Chapter 645: Sweeping All Before Them

“How did Golden Turtle Island get so many experts?”

Fu Gucheng and the others were all astonished. They knew Golden Turtle Island’s background inside and out: how many disciples lived on the mountain, how many dogs they kept, and what cultivation levels the disciples and dogs had.

There were so many immortal cities in western Penglai, with so many immortal soldiers and generals stationed in them, all for the purpose of keeping Golden Turtle Island under surveillance.

Over the years, they had kept close track of the Golden Turtle Island disciples’ movements. Apart from those who made their livings elsewhere, only three remained on the island. With Jiao the Cripple included, that made four.

So where had all these experts come from?

Daoist Jun said quietly, “Senior Brother Fu, it’s better to resolve a feud than to deepen it.”

The others nodded one after another.

They had assumed that dealing with Golden Turtle Island would be easy, and that they would reclaim the sacred ground without a hitch. They had never expected there to be so many experts on the island.

Fu Gucheng was also beginning to hesitate.

Great Immortal Chijing’s cultivation was profound, and he paid no attention to worldly affairs. Cloud Sky Grotto had been left in his care all these years. If he could take Golden Turtle Island and seize the Jade Clarity Dao Spring, it would surely be a great achievement.

The Jade Clarity Dao Spring was extraordinarily precious. Even Cloud Sky Grotto did not have one. Obtaining it might allow Great Immortal Chijing’s cultivation to advance another step and break through his limits!

But from the looks of things, Golden Turtle Island was indeed not to be trifled with.

Yong Guike said doubtfully, “Master, Martial Uncles and Martial Uncles, we know Golden Turtle Island’s background inside and out. When did all these experts appear? Even our Cloud Sky Grotto has only five Tai Yi Golden Immortals. These people look like country bumpkins. How could they possibly be Tai Yi Golden Immortals?”

At his words, suspicion arose in the others as well.

Although times had changed and there were many times more Tai Yi Golden Immortals than there had been in the past, their numbers were still limited. It was impossible for so many to appear all at once, let alone for ducks and dogs to be Tai Yi Golden Immortals too!

“Golden Turtle Island was indeed a remarkable sacred ground in its day. But after its defeat in the war that destroyed Shang, it fell into decline and remained so to this day. There’s no way so many Tai Yi Golden Immortals could suddenly appear.”

Yong Guike’s gaze flickered. “My Martial Uncles and Martial Uncles are all from the Three Purities lineage. You know how difficult spiritual practice is. How many years did it take you to reach the Tai Yi Golden Immortal realm? How many renowned teachers guided you? How many times did you attain enlightenment? How many immortal herbs and medicines did you use? How much immortal qi and spiritual liquid did you consume? How many Calamities did you weather? And that’s not even mentioning the Dao Realms. Golden Turtle Island couldn’t possibly have so many Dao Realms.”

The others nodded one after another.

The Golden Turtle Island disciples could generally only unify with the Dao in western Penglai. But western Penglai was polluted by the external Dao. After unifying with the Dao, the stronger one’s cultivation and the higher one’s realm, the more terrifying the external Dao’s backlash became.

Jiao the Cripple had nearly reached the limit of spiritual practice. If he advanced any further, the external Dao accumulated within him would suppress the immortal path and seize control.

Yet what they were seeing now was that even a duck had cultivation stronger than Jiao the Cripple’s!

Any one of those country bumpkins was stronger than Jiao the Cripple.

How was that possible?

Spring Martial Uncle Chun Daoming praised him. “Daoist Yong, you’ve observed this matter closely. It is indeed highly suspicious. If Golden Turtle Island had gained one or two Tai Yi Golden Immortals, that would be one thing. But now there are more than ten, and even the ducks and dogs are Tai Yi Golden Immortals. This is simply outrageous.”

Willow Martial Uncle Liu Daozi laughed. “Jiao the Cripple overdid it. If he had shown a little restraint, we might still have hesitated. But now he’s made every duck and dog a Tai Yi Golden Immortal. That only exposes how little confidence he has.”

Jun Martial Uncle laughed. “Those three flowers above their heads look quite convincing.”

The others laughed along. “They really do.”

Fu Gucheng’s gaze flickered. “In that case, let’s break their mountain-protecting formation.”

The Daoists agreed and returned to their respective immortal cities.

Fu Gucheng gathered his magical power and activated a divine ability, transforming it into water-and-fire sword qi. This divine ability was something he had comprehended through studying Great Immortal Chijing’s Great Luo magic treasure, the Water-Fire Edge. Water and fire blended together, revealing the wonders of yin and yang.

The two currents of water and fire stretched for dozens of miles. Twisting around each other, they formed a gigantic sword that crashed against the mountain-protecting formation and pierced into it.

A Tai Yi Golden Immortal’s attack was no ordinary matter. This divine ability brought the method of mutual support between the yin and yang Great Daos into full play!

At the same time, in the other immortal cities, groups of Tai Yi Golden Immortals joined forces, each unleashing water-and-fire sword qi. Water and fire supported each other as they struck the mountain-protecting formation!

Golden Turtle Island’s mountain-protecting formation was exceptionally sturdy, far stronger than the formations of other sects. But under the joint assault of eighteen Tai Yi Golden Immortals, it did not hold out for long. The magic treasures at the formation’s core shattered one after another!

With the formation broken, Golden Turtle Island was laid bare before them.

Fu Gucheng straightened his clothes and walked toward Golden Turtle Island, with Yong Guike following close behind.

The other Tai Yi Golden Immortals also approached, smiling.

On Golden Turtle Island, Jiao the Cripple was still wholly focused on recovering his cultivation and suppressing the external Dao. The moment he sensed the mountain-protecting formation break, he sprang up to meet the enemy. Unexpectedly, the external Dao took the chance to strike back. Overcome with panic and rage, he had barely taken a few steps before his whole body convulsed and he collapsed.

Chen Shi, Qiao Gu, and the others had not noticed.

They were all in front of Biyou Palace. Qiao Gu, Jing Mei, and Jiang Guo were still staring at Shang Dugong and the villagers, their faces full of astonishment.

Chen Shi said gently, “They’re farmers from my Dao Realm. They grow crops in my fields, and since they don’t pay rent, they came to help.”

Shang Dugong, Tang Feng, and the others all looked honest and simple.

Qiao Gu stammered, “Are the golden flowers above their heads real?”

Qu Lihua glanced up at the golden flower above her own head and smiled. “We cultivated it through Qi Refining. Don’t you have one?”

Qiao Gu shook his head woodenly.

“Too bad I can’t pluck mine off and give it to you.” Qu Lihua sighed, though she had no intention of plucking it off for him.

Chen Shi coughed, reminding them, “Everyone, I’ll leave this battle to you.”

The burly pill-refiner, Tang Feng, looked at the Tai Yi Golden Immortals approaching from every direction and grew a little nervous. “We’ve only studied what’s on the cyan stele. We hardly ever fight. These people look powerful, much stronger than the gods who used to come collect rent!”

The others were nervous too. The village girl Qu Lihua tightened her grip on her kitchen cleaver, the child Bai Lu hid behind his father, and Shang Dugong wiped the sweat from his forehead.

The duck quacked and laid an egg.

Chen Shi stepped forward, picked up the egg, and smiled. “Just use whatever you’ve comprehended from the cyan stele. You don’t need to worry about anything else.”

Tang Feng looked skeptical. “Really?”

Chen Shi picked up the duck and said, “Of course. Sacrifice!”

He raised the duck into the air and sent it toward one of the approaching Daoists. That Daoist was none other than Fu Gucheng. Before he could act, Yong Guike had already darted out from behind him, laughing. “Even a duck is a Tai Yi Golden Immortal? I’ll expose your fake three flowers!”

Once Chen Shi sent the Muscovy duck flying, it panicked. Then it saw Yong Guike charging at it and immediately unleashed its cultivation. With a flap of its wings, its body grew unimaginably huge. Its wings blotted out the sky, and a single spread covered the entire Golden Turtle Island!

“Whoosh!”

Its wings swept forward, sending countless golden sword rays flowing in their wake, like a vast ocean.

This Muscovy duck had been an ordinary duck in the Great Shang Era. After Daoist Lingbao left behind the cyan stele, the villagers fed it the dregs from their pill refining every time they made pills. As a result, it had developed intelligence long ago and had studied the cyan stele alongside the villagers for three hundred thousand years.

It rarely had any contact with the outside world. It did not know what a demon cultivator was, nor did it know how to transform into human form. After eating the medicinal dregs, it would go study the cyan stele, and it had comprehended extraordinary cultivation techniques and divine abilities.

With that flap of its wings, the empty sea filled with flowing light, shining brilliantly. It was an astonishing sight formed by countless sword feathers.

Although Yong Guike was also a Tai Yi Golden Immortal, his Dao Realm was far inferior to the duck’s. They were four Dao Realms apart. The moment his divine ability met the Empty Sea Flowing Light Sword, it was cut to pieces.

Just as the empty sea of flowing light was about to engulf him, Fu Gucheng immediately moved, charging into the sea of light formed by the sword feathers. He shouted, “The Empty Sea Flowing Light Sword! That’s a divine ability from the lineage of Celestial Venerable Lingbao! What sort of being are you?”

Two of the three flowers above his head bloomed. Any sword qi that came near him was destroyed, unable to touch him.

Fu Gucheng swept his sleeve, and Yong Guike immediately flew backward, pulled clear of the sea of light.

Yong Guike flew backward, dazed and blank. His mind was utterly empty.

In that brief clash, he had experienced the terror of death.

Facing that Muscovy duck, he had been unable to muster any thought of resisting or escaping!

At that moment, he had felt utterly without hope. He would certainly die beneath the duck’s divine ability!

Fu Gucheng rescued his disciple, only to see the duck flap its wings and flee, not daring to face him. At the same time, an iron-tower of a man charged toward him and attacked without a word.

When Fu Gucheng saw the man’s divine ability, his heart gave a slight jolt. “The Azure Dragon’s Roar! Another divine ability from the Lingbao lineage!”

The Azure Dragon’s Roar was a method for drawing upon the Eastern Heaven Green Emperor’s Dao power. Despite its name, it was actually a hand seal. When the burly man performed it, a dragon’s roar reverberated, and he seemed like the Green Emperor himself had arrived, pressing down on everyone until they could hardly breathe!

This hand seal was a closely guarded secret of the Lingbao lineage. Only its disciples had a chance to learn it. It was impossible for it to have been passed on to outsiders.

“Daoist, are you a disciple of the Shangqing Lingbao lineage?”

Fu Gucheng raised his hand to block the attack and was shaken until his breath wavered. He hurriedly said, “I’m a disciple of the Jade Clarity Yuanshi lineage. Senior Brother, we’re both of the Three Purities lineage. We’re family!”

The burly man, Tang Feng, paid him no heed. He only remembered being told to use whatever he had comprehended from the cyan stele. He immediately changed his moves and unleashed the White Tiger Seal, one of the Five Emperors’ Seals.

Chen Shi had studied the cyan stele and comprehended only one move, the Azure Dragon’s Roar. But the villagers had studied it for much longer and had learned even more divine abilities and Dao techniques.

Tang Feng paid no attention to what kind of Dao technique Fu Gucheng used. He simply unleashed the divine abilities he had comprehended and attacked Fu Gucheng recklessly.

“Lingbao Art! Heaven and Earth Command! Sacrifice the Mountains and Rivers!”

Fu Gucheng grew more and more alarmed as they fought. The country bumpkin’s techniques were all closely guarded secrets of the Lingbao lineage. Some of his divine abilities could only be learned by figures of Fu Gucheng’s master’s generation!

Tang Feng, on the other hand, found himself growing more and more at ease as he used the various methods he had comprehended from the cyan stele. Fu Gucheng gradually failed to keep up. Tang Feng broke through his defense and struck him in the chest with a palm.

The three flowers above Fu Gucheng’s head shone brightly. With a loud bang, he flew backward, and the petals of one of the golden flowers above his head drifted down.

Fu Gucheng was both shocked and furious. If the golden flower hadn’t taken that blow for him, he would have been seriously injured!

“You claim to be a disciple of the Shangqing Lingbao lineage. Why are you attacking a fellow disciple?” Fu Gucheng demanded.

Tang Feng had no idea what he meant and charged at him again.

Fu Gucheng had no choice but to brace himself and take the attack head-on. Their cultivation levels were about the same, but the country bumpkin’s cultivation techniques and divine abilities were far more refined than his own.

Fu Gucheng groaned inwardly. “Guike judged him wrong. This man really is a Tai Yi Golden Immortal!”

He could not help wondering, “Who exactly are these Golden Immortals? Could they really be disciples of Celestial Venerable Lingbao’s lineage? Why have I never heard of them before? And what’s the story with that Tai Yi Golden Immortal duck?”

A dog barked suddenly from the other side. Fu Gucheng glanced over in a hurry and saw Chun Daoming being chased all over the ground by that mangy dog.

The mangy dog was actually proficient in the Dao techniques of Celestial Venerable Lingbao’s lineage too. Chun Daoming was no match for it!

A muffled groan sounded in the distance. Fu Gucheng glanced over and saw a village girl wielding a kitchen cleaver in one hand and unleashing a divine ability that cleaved the heavens and split the earth with the other. She was matching Liu Daozi blow for blow. Her divine abilities were astonishingly powerful, and her skill with the cleaver was superb. In just a few moves, she had badly wounded Liu Daozi!

Fu Gucheng’s mind was a fog. He glanced over again and saw a white-haired old man, though frail with age, fighting with vigorous life as he beat up another Tai Yi Golden Immortal he had invited.

The old man’s three flowers had already bloomed, and his cultivation was even more profound than Fu Gucheng’s. He beat the other Tai Yi Golden Immortal until the man was routed.

Fu Gucheng then saw a child of only five or six years old fighting Jun Tiancheng.

He lost focus for a moment, allowing Tang Feng to gain a huge advantage. Another move struck him, and this time the other golden flower began to wither too.

Fu Gucheng panicked. If the three flowers above his head were knocked down, his Dao cultivation would suffer severe damage, and he would need countless years of arduous cultivation to restore it.

Another cry of alarm rang out. Fu Gucheng hurriedly glanced over and saw that Liu Daozi had already been knocked down.

Nearby, several other Daoists he had invited to help had also been defeated and captured.

Fu Gucheng no longer hesitated. He summoned the Great Luo Gold Immortal magic treasure Yin-Yang Mirror, which had been given to him by his master, Great Immortal Chijing, and directed it toward the burly Tang Feng.

This mirror was no ordinary treasure. It brought the Dao of yin and yang to the utmost extreme. Anyone struck by its mirror light would die instantly and turn into a pool of blood.

At that moment, two immortal boys, one blue and one white, flew up and blocked the mirror light in midair.

The white-robed immortal boy embodied yang, while the blue-robed immortal boy embodied yin. The two complemented each other perfectly. Even when the Yin-Yang Mirror’s light fell upon them, it had no effect at all.

Fu Gucheng grew even more panicked. He urged the Yin-Yang Mirror to fly up and down, while the two immortal boys flew alongside it, blocking its attacks.

Suddenly, the two immortal boys seized the Yin-Yang Mirror from either side and snatched the treasure away.

Without the treasure, Fu Gucheng was finally beaten to the ground by Tang Feng.

Elsewhere, the mangy dog had knocked Chun Daoming down.

In just a short while, every Tai Yi Golden Immortal who had come to besiege Golden Turtle Island was lying on the ground, unable to get up.

Qiao Gu, Jing Mei, and Jiang Guo gaped in astonishment.

Jiao the Cripple slowly came to, then struggled to crawl to the front of Biyou Palace. He saw the same scene and was so astonished he could not utter a word.

Chen Shi picked up the duck and sent it flying. The duck opened its beak, about to swallow ten thousand miles in a single gulp and devour the black iron immortal cities, along with the tens of thousands of immortal soldiers and generals inside them!