“Ancient jade talismans? I didn’t think that the Phoenix Cry Sect possessed such treasures. I believe the other Heavenly Dao Alliance sects won’t be disappointing us either. With that address, our sole worries are the black-robed men and the wagered battle.” Master Sunreach pondered for a moment before hesitantly asking, “Brother Yi, those black-robed men used Devil Dao techniques. Are you able to recognize what they were?”
Devil Concord unhappily snorted. “Their techniques may be Devil Dao, but this is the first time I’ve heard techniques of this type. I cannot make an accurate judgement. But there is no doubt that their Devil Dao techniques are far more pure and ingenious than the Six Devil Dao Sects of the Heavenly South. Additionally, they appeared to resemble the Ghost Spirit Sect’s techniques.”
“The Ghost Spirit Sect?” Master Sunreach pondered for a moment before continuing with a solemn expression, “We don’t know how many those black-robed men there are, but during the siege of Soaring Heavens City, eight of them appeared, all at Nascent Soul stage. There are clearly cultivators of the same sect. As for where this devilish sect has come from, could it be the Grand Empire of Jin?”
When the others heard Master Sunreach, they didn’t appear surprised. It seemed they had assumed the same.
At that moment, the red-clothed woman finally spoke, her voice cold and clear, “Humph! So what if they’re Jin Empire cultivators? From how secretive they've been acting, as if afraid of being seen, it is certain that they are only a single devilish sect, or perhaps only a single branch of one. What is there to be afraid of? We merely have to treat them as spell warriors and feign ignorance otherwise.”
Master Sunreach agreed, “Lady Feng words are reasonable. Even if a branch of the Jin Empire’s Devil Dao is fully supporting the Moulan, we won’t be handing over the Heavenly South to them either despite how powerful they may be.”
“That is right. But we must take into account that not only will the Jin Empire devil cultivators have superior magic treasures, but that they will meddle in the wagered battles tomorrow through some hidden scheme. It will be troublesome. The Jin Empire possesses countless secret techniques, many of which are impossible to defend against.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve already considered this. Do you remember our Great Truths Sect’s Restriction Breaking Bead?
Long Han astonishedly asked, “The Restriction Breaking Bead? The single-used magic tool that can destroy restrictions? Isn’t it only useful against low grade restrictions? The barrier used during the wagered battles — capable of resisting strikes from a Nascent Soul cultivator — are capable of being dissolved with this magic tool?”
Chapter 767: Battle at the Border (1)
Master Sunreach explained, “If it were that Restriction Breaking Bead, it definitely wouldn’t have an effect on a high-grade restriction. Brother Long may not know this, but the Restriction Breaking Beads that have spread are only half-finished goods. True Restriction Breaking Beads not only require many precious materials, but they are also difficult to refine. As a result, they possess great efficacy at breaking high-grade restrictions. Of course, since my sect hadn’t used them often, we hadn’t refined many of them. But for those Fellow Daoists that will be fighting in the wagered battles, my sect has managed to gather together ten Restriction Breaking Beads. So long as they have this on hand, they will be able to break the barrier and escape, given that they aren’t immediately dealt with. As such, there is no need to worry about the future.”
Devil Concord glanced at Master Sunreach and added on, “I did wonder why Master Sunreach was so calm about the wagered battles tomorrow. So it turned out he had a trick up his sleeve. With these Restriction Breaking Beads, we will have no need to fear the enemy’s tricks.
But to be safe, our Devil Dao’s Heavenfiend Sect has refined a medicine pill for the occasion, the Death Return Pill. The pill will stimulate one’s true essence, having most of their magic power to instantly replenish and increasing their cultivation slightly as well. However, once the effects ended, their vitality will be diminished. I will be able to give these Fellow Daoists a pill each. If they reach a critical moment of danger, they will be able to take the pill and use it to great effect.”
“That is great. With these two fallbacks, I feel much more relieved about the wagered battles.” Long Han smiled and then he changed the subject.
“These people cultivate Devil Dao techniques. Why not have some Fellow Daoists from the Righteous Dao deal with them. After all, the Great Truths Sect, as well as several other sects, have many techniques that specialize in restraining devilish arts. They should be quite suitable in dealing with these black-robed men.” Long Han glanced at Master Sunreach and waited for his reply.”
Master Sunreach openly replied, “Of course. These Devil Dao cultivators will be handled by our Righteous Dao Alliance. However, you all will be putting most of the effort into handling the Moulan Sages.”
“This is only natural. The spell warriors will be dealt with the other three superpowers. Specifically by...” The others had been quite happy to see that Master Sunreach has agreed to deal with the devil cultivators of the Jin Empire. They began discussing the matter thoroughly until sunset before feeling at ease. With negotiations coming to an end, each party began to make their own preparations.
At early dawn the next day, the patrolling cultivators caught sight with shining light and heard earth-shaking trembles from the Moulan war camp. Squads among squads of spell warriors calmly flew out from the war camp on their magic tools that they flew towards the center of the sky.
At that moment, the patrolling cultivators hastily sent back word through voice transmission talismans. A short moment later, the Heavenly South war camp began to sound with drawn-out bell rings, sending countless streaks of light to fill the sky from the opposite direction.
For a time, various-colored light filled the skies as clear rings and long whistles continuously sounded out. And with the overbearing advance of the spell warrior army from the other side, it appeared as if two huge waves were about to clash against each other in the sky. But when they reached about five kilometers apart — when they were able to catch sight of one another — both sides came to a sudden stop and began to observe one another from the distance.
Neither army retreated, resolved to fight until the other was wiped out. On one side were natives who lived on this land their entire lives. Their morale was soaring, unwilling to allow the enemies to invade their homelands. However, neither side moved despite the pervasive killing intent filling the air.
At that moment, Han Li was above a division of over a thousand cultivators. He was watching the spell warrior army from the distance. There were bright lights reaching out as far as the eye could see. Each light was a concentration of several hundreds of spell warriors, a continuous glow spanning over five kilometers.
It was clear that both sides have brought out their main forces. Although one couldn’t precisely count their numbers, there were at least seventy thousand cultivators present. Additionally, rarely-seen high-grade cultivators were now a common sight.
Although their numbers were vast, the differences between each army were clear to see. While the Moulan spell warriors were all differently dressed, their low-grade cultivators all possessed simple magic tools. They either used bowls and fist-sized beads, or even various colored flags. Blade-type magic tools were extremely sparse in number.
As for the Heavenly South cultivators, their low-grade cultivators possessed a myriad of magic tools, with blade magic tools being in a majority. However, these magic tools were each sparkling with light, possessing astonishing spiritual Qi. It was obvious their magic tools were superior to those of the Moulan.
Although the Heavenly South cultivators were better equipped, the spell warriors were better disciplined. As they flew in the air, they continued to maintain a mysterious formation. They were all silent as they watched their enemies with hostility.
The cultivators, on the
other hand, could barely maintain formation and were in complete disarray. It was clear they didn’t have enough training. Not only were they whispering incessantly to one another, but they would occasionally separate from their ranks to do other things. The high-grade cultivators in charge had no choice to rebuke their troops, much to the commanders’ frustrations.
When Han Li saw this, he frowned. This came as no surprise. In only a few month’s time, how was it possible to properly train so many unruly cultivators.
In comparison, the Moulan Tribes were often at war with the Soaring tribes. As a result, it was a common occurrence for them to be arranged in army formations; they were constantly trained.
This matter was obvious to the higher echelon of cultivators, but there was little they could do. Fortunately for them, this wasn’t as crucial a factor for victory unlike in mortal armies. As such, they turned a blind eye to these problems.
As Han Li thought about this, he examined the Moulan army. What was most eye-catching about them weren’t the spell warriors, but the dozen of enormous huge beasts that laid amongst their ranks. They appeared almost like small mountains amongst them. Many Nine Nations Union cultivators had personally witnessed the ferocity of these huge beasts, and look at them with a trace of fear as a result.
Han Li raised his head upwards to see clear skies completely clear of black clouds. He then looked down at the chaotically organized cultivators and shook his head with a sigh. He soon flipped his head and glanced at the two items in his palm — a thumb-sized black bead and an almond-sized medicine pill with a pungent and colorful scent.
These two items were sent to him by Master Sunreach on the day before. Han Li was given an explanation of them and it was said that every cultivator participating in the wagered battles were given them. He accepted them with surprise. It seemed in order to win this war, the three great cultivators were sparing no expense, taking out the treasures that they were keeping hidden.
However, the three great cultivators weren’t the only ones taking out their reserves. Han Li couldn’t help but glance at an adjacent division of cultivators below. They numbered about a thousand and had sixteen cultivators that wore red and green clothes. They were carrying two huge coffins together, one black and one white, side by side. Several tens of various-colored talismans were covering it.
Han Li easily recognized these cultivators. They were disciples of the Harmonious Bond Sect, the top Devil Dao Sect. This had aroused much of Han Li’s interest in these coffins. It was only a pity that the formidable restrictions on the coffin blocked his spiritual sense to looking deeper inside.
Apart from the two coffins, there were also a few other eye-catching objects amongst the rank of cultivators. There was a Righteous Dao sect that was carrying a twenty-meter-tall copper platform with a huge three-meter-wide gong on top. The surface of the gong shined with sparkling golden light and would occasionally reveal white talisman characters floating above it. There was a large bare-chested man that was sitting cross-legged at its side with his eyes closed.
Amongst a division of cultivators farther away, there were many black sculptures that were nearly ten meters tall and were being pulled by a few flying carriages. They appeared to be modeled vicious beasts from antiquity and were carved with vivid, lifelike details. It was unknown what they were used for. Every division of cultivators seemed to have a strange item within it.
When Han Li saw this, he felt more at ease. The various sects knew that this battle was extremely important and they brought out their own sect protecting treasures. As a result, the odds of victory were far greater. And in addition to these treasures, there were also countless other formidable items hidden inside storage pouches.
As for the spell warrior armies, they didn’t have anything obvious to see apart from the huge beasts. However, Han Li still felt uneasy. The spell warriors were certain to have hidden schemes, certain to be deadly as they lay hidden. It was truly difficult to say who would win the battle.
At that moment, an unending stream of cultivators and spell warrior armies had finally all gathered together. Then apart from a select few, both armies dropped to the ground, and silence filled the air.
An uproar was raised amongst the spell warrior armies as three people flew out from its ranks, the three Divine Sages: a shriveled old man, a very short man, and a scholarly man. Three streaks of light also emerged from the cultivator’s side, revealing Master Sunreach, Wei Wuya, and Devil Concord. They were each stopped tens of kilometers apart.
The scholarly man surnamed Zhong glanced at the cultivators and coldly said, “There is still time for you to come to an agreement. So long as the Heavenly South hands over half of their land over to our Moulan Tribes, we will cease hostilities and become friends. Otherwise, your Heavenly South cultivation world will be certain to suffer a great loss of strength, regardless of the outcome!”
Wei Wuya raised his chin and said, “What a joke. We may suffer a great loss in strength, but if you lose this war, you will face extermination. I should be cautioning you spell warriors instead.”
Chapter 768: Battle at the Border (2)
The shriveled old man spoke bluntly, “It seems there is no point in speaking any further. There is no room for discussion. Now, there can only be a battle of life and death. But before that, let us conduct the wagered battles. Let us send out our people and set up the restrictions. Regardless of the outcome of these wagered battles, we will immediately start the war once they are concluded.” At this stage, he realized that having the three great cultivators admitting defeat was merely wishful thinking.
Devil Concord stared at the old man and coldly smiled. “Of course we will agree to the wagered battles. However, where are the captives you’ve promised? I don’t see anyone. Hehe...”
Once the old man heard this, he blankly stared in through before sending a voice transmission to someone behind him. Suddenly, a spell warrior division began to shuffle, revealing over a thousand unarmed cultivators among their ranks.
The cultivators were then placed in front of the army, each wearing a variety of expressions. There were even those that were flushed with anger and were glaring at the spell warriors. This had aroused an uproar in some of the cultivator ranks; some cultivators recognized a few fellow sect members amongst the captives.
When Master Sunreach and the others saw this, they exchanged a glance and nodded.
The short man of the Moulan Divine Sages grew impatient. “What now? You’ve seen them, so you should feel at ease. Quickly start the wagered battles!”
Wei Wuya suddenly asked, “Why is your esteemed self so anxious? Could it be that you’re planning something with these wagered battles?”
The short man’s face stirred and he menacingly said, “If you don’t dare to fight the wagered battle, we will string these cultivators up on banners and then start the battle. Would you like that?”
A cold glint flickered from Wei Wuya’s eyes. He sternly asked, “You’re threatening us?”
At that moment, the shriveled old man sinisterly said, “It isn’t a threat at all. If you aren’t willing to conduct the wagered battles, we no longer have use for these captives, apart from hanging them and stirring up morale.”
When Master Sunreach heard this, he frowned and said, “But if we agree to the wagered battle, you will have to release the captives first.”
The short man bluntly rebuked, “Release them? You believe that we would do something so foolish?”
“But we are also distrustful of you. What can we do if you don’t keep your promise?” Wei Wuya calmly asked.
“Even with this, we...”
Before the short man could finish, an ominous glint flickered from the shriveled old man’s eyes, and he interrupted him, “Enough with these useless words. We will first release half of the captives before the wagered battle takes place. We will hand over the remaining captives once they are over. You must have no objections about this, right? If that won’t do, then we will si
mply start the battle.”
Master Sunreach spoke to the other two at his side through voice transmission and said with a decisive tone, “Fine, that will do! Release half of the men and we will begin to set up the restrictions on our end.” These conditions were the most that the enemy could concede. If the negotiations truly collapsed, he would have no way of rescuing those remaining cultivators.
With the matter decided, the six returned to their respective war camps and made their arrangements.
Han Li already left his original hiding spot from inside a division of cultivators. He hadn’t wished to be noticed by the enemy high-grade cultivators before the battle started. As for conversation between the late Nascent Soul cultivators, Han Li was able to eavesdrop on them with his powerful spiritual sense.
With a faint smile on his face, he saw the spell warriors release half of the restrictions on the captive cultivators. They all flew back towards the Heavenly South cultivators with delight.
Of course, Master Sunreach was already prepared for this. Before the cultivators flew back to the Heavenly South armies, a party of several hundred cultivators flew to meet them halfway. After inspecting the cultivators that were released and confirming that there were no spies among them nor any tricks placed on their bodies, they were released to join the cultivator ranks.
The short man surnamed Bi watched this from a distance and resentfully snorted. “Those Heavenly South fellows are quite careful. Fortunately, we hadn’t used those Heartdrain Pills on those cultivators beforehand. Otherwise, it would’ve been difficult to deal with.”
The scholarly man surnamed Zhong said, “Without a doubt! The three great cultivators of the Heavenly South aren’t easily dealt with. These small tricks won’t work. To kill a serpent, we must strike at its heart. If we try to be clever dealing with these cultivators, we will only end up overreaching ourselves.”
When the old man heard this, he didn’t reveal the slightest chance in expression. He merely curled his sparsely haired beard and watched the vast army of cultivators across from him.
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