Chapter 1204: As Of Now, Its Called the Paragon Bridge! (1/2)
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Next he went to the Ancient Demon Immortal Sect. Before leaving the Ninth Mountain and Sea, he wanted to see... Ke Jiusi!
However, although he could find the location of the Ancient Demon Immortal Sect, he was unable to enter. There was an invisible barrier in place that he could not pass without trying to break it open.
He hovered quietly outside of the ruins for a while before finally clasping hands and bowing deeply. Then he turned and left.
On a mountain peak inside the rubble of the sect, Ke Jiusi stood there looking at Meng Hao leave.
Suddenly Night’s voice spoke out next to him: “Why didn’t you let him in?”
“He has Ji Tian’s Karma on him... and I have even more than he does. If the two of us met now... it would be harmful for him.” Ke Jiusi sighed, then turned his head to look out at the ruins stretching out beneath him.
“Ji Tian....” he murmured, cold killing intent gleaming in his eyes.
Meng Hao didn't get a chance to meet Ke Jiusi again. He left and headed toward the Ruins of Immortality. He needed to get the incomplete Paragon Bridge that he had copied to make his Paragon magic. Back then, he had been unable to take away the bridge itself.
But now, his own Paragon Bridge had already transformed. Thanks to the Bridge of Immortal Treading, it was no longer illusory, but corporeal. With his current cultivation base... he would be able to use his Paragon magic and merge it with the true broken Paragon Bridge.
A prismatic streak shot into the Ruins of Immortality as Meng Hao followed the same course as last time. He saw many of the same things he had seen before. He saw broken down temples and huge disembodied heads. He saw numerous corpses, shattered lands, destroyed magical items, and the ruins of palaces, all floating out in the void....
After a long time, he reached the area where he had created his Daoist magic, and then found the location where he had gained enlightenment of his Paragon magic... the shattered bridge!
It was only a section of that bridge, but even from a distance and despite the fact that it had fallen into ruins, Meng Hao could sense the might of a Paragon emanating off of it, the incredible power of Heaven and Earth.
This bridge had once spanned the highest Heavens, and had been the object of worship by countless life forms, all of whom deeply desired to walk upon it!
But now, it was broken. Perhaps most of the bridge had faded away into the sands of time, and only this small section was what remained.
After all the years that had passed, it remained in this one spot. No one had ever been able to take it away. Not even Ji Tian could take it, much less other Dao Realm cultivators.
However, years ago, Meng Hao had forged his own Paragon magic by means of this bridge and thus had allowed it to become whole once again. It was that very Daoist magic that had earned him a spot in the Echelon.
Today, he had returned to take the bridge away!
“Are you really the Paramita Bridge?” he asked softly. “Well, I'm not completely certain what your previous name was, but I do know... that a lot of people know you.” He couldn’t help but think of the black-robed man who had emerged from the Paragon Painting in the Windswept Realm, and the expression on his face when he saw the Paragon Bridge.
“Perhaps in the so-called Paramita, even Paragons need to walk across you... to truly become Paragons.... [1. The characters for Paramita can also be read “the other shore,” which might be relevant since we’re talking about a bridge here. Also, the “other shore” aspect plays into the meaning of the Buddhist concept of Paramita]
“But today, I’m going to take you away. From now on, you... belong to Meng Hao. You are my... Paragon Bridge!” Meng Hao’s eyes shone with a bright light as he began to walk forward toward the bridge. The pressure of a Paragon rumbled out, and Meng Hao began to shine with scintillating light. He waved his right hand, and suddenly his Paragon Bridge appeared.
“Merge!” he roared, performing a double handed incantation gesture and then waving his finger toward his Paragon Bridge. Instantly, the two bridges began to merge together. The roar of the Bridge Soul could be heard from the Paragon Bridge as it ensured that nothing unexpected happened during the merger.
As the process continued, the pressure radiating off of the Paragon Bridge grew stronger. Rumbling filled the air, and everything grew dim. A wind swept through the Ruins of Immortality, as if the Paragon Bridge were truly awakening!
The pressure intensified, and the Heavens trembled. The Ruins of Immortality quaked, and soon the entire Mountain and Sea Realm was imperceptibly shaking. No power of expulsion could be felt from the Mountains and Seas, and yet it seemed like a pair of invisible eyes had turned their gaze towards it, as if recalling memories of the past.
That wasn’t all... above the Mountain and Sea Realm, in the 33 Heavens, everything was shaking. Countless cultivators there were shocked, although they had no idea what exactly was happening.
In addition... outside the 33 Heavens, far out in the great expanse, was a world in which several suns were hauling a huge statue. All of the cultivators there were also astonished.
Shockingly, it was also possible to see that in the land of the statue, which was growing inexorably closer to the Mountain and Sea Realm, there was also a bridge hovering in midair. It was also a Paragon Bridge, but it was in ruins, as if it were in place only as a symbol and had lost all of its previous significance.
That bridge also began to tremble.
The voice of woman spoke out, gloomy and serious: “Someone is awakening it....”
Beneath the 33 Heavens, back in the Mountain and Sea Realm, in the Ruins of Immortality in the Ninth Mountain and Sea, Meng Hao threw his head back and roared. He suddenly flew up to stand atop the Paragon Bridge, where he first lifted his hands up into the air and then slammed them down onto the surface of the bridge.
“Merge!”
RUMBLE!!
Meng Hao’s Paragon Bridge began to descend as the merging quickened. The aura of a Paragon rose up into the air, inundating Meng Hao. Even though this was his own Paragon magic, he was still affected, and coughed up a mouthful of blood.
However, his eyes gleamed with focus. This time, he was going to take away the ruins of the Paragon Bridge no matter what! He was going to merge them with his own Paragon Bridge to make it stronger!
“MERGE!” Meng Hao glowed with azure light as the Bridge Soul of his Paragon Bridge went all out, risking its own life as it controlled the bridge, causing it to descend further in its merging into the original bridge.