First, a few cultivators on the outermost edge suddenly let out a scream. By the time everyone looked over, the person had already vanished.
"Someone's attacking! Fellow Daoists, be on guard!" someone shouted a warning. But no one could see where the enemy was.
Both Qingyun Sect and Fenxiang Valley sent their elders and sect leaders to observe the ceremony. They managed to deflect a strange attack, and the sensation they felt immediately alarmed them.
"This is... the Beast God?"
"Don't panic, the real Beast God has just been buried by me. These are just Dao soldiers made from the malevolent energy of heaven and earth combined with some kind of strange magic. Everyone move closer to the center and gather together. Don't give them a chance to launch a sneak attack."
Under Lu Xuan's command, the large number of cultivators who had come to observe the ceremony began to quickly gather. Those who had come to observe the ceremony were representatives of the remaining major sects in the Central Plains. However, due to the heavy casualties in the previous battle, many of those who came now actually represented the entirety of their respective sects.
When everyone gathered together, they suddenly realized that in just over ten breaths, more than thirty fellow cultivators had vanished. The entire cultivation world of Central China had suffered another devastating blow.
A sharp buzzing sound came from the sky. It was the sword cry of Hongyu Jinchan. Lu Xuan saw from afar that a figure's face was shattered by Hongyu Jinchan's sword. But then, it transformed into a cloud of black mist and escaped.
Hongyu came to Lu Xuan's side and said.
"It resembles the Beast God, but not entirely. Its size is vastly different, but it's difficult to kill directly. It seems the people from Burning Incense Valley made the move."
"Heh, I originally thought they would make a move on our way back. I didn't expect them to be able to hold back now."
"They probably thought you used the Eight Fiends Profound Fire Formation and that it consumed a lot of energy, so they attacked you."
Hongyu was actually right. The reason Lu Xuan didn't notice it beforehand was partly because those things were indeed well-hidden, and partly because he was preoccupied with controlling the Eight Fiends Profound Fire Formation and had no time to spare.
"What are these guys thinking? In just a few days, the cultivation world's power has already been reduced by 70%. And they still want to suffer another wave of losses."
"Heh, for some people, the best outcome would be if they were the only cultivation sect left in the world. That's pretty much what unifying the world means."
"..." Lu Xuan truly didn't understand the Incense Valley's actions. It wasn't like the world was running out of resources, and everyone was fighting tooth and nail to survive. The entire cultivation world was clearly still in a pioneering era. And they were already starting to fight?
However, although he didn't understand, it didn't mean Lu Xuan would forgive these guys. In fact, Lu Xuan had been prepared for this for a long time.
Seeing that the remaining cultivators, numbering less than a hundred, had shrunk together, the hidden enemies began to slowly reveal themselves.
There were about forty beings that looked like humans. However, they were not breathing, had no heartbeat, and showed no signs of spiritual energy. They looked like ordinary corpses. But these very things, silently and without a trace, killed at least thirty experts from the cultivation world.
This is a world of cultivation, not a world of martial arts. This shows just how dangerous these things are. In terms of destructive power, each of them is at the level of the head of the Qingyun Sect!
Besides these creatures, countless merfolk appeared in dense formations all around. Most of them were deformed in appearance, with crazed and bloodthirsty expressions. There were probably thousands of them. Moreover, these creatures all possessed considerable spiritual energy fluctuations. They were likely infected by the beast god's malevolent aura, or specially cultivated war weapons using similar methods.
In fact, Lu Xuan quite admired the Incense Valley for this. After all, it was a sect with a commendable spirit of scientific research. It's just a pity they followed the wrong path, engaging in all sorts of crooked and unorthodox methods. Cultivation is about oneself; the key is inner cultivation. Even if they don't accept external aids, they're still focusing on magical treasures, elixirs, or even supernatural abilities like external avatars. What good does constantly cultivating these things do for one's own cultivation?
Okay, maybe it'll be somewhat useful. It might be helpful when attacking other sects and looting their scriptures. However, they're oversimplifying things.
Behind the mermaids, real humans began to appear. Without any disguise, they appeared directly wearing the robes of the Incense Valley. Their numbers were not as large as expected, only three or four hundred, but judging from their aura, they were all skilled fighters.
"Fenxiang Valley, what do you mean by this?"
Leading the way was Yun Yilan. In the original novel, Yun Yilan concealed his cultivation level, secretly cultivating his family's Incense Jade Manual to the highest level, the Jade Yang Realm, while secretly plotting his grand plan to take over the Central Plains.
His appearance at this moment showed a confident and composed demeanor.
"The land is vast and rich in spiritual energy, and has been occupied by you people from the Central Plains for thousands of years. It is time for it to change hands. From today onwards, in this world, only my Incense Valley will reign supreme. Go in peace."
"Wishful thinking! Do you really believe that killing us here will allow you to unify the Central Plains? The Central Plains still has the Qingyun Sect, the Tianyin Temple, and the Yinxian Sect. Do you think your Fenxiang Valley can handle any of them?"
Some in the crowd, indignant, spoke up in rebuttal. The Incense Valley had already become withdrawn and unapproachable due to the battle with the Beast God, earning the dislike of various factions in the Central Plains. Now, they were actually emerging to unify the Central Plains—this was simply intolerable.
"Hahaha, if it were before, my Incense Valley would naturally not be able to afford to offend them. But now, I have heard that Venerable Puhong and True Man Daoxuan are nearing their end. Three of the seven chief disciples of the Azure Cloud Sect have died, and the remaining four are still seriously injured. The Heavenly Sound Temple has suffered heavy losses, with only one elder of the Pu generation still capable of fighting. As for the Hidden Immortal Sect, they are just a few small fry; who can stop my Incense Valley?"
Not to mention my century-long plan; thousands of fishmen from the Western Death Swamp, led by my disciples from Burning Incense Valley, have already entered the Central Plains. They are also aided by Heavenly Fiend Dao Weapons. What will you use to resist them?”
At this moment, Hongyu glanced at Lu Xuan. Yun Yilan's question about how to defend themselves midway was indeed spot on. If the Central Plains were also facing such a siege, theoretically no one could withstand it. Being defeated one by one was highly possible. However, Lu Xuan had made preparations beforehand.
The Hidden Immortal Sect had established a surveillance system in the Death Swamp years ago. Lu Xuan knew of any movement the other side made long ago, and he sent Hongxiu with disciples to personally assist them. Crucially, Lu Xuan gave Hongxiu a trump card to suppress everything: his True Solar Fire.
Hongxiu certainly couldn't master the True Fire of the Sun. However, after Lu Xuan's last seclusion, the True Fire of the Sun underwent its transformation. Its power didn't increase much, but a very important change occurred.
That ball of true solar fire, nurtured by Lu Xuan for many years, has become sentient!
7017k
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Please take one day off.
With the changing seasons and cooler weather, gastroenteritis has arrived as expected... Luckily, I'm basically used to it!
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Chapter 463 The Demise of Incense Valley
Spiritual communication is a common phenomenon in the cultivation world. Mountain spirits, wild monsters, and magical artifacts nurtured over many years all have the potential to be spiritually connected. However, a flame communicating with a spirit is quite rare. A spiritual fire of the level of the True Fire of the Sun is even rarer, and has never been seen before.
The spiritual communication here refers to a spiritual connection. The flame possesses a spirit, meaning it transcends the conventional attributes of fire and exhibits special effects. This type of flame is called a spiritual flame.
Spiritual connection at the level of consciousness is far more complex. This refers to a ball of fire gaining consciousness and becoming a special kind of life. Lu Xuan's True Solar Fire is such a case. After absorbing the Eight Desolate Profound Fire Array, it did not advance in terms of power, but instead advanced laterally, gaining sentience.
Having gained sentience meant that Lu Xuan's supernatural power had become an even more peculiar existence. He could lend his power to others. It was simple; he could just have the True Fire of the Sun temporarily follow Hongxiu.
In fact, the advanced Solar True Fire transformed into a firebird the size of a sparrow. It no longer seemed to be just a supernatural power, but rather a special spiritual beast.
...In the Southern Frontier, the Incense Valley did not launch a rash attack. Lu Xuan noticed that while exchanging pleasantries, the Incense Valley members were also secretly preparing something. Clearly, they planned to set up array traps around the area to further weaken the power of the Central Plains cultivation world.
Although Lu Xuan was confident in his own strength, he didn't intend to let Fenxiang Valley continue its preparations. After all, the cultivation world in the Central Plains was already in dire straits. Lu Xuan was hoping that these people could spark some new ideas and ignite a spark in the cultivation world. If they all perished, the value of this world would be greatly diminished.
Lu Xuan raised his right hand and pointed to one of the Heavenly Fiend Dao Soldiers. To be honest, the name Burning Incense Valley was indeed imposing. It was just a pity that these things were actually weakened versions of the Beast God's creations. But Lu Xuan had received the direct inheritance of the Beast God.