CHAPTER 452: CHAPTER 446: SUMMONING GODS AND SCOLDING GHOSTS

The Great Mighty Sky General Seal—this was the most standard cultivation method for the Great Mighty Sky General Seal!

Immortal Miaoshan couldn’t help but bow; she truly had no other way to express the awe in her heart at this moment.

Though young and having never witnessed the former majesty of the Not Eating Beef Lord, she had heard from various senior brothers and sisters about this Master and the power of the Great Mighty Sky General Seal dharma method he cultivated.

The Shousui method of Entering the Mansion emphasized Qi Eating, but Qi Eating Skills varied, and so did the cultivation methods. Within Not Eating Beef, there were many bold, meticulous, and knowledgeable senior brothers, yet so many who attempted to cultivate this method failed. Why was that?

In short, it was too arrogant!

The Big Senior Brother once said that when he accompanied the Master to Shangjing in those years, he saw the grandest National Protection Hall in the Yi Capital. All Civil and Military Officials, along with the Emperor’s family and relatives, young and old alike, came there to worship. Lingering incense filled the air, resounding bell tolls echoed, and a seven-foot-tall Divine Statue faced south, overlooking all beings in the world.

The Big Senior Brother, intimidated by the Divine Statue, trembled. The Sect Hierarch asked him what thoughts came to mind upon seeing the Divine Statue.

The Big Senior Brother said he wanted to go forward to worship its toes, to kneel for peace and happiness, many children and bountiful fortune, favorable weather, and to build a grand mansion in the future with ten wives.

Yet the Sect Hierarch laughed and said, "I want to bring it down and sit on it myself."

At that time, the Sect Hierarch was only a newly initiated member of the mansion, while the Big Senior Brother was a long-term worker in his family. They had entered the capital hoping the Master could secure an official position.

But the Sect Hierarch’s arrogance was already evident then. During his first visit to the capital, he wasn’t fascinated by those noble figures or even the Emperor on the Golden Throne Hall; he was fascinated by the gods reigning high in the National Protection Hall.

Henceforth, following some untold experiences, the Sect Hierarch’s Great Mighty Sky General Seal began to emerge. It was unlike any other dharma method, and no second person had ever successfully cultivated it, yet it was longed for by every disciple in Not Eating Beef.

"I stand tall on the platform, gods and ghosts must revere me!"

"My little ones, I neither accept your worship nor wish for you to develop the habit of kowtowing to everyone you see. But it’s not that I dare not accept worship; if I am to be worshipped, it will only be by those gods and ghosts."

"Who made them so fond of making people kowtow? Since they enjoy it, I shall make them kowtow to me!"

"With one finger I point to the sky, denouncing its injustice; with one finger I point to humanity, detesting its lack of striving. Standing on one foot in a fighting stance, I look upon the gods and ghosts filling the heavens—who among them dares to remain high and mighty?"

Such words were heard and memorized by many senior brothers, passed down by word of mouth, evoking a profound sense of longing. Of course, the senior brothers also admitted, Truthfully, we didn’t quite understand those words when the Master spoke them back then, but they sounded incredibly powerful!

If the senior brothers didn’t understand, Immortal Miaoshan naturally understood even less. But it didn’t hinder her imagination. Especially at this moment, it was as if she saw the shadow of the Great Master Daliang from long ago superimposed on Hu Ma.

One hand pointed to the sky, the other to the earth; he had already formed a Magic Seal with his physical body.

His Divine Soul emerged from his Seven Apertures, manifesting above his head. With an imposing shout, it forced the Yin General to its knees. The countless vengeful souls followed suit, all their ferocity and unwillingness continuously converging onto Hu Ma.

Accepting worship from one with a malicious heart entailed risk and curses.

At this time, Hu Ma accepted the worship of the Yin General combined with the countless vengeful souls. From this worship emanated the weight borne by the Yin General, as well as the eerie ghost qi and innate curse qi from the kowtowing dead souls. It resembled surging dark clouds, all rolling towards him.

An ordinary person receiving such worship might have their lifespan immediately depleted, turning into a Vengeful Ghost brimming with baleful energy.

But Hu Ma took a deep breath, accepting it all. Far from faltering, the Divine Soul manifesting above his head was rapidly transforming—solidifying, growing fiercer, and becoming progressively more towering.

The greater his Divine Soul’s transformation, the stronger its suppressive force became, making it impossible for the Yin General to lift its head. The lower the Yin General bowed, the more the karmic backlash was directed entirely onto Hu Ma. This energy then integrated into the Great Mighty Sky General Seal, further suppressing the Yin General.

If Hu Ma’s earlier ingestion of a breath of yin qi was merely an introduction, then at this moment, he had officially transitioned from introduction to the cultivation of the Magic body.

However, it was too fast.

It was so fast that his Divine Soul surged, beginning to morph into a Dharma Form. Aggressive, hostile energy rushed towards his second Mansion Gate. So fast, in fact, that after merely accepting this one act of worship, his Divine Soul already bore the formidable appearance of a case god.

One night of cultivation could equal ten years of others’ efforts!

Immortal Miaoshan’s heart trembled. She had heard about and even seen some senior brothers cultivating the Great Mighty Sky General Seal, but never at such a frightening speed.

Most critically, she felt that Hu Ma might truly succeed in his cultivation.

At the same time, outside Shima Town, Iron Steed Grand Hall Officer suddenly raised an eyebrow, his eyes snapping open. He said coldly, "Someone in the town is Qi Eating, and it seems very ferocious!"

"What a fellow!"

The young man from the Meng family, who had borrowed vengeful souls held by servant ghosts and was patiently waiting for someone from the town to come out and kowtow to him, also perceived something. He suddenly chuckled softly, saying, "I was wondering why the one who stole the General Order has such backbone, refusing to come out and kowtow to me."

"Turns out he had this ace up his sleeve? He wants to use the pressure of the Yin General’s fate, which I’ve influenced, as an opportunity to nourish his soul?"

"Sometimes, after staying home for too long, you come out and genuinely discover that the world has more and more madmen, and their whimsical ideas are also multiplying..."

"This is a rebellious technique!

"

Iron Steed Grand Hall Officer’s eyes flashed with a fierce light as he sternly shouted, "My Shousui Righteous Skill cannot tolerate such fierce and evil techniques! As Shousui’s Great Sword-Catcher, I am responsible for purging evil spirits from this Path!"

"Second Young Master, do you have any other methods?"

"If not, then don’t blame me for not honoring your three-day wager. It’s time for me to act."

He was short-statured; his pauldrons nearly supported his round head, while the edges of his armor almost touched the ground. Yet now, filled with anger, his fierce shout seemed to change the color of the wind and clouds, his stature appearing to have grown much taller.

"Heh, why the rush, General?"

Young Master Meng chuckled, shaking his head. "I just found it somewhat novel. His current method of Soul Nourishment reminded me of that great demon from the past."

"Though that demon was fierce and mad, his end was also extremely miserable. Yet now, unexpectedly, someone wants to emulate him."

As he spoke, he gently shook his head again. "Forcibly seizing the General Order, borrowing my technique to cultivate your soul? A nice thought, but alas..."

"...Did you really think any stray dog that crawls out from who-knows-where can withstand such a karmic burden?"

As he spoke these words, even Iron Steed Grand Hall Officer thought Young Master Meng was about to unleash some formidable technique. He instinctively stepped back to clear the area. Yet, unexpectedly, Young Master Meng simply received three incense sticks from the maid beside him.

Still speaking, he held the incense sticks in both hands and gently bowed towards Shima Town.

With just this one bow, the surrounding flames flickered. It was as if an immensely heavy, invisible substance had appeared between heaven and earth, rolling over the woodland in between.

CRACK.

Simultaneously, Hu Ma—who had borrowed the technique to nourish his soul and was cultivating his body with Qi Eating—was witnessing the alarming progression of his Divine Soul. It was now showing signs of achieving Dharma Form, and the second Mansion Gate for Shousui was on the verge of opening directly. Suddenly, his complexion changed slightly as he heard a sound.

That was the sound of the General Order shattering.

He had harnessed the power of the General Order to subdue the Yin General and sought to nourish his soul to achieve a Magic body. But at this very moment, inexplicably, the General Order showed signs of breaking apart.

CRASH.

As this crack appeared in the General Order, the Yin General kneeling before him showed signs of rising.

And Hu Ma’s Divine Soul, which had absorbed too much energy and was on the verge of attaining a Magic body, also began to sway. The weight of the Divine Soul seemed so overwhelming for his physical form that it felt on the verge of detaching from his body.

"The General Order should be sufficient to subdue the Yin General, and it was perfectly timed to allow me to achieve a Magic body..."

Hu Ma became alert in that instant. "This was a shortcut, one that could allow me to directly push open the second Mansion Gate, saving me what would take others ten years of effort!"

"The path was clearly working; why are there signs of collapse now?"

He took a deep breath and focused his senses outward. Vaguely, he seemed to see the eerie ghost fog in the forest outside the town transforming, taking the shape of a giant human figure holding three dim incense sticks and bowing with malicious intent towards him.

"The abilities of the Meng family are indeed formidable..."

"He has his sights set on the Yin General, wanting to refine that absurd Ghost General Platform. Naturally, he would have considered all possibilities, even what to do if the person who stole the General Order genuinely found a way to suppress the Yin General..."

"So he always had a way to make even the General Order untenable?"

His mind was filled with emotion, yet he had to acknowledge that the Ten Surnames, as ancestors of the Path, indeed possessed qualities different from ordinary folk. Their actions seemed spontaneous because they always had easy solutions to any trouble they encountered.

Just like his own use of a borrowed technique for body cultivation, which he had thought out very clearly; yet, with merely an offering of incense, they could burden him beyond endurance.

"Unfortunately..."

He sighed softly, then opened his eyes, a new resolve in them. "I am also one of the Ten Surnames..."

"I am originally a Hu Family member, the sole heir of Zhensui Mansion. This identity weighs more than any General Order..."

Cultivating the Great Mighty Sky General Seal indeed required something like the General Order to enhance one’s karmic weight and suppress the Divine Soul. But who said that the General Order was my only method?

You consider yourself superior because you’re from the Meng family, looking down on this and that. You even harbor delusions of using that unseen fate to shatter the General Order and destroy my abilities?

It’s a pity for you, but this worship of yours—I can withstand it!

You dared to offer me these three incense sticks. I, in turn, dare to borrow this worship to refine my fearless Great Mighty Sky General Seal Dharma Form, and even...

...I should thank you for it!