Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Divine Lords of the Sect Attack the Tribe of Shamans

“I believe the Celestial Maiden of the Sect by your side has already guessed much of it. There’s no need for me to conceal anything further today. From the moment you were reborn into the mortal world, I began to lay the foundations for this scheme. When you left the mountain and returned home, then journeyed to Great Xia, everything unfolded within my grasp. You must be quite perplexed—why have I gone to such lengths to set my sights on you?”

Yuan Ji’s words were meant to lay everything bare; it was now clear that all her intricate designs had been for Hao Dan alone.

Hao Dan, incredulous at what he heard, questioned her, “From my birth, to entering Xia and saving my father, to everything that followed—you were aware of it all?”

Yuan Ji swept her gaze over the masses with proud solitude and gave a cold smile. “Precisely so.”

“Even when you, alone and weapon in hand, ascended the Ninth Heaven and battled the celestial host at the risk of your life, I knew of it! I know there are many things you cannot fathom—why I would go to such pains to ensnare the Jiuyi. At first, I merely intended to use Jiuyi against Shangqiu. But fate brought unexpected changes, and I was forced to alter my plans. What began as a simple effort to control the Empress of Jiuyi escalated because my disciple, without my consent, triggered Yangyi’s rebellion and seized the throne of Jiuyi. There were countless coincidences along the way. Li, the Grand Immortal of Beichu of the Gate of Yi, incited civil strife among the four neighboring kingdoms; you accompanied the Empress to Jiuyi in pursuit of the River Diagram and Luo Book—I was aware of all of this. What surprised me was that the Empress inherited a millennium of cultivation from the White Emperor, Bai Fengpian. You must know, the Empress of Jiuyi is a rare Jade Nine-tailed Fox, appearing only once in ten thousand years—a most delightful surprise for me indeed!”

At the hint that Yuan Ji intended to use Susu for some purpose, Su Moran and Su Qianshu could no longer contain themselves. Hao Dan hastened to calm them, while Bai Ling knitted her brows and questioned, “Master Diviner, I suppose you’ve also planted spies in the Heavenly Realm? Why not let me hazard a guess—who are they?”

Her words hung awkwardly in the air, just as the trenches along the Mingtiao front erupted into battle between the armies of Xia and Shang. Both sides were poised for war.

Yuan Ji, hands clasped behind her back, turned with a faint smile. “Show yourself! There’s no need for further pretense. What must come will come.”

A blurred figure passed through the spatial array behind Yuan Ji. It was none other than ‘Knower of All, I—Luoyu,’ one of the four great Celestial Guardians of the Sect, whom Hao Dan had encountered twice before.

At his appearance, little Bai Ling’s eyes lit up. She had likely already deduced that the figure who first ascended the Sacred Mountain in the Illusory Spirit Realm was this very ‘Knower of All, I—Luoyu.’ When Hao Dan had persistently questioned Bai Ling about that day, she had refused to answer—not because she wished to conceal it, but because her memory had not yet fully returned, and she’d felt an inexplicable unease at his presence.

As for why Luoyu had sought out Lord Luya, Bai Ling did not know. She only knew that Lord Luya’s grave injuries were somehow connected to Luoyu.

In the past, Bai Ling had reported this matter to the Sect Leader Tongtian. After all, when Luoyu had introduced himself, he’d claimed to be a Celestial from the Sect. Although Bai Ling’s memories of Eastern Emperor Taiyi were sealed, her memories as the Sect’s youngest disciple remained. She never trusted Luoyu. Lord Luya had secretly warned her: “When you leave the Illusory Spirit Realm, beware of Luoyu. He is so deeply hidden that even I cannot discern the depths of his cultivation.”

Now, the truth was about to surface.

With Luoyu’s arrival, the heavens and earth suddenly shifted—clouds churned, and the clear sky was transformed. One after another, celestial figures descended to the mortal realm.

Bai Ling glanced around, then lightly vaulted into the air and bowed to the assembled immortals. “Your junior greets her brothers and sisters on their descent to the mortal world!”

Five gods of the Sect had arrived. Each figure was unique: General Yan Lietian of the Three Realms stood resplendent in silver armor; Black Tiger Celestial Lord Zhao Gongming stood with hands clasped behind his back; the Sword Immortal Kong Qiandao eyed his foes like a tiger; Lady Yanruo, Fairy Ruoqianqian, plucked her Xuan Jade zither and smiled warmly at Bai Ling; and lastly, the most enigmatic of the group, Lu Tianming of Kongtong—Master of Ten Thousand Talismans and Arrays.

Draped in plain black-and-white robes, Lu Tianming seemed shrouded in a mysterious fog, his cultivation impossible to fathom.

“We have come to the mortal world today to cleanse our sect—seize the traitor, Knower of All! Should any of the Wu tribe’s juniors intervene, they shall be destroyed as well!” Yan Lietian’s voice was thunderous, echoing across Mingtiao. Both armies below trembled at his words.

Yuan Ji, rather than angered, laughed scornfully. “If you wish to fight, then let strength speak for itself!”

Luoyu shook his head gently. His Daoist robe billowed in the wind, revealing a Seven-Star robe of the Wu tribe beneath—his true identity instantly laid bare.

Luoyu offered a humble smile. “Forgive my lack of courtesy, but why not all come at once?”

The air grew tense, a powder keg waiting for a spark. The immortals’ eyes blazed with fury—such arrogance was an affront to the celestial generals of the Ninth Heaven. The two sides faced off, weapons drawn. The merchants’ alliance below quaked in fear. Hao Dan gave a few swift orders, then rose into the air beside Bai Ling to join the ranks of the Sect’s immortals.

Across from them, four sorceresses floated upward to stand behind Yuan Ji and Luoyu—six against seven, a lineup to inspire awe.

At that moment, Hao Dan was still puzzled by Luoyu’s motives. In the southern marshes, Luoyu had aided him against the sorceresses; in the Ninth Heaven, he’d helped him enter the Heavenly Guide. What, then, did Luoyu truly desire?

Just then, Grand Tutor Ran Long of the Deathless Pass in Great Xia signaled the attack. The merchants’ alliance responded in kind, and battle erupted below, descending into madness and chaos.

In the sky, Lu Tianming of Kongtong, sensing the danger, quietly unfurled the ‘Gate-of-Heaven Array,’ a formation that would isolate all immortal spells within, preventing any harm to mortals outside.

Below, the armies clashed in brutal melee; above, the two celestial camps prepared for war.

Hao Dan put aside thoughts of Luoyu’s motives for the moment. Remembering his debt to Old Black, he launched himself at the sorceress Eight-Life Pearl. The two immediately locked in battle. Bai Ling challenged the sorceress Yishen, while Kong Qiandao, his anger mounting at being ignored, squared off against Side-face Jialuo.

Fairy Ruoqianqian chose Wu Tong as her opponent. As for Yuan Ji, she smiled faintly and vanished before all eyes, leaving only a lingering scent of roses and a parting message in the air: “Now, it’s your turn! Today’s surprise may be somewhat premature, but it does not affect the final outcome!”

Clearly, these words were meant for Luoyu the Knower. In Yuan Ji’s estimation, he alone was more than a match for Zhao Gongming, Yan Lietian, and Lu Tianming.

But Zhao Gongming, proud and domineering as ever, would not stand for it. He turned to Yan Lietian and said, “I alone am enough. You two need not interfere!”

Luoyu replied calmly, “No need. All three of my senior brothers should come together. Though I entered the Sect later and have not yet reached a hundred years, I have mastered all its secret arts and doctrines, and long since made them my own. Even if the four chief disciples of our Master were to come, I could face them all.”

“Luoyu, do you know how arrogant your words are?” Yan Lietian thundered.

Luoyu merely shrugged, a look of helplessness on his face. “I do not consider myself arrogant—merely stating the facts.”

Lu Tianming said, “It seems we have underestimated you. Even we would not dare claim to challenge the Senior Brother Duobao or the Three Sacred Mothers.”

Zhao Gongming’s face darkened. In all his millennia traversing the celestial realm, never had he encountered such brazen arrogance—until today.

“So this is what our uncles meant—raising a traitor like you in the Sect could only spell disaster!” Lu Tianming muttered with sorrow. This was the day he had least wished to see.

...

As the three spoke, battle had already erupted around them. Hao Dan, intent on avenging Old Black, immediately unleashed ‘Ten Thousand Blades Severing,’ transforming the Eastern Emperor Bell into a golden blade. The sorceress Eight-Life Pearl, prepared for this, chanted her incantation: “Devour the Starry Sky!” At once, a black vortex formed before her, swallowing Hao Dan and the golden blade before he could evade. Her eyes flashed, and with a cold smile, she too leapt into the vortex.

Elsewhere, Bai Ling fared little better. The sorceress Yishen, with her Dreamcrafting Art, looked sweet and innocent, but was fiendishly cunning. Bai Ling, deceived by her appearance, could not bring herself to strike the childlike figure with her Xuantian Ribbon, and was instead forced into dire straits again and again. Yishen’s small stature and agility far surpassed Bai Ling’s, even after Bai Ling had invoked Divine Power of Heaven and Earth. It was deeply unsettling—how could this sorceress be so formidable? What was the source of their strength?

As Bai Ling pondered, Yishen smiled—her first truly eerie smile since their meeting. Behind her sweet face yawned an unfathomable abyss. Unwittingly, Bai Ling slipped into an illusion, a crevasse within her own heart—the place most fragile to her. Deep inside, Bai Ling could never accept that Eastern Emperor Taiyi had truly perished a thousand years ago, even after regaining her memories—a self-deception she could not shake.

Through various probes and covert spells, Yishen had used ‘Soul Listening’ to divine Bai Ling’s innermost callings, and now cast ‘As In a Dream’ upon her. In truth, Yishen was not skilled in offense; it was Yuan Ji who had taught her movement techniques, giving her the ghostly agility she now wielded.

Meanwhile, the Sword Immortal Kong Qiandao faced Side-face Jialuo. Both were peerless in their own right. Jialuo never looked anyone in the eye, but Kong Qiandao took no heed. To him, this evasive sorceress needed to be confronted directly. He unleashed a seven-colored divine sword—the most formidable attack in his arsenal, the Rainbow Glaze Sword.

Jialuo’s lips curled into a slight smile. She raised a delicate hand and flicked her middle finger. The oncoming sword dissipated into nothing, leaving only a solitary blade spinning endlessly in the air.

“No, that’s impossible!”

Never in all his experience among the immortals had Kong Qiandao faced such a formidable opponent. The Rainbow Glaze Sword was his most devastating technique—dazzling but deadly. Yet today he faced a genius of the Wu tribe, Side-face Jialuo, whose repertoire was endless, her command of the mind unrivaled, her power no less than Yuan Ji’s.

“If that’s the extent of your tricks, perhaps you should return to the celestial realm and train for a few more centuries before challenging me again,” Jialuo said mercilessly, pushing him to the brink.

Kong Qiandao’s face flushed, then paled—his pride in tatters.

“In that case, I shall fight with all my strength!” he cried. “Release the Celestial Seal!”

At his shout, all the immortals around turned in shock—Yan Lietian, Lu Tianming, and Ruoqianqian all marveled. “So soon—he’s been forced to unlock his celestial power?”

‘Releasing the Celestial Seal’ was a restriction placed on the gods when they descended to the mortal world to keep their power in check. Once released, their strength would multiply several times over, and their spells would become devastatingly destructive.

Kong Qiandao’s aura exploded, his presence utterly transformed. He seemed to possess boundless power. Jialuo, startled, realized she’d never heard of such a restriction among the Sect’s immortals. She glanced at Luoyu, who merely smiled—he had no intention of sharing this secret with the sorceresses.

In the midst of this tense standoff, Wu Tong, with a wicked smile, taunted, “You’d best worry about yourself!”

Fairy Ruoqianqian had fallen prey to Wu Tong’s Five Elements Extreme Array—a fusion of sorcery and celestial arts, with the Wu tribe’s poisonous insects added to the five elements. Already weakened, Ruoqianqian was overwhelmed. She cried out, “Brother Tianming, help your junior!”

Lu Tianming, alarmed, produced a yellow talisman and, without a word, sent it flying. In an instant, it became a golden dragon formed of countless talismans, which swept into the array and rescued Ruoqianqian just in time. The array still spun, and Wu Tong stood with cold disdain. “So, is this the might of the Nine Heavens’ fairies? How fragile, how pitiful!”