weird cultivation methods and creatures, mysterious law-defying trial realms, soul devourers and wandering souls, different cultures, and -- this part really stands out from most xianxia -- having to revert to a mortal to make a breakthrough. I also find it refreshing that not all foreshadowings actually come true in this novel, and that he joins so many sects at different points in time XD.

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In a small village between the Red Dragon Mountains far away from the Immortal City of Liyan, day has turned to night and night to day as the heavy wind and rain of the long-anticipated blue season came and went. The appearance of the Blue Season signified a coming period of bountiful harvest for the hard-working farmers and joy to the modest people of Bai Long Village.

As everyone brimmed with joy in this delightful period, in the crop fields at the edge of the village, a skinny young man of average height and looks could be seen with a face full of heaviness, which stuck out like a large beacon to the heavens in the current blissful atmosphere; a true oddity he was.

"Hey, Dong Zhou. What's with that annoying expression on your face? Have your cattle all been r*ped to death?" A burly man with a deep voice laughed as he uttered those words while approaching the skinny man.

The newcomer was a neighbour of the skinny young man named Dong Zhou and had come over after noticing the strange behaviour of his neighbour.

"Snort! Old Rat, if my cattle were ever r*ped to death, it could only be mean you've finally succumbed to your hidden lust for your own kind, " replied Dong Zhou.

"Hahaha! To think I was worried about you. You're still as crazy as ever, Dong Zhou. But, casting jokes aside, what's really bothering you?" Old Rat enquired.

"Sigh! It's the coming Blue Festival...I don't think I will be participating..." said Dong Zhou in low spirits, but also with deep determination.

"Dong Zhou, have you gone mad!? You are well aware of the significance and truth of the Blue Festival.. Have you forgotten what the consequences of offending them will be?" Old Mice tremendously shocked by what he had just heard, said in a heavy voice.

"I know, " replied Dong Zhou. "The blues festival is a festival to thank the almighty Blue Deity of the Red Dragon Mountains for providing us with the rain and sunshine of the blue season that will let our crops grow plenty folds, and usher our village into another prosperous period."

"If you know then wh... "

"I hate it, that's why!" Dong zhou with a twisted face replied sharply before Old Rat could even finish his words.

"Even if the Blue God sends us rain, why must we give them nearly all our crops to thank him in return! I work hard day and night all year just to grow and cater to those crops and now I have to give up nearly all of it; give up months of sweat, blood, pain, and suffering, just because he gave us rain?" Dong Zhou fury began to boil as he uttered those anger soiled words.

Old Rat's shock and disbelief only continued to grow. He couldn't believe what Dong Zhou had just said. He always knew Dong Zhou to be a hard-boned, stubborn maniac who was even more ruthless to himself than to others, which is why he had the best crops and largest fields in the entire village. But he had never expected... never thought that he would dare defy the Blue God. The Blue God was a mysterious Deity rumoured to reside in the highest peak of the Red Dragon Mountains; a place said to be unreachable to mortals. He is an almighty being capable of parting the heavens with just a decree; turning the moon and stars with the flip of a palm and bringing death and desolation to the earth with only the drop of a finger.

Such a divine being was worshipped by all and was known to greatly punish those who dared oppose him just as he sends a great reward to those faithful to them.

Dong Zhou is just a mere mortal, how can he hope to defy a God? He's only bringing death to himself. It's best I steer clear from such lunacy before I become implicated in this, Old Rat thought.

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3 months later.

The blues festival had come and gone, the village was filled with tranquility as villagers went on about their daily business. But suddenly, an extraordinarily loud screeching noise followed by the sound of heavy thunder was heard all over the village. Following immediately, the sky began to change greatly: the clouds parted until they faded away, the sun and moon shrieked in fear as they disappeared into an abyss that now became the sky.

The only thing left in the chilling dark vault above was a blood-red star that had begun to multiply at an alarming rate. The strange things that had just happened painted the ghostly phenomenon of a pitch-black sky with an eerie red glow. It was truly a heaven-shaking and soul-trembling sight. But oddly, the villagers though heavily shaken with fright didn't seem all that puzzled about the change of the sky as if they had an idea of the strange occurrences.

"Oh heavens! Divine judgment has come. The heavens are angry, the heavens are bleeding!"

"It's retribution. Finished. We are all finished. The land will weep today.

"Who is it! Who shamed this village and brought ruin to our people? Who has dared to anger our great provider, the Almighty Blue Deity??"

"I-it-it's Dong Zhou that madman! He had told me personally he won't give offerings last festival."

"Dong Zhou? Oh son of zhou, why? Why have you done this to us? Why!!!"

"The Almighty, please spare us all. We have greatly erred; please forgive our sins, All-Merciful One."

Amidst the wailing and pleading of the villagers, another great change was currently taking place in the sky. The thousands of red stars all began to accelerate towards the central area and in a moment's notice, they had all joined together. The resulting form from their fusion was what appeared to be an unbelievably enormous pair of eyes that covered nearly half of the sky. The eyes were of a deep devilish-red and also seemed to be weeping blood: A truly nightmarish sight it was.

Seconds after, the eyes had opened and looked to be focusing on a particular spot or a particular person, it may seem.

DONG ZHOU!!!

A loud thunderous voice reverberated throughout the world. The voice was extremely strange: seemingly both deep and shallow, clear and obscure, neither male or female, and though the words were of an unknown language, their meaning was crystal clear as it passed through their ears.

"The Decree of the Blue has been challenged!"

"The Blue is merciful; The Blue is all-giving."

"Why. Must. You. DEFY THE BLUE!!!"

Thunder raged and the earth quaked, as if in accordance with the tempestuous rage of the Blue God. Dong zhou who had been standing there with shaking feet and trembling fists all this time, threw his head up furiously to the sky and howled: "I will never bow my head and let anyone trample all over me, even if it's God himself! All must yield to me, even God and heaven aren't excluded!"

Although his voice was extremely tiny and perhaps negligible in face of the overwhelming, heaven-breaking might of the blue deity, it still carried with it a frenzied determination and unshakable will that shook one to the bones.

"Blasphemy! Blasphemy! You dare speak blasphemy in front of the Blue!!!"

"The blue has decided... "

"Punishment is..."

DEATH b*tch!!!

With that final word uttered, another change occurred!

The red stars dispersed and exploded one by one at a shocking speed. The explosions resulted in large swathes of red dust filling the black sky. The dust then pulled towards a central point and swirled into an enormous red cyclone. The cyclone spanned tens of thousands of kilometres and had fully formed in less time than the blink of an eye.

The blood cyclone then spun at a speed incomprehensible to mortal beings. It spun so fast that its appearance changed and it now looked like there was a deep red hole that led into the heavens. What was on the other side was a great mystery, but before anyone had the time to think about it, great amounts of blinding blue light poured out of the red hole.

The blue light then parted, and a deep-blue finger was revealed!

This finger didn't look large. In fact, it looked extremely small if compared to the red hole behind it, but it was even more terrifying.

It was a finger that could crush mountains and tear oceans!

Before anyone could react, the finger expanded. It continued to expand quickly, so quick that it would only take a few seconds to reach the earth and more importantly, its target!

Dong zhou with eyes that could explode, stared furiously at the incoming finger. He knew that he couldn't escape this finger! This finger wasn't something he could resist but still, he wouldn't allow himself to be crushed like an insignificant bug. He was a bug that would bite back even if it dying.

You want to kill me? Ok. But I'll have you pay a price!

As the distance between the finger and him shortened to only a few feet, Dong Zhou let out a howl of madness and shoved his hunting spear with a force far greater than he had ever mustered. The force was so great that it didn't even seem to be human.

BOOoOOoOM!!!

A great explosion resounded throughout the world. Everything within a 1000km radius were instantly turned to ruins. The shock and tremors even went much further than that. Even the distant Immortal City of Liyan was shaken by the aftermath.

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After a long time that seemed to be forever, dust eventually settled and the area of the explosion had more or less returned to tranquility. The heart-stopping bloody hole and the blue finger that brought despair to the world had long since vanished, but the heaven-shaking events of that forsaken day will forever be etched into the heart and soul of those few who had witnessed the events and were lucky enough to survive.

As the inner area of the explosion began to come into full clarity, something could be spotted in the centermost area if you looked close enough. Looking even closer it appeared to be something strange: A large spear firmly rooted to the ground. What's even more shocking is that the spear was covered in a thick blue-ish substance that resembled blood!

Moving even closer, something unbelievable and mind-bending was seen: A badly mangled body half-buried in dust and the unknown blue substance. The body was one that could easily be mistaken for a long-dead person but if you observed it for some time, you'd notice faint movements occasionally. But that's not even the end of it. Something a thousand times more shocking than the body situated nearby:

A lacerated chunk of blue-colored flesh with fresh bite marks on it!

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