Chapter 63: The Savage Bull of the Nine Netherworlds

Having gathered almost all the spirit stones and spirit marrow he needed, Lin Zhan sat cross-legged on the spot and began to study the Scripture of Creation in earnest. After all, having obtained the scripture, he still needed to practice it. Only Lin Zhan could be so oblivious—preoccupied with mining all this time, and only now turning to the serious work.

The Scripture of Creation was divided into nine chapters, known as the Nine Forms of Creation. The first form, represented by the first page of the Nine Star Chart, was called the “Law of Creation.”

This chapter focused on cultivating the divine sense. All things are born from creation, all things possess the power of creation, and all things give rise to the causes and effects of creation. If one mastered the Law of Creation, they could use their divine sense to trace the marks of creation upon objects or people, thereby achieving control—be it over objects or even over other beings.

This control over others was not merely about influencing someone’s actions; it meant the ability to manipulate them, heal, save lives, or, conversely, bring about death—granting power over life and death itself.

The Law of Creation, the first form of the Scripture of Creation, was divided into three stages: lower, middle, and upper.

The first stage was the Awakening of Creation.

This awakening meant that, once the practitioner had mastered this form, they could sense the latent power of creation within a person or object. Once awakened, a connection was established between the caster and the target, akin to opening the celestial eye. Whether one wished to know the nature or origin of a thing, or uncover a person’s secrets, all would become clear.

In battle, this meant knowing oneself and one’s enemy, greatly increasing the odds of victory.

Within the sea of consciousness, the thousand-foot stone wall that the first page of the scripture had become now glowed with radiant golden characters, each one reawakening as Lin Zhan calmed his mind and breathed in and out, causing the entire sea of consciousness to rejoice.

Lin Zhan carefully contemplated the script within the scripture. His eyes were calm and steady, his mind and spirit united. Spiritual energy rose from his spiritual sea and slowly circulated through his body.

The power of creation—present in all things—slowly began to stir within Lin Zhan, a new force tossing and turning, hesitating to reveal itself.

This had to be the mark of creation within his own body, the residual power of cause and effect left by creation itself. If he could grasp this subtle feeling, he believed he would achieve his own awakening of creation. Only after taking this first step could he hope to awaken the creation within others or objects.

With such careful scrutiny—bit by bit, thread by thread—finally Lin Zhan’s body trembled slightly. He exhaled a long breath, and his spirit, energy, and essence gained an indescribable new quality.

Following the guidance of the mind technique in the first chapter of the scripture, Lin Zhan tried to guide this power of creation within his body, moving it slowly.

At first, this power was faint. Yet, as he spurred it on with the mind technique, a resonance began to build around him. The air, the earth beneath him, the surrounding spirit stone veins—throughout the entire cave mansion—a similar energy began to flow in, at first as thin as hair, then gradually thickening to the width of a finger, forming a steadily spinning Wheel of Creation.

Meanwhile, the golden characters on the first page of the stone wall in his spiritual sea continued to flicker on and off.

Lin Zhan knew that once he mastered the Law of Creation, the golden characters on this first page would remain eternally bright.

“Ha! As long as I keep this up, my power of creation can grow endlessly!”

The Wheel of Creation continued to spin of its own accord. Lin Zhan ended his meditation, stood up, stretched broadly, and prepared to leave—there were still seven more teams under Cao Jin waiting for him to fight.

Suddenly, his spiritual link with the white bone tower shifted subtly, as if something was invading it.

Lin Zhan’s divine sense instantly extended, reaching the cave entrance. What he saw there stunned him.

“When did so many hideous beasts appear in the Blazing Lake?”

Indeed, a great horde of monsters had gathered. They looked like elephants Lin Zhan had seen before, but they were shorter and stockier, as if compressed versions of elephants.

Their bodies were pitch black and sleek, their heads grotesque with long, writhing tentacles—an ugly, shocking sight.

These monstrous elephants were battering the white bone tower with their tentacles, sending waves of shock through the water.

“Nine Nether Brutes?”

These were amphibious mutants, a species that had slipped through the spatial rifts of the Nine Nether and were briefly mentioned in the book “The Blue Ice World.”

“Hideous in appearance, their flesh is edible, their hides tough and durable—suitable for clothing or bowstrings. Their fighting strength matches the ninth rank of the human tier. The Nine Nether Brute King can reach the yellow tier in strength.”

Lin Zhan straightened, leaping up and rushing toward the cave entrance.

He seized the white bone tower and strode out boldly, swinging the tower to reseal the exit behind him.

Then he turned to face the dense horde of Nine Nether Brutes.

Though their strength matched the ninth rank of the human tier and Lin Zhan himself had reached the first rank of the yellow tier, the enemy’s overwhelming numbers were a concern.

Startled by Lin Zhan’s sudden appearance, the Nine Nether Brutes halted their assault.

A commotion stirred among them as if they were in discussion. Then, a path opened, and out wobbled a colossal Nine Nether Brute, three times the size of the others.

Ah, what a sight—this was the Nine Nether Brute King!

Lin Zhan drew a sharp breath. Today might be the day he met his end—never had he expected even the Brute King to appear.

With the king’s arrival, the other brutes fell silent, their restlessness quelled. The atmosphere grew tense and oppressive.

The Brute King seemed to regard Lin Zhan with great interest, its massive tentacled trunk sniffing in his direction.

A shrill, grating noise sounded, making Lin Zhan frown. Was this some kind of sonic attack? Yet its power seemed negligible—not worth worrying about.

“Cough, cough—human boy, this is my forbidden domain. If you’re wise, get out of the way!”

Ha! So it had been adjusting its speech channel just now. The Brute King could even speak—that was impressive.

Clearly, it wanted to claim the spirit stone mine, calling this its forbidden ground.

With this, Lin Zhan understood at last why there had been no other creatures at the bottom of the Blazing Lake. The remains of the Supreme Yan had long emanated a terrifying majesty within the cave, suppressing the aura of the spirit stone veins.

Now, with the golden bones of the Supreme Yan having vanished, that oppressive presence was gone. The spirit stone veins’ energy was now exposed, attracting the covetous gaze of the Nine Nether Brute King.

Lin Zhan smiled faintly. “Oh? And how will you prove it?”

“Proof? Ha! Strength is proof. Looks like this battle is unavoidable. Children, tear him apart!” the Brute King roared, issuing his command without hesitation.

Dozens of Nine Nether Brutes charged out in a frenzy toward Lin Zhan, shaking the very earth and drawing the surrounding lake water into a vacuum.

“Then let’s see just how strong you are!” Lin Zhan’s fighting spirit soared. Brandishing the white bone tower, he shot into the air like a white arrow, plunging into the black tide in a blinding flash.