Longevity: Comprehending the Heart Method

But Song Changsheng stepped forward and held her hand. "You’ve already done more than enough by holding that man back for me. You shouldn’t get involved in this. Leave it to me."

It wasn’t that Song Changsheng wanted to play at some sort of fair duel. Luoxia City had not yet declared an end to its neutrality, and Hex Tang’s status was special. He didn’t want to drag Zhuang Yuechan into this.

Besides, the Song Clan and the Lieyang Sect were already in a feud to the death. It wouldn’t matter even if he slaughtered Hex Tang.

"Then I’ll watch your back," Zhuang Yuechan said softly.

Song Changsheng nodded and walked slowly toward Hex Tang. Hex Tang’s Divine Soul and physical body were both severely wounded. Even if he burned his life essence, it would only be a desperate, final struggle.

"Die!"

Hex Tang formed a Seal Technique with his hands. A blazing sun slowly rose from above his head. The surrounding temperature skyrocketed, the air began to warp, and waves of heat washed over them.

’A Little Divine Technique,’ Song Changsheng murmured to himself.

Hex Tang was the second cultivator of his generation that Song Changsheng had encountered since leaving the mountain who had mastered a Little Divine Technique. The first was Yul Dongyang of the Vast Alliance.

From this alone, Hex Tang could truly be considered a genius.

Unfortunately, he had no escape today. A dead genius was just a pile of rotten meat.

BOOM!

The blazing sun descended from the sky, attempting to engulf Song Changsheng.

Song Changsheng could clearly feel the frenzied power contained within it. The fiery light reflecting on his face stung slightly.

’I wonder if the Celestial Spirit Shield can reflect a Little Divine Technique,’ Song Changsheng thought.

He also had a Little Divine Technique, but the biggest difference between him and an ordinary person was that he relied on the Primordial Qi in his body to cast it. If he disregarded the cost, he could use it multiple times.

But Hex Tang couldn’t. A single use would completely deplete his accumulated Mana, and he would need a long time to recover.

This was his last trump card. If even this couldn’t take down Song Changsheng, all he could do was wait for the slaughter.

RUMBLE!

The radiant sun fell from mid-air and collided with the Celestial Spirit Shield.

In an instant, the fiery glow illuminated half the sky, but Song Changsheng didn’t move an inch. Not even the hem of his clothes was lifted.

What horrified Hex Tang even more was that his own Little Divine Technique was actually being reflected back at him.

BOOM!

Unable to dodge in time, Hex Tang was engulfed by the blazing sun, which then exploded violently.

When the flames dissipated, Hex Tang was lying on the ground, on the verge of death. Large sections of his Battle Armor had melted away, and none of his exposed skin was intact, emitting a foul stench.

Song Changsheng slowly retracted his power and came to a stop not far from Hex Tang. Looking at the man whose expression was no longer discernible, he said wistfully, "From the first moment I saw you, I had a bad feeling. Why does your Lieyang Sect have to provoke me again and again?"

Hearing this, a trace of mockery appeared in Hex Tang’s eyes.

But Song Changsheng didn’t give him a chance to speak. He shook his head and said, "But it doesn’t matter. You’re about to die, and soon, the entire Lieyang Sect will join you in death."

With that, he formed a sword with his fingers and swiped lightly. As Sword Qi shot out, Hex Tang’s head fell to the ground, his Divine Soul utterly annihilated.

Hex Tai’s only great-grandson, a strong contender for the next Sect Leader of the Lieyang Sect, had just perished!

Song Changsheng silently collected his spoils of war. To him, this was merely a trivial bit of interest. Sooner or later, he would annihilate the entire Lieyang Sect to avenge a blood feud!

"With Hex Tang dead, Hex Tai will probably go insane," Zhuang Yuechan said softly, looking at Hex Tang’s gruesome corpse.

"If I were the one who died, my old man would go insane too." Song Changsheng had already considered the consequences before he acted.

Zhuang Yuechan nodded slightly and looked toward the distant battlefield. "Those people are probably connected to the Vast Alliance."

"With this move, they’ve essentially offended every major power in the Daqi Cultivation World. Why would they do this?"

Song Changsheng couldn’t make heads or tails of it. Even a group as crazed as the Blood Demon Sect wouldn’t have the guts to declare war on so many powers at once.

’Could the Vast Alliance really be strong enough to take on the entire Daqi Cultivation World by itself?’

"I think I vaguely heard someone mention the ’Celestial Fire Cauldron’."

"The Celestial Fire Cauldron?"

Zhuang Yuechan took a deep breath. "It’s a legend. They say the founding ancestor of the Hundred Herbs Hall relied on a Spiritual Treasure called the Celestial Fire Cauldron to dominate the world, becoming the number one expert below the Golden Core realm at the time."

"The Celestial Fire Cauldron not only excels in both offense and defense, but it also contains a vast number of Pill Formulas. This is the key to how the Hundred Herbs Hall has been able to leave everyone else in the dust when it comes to the Alchemy Dao."

"Or so the legend goes. It’s never been confirmed whether it’s true or not. After all, it’s been nearly three thousand years."

"If it’s really for a Spiritual Treasure, that would certainly make people take desperate risks."

The value of a Spiritual Treasure goes without saying, and its uses are extremely broad—for instance, surviving a tribulation.

When breaking through from the Purple Mansion to the Golden Core realm, one must undergo a Thunder Tribulation. Having a Spiritual Treasure for protection can increase the chance of success by at least twenty to thirty percent.

Why did the Great City Lord break through so quickly back then? Besides his own astonishing talent, possessing a Spiritual Treasure was one of the main reasons.

"The Daqi Cultivation World is about to be shaken to its core again," Song Changsheng sighed softly.

Things had just finally settled down, with everyone working together to push outwards, but now something like this had to happen. Who knew how long the chaos would last this time.

"I wonder which side will win."

Song Changsheng naturally hoped the old Hall Master’s side would win. Otherwise, given the Hundred Herbs Hall’s audacious nature, none of them could expect to live.

Just then, a massive explosion echoed from the horizon, and the entire Fire Tripod Mountain seemed to tremble.

Then, a brilliant light illuminated the entire sky. The barrier formed by the Sect Protection Array rippled violently before a gap was suddenly torn open.

A figure in a gray robe appeared in the gap. In a hoarse voice, he shouted to the combatants in the sky, "We got it! Retreat!"

’They even have people on the outside providing support,’ Song Changsheng thought in alarm. The strength of this group was truly not to be underestimated. In terms of the number of Purple Mansion Cultivators alone, they already surpassed Luoxia City and the Celestial Sword Sect.

One by one, the figures fought as they retreated, slipping out through the gap in the array and escaping right under the noses of Luu Yuming and the others.

They were still too short on manpower, and their hearts weren’t united. In the end, they failed to stop a single one of them.

Watching the barrier close again, Luu Yuming felt a surge of blood rush to his head. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and staggered, nearly falling from the sky.

The sect’s Supreme Treasure had been stolen!

In a way, the Hundred Herbs Hall had brought this wolf into their own home. Normally, it would be impossible for such a large force to enter Fire Tripod Mountain.

But now, it was too late to say anything. The Pill Tasting Conference had gone off without a hitch for so many years that everyone in the Hundred Herbs Hall had let down their guard.

"Master Luu, please take care of yourself. This matter no longer concerns only the Hundred Herbs Hall. When I return, I will certainly report to the Sect Leader and see to it that this entire group is hunted down and killed!"

Elder Wang Anlin of the Golden Crow Sect said hatefully.

During the earlier Celestial Annihilation Thunder attack, a core disciple who had accompanied him had perished, leaving not even bones behind. This was a declaration of war on the Golden Crow Sect!

"The same goes for my Celestial Vein Sect."

Immediately after, the Huansha Sect, the Celestial Sword Sect, and other powers all made their positions clear. They could not let this offense go unanswered!

But Luu Yuming was in no mood to respond to them. He waved his hand dismissively and landed on Fire Tripod Mountain, looking completely lost. The Supreme Treasure, passed down from the founding ancestor, had been lost on his watch.

Most importantly, he still didn’t know how they had done it. All he knew was that his connection to the Celestial Fire Cauldron had vanished.

"Who... who was it?!" Endless killing intent brewed in Luu Yuming’s eyes. ’Only a handful of people know about the Celestial Fire Cauldron. There must be a traitor within the sect!’

When Jiang Shuming and Bai Wuming hurried back, they were greeted by a scene of utter ruin. Seeing the look on Luu Yuming’s face, they suddenly had a bad feeling.

"The Celestial Fire Cauldron has been stolen."

At these words, both of their faces turned deathly pale. That was the very foundation of the Hundred Herbs Hall!

"There’s a traitor in the Hall." Luu Yuming sat in a rattan chair, his icy gaze sweeping back and forth between the two. At this moment, he suspected everyone equally!

Jiang Shuming steadied himself and asked, "Who did it?"

"The Vast Alliance!"

...