Chapter 528: Attracting Evil

South Mansion, inside the Garrison Command of the Celestial Net Department.

“Tomorrow, His Majesty intends to personally watch over the situation in Heqing Dao?”

Dressed in white robes, looking every bit the dashing young nobleman, Marquis Xuanping, Jin Ce, spoke after hearing the news Yang Zhongyuan had brought.

“It seems our previous preparations weren’t secure enough. With His Majesty watching, we cannot afford to make any mistakes.”

Marquis Wei Lie, Ten Thousand Laws Inference—a rugged, bearded man in a black robe—spoke calmly as a sudden ripple of power pulsed from within him.

A layer of light, as scorching as a fierce sun, enveloped his body. It seemed capable of melting anything and made one’s own vitality stir restlessly.

If the mysterious person inside Zhuang Li were here, they would discover that the Vitality within this man was simply beyond ordinary.

If the Vitality of an ordinary Innate Expert was like a star, then the Vitality within this man was like a fierce sun. In fact, because his Vitality had reached such an extreme, it could actually harm his surroundings.

The light of the sun is the foundation for all life, but when that light becomes too scorching, it destroys all living things on the surface of the earth.

“Are you going to create more clones? You’ve already made twenty-two and scattered them throughout Heqing Dao. There are risks if you continue, aren’t there? Even if you’ve cultivated the Great Sun Yang God and are empowered by the Emperor’s mandate, your Divine Sense will weaken, which will be a disadvantage in the fight to come.”

Jin Ce asked.

“Of the twenty-two clones, only six have power Above Innate. In a burst of ultimate power, they can only temporarily reach the Peak of Innate. The rest are merely hovering at the Sensing realm.”

“The greatest probability of an uprising is in South Mansion, but it’s not impossible for chaos to erupt elsewhere. Even with the Escape Technique tunnels open, if you and I are pinned down, we can’t rely on the local Sealed Sects alone to keep the people safe. Since His Majesty is watching personally, we absolutely cannot fail in Heqing Dao. I will create another fourteen clones—three at the Innate realm and eleven at the Sensing realm. That will bring the total to the number of the Thirty-Six Celestial Spirits. This is my limit, even empowered by the Emperor’s mandate. But as long as it’s not for too long, it shouldn’t affect my main body.”

Ten Thousand Laws Inference spoke calmly. Then, he reached over with his right hand, gripped his left shoulder, and squeezed hard.

CRACK!!

POP!!

His shoulder dislocated and the flesh tore open. A muscular arm slid out from his sleeve and fell to the ground. The wound was a startling crimson, but not a single drop of blood fell.

SWISH SWISH SWISH!!

Ten Thousand Laws Inference swung his right arm, instantly slicing the fallen limb on the ground into three sections. Then, with a grab of his hand, he plucked eleven hairs from his head and tossed them to the floor. Forming a seal with one hand, the light of the Great Sun flared from his body as the immense Vitality of his main self was unleashed.

“Arise!”

On the ground, the three arm segments and the hairs began to writhe. Flesh and blood rapidly swelled and multiplied, finally transforming into fourteen living men, each one identical to him.

A light shone in the eyes of these living men, as if each possessed its own independent consciousness.

The fourteen clones looked at Ten Thousand Laws Inference and nodded slightly. Then, with a flicker of their forms, they left the room and quickly vanished.

Some of them would be dispatched to various locations in Heqing Dao through the Escape Technique tunnels, while the rest would remain in South Mansion City to reinforce its defenses.

Great Sun Yang God, Body Out Incarnation Technique!

Marquis Wei Lie, Ten Thousand Laws Inference. Besides the immense power of his main body, he also possessed the means to be a one-man army.

However, the Body Out Incarnation Technique came with a price. For example, it could not be maintained for too long, or the split consciousnesses of the clones might break free from his control and severely impact his own Divine Sense. Furthermore, the power of the created clones was limited, and they drew upon the energy and combat strength of his main body.

If not for the Emperor’s mandate helping him resist some of the backlash, he would be incapable of such a feat.

GURGLE GURGLE!!

After the clones disappeared, the light of the Great Sun around Ten Thousand Laws Inference burned even more fiercely. His immense Vitality surged, and with the sound of muscles expanding from the stump of his shoulder, a complete arm emerged from his sleeve in just a few breaths’ time, as good as new.

“Alright, the preparations are sufficient. Now we just wait for those rats to show their heads.”

A smile appeared on Ten Thousand Laws Inference’s rugged face.

…

…

Just as the higher-ups on both sides were deploying their various stratagems, the gathering of martial artists from the various sects was reaching its conclusion.

After Liu Tie of the Divine Weapon Tomb defeated Ren Fei, He Xijun, and Miaoyin Hall’s Li Zhilin in succession, he could no longer remain on the platform according to the rules of previous years. He stepped down, leaving the opportunity for exchange to the other disciples.

The Elders of the various sects all wanted to invite a disciple at the Refining the Internal Organs realm from the Divine Weapon Tomb to fight another match, hoping to at least regain some face. However, Jiang Shitai, who seemed like a boorish fellow, was actually quite slippery. Claiming to have urgent business, he downed three cups in apology before leading the Divine Weapon Tomb disciples away.

Given the current situation, the other Elders couldn’t say much and could only swallow this silent loss.

As expected, the news had spread by the next day.

The pre-Lotus Lantern Dharma Assembly gathering was always a popular topic of discussion. With the participation of Schools from outside Heqing Dao this time, it drew even more attention. Most people weren’t too concerned with the internal struggles between the local sects; they were more interested in the performance of Heqing Dao versus the outside Schools.

“The Celestial Nine Pavilion didn’t participate in this small gathering of the Sealed Sect martial artists, citing important business. But the Divine Weapon Tomb sent a Blood Strengthening disciple named Liu Tie, who consecutively defeated three experts: Ren Fei of the Rebirth Palace, He Xijun of the Red Heart Sect, and Li Zhilin of Miaoyin Hall. No one could match him.”

“How embarrassing! The Schools from outside Heqing Dao are actually that strong? Three of our experts fought him in a row and still couldn’t beat him?”