Chapter 239 – Eternal and Immortal Divinity

The brilliant and indelible radiance made Mu Lin’s eyes flicker.

“This is… Divinity!”

“Death Divinity!”

That the Crow Servant could erupt with a wisp of Divinity was something Mu Lin had never expected, and it was also somewhat strange.

“If it possesses Divinity, why was the Crow Servant’s performance so weak? Was my sneak attack really that effective?”

“But that can’t be right. Divinity elevates one’s own rank, and with a higher rank, one can become immune to many abilities.”

The sublimation and transformation of rank is the most fundamental enhancement of life.

For example, mortals, without elevating their rank, have a lifespan of at most one hundred and fifty years, and their strength also has an upper limit.

Only by elevating their rank can they break through their own limits, increase their lifespan and strength, and thereby gain other abilities.

Strictly speaking, the cultivation of a Qi Refiner is not about making their own power greater or their Mana stronger—Qi Refiners who do this have a term in the cultivation world: “cultivating techniques without cultivating the Dao, ending up with nothing in old age.”

Clearly, this is not a favorable description.

Merely enhancing the power of Mystical Arts, no matter how strong, cannot grant them longevity.

And Qi Refiners seek longevity.

Therefore, the essence of a Qi Refiner’s cultivation is the continuous sublimation of their own life rank.

From mortal to perfected being (True Lord, Immortal, Deity)—this is what a Qi Refiner should pursue.

Well, due to different worldviews, the path from mortal to perfected being, and even the ultimate endpoint, are slightly different. Western Cultivators walk the Path of the Flaming Sword; they must start from the Material Realm, pass through the Formation Realm, the Creation Realm, and the Divine Realm, sublimating step by step in this manner, ultimately transcending to become perfected beings.

As for the path of the Qi Refiner, it is also four… no, five steps.

Refining Essence into Qi, Qi Refinement Transformation, Refining Spirit to Return to Emptiness, Refining Emptiness for Dao Fusion, and finally, transcendence—this is the path of sublimation for Qi Refiners.

Of course, because Qi Refiners reside in the Mortal Realm, and the Mortal Realm is in constant chaos with frequent Calamities, protective techniques, even if they do not grant longevity, are essential for Cultivators.

However, that’s not the topic at hand.

“After elevating one’s rank, extraordinary abilities naturally arise. Cultivators at the Refining Essence into Qi level can already be unafraid of heat and cold. Cultivators at the Qi Refinement Transformation stage can easily become immune to some Divine Soul attacks and Illusion Art inducements, and they inherently possess intuition, a sixth sense, and powerful perception abilities (Divine Sense).”

“And this is just Qi Refinement Transformation. The further one sublimates, the more extraordinary abilities a Cultivator gains.”

“Divinity—in the West, this is a super-rank power obtainable only in the Creation Realm or even the Divine Realm.”

“Even a mere wisp of such power, even if attached to another person, can grant the host countless enhancements and resistances. Logically speaking, a Servant of the Gods possessed by Divinity shouldn’t be so easily Stabilized, right?”

Mu Lin’s immobilization technique is indeed powerful, and his attack was sudden, but it must be understood that if Divinity were expressed in gaming terms, it would be at least: All Resistances +100%, immunity to mental attacks below the third tier, control reduction by 50%, corresponding attack power increased by 200%, attacks ignore defense… this kind of passive BUFF.

“Divinity is eternal and immortal. Those who possess Divinity can even sense the passage of time during a time stop. Such power truly isn’t something I, at my current level, can easily overpower.”

“But why did the Crow Servant die just like that? Is there a conspiracy?”

Upon noticing the anomaly, Mu Lin initially suspected that the Crow God was plotting against him. Because of this, he did not rush to rejoice but instead carefully observed the Divinity.

After observing for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Mu Lin made a peculiar discovery.

The Divinity he had obtained was indeed lofty, sacred, eternal, and indestructible.

However, at present, the vitality of this wisp of Divinity was being completely suppressed.

This was akin to a wealthy person possessing billions in assets, but while the wealth remained, it was frozen by a more powerful force.

Naturally, it was not Mu Lin or the Crimson Wine Gourd that was freezing the vitality of this Divinity, but rather… the world itself.

The world Mu Lin inhabited was actively suppressing the Divine power within the Crow Servant, preventing its full potential from being unleashed.

Once he realized this, Mu Lin immediately understood the reason behind the world’s suppression of this Divinity without needing to think too deeply.

“The God of Death and Misfortune worshipped by that Crow Servant does not belong to my world at all, and they came here as invaders.”

Using the sword of a previous dynasty… no, using an outsider’s sword to execute an official of this dynasty—what audacity, my lord!

…

It was only natural that an outsider’s official position could not function in this world.

“Wait, Divinity is not just an official position; it is also a source of energy, power, or wealth.”

An official position only holds authority in its designated place; an unrecognized official position is nothing more than a worthless piece of paper.

Energy, power, and wealth, however, are different—they can be utilized in this world as well.

Of course, before using it, Mu Lin had to find a way to “launder” this frozen wealth.

At the same time, he had to worry about whether this power was toxic.

“The toxicity is indeed a concern. The will of the Crow God might very well be hidden within the Divinity. Once I absorb it, it could corrupt and pollute me.”

“However, even if I cannot absorb it directly, I can still make use of it indirectly. I don’t even need to plan much for this—the Paper Crafting Scripture contains a wealth of knowledge on this subject.”

…

As the foundational source of the Paper Artisan Lineage, the Paper Crafting Scripture is merely an Earth Grade Supreme Cultivation Method. It is powerful but cannot be called invincible.

However, as a Cultivation Method with an extremely long history, the ancestors of the Paper Artisan Lineage were not all incompetent. Knowing the weaknesses of their own method, they devised countless ways to enhance the power of Paper Figures.

Enhancing them with talisman arrays was a legitimate and effective approach, but it was also extremely time-consuming and resource-intensive.

Because of this, many were unwilling to take this path.

In addition, the ancestors of the Paper Artisan Lineage experimented with other abilities as well.

Among these, there was a particularly cruel method known as the Soul Sealing Art.

It involved seeking out Malevolent Ghosts or Specters, or even creating some Malevolent Ghosts oneself, and then using the Soul Sealing Art to seal these Malevolent Ghosts or Specters into Paper Figures.

In this way, when driving the Paper Figures again, Paper Artisans like Mu Lin would not need to provide energy or Mana for the Paper Figures—they would only need to issue commands. This would free Paper Artisans from most of their limitations.

Moreover, Paper Artisans who did this could even absorb Mana from the Paper Figures in return, allowing them to cast powerful Spells.

With this ability, a Paper Artisan could summon over a hundred Malevolent Ghost Paper Figures at once, becoming an army of one.

Such a powerful Spell was the most commonly used method among Paper Artisans and also the reason for their poor reputation and the persecution they faced.

However, spells themselves are not inherently evil; it all depends on how the user wields them.

For instance, Mu Lin now discovered that he could use the Paper Figure Soul Seal to seal this wisp of Death Divinity within a paper figure, thereby indirectly harnessing its power.

If successful, it would naturally be excellent—Mu Lin would gain another formidable combat asset.

If it failed, or if the divinity truly contained the will of the Crow God, it would have little impact on Mu Lin.

Should the paper figure rebel or the divinity corrupt it, Mu Lin could simply destroy, imprison, or discard the sealed paper figure into the Demon Suppression Bureau HQ or the Tower of Illusory Heavens.

“The method is feasible, but how do I unseal and purify this power?”

After some contemplation, Mu Lin ultimately decided to—connect with the will of the Human Dao and seek its assistance.

“Power that transcends ordinary levels should be resolved by an existence that also transcends them.”

“Moreover, after connecting with the will of the Human Dao, this vast and sacred consciousness will likely help me eliminate the hidden dangers within the Death Divinity.”

Once decided, Mu Lin acted immediately.

…

“Huh? Build a Heaven-Praying Altar? Now?”

Near the Corpse Tree, Yan Yunyu was somewhat bewildered upon hearing Mu Lin’s request.

She couldn’t understand why Mu Lin wanted to build a Heaven-Praying Altar at such a critical moment, just before battle.

However, even though she didn’t fully grasp his intentions, she always followed Mu Lin’s orders without question.

Thus, upon receiving the command, she immediately directed others to begin preparations.

While she didn’t ask further, Qin Yuan and Zuo Li couldn’t help but inquire with curiosity and concern.

“Young Master Mu, are you building the Heaven-Praying Altar to deal with other Servants of the Gods?”

Mu Lin replied, “It has little to do with those cultists… well, it is somewhat related. There are some matters for which I need to borrow the might of the Heavenly Dao and the Human Dao.”

…

Upon hearing Mu Lin’s response, Qin Yuan and Zuo Li fell silent at first, followed by a surge of worry in their hearts.

Qin Yuan said, “Brother Mu, the Human Dao is elusive, and the Heavenly Dao is vast and boundless. Neither can be easily approached. If you intend to use the powers of both to confront those cultists, I believe we should prepare for the worst.”

Mu Lin had the idea of seeking the will of the Human Dao to help him unseal the divinity.

In this world, borrowing the power of the Heavenly Dao and the Human Dao was not uncommon.

Ceremonies such as offering sacrifices to heaven, grand imperial rites, and even large-scale rain-praying rituals, divinations, and inquiries into the Dao by Daoist practitioners often involved drawing upon the powers of both.

However, as Qin Yuan pointed out, the Human Dao was elusive, and the Heavenly Dao was vast and boundless. Both were lofty and majestic existences beyond the reach of ordinary people. Even most Qi Refiners never had the chance to interact with them in their lifetimes.

Even Celestial Masters—transcendent beings among humans—could not guarantee that every request would be answered.

As for a provincial governor, succeeding in two or three out of ten heaven-praying ceremonies was considered exceptional.

Compared to such prominent figures, Mu Lin was far too weak and held little significance among humanity. Therefore, Qin Yuan believed that the success rate of Mu Lin’s Heaven-Praying Ritual was exceedingly slim.

In fact, both of them thought Mu Lin’s attempt was doomed to fail, but they refrained from saying so outright to spare his dignity.

Since Mu Lin had mentioned that his Heaven-Praying Ritual was related to the Servants of the Gods, they subtly reminded him to make thorough preparations.

To this, Mu Lin nodded but remained resolute in his decision.

“Thanks for the reminder, but rest assured, even if this sacrificial ceremony fails, I’m confident I can handle those Cultists.”

Saying this, Mu Lin looked toward the Corpse Tree, and the continuously expanding Sky Burial Domain around it.

These forbidden powers of the Anomalies were the grand gift he had prepared for those Servants of the Gods.

(End of Chapter)