Volume One, Chapter Fifty-One: The Lord’s Astonishment

Chapter Fifty-One: The Lord’s Astonishment

At last, Tu Zhe stepped out from the Heart of the Lotus.

He had stayed inside for a full thirty thousand days. When he emerged, he was utterly transformed—clearly more mature, yet also more indolent. There was nothing to be done; such was his nature. No matter how high his cultivation soared, his character would not change.

Doggy let out a sharp cry, leaping into the rascal’s arms, instantly finding his anchor. Turning, he pointed at Mukulauta’s daughters, whining in a childish voice, “Rascal Brother! They insist I’m their little sister and keep touching me all over. It’s most improper! I suspect they’re traffickers in doggies, or worse—they might be copper thieves!”

Tu Zhe’s forehead was instantly lined with exasperation. He groaned inwardly, blaming himself: “Tsk, you’re becoming more and more like a little delinquent. It’s my fault for not strengthening your discipline and education. I’ve failed in my duty, ha ha…”

The young celestial girls nearby, hearing Doggy accuse them of being copper thieves and dog traffickers, were caught between laughter and tears, their hearts aching all the while.

One of them collapsed into her father Mukulauta’s arms, sobbing, “Father, what happened to our Doggy Sister? How did she turn out like this…”

Mara, eyes wide, stared and listened, his divine sense scanning Tu Zhe up and down. Suddenly, he could no longer contain himself and shouted, “Ah—!”

He startled Mukulauta, who was comforting his daughter.

Mara circled Tu Zhe, exclaiming, “Thirty thousand days—almost a hundred years! Such a transformation! Come, tell your master—what realm have you reached now?”

Tu Zhe hesitated, forcing a bitter smile: “Master, well… honestly, I’ve no idea, ha ha.”

Mara’s gaze was blazing as he pressed on, “You don’t know? Then let me ask you this: have you refined the Celestial Soul Crystal?”

“I have…”

“What? Truly refined it? That takes incredible fortune! Let’s see—can you check if there’s anything unusual back in our old home, the Realm of Freedom?”

Obediently, Tu Zhe did as he was told. Between his brows, a vertical eye suddenly opened, radiating a dazzling light that pierced the heavens. It easily tore through the crystal barrier between the third and fourth heavens as though it were nothing but tattered paper, then through the barrier between the fourth and fifth heavens, and in an instant, rent open the divide to the sixth. Arriving in the Realm of Freedom, his divine sense swept out, scanning everything in a flash before withdrawing. The vertical eye faded.

Tu Zhe said, “Master, everything appears perfectly harmonious—no signs of anything unusual…”

Mara grinned slyly. “Did you see any beauties?”

Tu Zhe rubbed his nose. “Well, I did see a few, but I didn’t dare linger, ha ha…”

Mukulauta shook his head with a sigh. “Unbelievable—to think he’s awakened the Heavenly Eye…”

Mara folded his arms behind his back, brimming with pride. “Of course! Whose disciple do you think he is? Now tell me, have you manifested a divine weapon from your soul?”

Tu Zhe replied, “I’ve awakened the Manas Blade, but nothing else yet…”

Doggy piped up eagerly, “I want to see Rascal Brother’s Manas Divine Weapon! Quick, quick, show us—!”

Seeing everyone’s expectant faces, Tu Zhe summoned the Manas Blade.

A gleam flashed between his brows, and a long blade, suffused with peculiar obsession and the four great negative emotions, hovered in the air, nearly filling the entire hall. For a moment, a strange, turbulent pressure and a foul power swept out, making everyone’s faces blanch with shock as they staggered back. Mukulauta’s daughters screamed, covering their heads and crying out that they couldn’t bear it. Tu Zhe had to withdraw the Manas Blade into his mind.

With a hint of smugness, Tu Zhe feigned embarrassment. “The hall’s a bit low, so I couldn’t draw the whole thing—couldn’t let everyone see its full length, ha ha…”

Mara glared. “How long do you want to make it? Just how long can you draw it?”

Tu Zhe scratched his head. “Well… maybe eighty or a hundred yojanas?”

Mukulauta’s daughters shrieked, “Wow—!”

Tu Zhe added, “That might have been an understatement. Maybe… a thousand eight hundred yojanas?”

“Wow, wow—!”

The girls’ eyes sparkled with stars as they cried out.

Even Mukulauta’s mouth dropped open in astonishment.

Doggy squealed, “Rascal Brother, you’re amazing—!”

Tu Zhe thought for a moment. “Well, actually… I might still be underestimating. Ha ha…”

Mara, exasperated, strode up and smacked him. “Can’t you speak without gasping for breath?”

Tu Zhe straightened, “Master, this time I won’t. To be honest, this blade—if I swing it, it can reach three hundred to two hundred thousand yojanas, no problem…”

Thud—

Thud, thud, thud—

Several people collapsed to the ground. Mukulauta’s daughters had all fainted from fright.

Mukulauta himself was so shocked he slumped crookedly to the floor.

Mara’s mouth hung wide open, unable to respond for a moment.

Only Doggy was unfazed, hands on her hips, shouting at the crowd, “What’s wrong with you all? My Rascal Brother’s divine powers really are that formidable! Don’t you believe it?”

At last Mara closed his mouth, his tone skeptical. “Boy, you haven’t been working at the Bureau of Statistics, have you? I hope you’re not exaggerating…”

Tu Zhe nodded solemnly, “Not a word of exaggeration—at full extension, it can reach nearly four hundred thousand yojanas, but its greatest destructive power is within three hundred thousand.”

Mukulauta slapped his forehead. “Ah, all these years, and look at myself compared to this—what can I say…”

Mara roared with laughter. “What can you say? The waves of the Milky Way push ever forward—one wave overtakes the last on the shore! This boy’s divine sense is even stronger than mine. At most, I can swing a blade a dozen yojanas long, and Mukulauta here is only a bit stronger—twenty at most. Now, tell me, what other great abilities have you cultivated?”

Tu Zhe moved his lips a few times, unsure how to answer. He felt that, although he had spent quite some time cultivating other divine powers, none had yet reached perfection, so he didn’t know whether he should mention them.

Mara noticed and asked with suspicion, “Boy, don’t tell me all you’ve got is the Manas Blade?”

Tu Zhe replied, “No, not just that. I’ve mastered several of the seals you taught me. And, well, there’s also… time. It’s a bit awkward to say…”

“Oh?”

Mara and Mukulauta perked up, listening intently. Could it be he had already touched upon the domain of time? Could he really be that heaven-defying?

Tu Zhe cleared his throat. “It’s just that… time is rather tricky to handle, right? As for me, well, I can reverse time back a hundred years. As for leaping into the future—one hundred years ahead is possible, but no further…”

What?

Mukulauta’s face turned ashen, his heart full of unspeakable melancholy.

What manner of person was this? Roaming freely a hundred years into the past and future, yet saying he couldn’t go further. If you could, would there be any point in me living? I can only rewind a decade or so, and I’ve never dared venture into the future—not that I don’t want to, but I don’t dare. One wrong leap, and I’d be lost in the branches of time forever, unable to return.