Goddess Nuwa, the creator of Humans, the sustainer of balance, and the one who mended the heavens with her hands.

Her name had been spread throughout history as emperors and immortals had claimed to have heard her revelations. They had done many things in her name, claiming it to be her will. Thus, her presence had not only created humanity but also molded it throughout the millenniums.

The descent of Goddess Nuwa. That painting should be in the possession of the Dragon Sovereign of the Northern Sea.

Li Muchen stared at the name with a heavy heart. A pit formed in his stomach, preventing him from looking upwards. The murky and rotten Qi emanating from the painting told him that it wasn’t original.

The portrait made in the image of the Goddess gave off a gentle hue, a feeling of being embraced by one’s mother as a child. He could never forget that feeling after experiencing it in person. However, the current painting in front of him wrapped around his neck like death’s bony hands.

She levitated in the shadows of a broken sky, her form grotesque. The divine now felt wrong, like a beautiful painting smeared with madness.

Her body, the shape of a woman but far from human, skin stretched taut over bones, too thin, too fragile, and yet gleaming with an unnatural sheen as though she were carved from polished porcelain that threatened to crack with each movement. But it wasn’t porcelain—it was flesh, pale, cold, and painted over with unnatural light that shimmered like sickly oil.

The serpentine lower half, instead of coiling gracefully, dragged behind her, malformed and grotesque. Scales black as midnight, slick with something that might have been blood, clung to her like the remnants of a nightmare.

Her face was a canvas defiled by a hand that did not know mercy. Eyes wide and hollow, reflected neither warmth nor wisdom—only emptiness, an abyss where sanity had long since dissolved. Around her lips, the faintest traces of a smile lingered, though it was a smile not of kindness but of something far more sinister.

Her hands were tools no longer used for creation but for desecration. One hand clutched a crimson-stained stone, glowing faintly with the dull light of a world that had forgotten its birth.

Robes hung like shredded skin, torn and stained, draped across her figure in a mockery of grace. The colors that bled through the fabric were not vibrant but murky and spoiled.

Even without looking up the image formed in Li Muchen’s mind. An image that stood in stark contrast to what he knew. Yet, he didn’t look up, because the moment he did he too would end up with his soul whisked away.

“What are the chances to get him out of this with my current preparations?”

Muchen came here with the preparations made to deal with Iron Body Deity’s remains, dealing with the fake Nuwa Painting wasn’t in his plans. No, he never even dreamt about facing it.

He turned his back to the painting and picked up the book, hoping to get some answers. But what he read seemed to only deepen his frown.

The alphabet system used in the book predated any he had known. The characters didn’t match with any regional change or exclusive alphabets he knew. The archaic characters along with hieroglyphics made it even harder to understand a sentence, much less one out of the thousand pages.

The only difference was the page that he had read before, written in characters and writing style used two thousand five hundred years ago. That handwriting and the rest of the book were different alongside the quality of the ink. Suggesting it to be written by someone else.

“It has to be this guy, the Iron Body Deity.” Muchen turned to the skeleton covered in rags.

Although it had not a lick of flesh, the bones had a metallic sheen to them. Muchen moved the rags covering the rib cage and saw the words carved into the sternum.

Heaven’s Might. He could still feel the Tribulation’s power emanating from it, although faint.

Iron Body Deity received a blessing from the heavens since the day of his birth, and it finally manifested when he tried to reach Heaven’s pond. But the real question was, how did he end up here?

“He found the painting and that became the reason for his disappearance.” The fact had always bothered him. Why would someone who worked to move Heaven’s Pond for other people vanish before he could even tell others?

Now it made sense. He was the last person to enter this area and chanced upon the painting. And just like Wang Yang his soul was whisked away.

The original painting of Goddess Nuwa promotes mental recovery and soul strengthening; it is situated in the grandest palace ever created and allows the world to see the beauty of its creator.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

But this painting is the opposite of that. It was sealed away in the darkest corner, it does nothing but paint a grotesque image that can one’s stomach churn. Thus, its effects are also the opposite, mind break and soul deterioration.

“It killed a man destined to become an immortal with that.” Muchen pinched the bridge of his nose.

The chances Wang Yang survived this was 0.00000001% if he was being generous. An impossible odd that even the man blessed by the heaven couldn’t overcome. However, could Wang Yang be compared to a man blessed by Heavens?

“You can do it… no, you will. You always come out of these without any problems. Impossible? Luck? Odds? These concepts lose meaning in front of you.” Muchen stood up with a deep breath, his gaze lingering on his disciple as a pit formed in his heart. A sense of fear of it not working this time.

“Geez… Even for a Regressed master, raising the son of heaven ain’t easy.”

Muchen took out seven talismans, red, blue, green, brown, silver, white, and black. He formed a star around Wang Yang using six talismans and stuck the white one to the boy’s forehead.

“Revolving Heaven Formation, Activate.” Muchen commanded, his voice laced with qi.

The six-talisman glowed in unison and formed a six-pointed star on the ground before a line extended up from each of them to connect to the final one.

This was to strengthen Wang Yang’s mental strength and serve as a stronger anchor point so the soul isn’t pulled in completely. Even now his soul maintained a connection with the body, making it a good backup.

This gave Muchen more time to prepare and increased Wang Yang's chances although a little as the formation severed as a way to monitor his mental state too.

Clenching his fist he made the choice, Muchen took out the necklace hidden under his robes. A milky white pearl, the size of a nail sat in the silver pendant held together by a red string. This item had been with him since the day he became a cultivator.

A gift from his Master for passing the test, an acknowledgment of his grit and determination. This pearl had been fostered by his mental strength over the years, bringing about the culmination of its owner’s cultivation. One of the rarest forms of treasure, a Life bound treasure.

As soon as Muchen put the necklace on Wang Yang, the pressure from the murky Qi in the formation dropped. The qi from the painting that had been trying to eat away at Wang Yang had come to a halt, its target now changed to the wall that stood robust to guard the young man.

Now, Wang Yang had been embraced by the pearl, giving birth to a defense that rejected all mental corruption. However, waking up still depended on him.

“Now, it is time to deal with the problems outside.” Muchen decided to move things forward to accommodate the deviation.

“Master, where is Xiao Yang?” Kexin asked the moment Muchen walked out of the cavern.

“It will take some time for him to come back.” Muchen said, his words didn’t change a beat. “You should continue your training in the meantime.”

“…Understood.” Although she had a lot to ask, Kexin chose to close her mouth.

“Yingyue, Zhi Rou I’ll leave the security to you two for the time being.” He turned to the two who maintained their calm, having gone through these types of ordeals.

“Senior Li, are you going somewhere?” Zhi Rou asked noticing the sheathed sword in his right hand.

“I have to settle some old scores, you should too.” He said leaving through the tunnel.

Exiting the tunnel, he walked down the animal trail. The trees started to get denser, and the sunlight that reached the loose soil started to thin out by the canopy of leaves. He was now on the edge of Tie Province, several hundred kilometers away from the pond. These areas were where he had laid out his traps, and he had caught his prey without fail. But this one wasn’t a rabbit.

A man two heads taller than Muchen walked forward, his dirty red hair flowed behind him as his wide shoulders knocked the oak trees down like they were twigs.

“It is good to meet you again, Ordinaire of the Second Genius Generation, Li Muchen.” A big smile splayed his face.

“You become quite the sorry sight. Shu Huang, the first disciple of the Fist King from Iron Palm Fortress, the rising star equal to Xiao Miaorui, The Lightning Sword Emperor.” Muchen saw the anger flashing on his opponent’s face. “But I suppose you left all that behind to join the Demonic Cult, Iron Fiend.”

“And whose fault do you think that is?” Iron Feind unwrapped the bandages on his right arm. His palm was big enough to squeeze Li Muchen’s head like a lemon, however, a nasty scar ran up his entire palm reaching halfway up his forearm.

“I was here for that kid, but I’ll pay you back first.” Madness flashed in Iron Fiend’s eyes, but more than that was his obsession. “I’ll pay you back for every bit of humiliation you’ve made me go through!”

With words akin to a fiery storm, he arrived in front of Muchen in a blink. His thunderous fist met the sheathed sword. The clash turned the trees around them to splinters as the ground cried under the weight.

Iron Fiend’s Qi flared as if announcing his cultivation level. Third Lamp of Nascent Soul Realm. Such was his strength, overshadowing Muchen by a whole major realm.

“I’ll crush you to bits along with the sword you are so proud of!” Iron Fiend’s frontal kick sent Muchen flying back even after he blocked.

Crashing through a small hill, Muchen landed on his feet. Not a hair out of place. He looked at the mad bull obliterating the hill to charge at him with fists full of fury.

It was the moment that every action of his since the regression was made for.

Attacking the Cult members, tricking them with the illusion, catching and sending Fu Yuzhe to Gu Changge, disrupting his plans for Purple Cloud Sect to bring him to a crossroad, forcing him to send out Iron Feind to get Wu Kexin, then placing his traces to draw in Iron Fiend.

The culmination of all that planning was to catch Iron Fiend alone. Gu Changge’s equal and one of the Four Demonic Generals that brought the downfall of the Four Major Sects on the Eastern Continent. It was all for this face-off.

For Li Muchen, failure wasn’t an option at this point.