Chapter 2058: Curse Treasure

“I’m back…”

As the Spirit Dao Long River gradually faded, the Body Dao Long River and Will Dao Sea also slowly retracted.

Within the Venerable Cut Space, the severed hand coalesced into a floating human figure. Xu Xiaoshou managed to reform his body, allowing his spirit and will to finally reside.

“What a relief!”

He clenched his fists.

Though his power was depleted, he felt a sense of being grounded, no longer like rootless duckweed. Only then could he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

The recoil from the passive punch, charged with fifty million points of accumulated power, was utterly beyond imagination; it had directly obliterated him. Xu Xiaoshou had prepared in advance, swallowing an entire pool of life elixir. Even so, without the blessing of the Body Dao, Spirit Dao, and Will Dao—two rivers and one sea—his Berserk Golden Body would likely have been instantly blasted out.

And relying solely on the Sword Self’s self-reconstitution, to conjure existence from nothingness, would have taken ages if the life elixir energy had been lacking. After all, Xu Xiaoshou’s foundation was too profound. To reconstitute a Zero-Level Ancestor, a "Suffering Ancestor" with extreme and perfected realms in various Daos, from the Heavenly Dao, would likely drain one-tenth of the current New Heaven Realm’s energy.

Fortunately, all preparations were thorough. Once his body, spirit, and will had reformed, Xu Xiaoshou still couldn’t detect Sheng Xin’s presence. Evidently, even if Sheng Xin was still alive, their condition must be worse than his own.

“Harming the enemy by a thousand, self-damaging by eight hundred.” This was Xu Xiaoshou’s assessment of the fifty-million-point passive punch.

Of course, with nine pools of elixir remaining in his body, he could still deliver a similar punch if another unforeseen event occurred. The only certainty was that Sheng Xin wouldn’t give him the chance.

“How do you feel?” Wu Bao returned, asking with concern.

Xu Xiaoshou pounded his chest with satisfaction, like a healthy gorilla, and waved his hand. “I’m perfectly fine, but Sheng Xin won’t give up so easily.”

“The Blood Demon Reverse Fate Art, which converts eons of luck into combat power, is indeed not to be underestimated. It didn’t kill them, only shattered their Divine Court.”

“What will Sheng Xin do next?”

Within the Venerable Cut Space, Xu Xiaoshou adapted to his new body, feeling it rapidly warm up under the nourishment of immeasurable energy. He pondered deeply, while simultaneously monitoring Medicine Ancestor’s situation outside.

War Ancestor clearly couldn’t answer that question. They were only responsible for short-term combat, and in reality, their outward appearance and the deterrence it projected far exceeded the actual combat power War Ancestor possessed at that moment. Only Medicine Ancestor was unaware of the true situation. War Ancestor’s Dharma Aspect actually possessed far less energy than outsiders perceived. The previous battle had almost completely drained them. If they had returned any later, they might have collapsed on the spot and dissipated into nothingness.

The same applied to Hua Changdeng; they were in no better condition than War Ancestor. Both Venerable Dharma Aspects were all show and no substance, merely bait thrown out by Xu Xiaoshou to divert attention.

As for Hua Ancestor, what was even more noteworthy than their recovery was that during Xu Xiaoshou’s tribulation and great battle, after integrating insights from the Body Dao and Will Dao, they had successfully pushed the Spirit Dao to its extreme, comprehending the Spirit Dao Long River. Their contribution was indeed immense. Without the Spirit Dao Long River, Xu Xiaoshou truly couldn’t have reconstituted his body, spirit, and will so quickly. And if his soul had been slow to return, allowing Sheng Xin to recover first, the danger would have been immense.

Fortunately, everything was within the plan. Not only did he preemptively shatter the Delayed Law Heaven and scheme against Shennong’s Hundred Herbs, but Xu Xiaoshou also obtained the crucial Original True Tablet, “Calamity,” which had been overlooked by outsiders.

“Buzz!”

Outside, as Hua Changdeng battled Medicine Ancestor with the Spirit Dao Long River, within the Venerable Cut Space, the scenery for the third Venerable Cut Quadrant had successfully materialized. The “Calamity Coalescence,” obtained by spending another hundred million passive points, had delivered a perfect score.

“It’s done!”

Xu Xiaoshou immediately turned his gaze, setting aside his concerns for Sheng Xin and Shennong’s Hundred Herbs. He saw that the background of the third Venerable Cut Quadrant depicted the initial revival of Calamity Yin from the thirty-third Heaven of the Heavenly Realm: dim, sinister, and covered everywhere with branches of withered infants. At the center of this dark world stood a colossal skeleton divine throne, which was seen by the world as the corrupted supreme altar of the Art Ancestor, and also Calamity Yin’s resting place.

“Come on, Calamity Treasure!”

“Once you’re in the Venerable Cut Space, we’ll be one big happy family. Your long-desired ‘alliance’ has also been fulfilled in another way.”

Xu Xiaoshou was naturally filled with anticipation. Calamity Yin’s combat power was evident to all; what they lacked was never talent, but time and optimal condition. Art Dao integrated both comprehension and combat. It could be said that among all the Great Daos Xu Xiaoshou had used, it was the second most effective after Sword Dao. With a flick of his finger, whatever he called for appeared.

Of course, Xu Xiaoshou didn’t have Calamity Yin’s profound foundation, and his inventory of arts was severely lacking. The arts he had used were almost entirely replicated from Calamity Yin; he had created very few himself. Even so, it compensated for Sword Dao’s severe deficiency in unpredictability and completed his last shortcoming.

Calamity Yin? An Art Master! Sword Dao handled primary output, Name Dao provided support and sustainability, while Art Dao was used for patching gaps and remedying deficiencies. The all-encompassing nature of Art Dao was, for Xu Xiaoshou, even more fitting than the myriad attributes of Saint Dao. After all, although Sheng Xin mastered Saint Dao’s various attributes and used them with extreme proficiency, Saint Dao excelled in energy condensation and explosive power, unlike Art Dao’s intricate applications of Dao arts. Basically, most Saint Dao arts were inherently countered by the Immeasurable Silence Seed.

As a result, after Xu Xiaoshou’s true self returned, he had only experienced Sheng Xin’s Demonic Dao, Divine Court, and Dao art applications like the Blood Demon Reverse Fate Art. Spirit abilities with Saint Dao refining attributes, such as Golden Profound Finger, were effective against people like Mr. Si, but against Xu Xiaoshou, Sheng Xin likely knew the implications themselves, so they rarely used them. From this perspective, if given a choice between Saint Dao and Art Dao, Xu Xiaoshou would undoubtedly choose the latter. And today, he would finally get his wish and claim the Calamity Treasure!

“Come on, Calamity Treasure, come out quickly, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time!”

Xu Xiaoshou’s eagerness and fervent desire made Wu Bao, standing nearby, frown slightly, unable to bear the sight, yet knowing this was simply his nature.

Utterly disappointing!

Within the third Venerable Cut Quadrant, though the background had coalesced, the Calamity Yin Dharma Aspect was slow to appear. Xu Xiaoshou’s third Dao-seizing tentacle was connected to the third Venerable Cut Quadrant, and he could clearly sense that while the Art Dao insights within were excellent, much was missing. Compared to the Ever-Changing Calamity Yin, what he had gained from the ‘Calamity’ character was clearly far from complete.

“Could it be that Calamity Yin was refined, had their Dao seized by Sheng Xin, and with a deficiency in their Original True Tablet power, they can’t coalesce into a Venerable Dharma Aspect?” His heart trembled, and this conjecture flashed through his mind.

In reality, this seemed like the normal course of events. The appearance of War Ancestor’s Dharma Aspect stemmed from War Ancestor’s strong will. The appearance of Hua Ancestor’s Dharma Aspect stemmed from the flawless nature of the ‘Hua’ character. Calamity Yin, up to the moment of their demise, was imperfect. Before the Original True Tablet separated, even their will had been completely refined by Sheng Xin. Although they had cultivated the Ever-Changing Self, perhaps their self was immortal. However, after their demise, it was highly probable that they couldn’t coalesce into a Calamity Yin Dharma Aspect by seizing the Dao through the ‘Calamity’ character.

“Xu Xiaoshou, over there.”

Just then, War Ancestor’s Dharma Aspect pointed into thin air, towards a corner of the third Venerable Cut Quadrant. Following the gaze, he saw that in the background of the thirty-third Heaven of the Divine Ruins, the skeleton divine throne was empty. In a dark corner, a rustling sound emerged, accompanied by a sinister voice:

“Well, well, Xu Xiaoshou!”

“Well, well, War Ancestor Wu!”

“To analyze the Original True Tablet with the Dao of Names, to communicate with the fallen will of the Ancestor Gods through my own Dao, to trace back the true meaning of the Great Dao and coalesce Ancestor God Dharma Aspects—such Dao-seizing techniques are truly unheard of. Calamity Yin is utterly enlightened.”

Who was speaking?

Though the voice was peculiar and sarcastic, it was remarkably childlike, like a child mimicking an old-fashioned tone. Xu Xiaoshou rubbed his eyes, then stared closer, utterly astonished. From the corner emerged a small creature, no bigger than a normal person’s palm, yet it had three heads and six arms, each forehead adorned with a purple evil eye.

Undoubtedly, it was Calamity Yin!

But vastly different from the previously seen demonic and unrestrained Calamity Yin on the skeleton divine throne, this little creature had a round head, big eyes, and was pink and adorable. Although it still sported three chins and a haughty gaze, striking an ‘I am invincible’ pose…

It wasn’t invincible at all!

Calamity Yin was no longer the Calamity Yin Evil God; they had become Calamity Yin Baby!

“Huh?”

Xu Xiaoshou was utterly bewildered. Because of the missing Original True Tablet power, the Calamity Yin Dharma Aspect should not have been able to coalesce. However, before their demise, Calamity Yin had completed the cultivation of the Ever-Changing Self. While their power couldn’t manifest the combat strength of a Zero-Level Ancestor God due to their current state, their comprehension had successfully reached the height of a Zero-Level Ancestor God. This meant their will was even superior to War Ancestor’s! So, the Dao-seizing tentacle had coalesced a bizarre entity—Calamity Yin had become Calamity Yin Baby, manifested in a shrunken form?

“What are you looking at!”

“Do you believe Calamity Yin won’t gouge out your eyes?!”

Little Calamity Yin seemed aware of their current predicament. Seeing Xu Xiaoshou’s expression—trying to suppress laughter—they instantly fumed. They bounced, as if trying to jump out of the Venerable Cut Quadrant to hit someone, but collided with the invisible barrier.

“Ouch.”

Clutching their forehead with six tiny hands, Calamity Yin Baby’s eyes widened, overflowing with murderous intent, but they could only slide helplessly down the spatial barrier.

Dead silence!

Within the Venerable Cut Space, for a moment, you could hear a pin drop.

“Pfft!”

Xu Xiaoshou could no longer hold back and burst out laughing.

War Ancestor, meanwhile, was roaring with laughter, their ten-foot body almost collapsing from Calamity Yin Baby’s antics, tears practically spurting out. They stretched out a finger, larger than Calamity Yin, and pointed from afar, exclaiming in disbelief:

“Calamity Yin?”

“You are actually this tiny?”

“Could it be that you’ve regressed to the Art Proliferation period, returning to the state of a three-month-old infant? Hahahahahaha…”

The ‘hahahahas’ were not thunderclaps but War Ancestor’s laughter. Hearing that thunderous laughter, Xu Xiaoshou instead stopped laughing. How could each one be more bizarre than the last? Wasn’t the Venerable Cut Space a gathering place for Ancestor Gods, a sacred realm?

Ancestor Gods!

Unreachable, unfathomable!

Yet, looking at them now, only Hua Changdeng seemed the most dignified?

“You mere weakling, how dare you spout such nonsense in front of Calamity Yin?”

The little baby spread open their six hands, their now short and stubby claws habitually forming loose fists, as if grasping some immensely powerful force. The three Calamity Yin eyes on their three round heads narrowed, emitting a seemingly safe but utterly harmless purple light. They spoke in a cold, childish voice:

“Rewind time thirty thousand years, Calamity Yin would let you use five hands, and you still wouldn’t even touch a corner of Calamity Yin’s robe. Yet you dare to laugh?”

“War Dao? Incomplete? All show and no substance, weak in endurance!”

“You couldn’t even perfect your Dao and fell to others’ schemes. If I were you, I would have long since clasped my left shoulder and punched myself to death, saving myself from resurrection, only to continue making a fool of myself!”

Xu Xiaoshou’s expression hardened, and he glanced at Wu Bao out of the corner of his eye. War Ancestor seemed to have been stung by the mockery, freezing in place for more than three breaths, then…

“Hahahahahaha…”

They laughed so hard they fell to the ground, their large hands continuously slapping the space beneath them. They tried to say something but were completely choked by their laughter, unable to utter a single word. Finally, they could only point tremblingly at little Calamity Yin, barely managing to squeeze out a sentence after a long pause:

“Didn’t you also die under a scheme?”

Calamity Yin Baby was furious: “You!”

They furiously tried to perform an art, but because their fingers were too fat and short, the familiar two-finger Calamity Yin hand seal got stuck for a moment and couldn’t be formed directly.

“Huh?”

Calamity Yin froze, their three little faces flushing.

“Hahahahaha!”

Seeing this, War Ancestor laughed even harder, almost choking on the ground.

“Alright!”

Xu Xiaoshou, suppressing his laughter, conjured a placid human face mask onto his own, then forced out a mediating tone, speaking with difficulty: “There’s no need for you two to bicker.”

“These are grudges from millions of years ago, there’s no need to bring them up now.”

“Within the Venerable Cut Space, you cannot cast spells or harm yourselves. Even if you want to fight, you’ll have to wait for an opportunity after this battle, then I can let you fight to your heart’s content.”

“Hmph!” Calamity Yin’s left and right faces turned away, while the middle face puffed up, unwilling to look at that mere reckless weakling. They truly looked down on War Ancestor from the bottom of their heart. After all, they were utterly useless, having been outmaneuvered early in the Divine War, failing to even last until Calamity Yin and Demonic Ancestor could join forces.

*You’re so conceited…*

Seeing that little expression, Xu Xiaoshou almost couldn’t hold back again. He restrained himself, telling himself not to laugh, otherwise Calamity Yin Baby’s self-esteem would be damaged, and they might truly retreat into the Venerable Cut Quadrant forever, closing themselves off. He still wanted to thoroughly explore the Art Dao.

“Sheng Xin isn’t dead, and the Blood Demon Reverse Fate Art’s effects are still active; they will surely return.” Shifting to serious matters, Xu Xiaoshou’s expression became solemn: “Calamity Treasu… Calamity Lord, that scoundrel Sheng Xin refined you and seized your Dao. You might not wish for revenge, but I will help you avenge it.”

“Because right now, you and I are on the same side, whether you like it or not.”

“But before I avenge you, and those around me, I must first ask you…”

Xu Xiaoshou paused, his expression serious: “I can use this Dao-seizing tentacle to allow your will to be reborn, which fulfills your previous alliance invitation. But how much strength do you have left? Could it be that your Art Dao has been completely seized by Sheng Xin?”

Calamity Yin Baby’s three faces stared simultaneously, eyes narrowed, and they cursed in a childlike voice: “Utterly ignorant!”

“Oh?” Xu Xiaoshou’s mouth twitched, trying to suppress his smile.

Calamity Yin Baby sneered: “The Art Dao is vast, encompassing myriad forms. Sheng Xin might have grasped some percentage, but how could they fully digest it in such a short time?”

“What percentage?”

“…They might master some, but in actual application, it’s roughly the same as you: merely imitating clumsily, able to perform the form of Calamity Yin’s forbidden arts, but unable to restore their essence!”

“What percentage?”

“What percentage?”

“Seventy percent.”

Indeed!

Xu Xiaoshou’s face darkened. Sheng Xin had already obtained seventy percent of Calamity Yin’s Art Dao; he could at most obtain thirty percent? No wonder the Calamity Yin Baby before him was underdeveloped; no wonder the Art Dao he sensed from the connection of the Dao-seizing tentacle was a mixed bag, with many imperfections.

“A mere seventy percent!”

Calamity Yin Baby was clearly a bit annoyed. They were certainly not foolish. From the first few sentences upon their ‘birth,’ it was clear they had already deciphered the Dao-seizing tentacles and Original True Tablet—the general reason for their rebirth after demise. Undoubtedly, Xu Xiaoshou’s tentacles had enslaved them, yet had also inadvertently saved them, preventing a fate of eternal oblivion. For a useless being like War Ancestor Wu, perhaps their future fate was simply to fight for others. For Calamity Yin, however, as long as they were alive, as long as a wisp of consciousness remained, they had infinite possibilities to deduce Dao-breaking forbidden arts and break free from the tentacles’ evil spell.

Of course, not now. The current situation was that they were stuck in the Venerable Cut Quadrant; without Xu Xiaoshou’s permission, Calamity Yin, no matter how much they blustered, actually couldn’t even step out. However, understanding that the focus now was on Sheng Xin and that Calamity Yin and Xu Xiaoshou were on the same side, Calamity Yin wasted no more words:

“Seventy percent of the Art Dao is completely useless!”

“The Ever-Changing Self only needs to retain a wisp of Calamity Yin’s true consciousness to infinitely deduce arts and spells.”

“Therefore, in the path of Art, as long as I, Calamity Yin, exist, no one can claim supremacy, not even Sheng Xin!”

Waving their tiny hand indignantly, Calamity Yin proudly puffed out their chest.

“Hahahahahaha…”

War Ancestor simply couldn’t restrain themselves. Yet, they knew how inappropriate their laughter was at this moment, so while wiping away tears, they walked towards their ‘home’:

“Excuse me, you two carry on.”

“Hahahahahaha…”

Laughing all the way, they rushed into the first Venerable Cut Quadrant without stopping. But they forgot that the various quadrants of the Venerable Cut Space were not soundproof; otherwise, how could Calamity Yin’s words have been heard?

“Hahahahahaha!”

The laughter, now back home, grew more rampant and unrestrained, completely disregarding others, even starting to comment: “Childish debate, feigning maturity, making a fool of oneself, hahahaha…”

Calamity Yin: “…”

Xu Xiaoshou quickly sealed off the first Venerable Cut Quadrant, completely ‘confining’ War Ancestor. Then he lifted the restrictions and let Calamity Yin Baby out to breathe, gently advising: “Calm down, calm down.”

“Such a crude person, there’s no need to get angry with them, otherwise it would diminish the dignity of us Zero-Level Ancestor Gods.”

Calamity Yin’s round face and chubby cheeks trembled. After a long while, they exhaled, grimacing: “To actually treat Calamity Yin as a child! One day, I will kill them.”

“Yes, yes, kill them. Yes, indeed.” Xu Xiaoshou chuckled placatingly, then steered the conversation back to serious matters, “Then, in Calamity Yin Baby’s opinion…”

“AHHHH—”

Calamity Yin’s rage flared, finally unable to tolerate it. They sprang up, but could only reach Xu Xiaoshou’s knee:

“Don’t call Calamity Yin Baby!”

“Xu Xiaoshou, do you believe Calamity Yin won’t cut you down with an art?!”