Chapter 655 The Coffin Master is Back
Li Weiyi found the Great Longevity "Tuoba Tao" in the northern border of Lingxiao Shengjing, who was in Dongxu Camp.
An ancestor of the Tuoba clan, and the guide for Tang Zhan to enter the Ling Army.
Tuoba Tao was a deformed human who followed the cultivation path of transforming into a dragon. He had a human head, a snake's body, and a dragon's tail, and his body was enormous.
"The situation in the North? It can be said that the situation is very good right now."
Tuoba Tao was in high spirits, coiled around the tree trunk, and recounted: "With the support of the Sword Dao Imperial Court, the Northern Army bypassed Leizhou in the Eastern Border and launched an attack on the four states of the Netherworld of the Dead, aiming their swords at the East Sea."
"In just two years, most of the territory of the Four States Netherworld has been brought under the Northern Border's banner, which can be described as awe-inspiring."
"Little Li, do you know what an achievement this is?"
"For thousands of years, even with the abilities of the Grand Palace Master, he could only hold onto twenty-eight states, unable to expand his territory or reclaim the lost lands of the former three hundred states."
Li Weiyi stood under the tree, frowning, and said, "The Seven Wrongs and Five Ghosts are not simple. Each of them has great supernatural powers. Would they just stand by and watch Xuejian Tangting take away four states without retaliating?"
Tuoba Tao lowered his head from the tree branch and chuckled, "The good thing is that they are seven grievances and five ghosts, not seven grievances and one ghost."
"The Five Ghosts have five different thoughts and each harbors their own evil intentions; they are not entirely united."
"The four states that Xuejian Tangting attacked belong to the territory of the Hungry Ghosts. Moreover, in the eyes of the other four ghosts, we do not have the strength to invade their territory, so they will not feel the pain of losing each other."
"In addition, the Snow Sword Tang Court sent an envoy with generous gifts to visit the Four Ghosts, explaining that we were forced to help the Sword Dao Imperial Court attack those four states and would never set our sights on the other states of the Seven Grievances Plain."
"This trick, of course, cannot fool the Four Ghost Kings."
"But for the hungry ghost to invite the other four ghost kings to help him with this move, he must pay a huge price."
Li Weiyi pondered for a moment and said, "The Mist Emperor has just gone on a killing spree in the Cloud Heaven Immortal Plain. I'm afraid the other four ghosts won't dare to come to the vicinity of the Lingxiao Realm so easily."
"That's right, that's the importance of timing."
Tuoba Tao laughed and said, "What's even better is that our four-state battlefield is just a small-scale skirmish."
"The thirty-one prefectures in the Southeast Netherworld that were once occupied by Lord Lan have been taken over by the Rice Palace, the East Sea Demon Clan, the Zuoqiu Clan, the Jiuli Clan, and the Leixiao Sect, and are gradually being restored to light. The situation there is much more powerful than ours."
"In addition, what truly restrains the ancient city of Ye, the Seven Vengeful Ghosts and the Cave Ruins Ghost City is the battlefield of the Ancient Kingdom of Time Ruins and the battlefield of the Holy Temple Realm."
"It can be said that we in the North have seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I heard that not long ago, the Hungry Ghost fought a great battle with the Lion Camel King and suffered a crushing defeat and fled."
Li Weiyi's heart tightened: "Is the Lion Camel King injured?"
"How could a single hungry ghost be a match for the Lion Camel King? At their level of cultivation, their vitality is immense; ordinary injuries are nothing to them. Besides, the Northern Territory is guarded by the Lion Camel King's eldest sister, the strongest disciple of the Sword Emperor, as solid as a rock," Tuoba Tao said.
Li Weiyi felt a little relieved and then recounted the situation when he said goodbye to Tang Wanzhou: "I have a feeling that her emotions are not right. Senior Tuoba, why don't you help me go back to the Northern Border and find out if something has happened?"
Tuoba Tao burst into laughter: "If something really serious had happened, my old man would have already secretly sent someone to deliver a message. Besides, if something really serious had happened, the enemy would definitely have acted first. You're just worried and making a fuss over nothing."
"The struggle for immortality in the Hundred Realms is of paramount importance. Compared to that, the importance of the four states currently under conquest must be temporarily relegated to the back of the list."
"The Sword Dao Imperial Court needs its young lord to shoulder the banner of the top scholar and win the championship in the Hundred Realms Longevity Competition. At the same time... it also needs a hostage to control the Lion Camel King."
"Isn't this just common sense? The Sword Dao Imperial Court has invested so much in the distant Lingxiao Realm. If we don't use some means to control it, what if we end up with nothing and it benefits someone else? What a huge loss that would be!"
"For every gain, there is a loss."
"Although she is a hostage, the benefits of being the top scholar in the new imperial examination are unimaginable. With the young lady's talent in martial arts, she needs the protection of being the emperor's disciple to grow up."
"A top-tier talent also requires a top-tier level of cultivation resources. Only the Sword Dao Imperial Court can provide that."
"In addition, one can receive personal guidance from the Sword Emperor."
"These three points alone, the benefits gained, are they not an equivalent exchange for the hostage we are going to receive?"
"Even in human relationships, there is an emphasis on reciprocity. Between powerful forces, it is even more about the exchange of equivalent interests."
"Since childhood, Shaojun has been free-spirited, like a northern eagle soaring through the sky. She does whatever she wants, and even the Lion Camel King can't control her. Now, the path she chose, the Cave Ruins Camp, has been forcibly cut off. She has to compromise with the situation and be trapped in a foreign imperial city, turning from an eagle into a caged bird. Of course, she is extremely miserable."
"But isn't this what growth is all about, something you have to face? Reaching the Longevity Realm marks the end of the stage where all you need to do is master martial arts."
Li Weiyi recalled what Tang Wanzhou had once said and felt that Tuoba Tao didn't really understand her: "I always felt that Tang Wanzhou wasn't just a sharp-tongued, self-righteous woman. She shouldn't have wavered just because of the hostage situation. She's very resilient and always likes to challenge the impossible."
"If you are really worried, I will go back to the Northern Border and help you find out the news."
Tuoba Tao learned some information from Tuoba Butuo and knew that Li Weiyi and Tang Wanzhou had an unusual relationship.
"Then thank you very much, Senior Tuoba! This is a small token of my appreciation, please accept it." Li Weiyi took out the demon core of the six-colored peacock and handed it over.
Tuoba Tao accepted it without hesitation and then headed towards the teleportation hall.
The abnormal human martial arts cultivators on the path to dragon transformation must cultivate to the level of a martial arts emperor in order to freely change between human and dragon forms.
Before that, one must endure the suffering of being a deformed person.
Li Weiyi turned around and saw Zhuang Shiyan's clone walk out, and a strange feeling immediately arose in her heart. After all, Zhuang Shiyan was Zuoqiu Hongting's master at the Du'e Temple.
"The Longevity Realm is a process of transformation from immaturity to maturity, and also a life trial from high spirits to having to constantly compromise. I also suffered a lot back then."
Zhuang Shiyan added, "In reality, reaching the Great Longevity stage will be even more difficult."
"Why? Please teach me, Lord Sentinel," Li Weiyi said.
The two walked through the forest, stepping on fallen leaves and snow, breathing in the cold air.
Zhuang Shiyan said, “Chaoran is the pillar of a power, bearing the greatest responsibility. It must not only be responsible for guarding the area, but also hide itself to avoid powerful enemies that it cannot fight and to deter these powerful enemies in the opposite direction. It must also cultivate and find resources. There can be no mistakes. There are many things that cannot be done personally.”
“However, the Longevity Realm martial artists are produced one after another, so the Great Longevity Realm cultivators must step forward to share the burden. This is one of the difficulties.”
"For top geniuses, achieving immortality will be the most painful period of their lives."
Li Weiyi listened quietly.
Zhuang Shiyan continued, "Take the eighth generation of immortals as an example. Do you know what level the most outstanding among them reached?"
"The sixth realm?" Li Weiyi asked.
The eighth generation of immortals are between one hundred and one hundred and sixty years old. To cultivate to the sixth realm within this age range is almost a guarantee of transcendence, making them true geniuses.
Zhuang Shiyan said, "There are very few people who can step into the sixth realm, no more than forty. Basically, only young emperors, true disciples of ancient sects, successors of Daoist methods, and those born with destiny can do it. But the most powerful one has already stepped into the transcendent realm."
"What? Why is there such a big difference?"
This time, Li Weiyi was truly stunned!
"It is the true successor of the previous generation of Inamiya."
Zhuang Shiyan continued, "The gap between top geniuses will be exposed during the Great Longevity Period, causing many young people who consider themselves to be at the same level to suffer greatly, as they can't catch up no matter what they do."
“If Tang Wanzhou doesn’t become the top scholar in the Sword Dao Imperial Court and doesn’t get the cultivation resources for the top scholar, he will likely fall behind Gu Zhenxiang in the Great Longevity Realm, or be surpassed by you and Zuoqiu Hongting who are coming on strong. So you should be happy for her.”
Li Weiyi asked curiously, "Why didn't Hongting go to the Ancient Kingdom of Time Ruins? I think Shen Ji and Qi Jianru went!"
“She’s gone!” Zhuang Shiyan said.
Li Weiyi was stunned.
"The ancient kingdom of the Ruins of Time is vast; it's normal that you haven't encountered it," Zhuang Shiyan said with a smile.
Li Wei then mentioned the rumors circulating in Dongxu Camp during this period.
"Let them spread the word. Only by taking action can we find them. Inaction is what causes worry... Your master has returned!" Zhuang Shiyan raised his head, looking in the direction of the Netherworld of the Dead, and felt a certain connection.
...
The coffin master was reduced to a mutilated corpse in the great battle a thousand years ago.
Now, the remains have been successfully forged, restoring their complete physical appearance.
He looked to be in his forties or fifties, with graying temples but no signs of aging. He wore a straight-hemmed deep robe and a wide-sleeved gown, exuding the elegance of a scholar.
His eyes shone like jewels. Although he had become a corpse king, he had no trace of the gloomy and evil nature of a corpse spirit. He sat with Zhuang Shiyan at the stone table in Qingyin Pavilion, drinking and chatting under the moon.
The two talked about the war between the ancient kingdom of the Ruins of Time and the Holy Temple Realm, the current turbulent situation in the Lingxiao Realm and the East Sea, the Zen Sea Mist and Yu Yaozi, the Immortal Xia Sect Master Qing Ci and the Demon Lord Yu Baxian whose lifespan was about to end... and so on, covering all sorts of topics.
It wasn't until midnight that Zhuang Shiyan finally left, having had his fill of fun.
Li Yuanzhe's gaze fell on Li Weiyi, who was standing to the side. He took out a teacup and filled it to the third position: "You seem preoccupied. What are you thinking about?"
Li Weiyi gave a bitter smile and sat down.
She then poured out her heart and asked him for help in analyzing the situation.
Li Yuanzhe pondered for a moment: "It's hard to say the specifics, we don't know the inside story. But the principles and rules of the world, at their core, will not change."
"According to your account, starting two years ago when Sword Emperor decided to seize the immortal dragon vein of the East Sea and wrote a letter to Tang Lion Camel, Tang Lion Camel went from politely refusing to compromising and began the war in the four states of the Netherworld."
"This first compromise was made by both sides, and Xuejian Tangting even gained some advantage."
"But Tang Wanzhou being forced to go to the Sword Dao Imperial Court was a unilateral compromise by the Snow Sword Tang Court. In this second game, although both sides still had their own advantages, the Sword Dao Imperial Court had gained the upper hand."
"Tang Shituo and Tang Wanzhou are both exceptionally intelligent individuals. They must have seen the future, understood the ambitions of the Sword Dao Imperial Court, and known that the next step would be an even greater compromise, one from which there would be no other choice but to accept it. Ultimately, they would be completely devoured."
(End of this chapter)
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