Chapter 223 Life and Death Without Blame (Twenty)
Outside the main hall, the wind and clouds surged.
The gray sky pressed down heavily, thunder rumbled, and even the magic array couldn't stop the raging wind. The air became damp and sticky, robes fluttered, and withered leaves were swirled up until they landed right in front of one's eyes, revealing them to be human skin paper.
On either side of the Temple of the God of War stand statues of a male and a female general, holding swords and looking solemnly at the countless flying boats moored on the horizon. At the summit, the stone statue of the God of War, Yao Shuo, is as enormous as a giant, looking down at the group of cultivators the size of sand and stones below without joy or sorrow.
Jiang Gu stopped on the steps, looked up, and saw many familiar faces.
On the largest flying ship stood several of the most prominent families and sects on the Pingze Continent. Leading them was Jiang Yinzhong, the head of the Jiang family, with Jiang Zhuan and Jiang Xiangyun standing behind him. Beside him were Jing Cang, the sect leader of the Linglong Sect, and Elder Song Ping. On the other side were Zhou Lin'an, the head of the Zhou family, and Lin Huan, the head of the Lin family, with Lin Feibai and Zhou Tingran following behind them. Surprisingly, many of these cultivators had reached the Golden Immortal realm, and they had never appeared in public before, not even being discovered during the Pingze troop count.
Besides the main force led by the Jiang family in the center, there were also the merman vengeful spirits brought by Qing Du, Qu Fengyu, Xuan Zhiyan, and Wu Tuo, who were also with them. Xia Ling, Mo Daojin, and others were scattered nearby. On the other side, Bai Yi and Hou Wenxin, along with the spirit pets and cultivators released by the Bodhi Clan and the White Bone Pavilion, occupied a corner. Wu Yi, Hu Jingchen, and Lei Jiusan stayed with the people from the Burning Platform Hall. Behind them were many cultivators who had escaped from the Tower of Life and Death...
Tens of thousands of people formed a dense, dark mass on the horizon, completely surrounding the Temple of War.
On the other hand, Xiao Dan's side only had Elder Nie and a few other pavilion masters, but Xiao Dan didn't seem flustered at all.
He even had the leisure to appreciate the scenery, and said to Jiang Gu with a smile, "Young friend Jiang, what do you think is the difference between the scenery of Wangyue and Pingze?"
Jiang Yinzhong had already given the order to begin the attack. Outside the mountain-guarding formation, magical treasures and spiritual power were unleashed simultaneously. Amidst lightning and thunder, countless orbs of light exploded. The surging spiritual power swept across the mountains and forests, causing mountains to crumble, the earth to collapse, and dust to fly everywhere, all turning into ashes and staining the world with a deep black.
“No difference.” Jiang Gu’s pupils reflected the colorful light as he turned to meet Xiao Dan’s gaze.
Xiao Dan laughed, looked at Jiang Gu and shook his head, sighing, "I heard you cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, do you know? In the beginning, in ancient times, there were no three thousand paths, nor were there so many levels of cultivation, but countless people still ascended. However, as divine descents became more frequent, cultivators began to choose the gods they followed, drawing different paths of cultivation, and the levels of cultivation became more and more detailed. They also became more and more reliant on divine artifacts and formations, but fewer and fewer cultivators ascended. Do you know why?"
Jiang Gu looked at him indifferently.
“Young friend Jiang, it’s all the same.” Xiao Dan smiled. “Wangyue doesn’t want Pingze to share the resources, and the immortals in the upper realm don’t want us cultivators to go up there either. The Path of Ruthlessness, the Path of Passion, the Path of Mortal World, the Path of Alchemy, the Path of Music, the Path of Heaven and Earth… there has never been any difference between them.”
Jiang Gu looked at him: "What path does the Master cultivate?"
Xiao Dan's smile faded slightly. He stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the cultivators continuously falling outside the protective array of the hall, and slowly said, "You might not believe it, but what I cultivate is—"
Thunder roared outside the magic array. With the combined efforts of many cultivators, the protective array of the temple was finally shaken, and a deep crack appeared. The sounds of fighting finally entered the temple through the crack. Xiao Dan's voice was distorted for a moment, but Jiang Gu still managed to hear those three words clearly amidst the noise and chaos.
"The Way of the Common People".
It was utterly absurd. Jiang Gu felt like he had heard a despicable joke.
“You are a rare and intelligent person, and I admire you.” Xiao Dan said gently, “Others may not understand, but you can. I built the Ten Towers and Eight Platforms and the Misty Rain Pavilion in Wangyue to make better use of these resources and artifacts. I built the Path to Heaven to fight against fate for everyone in the cultivation world. They have cut off our path, so why can’t we resist? Don’t you agree?”
Jiang Gu looked at him calmly and said, "Even if I am a person from the upper realm undergoing tribulation, and I have no memories now, it is meaningless for you to ask me."
Xiao Dan looked at him and smiled: "You're very smart. I thought you would at least give me a clear answer."
"You say there is no difference in the ways of the world, yet you have chosen the way of the common people. You are convinced of your own actions, yet you still ask me if I am right or wrong." Jiang Gu twitched the corner of his mouth. "Master Xiao, no matter what my answer is, you will not be satisfied, because even you yourself do not know."
The smile completely vanished from Xiao Dan's eyes.
“If I were you, I would have refined the Jade Step into the Path to Heaven on the very first day I obtained it, instead of testing people’s hearts and letting a Jade Step prove my right or wrong.” Jiang Gu said indifferently, “Whatever path I seek, right is right, and wrong is right.”
Xiao Dan's pupils contracted sharply upon hearing this.
He finally tore off that mask of pretense and suddenly attacked Jiang Gu, aiming straight for Jiang Gu's primordial spirit between his eyebrows. Jiang Gu immediately dodged and retreated. Almost at the same time that Xiao Dan made his move, Elder Nie and Xiao Qingfan and the others could no longer hold back. The signal formed by their spiritual energy broke through the sky, and countless cultivators from the Eight Pavilions emerged from behind the Pingze Flying Boat, surrounding them in front of the protective array. They echoed the array from afar and attacked from both sides. Instantly, the starlight of the fallen cultivators fell like rain.
The weather is getting colder and colder.
Jiang Gu dodged Xiao Dan's attack and quickly formed hand seals. The mist that Wei Feng had transformed into suddenly spread out, and in an instant, several figures appeared around Jiang Gu. They were Jiang Yinzhong, Jing Cang, Zhou Lin'an, and Lin Huan. They joined forces to meet Xiao Dan's palm strike. In an instant, spiritual energy surged, and everyone around was knocked back hundreds of feet. The general statue guarding the palace gate collapsed with a crash.
Jiang Xiangyun helped Jiang Gu up from behind. Behind him, Lu Liyu, Lin Feibai and others followed closely, while Wei Feng returned to his puppet body.
Even so, Jiang Gu was still shaken to his core and it took him a long time to calm down—with his current cultivation level, he couldn't even withstand a single palm strike from Xiao Dan.
In that instant, Wei Feng and Jiang Gu's primordial spirits had already been exchanged.
Jiang Gu quickly regulated his breathing inside the puppet body resembling Wei Feng. Wei Feng, in his puppet body, looked at him immediately, moved his mouth, and thankfully didn't call out "Master." He tightly grasped Jiang Gu's hand and asked worriedly, "Are you alright?"
Jiang Gu shook his head and squeezed his palm with his other hand.
Wei Feng didn't have time to ask Jiang Gu what his plans were, so he could only do his best to play the role of Jiang Gu. His primordial spirit was covered with a layer of brilliant gold, which completely concealed his filthy aura, while Jiang Gu's primordial spirit was entangled with ghost patterns, completely concealing the aura of the Jade Steps.
On the other side, Jiang Yinzhong, Jing Cang, and others had already surrounded Xiao Dan's distraction, while Jiang Xiangyun led his men to fight with Elder Nie and Xiao Qingfan, creating a chaotic scene.
"Yin Zhong, it's been a long time." Xiao Dan stood with his hands behind his back on the broken head of the stone statue, looked at the people surrounding him, and finally fixed his gaze on Jiang Yin Zhong.
Jiang Yin said solemnly, "Master, how have you been?"
"When was the last time we met?" Xiao Dan was still in the mood to reminisce.
“More than four thousand years ago, when you first took over as the leader of the platform, I had just entered the trial realm and thought you were just an ordinary cultivator.” Jiang Yinzhong was also very composed. “At that time, I was young and ignorant. Fortunately, the leader of the platform was magnanimous and did not hold it against me.”
Xiao Dan nodded and said, "I didn't expect you to have broken through to the Great Luo Realm. I should congratulate you."
"No need for congratulations." Jiang Yinzhong flicked his wrist, and a long sword appeared in his hand. "My Jiang family has been loyal to Wangyue for generations. Now you want to kill us after we've served our purpose. Xiao Dan, you have to give my Jiang family an explanation, both morally and logically!"
Jing Cang said, "Brother Jiang, why bother wasting your breath on him? Wang Yue has never taken us seriously."
"What a load of nonsense!" Lin Huan, his temper flaring, charged forward first. "Xiao Dan, prepare to die!"
Over thousands of years, the Jiang family's information network in Wangyue has become extensive, and they have been preparing for how to deal with Xiao Dan and his group for a long time. However, even so, the cultivation level of the Dao Ancestor Realm is still an overwhelming advantage for them.
Lin Huan unleashed the divine weapon, the Immortal Forest Hammer. Its enormous form was almost level with the temple gate. The giant hammer crashed down on Xiao Dan, who caught it with one hand without even using his form. The hammer made a cracking sound, and cracks spread like a spider web. Seeing this, Zhou Lin'an shouted, "Brother Lin, step back! I'll handle this!"
Although Zhou Lin'an's Dharma form was not as large as Lin Huan's, it was exceptionally agile. His divine weapon was a long whip, which entangled Xiao Dan, giving Lin Huan a chance to catch his breath. Xiao Dan smiled and suddenly disappeared in front of him, reappearing behind him. Unfortunately, just as he was about to make a move, Jing Cang and Song Ping joined forces to stop him. Jiang Yinzhong and Jing Cang simultaneously summoned their Dharma forms, their twin swords striking directly at his core. Xiao Dan retreated rapidly and stopped at the entrance of the temple. He raised his head, and with his movement, a huge, dark Dharma form slowly appeared, almost level with the entire temple. Originally, the Dharma forms of Lin Huan, Jiang Yinzhong, and the others were already enormous, but compared to Xiao Dan's Dharma form, it was less than a third of his size.
Around the temple, Jiang Xiangyun and Lu Liyu, along with their men, fought Xiao Qingfan. Bai Yi and Hou Wenxin faced off against Elder Nie. As the protective array of the temple broke, more and more cultivators poured in to fight the cultivators from the Eight Pavilions. The cultivators from Pingze, lacking sufficient cultivation, compensated with sheer numbers. Sometimes a hundred cultivators would fight one cultivator from the Eight Pavilions, or they would continuously replenish their manpower, exhausting the opponent's spiritual power until they finally killed them. The magical artifacts and even divine artifacts they obtained quickly found new owners. There were even cultivators who specialized in collecting magical artifacts to supply them... In an instant, the entire War God Temple was stained with blood. Large and small Dharma images bloomed like fireworks, disappearing in an instant or turning into streaks of light and moving forward. As far as the eye could see, it was a magnificent and colorful spectacle.
In the midst of the chaos, Wei Feng stayed close to Jiang Gu.
It wasn't obvious during their individual duels, but in this chaotic melee, Wei Feng finally realized just how terrifying Jiang Gu was. This chaotic fighting style was like adding wings to a tiger for Jiang Gu. He wielded the Golden Spirit Mace, wrapped the Fire Rope around his hand, extracted his primordial spirit and shattered his dantian, using the opponent's force against them. Despite only having the cultivation of a True Immortal at the Great Perfection stage, he was able to break through the encirclement of a group of Golden Immortals, and even move among them, helping the cultivators of Pingze deliver a crucial blow. Wei Feng followed behind him, imitating him. The master and disciple swept through like a hurricane, reaping countless lives and magical artifacts.
Those with short tempers immediately started cursing: "Have you no shame!"
Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Gu's Fire Rope deflected an attack from a Golden Immortal cultivator, who was then "accidentally killed" by his own people, dying with his eyes wide open in disbelief.
Jiang Gu collected countless magical treasures and fed them all to Wei Feng.
"I can't eat anymore, Master..." Wei Feng had swallowed several divine artifacts and now felt that he could break through to the next level immediately.
Jiang Gu then took and refined them as he went. Apart from a few useful divine artifacts, he refined them all into protective arrays for his primordial spirit. Finally, someone discovered their actions.
Song Shijun looked at the master and disciple in front of him with a complicated expression and said, "Jiang Gu, who exactly are you on? Don't forget that Gu Qinghui is still in my hands."
Gu Qinghui's primordial spirit silently emerged from behind Jiang Gu. She smiled slightly and said, "A Shi, his body is barely usable."
Jiang Gu narrowed his eyes, while Wei Feng rubbed his hands together, eager to try.
Song Shijun sneered, summoned the Golden Spirit Pagoda, but his expression suddenly changed: "Jiang Gu, what did you do to the Golden Spirit Pagoda?!"
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