Within Guantun County, Wei Yuan walked into the great hall where Zhang Sheng was recuperating. As usual, he sat beside her for a while, recounting recent events.
Zhang Sheng lay quietly, motionless. Not a shred of vitality could be felt from her body, while the grand array around her was brimming with life.
True Monarch Hanzhong was truly godlike in the medical arts. He had transferred all the vitality within Zhang Sheng's body into the grand array, using the array's respiration to substitute for her dharma body and nascent soul. In this manner, the speed of her recovery was increased manifold.
Wei Yuan exited the hall and carefully shut the doors behind him. The moment the doors closed, everything within the hall seemed severed from the outside world, devoid of any lingering connection.
As soon as he stepped outside, Wei Yuan saw a young cultivator standing with his hands clasped behind his back, admiring a peculiar flowering tree planted beside the entrance, its leaves a clear aqua blue.
Under his gaze, the flowering tree was shivering violently, all its leaves curling tightly inward.
Wei Yuan hastily bowed and offered greetings: "Senior."
Immortal Ancestor Zhao Li turned around and smiled faintly. "This tree is of an extraordinary breed. It excels at disguise and phantom projection, and its attainments in the dao of ice and cold are remarkable, bordering on the true meaning of return to silence. Where did this tree come from?"
Wei Yuan answered, "Years ago, I had some friction with the Xu family. When we later reconciled, they gave me this Bingli Divine Wood as compensation. Back then, it was just a tiny sapling. It took nearly twenty years of nurturing to grow this large. I placed it here to monitor those coming and going, to prevent enemies from playing dirty tricks."
Immortal Zhao Li took another look at the Bingli Divine Wood and said, "How generous of the Xu family to actually part with such an immortal treasure. Moreover, this tree actually carries the karmic consequence of slaying an almighty expert? How bizarre."
Wei Yuan felt a jolt in his heart. "How so?"
Immortal Zhao Li reached out and plucked a single leaf. With a cry of pain, the Bingli Divine Wood instantly curled into a ball, its canopy transforming into a pitiful young girl hugging herself tightly. A fresh wound had appeared on her arm, bleeding continuously.
Even Immortal Zhao Li was taken aback. "I only meant to pluck a single hair from you. What is the meaning of this?"
Wei Yuan glared fiercely at the girl, but she seemed frightened by his glare and trembled even harder. Then she looked up toward Immortal Zhao Li. That bewildered, helpless, and utterly pitiful gaze seemed to carry a trace of a celestial demon, instantly making Wei Yuan's heart sink.
Immortal Zhao Li suddenly understood and burst into hearty laughter. "You little creature, you actually dare to run a swindle on me! Ah, never mind. Consider today your good fortune. Would you be willing to grow in my immortal palace? With your affinities, it is the ideal place to take root. A thousand years from now, you might comprehend the true meaning of return to silence and obtain the opportunity to assume human form."
Bingli showed a hint of temptation, but still shook her head.
Immortal Zhao Li pondered for a moment, and a golden pill appeared in his hand. The instant the pill emerged, countless tiny organisms in the vicinity suddenly gained sentience.
"This pill is named the Mortal-Shedding Divinity-Transforming Pill, and I possess only this one. It can elevate your latent talent to another level. Afterward, I will take you as a personal disciple—and you will be my final disciple."
Bingli finally spoke: "Then what about Master?"
Immortal Zhao Li said, "You need not worry about that. I will naturally offer him ample compensation."
Bingli thought for a moment, glanced at Wei Yuan once more, and still shook her head.
Immortal Zhao Li's expression chilled. "That was my final offer and will not change. You needn't fear him either. As my disciple, what could he possibly do to you?"
The Bingli Divine Wood looked at Wei Yuan again and said, "Still, I wish to remain with Master."
Immortal Zhao Li was startled, then laughed aloud. "This child is using such a method to raise her own worth and demonstrate loyalty! Are you using this immortal as a stepping stone?"
Bingli actually nodded. When she looked toward Wei Yuan again, the message in her eyes was unmistakable: *Treat me better in the future!*
Immortal Zhao Li shook his head helplessly and flicked a medicinal pill to Bingli—naturally not the Divinity-Transforming Pill. Then he asked, "Why must you stay here?"
Bingli hesitated before whispering, "I feel... it will be better to stay here."
Immortal Zhao Li was astonished. After studying her intently for a while, he remarked, "So that's how it is. This child actually possesses a modest divine ability for pursuing auspicious fortune. No wonder I took an immediate liking to her and wished to accept her into my sect. Hmm...?"
The young cultivator's expression suddenly shifted, and he said in annoyance, "Do you believe this kid will surpass me in the future?"
Like a startled rabbit, the girl instantly ducked behind Wei Yuan.
Immortal Zhao Li burst into laughter again. Once he finished laughing, he said to Wei Yuan, "I observe that the karma she bears is linked to the fall of an almighty expert. This karma is exceedingly heavy. Think carefully: what has she ever done?"
Wei Yuan paused, looking back through Bingli's past, and replied, "If there's any connection, it would be when I had her hold the gun and fire a Yang Bullet at Hongye of the Shaman Clan."
Immortal Zhao Li said, "That must be it. It seems this Hongye is extraordinarily formidable. You must stay vigilant."
Wei Yuan nodded and committed it to memory.
Immortal Zhao Li brought out another cluster of misty radiance and said, "This is ten million mortal karmic luck, which I have already preliminarily refined so that it can be used freely. You are currently the target of all sides and need karmic luck everywhere. Consider this mortal karmic luck a loan to you."
Wei Yuan bowed deeply. "Thank you, Senior! I shall never forget this great kindness!"
"Spare me the pleasantries. If you truly wish to thank me, go resolve those two wall-scratching kittens of mine as soon as possible."
With Zhang Sheng inside the hall and Bingli eavesdropping nearby, Wei Yuan had no idea how to respond. Immortal Zhao Li did not dwell on the matter either, merely telling Wei Yuan to keep it in mind, before vanishing on his own.
Wei Yuan had no time for sentiment. He had Bingli return to her original spot to resume her disguise. Bingli swallowed the healing pill, gaining a slight boost to her cultivation, and transformed back into the flowering tree.
Yet Wei Yuan's vision blurred, and the young cultivator reappeared. "It seems someone has laid an extra layer of arrangements here, meant to veil heavenly secrets. This arrangement is extraordinarily profound; I only noticed it due to a sudden whim of intuition. Judging by its nature, however, it should harbor no malice toward you."
Wei Yuan said, "Thank you, Senior. I intend to meet all changes with constancy—set a trap and wait quietly for the enemy to make their move."
Immortal Zhao Li nodded and vanished once more, truly leaving this time.
Having suddenly gained ten million mortal karmic luck, the Flourishing of the Many Realms swiftly provided a plan for its use. Soon, an unassuming small sword appeared in Wei Yuan's hand. This sword was transformed from the Fourth Grotto-Heaven, possessing tremendous might. Wei Yuan immediately imbued the sword with the ten million mortal karmic luck, then handed it over to the Bingli Divine Wood.
With the mortal karmic luck infused, the sword's power was already sufficient to threaten immortals and obliterate Scenery Command experts, becoming Wei Yuan's strongest trump card at present and plugging any remaining loopholes.
With all preparations complete, Wei Yuan was about to return to the front-line encampment when an intuition stirred in his heart. He paused, then sat quietly in the county magistrate's manor of Guantun County, waiting for the formidable enemy to arrive.
***
Outside Guantun County, Cangwu and the King of Ji appeared, gazing toward the county seat a hundred li away. Under the mantle of night, the city lay quiet, showing only a few sparse specks of smoke and fire.
A noticeable layer of deathly qi drifted above the county seat. It was evident that vast numbers of people had perished within the city, their resentful souls not yet entirely reincarnated, with many still wandering in the air.
No matter how one looked at it, this was a city on the brink of ruin, no different from the countless other cities across the land of the State of Ji, bearing not the slightest peculiarity.
Before setting up the Heaven-Earth Severing World Refining Grand Array, Cangwu had already swept across the State of Ji with his divine sense and found no anomalies. Just in case, he had specifically dispatched several Scenery Command cultivators to patrol the entire territory. Within the designated refinement zone, the only place where living mortals still remained was the domain held by Wei Yuan, who had declared himself the Military Commissioner of Xianghan.
Yet Wei Yuan occupied only a single border county, with the rest of his territory consisting of the original Mountain Folk lands. When the Scenery Command cultivators had patrolled past, they had seen hardly any signs of human habitation in Guantun County, so they had paid it no heed. Even Cangwu had assumed Wei Yuan was merely fishing for fame and territory, possessing neither the means nor the desire to govern and pacify the populace.
Now, seeing the still-dilapidated county seat and recalling the conspicuous glow of vitality at the edge of the grand array, how could Cangwu not realize he had been deceived?
He immediately took hold of the King of Ji and flew directly over Guantun County!
The moment they crossed the city gates, the scenery before them transformed abruptly, as if they had stepped into an entirely different realm!
At this moment, Guantun County was filled with peculiar, square multi-story buildings, the streets bustling with heavy traffic and teeming crowds. The entire city was brilliantly illuminated, the roads lined with uniquely shaped street lamps that flickered continuously, casting light of assorted colors. Though vehicles were numerous, they moved in orderly succession. Crowds walked freely along the streets, occasionally gathering to chat and laugh. Behind them, nimble vendors peddled their wares with vigor. The whole city brimmed with the breath of living mortals and the scent of Qingyuan, having truly become a sleepless city!
With a single sweep of his gaze, Cangwu could tell that Guantun County alone held at least five hundred thousand people!
Chapter 1047