"This... this... this..."
Having lived for decades and earned the illustrious title of 'Martial Guardian King', this was the first time Ji Xiongjing had ever felt an emotion that bordered on the absurd. He saw Lu Yang raise a hand, and a piece of yellow paper with scribbled talismans would appear beside him.
It would then ignite, followed by the emergence of all sorts of phenomena that had nothing to do with the Martial Dao. There was sword qi streaking across the sky, five thunders striking from above, and a sudden flash of golden light. Every single piece of yellow paper brought with it mortal danger!
Huala—.
Sword qi slit Ji Xiongjing's cheek. Thunder fell upon him, leaving his entire body numb, while his full-force punch was blocked out of thin air by a ray of golden light.
"Impossible!"
Ji Xiongjing retreated again, not daring to engage Lu Yang any further. He could only grit his teeth, looking at Lu Yang before him with a mixture of terror and hidden desire. In the next second, a title leaped into his mind.
Immortal!
Lu Yang's methods at this moment were exactly like those of an immortal from the storybooks, which instantly ignited the desire for eternal life in his heart. At this thought, Ji Xiongjing once again increased the distance between himself and Lu Yang, his tone excited.
"Wait, there's no real enmity between us, is there? How about this, as long as you join my Imperial Family's Hall of Patrons and give me a copy of that yellow paper art, you can choose whatever you want—ten thousand taels of gold, or a fiefdom of your own!"
"Choose as I please?"
Lu Yang shook his head and chuckled. Do I need to choose? The entire Great Zhou is the Saint Sect's secret realm; it was mine to begin with!
How dare you promise me my own things?
"That could work. I'm very interested in the methods of a Martial Dao Celestial..."
"This is my 'Authority Over the Realm'!"
Without a second word, Ji Xiongjing took out a scripture and threw it to Lu Yang.
"There's only half a scroll inside. Give me the magical art, and I'll give you the other half!"
Lu Yang: "..." Ji Xiongjing's ambition was written all over his face, and Lu Yang could naturally see it. However, he didn't care, and it was even more impossible for him to pass on a cultivation technique to the man.
After all, this would not benefit his cultivation of The Sage's Theft, and it would also be a violation of the sect's rules.
"What a pity."
Lu Yang shook his head, put away 'Authority Over the Realm', and gave Ji Xiongjing a faint glance. Then, his figure suddenly dispersed, intending to turn and leave directly.
"Trying to leave!?"
Seeing Lu Yang's body of flesh and blood disintegrate into a wisp of ethereal white Qi, Ji Xiongjing roared, the desire on his face deepening even further.
Immortal arts!
Those are definitely immortal arts! I must obtain them!
"Authority Over the Realm!"
Ji Xiongjing shouted as he exhaled, raising his hand and clenching his five fingers. Surging blood qi rumbled into it, instantly turning his entire palm blood-red. In that instant, Lu Yang felt as if he saw a vast landscape of mountains and rivers slowly unfurling before his eyes.
Within it, scholars rose at the rooster's crow to practice, farmers rested at sunset, martial artists roamed the Jianghu, and travelling merchants conducted their trade. It was a depiction of all the states of the mortal world, shockingly representing the national destiny of Great Zhou, and also the general trend of the world.
Authority Over the Realm was also a Fist Overwhelming the Realm! Ji Xiongjing's fist intent had no physical form; it was purely a mental pressure, the spiritual accumulation of Ji Xiongjing, a Martial Dao Celestial, that had already transcended the Martial Dao. It was just that— "You want to compete with me in willpower?
I cultivate immortality, I have spiritual sense!" Ji Xiongjing's fist intent might be invincible when facing a crude martial artist who only understood brawling like himself, but it was futile when used against Lu Yang.
Boom!
With a single thought from Lu Yang, Ji Xiongjing's fist intent shattered in an instant. The grand trend of a nation, the vast mountains and rivers—all of it was directly swept away by his spiritual sense.
"You can actually take my fist?"
Ji Xiongjing gritted his steel teeth.
"Again!"
However, what answered him was a cold laugh.
"Incorrigibly obstinate."
As his voice fell, dozens of talismans suddenly appeared out of thin air. With the Myriad Spirits Banner on hand, he had brought more than enough talismans for this trip and didn't care about the consumption at all.
The talismans shattered in one go, transforming into a monstrous sword qi that landed on Ji Xiongjing, causing him to let out a miserable scream on the spot. In an instant, blood dyed the sky. However, a physique comparable to the Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm was truly ferocious.
Although the Sword Qi Talismans could slice through his flesh, they couldn't sever his bones. By the time the sword qi dissipated, Ji Xiongjing had turned into a man of blood. There wasn't a single piece of intact flesh on his body, as if he had just been subjected to death by a thousand cuts.
He didn't dare to linger, disappearing from the spot in the blink of an eye.
"He's quite decisive in his escape."
Lu Yang frowned slightly. This clone of his specialized in the Martial Dao and relied entirely on talismans to defeat his enemies. Although it could fly, its speed was actually not as fast as Ji Xiongjing's. Lu Yang's expression was strange.
The life force of a Martial Dao Celestial had exceeded his expectations. Despite Ji Xiongjing's miserable and wretched appearance, as long as he escaped with his life, he could recover most of his strength after a few days of rest. A physique comparable to the Perfection of Qi Refining, yet without any corresponding physical divine abilities.
"Truly good material for refining a corpse."
At this thought, Lu Yang felt a hint of self-reproach. It was true that one is stained by what one touches. Even a good person like him had become so cruel after staying in the Saint Sect for so long.
"... I'm not that kind of person," Lu Yang shook his head.
Besides, corpse refining was too inefficient. Using the Myriad Spirits Banner to refine it in an instant was undoubtedly far more efficient. That said, Lu Yang had no intention of focusing on this path.
After all, when this life ended, he would definitely choose his cultivation level, and the Myriad Spirits Banner could not be taken with him.
"I'll think about it in the next life!"
Thinking of this, Lu Yang directly dispersed his body, then silently descended into an alley in the capital city and reformed, blending into the crowd just like that.
"He lost, as expected. That's quite normal."
In Heavenly Capital City, at the Wei family residence, the Yun family's Old Ancestor calmly withdrew his gaze. Ji Xiongjing's defeat was within his expectations; in fact, it would have been stranger if he had won. After all, the purpose of instigating this karma, of the battle between Ji Xiongjing and Lu Yang, was not to win.
It was to make Ji Xiongjing discover Lu Yang's existence, then slowly spread the word, eventually influencing the other Celestials, and finally uniting all the Celestials to deal with Lu Yang together! As long as his clone was slain, there was no fear that his true body wouldn't appear!
To this end, he had long ago designed a 'fortuitous encounter', or rather, bait. All that was missing was for a fish to take the hook. Now was a perfect opportunity.
Thinking of this, he immediately began to instigate karma again. Almost at the same time, Ji Xiongjing, who had just escaped with his life and didn't even dare to return to the imperial palace, only daring to flee to the outskirts of the capital city, was currently hiding in a mountain forest.
His original intention was simply to hide from Lu Yang. However, in the course of hiding, he 'unexpectedly' found a sealed stone chamber inside a hidden cave. A skeleton was sitting upright inside.
"This is..."
Ji Xiongjing walked up to the skeleton and saw that it was holding a dust-covered scripture in its hands. He immediately reached out, took it, and opened it for a casual glance.
"... Hmm!?"
With that one glance, Ji Xiongjing's eyes instantly widened, and a look of disbelief and ecstasy appeared on his face.
"Heaven is truly helping me!"
The author of the book was nameless, and the content was just a single record: "There are immortals in the world, ageless and undying. Kill them and eat their flesh, and one can attain long life. Alas, their immortal arts are superb and difficult to defeat.
I studied painstakingly for decades, and finally comprehended a method to slay immortals before my death."
"On the Day of Startling Auspice, seven great masters must wield seven divine weapons and join forces to set up a formation. Only then is there a chance of victory."
The Day of Startling Auspice, Seven Warriors Slay an Immortal! Besides the general story, the book also recorded the forging method for the "seven divine weapons." Ji Xiongjing was mesmerized as he read, his ambition ignited once more.
"Hahahaha! This king truly has great fortuitous encounters and great fortune!"
"If I kill that immortal, I will surely achieve long life!"
Amidst his laughter, Ji Xiongjing's consciousness became increasingly obsessed. Karma had blinded his true heart, leaving him with no other thought but "slaying an immortal for long life."
(End of this chapter)