The fiendish monster had been sent to the center of the ocean, where there was no sign of human presence for thousands of li around. Noticeably restless, the creature began churning the sea, turning the heavens dark and raising towering waves.
Before Wei Yuan could cry out "Immortal Monarch, save me!" once more, Immortal Monarch Yanshi's voice sounded by his ear: "This harvest is truly beyond expectation! You need not worry; I will suppress this evil creature for you for now. Once matters here are settled, you can deal with it at your leisure. Yet the truly precious prize is not the evil creature itself, but the land capable of giving birth to such a thing."
With an Immortal Monarch watching his back, Wei Yuan was instantly invigorated. Looking around and finding nothing else to scavenge, he flew toward the two mineral veins marked by Yu Zhizhuo.
Both veins lay buried deep underground. One consisted of Earth Core Flame Jade, black suffused with crimson. This jade was a building material for immortal palaces and was frequently used when constructing forward strongholds in various minor worlds. In bitterly frigid realms especially, Earth Core Flame Jade was irreplaceable.
The other deposit was ancient spirit charcoal, formed over millions of years from the buried remains of spirit trees and spirit beasts from ancient times. Burning this charcoal produced no mortal fire, but spirit fire of supreme heat, capable of melting nearly anything—and easily smelting nether iron.
Ancient spirit charcoal was a necessity for forging spirit treasures, and a common ingredient in concocting Scenery Command-grade immortal pills.
Although Earth Core Flame Jade was the most common currency of exchange among immortals—holding a status equivalent to the seven daily necessities of mortals—no matter how ordinary it might be, it was still something used by immortals.
Upon seeing the deposit, Wei Yuan's initial thought had been that as long as it was something used by immortals, even stepping stones for latrines would be good. Only then did he recall: why would immortals ever need latrines?
Though ancient spirit charcoal was a Scenery Command resource, its applications were vast and indispensable. Both veins were of considerable scale; while difficult to price on the spot, they were certainly worth well over a hundred million.
Both deposits were buried deep underground; Yu Zhizhuo had dug down hundreds of zhang before locating them. Wei Yuan descended along the mine shafts Yu Zhizhuo had excavated, used the jade hoe to carve out giant spheres subterraneanly, and sent them into the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
Had it not been for Yu Zhizhuo's ability to deduce underground structures from the contours of surface mountains, rivers, and earth veins, Wei Yuan would never have found these two deposits even if beaten to death.
With this, the harvest was complete, and time was running out. Wei Yuan was immensely pleased and decided to return. At this moment, more than ten thousand tribesmen still remained in the Thunder Wolf tribe's city, all elderly, weak, sick, or crippled, incapable of being relocated into the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
A thought crossed Wei Yuan's mind, considering whether he should wipe them out entirely to leave no future trouble. But after mulling it over, Wei Yuan found he could not bring himself to do it.
On the battlefield or in the midst of war, it mattered little to Wei Yuan how many he killed; likewise, when first entering this world, he had not minded employing brutal methods to rapidly secure valuable resources. But now that the dust had settled and these tribespeople had lost all fighting capacity, killing them now would be nothing short of a massacre.
After confirming that everyone on his side had returned to the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, Wei Yuan was the last to go back.
The moment he crossed the boundary line between the worlds, above the Immortal Heaven, True Monarch Yanshi suddenly reeled in his fishing line. The Wise King of the Left and the Little State Preceptor exerted their might together, finally tearing this faded world away from the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World and pulling it back to their side.
The Wise King of the Left suddenly let out an utterly enraged roar: "Wei Yuan, I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!"
The shout echoed across every corner of the Immortal Heaven. Wei Yuan was taken aback and said subconsciously, "Wise King of the Left, you're an immortal after all. Why get so flustered and exasperated? You don't mean to tell me... I ate another one of your seeds, did I?"
Wei Yuan spoke slower and slower. He suddenly turned his head, fixed his gaze on that fiendish monster in the middle of the sea, and his expression grew increasingly peculiar.
The Wise King of the Left fell silent, but his terrifying will surged like a tempest, sweeping so violently that even the Immortal Heaven trembled. Immortal Monarch Yanshi laughed heartily: "As the saying goes, a cornered dog leaps over the wall..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the Little State Preceptor's will also erupted like a tempest, sweeping across the Immortal Heaven!
Immortal Monarch Yanshi was instantly struck speechless, struggling to fend off the onslaught. Lately, anyone who dared mention dogs in front of the Little State Preceptor had to face his thunderous wrath.
Weathering the fierce assault of the two immortals, Immortal Monarch Yanshi flicked out a mote of immortal light, erasing the karmic ties of the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World. Consequently, in the eyes of the immortals, the white star haloed in blue that embodied the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World vanished.
The Little State Preceptor gave a cold sneer: "You think you can erase karma under our combined weight? Our immortal powers are intertwined. Even if you specialize in the Dao of karmic luck and cause, you cannot wipe it entirely clean. Just watch how I drag this hidden piece of yours into the light!"
Before the Little State Preceptor, an unimaginably intricate grand formation took shape. Its formation was slow, its progress fluctuating depending on how heavily strained he was in the clash of techniques. Yet though Immortal Monarch Yanshi launched heavy blow after heavy blow, most were parried away by the Wise King of the Left, failing to disrupt the completion of the Little State Preceptor's immortal formation.
Wei Yuan could sense the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World sinking, gradually breaking away from the Immortal Heaven. But before it could fully decouple, the Little State Preceptor's immortal formation would finish, capable of retaining the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World within the Immortal Heaven.
Yanshi's voice sounded in Wei Yuan's ears again: "This time, the other side came prepared. We might have to fight another major battle before we can decouple. Be prepared; this fight may prove even harder than the last."
Another battle, and against an even stronger foe?
A chill gripped Wei Yuan's heart. Right now, the chief force of naval warfare in the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World—Seaweed—had fallen, and there was still a fiendish beast of definite Scenery Command caliber glaring menacingly. As for Maiden Yin-Yang... she had swung her sword so many times earlier; she probably couldn't move... right?
Wei Yuan calmed himself. Knowing that avoidance was impossible, he quickly devised a new strategy: still a naval battle. At the very least, naval combat could maximally restrict the enemy's mobility and leverage the advantage of his own side having abundant sentient life.
Wei Yuan had already prepared himself: if necessary, he could sacrifice all the Dao Foundation and dharma idol warriors, and even the dragon guards if push came to shove. By setting up layer upon layer of interception at sea, he would stall for time and bleed the enemy as much as possible while waiting for Immortal Monarch Yanshi to settle things on his end.
With the strategy set, Wei Yuan had the immortal plants organize the mortals in the rear to build large warships. At the same time, he expanded the scale of the grand formation once more, enabling it to mobilize five hundred thousand mortals in one breath during battle. Such curses, paired with the suppression of the world's might, would give even a Scenery Command expert a tough pill to swallow.
Yet this time, what came might not just be a single Scenery Command cultivator.
Wei Yuan rose high into the firmament, gazing into the distance at the battle in the Immortal Heaven. At this moment, starlight shone resplendently across the Immortal Heaven, flickering erratically. Who could have imagined that beneath such magnificent scenery, countless living beings were perishing with every passing moment?
The Little State Preceptor's immortal formation advanced slowly. Measured against the Immortal Heaven, the span of this formation even exceeded that of many stars. To search for the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World with such a formation made it clear he harbored absolute killing intent.
Yet to establish this immortal formation, the Little State Preceptor had to continuously endure Yanshi's fierce attacks. In the blink of an eye, another deep blue star began to fade—a cost that could hardly be considered light.
At last, the immortal formation was complete!
The instant the formation was formed, the Immortal Heaven shook. Heavenly melodies and abyssal roars echoed and intertwined, and the light of every star began to flicker violently, revealing countless threads of karma.
Just as the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World began to tremble, the three-eyed avian head emerged from the moon, swallowed something in a single gulp, and then fell into slumber.
The formation completed, beaming out hundreds of millions of rays of light. In that instant, Wei Yuan felt as though he had witnessed the boundless light of legend. The entire Immortal Heaven was illuminated, yet nowhere was there any sign of the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
The radiance seemed to brush past the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, as if the two did not exist within the same realm.
The Little State Preceptor froze, then roared, "How could it have left not a single trace of karma? Impossible! Utterly impossible!"
Without a word, Immortal Monarch Yanshi pressed on with his fierce assault, shattering another light blue minor world.
The Wise King of the Left snapped, "Focus on the enemy!"
The Little State Preceptor fell silent, finally stabilizing the front lines. Meanwhile, the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World had already begun to decouple from the Immortal Heaven and leave the battlefield.
Wei Yuan finally let out a long breath, his taut nerves at last relaxing. A clash between immortals was truly no game. It was like three giant elephants locked in mortal combat, while Wei Yuan was like a chipmunk foraging beneath their feet—a single misstep would get him crushed to death, and it took risking his very life just to snatch away a single nut.
At this moment, low roars echoed from the sea. There was still a fiendish monster that had yet to be dealt with. However, sealed by an immortal and further suppressed by Wei Yuan using the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, it had very little of its strength left.
Situated within the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, it was practically pitting itself against the entire world; thus, its ferocious bluster had completely vanished.
Wei Yuan immediately mobilized his naval forces, surrounding the island where the monster was located from afar, and then flew ahead of the rest to hover directly above the demonic island.
The part of the demonic island exposed above the sea spanned only a dozen li or so. Coiled upon the island was a pitch-black, dragon-shaped creature. Wei Yuan quickly browsed through his records and found that it was a corpse dragon.
At this moment, numerous seven-colored chains wrapped around its body, nailing it firmly to the island so that it could not move an inch. Seeing Wei Yuan, its two massive eyes shifted, and it unleashed an earth-shattering roar.
A corpse dragon—this was rather troublesome... Wei Yuan promptly summoned Old Daoist Chuhe into the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, then used his world authority to shift him directly above the small island.
Wei Yuan pointed toward the pitch-black giant dragon below, which was a full dozen li long, and asked, "Martial Uncle, what is your take on this creature?"
Perfected Chuhe, initially dazed after being dragged through empty space, felt his scalp tingle with dread and his knees turn to water the instant he saw the terrifying dragon below.
"No need to rush into this, really no rush..." Wei Yuan quickly supported the old Daoist, keeping him from dropping to his knees.
The old Daoist struggled frantically: "Don't stop me! Isn't this precisely the Dao path I've been searching for so bitterly! If I can take him as my adoptive father today, from now on, this old Daoist can also cultivate a heart of invincibility among dharma idols!"
"Martial Uncle, look closer. This is a corpse dragon!"
Perfected Chuhe shuddered all over. Rubbing his eyes, he peered closely, and his spine instantly stiffened. Nonchalantly, he said, "A corpse dragon? Er, never mind then."
Corpse dragons were born in places of extreme yin, possessing only instinct without intellect, and were exceedingly difficult to control. The consequence of Old Daoist Chuhe taking it as an adoptive father would likely be turning into his adoptive father's after-dinner snack.
Wei Yuan was still somewhat unwilling to give up and asked, "Is there any method to forcibly control it?"
Old Daoist Chuhe stroked his beard and said, "If it hadn't fully grown, that would be one thing. But having grown this large, it's essentially impossible. If Patriarch Huangyun were to attain immortality, there might be a chance. But with Patriarch Yanshi attaining immortality, there is probably no way."
Wei Yuan nodded, then summoned Xu Henshui over and asked, "Can this creature be used in medicine?"
Xu Henshui inspected it earnestly for a while before saying, "In the eyes of a true alchemist, everything in heaven and earth is alchemy material. Why couldn't this creature be refined? It's just that it is a bit big. One pot... no, one furnace might not be able to fit it."
Chapter 735