Immortality Through Array Formations

"Mountain Lord, what's wrong with you?"

Lord Yellow Mountain was startled, then barely squeezed out a smile, and said awkwardly:

"Nothing, nothing..."

"Oh." Mo Hua looked suspiciously at Lord Yellow Mountain, then asked again: "Can you tell me what exactly is a deity? How do they differ from humans?"

Mo Hua thought that Lord Yellow Mountain would continue to evade the question.

Unexpectedly, Lord Yellow Mountain seemed to tremble slightly, then deeply sighed and candidly said, "Alright, I will tell you..."

"Okay."

Mo Hua immediately sat upright, listening intently.

Lord Yellow Mountain looked at Mo Hua with a complex expression, then slowly sighed:

"A so-called deity is also one of the myriad spiritual beings of heaven and earth. Unlike humans, deities do not rely on flesh to exist. Instead, they are a powerful, independent, and pure embodiment of Divine Thought."

"But this does not mean that deities do not need a host."

"Just like humans, who possess both flesh and Divine Sense, both are indispensable."

"When a person's cultivation reaches a certain level, their Divine Soul can temporarily leave the body, but neither the body nor the Divine Soul can suffer harm."

"If the Divine Sense disperses, then the flesh has no master; if the flesh ceases to exist, then the Divine Sense perishes."

"It's much the same for deities..."

"Different deities have different hosts; some are stones, some are riverbeds, but most deities actually reside in a type of 'Divine Statue'..."

"'Divine Statue' is essentially the 'physical body' of a deity."

"But there are also various kinds of Divine Statues, some are Lifebound Divine Statues, some are Twin Divine Statues, some are Preaching Divine Statues, and there are also heretical External Path Divine Statues..."

"Preaching?" Mo Hua was puzzled.

Lord Yellow Mountain explained: "To grow stronger, deities need to eat offerings and be worshipped, hence they need to 'preach'..."

"The wider the preaching, the more followers, the deeper the devotion, the stronger the deity becomes."

"When deities preach, they cannot move around their sole 'Lifebound' Divine Statue. They must divide their essence to reside in 'Preaching' Divine Statues, and then spread throughout the Nine State, allowing people from various regions to offer sacrifices..."

Mo Hua suddenly realized, "So most of the 'Divine Statues' seen in the world are 'Preaching' Divine Statues, hosting the divided Divine Thoughts of deities, meant for eating offerings and receiving worship?"

"And 'Lifebound Divine Statue' is like the foundation or original capital of a deity, something that cannot be easily revealed?"

Lord Yellow Mountain nodded: "Correct."

Mo Hua suddenly brightened up, staring at the clay sculpture housed by Lord Yellow Mountain, curious:

"Then is this clay sculpture, a Lifebound Divine Statue, or a Preaching Divine Statue?"

Lord Yellow Mountain got a huge fright, hurriedly covering his clay sculpture, "I can't tell you that!"

If he told, it would be the end!

Mo Hua wasn't insistent on knowing. Seeing the flustered demeanor of Lord Yellow Mountain, he comforted it:

"Don't worry, I was just casually inquiring, I'm not plotting on you..."

Lord Yellow Mountain remained skeptical but still clutched his clay sculpture tightly.

Mo Hua spoke some kind words and offered some fruits, finally calming Lord Yellow Mountain down.

"Preaching Divine Statue..."

Mo Hua pondered, then suddenly asked: "Are there any deities... that incarnate in human bodies?"

Lord Yellow Mountain's gaze trembled, his expression becoming extremely severe.

Mo Hua was slightly taken aback, "What's wrong?"

Lord Yellow Mountain struggled with his expression, finally sighing:

"There are..."

"Deities usually only incarnate in Divine Statues. If They incarnate in a human body, it means... They've become an Evil God!"

"Evil God..."

Mo Hua's gaze slightly darkened.

Lord Yellow Mountain's expression turned solemn, continuing: "Divine Statues are usually made from clay or stone. These materials are dead objects of the world, lifeless and unconscious, thus they are 'clean'."

"Deities incarnate within Divine Statues, abiding by their 'Dao', unaffected, without much trouble."

"But humans are different, humans have Divine Sense, which harbors all kinds of unknown greed and desires, they aren't 'clean'..."

"If a deity incarnated in a human body, it might either corrupt the person or be corrupted by the person..."

"Once corrupted, it would degenerate..."

"Not just humans, if a deity incarnates in Monster Beasts, Spirit Beasts, or any other conscious, living beings, it means that They have already become 'Evil God', or at least, They have embarked on the path of the 'Evil God'..."

Lord Yellow Mountain's gaze held deep fear.

Mo Hua's heart chilled, whispering softly: "Is an Evil God... very terrifying?"

Lord Yellow Mountain nodded his head fearfully.

Mo Hua thought for a while, still somewhat confused, "Why does residing in the living flesh, lead to corruption, degeneration, and transformation into an Evil God?"

"Just by eating offerings and receiving worship, it won't degenerate?"

"What happens when one becomes an Evil God?"

"And just what exactly is terrifying about an Evil God?"

...

Mo Hua asked a series of questions.

Lord Yellow Mountain responded with a wry smile, "I'm just a minor Downcast Mountain God, how would I know these things, Evil Gods are not something I can afford to offend..."

"Indeed..."

Mo Hua nodded, and did not press Lord Yellow Mountain further, refraining from asking about the frightening topic of 'Evil Gods'.

Lord Yellow Mountain also breathed a sigh of relief.

"By the way..." Mo Hua pondered, then picked another question that was puzzling to him, slowly asking:

"Can a human become a deity?"

Lord Yellow Mountain was stunned, then immediately shook his head, "What are you thinking... that's definitely not possible."

"Not even if they ate offerings like a deity?" Mo Hua said.

Lord Yellow Mountain replied irritably: "Have you ever seen a living person receiving offerings?"