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Chapter 281: Chapter 278: Lucky Qi
Haitian City Center.
At this moment, a large ritual altar had been forged, thirty meters high and spanning over a hundred meters.
Zhang Taiping stood at the very top of the altar.
Around him, thousands of Elders, Supreme Elders, protectors, and True Disciples were seated in a circle, chanting prayers.
These few hundred people, without exception, were all core members of the Yellow Sky Sect, with Zhang Lingjian and Yu Xuanjing among them.
Because as individuals of high status and power, they were an important part of Yellow State’s fate.
"The Taiping Heavenly Book transforms the power of fate to enhance oneself, increasing one’s combat power while also being susceptible to the will of all living beings... Venerable Daoist Zhang is now employing this technique..."
Yu Xuanjing’s expression carried worry.
"Venerable Daoist Zhang has reached the Mahayana realm in his understanding of the Taiping Heavenly Book, and considering our current situation in Yellow State... the usable fate is less than half, far from the heyday of previous owners of the Taiping Heavenly Book. Venerable Daoist Zhang might be able to preserve his original intention and retreat safely..."
Zhang Lingjian spoke haltingly.
At the moment, he could only speak in the most optimistic terms.
Yu Xuanjing was silent for a moment, then said, "Heavenly Monarch Gu has already led his forces out of Chuyun Sky City; if we can hold out for a few days..."
He was interrupted by Zhang Lingjian before he could finish, "And then, after the Yellow Sky Sect has exhausted its power, we just wait for him to take over Haitian City?"
Yu Xuanjing opened his mouth.
This was a starkly realistic issue.
"Yellow State can only belong to our Yellow Sky Sect!"
Zhang Lingjian declared resolutely.
With the threat of Devils looming so close, Zhang Taiping, upon ascending the altar, dared not relax in the slightest; his vast Divine Thought scattered and diffused, and his Primordial Spirit manifested and merged into a shadow projected into the void.
He too recited prayers, unifying his own mental fluctuations with those of the thousands of core members of the Yellow Sky Sect around him, causing a spiritual resonance between them.
This resonance grew stronger under the guidance of the Primordial Spirit, eventually forming a lever effect that stirred the will of all living beings entrenched in Tianhai City, and then used it to further sense the thoughts of the countless beings in Yellow State.
For a moment, he was as if he embodied the will of tens of thousands of his people, his mental processes expanding at an unimaginable speed, and with it, his Primordial Spirit also grew rapidly under the amplification of the will of all living beings.
...
"Will of all living beings, the will of all living beings, this is the will of all living beings!"
Above the altar, Zhang Taiping, carrying the will of all living beings within his Primordial Spirit, felt his power surge...
He keenly sensed that at this moment, he could truly represent the entire Yellow Sky Sect, all of Haitian City, and even the whole of Yellow State.
His thoughts seemed to stretch to every corner of Yellow State.
This power...
Was simply incomparable.
"So strong! This sensation... Devas! This is definitely the power of the Devas Level!"
Zhang Taiping reveled in his transformation, emotionally surging, "To boost the might of a top-tier Monarch to skyrocket into the Devas Domain, this is the true power of the Taiping Heavenly Book! Had I known it possessed such divinity, why would the Yellow Sky Sect need to seek help from Lingxiao City, or give up our stronghold Yellow Sky City!?"
The next moment, he abruptly looked up, his Primordial Spirit ascending rapidly, supported by the power of the will of all living beings, and he flew swiftly towards the distance.
In an instant, he had crossed dozens of miles, directly facing the Demon King Flash Falcon, who was leading a host of winged Devil forces.
At this moment, Demon King Flash Falcon also sensed something, and with a piercing shriek that could shatter stone and gold, its body rapidly swelled under the enhancement of the Undying Demon Body, and its surface ignited into raging black flames.
However, Zhang Taiping, who seemed to have gathered the Will of All Living Beings in Yellow State within himself, showed no fear at all.
The Divine Thought vibrated, and it seemed as though a booming sound akin to a reverberating bell echoed through the void.
"Fiend! Today, I will let you know the price of offending the Yellow Sky Sect!"
No sooner had he spoken than Heaven and Earth Power around him surged wildly.
Zhang Taiping had not yet comprehended the Mysterious Devas, and thus could not perfectly draw upon the Heaven and Earth Power, but...
With the support of the Will of All Living Beings, his spiritual power was so strong at this moment that, despite not having comprehended Mysterious Devas, he still managed to force Heaven and Earth Power into action with his terrifying Spiritual Will. As he pressed down with an empty hand, a kilometer-long gleam of sword light appeared in the void.
Yes!
A kilometer-long sword light!
The sword light embodied the will of millions, or even tens of millions of people, exerting astonishing pressure on the thinking and spiritual essence of any living being.
It was like the time when Gu Jinlai and Chi Ying faced off against the Sky Extreme Sword drawn by Venerable Xuan Tian.
Only, one relied on spiritual essence, and the other on will.
Demons do not need to cultivate an Undying Will like humans do, and even if they needed to, Demon King Flash Falcon had not yet reached the Domain of Cultivating Undying Will.
Under the oppression of this sword light, and the Will of All Living Beings contained within it, Flash Falcon could clearly feel its thoughts slowing down.
It roared, pushing the Undying Demon Body to its limits, flapping its wings and sending countless wind blades formed from black Demon Flame continuously slicing towards the sword light condensed by Zhang Taiping.
Where the wind blades met the sword light, it was like a glowing hot iron cutting into soft cheese, causing the Light Sword to collapse on a massive scale.
Clearly, since Zhang Taiping was not a true Deva, this power was superficial, and its coherence could not match the attacks of a Deva.
But at this moment, he was one with the Will of All Living Beings, able to resonate and call upon vast amounts of Spiritual Power and Will Power. He further used the Will of All Living Beings to influence the Lucky Qi of Yellow State to change the skies and the Earth, forming a sweeping and terrifying attack.
Even though the wind blades slashed out by Demon King Flash Falcon were full of powerful Demon Evil, the Lucky Qi of Yellow State was even more vast.
No matter how much Demon Evil burned away the sword light, even more sword light would come to replenish it.
Finally...
The sword light surged, wearing down the wind blades unleashed by Flash Falcon, and then it brutally slashed across its body.
"Squawk!"
Accompanied by a shrill scream, even a flying Demon King like Flash Falcon, faced with the sweeping kilometer-long sword light, was directly cleaved in two, spilling blood across the sky.
"Hahaha! How could a flying Demon King possibly stand against a true Deva like me!? Kill! Kill! Kill!"
Zhang Taiping roared with laughter to the skies.
The Will of All Living Beings was filled with hatred and the desire to slaughter demons.
Under its influence, Zhang Taiping’s killing intent towards the demons also climbed to its peak.
After slaying Demon King Flash Falcon, the kilometer-long Giant Sword still did not vanish, but instead continued its sweep, targeting the numerous flying demons in the void.
Against sword light that even the Demon King couldn’t withstand, the remaining flying swords were reduced to mere targets, being swept down one after another.
This unparalleled strength completely engulfed Zhang Taiping.
Enveloped by the Will of All Living Beings, he plunged into the demon horde that arrived in hot pursuit, embarking on a massive slaughter, exerting a power that, though not quite celestial, was in some ways stronger than that of the Devas to its fullest extent.
Each sweep of his sword claimed the lives of dozens or even hundreds of demons.
Each sword strike was so powerful that even upper-level demons struggled to withstand it.
He was like an invincible god of war, seemingly capable of standing against tens of thousands of devils on his own.
However, after sweeping through the ranks and slaying over a thousand devils with a dozen sword strikes, Qingguang began to feel the exhaustion of his Primordial Spirit, pulling him back from this nearly invincible state.
The burden of carrying the will of all living beings within his Primordial Spirit was immense.
"No, I cannot squander my strength on this, I must..."
Zhang Taiping suddenly looked up, gazing in the direction of Yuntian City.
While performing the ritual to utilize the Taiping Heavenly Book, he had received news that Gu Jinlai, who had been stationed in Yuntian City, appeared to have left, purportedly to join forces with the Yellow Heaven Sect for a pincer attack on the devils, and was heading straight for Haitian City.
His expression underwent a series of changes.
This decision by Gu Jinlai...
It took him by surprise.
It even moved him somewhat.
But such sentiment was soon cast out of mind, far beyond the boundless skies.
"The one who seeks to accomplish great deeds must not be concerned with trifles. History has always been written by the victors. Gu Jinlai, your character is not suited to being a leader!"
A cold murderous intent flickered in Zhang Taiping’s eyes.
Lingxiao City had remained united because of Gu Jinlai’s presence.
If Gu Jinlai were to die...
Lingxiao City would surely be thrown into chaos.
Even though the Yellow Sky Sect had sustained significant damage, they wouldn’t necessarily gain much from Star State or Jiangzhou State if Lingxiao City fell into disarray, but at the very least...
They could save Yellow State.
After all, Gu Jinlai had already intervened in the affairs of Yellow State, and it was not difficult to guess that his next move would be to annex it.
To preserve the legacy of the Yellow Sky Sect, to uphold their dominance in Yellow State...
Gu Jinlai must die.
Lingxiao City must be thrown into turmoil.
"I am the Venerable Daoist Elder of the Yellow Sky Sect. Everything I do is for the Yellow Sky Sect!"
Zhang Taiping’s form of the Primordial Spirit began to accelerate, streaking towards Yuntian City.
With the mysterious power of the Taiping Heavenly Book and the augmentation of Yellow State’s fate, his Primordial Spirit’s ability to travel was no longer confined to tens of miles.
He could reach anywhere within Yellow State.
...
"Hmm!?"
Gu Jinlai, still over two hundred miles from Haitian City, suddenly looked up, vaguely sensing something.
He promptly activated the Qiantian Purple Qi Technique.
In an instant, he perceived that the fate of Yellow State was being depleted at a rapid rate.
Fate! 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪
Ever since he began practicing the Qiantian Qi Technique, Gu Jinlai truly touched upon this intangible force.
When fate is put to good use, it offers many advantages, but if it is maliciously depleted, it can cause severe damage to the land under its influence.
In a mild case, spiritual energy would become scarce, making cultivation difficult.
In a severe case, there would be endless natural disasters, with the earth shaking and mountains rocking.
And currently...
Someone was rapidly draining the fate of Yellow State regardless of the lives of its over twenty million inhabitants?
"The Taiping Heavenly Book!"
Gu Jinlai quickly realized what was happening, his face turning somewhat ugly.
He hadn’t expected the Yellow Sky Sect to go this far.
They only needed to hold on for a while, wait for his reinforcements, and then they could have sandwiched the devils, defeating them together, but instead...
He looked up into the distance.
In reality, he could somewhat guess the thoughts of those in power at the Yellow Sky Sect.
"They would rather see the entire Yellow State shrouded in natural disasters for a long time to come, turning into a desolate land scarcely trodden by man like the Black and White Sand Sea, rather than give up control over Yellow State..."
Gu Jinlai muttered softly, "If it doesn’t belong to me, why should I care if it is destroyed?"
Destruction.
Just like what the Yellow Sky Sect was doing now!
At this moment, he had to admit that he had been too lenient on the leaders of these top powers.
The Dragon Sparrow Manor never repented...
And now, the Yellow Sky Sect was the same.
Because they never believed they were wrong, nor would they admit their mistakes.
"Your refusal to admit wrongdoing does not mean you haven’t erred."
Gu Jinlai’s expression grew increasingly stern: "There are other magic skills capable of utilizing the power of fate besides the Taiping Heavenly Book of the Yellow Sky Sect. Since you play with fate, be prepared to be bitten back by fate."
Under the Qiantian Purple Qi Technique, the flow of fate around him became crystal clear to Gu Jinlai.
But that was not enough.
He glanced at the two streams of Qingguang he had stored for many years.
One of them was directly infused into his consciousness avatar.
The next moment, a layer deeper than "Will of All Living Beings," the "True Spirit Realm" unfolded clearly before him.
"All things have spirits..."
Gu Jinlai murmured to himself; soon, through the "True Spirit Realm," he sensed the disturbance of the spirits of all things in Yellow State.
After carefully observing for a moment, his Spiritual Sense was stimulated, seemingly touching upon some crucial point, and suddenly...
All beings and spirits in Yellow State seemed to "come alive."
