vncnus Chapter 2184-2182 The First Empress
Chapter 2184-2182 The First Empress
Chapter 2184 2.182 The Empress
This aligns with the logic of the entire side storyline. After all, Princess Jade Face's initial motivation for wanting to revive Princess Wansheng stemmed from a solemn oath of life and death. Therefore, to avoid dying young and tragically, she had to do everything in her power to revive Princess Wansheng.
Fearing that things might change and the oath might come true one day, Princess Jade Face immediately led Wu Chen to the hidden cave where Princess Wansheng's body was kept.
As the princess opened the chilling cave, Wu Chen held his breath before the nauseating stench hit him.
The bloodied, mottled dragon corpse lying on the ice bed was the corpse of Princess Wansheng, whom Princess Jade Face had taken advantage of the chaos to sneak into the Azure Wave Pool to retrieve after the pig demon had killed her with a rake.
Beneath the body lay the Queen Mother's most precious treasure—the Nine-Leaf Lingzhi Grass—which could keep Princess Wansheng "incorrupt for a thousand years."
Seeing Wu Chen standing with his hands behind his back, deep in thought and silent.
With her heart pounding like a deer, fearing an attack from within, the Jade-Faced Princess hurriedly asked, "May I ask, young master, why are you unmoved?"
“With the princess in person, I dare not conceal anything,” Wu Chen said truthfully. “Although Princess Wansheng’s primordial spirit survived, it had long since become one with the Buddhist relic. If it were forcibly separated, her primordial spirit might be damaged beyond repair.”
“There are some things.” Princess Jade Face pondered for a moment and then realized, “The relic is a Buddhist treasure that can transform the malevolent energy (demonic energy) of the three realms. Although Princess Wansheng has cultivated skills, she has not yet been ranked among the immortals. Therefore, she is still a demon (monster).
“Exactly.” Wu Chen nodded gently: “As the saying goes, ‘not of our kind.’ Princess Wansheng’s primordial spirit has been transformed by the Buddhist treasure and can no longer enter the dragon essence’s body.”
Simply put, good and evil cannot coexist, simply because they have different attributes.
"What should we do now?" Princess Jade Face would not give up easily.
"Only by using the 'body-possession technique' can the princess be brought back to life in another's body," Wu Chen thought of a compromise.
"How can I be resurrected through a corpse?" Princess Jade Face hurriedly asked.
"Just do it this way..." Wu Chen explained the extraordinary technique in detail.
“Choose another female demon to nurture the primordial spirit.” Princess Jade Face suddenly realized something was amiss: “But if that’s the case, what will happen to the dragon corpse?”
“Naturally, we’ll discard it,” Wu Chen replied.
“No.” Princess Jade Face shook her head resolutely: “If this technique is used, how can we know whether this Wansheng is the same Wansheng as before?”
This means that although Princess Wansheng's primordial spirit was saved through the "body possession technique," if her soul and spirit cannot be reunited and she can re-enter her physical body, the poisonous oath she made earlier will likely reveal its flaws.
"The princess's intention is to 'unite the body and soul and reshape the golden body.'" Wu Chen immediately understood.
“That’s right, that’s right,” Princess Jade Face repeatedly agreed.
“In that case, we need to use the ‘transplanting technique’.” Wu Chen certainly had a solution: “However…”
"Young master, please speak frankly." Princess Jade Face would not give up easily.
"This technique is dangerous; one must first unite with the spirit, then return to life," Wu Chen told him frankly.
"Could it be..." Princess Jade Face seemed to realize something.
“Exactly.” Wu Chen said, “We need to find a female demon to merge with Princess Jade Face to replenish her innate demonic energy. Only then can we be sure of success when she enters the demonic body.”
This is easy to understand: transforming "Buddha-nature" into "demon-nature," and then resurrecting in a demonic body, is the only way to succeed. It's like a blood transfusion: type A blood cannot be transfused with type B blood, and vice versa. However, if someone with type AB blood needs a transfusion, they can receive both type A and type B. A represents Buddha, and B represents demon. What Wu Chen needs to do now is transform Princess Wansheng's primordial spirit into an AB attribute.
“It’s feasible.” Princess Jade Face acted swiftly and decisively.
"We need to choose a female demon from the cave, but I don't know..." Wu Chen hesitated, then stopped.
“I am a fox spirit.” Princess Jade Face understood Wu Chen’s meaning: “If you abandon your original form, it may be difficult to have both. There is another person in the cave who can be of great use.”
"Oh? Could it be 'water spirit'?" Wu Chen asked with a smile.
"Though not quite there yet, it's not far off." Princess Jade Face smiled radiantly: "Young Master will know at a glance."
The two then went to the dungeon, where they found a female demon who was being tortured to the point of near death, bound to a bronze pillar.
"Young master, do you recognize what kind of demon this is?" Princess Jade Face deliberately kept her in suspense.
How could Wu Chen not recognize it!
Pan Yingzi, a legendary empress, played two roles in Shaw Brothers' "Journey to the West": "The Dancer of the White Bone Cave" and "The Maid of the Banana Cave." Although these were minor roles that made her debut in the film industry, they ultimately led to her becoming a hugely popular and legendary empress.
“It is…” Wu Chen’s fleeting True Sight had already seen through the true form: “Mu Mei?”
"木媚" is similar to "木魅", referring to the bewitching spirit transformed from an old tree. It is often categorized as "wood spirit".
"Still not hit, but you can still get close." The Jade-Faced Princess, with her captivating charm, said, "She is the spirit of the Banana Leaf Fan."
"The spirit of the banana leaf fan?" Wu Chen pretended to ponder, then said, "Could it be born from Princess Iron Fan's magical treasure, the banana leaf fan (nurtured but not transformed)?"
There is a saying, "Things, over time, become spirits." This refers to the phenomenon where objects, after being left for a long time, absorb the essence of heaven and earth and the spiritual energy of the sun and moon, gradually accumulating spirituality and eventually transforming into demons and spirits. In myths and legends, living beings are generally more likely to accumulate spirits over time, while non-living things require both innate spirituality and special opportunities to become spirits. Ge Hong of the Jin Dynasty said in "Baopuzi: Dengshe," "The essence of all things that have aged can take on human form." He also said, "A thousand-year-old tree spirit becomes a blue sheep, and a ten-thousand-year-old tree spirit becomes a blue ox."
It's important to note that these are often categorized as "artifact spirits." It's not that the artifact itself has cultivated itself into a spirit. Rather, it's that the artifact absorbs the essence of heaven and earth and the spiritual energy of the sun and moon, eventually becoming a spirit. Therefore, based on the five elements of the artifact itself, they are classified as wood spirits, water spirits, fire spirits, metal spirits, and earth spirits. The "banana leaf fan spirit" doesn't mean the banana leaf fan itself has "become a spirit," but rather that the essence of heaven and earth and the spiritual energy of the sun and moon absorbed by the banana leaf fan has "transformed into a spirit."
"Indeed." Princess Jade Face sighed, "It's a pity that she lost her foundation for no reason, and her life is adrift like a rootless duckweed. That's why she came to my tutelage. Do you know what you seek, young master?"
"Nine-Leaf Lingzhi Grass." How could Wu Chen not realize this? Since he was a wood spirit, losing the Banana Leaf Fan and coming to find the Lingzhi Grass was an act of kindred spirits and shared beliefs.
“Exactly.” Princess Jade Face’s eyes gleamed with a strange light: “First go to the ‘White Bone Cave,’ then enter the ‘Cloud-Piercing Cave.’ All we need is a leaf to shelter ourselves.”
No wonder. The "White Bone Cave Dancer" and the "Banana Cave Maid" are actually the same person. They are both Mu Mei.
"Water nourishes wood," which is even more rare as it aligns with Princess Wansheng's five elements.
If the Nine-Leaf Lingzhi Grass could be refined into a natal magic weapon, Princess Wansheng, who has reshaped her golden body, might be able to "travel in both water and wood" and make further progress in her cultivation.
With this thought in mind, Wu Chen stepped forward and asked the Wood Spirit softly, "If you could obtain the Nine-Leaf Spirit Grass to extend your life, would you be willing to take the risk?"
"What's wrong with a mere crippled body?" It turned out she had been lucid all along: "Life and death are predestined, young master, please do as you please."
"Very well." It's rare to see someone who understands the times and takes responsibility. Wu Chen gestured for Princess Jade Face to remove her shackles and take her to the hidden cave where Princess Wansheng's body was kept.
Once everything is ready, the "grafting technique" will be employed.