Forty millenniums of cul.., p.951
Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 951
"Well said!" Ba Xiaoyu clapped his hands and said, "I've been too much about the behavior of the swine-like Cultivators! Old Qi, if we truly inform them of the existence of the Divine Palace, believe me, just for the map inside Fellow Cultivator Spiritual Vulture's head, they will blow each other's brains out. When the journey to explore the Divine Palace really begins, the dirty traps and tricks on the way will be even greater eye-openers for everybody!"
"Fellow Cultivator Qi is a man of manners." Master Bitter Cicada also sighed and said, "It's a shame that few Cultivators are as mannered as Fellow Cultivator Qi. Have you not been educated in the trip to the southeast, Fellow Cultivator Qi?"
Qi Zhongdao listened in silence. There was no emotion on his face, which seemed to be forged out of iron. After a long time, he said slowly, "Since we share a pessimistic view about the Cultivation sects in the world, and it is a mandate that we cooperate with a certain powerful force… what about the emperor?"
Everybody was dazed by what he said.
"Huh?" Ba Xiaoyu the Beggar bulged his eyes and eyed Qi Zhongdao up and down as if he had never seen the guy before. "Cooperating with the emperor? What a surprise. I remember that you have always led all the major sects in competition with the court, Old Qi. Rumor even has it that the old emperor kicked the bucket because he was too mad at you!"
"Wrong!" Qi Zhongdao replied. "Everything I did was meant to keep the stability of the world! The Cultivation sects and the court are like two legs of a person that can only walk steadily if they are equally strong! It will do nobody any good if one of the legs is too long or too thick!
"When Wang Xi was in power in the past, he established the Ghost Character and instigated conflicts among the major sects through his diplomatic tricks. As a result, all the Cultivation Sects were living in anxiety and even attacking each other. So, when the leg that was the 'court' was too thick, I led the main sects to check and balance the emperor and Wang Xi's power!
"Then and now are different. Now, Wang Xi has lost his power, and the new emperor is new to the throne. Despite his ambitions to revive the Great Qian Dynasty, his foundation is still relatively weak. As a result, the leg named 'Cultivation sects' is expanding rapidly! You have witnessed everything during our trip of disaster relief to the southeast. If things go unchanged, the country will be no more!"
Qi Zhongdao raised his voice. Excitement beamed out of his dark face that was as tough as iron, as if a solid mask had been shattered with furious flames flowing out of the cracks!
"Right now, the world is about to be embraced by chaos, and every Cultivator may face their inevitable doom soon!
"However, the avaricious, shortsighted elders and leaders of the Cultivation sects are still minding only their selfish interests and fighting each other! Just as Fellow Cultivator Spiritual Vulture said, they are as ravenous as dogs and as stupid as swine. They are better destructors than constructors!
"If they continue messing around, a great war will break out before long. Then, the world of Cultivators will become a dog-eat-dog hell!
"We already realized that during our meeting below Roaring Tiger City the other day.
"However, despite our physical strength and our seemingly fancy titles, we are incapable of changing anything. We can only watch the world of Cultivators sliding into the abyss. After another few steps, everybody will fall and crash into pieces!
"That day, didn't we sigh over the fact that even the super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators invincible in the world were still unable to change the dirty and chaotic world?
"This is a great opportunity for us to reorganize the Cultivators and purge the world!
"As long as we excavate the secrets in the Divine Palace and receive the legacies of the primeval creatures, and preferably, if we each have a Cloud Qin Gold Statue, the entire world of Cultivators will run according to the will and rules of the five of us. Won't it be a hundred times better than the mess right now?
"There will, of course, be unnoticed problems to cooperate with the proud, ambitious Emperor Phoenix. That's all the more reason for the five of us to be united!
"As long as the five of us reach a consensus and stay fully united, the emperor, the Four Rapscallions, and the rogue Cultivation sects will all be suppressed by our will!"
Qi Zhongdao's astonishing declaration cast the other four super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators into a long silence. White mist was popping up from everyone's forehead, a sign indicating that their computational ability had been boosted to the maximum.
After a long while, Master Bitter Cicada recited the sutras briefly and said, "The vast changes in the world are too overwhelming for a monk to grasp and predict. However, I'm told that the new emperor has indeed accomplished several impressive things in the Divine Capital since he ascended to the throne a year ago. He pays great attention to the happiness of the people, too. Although his style is still a bit immature, he is already showing the demeanor of a wise monarch. If the court can stabilize the situation and protect the people from the harm of blades, it will be a blessing for everyone."
Ba Xiaoyu also craned his neck to study the relative location of the Great Qian Dynasty, the Dark Cloud Prairies, and the Land of Eternal Night. Scratching his stinky hair, he said, "I don't know much about battles. However, by common sense, if we intend not to be blocked and harassed by a large batch of enemies, we will have to strengthen the attacks on Ghost Qin from the south and stall the enemy's elite forces there. The Cultivators that are just loose sand can never achieve that purpose. Only the army of the court will be able to do that!
"Few troops in the court are brave enough for battles today. The elites are all under Emperor Phoenix's control. If we want our trip to be a success, the emperor seems to be our only possible partner."
"The emperor is not a dead person." Yan Liren was studying the stripes on the sheath of his sword with his full attention. He casually mumbled, "For such a huge operation to explore the Divine Palace, do you think that the emperor will not know it even if we don't tell him?"
The few of them did not seem to object to the cooperation with Emperor Phoenix.
After all, they did not lust for power at all, and there was no fundamental contradiction between them and the emperor.
Li Yao, however, stared at Qi Zhongdao for a long time before he said something that was beyond everyone's expectation.
"Fellow Cultivator Qi, you have long been in touch with Emperor Phoenix, and this isn't the first day that you've wanted to join your hands to deal with the Cultivators, right?"
Chapter 1463: Union of the Five Super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators! |
After hearing that, Yan Liren, Ba Xiaoyu, and Master Bitter Cicada all looked at Qi Zhongdao in bewilderment.
After all, Qi Zhongdao, the nominal 'leader of all the Cultivators', had always firmly stood on the Cultivators' side to check and balance the court's force. One might even say that he was the representative of all the Cultivators!
"With the assistance of Wang Xi," Li Yao said, "the late emperor almost suppressed the entire world of Cultivators, but it raised the intense dissatisfaction among the main sects. After Emperor Phoenix ascended to the throne, perhaps under the pressure of the Cultivation sects or perhaps because he did not trust Wang Xi, he deprived Wang Xi of all his power overnight!
"However, just because Emperor Phoenix banished Wang Xi does not mean that he will bend to the Cultivators. On the contrary, he might want to raise his own Wang Xi to keep the Cultivators in check. With the Great Qian Dynasty in peril right now, he does not have much time for his reorganization. It is impossible for him to bring up a trusted subordinate from nothing. Fellow Cultivator Qi is his best candidate. He is Emperor Phoenix's 'Wang Xi'!"
"Is it true?" Ba Xiaoyu could not help but ask, "Old Qi, did the emperor really turn to you?"
Qi Zhongdao was emotionless, but the veins on the back of his hand were suddenly rising. He stared at Li Yao and replied one word after another, "I am a man of integrity, and I don't have any clandestine secrets that I cannot share with other people. It is true that the emperor has reached out to me, proposing to purge the smoky world of Cultivators through thunderous approaches in order to restore the peace and order!"
"Did you agree, Fellow Cultivator Qi?" Master Bitter Cicada asked.
"I didn't." The brilliance in Qi Zhongdao's eyes dimmed. He said in a low voice, "I am the grand leader of the Grand Mystery Sect and a member of the world of Cultivators after all. I believed that as long as every Cultivator abides by the rules and bears the big picture in mind, we can restore the former vigor and prosperity on our own. So, I was reluctant to allow the emperor to meddle with the internal affairs of the main sects."
"It's a pity that the main sects' doings during the trip to the southeast have completely disappointed Fellow Cultivator Qi," Li Yao added for him. "Your blood is cold, and your heart is dead. You've realized that it is impossible to cleanse the dust, smoke, and scoundrels with just the strength of the Cultivators. It's just like a man who is mired in a swamp. If there is no external force to help him, he will only fall deeper and deeper until he is doomed! Only by cooperating with Emperor Phoenix and relying on the force of the court can we expect to revolutionize the world of Cultivators!"
Qi Zhongdao's eyes were frozen for a while, as if he was unwilling to admit the pathetic fact. Sighing gloomily, he said, "There's another reason why I didn't agree at that time. At that time, I was all by myself, and I did not have any chips to bargain with the emperor. Even if I agreed, I would only be his chess piece and his lackey. Moreover, I didn't believe that Emperor Phoenix had the capabilities to suppress the main sects. If the contradiction between the two parties intensified and a civil war of the Great Qian Dynasty was caused, then I would be forever blamed in the history books!
"However, your participation and the news regarding the Divine Palace have given me a new glimpse of hope!
"As long as the five of us are united, we will be a force that can shake the world, and we will have enough bargaining chips whether we are faced with the emperor or the main sects!
"If we can control the Cloud Qin Gold Statues in the Divine Palace, we will be able to purge the world of Cultivators with our invincible strength and bring new rules to the main sects and even the entire world. I can assure you, fellow Cultivators, that the rules will certainly be bright and justified!
"This is my lifelong dream. What do you think, fellow Cultivators?"
Like black nails, Qi Zhongdao's words pierced into everyone's heart deeply.
Master Bitter Cicada sighed and said, "I wish for nothing but the peace and happiness of all the ordinary folks in the world. If I have to pay a visit to the freezing hell in the Land of Eternal Night in order to achieve that, why not?"
Ba Xiaoyu spat on the ground heavily and clapped his hands in laughter. "This beggar has long been pissed off by the pretentious, shameless Cultivators of the main sects. Cooperating with the emperor does not look like a bad idea if it can teach them to behave!"
"To reiterate what I said," Li Yao said, "as long as everything related to the arts of refining inside the Divine Palace are given to me to study, it doesn't matter who we cooperate with!"
"What about you, Fellow Cultivator Yan?"
Qi Zhongdao shifted his eyes to Yan Liren.
Yan Liren was an elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect. Of the five Cultivators, he and Qi Zhongdao were most involved with the Cultivation sects.
Yan Liren was still studying the stripes on the sheath of his sword, as if he was decided their influence on the weight of the sheath. Without bothering to raise his head, he replied, "The Purple Pole Sword Sect or Emperor Phoenix matter little to me. You can fight however you want. There's only one thing that I care about, which is whether or not there is an opponent who is worthy of me drawing my sword in the Divine Palace!"
He suddenly raised his head, with brilliance of interest beaming out of his eyes. He mumbled, "Has it ever occurred to you that the Divine Palace is very close to the battlefield of the fight between Wu Suiyun and Meng Chixin, the two Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators?
"At that time, Wu Suiyun and Meng Chixin had their confrontation in the Land of Eternal Night. It is said that they countered an unprecedented blizzard in the middle of their fight. The cold front was so fierce that even the air froze! After the blizzard was over, the two Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators had already vanished!
"Do you think that Wu Suiyun and Meng Chixin might be related to the so-called 'Divine Palace' in a mysterious way?"
The question cast the four of them in a daze. They looked at each other in bewilderment and apparently could not offer an answer.
"Heh!" Yan Liren suddenly grew interested. He extended his thick and short fingers and flicked the sheath hard. "During the journey to explore the Divine Palace, it is possible that I will encounter the Four Rapscallions, who are worthy opponents that I must wield my sword with full strength to defeat; two seniors in the Divinity Transformation Stage; and even legendary deities whom I can also try to kill. This seems to be a lot of fun and definitely can't be missed!"
Finally, the five super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators reached a consensus driven by different motives!
Li Yao, however, had one last question.
"Fellow Cultivators, have you seen Wang Xi in person before? What does he look like?"
Li Yao picked some random pebbles on the desolate island and crushed them into powder, building a vivid sand sculpture, before he fixed it temporarily with his spiritual energy. It was Wang Xi, who had appeared under the form of 'Long Yangjun' just now.
As a refiner, Li Yao had to conduct shaping and micro carving on the components on many occasions. Although his sculpture was not a piece of shocking artwork, the ration was precise, and the face was vivid. It looked precisely like the real person.
"Is this Wang Xi?"
Everybody frowned at sculpture that Li Yao had made, which was a female with a plain face and a plump body.
"This is Wang Xi."
Exactly like Li Yao had done, Yan Liren also built a sculpture of Wang Xi with pebbles and broken stones.
"Yes. This is how Wang Xi usually appears in public occasions!"
Wang Xi used to be a powerful eunuch in the court. Naturally, there was no need for him to hide from everyone. Many Cultivators had seen him in person. Yan Liren and Qi Zhongdao, in particular, had met him at a close distance many times, which allowed them to capture his features precisely.
Li Yao observed Yan Liren's sculpture carefully. Wang Xi was not an arrogant, condescending weasel that most people imagined a powerful eunuch to be like. Instead, he looked like a graceful, if not vulnerable, middle-aged scholar. Except for his fair face and his lack of beard, he did not look much different from other Cultivators.
Since Yan Liren had always been fighting with Wang Xi in terms of their sword arts every time they met, the sculpture of Wang Xi was also carrying a sword on his back. His glittering eyes did befit the expected appearance of an unparalleled swordsman.
After Li Yao juxtaposed the two sculptures and compared them, he could not help but conclude that 'Wang Xi' and 'Long Yangjun' were too different.
However, it did not suggest anything. For Cultivators at the level of Li Yao and Wang Xi, it was not difficult to change their bones and muscles in order to expand or shrink their body size or to control the secretion of their androgen and estrogen to generate different secondary sexual characteristics!
If Li Yao was willing, he could stimulate the estrogen inside his body to secrete crazily. As a result, his skin would naturally be fair and smooth, his beard and his leg hair would drop, his subcutaneous fat would grow thicker, and his breasts would rise. That was certainly not a big deal!
Wang Xi, Long Yangjun, what is the real identity hiding behind you?
Li Yao suddenly thought of Wang Xi's profiles that he had read before.
According to the files, Wang Xi had been admitted into the palace around ninety years ago.
Most eunuchs were raised from their childhood, unless they were the special talents that were direly needed by the royal family.
It meant that Wang Xi had been born approximately a hundred years ago, which was a critical time.
A hundred years ago, two Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators vanished, never to be seen again, in the blizzard near the Divine Palace.
A hundred years ago, Wang Xi was born, and he was finally setting off to explore the Divine Palace after spending his entire life searching for the clues.
Still a hundred years ago, a mysterious signal was sent from the Ancient Sages Sector to the Heaven's Origin Sector and the Flying Star Sector!
Was everything mysteriously related?
The answer to everything would have to be found out after they arrived at the Divine Palace!
…
A month passed.
Hiu! Hiu! Hiu! Hiu!
Arrows were raining upon the battle formation overwhelmingly across the sky that was occupied by the dark clouds like a flock of hungry crows, raising a round of desperate of screams and the sounds of blood springing out!
"Charge now!"
After a deafening roar, the iron cavalry from the central plateaus rushed toward the fertile Dark Cloud Prairies like a torrent of steel!
Chapter 1464: The Way to the North! |
It was a skirmish that happened as fast as fire in the chaotic border between the Great Qian Dynasty and the Dark Cloud Prairies.
However, the roles of the attacker and the defender had been swapped.
Over the years, the court's army of the Great Qian Dynasty had mostly played a defensive role by holding their fortresses and bastions, whereas the Wolf Knights of Ghost Qin, with their advantage in speed, attacked and harassed aggressively. The previous year, the harassment had even upgraded into a real assault, and the vanguard of their enemy had almost reached the city wall of the Divine Capital. The court's army of the Great Qian Dynasty had suffered a crushing and humiliating defeat.
