Chapter 1350: Characters Linking Heaven and Earth

Early the next morning, the three flew south on their swords.

They flew until they reached the border where the Mortal World met the Desolate Sea.

Traces of a fishing village could still be seen along the coast, but under the oppression of the demons of Hongyuan Tianxia, the place had long been abandoned. The tide had already washed several houses away entirely.

Chen Changsheng swept his gaze across the area before letting it settle on Yun Hengzi.

Yun Hengzi said, "Fellow Daoist, you and I are different. This is a struggle over qi destiny. Humans can slay demons, and demons can eat humans. This is inherently a war; there is no reasoning with it."

The world was just like that—an unreasonable place where the strong were revered.

Each side simply fought for its own cause; there was no clear right or wrong, good or bad.

Yun Hengzi pointed to a particular spot. "Look there, Fellow Daoist. What do you think?"

Chen Changsheng followed his gaze and saw a seaside cliff.

The steep rock face was battered by massive waves below, which had carved a deep depression into the stone.

Chen Changsheng took one look and said, "It will do."

Yun Hengzi said, "I studied the Dao of arrays in my early years and heard rumors of many grand formations, whether for slaughter or Illusory Arrays. Hearing that you wish to set up a massive array to eradicate the locust plague, I couldn't help but be curious. Laying out a Heaven and Earth Grand Formation is incredibly difficult on its own, much less one targeted solely at locusts."

Chen Changsheng replied, "All things leave traces to follow. The path of Formations is ever-changing and unpredictable. From the ancient-script cultivators of early years to the array cultivators who came later, the long passage of time has naturally provided answers."

"I would be glad to hear the details."

Chen Changsheng raised his hand. With a flip of his wrist, the Listening Rain Sword fell into his grasp.

He leapt into the air, arriving before the cliff face.

Yun Hengzi followed closely behind, and Zhao Yuqing stepped forward as well.

Under their watchful eyes, Chen Changsheng raised his sword and began carving into the cliff.

One by one, ancient runes were etched across the stone.

Seeing that the ancient characters implicitly contained the fortune of heaven and earth, Yun Hengzi was stunned.

"Characters linking heaven and earth?!"

At a glance, Yun Hengzi recognized these as ancient characters that communicated directly with the heavens and the earth.

He couldn't help but look at Chen Changsheng with entirely new respect.

He acutely realized his mistake. The Dao Cultivation of the man before him was profound beyond measure.

Countless cultivators across the world could not comprehend a single fraction of these obscure ancient characters. Even a peerless genius with exceptional perception would find it incredibly difficult to grasp just one. Yet this man had carved several characters in succession without a moment's pause.

At that moment, Yun Hengzi understood where Chen Changsheng's confidence came from.

With such a profound mastery over ancient characters, he truly had nothing to fear from the locust plague.

Chen Changsheng carved several columns of ancient script into the cliff.

Suddenly, the heavens and earth responded.

The Dao rhythm of heaven and earth cascaded down. As Chen Changsheng sheathed his sword, the ancient characters on the cliff began to pulse with light.

Yun Hengzi took two steps back just as a golden light flared into the air.

Chen Changsheng exhaled and said, "This place is done. Let's head to the next one."

Yun Hengzi froze for a moment before stepping forward. "To think that your Dao has earned the favor of heaven and earth, Fellow Daoist. To unleash such might through the path of ancient characters is truly worthy of endless praise."

Chen Changsheng looked up at the sky and said, "The heavens are just doing me a favor."

The group traveled to a few other locations.

In quick succession, they established three more array nodes using the ancient characters.

Watching the Dao rhythm radiating from the Ancient Character Formation, Yun Hengzi sensed its flow and managed to glean a few details.

A bit puzzled, he asked, "Fellow Daoist, you actually left a sliver of survival for those locusts within the array. Why not eradicate them completely?"

Chen Changsheng said, "All things follow a set rule. Cats catch snakes, and snakes eat rats. This is inherently a cycle of Reincarnation. Breaking any link will have consequences. Killing them all is not necessarily a good thing."

Yun Hengzi pondered this. A moment later, he cupped his hands in respect. "Thank you for the guidance."

"You are too polite, Fellow Daoist."

After laying down the three array nodes, Chen Changsheng felt it was about enough for this area.

Zhao Yuqing glanced at Chen Changsheng and said, "Do you not plan to reinforce that ancient character array node on the cliff? I saw the seawater washing over it; it seems to be wearing the formation away."

Chen Changsheng shook his head. "This formation will break one day. I have received the aid of heaven, so I must also leave a sliver of leeway for heaven and earth. Taking absolutely everything will only lead to greater losses in the end."

Zhao Yuqing stroked his chin, unable to understand Chen Changsheng's reasoning.

When the Dao rhythm of heaven and earth was already assisting them this much, why did he still need to hold back?

Zhao Yuqing was more or less confused.

He vaguely sensed that there was a deeper reason, only that Chen Changsheng was keeping it to himself, so he didn't press the matter.

Even after establishing the three array nodes, the Heaven and Earth Grand Formation remained dormant.

It still lacked more nodes.

Chen Changsheng still needed to make a trip north.

He needed to establish a few more array nodes in the eastern position of the world.

Chen Changsheng exhaled and said, "This Chen still needs to make a trip to the Tongtian River to lay down an array node. Thank you for your assistance this time, Fellow Daoist."

Yun Hengzi smiled. "Think nothing of it. Helping you, Fellow Daoist, is also helping myself."

Chen Changsheng gave a slight nod, bidding the two men farewell.

Zhao Yuqing said, "I won't be accompanying you either. The rice in my fields will be ready to harvest soon."

Chen Changsheng paused for a moment upon hearing that, then nodded in response.

They parted ways there.

Yun Hengzi watched him leave.

Brimming with curiosity, he asked, "I wonder if the Lord of Yunfu Mountain has some free time to tell me a bit about this Fellow Daoist Chen?"

Zhao Yuqing replied, "I'm busy. The fields need watering. Next time."

Yun Hengzi offered a helpless smile. "Next time it is, then."

He was indeed incredibly curious.

Yun Hengzi raised his hand, attempting to divine some information.

But he was suddenly stopped by Zhao Yuqing, who said, "I advise you not to divine anything about him."

Yun Hengzi blinked. "Why?"

Zhao Yuqing only smiled and offered no explanation.

With that, he turned back to tend to his rice fields.

That night.

Zhao Yuqing had just finished tending to his fields. When he turned his head, he saw a massive surge of merit ascending to the heavens.

He instantly burst into laughter.

"Didn't listen to an old man's advice."

Zhao Yuqing laughed, feeling in exceedingly high spirits.

Meanwhile, deep in the valley, Yun Hengzi wore a look of utter helplessness.

"I regret it..."

Yun Hengzi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Watching so much merit dissipate from his body, he regretted not listening to Zhao Yuqing earlier.

"It truly is so. Curiosity really can kill a cat..."

Yun Hengzi shook his head, cursing himself for his own stupidity.

But the merit was already gone.

A full two centuries of merit, gone from a single divination.

Chen Changsheng rode his sword to the Tongtian River.

Mo Yuan leapt up from the Tongtian River. Amid the clouds and mist of the world, he saw Mister Chen.

Chen Changsheng explained the purpose of his visit.

After listening, Mo Yuan said, "Mo Yuan is willing to lend Mister a helping hand."

Chen Changsheng said, "It is no trouble. This Chen has already written the array runes. I only need to find a place to imprint them."

Mo Yuan paused in surprise upon hearing this. "Why doesn't Mister visit the Dragon Palace for a chat? The Dragon Maiden and the two dragon Crown Princes all miss Mister."

Chen Changsheng opened his mouth, but after a moment of hesitation, he shook his head.

"I will pass."