Chapter 341: The Divine Path System Hierarchy

Boom—!

The chains exploded the instant they touched the Five Qi giant hand!

The cloud sea trembled; Five Qi interwove with Jin Guang, surging wildly in all directions.

"Audacious demon! How dare you bring calamity to the mortal realm and secretly steal and purify Qi? Surrender at once!"

Three divine figures stepped forth from the Jin Guang, holding golden maces, divine mirrors, and chains, their divine eyes glaring fiercely at Cangyun Yaojun, who stood atop the True Dragon.

Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

Cangyun Yaojun was so frustrated he nearly spat blood!

A Jin Dan completion practitioner of the Qi Prayer Dao—such a monstrous cultivator, and he had to encounter one!

"Qi flows and churns from primordial chaos, born of heaven and earth; all beings in the cosmos may inhale and exhale it. How dare these rotting relics of the Divine Path steal authority and call themselves the true mandate of heaven and earth!"

Cangyun Yaojun's eyes nearly burst from rage; he knew this matter could not be resolved peacefully.

Just the charge of "stealing and purifying Qi" alone was enough to doom him utterly!

The three divine figures were utterly cold.

Never mind they were bound by duty.

Even in past times, when not under anyone's control, they would never waste words on such "Qi-thieving" demons!

Hum~

He flicked his divine mirror, releasing a Xuan light imbued with the power to ban spells and sever Qi, shining straight at Cangyun Yaojun.

He raised his golden mace; in an instant, it swelled into a towering divine peak, wreathed in countless inscriptions, crashing down upon the ancient True Dragon with supreme might.

Amid crisp metallic clangs, the chains extended forward, spreading outward and manifesting runes that sealed the surrounding void outright!

At that moment, even the ancient True Dragon seemed small.

They meant to seize him in a single blow!

"Never!"

Cangyun Yaojun's face contorted forward, his gray hair flaring, sharp fangs glinting with icy light, sinister and monstrous!

"Five Qi! Ultimate Spirit!"

Hmm~!

The dragon's roar shook the heavens; the sealing runes and golden chains trembled violently, as if about to snap.

The Five Qi light instantly drowned out the golden mace peak and the divine radiance.

The next instant, Cangyun Yaojun, standing atop the True Dragon's head, opened his mouth and sucked in—the rolling Five Qi surged like a great river into his belly.

Mmm~

The Shanhe Pearl, once glowing with radiant auspicious light, dimmed abruptly; the True Dragon let out a mournful cry, then dissolved into strands of Five Qi, flowing into Cangyun Yaojun's mouth.

A terrifying aura swelled uncontrollably, breaking through the Jin Dan threshold in an instant.

Finally, even Cangyun Yaojun's gray hairs were stained with Five Qi hues, and his sinister eyes revealed visions of Shanhe.

Jiang Lin the old Taoist's scalp prickled; without hesitation, he turned and fled.

"Five Spirit Shanhe Body—Awaken!"

Boom!

Boom—boom—boom!

The eternal cloud sea was completely swept away; before him remained only swirling Five Qi light.

Behind him stood a five-qi giant wolf, a hundred zhang tall, waist like a steep ridge, mouth like a bloodied maw, teeth like swords and halberds, breathing in and out Shanhe Qi, shattering the chains' seal outright.

"Aowu~!"

With a wolf's howl, the Five Qi giant wolf smashed the golden mace peak aside, and its tail swept once, flinging the three divine figures summoned by Jiang Lin the old Taoist into the distance.

In his past life, he was a Return-to-Void Demon Sovereign!

This "Body" was a new method deduced by the future Thousand Manifestations Dao Master—nonexistent in this world. How could these mere rotting relics clinging to divine positions possibly stop him!

Damn it!

If not absolutely necessary, he never wanted to reveal his "Body" method this early.

And now, draining the Shanhe Pearl so thoroughly—how long would it take to recover? He might even miss critical turning points!

The more he thought, the more furious he became!

Instantly, he resolved to end this swiftly.

"Die—!"

……

……

Beside the stone table atop the mountain peak.

"The Body is, barely, an embryonic form of a Law Phase," Seeing Hong Zun remarked.

The group had just discussed it, but aside from Bie Xuening's point, all other possibilities were unlikely.

After all, what was transmitted was merely information…

Some matters still required personal confirmation after reaching the Tai Xuan Realm.

So, using the Ascension Platform, he gave further instructions, such as the current progress of severing past ties.

He then turned attention to the situation of Cangyun Yaojun and Jiang Lin the old Taoist.

"Yet, practitioners in this world never considered this path before; it's natural that the new method is immature," Seeing Hong Zun added.

In this world, immortals and deities alternate frequently, so research into all kinds of divine techniques and battle arts has naturally lagged.

The Tai Xuan Realm's "Law Phases" have been refined over countless cultivators' generations to reach their current state.

To have even a "Body" is already quite good.

Moreover, this was thanks to a strange artifact born of the "Yan" Dao, controlled by He Yunqi in the "future."

After offering two comments, Seeing Hong Zun turned his head.

There, before Xiang Xiang Yuanjun, the Ascension Platform floated silently, threads of cause and effect weaving unpredictably…

It was currently assisting Lingzu in establishing a stable communication channel.

Jian Zun, meanwhile, stared at the five-element giant wolf on the cloud sea, showing no intention to reply.

Indeed, in the end, only…

"But using this method now isn't a good thing." Xu Xing's gaze fell toward the higher realms.

Would those Zhenjun who had once been cultivators before ascending to godhood simply watch passively as this unprecedented new method emerged?

"But we have no other choice."

With no alternative, without using the Shanhe Pearl to manifest the Five-Spirit Mountain-River Body, he truly couldn't match those three deities.

Hmm… this world's divine system is highly refined, and holds some reference value.

Power derives from authority…

Currently, I am handling the selection and guidance of ascension candidates, but once the plan stabilizes, it must be entrusted to my disciples.

As he pondered this…

Ding dong~

A clear, lingering chime, like a drop of water falling into a deep pool, sent ripples spreading across the entire sky.

"Huh?"

A soft, distant murmur of surprise drifted through the air.

"An unfamiliar cultivation method, self-contained and unique—quite interesting."

The voice was crisp and enchanting, evoking unconsciously a young girl crouched by a mountain stream, curiously watching fish swim in the water.

One finger…

A snow-white, slender finger pierced through the sky, its tip full as the moon, pushing aside all things as it pointed toward the five-element giant wolf!

!. Du

All of this was seen by the few atop the mountain peak.

Of course, Xiang Xiang Yuanjun paid no attention, continuing to focus on building the communication platform via the Ascension Platform.

Bie Xuening had also lost interest, turning her attention to the Ascension Platform's condition.

After all, the outcome was inevitable.

…………

Above the cloud sea, Jiang Lin the old Taoist halted his retreat.

He looked up at the descending finger; the Four Methods activated spontaneously, just as before.

【Deity: Yuxu Tianjun】

【Practiced the Prayer-Spirit Path for two hundred thirty-five years, attained the Nascent Soul realm, slew demons, eradicated evil, purged malevolence, protected the peace of a region, merited heavenly recognition, and received the Celestial Edict to ascend to the rank of 'Tianjun'】

【Authority: Demon-Slaying—Expel heresy, sever demonic and monstrous forces】

【Dao: None】

【Method: Yi Yuan Zhuoshui Lian Qi Fa】

【Current Status: Unsummonable】

Unsummonable!

This was a deity of virtue, a Zhenjun of Tianjun rank!

In this world's divine system, from low to high:

Lingjun (Lingbing, Lingguan, Lingjun)—typically yin soldiers, spirit servants, celestial soldiers, and land gods of county, township, and pavilion levels, or minor mountain spirits; the weakest possess only Qi Condensation, the strongest no higher than Jin Dan.

Shenjun (Shenjiang, Shenshuai, Shenjun)—this tier of deities are usually former practitioners of the Prayer-Spirit Path who assume the role after death, or mortals of great virtue during life, such as city and prefecture land gods; their combat strength ranges from Foundation Establishment to Nascent Soul.

Above them lies the Tianjun tier.

Deities of this rank are typically innate spirits of great mountains and rivers, or Zhenjun like Yuxu Tianjun, who, during life, reached the Nascent Soul realm or higher, and ascended to godhood by celestial decree.

With divine authority and power granted, even the weakest possess Spirit Transformation Realm combat power.

Above that is the Xingjun tier.

But aside from Taiyin Xingjun and Taiyang Xingjun, who manifest the cosmic Yin-Yang authority and possess the ability to merge with the Dao,

all others—whether celestial spirits born from stars or Zhenjun who ascended—possess only Return to Void ability; some dim stars don't even reach Return to Void…

And finally, there is the Di Jun tier.

This, of course, needs no elaboration: aside from the Tianzun who wields the supreme authority, the other major Di Jun also govern foundational authorities, each ruling over one layer of Heaven.

"Ao wu~!"

As the wolf's howl echoed, Cangyun Yaojun's fur bristled, his blood-red eyes churning with furious flame.

Damn it!

How fast they arrived!

And it was Yuxu, the Dao Lord.

No choice—forget the precautions!

Crack!

A sound like something shattering rang out, clear and sharp.

Blood-red eyes, blazing with boundless rage, locked onto Jiang Lin the old Taoist; the meaning within made even Jiang Lin feel a chill…

Well, that was impossible.

He had slain countless wicked demons; he was long accustomed to such glares.

"It is not wrong for humans to feed on all things—then is it wrong for us to feed on humans?"

The voice echoed, accompanied by five-qi rainbow light surging and leaping outward, instantly covering a hundred li of cloud sea.

Old Daoist Jiang Lin secretly activated the Divine Subjugation Scripture, summoning three divine beings to stand before him.

A slender finger descending from behind the celestial curtain gently touched the five-qi rainbow light.

Boom!

The entire heavens and earth seemed to shudder violently; all vision filled with five colors, then transformed into blinding white.

Only a continuous humming remained in his ears; the surroundings grew unbearably oppressive.

"A return-to-vacuum artifact...?"

All the strange phenomena in his vision vanished as the voice reached his ears.

The three divine beings guarded him before, their aura diminished but thankfully unharmed.

He looked around: the five-qi great wolf, the slender finger descending from behind the celestial curtain, and the endless cloud sea...

All had vanished; looking downward, he could clearly see forests, streams, snow cover, and startled wild beasts.

This demon's tricks are truly endless...

Old Daoist Jiang Lin felt a pang of fear, but not a trace of regret.

Such perilous matters were not the first or second time—if he had feared them, he would never have hunted demons before.

As for the demon's final words...

Hah!

Say what you will, the Daoist is human.

Just as he was about to dismiss the divine beings, he looked up and saw a tall figure in a silk robe, resembling a young girl, gazing at him.

Damn!

A chill instantly spread from his tailbone to the top of his head! (End of Chapter)