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Chapter 397: Chapter 393 Land of Hope
"Holy Land?"
Gu Jinlai was not at all unfamiliar with this name.
Most of the time, it came from Zhou Yi, the Heavenly Monarch who had recently joined the Lingxiao Palace.
The Xuanji Sect had been breached by devils, and the remnants of its power had dispersed in all directions to save the sect’s fire seed, seeking a way to survive. Zhou Yi, Hong Ye, and Yun Ling were among them.
And for Zhou Yi, the best choice was the legendary Holy Land.
It was said to be a place that gathered the experts from across the world.
Those cultivators whose homes had been destroyed by devils eventually converged there, gathering in one place.
People stationed and survived there, hudding together for warmth, joining hands to resist the infiltration of devils, keeping them outside the Holy Land.
But...
Gu Jinlai looked down at the corpses of the devils at his feet...
What about keeping the devils outside the Holy Land?
"Senior... have you come from the Outer Domain?"
At this time, Zhao Yang cautiously asked.
Immediately after, he added, "I do not mean to probe the origins of the senior, it’s just that our Holy Land is almost constantly hosting newcomers who have retreated here from all over the world. And each person we are fortunate enough to meet we have an obligation to, and are also willing to, welcome these brethren, lead them to the nearest city to settle, and inform them of some basic information about surviving in the Holy Land."
"Is that so?"
Gu Jinlai was somewhat surprised.
"Naturally."
Zhao Yang nodded, his expression somewhat solemn, "In today’s world, almost the entirety has fallen. Outside the Holy Land, it has completely become a paradise for devils. Many of us have become rootless driftwood... After all, if not because of the fall of their nation and home, who would be willing to leave the land that bore and nurtured them, and come to such a completely unfamiliar environment?"
His tone carried a sense of lament, "The tragic defeat caused by internal discord in the Twelve Domains must not happen in our Holy Land. All members of the Human Clan should unite as one, consolidating our strength, and twisting the power of our clan into a single rope to the greatest extent. Only in this way can we truly stand our ground in the Holy Land and prevent devils from eroding this last clean soil of humanity."
"Twist the power of our clan into a single rope to the greatest extent?"
Gu Jinlai looked up and scanned the horizon.
Before his eyes...
Lucky Qi surrounded him.
But this Lucky Qi was not the usual grey-black of the devils.
It was neither the usual white, yellow, green, and other colors of the Human Clan’s Lucky Qi.
It was...
Interwoven.
Countless strands of Lucky Qi were woven together, a chaos so complex that unless he stood at a high enough vantage and represented part of that Lucky Qi himself, he would never be able to untangle this chaotic weave.
Gu Jinlai pondered that perhaps this chaos was the result of the many forces outside the Holy Land entering it.
However, overall, there was still a fundamental order within the chaos of these interwoven Lucky Qis.
"If we really could maximize the union of the Human Clan’s power, the Holy Land would indeed have the strength to contend with devils," Gu Jinlai said.
"That is natural."
Zhao Yang said this with a trace of pride as a person of the Holy Land, "The Holy Land was jointly established by the Six Great Grotto Heavens, and capable individuals were chosen to form the Holy Dynasty, governing forty-nine giant cities across a hundred thousand miles of the Holy Land. Each giant city has a National Guardian Saint stationed there to ensure the city can rest easy without worries."
Gu Jinlai, seeing Zhao Yang’s proud expression, couldn’t help but turn his gaze back to the corpses of the devils at his feet.
Seeing this, Zhao Yang’s expression became slightly embarrassed, but he still said, "Since senior has experienced the suffering from the chaos of the devils, you surely know that the opening of the Demon Realm Rifts happens without any signs, and no one knows when a Demon Spirit might suddenly rush out from one of those randomly opening rifts. Therefore... even National Guardian Saints can only guard the giant cities, ensuring the safety of their surroundings, and they are truly unable to do anything about the outskirts far from the cities."
As he said this, he quickly added, "Each giant city is home to tens of millions of people, and some even have a population of over a hundred million. The forty-nine giant cities of the Holy Land protect the safety of four billion members of the Human Clan. The Holy Dynasty and the National Guardian Saints are able to ensure that these four billion people can survive on this land. Such magnificent achievements are undeniable by anyone."
"Four billion people!?"
Upon hearing this number, Gu Jinlai also paid his respects.
The more people there were, the stronger the spiritual essence they formed by gathering together, allowing for faster cultivation.
Yet correspondingly, it also attracted devils even more.
The Xuanji Sect, even with an Earthly True Immortal stationed there, could not protect its six hundred million people. That the Holy Dynasty was able to ensure the safety of four billion people...
This capability was unknown how many times stronger than the Xuanji Sect, from which Zhou Yi hailed.
"It’s no wonder it is the Holy Land, jointly established by all the experts remaining after the fall of the Twelve Domains."
Gu Jinlai gave his comment.
Zhao Yang also smiled and nodded, then continued, "Moreover, although we have been attacked by devils, as senior has seen, these are just some Demon Generals and nothing more. There are no powerful Demon Marshals, let alone Demon Kings, because we are not far from Wind and Rain City. Under the deterrence of the National Guardian Saints, no Demon Marshal or Demon King would dare to appear within thousands of miles of any giant city."
Gu Jinlai listened thoughtfully and nodded his head.
The fact that forty-nine giant cities could stand unyielding on the earth showed that there must be a fragile balance reached between humans and devils.
At least, on the human side, there must be a powerful trump card.
A trump card so formidable that it could balance against Demon Emperors, even Spirit Venerables, and Demon Lords.
Gu Jinlai pondered, his gaze sweeping over the Demon God Warriors who made up two-thirds of the assembly: "I observe that there are not many cultivators among you; it seems that most have chosen the path of Demon Martial Artists..."
"It is the path of Demon God Warriors."
Zhao Yang quickly corrected: "Predecessor, Demon Martial Artists are just a backward and crude cultivation system, which cannot be compared with the Divine Demon Martial System that is prevailing in the Holy Land."
He went on to explain, "Although Demon God Warriors, compared to the Cultivator System, cannot achieve longevity, they have advantages that cultivators cannot match—rapid advancement. One can become a Martial Artist in just three to five years, and compared to the backward and crude system of Demon Martial Artists, the Demon God Warrior System that prevails in the Holy Land has already rectified its shortcomings."
"Shortcomings rectified?"
"Right."
Zhao Yang nodded with some pride: "Unless Martial Artists themselves break their Heart Realm, or those with a weak Thunder Origin Body who cannot control the power within them, there is no risk of losing control and undergoing demonization. Age... one can live to sixty, and those with exceptional willpower can live to seventy. With the use of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, one can even live to be eighty, ninety, or over a hundred years old. Among mortals, that is already considered a long life."
"Sixty or seventy years old."
This age was naturally less in comparison to the average lifespan on Blue Star.
But in Qiantian, even a hundred years ago when demons had not invaded Qiantian, the average lifespan of the populace was just over sixty.
This was also due to the fact that it was increased by cultivators.
If one excluded cultivators, the average lifespan of the populace was less than fifty years old.
Therefore, Zhao Yang’s claim that they had rectified the shortcomings of Demon God Warriors was not bragging.
"In fact, the key reason why everyone chooses the path of Demon God Warriors is the urgent need of the various cities for a sufficient number of Martial Artists to patrol the lands and hunt demons, whereas cultivators... take too long to mature. To cultivate to a Qi Refinement level that’s comparable to Martial Artists, those with exceptional talents need ten to eight years, and ordinary people might not reach the Qi Refining Realm after twenty or thirty years. Unlike us Martial Artists, we can achieve something in just three to five years, and our combat power is not at all inferior to cultivators at the Qi Refining Realm."
Zhao Yang said this and then laughed, "If one is willing to spend the resources to nurture, becoming a military general in twenty to thirty years like me is not a problem. Those with exceptional talent can even cultivate to become a Martial Sect, Martial King, and even approach the level of a National Guardian Saint as a Martial Saint."
"A Martial Saint close to a Saint!?"
Gu Jinlai quickly thought of something: "Has the Demon God Warrior System of the Holy Land taken a step further on the basis of rivaling the physique of the Demon Demon King?"
"Right."
Zhao Yang looked at the change in Gu Jinlai’s expression and nodded firmly: "Not only that, it is said that the National Guardian Martial Saints, Saints, and those in the Cultivator System who are Void Immortals, are pooling their wisdom to develop a path above Martial Saints."
Void Immortals are another term for Earthly True Immortals.
In different places, Earthly True Immortals are even called Demi Immortals or Earth Immortals.
Gu Jinlai had no doubts about the existence of such a hierarchy in the Holy Land.
"A path above Martial Saints..."
Gu Jinlai’s expression grew solemn: "Have they made a breakthrough?"
"Not yet, but it is said that there is already some progress, and even, from the Holy Capital Research Institute, news has spread that the title for this realm has been decided upon, called Human Immortal."
At this, Zhao Yang couldn’t help but be carried away: "Human Immortal, to contend with Immortals as humans... I dare not imagine how powerful that realm would be. With our rapid advancement as Demon God Warriors, if we could truly research the realm of Human Immortals... going forward, what do we have to fear from all the demons in the world?"
"Human Immortal..." 𝚗o𝚟pub.𝚌𝚘𝚖
Gu Jinlai was also somewhat moved.
The path of the Demon God Warriors was indeed one of rapid advancement.
But the limit for Demon God Warriors in Qiantian was only at the level of the Demon Demon King.
No, it was much less compared to Demon Demon Kings and Devas.
Even a Primordial Spirit True Monarch wielding a powerful Spirit Sword could play a kiting tactic and "kite" a Demon God Warrior whose physique rivaled that of Demon King Level to death.
The road ahead for Demon God Warriors was the issue that Gu Jinlai found most troubling.
Until not long ago, he had, with the help of Qingguang and the Chaos True Demon Body, deduced the Chaotic Thunder Primordial Body, finally seeing the direction comparable to the Holy Body.
But he had not expected the Holy Land to have long since developed the path of Martial Saints and to be peering even further above—towards the realm of Human Immortal.
Indeed, one should never underestimate the wisdom of others.
Without stepping out of one’s little realm, one can never know the vastness of the world.
"Judging by the predecessor’s strength, you must also be a Demon God Warrior, with at least the strength of a Martial Sect Realm. With such cultivation, if you wish, you can settle in Wind and Rain City. Our Wind and Rain City has not only National Guardian Saints but also National Guardian Martial Saints. If the predecessor could take refuge under a National Guardian Martial Saint, it would not be wishful thinking to achieve the level of a Martial Saint in the future."
Zhao Yang looked at Gu Jinlai as he extended the invitation.
Following that, he immediately said, "As for the living arrangements, they can be left to our Yellow Dragon Commerce. Moreover, if the predecessor trusts our Yellow Dragon Commerce enough to become our patron, I can make the decision to gift you a three-suite mansion, and the corresponding treatment will certainly not disappoint you."
Gu Jinlai pondered for a moment and did not immediately refuse. The name Yellow Dragon, having just "seen" the layout of the East Continent, made him feel somewhat favorable towards it.
"Let’s go to Wind and Rain City and see first."
