"The Heavenly Dao is lending its power?!!"
"How could the heavens favor the Li family alone? Merit City is radiating with new life!"
"They're alive! They're alive! The people in Merit City are alive!"
"..."
The tribulation clouds moved, and the living dead radiated with life force.
This day truly broadened the horizons of everyone in the Azure Cloud region; it was an event the likes of which they had never even heard of before.
They looked towards Merit City, where the pillars of light formed by the lightning tribulation still remained, numbering in the hundreds of thousands.
They could feel that each and every pillar represented a person from Merit City!
The Heavenly Dao returned a hundred years of lifespan and even caused the cultivation base of the people within Merit City to increase, an amount equivalent to anywhere from one to twenty years of practice, depending on how much each individual could absorb.
This was truly a heaven-sent opportunity, and everyone was speculating which member of the Li family could have possibly performed such a grand feat, one worthy of Heaven's grace.
Furthermore...
This lightning tribulation!
They had never witnessed such a gentle lightning tribulation.
The center of the tribulation clouds remained completely still. Rumor had it that the Divinity Transformation tribulation would manifest a strange phenomenon to specifically attack the cultivator's Nascent Soul and divine spirit, yet this one showed no sign of it.
It was utterly and inexplicably bizarre.
"How is this possible?!! How could this be?!"
Han Qiusheng was utterly horrified.
Behind him, the numerous cultivators who had accompanied him were swallowing nervously in terror and had already begun to silently back away.
"Heheh... Honored friends."
Han Qiusheng saw that the crowd was still gazing at the spectacle over Merit City.
Cupping his fists towards Feng Chunlin and the others, a forced smile plastered on his face, he said, "I heard long ago that the Li family was engaged in a great battle in Eternal Sun Prefecture. This humble one has been pondering it for a long time.
For many years, the Li family has given so much for our Azure Cloud; even if this humble one must risk my very life, I must still help the Li family overcome this calamity.
Honored friends, please, lead the way! Through mountains of knives and seas of fire, I will not shrink even from ten thousand deaths!"
"..."
Just how thick could this person's skin be? Today, the people of the Azure Cloud region truly had their eyes opened.
It was as if the lightning tribulation over Merit City had utterly obliterated Han Qiusheng's integrity, smashing it to pieces all over the ground.
Feng Chunlin stared at Han Qiusheng, and his scrutinizing gaze caused Han Qiusheng to break out in a cold sweat.
He had originally wanted to obtain some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, because an avatar of Tian Xing had requested his aid long ago, swearing with utmost confidence that the people of the Li family were certain to perish.
Certain... my ass!
Just look at this Merit City, so clearly favored by the heavens!
Han Qiusheng truly couldn't fathom where that Tian Xing had gotten such confidence.
However, his shamelessness was of no use.
His expression changed; Feng Chunlin clearly had no intention of giving him a way out.
He said coolly to Old Ancestor Tianye, "Congratulations, Brother Tianye. I fear your Ghost Eye Sect is about to gain another Nascent Soul Human Pill. This Prince hopes to see, within your Ghost Eye Sect's Soul-Trapping Pagoda, a certain soul suffering the torment of a thousand years of soul-fire roasting."
BOOM!
In an instant, Han Qiusheng was already fleeing frantically.
Fleeing along with him was Daoist Sacred Fire, who had been outside the Jiang Royal Mansion, and all those who had blocked the path of the Azure Cloud group; they were all frantically fleeing for their lives!
They knew that in Azure Cloud, the old order had not yet fallen.
And yet.
The numerous experts of Azure Cloud did not give chase...
"This..."
Everyone cried out in alarm once more, their gazes turning towards the entirety of Merit City!
Beneath the lightning tribulation, not only did Merit City suffer not the slightest damage, but as its life force slowly recovered, the entire city actually began to become illusory, as if fading into space itself!
"A Grotto-Heaven and Blessed Land!"
The Jiang family's Old Ancestor sighed with immense emotion; long ago, their Jiang family had also possessed a Grotto-Heaven and Blessed Land, but it was destroyed when the Wu Clan came.
In these past hundred-plus years, they had also begun to rebuild one in Azure Cloud, so naturally, they could discern the principles behind Merit City's transformation.
A Grotto-Heaven and Blessed Land is, in reality, quite similar to the space within a storage ring; it is simply more stable and can also contain living beings.
Once a Grotto-Heaven and Blessed Land becomes a 'Concealed Grotto-Heaven', it can be hidden away in any inconspicuous corner, and can even be moved.
The Jiang family's Old Ancestor, however, was simply astonished by the sheer speed of the Li family's Grotto-Heaven construction.
It was likely, he surmised, that they had borrowed the power of the Heavenly Tribulation itself and relied on the methods bestowed by the heavens, which had allowed them to restore their vitality.
The numerous comrades from Azure Cloud were sighing with emotion.
But the likes of Daoist Sacred Fire and Han Qiusheng were only focused on fleeing.
However, very soon, they could no longer escape!
"And where do you think you're fleeing to?"
An ethereal voice rang out!
All those who were fleeing, in that very instant, whipped their heads around in horror!
CRACK—
All that could be seen was this: across the entire land of the Azure Cloud region, roots began to appear, as if they were tearing through space itself, stabbing out from thin air!
These roots all appeared from a single direction.
From the vanished Merit City!
One by one, the ordinary cultivators were entangled.
That Han Qiusheng had already been bound, his spiritual power sealed, and was unceremoniously thrown before the Azure Cloud group.
Only Daoist Sacred Fire merely furrowed his brow; using his spiritual power, he easily incinerated the approaching roots and swiftly fled, muttering only a single sentence to himself: "This place is bizarre; I truly should not have coveted those Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. To be granted such power by the heavens before even reaching Divinity Transformation?"
As his voice faded.
All the people of Azure Cloud rose into the air as one.
Merit City was no longer in its original place; the lightning tribulation in the sky had vanished without a trace, leaving only a single red leaf drifting on the wind.
They followed that red leaf, heading towards the Eternal Sun Prefecture!
In each of their ears, an ancient voice resounded, a voice as familiar as it had been on the battlefields of those bygone years.
"I have heard."
"I have seen."
"Tian Xing's fate is sealed!"
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