Chapter 1240: Collective Will of the Immortal Gate Fleet

The newly awakened Dao-Union Canghai Tianjun radiated a ferocious aura across the starry expanse, suppressing all with the Heavenly Dao's law-net, proposing to eradicate all neutral forces—the Seven Great Immortal Sects—before a final, mortal clash.

When this voice of Heavenly Dao law rang out, silence spread in all directions.

The great ones of the Heavenly Machine Immortal Palace, the Wuxingtian Sect, the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Sect, and others reacted differently: some ignored it, some sneered, some continued meditating on their Dao-Union bottleneck.

Clearly, in their hearts, the Wuxing Wuxing Tianzong great one Zhang Zhongtu, Brother Brother Xuanwu, had never been a man to trust.

This scene was only natural—nothing to be surprised by, nothing to be angry about.

"First destroy the Seven Great Immortal Sects…"

Far fell into deep thought.

To be honest, his heart stirred violently, far from calm.

For ten thousand years, the Eight Great Immortal Sects had been like cockroaches; the Immortal Gate had poured all its efforts into annihilating them, yet never succeeded completely, and now could barely defend itself.

And now, did hope finally appear?

Far unconsciously glanced at the others.

In the Dao-Union military formation, their divine souls' computational power was linked; thoughts, so long as not deliberately sealed, were fully shared—no words or glances needed, merely an unconscious habit.

"Worth serious consideration."

Senior Wanji Zhenzun, Mieryi Canghai Tianjun, Pingyang Canghai Tianjun, Taoying Zhenzun, and many other Immortal Gate Liánxū and Soul Transformation cultivators stared with fierce eyes and immediately spoke—their gambling instincts ran high.

"I disagree."

Zhenjun Shenji Zhenzun and others.

"Let him hand over one Soul Transformation divine soul first."

Dari Canghai Tianjun and others said, representing another major faction within the Immortal Gate.

It wasn't about forming cliques or self-serving politics; high-level cultivators were still human, with their own political views, favored friends, and closer associates in research—they naturally trusted certain individuals, reflecting the collective viewpoint of many.

"Within the Domain, only tangible power brings true security."

"Beyond that, grand strategy, strategic developments—all are illusions."

Jiang Ding explained his viewpoint: "Regardless, the top priority is to elevate the Central Array Spirit AI to Soul Transformation, strengthening the Immortal Gate's power. Whether the Eight Great Immortal Sects exist or not is irrelevant; the Immortal Gate's survival and growth are eternal. Mutual annihilation serves no interest of the Immortal Gate."

"Also, this Brother Brother Xuanwu likely isn't sincere—if we pressure the Seven Great Immortal Sects into hastily ascending to Soul Transformation, he'll likely switch sides."

"This man wants to drag other Immortal Sect great ones into the fire to shield himself."

"My view: a thousand birds in the forest are worth less than one in hand—secure what's within reach first."

"This is my thought."

"No, I believe…"

Senior Wanji Zhenzun and others also stated their reasons.

In that instant, over a thousand Soul Transformation cultivators and eight Liánxū cultivators of the Immortal Gate collectively pushed, decided, thought, and voiced their views—tens of thousands of ideas erupted in an instant, each seemingly viable.

Yet these views did not clash for the sake of argument; instead, they complemented and converged, some cultivators immediately abandoning their own views upon persuasion, without stubbornness.

This is why civic virtue and character are so vital.

If citizens' minds decayed and became chaotic, if they formed factions and attacked dissenters, the Immortal Gate's formation power would plummet instantly, internal constraints would paralyze it, and such terrifying effects could never reappear.

In an instant,

a decision fused from all their wills was born.

Dari Canghai Tianjun's viewpoint gained broader recognition from more Liánxū Zhenzun and Soul Transformation Canghai Tianjun—or perhaps it had always been theirs—this view was instantly refined and expanded into a far more detailed battle plan, surpassing Dari Canghai Tianjun's original thought.

Amid the gaze of seven great ones and countless cultivators, Far spoke slowly.

"Brother Brother Xuanwu, no need to delay."

"This time is insufficient for you to fully imprint your divine soul into the Heavenly Dao."

Far said slowly: "Your proposal is constructive, but before that, please fulfill the Heavenly Dao Covenant—allow me to examine your divine soul structure, or hand over a fragment soul imbued with Soul Transformation essence."

"What do you say?"

His tone grew more respectful.

Since Brother Brother Xuanwu's ascent to Soul Transformation, in public settings, regardless of enmity, he now treated a Soul Transformation Canghai Tianjun with courtesy, no longer addressing them as "old thing" or by name as he once did among peers.

This had nothing to do with enmity—it was respect for power.

The moment Far spoke, heaven and earth fell silent.

All felt as if in a dream, doubting they were not in reality but in some delusion.

A Liánxū cultivator had just asked the first Soul Transformation Canghai Tianjun of the Jin Yu Zhi whether he'd permit immediate inspection of his Soul Transformation divine soul?

To a cultivator, this was no different from killing him.

"Heavenly Dao Covenant?"

"That is indeed a matter."

The Wuxing Wuxing Tianzong great one did not anger—he merely smiled: "Please allow me time to consider carefully. This matter is of grave consequence, and these seven comrades watch from the sidelines—likely waiting to reap the benefits."

"Hah."

"Brother, rest assured—you'll have time to consider."

Far smiled too.

Hum!

Hummm!

In that instant, the Star Demon Tree rooted in the Central Thousand Worlds trembled, merging with the Immortal Gate's ten-thousand-warship formation; countless branches twisted and reshaped, rapidly forming a ten-thousand-li-long, dark-hued Annihilation Cannon entwined with leaves and vines at its center, as countless Yuan Ci law-nets rolled in.

The moment this Yuan Ci Heavenly Dao law-net formed, it spread outward, swiftly expelling the Immortal Rule law-net, snapping and collapsing its strands one by one.

The endless starlight across hundreds of thousands of kilometers of space, the seventh-tier spiritual veins of the Central Thousand Worlds, brilliant radiance—all converged here; the Annihilation Cannon's muzzle began to glow with dark, flickering light.

Within the Yuan Ci Heavenly Dao law-net, a terrifying, destructive aura emerged in heaven and earth.

It carried the flicker of Yuan Ci and the curse of darkness, originating from an essential form of Wu Xing Metal, instantly locking onto the enemy's divine soul core.

"This!"

"Path-Unification military formation, Path-Unification array, Path-Unification realm boundary-locking array!"

Even the great powers of the Brother Xuanwu Heavenly Palace changed their expressions.

With this special terrain advantage and the accumulation of various methods, the Eastern Extreme Demon Sect's military formation was far from merely barely reaching the threshold of Path-Unification—it had already advanced to an extremely profound depth within Path-Unification.

If it were only this much, then so be it.

He could still flee; he did not mind escaping. Someone like Zou Zou Xiyuan would flee when necessary, so how could he be trapped by such a trivial matter of face?

It would be nothing more than waiting until the Shen Hun Yin imprint was thoroughly branded into the Heavenly Dao, gaining the characteristic of indestructibility, before returning for revenge.

However!

The terrifying curse within his divine soul—things resembling strands of pitch-black iron wire—let him know what consequences awaited a newly ascended Path-Unification cultivator who ignored attacks from behind and fled without looking back.

He would, die!

He could not flee; he had to first destroy that fleet of hundreds of millions!