"What did you say?"
Li Sheng was clearly taken aback.
At the same time, within the layered Mirror Moon sword qi, an even more violent blaze suddenly erupted. The white-robed figure that had been trapped inside abruptly broke free and, in the space of a fleeting instant, arrived right in front of the old man.
Myriad Beast Fierce Flame!
"Another kind of True Force?"
Li Sheng frowned, surprise flashing through his pupils. Then he drove the Mirror Moon Sword Art even more fiercely, murderous intent rolling skyward like a tide.
Countless sharp mirrored surfaces sliced toward the white robe from every direction, every move aimed to kill, every stance pressing forward with lethal force.
The pinnacle of the sword path, the summit of spellcraft!
Yet amidst that dazzling torrent of Mirror Moon sword qi, that silver dragon moved with perfect ease, always dismantling the attacks at precisely the right moment.
No matter how much mana Li Sheng used, no matter what trump card technique he brought out, he simply had no way to break through the other side's spearmanship.
There was a kind of—deep powerlessness!
The other side seemed to be defending, yet every move was also laden with killing intent. If not for Li Sheng's realm being higher than the other man's, he likely would not have been a match at all.
Why?!
Li Sheng found it unbelievable.
His title as Northern Yang Dao's number 1 sword cultivator was not self-proclaimed, but won in arena battles.
His swordsmanship was no empty boast either. Many years ago, he had specifically tested himself against martial cultivators, fighting his way through battle after battle!
Even so, was he still that far inferior in front of this young man? Why?!
Crack—
The sounds of Mirror Moon sword qi shattering rang out without end, while the flames on the silver dragon changed yet again.
From their original orange-yellow color, with savage beasts racing across the surface, they transformed into a ghostly green. Twisted faces lurked within the fire, like ranks of underworld soldiers marching forth, and the spear technique likewise shifted from savage ferocity into eerie unpredictability.
Ever-changing, balanced in both offense and defense!
Before he knew it, fine beads of sweat had already covered Li Sheng's forehead. The confidence he had at the start had long vanished, leaving only one thought in his heart—how to escape!
The Netherworld ghost fire grew ever more vigorous, to the point that even the Mirror Moon sword qi was dyed ghostly green, as if the whole sky were filled with flames and all the heavens were packed with spear radiance.
The technique originally meant to confuse the enemy had, at this very moment, made even Li Sheng himself somewhat unable to distinguish truth from falsehood.
Flowers in the Mirror, Moon in the Water!
He suddenly raised his hand. The mirror-like long sword in his grip spun out sword flowers in rapid succession, and layers upon layers of mirror sword qi, each over 1 zhang long and as thick as an embrace, stacked atop one another, forming walls like dressing mirrors that trapped the white-robed figure inside.
On every mirror was Li Sheng's figure, like countless clones, so densely packed their true number could not be counted, surrounding the enemy so tightly that not a drop of water could pass through. Every figure performed the same move, raising its sword and thrusting at the enemy trapped in the center.
Of the 36 sword qi strands, 35 were illusions. Only one sword qi in a certain corner was the true killing blow.
After sending out this trump-card sword move, Li Sheng was already prepared—either to press the advantage or to withdraw from the battlefield.
Yet what he never expected was that the other side did not act according to his plan and search for the real sword qi hidden among the 36 strands. Instead, the silver dragon coiled once and, in a single instant, swept out 36 spear radiances, each one corresponding to one sword qi strand. It was like a divine dragon descending from the heavens, covering the sky and blotting out the sun!
Crack crack—
The sound of glass shattering rang out. The sword in Li Sheng's hand trembled nonstop, and his entire arm went numb. He understood that he had already been defeated.
The conviction in his heart collapsed with a crash, replaced only by the instinct to survive.
He turned to flee, only to discover that at some unknown point all the sword qi had been completely destroyed. Within all the mirrors, only overwhelming spear radiance remained, which had instead surrounded him from all sides!
"What remarkable comprehension!"
Li Sheng praised him from the bottom of his heart. "Just from crossing hands with this old man, you were able to steal this move, 'Flowers in the Mirror, Moon in the Water,' and even convert it into a spear technique. This kind of martial talent is truly extraordinary!
"However—
"this old man has bitterly trained for 60 years. How could I fail to see through my own path?!
"Break!"
With a sweep of his sleeve, the Mystic Mirror Flying Sword slashed out a heaven-splitting strike toward the northwest.
"This is the real one!"
Boom!
The Mystic Mirror Flying Sword collided with the Dragon Gall spear radiance, producing a deafening hum as the two canceled each other out.
"Just as I thought!"
Li Sheng shot toward the opening ahead at top speed, inwardly pleased that he had seen through the illusion. Then he suddenly felt waves of killing intent wash over him. His spine turned icy cold, and every hair on his body stood on end.
He looked up and saw that the remaining 35 spear radiances had not vanished at all, but were instead blasting toward his face from every direction.
At once, Li Sheng was horrified, because the 36 spear radiances the other side had unleashed in a single instant were—all real!
This was a killing move far beyond Flowers in the Mirror, Moon in the Water!
How was that possible?!
He had learned it on the spot, then used it immediately, and even surpassed the original?
Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz!
Li Sheng immediately let out a furious roar, summoning every defensive magic artifact on his body to shield himself while desperately swinging the Mystic Mirror Flying Sword to fend off the spear radiance.
In the midst of his frantic struggle, he saw that white-robed figure again.
Only now, did Li Sheng finally come to a sudden realization.
From the very start of their clash, it seemed he had never truly seen the other man at all—he had only been dazzled into continuously receiving attacks!
This was a difference in pure martial skill!
Li Sheng's heart turned to ashes.
In his eyes, he had no way to clearly see the opponent's opening stance. All he saw was the white-robed figure thrusting out another spear, the flames on the spearhead once again transforming into towering flames stretching tens of thousands of feet high, carrying incomparably violent and majestic True Force, completely blanketing heaven and earth, like a colossal flaming dragon devouring everything in its path!
There was no scream, no pain. Even the blood that should have spilled out was instantly vaporized beneath the blazing flames.
The entire body of the Li family's old ancestor turned to ash, completely dispersing amid the steam filling the sky, merging into heaven and earth!
"Mirror Moon Sword Art."
Chen Sanshi put away his spear, feeling it was somewhat interesting. It was just a pity that the person using the sword art was not good enough.
He had already more or less grasped its essential principles. After returning, with a few slight modifications, he would be able to create a complete cultivation method from it.
After comprehending the Extreme Dao Divine Ability, the current Chen Sanshi could now understand most martial arts with a single glance, learn them as soon as he saw them, and infer countless related principles from one example.
He could even create "martial arts" below the realm he had pioneered himself. As for creating a breathing method from scratch, he had not tried that yet for the time being.
After dealing with Li Sheng, Chen Sanshi did not waste any time. Using the Qi Observation Technique, he swept his gaze around, searching among the many cultivators for those with relatively higher realms.
In the end, he headed straight for Shengyun Sect's Peng Rui not far away.
"Damn it!"
Already wounded to begin with, how could Peng Rui dare take another move after witnessing Li Sheng's death?!
That mortal emperor had actually become capable of easily handling a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. If this went on, would Eastern Divine Continent not eventually produce a Golden Core cultivator?!
Once they had a Golden Core, then even in the cultivation world, they could be counted as a sect.
He summoned a flying puppet and tried to flee, but even his escape technique was slower than Chen Sanshi's. He was caught up to with ease, and then immediately lost consciousness...
After killing Peng Rui, Chen Sanshi rode Qianxun and continued seeking his next target. From high realm to low, wherever he passed, heads fell to the ground!
"Li Sheng is dead!"
"Why do you still refuse to submit to execution?!"
"..."
The tide of battle quickly became one-sided. The Heavenly Assault Army went on a slaughtering spree, while the cultivators, trapped inside the encirclement, could do nothing but await extermination!
This scene was also taken in by the ordinary rogue cultivators living in Daze Market.
"So this is the court from Eastern Divine Continent?!"
"Wasn't that place supposed to be barren? How did they end up fighting their way into Heavenly Water Isle?"
Chen Sanshi swept over their heads and advanced through the battlefield as though entering an unguarded land, heading straight to the summit of Daze Main Peak.
Just at that moment, brilliant golden light shot into the sky again. The Demon-Destroying Grand Formation slowly turned, causing the crack attached to Eastern Divine Continent more than 10,000 feet above to grow even larger.
The seal was loosening, and it would happen within the next few days!
Fortunately, he had arrived in time!
Chen Sanshi immediately began destroying the formation. After ruining the spirit stones and the formation eye, the already damaged flying sword at the core instantly shot uncontrollably into the sky and vanished from sight.
Immediately afterward, the crack on the surface of the seal also became fainter and fainter, declaring that this crisis had been properly resolved.
"Finish this quickly!"
Chen Sanshi gave the order, then charged back into the battlefield once more.
In less than 1 hour, the cultivator force responsible for defending Daze Main Peak had been annihilated to the last man!
Wang Zhi led a group of men into the Li family's residence, clearing out the stragglers while confiscating vast amounts of spoils.
"Your Majesty!"
Zhao Kang came to report, "The area around Daze Market has already been taken, but scouts say demonic cultivators are now carrying out blood sacrifices all over Northern Yang Dao. Living beings are perishing everywhere. Does Your Majesty wish to sweep them clean?"
"Let the horses trample Northern Yang,"
Chen Sanshi ordered at once.
It was not as if he had only just learned of the demonic cultivators.
Over these past years, demonic cultivator activity in Northern Yang Dao had been extremely frequent.
It was only that at the time, his status made it inconvenient for him to act, and he had no especially good way to deal with it.
But now that the blood sacrifices had begun, those people had all jumped out on their own. It was the perfect chance to wipe them all out in one net.
"Command received!"
Zhao Kang immediately mounted a Dunhu and led away the remaining half of the troops.
The ordinary commoners who had originally been slaughtered with no one caring, in the depths of despair, saw heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals descend.
They bore the banner of the Great Han, carried rolling thunder with them, swept away evil, and flattened the demonic cultivators.
On this day, the prestige of the Great Han spread into Heavenly Water Isle for the first time.
The mortals came to learn that in this great world, there existed an imperial court that would care whether they lived or died.
The National Fortune Profound Qi within the Mystic Pearl increased once again.
The whole battle looked bloody and brutal, but in truth, the fighting itself lasted less than 2 hours.
Even counting the later trampling of Northern Yang, it took only a single day in total. It could truly be said that speed was elevated to the utmost extreme in warfare.
After cleaning up the battlefield, the Heavenly Assault Army returned to Heavenly Water Isle through Daze Market's teleportation array.
"Brother Deng!"
Before departing, Chen Sanshi brought Qu Lingchuan to Little Bamboo Peak and said, "Miss Zinan, once this battle is over, my Great Han will be kept safe and sound. The two of you may reconsider whether you wish to join my Great Han. Oh, and my earlier promise still stands."
"I'm in."
Deng Wuchang agreed readily. "Then this subject pays his respects to Your Majesty."
After careful consideration, Zinan also bowed and said, "Now that Daze Market has been destroyed, this little woman no longer has any better place to go. I am willing to submit to His Majesty, the Tianwu Emperor."
"Good. My Great Han has gained two more capable aides."
Chen Sanshi summoned his mount. "This place is not suitable to stay in for long. The two of you should return to Shenzhou with me first."
The main purpose of this journey had been to destroy the Demon-Destroying Grand Formation.
Only after the formation had been destroyed did he dare spare the time to deal with the demonic cultivators within Northern Yang Dao, because he was not sure when that Golden Core cultivator might return.
1,000 miles away.
"Rumble—"
After another exchange, Shouzhongzi finally found an opportunity to shake off the dragon puppet. He then rushed back to Northern Yang Dao as fast as possible, only to see the Daze Market in ruins and the abandoned Demon-Destroying Grand Formation.
"So it really was like this."
Shouzhongzi let out a long sigh.
"Old thing, die—"
Cao Dongjun chased after him with the dragon puppet, but upon seeing this scene, he too froze. "Th-this was done by the Han court?!"
Only at this moment did he realize that he had been used as a knife by someone else!
"Where is the Living Earth?!"
Cao Dongjun said tensely, "Could it really not be in your hands?"
Shouzhongzi merely shook his head.
"Could it be..."
Cao Dongjun muttered to himself in humiliation and rage, "That the Imperial Heaven Living Earth also fell into Chen Lei's hands?!
"Damn it!
"Thieving bastard surnamed Chen!
"Ah!"
A scheme plotted over many years had ended up making wedding clothes for someone else. How could he not be furious?
"Imperial Heaven Living Earth?"
Shouzhongzi showed slight surprise. "So it was the Imperial Heaven Living Earth, one of the two great Living Earth. No wonder such auspicious phenomena appeared after it emerged into the world. Heh, you fiends almost succeeded."
He knew very well what consequences the emergence of Living Earth would bring.
He believed that it would not take long for the news to spread through the 36 Immortal Sects, and that a great number of high-realm cultivators would surely come rushing to Northern Yang Dao.
In a certain sense, the importance of the Living Earth was not much less than that of the ancestral vein. Moreover, the ancestral vein was difficult to monopolize, while the Imperial Heaven Living Earth could help nurture true immortals.
"Old thing, I'll spare your life for today!"
Cao Dongjun did not dare linger. He immediately rode his flying boat toward the border of Heavenly Water Isle and soon vanished without a trace.
Shouzhongzi, meanwhile, remained seated cross-legged on the mountaintop, adjusting his breathing and recuperating. He knew in his heart that after causing such enormous chaos, even a Golden Core cultivator like himself would likely be held accountable from all sides.
Great Han, Chang'an.
Tianyong City.
After everyone withdrew back to Shenzhou, the Heavenly Assault Army conducted its final tally.
"Reporting to Your Majesty!
"In this campaign into Heavenly Water, we killed a total of 421 cultivators, while more than 2,000 of our brothers fell in battle.
"We also seized countless spirit stones and magic artifacts!"
Under the augmentation of national fortune, it was effectively possible for every 5 mortal soldiers to kill 1 Qi Refining early-stage cultivator.
Although the number of casualties was still great, it had already truly proven that mortals need not fear cultivators.
"Take the brothers and rest first. After I finish handling miscellaneous matters, I will naturally reward merit accordingly."
Chen Sanshi dismissed those around him.
The only one left in the hall was the Bai family's current head, Bai Linxun.
He imitated the salute of a Great Han official, then took a scroll from his robe and raised his voice. "Your Majesty! The Imperial Heaven Living Earth is here. Please graciously accept it, Your Majesty!"
Chen Sanshi took the scroll and probed inside it with his divine sense. He could then see, within the void, a seven-colored auspicious cloud floating there.
This scroll was a tool made specifically to contain the Living Earth.