Chapter 420 Ancient Proclamation
The destruction of the Void Realm was a cataclysmic event for the Void Realm Apostles, but for the outside world, it was a storm occurring in another dimension that was imperceptible.
In Luoshan, only Yuchi and I were the first to know about this. Most demon hunters, however, learned of Shenzhao's death immediately.
As a being akin to a deity, the Sambhogakaya (spiritual body) can remain in the world even after the physical body dies, and believers can gain power by worshipping the Sambhogakaya. However, this Sambhogakaya does not have the function of prolonging the life of the physical body or living in place of the physical body. It is more akin to the idea that "even if the physical body perishes, the spirit continues to be passed down from generation to generation" in the common sense world, praising thinkers.
When the Great Impermanence entity dies, believers can receive corresponding responses through meditation and prayer. Therefore, that very night, a storm of public opinion swept through Luoshan.
The violent death of Da Wuchang is a rare event. Generally speaking, even if Da Wuchang disappears from the sight of the demon hunters, it is mostly a matter of loss. In the history of Luoshan, a confirmed death is rare, perhaps only once every thousand years. Just this year, Fu Hongchen was killed by Xuan Ming; now, even Shen Zhao has been killed by Xuan Ming.
Yes, "killed by Xuanming"—that was Luo Shan's initial assessment of Shenzhao's cause of death.
After Shenzhao's death, his subordinates, all at the Great Completion level, immediately stormed into his meditation room and witnessed the scene of his death. There, they found a criminal declaration left by Xuanming in flame-like writing:
"By order of the Lord of the Divine Seal, the Fourth Apostle of the Void Realm, Xuanming, has slain the Great Impermanence God of Mount Luoshan here."
The fiery writing even emitted the unique magical fluctuations of Xuanming himself.
While magical energy fluctuations can be faked, the very existence of counterfeiting techniques implies the existence of techniques for authenticating them. The Luo Shan team quickly confirmed that the fluctuations were indeed genuinely Xuan Ming's own magical energy.
Yu Chi and I both knew very well that it wasn't Xuan Ming who killed Shen Zhao, but the Lord of the Divine Seal. However, this happened within the Void Realm, and even if we revealed it, we wouldn't be able to produce any concrete evidence. Xuan Ming deliberately left this at the scene of Shen Zhao's death; it was clearly an attempt to drag the Lord of the Divine Seal into the mess.
He probably couldn't forge any trace of the Lord of the Divine Seal. Ultimately, Luo Shan had never obtained any physical clues related to the Lord of the Divine Seal, so even if the traces were genuinely forged, Luo Shan wouldn't be able to distinguish them. That's why he resorted to this roundabout method to increase Luo Shan's hostility towards the Lord of the Divine Seal. This approach would certainly increase the hostility of Luo Shan's followers towards him, but he seemed unconcerned.
It's a mystery how he managed to infiltrate Luoshan headquarters in such a short time and leave flame-shaped writing at the scene of Shenzhao's death. Perhaps, just as the Lord of the Divine Seal could use the power output of Shenzhao to trace back and summon the ownerless fragments of the Divine Seal left in the real world into the virtual realm, Xuanming accomplished something similar.
At the scene of Shenzhao's death, there was also a magic array set up by Yuchi, utilizing the power of fragments of the Unowned Divine Seal. Perhaps there was an invisible connection between the fragments of the Unowned Divine Seal and the magic array, and Xuanming used this connection to reverse the power in the virtual realm and transfer it to the scene of Shenzhao's death. The Luoshan side naturally had no way of knowing this and could only assume that Xuanming himself had infiltrated the Luoshan headquarters.
That same evening, Yu Chi immediately sought me out, asking what my next steps were. I generally supported Xuan Ming's expressed intentions. Whether it was destroying the Void Realm or creating enemies for the Lord of the Divine Seal, ultimately it was all about hindering the Lord of the Divine Seal and putting pressure on him. I had also considered similar ideas, but I had never come up with a good method, nor did I have the time or energy to devise and execute them.
I even held Xuanming in some respect. During the final Void Realm meeting, from Shenzhao's assassination attempt to Xuanming's destruction, I was essentially left to passively await the changing tides. Although I finally gained the privilege of wielding magic within the Void Realm, I didn't have time to demonstrate my abilities before the Void Realm came to an end. At most, I used this power to protect Xiaowan from Xuanming's control.
Of course, I also have negative feelings about Xuanming's actions. It's not just because he attacked Xiaowan, but also because after the destruction of the Void Realm, I lost my means of contacting Xiaowan. Apart from the Void Realm, I can't think of any other way to re-establish contact with Xiaowan.
There is one person whose negative emotions are probably even more intense than mine, and that is the Dog (戌狗).
He had finally obtained the second fragment of the Divine Seal, and was only one step away from making a deal with the Lord of the Divine Seal, but he was interrupted one after another by Shenzhao and Xuanming. In the end, even the Void Realm, the platform for the transaction, vanished, and he missed the chance to fulfill his wish. Logically speaking, since they had all become Great Impermanences, their luck shouldn't be this bad. But the two people who interrupted him were also Great Impermanences, so this cannot be simply judged by good or bad luck.
The next day, in a room in the mansion, I met with Mazao, Zhu Shi, and me.
Shenzhao's funeral was not held immediately. On the one hand, it required preparation time, and the funeral of the Great Impermanence should not be rushed; on the other hand, although Shenzhao was dead, who knew if he was really dead? Maybe in a few days, he would come out on his own? - Many demon hunters had this thought.
Since the murderer was the master of the Divine Seal, I was certain that Shenzhao had no chance of making a comeback. While the outside world was buzzing with discussion about Shenzhao's death, I told Mazao and Zhushi everything that had happened in the Void Realm.
As expected, Mazao looked devastated and said, "In the future... will we not be able to contact Kobo anymore?"
“Not necessarily,” I said. “The Void Realm was originally created by the Lord of the Divine Seal. Even if it was destroyed once, it can be recreated. As long as the Void Realm is truly important to him, he will definitely do so.”
I tried to sense the connection between myself and the fragments of the divine seal.
The connection itself still exists, but after being scorched by the Flame of Proclamation, it has become distorted and altered, much like a plastic rope charred black by the flames. This distortion and alteration doesn't seem to affect the state of the connection between me and the fragments of the Divine Seal, but based on my experience during the destruction of the Void Realm last time, it will at least affect the state of the connection between the fragments of the Divine Seal.
In other words, this is a negative change specifically imposed to sever the establishment of the illusory realm.
It's probably unrealistic to think that this method can permanently block the master of the divine seal. However, since Xuanming has taken such a serious action, it means that this change can last for a long time.
I wonder if the Lord of the Divine Seal will choose the old apostles again in the next Void Realm that is created. Xuanming will probably be excluded from the Lord of the Divine Seal's list, and Xuanming himself probably wouldn't want to enter the Void Realm again. I still have a strong interest in the Void Realm and hope to re-establish contact with Xiaowan.
While worried about Xiaowan, Mazao asked in confusion, "I don't understand... why did Xuanming suddenly attack Xiaowan?"
“In the mythological era, the divine child who was born with the right position to govern the heavens and the earth was both a born sage and a sacrifice of the highest caliber offered to heaven and earth, possessing supreme value,” Zhu Shi said. “Although I don’t know what Xuanming’s intentions are, he may have taken a liking to this point.”
"His surprise attack was not necessarily aimed at 'killing' but rather at 'capturing'."
As she spoke, she seemed to realize there was a problem, muttering to herself, "But I heard that Xuanming was known for his virtue in the past, would he really do such a thing..."
“There may not necessarily be a contradiction between the two,” I said.
The definition of morality can change depending on different value systems.
It is said that the Shang Dynasty had a rich culture of human sacrifice. During celebrations, nobles would casually sacrifice several people to appease the heavens. After their deaths, these sacrifices were to be buried with them, along with their close advisors and wives. Human sacrifices were also buried in the foundations of palaces, temples, city walls, and other buildings to pray for the protection of heaven and ancestors. Even ordinary people would buy human offerings after building their houses and bury them underground as talismans to ward off evil spirits. At that time, human sacrifice was a common social activity.
In our time, sacrificing an innocent little girl for the sake of a huge public good is a classic moral dilemma; but in an era when human sacrifice was commonplace, it might have been a good deed that required no hesitation. Even the sacrificed person who tried to resist and escape might not have considered the sacrifice immoral, and might even have admitted that their resistance and escape were the immoral acts.
Xuanming, as the ancestor of the Shang dynasty, accumulated virtue in an era even more ancient and primitive than when the Shang dynasty was established. We cannot consider him a good person in the modern civilized society simply because he appears easy to talk to.
Judging Xuanming by modern moral standards might actually reveal him as a cruel and tyrannical monster beyond imagination.
(End of this chapter)
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