Chapter 288 - 258: The Dragon King’s Entrustment (Part 2)
Gu Zhan lifted his teacup, took a sip, and asked, "Dragon King, is there anything else?"
Mo Jingzhou nodded and said, "There are two more things. Let’s talk about the first one, tell me about the struggle between the righteous and demonic factions this time."
Gu Zhan said nothing, listening quietly.
Mo Jingzhou said in a low voice, "The true cause of the struggle between righteous and demonic factions, you should know, was deliberately instigated by the Yunxi Martial World to counter the Cyan Gorge Covenant. There’s no need for me to say much about the rampant actions of the Demon Dao, real or fake, you should understand."
Gu Zhan nodded slightly,
Recently, the Demon Sect was everywhere committing massacres, but it was not the long-dormant Demon Dao responsible for it,
it was merely the Yunxi Righteous Dao Martial World needing a valid reason.
Mo Jingzhou continued, "In the Ten Thousand Mountains, the Demon Dao is prevalent, but essentially, it’s mainly three major forces. One is the leader of the Demon Dao, the Moon Worship Cult, which holds a status in the Demon Dao similar to Sword King City in the Righteous Dao; it is a super force with an Earthly Immortal holding the fort."
Gu Zhan slightly squinted his eyes.
Earthly Immortal is an honorary title for the supreme grandmasters above the Grotto Heaven Realm, Great Power cultivators.
Legend has it that Earthly Immortals can break the limitations of lifespan.
Lifespan is a very difficult thing to alter; in this world, neither ordinary people nor strong cultivators have much difference in lifespan. One’s lifespan doesn’t necessarily extend with stronger cultivation,
even supreme grandmasters simply have better mental states than ordinary people; they’re still old when they’re meant to be old, dead when they’re meant to be dead. Occasionally, someone might live over a hundred years, but they’re like old longevity stars, completely unlike those web novels Gu Zhan read in his previous life where the higher the cultivation, the longer the lifespan.
However, there’s a realm capable of extending one’s lifespan,
that realm is beyond the supreme grandmaster, the Grotto Heaven Realm.
Cultivators of the Grotto Heaven Realm are called Earthly Immortals, the pinnacle of the martial arts path; beyond that lies the legendary Broken Void, but the last account of Broken Void traces back five hundred years.
Of course, Broken Void is just a legend,
but Grotto Heaven Realm Earthly Immortals genuinely exist,
the most famous being the top ten experts on the Martial World Ranking, all are legendary Earthly Immortals.
It’s said that Earthly Immortals of the Grotto Heaven Realm can break lifespan restrictions; according to recorded archives, the shortest-lived Earthly Immortal of the Grotto Heaven Realm lived a hundred and fifty years, while the longest-lived exceeded three hundred years.
Such immortal figures, though clearly documented, aren’t something many have the chance to meet, but Sword King City has one that has lived for two hundred years.
This is also the main reason Sword King City can become the leader in Yunxi.
As far as Gu Zhan knows, the Earthly Immortal in Yunzhou resides in Sword King City,
now hearing Mo Jingzhou say that the Demon Dao also has one makes him somewhat surprised, "Isn’t it said that Yunzhou has only one Earthly Immortal?"
"One? How could that be," Mo Jingzhou said, "If the Demon Dao had no Earthly Immortal, during that struggle between righteous and demonic factions years ago, how could the Demon Dao have escaped into the Ten Thousand Mountains? It was because the Earthly Immortal of the Moon Worship Cult intervened.
Additionally, the currently rebelling White Lotus Sect also has an Earthly Immortal; otherwise, they wouldn’t have the qualification to rebel nor continue rebelling repeatedly without being suppressed."
Gu Zhan nodded, "Then in this struggle between righteous and demonic factions, will the Earthly Immortal of the Moon Worship Cult intervene?"
"No," Mo Jingzhou said, "Though I’ve never reached the Grotto Heaven Realm, I understand slightly; Grotto Heaven Realm cultivators seem to have certain restrictions; they generally won’t intervene unless absolutely necessary.
Moreover, in our initiated struggle between righteous and demonic factions, we’re not genuinely intending to eradicate the Demon Dao; it’s not worth the intervention of an Earthly Immortal. Our main goal this time is to seize a path within the Ten Thousand Mountains.
Among the three major forces, besides the Moon Worship Cult, there’s also Ghost King Sect and Yin Kui Sect. The path we aim to seize belongs to the Ghost King Sect, one of the top three Demon Dao forces. This time, we’re primarily besieging the Ghost King Sect; their strength is not to be underestimated, both the sect leader and deputy sect leader are supreme grandmasters.
They’ve also sought assistance from the Moon Worship Cult and Yin Kui Sect. Although the three forces generally don’t agree, given this struggle between righteous and demonic factions, both the Moon Worship Cult and Yin Kui Sect have brought their forces to aid the Ghost King Sect."
Gu Zhan drank his tea slowly, listening quietly.
Mo Jingzhou paused for a moment and said, "This struggle between righteous and demonic factions is about honor; thus, regardless of the outcome, this battle will not be easy. Therefore, deciding to send a challenge letter to the Demon Dao, inviting them to fight at Bright Moon Gorge. But keep in mind, you must stay away from the front lines in this struggle."
Gu Zhan asked, "Is there a plan?"
Mo Jingzhou nodded, "I will burn my blood essence, injuring several supreme grandmasters from the Demon Dao, ending this struggle in the most decisive manner."
Gu Zhan raised his brow, "Is this why you say you don’t have long to live?"
Mo Jingzhou nodded.
Gu Zhan asked, puzzled, "Why do this?"
Mo Jingzhou said slowly, "This is a deal I’ve made with four other top forces. I’ve already exhausted my vitality, at most living two more years; it’s better to use this last bit of time to buy some time for the Beidou Bang.
I’ve signed an alliance agreement with the four top forces; after I die, regardless of the Beidou Bang’s situation, these four forces must not interfere with Canglan Dao. Without these four dealing with Beidou Bang, with Yun Wei and Xiao Chen, the two grandmasters present, Beidou Bang may only strategically shrink under external pressure but can be preserved."