The strength of cultivators varies, and thus the distance of their vision and the depth of their reach are worlds apart.
When Jin Shan activated his divine ability and Li Haikuo raised his spiritual artifact, both on high alert, the nurous Foundation Establishnt cultivators in Western Sea Immortal City had not yet realized the problem. However, they absolutely would not view the actions of two True Persons as a joke. There were no "boy who cried wolf" stories in the West Sea. Purple Palace True Persons were even less likely to be jokesters; Danri wasn't, and neither were Jin Shan or Li Haikuo.
Just as Wang Xianmao led Wang Yulou in a dash eastward toward the Western Sea Levee, amidst the chaotic Western Sea Immortal City, no one noticed that Mu Changze had quietly arrived in front of the Treasure-Wielding True Human's Residence.
No, the Foundation Establishnt cultivators were in no state of mind to pay attention to Mu Changze, but Jin Shan and Li Haikuo noticed. Not understanding an Immortal Venerable's layout was normal, but the mont a pawn was played, if the two of them still couldn't understand, they wouldn't have made it to where they were today.
In almost an instant, these two grand cultivators guessed Shen Guang's design. They exchanged a glance, both seeing deep apprehension in each other's eyes.
Jin Shan was apprehensive; he feared he was being led into a massive trap. Based on the web of interests, it could now be confird that Shen Guang and Mang Xiang had definitely ford a secret alliance.
Although Zhou Fujiao was Mang Xiang's disciple and Mang Xiang's man, for a very long ti previously, Zhou Fujiao and Mang Xiang had been enemies. anwhile, Li Haikuo and Shen Guang were tying down Jin Shan in the West Sea, and the three attacking Demon Generals outside were likely Shen Guang's pawns as well.
Under these circumstances, Jin Shan was currently in mortal danger. How could he not be afraid?
Li Haikuo was apprehensive; he feared he had beco Mang Xiang's discarded pawn. The mont war broke out over at the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and the Sky Serpent Sect, three Demon Generals imdiately ca to attack Western Sea Immortal City, and Zhou Fujiao was suddenly and openly served up onto the dining table.
What dining table? Shen Guang's dining table!
Under these circumstances, how could Li Haikuo—who had the lowest cultivation base and had only just attained the Purple Palace realm—not be apprehensive? If Jin Shan were to lean even slightly toward Shen Guang, he might end up dying alongside Zhou Fujiao today.
It could be said that the mont Mu Changze made his move, these two grand cultivators of the Immortal Alliance were already beating a retreat in their hearts. The waters of the West Sea were too deep.
Shen Guang making a move ant three Demon Generals coming together; they were terrified! This ti it wasn't about being prudent; it was pure fear.
Jin Shan was afraid of perishing in an unlucky place like the West Sea. Li Haikuo was afraid that, having just reached the Purple Palace realm, Mang Xiang would hand him over to Shen Guang, turning him and Zhou Fujiao into little snacks for Shen Guang or Shen Guang's allies.
The Immortal Alliance served all cultivators, but due to a lack of overall capability, it primarily served grand cultivators for the ti being.
However, when Shen Guang and Mang Xiang intensely involved themselves in the fierce struggle over the West Sea and even the northwestern part of Wunan, Purple Palace True Persons like Zhou Fujiao, Li Haikuo, and Jin Shan could also beco acceptable sacrifices in the eyes of the two Immortal Venerables.
Jin Shan and Li Haikuo's gazes t in the air, and Li Haikuo took the initiative to speak.
"Senior Brother Fujiao might be busy. We should first borrow the power of the grand array and focus entirely on resisting the demonic beast attack."
It seed like stating the obvious, but Li Haikuo was actually confirming what Jin Shan intended to do—as True Person Longhu, you should at least raise the grand array to block the demonic beasts when they attack, right?
"Brother Haikuo is right. How about this, Fujiao might have run into a minor situation, why don't... you go take a look?"
Don't overthink it, I, Jin Shan, am loyal to the Immortal Alliance, understand? As for asking Li Haikuo to go save Zhou Fujiao, that was because Jin Shan was afraid Li Haikuo would backstab him later.
He wasn't afraid of fighting one against three; he was afraid his teammate was a treacherous wolf. This kind of situation was happening for the first ti since the Immortal Alliance stationed three True Persons in the West Sea.
One could only say that after Shen Guang attained his path, the waters of the West Sea began to run deep. Now that Mang Xiang wanted to attain the Golden Core, the waters of the West Sea had deepened by another order of magnitude.
Facing Li Haikuo, who could potentially be a pawn for both Immortal Venerables Shen Guang and Mang Xiang, Jin Shan did not dare to easily trust him. Deep down, Li Haikuo actually wanted to go help Zhou Fujiao.
After all, no matter what, he was one of their own from the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, but he ultimately didn't go. Zhou Fujiao might be a little snack intentionally presented to Shen Guang by Mang Xiang; therefore, it was better not to save him.
Better a dead Fellow Daoist than to die oneself, after all.
"No need to look. Resisting the demonic beasts is more important. I will manage the grand array. If the array breaks, Fellow Daoist Jin Shan can just leave directly!"
The duty of a guardian True Person was to guard the grand array well. Li Haikuo sensed Jin Shan's wariness toward him and imdiately stated his position.
"Acceptable!"
Jin Shan let out a long sigh of relief. This way, it was a pure one-versus-three fight.
He didn't have to worry about Li Haikuo dragging him down. Although the grand array was in Li Haikuo's hands, Jin Shan knew all its key intricacies; therefore, he wasn't afraid of Li Haikuo plotting against him at all.
Of course, the possibility of Shen Guang directly stepping onto the battlefield still existed, but there was even less need to worry about that—it would be useless.
—— Compared to Wang Xianmao and Wang Yulou, who were fleeing in a frantic rush, and the two True Persons preparing to et the enemy, the three Great Demons who had truly co to attack Western Sea Immortal City today were actually in a rather leisurely mood. Flying at the front was a black-skinned erkat missing half its head.
It was no bigger than a palm, its skin sleek and glossy, and its eyes were extrely cute. If it hadn't lost half its skull, it could probably fetch a high price in a spiritual pet shop based on its appearance alone.
Of course, given its esteed status as a Demon General, no one could afford to buy it anyway.
"Do not touch the people and things in the East Annex City and South Annex City. We are only hitting the immortal city. When the ti cos, follow closely. This ancestor will watch over you at all tis with my whiskers, so there's no need to worry about danger."
The voice of the half-headed creature was highly authoritative, completely disproportionate to its arguably cute size. Following behind it were a sheep demon and a scorpion demon, both Demon Generals. Aside from these two Demon Generals, whose strength rivaled that of human Purple Palace grand cultivators, the most nurous among the demon horde were erkats of various breeds. Totaling around a hundred, all of them were Great Demons, equivalent to Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
At this mont, none of these demons voiced any opposition to the half-headed creature's orders. Going to attack a place like Western Sea Immortal City was obviously extrely dangerous, yet it seed the demon horde was full of confidence.
"It's just that the immortal city's formation array is extrely hard to break. With Purple Palace grand cultivators standing guard, even if the three of us join forces, we might be delayed for days. If we are delayed, we'll be entangled by the Immortal Alliance's reinforcents, and it'll be hard to leave when we want to. Big Brother Black Dragon, how exactly should we break the array? Could it be that the Immortal Venerable has also provided assistance for breaking the array?" the scorpion Demon General asked.
It would be impolite to pry into exactly which Immortal Venerable it was.
One shouldn't casually bring up soone's na. As long as there wasn't ironclad evidence, that person was rely a "possible behind-the-scenes mastermind," not a certainty.
"No need to break the array, hahaha, no need to break the array," Half-brain—no, Black Dragon—replied with a laugh, its single eye looking toward Western Sea Immortal City flashing with a teasing, mocking hue.
A formation array? Ha, it can only stop the incompetent!
Jin Shan was confident in fighting one against three because his strength was great enough. But the three Demon Generals that the Immortal Venerable invited over to smash the immortal city... no, invited over to find more possibilities for the sustainable developnt of the West Sea, were not weaklings either.
The black erkat Demon King was nad Black Dragon.
What it cultivated was the Dragon Transformation thod, the most unique among the many inheritances of the demon race. It only lacked a dragon body to achieve completion.
But it was a Demon General itself and couldn't lay hands on the dragon species qualified to bear its Dragon Transformation thod—those types usually had powerful backgrounds. Therefore, it had been pulled in by Shen Guang to share a taste of Zhou Fujiao together.
Black Dragon's strength corresponded exactly to Jin Shan, the strongest among the Immortal Alliance's three West Sea True Persons. If it wasn't strong, how would Shen Guang dare to entrust it with such a major matter?
—— Wang Yulou suddenly felt his whole body jolt, realizing the Patriarch had halted his evasion art. Looking at the grand array before him with so fear, Wang Xianmao quickly found a cultivator guarding a formation array node at the corner of the immortal city wall and asked a question.
"We want to go out. How many spirit stones will it cost?"
The array-guarding cultivator actually wanted to run away just now as well but couldn't get out. At this mont, his expression was as foul as if he'd just eaten a hundred catties of donkey dung.
He glanced at Wang Xianmao, and seeing his extraordinary bearing, finally spoke.
"You want to leave? I want to leave too! Don't even ntion giving spirit stones. Right now, even if the Heavenly King himself ca, he wouldn't be able to get out. Sigh."
It was clear that Western Sea Immortal City might face danger, and going out at this ti wasn't safe either. Staying within the immortal city's formation array at least offered the protection of the Immortal Alliance's formation array and the Immortal Alliance's True Persons; it seed it should be safer.
Why did everyone, from Wang Xianmao to the array-guarding cultivator, want to leave? Because if a Demon King attacked, the formation array might be useful, and the three True Persons might be able to win, but the people inside and outside the immortal city might beco the cost paid during the process of victory.
When the city gates catch fire, the fish in the moat suffer. When grand cultivators engage in magical combat, Foundation Establishnt cultivators suffer!
For most sensible cultivators, after a magical combat between grand cultivators and a Demon King, Western Sea Immortal City might still be standing, but whether they themselves would still be around was another matter entirely.
Therefore, when grand cultivators fought, no one would stick around to watch. Watch? Run! This wasn't the wisdom of survival; it was just a basic ans of survival.
"Patriarch, where do we go now, Dragon Tiger Platform or the Treasure-Wielding True Human's Residence?" Realizing they couldn't escape the immortal city, Wang Yulou imdiately asked.
In this regard, Wang Yulou didn't have any special thoughts. He simply felt Dragon Tiger Platform was safer, but since Zhou Fujiao was his master, he had to give so face, so he brought it up in passing.
Hearing Wang Yulou's question, Wang Xianmao suddenly froze and said,
"Wait, why hasn't he appeared yet?"
Wang Yulou's pupils shrank. Right, those two old fogeys, Jin Shan and Li Haiping, had already flown into the sky for a lap, and Jin Shan was still hovering up there.
But what about Zhou Fujiao? Where did he go?
Zhou Fujiao was currently preparing to switch bodies. For the future of the Zhou Family, he had decided to sacrifice his most beloved junior, Zhou Yingxi, to give himself—this disappointing ancestor—a chance to start over.
If anyone asked Zhou Fujiao why he didn't give this chance to Zhou Yingxi, that would be a rather impolite question, and they might just end up drinking a bowl of ng Po's soup in the underworld. However, before the preparatory work for the body usurpation was completed, three Demon Generals arrived outside Western Sea Immortal City.
Zhou Fujiao naturally understood that this was Shen Guang finally making his move. Amidst his shock and rage, he only found it pathetic.
With Mang Xiang and Shen Guang ssing around like this, what prestige did the rules of the Immortal Alliance still hold? From Qingrui to the other Golden Cores, not a single one was willing to step forward and rescue him.
Zhou Fujiao accepted this; after all, everyone wanted to wait until the resistance waned before stepping onto the battlefield. He understood.
But Shen Guang and Mang Xiang had already gone to such extres, and yet the others still ignored him. What was the aning of this?
Actually, Zhou Fujiao knew the answer. He just didn't want to admit it—didn't want to admit that he had ultimately walked the wrong path.
The foundation of the Immortal Alliance rested upon the grand cultivators. Their offerings originated from the blood and sweat of the Alliance's trillions of commoners, extorted to the last cent from across its vast territories.
The top-tier factions each controlled a piece of Heaven and Earth, remaining stable over long periods without starting wars, only exploiting their internal populations. First, they extracted from the bottom tier to support the Purple Palace and Golden Core cultivators, maintaining this cycle for thousands of years.
Later, as the number of Qi Refining and Foundation Establishnt cultivators grew daily, nurous grand cultivators acted together a millennium ago to cap the cultivation speed at the Qi Induction realm, fundantally restricting the upward mobility of lower-level cultivators. After that ca the suppression of Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
The Immortal Alliance guarded against Foundation Establishnt cultivators even more strictly than it guarded against demons. However, Wunan was barely twenty thousand li across; how could it support nearly twenty Golden Cores?
The more than one hundred and forty nominal Immortal Venerables of the Immortal Alliance were even more excessive. Wang Yulou's guess hadn't been wrong; the quotas were fake, but the resources were real!
When plundering the Qi Induction, Qi Refining, and Foundation Establishnt cultivators could no longer satisfy the needs of the Immortal Venerables, turning on the Purple Palace cultivators beca only a matter of ti. Zhou Fujiao might just be the beginning.
However, even though he had been placed on the chopping block, Zhou Fujiao had no intention of accepting his fate. As Jin Shan and Li Haiping ascended into the sky to et the enemy, he silently pushed the already max-capacity body usurpation process just a fraction faster.
Just a fraction. Yes, he had polished the entire body usurpation process in his mind hundreds, even thousands of tis.
From the mont Zhou Yingxi ca crying into the world, to later when she was nurtured as a Dao Body inside the grotto-heaven, Zhou Fujiao would constantly refine the process for today's usurpation. Over the years, he had perfected it flawlessly.
Suddenly, Zhou Fujiao sensed that Mu Chunze had arrived. He erged from the Mountain and Water Wood Casket magic treasure, which was serving as the base of the usurpation grand array.
The flood dragon corpse glanced at the slumbering Zhou Yingxi, ultimately unable to bear harming her. Zhou Fujiao didn't think he had reached the end of his rope.
As long as Shen Guang didn't strike personally, he wasn't afraid of anyone!
'Chunze, you've endured for so long, and you've always been ticulous. Why co here to throw your life away?'
Mu Chunze was highly suspicious; this was a point Zhou Fujiao had gradually noticed after coming to the West Sea. But the way Zhou Fujiao saw it, Shen Guang and Mang Xiang had already joined forces.
Under such circumstances, his usurpation in the West Sea should have been safe. Little did he expect that Shen Guang truly possessed no taboos.
A hard kill, an unvarnished execution. Zhou Fujiao really wanted to ask just one question: Is it really necessary?
We are all colleagues. Yes, your cultivation base is higher than mine, and your backing is special, so you aren't afraid of the Immortal Alliance's sanctions, but do you really care nothing for the rules at all?
Now that he had beco the cost, old Zhou, too, hoped that those paper-thin rules were real, and that the Immortal Alliance truly served him.
"Ancestor, Yingxi is my daughter."
Mu Chunze walked forward, step by step. As he walked, his humanoid, antler-bearing form transford into an Auspicious Deer.
After transforming into a deer, his human characteristics completely vanished. Its white fur was speckled with pale gold, and its entire body exuded a profound, mysterious spiritual charm.
Its four massive green antlers were incomparably sharp and possessed extraordinary might. Every ti they swept through the air, they carved afterimages into space.
The Auspicious Deer's bright, radiant ruby eyes turned into dazzling little suns. Two beams of white light shot from Mu Chunze's eyes, piercing directly through the formation array Zhou Fujiao had set up.
That exquisite formation array was as fragile as a bubble under the Auspicious Deer's Law-Extinguishing Eyes. Zhou Fujiao stimulated his magical power, his voice booming loud enough to be heard for hundreds of li around.
"Colluding with the West Sea demon horde to betray the Immortal Alliance... Mu Chunze, are you insane?!"
These words were actually his attempt to save himself. Internally, a hidden piece like old Mu, planted by Shen Guang, was backstabbing him, and there might be more traitors than just old Mu.
Externally, three Demon Generals were leading their troops here. At this very mont, Zhou Fujiao had to use every ans he could think of to survive.
However, it was a pity that his cries for help couldn't leave Western Sea Immortal City. The city's Vajra Western Sea Grand Array sealed the inside off from the outside.
But at the sa ti, Zhou Fujiao was also secretly negotiating terms with Jin Shan and Li Haikuo. He was doing nothing more than using Immortal Venerable Qingrui's banner, hoping his two colleagues would consider the big picture.
Yet, even though Jin Shan and Li Haikuo agreed very readily, Zhou Fujiao still felt uneasy in his heart—could he just surrender to Shen Guang? Admitting defeat and surrendering to Shen Guang wasn't a big deal; he could just write it off as the changes of dragons and snakes.
"I am not insane, Ancestor, nor have I colluded with the West Sea demon horde. You slaughtered the direct lineage of the Zhou Family in the West Sea and sought to take my daughter's body for usurpation. I have already reported this to True Person Jin Shan. True Person Jin Shan told to handle it alone, and so I have co to handle it."
A pure fra-up, and he didn't even bother to act it out well. He went through a process without even eting Jin Shan face-to-face; Mu Chunze simply wrote the docunt himself, stamped it, pointed at Jin Shan, and claid he approved it.
This... Jin Shan's face turned green. To make a grand cultivator's face turn from gold to green could only an that Immortal Venerable Shen Guang's fierce reputation was simply too overbearing. Even Jin Shan trembled upon hearing it. He didn't dare say Mu Chunze was going crazy; he rely secretly appeased Zhou Fujiao.
'Fujiao, I didn't say that. I just don't want to sink into these matters. Rest assured, guarding the immortal city today, I will naturally do my utmost. Be absolutely at ease, do not misunderstand.'
Who the fuck could figure out what was going on? Jin Shan just wanted to properly fulfill his duties as True Person Longhu, repel the demonic beast attack, and then safely survive his tenure in the West Sea. Considering the circumstances, he was a Purple Palace cultivator directly under the Immortal Alliance, making Zhou Fujiao half a comrade. Therefore, choosing this path was actually the most appropriate for him.
As for Shen Guang's side, he would absolutely never stand with them. Nonsense, he ca to the West Sea specifically to investigate the running dogs within Shen Guang's faction! Of course, he hadn't actually investigated anything yet. But overall, Jin Shan and Shen Guang were ultimately not in the sa boat, so he chose to help old Zhou out.
Zhou Fujiao was satisfied and stopped considering the prospect of playing the grandson and surrendering to Shen Guang.
However, Shen Guang did not agree to Jin Shan's compromise with him, and Mu Chunze agreed even less.
The Auspicious Deer tapped its hooves and stepped forward in the void. As it walked, countless green motes of light scattered; this was the Auspicious Deer's divine ability, Spring Forest Birth. After transforming his divine ability into a demon shape, Mu Chunze could also use the innate divine abilities inherent to the Auspicious Deer.
Wrapped in boundless spiritual vitality and spiritual charm, Mu Chunze charged straight at the flood dragon corpse, seemingly harboring the intention of forcing a hard kill on old Zhou.
Zhou Fujiao was only half-dead, not truly dead. He imdiately conjured an indigo fla divine ability, weaving it into a massive net, waiting for Mu Chunze to deliver himself into it.
However, old Mu's move was ultimately just a feint. He proactively launched an attack to cover up his real maneuver. Just as old Zhou struck out with all his might, Mu Chunze accelerated with a sway of his body. Using a half-baked Heaven and Earth Manifestation, the Auspicious Deer's figure suddenly swelled to more than double its size.
Zhou Fujiao was duped by Mu Chunze's fake move and relaxed his guard over Yingxi. Under the effect of the Auspicious Deer's Spring Forest Birth, Mu Chunze used a wood evasion art to instantly appear by Zhou Yingxi's side.
Just like over a decade ago in Clear Stream Market, the Auspicious Deer lowered its head, gently picked up its daughter in its mouth, and left without looking back.
Zhou Fujiao's indigo flas left a massive scar on Mu Chunze's back, but old Mu no longer cared.
Looking at Mu Chunze fleeing with Zhou Yingxi, Zhou Fujiao, having lost his usurpation Dao Body, let out a hysterical, enraged roar.
"The Great Dao is like the blue sky, yet I alone cannot escape it! Shen Guang, how dare you bully like this!"
He missed his body too much.
If his body were still around, how could he have let Mu Chunze escape with Zhou Yingxi? Perhaps what he missed wasn't just his once-intact Dao Body, but that self who hadn't lost all possibilities, who hadn't suffered the humiliation of taking Mang Xiang as his master just to survive, who was full of youthful vigor. Where did it start going wrong?
He couldn't rember anymore. After he ca to the West Sea, he had been forced on the run by Mu Chunze and Shen Guang.
After confirming that Shen Guang and Mang Xiang had joined forces, he raced against ti to refine the pill. After confirming that the Red Lantern Illumination Sect had gone to war and his own mission was complete, he raced against ti to perform the usurpation.
In his mind, no matter how ruthless Shen Guang and Mang Xiang were, they would surely leave so leeway. They wouldn't force him into an absolute dead end, nor would they force themselves into one.
His plan to race against ti had been so successful, and indeed, Mu Chunze as a pawn didn't prove to be of much use. But Shen Guang directly pulled in three Demon Generals to bathe Western Sea Immortal City in blood!
Old Mu had run away, and old Zhou was furious. Many Foundation Establishnt cultivators in the West Sea who couldn't read the situation only felt they had witnessed sothing massive today.
So, Zhou Fujiao was preparing for body usurpation. So, that Mu Chunze had actually hidden himself so deeply.
So, grand cultivators also engaged in infighting! But they had no ti to think about it anymore.
When the half-headed Black Dragon appeared outside Western Sea Immortal City leading the demon horde, Li Haiping manipulated the formation array to launch a few long-range attacks at them. Western Sea Immortal City's protective grand array was nad the Vajra Western Sea Formation.
The Vajra Pillar served as the array's eye, and Western Sea Immortal City served as its foundation. As long as the Vajra Pillar remained within, the formation array was incomparably stable, and the attacks unleashed by borrowing its might were exceptionally powerful.
However, to refine the Blood Marrow Restoration Pill, Zhou Fujiao had exhausted all the Vajra Pillar's accumulated might over the years to block the Heavenly Tribulation! This seed like a coincidence, but Li Haikuo couldn't shake the feeling that a deeper intent lay behind it.
Whose will? Mang Xiang and Immortal Venerable Shen Guang's shared intent: Zhou Fujiao must die. They must have calculated everything up to this point.
Therefore, Li Haiping wasn't fighting for real either. These Demon Generals were clearly invited by Shen Guang; if he actually fought them, wouldn't he be asking for trouble?
However, he had only manipulated the grand array to unleash two strikes... In the eyes of the many cultivators in Western Sea Immortal City, the grand array collapsed inexplicably, without any warning.
What was going on? Li Haikuo hurriedly checked the array in disbelief.
Soon, his expression turned exceptionally grim.
"Jin Shan, have you already surrendered to Shen Guang?" Li Haikuo asked. "No... is Shen Guang going rogue?"
Jin Shan couldn't understand it either. Why did Zhou Fujiao deserve to die?
No, why was Zhou Fujiao targeted by Shen Guang? To vent anger on Mang Xiang's behalf?
Unlikely. So...
Could that bastard Shen Guang, seeing the chaos between the Sky Serpent Sect and the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, be planning to bathe the West Sea in blood and score a massive haul? It wasn't impossible.
Past profits were in the past; future gains relied on future expectations. The current share might not be small, but how could it compare to the imdiate payout of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs?
Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs wasn't wrong; what was wrong was not having the qualifications to acquire a second goose. As long as Shen Guang ate the goose and its eggs to fuel his own advancent, obtaining a second goose in the future would just be a matter of negotiation.
The so-called live-in son-in-law Mu Changze turning on his master was a complete sham; the truth was, Immortal Venerable Shen Guang might want to take it all! Thinking of this, both of them shuddered. Hold on, they had to hold on—otherwise, they would be the ones taking the massive bla for this catastrophe!
Of course, they still had to negotiate. As the two flew up to et the enemy, they simultaneously initiated a communication request to Shen Guang.
As the Immortal Alliance's supre leader in the West Sea, all three True Persons had their own ans of contacting Shen Guang. If they wanted to reach him, they could always get through.
'Old sir, just raise your hand a bit; it'll be enough if we finish off old Zhou together.' Wang Yulou had never expected things to develop to this extent.
Shen Guang had directly pulled in three Demon Generals to slaughter the West Sea, and Wang Yulou's cheap father-in-law had backstabbed his master at the critical mont. Bringing conflicts out into the open was nothing; the most terrifying aspect of Shen Guang's move was his absolute disregard for the rules.
The Immortal Alliance's laws? The Immortal Alliance's rules?
In the eyes of Immortal Venerable Shen Guang, these were all farts! No, a fart could at least be heard; these rules were worse than a fart.
But thinking about it, it made sense. Shen Guang was soone standing at the commanding heights of those rules; naturally, he wouldn't be bound by them.
Giving a nod to the Immortal Alliance's rules by having Mu Changze use Jin Shan to go through the motions was already Shen Guang's final respect for the Immortal Alliance, and that was only because of Jin Shan's special status.
Otherwise, if it were a local Purple Palace cultivator from Wunan, Shen Guang probably wouldn't have even bothered going through the motions. Just as Wang Yulou and the Patriarch were hiding in Dragon Tiger Platform to avoid the disaster, old Mu, holding Yingxi in his mouth, tossed her directly into Wang Yulou's arms.
"Wang Yulou, keep Yingxi safe!" Seeing the expression of relief on Yulou's face, Wang Xianmao sighed faintly.
He was the one who had just pulled Wang Yulou to Dragon Tiger Platform to avoid the disaster. When old Zhou failed to appear, he sensed sothing was wrong and chose Dragon Tiger Platform as their refuge.
Now that Yingxi was safe, that was naturally for the best. Thinking of this, the Patriarch looked again at the departing old Mu.
What was so special about this Transform into Auspicious Deer divine ability? Why was it so strong?
Was Transform into Auspicious Deer strong? Actually, it wasn't, especially when compared to the Dragon Transformation thod.
Different demonic beasts had their own species limits and innate traits. Among them, the limits and traits of the dragon species were exceedingly extraordinary. Therefore, the Dragon Transformation thod beca a uniquely top-tier divine ability among demons.
Compared to the Dragon Transformation thod cultivated by the Great Demon Black Dragon—a half-headed, black-skinned erkat—Transform into Auspicious Deer was still a tier lower. However, Black Dragon's cultivation base was incredibly high.
It had already reached the peak of the Demon General rank, analogous to a human cultivator's Peak Purple Mansion—the exact sa realm as Jin Shan. This old demon looked utterly miserable, missing half its head, but when it fought, its fierce flas were an overwhelming torrent.
Boundless whiskers grew from its body, coiling around its fra to form the shape of a black dragon. Unpredictably powerful black flas burned along these whiskers.
Wherever they passed, anyone below the Purple Palace realm was instantly turned to dust, and buildings were reduced to bare earth. Against such a fierce demon, Jin Shan naturally didn't dare to be careless.
But while Li Haikuo was rely stalling the sheep demon, the scorpion demon rushed over to help Black Dragon deal with Jin Shan. Therefore, Jin Shan was struggling greatly in the fight.
"Old Zhou, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and help !"
Zhou Fujiao naturally believed that Jin Shan was on his side, so he hurried forward to help him block the Demon General's rampage. But the mont he took to the sky, he crashed right into Jin Shan's fully unleashed Supre Dark Annihilation Ten-Thousand Li Tempest—Jin Shan had already struck a deal with Shen Guang!
Supre Dark Annihilation Ten-Thousand Li Tempest was an inheritance left by the ancient, top-tier faction Beyond Heaven, and it was also one of Jin Shan's trump cards. The "Supre Dark" here didn't an profound and mysterious, but rather the literal color black. Supre Dark Annihilation ant Absolute Darkness Annihilation.
Ten-Thousand Li Tempest referred to how this thod captured the single trace of transformation in the world as it shifted from absolute darkness to gradual light.
Although the transformation was but a single trace, it whipped up a tempest spanning ten thousand li, deeply containing the Great Dao of Yin and Yang where extres give birth to change.
It could be said that this divine ability was the absolute highest-tier offensive dharma thod one could cultivate after attaining the Purple Palace realm through the Heaven-Human Resonance of the old cultivation arts. Hitting a fledgling Purple Palace cultivator like Zhou Fujiao with it was basically like hitting a baby.
If Zhou Fujiao still had his grotto-heaven, he could have easily blocked it. It wouldn't even have been surprising if he fought back for hundreds of rounds and counter-killed Jin Shan. However, his grotto-heaven had collapsed.
One move. For a Peak Purple Mansion cultivator to bully a half-dead Purple Palace cultivator like Zhou Fujiao, one move was all it took.
Under the assault of the Supre Dark Annihilation Ten-Thousand Li Tempest, Zhou Fujiao didn't even have ti to dodge before he was beaten into a near-death state.
Jin Shan even retracted the Ten-Thousand Li Tempest just outside the skin of the flood dragon corpse, solely using its connected power of the Great Dao to sever Zhou Fujiao's divine soul. He was leaving the flood dragon corpse intact for Black Dragon to use!
"Shen Guang, you..."
Zhou Fujiao could never have imagined that Jin Shan, who had been sent by the Immortal Alliance to supervise Shen Guang, would be won over by him. Near death, he still wanted to spew curses, but Black Dragon didn't give him the chance.
The endless whiskers of Demon General Black Dragon had already wrapped around him, devouring the residual dragon nature of the flood dragon corpse.
"Don't rush, we still have to keep fighting," Jin Shan reminded.
His Ten-Thousand Li Tempest cultivated the subtle path of change from absolute dark to gradual light. In the West Sea, apart from Black Dragon and Shen Guang, not even Li Haiping could see through what he had done—Old Li was still tangled with the sheep demon.
Therefore, after killing Zhou Fujiao and submitting his pledge of allegiance, Jin Shan had to continue fighting Black Dragon to complete Shen Guang's task. But Black Dragon ignored him, single-mindedly absorbing the dragon nature.
At this mont, Shen Guang was the one who couldn't hold back anymore. From a great distance, Wang Yulou saw it clearly.
In the sky above Western Sea Immortal City, a tear appeared like a ripped rag. A five-colored pillar of light shot out from within, shining down onto the rampaging Demon General Black Dragon.
"Squeak! Squeak~"
Instantly, the half-headed Black Dragon was taught such a harsh lesson by Immortal Venerable Shen Guang that its eyes turned clear. Considering it was already a half-brained creature to begin with...
...it quickly used its whiskers to hook the flood dragon corpse and resud fighting Jin Shan. Shen Guang's intervention instantly sent the morale of the nurous cultivators in Western Sea Immortal City soaring.
"The Immortal Venerable has acted! It's Immortal Venerable Shen Guang!"
"The Immortal Venerable is here! The immortal city is saved! The Immortal Venerable is here! The West Sea is at peace!"
"Why did the Immortal Venerable only strike once and then stop?"
"What do you know? The Immortal Venerable must have heavily wounded that black-furred monster with the fiercest demonic flas. Seeing no need to continue, he stayed his hand."
Most people chose to believe in Shen Guang. Zhou Fujiao was an outsider, after all; Shen Guang was the true sky of the West Sea.
Of course, wherever there were crowds, there would naturally be objective bystanders and rational analysts.
"Then why did True Person Fujiao ntion the Immortal Venerable like that just now?"
Wang Yulou shook his head. Why?
"Refusing to concede, not wanting to die, not wanting to beco a sacrifice, not wanting to be reduced to a stepping stone. Who knows?" Wang Xianmao said.
"If you lose, no matter who you are, you won't have a good reputation. Reputation is the most aningless thing.
"Just as you've seen, no matter what you've done, as long as you win, glorious fa will surge toward you for free. Yulou, cultivating immortality is a long road.
"Regardless of what changes today's events might bring about in the future, you must maintain your forward stride and keep walking."
Wang Xianmao, unable to hide his smile, guided Wang Yulou. Old Zhou was dead. Dying right after Wang Yulou reached Foundation Establishnt—what perfect timing. It seed like a coincidence, but this timing actually aligned with Zhou Yingxi reaching Foundation Establishnt, which in turn aligned with her absorbing the Blood Marrow Restoration Pill. Add to that Zhou Bojiao refining the pill after the investigation into the Demon-Suppressing Treasure Pagoda, and his attempt at body usurpation right after the Red Lantern Illumination Sect went to war, the only conclusion was that old Zhou had ticulously sched against Zhou Yingxi and Wang Yulou every step of the way.
So, seeing old Zhou die at the hands of the black-haired Demon General, how could Wang Xianmao not be delighted? Old Zhou, oh old Zhou. He sched so deeply for the sake of body usurpation, but the one thing he failed to account for was that Shen Guang would have so little regard for the rules.
Thinking of this, Wang Yulou sighed faintly. "Patriarch, with Ancestral Master and Immortal Venerable Shen Guang acting like this, I fear we'll face new storms ahead."
Wang Xianmao's smile faded. He couldn't laugh anymore.
For the sake of attaining the Golden Core, Mang Xiang directly declared war on the Sky Serpent Sect without approval from the Gathering Immortals Platform. In the West Sea, Shen Guang killed a mber of the Immortal Alliance, Grand Cultivator Zhou Bojiao, displaying extre arrogance. By sheer coincidence, the two people Wang Yulou served were exactly these two. The advantages he had gained by guessing that Shen Guang and Mang Xiang might unite were directly proportional to the danger of the volcano he now stood upon.
"Storms and hardships are normal... Wait, Yulou, look. The movents—no, the looting—of those Great Demons and the three Demon Kings. Isn't it a bit off?"
Reminded by the Patriarch, Wang Yulou finally noticed sothing was wrong.
It wasn't that he lacked observation skills; today's events were simply too overwhelming, leaving his mind in turmoil. In Western Sea Immortal City, most of the buildings had been ravaged by the demon horde.
Only the pavilions and platforms directly under the Immortal Alliance, like Dragon Tiger Platform, remained intact. The cultivators had built a new line of defense inside the immortal city using these pavilions and their built-in arrays.
Unable to break the combined defense of the pavilion arrays and the cultivators, the Great Demons chose to strike elsewhere. In just a short while, many Great Demons had gorged themselves and caused destruction to their hearts' content.
"It is indeed off. The Jade Palace Estate has already fallen," Wang Yulou muttered.
'Immortal Venerable, is this also one of your goals?'
"If it's fallen, let it fall; it's not a loss!"
Wang Xianmao was truly excited this ti. 'Immortal Venerable, this is exactly why you could beco an Immortal Venerable. What to do if the new district isn't valuable? Smash the main city district and force the livestock to buy new pens!'
Yulou also saw those itinerant cultivators struggling beneath Dragon Tiger Platform, trying to enter the array—no, many among them weren't even itinerant cultivators, but disciples of major sects and large families.
But they still couldn't get in because outside Dragon Tiger Platform, there were seven or eight Great Demons wildly gorging themselves like they were at a slaughterous feast.
Dragon Tiger Platform wasn't short on seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivators, but the battle in the sky hadn't truly decided a victor, and Perfected Man Fujiao looked as though he had already been taken down by the Demon King.
At a ti like this, if they wasted spiritual power saving outsiders, and the situation went south forcing everyone to flee, it would just beco a competition of who was the slowest.
Therefore, even though there were over thirty Foundation Establishnt cultivators in Dragon Tiger Platform, no one was willing to go out and block those seven or eight Great Demons feasting outside.
They rely watched silently as those ordinary Qi Refining and Foundation Establishnt cultivators standing at the edge outside the array were devoured by the erkats.
"Fuck! I can't watch this anymore! How can you all just watch!"
A middle-aged man with flowing hair charged out from within the inner array of the Demon-Suppressing branch pavilion, drawing sidelong glances from everyone nearby.
Feng Jianxian was Feng Jianxian after all; under everyone's gaze, he beca the most dazzling figure in the immortal city at this mont. But he wasn't doing it to show off; he was doing it to save people.
"How can you all just watch? They are people, people just like you! Kill, kill, kill, kill!"
Feng Jianxian unleashed the secret divine ability of Dripdrop Cave, Flowing Water Vast and Deep. A mighty white water mist perated his surroundings, and those Great Demons who noticed him rushed toward him.
This was a peculiar mutual charge: the erkat Great Demons wanted to tear this reckless fool to pieces, and Feng Jianxian wanted to use his presence to attract more Great Demons. Wang Yulou watched his good friend marching to his death outside the array.
The hands holding Yingxi subconsciously tightened, and Yingxi jolted awake from the pain. Outside the array, covered by Flowing Water Vast and Deep, Feng Jianxian then executed Thousand Waterfalls to One, directly killing two erkat Great Demons that lacked divine abilities.
"Good!"
"Old Feng, what valor!"
Among the onlookers, many recognized Feng Jianxian. Seeing him achieve rit, they clamored to cheer for him.
"Idiots, don't just shout and stand there! What are you waiting for?" Feng Jianxian roared. "This is the best chance to gather military rit. Normally, we couldn't catch these Great Demons even if we wanted to!"
His words hit the mark, and imdiately, many people began to itch for action. Right, they were in the immortal city after all, and the Immortal Alliance's reinforcents would arrive sooner or later. Joining the fray at this mont was just perfect.
However, in the sky, Black Dragon—who was busy fighting a performative duel with Jin Shan while simultaneously smashing Western Sea Immortal City—noticed Feng Jianxian trying to rally people against the demons. He rely detached three of his whiskers, sending them toward Feng Jianxian.
Black flas ignited out of thin air. Flowing Water Vast and Deep turned into endless steam, which was then instantly incinerated. A gust of wind blew past; where Feng Jianxian had originally stood, only a patch of fluttering black ash remained.
Wang Xianmao tightly held down Wang Yulou's shoulder. Zhou Yingxi, who was lying on Wang Yulou's shoulder seeking refuge, felt Wang Yulou's surging anger and glared resentfully at the sky.
In this world, there was no absolute evil, and no absolute good. Isolation was a false proposition; connection was the chanism that bound everything together. Systemic violence ravaged every soul, and this cage would not fundantally change regardless of differences in cultivation base, status, or identity. Under such systemic violence, kindness beca a sort of willful caprice, blind to the true 'weight' of things. Weight itself held different values depending on the dinsion of evaluation and the standpoint of the subject. It was a relative system, not an absolute one. Viewed from the perspective of connection, valuing kindness too heavily ant valuing other conceptual 'anings' too lightly—and that bordered on re caprice.
Wang Yulou ultimately did not move a single step. He was not Feng Jianxian; he did not have the right to be capricious.
"Alright, Yingxi, stop crying. What's there to cry about? Isn't it over now?" Ignoring the pain in his own heart, Wang Yulou forced a small smile and comforted Yingxi.
His wife was safe, but the first true friend he had made after coming to this world had been killed by the Demon King. Was it a loss? Was it a gain? Neither.
Wang Yulou couldn't clearly describe how he felt; the concepts of loss and gain were far too shallow to encompass it. He only knew one thing: it was ti to do sothing.
'Having reached Foundation Establishnt, in an era where Purple Palace cultivators rarely take the field directly, I should finally be able to do sothing, right?'
"Over... I feel like I've had a very long dream, husband."
Wang Yulou didn't answer, rely looking in astonishnt at the changes in the sky.
"That's..."
"Mu Changze!"
"He's probably truly joined forces with the West Sea demonic evildoers."
Zhou Yingxi whipped her head around, and at the focal point of everyone's gaze, she saw her own father. That Auspicious Deer bearing four antlers on its head was rapidly devouring everything Zhou Bojiao left behind: spiritual vitality, spiritual charm, Dao resonance, Essence of Grotto-heaven, and even fragnts of his soul.
Not many knew what a Purple Palace soul looked like, but one thing was certain: its fragnts were a clear, translucent silver. The Auspicious Deer chewed on Zhou Bojiao's soul, and the innate might on its body grew increasingly powerful until finally, the embryonic form of Dao resonance gradually manifested.
This was the true reason everyone was shocked. The process of opening the Purple Palace was only known to the breakthrough attempters themselves.
But when a Purple Palace grand cultivator had just broken through, they were often unable to restrain the Dao resonance on their body. Looking for Dao resonance was the key way for bystanders to see whether a cultivator had broken through to the Purple Palace.
The heavenly genius of the Zhou Family had beco a stepping stone under Immortal Venerable Shen Guang's design, and a newly born Purple Palace cultivator was gradually coming into existence in Western Sea Immortal City.
Inside Gu Family Tea House, Gu Qilang looked at the distant Mu Changze and let out a faint sigh.
"Those whose divine abilities transform into demons beco divine and attain longevity. Divine and attain longevity... The old cultivation arts are better after all; one can open the Purple Palace in their early two hundreds."
In the East Annex City, inside the Demon-Suppressing Treasure Pagoda, Xihai Qingfeng looked toward the direction of the immortal city, completely unable to maintain his aloof, moon-like bearing anymore. He wanted to do sothing, wanted to say sothing, but ultimately, he just slumped back into his seat dejectedly.
'Master, why? Why him? On what basis is it him?'
Xihai Longhu and Xihai Zhongcheng, however, rarely sat together. Xihai Zhongcheng smiled and said, "Second Brother, you don't need to rush. Master has his own ideas. Master sees everything you've done so well in the South Annex City. It's just that the two hundred mu of land this little brother wants..."
Xihai Longhu threw a smug, satisfied glance at his third brother and said, "Thirty thousand spirit stones per mu, absolutely no haggling~"
Xihai Zhongcheng was instantly anxious.
"Wasn't it twenty thousand per mu just two days ago?"
Knuckles tapped against the tabletop, producing a thump-thump sound, like a small drum beating against Xihai Zhongcheng's heart. He only heard his Second Brother say,
"Right now, in the South Annex City, it's thirty thousand per mu; if you're not buying, get out!"
—— After a long while, under the gaze of everyone, under the "protection" of the three Demon Generals, and under the "attacks" of the two Immortal Alliance True Persons, Mu Changze—this ruthless man who had once diluted the water in Clear Stream Market—finally fully condensed his own Dao resonance and beca a Purple Palace grand cultivator, a figure that might not erge even from among a million cultivators.
It was just that after becoming a Purple Palace cultivator, he didn't revert to his original form. Instead, alongside the rampaging demonic beasts, he was "driven away" by the two True Persons of the Immortal Alliance. Just before leaving, at the distant edge of heaven and earth, at the limit of visibility, Mu Changze suddenly looked back in Yingxi's direction.
Zhou Yingxi had never understood her own father, neither when she was little, nor up until yesterday. Today, she finally understood her father's extraordinary Dao heart, his unwavering dedication to seeking the Dao.
But... she really couldn't say she liked it.
She could see those red, ruby-like eyes of the Auspicious Deer, yet she subconsciously chose to look away.
The demonic beasts had just caused such slaughter in Western Sea Immortal City, yet her own biological father, the father who had saved her from Zhou Bojiao's hands, was going to leave together with that demon horde that slaughtered people as casually as drinking water. Zhou Yingxi now wished so much that all of this was truly just a dream.
After waking up, she could return to reality, preferably back to her teenage years, the days of cultivating alongside her father in Clear Stream Market.
Back then, Wang Yulou was still very dense, that idiot Wang Yu'an was still around, her father hadn't abandoned his identity as a human, and the Zhou Family hadn't fallen into its current wither and decline. But she ultimately couldn't go back; she just couldn't go back.
"Yooo~"
With a deer's cry, Mu Changze left, ultimately offering no explanation to his daughter.
'Let it be like this. Wang Yulou, I believe in you!'
This had nothing to do with trust; it was purely about strength. If you had a Purple Palace father-in-law, you too would beco your father-in-law's caring little padded jacket.
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