Chapter 1290: Arrived in the Upper Realm's Fallen Immortal World

After Han Lin, cultivators successively spoke up.

"Please, Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun, give your orders; let us sweep the four directions for you."

Da'ai Canghai Tianjun bowed deeply in salute.

"Please, Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun, give your instructions!"

Many powerful elder Soul Transformation Tianjuns successively declared their stance, showing no treacherous intent whatsoever.

This made many newly promoted Tianjuns feel an ominous sense of dread.

Tushan Tian Jun seemed to have sufficient emotion and mutual trust with his old associates; he did not rely entirely on military force to suppress and intimidate, so that even with his true body absent, they were willing to uphold the Tushan Law.

"No need."

Jiang Ding said with relief.

"With everyone acting thus, I am deeply moved. It turns out Master Tushan Master Tushan Zhongting has its own vitality; it is not, as my true body thought, maintained solely by personal martial might."

His Tushan Law began to receive sincere recognition and support from some cultivators, taking deep root in this world.

Even if Master Tushan Master Tushan Zhongting collapsed in the future, countless cultivators would surely attempt to rebuild it, because this order could enable more cultivators to unleash greater productivity, benefiting everyone.

"Lieyang, nothing major; it's just the usual."

"The branches have grown for several thousand years; they must be pruned occasionally, or they will grow crooked."

Jiang Ding tossed a jade slip to Lieyang Canghai Tianjun: "Handle the people listed here. Be fair and open; do not execute the innocent, and do not disrupt the normal cultivation and lives of other cultivators."

"Yes, Sword Disciple!"

Lieyang Canghai Tianjun took the jade slip, swept it with his divine sense, and revealed a look of disappointment.

There was not a single Soul Transformation cultivator among them.

"Look at this as well."

Jiang Ding handed out another jade slip, making it public to all Soul Transformation cultivators.

The information within became known to everyone.

Instantly, the faces of the three newly promoted Soul Transformation Tianjuns turned deathly pale; especially Dong Xue Yuan Canghai Tianjun, whose body swayed as if about to collapse.

"Lan Die Canghai Tianjun: corruption, graft, using power for private gain. Punishment... imprisonment for one thousand years."

"Ni Ren Canghai Tianjun: illegal mining of ores... imprisonment for three hundred years, plus triple restitution of illicit gains..."

"Dong Xue Yuan Canghai Tianjun: using Water Spirit Root cultivators to refine Ice Crystal Pills to boost cultivation, collectively harming one hundred and thirty thousand Water Spirit Root cultivators and twenty-seven Heavenly Water Spirit Root cultivators. Evidence follows..."

"... Death penalty!"

Clang!

Jiang Ding drew his sword at a leisurely pace and looked at Lan Die Canghai Tianjun and Ni Ren Canghai Tianjun: "What do you two have to say?"

"Your subordinate admits guilt!"

"This slave admits guilt and willingly accepts punishment!"

Lan Die Canghai Tianjun and Ni Ren Canghai Tianjun knelt on both knees, submitted to the law, with no intention of making any excuses.

Jiang Ding then looked to the other side.

"Cowardice!"

"He is merely a

projection!"

Dong Xue Yuan Canghai Tianjun revealed a ferocious expression and roared: "We Soul Transformation cultivators cannot remain beneath others for long. Today is the perfect opportunity; in the future, this world will belong to us..."

"Kill!"

Knowing she could not escape, she burned her vital blood and soul, merging them into a crystal-clear flying sword, tore through space, and lunged to kill that young man in green robes.

Cold sword intent swept over the heavens and covered the earth; she had already entered the realm of refining the sword into threads, having polished it for a long time, with extremely outstanding sword talent.

At this moment, Li Qingyun Canghai Tianjun Han Lin, Gong Gong Caiyu Canghai Tianjun, Ye Yue Canghai Tianjun, and others tensed their divine senses, ready at all times to intervene and save her; the bond of the past five thousand years was not empty, but a truly existing thing.

Clang!

A single sword cry.

Jiang Ding sheathed his sword and turned to leave.

Behind him, Dong Xue Yuan Canghai Tianjun's body stiffened, the Ice Crystal flying sword stiffened, and she was severed from the state of man and sword as one; a fine sword mark appeared on her brow, her eyes became utterly lifeless, and not a shred of vitality remained.

Boom!

Her cold corpse fell to the ground, snapping a branch and kicking up a cloud of dust.

She was dead.

"That sword strike..."

Da'ai Canghai Tianjun, Bing Dong Xue Canghai Tianjun, Lou Xi Canghai Tianjun, and others' pupils contracted sharply.

Afterwards, they bowed deeply once more toward that departing figure, even though he was merely a projection.

The ascension process seemed extremely long.

Traversing an exceedingly vast distance, a distance that even to Jiang Ding seemed despairing; he feared he could not leap this distance even if he spent his whole life traveling, let alone face the various strange and perilous lands encountered along the way, terrifying giants like stars, and unknown mysteries wandering through the endless starry sky without ever pausing.

Moreover, an endless river of blood cut through the starry sky; countless ghosts and monsters emerged from the blood river, and merely a glance left one's body and soul blank, trembling uncontrollably...

Such things made one shiver with fear. Yet the ascension process also seemed extremely brief.

In an instant, Jiang Ding walked upon infinite steps; before his eyes blurred, he had already arrived within an unimaginably massive star.

Even Zhong Senior Qian Shi Gao Jie was insignificant before this star, like dust.

Countless laws crisscrossed between the stars, forming ring-shaped halos.

For a moment, Jiang Ding doubted whether this was a star or an entire universe of starry sky.

"Great Thousand World..."

Jiang Ding drew in a deep breath.

He was not entirely ignorant about the Upper Realm.

More than four thousand years ago, a clone of Zou Zou Xiyuan had slain the mortal incarnations of two gravely wounded Dao Merging Divine Monarchs of the Northern Plains Minor Thousand Worlds, then captured the divine soul of an elder of the Supreme Court of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect in the Upper Realm — a Void Refinement cultivator — and forcibly performed a soul search, obtaining his memories, which were then given to her son, Xi Ping'an.

At the same time

?? Zou Zou Xiyuan struck a deal with Jiang Ding.

Using a copy of the Upper Realm Void Refinement memories as the price, she had the past grievances between Jiang Ding and Xi Ping'an written off completely; Jiang Ding agreed.

The Upper Realm's pull on Jiang Ding was simply too great.

The divine soul memories of this Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect Supreme Elder contained an introduction to the Great Thousand Worlds.

The Great Thousand Worlds — the cornerstone of a True Immortal's court!

This meant that, in the endless starry sky of the universe, only beings at the True Immortal level could actually take control of a Great Thousand World, transforming it into one of the pillars supporting their Immortal Court.

And aside from True Immortals, even forces at the near-Immortal level could not affect a Great Thousand World in any overall way.

A Great Thousand World was bound to possess a Heavenly Dao consciousness.

This was a kind of world-awareness formed by countless lives over countless eons — neither good nor evil — and any force that attempted to lay hands on a Great Thousand World, to dominate all living things beneath heaven, would surely meet with destruction.

For this reason, even Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong could not fully control a Great Thousand World.

Jiang Ding's mind went over the various pieces of intelligence.

In the next instant, he threw himself wholly into the vast sea of stars, vanishing from sight, beginning to be accepted by the Great Thousand World, plummeting toward some spot on the earth below.

At the same time, a pain that bored into bone and marrow — enough to drive a Soul Transformation cultivator mad and into unconsciousness — surged through his body and divine soul.

"Ascension Platform rules… Ascension Baptism…"

Jiang Ding's eyelids twitched; his body trembled.

This agony, born of soul and flesh, instantly overrode the instincts of blood and meat, triggering his divine soul's self-preservation reflex, pulling him toward unconsciousness, the loss of all awareness.

According to intelligence from the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect, this was the Great Thousand World baptizing the ascending cultivator—blessing him, elevating the aptitude of his divine soul and body, and strengthening his potential—bestowing all manner of benefits.

This was a remnant left behind by an Immortal Court that had ruled here some untold millions of years ago!

Clang!

The Great Sun Destruction Sword Intent hummed softly, forcibly slicing away the body's self-preserving urge toward unconsciousness.

Jiang Ding's body trembled.

He was unwilling to lose awareness; at no time — not even his body's own instincts — could influence him, change him, or force him into doing something he did not wish to do.

He did not know how long it lasted.

The transformation of body and divine soul slowly came to an end.

At the same time, a stretch of land strewn with mountains, rivers, and thunder-marshes came into Jiang Ding's view, wholly embracing him — his face deathly pale, his aura faint.

"…Blood Sea Heaven… the Nine Hundred Seventy-Second Great World…"

A broken, halting voice tried to sound in Jiang Ding's ear, but it was like a shattered gear — incomplete, impossible to make out.

At this moment, the Ascension Platform rules showed a slight disturbance.

Boom!

The figure within

was hurled violently into the earth, blasting through the strata, plunging several hundred kilometers deep into the ground.

"Dammit!"

"This really isn't pleasant."

After a short while, Jiang Ding wobbled as he flew out of the crater, his whole body covered in dust, his face marked with several wounds.

He had already been injured by the Ascension Baptism, and now being smashed into the earth had worsened his wounds further; his current strength was less than a tenth of what it had been, and he had fallen into a state of serious injury.

By instinct, Jiang Ding instantly concealed his form and swiftly put distance between himself and the place, to avoid being discovered by the strong cultivators of the Fallen Immortal Realm.

"This still isn't enough."

"It's basically impossible to shake them off and heal in peace."

Deep within the folds of space, Jiang Ding's divine soul spun rapidly: "This is Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect territory — because the Northern Plains Minor World is the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect's lower realm, any cultivator who ascends ascends here."

"The problem now is that every ascending cultivator carries a wisp of 'Innate True Spirit Qi,' which comes from the Ascension Baptism."

"The Nine Heavens Divine Thunder True Sect possesses a special treasure for tracking 'Innate True Spirit Qi' — they can find me, no matter where I run."

"I need to beat them to death first."

"Then stomp that special treasure to pieces."

(End of this chapter)