Free Web NovelChapter 248: Answering the Challenge
Above the nine heavens, a crashing sound echoed within a palace of the Immortal Alliance.
Feng Ao, the Immortal Alliance's Dharma Form cultivator, had directly smashed his cup to the ground. As he stared at the cultivation details of Yaoguang released by the Nine Cauldrons Sect, his eyes burned with fury at being played.
"It was him! It has always been him!" he shouted.
Feng Ao recalled how, ten years ago, they had used the excuse of a Dharma Form cultivator attack on the Immortal-Proving Tower to extort compensation from the Nine Cauldrons Sect. Although they had succeeded, they had still felt a trace of guilt.
Because of that guilt, when the Nine Cauldrons Sect later introduced a new cultivation system that reduced reliance on pills, causing the Immortal-Proving Tower to earn far less than expected, they had silently accepted the loss, avoiding making trouble for them over the matter.
But now, it appeared that everything they had done had been manipulated by the Nine Cauldrons Sect.
The theft at the Immortal-Proving Tower had been their doing all along, and even the agreement they had signed had been part of a long-planned scheme.
Only the Immortal Alliance higher-ups had remained in the dark, secretly pleased with themselves, thinking they had gained a great advantage.
Suddenly, Feng Ao sensed something. As he split off a strand of his mind and entered the Void Psychic World established by the Immortal Alliance, the figure of Mi Le, the largest backer behind the Immortal-Proving Tower, appeared immediately.
"Feng Ao, you’ve seen the announcement from the Nine Cauldrons Sect, haven’t you?" A chilling light flickered in Mi Le’s eyes. "They’ve got some nerve!"
"They think that the matter is settled and dare to step out openly now? They’re not taking our Immortal Alliance seriously at all! We must teach them a lesson they’ll never forget!" Barton, the star god overseeing the Immortal-Proving Tower, appeared next within the Void Psychic World.
His words had Mi Le nodding in agreement.
Another figure manifested. "This matter may not be as simple as we think. The Nine Cauldrons Sect couldn’t possibly be unaware of the possible consequences of their announcement! They’re basically admitting that the Immortal-Proving Tower incident ten years ago was their doing, yet they still chose to reveal it! And considering that Yaoguang possesses the strength of a star god, Golden Core cultivator, and Dharma Form cultivator simultaneously, there is only one explanation!"
The Golden Core cultivator from the Lu family spoke with a grave expression. "He already has strength that makes him unafraid of any one of us... In other words, he does not fear any Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivator! If we fight him, it's going to become a life-or-death battle, and someone will have to die!"
A life-or-death battle! Those words immediately calmed Feng Ao, Mi Le, and Barton.
The reason the Great Cangwu World remained locked in constant conflict yet never fully collapsed was precisely that all Golden Core cultivators understood one truth: Each of them possessed the power to drag the entire world down with them. If pushed to the point of no return, nobody would be able to claim victory. However...
"If Yaoguang already has Radiant Sun Golden Core Realm combat power, he should have ascended to the nine heavens rather than staying in the Great Cangwu World. Is he trying to threaten us this way?" Mi Le said.
The Lu family’s Golden Core cultivator, Lu Xi, glanced at him. "At that time, he had not revealed his strength as a Golden Core cultivator. Staying in the Great Cangwu World was something we could not criticize. He understood that himself. Now that he has made his strength public, his true body has already ascended above the nine heavens. He has chosen a lifeless planet, the closest one to the Great Cangwu World, Planet No. 6713."
The moment this was said, surprise appeared in the eyes of Mi Le, Feng Ao, and Barton.
What's going on? He's behaving so well? The moment he revealed his strength, he went straight to the nine heavens?
Many cultivators would normally find all kinds of excuses to delay and remain within the Great Cangwu World. After all, how could the environment above the nine heavens compare to that within the world itself?
But Feng Ao gradually realized something. His expression turned cold. "He is issuing a challenge to all Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators! As for whether it's a personal challenge, or he's representing the Nine Cauldron Sect...that I do not know."
Lu Xi gave a small nod. "To be precise, he is challenging the Infinite Star Palace and our sect. The Infinite Star Palace goes without saying. Their recent large-scale movements clearly indicate they intend to take measures against the Nine Cauldrons Sect. As for us..."
His gaze shifted toward Mi Le. "The Immortal-Proving Tower incident must be properly settled."
Mi Le’s expression darkened. His gaze returned to Yaoguang’s publicly disclosed cultivation details.
Yaoguang's body refinement was at the Star God Realm, his qi refinement was at the Golden Core Realm, and his psyche refinement at the Dharma Form Realm. This perfectly matched the so-called perfect cultivation system mentioned by the North Sea Star.
Then he thought of the Primordial Creation Art system that had been promoted within the Nine Cauldrons Sect in recent years...
"Did the Nine Cauldrons Sect obtain the complete cultivation art of the North Sea Star through some other channel and decide to implement it ahead of time? Otherwise, how could they have had the courage to abandon their existing system and promote it sect-wide?" Mi Le said.
He no longer mentioned the Immortal-Proving Tower incident.
"I’ve looked at the Primordial Creation Art of the Nine Cauldrons Sect. It is already fully developed and highly refined; it doesn’t look like something created out of thin air. Even though only up to the Unity Realm has been made public so far, that level is already formidable. Even those who have established immortal foundations can hardly compare. Combined with Yaoguang’s sudden high-profile actions..." Feng Ao said in a low voice. "There’s a strong possibility that this art is complete."
Hearing this, Mi Le felt an urge to curse.
If Yaoguang has really cultivated the complete system of the North Sea Star and advanced to the Golden Core Realm, then what's his true power? Someone like me, whose Radiant Sun Golden Core is unstable, is probably unable to contend with him. Feng Ao also already clashed with Yaoguang's Dharma Form power over a decade ago, and Yaoguang's psychic thought had even seemed slightly superior... How can we possibly fight him? Mi Le was already considering retreat.
"This battle must be fought, unless we choose to play dumb. The only alternative is knowing full well that the Immortal-Proving Tower attack was carried out by the Nine Cauldrons Sect, yet pretending otherwise..." Lu Xi said in a deep voice.
As he spoke, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
Ten years ago, they had used that very excuse to extort the Nine Cauldrons Sect, fearing the sect might deny it. But now, he almost wished the Nine Cauldrons Sect would step forward and deny everything, giving them an excuse to back off, pretend to be ignorant about the matter, and forget about it.
After all, the alternative was fighting Yaoguang, a Golden Core cultivator who very likely possessed the complete cultivation system... If someone wanted to test him, he could go right ahead. All they wanted was for them not to drag the Immortal Alliance into it.
Yet he also understood that, unless the Immortal Alliance was willing to throw its reputation to the ground and let the Nine Cauldrons Sect trample over it, this battle could not be avoided.
"Although this battle must be fought, it does not mean that only our sect will take action. The Infinite Star Palace can't possibly stand by and watch." Feng Ao immediately understood what he meant.
Mi Le had also calmed down. "Contact the Infinite Star Palace."
As someone who had the resolve to form a Radiant Sun Golden Core, he quickly adjusted his mindset once he understood the situation was unavoidable. What mattered next was using every possible means to secure victory.
Feng Ao nodded. He opened up a separate space within the Void Psychic World. Soon, under the lead of Lin Deng and Luo Fu, figures began to project into that space one after another.
"The Nine Cauldrons Sect has hidden itself quite well!"
"It doesn’t matter. I don’t believe that one additional Golden Core cultivator can change the current situation."
"Who knows whether what he claims is true? Has he really reached the Star God Realm and the Dharma Form Realm? This could very well be nothing more than a bluff by the Nine Cauldrons Sect to scare us and buy themselves more time, taking advantage of our hesitation. What we need to do is strike with overwhelming force and expose their trick."
One after another, the Golden Core cultivators of the Infinite Star Palace voiced their opinions.
They could not accept having to abandon their plans to act against the Nine Cauldrons Sect, not after withdrawing from the Black Flame Continent at the cost of destabilizing its situation. Without a fight, they would never accept it.
"Then how about we join forces?" Mi Le took the initiative. "Yaoguang has already gone to the nine heavens and chosen a lifeless planet as the stage, and he's clearly waiting for us to step onto it and play our roles. If he is that confident, why not oblige him?"
"We understand the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s intentions. However, if we act together, Li Hanqiu may not agree. He might step in again and cause trouble," A Golden Core cultivator from the Infinite Star Palace said.
"Heh, as the saying goes, those with nothing to lose fear nothing. In the past, Li Hanqiu might have been willing to risk mutual destruction at the slightest disagreement. But now... the Nine Cauldrons Sect is thriving, and it has produced a second top-tier powerhouse. He may no longer have the same resolve." Mi Le narrowed his eyes slightly. "All we need to do is to avoid overdoing it..."
"Control the scale of the fight..." The members of the Infinite Star Palace immediately understood.
"Our sects will each send one Golden Core cultivator. Two Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators joining forces will exceed their expectations. We won’t follow their script, yet we will give them the illusion that they can win if they fight desperately. At the very least, they will believe survival is still possible..." Mi Le said. "But in reality, if we make proper use of this opportunity, we can completely remove the growing confidence of the Nine Cauldrons Sect..."
"That is still a Golden Core cultivator who cultivates essence, qi, and psyche simultaneously."
"I’ve fought him before. What he condensed was only a Crimson Golden Core," Barton stepped forward and said.
This was already within their expectations.
For the Nine Cauldrons Sect to produce a Crimson Golden Core cultivator in such a short time was already the limit. If they had really produced a Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivator, their arrogance would have been far greater, and they would have spread the news across the entire world.
The Golden Core cultivators of the Infinite Star Palace and the Immortal Alliance exchanged glances and discussed further before finally reaching a consensus.
"Then each side will send one Golden Core cultivator. And as Lord Mi Le suggested, we will seize this opportunity, strike with overwhelming force, and stop the momentum of the Nine Cauldrons Sect! We will not allow them to grow." One Golden Core cultivator from the Infinite Star Palace stepped forward. "The Great Cangwu World already has six top-tier immortal sects. There is no need for a seventh."
The one speaking was Janko, one of the Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators most skilled in life-or-death combat within the Infinite Star Palace. This time, he would be the one to face Yaoguang.
"If we want to kill Yaoguang before he has any chance to react, we will have to use our trump cards. Our sect intends to use a top-tier spirit treasure, the Void-Splitting Disk. Given the foundation of the Infinite Star Palace, producing a spirit treasure of the same level should not be difficult," Mi Le said.
"The Void-Splitting Disk... With such a weapon, even if his Golden Core power rivals a Radiant Sun Golden Core, we still have a strong chance of shattering it. However, we must be cautious. We can't risk him sensing it in advance and evading its attack..." Janko pondered briefly before making a decision. "I will bring the Chaotic Heaven Ruler. It is a supreme treasure that once disrupted even the perception of a Dharma Form expert from the Lunar Fiend Empire. It will be enough to nullify his advantage in psychic perception."
"The Chaotic Heaven Ruler!" Mi Le, Lu Xi, and Feng Ao’s eyes all lit up.
They understood very well just how powerful this top-tier spirit treasure was. It could even be considered the Infinite Star Palace’s supreme treasure.
"Good. With the power of these two treasures, combined with the strength of the two of us, even if he were a Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivator, we still have a strong chance of killing him. Moreso if he's just a Crimson Golden Core cultivator," Mi Le said firmly. "There's no time to waste. Let us ascend to the nine heavens and head to Planet No. 6713 to fight him. Since he chose that battlefield, even if he fails and tries to drag everything down with him, he won’t be able to harm the Great Cangwu World in the slightest."
Janko nodded. After their discussion, one Golden Core cultivator after another left their respective palaces, heading toward Planet No. 6713.
