Three days after the banquet, some chaos began to emerge in Qingmang. In addition to the government reviewing past cases and reopening court to examine wrongful convictions, more and more families were confessing their crimes.
Admitting guilt—yes, some families admitted to falsifying accounts, hoarding land, secretly recruiting people, and so on—actions that, while not punishable by death, were certainly enough to betray their class.
This is a bit troublesome for Dao Chengyi's side, but they can still try to stall for time, whether they succeed or not is not important.
As for the Mu family, it didn't matter. After all, the Mu family didn't care much about land annexation. They were more interested in business profits and tax revenue. With Mu Qingluo, a business prodigy, and with the help of other merchants, the Mu family's Qingmao caravan was quite famous in both Louzhou and Jiaozhou.
"This is the income from the Nine Serpents Stronghold these days. We have newly acquired twelve Gu worms, and we have collected half of the various Gu materials we need. Half of the people in Qingfeng Stronghold have already turned to us. Chief Wu killed him, and his body is now in the refining room."
Ma Yunlai was kneeling beside Dao Chengyi, watching the ferocious blue ox pythons in the feeding pool. They were strange creatures with heads like oxen and bodies like pythons.
"So now, within a 500-mile radius of Qingmang, only Baizu Mountain remains unsubdued, right?"
Hundred-Legged Mountain is a clan power located near the Hundred Thousand Mountains region of Qingmang. It was also the superior power of Nine Serpent Stronghold in the past. However, after Wu Guizhi, the leader of Nine Serpent Stronghold, opened his Void Aperture and embarked on the Path of Wood, Hundred-Legged Mountain's control weakened.
In particular, Wu Guizhi's slogan of being a descendant of the King of Jingchu, reviving the spirit of the Nine Yue, and returning to his homeland gave him a legal advantage.
Meanwhile, the spies from Nine Serpent Stronghold, having heard news from the Nine Yue tribe deep in the mountains, were mostly observing the situation, as the glory of the past century had not lasted long, and the legacy of the King of Jingchu still lingered.
"Yes, and I heard that they are planning to forcefully storm the Cangjing Prefecture, intending to spread the news of the return of the descendants of the King of Jingchu in order to attract the imperial court to wipe out the Nine Serpent Village."
Upon hearing this news, Dao Chengyi shook his head and put away the bait. Seeing that there wasn't enough bait, one of the green ox pythons rushed towards Dao Chengyi and opened its blood-red maw.
But the next second, a thick ice spear pierced through it, and a general puppet in ice armor appeared beside Dao Chengyi. Only then did Ma Yunlai realize that there was also a white-haired woman beside Dao Chengyi.
The person was Bai Zhi. Compared to her previous thinness and disfigured face, she was now taller and more slender, with fair and flawless skin. She wore a simple and clean white dress and exuded a wintery chill.
"This fellow shall be lunch today, young master."
When Bai Zhi spoke, the coldness vanished, replaced by a gentle warmth and moisture, like winter giving way to spring.
"Compared to these domesticated poultry that have come to terms with reality, this kind of wild and untamed taste is much better."
Dao Cheng glanced at the snake that was obediently sitting in the pool, then reached out and placed his hand on Ma Yunlai's head. Although Ma Yunlai had his head down, Dao Cheng could feel the increasingly heavy, dangerous, and noble aura growing within him.
That majesty, that nobility—Ma Yunlai felt as if the image of a supreme, immortal, and indestructible dragon, standing tall amidst the vast chaos, appeared in his mind.
"Tell Wu generals to kill them all and then send me everything they own."
"Chief Wu said that the Nine Yue tribes' Wuhou are stationed there, making it difficult to move."
“Then kill him together and tell him that Jiu Yue’s only way out is through me, because he has no other choice. Prove his loyalty and I will give him hope.”
"I won't tell him a second time."
"annex and then kill!"
The hand suddenly widened, its sharp claws, capable of tearing through space, touched the skin on the back of the head; the increasingly thick and scorching scales on the hand… the dragon's breath that spewed fire, a dragon… a real dragon…
"Understood."
Ma Yunlai felt himself becoming even smaller, his spine bending involuntarily as he succumbed to this will, while the blue ox python in the pond trembled and curled up in a circle.
Of course, in the eyes of others, Dao Chengyi is still Dao Chengyi, that gentle and refined gentleman.
Releasing his grip, Dao Chengyi looked at the Gu Cauldron. After three years of practice and repeated experiments, the Transformation Dao Gu worms, such as the Dragon Gu, had appeared. These were various Transformation Dao Gu worms, including the Camel Gu, Deer Gu, Rabbit Gu, Ox Gu, Snake Gu, Mirage Gu, Carp Gu, Eagle Gu, and Tiger Gu, which Dao Chengyi had refined from demonic beasts of the same level. They were all fused together to form a Gu.
However, after this Gu was refined today, the Gu cauldron, which had been dormant for many years, finally reacted violently and gave Dao Chengyi, who was still at the fourth level, the conditions for the sixth level.
Sharing the authority of gods, or seizing the authority of any god! This can lead to the sixth stage of enlightenment!
As expected...
Dao Chengyi was not intimidated by this condition, because according to the levels he set, a sixth-level Gu Immortal could refine an Immortal Gu, which was a Gu worm that could only be created in one way in theory, which was a fragment.
In this context, the only possible explanation is the power of deities who seem to possess the rules of the universe or some kind of concept. Only they are worthy of being the Nine-Turn Venerable as envisioned by Dao Chengyi.
The reason why the sixth level cannot be achieved directly through the Gu Dao is simply because Dao Chengyi and the Gu Cauldron are not from this world. The Gu Dao of the Gu Cauldron is merely a process of eroding and embedding itself into this world according to Dao Chengyi's will.
He first plundered the blessing bestowed upon the Mysterious Female by the Medicine Master through the Insect Vessel, then stole the divine authority at the Sixth Rank, and finally devoured, murdered, and seized the Dao at the Ninth Rank.
This is the path to the future of Tao Chengyi. It sounds difficult, doesn't it?
But it's not difficult. After all, it's only necessary the first time, and who says those gods won't die? Dao Chengyi looked at the Dragon Gu in his hand, feeling the resonance between the Gu Cauldron and a certain vast but incomparably silent Dao.
Immortality... This is the name of that dead god, and dragons are one of the elements that resonate with Him; all dragons share His legacy.
Even the artificially created fake dragons that followed were accepted, since their master was dead and no longer able to distinguish between the real and the fake.
It's much easier to seize power from a dead god: follow His rules, attract Him, resonate with Him, create more dragons, or increase your own dragon attributes.
Dao Chengyi looked at the minimum energy required for a sixth-rank Gu worm. The highest rule for the fifth rank is one million, and the sixth rank is a celestial Gu. If the energy is increased in the usual way, it would require at least ten million adults. This is how the bloodline conversion works. Otherwise, it would probably require several volcanoes or the creation of three large Yuan Springs.
This calculation isn't particularly difficult, is it?
The Gu Cauldron indicates a lack of samples, requiring further deduction of the Gu formula, and necessitates a massive energy expenditure.
"No rush, no rush. Anyway, we haven't passed the fourth stage yet, so we can just wait." In a great mood, Dao Chengyi put the Dragon Gu into the Void Aperture. The first thing the black-gold little dragon encountered in the Void Aperture was the Humanity Gu.
"Father! Father! I'm going to have a little brother!"
Just then, a beautifully sculpted child ran over; he was Dao Chengyi's child.
Dao Muqing...
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