Chapter 87: Origins

Kongkong’s soul has left his body. He must have sensed that Shouzheng is calling for him. We should hurry there at once.

Jiang Litian saw that the spirit monkey, which had been hopping about beside them only moments before, suddenly go still. It immediately reminded him of what had happened earlier at Shen Bijun’s home, when Kongkong had likewise sent out his soul to the netherworld to rescue Zhang Shouzheng.

"Let’s go. I want to see what sort of man this Li Taku is. Since he likes to make corpse slaves so much, it is only fitting that I, too, happen to enjoy making ghost slaves."

Granny Yinshan set down her teacup and gave a chilly smile that sent a shiver down the spine.

Soon after, the group left the luxury residential compound. Jiang Litian drove, taking Jiu’er and Granny Yinshan toward Li Taku’s location. Since they had dealt with Li Taku before, they knew his exact whereabouts. On the way, Jiang Litian ran through several red lights in a row. He knew exactly what kind of man Li Taku was; if Zhang Shouzheng fell into his hands, then even if he remained alive, his fate would be a miserable one.

Jiu’er sat in the back seat, breathing heavily, her fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white. A flicker of killing intent surfaced in her eyes. If Senior Brother Shouzheng was truly suffering some calamity, she would bite Li Taku to death without hesitation. Yes, bite him to death.

"Kongkong, crush him!"

Zhang Shouzheng burst out laughing, but the next moment he could laugh no more, because that seemingly overwhelming palm stopped several feet above Li Taku’s head. Somehow, a palm-sized green lotus had formed overhead, glowing with a faint emerald light. A subtle fragrance drifted from it as it rotated. Most peculiar of all, a milky-white jade slip hovered above the lotus, as if possessing some unfathomable power.

"Master, I can’t hurt him!"

Kongkong’s childish voice rang out. The next instant, the furry giant hand withdrew. From within the black clouds, a huge shadow dropped down before Zhang Shouzheng. The moment he saw Kongkong in soul form, Zhang Shouzheng was struck dumb.

What monkey was this? It was clearly a Vajra. No, not even a Vajra this enormous. Kongkong’s current form was more than six meters tall, and its arms in particular were massive. Golden talismans covered its entire body, giving it an air of profound mystery.

"Why can’t you hurt him? Back in the netherworld, didn’t you crush that ghost demon with one hand? I even saw it myself."

Zhang Shouzheng took a deep breath and lifted one hand toward the air before him. With a flick of his wrist, he began writing in empty space. An arcane talisman materialized in the air.

"Heaven and earth, boundless as one. Azure Dragon True Law. Slaying Evil Blade, take form!"

The talisman flashed faintly and transformed into a three-foot blade wreathed in blue light. Runes spiraled around it, and its aura was so powerful it seemed almost solid. When Zhang Shouzheng raised his arm, the Slaying Evil Blade likewise hovered upward. As the incantation ended, he pressed his palm downward, and the blade shot forth, cleaving toward Li Taku.

Li Taku, however, had all along been examining Kongkong’s soul, as if confirming something. Then he fixed Zhang Shouzheng with a look of unrestrained delight, his conviction only deepening.

Seeing the Slaying Evil Blade come flying at him, he was not the least bit angered. Instead, he spoke calmly: "All the arts of Dao under heaven come from the Li clan, and they are all recorded within these three heavenly volumes. How could you possibly cultivate such vulgar sorcery?"

As he finished speaking, he lifted a finger and pointed ahead. He did not even form a hand seal or recite an incantation. From the tip of his finger shot a streak of azure sword light. It swirled once around the Slaying Evil Blade, and that seemingly invincible weapon began to shatter bit by bit.

Zhang Shouzheng was horrified beyond measure.

This was a spell with such devastating power that he had only dared to use it after his cultivation had reached the day-walking realm. Whether against demons, spirits, or living men, it possessed terrifying killing force. Yet it had been destroyed by a single finger.

"Master, I’m still too weak. My soul can’t remain outside the body for long. What should I do? This man carries a very unusual aura, the same as Master’s. I can’t pose any threat to him."

Kongkong turned back, looking at Zhang Shouzheng with a thoroughly innocent expression. He had not expected that he would be unable to harm Li Taku, and had even begun to doubt his own abilities.

"Demon-warding spirit monkey. Of course you cannot hurt me, because I am of the Li family, and you are the divine monkey who protects the Li family. That is why you cannot harm me. Return to your body quickly. Your current power is still too weak. If your soul remains out in daylight for too long, it will be damaged. Rest assured, I will not harm your master, because because he and I are family."

Li Taku smiled faintly, looking up at the enormous demon-warding spirit monkey.

"Family? I have family?"

A thunderclap exploded in Zhang Shouzheng’s mind. His soul automatically returned to his body, and when Kongkong saw that Li Taku had also returned to his own body and no longer intended to harm Zhang Shouzheng, it finally turned into a mass of black cloud and departed.

"Yes. You bear the blood of the Li family, so of course you are one of us. By your present age, I would even count as your forebear. For all these years I have been searching for the Li family’s descendants, never imagining I would meet one here. I am truly fortunate."

Unable to restrain himself, Li Taku came over to Zhang Shouzheng and reached out to ruffle his hair.

"I don’t even know my own origins. How would you know? Hmph, you must be trying to deceive me, or perhaps you’re after Kongkong."

Zhang Shouzheng took several steps back and eyed Li Taku warily.

Li Taku smiled and let out a soft sigh, his face full of sorrow. "We are not deceiving you. The Kongkong you mentioned is indeed the demon-warding spirit monkey. That is an unchangeable fact. Besides, the demon-warding spirit monkey is born with the duty of protecting the Li family’s descendants. Otherwise, why would it treat you so well? Outsiders can never tame a demon-warding spirit monkey. They would rather die than submit to a foreign bloodline. And the Qianyuan Pearl is also one of our Li family’s treasures. Just now I saw your soul leave your body, and within that I sensed the aura of the Qianyuan Pearl. Moreover, the Qianyuan Pearl was forged by several old fellows of the Li family using their own pure yang essence blood. You simply cannot absorb its power yet. After all, you are still far too weak."

"Kongkong grew up with me, so of course he would recognize me as his master. How do I know this demon-warding spirit monkey of yours is not something you made up? And as for this Qianyuan Pearl, you’re mistaken there too. Master said he had obtained it before he ever found me."

Zhang Shouzheng shook his head, though the wariness in his eyes had eased somewhat. If Li Taku truly meant to kill him, why bother speaking to him at such length?

This man’s soul and body did not resemble one another at all, which meant he was very likely like Wei Ziyang, an existence that had returned to life by taking over a corpse. He could not afford to be careless.

"Of course I know that. And the Qianyuan Pearl appeared in the Heavenly Dao Sect long ago. If I recall correctly, at that time the pearl had fallen into the hands of a little fellow named Huayuan."

Li Taku remained unconcerned, explaining with remarkable patience. At the same time, he narrowed his eyes slightly and examined Zhang Shouzheng with painstaking care, unwilling to miss even the smallest detail.

"The third-generation patriarch, Huayuan!"

Zhang Shouzheng was so shocked that his jaw nearly dropped. He had heard from Qingxu that after the ten-day massacre in Yang City, it was precisely the third-generation patriarch, Huayuan, who had built the Ghost Suppression Tower there. Li Taku even knew of this. Could he truly be his ancestor?

"Yes, it should be the third generation. Think about it. The Qianyuan Pearl is such a treasure, with effects beyond imagination. From the third-generation patriarch of the Heavenly Dao Sect down to the present, this pearl has passed through the hands of who knows how many disciples, yet why has it remained intact? Why has no one ever known how to use it?"

Li Taku’s tone sharpened. The warmth in his expression vanished as he lightly pinched Zhang Shouzheng’s cheek.

At once, Zhang Shouzheng felt the world spin around him. His own suspicions had been right. His master knew his origins and had also said that the Qianyuan Pearl was intimately connected to him. It seemed his master even knew of the enemies who had been destroyed. Thinking of this, his steps faltered and he nearly collapsed to the ground, but Li Taku steadied him firmly.