Ascension Day

Suddenly, an official was sent flying, crashing not far from Xu Ying.

It was the same official who had been wearing the Inconstancy Mask. Only half of his body remained, and the mask fell from his face, rolling to Xu Ying’s feet.

The official lay on the ground, staring blankly at Xu Ying. His breath was faint as his lips moved. "Save me..."

SPLAT!

A huge foot came down, crushing him to a pulp!

The Profound Turtle, carrying the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit, walked over and stomped the half-bodied official to death.

The Profound Turtle had a savage and ferocious expression. It followed the dying Nuo Master’s gaze but saw no one. With a roar, it continued on its way up the mountain.

Xu Ying and Da Zhong were hiding in a ditch on the side of the mountain. Xu Ying clutched the Inconstancy Mask in one hand, his eyes wide and his breath held. Only after the Profound Turtle and the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit were far away did he gasp for air.

Da Zhong was also trembling with fear.

Xu Ying stood up and climbed out of the ditch, only to see the ground littered with corpses. The Divine Spirit had slaughtered all the officials from before, leaving no survivors!

"Strong... too strong!"

Xu Ying frowned. ’So many Divine Statues are reawakening. With them being this powerful, getting to the great temple will be no easy task.’

’And what’s the deal with this mask? How can it change your form just by wearing it?’

Xu Ying examined the Inconstancy Mask, recalling how the official had transformed into an Underworld Ghost God after putting it on. ’Yuan Qi is so well-read,’ he thought. ’If he were here, he’d definitely know what this is.’

He slung the Inconstancy Mask over his back and looked up at the sky, where Divine Spirits could be seen moving about on several of the massive stone belts.

Xu Ying looked into the distance. There was another massive stone belt there, but he didn’t know if any Divine Spirits were on it. He immediately rushed in that direction. Suddenly, terrifying fluctuations of Nuo Art erupted from ahead, even more dreadful than before. The shockwave was so powerful it flattened entire swathes of forest!

Xu Ying crept closer and saw that one of the combatants was still the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit on its Profound Turtle. This time, however, its opponent was a middle-aged man!

’It’s a high-ranking official who serves the Governor of Yongzhou!’ Xu Ying’s heart skipped a beat.

The Governor of Yongzhou, Zhou Heng, had sent this very man to lead the experts hunting him, so Xu Ying remembered him well.

The middle-aged man’s name was Zhou Zheng. He let out a roar that shook the mountains and rivers, and as he charged the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit, he suddenly transformed into a Golden-winged Roc, his wings becoming blades that slashed toward the Divine Spirit!

His Cultivation Power far surpassed Zhou Yihang’s. Zhou Yihang had received the Zhou Family’s authentic teachings but not their most advanced legacy, which Zhou Zheng clearly had.

In his Golden-winged Roc form, he was strong enough to injure the Divine Spirit. He stayed in the air, his wings flapping, attacking from above with his wings, Golden Feathers, and sharp talons!

His wings, Golden Feathers, and talons were all incredibly powerful and fierce!

After several rounds of fighting, the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit was wounded in multiple places. It suddenly opened the third eye on its forehead, and a blinding light shot out. With a SHIING, it sliced off both wings of the Golden-winged Roc that Zhou Zheng had become!

Zhou Zheng’s Golden Feathers withered as he plummeted from the sky. While still in mid-air, his muscles bulged and he transformed into a Violent Ape several dozen feet tall, crashing down from above!

The Violent Ape was covered in golden fur and had Copper Sinews and Iron Bones, with a forehead like steel. It engaged the Divine Spirit in close-quarters combat, beating it so badly that even the Profound Turtle suffered broken bones and was forced to retreat continuously!

The Three-Eyed Divine Spirit resorted to its old trick, once again opening its third eye to shoot a beam of Divine Light at the Violent Ape.

Zhou Zheng suddenly dispersed his Violent Ape form. His body shifted, and golden scales erupted from beneath his skin, transforming him into a giant with the head of a dragon and the body of a man. He walked with lightning crackling at his feet, as if carrying the heavens themselves.

The Divine Light from the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit’s eye struck his body but was reflected in all directions by the glistening Dragon Scales. The deflected beams riddled the earth and forest with holes, but failed to cut through him.

Zhou Zheng swung his palm, and the lightning gathered beneath it, forming a Long Sword. With a CRACK, he sliced off the Three-Eyed Divine Spirit’s head!

"You killed so many of my men from Yongzhou Prefecture. Death is too good for you!"

Zhou Zheng stomped his foot down hard, shattering the Profound Turtle into pieces.

Xu Ying held his breath, not daring to move a muscle. Da Zhong didn’t dare to breathe either. This Military Legal Advisor of Yongzhou was far, far stronger than Master Zhou Yihang.

Zhou Zheng’s voice echoed, "Where in the world did that Xu Ying hide? Five Immortal Mountains... this place is huge, and with so many Divine Spirits reawakening, searching is a real pain! All Grass and Trees Are Soldiers!"

He suddenly shouted, then raised his foot and stomped down hard. Instantly, his Nuo Art erupted.

Hearing the shout, Xu Ying knew this was bad. Just as he expected, a wave of immense vitality burst forth from Zhou Zheng’s direction, spreading everywhere. Wherever it passed, all the plants and trees uprooted themselves!

Wild grass, fresh flowers, shrubs, and giant trees—all were granted life. The wild grass turned into little people with green clothes and pointed hats. The wildflowers became thumb-sized girls wearing straw hats. The shrubs, clad in thorns, sprinted like wolves, and the giant trees became treants with lush canopies for heads.

Like a tide, they surged in all directions, searching for Xu Ying.

The next moment, countless little green-clad people with pointed hats were at Xu Ying’s feet, looking up at him. A few straw-hatted girls ran over, staring at him and blinking their big, dark eyes.

Xu Ying pointed into the distance, trying to send them that way.

But the little people weren’t fooled. They huddled together, whispering, "Yigu-yigu!"

One of the straw-hatted girls took out a tiny portrait, unrolled it, and looked back and forth between it and Xu Ying.

Xu Ying leaned in to look at the portrait. It was indeed him. He whispered, "That’s not me. See? My clothes have a hole here, but his don’t."

The little green-clad people and straw-hatted girls chattered "yigu-yigu" for a moment, then suddenly all looked behind him.

Xu Ying’s heart lurched. He straightened up and whispered, "Lord Zhong, is that high-ranking official from Yongzhou right behind me?"

Da Zhong let out a dull DONG.

With a smile on his face, Xu Ying slowly turned around. Sure enough, the Military Legal Advisor of Yongzhou, Zhou Zheng, was standing not far away, watching him with a leisurely expression.

’I thought I’d fooled these little flowers and grasses,’ Xu Ying thought resentfully. ’I didn’t expect all the big trees between us would run away.’

When Zhou Zheng used his Nuo Art, "All Grass and Trees Are Soldiers," all the nearby flowers, grasses, and trees had uprooted themselves. The dense forest that had once separated Xu Ying and Zhou Zheng was now gone, its trees having turned into treants and run off. That was how Zhou Zheng spotted the culprit, Xu, hunched over and trying to deceive the little plants.

"Fugitive Xu, do you have any last words?" Zhou Zheng asked, completely at ease.

Xu Ying burst into laughter, then suddenly turned and sprinted away. In an instant, he reached the edge of the Immortal Mountain and leaped off.

Zhou Zheng hurriedly gave chase to the edge of the Immortal Mountain. Looking down, he saw Xu Ying riding a Big Copper Bell that was taller than a man. The bell was floating in the air, struggling to fly slowly toward the great temple.

Zhou Zheng couldn’t help but laugh. His body slowly transformed into a Tianpeng Divine Man with the head of a bird, the body of a man, and two wings. With a gentle flap, he flew unhurriedly toward Xu Ying.

Xu Ying frantically activated his Taiyi Guiding Skill. A half-mu field of brilliant light appeared above his head, expanding again and again until it became a one-mu field of light, creating quite a celestial phenomenon.

Zhou Zheng paid it no mind and chuckled. "Xu Ying, even if you recovered your full Cultivation Power, you’d still be no match for me. Why bother with all this?"

Suddenly, his expression changed as he realized Xu Ying’s true intention. ’His purpose in using that Demon Technique isn’t to restore his Cultivation, but to use the celestial phenomenon as a beacon to show everyone where he is!’

Just as he thought this, he saw streams of azure Incense Smoke Qi streaking through the air toward him. Before they even got close, the streams of Incense Smoke Qi transformed into sharp Flying Swords, each one containing terrifying power as they slashed at him!

Zhou Zheng followed the path of the Incense Smoke Qi with his eyes and saw the City Gods of Ningyuan, Dongning, Daozhou, Jiang Yong, Lanshan, and other regions, all riding atop Xiangyun as they flew toward them!

The City Gods had not yet arrived, but their Flying Swords had, with the clear purpose of stopping Zhou Zheng from capturing Xu Ying!

Rage filled Zhou Zheng’s heart. He flapped his golden wings, and his feathers flew out with metallic clangs to counter the City Gods’ Flying Swords, trapping him in place for the moment.

He stole a glance and saw Xu Ying, riding the Bell, slowly making his way toward the great temple.

’The sight of that kid’s back is so damn infuriating!’ A deep sense of helplessness washed over him.