Library of Heaven's Path

by Little Merger

Traversing into another world, Zhang Xuan finds himself becoming an honorable teacher. Along with his transcension, a mysterious library appears in his mind. As long as it is something he has seen, regardless of whether it is a human or an object, a book on its weaknesses will be automatically compiled in the library. Thus, he becomes formidable. “Emperor Zhuoyang, why do you detes

53. 1665

Library of Heaven's Path #Chapter 1665 - Eradicating the Innate Fetal Poison (2) - Read Library of Heaven's Path Chapter 1665 - Eradicating the Innate Fetal Poison (2) Online - All Page - NOVEL NEXT

Chapter 1665: Eradicating the Innate Fetal Poison (2)

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

Knowing that this wasn't a good time for his mind to be wandering around the place, Zhang Xuan curbed the dizziness in his head and focused his attention on the silhouette on the stone platform.

At this moment, the silhouette seemed to be undergoing a similar experience as him. Heavenly flames descending from the heavens seared him mercilessly, turning him into the color of black charcoals. His aura withered swiftly under the heat, and it felt as if he would wilt and breathe his last.

Just as his aura grew so feeble that it was nearly indiscernible, a small seed of energy suddenly sprouted from his body. The small seed of energy grew relentlessly in the face of the heat, accumulating power and vitality. Before long, it had already developed into a colossal tree.

The silhouette remained completely motionless throughout the process, but his presence seemed to be growing bigger and bigger. It came to a point where it seemed to tower over everything in the world.

This is... Resurgence After Desolation, Revival After Demise? Zhang Xuan's heart jolted in astonishment.

With the arrival of autumn, the resplendent world would gradually wilt and lose all vitality, leaving nothing but piles of discarded autumn leaves on the ground. However, when spring returned to the world once more, everything would come back to life. Vitality would surge back into the world, resuscitating the dead and bestowing new lives!

This was the cycle of nature.

And the silhouette on the stone platform was using this cycle to his advantage.

The more I try to oppose the black flame, the greater the intensity it'll burn with. In other words, if I choose not to oppose the heavenly flame, the temperature of the flame will lower accordingly too. If I could just lower the temperature of the black flame to a level that's tolerable to me, I'll be able to use the heat to temper my body and gradually adapt to the heat... Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in realization.

This was actually a common trait amongst cultivation ordeal. Be it the lightning tribulation or the heavenly flame tribulation, their prowess of the tribulation mirrored the strength of the cultivator it was dealing with.

Take the lightning tribulation as an example, the stronger one's cultivation was, the more powerful the lightning tribulation would be. To put it in other words, the more feeble one was, the weaker the lightning tribulation would be...

It was counterintuitive, but the key to overcoming this cultivation ordeal was to not oppose it. Otherwise, even if his Primordial Spirit had reached Aureate Body realm, he would still eventually succumb to the intense heat and pass out.

What he had to do was to feign weakness before the cultivation ordeal in order to give his body some time to adapt to the heat.

The arrival of the winter solstice, the silencing of all beings!

Finally seeing a plausible way out of his current quandary, Zhang Xuan immediately abandoned all attempts to ward off the heat from the black flame. Consciousness seemed to have vanished from his body as he stopped breathing altogether.

It was as if winter had descended, extinguishing the flames of life under a weight of coldness. In this moment, it seemed as if eternal silence had set upon the world.

Tzzzzzz!

Just as what Zhang Xuan had expected, as soon as he abandoned all resistance, the black flame realized that it had lost an opponent and swiftly calmed down. As a result of that, the temperature of the black flame plummeted sharply.

To make an analogy, Zhang Xuan's zhenqi was like gasoline to the black flame. The more he tried to fend off the black flame with his zhenqi, the more domineering the black flame would become in order to quell him.

On the other hand, if he were to seal his zhenqi together and keep it from coming into contact with the black flame, with time, the black flame would lose its momentum and extinguish.

Having given up on resistance, Zhang Xuan's aura gradually weakened down to the point where he seemed nothing more than an ordinary mortal. In reciprocation to that, the black flame also diminished to a level tolerable to him.

Under the scorching heat of the black flame, black gas began rising out of Zhang Xuan's body. Slowly, a golden sheen emerged from his physical body.

Having cultivated the Heaven's Path Golden Body, Zhang Xuan knew that the black gas was the impurities accumulated within his body. Even if he had refined his body time and time again, it was nigh impossible for him to cleanse it fully.

In a sense, this was similar to no matter how many times a person washed his body, his body would never be perfectly clean.

This was because the spiritual energy in nature was impure. This impurity was also the reason why spirit stones were divided into low-tier, middle-tier, high-tier, and pinnacle.

Even the pinnacle spirit stone, which boasted the highest purity of the spirit stones, wasn't close to being devoid of impurities. Given that even the spiritual energy absorbed by a cultivator wasn't perfectly clean, it was inevitable that impurities would gradually accumulate within one's body.

The heavenly flame wielded the power to burn these impurities into black gas and expel them from a cultivator's body. Without these impurities to hinder his bodily functions, the cultivator would be able to wield greater power at his disposal.

Gold was known to be the element that contained the least impurities. By tempering one's physical body over and over again, it would begin to emanate a beautiful golden sheen. This was also where the term 'Aureate Body' originated from.

As more and more black gas was being expelled, the golden sheen emanating from Zhang Xuan's body grew more and more brilliant.

In the previous heavenly tribulation, he had only managed to refine his Primordial Spirit to assume a golden color. However, under the intense scorching of the black flame, his physical body and zhenqi were swiftly being purified, and they were beginning to turn golden as well.

With a light knock, a metallic reverberation sounded from his body. It was almost as if his body was a legendary weapon in the making.

I think I can start raising the temperature of the black flame...

As the black flame tempered his body, he found that the excruciating pain he had suffered previously had been reduced to a level where he could hardly feel anything anymore. This was a sign that he had already adapted to the current level of heat emanated from the black flame, and it no longer posed a threat to him anymore.

Thus, he began to drive his zhenqi.

In an instant, it was as if the world had come back to life. The frost had melted, and a surge of vitality sprouted from the depths of his body.

Hong long long!

Sensing the changes in Zhang Xuan's body, the black flame realized that it had been duped and flew into a rage. Innumerable bundles of black flames descended one after another, threatening to burn the young man down to ashes.

However, this was the exact reaction Zhang Xuan was anticipating from it.

Without any hesitation, he absorbed the bundles of black flame into his body.

Jijijiji!

It wasn't too long ago that the black flame was a force far beyond his means to deal, but after undergoing a period of adaptation, his body had already built up some immunity against the heat. The damage and pain inflicted on his body had both reduced to a level acceptable to him.

Black gas continued being expelled from his body, and the golden sheen on his body was becoming more and more brilliant.

At the same time, the floor he was sitting on had initially turned black under the heat of the black flame, but at this point, it was starting to grow translucent. Slowly but surely, it was assuming a similar appearance to the blue jadestone he had seen previously.

Slowly, Zhang Xuan felt his body adapting completely to the black flame, and he heaved a sigh of relief. A glint flashed across his eyes as he thought, It's about time to resolve the Innate Fetal Poison!

The Innate Fetal Poison had managed to slip into his physical body and hide in his narrowest meridians, where he was unable to reach. This time around, he was determined to accomplish the deed once and for all!

Zhang Xuan took in a deep breath as he turned his gaze toward the ominous clouds above. With a powerful leap, he dashed right into the midst of the Empyrean Heavenly Flame.

Since he had already resolved himself to eliminate the Innate Fetal Poison, he would have to make sure to utterly obliterate it this time around such that it wouldn't be able to make a comeback again. The bundles of black flame that descended from the ominous clouds above wasn't sufficient to guarantee the complete destruction of the Innate Fetal Poison, so he would have to dive into the core of the black flame to carry out the deed.

Back then, he did dive into the ominous clouds with his Primordial Spirit too, but he had remained near the edges. That created an opening for the Innate Fetal Poison to get away.

He wouldn't make such a mistake again.

Huhuhu!

As soon as he dived into the midst of the dark clouds, he immediately felt innumerable bundles of black flame swarming in his direction, threatening to drown him whole.

In the face of the frenzied assault from the black flames, Zhang Xuan opened his acupoints and devoured them frenziedly.

As the black flames surged into his meridians, he channeled them toward the area where the Innate Fetal Poison hid.

Jijiji!

At this moment, the Innate Fetal Poison was still idling by one corner, oblivious to the fact that Zhang Xuan had already summoned the heavenly flame tribulation for his physical body too. Caught off guard by the ferocious onslaught of black flames, it released a shrill shriek and quickly took flight.

"Do you think you have anywhere to run to?"

After been tortured by the Innate Fetal Poison for so long, Zhang Xuan couldn't possibly allow it to do as it pleased anymore. Before the Innate Fetal Poison could get far away, black flames surged into the path it was intending to escape to.

Before it could even register the situation it was in, all of its paths of escape had been completely sealed.

Zhang Xuan knew how agile the Innate Fetal Poison was when it came to fleeing, so he made sure that everything was in place before launching the decisive assault.

At this moment, due to the overwhelming quantity of black flame in him, his entire body had turned into a human-shaped black fireball. If he still couldn't get rid of the Innate Fetal Poison with this, he could really just kill himself on a blob of tofu.

Jijiji!

Completely surrounded, the Innate Fetal Poison had no way to escape to. Engulfed in the midst of searing black flames, a piercing shriek reminiscent of a banshee's cry shook the air. The shriek slowly dwindled before everything was reduced to silence.

It's finally over... Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

His physical body and Primordial Spirit had been tempered by heavenly flames, and his Spiritual Perception had grown sharp enough to notice any anomaly in his body. No matter how crafty the Innate Fetal Poison was, there was no way it would be able to escape from this.

Fearing that the Innate Fetal Poison would make a comeback, even after the piercing shriek faded, Zhang Xuan continued to channel black flames into his body to sear the Innate Fetal Poison. He continued the process for nearly ten minutes, stopping only when the dark clouds were beginning to dissipate.

Retracting the black flames, Zhang Xuan swiftly scanned the area where the Innate Fetal Poison had last appeared with his Spiritual Perception. His eyes widened at what he saw.

"This... What is this?" Zhang Xuan muttered in shock.

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Chapter 1666: He's Smithing?

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

The Innate Fetal Poison which had plagued him for over a year had disappeared without a trace. However, remaining in its place was a ball of black smoke.

This bundle of black smoke wasn't too big, roughly the size of a fingernail. It sat quietly in the midst of his meridians, not moving at all.

I have no idea what it is, but it's unlikely to be anything good. Let me see if I can get rid of it!!

Zhang Xuan continued to channel the black flame into his body to burn the ball of black smoke, but it didn't seem to faze the ball of black smoke at all. Even the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, which boasted the ability to be able to burn anything down, was completely ineffective against it!

What in the world is this ball of black smoke?

Following which, Zhang Xuan tried to use his soul energy and zhenqi to expel the ball of black smoke out of his body, but to his astonishment, it seemed to have taken root in his body. No matter how he tugged and pulled, it refused to budge at all.

Could this be the 'problem' which Kong shi was referring to back then? Zhang Xuan thought with a frown.

After taming the Pavilion Master Token, he encountered Kong shi's will, and the latter told him that it wasn't too difficult to resolve the Innate Fetal Poison. What was troublesome was the problem that came after it...

He had successfully eradicated the Innate Fetal Poison, but in its place, this ball of black smoke appeared... There was no doubt the 'problem' which Kong shi was referring to was this!

Something which even Kong shi deemed to be 'a problem' was likely to be really difficult to deal with.

This ball of black smoke is residing in one of my smaller meridians, so my Primordial Spirit is unable to slip in. Furthermore, it doesn't seem like my Library of Heaven's Path is working on it either... Zhang Xuan frowned in frustration.

He had used his Eye of Insight, Library of Heaven's Path, and everything at his disposal, but he was still unable to identify what the ball of black smoke was.

Forget it! Judging from its state, it doesn't seem to pose any harm to me for the time being. I guess I'll have to ask Kong shi about it the next time I meet him...

Zhang Xuan examined the ball of black smoke carefully, and it didn't seem to be poisonous. Deeming it unlikely to cause him any harm in the short run, he decided to put this matter aside for the time being.

While he was a little unnerved by its presence, it didn't seem like he was able to get rid of it at the moment.

In any case, he had finally managed to resolve the Innate Fetal Poison, and that was truly a huge load off his chest!

The tension which had been weighing him down over the past year vanished without a trace, and he suddenly felt light and free.

Huhu!

At the same time, the dark clouds in the sky were already halfway through their dissipation, and the heavenly flame tribulation was likely to flee very soon.

The current heavenly flame tribulation doesn't pose any threat to me anymore...

Even when the tribulation was at its full prowess, it was unable to bring him down. Given that it was already in the midst of dissipation, there was no way it would be able to hurt him anymore.

It would be a waste to allow the black flame to dissipate just like that though. Otherwise, who knows when I'll be able to encounter it once more? Zhang Xuan thought.

The corners of his lips crept up as he flicked his wrist and took out a three meters wide round platform.

Golden Origin Spirit Stone!

This was the treasure which the Dragonbone Divine Spear had given him back at Ancient Sage Ran Qiu's ancient domain. However, as he had no suitable flame to process the material, he could only store it in his storage ring all this while. However, since there were remnants of the heavenly flame in the sky, and it happened that he had no other use for it at the moment, this was an ideal opportunity to reforge the Golden Origin Cauldron!

That fellow had been following him for a very long while now. However, as he had advanced his cultivation too quickly, it didn't take long before it was rendered redundant. Since he had some spare time at the moment, it would be a good chance to upgrade this loyal subordinate of his!

Hu!

As soon as the Golden Origin Spirit Stone came into contact with the black flame, the precious metal which even the most powerful earth flame would have difficulty processing began to soften. In less than ten breaths, the massive platform had already been reduced to a puddle of metallic fluid.

"Golden Origin Cauldron, come out!" Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist.

Hu!

The Golden Origin Cauldron materialized in the air. As soon as it appeared, it squealed out in delight, "Master, did you suddenly miss me? Did someone bully you again? Tell me who he is, and I'll have him reduced to..."

But before it could finish squealing, it swiftly realized that something was amiss. When it noticed the black flames wrapped around it, its voice quivered in horror, "M-master, what's that? Why is it so hot? Master, did I offend you somehow that you actually want to melt me down? Please, don't kill me! If you really want me to, I can even give my first time to you!"

"..." Black lines streaked across Zhang Xuan's face. "Shut up! I am trying to upgrade you right now. If you dare utter another word of nonsense, I'll toss you into the black flames and burn you to death!"

"Ahhh... Yes, master!" Hearing that its master was actually intending to upgrade it instead, the Golden Origin cauldron heaved a sigh of relief.

Just as it was about to say something, intense heat from the black flames suddenly gushed in from the surroundings. Under the overwhelming heat, Its body began to distort as it lost its structural rigidity. It was gradually starting to melt.

Zhang Xuan waved his hand, and the melted Golden Origin Spirit Stone swiftly flew over. He began to fuse it together with the Golden Origin Cauldron.

"No, this isn't right... The Golden Origin Spirit Stone is too high tiered! The smithing techniques that I have learned previously can't apply to it... How much of it do I need to fuse into the Golden Origin Cauldron in order to maximize its strength?" Zhang Xuan suddenly froze as a question popped up in his head.

His comprehension of smithing was only at 8-star pinnacle at the moment, and the knowledge he had was clearly insufficient to properly process the Golden Origin Spirit Stone!

A certain proportion had to be struck between various ores in order to maximize the resilience of the resulting alloy. The more precisely the resulting alloy stuck to the ratio, the more powerful it would be.

He had never worked with the Golden Origin Spirit Stone before—it was simply too rare! He had only heard of its name before, so there was no way he could have known at what ratio it should be fused with the other metals in order to create a perfect alloy.

"I was too reckless..." Zhang Xuan's face twitched awkwardly.

If the proportion of the alloy was wrong, no matter how much good stuff he packed into the forging process, the resultant artifact was unlikely to be too powerful.

His only thought then was to make full use of the black flame to reforge the Golden Origin Cauldron that he failed to think the matter through thoroughly. Considering that he had already started to fuse the Golden Origin Cauldron together with the Golden Origin Spirit Stone, it was already too late for him to turn back now.

"Forget it! The Golden Origin Spirit Stone is an exceptionally powerful material, so the more the merrier. In any case, the materials used to forge the Golden Origin Cauldron is too mediocre, so it would be good to replace them all at once..." Being an optimistic person, Zhang Xuan tossed those concerns to the back of his mind.

Even if the proportion was wrong, an artifact which had the Golden Origin Spirit Stone mixed into it couldn't possibly turn out to be weak. Since he had already gone wrong, he might as well add more of it! Perhaps, it might rectify his previous mistakes!

Tzzzzzzz!

As the Golden Origin Cauldron fused with the three meters wide round platform, it was swiftly reduced to a metallic lump.

Hu!

At this moment, the dark clouds seemed to have run out of power, and with a 'hu!', the black flames began extinguishing one after another.

"Crap, the black flames are vanishing too quickly. I haven't even started forging it yet!" Zhang Xuan's face twitched in horror.

He was supposed to be upgrading the Golden Origin Cauldron, not to disfigure it! If the black flames were to vanish altogether, the alloy would swiftly solidify, making it nigh impossible for him to reshape it back to the form of a cauldron!

Zhang Xuan quickly flicked his wrist and whipped out a hammer. He rushed forward and began hammering the metallic lump into shape with powerful strikes.

Ding dang ding dang! Ding dang ding dang!

The sound of hammering echoed loudly in the air.

...

Outside the Shrine of Kong shi...

Ren Qingyuan and the others were looking at the dark clouds above with worried looks.

"Even I would have to flee in the face of the Empyrean Heavenly Flame... Considering that Zhang shi has just achieved a breakthrough not too long ago, will he really be able to survive the cultivation ordeal?"

"I don't know either, but... doesn't he have the ability to control the lightning tribulation? Perhaps, he might be able to do the same with the heavenly flame tribulation too!"

"There's a fundamental difference between lightning tribulations and heavenly flame tribulations... Look up there! He's dashing into the midst of the dark clouds now!"

Seeing Zhang Xuan dash into the midst of the dark clouds, the crowd wasn't reassured in the least. Instead, their worry only served to deepen.

"He might still be able to withstand the lightning energy in the storm clouds of lightning tribulations, but those dark clouds harness a massive inferno within them! How is he going to survive such intense heat?"

"Isn't that sheer recklessness? We can only pray that he has a plan in mind..."

While the 9-star master teachers were still discussing amongst one another, the dark clouds began showing signs of dissipation.

"Oh? The heavenly flame tribulation is about to dissipate..."

"So quickly? It can't be that some mishap has happened to him, can it?"

The crowd quickly turned their gazes to the sky, wanting to see if the legendary genius was able to beat the odds and survive against the devastating Empyrean Heavenly Flame. However, they ended seeing something they didn't expect to see instead.

Amidst the dark clouds, they saw a human silhouette taking out a hammer, and he began hammering a lump floating in front of him.

Ding dang ding dang! Ding dang ding dang!

There was a rhythm to the hammering, which sounded surprisingly pleasurable to the ears.

"H-he is forging a weapon?"

Following that question, silence drifted amongst the master teachers.

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Chapter 1667: The Temple of Confucius Appears

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

There was no cultivator who would disagree that the heavenly flame tribulation was a perilous cultivation ordeal. Countless prodigies had lost their lives in the face of its devastating might.

Even in the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, where the top geniuses of the Master Teacher Continent were gathered, most 9-star master teachers would spend from several dozens to over a hundred years to prepare themselves before daring to face the scorching trial of the heavenly flame tribulation...

It was not too long ago that Zhang Xuan was still at Saint 9-dan Macrocosm Ascendancy realm, but before they knew it, he had already summoned a heavenly flame tribulation. To make things worse, the heavenly flame tribulation he had summoned was no other than the most terrifying Empyrean Heavenly Flame...

It was no wonder why everyone was pessimistic about his survival! Was it really possible for a human to survive something of this level?

But contrary to their expectations, not only did the young man emerge perfectly fine from the tribulation, they found that he was even making use of the heavenly flame to forge an artifact...

Screw that!

Constipated looks appeared on the faces of the 9-star master teachers all around. They stared at one another with widened eyes, not knowing what they should make of the situation before them.

They had hypothesized many possibilities. Perhaps, the young man might have been burned to cinders, or maybe, he would be able to barely overcome it with grievous wounds... But the thought that he would make use of the heavenly flame to forge an artifact had never crossed their minds. Not even once!

Had the world lost its mind?

It was one thing for him to be able to control the lightning tribulation, but to actually be using the heavenly flame to forge an artifact... Hell, that was sheer extravagance!

Bro, does your family own the heavens or something?

The heavenly flame tribulation should have been the heavens' punishment against you! It's not a lighter for you to borrow a flame from!

While their minds were struggling to come to terms with the freakish happenings unfolding before their eyes, Zhang Xuan suddenly turned his gaze in their direction and asked, "Does any of you have any Hibernal Spirit Essence? Lend me some for use. I need it to quench my artifact..."

"Hibernal Spirit Essence?" The abrupt request left Ren Qingyuan's face twitching in frenzy. Nevertheless, he quickly nodded his head and replied, "I have some here!"

He whipped out a jade bottle with a flick of his wrist before tossing it up into the sky.

"Thanks!" Zhang Xuan grabbed the jade bottle and crushed it open.

Hula!

The Hibernal Spirit Essence shot out from the jade bottle and scattered all over the Golden Origin Cauldron.

Tzzzzzzz!

White smoke shrouded the Golden Origin Cauldron, placing a veil of mystery over it.

Maintaining the right proportion between the various metals used in the alloy was important, but quenching played an even more crucial role in determining the final quality of the artifact.

The Hibernal Spirit Essence was the ultimate treasure for quenching artifacts, so most 9-star blacksmiths would usually bring a bottle around with them. Considering how many 9-star master teachers there were around the area, it was almost certain that one of them would have it.

"He is... forging a weapon?"

It didn't take too long for the white smoke to dissipate, revealing the true form of the mysterious artifact that was extravagantly forged using heavenly flames. At the same time, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

Ren Qingyuan and the other 9-star master teachers quickly turned their gazes over. What they saw left their lips twitching in horror, and they nearly keeled over.

They expected the weapon forged by Zhang Xuan using the heavenly flame to be mind-blowing! At the very least, it should be a magnificent Great Sage artifact on par with renowned legendary weapons in the world!

Can anyone tell us what the heck is that black lump over there?

It doesn't look like a cauldron, it doesn't look like a brick... Heck, it doesn't even qualify to be called a poop! After all the hammering using all those mystical forging techniques, this is all that you managed to smith?

A 9-star master teacher tilted his head uncertainly as he examined the mysterious artifact in the air, "It should be... a cauldron, right?"

"Doesn't look like it. To me, it seems more like a shoehorn!"

"I think you're right. A brick-like shoehorn..."

"..." Zhang Xuan

"Hahaha, I, the Golden Origin Cauldron, have finally been upgraded! Thank you, master!" As the quenching came to an end, an excited exclamation sounded in the air. But soon, a doubtful frown appeared on its distorted face as it asked, "Master, I don't feel right. Why does my head feel a little squarish? I seem to wobble quite a bit when I walk... Wait a minute, where are my legs?!"

"Your stubby legs have always been a major imperfection in your aesthetics, so I modified it a little for you," Zhang Xuan replied without the slightest hint of redness on his face.

"You altered it? Then... where is my furnace?" The Golden Origin Cauldron examined its body carefully for a very long while but was unable to find its furnace, so it couldn't help but ask.

"It made your figure a little bulky, so I filled it up with the Golden Origin Spirit Stone," Zhang Xuan replied with a reassuring voice.

"How do I forge artifacts or pills without a furnace?"

"Those are just minor issues. You need to let go of some stuff in order to make space for better upgrades... Don't you feel like your bottom has grown much bigger? I made it this way to complement your fighting style. With this, you can better crush your opponent with your bottom!" Zhang Xuan remarked earnestly. "Honestly speaking, I think you are much more dashing than before..."

"Am I? Haha, I guess I'm asking the obvious. Who else could be more good-looking than me, the Golden Origin Cauldron? I should be able to attract many female cauldrons in the future..." the Golden Origin Cauldron laughed heartily in satisfaction.

"..." Ren Qingyuan.

"..." The 9-star master teachers.

Did this pair of master and servant have some kind of misconception as to what was considered beautiful in this world?

Anyone with functioning eyes wouldn't be able to tell that it was a cauldron at all... Was it really fine for them to be so delusional?

Oh well! Geniuses tended to have their own quirks... Whatever that pleased them!

Paying no heed to the stupefied crowd below, Zhang Xuan examined the Golden Origin Cauldron before him carefully.

Due to him adding too much Golden Origin Spirit Stone, it looked just nothing more than a lumpy mess. However, its prowess wasn't to be underestimated despite its misshapen exterior.

It might have been unbelievable to anyone just looking at its exterior, but the current Golden Origin Cauldron was actually a true Great Sage artifact!

Its weight had reached a level so frightening that even a Sempiternal realm primary stage cultivator would be crushed into minced meat should the Golden Origin Cauldron's bottom fall on him.

"Alright, you should try and comprehend your strength and bring up your cultivation as soon as possible!" Zhang Xuan instructed.

Placing the satisfied Golden Origin Cauldron back into the Myriad Anthive Nest, he began to observe the changes with his body through his Spiritual Perception.

After undergoing the tempering of the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, not only had his cultivation advanced to Great Sage 1-dan Introspective Convalescence realm, all of the impurities in his body had been cleaned out too. Every single one of his cells was pulsating with vitality comparable to a newborn.

"This is... Introspective Convalescence realm consummation?" Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up in joy.

It would usually take many years for an Introspective Convalescence realm primary stage cultivator to refine his body and advance his cultivation. However, through the tempering of the heavenly flame, his cultivation actually surged all the way up to consummation stage!

Not only so, his physical body and zhenqi had also begun taking on a golden sheen.

From the looks of it, he only had to reinforce his cultivation for a bit before he was ready to push for a breakthrough to Aureate Body realm!

"With my current zhenqi cultivation and soul cultivation, along with the Golden Origin Cauldron and the Dragonbone Divine Spear, I should be able to put up a fight even against Sempiternal realm pinnacle experts!" Zhang Xuan clenched his fist in agitation.

Beyond Great Sage, there was a huge gap between each cultivation stage, thus making it extremely arduous and time-consuming to advance one's cultivation.

Yet, within a short span of a day, not only did he advance his Primordial Spirit to Aureate Body realm consummation, he had also managed to push his zhenqi cultivation up to Introspective Convalescence realm consummation... Even without relying on his overpowered artifacts, he was confident that he would be able to defeat the Xingmeng Sword Saints with ease!

It hadn't been an easy day for him, but his efforts had truly paid off!

Previously, he was completely helpless against Sempiternal realm cultivators without igniting Kong shi's blood droplet, so he had no choice but to flee from them. But with the current strength that he wielded, he could already put up a decent fight against them.

"However, I still need some time to get used to my powers before I can bring them out to their full potential!"

As he had advanced his zhenqi cultivation and soul cultivation separately, there were still some imperfections in wielding them simultaneously. However, that wasn't a big problem. With a few days, he should be able to reconcile the differences between the two and heighten his fighting prowess.

After confirming the changes in his body, Zhang Xuan finally descended back to the ground.

He had been in the Shrine of Kong shi when he summoned the heavenly flame tribulation, but he had practically swallowed the black flames that descended to earth whole. As such, the buildings in the surroundings didn't come to harm as a result of his cultivation ordeal.

Shortly after he landed on the ground, Luo Ruoxin walked out from the Shrine of Kong shi as well.

"Pavilion Master Ren, I am extremely grateful to you..." Zhang Xuan walked up to Ren Qingyuan and clasped his fist.

He was in the midst of thanking Ren Qingyuan for granting him access to the Shrine of Kong shi when the world around him suddenly tremored intensely.

Following which, another radiant sun rose from the horizons of the sky, cloaking the world in its blinding light.

Within the rising sun, one could vaguely see an enormous shrine embedded in its depths, resembling a resplendent sky palace.

"The Temple of Confucius..." Ren Qingyuan muttered beneath his breath with narrowed eyes.

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Chapter 1668: The History of the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

"That is the Temple of Confucius?"

Taken aback by Ren Qingyuan's words, Zhang Xuan took a closer look at the newly risen sun and swiftly realized that the sun was located in a parallel dimension. Despite being within sight, it was actually an unimaginable distance away.

Or to be more exact, the distance wasn't just limited to spatial displacement but temporal displacement as well. The newly risen sun seemed to exist within the flow of time, and special means were required in order to get to it.

As for the temple within the sun, it was obscured from sight by layers of shadow. Even with the Eye of Insight, Zhang Xuan found himself unable to catch a closer look at it.

"According to history, Kong shi was once trapped by the strongest Otherworldly Demon Emperor in Chen Cai. With his deep understanding of time, he created the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn. When the artifact first came into existence, the seasons of the world were thrown into disarray by its prowess. Spring and autumn intersected one another, causing the plants to blossom at one moment and wilt in the next. Summer and winter clashed with one another, raising storms and tornados here and there. Bizarre phenomenons occurred in the places where the Great Codex of Spring Autumn shone upon. An infant aged into a middle-aged man in the blink of an eye, and an elderly awaiting his death reverted back into an infant in a heartbeat..." Recalling the content written in ancient texts, Ren Qingyuan said.

When the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn was first created, mankind was still struggling against the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. In truth, the prowess of the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn wasn't as great as what the legends put it out to be.

After Kong shi freed himself, he used the powers of the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn to lay waste upon the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Before long, people came to revere the artifact, resulting in its widespread fame. There was no Otherworldly Demon who didn't fear the prowess of the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn.

"The Great Codex of Spring and Autumn, the ability to manipulate the seasons... Did Kong shi comprehend the Time Quintessence as well?" Zhang Xuan asked.

This wasn't the first time he was hearing about the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn, but he had never really understood what kind of capabilities it wielded. Judging by Ren Qingyuan's explanation, it seemed like it had the ability to manipulate time.

"Un, it should be the Time Quintessence... However, it's likely that what Kong shi has comprehended goes beyond just time acceleration. Based on the information we have in the records, it's likely that he has mastered time deceleration and time freeze too!" Ren Qingyuan said.

"Time deceleration and time freeze?" Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in astonishment.

Similar to how there were other Spatial Quintessences aside from the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing, the same applied to Time Quintessences as well. The Time Quintessence comprehended by the Zhang Clan was the Time Quintessence of Acceleration, which allowed a cultivator to accelerate his own time.

Through accelerating one's time, a second of the opponent's time could translate into ten seconds of one's time, thus making it appear as if the movements of the other person had slowed instead.

But other than the Time Quintessence of Acceleration, there were also the Time Quintessence of Deceleration and the Time Quintessence of Freezing!

While the Time Quintessence of Deceleration might not appear to be of much use to most cultivators, it was, in fact, the greatest weapon that human Ancient Sages had at the moment. It was through hibernation in the state of time deceleration that human Ancient Sages were able to lengthen their lifespan and continue fighting for mankind.

On the other hand, the Time Quintessence of Freezing was known to be the most difficult temporal law to comprehend. In terms of prowess, it was even stronger than the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing.

The Spatial Quintessence of Sealing could immobilize a cultivator's physical body, but the cultivator would still retain his consciousness, allowing him to remain aware of the happenings around him. On the other hand, the Time Quintessence of Freezing would even put one's consciousness to a stall. If a cultivator were to be killed in such a state, he would be thoroughly dead. He wouldn't even have a chance to revive himself!

If Kong shi had comprehended the Time Quintessence of Freezing as well, just how powerful could he be?

No matter how powerful Vicious was, he couldn't possibly have been a match for Kong shi!

"Those are conjectures made by the later generation, so they might not be accurate. However, if one thing was for sure, Kong shi had indeed infused his knowledge of temporal laws into the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn. If we could obtain the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn and acquire his heritage, that would indubitably be a huge boost to the forces of mankind! No matter how formidable the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe may be, we would be able to quell them with ease!" Ren Qingyuan said.

The power and influence commanded by the Master Teacher Pavilion were slowly accrued time. Back in the era shortly after Kong shi's departure, the Master Teacher Pavilion had only been founded not too long ago, and it was far from its current scale. While it had achieved a victory over the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, it didn't have the power or resources to destroy them once and for all. The most it could have done then was to exile them in the otherworldly battlefield...

However, mankind had grown much stronger from back then. If they could just acquire the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn, they might just be able to accomplish what the predecessors had failed at!

"Indeed!" Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement.

Mankind had grown collectively stronger since Kong shi's era, but its number of top-notch experts was on the decline. No one had been able to reach Ancient Sage ever since ten thousand years ago. What mankind was severely lacking at the moment was fighting prowess in the top echelon.

If they could obtain the heritage of the World's Teacher, they would be able to resolve this problem and turn the tables on the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe!

"9-star master teachers of the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, heed my orders! Other than those who are bound for the Subterranean Gallery, all of you are to head to Qufu right away! Since the Temple of Confucius has surfaced, it won't be long before it opens completely!" Ren Qingyuan turned around and issued a command.

"Yes!"

The 9-star master teachers replied resoundingly before rushing off.

"Zhang shi. Since that the Temple of Confucius has surfaced, there's no doubt that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe will soon make its move. Do you want to move together with our Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, or do you intend to move independently?" Ren Qingyuan asked.

"I..." Zhang Xuan was just about to give his reply when he saw Luo Ruoxin shaking her head lightly by the side. A perplexed frown surfaced on his forehead as he continued, "I'm thankful for your thought and concern, but I would like to move independently!"

"Alright!" Ren Qingyuan didn't seem to be too surprised by Zhang Xuan's decision. With a nod of his head, he said, "Let's meet at Qufu then!"

After saying those words, Ren Qingyuan turned around and raised his hand. A large group of 9-star master teachers swiftly gathered around him. It seemed like they were going to discuss their plans to deal with the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe after the opening of the Temple of Confucius.

"Let's head back!" Zhang Xuan beckoned to Luo Ruoxin, and the two of them quickly made their leave.

In the blink of an eye, they were already out of the perimeter of the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters.

Recalling Luo Ruoxin's action earlier, Zhang Xuan turned to her and asked, "With the opening of the Temple of Confucius, the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would surely make its move too. There's no doubt that they would mobilize their Ancient Sages too... There might be some restrictions being with the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, but it would also be safer under their protection. I'm curious to know why you chose to advise me to turn down their offer."

In truth, Zhang Xuan was also thinking of turning down the offer as well, but he didn't expect Luo Ruoxin to advise him to do the same too. Thus, he was a little curious to hear her thoughts on the matter.

According to Yang shi, there was a restriction that prevented Ancient Sages from entering the heart of the Temple of Confucius to retrieve the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn. However, make no mistake. The true fight would only begin once the codex was brought out of the Temple of Confucius. As soon as the new owner of the codex walked out of the premises, the different powers would surely make an attempt to snatch it over.

And without a doubt, Ancient Sages would be embroiled in the tussle as well!

It would seem that the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters only had Great Sages in their ranks, but that was only because they hadn't brought out their trump cards yet.

Even the Zhang Clan had an Ancient Sage old ancestor still alive, so it would stand to reason that the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would have many more! Without a doubt, staying with the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would be a much safer option!

"There's still some time before the Temple of Confucius fully opens, so there's no point in sticking with them just yet. Furthermore, with the surfacing of the Temple of Confucius, we can expect countless experts to make their way to Qufu as well. Rushing there at this point would bring us no benefit; on the contrary, it would only embroil us in meaningless battles," Luo Ruoxin replied.

"There's still some time before the Temple of Confucius fully opens?" Zhang Xuan repeated in confusion.

He thought that he would be able to enter the surfaced Temple of Confucius straight with the Prime Amulet in hand. He didn't think that there would still be some time before its complete opening.

"Wait, that's not right... Isn't it said that only those who possess the Celestial Amulets of Legacy are able to enter the Temple of Confucius? Even if the experts all over the world were to head here, they wouldn't be able to do anything at all!" Zhang Xuan asked as he recalled another matter.

Only those who possessed the Celestial Amulet of Legacy was able to enter the Temple of Confucius—this was a pre-established fact that no one disputed. Otherwise, the experts of the Hundred Schools of Philosophers wouldn't go so far as to challenge the Zhang Clan and the Luo Clan.

If they couldn't even enter the Temple of Confucius, was there any meaning in them rushing over?

"It's true that the Celestial Amulets of Legacy are required to enter the Prime Hall and the Subordinate Halls of the Temple of Confucius, but what about the outer perimeter?" Luo Ruoxin remarked with a smile.

"The outer perimeter?"

"Let's use the Qiu Wu Palace as an example. The Qiu Wu Palace itself is an individual entity which requires quite a bit of trouble to enter, but the outer perimeter around the Qiu Wu Palace is accessible to all cultivators," Luo Ruoxin explained.

Zhang Xuan fell into deep thought.

There were indeed quite a number of formations and obstacles on the outer perimeter of the Qiu Wu Palace. Without the map, it would be nigh impossible for most to reach the Qiu Wu Palace.

If that was the case, it would mean that the Temple of Confucius didn't just consist of the Prime Hall and the six Subordinate Halls. It was an entire area consisting of an outer perimeter too, and it was likely that there would be formations and the sort on the outer perimeter.

"Kong shi has always believed in impartation without discrimination. Other than the Prime Hall and the Subordinate Halls, he has left many treasures and different heritages around the Temple of Confucius. Those who didn't have the Celestial Amulets of Legacy would still be able to acquire those items, so it went without saying that they would have to make their way there too," Luo Ruoxin said.

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Chapter 1669: The Subterranean Gallery of the Dracotiger Mountain

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

Zhang Xuan nodded in realization.

All along, he thought that the Temple of Confucius only contained the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn and Kong shi's heritage. However, from the looks of it now, it was likely to be similar to most ancient domains out there. There were many unexpected treasures and fortuitous encounters awaiting the cultivators there.

"Not only so, the Temple of Confucius harnesses the academic aura and academic fortune Kong shi has left behind. Even if a cultivator fails to acquire anything at all, he would still be able to make significant progress in his cultivation just by cultivating within. Furthermore, it's said that Kong shi's Impartation of Heaven's Will lingers in the Temple of Confucius. As long as one listens carefully, one will be able to overcome any bottleneck one is facing with ease," Luo Ruoxin explained.

"The emergence of the Temple of Confucius is a major affair to all cultivators in the world. This is an opportunity that no one is willing to give up on, be it the human cultivators, the Otherworldly Demons, or the Beast Tribe... You must ensure that you are prepared if you wish to acquire anything from the Temple of Confucius. Advancing blindly in the Temple of Confucius isn't going to work out."

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan lowered his head solemnly.

The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe weren't lacking experts, and there were many formidable beasts in the world too. Considering the allure of the Temple of Confucius, not even the Master Teacher Pavilion would dare to stop them carelessly.

The implications were simply great. Stopping them would mean robbing them of the countless possibilities of what they could become. In the worst-case scenario, it could even lead to a full-blown war there and then!

And if the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were to make a move then, mankind would really be in trouble.

The best they could do at the moment was to acquire the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn as soon as possible and control the Temple of Confucius. This was the only way they could ensure that the situation wouldn't run amok.

Kong shi had forged six Subordinate Amulets and a Prime Amulet, which equated to a total of seven Celestial Amulets of Legacy. So far, it was known that the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, the Zhang Clan, and the Luo Clan possessed a Subordinate Amulet each. As for the remaining three Subordinate Amulets, their whereabouts were a mystery.

However, if Zhang Xuan had to fathom a guess, he felt that it was likely that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe and the Hundred Schools of Philosophers had a Subordinate Amulet in their possession too.

Furthermore, cultivators who possessed unique constitutions would be able to enter the Temple of Confucius as well. This meant that a considerable number of people would be able to enter the Temple of Confucius. It could really turn out to be dangerous if he didn't make ample preparations in advance.

Putting everything aside, the cultivators of the Hundred Schools of Philosophers had already shown that they had no lack of formidable artifacts. Even with the recent advancements in his cultivation, he would still have difficulties dealing with them.

He didn't think that he could be considered weak anymore, but he wasn't so arrogant as to think that he could easily tower over all of the experts in the world.

"Let's return to the Zhang Clan and see how their preparations are coming along!"

In truth, Zhang Xuan didn't know much about the Temple of Confucius and how the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn could be acquired. However, it was likely that the Zhang Clan had some exclusive intelligence and had been preparing for it since a long time ago.

With such thoughts in mind, Zhang Xuan and Luo Ruoxin quickly left the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters and returned to the Zhang Clan.

With the advancements in Zhang Xuan's cultivation, the spatial passageways he constructed through ripping open dimension rifts had become significantly stabler. It didn't take long before the massive Zhang Clan appeared before their sights.

As soon as he entered the Zhang Clan, Zhang Xuan could already sense that something was amiss.

The Zhang Clan always had huge crowds walking to and fro, but at this very moment, the entire place felt exceptionally empty. There was hardly anyone within sight.

It took quite a bit of searching around before Zhang Xuan finally found an elder. He asked anxiously, "What happened?"

"Nearly all of the cultivators of Saint realm and above in our Zhang Clan have made their way to the Subterranean Gallery to fend against the invasion of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. The Xingmeng Sword Saints have already headed over too!" Upon seeing Zhang Xuan, the elder hurriedly greeted him with a bow before reporting the current circumstances.

"They have headed to the Subterranean Galleries?" Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in realization.

He had been too overwhelmed by the emergence of the Temple of Confucius that he had forgotten about the orders he had passed down earlier. Back when he was still at the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, he had instructed the Three Premier Clans to reinforce the Master Teacher Pavilion in fending against the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

"Which Subterranean Gallery they head to? Bring me there!" Zhang Xuan instructed imposingly.

With the opening of the Temple of Confucius just around the corner, it was likely that the invasion of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would further intensify. After all, there would not want to miss on this once in a lifetime opportunity.

This was truly a quandary. The Temple of Confucius was important, but even if they managed to acquire the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn, it would be meaningless if losing the Master Teacher Continent was the price of it.

The Great Codex of Spring and Autumn could enhance a cultivator's prowess immensely. However, to fight a war of such scale, they would require the might of countless soldiers. It would be a catastrophe if the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were to breach their defense at this point in time.

It was no wonder why the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters was in such a panic, even going to the extent of clearing his 9-star master teacher examination in such a slipshod manner.

Otherwise, if they were to go through formal procedures, just proving his philosophy of pedagogy was likely to take several years already.

"Even though there is unrest in all 108 Subterranean Galleries, our scouts found that most of the Subterranean Galleries are only facing minor skirmishes at the moment. The local Master Teacher Pavilions should be able to suppress them. The true threat lies in six of the Subterranean Galleries, namely the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters' Subterranean Gallery, the Dragon Gate Subterranean Gallery, the Icysea Subterranean Gallery, the Cloudsea Subterranean Gallery, the Zhang Clan's Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, and the Luo Clan's Starcluster Subterranean Gallery!

"There are many 9-star master teachers to deal with the Subterranean Gallery over at the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters' side, so they don't require any assistance at the moment.

"Over at the Dragon Gate Subterranean Gallery and the Cloudsea Subterranean Gallery, the Progeny of Combat, Zheng Yang, has officially assumed the title of the master of the Combat Master Hall and led countless combat masters to quell the unrest in those two places.

"As for the Icysea Subterranean Gallery, the Glacier Plain Court, the Yuan Clan, the Sanctum of Sages, and the Spirit Awakener Guild have all liaised with one another and sent their forces over to stabilize the region.

"The other Sage Clans, occupation guilds, and powers are patrolling the other Subterranean Galleries to lend their aid wherever required.

"Last but not least, the Jiang Clan is moving alongside with both the Zhang Clan and the Luo Clan to guard the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery and Starcluster Subterranean Gallery!

"The Otherworldly Demons are particularly rampant in the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery and the Starcluster Subterranean Gallery, and the seals which Ancient Sage Qiu Wu have left behind are having trouble fending them off. As such, all master teachers of 6-star and above in the Zhang Clan are all mobilized to the Subterranean Gallery to bolster the defenses!" the elder explained.

"I am left in charge of taking care of the clan while the others are away. Should the situation turn for the worse, I'm responsible for moving our clan members away so as to preserve the lineage of our Zhang Clan!"

"Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery? In other words, there is Subterranean Gallery is right beneath us?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows shot up.

He knew that some of the regional Master Teacher Pavilion branches were responsible for suppressing the Subterranean Galleries across the continent, such as the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy... He should have guessed that it would have been the same for the Zhang Clan as well!

The Dracotiger Mountain was right next to the Zhang Clan, and since the Subterranean Gallery was named as such, it was likely to be in the vicinity.

"Un, the entrance is right beneath our Zhang Clan. If you wish to enter, I can bring you over right now!" the elder replied.

"Bring me over. I wish to take a look!" Zhang Xuan instructed.

Putting aside the fact that the Temple of Confucius wasn't open yet, even if it was, it still wouldn't be as important as quelling the invasion of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe!

"Clan head, please follow me!"

Without any hesitation, the elder led the way forward. Before long, they arrived at their destination.

"This is... the mausoleum of the Zhang Clan?" Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

"That's right. The Subterranean Gallery is located beneath our mausoleum!" the elder replied.

"Using heroic spirits of the Zhang Clan's predecessors to suppress the Subterranean Gallery..." Zhang Xuan murmured quietly.

This practice was similar to that of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy. Each principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy would deposit a sliver of their will at the entrance of the Subterranean Gallery so as to reinforce the seal, thus preventing the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe from stepping onto the Master Teacher Continent.

"Only the heroic spirits of our predecessors are able to suppress the Otherworldly Demons and prevent them from entering the Master Teacher Continent. Clan head, the Subterranean Gallery is right ahead. I still have some other matters to attend to, so I'll have to take my leave right now!" the elder bade his farewell before leaving the area.

If the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were to breach the defenses set up by the Zhang Clan and the Jiang Clan, their very first point of contact with the Master Teacher Continent would be the Zhang Clan. Thus, they had to be prepared to move the members of the Zhang Clan at any moment.

Otherwise, if even the younger generation were to lose their lives in this war, mankind would have nothing to oppose the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe anymore!

"Un!" Zhang Xuan nodded before making his way into the Zhang Clan Mausoleum together with Luo Ruoxin.

There were countless stone tablets lying all around. Taking a closer look, there was a name inscribed on each of the stone tablets. These were the strongest experts of the Zhang Clan in their era, but it was a pity that they were unable to escape the restraints of time. All that was left of them was a fistful of yellow dust.

No matter how talented a person was in his lifetime, in the passing of tens of thousands of years, all that would remain of them were just lonely names on blocks of stones.

With time, even history would forget who they were and what they did. All that would be left of them were their heroic spirits.

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Chapter 1670: Entering the Subterranean Gallery Once More

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

"It's due to their sacrifice that mankind is able to enjoy the prosperity and stability it does at the moment. Without them, the world would have already been plunged in chaos..."

Zhang Xuan was never an emotional person. Ever since transcending over, due to his previous life, he had always viewed this world with nonchalance. However, when he saw the students of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy charging fearlessly in the face of battle, and countless master teachers staking their life on the line in a Subterranean Gallery... To be honest, it had truly moved him.

His initial impression of the Zhang Clan was horrid, but when he saw the countless stone tablets lying around him, he couldn't help but sigh sorrowfully.

It was not just due to its strength and accumulation that the Zhang Clan became the number one Sage Clan. More than that, it was about what they had done.

For tens of thousands of years, they had kept the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe suppressed in the Subterranean Galleries. It was due to their contribution and countless sacrifices that mankind enjoyed the current peace it did.

Without them, mankind would have never prospered and developed so far.

Boom!

While Zhang Xuan was deep in thought, he suddenly felt the ground beneath him shaking intensely. Spurts of malevolent aura burst forth from beneath the ground.

Weng!

Barely after the spurts of malevolent aura reached the surface, the tombstones swiftly released a brilliant light reminiscent of the Night Illumination Pearls, Gradually, the malevolent aura dissipated silently.

The fact that the malevolent aura is able to reach here means that the seal beneath is swiftly approaching its limit. I should quickly take a look! Zhang Xuan thought.

Having been to the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy's Subterranean Gallery, he was familiar with this situation. Without any hesitation, he beckoned Luo Ruoxin and quickly advanced forward. Soon, they arrived before a massive sculpture.

It was a sculpture of the founder of the Zhang Clan.

Zhang Xuan placed his hand on it.

Weng!

With a brilliant burst of light, both he and Luo Ruoxin disappeared from the spot. In the next moment, they were already standing in the midst of darkness. Malevolent aura suffused the area, leaving one with a slight feeling of discomfort.

The two of them quickly headed forward. Soon, they arrived at a massive fortress.

This Subterranean Gallery was clearly much larger than the one beneath the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy. The fortress was formidable as well. There were all kinds of active formations shrouding it, keeping any enemy at bay.

Entering the fortress, Zhang Xuan immediately saw countless members of the Zhang Clan. They were standing in a neat formation, reminiscent of soldiers marching into war.

"Clan head!"

Upon seeing Zhang Xuan, the managing elder quickly rushed forward to greet him.

"What's the current situation?" Zhang Xuan asked.

"It doesn't look too optimistic. The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe has already launched ten attacks so far, and both sides have already sustained heavy losses. Due to the hindrance of the seal, the losses suffered by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe is considerably greater than ours. However, I fear that we won't be able to last too long against their crazed attacks!" the elder said worriedly.

"How is the seal at the moment?" Zhang Xuan asked.

"I'm not too sure at the moment. Our men were still in control of the area a while ago, but they have been overrun by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. I fear that we are unable to approach the seal at the moment!" the elder replied.

"We have lost control over the seal? Isn't that extremely disadvantageous to us? With the experts of our Zhang Clan, how did we lose control over the seal?" Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in disbelief.

The main reason why the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe was unable to launch large-scale attacks previously was due to the obstruction of the spatial seals.

The spatial seals left behind by Ancient Sage Qiu Wu were incredibly powerful. Humans were able to pass through the seals freely, but not the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Thus, the defensive forces only had to camp outside the seal and slay any Otherworldly Demons who managed to slip past the seal by luck.

If the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were to take control of the seal, wouldn't they be able to squeeze as many people as they wanted into the Subterranean Gallery? This meant that their forces would grow swiftly with time!

The Zhang Clan was powerful, but it wasn't strong enough to stand against the unhindered prowess of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe! They wouldn't stand a chance at all!

"I was the one who ordered the members of the Zhang Clan to retreat!"

Before the elder could answer the question, another imposing voice had already echoed by the side.

Turning his head over, Zhang Xuan saw his parents, Sword Saint Xing and Sword Saint Meng, walking over with widened strides.

Hearing the words that had come from Sword Saint Xing, Zhang Xuan frowned.

"They have already completely breached the seal left behind by Ancient Sage Qiu Wu, so there isn't any point guarding the area anymore. Rather than to expend our forces on a collapsed seal, it would be much better for us to guard this fortress instead. With the protection of the formations here, we will allow us to bring our losses down to the minimum!" Sword Saint Xing explained grimly.

"The seal has been breached?" Zhang Xuan clenched his fists tightly.

"Indeed. The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe has truly resolved themselves this time around. They are determined to push their way into the Master Teacher Continent no matter how much losses they suffer!" Sword Saint Xing shook his head. He beckoned with his hand and said, "Follow me!"

They quickly made their ways to the fortress walls.

Gazing forward from the sentry tower, he swiftly noticed the billowing killing aura that had congregated in the distance. Countless Otherworldly Demons were standing in an orderly formation, reminiscent of an army.

Despite their stationary position, their very presence emanated great pressure on those in the fortress.

There were many tents and temporary structures erected around the army. From the looks of it, it seemed like the Otherworldly Demons also knew that it wouldn't be easy for them to overrun the fortress.

"The seal has been breached, which means that the Otherworldly Demons can easily traverse into the Subterranean Gallery. There's no doubt that they are biding their time so that more and more of their brethren could reinforce them. If this were to continue on, we might potentially lose control of this Subterranean Gallery!" Zhang Xuan analyzed with a deep frown.

"I know this as well, but having fought with the Otherworldly Demons for innumerable years, we are well aware of the extent of their forces. Given that they are assaulting all 108 Subterranean Galleries simultaneously, the number of allies they will be able to gather here is going to be terribly limited. If they really wielded the strength to overrun all 108 Subterranean Galleries simultaneously, mankind would have already gone extinct many years ago!" Sword Saint Xing replied confidently.

There was an irreconcilable grudge between mankind and the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

If the Otherworldly Demons were truly capable of bringing down all of the Subterranean Galleries simultaneously, they would have already done so a long time ago. There was no reason for them to contend with living in the barren otherworldly battlefield for so many years, suffering so many grievances!

"You are saying that... they are just putting on an act of bravado?" Zhang Xuan frowned doubtfully.

"I wouldn't say that it's just an act of bravado, but aside from waiting for the reinforcement from their allies, it's likely that they are held back partially by fear too. They are observing the circumstances in the other Subterranean Galleries before deciding whether they should launch a decisive assault. If their forces were to be defeated in the other Subterranean Galleries, it would be meaningless even if they were to claim this one. Without reinforcement, it would only be a matter of time before we forced them back into the otherworldly battlefield. Naturally, it would be meaningless for them to incur disproportionate losses just to claim a plot of land temporarily. On the other hand, if the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were to successfully overrun the other Subterranean Galleries, we would be in grave danger too!" Sword Saint Xing said.

Zhang Xuan pondered over those words for a moment before nodding, "You're right..."

Nevertheless, this was just a hypothesis on their part at the moment. Furthermore, even if just a single Subterranean Gallery were to be breached, mankind would surely sustain severe losses. Thus, it was of utmost importance for them to remain on their guard.

"Wait a moment. Could the same situation be happening in the other Subterranean Galleries? If that's the case... could this be a diversion tactic?" Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes in astonishment as a thought surfaced in his mind.

"A diversion tactic?" Sword Saint Xing, as well as the other elders of the Zhang Clan, frowned in confusion.

There didn't seem to be anything more important than claiming the Subterranean Galleries that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had to divert their attention for.

"You have been in the Subterranean Gallery all this while, so it's no wonder you haven't heard of it yet. Just a moment ago, the Temple of Confucius has emerged. It's likely that it'll open very soon... For the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe to invade all of the Subterranean Galleries at such a point in time and draw the experts of mankind here, could they be buying time? While acting as if they are waiting for reinforcements, are they just tying down our men here so that we won't be able to focus our manpower on the Temple of Confucius?" Zhang Xuan revealed his thought.

Having crossed blows with mankind many times, the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were definitely aware that they would sustain massive losses if they were to push ahead with their attacks on the Master Teacher Continent at this point in time. This was similar to the concept of 'mutually assured destruction' in his previous life. Even if the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had the power to claim the Master Teacher Continent, if they had to sustain heavy casualties in order to do so, was it really still meaningful for them to do so?

Was this a price they were willing to pay in exchange for defeating mankind?

And not to mention, mankind wasn't the only major power on the Master Teacher Continent.

It was true that the Temple of Confucius and the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn were important, but was it so important that they had to sacrifice the lives of so many Otherworldly Demons to acquire it?

In other words, could the reason why they weren't in a rush to attack be because they had already achieved their motives? They had already stalled the most of the experts of mankind here, which meant that they would be in an advantageous position in the fight over the Temple of Confucius!

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Chapter 1671: Venturing Alone

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

"This..." Sword Saint Xing fell silent.

He found his son's conjecture to be very plausible too.

If the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe truly wanted to take down mankind, there was no reason for them to disperse their forces across 108 Subterranean Galleries. The dispersion of forces would make it much more troublesome for mankind to cope with their assault, but it would hinder them from launching a decisive assault either.

It would have been much more efficient if they had just focused their forces on a couple of Subterranean Galleries. Had they resorted to concentrated, surprise attacks on a couple of the more loosely guarded Subterranean Galleries, their chances of success would have been much higher.

"Even if the Otherworldly Demons were to keep us preoccupied at the Subterranean Galleries, they wouldn't be able to dominate the Temple of Confucius with just a small handful of experts. If what you said is true, it would mean that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe has already snuck most of their experts over to the Master Teacher Continent!" Sword Saint Xing said gravely.

Tens of thousands of years of accumulation had filled the ranks of the Master Teacher Pavilion with countless experts. With the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn was at stake over here, there was no way the Master Teacher Pavilion was going to hold back. Without a doubt, the grand elders and old ancestors of the Master Teacher Pavilion were going to emerge from their seclusion as well.

It would seem to the common populace that they had already disappeared into the annals of history, but there was no way to tell for certain if they had truly passed away or not!

Some of them would have already passed away, but there was bound to be a handful who had chosen to go into hibernation, just like the Ancient Sages. They were biding their time for the opportunity that would allow them to make a breakthrough in their cultivation.

It would appear on the surface that Yang shi was the strongest expert beneath the Ancient Sages, but it would do to remember that he was only in his eight hundreds. Given how large the Master Teacher Continent was, there were bound to be seniors who had dominated the eras prior to him, especially since the lifespan of a Great Sage was 1500 years.

Even if some had passed away, there had to be some who were still living and kicking!

Had Temple of Confucius not opened, they might have still chosen to remain in seclusion. This way, they would be able to lessen the loss of their vitality and lengthen their lifespans as long as possible. However, with the opening of the Temple of Confucius just around the corner, they were bound to make a move.

If anything, it was likely that the key to achieving a breakthrough to Ancient Sage lay within the Temple of Confucius. Perhaps, they might even find treasures that would allow them to lengthen their lifespan... This was the very opportunity they were waiting for, so there was no way they would remain impassive before it!

And there was just no way the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would have failed to consider this in their plans.

Since they were willing to go to the extent of sacrificing a significant number of their brethren in order to stall the experts of the Master Teacher Pavilion and the major powers, there was no doubt that they were determined to claim the Temple of Confucius. Naturally, they would have to dispatch a sufficiently powerful force into the Master Teacher Continent in order to ensure that they would achieve their goal.

"I have encountered some Otherworldly Demons on the Master Teacher Continent not too long ago. Most of them were at Sempiternal realm, and there were even Ancient Sages amongst them!" Zhang Xuan replied with a nod.

Back when he was at the Harvest Valley City Seer Guild, he had slain five Great Sage 4-dan Sempiternal realm Otherworldly Demons. The fighting prowess they commanded was noteworthy, possibly on par with the grand elders of the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters.

Furthermore, he even met a living Ancient Sage there!

Given how even the Otherworldly Demon Ancient Sages were able to circumvent the detection of the Master Teacher Pavilion, he couldn't begin to imagine just how many Otherworldly Demons had successfully infiltrated the Master Teacher Continent!

Just the very thought of it sent shudders down his spine.

In the worst-case scenario, perhaps the forces before them were all ordinary soldiers bearing the mission to stall them here; in truth, the Great Sage Otherworldly Demons had already successfully infiltrated the Master Teacher Continent.

"Did you encounter any Great Sage Otherworldly Demons in the battle so far?" Zhang Xuan asked.

"While we were guarding the seal, your father and I encountered an expert and clashed with him. He was a fearsome foe. If not for our collaborative swordsmanship, we might not have been able to return alive. That being said, I still sustained some injuries in the fight," Sword Saint Meng replied.

"You are injured?" Zhang Xuan quickly turned a worried look over.

"Don't worry, it's nothing major. I have already consumed a recovery pill!" Seeing that her son was worried about her, Sword Saint Meng replied with a reassuring smile.

"That's a relief..." Zhang Xuan nodded. "An opponent which requires your collaborative swordsmanship to deal with is bound to be at Sempiternal realm at the very minimum..."

The Xingmeng Sword Saints were at Great Sage 3-dan Intuitive Impulse realm consummation, but the prowess they were able to bring out through their collaborative swordsmanship was beyond what an average Sempiternal realm cultivator would be able to deal with!

If Sword Saint Meng still ended up sustaining some injuries even after they had executed your collaborative swordsmanship, it would mean to say that the opponent they had faced was extremely powerful.

If the goal of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe was to claim dominance in the Temple of Confucius, they should have dispatched all of their top experts to the Master Teacher Continent. It was truly surprising to hear that there would still be a Sempiternal realm cultivator in the ranks of the enemy.

Of course, it was still too early to come to a conclusion at this point in time, but this did weaken the credibility of his argument.

"No matter what their motive is, I want to take a look at it personally to verify it. It won't do for us to continue biding our time here blindly!" Unable to make sense out of the matter, Zhang Xuan raised his head and said.

At this rate, mankind would find itself losing a large group of experts for the Temple of Confucius. If the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe successfully amassed most of the treasures in the Temple of Confucius as a result of that, mankind would be placed in an even more disadvantageous position in the war.

However, with a massive army of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe standing right before them, they couldn't afford to just leave their posts and reinforce the Temple of Confucius either.

If his conjecture was true, the ideal plan would be to assault the army before them right now and regain control over the seal as soon as possible before reinforcing the Temple of Confucius.

However, if his conjecture were to be false, they would be abandoning the protection of the formation, and this was an extremely risky move.

Thus, the only thing he could do at the moment was to scout the situation himself and uncover the true intentions of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

"You wish to take a look personally? That won't do! You are the head of the Three Premier Clans and the Sanctum of Sages! If something were to happen to you, it would be a huge setback to mankind!" Sword Saint Xing immediately expressed his vehement opposition toward Zhang Xuan's decision.

His son wielded massive influence in mankind, possibly even greater than Ren Qingyuan and Yang shi. There was no doubt that he would play a crucial role in uniting the forces of mankind in the war against the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

They couldn't afford to allow him to take such a risk!

If he were to be caught by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe while scouting the situation, the chances of him returning alive were extremely slim. Even if they were to mobilize the full prowess of the Zhang Clan to rescue him, it was unlikely that the operation would in their favor.

It was the greatest blessing of mankind for someone who wielded considerable influence in most major powers of the Master Teacher Continent to appear at this juncture. Such a figure could easily become a binding force in constructing an allied army of mankind. If he were to pass away, mankind would be scattered once more. It would be a huge setback in the war against the powerful Otherworldly Demons.

"You can't go!" Sword Saint Meng exclaimed in fright too.

"I have comprehended the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing. I understand that the spatial seal has been breached, and I believe that I might be able to mend it. If I were to succeed, the Otherworldly Demons wouldn't be able to bring in their reinforcements easily, thus increasing our likelihood of a victory... Don't worry, I have plenty of life preservation means up my sleeves. Besides, I'm just going to see what they are up to. It's not as if I'm going to start a battle with them or anything. They won't be able to find me easily!" Knowing their worries, Zhang Xuan reassured with a smile.

"But..." Sword Saint Meng was still extremely worried.

"This is something I have to do. I'll just be scouting for intelligence, so the level of danger would be much lower. If you don't believe me, you can ask Ruoxin!" Zhang Xuan said.

"Zhang Xuan will be fine if it's just simple scouting," Luo Ruoxin reassured with a nod.

Her disguise amulet was able to disguise even one's bloodline, so he wouldn't face any trouble disguising as an Otherworldly Demon. Besides, even if something were to happen, Zhang Xuan had the ability to get away as long as his opponent wasn't an Ancient Sage. There was indeed nothing to worry about.

"Then... You must make sure to proceed with utmost caution. If you were to notice anything amiss, head back right away. Don't push yourself, alright?" Seeing that even Luo Ruoxin had said such words, Sword Saint Meng hesitated for a moment before reluctantly nodding in agreement.

"I will!" Zhang Xuan replied with a smile.

Taking a deep breath, he leaped down from the city walls.

While descending down, his figure suddenly vanished without a trace before everyone's eyes.

"This..."

"How did our clan head disappear?"

"I can't sense him with my Spiritual Perception!"

The elders exclaimed with widened eyes.

"It's a maneuver of the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing. Through sealing the space around his body, he is able to redirect light and Spiritual Perception away from him, thus making it nigh impossible to perceive his presence. Unless one's soul cultivation or comprehension of space reaches a certain level, it would be impossible to find him," Luo Ruoxin explained to the confused crowd.

Realization dawned upon the crowd.

They didn't know that it was possible to manipulate space in such a manner to produce such mystical effects.

It was no wonder why the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing was the highest heritage of the Luo Clan. Its prowess truly didn't disappoint!

If they were able to conceal their figure through such a method as well, it would effectively mean that they could march right into the enemy camp openly without catching anyone's notice!

They were still a little worried over the safety of their clan head a moment ago, but after seeing what he was capable of, their hearts were put at ease.

With the ability to conceal himself and the ability to accelerate time, he would surely be able to overcome any danger and return safely!

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Chapter 1672: General Auer

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

Sou sou sou!

Using the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing, Zhang Xuan concealed his figure and quickly advanced toward the encampment of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

It didn't take long for him to arrive before the enemy barracks and halted his footsteps.

'Cruck cruck cruck', his bones and muscles began warping, and his height by a chi 1 . By the time he was done, he looked no different from any other Otherworldly Demons.

Of course, he didn't neglect to alter his aura either. This time around, however, he held himself back quite a bit such that the killing intent he emanated wasn't as pure as what it would ordinarily be. It was even beneath the level of Greenleaf King and the others, no different from an ordinary soldier in the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

After completing his disguise, he descended onto the ground. He swiftly found a group of patrolling soldiers and discreetly crept up to the Otherworldly Demon soldier lagging behind at the back. Raising his finger, he tapped the back of the Otherworldly Demon soldier lightly.

Puhe!

It was a silent first blood. He hurriedly kept the corpse of the Otherworldly Demon soldier into his storage ring.

After cleaning up the scene, he quickly morphed his appearance into that of the Otherworldly Demon soldier. Of course, he wouldn't forget something as basic as to change his clothes as well.

So, when he revealed his figure once more, he was already wearing a heavy set of armor with a long spear in his hand. He broke free of the group he was following and marched his way into the main encampment.

The Otherworldly Demons were very particular with their defenses. It was apparent with a swift glance that the defensive formations they had set up were the work of an expert. It was fortunate that Sword Saint Xing had made the call to stand guard at the fortress. If they had really attempted to breach these formations, the Zhang Clan could very well lose half of its entire army.

These formations are slightly dissimilar to those of the Formation Master Guild. They are inscribed using the runes of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Those who step into these formations will be struck by a gush of killing intent, placing them in a state of disorientation... Zhang Xuan thought as he analyzed the formations carefully.

He had encountered similar formations when he descended into the Subterranean Gallery the first time around. However, the formations he had seen back then could only be said to be mediocre compared to those standing before him right now.

Even Saint 9-dan experts would suffer a bout of light-headedness if they were to barge into the formations carelessly, let alone weaker cultivators.

Of course, due to their unique constitution, these formations wouldn't affect Otherworldly Demons.

As Zhang Xuan proceeded ahead, he carefully analyzed the structure of the formations and deduced the locations of their cruxes. Following which, he discreetly infused his Heaven's Path zhenqi into those formations. However, he didn't rush into destroying them.

He was here to scout intelligence. If he were to destroy the formations right now, it would only expose the presence of a spy within the encampment, thus tightening the security of the base. That would only make it harder for him to do his job.

So far, the cultivation of the Otherworldly Demons he had encountered ranged from Saint 3-dan to Saint 9-dan. He hadn't encountered any Great Sage Otherworldly Demon yet, but they could just be located in the deeper parts of the encampment.

The Qingtian Lineage can't even begin to compare to this... Zhang Xuan couldn't help but shake his head.

The Otherworldly Demon Kings of the Qingtian Lineage had only barely reached Primordial Spirit realm, and even the Qingtian Emperor himself was only at Saint 6-dan Grand Dominion realm. That bit of fighting prowess was truly pathetic compared to the troops right before him.

From the looks of it, it seemed like there was a massive gap in abilities even amongst fellow 'Emperors'. Of course, it could also be possible that the Qingtian Lineage was an exception.

It was a pity that Vicious was still in a state of hibernation at the moment. Otherwise, Vicious would surely have regained another significant portion of his memories after fusing with his upper body. He would be able to ask the latter about the circumstances in the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe and take precautions against them accordingly.

"Your are supposed to patrol the area and check if there are any threats in the area. Why are you loitering around here?"

All of a sudden, Zhang Xuan heard a harsh voice sounding behind him. Turning his head around, he saw an Otherworldly Demon wearing a black helmet walking toward him with a displeased frown on his forehead.

The Otherworldly Demon was at Saint 8-dan. Judging from his tone, it seemed like he was a relatively high ranking officer in the army.

He spoke in the native tongue of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Fortunately, Zhang Xuan had already learned the language the first time he descended into a Subterranean Gallery. In fact, it was using the language that he managed to fool the Goldenleaf King and the Greenleaf King into killing one another.

"Someone has just switched places with me, so I came back to the encampment to rest a while!" Zhang Xuan quickly lowered his head and bowed.

Zhang Xuan noted that the Otherworldly Demon soldier had just switched shift with another group, and that was also the primary reason why he chose to attack the latter. If the Otherworldly Demon soldier was still on his shift, it might have taken him a bit more trouble to switch positions with him.

"Follow me. There's something I need you to do!" the black helmet Otherworldly Demon harrumphed coldly as he beckoned Zhang Xuan to follow him.

"Yes, sir!"

In order not to give himself away, Zhang Xuan obediently followed the black helmet Otherworldly Demon.

The black helmet Otherworldly Demon proceeded on to assemble ten other Otherworldly Demon soldiers. The soldiers that he had picked out were all the lowest Saint 3-dan soldiers, similar to the one which Zhang Xuan was disguised as.

"What does General Auer want us to do?"

Following obediently behind the black helmet Otherworldly Demon, one of the Otherworldly Demon soldiers asked the group discreetly.

"I'm not too sure either, but I guess it should be some kind of construction work!" the Otherworldly Demon beside shook his head and replied.

"Construction? Haven't we completed the construction of the base already?"

"Don't ask unnecessary questions. We just have to do whatever General Auer orders us to do. Poke your noses in where it doesn't belong, and you won't even know how you died!" one of the Otherworldly Demon soldiers harrumphed impatiently, and the crowd fell silent.

"That fellow is called General Auer?" Zhang Xuan took careful note of the name.

The black helmet Otherworldly Demon hadn't executed any battle technique yet, so he had no way of knowing the other party's identity. In any case, he should remember the name first so as to not mess up later on.

"Stop!"

After walking for a while, they stopped before a peculiarly designed building. The black helmet General Auer stepped forward, pushed open the door, and led the way in.

The interiors of the building appeared empty. There were only a couple of massive boxes placed within.

Each of these boxes was roughly a person tall, and they were placed in an orderly fashion, roughly ten meters apart from one another.

Sensing that something was amiss over here, Zhang Xuan took a closer look at the boxes. There was no pulsation of power coming from the boxes, which indicated that it wasn't inscribed with any formations or seals.

"I want you all to move the boxes over to the other side!" General Auer ordered.

He gathered us here just to move a couple of boxes? Zhang Xuan thought in bewilderment.

The other Otherworldly Demon soldiers were confused by the situation before them as well.

At their cultivation realm, they could easily use their Spiritual Perception to keep anything into their storage ring and place them elsewhere... Yet, they were all gathered here to accomplish something as easy as this?

"What are you all dawdling for? Hurry up!" Seeing that no one was moving at all, General Auer's face darkened. "You just have to do what is ordered of you. There's no need for you to know anything at all!"

"Yes, sir!"

Not daring to protest against their superior, they hurriedly carried the boxes and brought them out of the building.

These boxes weren't heavy at all. Zhang Xuan attempted to extend his Spiritual Perception through the box to take a peek at what was placed within, but as if there was a seal cast over its exterior, his Spiritual Perception was unable to seep in at all.

He tried using the Library of Heaven's Path as well, but he could only compile information on the box but not what was within it. Eventually, he could only give up on it and obediently follow the crowd out.

"Make sure the boxes are the same distances away from one another!" General Ayer ordered sternly.

As Saint 3-dan cultivators, each of the Otherworldly Demon soldiers possessed exceptional memory. They quickly got into the same formation as the boxes when they first saw them in the building.

"Good!" Seeing the formation put up by the crowd, General Ayer nodded in satisfaction before gesturing them to head forward.

Maintaining the same distance amongst one another, they began marching forward.

What is the purpose of maintaining the distances amongst the boxes? Zhang Xuan frowned in incomprehension.

If these boxes were parts of a formation or something, he could still understand the need to maintain their positions relative to one another. However, the fact that he couldn't feel any pulsations of energy from them showed that that wasn't the case. Thus, was there really a need to be so concerned with such a minor detail?

More importantly, why couldn't they move the boxes with their storage rings instead?

Hm?

Perplexed by the peculiar situation, Zhang Xuan activated his Eye of Insight and observed his surroundings carefully. With a look, his body stiffened in astonishment, This feeling... It's similar to how I felt whenever I enter a Seer Guild... They are trying to conceal something from the heavens?

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Chapter 1673: Half-Ancient Sage Artifact

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

Affected by the notion that the boxes were positioned to create some sort of mysterious formation, his thoughts didn't wander in such a direction earlier. However, under the discerning gaze of the Eye of Insight, he swiftly noticed an anomaly.

There was nothing wrong with the boxes individually. But when they were placed in a specific formation, it created a feeling which was strikingly similar to the sensation he felt when he entered a Seer Guild.

It was possible to use Spiritual Perception and all other means on a Seer Guild, but it was impossible to use divination arts on the Seer Guild!

Of course, this didn't mean to say that seers were unable to divine from within the Seer Guild. It only meant that it was impossible to divine anyone and anything within the Seer Guild. In a sense, it was similar to a one-sided mirror, where those within the Seer Guild were able to divine what was outside, but those outside were unable to divine what was within the Seer Guild.

Upper Nine Paths, Middle Nine Paths, and Lower Nine Paths; the word 'nine' in each of these terms symbolized the idea of the extremities. It didn't mean that there were only nine occupations in each of these paths. In fact, there were way more than thirty recognized official occupations in the world.

There were numerous occupations which Zhang Xuan had never learned before. Nevertheless, with the books he had read over the past year, he was still able to participate in a conversation regarding their technicalities. But when it came to seer... he really didn't know a thing at all!

He had attempted to learn divination art within a Seer Guild before, but as soon as he attempted to read them, countless bolts of lightning fell from the heavens.

The Library of Heaven's Path in his mind represented the heavens, and the seers who sought to peer into the secrets of the heavens were no different than thieves to them. Naturally, the Library of Heaven's Path wouldn't allow for the existence of any divination arts in its line of sight, which effectively made it impossible for him to learn them too.

It was because of this that he had no choice but to give up on the notion of learning anything relating to divination.

Nevertheless, he could still distinctly recognize the sensation he felt within a Seer Guild, and it was identical to what he was feeling at the moment.

I thought that the entire Seer Guild had colluded with the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe to help them sneak onto the Master Teacher Continent, but that might not necessarily be the case! Zhang Xuan thought.

Ever since the theft of Vicious' upper body, he had been thinking that the entire Seer Guild had betrayed mankind. Otherwise, they should have divined the arrival of the Otherworldly Demon Ancient Sages into the Master Teacher Continent and reported it to the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters.

But thinking about it again, they didn't need the cooperation of the entire Seer Guild for that. All they needed was a 9-star seer to collude with them in order to create such artifacts. With these anti-divination artifacts, they would be able to conceal the Ancient Sages from the heavens, thus bypassing the divination of the entire Seer Guild!

But why would these anti-divination artifacts be here? Unless it's a prolonged war, our seers are unlikely to pose much threat to the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe... Or could it be that they were planning to use it to assassinate the Xingmeng Sword Saints?

Zhang Xuan's mind swiftly whirred into action.

With their ability to divine the future, seers were indeed troublesome individuals to deal with. However, they had their limitations too. They were only able to divine specific individuals or the general state of matters, so they wouldn't be of much help in uncovering crucial military intelligence such as the enemy's strategies and plans. As a result of that, their utility in massive and chaotic battles was severely limited.

For this reason, the Zhang Clan didn't bring any of its seers to the battlefield either.

The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe should have known this too, so it was likely that these boxes weren't prepared in order to deal with the seers.

And putting aside the seers, the only ones who would be affected by the anti-divination artifacts were the Xingmeng Sword Saints instead.

The Xingmeng Sword Saints were at Great Sage 3-dan Intuitive Impulse realm, which allowed them to instinctively sense danger and take actions to avoid it. The boxes would seal that ability of theirs too, thus making it much easier for them to carry out an assassination.

It's one thing if I am unaware of it, but now that I have discovered such a matter, I won't stand on ceremony then... Zhang Xuan thought as his lips crept up.

Others might still have to resort to physical attacks in order to destroy these anti-divination artifacts, but he was different!

All he had to do was to tap into his Library of Heaven's Path, and he would be able to bring lightning upon them...

I shouldn't rush into it first. I have already promised Little Tribulation that I would offer him some pointers. If I were to summon him over, I should at least offer him some guidance so he would be able to grow stronger. If I could make him strong enough to destroy all of these Otherworldly Demons, that would be for the best...Zhang Xuan thought.

It wasn't too easy to summon a lightning tribulation in the Subterranean Gallery, but with the provocation from these blasphemous artifacts, the heavens would surely answer the calls of the Library of Heaven's Path and bring retribution down upon these heathens!

Just that... he had come encountered with the lightning tribulation that brought retribution to seers several times in the past, but unlike the wonderful indiscriminate area of effect devastation typical to cultivation ordeals, this lightning tribulation only struck specific artifacts or individuals... What did he have to do in order to summon a sufficiently large lightning tribulation to kill all of these Otherworldly Demons?

These Otherworldly Demons wouldn't be as 'law-abiding' as the cultivators from the Glacier Plain Court and Sanctum of Sages. If a lightning tribulation were to appear above them right now, they would dispel it right away before it could even grow into anything.

Against an entire army, there was no way a lightning tribulation could stand a chance. Otherwise, they could simply dispatch a random chap on the verge of a breakthrough into the heart of the enemy base and call forth a lightning tribulation to annihilate the enemy.

Besides, ordinary lightning tribulation wouldn't pose much of a threat to cultivators beyond Aureate Body realm as long as they were prepared for it. At their level, only heavenly flames would be able to pose some danger to them.

The Otherworldly Demon who had fought the Xingmeng Sword Saints to a draw was likely to be at Sempiternal realm at the very minimum, so ordinary lightning tribulations were definitely not of much use against him.

If I want to do it, I'll have to summon a sufficiently powerful lightning tribulation right from the start. Otherwise, I'll only alarm them... Zhang Xuan thought as he suppressed his urge to use the Library of Heaven's Path.

"Halt!"

Even though Zhang Xuan's thoughts were flying around the place, he was still able to continue walking in file with the other Otherworldly Demon soldiers. They traveled for over several li before General Auer finally raised his hand and halted them.

Seeing that the crowd had stopped their footsteps, Zhang Xuan didn't dare to display any anomaly either

"Place the boxes down here, and you may return!"

"Yes, sir!"

The crowd nodded their heads hurriedly. They quickly put down the boxes down before leaving the area.

Zhang Xuan left along with the departing Otherworldly Demon soldiers as well, but after traveling some distance away, he discreetly cast a spatial seal over himself, thus concealing himself from view, before sneaking back.

Shortly after he returned to the area, he saw a huge Otherworldly Demon walking over.

The huge Otherworldly Demon emanated an aura far stronger than the others, giving rise to an incredibly intimidating presence. The powerful killing intent he harnessed produced an ink-like manifestation around him. Even a glance at him would cause the killing intent to intrude one's mind, stripping one of one's fighting prowess.

An Otherworldly Demon Emperor! Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes.

Just the sheer intensity of the killing intent emanated by the huge Otherworldly Demon had already surpassed that of the Qingtian Emperor. He had only felt something similar to this from Vicious and the Otherworldly Demon Ancient Sage he had killed. Of course, the presence of the Otherworldly Demon before him was far weaker as compared to those two, but it was still plenty formidable...

Even if he wasn't an Otherworldly Demon Emperor, he was likely to be very close to becoming one.

"Paying respects to the Commander!" General Auer hurriedly clasped his fist and greeted the tall Otherworldly Demon.

"Un!" the Commander nodded. "You may take your leave now. I don't want anyone interrupting me."

"Yes, Commander!" General Auer nodded before swiftly leaving the area.

After ensuring that there was no one around, the Commander took a step toward the boxes. With a majestic wave of his hands, all of the boxes around him burst open, revealing the secrets hidden beneath them.

Within each of those boxes were stone platforms of equivalent height. A mirror was placed on top of each of these stone platforms.

These mirrors were veered at different angles. As light swiftly reflected off them, they swiftly formed a tortoiseshell-like hologram in the air.

The appearance of the hologram deepened the sensation Zhang Xuan felt. This was a sign that the concealment barrier against the heavens had grown even stronger. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would have never guessed that there were such artifacts hidden in the boxes.

"There's still another box there..."

At this point, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but notice that there was another box in the middle that remained unopened.

The Commander closed his eyes and felt the aura around him before walking up to the box in the middle. He gently placed his hand on upon the box.

Kacha!

The box burst open as well, revealing a blood crimson saber floating quietly in the air. The handle of the saber was an elongated skull with a vicious face, and the entire weapon seemed to command a sinister presence.

What a formidable saber... It isn't on par with the Dragonbone Divine Spear, but it's indubitably an extraordinary artifact... Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes.

The malevolent aura emanating from the saber was far stronger than the sword from Ancient Sage Zi Rong which Nangong Yuanfeng had given the Luo Clan!

"That is a Half-Ancient Sage artifact!" the voice of the Dragonbone Divine Spear sounded in Zhang Xuan's mind.

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Chapter 1674: On the Verge of Insanity

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

"A Half-Ancient Sage artifact?"

"Indeed. Between Great Sage and Ancient Sage, there's still a Half-Ancient Sage tier. Cultivators wielding artifacts of such a tier would be able to slay even Sempiternal realm cultivators with ease. It's still nowhere close to competing with a true Ancient Sage artifact like me though. As long as master reaches Ancient Sage, my seal will be released, and I'll gain fighting prowess on par with Ancient Sage cultivators!" the Dragonbone Divine Spear explained.

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan's face turned grim.

If the Otherworldly Demon were to really use a weapon of such prowess to assault the Xingmeng Sword Saints, they might very well fall victim to it.

"Damn these scoundrels!" Zhang Xuan cursed beneath his breath.

He thought that the Otherworldly Demons were afraid to make a move, but who could have thought that they were actually preparing their trump card!

"I can't let them succeed!"

Having lived as an orphan in his previous life, while he found it difficult to express his feelings, he did treasure the familial ties he had with the Xingmeng Sword Saints. Yet, the Otherworldly Demons actually wanted to assassinate them... Unforgivable!

There was no way he could allow them to succeed!

However... with his current strength, unless he were to use the Ancient Sage corpse, it would be impossible for him to defeat the Commander standing before him!

But if he were to use the Ancient Sage corpse right now, he would deplete his soul energy swiftly. Given that he was currently in the midst of the enemy's encampment, that was an extremely risky move to do.

Hu!

Just as Zhang Xuan was still pondering over how he should deal with the Commander, he saw the latter abruptly taking a breath. A burst of power flurried from the Commander. Gritting his teeth, the Commander stepped forward and grabbed the demonic saber.

Tzzzzzz!

A crimson glow flickered from the skeletal handle of the demonic saber. With an abrupt jolt, the demonic saber knocked the Commander away and assaulted him with a gush of malevolent aura.

The Commander's face darkened upon seeing this sight, and he hurriedly retreated two steps. It took a while before he managed to suppress the raging energies in his body.

He paused for a moment before speaking slowly, "I don't intend to tame you. I just need you to help me to slay two people!"

It went without saying that the Half-Ancient Sage artifact had a weapon spirit, so it was possible to negotiate with it.

Weng weng weng!

However, it didn't seem like the skull on the demonic saber was willing to listen to his words at all. It fell silent after jolting the Commander away, completely disregarding his words. It was as if it was telling the Commander that he would have to show ample strength to prove himself worthy of speaking to it first!

"Since you aren't willing to cooperate, don't blame me for taking extreme measures then..." Seeing how arrogant the demonic saber was, the Commander's complexion didn't look too good either.

Narrowing his eyes, light began gathering on the surface of his palm before eventually forming a transparent, thin film. Following which, he stepped forward and grabbed the demonic saber once more.

Tzzzzzz!

The demonic saber had no intentions to give in either. The two formidable forces collided with one another, causing dimension rifts to surface in the surroundings.

Due to the seer artifacts and the formation cast over the area, despite the powerful shockwaves diffusing into the surroundings as a result of their clashes, not the slightest hint of energy leaked out of the area.

That so-called Commander fellow hasn't tamed the demonic saber yet! Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in realization.

It seemed like the mirrors served two purposes. Firstly, it was to dull the Xingmeng Sword Saints instincts so as to enhance the chances of conducting a successful assassination. Secondly, it was to conceal the existence of this Half-Ancient Sage saber.

That would also explain why they had to move the boxes manually. If the saber had already been tamed, they might have been able to keep it into a storage ring. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case, so they had no choice but to go through the additional trouble.

Considering how powerful the Commander already was, if he were to successfully tame the demonic saber, even if his assassination were to fail in the end, his prowess was still beyond what the Xingmeng Sword Saints could deal with.

This is perfect! I'll just have to stop him from taming the demonic saber... Zhang Xuan was still wondering how he should stop the Commander, but since the latter hadn't tamed the demonic saber yet, this matter would be much easier to resolve.

While the Commander was devoting all of his strength into dealing with the saber, Zhang Xuan began to move his muscles and bones once more.

Geji! Geji!

In the blink of an eye, he had already assumed another identity.

...

In the midst of the formation of mirrors, the Commander eyed the demonic saber before him warily.

He knew how powerful the demonic saber was, so he didn't dare to hold back at all. He drove his zhenqi to the limits and sent a concentrated barrage of powerful attacks one after another against the demonic saber.

He could feel the winds of the battle gradually turning in his favor. This was the decisive moment, he couldn't allow his attention to wander at all. If he were to push his way through, he was confident he would be able to win the acknowledgement of the demonic saber.

But at this crucial moment, he heard flurried footsteps outside.

Following which, a figure came into sight. He was the person whom he had just dismissed a moment ago, General Auer. The latter walked right up to him, clasped his fist, and bowed, "Commander, I have already relayed your orders to the men. No one will interrupt you anymore. You can cultivate with a peace of mind!"

"..." The Commander's body twitched upon hearing those words.

Most Great Sage cultivators were strong enough to multitask, but dealing with the demonic saber left no room for his concentration to wander. Not only did he have to fend off its furious assault, more importantly, he had to keep the demonic saber's malevolent aura from corroding his mind too. At a time like this, silence was of utmost importance.

This was also the reason why the Commander had ordered General Auer to keep anyone from interrupting him... Yet, this fool actually barged in just to report to him that he had fulfilled the order...

Do you have any common sense?!

Isn't it obvious that my order includes you as well? How am I supposed to cultivate with a peace of mind with you around?

"You're dismissed!" Suppressing the urge to give General Auer a tight slap, the Commander bellowed with a wintry voice.

Huhu!

The sudden fluctuation in his emotions opened a gap for the malevolent aura of the demonic saber to seep into his mind, causing his consciousness to blur a little. As a result of that, his movements grew a little sluggish.

"Yes, Commander!" General Auer replied resoundingly before taking a step back, seemingly about to leave the room. However, just as he was about to step out of the door, he abruptly halted his footsteps, as if having recalled something. He turned around and asked, "Commander, it's going to be lunchtime very soon. Do you want to have beef brisket noodles or omelette du fromage? I'll get the kitchen to prepare one portion specially for you!"

"Beef brisket noodles? Omelette du fromage?" the Commander was startled by those words.

Do we have such food over here?

As long as there was ample spiritual energy, cultivators at their level could easily fast for over ten years... Given that they were in the midst of the war, who would be in a mood to eat beef brisket noodles or omelette du fromage, whatever that was!

"Scram!"

He was in a crucial period of the taming process, and he needed absolute silence at this moment. Yet, that fellow just had to prattle on and on by the side. If the Commander had hypertension, his veins would have already popped from sheer anger!

That momentary distraction from General Auer allowed the demonic saber, which had just been forced into a disadvantageous position, to make a comeback. It sent a gush of malevolent aura toward the Commander, further blurring his consciousness. The splitting headache caused by the malevolent aura caused cold sweat to trickle down the Commander's head.

"Ah? You don't seem to be in too good of a mood... Do you want some iced water to cool yourself down?" General Auer asked with a concerned tone. "Look how much you are sweating! Are you feeling unwell?"

"..." the Commander.

Screw you screw you screw you! Why have I never noticed that this idiot has such an irritating mouth before?

You are a general, not a chef or an attendant! Furthermore, isn't it plain to see that I'm busy at the moment? Just why are you so determined to trouble me at this moment?

"I told you to scram! Scram!!!" Unable to take it any longer, the Commander howled with a mixture of fury and desperation in his voice.

However, it didn't seem like his intimidation was working very well as the other party's voice soon sounded once more, "Wow, there's no need to get so touchy. You could have told me that you weren't thirsty... What about soup then? I heard that the kitchen has just boiled an amazing pork bone soup. Shall I serve a bowl to you too?"

PUUUU!

Something within the Commander snapped at the moment. In the next, however, the malevolent aura successfully breached the mental defenses of the Commander, causing his face to pale and fresh blood to spew from his mouth.

Freak you! Are you done or not?

Are you really blind? Can't you see that I'm in the midst of taming the demonic saber?

Get some common sense, you jackass!

Suppressing the boiling rage within him, the Commander took deep breaths, and with forced composure, he spat through gritted teeth, "I don't want food, I don't want water, and I don't want soup too. Now, get out of this room and stop bothering me!"

"Commander, you don't have to worry! I have relayed strict orders to the men, so you can be certain that no one would dare to bother you! Only fools seeking death would dare to oppose your orders. Even if you don't say a word, I would slay that dimwit with my own hands!" General Auer waved his hand grandly and spoke with an imposing demeanor.

The Commander felt a stabbing pain in his chest.

Is there a screw loose in your mind? What makes you think that I am referring to others? The one who is bothering me is you!

Just as the Commander was about to hurl expletives at that dense subordinate of his, General Auer turned his earnest gaze to him once more and asked, "Commander, isn't it a little too boring to be idling around here without doing anything? Shall we sing together? If you are too shy, I don't mind singing for you either!"

"Pu!" the Commander spurted another mouthful of blood.

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Chapter 1675: Taming the Demonic Saber

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

This was the first time the Commander came to being on the verge of insanity felt like. He felt like he could suffer a mental breakdown there and then!

Sing sing sing, sing your head!

I am a member of Otherworldly Demon royalty, a Sempiternal realm expert. Yet, you want me to sing with you?

Did your head get crushed under a boulder?

A highly capable and tactful subordinate General Auer was, the Commander had always regarded him highly and treated him as his confidant. The latter was extremely good at reading the atmosphere and would never do anything that overstepped his boundary. Why would he suddenly become such a pain in the ass to deal with today?

I told you clearly not to disturb me, but you seem to be finding all sorts of nonsense to bug me. Are you doing this purposely?

A thought suddenly came to the Commander's mind, and he hurriedly took a closer look at General Auer. However, the appearance, the soul aura, the killing intent, and the intonation when he spoke, they were all identical to the General Auer he knew...

If he really had to point out a difference, it would be the helmet...

Wait, the helmet was different?

Could it be that this fellow wasn't General Auer but another person in disguise? But he had never heard of anyone in the world who was able to put up such a convincing disguise which even he was unable to see through!

While he was still deep in thought, General Auer took in a deep breath and said, "Very well, I'll go first then... Kong shi had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb..."

"Pu!" The Commander spurted yet another mouthful of blood. With his eyes reddened with rage, he hollered, "I'll kill you first!"

Unable to stand this nonsense any longer, he decisively retracted his palm from the demonic saber and thrust it toward General Auer instead.

General Auer's constant harassment had already placed him in a bad position against the demonic saber, and abruptly releasing his grasp from it only served to worsen his situation. A surge of malevolent aura overran his body, leaving him light-headed.

This single move had already inflicted severe damage to his Primordial Spirit. He knew that it would take him at least half a year to make a full recovery. However... he couldn't take it anymore!

Not even his mother was as naggy as this!

If he didn't kill this bastard right now, his heart might just explode from all the rage he had accumulated within!

Boom!

The might of his palm poured forth like a ferocious dragon, surging forward with unstoppable momentum. In an instant, it had already arrived right before General Auer.

Horrified, General Auer hurriedly hid behind one of the stone platforms as he cried out indignantly, "Commander, I am your beloved Auer!"

An anti-divination mirror was placed on top of the stone platform. If the Commander were to push forward with his attack, there was no doubt that he would damage the mirror, and that could potentially reveal the existence of the demonic saber.

Left with no choice, he could only retract his palm strike hurriedly.

An instant after he retracted his palm strike, General Auer's anxious voice sounded in his ears, "Commander, be careful! Someone is attacking you from above!"

The Commander hurriedly raised his head, but other than a thick layer of mist above, there wasn't anyone in sight.

Hu!

Realizing that he had been tricked, the Commander quickly lowered his gaze, only to see a spear piercing straight for his chest.

Caught off guard by the extraordinary strength and speed coming from General Auer's attack, the Commander's face darkened. He quickly tilted his body in order to evade the pierce.

Puhe!

But even so, the spear still tore a deep laceration across his chest, causing his blood to flow profusely.

"A Great Sage artifact?"

The Commander narrowed his eyes in shock.

His physical body had been tempered by the heavenly flame tribulation, so ordinary weapons couldn't even hope to hurt him. To inflict a glaring laceration on his Aureate Body, there was no doubt that the spear was a Great Sage artifact!

This realization also made him acutely aware that the person standing him was definitely not General Auer, no matter how alike the two of them were!

Putting aside the fact that General Auer wasn't qualified to possess such a weapon, even if he did have one in his possession, there was no way he could bring out its strength with his Saint 8-dan cultivation!

"Who in the world are you?" the Commander growled menacingly.

Including the Xingmeng Sword Saints, most members of the Zhang Clan were sword users due to the nature of their heritage. There shouldn't have been any proficient spear users amongst the enemy!

The emergence of these doubts in the Commander's mind didn't dull his movements in the least. Instead, the realization of the threat before him made him sharpen his movements. After dodging the spear pierce, he bolted forward to counterattack with a palm thrust.

He had devoted his full strength as a Sempiternal realm expert into the attack this time around. The devastating might of his attack caused dimension rifts to open all around the area. Even the surrounding air groaned in protest against the immense strain it was placed under.

But before the palm thrust landed, once again, General Auer exclaimed anxiously, "Danger! Commander, look up!"

Out of sheer instinct, the Commander immediately released his Spiritual Perception, but the area directly above him was still as empty as ever. Realizing that he had been tricked once more, he roared with a voice quivering with rage, "Be prepared to meet your maker!"

His zhenqi surged wildly, further augmenting the might of his destructive palm strike.

Hu!

In the face of such a powerful attack, the fellow before him fled frantically behind another one of the stone platforms.

"You bastard!" With another mirror standing in the way of his attack, the Commander had no choice but to forcefully retract his palm strike once more. "Why don't you stop being a coward and face me like a man?"

The very fact that the other party was able to injure him meant that the other party wielded strength close to a Sempiternal realm cultivator, if not equal. Those who had reached such a height would value their dignity and reputation a lot, sometimes even going to great lengths to protect them.

But the fellow before him simply kept hiding behind the mirrors, not daring to face his attacks directly at all. Was this the kind of etiquette an expert should have?

Shameless! Cowardly!

Don't you think it's unseemly for someone as powerful as you to be resorting to such despicable tactics?

He had also clashed with master teachers before. They were dignified and righteous individuals who would rather lose their lives than to have their dignity sullied... As if it wasn't enough for the other party to disguise himself as Auer and intentionally disturb him in the midst of his cultivation, the other party was even spouting lies as if they didn't cost anything and kept darting behind the mirrors around...

Stop being a shameless bastard and face me head-on! If you have the guts to do what you did, surely you should have the guts to face my wrath too!

With an enraged roar, the Commander charged forward to tear the other party apart when the other party abruptly pointed to the sky once more and exclaimed, "Watch out! Danger!"

"Danger your head!" Knowing that it was just another distraction tactic by the other party, the Commander chose to pay no heed to those words and continued with his charge.

But before his palm could land on his target, goosebumps suddenly rose up all over his body. He could sense a hulking force was falling toward him from the sky. It was beyond the range of his Spiritual Perception to perceive exactly what it was, but with the speed it was traveling at, there was no way he would be able to dodge it in the midst of his charge.

Padah!

The Commander was smashed into the ground in a '大' shape. In an instant, he had sustained innumerable fractures all over his body, and crimson blood spouted from his mouth as if a fountain.

"Hahaha! I, Ding Ding, have finally made a comeback! The world shall shudder beneath my bottom!" an excited voice sounded right above the Commander.

A massive brick-like bottom twisted around on top of the Commander, producing crisp sounds reminiscent of snapped twigs. With each twist, another mouthful of blood would be ejected from the Commander's body.

"..."

The Commander really wanted to bawl at this very moment!

It was no easy feat to acquire a Great Sage artifact. They were extremely difficult to create, which made them rare and invaluable entities. Even a Great Sage cultivator would be the envy of his peers if he were to have a Great Sage artifact in his possession! Yet, the spear and the brick that fellow had in his possession were actually both Great Sage artifacts...

Where the flying cow did this monster come from?

"都告诉你了,有人偷袭,非不听..."

"I warned you. I told you to watch out, but you simply wouldn't heed my warnings..." Zhang Xuan shook his head in disappointment, as if admonishing an obstinate child who simply wouldn't listen to the advice of his elders.

With a sigh of lamentation, he walked up to the Commander and took the storage ring right off his finger.

"..." the Commander.

I am not dead yet!

"I'll leave this fellow to you!" After taking away the storage ring, Zhang Xuan waved his hand casually before turning his attention away from the Commander.

The Dragonbone Divine Spear and the Golden Origin Cauldron were delighted to receive such an order. It had been long since they had any showtime. Thus, one did its best to twist and turn its bottom to squeeze the last bit of juice from the poor man below it while the other pierced him relentlessly with its tip...

Entrusting the Commander to his two artifacts, Zhang Xuan turned his attention to the demonic saber.

This demonic saber was even stronger than the Golden Origin Cauldron. The malevolent aura that it emanated was an extremely powerful soul offense which could faze even Otherworldly Demons. If he had such a weapon in his grasp, he would surely have been able to defeat the Commander much more easily.

All he would have to do was to toss it out along with the Dragonbone Divine Spear and the Golden Origin Cauldron, and the three of them would be able to put an end to the Commander by themselves without him lifting a finger.

"Let me give it a try!"

Emulating what the Commander did earlier, he reached out and grasped the handle of the demonic saber.

Boom!

A burst of killing intent surged right into his body, piercing right for his Primordial Spirit.

Weng!

His Primordial Spirit emanated a golden glow and warded off the killing intent.

"What a formidable attack..."

Despite having successfully withstood the attack, Zhang Xuan was still forced to retreat a step under the powerful burst of killing intent.

Had he not tempered his Primordial Spirit with the Empyrean Heavenly Flame previously, that attack would have inflicted severe damage on him in an instant!

"Let's see if your killing intent is more formidable than mine!"

Since you wish to put your killing intent against me, I shan't stand on ceremony either then!

Zhang Xuan drove his Heaven's Path zhenqi, and in the next moment, a torrent of killing intent came crashing down on the demonic saber. This killing intent was raw and unrefined, but its sheer purity would cause even one's blood to freeze over.

Unexpectedly, before the killing intent could even reach the arrogant demonic saber... Putong! The demonic saber fell to the ground and lowered itself subserviently, as if paying respects to its new master. Its body trembled uncontrollably, hinting at the deep fear it carried for the person standing before it.

"..."

Seeing such a sight through his swollen eyes, tears streamed freely down the Commander's face.

Aren't you supposed to be a proud and lofty weapon?

Why are you submitting to him so quickly? Where did all your pride and dignity go to?

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Chapter 1676: Killing the Commander

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

The Commander was so traumatized that he looked as if he had lost his soul.

It was with high expectations that he led his army into the Subterranean Gallery, intending to push his forces into the Master Teacher Continent. If he succeeded, his name would ripple throughout the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, and his standing would swiftly rise through the ranks. But before he could even launch a proper invasion, he was already violated by a brick and a spear...

Moreover, the demonic saber which he had specially brought out of his clan for this special occasion actually submitted to the other party...

Where in the world did the prideful attitude you have shown me earlier go to?

Why in the name of the heavens are you groveling on the ground right now?

I see! This fellow submits to those who possess purer killing intent than it does. The killing intent I am able to emanate through my Heaven's Path zhenqi is at least comparable to Vicious, so it's no wonder why it submitted to me so quickly... Zhang Xuan nodded in realization.

While the Commander was likely to be an Otherworldly Demon Emperor as well, judging from the Qingtian Emperor's standards, his killing intent still came nowhere on par with his Heaven's Path zhenqi.

With a light tap of his finger, he flicked a droplet of blood over to fuse with the demonic saber.

Soon after, he felt a will surging into his mind.

Infernal Blacksaber!

That was the name of the demonic saber lying before him.

Just like what the Dragonbone Divine Spear had said, the Infernal Blacksaber was indeed a Half-Ancient Sage artifact. However, that was not all that was to it...

It was actually an upgradable artifact!

The upgradable artifacts of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were fundamentally different from that of mankind.

The Golden Origin Cauldron was one of the rare upgradable artifacts in the world, but in order to raise its tier, it had to be reforged with other precious ores. On the other hand, the upgradable artifacts of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe only demanded sufficient fresh blood or souls for their tier to be raised.

In other words, he didn't have to reforge the Inferno Blacksaber and risk messing it up. All he had to do was to slay more experts in order for it to grow stronger!

It was precisely due to this nature of it that the demonic saber emanated such an intense malevolent aura.

"In other words, this means that you can be upgraded into an Ancient Sage artifact?" Upon learning of this matter, Zhang Xuan asked the Infernal Blacksaber with excitement gleaming in his eyes.

One must know that Ancient Sage artifacts wielded the prowess to slay Ancient Sages! If the Infernal Blacksaber could be upgraded, he would really have no fear for cultivators beneath Ancient Sage!

"I can be upgraded, but I'll need to devour the fresh blood of an Ancient Sage for it..." the Infernal Blacksaber replied courteously.

"You'll require the fresh blood of an Ancient Sage in order to be upgraded? Forget it..." Zhang Xuan's lips twitched upon hearing those words.

This was ridiculous! If he was strong enough to hunt down an Ancient Sage and feed the Infernal Blacksaber the latter's blood, what need would he have for it?

"If you really aren't able to find any Ancient Sages, I can also be upgraded through devouring the blood and souls of Sempiternal realm or Half-Ancient Sage cultivators. However, the process would be much slower..." As if seeing through the thoughts of its master, the Infernal Blacksaber quickly added.

"The blood of Sempiternal realm cultivators works for you too? What about that fellow over there?" Zhang Xuan asked as he pointed a finger at the Commander.

"Even though his fighting prowess is subpar, he's still a core member of the Otherworldly Demon royalty. If I could consume him, I should be able to advance my cultivation to the forefront of Half-Ancient Sage artifacts!" the Infernal Blacksaber replied with a nod.

"Good, I'll leave him to you then!" Zhang Xuan replied

In the first place, he didn't harbor the slightest sliver of goodwill for the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Furthermore, the other party was even planning on assassinating his parents, and that was something he couldn't accept.

"Thank you, master!" Hearing those words, the Infernal Blacksaber rushed over delightfully and sunk its blade into the Commander's flesh.

It didn't take long for the Commander to be reduced to a withered corpse, his soul and blood sapped dry.

After being nourished with the Commander's blood and soul, the Infernal Blacksaber looked even more demonic than before. Its strength had advanced considerably, to the level where even the Golden Origin Cauldron would take a detour just to avoid it.

"Not bad!" Zhang Xuan nodded in satisfaction.

At this rate, it shouldn't be long before he successfully upgraded the Infernal Blacksaber into an Ancient Sage artifact. That would truly be a huge boost to his fighting prowess!

"Alright, you should return to my storage ring for the time being!"

Having settled the matter here, Zhang Xuan kept the three artifacts back into his storage ring before heaving a sigh of relief.

Having dealt with the Infernal Blacksaber and the Commander, it was unlikely that the remaining Otherworldly Demons would pose much of a threat to him anymore. Nevertheless, the power of the mass shouldn't be underestimated. To be safe, he should still tread carefully.

If he could find a way to massacre all of the Otherworldly Demons at once, that would be for the best.

Otherwise, even if their Commander had been killed, it was only a matter of time before a new commander took over and dispatch these Otherworldly Demons against them. If a battle were to break out, who knew how many offspring of the Zhang Clan would lose their lives?

Zhang Xuan stroked his lower jaw contemplatively.

Considering how there was a Sempiternal realm Commander in this Otherworldly Demon encampment, it was likely that there would be other Great Sage military officers as well too. It would be too naive to think that the Otherworldly Demon army would collapse by itself just because it had lost its Commander.

It was unlikely that he would face an opponent as powerful as the Commander within the encampment anymore, but he didn't have the strength to eradicate a well-trained army on his own either, even with the assistance of his three artifacts!

He had to think things through and formulate a feasible plan before making his move.

The earlier battle with the Commander has caused quite a huge commotion, but fortunately, due to the mirrors and formations cast around the area, no one has realized the happenings over here yet. In other words, the soldiers are still oblivious of the demise of their Commander. I might be able to pull something off if I could successfully impersonate him... Zhang Xuan thought.

In order to hide the existence of the Infernal Blacksaber, the Commander had gone to great lengths to isolate this room, such that not even the slightest aura of shockwave would be able to escape from this room. It was ironic, but it was precisely due to the arrangements made by the Commander that no one realized that he had already been killed.

Since Zhang Xuan was able to disguise himself impeccably as General Auer, there was no reason why he couldn't pass himself off as the Commander too.

He took off the helmet from the corpse and quickly wore it. At the same time, he began to shift his muscles and bones, slowly morphing into the appearance of the Commander.

Let me check how many Great Sage cultivators are there in this encampment...

Leaving the stone platforms and mirrors behind, Zhang Xuan departed from the area and headed straight for the main tent located at the center of the base.

Since the Commander was at Sempiternal realm, it was unlikely that his Vice Commanders would be too weak. First and foremost, he would have to check how many Great Sage cultivators there were in this camp and deal with them promptly. Once all of the Great Sage cultivators were gone, the remaining soldiers wouldn't be able to pose much of a threat to him anymore!

Having assumed the appearance of the Commander, there was no guard or soldier who dared to halt Zhang Xuan's footsteps as he strutted through the camp with widened strides. Soon enough, he arrived at the main tent.

"Commander!"

The Otherworldly Demon soldiers guarding the main tent quickly clasped their fist and greeted him.

"Un!" Zhang Xuan nodded casually as he walked into the tent.

Within the tent, he saw seven figures seated all around with grim looks on their faces.

"Commander, you... have succeeded?" Upon seeing the return of the Commander, fervent joy spread across their faces.

It seemed like these figures were also aware that the Commander was planning to assassinate the Xingmeng Sword Saints, and they were waiting for the results here.

"I haven't done it yet. There's an urgent matter that we need to discuss, and I need you all to offer some constructive advice!" Zhang Xuan said authoritatively.

Due to the presence of seer artifacts, he dared not to use the Library of Heaven's Path lightly. Otherwise, he could risk bringing the lightning tribulation upon the base before resolving the major threats.

He wasn't too sure what was the situation concerning the Commander, but through his rich experience of disguising himself, as well as the prowess of Luo Ruoxin's disguise amulet, the seven people in the room didn't notice any anomaly.

"Commander, feel free to order us as you deem fit!"

The crowd quickly clasped their fists and replied.

"Un!" Zhang Xuan said as he nodded contemplatively. In truth, he had discreetly activated his Eye of Insight and was examining the crowd before him.

Just like what he had guessed, these seven fellows were all Great Sages. Two of them were at Intuitive Impulse realm, three were at Aureate Body realm, and the last two were at Introspective Convalescence realm.

It was fortunate he didn't rush into making a move earlier, or else if these seven people were to collaborate against him, it would have truly been a tough battle.

Not to mention, with the sheer number of soldiers they had, if the Otherworldly Demon army were to form a collaborative formation, even Sempiternal realm cultivators would have trouble escaping!

Zhang Xuan pondered deeply for a moment before beckoning at one of the Intuitive Impulse realm Otherworldly Demon and said, "You, follow me for a moment. I need to delegate some tasks to you privately..."

"Yes, Commander!" Without the slightest hint of doubt, the Otherworldly Demon pointed out followed him out of the main tent.

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Chapter 1677: Queue Up and Hold Each Other Hands

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

After leaving the barracks, Zhang Xuan swiftly led the Otherworldly Demon toward the room with the mirrors.

"Commander, what's wrong?" Seeing how careful the Commander was being, sealing the entire area completely such that not even the slightest aura could leak out, a serious look appeared on the face of the Otherworldly Demon.

"It's like this..."

Stroking his lower jaw, Zhang Xuan casually walked up to the Otherworldly Demon when all of a sudden, a demonic blade materialized in his hand and sliced right for the Otherworldly Demon's neck.

"..."

Not expecting the Commander to make a move on him suddenly, the Otherworldly Demon swiftly backed away. No matter what, he was still a Great 3-dan Intuitive Impulse cultivator and had been through many battles. Despite being caught off guard, he did not become flustered.

Padah!

However, barely after taking two steps back, a massive brick crashed down on his head and reduced him to a flat pancake.

Given how even the Sempiternal realm Commander had been rendered completely helpless under the crushing might of the Golden Origin Cauldron, how could this Intuitive Impulse realm Otherworldly Demon stand a chance? It was a one-hit KO.

Puhe!

The Infernal Blacksaber swiftly flew forth and devoured the Otherworldly Demon's blood and soul.

Without much hesitation, Zhang Xuan returned to the main tent and beckoned the other Intuitive Impulse realm Otherworldly Demon out. "You, come out for a moment!"

Five minutes later, he stepped into the main tent once more and said, "The three of you, follow me!"

The three Aureate Body realm Otherworldly Demons followed the Commander out, leaving the two Introspective Convalescence realm fellows staring at one another blankly.

Aren't we supposed to be discussing a matter of some sort?

Why are we being called out one after another?

Their doubt did not last too long. The Commander walked back into the main tent with a satisfied look on his face. As soon as he entered, he set up an isolation barrier around the tent and said, "I had some missions to delegate to them, so I had to meet them privately. It's finally your turn..."

The two Introspective Convalescence fellows immediately got to their feet, fearing that they would miss a single word about this highly secretive mission.

Hu!

Before they could react, a cold glint sliced through the air, and two heads fell to the ground.

Till their final breaths, they could not understand why the Commander would make a move on them.

Zhang Xuan might still have some problems trying to deal with Sempiternal realm cultivators, but Introspective Convalescence realm cultivators were already a 'one shot, one kill' to him.

After dealing with the seven of them and disposing of their corpses, Zhang Xuan beckoned a guard stationed outside to come in.

"Gather all of the Great Sage experts in our camp for a meeting!" Zhang Xuan ordered.

"Commander, there are only seven Great Sage Vice Commanders in our camp. You called out five of them earlier, and the remaining two... were in this tent," the guard replied with a doubtful frown.

Earlier, he had seen the Commander calling out five of the Vice Commanders one after another, so there should still have been two more Vice Commanders in the main tent. Why would they suddenly disappear without a trace?

The guard was only at Saint 7-dan. Considering how even the Great Sage 3-dan Intuitive Impulse realm Vice Commanders were unable to see through his disguise, there was no way that the guard could have done so.

It was unthinkable to him that their Commander would have already been killed.

"Good!" Zhang Xuan had just been verifying the matter to be safe. Since it was confirmed that there were only seven Great Sages in the camp, he was saved a great ton of trouble. He stood up and instructed, "Inform all of the soldiers to gather before the main tent!"

"All of the soldiers?"

"That's right, everyone. This includes those who are resting, patrolling, and on sentry. Get all of them here!" Zhang Xuan waved his hand grandly.

"Yes, Commander!"

The guard quickly left the area and sounded the assembly horn.

Ten minutes later, when Zhang Xuan walked out of the main tent, he saw countless Otherworldly Demons standing neatly in a formation.

With just one glance, Zhang Xuan's eyebrows had already shot up in astonishment.

There had to be over ten thousand Otherworldly Demons before him.

It was fortunate that he had not made a move recklessly earlier. Otherwise, a collaborative formation consisting of over ten thousand Saint 3-dan Otherworldly Demons would have been more than enough to render a Half-Ancient Sage powerless.

It was truly a wise decision from Sword Saint Xing to retreat. The Zhang Clan was not weak, but against such a huge army, they would still lose at least half of their entire force even if lady luck was shining on them.

Suppressing his shock, Zhang Xuan bellowed, "General Auer!"

"Yes, Commander!" General Auer stepped out of the formation and clasped his fist.

"Get your men to bring the item that I just set up over here!" Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

"Yes, Commander!" General Auer had no idea why the Commander had issued such a command, but it would be insubordination to oppose an order from a person of a higher rank.

Thus, he quickly led a group of people and left the area.

Several minutes later, the stone platforms and mirrors were moved over.

"Divide yourself into groups of a thousand, and each group will take one of these artifacts. I want the members of each group to get into a line and hold hands with one another. The person at the front is to place their hand on the mirror!" Zhang Xuan commanded.

"Groups of a thousand?"

"Get into a line and hold hands with one another?"

All of the soldiers were confused.

Were they going to practice some kind of new formation or something?

But... why did it sound so shady?

They had never heard of any formations that required cultivators to hold hands with one another!

Unable to take it any longer, another Otherworldly Demon wearing a black helmet similar to that of General Auer stepped forward and said, "Commander, the Zhang Clan has been eyeing us warily all this time. If they launch an attack while everyone is here holding hands with one another, it could end in a catastrophe!"

The other soldiers also turned intrigued gazes over.

"You fool!" Zhang Xuan's face darkened as he roared in fury. "This is the battle plan that I have just designed with the other Vice Commanders. Do you all know what these mirrors are?"

"No, Commander!"

"These mirrors do look a little extraordinary, but I can't figure out what they are used for..."

The crowd shook their heads in response.

If not for the fact that Zhang Xuan had come into close contact with seers in the past, he would not have been able to deduce the purpose of these mirrors. Considering that these soldiers and officers were unlikely to have ever met human seers before, there was no way that they would be able to recognize these mirrors.

"These mirrors are the treasures of the human's Seer Guild! They are able to provide concealment from the heavens, hindering even Intuitive Impulse cultivators from discerning your presence. The reason I want you to stand in a file and hold hands with one another is to conceal your killing intent and auras so that we can sneak into the fortress of those pesky humans and catch them off guard! Does everything make sense to you now?" Zhang Xuan said with an authoritative wave of his hand.

"Sneak into the fortress of those pesky humans? Does our Commander intend to launch a surprise assault?"

"It's able to conceal our killing intent and auras? That's incredible!"

"If we could successfully pull off this surprise assault, we will become celebrated heroes of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe!"

Hearing the effects of the mirrors, the faces of the Otherworldly Demons flushed crimson as they trembled in agitation

They also knew that a direct confrontation with the Zhang Clan would result in heavy casualties. If they could pull off a surprise assault, their chances of survival would be much higher. Perhaps, they might even accrue significant military contributions as a result of the operation and be handsomely rewarded for their effort!

"If you get what I'm saying, hurry up and do it! Ensure that there aren't any artifacts in between that would terminate the connection. If anyone reveals our location to the master teachers because they aren't holding the hand of the person next to them tightly enough, they'll be the sinner of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. That person will be executed on the spot!" Zhang Xuan commanded authoritatively.

"We'll be putting everything into this surprise assault. This operation must end in a success; no failure is permitted. Understood?"

"Yes, Commander!" The Otherworldly Demon soldiers nodded with looks of agitation on their faces.

"Very well!" Seeing that his soldiers had received his orders, Zhang Xuan waved his hands grandly and said, "Prepare the formation!"

Hualala!

The massive army immediately divided themselves into groups of a thousand, and the strongest soldiers of the group stood at the front of each file, placing their hands in direct contact with the mirror. The others held hands with one another with iron-tight grips, and the file extended for several hundred meters.

"Good!" Zhang Xuan nodded in satisfaction.

He was just about to give a motivational speech when he suddenly heard a gale sounding above. Raising his head, he saw a figure appearing right before him.

"Commander Heng Jiang, what are you doing?"

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Chapter 1678: Cheese!

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"Commander Heng Jiang?"

It was an unfamiliar name, but considering that the figure was looking right at him, it was obvious that the other party was addressing him.

So, the name of the Commander that he was disguised as was Heng Jiang! It was not a bad name.

Taking a closer look at the figure before him, he saw that the other party was wearing a helmet identical to his. His aura felt dense and expansive—he was actually a Great Sage 4-dan Sempiternal realm cultivator too!

Were there only seven Great Sages in this encampment?

Where did this one pop out from?

"The seal..." Zhang Xuan heart skipped a beat as realization struck him.

If he was not mistaken, the other party was the backup from beyond the breached seal!

Of all the times, the other party just had to arrive before he made a move... Was this not too much of a coincidence?

However, even if the other party was a Sempiternal realm cultivator, it would not be easy for him to see through his disguise.

With such a thought in mind, Zhang Xuan did not panic in the least. Instead, his eyebrows shot up coldly as he remarked, "Am I obligated to report my actions to you?"

"You!" Hearing those words, the black armored Otherworldly Demon harrumphed coldly. Flinging his hand back coldly, he took out a golden edict and said, "Under the orders of Overlord Chen Yong, you are to halt your attack and retreat immediately!"

"Retreat immediately?" Zhang Xuan was slightly taken aback.

The 'Overlord Chen Yong' whom the other party spoke of was likely to be one of the highest-ranked Otherworldly Demon Emperors... but this did not make any sense at all! After all of the sacrifices made to breach the spatial seal, he was being ordered to retreat?

"That's right. What are you waiting for? Hurry up and reorganize your army to retreat!" the black armored Otherworldly Demon berated as he tossed the golden edict over.

Zhang Xuan caught the golden edict and read through it. The words were written in the language of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, and it was indeed a command for his army to retreat.

"This..." Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment as he placed the edict into his storage ring. "Before that, I have something to show you."

"Hmm?" the eyebrows of the black armored Otherworldly Demon shot up.

"I have found another use for the artifacts of the human seers. Once activated, it wields incomparable prowess, such that even Half-Ancient Sages will be destroyed in an instant. There's no better tool than this to deal with those humans!" Zhang Xuan spoke with unwavering confidence.

"Even Half-Ancient Sages will be destroyed in an instant?" the black armored Otherworldly Demon questioned with a skeptical tone.

Ordinary soldiers might not have been able to recognize these mirrors, but he did. They were the artifacts of the human seers, and they could only be used to conceal one's aura. Furthermore, they had to be arranged in a specific position in order to do so. There was no way that these mirrors could wield the prowess to kill a Half-Ancient Sage cultivator!

"If you don't believe my words, why don't you can give it a try yourself? After that, I'll get my soldiers to retreat!" Zhang Xuan nodded earnestly.

"Very well. Let me see what in the world are you up to!" The black armored Otherworldly Demon nodded doubtfully.

He was there to relay the orders, and as long as the other party was willing to abide by the commands, he did not mind playing along with him. If there was truly an extraordinary use for the mirrors, that would be even for the better.

Given that there were so many Otherworldly Demon soldiers around, and the fact that the person that he was facing was a Commander, it was unlikely that the other party would dare pull anything on him.

"It's very simple. Pick any one of these mirrors and place your hand on it," Zhang Xuan instructed affirmatively.

The black armored Otherworldly Demon gazed into Zhang Xuan's eyes for a while, and seeing that the other party was not messing with him, he eventually nodded in agreement. He walked up to one of the mirrors and placed his hand on it.

It was not that he was a fool. It was just that he could not possibly have imagined that the person before him was not Heng Jiang but someone else.

Besides, seers were known not to be a battle-oriented occupation. Their artifacts mainly dealt with divination and anti-divination means. Even if it was a trap, he was confident that he would be able to deal with it with his strength.

"Since everyone is ready, let's begin!"

Seeing that this newly-arrived expert had placed his hand on the mirror as well, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

But just as he was about to activate the Library of Heaven's Path on the mirror, he heard the sharp whistle of a gale sounding above. Another figure was flying over.

"Heng Jiang, receive your orders! Sovereign Chen Ling has decreed that you shall launch an attack this instant!"

While in the air, the figure had already unrolled a golden edict and issued the order.

It was another Sempiternal realm cultivator!

"This..." Zhang Xuan blinked blankly.

It was just a moment that he received an order to retreat, and all of a sudden, he received another order to launch an assault right away... Are you all toying with me?

Wait a moment... The person who issued the order to retreat seemed to be Sovereign Chen Yong whereas the person asking me to attack is Sovereign Chen Ling. Their names sound similar, but they aren't the same person... Could there be some discord among the Sovereigns?

If the Sovereigns were close with one another, there was no way that they would issue such contradicting orders. If there was truly disharmony among the Sovereigns, this could spell an opportunity for him...

"Mou Wu, what do you mean by this? Sovereign Chen Yong has already ordered for the troops here to retreat!" the black armored Otherworldly Demon remarked with an awful look on his face.

It was just a moment after he had issued his order when Mou Wu came here with a contradicting order. This was blatant disrespect toward him and Sovereign Chen Yong!

"I don't mean anything at all. If you were a bit smarter, it should be apparent to you that I'm just following orders. Heng Jiang, what are waiting for? Hurry up and receive the edict!" the Otherworldly Demon named Mou Wu replied coldly as he tossed the golden edict over toward Zhang Xuan.

Catching the edict, Zhang Xuan swiftly read through its contents. Written in the language of the Otherworldly Demons as well, the edict contained a command for him to launch an attack against the Zhang Clan right away.

"This..." A look of dilemma surfaced on Zhang Xuan's face as he stared the edict before him.

Seeing the conflicted look on Zhang Xuan's face, the black armored Otherworldly Demon bellowed furiously, "Heng Jiang, ignore that fellow's words and get your men to retreat. As the direct subordinate of the Spirit God, Sovereign Chen Yong is the highest Otherworldly Demon Emperor of our Otherworldly Demon Tribe. Unless you want to be beheaded, you should know what you must do!"

"Sovereign Chen Yong might be the highest Otherworldly Demon Emperor, but times are different now. The Temple of Confucius is on the verge of opening, and after all the effort we have put into breaking open the spatial seal, how can we retreat like this? Think of the men who have sacrificed themselves for this cause!" Mou Wu roared vehemently.

"Sovereign Chen Yong's words are the very words of the Spirit God. Do you intend to oppose the will of the Spirit God?"

"I dare not oppose the will of the Spirit God, but this matter is of the utmost importance to our Otherworldly Demonic Tribe! There's something amiss about the order issued by Sovereign Chen Yong, so I would rather listen to Sovereign Chen Ling's words!"

The two envoys began bickering with one another.

"Alright, alright! There's no need to bicker over this matter..." Seeing that the two Otherworldly Demons were on the verge of clashing with one another, Zhang Xuan stepped forward and mediated the situation.

"If you may listen to my humble words, why don't we not rush into executing the orders of Sovereign Chen Yong and Sovereign Chen Ling for the moment? Regardless of whose command it is, the wills of the Sovereigns are not something that we can simply disregard!

"Why don't we do this instead? I won't withdraw my soldiers, but I won't rush into an attack either. Let's clarify the situation before coming to a judgement. For the time being, why don't I show you two the recent research breakthrough I have made?"

"Research breakthrough?" Mou Wu frowned doubtfully.

"Indeed. I have found a way to utilize the artifacts of the human seers that produces devastating power that is sufficient to destroy even an entire city! Brother Mou Wu, if you are interested, why don't you place your hand on one of the mirrors, just like what my soldiers are doing? I'll show you the results of my research!" Zhang Xuan said with a smile.

"You want me to touch the mirror?" Mou Wu asked with a doubtful frown.

He turned his gaze to the Otherworldly Demon soldiers around him, and only at that moment did he realize that they were holding hands tightly together with the person at the forefront of the file touching the mirror.

Even the black armored Otherworldly Demon was standing before a mirror with his hand resting lightly on its surface.

"Indeed! I believe that this could be a revolutionary discovery. If we could use this discovery to eradicate the humans once and for all, we'll become heroes of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe! The Sovereigns will surely reward us handsomely for our immense contribution!" Zhang Xuan spoke with his voice quivering in excitement.

"Very well then!"

Seeing that everyone was already in position, Mou Wu swiftly nodded in agreement. He walked up to a mirror and placed his hand on it.

"Great! Is everyone ready? Put on a bright smile, alright? Three. Two. One..."

Zhang Xuan threw his hands in the air and exclaimed, "Cheese!"

Kacha!

Kacha! Kacha! Kacha!

In an instant, Mou Wu, the black armored Otherworldly Demon, and all of the soldiers were assaulted by a barrage of lightning bolts. Their hair rose into the air, and white smoke drifted from their bodies.

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Chapter 1679: Will You Believe Me?

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"You..."

Not expecting the mirror to actually be able to summon lightning bolts, the faces of Mou Wu and the black armored Otherworldly Demon were ravaged with frenzy. The both of them released a resounding roar at the same time.

The Otherworldly Demon soldiers were also devastated by the lightning bolts. It was just a short instant, but they had already sustained severe internal injuries.

They had abided by the Commander's orders expecting something good, but who would have thought that this would happen instead? They wanted to release their hands, but the electrocution from the lightning bolts had affected their nerves, not allowing them to move as they liked. To make matters worse, they had held hands tightly together in order to prevent their auras from leaking out...

At the forefront of the group, Commander Heng Jiang waved his hand apologetically and said, "My bad, my bad! I don't think I operated the artifact properly. Continue holding your hands firmly on the mirrors, alright? I guarantee that it'll be different this time around!"

But before he could even finish his words, more streaks of lightning had already descended from the sky.

Kacha! Kacha!

It was as if the Armageddon had arrived! The crackling of the lightning simply echoed ceaselessly in the air. All of the Otherworldly Demon soldiers were frenzied.

It's indeed different this time around... But what the heck? The lightning is even more fearsome than before! My gosh!

Are you intending to send us to our graves?

The Otherworldly Demon soldiers tried their hardest to retract their hands from one another, but their bodies were far too paralyzed for them to be able to do anything other than spasm.

Pu! Pu! Pu!

One after another, white foam dribbled from the corner of their mouths as their consciousness gradually faded away.

Even as they gradually came to their last breath, they could not believe that they would die from a mistake by their Commander.

To actually do in his own men as well... How in the world did this fellow manage to become a Commander?

Most of these soldiers were only at Saint 3-dan and Saint 4-dan—they had not even gone through their first Leaving Aperture Ordeal yet! How could they possibly survive such a vicious onslaught of lightning bolts?

All it took was a couple of bolts for nearly all of them to be wiped out.

Even Mou Wu and the black armored Otherworldly Demon were spasming from being electrocuted!

Typically speaking, as Sempiternal realm cultivators, they should have been able to overcome lightning bolts of such scale with ease. However, the very fact that the mirrors were mere seer artifacts made them lower their guard. They had not put up any defensive measures at all, and the lightning bolts had come too quickly for them to put up anything.

As a result, while the barrage of lightning bolts was not enough to claim their lives, it blurred their consciousness and rendered them powerless.

"Phew, it seems like everything worked out well!" Seeing that the ten thousand or so Otherworldly Demon soldiers had been completely annihilated by the lightning bolts, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

As tools used against the heavens, seer artifacts were susceptible to heavenly retribution. All Zhang Xuan had to do was activate his Library of Heaven's Path, and the heavens would do their job.

He had come up with this plan on the spur of the moment, and to be honest, he had thought that it was a rather ridiculous plan. Yet, who could have thought that he would actually be able to pull it off impeccably!

The only imperfection in his plan was probably the sudden emergence of the two envoys from Sovereign Chen Yong and Sovereign Chen Ling. However, it was fortunate that the two of them had not expected to fall for such an unconventional attack.

While the heavenly retribution toward seer artifacts was limited in terms of prowess, its greatest advantage lay in the fact that it was instantaneous. As such, it was actually able to get to the two Sempiternal realm cultivators before they could even react.

"Dragonbone Divine Spear, scout the area and kill any dead soldiers around. Ding Ding, Infernal Blacksaber, the two of you deal with Mou Wu!"

He knew that he had only succeeded because his luck was good. The other party had been caught off guard. However, once the two Sempiternal realm cultivators recovered, he would be in a terrible position.

Knowing that time was not on his side, Zhang Xuan immediately dashed for the black armored Otherworldly Demon.

He had left Mou Wu to the Golden Origin cauldron and the Infernal Blacksaber while he dealt with the black armored Otherworldly Demon singlehandedly.

"You aren't Heng Jiang! Who are you?"

Seeing the huge massacre before him, there was no way that the black armored Otherworldly Demon could still remain oblivious to the truth. The person before him was not Heng Jiang at all!

Overwhelmed with rage, he flicked his wrist, whipped out a sword, and brandished it toward Zhang Xuan.

Weng!

However, before his sword could even come close to Zhang Xuan, he suddenly felt a will surging right into him, befuddling his mind. He nearly lost his balance and fell down due to that.

"Soul offense?" The black armored Otherworldly Demon narrowed his eyes.

It was apparent that the other party was skilled at soul offense. To think that even a Sempiternal realm cultivator like him would be unable to guard his mind against the other party!

Huala!

While the black armored Otherworldly Demon was still plagued with dizziness, he suddenly saw the fake Heng Jiang appearing right before him. A powerful punch harnessing unbelievable might was already heading right for his head.

"Bloodline Ignition!"

Knowing that he would lose his life if the punch really landed on him, the black armored Otherworldly Demon activated his bloodline without any hesitation. In an instant, incredible power surged through his body.

"Bloodline Ignition won't help you either!" Zhang Xuan scoffed coldly.

With the tremendous surge of strength from the Bloodline Ignition, the black armored Otherworldly Demon was just about to counterattack when the fellow right before him suddenly whipped out a small inkstone and pounded it down on his head.

Kacha!

It was the sound of a certain Otherworldly Demon's skull being split apart.

As a Sempiternal realm cultivator, his body had reached a level where it was impervious to most attacks. Even if he allowed an Aureate Body realm cultivator to attack him freely, the latter might not have been able to breach his defenses. Yet, the other party was actually able to split his skull apart with just an inkstone...

Just what tier was that inkstone at?

Bro, where in the world did you come from?

That skeleton dragon, the brick, and the demonic saber... I thought that it's already astounding that you could have three artifacts that are so powerful, but to think that you even have an inkstone on top of that...

Peng peng peng peng!

This was clearly not the time for thought as the other party continued smashing the inkstone down on his head. Gradually, his consciousness drifted away.

He was probably the only Sempiternal realm cultivator to die such a miserable death. He was first electrocuted before being smashed to death by a puny-looking inkstone. He never would have thought that such a fate would befall him.

"It's indeed not so easy to use this inkstone. It isn't intended for offense after all..." Zhang Xuan shook his head as he returned the bloodstained inkstone to his storage ring.

This was the artifact that he had obtained from Tantai Zhenqing. It was one of the personal possessions of Ancient Sage Zi Yu, and it went without saying that it was a formidable artifact. However, it was not as handy when used as a weapon.

If Tantai Zhenqing knew that Zhang Xuan had used this invaluable treasure from his ancestor as a weapon to smash an enemy's head, he would probably lose his mind and faint on the spot.

The inkstone was a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation within the Tantai Clan! If one used the ink ground by the inkstone to calligraph, the Golden Warriors of Mentor's Calligraph produced would be much more powerful. Yet, that fellow actually used this inkstone as a mere bat...

How in the world did such a refined tool end up being used for such a barbaric purpose?

After slaying the black armored Otherworldly Demon, Zhang Xuan turned his head around to look at Mou Wu. The latter's head was currently pressed under the Golden Origin Cauldron's bottom, and there was a despaired look on his face.

Without looking on, it was apparent that the fellow was doomed too.

The fighting prowess of weapons was significantly reduced without a skilled user to control them. However, both the Golden Origin Cauldron and the Infernal Blacksaber possessed greater strength than Mou Wu, and they had moved in unison to deal with him.

Furthermore, Mou Wu had yet to recover from the side effects from the electrocution, so there was no way he could be a match for him.

At this moment, the Dragonbone Divine Spear had finished its clean up and returned as well.

The relentless bolts of lightning earlier had pretty much zapped the ten thousand or so Otherworldly Soldiers into their graves. There were very few survivors, so it did not take the Dragonbone Divine Spear to finish its job.

To be honest, the Dragonbone Divine Spear was truly impressed with the means of its master.

That was an army of over ten thousand Otherworldly Demons! Before Ancient Sage Ran Qiu made his breakthrough to Ancient Sage, he would have had to flee as far as he could from such a lineup. Yet, his master single-handedly annihilated the entire army and left not a single survivor at all. What was even more ridiculous was that he did not suffer the slightest injury in the midst of doing so!

This was a feat that would go down in legends and recounted as an epic.

To singlehandedly clear a Subterranean Gallery, this was truly inconceivable!

Just as the Dragonbone Divine Spear's thoughts were wandering, another gale sounded from the distance, and yet another black armored Otherworldly Demon appeared in the area.

"Commander Heng Jiang, receive your orders! Sovereign Chen Xing commands you to keep your army on standby. You are not to attack or retreat recklessly..."

As the black armored Otherworldly Demon spoke, he flicked his wrist and took out a golden edict. At this moment, however, he caught sight of the countless corpses beneath including Mou Wu, who was crushed under a brick. His eyebrows shot up in astonishment as he exclaimed, "Heng Jiang, what's going on here?"

On the ground, Commander Heng Jiang scratched his head awkwardly and said, "Will you believe me if I say that they are all sleeping?"

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Chapter 1680: Repairing the Seal

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

What do you mean by sleeping?

How in the world do they look like they are sleeping to you?

The black armored Otherworldly Demon who had just arrived clutched his hair in frenzy.

Do you think I'm a fool who can't differentiate between the dead and the living?

"There's nothing I can do if you don't believe me..." Knowing that the other party would not believe him no matter what he said, Zhang Xuan waved his hand helplessly. "Get him!"

He had already killed three Sempiternal realm Otherworldly Demons here. He did not mind adding one more to his record.

Boom!

The combined prowess of Zhang Xuan and his three artifacts truly could not be underestimated. Before the black armored Otherworldly Demon could get away, he was encircled and slaughtered.

After absorbing the blood and souls of four Sempiternal realm Otherworldly Demons, the Infernal Blacksaber had become even more demonic, making it difficult for one to look at directly.

After taking all of the resources and storage rings scattered around, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. Following which, he began making his way toward the spatial seal.

He was not too sure what had happened at the seal, but the fact that Otherworldly Demons were coming one after another was a sign that it had indeed been breached. He really had to find a way to repair it as soon as possible.

Otherwise, there would really be no end to them!

After flying for a while, the spatial seal finally came into his sight. At the very center of the spatial seal was a massive hole. It looked as if someone had forcefully ripped it apart.

There was little doubt that Mou Wu and the others had come in through here.

"It's fortunate that it hasn't been completely destroyed. Otherwise, there's no way I could have constructed another spatial seal of this scale..." Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

Even though he had comprehended the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing, his cultivation was simply too weak. Mending it was already the limits of his ability. For him to set up a brand-new spatial seal that could ward off Ancient Sages was clearly daydreaming!

Heading up to the seal, Zhang Xuan immediately got to mending it. In the midst of his work, he could not help falling into thought. The otherworldly battlefield is right on the other side... Should I go over to take a look?

The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe often sent their men over to wreak havoc, so why should he not do the same to them?

Furthermore, while he had managed to resolve the crisis in this Subterranean Gallery for the time being, it would be naive to think that this would be the end. This was likely to just be a small proportion of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe's armies.

The 108 Subterranean Galleries had all come under the simultaneous assault of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, and the Master Teacher Pavilion, the Luo Clan, and the Jiang Clan had been forced to head over to defend against them.

If he could cause some chaos over in the otherworldly battlefield, it might alleviate the stress in the other Subterranean Galleries.

I'll think more about it after I fix the seal... Zhang Xuan thought as he hastened his speed.

...

"It has already been so long. Why isn't Xuan-er back yet?"

Sword Saint Meng paced around the room in vexation.

Her son had said that he was just going to scout the situation, but two hours had already passed, and there was still nothing at all. She could not help but worry about his safety.

"He might have just met with some small hiccups. Don't worry, our Xuan-er has many means up his sleeves. Nothing will happen to him!" Sword Saint Xing patted his wife's back and consoled her.

"But that's the army of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe that we're talking about! There were at least ten thousand soldiers in the previous clash with them! Even Yang shi wouldn't stand a chance against them... How can our Xuan-er withstand something like that?" Sword Saint Meng exclaimed anxiously.

With the opponent being ten thousand well-trained Otherworldly Demons of Saint 3-dan and above, there was no one who could possibly not worry!

"I hate to admit this, but there's nothing we can do but trust our son. We don't have the same concealment technique that he has, and if we are caught while attempting to check on his condition, we will just put him in a worse position," Sword Saint Xing said.

He was worried about his son too, but it was clear that there was nothing that they could do to help him.

Sword Saint Xing turned to Luo Ruoxin and asked, "Ruoxin, what do you think of the matter?"

The young lady before him had been perfectly calm all this while, as if she was not worried about Zhang Xuan at all. This had left him rather perplexed.

"Zhang Xuan will be fine," Luo Ruoxin replied with composure.

Putting aside the fact that he had comprehended three Quintessences and possessed nearly impeccable disguise means, just his current prowess paired with the Dragonbone Divine Spear would already be a huge headache for anyone to deal with. Unless an Ancient Sage appeared, it would be impossible for the Otherworldly Demons to get him!

Since that was the case, there was nothing for her to worry about.

"But..." Seeing how confident Luo Ruoxin was, Sword Saint Meng could not help but frown.

She was just about to ask the reason behind Luo Ruoxin's unwavering confidence in Zhang Xuan when an elder suddenly rushed into the room.

"Old clan head..."

"Is Xuan-er back yet?" Sword Saint Xing immediately stood up in agitation.

The elder who had just entered was in charge of intelligence gathering in the Zhang Clan. The fact that he had come over in such hurry meant that he had some important news to report.

"That's not it... The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe has just blown a horn to gather all of their soldiers. I fear that they might be launching another attack very soon!" the elder said grimly.

"An attack?" Sword Saint Xing's face immediately turned severe. "What happened? Tell me the details!"

"I sent some scouts to the Otherworldly Demon's encampment, but their defense was simply too tight. My men could only skirt the perimeters, unable to get too close. However, an hour ago, a horn suddenly sounded, and following which, the Otherworldly Demon soldiers began to retreat back into the camp. Even those who are responsible for upholding the defensive formations, keeping a lookout, and even the patrols left their positions!

"Fearing that it might be a trap, our men didn't dare get too close initially. However, there was still no movement after waiting for fifteen minutes, so they slowly advanced deeper into the camp to scout the situation. They found that the Otherworldly Demons were divided into ten huge groups in order to practice some kind of unique formation. Furthermore, the Commander whom you clashed with previously said that he wanted to try a new collaborative formation and was going to launch a surprise assault with it!

"Hearing up to that point, our scouts dared not waste any time. They immediately rushed back here to report the matter to me as soon as possible!"

"It's fortunate that your scouts delivered the intelligence back in time. Otherwise, if their surprise assault were to succeed, our Zhang Clan would have sustained heavy losses..." Sword Saint Xing heaved a sigh of relief.

This piece of intelligence was simply too important. If they had really been caught off guard, it could have ended disastrously for the Zhang Clan.

Taking a deep breath, Sword Saint Xing's voice reverberated across the entire fortress, "Offspring of the Zhang Clan, heed my orders. The Otherworldly Demons are preparing to launch a surprise assault. All of you are to stand on level one wariness right now!"

"Yes, old clan head!"

Hearing the orders, the members of the Zhang Clan swiftly got into their positions to ready themselves for the impending battle. In an instant, the atmosphere turned incomparably solemn.

After issuing the instructions to the members of the Zhang Clan, Sword Saint Xing turned to the crowd around him and said, "Elders, follow me out of the city to meet the Otherworldly Demons. Since they are going to launch a surprise assault, we might just be able to take advantage of that catch them off guard!"

"Very well!"

The elders nodded, and the crowd swiftly flew out of the city.

The outskirts of the fortress were cloaked with a thick layer of mist, making it difficult to see too far ahead. Peering into the depths of the mist, and a knit suddenly appeared between Luo Ruoxin's eyebrows. Without any hesitation, she quickly flew ahead.

"Ruoxin..." Not expecting the young lady to be so reckless, the Xingmeng Sword Saints frowned.

"The rest of you stand guard over here. We'll head over to take a look!" Knowing that they would lose Ruoxin if they didn't follow her right now, Sword Saint Xing swiftly issued some instructions to the elders before departing with Sword Saint Meng to chase after Ruoxin.

...

"Why is there no one at all?"

The further the Xingmeng Sword Saints flew, the more perplexed they were by the situation.

Logically speaking, given how far they had traveled, they should have encountered some Otherworldly Demons by now. Yet, why was there not a single person in sight?

Regardless of whether they were going to launch a surprise assault or not, surely they should at least upkeep their basic defenses?

If the Otherworldly Demons were truly so careless, there was no way they would have been able to stand against the Master Teacher Pavilion for so many years.

"Look, in front!"

Just as Sword Saint Xing was still pondering over the matter, Sword Saint Meng's voice suddenly sounded. He quickly raised his head and saw row after row of Otherworldly Demons lying motionlessly on the ground.

Their hair was raised high in the air, and their faces were charred black. White foam flooded the corners of their mouth.

They were all dead!

Luo Ruoxin was kneeling in the midst of these corpses with a frown between her eyebrows, seemingly trying to examine for something.

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Chapter 1681: Crossing the Spatial Seal

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"This... What happened?"

Seeing the Otherworldly Demons who had left them in a fluster lying dead on the ground, the Xingmeng Sword Saints were utterly stunned.

"They were killed by Zhang Xuan," Luo Ruoxin said as she rose to her feet.

"They were killed by Xuan-er? How could that be? Unless one's an Ancient Sage, there is no way any cultivator could eradicate an entire army of Otherworldly Demons!" Sword Saint Xing could hardly believe what he was hearing.

It was not that he did not trust his son, but the enemy consisted of ten thousand Otherworldly Demons at Saint 3-dan and above! Furthermore, there were also a few Great Sages in their ranks. Even with his son's prowess, it was impossible for him to kill all of them singlehandedly!

"He used the power of lightning against them. These Otherworldly Demons were caught off guard and electrocuted. Most of them died in the electrocution, but those who survived were paralyzed by the lightning and killed nevertheless," Luo Ruoxin analyzed.

"Lightning?"

The Xingmeng Sword Saints quickly turned their gazes to the corpses on the ground, and indeed, there were burn marks on their bodies.

At this moment, they could not help but remember that their son had the ability to summon lightning tribulation.

To actually defeat an army of ten thousand singlehandedly... even when they were seeing the results with their own eyes, they still felt like they were dreaming.

"Since these people are already dead, where is Xuan-er?" Sword Saint Meng quickly searched around the area.

No matter how many means her son had, he was bound to be in a bad condition after facing so many enemies at once. No matter what, she would not feel reassured until she saw how he was doing and whether he was injured or not...

"He has probably gone to the seal..." Luo Ruoxin stood up and continued venturing forward.

Considering how the threat was already resolved, the chances were that he had gone to repair the spatial seal. It was not too difficult to deduce this much.

The group quickly advanced ahead, and it did not take long for them to arrive before the spatial seal.

At this very moment, the spatial seal was already completely mended. The energy pulses within the spatial seal were a sign that the repairs had just been completed.

"It's Xuan-er's zhenqi, but... where is he?"

Sword Saint Meng could tell that the barrier had been mended using Zhang Xuan's zhenqi. The fact that he could still repair the spatial seal meant that he was likely fine. However... where did he disappear to?

She had her Spiritual Perception cast as wide as possible for fear that she would miss her son. If her son was truly still around, she should have already found him by now.

"It looks like he has traversed across the seal to head to the otherworldly battlefield!" Luo Ruoxin frowned.

"He went over to the other side? How can he be so reckless?" Sword Saint Meng nearly fainted from shock upon hearing those words. "This won't do. I must save him..."

Sword Saint Meng was hot-tempered, but she was rarely reckless. In fact, she was an extremely rational person, knowing clearly what she could and could not do. However, whenever it came to matters concerning her son, she seemed to swiftly lose her rationality.

"Allow me to go over instead. If the two of you head over, it's likely that you'll meet with danger before meeting Zhang Xuan..." Luo Ruoxin suddenly interjected.

The Xingmeng Sword Saints were powerful, but fighting in the otherworldly battlefield was a different matter from fighting in the Subterranean Gallery. The killing intent in the otherworldly battlefield was so great that it would suppress their fighting prowess considerably. On top of that, their auras would stand out like a lighthouse in the night, making them easy targets.

If they entered, it was likely that they would be captured and killed by the Otherworldly Demons before even finding Zhang Xuan.

"You?" Sword Saint Meng frowned. "It's too dangerous to venture beyond the venture seal! Your current strength..."

It was not that she did not believe Luo Ruoxin, but the latter had never revealed her cultivation before. Back at the Luo Clan, it was her subordinate, Wu Chen, and not her who battled with the elders.

They had guessed that she was likely a formidable expert, but it was just a deduction on their part.

"Don't worry!" Knowing that the other party was worried about her, Luo Ruoxin chuckled softly. "You should return to the city and inform the others of this news. Get them to clear the Otherworldly Demon corpses and move the defense line up to the spatial seal. As for the rest, leave it to me."

After saying those words, she pushed her hand toward them lightly.

Hu!

The Xingmeng Sword Saints suddenly found their surroundings blurring before their eyes. The sight before them distorted, and all of a sudden, they found that they were already back in the main hall of the fortress.

"This..."

The two of them widened their eyes in astonishment.

To be able to bring them accurately back to the main hall with just a push... just how deep was her comprehension of spatial laws?

Not even Yang shi was capable of a feat like that!

"Could she be... an Ancient Sage?" Sword Saint Meng uttered with an incredulous look on her face.

She knew that the woman whom her son loved possessed extraordinary strength, possibly stronger than them even. However, she did not think that the latter would actually be so formidable!

They could even put up a fight against Sempiternal realm cultivators if they collaborated with one another, and yet, the other party was able teleport them back without them knowing... If she diverted her abilities to offense, her fighting prowess was bound to be formidable.

"Ancient Sage? How could there be such a young Ancient Sage on the Master Teacher Continent?" Sword Saint Xing shook his head and refuted Sword Saint Meng's guess.

He pondered for a moment, but he was unable to fathom how powerful Luo Ruoxin was. Thus, he could only shake his head and say, "Alright, let's not think too much into it for the time being. In any case, I think we should be able to entrust Xuan-er in her hands!"

After saying those words, he flew toward the aerial space of the fortress and commanded, "Offspring of the Zhang Clan, hear my command! Set forth right away to collect our spoils of war!"

"Collect our spoils of war?"

The elders guarding outside the city were surprised to hear such an announcement and bewildered to see the person who had made the announcement. They had seen their clan head advancing deeper into the Otherworldly Demon encampment, but before they knew it, their clan head was suddenly behind them. This was a truly perplexing sight to them.

"Clan Head Zhang Xuan has infiltrated the Otherworldly Demon encampment and slain the ten thousand Otherworldly Demons that we are at war with. With this, the crisis at the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery has been resolved!" Seeing the looks of bewilderment below, Sword Saint Xing explained the situation with hearty laughter.

"Our clan head killed ten thousand Otherworldly Demons singlehandedly?"

"The Otherworldly Demon army that we were helpless against was annihilated by our clan head alone?"

"This... Am I hearing things?"

...

In an instant, everyone in the Zhang Clan froze on the spot. They were all shocked silly.

They had heard stories of heroes charging into the midst of an army to decapitate the enemy commander's head, and they had also heard of experts valiantly fighting against hundreds simultaneously... But for a single man to destroy an entire army, what in the world was happening?

...

Oblivious to the happenings in the Zhang Clan, Zhang Xuan was swiftly advancing ahead in the otherworldly battlefield.

A world as vast as the Master Teacher Continent, the horizon was nowhere in sight. There was no sun in the world, just a crimson moon hanging above, bringing an air of desolation to the world beneath.

The killing intent of this world seemed to be concentrated on the crimson moon, as if the unique zhenqi of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had originated from there.

Zhang Xuan's eyebrows shot up. This place truly feels like a living hell. It's no wonder the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe want to conquer the Master Teacher Continent...

Even though his Heaven's Path zhenqi granted him protection against killing intent, he felt that his mind would slowly become warped and violent if he stayed there for a prolonged period of time. Slowly but surely, he would start to desire bloodshed.

This world truly was not a hospitable place.

If he had been an Otherworldly Demon, he would have barged over to the Master Teacher Continent as well.

I don't think I'll be able to find my way around without a map. Should I return first and wait for Vicious to awaken before coming back?

In truth, it was mostly out of curiosity that he had gone over to the otherworldly battlefield. Realizing that he would not be able to navigate his way around efficiently, he felt that it would be better for him to return for the time being.

Otherwise, it would be really disastrous if he lost his sense of direction.

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to turn back, he heard a gale sounding not too far away. Following which, the voice of an Otherworldly Demon cultivator was heard. "Hurry up!"

Zhang Xuan swiftly used the Spatial Quintessence of Sealing to conceal his figure before heading in the direction that the voice had originated from.

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Chapter 1682: Army of a Hundred Thousand

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

It did not take long for him to arrive at the foot of a mountain, where he found four Otherworldly Demons loitering. Spiritual energy was surging in from the surroundings. It seemed like the Otherworldly Demons were trying to drive some kind of formation.

Of the four Otherworldly Demons, the stronger one was at Sempiternal realm, wielding strength comparable to Mou Wu. The remaining three were only at Great Sage 1-dan Introspective Convalescence realm.

Right in front of them was a Teleportation Formation. However, gauging from the formation flags around, the formation seemed to be really old. As such, it would take some difficulty to reactivate it.

The strongest Otherworldly Demon was glaring at the other three with a furious gaze. The one who had hollered earlier was him as well.

"Lord Mo Ye, I am already trying my best, but this formation is simply too old... There's nothing I can do either..." one of the Otherworldly Demons driving the formation protested timidly.

"Cut the cr*p and get to work. If this doesn't work out, you and I, our heads will roll!" Mo Ye waved his hand coldly.

"Yes!"

Not daring to protest anymore, the Otherworldly Demon drove his zhenqi furiously into the formation. The rate at which spiritual energy was gathering in the area hastened, and the ancient formation began to flicker. It seemed as if it would come to life at any moment.

However, the face of the Otherworldly Demon driving the formation was swiftly paling as well. He seemed to be reaching the limits of his stamina.

"Hurry up and help me!" the Otherworldly Demon exclaimed to the remaining two.

The other two Introspective Convalescence realm Otherworldly Demons unhesitatingly bit their fingers and offered their blood to the Teleportation Formation.

Weng!

In an instant, the spiritual energy in the surroundings grew so dense that it almost felt tangible. A brilliant light shone off from the Teleportation Formation.

"Good!" Seeing that the Teleportation Formation had been activated, Mo Ye harrumphed coldly before stepping into it.

Hu!

Enveloped by the light, a dimension rift appeared before Mo Ye. He stepped in and swiftly disappeared from sight.

Padah!

As soon as Mo Ye left, the remaining three Introspective Convalescence realm cultivators slumped onto the ground.

It seemed like activating the formation had sapped their strength dry.

"It's fortunate that we managed to pull it off, or else our heads would have been lopped off..." Despite their exhaustion, the trio had relieved smiles on their faces.

If the formation had not been activated, they would have lost their lives!

While they were in the midst of celebrating their small success, a towering Otherworldly Demon suddenly walked up to them.

"Lord Mou Wu!"

Upon seeing the towering Otherworldly Demon, the trio hurriedly got to their feet and greeted him.

"Un. Drive the formation. I want to go to where Mo Ye just went!" Mou Wu waved his hand imposingly.

It went without saying that this Mou Wu was an impersonation from Zhang Xuan.

Considering how Mo Ye was in such a rush to leave via a Teleportation Formation, there was no doubt that he had something urgent to attend to. Since he had seen it, it went without saying that he had to stop the other party. At the same time, this was a good opportunity for him to learn about what was going on in the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

"Lord Mou Wu, you wish to head to the Thousandleaf Sea, too?"

The Otherworldly Demons who had activated the formation nearly burst into tears.

They had nearly exhausted themselves to death activating the Teleportation Formation once. If they had to do it once more, they might just lose their lives!

One of the Otherworldly Demons gritted his teeth and said, "Lord Mou Wu, pardon me for asking this, but weren't you heading to Riverstar under Sovereign Chen Ling's orders?"

Picking up on the phrase 'Riverstar', Zhang Xuan pondered silently for a moment.

Considering that Mou Wu had gone to the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery earlier with Sovereign Chen Ling's edict in hand, it was likely that the 'Riverstar' mentioned by the Otherworldly Demon referred to that. It seemed like the names that humans and Otherworldly Demons had for certain locations differed from one another.

"I have already resolved the matter at Riverstar. Sovereign Chen Ling has just instructed me to make my way over to the Thousandleaf Sea in order to meet up with Mo Ye... Do you need me to report all of my actions to you?" Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes as killing intent burst forth from his body.

Power began billowing beneath his thick armor, and it seemed like he would make a move at any moment.

Mou Wu's armor was identical to Heng Jiang's, so he only had to alter his appearance a little in order to personate the other party.

"I dare not question Lord Mou Wu's movements!" The Otherworldly Demons immediately paled in fright. He hurriedly turned his attention to the Teleportation Formation and began infusing his zhenqi.

However, as he had just exerted himself too much, his stamina was already at its limits.

The other two Otherworldly Demon knew that they would be punished if they could not activate the Teleportation Formation for Mou Wu as well, so they quickly rushed over to aid their companion.

"I have just finished dealing with the matters at Riverstar and am still unaware of the situation over at the Thousandleaf Sea. Tell me, what's the progress there?" Watching as the Otherworldly Demons squeezed every last drop of their zhenqi into the Teleportation Formation, Zhang Xuan dropped such a question leisurely.

Since Riverstar referred to the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, it was likely that the Thousandleaf Sea was the name of another Subterranean Gallery. In fact, if his guess was correct, it was likely one of the six Subterranean Galleries that the Otherworldly Demons were focusing their manpower on.

It would be good if he could head over there and resolve the crisis there. This would alleviate the pressure the others were facing.

"Reporting to Lord Mou Wu, we aren't privy to such information, so we aren't too sure either... However, Lord Mo Ye mentioned earlier that both Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling have issued an order in unison for the reserve army stationed at the Thousandleaf Sea to launch an attack on the humans right away!" one of the Otherworldly Demons replied hurriedly.

"Reserve army? Launch an attack right away?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows shot up.

Back at the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, Sword Saint Xing noticed that the Otherworldly Demons were in no rush to attack the Zhang Clan and wondered if they might be waiting for reinforcements. An army of ten thousand was already a handful to deal with. If they had to deal with reinforcements, it would really be a nightmare for the Zhang Clan!

Deducing based on the information that he had received so far, it seemed like the Thousandleaf Sea was not a Subterranean Gallery but a military barrack where the 'reinforcements' were all stationed.

This was not good news. Without a doubt, the master teachers stationed in the Subterranean Gallery where the reserve army was mobilized to would definitely face great danger.

Furthermore, this was an order that Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling had ordered in unison!

The orders that Heng Jiang had received from Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing earlier had been conflicting; the former had commanded him to launch an attack right away whereas Sovereign Chen Xing had commanded him to remain on standby. In order words, it seemed like there was some disharmony among the Sovereigns. Yet, the two of them actually made a call in unison to launch an attack...

"How many soldiers are there at the Thousandleaf Sea? Is it possible to divert some men over to reinforce Riverstar?" Zhang Xuan continued asking casually.

"The soldiers at the Thousandleaf Sea are the strongest soldiers of our Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, the elites under Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing's command. They number over a hundred thousand!" the Otherworldly Demon replied proudly.

"Hundred thousand?" Zhang Xuan nearly stumbled upon hearing that number.

Ten thousand Otherworldly Demon soldiers was already enough to force the Zhang Clan to mobilize all of its forces and descend to the Subterranean Gallery to fight a desperate battle. If a hundred thousand Otherworldly Demon soldiers were mobilized simultaneously, not even the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would be able to suppress them!

Who could have thought that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would actually have an army of such a scale?

Would they still be able to protect the Master Teacher Pavilion against such a powerful foe?

"That's right!" the Otherworldly Demon seemed to know quite a bit about this matter. "This is the first time that the two Sovereigns have worked with one another. They have gathered all of the experts of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe together in order to push open a path to the Master Teacher Continent. Most of the soldiers from the other Subterranean Galleries have already headed over to the Thousandleaf Sea. The only reason Riverstar didn't receive the order is because it's too far away!"

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan discreetly heaved a sigh of relief.

He had thought that the Otherworldly Demons were assaulting all 108 Subterranean Galleries simultaneously and still had a reserve army of a hundred thousand strong to reinforce them wherever required. If that was the case, that would really have been frightening!

Fortunately, that was not so.

It seemed like Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing had issued orders to have the soldiers from the different Subterranean Galleries regroup at the Thousandleaf Sea. Afterward, they would focus their fighting power on breaching a single Subterranean Gallery.

Another thing that he noted from the Otherworldly Demon's words was that this was the first time that Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing had worked together. This further verified his deduction that the three Sovereigns of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were not on good terms.

In fact, it was likely that they were apprehensive of one another, and there was a little bit of infighting going on. That had probably hindered them from cooperating with one another, thus preventing the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe from launching a decisive assault all this while.

All of a sudden, the Otherworldly Demon noticed that something was amiss and exclaimed, "That's not right... Lord Mou Wu, you are a commander of our Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. How can you not know all this?"

The other two Otherworldly Demons widened their eyes as realization dawned on them, and they swiftly directed menacing gazes toward Zhang Xuan.

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Chapter 1683: High Commander

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"You're right. I suppose Lord Mou Wu should have known all this..." Seeing that he had been exposed, Zhang Xuan could not be bothered to keep up with his disguise anymore and chuckled softly.

"He isn't Lord Mou Wu! Attack!"

The three Otherworldly Demons narrowed their eyes menacingly as they prepared to leap at the person before them. However, before they could do so, a massive silhouette in the sky was already falling swiftly on them.

Padah!

The Otherworldly Demon driving the formation was crushed into minced meat.

Following which, a skeletal dragon surged forward and bit off the head of another Otherworldly Demon. At the same time, a demonic saber easily severed the last Otherworldly Demon in half.

Those three Otherworldly Demons were only in the Introspective Convalescence realm. Since they had seen through his disguise, all he had to do was silence them.

After cleaning up the corpses, Zhang Xuan infused his zhenqi into the old Teleportation Formation before him, and amid shimmering light, he vanished on the spot.

With his expertise as a formation master and his comprehension of space, activating the formation was a walk in the park to him.

With a jolt, he appeared at the other end of the Teleportation Formation. With a sweeping gaze of his surroundings, he found that he was standing amid a massive valley. Mountains of different heights meandered through the area, obscuring the area from public view.

"Paying respects to the Commander!"

Barely after stabilizing his posture, he heard voices sounding by the side.

They were the soldiers tasked with the responsibility of standing guard over the Teleportation Formation. They did not seem to be too highly ranked. Most likely, they had only recognized him from the helmet and armor that he was wearing.

"Un." Zhang Xuan nodded perfunctorily as he stepped forward with widened strides.

A crimson moon hung above a distant mountain, and a slight layer of mist drifted amid the mountain range. Despite the sinister air lingering in the area, Zhang Xuan had to admit that the scenery was breathtaking, almost like a still painting.

There were countless soldiers standing in neat formations throughout the massive valley. Their movements were extremely organized, and there was not the slightest dissonant sound to be heard. Just from the discipline alone, it was apparent that the soldiers were well-trained.

As the reserve army consisted of soldiers from many different Subterranean Galleries, while Mou Wu's face appeared a little foreign to most, no one doubted his identity. The further he advanced, the more shocked Zhang Xuan became.

Just like the Otherworldly Demon soldiers dispatched to the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, even the weakest of the soldiers standing in this very valley was at Saint 3-dan!

If this army of a hundred thousand made a move simultaneously, even Ancient Sages would have to back down in the face of their might!

I have to stop them, or else many lives will be lost! Zhang Xuan thought with a frown.

After tens of thousands of years of development, the Master Teacher Pavilion was indeed capable of rallying a hundred thousand cultivators of Saint 3-dan and above. However, it would take time to do so. Furthermore, due to the Otherworldly Demons invading all 108 Subterranean Galleries simultaneously, the human cultivators had been forced to scatter all over the Master Teacher Continent to fend them off.

If this army launched an assault right now, there was no way that the Master Teacher Pavilion would be able to put up a sufficient defense in time to stop it. And once the Otherworldly Demons started pouring into the Master Teacher Continent, many innocent civilians would be massacred!

He had to stop this army by hook or by crook!

But... how was he supposed to go about doing so?

Even Ancient Sages would not dare confront an army of such scale easily, let alone him!

If he showed the slightest anomaly in his actions, he would be deader than a doornail before he knew it!

He could consider using the Heaven's Path zhenqi to poison the soldiers, but even if he depleted every last drop of his zhenqi, it was unlikely that it would be sufficient to stop the army in its tracks.

The lightning method did work earlier, but he did not have any seer artifacts to work with at the moment. Besides, he would require the soldiers to heed his command first!

Let me see if I can find their highest commander... If I can kill him and take control of the army, I might just be able to pull something off...

To deal with an army, the most effective method was to first nab its commander.

He could not think of a feasible plan that would allow him to incapacitate the entire army at once, so the best thing that he could do at the moment was claim the initiative. If he could assume the highest role in the army, he would be in a better position to do something about the matter.

Thus, Zhang Xuan activated his Eye of Insight and began scanning his surroundings.

It did not take long for a huge tent with a group of soldiers standing guard outside to come into his sight. Knowing that it was likely the commander's tent, he began making his way over.

While strutting over to the tent, he passed by a remote area. With a swift flick of his finger, he warped the space around him and disappeared from sight.

After concealing himself, he began flitting toward the huge tent, and it did not take long before he was standing before it.

Sha sha!

After waiting outside for a while, a person dressed in a black helmet and armor, presumably a commander like Heng Jiang and Mou Wu, pried open the tent flap and walked in. Zhang Xuan casually entered right behind him as well.

There was a fire stove within the room that kept the tent slightly warm. Gazing across the tent, Zhang Xuan saw eighteen other Otherworldly Demons seated within. They were dressed in black helmets and armor, which indicated that they were commanders as well.

"They are all Sempiternal realm cultivators?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows leaped up in astonishment.

To his astonishment, they were all Great Sage 4-dan Sempiternal realm cultivators, wielding strength comparable to Mou Wu! This was especially so for the middle-aged man seated at the very center with a golden saber in his grip. Zhang Xuan could vaguely sense that his strength was on par with Yang shi's!

In an instant, Zhang Xuan's body stiffened on the spot. He dared not even twitch for fear of catching their attention.

It was fortunate that he did not barge in recklessly but followed behind another commander. Otherwise, even with his spatial seal, his abrupt intrusion would likely have made the experts gathered here notice an anomaly.

He had made huge advancements in his cultivation during this period of time, but he was not so naive as to think that he would be able to get away unscathed from the clutches of so many Sempiternal realm experts.

"Reporting to the High Commander, Bei Xin refuses to comply with our demands!" The commander who had just entered the room clasped his fist and gave his report.

"He refuses to comply?" the middle-aged man seated at the center replied impassively.

"He said that their resources are limited too, so they can't afford to share anything with us. He suggests that we should just keep our inventories separate so as to avoid getting into meaningless squabbles over this matter!" the commander said.

"Meaningless squabbles? He sure has everything planned out well. He expects us to take the vanguard, but he isn't even willing to lend us a single set or armor... It's clear that he regards us as nothing more than stepping stones to achieve his aims!"

"Sovereign Chen Xing has always been known to be a greedy person, but who could have thought that Bei Xin would be so cunning too? We have already agreed to collaborate with one another on this attack, but he wants to get away with contributing nothing at all? He's daydreaming!"

...

Upon hearing the words of the arriving commander, a huge uproar broke out within the room.

The middle-aged man raised his hand to gesture for the crowd to quiet down. "Tell them that it's fine if they don't want to contribute any resources. However, their side must send an army in as well, and we'll advance alongside them. Otherwise, they'll have to give us the Celestial Armors forged by Sovereign Chen Xing. I won't ask for too much, just one hundred sets. Otherwise, we'll just have to settle it with a fight! If he wins, I'll abide by his arrangements. But if I win, he'll have to cut this nonsense and heed my words!"

"Yes, High Commander!" The commander quickly nodded and backed out of the room.

Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment, but eventually, he chose to leave the room together with the commander. Following behind the latter, he soon noticed another huge tent in the distance.

From their conversation, it seems like even though the reserve army numbers up to a hulking hundred thousand, they are divided into two factions. One is sided toward Sovereign Chen Xing whereas the other is under Sovereign Chen Ling! Zhang Xuan swiftly sorted through the information that he had acquired so far.

He had no idea whom the two Sovereigns were, but it was apparent that even though they had decided to work with one another, there was still some strife between the two factions.

The more friction there is between them, the better. If I could just spark the friction into raging flames and make them fall out with one another, I might just be able to resolve the crisis, Zhang Xuan thought with brightly lit eyes.

If the hundred thousand soldiers united together as one, there would really be nothing that he could do. He would just have to swiftly return to the Subterranean Gallery and inform the Master Teacher Pavilion and the various major powers of the matter through his Communication Jade Token so that they could make preparations in advance. However, since there was some disharmony between the two factions... it seemed like this was an opportunity that he could exploit!

Thus, Zhang Xuan swiftly altered his appearance before tearing away the spatial barrier around him, revealing himself.

"Cough!" Zhang Xuan intentionally released a cough to catch the commander's attention.

"Who is it?"

The commander was in the midst of heading over to the opposite tent when he heard the cough. He quickly turned around, and upon seeing the person standing before him, he jolted in shock. He bowed in a fluster and greeted him. "High Commander! D-do you... have any other orders for me?"

The person whom Zhang Xuan was impersonating was the middle-aged man seated in the center of the room earlier, the High Commander!

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Chapter 1684: Sowing Discord

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Imitating the High Commander's voice and enunciation, Zhang Xuan looked at the commander and said, "There's something that I want you to relay to Bei Xin for me!"

"High Commander, feel free to relay your orders!"

"Come closer. This matter mustn't be made known to anyone else..." Zhang Xuan said gravely.

"Yes, High Commander..."

The commander was perplexed as to why Zhang Xuan could not use zhenqi telepathy to talk to him discreetly, but he still chose to lean his head closer in anyway. As a show of deference to the High Commander, he kept his head lowered respectfully.

They were in the depths of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe's main camp. The thought that anyone would be so audacious as to impersonate the High Commander was so ludicrous that it did not even cross his mind.

"It's like this..." With a suppressed voice, Zhang Xuan began speaking.

But on the third word, a cold flash of light sliced through the air.

The commander instantaneously sensed danger, but before he could do anything, the world was already spinning around him. His head had been lopped off his neck.

It was a completely unexpected strike, and the killing blow was made using the Half-Ancient Sage Infernal Blacksaber. Even though the commander was at the Sempiternal realm, he still ended up falling victim to Zhang Xuan.

Of course, part of the reason was that the commander was only at Sempiternal realm primary stage. If he had been any more powerful, things would not have been so simple.

Zhang Xuan swiftly threw the commander's corpse into his storage ring and erased all traces of the assassination. Following which, he warped his muscles and bones to assume the appearance of the dead commander.

The assassination had occurred in the middle of the camp, where there were many Otherworldly Demon soldiers running about. However, as Zhang Xuan had made sure to seal the surrounding space before making a move, the act did not catch anyone's attention.

After putting on the commander's armor and helmet, he began striding over to the huge tent before him.

Just as he reached the entrance, two guards raised their spears and blocked his passageway.

"Audacious! I have come here in representation of our High Commander! Go and report my arrival!" Zhang Xuan placed his hands behind his back and spoke authoritatively.

One of the guards hesitated for a moment before turning around to enter the tent. A moment later, he beckoned with his hand. "Please enter!"

With a haughty harrumph, Zhang Xuan strutted into the tent.

Similar to the tent that he was in before, there were over a dozen Sempiternal realm cultivators sitting all around. The Otherworldly Demon sitting at the center had an aura that did not pale in comparison to the High Commander in the other tent. Most likely, he was the High Commander of Sovereign Chen Xing's faction, Bei Xin.

Noticing Zhang Xuan's arrival, Bei Xin shot a glance over and asked coldly, "Has Wu Shu agreed to my terms?"

"Our High Commander has agreed to the terms. However, there are several details that he hopes to discuss with you!" Zhang Xuan nodded in response.

"A wise decision from your High Commander! It seems like Wu Shu isn't as obstinate as the others make him out to be!" Bei Xin did not think that the other party had acceded to his demands, and he burst into hearty laughter. "Where does he want to discuss the matter?"

"As this matter concerns the alliance of both of our factions, there's a need to take things carefully. Thus, he suggests the meeting to be at the narrow valley in between the two tents. If you don't have any objections to the matter, please head there an hour from now. Our High Commander will be waiting for you there!" Zhang Xuan reported.

While he was making his way over earlier, he had noticed that there was a narrow valley around.

"Alright. Tell Wu Shu that I'll be there!" Bei Xin nodded.

"Farewell!" Zhang Xuan lowered his head and backed out of the room.

As soon as Zhang Xuan left, the commanders in the tent anxiously got to their feet and clasped their fists.

"High Commander, Wu Shu is known to be a scheming fellow. I fear that he might be up to no good!"

"Indeed. I find it hard to believe that he would accept our terms. Most likely, he's intending to ambush us to force us to comply with their terms!"

The commanders exclaimed worriedly.

"If they think that such trivial schemes will work against me, they are too naive! Besides, this is the will of the two Sovereigns, and all of you will be in the vicinity too. He won't do anything that would compromise the success of the alliance!" Bei Xin harrumphed coldly.

He whipped out a spear and brandished it forcefully, tearing open a dimension rift in its trajectory.

"However, we should still be prepared in case they attempt to pull anything funny. Later on, I want you all to scout the area around the valley. If you notice any anomalies, report them to me immediately!" Bei Xin said.

"Yes, High Commander!" the crowd replied resoundingly.

...

After leaving Bei Xin's tent, Zhang Xuan returned in the direction that he had come from, and it did not take long for him to arrive at the other huge tent.

"Reporting to the High Commander, I have just relayed your words to Bei Xin, but he..." With an awkward look on his face, Zhang Xuan lowered his gaze with a conflicted look on his face, seemingly unsure whether he should continue or not.

"Speak!" High Commander Wu Shu ordered.

"He said that... you aren't worthy of being his opponent at all. If you dare challenge him to a duel, he'll have you pummeled till you are on your knees, begging for mercy!" Zhang Xuan lowered his head fearfully as he spoke with a quivering tone.

"He thinks that I'll beg him for mercy? That arrogant b*stard! Very well, let's see how powerful he is to dare utter such words!"

Huala!

Wu Shu slammed his fist on the table and rose to his feet. As if a manifestation of his rage, a devastating hurricane seemed to be brewing around him.

An inferno of fury could be seen burning in the depths of his eyes.

"He says that if you have guts, he will face you in the narrow valley in between the two tents an hour from now..." Zhang Xuan continued speaking fearfully.

"Hah! It seems like there's no end to Bei Xin's arrogance. Let's see if he has the strength to back up his words then!" Wu Shu flicked the golden saber in his grasp, and a choking sound echoed from the surrounding air.

A commander in the tent stood up and exclaimed, "High Commander! I fear that Bei Xin might have some ploy in mind to utter such arrogant words!"

"I concur, High Commander. I think that there's a good chance that it's a trap!" Another commander stood up and remarked in agitation.

"Un. I have challenged that fellow to a fight before, but he ended up backing down at the last moment. It's unlikely that he has the guts to challenge me to a proper duel. Most likely, he's up to something. He Mu and Gui Li, I want the two of you to keep a close watch over the valley. If you notice anything, report it to me right away!" Wu Shu commanded.

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

Two commanders stood up and left the tent.

"I am familiar with the area around the valley. Allow me to accompany them for the scouting mission!" Zhang Xuan clasped his fist.

"Go on!" Wu Shu waved his hand.

Zhang Xuan quickly turned around, left the tent, and shouted to the two commanders who had just left, "Wait for me. I am familiar with the terrain around the valley, so allow me to bring you over!"

The two commanders nodded. The three of them swiftly concealed their auras and headed forward.

It did not take them long to arrive at a valley.

"I think it would be best for us to split up and cover an area each. This way, we'll be able to cover each other's blind spots and alarm one another as soon as something happens!" Zhang Xuan suggested.

Feeling that what Zhang Xuan said made sense, they swiftly scattered to find a hiding spot each. However, before they could even find a place to conceal themselves, their bodies suddenly jolted before slumping lifelessly to the ground.

One had the Dragonbone Divine Spear pierced through his heart while the head of the other had been severed by the Infernal Blacksaber.

After slaying the duo, Zhang Xuan swiftly took their corpses and cleaned up the area. After which, he morphed into Bei Xin's appearance and dashed right toward High Commander Wu Shu's tent.

Before arriving in the tent, he suddenly began laughing maniacally.

"Wu Shu, just say if you are afraid to face me. Don't you think it's cowardly of you to plant your men in the area to assault me?"

Hula!

After saying those words, he tossed the three corpses toward the tent before turning around and fleeing as fast as he could.

By the time Wu Shu rushed out of the tent, Zhang Xuan had already fled to a remote corner and hidden within a spatial barrier. Wu Shu looked at the three corpses dumped before his tent—they were Su Mu, Gui Li, and Li Jia, the three commanders whom he had just dispatched to scout the valley. Immediately realizing what had happened, he nearly exploded on the spot.

They had already formed an alliance with one another, but Bei Xin still dared to kill his subordinate so blatantly. This was intolerable!

"Bei Xin! If I don't kill you, I shan't be known as Wu Shu!" With a furious roar, Wu Shu dashed right for Bei Xin's tent.

At the same time, the commanders behind him were also burning with rage after witnessing the deaths of their comrades. They quickly followed behind Wu Shu.

In the opposite tent, Bei Xin and his commanders were still trying to figure out the motive behind Wu Shu's offer to talk when a heavy pressure suddenly descended upon them from above. Following which, an overwhelming saber qi sliced through the air and split the tent in two.

Hu hu hu!

Bei Xin swiftly flew into the air to get a closer look at the assailant when he saw Wu Shu with his golden saber. His eyebrows shot up, and he roared furiously, "Wu Shu, have you gone mad? What are you trying to pull here?"

Did the other party not agree to his terms? Why would the other party suddenly rush over with a look that seemed as if he was going to murder someone?

"Stop putting on an act! You sure are formidable, aren't you? Why don't you prove your worth to me once and for all?" Wu Shu could not even be bothered to waste his time with words anymore.

He raised his golden saber and sent another barrage of saber qi toward Bei Xin.

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Chapter 1685: Complete Chaos!

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Si la!

The barrage of saber qi ravaged the surroundings, tearing open countless dimension rifts in the area. An astonishing concentration of killing intent gathered in the area, corroding the souls of those present.

"You are seeking death!"

Seeing how Wu Shu was aiming to claim his life without any hesitation as if a madman, Bei Xin's eyebrows twitched in anger. He flicked his spear upward to fend against Wu Shu's attack.

Ding ding ding!

As the two weapons collided with one another, a brilliant flash of light erupted in the sky.

The two of them were Sempiternal realm consummation experts, invincible among those beneath Ancient Sage. As they crossed blows with one another, the shockwaves of their attacks tore apart the heavens and the earth. Even the light of the crimson moon was overshadowed by their might.

"Is that fellow insane?"

The more he fought, the more stifled Bei Xin became.

It was just a moment ago that the other party had dispatched an envoy to agree to his demands and request further negotiations. He had already prepared what to say during the negotiation, but who could have thought that before an hour was up, the other party would suddenly charge over and put his life on the line against him?

What in the world was he up to?

Did he eat gunpowder or something?

"Wu Shu, can I view your actions to be a desire for the dissolution of our alliance? You should know that if this alliance breaks down, I have no qualms with reporting you to Sovereign Chen Ling!" Bei Xin bellowed coldly.

"You wish to report me to Sovereign Chen Ling? Do it then! If you have the guts to kill my subordinates blatantly, what else do I have to lose?" Wu Shu bellowed furiously as he brandished his saber furiously toward the other party.

"I killed your subordinates? What the hell are you saying?" Bei Xin roared back. "Don't malign me for something I didn't do!"

"Su Mu, Gui Li, and Li Jia... The three of them would be able to equal even a Sempiternal realm consummation cultivator in battle! Who else could be the culprit if you not?" Wu Shu spat through gritted teeth.

Even though his three subordinates were only at Sempiternal realm primary stage, their fighting prowess was still relatively formidable. Other than Bei Xin, there was no one else in the entire camp who had the ability to kill them so discreetly!

Moreover... that fellow had even dumped the corpses at the entrance of his tent, and there were many eye-witnesses who could bear testimony to that!

"You are saying that I killed Su Mu, Gui Li, and Li Jia?" Seeing the fury in Wu Shu's eyes, Bei Xin was startled. A contemplative frown surfaced on his forehead as he opened his mouth to explain himself.

However, before he could say a word, a fiery inferno suddenly rose from his tent. Someone had set fire to his tent!

Following which, a voice sounded from the crowd. "Sovereign Chen Ling never intended to work together with us. They have planted their men around the valley in order to ambush us! Look, even High Commander Wu Mu has brought his men here to wreak havoc..."

That voice sounded extremely clearly within the silent camp. It was as if a boulder had been tossed into calm waters.

The next moment, a huge uproar broke out.

Many soldiers had witnessed the furious fight between Wu Shu and Bei Xin in the air, and every single move that they made was deadly, seeking to claim the other's life. They were still wondering what was going on when they heard those words, and realization dawned upon them. Rage swiftly crashed down upon them.

"Slaughter those traitors!"

"They are just looking for an excuse to attack our men! Those shameless scoundrels!"

"Brothers, charge! We are the proud soldiers of Sovereign Chen Xing. We mustn't allow others to underestimate us!"

"I have long thought that they were an eyesore. Let's kill them all!"

...

Such battle cries could be heard all around. It was as if someone had set their fighting spirits alight. However, as well-trained elites, as furious as they were, they did not make a move. It was insubordination to engage in battle without the command of a superior.

At this moment, an Otherworldly Demon dressed in black helmet and armor flew in the air and roared, "What are you waiting for? Those scoundrels have already climbed over our heads! Get back at them!"

It was a direct command from one of their commanders. With this, the very last hurdle holding them back was torn down. Thus, they began charging toward the other faction with furious war cries.

"..."

Wu Shu and Bei Xin, who were fighting in the air a moment ago, fell into a daze. They did not expect such a situation to happen at all.

"Something is wrong..." Wu Shu's eyebrows shot up.

As furious as he was, as someone who had risen to the position of High Commander, he was not a reckless individual. The earlier shouting had come at too coincidental a moment. It effectively ignited the emotions of all soldiers. It was hard to believe that such a matter was not pre-planned.

Quickly turning to his subordinate, Wu Shu commanded, "He Lin, Chun Mu, and Bei Ye, try and calm down the situation below. We can't afford to have infighting happening at such a moment!"

They had allied with one another not too long ago, and they had not even fought the Master Teacher Pavilion yet! If they started fighting right from the start, he would not be able to explain matters to Sovereign Chen Ling!

As the leader of an entire army, he could not allow himself to be controlled by his emotions.

"Yes!"

The group of three quickly descended among the crowd to stop them. However, not too long later, the commander named He Lin returned and exclaimed, "High Commander, bad news! Their men began to attack our men without giving us a chance to explain ourselves. Chun Mu and Bai Ye attempted to reason to them to stop the attack, but they ended up being killed too!"

As he said those words, He Lin flicked his wrist, and a couple of corpses appeared by his side.

Looking at the corpses, Wu Shu's eyes turned so red that it seemed as if blood would drop from them.

"Bei Xin, I have tolerated you again and again, but you are really testing the limits of my patience..."

Seeing how five of his commanders had been killed one after another, Wu Shu could not hold back his rage any longer. He brandished his saber and slashed it down upon Bei Xin.

"Brother Wu Shu, this matter isn't as simple as it seems! My men would never dare make a move on your commanders..." Bei Xin hurriedly tried to explain himself.

But before he could finish speaking, another Otherworldly Demon dressed in a black helmet and armor rushed up to Bei Xin and reported, "High Commander, bad news! Six of our commanders have just been assassinated!"

Following which, the Otherworldly Demon flicked his hand, and six corpses materialized on the ground.

Facing such a situation, Bei Xin slowly turned his head over and spat through gritted teeth, "Wu Shu, what did you just say?"

"Well killed!" Wu Shu roared heartily.

He had thought that his faction had been taken advantage of all this while, but his subordinates were proving to be no pushovers either. They had already slain six of Bei Xin's commanders!

"It seems like you are for real this time. Since that's the case, I'll give you what we want!" Hearing Wu Shu's words, Bei Xin could not hold himself back anymore.

He raised his spear and thrust it forward.

Huala!

His spear qi gushed forth with ferocious might. From the tremendous prowess of his spear, it was apparent that he had already comprehended a kind of Spear Quintessence.

Wu Shu did not pale in comparison either. From the sheer might of his saber qi, it was also very clear that he had grasped a type of Saber Quintessence.

In the blink of an eye, the two of them were already locked in an intense fight.

"Let utter chaos descend here!"

Amid the crowd, the lips of an Otherworldly Demon crept up as he watched the upheaval before him.

He was Zhang Xuan.

He was the commanders who had reported to Wu Shu and Bei Xin.

If those commanders were to group together with one another, he would have had difficulty trying to assassinate them. However, when they split up from one another, it became much easier for him to kill them, especially since he was able to disguise himself and catch them off guard. In just ten minutes, he had already slain more than ten commanders.

Through these corpses and his ability to disguise himself impeccably, even figures as intelligent as Wu Shu and Bei Xin ended up losing themselves to their emotions and were unconsciously being dragged into his scheme.

They never could have thought that someone was able to disguise himself impeccably as their subordinates.

"Commander Mo Qin, what are you doing here? They have already started fighting over there..."

While Zhang Xuan was still watching the commotion, an Otherworldly Demon wearing a black helmet and armor came over and raised his saber.

Kacha!

The next instant, the head of the Otherworldly Demon fell to the ground.

After beheading the other party, Zhang Xuan swiftly altered his appearance to the opposite commander and exclaimed. "Commander Ji Mo has been killed. Everyone, you must exact vengeance for him!"

His voice sounded clearly even among all of the ruckus.

Since it was already an upheaval, there was no harm stoking the flames of madness further!

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Chapter 1686: Killing the High Commander

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Zhang Xuan flitted around the battlefield with his clone, the Golden Origin Cauldron, the Infernal Blacksaber, and the Dragonbone Divine Spear. They would usually hide themselves amid the crowd, and as soon as an opportunity to strike surfaced, they would swiftly make their move.

In less than ten minutes, the number of Otherworldly Demons above Saint 9-dan who had fallen to him already numbered several hundred.

All of the commanders are already dead...

Zhang Xuan swiftly combed the battlefield and found that all of the black armored commanders and generals had been killed, and he heaved a sigh of relief.

Having cultivated the Saint Ascension Decipher and successfully achieved a breakthrough using Kong shi's superior breakthrough method, his zhenqi could be said to be boundless. Furthermore, the incredible chaos happening around him served as the perfect cover to conceal his tracks. With his disguise ability, no one was able to see through him at all.

Basically, the fate of any Otherworldly Demon whom he set his eyes upon would immediately be sealed.

In fact, he had singlehandedly killed more than two-thirds of the commanders and generals!

Now, this is what I call utter chaos!

Without any commanders and generals to control the crowd, the order that was still barely maintained among the soldiers fell through completely. On a battlefield of a hundred thousand soldiers, at least a couple of Otherworldly Demon died every single second.

Even by conservative estimates, at least twenty thousand Otherworldly Demons had already died amid the chaos.

Now, the key lies in the two High Commanders above. As long as they survive, it's only a matter of time before they recover from their irrationality and exert control over their soldiers, thus calming the situation down... Zhang Xuan thought as he turned his gaze toward the sky.

At this moment, Wu Shu and Bei Xin were still locked in an intense fight with one another. Their attacks bore a striking resemblance with one another, and it seemed like they were familiar with each other's moves as well. Thus, while they had sustained some injuries in their prolonged fight, there was still no decisive outcome to their battle.

As long as these two men remained standing, they would be able to swiftly bring order back to the army.

As High Commanders, they were definitely no fools. It was true that they had let anger get the better of them for a moment, but they would surely calm down after fighting for a moment and notice that something was amiss.

This would be especially so after they realized that all of their commanders and generals had been assassinated. No matter how foolish they could be, it would be obvious that they had fallen into someone else's trap.

I need to kill at least one of them before they come back to their senses...

A sharp glint flashed across Zhang Xuan's eyes as he racked his brain for a solution.

At this moment, however, Wu Shu deflected Bei Xin's spear with a powerful brandish of his saber before retreating a few steps. Following which, he declared in a cold voice, "Bei Xin, we won't be able to determine a victor today. Let's just leave it like this for the time being. However, let it be known that I won't let this matter slide!"

"Rest assured that I'll never forget this matter either," Bei Xin spat coldly.

As they possessed near equal fighting prowess with one another, they did not have the spare attention to keep track of their surroundings. They knew that chaos had broken out amid the army, but they thought that their commanders and generals would be able to keep the situation under control and limit the casualties. They could not have imagined that so many soldiers would have died within such a short span of time.

If they knew, they would have spurted blood on the spot.

Before Bei Xin could finish his words, he saw one of his subordinates thrusting his spear right for Wu Shu. "We can't let this matter slide like this, High Commander. We should kill him right now. How else can we face the brothers whom his subordinates have slaughtered in cold blood?"

Recognizing the person assailing Wu Shu as one of his subordinates, a Sempiternal realm primary stage cultivator, Bei Xin roared furiously. "Hua Muzhe, what the hell are you doing? Stand down!"

The gap between Hua Muzhe and Wu Shu was too great! Such an action was tantamount to suicide!

"Pardon me for disobeying your commands, but he killed too many of our brothers. Even if I lose my life today, I can't let the deaths of our brothers go to waste!" Hua Muzhe bellowed with a hint of madness in his voice as he drove his spear forward furiously.

Facing Hua Muzhe's attacks, Wu Shu was on the verge of going insane.

The other party spoke of dying at his hands, but the truth was that he was the one having difficulties coping with the other party's offense!

He had heard of Hua Muzhe's name before, and he was known to be a rather average commander in Bei Xin's faction. When did the other party grow so formidable to be able to pose a threat to him?

Huhuhu!

Hua Muzhe's spear grew faster and faster, forcing Wu Shu to retreat in a fluster. At the same time, he bellowed to Bei Xin behind him, "High Commander, let's kill him together!"

"This..." At this moment, Bei Xin hesitated.

It was true that he was infuriated after seeing his subordinates dying right before his eyes, but he had never truly intended to claim Wu Shu's life. Wu Shu was Sovereign Chen Ling's subordinate, and if he died there, the alliance would surely fall through.

"Hua Muzhe, I understand your feelings, but I need you to stand down right now. We'll talk about killing Wu Shu later on..." Bei Xin attempted to diffuse the situation.

However, before he could finish his words, he suddenly saw Hua Muzhe's figure accelerating abruptly. With a speed almost on the level of teleportation, he charged right up to Wu Shu. At the same time, the space around Wu Shu suddenly froze, rendering the latter in capable of moving.

Bei Xin immediately realized that something was amiss, and he exclaimed in horror, "You... You aren't Hua Muzhe!"

Boom!

Along with the horrified exclamation, Bei Xin immediately dashed forward with his spear and deflected Hua Muzhe's spear with a powerful pierce.

Peng!

As the two spears collided with one another, a huge shock rippled into the surroundings. Hua Muzhe's spear swiftly disintegrated into dust.

Deng deng deng deng!

At the same time, Wu Shu managed to break out of his sealed space, and he hurriedly retreated multiple steps. Cold sweat poured down from his forehead.

If not for Bei Xin's timely assistance, Hua Muzhe's spear would have pierced right through his throat, bringing him instant death.

"Who in the world are you? Are you the one who killed our commanders earlier too?"

After knocking back Hua Muzhe, Bei Xin pointed his spear menacingly at his 'subordinate' as he questioned him with a wintry tone.

He knew full well how powerful the real Hua Muzhe was, but the person before him was actually able to execute three different Quintessences simultaneously. This was a feat that even he, a High Commander, was incapable of!

He would have to be a real fool not to know that Hua Muzhe had been replaced at this point in time!

At the same time, all of the suspicions that had drifted through his mind earlier swiftly clicked together, forming a nearly complete picture in his mind.

Who would have thought that both he and Wu Shu, two of the strongest High Commanders of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, had actually been played like fools?

"Hahaha! I guess I have been exposed... Yes, you are right. I was the one who killed your subordinates!" Seeing that his identity had been compromised, Hua Muzhe burst into laughter before transforming into the appearance of a young man.

He was none other than Zhang Xuan.

He had been thinking that as long as he could kill one of the High Commanders, everything else would be simple. Who would have thought that he would end up giving himself away instead?

In truth, if he had used the Dragonbone Divine Spear earlier, even if Bei Xin had noticed that he was an impersonator, it would have been too late. However, in order not to expose his own identity, he had no choice but to use Hua Muzhe's weapon. Due to the lacking resilience of the weapon, Bei Xin had been able to easily deflect his attack, thus saving Wu Shu's life.

"Die!" Realizing that he had been played for a fool, Bei Xin flew into a rage and thrust his spear furiously toward Zhang Xuan.

"You b*stard!" Wu Shu also swiftly realized what was going on, and he could not accept the fact that he had been toyed with. Recalling the demise of his subordinates, he furiously hacked his saber down upon Zhang Xuan as well.

Tzzzzz!

Even though Bei Xin and Wu Shu had never practiced their coordination before, they were well-versed in the collaboration formations of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Their spear and saber moved together with impeccable timing to corner Zhang Xuan, forcing the young man to retreat time and time again.

Zhang Xuan swiftly whipped out the Dragonbone Divine Spear to retaliate.

While the two High Commanders had sustained some damage and had exhausted themselves considerably in the previous battle, they were still Sempiternal realm consummation cultivators. Having to face two of such experts simultaneously, Zhang Xuan swiftly found himself being overwhelmed under their offense.

With the pressure on him weighing greater and greater, Zhang Xuan thought bitterly, It seems like I have underestimated them...

He had thought that the crisis could be resolved with him slaying one of the High Commanders, but the situation was starting to turn against him.

At this rate, the soldiers would also swiftly notice that something was amiss and halt their attacks. That would render his plan to eradicate this threat once and for all futile.

After retreating another eight steps, Zhang Xuan was still trying to figure out a way to turn the tables around when Wu Shu and Bei Xin's heads suddenly exploded with a burst of blood. As their blood descended to the ground, a figure appeared before him.

"I told you that we should have just killed them with a punch instead of going through so much trouble, but you just wouldn't listen!" Zhang Xuan's clone remarked disdainfully as he placed his hands behind his back.

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Chapter 1687: Complete Victory

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

With a sweep of his hand, Zhang Xuan swiftly stowed the two plummeting corpses into his storage ring.

When he revealed his true identity earlier, he had made sure to seal the space beneath him so as to not catch the attention of the soldiers below. Otherwise, if they had realized that someone was making a move on their High Commanders, he would have been knocked out of the sky before he could do anything at all.

Zhang Xuan swiftly scanned the area beneath him, and after confirming that he had not given himself away yet, he heaved a sigh of relief. After which, he turned his sights to his clone, and his lips twitched a little.

He had known that there was a chance that his plan to assassinate Wu Shu could fall through, and it would be difficult for him to deal with the two High Commanders simultaneously. Thus, he had made his clone lie in wait within a sealed space, prepared to ambush the two High Commanders should his initial plan fall through. Fortunately, while his initial plan did not go as smoothly as he had thought it would, his backup plan worked without a hitch.

But still... No matter what, Wu Shu and Bei Xin were still Great Sage 4-dan consummation experts. He had thought that even if his clone caught them off guard, he would only be able to distract them momentarily and keep them tied down. Yet, who would have thought that his clone would actually be able to burst their heads with two punches?

Could it be that... this fellow's strength had grown even stronger than before?

Zhang Xuan had thought that he would be able to teach his clone a lesson after his recent breakthrough, but it seemed like he was thinking too much.

If he tried it, he would surely end up with a bruised face once more.

"You should go down and find an opportune moment to make an appearance later on!" Knowing that he would surely be traumatized if he spoke to his clone for too long, Zhang Xuan issued an instruction as he descended to the battlefield beneath.

By the time he appeared before the sights of the Otherworldly Demon soldiers below, he had already morphed himself to assume Wu Shu's appearance.

"I have already slain Bei Xin! Soldiers of Sovereign Chen Ling, hear my words! Charge and slaughter those traitors!"

Even amid the deafening metallic reverberations and war cries on the battlefield, those words resounded in the ears of every soldier present loud and clear.

"Kill those b*stards!"

"Let them know our prowess!"

Hearing the commands from their own High Commander, the morale of the soldiers from Sovereign Chen Ling's faction rose to a new high.

On the other hand, the soldiers from Sovereign Chen Xing's faction plummeted to rock bottom.

The two factions had initially been equally matched with one another, but it did not take long for the scales to lose balance.

As the casualties on Sovereign Chen Xing's faction started to pile up, the soldiers were starting to show signs of flight.

However, just when the forces on Sovereign Chen Xing's faction were about to fall through, a bloodied figure suddenly descended from the sky and punched Wu Shu into the ground.

"Hahaha, how could I, Bei Xin, fall so easily? I only feigned death in order to deceive this fool. Brothers, now that I have killed Wu Shu, it's time for us to make a comeback! We are from Sovereign Chen Xing's faction, we can't possibly fall to these weaklings!" the bloodied figure declared passionately.

Those words injected fighting will into the subdued soldiers of Sovereign Chen Xing's faction, driving them to straighten their slumped backs, raise their arms, and roar ferociously once more.

Since our High Commander is still with us, how can we possibly let him down?

We have to kill them and let them know that we are no pushovers!

As the morale of Sovereign Chen Xing's faction was pushed to a new high, miserable cries rang out from the soldiers of Sovereign Chen Ling's faction.

With their High Commander emerging victorious in the battle among the top echelon, they had thought that their victory was assured. Yet, who would have thought that Bei Xin would make such a comeback!

With the disappearance of their High Commander, their backbone, the soldiers swiftly flew into a fluster.

It did not take long for the tables to turn.

The momentum of Sovereign Chen Xing's faction swiftly built up, and before long, the soldiers of Sovereign Chen Ling's faction were starting to flee frightfully.

However, right before the complete defeat of Sovereign Chen Ling's faction, another figure emerged from the ground and knocked Bei Xin flying.

"Do you think that you are the only one who knows how to play dead? I, Wu Shu, can do the same! In the end, I am still the one who has the last laugh! Soldiers, I have slain Bei Xin. Raise your weapons and show the enemy the might of those who serve Sovereign Chen Ling!"

Hearing those words, the crowd turned their sights upward and saw that Wu Shu, who should have died earlier, was gazing down upon the battlefield with an imposing air.

The soldiers from both factions were stunned.

While we are pitting our lives on the line, our High Commanders are continuously feigning their deaths...

Is this really fine?

Why does it feel like they are treating this intense war as nothing more than a child's play?

More importantly...

Brother, can you at least give a clear signal as to who is alive and who is dead?

Don't you know that you are making us really flustered like that?

Seeing that the soldiers were stunned still, Wu Shu bellowed furiously from the sky, "What are you waiting for? Bei Xin has already been killed by me! Hurry up and attack the enemies! Otherwise, I'll have you all executed under the crimes of war treason!"

"Kill!"

Hearing that the High Commander had passed the order, the soldiers of Sovereign Chen Ling's faction roared ferociously and charged over.

It was yet another intense slaughter, and just when victory was in sight...

"Hahaha! Wu Shu, you never would have thought that I was playing dead once more, right? You should feel proud that you have died under my blade! Men, hear my instructions! We shall launch a counterattack and ensure than none of those dogs of Sovereign Chen Ling's faction will return alive from here!"

Yet again, Bei Xin's figure appeared from the horizon and smashed Wu Shu flying.

The soldiers were completely frenzied.

Can one of you two High Commanders really just drop dead so that we can have some closure?

To die and come back to life again and again... What are we supposed to make of this situation?

Don't you know how exhausted you are making us?

For the first time, all of the soldiers found themselves wishing that their High Commander would die for real instead of playing dead. It was like a roller coaster ride of highs and lows; their hearts really could not take such excitement!

"Alright, it's about time..."

Disregarding the soldiers, who were already on the verge of mental breakdown, Zhang Xuan saw that less than ten thousand soldiers were left of the initial hundred thousand strong army, and he heaved a sigh of relief.

Most of these ten thousand men were severely wounded. Judging from their states, they should not be able to form a collaborative formation strong enough to pose a threat to him anymore.

Nevertheless, there was no telling if the Otherworldly Demons still had some other trump cards in hand. Thus, he had the soldiers continue fighting with one another for roughly another hour. By the end of the hour, more than half of the ten thousand 'fortunate' survivors had been wiped out, leaving less than five thousand remaining.

At this moment, Zhang Xuan finally raised his hand, and his clone, the Golden Origin Cauldron, Infernal Blacksaber, and Dragonbone Divine Spear charged forth simultaneously.

These soldiers were only around Saint 3-dan to Saint 4-dan, and most of them were severely wounded. How could they possibly withstand the onslaught of these experts comparable to Sempiternal realm cultivators? In less than ten minutes, they were completely wiped out.

Looking at the corpses sprawled all over the ground, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. As the tension left his body, he felt a feeling of exhaustion consuming his body, and his head started to feel a little light.

Throughout the battle, he had put his entire effort into disguising himself so as to ensure that his disguise would not be seen through, and this was rather taxing on him.

At this point, his soul energy had nearly been completely depleted.

It was fortunate that he had succeeded in the very end.

Otherwise, if anyone had noticed that it was a ploy on his part, even with just ten thousand Otherworldly Demon soldiers remaining, the tables could possibly have turned on him. The power that could be amassed by ten thousand Saint 3-dan cultivators should never be underestimated!

Zhang Xuan entered the Myriad Anthive Nest, sat down in an empty clearing, and took out energy replenishing treasures. After absorbing furiously for an entire hour, he finally felt himself recovering a bit.

"Let me see how many treasures I have gathered this time around..."

It was a huge contribution for him to slaughter the hundred thousand strong army of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, thus foiling their plan to invade the Master Teacher Continent. However, what he was more concerned about at the moment was the spoils of war that he had earned from the battle.

Putting aside the personal possessions of the hundred thousand strong army, just the wealth of the two High Commanders and dozens of Sempiternal realm cultivators had already far exceeded what the Zhang Clan and the Luo Clan had amassed over the past ten thousand years.

"This golden saber is comparable to the Infernal Blacksaber... This spear here is likely a Half-Ancient Sage treasure too..." Zhang Xuan analyzed as his eyes lit up in excitement.

Wu Shu's golden saber and Bei Xin's saber were actually comparable to Heng Jiang's Infernal Blacksaber. Of course, this was to be expected. Even though they had been done in by Zhang Xuan in the end, they were still the people in charge of the hundred thousand strong army.

Zhang Xuan drove his Heaven's Path zhenqi and converted it to the Zhenqi of Slaughter. It did not take him long to win the acknowledgement of the two artifacts.

"Soulslaying Blacksaber, Cloudpiercing Spear... I have another two weapons in my possession!

"Let's see if I can find any suitable cultivation techniques for me. While there are no standard cultivation techniques beyond Great Sage, it would still be good for me to take a look at the cultivation techniques of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Perhaps, I might be able to gather some inspiration from their cultivation techniques!"

Zhang Xuan continued searching through the storage rings, but he was not able to find any better weapons. Thus, he decided to turn his attention to the other items in there.

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Chapter 1688: Meridian Altering

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

At the moment, Zhang Xuan's zhenqi cultivation had already reached Great Sage 1-dan Introspective Convalescence realm consummation. He had already browsed through the books filled with the insights of the predecessors regarding their breakthroughs in the Great Sage realm from the Zhang Clan and the Luo Clan. However, the path that each cultivator had to take would eventually diverge, so naturally, the method through which each of them achieved a breakthrough was different.

He could use their insights as a reference to give him some direction, but he could not blindly copy from them.

For this reason, even though he had already browsed through many books, he was still unable to find an appropriate method for him to further advance his cultivation.

Having slain dozens of Sempiternal realm experts, there was a sizeable collection of cultivation technique manuals and books detailing the insights that they had regarding their breakthrough. Even though their cultivation techniques and breakthrough methods were significantly different from those of humans, considering how a breakthrough to Great Sage had resulted in his meridian network assuming a form similar to that of the Otherworldly Demons... Could their cultivation techniques be effective on him too?

After all, Otherworldly Demons were a higher level of existence than humans. There could be some benefits to emulating their cultivation techniques.

Zhang Xuan took out all of the books in the storage rings, and all in all, they numbered several thousand. With a quick glance, he collected all of them into the Library of Heaven's Path.

"Compile!"

He swiftly fused them together with the books that he had collected back the Jiang Clan, the Luo Clan, and so on.

Weng!

A brand-new book materialized in the Library of Heaven's Path.

With a tap, the knowledge within the book flowed in Zhang Xuan's mind, and he slowly closed his eyes.

The method used by the Otherworldly Demons to achieve a breakthrough to Aureate Body realm was much more complex than that of humans. It demanded the Otherworldly Demons to tap into the power of the crimson moon to augment their Zhenqi of Slaughter so as to temper their body. Essentially, it was not a method that humans could use at all. The cultivation technique that he had compiled was not usable.

In other words, his previous assumptions did not hold.

Nevertheless, even though a Heaven's Path Divine Art manual was not formed, it did give him some inspiration as to how he could further advance his cultivation.

"By purifying their bloodlines, those of the Beast Tribe are able to raise their cultivation further. After humans achieve a breakthrough to Great Sage, their meridians start to develop in a manner that bears some resemblance to that of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe... In essence, advancing one's cultivation could be said to be raising one's level of existence!

"My body has already been tempered by the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, resulting in my body being far stronger than normal Aureate Body realm cultivators. So, the bottleneck is lies not in my physical body but my meridians. As long as I improve my meridians a little more, I should be able to achieve a breakthrough!" Zhang Xuan mumbled as a glint flashed across his eyes.

With his body and Primordial Spirit tempered by the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, he was much more formidable than the ordinary Aureate Body realm cultivators. Since that was the case, there was unlikely to be much for him to improve in his physical body and Primordial Spirit anymore.

In other words, as long as he improved his meridian network and raised his level of existence, he should be able to easily advance his cultivation to higher realms!

He did not need any cultivation techniques at all!

Let me give it a try! Zhang Xuan thought as he sat down on the floor.

Absorbing the spiritual energy from the cultivation resources he had collected, he circulated his zhenqi throughout his body three times and raised his condition to the peak.

Back then, in order to reconstruct Zhao Ya's meridians, he had derived a new and improved meridian network. Swiftly going through the new meridian network in his mind, he began to slowly reshape the meridians in his body accordingly.

Meridians were the very foundations of a cultivator. He dared not alter those that were connected to his dantian and organs in case something went wrong, so he started out by altering those linked to his limbs.

Even if ordinary cultivators knew that altering their meridians would allow them to advance their cultivation, they would still be unable to do it. This was because their meridians were a natural part of their body, and the process of altering them could easily lead to unexpected complications.

However, having cultivated Kong shi's superior breakthrough method, Zhang Xuan's body had been tempered by the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, thus raising the resilience of his body far beyond that of his peers. This allowed him to endure the strain of moving his meridians.

Using the same method as before, he began moving his meridians slowly.

...

After some time...

Hong long!

A burst of killing intent burst forth from the depths of his body, and in an instant, it seemed as if he had become an Otherworldly Demon himself.

This phenomenon was similar to what happened when he reconstructed Zhao Ya's meridians. He did not intentionally alter the attribute of the latter's zhenqi. Instead, the emanation of the Otherworldly Demons' killing intent seemed to be a natural process of evolution.

At this moment, even if he did not rely on the disguise amulet, Wu Shu and the others would still have been unable to discern him apart from other Otherworldly Demons.

It works...

If one compared meridians to a watercourse, he would just be an ordinary stream at the moment. If he wanted to become a true raging river, the riverbed had to be deepened, the width of the water channel had to be widened, and the meanders along the watercourse had to be reduced. Only then would water be able to flow efficiently through the watercourse.

The more Zhang Xuan altered his meridians, the greater the strength within his body became. His aura swiftly grew stronger and stronger.

The Aureate Body realm seemed out of touch to him a moment ago, but right now, it was already something completely within reach.

It did not take long for him to finish altering the meridians in his limbs.

After that was done, Zhang Xuan did not rush into the next step. Instead, he chose to take a rest so as to replenish his depleted zhenqi and condition his state back to the peak before continuing.

At this moment, his meridians had become much wider, allowing zhenqi to flow unobstructed through them. If he attempted to channel his zhenqi with all his might, it would form a raging current reminiscent of the charge of thousands of cavalry troops.

There were mainly minor meridians in the limbs, so it was much easier to alter them. However, the same could not be said for the meridians surrounding one's dantian and internal organs. They intersected one another with the utmost complexity, and the slightest mistake could cause a reversal in one's zhenqi, possibly resulting in paralysis or even one's cultivation going berserk.

Not daring to rush into it, Zhang Xuan warily moved each meridian bit by bit with strict accordance to the steps.

While he was attempting a breakthrough to the Aureate Body realm, back on the Master Teacher Continent, the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters found itself with a group of guests.

They were none other than Luo Ganzhen and Jiang Fangyou.

Entering the main hall, they swiftly took their seats.

"Is the reason behind your arrival concerning the crisis in the Subterranean Galleries?" Ren Qingyuan looked at his two guests and got straight to the point.

"Indeed. It seems like the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters have noticed that something is amiss as well. Ren shi, I would like to request you to share the details of what you know with me so that we can compare the intelligence we have received!" Jiang Fangyou clasped his fist.

"Un!" Ren Qingyuan nodded. "Just a day ago, the Otherworldly Demons in our Master Teacher Pavilion's Subterranean Gallery were still incomparably ferocious, seeming as if they wouldn't rest until they breached our defenses. Yet, just this afternoon, most of their soldiers suddenly retreated, leaving behind only a small rearguard to defend the area. I thought that it was bait to draw our forces in, so we chose to stand our ground and bade our time. However, even after such a long time, there was still no movements from their side. When we dispatched our scouts to investigate the matter, we realized that most of them have retreated back behind the seal! Did the same situation happen in the Subterranean Galleries that you are standing guard over?"

"Indeed! We encountered the same peculiarity in our respective Subterranean Galleries. The Otherworldly Demons on our side abruptly returned to the otherworldly battlefield as well. I'm not too sure what they are up to at the moment, but I have a bad feeling about it!" Luo Ganzhen said grimly. "Brother Fangyou, if I'm not mistaken, the reason you urgently gathered us is because you know something about this matter, right?"

The reason they had all gathered in the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters at this crucial period of time was due to a request made by Jiang Fangyou.

"I do know something about this matter, and the reason I gathered all of you here so urgently is to discuss the matter!"

As he spoke, Jiang Fangyou took a sweeping glance at his surroundings. Only after seeing the multiple layers of seal placed over the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, which prevented crucial information from leaking out, did he heave a slight sigh of relief.

Seeing how severe Jiang Fangyou's attitude was, the faces of Ren shi and the others turned grim as well.

"I believe that the Master Teacher Pavilion is aware that ever since the fall of the Otherworldly Demon Emperor whose strength was so great that he could oppose even Kong shi directly, the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe has been under the control of three apex experts!" Jiang Fangyou said.

"Un. They are Sovereign Chen Yong, Sovereign Chen Xing, and Sovereign Chen Ling, right? Sovereign Chen Yong takes on the leading role whereas Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling assume auxiliary roles... However, the three of them have never been on close terms, and they are extremely wary of one another. It's due to their disharmony with one another that they have never been able to launch a decisive assault on mankind, or else even the Master Teacher Pavilion would have been troubled fending them off!" Ren shi nodded.

This was extremely confidential intelligence, but there was no way that the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters could have been oblivious to it.

"Indeed. Those three Sovereigns had been keeping each other in check all this while. However, earlier this afternoon, I received news that Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling have proclaimed an alliance with one another!" Jiang Fangyou's face darkened.

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Chapter 1689: Ren Qingyuan and the Others' Shock

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"Alliance?" Ren Qingyuan was alarmed by the news.

"Based on what I've heard, it seems like the two Sovereigns have amassed a hundred-thousand-man-strong army. If they follow through with the alliance, it's likely that we might face a major invasion soon... If the intelligence I have received is true, the location will be the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters' Subterranean Gallery!" Jiang Fangyou said grimly.

"Most of the Sempiternal realm grand elders of the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters have already gone to the Temple of Confucius, and our master teachers are spread across the many Subterranean Galleries throughout the Master Teacher Continent. Even if we attempt to gather them now, they won't be able to make it back here in time. We could use Teleportation Formations to get some of them over, but most of them are too weak to withstand the spatial turbulence!" Ren Qingyuan said with a deep frown.

If Jiang Fangyou's intelligence was true, mankind was truly in huge danger this time around.

Even he was unable to think of a feasible solution to resolve this issue at the moment.

"I know that this matter concerns the survival of mankind, so Brother Luo and I have brought the elites of the Jiang Clan and the Luo Clan over so as to aid the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters in the defense of its Subterranean Gallery!" Jiang Fangyou said.

"Allow me thank you on behalf of mankind, Brother Jiang. Given that a full-blown invasion by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe lies just ahead of us, we have no time to lose. Let's head down to the Subterranean Gallery right away and discuss our battle plans on the way there. I fear that they will begin on their assault before we manage to get anything concrete out..."

Without any hesitation, Ren Qingyuan and the others quickly made their way over to the Subterranean Gallery beneath the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters.

Just like the Zhang Clan's Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, there was a massive fortress behind the spatial seal to serve as the last line of defense against the Otherworldly Demons.

Unless the Otherworldly Demons breached the fortress, they would never be able to step foot on the Master Teacher Continent.

"What is the situation on the other side?" Ren Qingyuan quickly landed on the sentry post and questioned the 9-star master teacher standing guard there.

"There have been no movements from the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe since a while ago. We have just received word from our scouts that their soldiers have retreated through the spatial seal, seemingly planning something. As the killing intent lingering in the otherworldly battlefield affects one's rationality, they didn't dare advance too deep. As such, they aren't certain about the exact situation either!" the 9-star master teacher reported.

"I see!" Ren Qingyuan nodded.

A crimson moon loomed over the otherworldly battlefield where the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe resided, causing concentrated killing intent to linger in the area. If normal master teachers entered the otherworldly battlefield recklessly, it would not be too long before their rationality was corroded by the killing intent, turning them into machines who knew nothing more than slaughter.

It was for this reason that mankind had chosen to maintain a defensive stance against the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe over the past tens of thousands of years. It was not because they did not want to eradicate the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe once and for all, but they were not able to do so.

Otherwise, given the countless experts within the ranks of the Master Teacher Pavilion over the past tens of thousands of years, there was no reason for them to give the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe a breather and allow them to recover from the severe blow that they had suffered during Kong shi's era.

Jiang Fangyou pondered for a moment before saying, "It isn't a solution to continue waiting here blindly either. I'll head over there to check on the situation personally. We need more intelligence to prepare for what is to come. The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe usually neglect to guard their borders of the spatial seal, so I should be able to sneak in without alarming them."

"Brother Jiang, allow me to go with you." Luo Ganzhen stepped forward. "I have recently made some advancements in my comprehension of space. As long as the opponent's cultivation isn't above mine, I will be able to conceal us easily from the gazes of any Otherworldly Demon!"

"This..." Ren Qingyuan hesitated for a moment before turning around to the 9-star master teacher to instruct, "Organize our forces and have them prepare themselves for battle at any moment. I'll head over to the otherworldly battlefield to check on the situation with Brother Jiang and Brother Luo."

Since the scouts were unable to advance too deeply into the otherworldly battlefield, the information that they could acquire was limited. It would be better for him to make a move personally.

"Deputy pavilion master! You mustn't!"

"It's too dangerous!"

Many 9-star master teachers attempted to dissuade Ren Qingyuan from making this move.

"Don't worry, I'm only going there to do some scouting. With Brother Luo and Brother Jiang around, we won't face too much trouble!" Ren Qingyuan interrupted the crowd to appease them.

Seeing that Ren Qingyuan was determined, the crowd knew that it would be futile to attempt to change his mind. They could only sigh deeply and fall silent.

As this matter was of the utmost urgency, the trio quickly hid their figures and advanced forward.

It did not take them too long to arrive before the spatial seal.

Just as the 9-star master teacher earlier had said, the Otherworldly Demons did not put up too much defense. The soldiers left behind to guard the area were not very strong; the group of three was able to bypass them with ease.

As soon as they entered the otherworldly battlefield, they felt an intense wave of killing intent gushing toward them. Even with their level of cultivation, they were still unable to prevent such overwhelming killing intent from seeping into their body. Thus, they could only hasten their movements.

"I feel great disturbances in the flow of spiritual energy over there. Let's head that way to take a look!"

After flying briefly, the group of three felt something that could be described as a raging storm of spiritual energy coming from a certain direction. They traded gazes with one another and swiftly proceeded over.

Before arriving in the area, they made sure to conceal their figures entirely and proceed with full wariness. They feared that the slightest ripple that they made in their surroundings would betray their presence to the enemy.

It was not easy for them to arrive in the vicinity of the disturbances. Standing at the peak of a mountain, Ren Qingyuan glanced down at the valley before him, and his figure jolted in astonishment.

Seeing Ren Qingyuan's state, Jiang Fangyou frowned in bewilderment. "What's wrong?"

"Take a look at it yourself!" Ren Qingyuan remarked with trembling lips.

Luo Ganzhen and Jiang Fangyou were perplexed. They quickly glanced downward as well, and in the blink of an eye, their eyes were bulging, and their mouths were agape.

"These Otherworldly Demons... are all dead?"

The valley before them was filled with countless Otherworldly Demon corpses. They piled up on one another like many mini hills in the midst of the valley, forming a rather gruesome sight. This could probably only be described as a 'sea of corpses'.

They had been worried about an invasion by the Otherworldly Demons and were frantically preparing in place many countermeasures to deal with them... Yet, before these Otherworldly Demons had even gotten beyond the spatial seal, they had already been completely wiped out. What in the world was happening?

"Let's head over to take a look!"

Since the Otherworldly Demons were already dead, there was nothing for them to fear. Thus, they hurriedly made their ways over.

They quickly flew into the valley and swept across the corpses.

Analyzing the traces around them, Jiang Fangyou remarked in astonishment, "This should be the encampment for the allied soldiers of Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling. From the looks of it... it seems like they died from fighting one another!"

The soul oracles hidden amid the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had secretly sent a message to inform him of the alliance between the two Sovereigns. There was no doubt that such an alliance posed a major threat to mankind, so it was of the utmost importance for mankind to make preparations beforehand.

After learning of this news, Jiang Fangyou had been plagued with worry. He had trembled just thinking of what would become of mankind if they failed to fend off the Otherworldly Demons. But before the enemy even appeared, they had already all been killed.

The hell! What the heck is going on here?

Can anyone explain the situation to me?

"Could it be that the two Sovereigns had a falling out over the alliance and came to a fight as a result, thus causing the entire allied army to be wiped out?" Luo Ganzhen asked.

It was an extremely ludicrous reason, but he could not think of any alternative ways to explain this matter.

"Even if the two Sovereigns turned against one another, causing a battle to break out between the two factions, it's impossible for the entire army to be wiped out like that... Someone must have gone around killing all of the survivors. Furthermore, don't you think that there's a striking similarity among how they died? The thousand Otherworldly Demons over here have all been crushed flat by some immense force, the thousand Otherworldly Demons over there had their hearts impaled, and the thousand Otherworldly Demons there had their heads lopped off..." Ren Qingyuan shook his head and rejected Luo Ganzhen's hypothesis.

As a 9-star master teacher, he was extremely sharp in his observation and analysis. From the traces left behind, he could tell that not a single Otherworldly Demon of the army of a hundred thousand had escaped alive from this battle.

If the factions of the two Sovereigns were equally matched, it was possible for the war to end with many deaths. However, without the involvement of any external powers, it was impossible for all of them to die off so cleanly.

"Pavilion Master Ren is right. Not only so, the equipment and resources of the Otherworldly Demons have also vanished without a trace. I can't see a single storage ring around... Without a doubt, someone must have plundered them!" Jiang Fangyou added.

Hearing those words, Luo Ganzhen swiftly swept his gaze over the countless Otherworldly Demons around, only to see their empty fingers. There really was not a single storage ring to be seen. Furthermore, even though most of the tents had been burned down to cinders, there were no military supplies to be seen.

How could such a large army have no military supplies at all?

There was only a single explanation for such a sight—a third party had been there. Chances were that this massacre had been orchestrated by the third party.

However...

Who in the world had the ability to destroy a hundred thousand Otherworldly Demon strong army in less than a day?

Hu!

At this moment, a sharp sound of wind could be heard from the distance. Following which, a figure appeared above the mountain valley that they were in.

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Chapter 1690: Just for Fun

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

In response to the sudden arrival of the figure, Ren Qingyuan and the others immediately raised their guard and whipped out their weapons. Just as they were about the attack the figure, they got a clear look of the other party.

Ren Qingyuan widened his eyes in astonishment and exclaimed, "It's Luo shi!"

Jiang Fangyou and Luo Ganzhen also recognized the figure in the sky.

They had seen Luo Ruoxin during the engagement ceremony. Given her outstanding disposition and appearance, there was no way that they could mistake her for someone else.

Just that... why would she suddenly appear here?

Did she not head to the Zhang Clan together with Zhang Xuan to guard the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery?

"Could she be an Otherworldly Demon?" Luo Ganzhen's eyebrows shot up as an air of hostility burst forth from him.

Even though he had already acknowledged Zhang Xuan as the new head of the Luo Clan, he still could not bring himself to forgive Luo Ruoxin for intruding on the engagement ceremony back then and injuring the elders of the Luo Clan.

He had attempted to investigate Luo Ruoxin's background afterward, but it seemed as though the latter had appeared out of nowhere. Even the Luo Clan's formidable intelligence network was not able to gather any information on Luo Ruoxin at all!

For someone as powerful as Luo Ruoxin to suddenly appear without any prior signs... it was really hard not to doubt her identity!

Hearing those words, the two of them turned their gazes over and saw Luo Ruoxin. There were no peculiar emotions on her face as she looked upon the heaps of corpses strewn across the area. Instead, she was looking around, seemingly trying to find something.

"If that's truly the case," Ren Qingyuan remarked with a frown, "I doubt that she would have been able to remain so calm after seeing the deaths of so many of her tribesmen..."

That was a hundred thousand Otherworldly Demons they were talking about! The death of so many elites was already enough to shake the foundations of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe!

If Luo Ruoxin was truly an Otherworldly Demon, she should have shown some kind of reaction to the slaughter that had happened. The fact that she was able to remain impassive despite such huge losses likely suggested that she was not affiliated with the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe.

"Ren shi, Clan Head Luo, and Clan Head Jiang, have you seen Zhang Xuan?"

While the three of them were discussing the matter telepathically, Luo Ruoxin had also noticed them, and she clasped her fist.

"Zhang Xuan? Is Zhang shi here as well?" Ren Qingyuan was taken aback by that question.

After they parted from one another the day before, Zhang shi had immediately rushed back to the Zhang Clan. It did not seem logical for Luo Ruoxin to be looking for him here in the otherworldly battlefield.

"Un. Yesterday, Zhang Xuan singlehandedly resolved the crisis in the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery before entering the otherworldly battlefield. I had to search for quite a while before tracking him here," Luo Ruoxin explained.

"I heard about the situation at the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery. If I'm not mistaken, there are ten thousand Otherworldly Demons stationed there, right? What do you mean by... Zhang shi singlehandedly resolved the crisis?" Jiang Fangyou asked doubtfully.

The members of the Jiang Clan had been dispatched to reinforce the Zhang Clan's Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery and the Luo Clan's Starcluster Subterranean Gallery.

As one of the six largest Subterranean Galleries on the Master Teacher Continent, the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery was one of the major targets of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Given the scale of the invasion this time around, its security could be said to be shaky even when it was guarded by the powerful Zhang Clan. Yet, Zhang Xuan had actually resolved the crisis singlehandedly—how was that possible?

"Yes, there were ten thousand Otherworldly Demons stationed then. Yesterday, Zhang Xuan said that he would head over to scout the situation, but he ended up killing them all. By the time we noticed it, he had already entered the otherworldly battlefield," Luo Ruoxin explained.

"He ended up killing ten thousand Otherworldly Demons while trying to scout the situation?"

"Are you sure you aren't pulling our legs?"

The trio felt their hair standing on end.

Having clashed with the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe many times, they were well aware of the fighting prowess and capabilities of the Otherworldly Demons. Even an average Ancient Sage would have trouble dealing with ten thousand Otherworldly Demon soldiers! Yet, to actually wipe such an army out while scouting...

Was that for real?

"Indeed. In fact, the hundred thousand Otherworldly Demons here were likely killed by him. Just that... where is he? The three of you arrived earlier. Did you notice anything?" Luo Ruoxin asked.

She had been together with Zhang Xuan for the past few days, so she was well aware of the means he possessed. She had seen the corpses that Ren Qingyuan had pointed out earlier, and she recognized them to be the doing of the Golden Origin Cauldron and the Dragonbone Divine Spear.

The only problem was that Zhang Xuan was nowhere to be seen. Since the three of them had arrived earlier, could they have found anything?

"You are saying that Zhang Xuan... singlehandedly wiped out an army of a hundred thousand Otherworldly Demons?"

"No, that's not right. If we count the Otherworldly Demons from the Dracotiger Mountain Subterranean Gallery, that would be 110,000 Otherworldly Demons!"

"In other words, he resolved the major threat to the Master Teacher Continent by himself?"

The trio felt their heads spinning dizzily around them. All they had just heard was simply so inconceivable that it threatened to tear down everything that they had known about the world.

Was this for real?

110,000 Otherworldly Demons of Saint 3-dan and above was a force that even the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would struggle to face! Even if the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters successfully rallied all of the forces at its disposal, it would have only ended in a narrow victory on their side.

Yet, the other party had actually resolved the crisis singlehandedly.

How in the world did he do it?

Not even Kong shi had achieved such spectacular accomplishments in his time!

Ren Qingyuan took a deep breath and calm his shock before replying Luo Ruoxin's question. "Luo shi, we arrived moments before you, and we didn't see Zhang shi anywhere..."

Before he could finish his piece, the air above suddenly turned turbulent. He hurriedly raised his head and saw large swathes of ominous clouds swiftly congregating together.

"It's a cultivation ordeal," Ren Qingyuan exclaimed in astonishment.

Unknowingly, a figure suddenly appeared in the sky, floating quietly beneath the congregation of ominous clouds.

Pitch-black flames rumbled amid the clouds above him, turning the surrounding air incredibly dry. The temperature swiftly surged with a momentum that felt as though it would melt the entire sky.

"It's the heavenly flame tribulation..."

Luo Ganzhen and Jiang Fangyou gulped.

A day earlier, when they met with Zhang shi, he had still been at Saint 9-dan pinnacle. Yet, within such a short span of time, not only had he achieved a breakthrough to Great Sage 1-dan Introspective Convalescence realm, he was even fast on his way to advancing toward the Aureate Body realm.

How in the world did he cultivate so quickly?

Any other cultivator would require several years of effort before they were ready to push for a major breakthrough in their cultivation, but to the fellow in the sky, it seemed like nothing more than child's play.

More importantly, he even had the spare time to kill 110,000 Otherworldly Demons and many Sempiternal realm commanders.

"You are all here!"

While the crowd was overwhelmed with utter shock, Zhang Xuan also caught sight of them and flashed them a smile. "Give me a moment. Let's talk after I overcome the heavenly flame tribulation!"

After saying those words, he dived right into the congregation of ominous clouds.

"Is he going to use the same tactic for the heavenly flame tribulation?" Luo Ganzhen's body staggered a little upon seeing that sight.

He had heard stories about how Zhang Xuan overcame his lightning tribulation, but there was a huge difference between lightning tribulations and heavenly flame tribulations! To dive right into the source of flames... was he not afraid of being reduced to cinders?

More importantly, what was with that relaxed expression on his face?

Are you that confident that you will be able to get through such a powerful tribulation safely?

"This..." Catching sight of Luo Ganzhen's astonishment, Ren Qingyuan shook his head and explained, "Zhang shi should be fine. He overcame the heavenly flame tribulation back in the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters yesterday!"

"He has already overcome it?" Luo Ganzhen exclaimed in bewilderment upon hearing those words. "Each cultivator will only face the heavenly flame tribulation once in their life at most, right? Why is he facing it a second time?"

The heavenly flame tribulation was a cultivation ordeal that one had to overcome when achieving a breakthrough to the Aureate Body realm. Each Great Sage would only face it once in their cultivation journey. It was unthinkable for anyone to have to face it twice!

"I'm not too sure what's going on either. In any case, it's a fact that he did face the heavenly flame tribulation in the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters just a day ago, and he survived the ordeal by diving right into the clouds as well. I don't think he will face any problems now," Ren Qingyuan replied.

"That's not right. Ren shi, Zhang shi came to our Jiang Clan two days ago and underwent the heavenly flame tribulation then as well... But you are saying that he has faced the heavenly flame tribulation at the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters as well?" Jiang Fangyou asked doubtfully.

"You are telling me that it's his third time facing the heavenly flame tribulation?" Luo Ganzhen nearly fainted on the spot.

That was the heavenly flame tribulation, a force that no cultivator would not fear!

To face it again and again... it was as if the heavenly flame tribulation was a sparring partner that he could challenge as and when he liked!

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Chapter 1691: The Two Sovereigns on the Verge of Insanity

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Other cultivators would take their time to write their last will before facing the heavenly flame tribulation, knowing that there was a real possibility that they would lose their life in the cultivation ordeal. Yet, this fellow dived into it again and again as if he was enjoying a hot spring, going at it the day before yesterday, yesterday, and today...

Is it really alright to toy with the powers of the heavens like that?

While other cultivators had to put their lives overcome survive cultivation ordeals, when it came to Zhang Xuan, it felt like he was going on a leisurely tour instead!

And in truth, the ones who were surprised were not only Luo Ganzhen and the others. The heavenly flame in the sky was stupefied as well.

[Freak, it's this fellow!

Freaking hell, it's this fellow again!

Holy freaking hell, why the heck is it this fellow again?

Bro, can't you just allow me to rest for a day?

You are making me work overtime day after day! Can't you have some sympathy for me?

I already ran to the otherworldly battlefield in order to avoid you, but you still came chasing after me...

...

The crowd could not make sense out of why Zhang Xuan was able to challenge the heavenly flame tribulation thrice, and they could not comprehend why it was the Empyrean Heavenly Flame each and every time. Eventually, they could only give up on trying to understand this inconceivable phenomenon and focused their attention on watching the cultivation ordeal instead.

Ferocious black flames billowed within the clouds in the sky. At the start, they had still been roaring fiendishly, as if they would bring utter annihilation upon the world.

But as Zhang Xuan dived in, the ominous clouds suddenly began shuddering and twitching. Even that feral roar seemed to have turned into helpless moans.

By the ten-minute mark, the tribulation had already turned tail and fled, leaving a revitalized and satisfied Zhang Xuan floating in the air.

Modifying his dantian and altering his meridian network had taken quite a while, nearly an entire day, but its effects were remarkable. Otherwise, he would not have been able to push for a breakthrough to the Aureate Body realm so quickly.

With two prior experiences of dealing with the heavenly flame tribulation, he had opened up all of his acupoints and devoured the flames without any hesitation. With the augmentation of various cultivation resources, he had actually managed to advance to Aureate Body realm consummation within a short ten minutes!

Driving his zhenqi, a golden sheen swiftly enveloped his body. It was as if an incarnation of Buddha had descended upon the world.

After overcoming his heavenly flame tribulation, Zhang Xuan descended to where the crowd was and asked, "Why are you all here?"

Logically speaking, Luo Ganzhen, Jiang Fangyou, Ren Qingyuan, and Luo Ruoxin should have been in different Subterranean Galleries, fending off the invasion of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Why had they gathered in the otherworldly battlefield, to watch his cultivation ordeal?

"We noticed some peculiar movements from the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, so we came over to scout the situation. Were you the one... who killed these Otherworldly Demons?"

Even though Ren Qingyuan had vaguely guessed the story, he still found it hard to believe that something like this was possible. Thus, he pointed to the heaps of corpses scattered around.

"Oh. When I first arrived, these scoundrels were planning to launch a decisive invasion on the Master Teacher Continent. In order to stop them, I played on the tension between the two factions that made up the army and stoked them into fighting against one another. Fortunately, everything went according to plan!" Zhang Xuan said.

The desire for slaughter could be said to be coded into the genes of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. If they entered the Master Teacher Continent, many innocent humans would surely be killed under their barbarity. It did weigh on Zhang Xuan's heart to claim so many lives callously, but he felt that it was necessary.

Benevolence toward the enemy in war was no different from malevolence toward one's allies.

"You were able to make the two factions come to blows with one another?"

The lips of Ren Qingyuan and the others twitched as they listened to Zhang Xuan's story.

While the latter had phrased it very casually, they understood the difficulties in trying to pull something like this off.

The Otherworldly Demons were not mindless creatures of power. They were shrewd as well, which made them particularly difficult opponents to deal with. Otherwise, the Master Teacher Pavilion would not have had so much trouble trying to deal with them.

"It must have taken you quite a bit of effort to turn them against one another..." Ren Qingyuan remarked.

"You're right, it took me one whole hour to do so! I'm feeling really beat now!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

He had needed to switch between multiple identities again and again, which was truly no easy feat. Even with his strength, he could not help but feel completely drained by the time he managed to pull everything off.

It had indeed been rather difficult on him.

"An hour?"

Ren Qingyuan and the others suddenly felt utter helplessness weighing down on them.

If they had been in Zhang Xuan's shoes, it would have cost them much more in order to deepen the tension between the two factions and force them to clash with one another. At the very least, it would have taken them years of careful preparation.

Yet, that fellow only took an hour...

The more they talked to the other party, the more stifled they felt on the inside.

[Can you go easier on our hearts?

"There should have been several dozen Sempiternal realm commanders within this army of a hundred thousand, right? Did you... kill them as well?" Jiang Fangyou asked.

"I did. It took me a while, but I managed to assassinate all of them!" Zhang Xuan nodded earnestly. "I ended up staining my armor in order to do so..."

In order to make his disguise more lifelike, he had cleaned his dirtied armor over and over again. By now, his armor was already completely soaked in blood, such that no amount of wiping would be able to get the blood out of it.

"..."

Jiang Fangyou felt suffocated.

[Even Yang shi would be forced to flee as far as he could when faced with several dozen Sempiternal realm cultivators. Yet, you actually managed to assassinate all of them without sustaining any major injuries, and you are even complaining about how they stained your clothes...

All of a sudden, Jiang Fangyou could not help but feel a little bit of pity for the Otherworldly Demon experts who had died at Zhang Xuan's hand.

...

An imposing palace towered in the depths of the otherworldly battlefield, far away from where Zhang Xuan and the others were.

Two middle-aged men were seated opposite one another with wine cups in their hands.

The middle-aged man seated on the left wore a flowing golden robe. With a hearty laugh, he raised his cup and said, "A toast to our alliance! May our tribesmen reclaim the land that belongs to us!"

He was one of the Three Sovereigns of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, Sovereign Chen Ling!

Opposite to him was a middle-aged man dressed in a long, violet robe—Sovereign Chen Xing!

"May your words come to be!" Sovereign Chen Xing nodded in a dignified manner as he sipped on the wine, savoring its deep fragrance.

He had to admit that the wine prepared by Sovereign Chen Ling was truly fine. Even as one of the Sovereigns, it was not a flavor that he could taste too often.

"Rest assured, there's no way the humans stand a chance against our allied army. Once this matter comes to be, mankind will no longer pose a threat to us. We shall return to our land of prosperity and bring our Otherworldly Demonic Tribe to greatness once more," Sovereign Chen Ling roared joyfully.

However, the next instant, his expression froze, and it slowly turned into a frown. Without any warning, he dashed out of the room.

Noting Sovereign Chen Ling's queer movements, Sovereign Chen Xing realized that something major must have happened as well. Thus, he quickly left the room and followed Sovereign Chen Ling.

Before long, the two of them arrived before a vast altar.

Countless jade tokens floated in the air above the vast altar.

It was a tradition of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe to extract a sliver of each soldier's will and forge it into a jade token before the army departed for battle. This jade token indicated the condition of the individual. If a jade token shattered, it meant that the individual had already breathed his last breath.

This served as an effective method for the Sovereigns to gauge the status of the army and family members of the soldiers to keep track of the condition of their loved ones.

Whenever a major battle broke out, the jade tokens would swiftly shatter one after another. This would mean that the brave soldiers of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were laying down their bodies and souls to further the cause of their tribe.

These men would be regarded as heroes, and they would be honored for their valiance. Their deeds would go down in history, and their name tablets would be placed on the God's Altar.

By the time that the two Sovereigns had arrived before the altar, the jade tokens had already begun shattering one after another. As beings who stood at the very top of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, they had already seen their fair share of deaths. If it had just been a normal battle, such a shattering of jade tokens would not have even fazed them. However...

Pipipah! Pipipah! Pipah pipah pipipah!

The jade tokens shattered with beautiful rhythm, reminiscent of an orchestral performance. It was baffling to think of it in such a manner, but there was a mysterious charm to the melody. From time to time, as if the melody struck a climax, there would be an extraordinarily powerful note that played on the heartstrings of the listeners.

Within the short span of a few minutes, the hundred thousand jade tokens floating above the altar had been reduced to a pile of dust on the ground. Nothing was left at all.

"Our army of a hundred thousand..."

Sovereign Chen Ling staggered weakly as the wine cup in his hand fell to the ground. His face paled in disbelief as he shook his head in incredulity.

An army of a hundred thousand elites should have been sufficient to push their way through the Subterranean Gallery and bring havoc upon the Master Teacher Continent... They had expected great casualties in the midst of doing so, but they were confident that victory was in their grasp. Yet, barely after they had confirmed their alliance, before their allied army could even make their way out of the Subterranean Gallery, it had already been wiped out.

For the jade tokens to shatter one another so determinedly and relentlessly...

What in the world was going on?

In an instant, the two Sovereigns were left completely stunned.

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Chapter 1692: Heading to the Temple of Confucius

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

It had not been easy for the two of them to put aside their differences and form an alliance, but everything had fallen apart before they could do anything at all. What was even worse was that they did not know who the culprit was!

"I can't accept this. I'll go take a look personally!" Unable to hold back his rage, a cataclysmic aura burst forth from Sovereign Chen Ling, causing the surrounding space to shatter.

He was an Ancient Sage expert!

"I'll follow you!" Sovereign Chen Xing spat coldly.

Half of the casualties had been his subordinates. There was no way that he could let the matter slide so easily!

"Let's head out together then. While we're at it, we should settle that matter as well. Otherwise, we'll be forced to remain subservient to that man for the rest of our lives!" Sovereign Chen Ling said as a sharp glint flashed across his eyes.

Sovereign Chen Xing nodded. "I heard that Sovereign Chen Yong has recently taken in an extraordinarily talented young man. That brat seems to know no bottleneck at all; his cultivation advances at a breakneck speed! None of our disciples are a match for him... If we allow brat to continue growing at this rate, we'll soon lose what should have belonged to us!"

"Don't touch that brat for the time being," Sovereign Chen Ling said. "He has received the acknowledgement of Vicious' will, and he practices the highest cultivation technique of our Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Given the prestige that he enjoys at the moment, we can't afford to touch him. However, once that matter comes to be, that brat will lose all his support. Then, we can slowly grind him down... Perhaps, we might even be able to attain the highest cultivation technique!"

"You're right. Let's do it then!" Sovereign Chen Xing nodded before falling silent.

With a jolt, the two middle-aged men vanished from the spot. It seemed like they had torn through the restraints of space to head to an unknown place.

...

"You said that an army of a hundred thousand Otherworldly Demons has been eradicated by Clan Head Zhang singlehandedly?"

"Is such a thing even possible?"

"I heard it from Ren shi personally, so there's no doubt about the authenticity of the news. Even so, I still find the matter really hard to believe..."

"Since the threat of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe's invasion has been resolved, we don't have to be stationed in the Subterranean Gallery anymore..."

...

After overcoming the heavenly flame tribulation, Zhang Xuan had advanced tremendously in his cultivation once more. Since there was no need for him to remain in the area, he had swiftly left together with Ren Qingyuan and the others.

It did not take long for the news that the threat of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had been resolved by a single young man to reach the defensive forces guarding the 108 Subterranean Galleries.

Everyone was astounded.

There was no lack of talents in the history of the Master Teacher Continent. Many brave and powerful men had left behind legends that resounded in the ears of the populace even to this day. Yet, compared to the feat achieved by this single young man, those legends were not even worth mentioning!

To singlehandedly annihilate 110,000 Otherworldly Demons and several dozen Sempiternal realm experts... The more they thought about the matter, the more frenzied they became.

They could not help but pinch themselves to check if they were dreaming.

...

Oblivious to the uproar that he had caused, at this very moment, Zhang Xuan had already returned to the Zhang Clan.

"With the major setback suffered by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, it's unlikely that they will be able to amass the forces required to launch another invasion within a short period of time. Let's head to the Temple of Confucius together. We'll need to assemble a team to go along with us."

After hearing the happenings in the otherworldly battlefield from his son, Sword Saint Xing was unable to close his mouth for a very long time.

"Alright!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

There was no doubt that the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had suffered a huge loss. Even if they attempted to amass their troops once more and launch another invasion, it was unlikely that they would be able to pose much of a threat.

Thus, what they should focus their attention on at the moment was the Temple of Confucius. Given that its opening was just around the corner, they should make their way over very soon.

If they arrived late, the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn could very well fall into the hands of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe or the Hundred Schools of Philosophers. This would be bad news for the Three Premier Clans and the Master Teacher Pavilion.

"The Temple of Confucius is located in Qufu. The space in Qufu is folded and distorted, so it would be unsafe to head over through spatial teleportation. We should teleport to somewhere nearby before flying over. We'll head there first as the advance party to scout the situation there. Elder Wuyun, I'll leave it to you to pick out the clan members for this expedition and bring them over. Make sure to contact us as soon as you arrive!" Sword Saint Xing instructed.

After First Elder Zhang Wuheng was punished for plotting against the incumbent clan head, Elder Wuyun had taken over his responsibilities.

"Also, inform the grand elders who are in seclusion to hurry over as well. The Temple of Confucius will likely be their best shot at overcoming their current bottlenecks!"

Similar to the Master Teacher Pavilion, the Zhang Clan had many grand elders in seclusion as well. Unless the Zhang Clan was forced into a desperate position, they would never make a move.

Their cultivation had all reached Great Sage 4-dan Sempiternal realm. Unless Ancient Sages made a move, they could be considered as the top experts of the Master Teacher Continent.

It was unfortunate that they were not able to find a way to achieve a breakthrough to Ancient Sage, so they could only go into hibernation to lengthen their lifespan as long as possible.

There was much more to the Temple of Confucius than just the Great Codex of Spring and Autumn. It was not a coincidence that no one had been able to achieve a breakthrough to Ancient Sage for the past ten thousand years. Perhaps the secret behind overcoming this bottleneck was hidden there as well.

Regardless of whether that was true or not, they would have to make a trip there to find out for themselves.

Currently, the Zhang Clan only had one Ancient Sage left. Once that Ancient Sage came to the end of his lifespan, without any other Ancient Sages to support the Zhang Clan, it would swiftly fall from the top echelons of the Master Teacher Continent.

"I understand!" Elder Wuyun nodded.

After making arrangements, Sword Saint Xing said, "Let's head over now!"

Zhang Xuan took out the Dragonbone Divine Spear and slit a dimension rift in front of him.

A passageway swiftly formed in the dimension rift under his manipulation, and the crowd made their way over.

With his zhenqi cultivation reaching Aureate Body realm consummation, Zhang Xuan's fighting prowess had reached greater heights. Even without resorting to schemes, he was already able to face Sempiternal realm consummation experts like Wu Shu in a direct confrontation and even win.

In truth, he had been intending to push his zhenqi cultivation straight up to the Intuitive Impulse realm, but he had found that he was unable to do so at all!

The Intuitive Impulse realm allowed one to peer into the fortune of the world and consciously avert danger. However, such an ability was essentially peering into the secrets of the heavens as well, albeit to a lesser extent than that of seers. As one who possessed the Library of Heaven's Path, attempts to do so would only end in his electrocution.

He had secretly tried it a few times, and each and every time, he had ended up with a numbingly refreshing electric massage. Seeing that it was futile, he could only give up on the idea.

From the looks of it, he could not follow the conventional path that all cultivators would tread on. He would have to find his own way forward.

By the time they arrived at the other end of the passageway, they were already in close proximity to Qufu. They quickly began making their way over toward the Temple of Confucius when a figure suddenly approached them.

It was Wu Chen.

He had previously separated from them, saying that he had matters to attend to.

Wu Chen first greeted Luo Ruoxin with a bow before turning to look at Zhang Xuan. It could have just been Zhang Xuan's imagination, but he seemed to sense some conflicting emotions in the depths of Wu Chen's eyes.

"Have you settled your affairs?" Zhang Xuan asked.

All this time, he could feel that there was some kind of issue plaguing Wu Chen, leaving him in a heavy mood. Even as he followed Luo Ruoxin around, there was still a brooding atmosphere to him. However, the brooding atmosphere around him seemed to have vanished, which suggested that the matter had already been resolved.

Hearing Zhang Xuan's question, Wu Chen snapped out of his contemplation and replied with a slight smile. "Thanks to your grace, it has been resolved without a hitch."

"That's a relief!" Zhang Xuan nodded. He knew that Wu Chen was unwilling to talk too much about his private matters, so he did not press on.

Before long, they were back on their way to Qufu. From where they were at, they were not too far away from their destination.

The closer they got to Qufu, the greater the pressure exerted on them from the 'second sun' in the sky. It was not as searing as the real sun, but the pressure that it emanated seemed to weigh directly on one's soul.

To construct such a massive ancient domain in the midst of the sky and conceal it even from the detection of Ancient Sages... This was no longer the work of a man but a miracle created by a higher power.

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Chapter 1693: Qufu

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"As expected of the World's Teacher..." Wu Chen remarked in awe.

"Kong shi is known not just for his unparalleled fighting prowess but his astounding intelligence as well. He played a huge role in constructing a systematic lineage for the inheritance of numerous occupations. Of the Lower, Middle, and Upper Nine Paths, he organized no less than twenty occupations!" Sword Saint Xing explained with an excited gleam in his eyes.

The lineage of master teachers originated from Kong shi. There was no master teacher in the world who was not filled with awe and respect for Kong shi.

Zhang Xuan did not participate in the conversation with the rest of the crowd. Instead, he stared into the massive temple sealed within the 'sun' as a hint of bewilderment seeped into his eyes. For some reason, he could feel something within beckoning him.

As if resonating with this beckoning, the Library of Heaven's Path trembled lightly, and the countless books stored within shook along with its movements.

Is there an artifact in the Temple of Confucius that could upgrade the Library of Heaven's Path? Zhang Xuan wondered with a frown.

The Library of Heaven's Path had always maintained a state of impassiveness to whatever happened around him. Rarely did it move of its own accord. Yet, at this moment, it was shaking non-stop.

It had not been this excited even when he paid a visit to the Seer Guild before.

Could it be that there was something that the Library of Heaven's Path desired in the Temple of Confucius?

If that was the case, he would have to make sure to acquire it.

The reason he had been able to advance from a nameless nobody to an esteemed expert whom no one did not know of was not because of his astounding talent, high morals, or extreme diligence... rather, it was due to the Library of Heaven's Path!

If not for the Library of Heaven's Path, it was likely that he would still have been struggling in the Tianxuan Kingdom, attempting to push for a breakthrough to become a 1-star master teacher.

Without a doubt, the Library of Heaven's Path was his greatest asset and trump card. No matter what dangers he would have to face, it would all be worth it if he could upgrade it further.

He activated his Eye of Insight in an attempt to peer into the sun. However, despite having flown several hundred li into Qufu, he was still unable to look into the depths of the Temple of Confucius. There seemed to be some kind of veil covering the temple, obscuring it from sight.

"The Temple of Confucius is located in a folded space. Until it's completely opened, not even Ancient Sages will be able to reach it even if they fly for over a decade," Luo Ruoxin explained.

Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in astonishment.

In a sense, this was similar to how the sun was in his previous life. It seemed to hang directly above Earth, creating an illusion that it could be easily reached as long as one flew into the sky. But in truth, even if one moved at the speed of light, it would still take eight minutes in order to reach the sun.

"If we can still see it even from such a long distance away, how big must the Temple of Confucius be?" Zhang Xuan could not help but voice the question on his mind.

The reason that was the case for the sun was simply because of its massive scale.

If it was the same for the Temple of Confucius as well, could it actually be a gigantic world of its own?

"The Temple of Confucius isn't too big. It's a type of spatial manipulation; in truth, it isn't that far away from us," Luo Ruoxin replied.

It seemed like she had quite a deep understanding of the Temple of Confucius.

While they were chatting with one another, an ancient city soon came into view. The crowd quickly made their way over.

The land where the Temple of Confucius was located, Qufu!

This city was not as prosperous or massive as the Empire Alliance, and most of the buildings were ancient and decrepit. However, it had a quiet and peaceful aura, giving rise to a comfortable atmosphere. If one had to describe it, it would be reminiscent of an infant returning to a mother's embrace.

"This is... the unique aura of a Celestial Master Teacher?" Zhang Xuan's eyes shot up in astonishment.

The aura looming in the city was extremely similar to the aura that seeped into his body during the acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher. The only difference was that the concentration was many times lower.

"There are seemingly intangible forces that manifest in mysterious ways in the world. There is an academic aura for the academics and martial aura for martial arts. These two forces are derived from the unique culture of education and lineages on the Master Teacher Continent, and we collectively refer to them as 'teacher's milieu'. If one comes into prolonged contact with teacher's milieu, one's state of mind will mature swiftly. One's thoughts will become more open and discerning, thus leaving little room for inner demons and irrationality to exist!" Sword Saint Xing explained.

"Teacher's milieu?" Zhang Xuan repeated those two words before nodding slightly.

In truth, this unique aura was not exclusive to Celestial Master Teachers. When a master teacher paid respects to the predecessors in the Teacher Acknowledgement Hall, they could be bestowed with this aura as well. In a sense, it was a symbolism of culture.

It was through the milieu of a teacher that master teachers were able to win the respect of the world and become the leaders of the world.

"Has this place... always been like that?" Zhang Xuan asked.

He focused his attention on the teacher's milieu around him, and just as Sword Saint Xing had said, the aura was indeed able to bring greater sharpness and acuity to his mind. At the same time, this sparked some doubts in his mind.

The effects of the teacher's milieu were astounding, such that even the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters' was unable to compete with it!

Seeing through Zhang Xuan's doubt, Sword Saint Xing explained, "Before the opening of the Temple of Confucius, while teacher's milieu still lingered in Qufu, it was far sparser than what you can perceive right now. Nevertheless, its enhancement to one's state of mind was still rather conspicuous if one lived in the area for prolonged periods of time.

"Due to that, Qufu is also known as the ancestral land of the master teachers. Most 9-star master teachers reside in Qufu for a period of their life, not to cultivate or go into seclusion but to experience the life of a mortal and temper their state of mind!

"Take a look at that carpenter over there. Do you notice anything different about him?"

Zhang Xuan turned his gaze over.

By the side of a street, there was a carpenter who was in the midst of crafting a piece of furniture. The movements of his callused hands were extremely precise, as if they had been carefully measured by a ruler. Wooden shavings flew around the place. Before long, a completed product was sitting right before him.

"He is... a 9-star master teacher!" Zhang Xuan was astounded by what he saw.

The carpenter shaved the wood with light strokes that seemed to be devoid of strength, and there was not the slightest hint of zhenqi that could be felt flowing through his body. However, the ocean-like accumulation of energy that Zhang Xuan could see in the depths of his dantian through the Eye of Insight told a very different story.

Not only was the carpenter likely a 9-star master teacher, chances were that he was an extremely powerful one as well.

"Indeed. He's a 9-star master teacher who made his name three hundred years ago. He was at Great Sage 2-dan Aureate Body realm back then, so there's no doubt that he has grown much stronger by now!" Sword Saint Xing replied.

"An Aureate Body realm cultivator doing carpentry?" Zhang Xuan could hardly believe what he was hearing.

All along, he had thought that Great Sage experts were extremely rare among mankind. Yet, who could have thought that even a carpenter that he encountered on the street within Qufu would have reached such a level as well?

"Look at the fishmonger and butcher over there as well... They were all renowned 9-star master teachers in their era. Back then, they still weren't too powerful, but over the years, they have reached Great Sage 3-dan Intuitive Impulse realm as well, just like me!" Sword Saint Xing explained.

"If nothing had happened to you back then, your mother and I would have come to Qufu to try living an ordinary life as well. Through experiencing the difficulties of mortal life, we would have been able to temper our state of mind and ready ourselves for a breakthrough to higher realms!"

Zhang Xuan nodded quietly in response.

Just as Sword Saint Xing had said, a lot of the ordinary-looking individuals around them were astoundingly Great Sage experts.

They were experts whose silhouettes could rarely be seen even within major clans, but in Qufu, they were as common as cabbage in a wet market.

It was no wonder Qufu was known as the ancestral lands of the master teachers. It seemed like there was indeed a basis to it.

Sword Saint Xing suddenly turned to look at Zhang Xuan and asked curiously, "Right! Xuan-er, what's your Soul Depth at the moment? If you wish to advance your cultivation as a master teacher, raising your Soul Depth is of the utmost importance. If your Soul Depth isn't up to par, your heart won't be calm, and your will won't be pure. Pushing your cultivation ahead will become much harder and harder!"

As long as one had a high aptitude, sufficient cultivation resources, and a good teacher, one would be able to advance one's cultivation rather swiftly. However, tempering one's state of mind was a step-by-step process that could not be rushed. There was no way to forcefully hasten the process, and any attempts to do so would likely end up bad.

His son was incredibly talented, but that did not change the fact that his son was only twenty this year. To become a 9-star master teacher at such an age... he could not help but wonder how high the Soul Depth of his son was and how he had managed to raise it so quickly.

"My Soul Depth?" Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before replying honestly, "29.1."

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Chapter 1694: The Importance of Soul Depth

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Having undergone the fifth acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher and stumbling across many fortuitous encounters, he had been able to raise his Soul Depth considerably swiftly. It did not take him long to reach a level comparable to 9-star pinnacle master teachers. Most likely, the only master teachers who could surpass him were Yang shi and a couple of others.

"29.1?" Hearing that number, Sword Saint Xing's lips twitched.

He had thought that given how fast his son's cultivation had grown, his Soul Depth would have difficulties trying to catch up. Who would have thought that his son's Soul Depth was actually much higher than his?

"You... How did you cultivate your Soul Depth?" Sword Saint Xing asked in astonishment. "It should have been extremely difficult to raise one's Soul Depth! Even with the assistance of a cultivation technique, it still takes tremendous effort and time in order to do so..."

It was common knowledge that the greatest limiting factor to a master teacher was their Soul Depth. In order to experience the vicissitudes of life, Yang shi concealed his identity and wandered the world for many years before he managed to raise his Soul Depth so high.

On the other hand, his son was only twenty this year, and he had spent his earlier nineteen years in a place as remote as the Tianxuan Kingdom. How could his Soul Depth be so high?

"How did I manage to do it?" Zhang Xuan frowned slightly upon hearing such a question. "I don't really know. I have never cultivated my Soul Depth before. It simply grew naturally..."

Hearing those words, Sword Saint Xing's face flushed completely crimson, and he nearly spurted blood. "Are you telling me that your Soul Depth grew to 29.1 naturally?"

Seeing how traumatized her husband was, Sword Saint Meng could not help but burst into laughter.

Of all people her husband could ask, he just had to ask their son. Was he not asking for a mental trauma?

The first time that they reunited with their son in the Empire Alliance, their son had only been at Saint 8-dan. However, within half a month, he was already an Aureate Body realm consummation expert... To attempt to compete with a prodigy of such a caliber, was it not obvious that he was asking for it?

"Is there a problem with my Soul Depth?" Zhang Xuan asked.

To be exact, calling it natural growth was not entirely accurate. However, it was true that he had never cultivated his Soul Depth before in order to raise it.

The golden page, acknowledgements of Celestial Master Teacher, Soul Tempering of a Mentor's Calligraphy, sudden bouts of inspiration... each and every time that he encountered one of these, his Soul Depth would increase by 1.0 or even more. Given so, it was no wonder that his Soul Depth had risen to 29.1 so quickly.

"There's nothing wrong at all," Sword Saint Xing replied with a stifled look on his face.

While others ground themselves down to the bones in order to raise their Soul Depth by just 0.1, this fellow was actually able to raise his Soul Depth to a level comparable to Yang shi without even bothering to cultivate it.

If other master teachers heard that, they would surely lose all motivation to cultivate.

Having stayed quiet all this time, Wu Chen suddenly spoke up. "You won't be able to reach Ancient Sage if you allow your Soul Depth to simply grow naturally. You need to temper it in order to make your state of mind more wholesome and resilient. Only then will you be able to advance further in your cultivation!"

"Does Soul Depth play a role in pushing for a breakthrough to Ancient Sage?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

Strangely enough, neither the Three Premier Clans nor the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters had any books relating to Ancient Sages. As such, he knew next to nothing about the realm.

"Un. The crux to reaching Ancient Sage is to align one's heart and will together with the world, thus granting one greater control over the environment. If one's state of mind isn't sufficient to harness the strength of the world, one will be at risk of turning into an idiot or descending into lunacy. It's great that you are able to raise your Soul Depth quickly through natural means, but without undergoing any tempering, it will be nigh impossible for you to reach Ancient Sage!" Wu Chen seemed to be really familiar with this matter.

Then again, considering that he was a Sempiternal realm cultivator just like Yang shi, it was likely that he had been seeking a way to push for a breakthrough to Ancient Sage all this while. It would not be surprising for him to be well-versed in such knowledge.

"I see!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

He had an Otherworldly Demon Ancient Sage corpse in his storage ring. While he had no idea how far he was away from Ancient Sage, he could roughly fathom how powerful Ancient Sages were.

Even after the Ancient Sage's death, the other party's body remained so heavy that he had difficulty trying to lift it up. At the same time, the imposing aura that the other party emanated made it difficult for his Primordial Spirit to approach initially. These facts served as glimpses into how powerful Ancient Sage cultivators truly were.

Even though it was just a realm of difference between Sempiternal realm and Ancient Sage, this fine line demarcated the difference between a mortal and a deity. Naturally, the prowess of the two could not even begin to compare to one another.

Zhang Xuan thought that the difference lay in the accumulation of power, but who would have thought that Soul Depth actually played an important role as well?

"That's not right..." A doubt swiftly arose in Zhang Xuan's mind, and he quickly posed it to Wu Chen. "The advancement of Soul Depth is a requirement imposed only on master teachers, right? Given so, it's unlikely for other cultivators to cultivate their Soul Depth. Since that's the case, how can they achieve a breakthrough to Ancient Sage?"

Soul Depth was a requirement for the rank advancement of master teachers, which was the reason master teachers emphasized it so heavily. Other cultivators would not feel any need to cultivate their Soul Depth, and if so, would they not be unable to reach Ancient Sage?

"Ordinary cultivators do place great importance on cultivating their state of mind. Take apothecaries for example. If they weren't in the right state of mind, the Tranquil Heart Pill they forged would be warped, thus transforming from a calming pill into lethal poison!" Wu Chen explained.

"The same goes for other occupations. If demonic tunists fail to cultivate their state of mind, how could they possibly conceptualize their intent through music to beguile their opponents? If formation masters neglect their state of mind, how would they be able to set up highly complex formations?"

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan fell silent.

He had faced something similar to this back when he was undergoing his 1-dan apothecary examination. Back then, there was an apothecary who had not reached Heart of Tranquil Water and thus lacked control over his emotions. He had attempted to forge Tranquil Heart Pills while his mind was not in a composed state, and the pills that he produced eventually turned out to be lethal poison that could kill the cultivators who unfortunately consumed them.

He could relate to how state of mind was important to a demonic tunist too. If he could not control his emotions, his music would only run amok. For example, during his demonic tunist examination at the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, he had needed to make the divine cranes dance along with his zither melody. However, if he had allowed his emotions to run wild, it was likely that he would have jolted them to death with his music instead.

Thinking about that, there were indeed no occupations in the world that demanded nothing of one's state of mind. It was just that none of them were as demanding as the master teacher occupation.

"Before Kong shi's era, the cultivation of Soul Depth was categorized under Will of Mind, and it was divided into many different levels. This is also where Heart of Tranquil Water, Lucid Mind, Unperturbed Spirit, Impervious Will, Impregnable Heart, Uninhibited Psyche, Incorruptible Soul, and the like come from..." Wu Chen continued on.

"However, Kong shi felt that such categorization is overly complex and hard to accurately gauge. Thus, he simplified the entire model through quantifying it with numbers, which gave rise to the Soul Depth that we are familiar with. The model has been adopted by the Master Teacher Pavilion, with every 3.0 points indicating a new tier. 1-star master teachers require a Soul Depth of 3.0, 2-star master teachers require a Soul Depth of 6.0, and so on. Going by this, 9-star master teachers require a Soul Depth of 27.0. The requirement on Soul Depth is much harsher than cultivation; those who haven't reached the required Soul Depth cannot be promoted, even under exceptional circumstances!"

Zhang Xuan nodded in realization.

Kong shi had simplified the 'Will of Mind' model into the 'Soul Depth' model, and the Master Teacher Pavilion had adopted the latter as one of its promotion criteria. On the other hand, the other occupations still persisted in using the 'Will of Mind' model, which worked fine as well since they did not require such a fine distinction.

Of course, just because the other occupations did not adopt the 'Soul Depth' model did not mean that they would not temper their state of mind.

While both models worked fine, there were still some advantages to quantifying 'state of mind' in the form of 'Soul Depth'. It would allow master teachers to constantly track their progress in cultivating their states of mind, thus encouraging them to adopt practices beneficial to advancing their Soul Depth. It was due to this that the Master Teacher Pavilion had become the leading expert in this field, and the other occupations struggled to catch up.

"I have been here once before, and if I recall correctly, there's a place just ahead that allows one to temper one's Soul Depth. It's known as the Heart Pavilion. There are cultivation techniques in there that allow one to reinforce one's state of mind, insights left behind by countless experts, and formations that temper one's state of mind. Why don't we head there to take a look? Since you have never tempered your state of mind before, you might be able to make considerable advancements through it!" Sword Saint Xing suddenly suggested.

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Chapter 1695: Surge in Soul Depth

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"Heart Pavilion?" Zhang Xuan nodded. "Let's head there to take a look!"

Since the Temple of Confucius had not opened yet, he had some time to spare. Given that the Heart Pavilion could help him temper his state of mind, there was no harm heading over to take a look.

All along, he had been dependent on fortuitous encounters in order to raise his Soul Depth. However, it would not do for him to be solely reliant on luck in tempering his state of mind. It would be great if he could acquire a feasible cultivation technique that would allow him to raise his Soul Depth.

After walking for a while, a building came into sight. Walking in, they were greeted by a middle-aged man.

"Greetings. Do you intend to temper your state of mind or examine it?"

"We wish to temper our state of mind," Zhang Xuan replied.

"This way please..." The middle-aged man gestured with a smile. "First and foremost, our Heart Pavilion doesn't accept spirit stones and other currencies. We only accept Saint pinnacle artifacts as payment. Every two hours inside will cost a Saint pinnacle artifact!"

"It sure is expensive..." Zhang Xuan was slightly taken aback by the price.

After all the scavenging that he had done, he had no lack of Saint pinnacle artifacts in his inventory. Nevertheless, it was still a price that most cultivators would struggle to fork out, including those from major clans.

Most Saint 9-dan cultivators would not even have a Saint pinnacle artifact, and yet, two hours in the Heart Pavilion would cost one such item.

"It can't be helped. It's extremely expensive to construct a formation and space that is safe yet challenging enough to temper one's state of mind, and maintaining it also costs a hefty sum," the middle-aged man replied.

"That's true, I suppose." Zhang Xuan nodded.

Most of the cultivators who had come to Qufu to temper their state of mind were 9-star master teachers, individuals who possessed Soul Depths of 27.0 and above. At their level, ordinary Illusory Formations and Beguilement Formations were already ineffective on them. In order to exert pressure on them, the highest quality formations and artifacts had to be used. Given so, it was inevitable for the cost to be on the pricier side.

"Here you go!" Zhang Xuan tossed over a Saint pinnacle weapon. "I would like to test the effects out for myself first. If it's effective, let's go in and cultivate together!"

Having plundered the military resources of 110,000 Otherworldly Demons, there were more than a thousand Saint pinnacle artifacts in his storage ring. Considering that he had no use for artifacts of that tier anymore, he had no issues spending them there.

The crowd nodded in response.

"This way please..." The middle-aged man swiftly led them into a vast hall.

Placed at the very center of the hall was a crystal ball. It revolved quietly above a stone platform, emanating a mesmerizing glow.

The walls around the hall were inscribed with insights and cultivation techniques that would raise one's Soul Depth.

"These are left behind by the experts who have been to the Heart Pavilion to temper their state of mind. We have tested them personally, and they are all highly effective in raising one's Soul Depth. However, please do take caution when reading through them. If you attempt to take in too much, they could end up hindering your state of mind instead. Use them prudently, and your Soul Depth will surely surge ahead," the middle-aged man said with a smile.

Cultivation techniques were valued not in quantity but quality.

Attempting to take in too much would only end up confusing one instead.

Every cultivator had their own path of cultivation to follow. The more they attempted to emulate the route of others, the further they would stray from their path. If a cultivator lost themself in the wisdom of others, not only would their growth slow down, their cultivation might even go berserk!

It was for this reason that the Master Teacher Pavilion discouraged individuals from studying too many cultivation techniques.

Of course, there were pros and cons to the matter.

If a cultivator successfully utilized the wisdom of others to further their own path, they would be able to reach a height far beyond their predecessors.

"When you are ready, just place your hand on the crystal ball ahead and focus your attention on your consciousness. The crystal ball will process the fluctuations in your state of mind. If you reach the limits of your tolerance at any point in time, we'll immediately terminate the formation so that you are not hurt!" the middle-aged man explained.

"I understand!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

He took two steps up to the crystal ball, but he did not rush to place his hand on it. Instead, he swept his gaze across the wall opposite of him.

Hu!

A new book materialized in the Library of Heaven's Path.

Placing his finger on the book, its content swiftly flowed into Zhang Xuan's mind. Slowly, his eyes lit up in excitement.

By compiling all of the cultivation techniques and insights detailed on the wall together, he had successfully compiled a Heaven's Path Heart Tempering Art.

While he had encountered numerous books relating to the tempering of one's state of mind in the past, he had never paid much attention to it. However, as he browsed through the content of the Heaven's Path Heart Tempering Art, he swiftly realized that raising one's Soul Depth was not easy. In terms of difficulty, it was much higher than raising one's cultivation, especially due to how elusive and intangible the entire field was.

The typical method to temper one's state of mind in the Master Teacher Continent was using Illusory Formations to put one's consciousness through various turmoil. Through overcoming those ordeals, one's state of mind would gradually grow steadier and more resilient.

However, this 'typical method' was both passive and indirect. It relied heavily on luck and circumstances. Even if one augmented the process with heart tempering cultivation techniques and artifacts, the rate of growth still would not be too remarkable.

Fortunately, the Heaven's Path Heart Tempering Art that Zhang Xuan had just compiled through the Library of Heaven's Path resolved this problem perfectly. It allowed him to cultivate his state of mind directly, just like his zhenqi and soul.

"Let me begin..." Zhang Xuan quickly went through the heart tempering cultivation technique in his mind before placing his hand on the crystal ball.

Weng!

A shimmer of light shrouded the crystal ball as numbers surfaced on it—29.1.

Just as Zhang Xuan had calculated, his Soul Depth had already reached a level equivalent to 9-star pinnacle master teachers.

"He's... a 9-star master teacher?" The middle-aged man recoiled in shock.

He had thought that given how young Zhang Xuan was, his Soul Depth would surely be the lowest among the group. Most likely, that was why he had gone there to temper his state of mind. Yet, who would have thought... 29.1! Even if he looked at the whole of Qufu, it was unlikely that there would be too many master teachers who could match him.

"Un." Seeing the middle-aged man's shocked expression, Sword Saint Meng nodded proudly. "Is there anyone who has encountered sudden bouts of inspiration while tempering their state of mind here?"

"There is! Many years ago, Yang shi visited our Heart Pavilion, and his Soul Depth was at 28.2 when he first tested it. In the midst of tempering his state of mind, an epiphany suddenly struck him, and his Soul Depth shot up by 0.2, reaching 28.4. That matter has become a legend of our Heart Pavilion!" the middle-aged man said.

The difficulty in raising one's Soul Depth grew exponentially difficult the higher one's Soul Depth was. Beyond 27.0, every increment of 0.1 would usually require many years of hard work. It was indubitably a remarkable feat for Yang shi to have advanced his Soul Depth by 0.2 in less than two hours. Very few would be able to emulate his success.

"Yang shi is indeed formidable... Do you have any rank board or the sort here? What is the fastest rate that a master teacher has raised his Soul depth?" Sword Saint Meng continued asking.

"We do have something similar to that. The current record holder for the fastest increment in Soul Depth is held by an 8-star master teacher. His Soul Depth was 24.7 when he first arrived, and when he tested it two hours later, it had already reached 25.7. That was an increment of a whole 1.0! But of course, it's hard to compare this with Yang shi's feat. After all, the higher one's Soul Depth is, the more difficult it is to raise it!" the middle-aged man said.

Raising one's Soul Depth was similar to building a narrow tower. The bottom layer was always easier to build, but after reaching a certain height, the difficulty would suddenly skyrocket.

"Dear, are you thinking that our Xuan-er will be able to break the record?" Sword Saint Xing asked.

It was not too difficult for him to follow his wife's train of thought.

"My son is a prodigy. Isn't it normal for him to break records?" Sword Saint Meng replied matter-of-factly.

"I think you have too much confidence in our son! Tempering one's Soul Depth is different from raising one's cultivation. There's no way to force the matter..." Sword Saint Xing shook his head.

Raising one's Soul Depth was not as easy as taking in spiritual energy and converting it into one's strength. It was a far more complicated process, and it was highly dependent on luck. Even though his son was a prodigy, there were some things in life that talent simply could not influence!

"Look over there!"

Before Sword Saint Xing could finish his words, a shrill voice sounded. Sword Saint Xing immediately turned his gaze over, and on the crystal ball, he saw the number '29.1' flickering and turning into '29.2', '29.3', '29.4'...

"This..." Sword Saint Xing was flabbergasted.

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Chapter 1696: Soul Depth of 29.9

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Not only was Sword Saint Xing stupefied by what he was seeing, even the middle-aged man was standing petrified on the spot. It looked as if he had just seen a ghost!

Complete silence loomed in the air.

It was just a moment ago that they had been praising Yang shi for raising his Soul Depth by 0.2 so swiftly, but that was the result of a sudden epiphany, and it had taken him two whole hours in order to do so. On the other hand... to jump up by 0.1 every ten seconds, how in the world was the young man doing it?

Even 1-star master teachers with Soul Depths of 3.0 would not be able to do it so swiftly!

"Could the crystal ball be spoiled?" the middle-aged man muttered as he hurried forward to check on the artifact.

However, the crystal ball was completely intact. There was not the slightest trace of damage that could be seen on it.

If the crystal ball was not faulty, it meant that the changes had come from the young man himself, but was such a matter humanly possible?

Wu Chen's eyebrows danced frenziedly around the place, and he looked as if he was about to lose his mind.

This was not cultivation but Soul Depth that they were talking about, and the other party's Soul Depth was beyond 29.0 at that! To be increasing 0.1 every ten seconds...

"He has a strong foundation for his state of mind, having cultivated every realm of his Will of Mind impeccably. This has made his state of mind incomparably wholesome. As a result, he faces little impediment in the advancement of his Soul Depth, thus allowing him to raise it swiftly!" Luo Ruoxin placed her hands behind her back as she calmly explained the situation.

There was not the slightest hint of surprise on her face, as if she had expected such a matter to happen.

As a Celestial Master Teacher, Zhang Xuan had a strong foundation for his state of mind. Using the tower analogy once more, if the lower blocks were laid impeccably, it would be much easier to build the top layers.

"Strong foundation..."

Coming to realize what was going on, bitter smiles appeared on the faces of the crowd.

This was especially so for Sword Saint Xing. He was so embarrassed that he could have found a hole to bury himself in!

He had been thinking that his son's state of mind would be lagging behind due to him advancing his cultivation too quickly. However, this matter had told him loud and clear that his son's cultivation was not fast at all... On the contrary, his cultivation was having difficulty keeping up with his state of mind!

Since he had already met the necessary requirements to push for a breakthrough in his cultivation, what was the point of him remaining stationary on the spot?

Before everyone's shocked gazes, the number on the crystal ball finally came to a halt.

29.9!

Exhaling deeply, Zhang Xuan retracted his palm from the crystal ball and shook his head. "This seems to be my limit!"

Cultivating the Heaven's Path Heart Tempering Art, he had indeed been able to advance his Soul Depth swiftly at the start. However, as soon as it struck 29.9, he realized that he was unable to raise his Soul depth any higher. It was if there was a massive barrier standing ahead of him, obstructing his path forward.

No matter how hard he tried to push through it, the barrier simply would not falter. He swiftly realized that it was impossible for him to break the barrier with his current strength.

Watching as Zhang Xuan walked back in his direction, the middle-aged man's eyes were widened as though large bells. "Just like that... you are already done cultivating?"

Normal cultivators would find even ten hours too short for their cultivation, but this fellow had actually reached his bottleneck within just two minutes.

"Un. I just paid for two hours straight, so we should still have some time left. Do any of you want to give it a try?" Zhang Xuan asked as he turned to the crowd.

"I'll give it a try!" Sword Saint Meng said.

She still had a gleeful smile on her face, overjoyed by her son's incredible feat.

"Give me a moment. I had an epiphany after browsing through the cultivation techniques inscribed on the walls, so I created one of my own. Allow me to impart it to you!" Zhang Xuan said.

"You created a new cultivation technique?" Even Sword Saint Meng could not help but be startled by what she had just heard.

It hasn't even been three minutes from the moment we entered the room till now, but not only have you raised your Soul Depth by 0.8, you even managed to create a cultivation technique?

"Indeed!" Zhang Xuan nodded, not bothering to explain the matter any further.

With a tap of his finger, a sliver of his will dived into Sword Saint Meng's consciousness.

Swiftly going through the knowledge that had just been imprinted into her mind, Sword Saint Meng's body stiffened in shock.

As an Intuitive Impulse realm expert, she had her own heart tempering cultivation technique to reinforce her state of mind. However, when she looked at the heart tempering cultivation technique that her son had sent over, she realized that what she had cultivated previously was no different from trash!

She quickly internalized the heart tempering cultivation technique that she had just received, and it did not take long for her to fully grasp it.

"Let me give it a try!" Taking a deep breath, Sword Saint Meng walked up to the crystal ball and placed her palm on it.

Weng!

Numbers surfaced on the crystal ball—27.3.

She was a powerful cultivator, and her swordsmanship was nothing short of impressive. However, her Soul Depth had stagnated shortly after she reached the mark required to become a 9-star master teacher.

Feeling the pressure coming from the crystal ball, Sword Saint Meng closed her eyes and began to drive the heart tempering cultivation technique that her son had imparted to her.

Kacha!

The numbers on the crystal ball flickered—27.4.

A minute later, 27.5.

Yet another minute later, 27.6...

It swiftly formed a fixed pattern, similar to what had happened in Zhang Xuan's case. The only difference was that Zhang Xuan's increment had happened once every ten seconds whereas Sword Saint Meng's came once every minute.

"..."

Sword Saint Xing widened his eyes in horror once more.

If there was anyone in the world who knew Sword Saint Meng the best, it was none other than him.

His wife had a fiery temper and fidgety demeanor, which made it extremely difficult for her to raise her Soul Depth. He had to search for all sorts of treasures that were beneficial to raising one's Soul Depth, and in order to cater to his restless wife, he had even designed a collaborative swordsmanship for the two of them to practice together just to temper her state of mind. Even so, it had taken a very long time before her Soul Depth reached 27.3.

And after that, it had simply stagnated there. For many years, it had not even moved a single inch.

But at that very moment, it was increasing by 0.1 every minute...

Sword Saint Xing quickly turned to his son and said, "Your heart tempering cultivation technique..."

Without a doubt, this miracle definitely had something to do with the cultivation technique that his son had imparted to his wife.

"Here you go. You can give it a try afterward!" Knowing what Sword Saint Xing was thinking of, Zhang Xuan chuckled softly as he tapped his finger and imparted the simplified version of the Heaven's Path Heart Tempering Art to him as well.

Sword Saint Xing swiftly browsed through it, and a moment later, he fell into a daze.

It was no wonder his wife was able to raise her Soul Depth so quickly! This heart tempering cultivation technique was truly out of that world!

The predecessors of the Zhang Clan had created innumerable cultivation techniques in order to temper their Soul Depth and overcome their limitations, but none of them came close to competing with the heart tempering cultivation technique that had just been imparted to him.

The more I look at him, the more I find myself unable to see through him... Sword Saint Xing shot a glance at his son and sighed deeply.

He knew that his son had many secrets, and he had thought that he would come to learn of them as they spent more time together. However, the closer they became to one another, the more mysterious his son became to him.

It was as if his son was the embodiment of omniscience. Any cultivation technique, even the most elementary ones, when placed in his hand, would showcase extraordinary effects, transforming into invaluable treasures that the world would die to lay their hands upon.

Legend has it that Kong shi wielded such an ability too. Could it be that my son is going to become an expert on par with Kong shi? Sword Saint Xing trembled in agitation at the thought.

According to the legends, Kong shi had possessed the ability to understand anything that he laid his eyes upon and master any craft in a moment's time. That was actually similar to what his son was able to do. Was his son really going to reach a level comparable to Kong shi?

Just the thought of it filled him with anticipation for the future.

"Come over. I have already reached my bottleneck, and I don't think I can go any further than this..."

While Sword Saint Xing was still deep in thought, his wife spoke. He quickly turned his gaze over and saw the number '29.9' on the crystal ball. Within such a short period of time, his wife's Soul Depth had actually increased by 2.6, reaching 29.9, the very limits of a 9-star master teacher!

"29.9 is the limit of a Great Sage. If you take another step forward, it will mean that your Soul Depth has reached a level comparable to Ancient Sages!" Wu Chen explained.

Achieving a breakthrough from 29.9 means that my Soul Depth has reached a level comparable to Ancient Sages? Zhang Xuan fell into deep thought.

I'm unable to advance my zhenqi or soul cultivation any further at the moment, but I do have a golden page on hand. If I use it, will I be able to raise my Soul Depth by another 5.0, thus reaching a level comparable to Ancient Sages?

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