Heaven's Devourer

Death no more, he had been saved. Dreams no more, and the Ruyi Jingu Bang was gone as well.

No Ruyi Jingu Bang, his body torn by the Spirit Severing Powder. No cultivation recovery. Wu Yu was struggling at death's door.   

Without the Jingu Bang, he had no Invincible Vajra Body, no Great Way of Immortality Art, and no mystiques or 72 Transformations either.

Ming Long would not appear either.

This meant that all of Wu Yu's advantages were gone.

On the one hand, he was filled with terror at this strange reality, stretched out before him like an endless sea. Wu Yu was just a mortal, and the Ruyi Jingu Bang was his only straw to clutch at. But now this life-saving straw had not appeared, and he floundered like a mortal in the sea. All around him was dark seawater, and it was difficult to breathe. Death and fear swamped him.

"Uncle Sun, can you let me see that?" Wu Yu said dry-mouthed. He endured the blinding pain in his skull and struggled to stand.

"This? It is from my ancestors. It is known as the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure. You have to treat it carefully, don't spoil it now." Sun Wudao had warmed up to him after saving his life.

"I will." Wu Yu took the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure with his cold hands, anxious and shaking.

"The Heavenly Immortal gave you 10 days to rest. After that, you have to work at the Immortal Beast Garden with me. I see that your injuries are still not recovered. Make use of this time and recuperate. This old man is going to work first."

Sun Wudao said, then he turned to leave. Wu Yu had been waiting for him to leave. When he did, Wu Yu sagged against the wall, breathing heavily. His forehead broke out in an unusual cold sweat. He gripped the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure with both hands, eyes wide.

"Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, Victorious Fighting Buddha, Ruyi Jingu Bang... I am Wu Yu. Please impart the Invincible Vajra Body to me. I don't know what went wrong. Shouldn't I have gone through transformations...."

He held it in a death grip, but the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure did not even respond!

"Why? What is the problem?! Why does it not choose me? Is it not time? Did I do it wrong? Or not communicate well enough?"

His face was even paler now, huge beads of sweat glistening on his forehead. He found that he could no longer breathe, and the headache was still splitting his skull. Wu Yu trawled back through his memories. He could not find a single time when he was this terrified!

He also imagined how his life would have changed if he did not have the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal's legacy. No matter how strong his will was, no matter how smart he was, no matter how much he defied death, all of that was inconsequential. The most important keystone in his life, once missing, would render him only mortal. Doomed to grow old in the Bipo Mountain Range, with no chance of rising.

His mindset back then in the person he was now. That was a devastating gap.

"No. I have to calm down. There is still a chance. I was too desperate, and it was unwilling to communicate with me. I must be wiser!"

Wu Yu took a deep breath. He wiped the sweat from his brow and forced himself to regain his composure. But even so, the deep terror that was welling up was insuppressible.

"Great Sage, I do not know why it became like this. In my memory, I already had the Invincible Vajra Body at this point. It was because Situ Jin attacked me, and I blocked, and did not die...."

Wu Yu thought about that. Did that mean that if he died, Sun Wudao would bequeath it to him, and he would have an immortal's legacy?

"But what if Uncle Sun did not give me the Ruyi Jingu Bang this time?" Wu Yu had to consider this.

Because many actions were fueled by impulses. It was too great of a risk to commit suicide.

The Jingu Bang was in his hand, but he could feel no warmth. Its coldness permeated Wu Yu's heart.

"What am I supposed to do?"

He could not remember a time when he was as frantic as he was. Both anxious, and with a blinding headache.

"I was probably killed by the Six Arms Demon Ape. But that does not mean the Ruyi Jingu Bang cannot reset everything, allowing me to restart. Perhaps it has that power. But right now, I can't get it...."

Wu Yu was more depressed the more he thought about it. In this wooden hut, he tried all kinds of methods - dripping blood, sweet talk - but none of it worked. The Ruyi Jingu Bang remained cold and unresponsive from start to end.

Despair swamped him in waves.

In the night, Sun Wudao returned. Seeing Wu Yu's pale color, he again brewed ginseng soup. There were still quite a few wild mountain ginseng in the immortal grounds of the Bipo Mountain Range.

"What, missing your palace? Your days of being a prince are over." Sun Wudao sat on the edge of the bed.

"Uncle Sun, this Jingu... thing. Can I have it for a few more days?" Wu Yu hurriedly asked after drinking his medicine.

"There's nothing special about that though...." Sun Wudao was surprised. However, he nodded in response to Wu Yu's fervor. "Alright. You take it. Return it to me at any time. In truth, my Sun family's joss stick will end with me. This family heirloom has no more place to go. You and I meeting here is fate. Since you call me ‘Uncle Sun,’ I will give it to you. However, you have to promise me one thing."

Hearing this, hope flared in Wu Yu. He hurriedly said, "Anything, Uncle Sun. I can do it."

Sun Wudao said, "In the future, even a hundred years from now, continue to pass on the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure. If you have a child, you have to pass it on. You cannot let this treasure be buried."

"Of course. No problem." Wu Yu did not care about this 100 year period. He simply wanted to get his immortal's legacy back. Once done, all would be easy. Without the legacy, his life would be ruined. And he could not save Sun Wudao's life either.

At night, Sun Wudao tended the fire and cooked, not allowing Wu Yu to help. The old and young men sat at a small table and finished a humble meal. Sun Wudao washed the cutlery and then fell asleep. Wu Yu slept against the window. Outside, the pure moonlight illuminated the sky. The Jambu Realm was so huge! And here in this small place, he moved at the pace of an ant. The fear of being insignificant again battered at him.

"No, I have to obtain the Jingu Bang's recognition!

“Otherwise, I cannot save Wu You! Wu You is about to marry that ghostly cultivator of the East Sea!" He knew that from his memory, Wu You was a stubborn character. She would rather die than marry someone against her consent. Given her temper, she would choose death.

Sun Wudao was clearly not hated by Situ Jin, but given his age, he would not live for too long either.

And then the Ninth Spirit would appear, the Heavenly Sword Sect would be destroyed, and Feng Xueya and Su Yanli would all perish!

And everything after that was too far to consider. Without an immortal's legacy, he would not even be able to speak to Nangong Wei and the others. He might never meet Luo Pin, and the Yan Huang Ancient Region and the Nanyin Demon Continent were just too far.

Jiu Ying, the Full Moon of Nanshan, Ye Xixi - he couldn't meet any of them! He might never meet them!

The more Wu Yu thought about this, the more fearful he became. He felt like he was being stalked by monsters, each one a savage beast about to swallow him whole.

"Jingu Bang!"

Wu Yu hurriedly took it out under the moonlight. Through the night, he tried everything save suicide, but it did not work. The Jingu Bang did not respond in the slightest. In his mind, Nangong Wei, Luo Pin, the Full Moon of Nanshan, Ye Xixi, Feng Xueya, Wu You - all of them prowled and stirred Wu Yu's anxiety. He spotted a wood hatchet in the corner.

The blade gleamed brilliantly. Wu Yu did not recall it being there, but perhaps his memory was faulty.

"That's right! Now that Uncle Sun has given me the Jingu Bang, I simply need to kill myself. He will then bury me, and I will dream of the Heaven Raising Staff, and all will be right again! I have to start cultivating the Invincible Vajra Body and then become Feng Xueya's disciple! I have to save my sister from death! I have to kill Heavenly Immortal Hao Tian!"

The feelings came to him strongly. This made him climb down from his bed and totter over to the wood-cutting hatchet. Although his head was still throbbing, the fire of hope had been lit in him. Step by step, he moved over. Hiding the Ruyi Jingu Bang well, he prepared to kill himself. Although the distance was short, he spent a long time getting there. At this time, Wu Yu took up the wood-cutting hatchet, and placed it on his neck.

The blade gleamed coldly.

"Success lies in the realm of death!"

He believed that suicide would bring life. Otherwise, not getting an immortal's legacy would truly be a life worse than death.

He gripped the hatchet tightly. He shut his eyes tightly. A grim smile on his face, he jerked.

"What are you doing!?" Suddenly, he was struck violently and thrown to the ground without killing himself. The hatchet clattered beside him.

"You can't even endure this setback at such a young age?! Thinking of suicide?" Sun Wudao had heard the commotion and awakened to stop him.

"Uncle Sun...." Wu Yu's mind was frazzled at this time. He looked at Sun Wudao blankly, the moon outside in his peripheral vision.

For some reason, he felt that the moon had suddenly become a golden eye. But by the time he looked properly, it was a normal moon again.