Chapter 769 - 763: The Shortcut to Advancement in Spiritual Mechanism Dao Rhythm
I must say, the Iron Pine Divine Spirit’s strength is indeed formidable. Its involvement in the siege had caused the Dandelion’s Myriad Phenomena defense barrier to show signs of faltering in just a short while.
This is not to say that the Dandelion’s Dao Cultivation is much inferior to that of the Iron Pine, but the two belong to different races, possess different Talent Skills, and their cultivation focuses on different aspects.
Iron Pine is an Exotic Species Spiritual Tree. Even a common Iron Pine is as durable as iron, let alone one that has ascended to the Upper Divine Spirit status.
The massive and resilient trunk makes the Iron Pine Divine Spirit overwhelmingly powerful in close combat, and at a distance, it possesses countless Pine Needles that give adversaries a headache. With profound Laws to aid it, this guy’s combat effectiveness has always ranked at the top under the Divine King’s command.
But the Dandelion is different; its size and physical solidity are far inferior to the Iron Pine’s. Furthermore, its race’s Talent and the Life Principle it cultivates prioritize healing first and warfare only after.
Strictly speaking, it is a support Divine Spirit. With it around, All Gods can fight with ease, knowing that should they get injured, it could always lend a hand, using its mighty Healing Technique to fully restore them and greatly enhance the entire team’s ability to sustain combat. However, when it comes to solo fighting, it is far weaker than the Iron Pine Divine Spirit.
What’s more, besides the Iron Pine, several other Divine Spirits are joining hands to attack it.
Though Mo Yuan and the others are of lower Divine Level than the Dandelion, at the end of the day, they are still Divine Spirits, and their attacks cannot be simply ignored; otherwise, being hit would still result in Severe Injury.
“Heh, heh… Pu God, let’s see how much longer you can hold on!”
The Iron Pine Divine Spirit sneered repeatedly, “In the past, you relied on the Divine King’s favoritism and didn’t take me seriously. Did you ever think this day would come?
I gave you a chance to surrender just now, and you refused. Now you don’t even have the opportunity to do so. I know you possess the means to resurrect yourself, but those are useless before me. Over the years, I’ve already figured out everything about you. Don’t even dream of leaving here alive.”
“Alas, why all the trouble!”
The Dandelion let out a light sigh, its tone filled with endless regret, “We have worked together for tens of thousands of years. Why must it come to the point where it’s either you or me?”
“Why has it come to this point?”
The Iron Pine Divine Spirit’s face darkened, “Previously, I wanted to enter the Spiritual Lake for cultivation, to see if I could break through to the Top Level Divine Spirit. But no matter if it was the Previous God King or the current one, both refused my requests. They were all worried that my advancement would threaten their positions.
Yet, you received the Divine King’s generous reward effortlessly, allowing you to cultivate in the Spiritual Lake and ascend easily to the Upper Divine Spirit level!
Without that, on what basis would you be on the same realm with me, sitting on an equal footing?
Because of the Divine King’s favoritism, fearing my advancement would result in a contest for the throne, the Divine King repeatedly suppressed me. Yet, a Truth Wizard was all it took to cause the dispersion of All Gods in the Canglan Realm over these thousands of years, as the creatures of various regions ceased their pilgrimages.
All of this was caused by the selfishness of both the former and current Divine Kings!”
It roared with rage, “If they had agreed to let me cultivate in the Spiritual Lake back then, once I advanced to a Top Level Divine Spirit, joining forces with two of such spirits to defeat that Truth Wizard would have been simple. How could we be in the current situation, and how could we find ourselves seeking an alliance with the Human Clan Cultivators to fight against the Wizards when faced with their invasion, all the while putting on forced smiles!”
“Is this your reason for betraying the Divine King?”
The Dandelion gave it a glance, unable to help but shake its head, “Turns out you harbored ulterior motives during the reign of the last Divine King. It’s rather impressive you managed to endure for so many years before bursting out with it.
But you only know that the Divine King refused your request to enter the Spiritual Lake; did you ever clearly understand the reason for the refusal?”
“If I remember correctly,” Qin Feng muttered, “the Divine King said you should focus on your cultivation and seek it out only when you’re assured that your Law has leveled up, and even then the Divine King would consider the matter—never issuing a flat-out refusal.”
“Bullshit!” Iron Pine roared, “How is that not a rejection when it’s been made so clear?
I’ve already reached the peak of an Upper Divine Spirit. Which Divine on the entire Divine Mountain has a stronger Law than mine? If I take one more step, I’ll just advance on my own. Why would I need to owe it a favor to cultivate at Spiritual Lake?”
“You… are beyond reason!”
Dandelion couldn’t help but feel a headache coming on.
How could this guy’s brain be even more blockheaded than that of the God of Yushu? He was stubborn to a fault. Considering the state Canglan Realm has reached, if Iron Pine truly had a chance to advance to a top-level Divine Spirit, why would the Divine King suppress it and not give it the chance?
The energy in the Spiritual Lake is indeed potent, but the Spiritual Mechanism Dao Rhythm that could help with advancement is hard to accumulate. The previous Divine King’s refusal to Iron Pine stemmed from the need to cultivate the current Divine King using the Spiritual Lake. It wasn’t enough just to rely on the accumulated Dao Rhythm in the lake. In the end, the previous Divine King, through self-sacrifice and merging his own Law into the current Divine King, was able to create a top-level Divine Spirit.
Iron Pine naively sees the Spiritual Lake as his hope for advancing to a top-level Divine Spirit, not realizing that the Dao Rhythm within it also requires long-term accumulation and can only play a supporting role. If it were truly possible to instantly make a top-level Divine Spirit, why would the previous Divine King sacrifice himself instead of advancing on his own?
It has only been a few thousand years since the current Divine King advanced to Immortal, and the Spiritual Charm in the lake is far from restored to its former state; it’s insufficient to help anyone advance to that level. Moreover, the Divine King believes there are flaws in Iron Pine’s Law, which is why he didn’t agree to its request, but neither did he entirely reject the idea, intending instead to give Iron Pine a chance.
The Divine King reckoned it would take at least ten thousand years for Iron Pine to truly refine his Law to the ultimate peak. During these ten thousand years, perhaps the Spiritual Lake could accumulate more Dao Rhythm, by then granting a greater possibility of advancing compared to present times.
Otherwise, if Iron Pine were to enter the Spiritual Lake while its Realm is insufficient and squander the hard-earned Spiritual Charm, it would lose the opportunity to advance when it eventually reaches the proper Realm.
The Divine King wouldn’t allow Iron Pine to enter the Spiritual Lake a second time; after all, it is the Divine King’s sanctuary. Unless there are special circumstances or a particularly close Divine who has rendered great service, deserving a reward, the Divine King might occasionally grant favor—otherwise, does it really expect the place to be treated like a public space where anyone can freely enter to cultivate?
Indeed, it’s incredibly generous of the Divine King to resist the impulse to absorb the Dao Rhythm from the Spiritual Lake to boost its own power but rather to reserve it for cultivating a second top-level Divine Spirit. Faced with this, not only is Iron Pine ungrateful, but it even dares think the Divine King stingy, deliberately suppressing its advancement—such a disposition truly makes Dandelion feel contempt.
“Hmph!”
Iron Pine, indifferent to Dandelion’s words, displayed a hint of madness in its eyes, “A few days ago, after a great battle with Human Clan Cultivators, a wizard found me and told me they could give me what the Divine King could not!
That Truth Wizard has promised me that as long as I help them eliminate the Divine King, not only would they give me what the Divine King denied, but they would also support me in becoming the new Divine King!
Then not just the Spiritual Lake, but the Royal Palace, the Divine Mountain, and even the entire Canglan Realm would be mine!”
As Iron Pine’s tone grew increasingly pompous, it wasn’t just Dandelion who was rendered speechless; even Qin Feng, listening on the side, couldn’t help laughing at Iron Pine’s words, “This Iron Pine Divine truly lives up to its Iron Pine Clan heritage—short-sighted with no self-awareness, and with a skin thicker than I could ever commend!”
“What did you say?”
The Iron Pine Divine Spirit, upon hearing this, immediately flew into a rage, its large eyes glaring daggers at Qin Feng.
Qin Feng smirked, “Though your power is quite decent, you’ve only reached the late stage of an Upper Divine Spirit. You’re still far from the true peak, and yet you dare talk about advancing to a top-level Divine Spirit?
And as for being supported by wizards to become the new Divine King, what a joke!
Let’s not even discuss whether the wizards’ promises would hold; if they really were to push you into that position, you’d be nothing but an unworthy puppet.”
“Being elevated solely by the hand of a wizard, how much true majesty can a Divine King possess, and how many amongst all gods would genuinely regard you as their king?”
“Moreover, with your temperament and Dao cultivation, at present, there seems little possibility of you becoming a top-level divine spirit!”
Qin Feng’s words were not false; although he had not yet reached the realm of a Profound Immortal himself, he had seen many such beings.
After his advancement to True Immortal, not only were all the hidden secrets of the sect in the Ten Thousand Demons Cave Heaven fully accessible to him, but his own vision had grown much stronger. He could tell that although the Iron Pine Divine Spirit was not weak, it still fell short of the true peak.
At the very least, it certainly couldn’t compare to the Gui Ling Ancestor who had yet to complete his Proving Dao, nor with Elder Kongkong who had gone to the Nordic Divine Realm to vie for the Rainbow Bridge, preparing to prove himself as a Golden Immortal!
Thus, he believed that Iron Pine had absolutely no hope of advancing in the short term!
But Iron Pine Divine Spirit did not think so.
It only felt that Qin Feng was shaming it, which infuriated it. It shouted, “Human junior, you’ve only cultivated for a few years, yet you dare mock this god. Believe it or not, after I cut down the Pu God, I’ll tear you to shreds!”
“This, I truly don’t believe. Don’t you think so, Your Majesty the Divine King!”
Qin Feng spoke indifferently, but his words made Iron Pine and the other gods’ hearts thump violently.
Ever since the dandelion had acted to defend, Qin Feng had honestly stayed behind the defensive perimeter to watch the battle, without interfering.
The reason why Iron Pine Divine Spirit was so confident it could conquer them now was because it had the assistance of gods such as Mo Yuan.
But in reality, without the several gods like Mo Yuan, relying solely on itself, it would be difficult to determine a winner in a few days’ time in its struggle against the dandelion.
Although the dandelion might be slightly weaker in head-to-head combat, it belonged to those with an exceptionally strong sustained combat capability. As long as it wasn’t cut down swiftly, it could drag the fight out using its life principle until the opponent grew weary, and perhaps even turn the tables and kill them in the end!
This was the most common battle strategy for beings proficient in the life principle and healing divine powers.
While Qin Feng himself was a formidable fighter, no less powerful than a Heavenly Immortal and even typical middle-rank divine spirits might not be his match. Combined with having seven demon immortals under his command, if he were to unleash them all, they would not only be able to defeat divine spirits like Mo Yuan, but also could help the dandelion turn the tables and besiege Iron Pine.
But these were not the reasons why he remained uninvolved and casual.
The real cause for his fearlessness and even teasing of Iron Pine Divine Spirit was that he had strong support, with the Divine King standing behind him.
Otherwise, the matter of forming an alliance had already been negotiated in the palace earlier with the two ancestors, and even the oath of the Dao had been sworn; there was no need to send another divine spirit to discuss alliance terms with the Human Clan Cultivators!
As Qin Feng’s words left his mouth, Iron Pine Divine Spirit and the others hurriedly looked around, and after finding everything calm without any abnormalities, they breathed a huge sigh of relief. Then, endless rage arose, furious for having been fooled by Qin Feng.
“The Divine King, not wanting to cause any misunderstanding with the Truth Wizard, has hidden in the Divine Mountain for thousands of years, not daring to venture out. And you, boy, actually dare to deceive us using the name of the Divine King; you truly deserve to die!”
Convinced that it had been duped, Iron Pine Divine Spirit was furiously enraged, its divine power flaring up, intending to forcefully break through Dandelion’s Myriad Phenomena to capture and severely torment this insolent Human Clan Cultivator to vent its bile. That’s when, from the distance, a sigh was heard.
“Alas…”
A soft sigh, not loud, yet it startled Iron Pine Divine Spirit considerably.
Because that voice was just too familiar!
With a sudden turn of his head, he saw the Divine King emerge with a complex expression from a void in space.
It wasn’t just the Divine King who appeared; behind him followed dozens of divine spirits, each looking at Iron Pine with eyes filled with anger or disappointment as though blaming him for not achieving his potential.
Clearly, all the gods were heartbroken and annoyed by the betrayal of the Iron Pine Divine Spirit!
“So, you chose to betray me just because I wouldn’t allow you into the Spiritual Lake!”
The Divine King looked at the Iron Pine Divine Spirit with a complex expression, “What I said back then was true, and I never absorbed and refined the Dao Rhythm Spiritual Mechanism nurtured in the Spiritual Lake. I was saving it for your advancement, how could you… not trust me?”
“It is not the Divine King’s fault that the Iron Pine Divine Spirit betrayed us, after all, the Divine King has been nothing but benevolent and righteous to his subordinates!”
Qin Feng bowed in respect to the Divine King, “The betrayal by the Iron Pine Divine Spirit really has nothing to do with the Divine King. For a being of such temperament, betrayal needs only a reason, any reason.
Even without the issue of the Spiritual Lake, it would’ve found other excuses, such as coveting the throne of the Divine King, or simply not wanting anyone superior to it, and so on.
It just hadn’t found the right opportunity to betray before, and considering that not only were your strength and realm far superior to it, but you also hail from the legitimate lineage of the Divine King, it had to bide its time.
Such a creature is naturally selfish and profit-driven. If it had truly been loyal to the Divine King, it wouldn’t have betrayed you so readily at the mere instigation of a wizard; it must have harbored this thought from the beginning, only lacking the opportunity to act on it until now!”
After careful consideration of Qin Feng’s words, the Divine King nodded, “Hmm, the Envoy makes a valid point!”
The look on his face evidently became a lot more relieved.
On the other side, Iron Pine Divine Spirit was panic-stricken, looking at the Divine King in shock, “You… how dare you leave the Divine Mountain, aren’t you afraid that the Truth Wizard will sense it and immediately start a war?”
“If that happens, nothing could be better. I’d like to lure them all out and wipe them out in one fell swoop!”
The Divine King said indifferently, “Dying god, you needn’t worry about this. In consideration of your many years of loyalty, I will give you a chance to end your own life, so that you may keep your body intact.”
Upon hearing this, the Iron Pine Divine Spirit’s expression flickered uncertainly.
After a long while, it snorted coldly, “Dead is dead, what use is there for a whole corpse? I know I’m no match for you, but to think I will submit willingly to execution, that will never happen!”
As it spoke, a radically different aura suddenly surged from its body, escalating its strength nearly twofold, and its pupils turned an unfathomable black, “For many years, I’ve had some discontent towards you. Today, let’s have a battle and see just how much of a gap there is between me and a top-level divine spirit!”
“You…”
The Divine King’s face changed, “In such a short time, you’ve already accepted the wizard’s transformation?”
“Heh heh, indeed, it was the Truth Wizard himself who personally modified my body, granting me a power far greater than before!”
The Iron Pine Divine Spirit sneered, “You’d better kill me quickly, for once the Truth Wizard senses your presence and comes here, you won’t have another chance to do so!”