The East Sea had always been known for its vast territory, bountiful resources, and endless wonders. As leaders of their own factions who regularly attended all kinds of banquets, the twelve Soul Formation cultivators were hardly lacking in worldly experience. They had even seen plenty of the bizarre Sea Race folk dwelling in the deep ocean.
Yet never before had they seen swarms of Meng Jingzhous raining down from the heavens.
Not even in their worst nightmares had they imagined such a scene.
The sky full of Meng Jingzhous manifested Three Heads and Six Arms across an enormous area. It was useless for the twelve Soul Formation cultivators to scatter and run; they were all trapped within the strike zone of One Sword Into Ten Thousand Swords.
Watching from a distance, the Three Heroes of Fangshan Island were left utterly dumbfounded.
Lu Yang was panting heavily with exhaustion. This terrifying move was by no means easy to pull off. Executing the ordinary One Sword Into Ten Thousand Swords involved solidifying sword intent to manifest sword bodies; and if sword intent could take the form of swords, it could just as well manifest the Sword Cleansing Pool—or Meng Jingzhou.
The normal One Sword Into Ten Thousand Swords did not demand much in terms of divine sense strength, as its primary mode of attack was simply bludgeoning opponents with heaps of swords.
However, One Meng Into Ten Thousand Mengs was far more demanding. It was equivalent to over a thousand Meng Jingzhous striking at once, placing extreme demands on divine sense strength—demands that even Lu Yang's divine sense could not satisfy alone.
Fortunately, they were channeling the Five Elements Battle Method, which allowed them to share not only power, but also divine sense.
Lu Yang's divine sense went without saying: peerless among his peers.
Meng Jingzhou had spent years wrestling with his overflowing yang qi, forging an exceptionally strong divine sense.
Tao Yaoye specialized in illusions, so her divine sense was remarkably potent as well.
When Li Haoran acquired Qin Haoran's memories, his divine sense had expanded accordingly.
Man Gu... well, Man Gu's divine sense was quite ordinary.
Only by pooling the divine senses of Lu Yang and three of his companions could they execute One Meng Into Ten Thousand Mengs.
"I only meant to give it a shot and swap back to the Sword Cleansing Pool if it failed," Lu Yang mused, stroking his chin. It was an impromptu technique he had thought up on the fly, and the results looked pretty good so far.
With wild whoops, the Meng Jingzhous swung their fists without bothering about form or finesse—their shared divine sense couldn't handle such precise micro-control anyway.
Just battering them was enough.
The Soul Formation cultivators were already injured to begin with. Besieged by a boundless sea of Meng Jingzhous, they were pummeled and sent splashing into the sea like dumplings dropping into boiling water.
The thousands of Meng Jingzhous vanished into thin air.
"Run now, will you!" Meng Jingzhou returned carrying six Soul Formation cultivators with his six arms.
Lu Yang and the others sprang into action too, plunging into the sea to haul back all the fallen Soul Formation cultivators.
"One, two, three... all twelve accounted for." Looking quite pleased with their job well done, Lu Yang clapped his hands and swallowed an elixir pill to restore his stamina.
Having witnessed the entire spectacle, the Three Heroes of Fangshan Island stared so hard their eyes nearly popped out of their heads. These were twelve Soul Formation cultivators!
They had heard that disciples of immortal sects possessed extraordinary combat power, were invincible among their peers, and could easily challenge opponents above their cultivation realm—but they had never imagined it would be this ridiculous. Faced with enemies whose cultivation and numbers far surpassed their own, they had not only won, but captured every single one alive?!
Seeing the battle conclude, the three heroes started to fly over, only to hear a divine sense voice transmission from Lu Yang.
"Stay back for now. If you three come over, you will learn their identities, which will inevitably invite retaliation down the road."
Hearing this, the three heroes immediately understood.
Lu Yang ripped off the face coverings of each captive one by one and let out a cold snort.
"Daring to oppose our Five Elements Sect—you truly have a death wish. Go ask around! In Great Xia, aside from the Dao Seeking Sect, who dares provoke us people of the Five Elements Sect?
"Or do you have a half-immortal backing you up as well?"
Cold sweat poured down the Soul Formation cultivators' backs as they kowtowed repeatedly. Forget having a half-immortal backer—not a single half-immortal was known to exist in the entire East Sea!
"All you know is kowtowing and begging for mercy. Not tactful at all. Hand over everything valuable!" Meng Jingzhou kicked Gao Feng sprawling, telling them to get with the program.
Robbery was another East Sea hallmark—one simply had to experience it once.
The Soul Formation cultivators were overwhelmed with regret. Weren't people saying Great Xia was peaceful, where cultivators sparred with restraint and never aimed to kill? Why did reality look nothing like that?
Even local East Sea thugs couldn't possibly act more ruthless than this!
As captives, staying alive was already a tremendous blessing, and worldly wealth was just external possessions... Consoling themselves with these thoughts, they painfully brought out their prized, bottom-of-the-chest treasures:
Cultivation techniques, maps, secret realm intel, magical treasures, spirit stones...
Li Haoran shook his head in disappointment. "You East Sea cultivators really are subpar. Handing over your storage rings just like that? If it were me, I’d prepare at least two storage rings—one out in the open and one in the shadows. The hidden one would be tucked inside my flesh: just tear a gash anywhere on your body, shove the ring in, and let the wound heal up."
Due to personal circumstances, Li Haoran possessed vast experience when it came to stashing things away.
At his words, the Soul Formation cultivators hung their heads in shame, astonished that even their experience in hiding valuables fell short of a Five Elements Sect disciple's.
"Alright, Fangshan Island's rare treasure now belongs to our Five Elements Sect. Scram!"
"Yes, yes, right away!" As if granted an imperial pardon, the Soul Formation cultivators nodded and bowed obsequiously.
"Hold on, don't leave yet. One more thing."
"Please, speak, sir!" When Meng Jingzhou called them back, the Soul Formation cultivators thought he was reneging on his word, their hearts leaping into their throats.
"The Three Heroes of Fangshan Island showed us great kindness, and I've memorized every single one of your faces. If I ever hear about trouble befalling Fangshan Island in the future, regardless of whether you're suspects or not, every last one of you will be held accountable!"
Meng Jingzhou paused, then glared and roared, "What are you standing around for? Scram! Did you expect me to invite you for dinner?!"
Hearing that, the Soul Formation cultivators took to their heels. These five were far too bizarre and wicked; spending another moment near them was sheer terror.
Only then did the matter come to a close. The Three Heroes of Fangshan Island flew over with trepidation.
"I-it's over?" Hero Yan still found it hard to believe.
"It's over. If anyone asks about the rare treasure in the future, just tell them the truth," Lu Yang said. The Feathering Immortal Grass was far too precious—a treasure coveted even by Body Integration stage experts. Possessing it would bring the three heroes misfortune rather than fortune.
The immortal grass was never something they were qualified to keep anyway, and obtaining a rank-five spiritual vein was already a stroke of immense luck. The three heroes were deeply grateful to Lu Yang and the other four.
Lu Yang suddenly thought of another safety concern. "If I recall correctly, rank-five spiritual veins are typically held by Soul Formation cultivators. Wouldn't it be unsafe for the three of you to hold onto it?"
Territory disputes occurred frequently in the East Sea; otherwise, maps from a century ago wouldn't differ so vastly from the ones today.
Even if Lu Yang had warned those twelve Soul Formation cultivators, there was no guarantee other Soul Formation cultivators wouldn't covet this place.
Hero Yan sighed. "It is indeed not very safe, but there's nothing we can do about it. For now, the only plan is to rely on the rank-five spiritual vein so I can cultivate to the Soul Formation stage as soon as possible. Only then will Fangshan Island truly be safe."
"From what I can tell, you're already at the late Nascent Soul stage?" Lu Yang asked suddenly.
Hero Yan replied honestly, "I was previously at the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage. After drinking the Enlightenment Tea, I reached the half-step Soul Formation stage, but I have no idea when I'll be able to take that final half-step."
Lu Yang smiled. "Why put off until tomorrow what can be done today? How about we help you ascend to the Soul Formation stage tonight?"
Chapter 803