West Mountain of Beiluo.
The cultivators were dispirited as Kong Nanfei didn’t pull through the calamity.
Many people only understood now that cultivation was not always smooth sailing. Becoming a great cultivator came with not only great power but also a grave danger.
The danger of failing to survive the calamities.
A lot of people started to feel afraid and uneasy. Who would have thought that the Heavenly Lock Realm had three Thunder Calamities? Even a cultivator as strong as Kong Nanfei who could release tremendous Righteousness Qi with one move couldn’t withstand the Thunder Calamity.
Wouldn’t ordinary cultivators like them die from the Thunder Calamity?
The Heavenly Lock… might be a cultivation path that only belonged to the chosen ones.
Ordinary cultivators should feel lucky if they could enter the Golden Elixir Realm.
Quite some people shared the same thought.
Nie Changqing glanced at them and didn’t speak.
People had different dreams and ambitions. It was obvious how dangerous and difficult it was to enter the Heavenly Lock Realm. It was not suitable for everyone.
Nie Changqing and Ning Zhao also looked at them. With a tacit understanding, they stepped into the Trial Pagoda.
They continued to attempt the higher realm.
Carrying the black cauldron, Ni Yu clicked her tongue.
Nie Shuang clenched his fists. His eyes were glistening.
Three baby chicks wrapped in Bai Qingniao’s clothes craned their necks out. Bai Qingniao’s eyes brightened up when she saw Jiang Li. She noticed Jiang Li before but didn’t want to shout his name when Kong Nanfei went through the calamity.
She came close to Jiang Li and sized him up and down. Bai Qingniao finally felt relieved after making sure Jiang Li was unscathed.
Lil Phoenix One crawled out of Bai Qingniao’s clothes and stood on her head. It raised its chin and glared at Jiang Li.
Jiang Li glanced at Lil Phoenix One. His lips twitched.
He never thought he would get eye-rolling from a baby chick.
Ni Yu and Nie Shuang entered the Trial Pagoda.
Ni Yu called Bai Qingniao before she stepped in. However, Bai Qingniao was too busy bothering Jiang Li to respond.
Ni Yu carried the black cauldron on her head and snorted in displeasure, so she turned around and then walked into the Trial Pagoda.
The scene in front of Ni Yu’s eyes changed.
She appeared to be inside of a dense forest when the image cleared up.
Black shadows dashed at her one after the other. Strong-willed, Ni Yu raised her chin. She was eager to give it a try.
It was the third level of the Trial Pagoda.
The black shadows stopped moving. They were the mysterious masked creatures that Ni Yu was familiar with. There was a round hole at the center of the mask where she could see their cold eyes behind it.
These shadows uniformly carried black cauldrons.
They sat with legs crossed and encircled Ni Yu. But Ni Yu held the cauldron with one hand. She was ready to fight.
“Come on!”
“Let’s fight to the death!”
After a contest in a threatening manner…
Ni Yu and the mysterious creatures all sat on the ground. Numerous medicinal materials appeared around Ni Yu. Her chubby cheeks twitched as she started to light a fire and make elixirs. She threw the medicinal materials into the black cauldron one by one.
In the distance…
The mysterious creatures raised their hands with a flame of fire in the center of their palms. They tossed the flames at the bottom of the cauldrons, and the fire started to blaze.
They were making elixirs too.
Ni Yu’s challenge in the Trial Pagoda was different. Other cultivators fought with enemies who tried to kill them in the Trial Pagoda, while Ni Yu’s enemies made elixirs just like she did.
To defeat her enemies, Ni Yu had to make elixirs with higher quality.
They were only making the ordinary Gathering Qi Elixir.
Ni Yu clenched her teeth.
She failed before and was bashed to death by these mysterious creatures with their cauldrons.
Therefore, she swore that she would win this time and get even with them!
She was the best apothecary favored by the Young Master.
The challenges in the Trial Pagoda adapted to each person’s unique talent.
For example, Nie Changqing’s opponents all wielded butcher knives and excelled in the knife spirit.
Ning Zhao’s opponents used Cicada Wing Swords, Nie Shuang’s opponents fought barehanded, and Bai Qingniao’s opponents all raised baby chicks.
The Trial Pagoda was a treasure that could tap everyone’s potential and help them achieve breakthroughs.
Beiluo Lake Island.
Kong Nanfei woke up.
But he was still very weak. He felt a burning pain in his meridians.
Sitting in a wheelchair, Lu Fan slowly came into sight as the chair rolled on the snow.
“Do you regret it?” Lu Fan asked as he leaned closer to look at Kong Nanfei while sitting in the Thousand Blades Chair.
“Actually, you have a chance of fending off the third Thunder Calamity if you waited for a little longer and let yourself adjust to your strength…” Lu Fan continued.
Kong Nanfei’s eyes flickered. He failed…
He wanted to prove himself yet failed.
His hopes were crumpled into pieces by the Thunder Calamity. It was a devastating blow to him.
His will to achieve breakthroughs was almost broken.
Meng Haoran looked at Kong Nanfei from the side with great concern. He was worried that his mentor would become despondent and depressed because of this.
Kong Nanfei was disappointed, but not crushed.
“I rushed myself.”
Kong Nanfei spoke calmly.
“Thank you, Young Master Lu, for saving me…”
Kong Nanfei gestured at Lu Fan.
Sitting in the Thousand Blades Chair, Lu Fan waved his hand. “You’re welcome.”
“Go out and have some fun. You can wander around like the Master. Maybe you will attain some spiritual enlightenment. Maybe you can have a better chance to withstand the Heavenly Lock calamities with more experience,” Lu Fan said.
Kong Nanfei stood up. Although his face was chalky white, he still joined his hands to bid farewell to Lu Fan.
He planned on doing exactly what Lu Fan had said.
Before leaving the island, Kong Nanfei found Mo Tianyu and solemnly prostrated himself before the Master’s grave to show respect.
Then he left the island and Beiluo City with Meng Haoran.
Shortly after Kong Nanfei’s departure, Mo Tianyu, who had been kneeling before the Master’s grave, also said goodbye to Lu Fan.
His Confucian robe flapped in the wind. With three copper coins, he walked into the snow casually and elegantly.
Beiluo Lake Island became quiet again.
Lu Fan strolled through the peach blossom and the bamboo forest.
His slender fingers tapped the armrests of the wheelchair.
Even though Kong Nanfei’s attempt at the Heavenly Lock Realm failed, Lu Fan could sense that a cultivator would soon enter the Heavenly Lock Realm.
Above Beiluo Lake.
The water ring on the little Responsive Dragon’s mouth was still shut. It laid on its back and floated on the lake like a fallen leaf.
Looking at it, Lu Fan couldn’t help but laugh.
He raised his hand and removed the water ring.
The little Responsive Dragon’s eyes brightened up after realizing it could open its mouth again. Fluttering its wings, it leaped from the surface of the lake. It could surf and roll in the water again!
Lu Fan didn’t pay attention to the little Responsive Dragon playing on the lake.
He stared at the bottom of the lake.
Indistinctly…
He saw the thunder bead at the bottom of the lake and the thunder dragon inside the thunder bead.
******
The snow was blowing in the wind.
A horse was galloping fast. Wearing a crane cloak, Mo Ju glanced at Li Sansi on the black ox next to him.
Surprisingly, Li Sansi’s black ox could run as fast as Mo Ju’s horse.
Mo Ju felt a painful sensation as snow slapped on his face.
“The Great Xuan and Western Liang breached the capital city at the same time because Western Liang has first-class cultivators like the Overlord. Therefore, the Great Xuan has to pull out from the capital city to elude Western Liang when they are full of vigor. They are most likely based in Yuanchi City. So we have to hurry to Yuanchi City because no one can say for sure if the Overlord will start to attack the Great Xuan.”
Mo Ju was analyzing while riding the horse.
Li Sansi, on the other hand, let out a big yawn.
With the wooden sword in his pocket, he was about to fall asleep.
He didn’t exactly hear what Mo Ju said.
But he wouldn’t back out now since he already promised Mo Ju to help him and the Great Xuan to handle the Overlord.
After all, Mo Ju helped him to deliver the Green Bamboo Leaf Liquor to Buzhou Peak. He owed Mo Ju a favor.
Of course, Li Sansi already told Mo Ju that he was only responsible for blocking the Overlord. He probably couldn’t defeat the Overlord in a real fight.
Mo Ju accepted it with a smile. Blocking the Overlord was enough. To actually kill the Overlord…
No one could do it except for the Young Master Lu of Beiluo.
Suddenly…
Li Sansi rode the black ox and was half asleep. He suddenly opened his bleary eyes.
“Em?”
“I sensed the Spirit Qi of cultivators…” Li Sansi said.
Mo Ju jolted. With a lower cultivation level, he couldn’t sense the energy Li Sansi mentioned.
But he was smart and guessed something. After a quick thought, his face changed slightly.
“Could it be…”
Mo Ju’s expression was grim.
“Daoist Priest Li, we probably have to speed up now,” Mo Ju said after he looked at the front and slowly let out a breath.
******
The two armies were now locked in a face-off on the snowfield.
They started the battle immediately.
The Xiang Family’s Army and Western Liang’s armored horsemen charged at the army of the Great Xuan.
Tantai Xuan didn’t stand on the carriage. He always had a bad temper. Now his eyes were bloodshot.
He pulled out the knife pinned on his belt and shouted a battle cry.
Taking the lead, he rushed at the enemies.
It was the first clash between the Great Xuan and Western Liang.
The armies of cultivators met first. The Xuanwu Guard engaged in a fierce fight with the Xiang Family’s Army as the Spirit Qi burst in the glint and flash of knives and swords.
Then it was the armored horsemen from the two countries.
The battle went on like mountain torrents. The snow on the ground was squashed into dirty mud.
Blood soon dyed the snow red. The cruel smell of war pervaded the air.
The Overlord watched intently. The army of the Great Xuan was not weak. After all, they had been fighting against Xirong at the border for many years and were just as good as the Western Liang armored horsemen. The two armies were like two lions wrestling together.
It was a brutal battle.
The Overlord stepped on the chariot that was pulled by three horses.
He whipped the horses with a riding crop. The three black horses galloped toward the army of the Great Xuan.
Demonic Qi was released from the Overlord’s body like a flash flood that was about to engulf everything.
“Fight!” the Overlord bellowed.
Western Liang’s will to fight rose rapidly when they saw the Overlord join the fight.
The Great Xuan lapsed into a disadvantageous position.
Tantai Xuan’s eyes were red. He had no choice but to take the beating since he was weaker. Even so, he would still force his opponent to pay the price.
Tantai Xuan had a ruthless character.
Today was a crisis for Tantai Xuan, the biggest one he had ever encountered…
A head-to-head battle with the enemy.
If they lost, they would collapse like a landslide and as pitiful as a stray dog.
The Great Xuan could retreat from Yuanchi City, but they couldn’t be demoralized on the battlefield.
The Overlord’s chariot came closer, crushing everything in its way.
No one could stop the Overlord.
Because of the Overlord’s Spirit Pressure, ordinary soldiers couldn’t even lift their heads when his chariot ran past them. The power of the peak Internal Organs Realm cultivator was beyond the imagination of regular people.
Although Kong Nanfei was struck badly by lightning…
It was the force of Heaven.
Kong Nanfei reached the limit of the Internal Organs Realm. He could triumph over tens of thousands of soldiers with a burst of Righteousness Qi.
Tantai Xuan’s armor was stained with blood. He stared at the Overlord, who was standing on the chariot and charging at him.
“What an Overlord…”
Tantai Xuan started to laugh.
He remembered how the Overlord let him go before.
The Overlord wanted to kill him on the battlefield, open and aboveboard…
The Overlord had been fair to him.
Otherwise, he could never escape if the Overlord intended to kill him before.
How could Tantai Xuan, barely stronger than a commoner, be a match for the Overlord who was at the peak of the Internal Organs Realm?
All of a sudden…
In front of Tantai Xuan.
Soldiers from the Xuanwu Guard shielded him.
“My Lord! Retreat quickly!” a Xuanwu Guard shouted.
They would block the Overlord at the risk of their lives so Tantai Xuan could have a chance of surviving this battle.
Tantai Xuan’s whole body trembled.
Looking at the Xuanwu Guards protecting Tantai Xuan, the Overlord raised his face slightly.
It was a familiar scene.
The disciples of the Mohist School did the same thing when he was attacking the Mohist City of Traps.
It happened again today.
But the Overlord didn’t show mercy, not that he ever would. He wasn’t lenient when attacking the Mohist City of Traps. Today would be no different.
The chariot kept rushing forward.
The Overlord let out a deep roar on the chariot.
The Xuanwu Guards have been blasted away while coughing up blood.
The Xuanwu Guards were only in the Qi Core Realm and couldn’t withstand the powerful Overlord at all.
In the horse carriage…
Mo Beike’s eye bags twitched.
His hands covered by the long sleeves clenched into fists.
The Overlord, Overlord…
Mo Beike suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness. Before the age of cultivators, he could draw up plans and devise strategies that would assure victory from thousands of miles away.
However, the age of cultivators disrupted his world.
The Overlord, in particular, was crushing Mo Beike in a domineering manner.
If Tantai Xuan died here…
The Great Xuan… would be finished.
Suddenly…
A chuckle broke the tension.
“Overlord… long time no see. You are still… overbearing as usual.”
The voice rippled through the battlefield.
A wooden sword appeared before Tantai Xuan. Li Sansi’s Daoist robe flapped in the wind.
Streams of Spirit Qi intertwined in front of Li Sansi and transformed into an armor.
Bang!
Standing on the chariot, the Overlord stopped right away.
The three horses reared high at the same time. Neighing, they sprayed hot breath from their mouths and noses.
“Li Sansi.”
The Overlord was taken by surprise. He never expected to see Li Sansi on the battlefield.
The former head of the Daoist School.
The first person who entered the Internal Organs Realm.
The Overlord wasn’t the only one left open-mouthed. Tantai Xuan was also astounded by the sight of Li Sansi.
Why would Li Sansi be here?
Suddenly…
Mo Ju popped in Tantai Xuan’s head. Mo Beike told him before that Mo Ju went to find someone who could deal with the Overlord.
Did Li Sansi come upon Mo Ju’s request?
Li Sansi… was probably one of the people who could handle the Overlord.
The Great Xuan might still stand a chance to defeat Western Liang if Li Sansi was willing to help!
The Great Xuan could still fight!
In the distance…
Mo Ju rode the horse through the battle.
Spirit Qi was surging around him, yet he didn’t attack the enemy. He went straight to Tantai Xuan.
Tantai Xuan had extremely complicated feelings.
He remembered the letter he tore up. He once thought Mo Ju had betrayed him and escaped from the Great Xuan.
However, Mo Ju brought a ray of sunshine and a glimmer of hope back to the Great Xuan and him at their darkest moment.
Panting for breaths, Mo Ju jumped off the horse.
He exhaled a long sigh as he looked at Tantai Xuan, who was covered in blood.
Thankfully he was not too late.
But Mo Ju paused for a second when he saw Tantai Xuan’s eyes. As smart as he was, Mo Ju immediately realized that Tantai Xuan probably knew his identity already.
Mo Ju cracked a smile and didn’t think too much.
It was all right that Tantai Xuan knew.
A lot of things couldn’t remain secrets. To be honest, Mo Ju had foreseen such a day when the Master died in Dongyang County.
“My Lord, let’s talk about things after the battle is over,” Mo Ju suggested.
Tantai Xuan grasped Mo Ju’s hand and tapped solemnly.
The Overlord frowned on the chariot in the distance.
He was astounded that Li Sansi would join the fight.
“Li Sansi, are you stopping me?” the Overlord asked.
Li Sansi waved the wooden sword and smiled and said, “I owe someone a favor and made a promise…”
The Overlord didn’t speak anymore.
He had no choice but to fight as Li Sansi had said this much.
Brandishing the giant ax and shield, the Overlord jumped off the chariot. Surrounded by black Demonic Qi, he rushed toward Li Sansi at full speed.
Li Sansi also sprinted toward the Overlord with a smile, his Daoist robe flapping in the wind.
“I have been wanting to have a match with you since a long time ago. The first cultivator who entered the Internal Organs Realm… Let me see how powerful you truly are!” the Overlord bellowed.
His ax swept across. The dark energy raised a thick layer of the mud above the ground!
Li Sansi’s wooden sword promptly bent as he pressed it on the ground. It also lifted a big patch of mud as his Spirit Qi surged.
The two came into a collision.
An explosion!
The Spirit Qi clashed and caused a massive blast.
The Overlord stood erect and unshakable.
The Daoist robe Li Sansi wore created loud flapping sound.
Only cultivators at the same level could take on each other…
Tantai Xuan finally witnessed a vivid demonstration of the saying.
The domineering Overlord was stopped at last!
“Fight!”
Tantai Xuan raised the knife in his hand and bawled.
The soldiers of the Great Xuan all waved their weapons and shouted the battle cry.
Mo Beike got off the horse carriage in the distance.
He lifted the hem of his robe and ran to Tantai Xuan and said, “My Lord, it’s not wise to fight tooth and nail against Western Liang…”
Unresigned, Tantai Xuan darted a glance at Mo Beike.
“Don’t forget your promise to build the Great Xuan Dynasty Academy,” Mo Beike said somberly.
Tantai Xuan’s stirred heart finally calmed down.
He took a brief look at the Overlord who was pinned down by Li Sansi. He closed his eyes and forced himself to control his emotions.
After quite some time…
He released a long breath and opened his eyes.
“Okay!”
“Retreat!” Tantai Xuan ordered.
Mo Ju didn’t know about the promise. But it apparently was the reason Western Liang attacked the Great Xuan so soon.
The Great Xuan pulled back safely.
Even though Western Liang was strong, they couldn’t strike a devastating blow to the Great Xuan without the Overlord.
The army of the Great Xuan withdrew.
Li Sansi fought with the Overlord for a short while before taking off. If he stayed any longer, he would probably be killed on the spot by the Overlord and the Xiang Family’s Army.
The Great Xuan beat a hasty retreat.
The Overlord didn’t send troops to chase them. He was stunned that Li Sansi would help the Great Xuan.
It was no longer easy to conquer the Great Xuan when they received help from a cultivator in the Internal Organs Realm.
The Overlord sighed.
It might be fate.
The Great Xuan would keep standing if it were destined.
The Overlord turned his head and looked at the direction of Beiluo City. It seemed that… he needed to train the soldiers of the Xiang Family’s Army well in the following days.
Lu Ping’an favored the Great Xuan Dynasty Academy.
The Overlord had to train great cultivators in the military and crush the Great Xuan Dynasty Academy!
It would be something to look forward to if he could slap the Young Master Lu in the face.
…
Lu Fan had been watching the battle between the Great Xuan and Western Liang.
He didn’t plan on stepping in.
Nevertheless, even Lu Fan was surprised to see Li Sansi showing up.
Mo Ju persuaded Li Sansi. How interesting! How did he do it?
Li Sansi was a cultivator in the Internal Organs Realm. His involvement revived the Great Xuan, which was playing a lost game.
Since the Overlord couldn’t defeat the Great Xuan today, the world might take a brief hiatus moving forward.
Suddenly…
Lu Fan was startled.
The system page popped up in front of his eyes.
He saw that the long-quiet quest bar was blinking.
…