Chapter 200: Changkong’s Plot
Chapter 200: Chapter 200: Changkong’s Plot
The tunnel of cyan light was only about thirty zhang in length.
Li Ping sped through the passage. A moment later, he emerged into an unfamiliar world.
With no time to survey his surroundings, the first thing Li Ping did upon entering the secret realm was close the entrance. He then shut his eyes, focusing on the spiritual sense within him.
Half a day later, confirming that the spiritual sense within him was no longer issuing a warning, Li Ping breathed a huge sigh of relief.
He had guessed as much. If Yan Liming could enter this secret realm and evade the senses of Yan Hengchuan—a man who cultivated the ’Foundation-Stealing Method’—then this place had to be its own self-contained world.
’As long as I hide in here and don’t leave, no matter how powerful Hua Wuji’s tracking abilities are, he won’t be able to do a thing to me.’
And now, it seemed his guess was correct.
The spiritual sense within him was perfectly calm, without the slightest ripple.
This meant he was finally safe.
Li Ping nodded, satisfied. ’With a place this good, I’d have to be a fool to go to Great Zhou.’
He didn’t understand why Yan Liming had chosen to leave, but he was perfectly happy to hole up here until all his enemies were dead.
Once he was sure he was safe, Li Ping finally took a look around.
He was near a clear stone pool several zhang across. The pool was surrounded by lush green Grassland, and in the distance, a small stream meandered through the plains, feeding into the pool.
WHOOSH!
Li Ping soared into the air. In just a moment, he reached the "sky’s" end. The ceiling of the secret realm was not high, less than a hundred zhang up. Beyond it, he could feel a thin, film-like spatial barrier—the very thing that kept the raging spatial storms at bay.
Li Ping saw no sun or stars, and he had no idea where the ambient light came from.
The entire secret realm was only a few dozen li in area. Though small, it had everything: Grassland, hills, pools, and rivers. Apart from a central area shrouded by a Tier Three Array, the rest of the landscape was open and exposed.
Li Ping also spotted a few spirit fields. They had probably once held Spirit Medicine, but Yan Liming had picked them clean.
He wasn’t bothered by this.
After all, aside from the core area protected by the Tier Three Array, the concentration of Spiritual Qi decreased farther out. Most of the realm was only Tier Two to Tier Two Upper Grade, and the outermost regions were barely Tier One.
With a Spirit Vein of this level, Spirit Medicine could only grow for five or six hundred years at most before stagnating. To reach an age of a thousand years or more, they would need to be nourished by a Tier Three Spirit Vein.
The Spirit Medicine Yan Liming had taken away was valuable, but not so valuable that Li Ping felt any sense of loss.
Even so, Li Ping couldn’t help but marvel. ’I wonder how such a small secret realm could produce a Tier Three Spirit Vein. Could a cultivator with Great Divine Abilities have forcibly severed a Spirit Vein to create this place?’
’And what level of cultivation would it take to create a secret realm from thin air?’ Shaking his head, Li Ping pushed the thought aside.
However this secret realm came to be, it was his now.
He took a long look at the Tier Three Array shrouding the secret realm’s core. He could clearly sense that all the Spiritual Qi in the realm radiated from that spot. The Spirit Vein at the center had to be Tier Three.
But a core area less than a hundred zhang across, even with a Tier Three Spirit Vein, was likely only a miniature one.
It couldn’t compare to the Tier Three Spirit Vein at Cyan Dragon Mountain and could probably only support the cultivation of a single Core Formation Cultivator.
Finding an area with Tier Two Upper Grade Spiritual Qi, Li Ping sat cross-legged. After circulating his Cultivation Technique for several cycles, he took some Spiritual Materials from his Storage Bag and began crafting puppets.
...
「In a palace atop Donghua Mountain.」
Three figures were seated in a row: Xiao Changkong, Qiu Changfeng, and Yan Changqiu.
Prior to this, Xiao Changkong had agreed to a duel with Old Demon Lu of the Spirit Control Sect to determine the fate of the Western Wilderness. As promised, the four Demon Dao Sects had withdrawn from the Qi Kingdom and set up camp in the Yuan Kingdom.
"Junior Brothers," Xiao Changkong’s resonant voice rang in their ears, "I have called you here to entrust you with a matter of great importance."
Both men’s expressions grew solemn. They realized what Xiao Changkong was about to say was no ordinary matter.
After all, counting the cultivators from the Yuan Kingdom’s sects, there were nearly twenty Core Formation Cultivators on Donghua Mountain. Yet Xiao Changkong had summoned only the two of them. They knew exactly what that implied.
After exchanging a glance, Yan Changqiu nodded. "Senior Brother Xiao, please speak."
Xiao Changkong’s expression was grim. "That old demon, Lu Kuang, knows he is no match for me, yet he still dared to challenge me to a duel. I suspect he either plans to use some dirty tricks during the fight, or he has invited powerful reinforcements. If I go, my chances of survival are slim."
Qiu Changfeng and Yan Changqiu grew pensive. They, too, had considered this possibility.
However, they knew how powerful their Senior Brother was while wielding the Seal of All Living Beings. Even if Old Demon Lu resorted to trickery, he shouldn’t be a match for him.
But hearing Xiao Changkong say it himself, they couldn’t help but look worried.
They guessed he wanted to ask them to provide support during the battle.
Qiu Changfeng smiled. "Even if he uses more tricks, I doubt he’ll be a match for you, Senior Brother. And as for reinforcements... if he can bring help, so can we."
Yan Changqiu nodded in agreement. It was their duty to help Xiao Changkong eliminate any lingering threats from this battle.
But he thought more deeply than Qiu Changfeng. "Senior Brother," he asked, confused, "if you believe Old Demon Lu won’t fight honorably, why did you agree to the duel?"
Xiao Changkong laughed heartily. "My dear Junior Brothers, if I hadn’t agreed to the duel, would the four Demon Dao Sects have so obediently withdrawn from the Qi Kingdom?"
Hearing this, both men looked up sharply. "Don’t tell me..."
"That’s right." Xiao Changkong nodded, his expression turning grave. "While they are retreating, I intend to take the Seal of All Living Beings north and help our allies in the Yan and Liang Kingdoms crush the Tuluo People in one fell swoop."
His gaze settled on the two of them. "My departure must be kept secret. To prevent the four Demon Dao Sects from suspecting anything, I will announce that I am entering seclusion to prepare for the duel. During this time, all matters of the Daoist Guardian Alliance will be left to your discretion."
Wielding the Ancient Treasure, the Seal of All Living Beings, Xiao Changkong’s combat prowess was enough to overwhelm any other Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator.
With his strength as the foremost cultivator in the Western Wilderness, if he secretly went to the Liang Kingdom and launched a surprise attack on the Tuluo tribes with the help of the Daoist Guardian Alliance cultivators there, crushing them would be no issue.
He might even be able to catch them off guard and slay a few of their Core Formation Cultivators.
The three fronts—in the Qi, Yan, and Liang Kingdoms—were interconnected. A change on one front would create a domino effect on the other two.
Once the Tuluo People were completely driven away, the cultivators from the Western Realm and the Central-South Realm would be free to act. The balance of power between the Daoist Guardian Alliance and the four Demon Dao Sects would shift dramatically.
At that point, it would be the four Demon Dao Sects’ turn to cower in their shells.
Qiu Changfeng and Yan Changqiu quickly understood their Senior Brother’s plan, but instead of celebrating, they frowned.
Yan Changqiu shook his head. "Senior Brother Xiao, if you leave and the four Demon Dao Sects launch an all-out assault on Donghua Mountain, we will have a hard time defending it. One misstep, and we could lose the entire Sect."
Qiu Changfeng also objected. "The foundation of the Academy Palace is Donghua Mountain and the Cyan Cloud Secret Realm. As long as we hold those, everything else we lose can be reclaimed. Senior Brother Xiao, what you’re proposing is too risky. Forgive me, but I cannot agree."
Xiao Changkong sighed inwardly. He knew his junior brothers’ concerns were not unfounded.
But he believed that if they simply held their ground at Donghua Mountain, there was no telling how long the war would drag on.
By then, the casualties among the cultivators and mortals of the Western Wilderness would be immense.
But with his plan, they could take advantage of the Tuluo People going all-in on their southern invasion to crush them, then gather the cultivators of the Western and Central-South Realms to eradicate the cancer that was the four Demon Dao Sects, no matter the cost.
This could bring lasting peace to the Western Wilderness!
Of course, the plan came with the risk of losing Donghua Mountain.
But compared to the chance for permanent peace, he believed the risk was well worth taking.
At this thought, his expression hardened. "Junior Brothers, as long as you remain within Donghua Mountain, you will have the support of our other brothers and allies. Relying on the Mountain Protection Array, holding out for a few days won’t be a problem. I will act quickly on this trip and won’t linger in the Yan and Liang Kingdoms for long."
Qiu Changfeng opened his mouth to protest again.
But Xiao Changkong cut him off. "My mind is made up. Junior Brothers, I’m entrusting Donghua Mountain to you."
Qiu Changfeng and Yan Changqiu exchanged a look and could only nod in resignation. "Don’t worry, Senior Brother Xiao."
...
That very night, Xiao Changkong took the Seal of All Living Beings and quietly departed from the Qi Kingdom.
「A few days later.」 He appeared near Sky-Mourning Immortal City in the Yan Kingdom. Joining forces with the Daoist Guardian Alliance cultivators stationed there, he crushed the Tuluo tribes that had invaded the Yan Kingdom.
They slew one Mid-stage Core Formation Tuluo Cultivator and three at the Early-stage Core Formation Realm, and they heavily wounded one Late-stage Core Formation Tuluo Cultivator.
With that, the siege of the Yan Kingdom was broken.
Immediately afterward, Xiao Changkong, along with Huang Yunzi and the other Core Formation Cultivators, rushed to the Liang Kingdom.
The Tuluo tribes in the Liang Kingdom were caught completely off guard. Their encampment’s Grand Array was shattered, and countless of their cultivators were killed or wounded. Even their High Priest, a Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator, fell to the Seal of All Living Beings.
The other Tuluo Core Formation Cultivators fled in disarray, but very few managed to escape back to the Grassland.
After this battle, the six great tribes of the Tuluo People suffered catastrophic losses. Even those who escaped back to the Grassland would likely be absorbed by other tribes.
Their "all-in" gambit, instigated by the four Demon Dao Sects, had resulted in a peace that might last for hundreds, if not thousands, of years for the Yan and Liang Kingdoms.
Having done all this,
Xiao Changkong left Huang Yunzi, Chi Xiaozi, and the other Core Formation Cultivators to rally their Low-tier Cultivators. He ordered them to march on the Qi Kingdom after the rewards for their service were distributed, to utterly destroy the four Demon Dao Sects.
As for himself, worried about the situation at Donghua Mountain, he chose to head back south alone and ahead of the main force.
But he had caused such a massive stir in the Northern Realm that Demon Dao spies had long since reported it.
Far from being alarmed, Old Demon Lu was delighted. He took his Spirit Beast, the Red Flood Dragon, and left the Yuan Kingdom to intercept Xiao Changkong!
If Xiao Changkong dared to leave Donghua Mountain alone, then he would simply have their battle ahead of schedule.