he had come to some kind of ark left after an apocalypse.

These Deities each had their own affairs, their own followers, and had simply found a place to contain themselves, then projected Dharma bodies to their respective worlds.

So from the outside, what Li Qi saw was a group of stone statues standing everywhere, not interacting with each other; they stayed here simply because this was the Divine Realm, and handling external matters here would be very safe.

It was almost as if… a group of reclusive shut-ins immersed in a virtual world, unable to extricate themselves.

They were confined in virtual pods, exploring the outside world through 'Dharma bodies,' which were like virtual reality; even if a Dharma body died, it wouldn't affect their main body.

Because all their interpersonal relationships were established by their 'Dharma bodies,' and they weren't familiar with the other Deities around them, everyone was too lazy to greet each other.

They simply turned into stone statues, found a place to put themselves, and then returned home.

This made Li Qi look at Yao Ji and sigh.

“The Divine Dao… is a stagnant pool now. Is this what you're dissatisfied with?” (End of Chapter)