But even if they were outmatched, they wouldnât lose their nerve!
Even though the soldiers were scared to death, their calves cramping,
they couldnât help but unleash an antâs roar as they stared up at the high-and-mighty Cultivators who saw them as nothing more.
Up in the sky, the Cultivatorsâ response to this was, as always, simple and direct.
The warshipâs massive cannon once again spat out a torrent of flame, striking the ground just outside the Imperial City.
"TSSSS..."
The beam of flame from the warship didnât cause any earth-shattering explosion, only an unremarkable tearing sound.
And yet, this sound, like paper being torn, brought with it terrifying destruction.
A nearly hundred-meter-long trench was gouged into the earth beneath the city wall. Due to the intense heat that had pierced through, the ground even emitted an acrid, burning smell.
It seemed the enemy had no intention of slaughtering innocents.
Thus, the beam from the Immortal Ship didnât directly strike the populated areas of the wall. Otherwise, that single blast would have killed at least several hundred people!
Li Changâanâs figure emerged from the depths of the Imperial Palace.
His expression darkened as he looked at the ghastly trench in the ground and the soldiers beside it, who were already scared stiff, their faces deathly pale.
He turned and looked up at the enemyâs Immortal Ship... or perhaps it was better described as a warship that looked like an Immortal Ship.
Clearly, these werenât simple, old-fashioned Cultivators, but ones who had invested in a technology tree!
Of course, that wasnât the most important thing.
What was most important was that Li Changâan found the Immortal Ship looked somewhat familiar. Moreover, the insignia below the warshipâs deck... he actually recognized it!?
No, it was more than just recognition.
It was painfully familiar!
At this thought, memories from his past life surfaced in Li Changâanâs mind.
Immortal Palace, the Liyang Empire, Empress Su Ying, the Demon Leng Yanran, the Demon Sectâs Saintess Ran Qingqiu... one by one, these names, both familiar and distant, were reawakened as his memories stirred.
The symbol on the enemyâs warship.
It was the insignia of the Immortal Palace, an enemy he had fought in battles of life and death!
Li Changâanâs eyes widened in astonishment. "Youâre... from the Immortal Palace?"
Hearing Li Changâanâs voice, the Cultivators aboard the Immortal Ship were clearly surprised. The young man in the lead looked at Li Changâan and asked, "Who are you?"
Seeing that they didnât deny it, Li Changâan finally realized they truly were Cultivators from the Immortal Palace!
âSo, does this mean Iâve transmigrated again, to another minor world under the rule of the Immortal Palace?â
âOr has some other strange problem occurred?â
âSince the Jiuzhou Continent can connect to the Immortal Palace, does that mean I might have a chance to search for the Liyang Empire I founded in my past life?â
However, as he looked at the enemyâs tech-filled Immortal Ship, Li Changâanâs mood soured.
After all, when he had fought the Immortal Palace in his past life, they were still a group of simple, classical Cultivators who only knew how to use cold weapons.
Even though they had been immensely powerful, their limited production capacity and the constraints of the Immortal Sects meant Li Changâan could still hold his own against them, even trading blows on relatively equal footing.
But now, upon seeing the Immortal Palace again, not only were the Immortal Sectsâ restrictions gone, but they were even flying an Immortal Ship?!
In other words, during the unknown stretch of years he had been gone, their civilization and strength had taken a qualitative leap forward.
Since the Immortal Palace was still advancing,
then if the Liyang Empire hadnât managed to escape in time, it had likely been destroyed by now. Its technology might have even been completely absorbed by the Immortal Palace.
If that was really the case,
Li Changâan felt a pang of pain in his heart.
After all, he had poured an immense amount of blood, sweat, and tears into building the Liyang Empire with his own hands. Though it seemingly had nothing to do with him after his rebirth, it still held a vast and lengthy portion of his memories.
Furthermore, that world was home to several of his former confidantes.
After using the Rebirth Mark to delete his memories, Li Changâan could avoid actively recalling things related to them.
But now, with the Immortal Palaceâs Flying Ship right before his eyes, no matter how much he wanted to forget, his memories were being triggered at every moment, like a switch being flipped again and again.
He took a deep breath.
Thoughts raced through Li Changâanâs mind, but with such limited information, he still couldnât figure out what was going on.
However, his face betrayed none of his inner turmoil.
Instead, he spoke calmly, "I am the one and only Emperor of the Jiuzhou Empire. And I am the one who killed the avatars you sent to harvest it!"
His voice paused. Gazing at the flying Immortal Ship in the sky, Li Changâanâs body tensed, and his eyes grew grave. His tone turned cold as he said, "If youâve come seeking revenge, Iâm right here. We can fight and see what happens. In the past, I could cut down your avatars. Today, I can cut down your true bodies all the same."
To be honest, Li Changâan was quite adept at dealing with Immortal Palace Cultivators who hadnât invested in a tech tree. After all, they had slaughtered one another for millennia, and he had a thorough understanding of all their methods.
But against this new breed of Cultivator, the ones who had invested in a tech tree, Li Changâan truly felt he was out of his depth.
âAfter all, Cultivators were terrifying enough on their own. The only thing holding back their development was their relatively backward means of production.
But if a Cultivator also invested in a tech tree...