Chapter 545: Treasure Inside The Pond
"Boom!" A loud blast resounded amidst the celebrating ghosts. An endless immortal light suddenly illuminated the entire pond with its source at the center.
"Look over there, it's Li Qiye!" Inside the blinding immortal light, a figure appeared in the center of the pond — Li Qiye.
"He made it to the deepest part of the pool!" Everyone was aghast to see him appearing in the center of the pond because all speculations hinted that the biggest fortune of the Water Realm was at the center of this pond.
The ghost experts looked like they had just swallowed a fly, especially those who were gloating earlier. Now, they all had frozen expressions.
Their smugness earlier was slapped harshly by Li Qiye's appearance.
"He scooped out a treasure!" Inside the immortal light, Li Qiye got something from the water. It was a stone that looked like a long trunk, and the endless immortal light came from it. At times, the light took the form of a fiery light, then it would transform into an icy shape and then back into a pure wooden shade… All of these immortal lights kept on transforming to prove its identity as an immortal stone!
All were envious and jealous of this sight. The ghost race was reddened and crazed. They had been guarding here for so long, but they didn't even get a blade of grass while Li Qiye managed to find an immortal stone at this moment.
Many were unwilling to see it in Li Qiye's possession, so they angrily uttered: "Is this the big fortune of the Water Realm?"
The old undyings hiding in the shadows with ice-cold glares stared at the stone in his hand. Those from the emperor's lineages stared with especially frightening glints in their eyes.
They could hold back their greed if it was any other treasure, but an immortal stone that could prolong one's life span was irresistible no matter Li Qiye's origin and background.
The Phoenix Maiden, who had been relaxed, suddenly changed her expression after seeing the immortal light shrouding Li Qiye. She called for a disciple nearby and commanded: "Tell the Bronze-Carapace King to help me with a matter and that the Myriad Bones Throne will not ill-treat their insect tribe from now on."
Long Zuntian only shook his head while watching her since he knew what she wanted to do. In the eyes of a supreme genius like himself, he didn't support her course of action and felt that using lowly schemes against experts was a dishonorable thing. Nevertheless, he didn't try to stop her.
To the jealous members of the ghost race, this issue was not just about an immortal stone, it was because the one who got it was Li Qiye who shamed them before.
Meanwhile, Tian Lunhui only sighed to see Li Qiye's harvest. He didn't continue on any further and return instead. Even if he could go further, it would be meaningless since the victor had already been decided. So what if he could take another one hundred steps? If he couldn't surpass Li Qiye, then it was only a counting game with himself.
In the case that he managed to reach the middle of the pond and went towards the deepest parts of the water, it was still trivial since Li Qiye was there first and arrived there in a much shorter amount of time.
However, what Tian Lunhui dreaded the most was not Li Qiye's speed, but that he had command over the grand momentum of the pond. Tian Lunhui was very confident in his own grand dao and with his created path, he would be able to go very far in the pond — one world per step.
But Li Qiye was different. The situation had reversed and the pond was no longer in control, Li Qiye was the one who mastered the spatial transformations within. It was not a world per step from the pond and instead was Li Qiye creating a world with each step.
This meant that nothing could stop Li Qiye's pace within the pond and that he was free to come and go on his whim.
Tian Lunhui's heart was gloomy. As a cautious and meticulous person, Li Qiye had now become his number one opponent, someone even greater than Di Zuo. His absolute confidence in his grand dao even reached the level that he was certain that the Heaven's Will would accept it as long as he continued on this path. His grand dao would become the heavenly dao, and his secret law would become the Heaven's Will Secret Law.
However, Li Qiye's grand dao suffocated him today. If Tian Lunhui's grand dao could become a heavenly dao in the future, then Li Qiye's grand dao was above even a heavenly dao — this was the reason for Tian Lunhui's fear. Li Qiye was too terrifying! If Tian Lunhui wanted to become an Immortal Emperor, Li Qiye would be his biggest obstacle!
All the ghost cultivators were quiet after seeing Tian Lunhui leave the pond. At this time, no one blamed him and of course, no one was qualified to do so. Even ancestors personally taking action wouldn't have as great as an accomplishment as Tian Lunhui.
It was not due to his personal lacking, but only because his enemy was too devilish and unbelievable.
The ghost race felt powerless since they were humiliated by Li Qiye time after time and only met failure despite retaliating numerous times. First was the Phoenix Maiden in a battle where Li Qiye ended up massacring tens of thousands of ghosts. Now, the Titanic Crescent Saint Child, Ghost Insect Evil Child, and Tian Lunhui all had suffered utter defeat.
The ghost race wanted to cry, but even tears wouldn't come out after a supreme genius like Tian Lunhui lost to Li Qiye. They wanted to fight back but had no means to do so. No one was more qualified than Tian Lunhui, and even Di Zuo was not necessarily much better.
Regarding talents and insights, even within the group of ancestors of the previous generation, it would be hard to find one or two who were more heaven-defying than Tian Lunhui.
'How about we have a great power's ancestor personally kill Li Qiye?!' A ghost expert's anger wouldn't subside, so he had this thought. A cruel intention began to appear among the ghosts. They agreed that Li Qiye was indeed heaven-defying, but if a Virtuous Paragon took action, this paragon would definitely be able to suppress and kill him.
The issue was that they must find an ancestor who would agree to this. Normally, these ancestors wouldn't want to touch the bee's nest that is the Thousand Carp River without a pre-established clash of conflict. Moreover, ancestors that could actually fight against the Thousand Carp River, such as those from the Titanic Crescent Sacred Ground, were not stupid enough to come out to fight a junior!
"If it is a contest of strength, then Sir Tian Lunhui would surely be able to kill Li Qiye. Although Li Qiye understood the mysteries of the pond, this doesn't mean that his cultivation is stronger than Sir Tian Lunhui's." A ghost expert had this thought: "Sir Tian Lunhui is a reincarnated Immortal Emperor, someone who trains two different supreme emperor's laws from two emperors. Li Qiye definitely is not a match for him!"
A ghost royal lord had the same train of thought: "If Tian Lunhui takes action, then he can kill this human junior. In my opinion, his cultivation at best is only a Heavenly Sovereign; he cannot handle Heavenly Kings."
Of course, Tian Lunhui was not someone that they could control. If he didn't want to, then even if they talked till their teeth wore out, it would all be meaningless.
In short, the indignant ghosts only wanted to kill Li Qiye at this moment. As long as he lived, the ghost race would never be able to wash away this shame!
Li Qiye also came back out not long after Tian Lunhui returned. Lan Yunzhu was relieved to see his safe return and quickly rushed over to see him. While being secretly glad, she said: "Did you get a great fortune?"
"Not really, entering the center of the pond doesn't guarantee a great fortune since it also depends on their luck." Li Qiye continued with a smile: "But I did find out something."
"What did you find out?" Lan Yunzhu hastily asked, unable to quench her curiosity.
However, Li Qiye did not answer because Tian Lunhui came closer while shrouded in his mysterious aura. He then spoke: "Fellow Daoist Li, I accept my defeat completely. Your grand dao is truly unequaled and has escaped the boundary of the grand dao…" Although he lost, Tian Lunhui was still very graceful as he looked at Li Qiye with his profound eyes.
Li Qiye didn't want to talk about his grand dao, so he interrupted Tian Lunhui and steadily spoke: "Then our deal should be carried out."
Tian Lunhui took a deep breath and said in a serious manner: "You can rest assured about this. I can represent the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom to say that we will leave this conflict. We will not touch any treasures at this place."
After all, Tian Lunhui was Tian Lunhui, the descendant of the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom; his words were powerful and had true substance.
He then looked at the group of great powers from the ghost race and carefully declared: "This was the deal, I lost to Fellow Daoist Li due to my own lack of abilities. I hope that the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom's allies and friends will leave this conflict. Of course, if you are unwilling, then I won't force you; feel free to comply with the wishes of your countries."
Tian Lunhui's declaration caused the great powers from the ghost race to look at each other, especially those from the western Green River. The ancient kingdom was a powerful monster in this region, a force that was looked up to by many countries.
Eventually, these great powers declared their intentions: "We are willing to follow you and stand by your decision."
"The Three Graves Country is willing to follow your decision."
"The Bamboo Corpse Sect is willing to leave this conflict with you and will follow your order of not taking any treasures from this place."
545 Teaser"Boom!" A loud blast detonated amidst the celebrating ghosts. An endless immortal light suddenly illuminated the entire pond with its source at the center.
"Look over there, it's Li Qiye!" Inside the blinding immortal light, a figure appeared in the center of the pond — Li Qiye.
"He made it to the deepest part of the pool!" Everyone was aghast to see him appearing in the center of the pond because all speculations hinted that the biggest fortune of the Water Realm was at the center of this pond.
The ghost experts looked like they had just swallowed a fly, especially those who were gloating earlier. Now, they all had frozen expressions.
Their smugness earlier was slapped harshly by Li Qiye's appearance.
[collapse]Chapter 546: Bronze-Carapace King
In just a moment, many great powers from the western Green River revealed their stance. Although the treasures might be tempting, a long-lasting relationship with the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom was more important. Moreover, it was not certain that they could even obtain these treasures in the pond. There were many emperor's lineages here, so the big fortune had no parts for great powers like them.
Instead of drinking leftover soup from these lineages, it would be better to climb up the ladder to please the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom at this moment. If they didn't give Tian Lunhui face at this moment, then once he ruled over the ancient kingdom, it would be too late to try to make positive relations.
"This is the deal between Fellow Daoist Li and our ghost race, are you satisfied?" Tian Lunhui asked Li Qiye.
Hailing from the All-Eras Ancient Kingdom, Tian Lunhui had never lacked treasures and could obtain all that he wanted. To him, not obtaining the big fortune from the pond was not a big deal. He needed status and fame as well as the support of these great powers. This would solidify his position in the ghost race for when he eventually contends for supremacy.
He was very satisfied by the western Green River's great powers' attitude. In the future, he would rule over the ancient kingdom then reign over the Green River without an issue. Once his wings became stronger, he would then aim for the top of the Sacred Nether World and eventually maneuver his army into the Nine Worlds to compete for the Heaven's Will!
"Good move." Li Qiye smilingly said as he nodded approvingly.
Tian Lunhui didn't continue to chat and quietly left. He didn't go too far since he wanted to watch from the distance to see the developing situation.
His eyes were profound, and no one could see through his thoughts while he was shrouded in that mysterious aura. He wanted to see Li Qiye's grand dao once more.
After Tian Lunhui's departure, Li Qiye looked towards the Phoenix Maiden. This turmoil was initiated by her, but she was clever enough to make others fight first as cannon fodder.
Li Qiye didn't intend to let her go since she continuously antagonized him. He stared at her and nonchalantly said: "Do you want to try again by using the pond, or do you want to use force? Our matter has not yet concluded!"
"What do you think?" The maiden said as she coldly glared at him. Her eyes were burning with a palpable murderous intent towards Li Qiye.
"Whatever, it's up to you." Li Qiye smiled and said: "Using the pond or directly fighting, both of these choices are good. Today, we should resolve this grievance. Like I said, death is the only path for my enemies, so you should mentally prepare to meet your demise today!"
"Hahaha! Human ants, do you really think our ghost race has no one that can stand up to you? How could we allow a cruel and immoral butcher like you to slay our ghost juniors?" An immense voice suddenly appeared.
Loud buzzes appeared as the sky became dark with the arrival of countless insects that eventually gathered into a gigantic person.
"Bronze-Carapace Insect Tribe, the Bronze-Carapace King!" The group gasped and uttered after seeing this insect giant.
This insect tribe was not the strongest ghost tribe in the Sacred Nether World, but it was definitely the most troublesome and scary tribe. They were like locusts and unkillable cockroaches; it was nearly impossible to kill them all.
The tribe brought along a group of disciples, causing many great powers to secretly dread their presence.
These insects all came together to form the Bronze-Carapace King that stood before Li Qiye. With the heavens as his crown, it stared down at Li Qiye.
Li Qiye was too lazy to look at this giant as he said: "Oh? Your Bronze-Carapace Insect Tribe wants to get involved too?"
This king looked very real as if it was cast from bronze. No one would think that it was made from countless insects squeezed together.
"Yes!" The voice of the insect king was clear yet loud like thunder. It coldly spoke: "Human junior, we will not allow you to carry out your devious scheme!"
"My scheme?" Li Qiye asked with amusement.
"Time and time again, you kill our ghost geniuses in order to carry out your plan!"
"My plan? What kind of plan?" Li Qiye laughed and asked.
"You killed Ghost Monk, Golden Child, and also several tens of thousands of young talents and experts of the ghost race. Now, you reach your hands towards the Titanic Crescent Saint Child and the Ghost Insect Evil Child. Then in the future, you will also conspire against our three heroes! For what?
"This is all because you want to kill our ghost race's youngins, our seeds as well as our future and hope! This is your scheme! After you do so, you will then lead the humans to ruthlessly massacre our ghost race and chase us out of the Sacred Nether World, even if it means to the point of extinction!
"Then, your human race will rule the entire Sacred Nether World alone!" At this point, the insect king was extremely angry. With indignation, he spoke in a righteous manner: "But as a member and child of the ghost race, we of the Bronze-Carapace Insect Tribe will not let you get away with it! If you want to scheme against our youth, you will have to confront us first!"
The insect king's rhetoric was full of devotion to righteousness that deserved reverence. His presentation against Li Qiye caused everyone to become dumbfounded, including the great powers of the ghost race.
Many great characters from these powers looked at each other. Whether it were ghosts or people from the other races, anyone with a sliver of sobriety could tell that the insect king was exaggerating. Li Qiye alone wanted to destroy the ghost race? This was just daydreaming!
Long Zuntian, who was standing to the side, shook his head. He knew the goal of the Phoenix Maiden's scheme.
"Shameless!" Lan Yunzhu snorted and exclaimed upon hearing this. She knew that the insect king was trying to frame Li Qiye and cause all the ghosts to attack him. At the very least, this would give the old undyings of the ghost race a reason to attack, a reason for the great powers to actually maneuver their true forces.
With this kind of righteous excuse, the ghost race could easily tear apart the verbal agreement from before. Even if they had lost, they didn't need to leave this place and could maintain their occupation of this pond!
Li Qiye couldn't help but laugh after hearing this dignified insect king. He then looked up at the Phoenix Maiden on her chariot.
How could such a scheme elude Li Qiye? After hearing the insect king, he immediately knew who was leading him on. A person like the insect king wouldn't be able to articulate this kind of logic.
"Well said and cleverly put." Li Qiye applauded and said with a grin: "With such effective eloquence and lip service, it is a shame that you are not a storyteller." Li Qiye then smirked at the maiden and continued: "However, your words are useless. Today, the maiden will definitely not leave this place alive."
"Hmph! Li Qiye, your scheme is truly evil. You want to murder our entire ghost race!" A ghost cultivator harshly shouted.
"You want to kill our future generation? We shall absolutely not let you succeed!" A ghost royal lord boldly declared.
"That's right! Do not let the human race's scheme come to fruition!"
In just a moment, many important characters from the ghost race stood out against Li Qiye. A few were moved by the words of the insect king, but if these sect masters and royal lords were so easily moved by speech, then they wouldn't be worthy of their current position.
They were pretending to be stupid as they marched against Li Qiye; their minds were still very clear!
This was the best chance for them to kill Li Qiye, and the insect king's words gave them a legitimate reason.
Only a fool would not take advantage of such a good excuse. It could be said to be killing three birds with one arrow. First, they could kill Li Qiye. Second, there would be no need to honor the deal; they could stay at the pond so that the ghost race could have exclusive access to the treasures. Third, they could pave the way for the ghosts' younger generation, especially the three heroes.
How could the sect masters and royal lords of the great powers choose to let this opportunity go?
In an instant, the fervent mob stimulated by these big shots had even more ghost cultivators verbally attacking Li Qiye. In the meantime, the old undyings were only sneering in the shadows.
Before this, these old undyings didn't want to attack a junior, but it was different now since the insect king gave them the perfect excuse. If necessary, these old men would be happy to give the human junior Li Qiye a fatal blow.
While so many ghost cultivators and great powers were provoking Li Qiye, the cultivators from the other races didn't want to join this mess, so they only watched silently by the side.
"Good trick. No words are spared when accusing someone of a crime." The Jadewater Queen commented as she was startled by the sudden reversal of the situation.
Chapter 547: The United Crowd
The Divine Spark Phoenix Maiden sighed in relief and revealed a smile after seeing many great powers criticizing Li Qiye. At this time, she was certain of victory and did not believe that Li Qiye could walk away alive.
There were many ghost experts here today, including Heavenly Sovereigns, Heavenly Kings, and even a few hidden ancestors from the great powers. The ancestors from the Titanic Crescent Sacred Ground or the Insect King Lineage could definitely give him a fatal blow. As long as these old men who were hiding behind the curtains took action, there would be no chance for him to escape.
The situation was escalating towards her desired outcome, giving her great confidence. She wouldn't let him escape today, she had to destroy the number one enemy for her husband — Di Zuo!
Li Qiye, on the other hand, didn't care for this excited and united crowd. He simply stood there at his leisure. He only chuckled at the barrage of attacks from these great characters.
After a while, he dryly coughed and deliberately spoke to these excited great characters: "Forget about the excuse. You can say that I'm plotting to destroy the ghost race or whatever, but I'll play to your heart's content. I do not mind killing a few more tens of thousands, so leave alive or stay here and die without a grave — it's your choice."
Li Qiye paused here and gazed intensely at the Phoenix Maiden. Then, he declared with a smile: "However, even if you had your greatest army here, you still wouldn't be able to stop me… Today, she must die!"
The maiden felt a chill from Li Qiye's stare. His attitude was outside of her expectations. Anyone who withstood this constant barrage from the great powers would surely be in shambles. Even a genius with great courage and decisiveness, when facing the entire ghost race, would know of their harsh situation. They might even choose to compromise.
However, Li Qiye didn't seem to care at all. Despite the hundreds of ghost tribes crying for his punishment, Li Qiye was still unperturbed. Perhaps, he didn't care for the ghost race despite their considerable forces at this location.
The maiden felt a dreadful sense of foreboding. She didn't know where his confidence was coming from, but she understood that no one could hinder his path.
She gathered her strength and met his gaze while feeling a cold sensation inside. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he was looking at a dead person. However, she didn't care for her own life. Rather, she was worried about Di Zuo having such a frightening enemy like Li Qiye.
She then calmly spoke: "If my death can wake up the ghost race's vigilance, then my death would not be without meaning!" She was prepared for the worst as she declared in a solemn demeanor: "You wish to destroy the ghost race's future and hope, but your scheme will fail! Even if I die, I must stop your plan and destroy your scheme against the ghost race!"
"This woman's mind is sharp. With her support, Di Zuo could have swept through the Sacred Nether World in the future." Lan Yunzhu lamented while looking at the Phoenix Maiden's calm expression of self-sacrifice. She was also a genius so she understood how effective this move was. The maiden was ready to die, but not for the ghosts, it was for Di Zuo instead.
"You must ask me before killing the young lady!" The gigantic Bronze-Carapace King gravely spoke; he was full of justice.
"That's right! Do not let this human's scheme come to fruition! You must walk through our corpses if you want to kill the Phoenix Maiden!"
The young ghost cultivators' blood were boiling due to the Phoenix Maiden's calm attitude. They shouted: "For the ghost race! Do not let this human brute hurt the Phoenix Maiden!"
"Yeah! Do not let the human race's devious plan succeed! Our ghost race will not allow Li Qiye to massacre our disciples as he pleases!" Taking advantage of the aroused crowd, many great characters decided to add wind to the fire. They wanted to use others to kill Li Qiye no matter the reason.
"Good, then I'll do as I please." Li Qiye smiled and said: "Who wants to go first? I'll give you a hand by stomping on your corpse."
"You'll have to ask for my permission first!" The Bronze-Carapace King roared. The giant with two hands capable of sealing the sky slammed the ground hard with surging blood energy. This was a strike that shook the heaven and earth.
This attack was not only the strongest blow from the insect king, it was also a move exerted by countless disciples from the insect tribe at the same time.
"I'll fulfill your death wish!" Li Qiye did not retreat against the gigantic hands that smashed down from the insect king. Instead, he met it with full force. The Thousand Hands technique appeared as a grand world was lifted by them.
In this second, all of his hands suddenly transformed into a pair of hands as it was utilized to its strongest point. At this moment, the force of this pair of hands could shatter the earth and break the stars.
"Bang!" With a loud noise, their hands collided violently. Both sides had to take several steps back as their feet dug deep into the ground.
After seeing the full-frontal assault by both sides where they both took steps backward, the ghost experts gasped: "Does this brat really only have the power of a Heavenly Sovereign?"
The insect king's cultivation was at the Heavenly Sovereign realm and, right now, with numerous disciples taking the form of a giant, all the disciples' blood energy and power became his. Nevertheless, the insect king only managed to duke it out evenly with Li Qiye. How heaven-defying was this?
"Crack!" The insect king's gigantic hand fragmented into pieces after another full-on collision with Li Qiye.
As these pieces fell down, people finally saw the insects made from bronze being smashed apart. This meant that, with that one blow, many insect disciples were killed.
However, the worst had yet to come. From the bodies of these insects came little larvae in fainter bronze colors.
These little larvae crawled out from the corpses and instantly came together again to form a new hand. The dead and broken bodies that fell to the ground looked just like flakes of skin. This scene terrified those who had never seen these insects in action before. They were clearly killed, yet new insects still crawled out from their corpses. What a frightening ghost tribe!
"Rumor has it that each disciple of the Bronze-Carapace Insect Tribe all have three lives. Could this rumor be true?" A person quivered and asked after seeing this scene.
Anyone would feel a terrorizing sensation in the face of such an opponent. What a wicked thing to be able to be reborn from one's own corpse!
"Human junior, I cannot be killed. I have the protection of my disciples and you will never be able to kill us all!" The insect king coldly shouted: "Now, it is time for you to die!"
With a great roar, his gigantic body suddenly became a huge mountain that carried a powerful weight and majestic force descending onto Li Qiye. Such a huge mountain was more than enough to flatten him into meat paste.
This sudden transformation shocked the spectators. The techniques of this insect tribe were so bizarre.
"Is that so?" Li Qiye remained still without batting an eyelash against the huge mountain crashing down at an unbelievable speed.
"Clank!" At this moment, a giant lock emerged from his body as countless refined flame universal laws covered his body. In the blink of an eye, nine suns rose from behind his back like nine sealed suns, and these gigantic chains made out of laws were dragging them out.
"Boom!" The nine suns suddenly exploded. The location where Li Qiye stood had turned into a sea of flames. Endless refined sunfire incinerated the sky and all creations!
"No!" Screams resounded the moment this endless refined sunfire encompassed the gigantic mountain.
The huge mountain was burnt into countless sand particles as they fell down and no longer had the power to suppress Li Qiye.
Under the Nine Suns Locking Heaven's refined flames, even these insects that were shielded with their bronze carapaces were killed. Little larvae crawled out from the burnt corpses, but they were also incinerated before being able to escape.
"Buzzz!" Many powerful insects were not killed by this fire and managed to escape to the four directions like dispersed bees without a nest.
However, inside the endless refined sunfire, countless chains as thin as silk shot out and instantly penetrated these insects, killing each escaping insect one by one.