Chapter 74: Taking a Step Back
er have no friends.""Jiang Wang is a person of his word, trustworthy and seemingly peaceful, but with pride deep in his bones. If I only took his subordinates, that would be creating enemies for mysel...Even people in the present day are like this!
And it's still a living person like Shi Mingcheng.
The strength of the visitor need not be described further.
Is he a Saint, a hero, or a king
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Su Guanying lost her composure. With a flip of her left palm, she brought out the seal of the Grand Governor of Nanxia. Holding this seal, she acted on behalf of the emperor's will and mobilized the nation's power in Nanjiang! A steady stream of strength flowed towards her, giving her the confidence to challenge anyone at this moment.
Ten thousand miles of clouds surging in the sea.
The giant face that replaced the sky suddenly shrank, shrinking into a black dot.
Give the sky back to the present world.
And he was far away in the high heavens of countless thousands of meters.
The black dot plummeted at an incredible speed, appearing out of nowhere in the blink of an eye.
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In the very center of Hǔtái stood a man whose face shone with firelight, so radiant it was impossible to look directly at him.
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They call him a man because his voice is very deep.
"Heaven's justice is clear, yet he dares to obstruct the chariot with his arms!"
He is King Zhao!
The three leaders of the Equal Nation, although there has never been a clear geographical division, generally speaking, the leader who handles the affairs of the southeast two domains is King Zhao. The one who appears more in the northwest two domains is Shenxia. Most of those who organize actions for the Equal Nation in Zhongyu are Shengong.
With the sound, King Zhao of the tiger platform arrived and casually pushed outward with his hand. His posture was as natural as looking at the moon from a window.
But a fundamental shift has already taken place.
Su Guanying radiated an overwhelming and terrifying aura. Leveraging his position as the governor of Nanxia, he wielded the immense power of the nation, nearly attaining limitless might to rival King Zhao. Yet, without any apparent reason, he vanished from the Tiger Terrace, disappearing completely.
As if being squeezed out by this world, when he reappeared, he was already in Hubei!
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Stretching across the regions of Jinggi and encompassing the entire Sangfu.
Absolutely no resistance!
Even though she has now come infinitely close to the True Monarch, she is after all not a True Monarch. The current Nanjiang is still not enough to push her to the truly extraordinary peak.
The essence of the true way and the Dao of derivation differ fundamentally in levels of power.
If King Zhao truly wanted to kill her, it would be as easy as flipping his hand. There was no need for him to go through any trouble.
But at this moment, he had more important things to do.
“Take Chu Xu away. We will always remember those who died for their ideals.”
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He gave Zhao Zi such a casual order, then stretched out his hand and became a claw, directly falling onto the Tiger Platform!
Zhao Zi rolled up Chu Shu's body, his figure flickering, and he was already gone. Qian Chou and Li Mao also didn't hesitate, disappearing one after another.
After all, they were facing a hegemonic power like the State of Qi. They could only touch and go, never lingering. Afterwards, King Zhao might not be able to look after them anymore.
Just now, several protectors from the Equal Nation left.
Suddenly, dense cracks like a spiderweb appeared on this Tiger Platform which was three thousand steps square.
The might of King Zhao, through this Tiger Platform, stretches down into the infinite depths below!
Yes. Destroying the Nanjiang official examinations and shaking up Qi's rule in Nansha is just a smokescreen.
Resolving Su Guanying or Shi Mingcheng is not the true goal of this large-scale operation by the Equal Nation.
Qi State secured its dominance in the South with a decisive victory, making its rule over Nanjiang an undeniable reality. At most, they could only cause some tremors, but there was no possibility of overthrowing them.
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But killing someone like Su Guan'ying or Shi Ming'cheng wouldn't fundamentally affect the overall situation in Qi.
King Zhao took a huge risk by publicly striking someone, he couldn't have just killed one person, could he
They want Si Xuan's palace!
In the First War between Qi and Xia, it was defeated by the Duke of Qi. Even in the Second War between Qi and Xia, it remained unrepaired: the Si Xuandi Palace!
Ding ding ding ding ding dong.
Between heaven and earth, there seems to be the sound of a qin being plucked.
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However, that was not the sound of a piano.
That was the collision of the lines of rule, the symphony of world truth.
Truth has its own beauty, and the great way creates its own harmony.
The mighty power of the Dao masters harmonizes with nature itself.
The cracks on the surface of the Tiger's Terrace, spreading like a spider web, were quickly filled with endless starlight.
It spread like water, swiftly filling every crack. It did not heal the cracks, but the Tiger Platform was effectively whole again.
The hideous cracks, became beautiful patterns.
Three thousand steps to see the platform, such a beautiful star-patterned Tiger Stage.
... but that's not all.
At this moment, the entire sky was covered by a magnificent and intricate star map.
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If one observes carefully, one can find that this star chart happens to correspond with the current starry pattern formed by the Tiger's Altar. It is not a deliberate attempt to make the lines exactly the same, but both patterns have a harmonious resonance.
This is a pairing close to art, something anyone can capture the beauty of.
One cannot map the stars with such precision without a profound understanding of the cosmos.
At this time, everyone is under the starry sky, all looking up at the stars!
Within the flowing starlight, a man with an unusually youthful face and a robe adorned with star charts materialized.
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He stood on the other side of the Xingwen Tiger Platform. With a sweep of his sleeve, all the Qi officials on the platform vanished. He was left alone facing King Zhao.
“You can’t stop me!” King Zhao’s voice was deep, almost like a confirmation of truth: “Do you think you can stop me”
That's so awesome!
Facing Ruan Qiu, the inspector of the astronomical observatory of Qi State, who had once stood toe-to-toe with King Xia Wu Wang Si and held his own, King Zhao actually spoke dismissively, took a step forward, and crushed Ruan Qiu's star map rules underfoot, stepping into his safe distance.
But Ruan Qiong just looked at him calmly: "You had better be able to act flawlessly, you'd better not reveal any flaws, you'd better not let me figure out who you are."
An egalitarian nation is an enemy to the current world order, and it is hated by all hegemonic nations.
Once the true identity of King Zhao is revealed, no matter what level of being it is, the outcome will undoubtedly be extremely tragic.
“Hahaha!” King Zhao laughed. “You little charlatans, I hope you can actually pull it off.”
At this moment, the heavens roared with a sound like tearing silk.
The star chart covering the night sky was actually torn open in the middle!
The star patterns formed on the Tiger Platform suddenly blazed with brilliance, reaching from earth to heaven. For a moment, light surged into the sky, forming walls of starlight that forcibly held back the celestial map.
At first, Mingming appeared to mend the rift caused by King Zhao. Now, he naturally formed an alliance, as if King Zhao himself had become a part of this formation.
Then, the mighty power swept across the heavens and earth, tightening its grip on King Zhao in a stranglehold!
As the sky glittered with starlight, twinkling like countless threads woven across the heavens, upon the earth, walls of stars rose one by one, painting a celestial tapestry.
All rules have been broken and reshaped.
Therefore, the heavens collapse and the earth splits, time and space are displaced, the Five Elements are in disorder, and truth returns to emptiness!
This is the Nine Heavens Star Transformation Returning to Void Formation.
This formation, when fully evolved, can even shatter the true immortal's "Dao"!
And yet, Ruan Qi effortlessly and naturally wove the scene, without a ripple.
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From the moment he made his move, every step Ruan Qi took was profound and well-calculated. It seemed like there were endless hidden intentions behind every action, leaving people overwhelmed and unable to anticipate his next move. If we talk about scheming and calculation, wouldn't Guadao Zhenjun surpass anyone else
The terrifying rules touched his body, and King Zhao had a blue lightning like a dragon snake coiling outside his body. That wasn't some powerful technique, but the reaction of his Dao Body to the power of the formation.
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He watched as Ruan Qiong opened the killing array, only extending his hand.
Boom!
The earth trembles!
At the bottom of the Star-patterned Tiger Platform, a great thing was visibly shaking. The surrounding world rules had shattered one by one.
King Zhao, despite being attacked by Ruan Qiu's forces, dared to forcibly pull out Si Xuan's palace!
So arrogant, so domineering!
He made this choice for several reasons. First and foremost, it was based on his terrifying strength; he could truly withstand any challenge. Secondly, he couldn't afford to prolong the fight with Ruan Qiong here, as other powerful figures from the Qi state would arrive at any moment. This was also why he hadn't bothered to put in much effort before and had killed Shi Mingcheng and Su Guanying on the spot.
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Having removed Si Xuan's palace, this expedition is a victory.
Even if he killed Shi Mingcheng and Su Guan Ying, this journey would still be a failure since he couldn't take away Si Xuan's palace.
So he, even with his body injured, forced himself to persist in this matter.
Of course, the extent of Dao Ku's injuries was entirely under his control, he could endure it.
As for whether there were truly powerful figures from the Qi state lurking in Nanyang, he had certainly speculated. The reason he still went ahead was because he was confident that even if the worst-case scenario happened, he would still be able to achieve his goal.
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It is precisely because Qi State has a powerful master at the level of True Monarchs, they may not even suspect his intentions toward Si Xuan's Palace!
Si Xuan's palace was deeply buried underground, situated beneath Hutai Mountain. Yet it influenced the entire Nanjiang region for thousands of miles. It had already established a close connection with the South Xia Governor's Mansion.
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If a few more years pass, when Nanzhang is politically stable and the people are united, with everyone working together for a common goal, then we can establish a grand palace like the one in Si Xuan's domain, just as powerful as the General Governor's Mansion of Nanxia. But before that, we must first assess the current state of affairs in Nanzhang and prepare accordingly.
Therefore, today is truly a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity.
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Ruan Qi sighed: "As expected of King Zhao, you've ruled the world for so many years, and countless heroes have tried to kill you but failed! I indeed can't stop you. But—"
King Zhao looked at the highest achiever of Eastern Region's star divination... But
But what
He soon found out but what!
He moved with unparalleled might to shake the celestial palace of Si Xuan, but suddenly a surge of immense power arose, officially resisting his invasion!
King Zhao experienced surprise for the first time.
How could this be
The Heavenly Palace of Si Xuan had long since been shattered. Since that year until now, it has never been restored. Where did such power come from
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If it had recovered, if it still had strength, why did it not appear in the war where Qi State destroyed Xia State!
Boom!
The ground shook even more violently.
All the rules of this world are shattering, and new ones are being born.
A magnificent palace suddenly appeared in the sky.
It appeared precisely at the tear in the celestial tapestry, as if filling a void, possessing the might to subdue all under heaven.
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Within the palace, a grand voice boomed forth, empowered by the strength of the subterranean chambers.
"Master Ming Shouqi of the Si Xuan Temple greets His Royal Highness, the Prince!"
Got it!
King Zhao instantly understood everything.
"The so-called 'Xie Huai'an used a thunderous force to seize control of Si Xuan Di Gong first, encircling it without attacking. Then, they launched a strong attack on Gui Yi City, forcing An Le Bo to surrender, and finally returned to take control of Si Xuan Di Gong...' This plot, which Su Guan Ying had recounted to Jiang Wang before, had also been made public by the Qi State side."
It's just "the plot".
The real process is not like that.
In fact, it was the Palace Master of Si Xuan's Earth Palace, the current immortal Ming Shouqi, who had long secretly infiltrated the Qi court!
At the beginning of the First Qi-Xia War, Prince Qi had already successfully subjugated Ming Shouqi. As one of the vanguard forces, he was about to capture Guiyi City in one fell swoop. However, Empress Dowager Xia acted decisively at that time. Yi Tian Guan took the lead and descended first, with countless powerful auras from masters arriving. Jing Guo's might overwhelmed the world!
When faced with the Emperor, all his armies could only retreat, returning to the East and relinquishing all control over the South.
But he kept Ming Shouqi.
The dilapidated Si Xuan Palace, the seriously injured and dying Master Ming Shouqi of Si Xuan Palace, remained in the same dilapidated and precarious Xia Kingdom.
This was followed by a period of thirty-three years known as the Era of Divine Martial prowess.
The Xia Kingdom, both its ruler and his ministers, were united in their efforts to govern diligently and rebuild the nation. They strengthened the country's defenses by reinforcing the national army and secretly rebuilding the imperial palace of Si Xuan as a hidden trump card. However, they publicly proclaimed that the restoration of Si Xuan Palace was still far off.
Unfortunately, this card is Qi Tianzi Jiang Shu's card!
Qi State planted this nail when they retreated thirty-four years ago.
Therefore, Xie Huai'an was able to easily defeat Guiyi City in the final Qi Xia War.
Therefore, a woman as extraordinary as Empress Dowager Xia would have offered no resistance and simply set herself ablaze. Otherwise, even though deeply wounded by her own son and utterly heartbroken, she still would have done something—at that point, there truly was nothing left to do.
Because Xia Tingyi was one of the rear guards and also the last reliance of Guiyicheng's Si Xuan Di Gong at that time, he refused to answer the summons!
But what it meant, the true higher-ups of Xia Ting all knew very well.
Why was Qi's understanding of Xia's every move throughout the entire Warring States period so comprehensive
Because it is the birthday of Ming Shouqi.
Why did the intelligence system meticulously constructed by Xia Guo's government end up leaking like a sieve
Because of Ming Shouqi!
But Si Xuan's palace itself holds even greater significance.
Since ancient times, there has never been anything that surpasses man.
Even the strongest weapon needs to be wielded by a person.
Even the greatest weapons are man-made.
Cultivators throughout history have endured hardship, generation after generation of monks pushing the boundaries of wisdom and constantly expanding the limits of cultivation.
It makes no sense that inanimate objects can surpass living beings, and artifacts can overpower real people.
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After the Dao of self-cultivation was utterly destroyed, it became even worse.
All tools have their limits, but the path of transcendence has limitless potential!
The Mohist School, despite its formidable strength and years of tireless effort, pouring their heart and soul into creating extraordinary puppets, could only achieve the level of a human Immortal at most. Furthermore, each puppet is unique and cannot be mass-produced.
As for other types of weapons, there is no need to elaborate. They are typically only effective in low-level combat. Weapons capable of participating in the Divine Presence level of combat are already few and far between. Weapons capable of participating in the True Person level of combat are extremely rare!
But at the level of True Monarchs, no matter what kind of magic weapon you wield, it will be useless. It can be shattered with a single thought, and reduced to dust with another.
Even the weapons of true immortals will quickly deteriorate once they are separated from their master's care.
But throughout history, there has been one kind of existence that can be an exception.
That is the countless sages' heart and blood, utilizing Heaven and Earth's innate treasures to refine the celestial treasure!
This is also one of the fundamental reasons why the value of a cave heaven far exceeds that of a blessed land.
Just like the Sun Palace of the ancient Emperor Yang, it once dominated the heavens and suppressed the Eastern regions. Who dared to defy it
Si Xuan's earthly palace is also of this kind!
Although its predecessor was merely one of the thirty-six minor celestial realms, the celestial treasure it forged was powerful enough to interfere with battles at the level of Dao Transformation.
Now Ming Shouqi, controlling the Xuandi Palace, has emerged victorious, having already secured a decisive victory.
King Zhao, knowing that the great matter was beyond his reach, remained silent. He allowed the azure lightning to flicker around his body, and with a single step, he vanished miles away.
Wait a minute!
With a brush dipped in ink, he painted swirling mists that danced around him as he took his first step onto the celestial dome of the Divine Palace of Si Xuan.
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In an instant, a brilliant light blazed forth, surpassing the sun and illuminating the heavens. This magnificent palace erupted with unimaginable power, directly pinning down King Zhao!
Ruan Qi had been lurking in the depths of Xuan Di Palace for many days. Was he waiting for an incident like that of King Zhao of Pingguo
He has also been familiarizing himself with the Palace of Si Xuan, to the point where he can now directly manipulate it!
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This was Qi's hidden trump card in the War against Xia, kept for so long and now it has been revealed, landing right on the face of the Pingguo! time, the fallen maple forest city was now caught between the netherworld and the mortal realm.Back then, the youths who cultivated in the realm of Wandering Pulse, are now accomplished cultivators o...