Chapter 19 Great Ambition

Tianji Daoren’s gaze was deep and profound, carrying a power that could see through people's hearts.

People have seven emotions and six desires, with all sorts of feelings like joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. From these arise all kinds of desires.

For ordinary people, this might mean being enfeoffed as a marquis or appointed as a prime minister, dividing land and being crowned a king, bringing glory to ancestors, or returning home in silken robes. But for cultivators, the so-called fine clothes, jade meals, power, wealth, money, and beauties are already within easy reach.

Therefore, what they want is something that ordinary people cannot imagine.

Cultivating supernatural powers, refining magic power, seeking longevity, seeking freedom, seeking ease, seeking apotheosis, seeking immortality, seeking indestructibility—not a single one of these is something ordinary people can fathom.

Whether it's rules or restrictions, none of that is what they want.

The purpose of cultivation is to break free from worldly constraints and do as one pleases. How could they willingly be bound?

Therefore, You Ming F君 (Lord of the Netherworld) failed.

When he was present, everything was easy to say. His overwhelming power suppressed the world, and even the Huang Tian Shi Li (Ten Violent Ones of the Imperial Heaven) were suppressed by him. There was no need to mention other cultivators. But now that he was gone, in just over a thousand years, his rules had already fallen apart.

Even the Yin Si Cheng Huang (Underworld City God) system, which at the time seemed flawless to everyone, had disintegrated.

Therefore, after seeing through An Qisheng's thoughts, Tianji Daoren withdrew his killing intent, because he was destined to fail.

"Daozhang (Daoist Master) thinks this matter is very difficult."

An Qisheng's gaze reflected the image of Tianji Daoren as he asked.

The great desires of men are the hardest to suppress.

Without the constraints of morality and law, and possessing supernatural powers, who would willingly remain poor and confined to the bottom?

"Even someone as strong as You Ming F君 (Lord of the Netherworld) saw his rules perish after his death. Naturally, this matter is extremely difficult," Tianji Daoren nodded slightly.

"Then, someone as remarkably talented as Daozhang (Daoist Master) must surely be able to achieve apotheosis with ease," An Qisheng smiled. "Perhaps, from the very first day of your cultivation, Daozhang (Daoist Master) already knew that you would be able to ascend to immortality in the future?"

Tianji Daoren's expression froze. He already understood the meaning of An Qisheng's words, but he couldn't refute them.

He naturally believed that he was extremely talented, but he wouldn't dare say that he was certain he could achieve apotheosis and ascend to immortality, let alone at the beginning of his cultivation.

"Throughout the ages, for hundreds of thousands of years, there have been very few who have achieved apotheosis. Yet cultivators still follow one after another. All living beings in the world are destined to die. Knowing that death is inevitable, why bother living?"

An Qisheng flicked his sleeve and stepped into the city, his voice drifting along:

"Perhaps things in the world cannot be accomplished simply through ambition, but does that mean we should not even try if success is not guaranteed?"

He had never been someone who was easily swayed.

If he wanted to do something, it was only because he wanted to do it, nothing more.

"Hmm?"

Tianji Daoren's gaze sharpened. The words he wanted to say suddenly caught in his throat. He looked at An Qisheng's departing back, stunned and speechless.

Chang Songzi stood by his side, watching the departing Daoist. An indescribable emotion arose in his heart.

He had never seen anyone like this before.

"Amitabha," Ru Yi Seng (As-You-Wish Monk) chanted the Buddha's name softly in the distance, lost in thought.

Behind him, several monks looked at the departing figure with lingering fear and also lowered their heads to chant the Buddha's name.

They vaguely sensed that a great change was about to happen.

.......

Clang clang clang clang~~~

The sounds of metal clashing echoed through the imperial city.

At every palace gate and in every long alley, countless imperial guards raised their weapons and rushed toward the main hall.

From afar, one could hear the incessant sound of metal clashing in the center of the imperial city. Beams of sword light, as substantial as they were, pierced through the void and shot out in all directions, creating the appearance of a sword lotus blooming in the air.

Faintly, one could hear shouts and curses.

"His Majesty has passed away! The assassin is still in the imperial city!"

"The Da Qing Dynasty has raised soldiers for a thousand years. This is the day to die for our honor! No matter who the assassin is, he must be killed!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

All around the imperial city, eunuchs ran about frantically, waving flags and commanding the movements.

Boom!

Boom!

Above the ruins of the main hall, which had already been completely blown away, bursts of air exploded one after another.

"Die! You damned thing! Do you know what you've done?!"

"Damn it! Damn it!"

"I will extract your soul and refine it into oil, making you unable to live and unable to die!"

Chang Qian Daoren (Daoist) stepped on sword light and rushed through the sky, unleashing fierce killing intent with every sweep of his sword finger.

At this moment, he was so angry that his chest was about to explode.

He had watched with his own eyes as the old emperor was completely killed by a single sword right in front of him. The killing intent in his heart was about to overwhelm him.

Clang clang clang clang~~~

Not far away, beams of sword light also shot out from all directions, killing Yan Xiake (Swallow Wanderer), who was surrounded.

Yan Xiake retreated repeatedly in the air. Under the horizontal strikes of the sword light, he had little power to fight back.

The power of Sword Twenty-Three was boundless, but its consumption was also extremely great. That one sword had almost drained his soul. At this moment, he was mentally dazed and unable to fight.

If this white bone demon hadn't been transformed by An Qisheng's refining, it would have already been completely shattered.

Even so, many parts of his bones had already been broken, and one of his hand bones had been crushed to pieces.

"Killing one is a gain, killing two is a profit!"

Yan Xiake swayed. Raising his only remaining arm, his bone claws formed a sword finger and soared into the sky.

He had only come to kill the old emperor. Now that his goal was achieved, why would he begrudge his own death?

Buzz buzz buzz~~~

Icy sword light surged like a tide.

Chang Qian Daoren (Daoist) subconsciously retreated a hundred zhang (333 meters). This white bone demon might not have been very strong, but even he was somewhat alarmed by that sword.

But after taking a step back, his face immediately flushed red again. He let out a long roar and pounced forward.

For a time, sword energy surged like a tide.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh~~~

Sa Wuling, tattered and disheveled, dodged and weaved, being beaten in a sorry state.

There were quite a few Tian Yi Jiao (Heaven's Will Sect) Daoists in the imperial city, including some who had condensed their natal souls. Although most of them were frantically besieging Yan Xiake (Swallow Wanderer), he was under great pressure.

Bang!

Sa Wuling flew dozens of zhang (meters), heavily smashing into a rockery. Like a meteorite, he smashed into the white jade ground, wincing in pain.

But before he could even let out a scream, he dodged again, avoiding a bronze cauldron falling from the sky.

Boom!

Smoke and dust rose everywhere, and scattered rubble flew in all directions, making sounds like powerful crossbows piercing through the air, battering the rockeries and walls until they were riddled with holes.

Bang!

In the thick smoke and dust, a burly Daoist, carrying a bronze cauldron, shouted:

"Hey old man, all you know how to do is dodge?!"

Sa Wuling had no time to respond to him. He dodged the rubble with a look of embarrassment, secretly complaining in his heart:

"Master Shou, Master Shou! If you don't make a move, I'm going to be beaten to death!"

"I've taught you for more than two years. If you can't even handle a strong man with brute force, you might as well die." Mu Longcheng watched coldly.

Everything that happened along the way was under his observation. However, his mind was not on this imperial city, but on the ever-changing celestial phenomena outside the city.

This was a height he could not reach at this time.

Even for him, it was impossible to train Sa Wuling to the point where he could influence celestial phenomena in just two short years. But that did not prevent him from calculating this kind of power.

The changes in celestial phenomena were difficult and easy at the same time.

There were many celestial weapons on Xuan Xing (Profound Star). In his former position, he had naturally come into contact with many.

However, the fact that a single individual could influence celestial phenomena to this extent still made him sigh.

The power being displayed could no longer be expressed with simple numbers.

Moving mountains and filling seas was far more terrifying than imagined. The weight of any mountain was measured in the tens of millions of tons.

It had to be said that the immortals in the legends of Xuan Xing (Profound Star) were nothing more than this.

"Little mouse!"

Seeing Sa Wuling constantly dodging, the burly Daoist snorted coldly. He stepped into the air for dozens of zhang (meters), and the raised bronze cauldron slammed down heavily.

Boom!

The bronze cauldron grew larger as it faced the wind. In just a few moments, it was as large as a house, weighing who knew how many thousands or tens of thousands of pounds. When it slammed down, the air currents were instantly pushed away by the terrifying force.

For a moment, it was like a huge wave emptying the sky. Air bursts and sonic booms sounded at the same time!

It was as if a bolt of lightning had fallen from the sky!

More than ten zhang (meters) away, the surging air currents had already shattered the ground.

"You're relentless!"

After being beaten into a sorry state and mocked, Sa Wuling was also enraged. He made up his mind and didn't run anymore.

Bang!

He suddenly stomped his feet on the ground, his spine snapping like a dragon. He leaped up and charged straight at the descending cauldron!

"Hmm?!"

The burly Daoist was stunned at first, then sneered:

"Seeking death!"

Rumble!

The cauldron slammed down, as if a thunderbolt had struck the sky.

The air currents instantly engulfed Sa Wuling's thin body.

With this cauldron, he was confident that he could smash through the magical energy field and physical bodies of any cultivator below the Ben Ming (Natal Soul) realm.

But in the next moment, his expression changed.

There was no force under the giant cauldron. There was no sense of force at all.

"Not good!"

The burly man's heart jumped. He lifted the giant cauldron and saw a small figure made of yellow paper being torn apart by the air currents.

Boom!

In the next moment, rays of light suddenly appeared on the ground and in the air.

He looked around and realized that countless talismans were floating everywhere, at some point.

"I..."

The burly man's heart pounded wildly. He only had time to hold the giant cauldron in front of him before being submerged by various spells formed from the overwhelming talismans.

The levels of these talismans were not high, but there were a lot of them.

"Ah!!!"

Along with a earth-shattering scream, the giant cauldron shattered. Before the burly man's screams could spread, he had been beaten into a rain of minced meat.

"Shidi (Junior Brother)!!"

A furious roar.

One of the many Tian Yi Jiao (Heaven's Will Sect) Daoists besieging Yan Xiake saw this scene and his eyes were about to burst with fury.

Whoosh~

Sa Wuling landed on the ground, not looking back, and ran away.

Because along with the roar, overwhelming sword light swept over, and several Tian Yi Jiao (Heaven's Will Sect) Daoists came with fierce killing intent.

If he didn't run now, what would he do?

Sa Wuling frantically shook his clothes, throwing out the talismans he had accumulated over two or three years as if they were worthless.

He ran wildly in the midst of the collision between the sword light and the talismans, causing the Tian Yi Jiao (Heaven's Will Sect) Daoists behind him to roar:

"You killed my Shidi (Junior Brother)! Even if you escape to the ends of the earth, you will die!"

He stepped on sword light and howled as he chased.

Suddenly, his body stiffened, and he saw the Daoist who was fleeing in a sorry state suddenly turn back.

And behind that Daoist,

A Daoist in white robes walked slowly, stepping into the imperial city.