Chapter 698 - Old Master (1/2)

If the previous Netherworld was said to be a seed, then the present Netherworld had already become a seedling. It was continuously absorbing nutrients, thriving, and growing vigorously in the process.

The Temple of the Qing Xuan Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery also vanished in the Netherworld, as its existence was attached to the strange spaces of the Netherworld. After Shen Lian arranged his affairs, he left for the temple.

As soon as he stepped foot into the temple, he vanished. To put it another way, only the Qing Xuan Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery was left behind in the temple. This was a very abstruse thing, for he is still himself, yet his status was that of the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery for Qing Xuan.

He completely lacked the feeling of reluctance towards this foreign status, as if he ought to have this role.

Shen Lian was not confused by the changes in his status, as he himself did not change.

The feeling he had was akin to when a Crown Prince ascended to the throne and became the Emperor. Naturally, there was a great difference between the past and the present but he was still Shen Lian.

He adapted to his new status in a short time. The Register of Life and Death that he held in his hand had countless dense threads, linking all the beings of the Netherworld. At the same time, newer threads that signified a new being appeared, while some threads broke. All in all, the beings linked together with the Register of Life and Death kept on increasing but it did not include every single being of the Netherworld.

Shen Lian sat in a lotus position on the altar and he was surrounded by black and white Qi of Life and Death. Owing to his extremely high attainment in Dao of Yin and Yang, he could control the Qi of Life and Death with such ease as to the flow of the water in the drain.

Ah Lian became a divine servant, standing below Shen Lian. Her hands held the lotus lantern that was forever glowing.

Shen Lian came to a realization that Ah Lian was his subordinate and he could accept three more subordinates as such. The function of the lotus lantern was to illuminate the road to the Yellow Springs for the purpose of receiving the dead. It also helped in the performance of religious ceremonies to enable lost souls to find peace.

As the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery, one was not to become a deity that was aloof and not in touch with reality. Instead, he was to provide salvation for all beings in the boundless sea of suffering. The term 'all beings' encompassed every living being, not just that of the human.

Of course, the prerequisite for salvation was that the living beings who were suffering must think of him in their hearts and believe that he was able to save them. If they did not believe, the salvation would then be ineffective.

Nothing would be gained in return for the salvation, for the salvation was inherent to the mercy of the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery.

At this point, Qing Xuan Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery had mercy in his heart, though not by much. Perhaps it was because of Shen Lian. After all, Shen Lian was neither an evil person nor a do-gooder but a person with a cold heart.

Shen Lian could feel the power of the Qing Xuan Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery. It was not very strong but it was not very weak either. If he were to save people from suffering, his mana would be boundless. On the contrary, if he did not, he would just become an ordinary deity.

At that instance, Shen Lian had no intention of devoting his effort to fulfill his obligation of being the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery. Instead, he frantically perused the contents of the Register of Life and Death in order to find any information about his old friends that had passed away.

Finally, he found the information of one person – Zhang Ruoxu, who was in the Netherworld and had his name recorded on a page of the registrar.

After having found the answer, Shen Lian turned to Ah Lian and said, ”As the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery, I manage four residences. I designate here to be 'Qing Xuan's Abode of Immortals' and I leave it in your capable hands.”

Ah Lian cheerfully followed the orders as she had already understood everything back at the temple. After having found out that Celestial Teacher had become the Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery, she knew that it was a deity of high position. Therefore, she developed herself in accordance with the situation. By improving her spiritual tablet, she was able to do many more things.

Compared to Shen Lian, she had a much more merciful heart. In addition to her background of suffering, as she had acquired a great strength, she wished to do many kind things to enrich the coming years ahead of her.

After finishing what he wanted to say, Shen Lian left. Then again, the Qing Xuan Heavenly Lord of Salvation from Misery was still in the temple, and it could even be said that he never left.

Once Shen Lian was out of the temple, he felt a very mysterious feeling.

In the temple, he was the deity. Out if it, he was Shen Lian. Both of these feelings were different and even their line of thought was dissimilar. An ordinary person would have gone mad long ago but Shen Lian was no ordinary person. Naturally he did not go mad and in addition, he managed to learn something from this.