Chapter 2: Chaos Creation Scripture!

The phantom before him solidified at a breakneck pace, its aura surging higher and higher until the entire dungeon trembled under the pressure. A mane of messy white hair framed only a pair of razor-sharp, crazed eyes. His robe hung in tatters, like a beggar dragged in off the roadside. No one would have guessed that this was the Mad Immortal Emperor who, a hundred thousand years ago, had thrown the whole cosmos into chaos. Yet the Mad Immortal Emperor had never truly been an Immortal Emperor. He had been a True Immortal beneath the Supreme Immortal Emperor, a figure who held Mustard Seed and Mount Sumeru in the palm of his hand. Even so, as a True Immortal, he had crossed the river of ages and cleaved an Immortal Emperor with a single sword. From that day on, the Mad True Immortal earned the title Mad Immortal Emperor, the one and only person in all history to seize an Immortal Emperor's honorific while still a True Immortal. That very title, however, provoked the other Immortal Emperors' authority. Coupled with his frenzied, lawless ways, he finally enraged them beyond restraint. In the end, they joined forces to suppress him, leaving only a wisp of Remnant Soul behind. "I told you from the start," the Mad Immortal Emperor said, shaking his head, "that your Seventh-grade Life Palace was garbage. An Immortal Emperor, me, offered to help you cultivate and you still refused. If you'd agreed, would you be stuck in this mess?" Murray Scurr let out a dry, humorless chuckle. Half a year ago, a stroke of fortune had awakened a strand of the Mad Immortal Emperor's Remnant Soul. Murray had thought the man would attempt seizing him on the spot. Instead, the old monster kept feeding him lofty pep talks, then turned around and tried to dig out his Elixir Field so he could cultivate some Chaos Creation Scripture. Back then, Murray had been riding high, brimming with confidence and talent. He would have had to be out of his mind to agree. After he refused, the Mad Immortal Emperor went straight back to sleep, only waking again today. Murray seriously suspected the bastard had done it on purpose. "What do I do?" Murray asked, voice tight. There was no other road left. He wanted revenge, and he wanted to protect the one he loved. "I'll pass you the Chaos Creation Scripture," the Mad Immortal Emperor said. "The first volume. Take the Elixir Field as your meridian." His expression hardened. His Remnant Soul would not last much longer. Without hesitation, he lifted a finger and tapped Murray between the brows. A radiant streak shot straight into Murray's forehead. "Ugh!" Murray's whole body locked up. A tidal wave of information slammed into his mind, pouring in without mercy. "The Chaos Creation Scripture is a Primordial Immortal Art. This Immortal Emperor spent a lifetime of blood and sweat to research it. Yet before my grand vow could be fulfilled, I perished as my Dao dispersed. I would not accept it. I wished to create an Immortal Emperor and break the Great Way!" "Fifty paths comprise the Cosmic Order. Heaven unfolds forty‑nine of them. Open forty-nine Hidden Meridians. Each Hidden Meridian is the equivalent of an Elixir Field and can contain limitless power!" "When the time comes, you will possess the makings of a great emperor. Then open one hundred and eight Main Meridian. Enough to sever the ages and rule a thousand autumns!" "Kid, you're getting a bargain. Don't disappoint me!" Murray's eyes snapped open. Sweat drenched him from head to toe. After absorbing the Chaos Creation Scripture, he finally understood. *So that's why…* "It was all because I had the Seven-Orifice Exquisite Heart." The Mad Immortal Emperor had chosen him for that very reason. The Seven-Orifice Exquisite Heart fit the Chaos Creation Scripture perfectly. It could even open two more orifices and achieve the Nine-Orifice Exquisite Heart. Nine-Orifice Exquisite Heart. The heart of an immortal. "Murray Scurr, this is the Eighteen-tier Pagoda," the Mad Immortal Emperor said, producing a small tower. "Inside, I've suppressed every powerful soul I ever slaughtered. Each soul's strength can fill one Hidden Meridian. Know your limits. Do not get greedy." "With my current strength, I can suppress the Eighteen-tier Pagoda for you for three years. Within those three years, you must grow strong enough to suppress it yourself." "If you fail… any one of the souls inside can tear you into pieces." Murray stared at the Eighteen-tier Pagoda in the Mad Immortal Emperor's hand, silent. Three years. Too short. But he had no choice but to walk this path. "And you must open as many Hidden Meridians as you can," the Mad Immortal Emperor continued. "Devour the souls' power. The more you take, the easier it becomes to suppress." As he spoke, his figure dimmed. Fatigue seeped into his bones, as if the wind could scatter him. Murray's chest tightened. The Mad Immortal Emperor had not refused to save him. He had been saving his last strength to help him suppress the Eighteen-tier Pagoda. "I'll help you open your first Hidden Meridian," the Mad Immortal Emperor said. "Once it succeeds, you'll fuse with the Eighteen-tier Pagoda. You'll be able to devour a soul and gain supreme power and Divine Power." With that, his body dispersed into a streak of light and merged into the Eighteen-tier Pagoda. The pagoda flared brilliantly, then shot into Murray's forehead and fused with him. "Clang, clang, clang!" A surge of force flooded his body. The iron chains and hooks shattered all at once. His wounds knit shut in moments. At the same time, a meridians as thick as a thumb condensed within his Elixir Field, swelling and expanding without pause. "Ah!" Murray crashed to the ground. The pain of the Hidden Meridians expanding ripped a scream from his throat. Beads of sweat rolled off him like rain. "Betrayal. A sea of blood and hatred," he snarled through clenched teeth, fists hammering the floor. His eyes bulged, bloodshot and trembling. "What is this pain compared to that!" He endured it, teeth grinding, refusing to yield. "Hng!" With a muffled groan, he blacked out. His consciousness plunged into the Eighteen-tier Pagoda. He found himself in a vast space, white fog stretching endlessly in every direction. Murray turned his head, taking it all in, astonishment rising in his throat. "So this is inside the Eighteen-tier Pagoda?" "This is the pagoda's first level," the Mad Immortal Emperor's voice said suddenly. Murray whirled around. When he saw the Mad Immortal Emperor, relief and joy hit him at once. Good. He had not vanished. "The first level holds five Heavenly Venerable Soul," the Mad Immortal Emperor said. "I can only help you suppress the pagoda. Whether you can devour a Divine Lord Soul depends on you." "Heavenly Venerable Soul…" Murray sucked in a sharp breath. Those were monsters who wielded the power of law itself, strong enough to shake heaven and earth. As expected of the Mad Immortal Emperor. Anyone he had imprisoned was no nameless nobody. "If the first level already holds Heavenly Venerable-level experts," Murray said, heart jolting, "then what's locked on the eighteenth-" He stared at the Mad Immortal Emperor, horrified. "That's right," the Mad Immortal Emperor said, nodding. "Above the eighteen levels, what's suppressed are Immortal Emperor Soul. I look forward to the day you swallow one." Swallow an Immortal Emperor Soul. A feat unheard of since time began. He had waited for that day with a hunger that never died. Murray's blood boiled just imagining it. Devouring the soul of a Supreme Immortal Emperor that had been suppressed for ages… even the thought made his scalp tingle. He drew a long breath and forced himself to calm down. For the moment, it was only a fantasy. A Supreme Immortal Emperor's soul could probably kill him with a single glance. "Mad Immortal Emperor!" A sudden roar exploded through the fog, making Murray flinch. He turned. A figure burst out of the white mist, eyes sharp as blades. His tall, straight body looked like a divine sword thrusting up to pierce the sky. "Lawless Sword Venerable," the Mad Immortal Emperor said, giving him a sidelong glance. "A Sword Way powerhouse. He once used Sword Law to slaughter an entire Small World." Murray's breath caught. A Heavenly Venerable-level expert… far more terrifying than he had imagined. "If you devour his soul," the Mad Immortal Emperor said, "you'll form your first Hidden Meridians: Sword Meridian." "And you'll gain his most core power." "Mad Immortal Emperor!" Lawless Sword Venerable bellowed, glaring at him. "You've imprisoned me for fifteen hundred thousand years. How much longer are you going to keep me locked up?" He raged, yet he did not dare step closer. A Heavenly Venerable was nothing but an ant in an Immortal Emperor's eyes. "Lawless Sword Venerable," the Mad Immortal Emperor said lightly, "let's make a deal. Kill him, and I'll let you out. How about it?" Lawless Sword Venerable froze. He turned to Murray, suspicion flickering in his gaze. "Kill him?" This was a brat with no cultivation. In his eyes, Murray was less than an ant. A casual flick of his hand would crush him. "That's your word!" Lawless Sword Venerable shouted, ecstasy surging through him. He lunged straight at Murray. Murray's face drained of color. This was a Heavenly Venerable-level monster. Just being stared at felt like a mountain pressing down on his spine. "Chaos Creation Scripture!" He forced himself to steady his breathing and circulated the art. The surrounding white fog roared into his body, swallowed in a frenzy. The Chaos Creation Scripture surged, its power climbing violently. Lawless Sword Venerable's eyes flashed with surprise. Then his expression turned vicious. He raised two fingers like a blade and stabbed toward Murray's forehead. "I'm done being pushed around," Murray roared, planting his feet. "No one gets to kill me. Not you either, Lawless Sword Venerable!" "Devour!" He threw his head back and howled. At the same time, seven-colored radiance burst from his left chest. "Seven-Orifice Exquisite Heart!" Lawless Sword Venerable's face changed. Instinctive fear made him retreat. The Seven-Orifice Exquisite Heart was not only Clear Enlightenment of the Way, it also restrained the soul itself. But it was too late. A terrifying suction slammed into him, dragging him forward against his will, pulling him straight toward Murray. "Th-This… what kind of art is this?!" "Ah… no! Mad Immortal Emperor! You locked me up for fifteen hundred thousand years and you still won't let me go? Let me go! Let me go!"