Chapter 284: The Overture of War (1)
One could see neither head nor tail of the behemoth. The tigerâs body was concealed in countless clouds, and profound talismans and runes glittered on its form. Grand and imposing, the white tiger seemed like an imperial palace in the sky!
In the puppetâs surroundings, there were several palaces that ranged from a hundred meters to a thousand meters in size. Encircling and protecting the white tiger, they added an even deeper kind of divine prestige to the machine as the eve of dawn approached.
However⊠like hornets⊠swarms of rice-sized shadows filled the white tiger puppetâs surroundings!
With a mere glance, Li Zongyuan nearly went soft at the knees and said shakily, âMy⊠god⊠W-What the hell is this?!â
Xu Yangyiâs gaze was like fire, and he gravely observed the incredibly massive white tiger puppet. He even saw shadows entering and leaving the machine like butterflies flitting through flowers.
Tens⊠hundreds⊠a thousand black dots! Just like little flying saucers that an alien mothership deployed in a scifi movie!
âThose are cultivators.â He licked his lips. âThis⊠is some clanâs lair⊠Their chief base⊠and they are absolutely no minor clan.â
âThis place⊠is Xichuan Province, Chengdu.â
âChengduâŠâ Li Zongyuanâs gaze was somewhat blank as he looked at the white tiger in the sky. âT-ThisâŠâ
âShould be the lair of some clan thatâs determined to wage war.â Xu Yangyi looked deeply at the sky. This wasnât to mention⊠that merely based on the battle formation, he knew that the war over the heavenly paradise was doomed to be unimaginably desperate.
In the face of a thousand regiments and ten thousand horses, the charge of a grand army, individual battle strength would fall to the abyss. He alone was strong, but this power only held meaning if it attained the great realm of Core Formation ancestors. Otherwise, he would only be able to survive on the strength of his own power here.
Xu Yangyi didnât ponder for too long. To the east, the curtain of the sky was like black velvet. As the first ray of light cut across the sky, it was like a sharp jewel sword cleaving through the eastern corner. Little by little, the whiteness of a fishâs belly suffused the dark sky and slowly transformed it red. At first, the sky was pink, and then orange and vermilion.
Sunlight bathed the earth once more. A new day had arrived. Time already drew closer and closer to this asura ground of cultivators.
âNoâŠâ Xu Yangyi abruptly knitted his brows, extending his hand and looking.
With great difficulty, Li Zongyuan quickly resisted his shock and murmured, âWhatâs happened, Master?â
Xu Yangyi seriously watched his hand. The Sun had already ascended, but⊠where they were located was still bathed in shadow!
CLINKâŠ
The sound of a gigantic machine boomed, coming from behind them. This noise subsequently became louder and louder until it reached the skies.
BOOMâŠ
Following this mechanical noise, the soil under their feet made a gentle trembling noise. Chengdu, the provincial capital of the west, was roused from slumber. Many sanitation workers who had woken up early looked at the ground and sighed, âHuh⊠earthquakes are getting more frequent lately⊠Fortunately, theyâre smallâŠâ
No one spoke. Li Zongyuanâs face was the color of earth, his sweat pouring out like broth. Xu Yangyiâs expression was quite peaceful, yet he tightly clenched his fist.
They had both guessed what that sound was.
Taking in a few good deep breaths, he calmly turned his head back. At the end of his vision, a gigantic vermilion foot that was several hundred meters tall stomped into the earth until it pierced the skies!
Following the sunâs rise, the clouds above, dense like a black curtain, slowly became transparent and scattered. The lone horn of a white machine crane, thousands of meters long, stomped into the earth, and another bow-like foot began to bend. On its back was a chain of unending palace halls. Brightly lit and hidden from view in the clouds, these pavilions resembled a city of day in the night sky.
As the first glimmer of dawn came, the craneâs head that was hidden in its wing gracefully lifted upwards. Two eyes radiated hundreds of meters of white qi. The spirit crane at the side of the city was the same as the white tiger puppet, the shadows of countless patrolling guardians ceaselessly flowing on it. A rainbow of spiritual light stomped down below, causing the immense crane to seem as if it was hovering in the vibrant spirit clouds.
âHuffâŠâ Li Zongyuan was already shocked, unable to say a word. He simply hadnât expected to meet something like this now!
Under the premise that only Qi Condensation soldiers were dispatched⊠was there any margin of resistance that even greater individual martial skill could pose against this colossus?
âM-MasterâŠâ He said in shock, âT-Theyâre going toâŠâ
âLi Zongyuan.â Before the toad-demon even finished speaking, Xu Yangyi said dimly, âFeel it.â
Li Zongyuan still hadnât realized it at the start but came to a sudden understanding. Closing his eyes, he merely cycled his arcane effort a little and nearly yelped out in alarm, âMaster! Itâs strong! Such strong qi!â
Xu Yangyi didnât answer. His five senses had been transformed by the Eternal Alchemy Canon, far exceeding a normal personâs keenness. As soon as he arrived in Chengdu, he sensedâŠ
That in this place, slivers of fog-like qi were condensing everywhere! Such a phenomenon was extremely rare in other places! Chengduâs qi density was at least one-and-a-half-times greater than other provinces! And this⊠was still the fringes of Longsu Province! Because this land and Longsu shared a common border, it had received the great qi reparation, the naturally cultivated radiation of a heavenly paradise!
Li Zongyuanâs chest rapidly heaved in and out. Although his experience was not great, he was no fool. There were only three possibilities of such a strong level of qi.
First: a secret treasure had come into the world. Second: a secret realm had manifested. Third⊠the qi circulatory system here was giving rise to a monumental transformation! A change even more inclined towards cultivation!
The answer was obvious.
The first two theories simply couldnât attract the mobilization of clan strongholds. Moreover, these were clans that were about to become apex clans! Only the last theory could cause them rush about like ducks!
âM-M-MasterâŠâ His chest heaving up and down for ages, the toad-demon settled down and said warblingly, âW-Why isnât anyone talking about this? Regardless of the cultivation net or cultivators? Such a great change has happened in Chengdu. How did this not reach the outside worldâŠâ
âBecause the true powers that be are keeping this information under wraps.â Xu Yangyi pointed ahead in disinterest. âNanzhou is thousands of kilometers away from here. That place is the heart of the great change.â
âWhat?!â Ultimately, Li Zongyuan was no longer able to prevent himself from crying out in surprise, attracting the countless rolling eyes of passersby. He cared nothing for them and said in disbelief, âThat⊠Chengdu isnât even the center?! Nanzhou is?!â
His astonishment was no surprise. Chengdu was already like thisâŠ. It was hard to imagine the density levels that Nanzhouâs qi had reached!
It was no exaggeration to say that a single day of cultivation was at the minimum equal to three to four days! Based on the hundred years of longevity held by Qi Condensation cultivators, this was equal to an increase of at least thirty to forty years of life!
The toad-demon licked his lips that had become somewhat chapped due to his great shock, and his gaze swept over the two tremendous palaces. He understood⊠He understood everythingâŠ
âMaster!â Li Zongyuan immediately said. âWe canât go to Nanzhou!â
âOh?â Xu Yangyi faintly smiled. âWhy?â
âThis isnât a battle we can fight!â Li Zongyuanâs life and Xu Yangyiâs were connected together. He simply dared not hide a shred of truth. âOnly if you reach Foundation Establishment, otherwiseâŠâ
âDo you know what an organizational power is?â Before Li Zongyuanâs voice even fell, Xu Yangyi calmly interrupted him.
Li Zongyuan almost choked to death on the second half of his words. His masterâs jumps in thought process was too swift. He couldnât keep up!
âMaster, place state it clearlyâŠâ
âPutting aside whatever function, a so-called power is bound to have a leader.â Xu Yangyi seemed to recollect something. âWithout a leader, an organization is a plate of scattered sand. With a leader, it can become a terrible killing machine, a tool to collect wealthâthatâs from Heavens Lawâs teachings, the new fifth year âCultivation Sociologyâ. I forgot which page.â
Li Zongyuan listened respectfully. He had no clue what Xu Yangyi was trying to get at.
âI am in the Xingtian Legion, so only then is the Xingtian Legion the Xingtian Legion. If I am not present, the Xingtian Legion is a plate of scattered sand.â Xu Yangyi stowed his gaze and looked straight at Li Zongyuan. âOnly I, the branch master, can form a power and unite the Featherwood Guard. The Foundation Establishment legions wonât obey me, but anyways, dozens of cultivators can by assembled from the Qi Condensation legions.â
He eyed the giant red-crowned crane puppet above. âReal cultivators that can fight are completely different from these sentries. These⊠are only the vassals. A true elite legion, in the Featherwood Guardâs records on demon cultivators, has the Nangong Clanâs âFeatherplume Legionâ with the most combatants. 937 people. As for these people here⊠they donât rank as an apex clan. I estimate that there are no more than 600 of them!â
âButâŠâ He faced Li Zongyuan and laughed, but the familiar shivered in fright because of this smile. âIâm on Tianzi Mountain right now.â
Li Zongyuan nodded. In the next second, he almost jumped up!
âThe time difference?!â He coldly gasped, âThatâs right! We came here directly from Tianzi Mountain! Someone is hunting us, so that means someone is definitely monitoring us! They would also know that we entered a secret realm! But nothingâs come!â
Nobody knew that they were in Chengdu!
âIâll remind you of two things again.â At this moment, Xu Yangyiâs mind was crystal clear. âThe Demonheart Seed Magik. The Thousand Illusions.â
Li Zongyuan stared a little blankly. He, who was no model of wisdom, pondered for ten minutes until he finally thought of one possibilityâŠ
As he thought of this possibility⊠he couldnât resist the shiver that traveled down his entire body!
âM-MasterâŠâ He was covered in cold sweat and bowed with unparalleled respect. He dared not believe that in such a pittance of time, Xu Yangyi had actually considered so much! If this was not fiendish, what was?!
The time difference between Tianzi Mountain and Chengdu⊠The Demonheart Seed Magik⊠The Thousand IllusionsâŠ
If these three things were spoken of separately, perhaps only Bai Suzhenâs demon heart was the most terrible item. But if all three were joined togetherâŠ
In a flash, a horrific and preposterous idea surged up in his mind!
âIâll speak. May I ask you to see whether or not what I say is right or wrong?â
Xu Yangyi lifted his chin at the toad-demon. The duo walked into a roadside coffee shop and both ordered coffee. However, Li Zongyuan didnât drink and said in excitement, âSir, you canât make it to Nanzhou in a day, or the Featherwood Guard Longsu branch! You also have the immunity to not be named! Right now, inside and outside of Chengdu, the lairs of the noble clans are in the sky; countless Foundation Establishment spiritual senses are sweeping the region! Not even a housefly can get in undiscovered, but no one knows that youâre in Chengdu!â
Xu Yangyi laughed and used his spoon to stir his coffee, hinting for the other to continue speaking.
âYouâre not technically here! Theyâll be embarrassed to move against the Xingtian Legion! Because thereâs no sense behind it! And you can hide your identity and tell Ancestor Ancientpine that youâve been trapped in a secret realm! Youâre absolutely justified! Right?â
Xu Yangyiâs spoon stirring his coffee paused.
Why did he suddenly have hope for this fellowâs IQ?
âYou got it half-right.â Towards his subordinates, especially those who had handed their lives to him, he wouldnât strike
too
harshly. Xu Yangyiâs slender finger gently tapped the table, and he studied the tremendous crane and tiger with rapt attention. He whispered, âBai Suzhenâs demon heart conceals qi, and the Thousand Illusions alters appearance. They wonât know that Iâve already entered the Featherwood Guard. Hehe⊠a legion of 600, how many are they going to send to confirm that Iâm deader than dead? Thirty? Fifty?â
Even now, a blaze pulsed in his eyes. He said not another word.
If the amount of people dispatched was only twenty, he grasped the certainty to have none of them return alive!
An elite legion of no more than 600. How many times could they allow a fifty-man squadron to perish? A group of twenty was already enough to send them thrashing in pain!
A power that was eaten away little by little before it was wiped out⊠As long as he devoured a hundred strong, this clan would find themselves in mortal danger on the battlefield!
Who was the prey, and who was the hunter? At this instant, the balance was already beginning to faintly tremble for the first time!
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