Chapter 814: The Fall of Nine Mountains Prefecture
Chapter 814: The Fall of Nine Mountains Prefecture
A young man in his teens, brimming with vigor, is at an age most susceptible to influence.
Moreover, Shang Tianci had fallen under Li Fan’s Art of Blood Kinship, making him implicitly trustful.
And who was Li Fan? Even as a mere mortal, he could weave words so compelling that people would willingly lay down their lives for him.
It took little effort, therefore, for Li Fan to thoroughly indoctrinate him.
"The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance is corrupt beyond repair," Li Fan declared. "We cultivators must make it our duty to overthrow it."
"Only then will a glorious new era of freedom in cultivation truly arrive!"
Shang Tianci felt his blood surge, consumed by a profound sense of purpose he had never known.
As for what would happen after the Alliance’s fall, or whether true freedom in cultivation could ever be achieved, those were questions that never crossed his mind.
"Our first step is to unite all the forces we can. For example, the unaffiliated Grotto-heavens and worlds of the Xuanhuang Realm..."
Shang Tianci’s eyes shone. "A federation of all worlds! Brilliant!"
Li Fan continued his indoctrination, feeding him one concept after another.
The process, however, was abruptly cut short by a strange, oppressive atmosphere that descended upon them.
They both looked up simultaneously, their gazes fixed on the distant horizon.
From their vantage point on Yulan Mountain, the highest peak in the Nine Mountains Prefecture, their line of sight stretched across most of the province. On the border, a dense, teeming mass of cultivators had suddenly appeared.
"That's..." Shang Tianci stammered, his face a mask of horror.
The attire of those cultivators was completely different from that of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.
They clearly belonged to the other major power in the Xuanhuang Realm: the Five Elders Council.
"This is bad, an invasion! I have to—"
Shang Tianci was about to teleport away using his Heavenly Scene Treasure Gourd, but when he reached for it, it was gone.
Only then did he recall that Li Fan still had it. "Senior!"
Before he could say more, Li Fan placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"The Alliance is rotten to the core, but the Five Elders Council is no righteous savior either."
"Their five Heavenly Venerates have reversed the laws of heaven and earth, deluding all who live under their rule."
"The more fiercely they fight each other, the more it benefits us."
"Let the tigers fight while we watch from the mountain!" Li Fan’s voice was grim.
At first, hesitation was written all over Shang Tianci’s face.
But after a moment of deep thought, he fell silent.
The instant the cultivators of the Five Elders Council set foot in Nine Mountains Prefecture, chaos erupted across the land.
Numerous cultivators dressed in the Alliance’s uniform suddenly turned on their comrades, launching attacks against the fortress cities of the Nine Mountains Prefecture.
Moreover, as time went on, the number of rebels seemed to multiply.
"You see?" Li Fan said, seizing the opportunity. "The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance has lost the hearts of its people. The moment someone raises a banner of rebellion, countless others flock to join them!"
Watching the scene unfold, Shang Tianci slowly nodded.
In truth, the Five Elders Council was not without its merits.
At the very least, this surprise attack was a testament to their organizational prowess.
In just half a day, the majority of the vast Nine Mountains Prefecture had fallen. The armies of the Five Elders Council advanced with breathtaking speed, dispatching forces to secure the captured fortress cities while their main host pressed on toward the final stronghold: Mount Tianchang.
The battlefield descended into chaos.
Li Fan and Shang Tianci remained hidden atop Yulan Mountain, undiscovered for the time being.
As the most important bastion in the Nine Mountains Prefecture, Tianchang City was not only guarded by a Dao Integration cultivator but was also home to the Wanfa Chamber of Commerce.
If the Wanfa Chamber of Commerce had lent its strength to the defense, the city might have held out until reinforcements from the Alliance arrived.
But clearly, the Wanfa Chamber of Commerce was an opportunistic bunch, always waiting to see who had the upper hand. From start to finish, not a single one of them joined the battle.
Meanwhile, the Dao Integration guardian of Tianchang was already buckling under the assault of three cultivators of the same realm dispatched by the Five Elders Council.
"It seems the Alliance's defeat here is certain. It's time for us to depart," Li Fan announced, rising after having watched the spectacle for long enough.
"However, before we leave, we should leave something behind—proof that we were here."
"Tianyang!"
Li Fan tossed a jade slip to him.
Receiving his orders, Tianyang caught the slip and clenched it tightly in his palm.
Then, he hurled it with all his might in the direction of Mount Tianchang.
It wasn't just the jade slip that went flying.
It was also Tianyang's entire hand!
A trail of red and black flames erupted from behind the severed hand.
Its speed abruptly intensified.
Like a meteor, it streaked across the sky of Nine Mountains Prefecture, racing toward its destination.
"Let's go."
Li Fan patted Shang Tianci's shoulder and, without a word, returned the Heavenly Scene Treasure Gourd.
Shang Tianci understood instantly. With a single thought, a peculiar ripple of energy enveloped them both.
A moment later, their figures vanished from the peak of Yulan Mountain!
Above Tianchang City.
The three Dao Integration cultivators from the Five Elders Council, currently besieging Tianchang's guardian, Qingyu Immortal Venerable, suddenly flinched.
Their eyes darted toward a ball of fire hurtling toward them.
"What is that?"
At first, they suspected it was a hidden trump card from the Alliance.
But a sweep of their divine sense revealed something unexpected hidden within the flames: a jade slip.
Without exchanging a word, the three acted in perfect concert.
One of them, a cultivator dressed in sackcloth who looked like a middle-aged farmer, intercepted the jade slip.
After examining its contents, all three of them narrowed their eyes.
"The Federation of All Worlds?"
"They claim to have resolved our intelligence leak?"
"And a method to drastically reduce the effects of the Yuan-Devouring White Mist, allowing an army to march through it?"
The jade slip contained little text, but the implications were enormous.
Their divine senses instantly swept across the entire Nine Mountains Prefecture, but they found no trace of the sender.
"Quite resourceful," one of them muttered.
All three wore expressions of keen interest.
...
Taihua Province.
Li Fan and Shang Tianci appeared without warning on Taixu Mountain, one of the ten great mountain ranges of Taihua.
"This Heavenly Scene Gourd of yours is truly wondrous," Li Fan remarked, savoring the memory of their recent spatial jump.
"Does it use the power of the earth veins to achieve instantaneous travel?"
He clicked his tongue in amazement.
"No, that's not quite it. Rather than the power of earth veins, it feels more like it directly uses the power of the Xuanhuang Realm itself to shift locations."
Li Fan was instantly reminded of the sight of Mr. Bai walking at a "slow pace."
A vague understanding bloomed in his mind.
Although Mr. Bai had fallen, the various "abilities" inherent to the Xuanhuang Realm had not vanished with him.
Instead, they had been scattered, inherited by a new generation of so-called geniuses.
"But even Mr. Bai, who could integrate all the wonders of the Xuanhuang Realm into himself, was no match for the Dharma Spreader."
"What chance do these geniuses have?"
"In the Dharma Spreader's eyes, they're nothing more than high-quality fodder."
Li Fan mused on the motives of the Dharma Spreading Heavenly Venerate.
Shang Tianci, however, remained oblivious.
He was still proudly introducing his twin treasure gourds to Li Fan. "My companion wonder is actually a pair of gourds."
"One purple, one green."
"The green one, Senior, you've already seen. It can record landscapes and locations, and then travel to them at will."
"As for this purple gourd..."
—
There will be another chapter shortly.
(End of this chapter)
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