Floating Immortal Order

Chapter 201: No Way Out

Chapter 201: No Way Out

TL: Sponsored chapter (6/7)

“White Lotus Array Flag, Jade Water Array Flag, explode for me!”

Top-grade Magic Treasures were thrown out by Xu Disheng in rapid succession. He completely ignited their origin sources, causing them to detonate!

Terrifying waves of energy pulsated outwards. The backlash of detonating the treasures hit him square on, making him cough out a mouthful of blood. His face was pale, and his aura was extremely weak.

Meanwhile, the enormous hand formed from profound qi… had only been delayed for the slightest of moments!

Xu Disheng’s eyes were bloodshot. He gritted his teeth, then took off the White Heron Robe!

“White Heron Robe… explode for me!!”

With a low roar, Xu Disheng ignited the origin of this flawless Psychic Magic Treasure, destroying it completely!

The White Heron Robe wasn’t like the Fierce Specter War Chariot. It was a flawless, fully intact Psychic Magic Treasure. Since Xu Disheng was its owner, the backlash of the self-detonation blew out a hole in Xu Disheng’s gut, sending him to tumble backwards!

At last, the hand formed from profound qi was slightly affected.

But… it still wasn’t enough!

Xu Disheng was already extremely exhausted and weak by this point, hardly able to steer the phantom image of the Yin Yang Diagram beneath him. He begrudgingly took out Disperse, and with another desperate shout, he willed the Paramount Ancient Bell to squeeze out a stream of Shangqing profound qi, which he used to splinter the calligraphy brush to pieces!

The fragments of the Magic Treasure were sent flying in every direction. A terrifying, undisguised aura rose from the splinters of the calligraphy brush.

A drop of pure black water rose up into the air, silently emitting an aura of unbridled destruction that caused the surrounding space to twist and warp.

After all, this was the Luminous Cloud Abyss, which was only an externally manifested Secret Realm. The might of the Pure Oblivion Water was more than enough to cause the space around it to distort and tear.

The hand made of profound qi continued to grab towards him, colliding with the drop of Pure Oblivion Water!

Xu Disheng had no way of controlling the Pure Oblivion Water. After destroying the calligraphy brush vessel, Xu Disheng had completely lost the link he had with the drop of Pure Oblivion Water, and only an inexplicable perception allowed him to sense it.

The space around the collision of the two objects warped and cracked. The power of the profound qi hand decreased by a little less than half. The drop of Pure Oblivion Water didn’t have anyone controlling it, so after it came into contact with the hand, it couldn’t avoid being sent flying off into the distance of the Luminous Cloud Abyss.

More than half of the power backing the profound qi hand remained. But before Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord could move the hand to grab towards Xu Disheng once more, a gray divine light fell from the sky, smashing the profound qi hand and dispelling its remaining force!

“Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord?! I demand an explanation!” Primordial Lord Yangze said, his expression dark. He disappeared from his spot at the edge of the Luminous Cloud Abyss, appearing near Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord in the next instant.

Earth Fox Primordial Lord also came over, his expression inquisitive.

At this moment, Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord was inwardly shocked. Even supposing he was on the verge of breaking through to the Dao Foundation stage, how could a mere trifling Sea of Qi stage cultivator resist his arrest?

But reality was right before his eyes. A freshly broken-through Dao Foundation stage disciple, who was no different from an ant in comparison to himself, had really resisted his capture for two full breaths of time, buying enough time for Primordial Lord Yangze to save him!

“Explanation? What explanation? I am simply arresting a disciple for violating the rules of the sect,” Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord said flatly, his expression unchanged in spite of the fact that he was inwardly quite shaken.

Primordial Lord Yangze scoffed angrily. “Xu Disheng is a genius of my Mingxin Mountain Range. Even if he did violate sect rules, that would be for my Mingxin Mountain Range to sort out. How is that any of your business?”

“Primordial Lord has the authority to arrest, question, and punish any disciples who violate the rules of the sect. Red Lotus Mountain Master, is this not so?” Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord said, ignoring him and turning directly to Red Lotus Primordial Lord.

Red Lotus Primordial Lord was the husband of Rippling Tear Primordial Lord and the Mountain Master of the First Mountain, Shangqing Mountain Range. As a result, his status was a half-level higher than that of the other Mountain Masters from the other Mountain Ranges.

Seeing Xu Disheng resist Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord for two full breaths of time, he was also inwardly flabbergasted. When he heard what Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord address him, he nodded. “That is indeed what the sect rules say, but… what sect rule did this disciple violate that provoked you to directly take action like this? Could you explain the details to us two Mountain Masters?”

From Primordial Lord Yangze’s words, the other Primordial Lords had all inferred that he and Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord were both cognizant of the fact that Xu Disheng had violated sect rules.

Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord looked over at Primordial Lord Yangze, whose expression was still dark. He took out several jade slips and said, “Xu Disheng of Mingxin Mountain Range’s Morning Dew Peak has slaughtered fellow disciples of the sect in the Zhao Realm—13 Sea of Qi stage disciples and 54 Cleansed Meridians stage disciples. He also plundered spirit stones and cultivation resources for his personal use. According to the laws of the sect… this is a punishment worthy of death.”

Of course, he didn’t take out the recording jade slip that showed Xu Disheng using the Black Sky Yellow Earth Pagoda.

By this point, Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord had given up all thoughts of directly suppressing and capturing Xu Disheng. Now, he could only convict him of the crimes, then think up another way that he could bring him back to his domain and refine the Profound Treasure out of him.

The Primordial Lords roughly swept through the jade slips, momentarily somewhat speechless.

The evidence was conclusive and irrefutable. As for whether Xu Disheng had violated sect rules or not… the answer was already plain and clear.

“Then Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord, why did you choose to suddenly take action at this specific moment? Our fellow cultivators from the Shan Mountain Territory have come to watch the tournament and are still present. Isn’t the timing of this too inappropriate?” Primordial Lord Yangze said, his tone cold. “Furthermore, Xu Disheng is a disciple of my Mingxin Mountain Range. You have been residing in the Yuluo Realm for a long time, but now you suddenly come out to watch this tournament, and even flagrantly attacked a disciple. Your behavior is extremely abnormal. Could it be… that you have some other scheme in mind?”

Each and every Primordial Lord present was a peerless, one-in-a-million genius. When they heard what Primordial Lord Yangze said, they thought a little bit about it and quickly understood. Some guesses formed in their hearts, and they looked at Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord with inquisitive gazes.

Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord always stayed in his own domain in the Yuluo Realm, and was very rarely involved with any of the matters regarding the Mountain of Law’s Zhao Clan. No matter how anyone looked at it, it was very strange for him to come to the Luminous Cloud Abyss to watch a tournament, and then attack a Sea of Qi stage disciple from the Mingxin Mountain Range.

Even if Primordial Lords had the power of arrest, his behavior simply violated common sense, causing people to think deeply about his motives.

Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord gave a cold snort and said, “I have conclusive evidence and am acting according to the rules of the sect. I would implore the respected Mountain Masters present to not obstruct me from bringing this disciple back to my domain for punishment.”

Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord clearly didn’t intend to waste any more words. He crushed the evidence between his fingers, then began to move to bring Xu Disheng away.

Unfortunately, Primordial Lord Yangze had no way to retort. The evidence was irrefutable. In the Shangqing Sacred Sect, the rules of the sect stood above all else. Even as a Mountain Master and a Primordial Lord, there was no way he could blatantly resist the sect rules.

High in the clouds, the Primordial Lords began to talk amongst themselves. But meanwhile, none of the others present were aware of the uproar that was taking place above the central sea of clouds.

“What in the world is happening? That profound qi hand just now had a Primordial Spirit stage aura!” a Dao Foundation stage Deacon said with a frightened expression, still caught up with the profound qi hand that had blotted out the sky several moments before.

“That was undoubtedly the work of a Primordial Spirit stage cultivator! Xu Disheng broke through to the Dao Foundation stage!”

“How could Xu Disheng block the attack of a Primordial Lord?!”

“That gray divine light just now was from Mountain Master Yangze’s Black Cloud Profound Light!”

“…Is this a dream? This is the central sea of clouds! How could two Primordial Lords exchange blows here?”

“Is Xu Disheng dead? There hasn’t been a single sound from the place he was standing earlier!”

“That drop of water… what was that?!”

“Why would a Primordial Lord attack Xu Disheng? And then another Primordial Lord saved him?” One Divine Core stage Spirit Master was at a complete loss, unable to get any of the context behind what just happened.

Celestial Tide Spirit Master, on the other hand, was well aware of the dangers at hand. When Spirit Controlling Primordial Lord launched his attack, he had already guessed the majority of it, but he had no way to help.

Only after Xu Disheng went all out, managing to buy himself two breaths of time for Primordial Lord Yangze to save him, did Celestial Tide Spirit Master finally let out a breath of relief, allowing himself the liberty of releasing his tightly clenched fists.

Originally, a Divine Core stage Spirit Master would never lose control of themselves like this.

But in the time he knew Xu Disheng, he had given him too many surprises, to the point that he… saw the image of Greater Lord Zhuri in him.

Because of his incredibly miraculous profound law foundation, Celestial Tide Spirit Master felt that Xu Disheng had the chance to become a Clone Avatar stage Greater Lord one day!

Even if he only had a very, very small chance of reaching the Clone Avatar stage, it was still an incredible prospect!

Not too long ago, the Divine Sea stage beings in the Human Realm had received the order from the Heavenly Court’s House of the Earth God to congregate at Buzhou Mountain, where they would reforge themselves into divine bodies and take up a post in the Heavenly Court.

As a result, Clone Avatar stage Greater Lords were the absolute strongest existences in the Human Realm at the moment. With just a thought, they could overturn heaven and earth; with a snap of their fingers, burn the skies and seas.

If he really did have a sliver of a chance to become a Clone Avatar stage Greater Lord, it was still extremely terrifying, no matter how small that probability was!

If another Clone Avatar stage Greater Lord really did appear, it would elevate the entire Shangqing Sacred Sect to new heights!

Even the existence of one more Clone Avatar stage Greater Lord would mean multiplying the sect’s power many times over!

The only person to reach the Clone Avatar stage in the last several tens of thousands of years was Red Nacre Greater Lord.

Red Nacre Greater Lord had reached the Clone Avatar stage right before Heavenly Lord Yu Jing reached the Divine Sea stage. At the time, the Shangqing Sacred Sect didn’t have a Divine Sea stage existence. As a result, they were forced to pay 10% of the entire sect’s wealth in tribute to the Nirvana Sky Sect, the strongest sect in the Eastern Territory at the time. Even though several tens of thousands of years had passed since then, it was still the greatest humiliation that the Shangqing Sacred Sect ever had to endure.

Heavenly Lord Yu Jing’s supreme talent allowed him to survive the Heart Demon Heavenly Tribulation and reach the Divine Sea stage. Then, he went to the Nirvana Sky Sect and only then did he manage to demand half of the tribute back.

It was only half, but the humiliation was already carved deep in the hearts of the Greater Lords of the Shangqing Sacred Sect, and the shame hadn’t decreased one bit.

If the Shangqing Sacred Sect still hadn’t managed to produce a Divine Sea stage existence in the next several tens of thousands of years while the strongest sect in the Eastern Region and the other overlord sects managed to produce Divine Sea stage powerhouses of their own, then humiliation would only await them once more.

And that cycle would only continue ad infinitum.

Across all the eras that the Shangqing Sacred Sect existed, they had produced a few dozen Divine Sea stage existences, who had left behind legacies and other measures. As a result, before Heavenly Lord Yu Jing had reached the Divine Sea stage, the Divine Sea stage powerhouse from the Nirvana Sky Sect had demanded a 10% tribute, but that was only because that was how much it always was.

After all, fortunes rise and fall. Divine Sea stage beings were eternal, but all living beings below the Divine Sea stage would die eventually. No one knew when and where a Divine Sea stage powerhouse would emerge, and from what sect. And if the other sects happened to not have a Divine Sea stage existence, they would only become a target of oppression.

Therefore, throughout the passing of the ages untold, the strongest sect and overlord sects of the Eastern Region had inadvertently reached a status quo of sorts.

A tribute of 10% of the sect’s entire wealth, no matter how ample their cultivation resources were!

It was taxing enough to make any overlord sect unable to raise its head for tens of thousands of years.

There were only two overlord sects in the Shan Mountain Territory. The other overlord sect was the Ancient Nuwa Sect, who were similar to the Shangqing Sacred Sect, but they were a bit worse off in comparison. In almost 100,000 years, the Ancient Nuwa Sect hadn’t produced a single Divine Sea stage powerhouse. As a result, they had paid the tribute two times, leaving them at a point that was practically beyond recovery.

Under a vicious cycle like this, they would be even less capable of producing a Divine Sea stage powerhouse. In spite of the fact that they were an overlord sect, they would perhaps soon be washed away and destroyed in the rivers of time, buried in the dust.

The reason why the strongest sect prevailed as the strongest was because every several tens of thousands of years after the House of the Earth God issued the command and took away all Divine Sea stage existences in the Human Realm, they would always be the first to produce a Divine Sea stage existence!

There were some prevailing sects that had terrifyingly deep reserves, who would always keep several Clone Avatar stage Greater Lords with 9 avatars waiting in secluded cultivation. The moment the House of the Earth God issued a decree, they would immediately go through Heart Demon Heavenly Tribulation and become the new Divine Sea stage powerhouses.

If they successfully passed the tribulation, each occasion would produce two, if not three Divine Sea stage cultivators!

These prevailing sects were always the strongest, and there had never been a gap in their strength, not even once throughout their lifetimes. With the huge volume of cultivation resources milked out of the other sects, they were always able to have several Nine-Avatar Greater Lords ready to undergo Heart Demon Heavenly Tribulation at any time!

This meant that the strongest prevailing sects practically never had any period of time where there wasn’t a Divine Sea stage existence, aside from the brief time it took for the tribulation to take place.

The Shangqing Sacred Sect could certainly be called an overlord sect in the Shan Mountain Territory, but they only had a single Clone Avatar stage Greater Lord with nine avatars, and that was the Sect Master, Greater Lord Qingyuan.

The Heart Demon Heavenly Tribulation represented the moment when a living being completely broke free from their predestined fate. It took a few hundred years to pass the tribulation at the very least, but it could take as long as a few thousand years. As soon as someone passed the tribulation, it meant their rank as a living being had undergone a thorough transformation. They would cross the boundary of eternal life, capable of living as long as the heavens themselves, earning themselves the title of Heavenly Lord.