Meng Juehai might not have been able to overpower Deng Tianwang in brute strength, but his ferocity on the battlefield was unmatched. Over half a year of campaigning, he had felled over a hundred generals with his spear. His hundred-pound Tiger Head Black Gold Spear exuded dominance, and his reputation had spread far and wide thanks to the Qiang Guan Fa, a spear technique passed down from the Yao family. This was the first ruthless general, Meng Juehai.
"View detailed information for Yi Ma San Qiang - Meng Juehai!"
"Name: Meng Juehai"
"Dynasty: Late Tang Period"
"Cultivation: Golden Immortal Layer Four!"
"Cultivation Technique: Spear Bathing Battle Demon Art!"
"Accompanying Troop Type: Top-tier Troop - Hundred Thousand Elite Soldiers!"
Experience: Born into a well-off family, Meng Juehai studied spear techniques under a renowned master. His instructor was a descendant of the founding general of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Yu Qi.
Through ten years of arduous effort and dedication, Meng Juehai developed a formidable strength of several hundred pounds. The Qiang Guan Fa, characterized by its sheer power, was exceptionally agile in his hands. Impetuous and straightforward, Meng Juehai constantly pondered and meticulously practiced, improving upon various unique skills. His efforts were eventually rewarded, as he mastered the swift and ruthless spear techniques of Yi Ma San Qiang.
After pledging allegiance to Huang Chao, Meng Juehai was appointed as the vanguard general. During the fierce battle at Yun Prefecture, the defending general Xu Zhou led six deputy generals to meet the enemy. At that moment, Meng Juehai charged forward alone, and the six enemy generals were successively impaled and killed by his spear on the battlefield.
Xu Zhou, a valiant general of the Great Tang, was no match for him. Meng Juehai thrust his spear into Xu Zhou's lower abdomen, let out a thunderous roar, and flung him over ten feet away.
Following this, Meng Juehai led his army to attack Song Prefecture. In this battle, Meng Juehai's bravery was even more pronounced, as four Tang generals met their fatal end under his spear.
Enraged, the generals within the city dispatched eight more warriors to surround and eliminate this formidable opponent. Facing eight enemies simultaneously, Meng Juehai showed no fear. With swift thrusts, he impaled the Tang general directly in front of him. With a counter-thrust, he knocked another general on his left off his horse. With a flick of his golden spear, he shattered the weapon of the general on his right and, in a fluid motion, impaled him as well. Soon, all eight generals fell.
Later, Meng Juehai's might shook the land, and countless generals, upon hearing his name, trembled with fear. However, during a major engagement, Meng Juehai challenged the enemy alone. Unexpectedly, the Great Tang dispatched a frail-looking general. Meng Juehai exerted eight parts of his strength to swing his spear down. His opponent, brandishing the Yu King Divine Halberd, blocked the attack, directly cracking Meng Juehai's tiger's mouth. His warhorse stumbled back several paces, and his weapon was directly knocked from his grasp. In his panic, the frail Tang general seized him with one hand, lifted him up, and thus the ruthless general Meng Juehai, known for Yi Ma San Qiang and his world-shaking prowess, withdrew from the stage of history.
The moment Yang Hao summoned the heroes, within the secret treasury of the Buried Dragon Immortal Emperor, a host of beings had already reached the core area of the treasury. The treasury, having been plundered for tens of thousands of years, contained little in the way of inheritance, and even ordinary elixirs were scarce. Consequently, the beings who entered moved with great speed.
"This is about as far as we can go!"
Qi Jiguang and Li Bai, who had been moving swiftly, stopped. Li Bai let out a long sigh and surveyed their surroundings. Within this secret treasury, the further they delved into the core region, the more relatively intact the ancient ruins and architecture became.
"General Qi!"
Li Bai tossed his wine gourd to Qi Jiguang. Qi Jiguang smiled faintly, accepted the gourd, and took a long draught. Streaks of golden light enveloped him, instantly restoring the strength he had expended during their journey.
"Two esteemed sirs!"
As Li Bai and Qi Jiguang walked forward, the western horizon shifted slightly, and two figures rapidly approached.
"Lao Fuzi, Dean Zhang!"
"The two of you are moving much faster than us old fellows!"
Lao Fuzi smiled faintly, then his expression suddenly turned cold. "You two must be wary of the Great Yu Immortal Dynasty and the Purple Thunder Sect. Along the way, Dean Zhang and I discovered that all beings from the Ancient Sword Sect had been annihilated by the Great Yu Immortal Dynasty and the Purple Thunder Sect!"
"Did you manage to find this item?" Lao Fuzi asked, producing a blood-red flying dagger.
"You have them too!" Dean Zhang exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the blood-red flying dagger Li Bai produced. "My wife and I have studied this dagger extensively with no success. However, at the site where the beings of the Ancient Sword Sect perished, we detected traces of another flying dagger. The Great Yu Immortal Dynasty and the Purple Thunder Sect are likely responsible for the demise of the Ancient Sword Sect beings, all for the sake of these daggers!"
"We, too, have been unable to decipher any clues. However, Immortal Emperor Buried Dragon's actions likely serve some other purpose. Lao Fuzi, Dean Zhang, let's proceed!"
As they spoke, the group moved deeper into the treasury. Not long after, a massive aerial pavilion appeared directly before them. This pavilion was mobile, seemingly controlled by some unknown formation. In front of the aerial pavilion were eighteen steps. The group fell silent as they gazed at the staircase.
"These eighteen steps must be connected to Immortal Emperor Buried Dragon. In his lifetime, Immortal Emperor Buried Dragon controlled eighteen Emperor Fates. Here, precisely eighteen steps, no more, no less!"
Lao Fuzi said, carefully stepping onto the first step. He then added, "Come up. There are no restrictions set on these steps!"
"Wait a moment!"
Just as Li Bai and the others were about to ascend, Nan Tianxun, leading several thousand soldiers, approached from afar. It was evident that compared to the large contingent that had entered the treasury initially, the forces of the Southern Heaven Immortal Dynasty had significantly dwindled.
"Lao Fuzi, I wish to be the first to enter this aerial pavilion. I believe that you, who have enlightened the realm and sought no power, would not mind this small matter." Nan Tianxun said coldly.
"As you wish!"
Lao Fuzi stood with his hands behind his back, his expression utterly calm. Nan Tianxun instantly felt a surge of triumph. His imperial eyes, carrying a hint of killing intent, fixed upon Li Bai and Qi Jiguang. However, out of consideration for Lao Fuzi's presence, Nan Tianxun quickly concealed his murderous gaze and then led his troops onto the steps, proceeding towards the aerial pavilion.
"Let's go!"
Not long after, Lao Fuzi said softly. Within a few breaths, the group had ascended the eighteen steps. Although there were no lethal restrictions, those few breaths felt as though they had endured over ten days. After crossing the eighteen steps, they entered an immensely vast plaza. Upon stepping onto the plaza and lifting their heads, they could directly see, directly in front of them, a blood-red memorial archway standing dozens of feet high and spanning about a hundred feet. Upon closer inspection of this archway, it left all present beings in shock.
The skeletal remains of the young of renowned races throughout the Immortal Realm were embedded in the archway, even subjected to compression divine abilities.
Beneath the six pillars, each rested on a massive dragon head as its foundation. A total of six dragon heads, all of which had been severed with a single strike while alive. Observing the residual immortal energy still faintly flowing from the dragon heads was enough to allow beings to trace back to the previous era. These six dragons were once peerless prodigies!