Chapter 255: Breaking the Boundary

Li Heng had many considerations for leaving his divine avatar on autopilot previously. The biggest reason was that he had no time to spare for the avatar's growth, so he simply used it as a cultivation accelerator.

However, now that his Visualization of the Boundless Earth had reached a relatively high level, coupled with his own needs and the current situation of so many souls dying in Beijun, it was time to put the avatar to use.

Bei'an City, the site of the Sanshan Gathering.

A massive temple stood here, named the Youming Dijun Miao, where the incense was flourishing and believers and pilgrims were numerous, with an endless stream of people coming and going to worship and offer sacrifices every day.

Even high-ranking officials and wealthy nobles from Bei'an City and even outer counties would spare no effort to travel by boat just to offer a stick of incense in this temple in order to seek protection.

It even caused the Sanshan Gathering to revive somewhat.

"Shopkeeper, when it comes down to it, this is just a temple. Is it really that efficacious? I don't believe it."

Outside the temple, at a noodle stall.

A burly, somewhat fierce-looking man laughed.

"Eh, you look like an outsider. The Youming Dijun worshipped in the temple is very efficacious; he even protected the people of the Sanshan Gathering during a Disaster in the past."

The short, stout noodle stall owner shook his head, disagreeing.

"Oh? He once manifested his spirit to provide protection?"

The man's eyes flickered, and he hurriedly pressed for more.

"That goes without saying."

"Back then, yin energy was pervasive, and many dirty things appeared; it was the Emperor Lord who manifested his spirit to protect us."

"There was another time, I don't know why, but a kind of white mist filled the surroundings. Anyone who dared to walk into the white mist would disappear instantly, which was incredibly Weird. That Third Child next door to me just vanished inexplicably like that."

"But later, the Emperor Lord displayed his might and protected us as well."

The noodle stall owner shook his head as he spoke, telling these outsiders about the deeds and divine might of the Youming Dijun, which counted as one of the few pleasures in his daily work of pulling and boiling noodles.

"Then I wonder, how exactly did he manifest his spirit?"

The man continued to ask.

"How would I know that? How could mere mortals like us, with our fleshly eyes and mortal bodies, witness true divine might?"

"Boss, if you haven't even witnessed it, how can you be sure that this Youming Dijun definitely exists? Seeing is believing, after all."

A thin man beside the burly man said with a smile.

"Go, go, you outsiders. Even though we haven't seen the Youming Dijun, he must exist; otherwise, this Sanshan Gathering would have ceased to exist long ago."

"Not to mention that those high-ranking officials and wealthy nobles also come here often."

"Alright, alright, since the boss says so, there's nothing we can do. Pay the bill." After the two finished their noodles, the burly man said indifferently, signaling the thin man to pay.

The thin man understood and produced a few copper coins.

Seeing this, the noodle stall owner had undisguised disappointment in his eyes. These two outsiders were dressed so well, yet they were so stingy when paying; it really was the richer you are, the stingier you are, and the stingier you are, the richer you get.

He watched these two outsiders leave.

He saw the backs of the two disappear completely.

The boss spat and cursed.

"These two outsiders, what are they, daring to question the Youming Dijun?" He didn't care whether he had seen the Youming Dijun or not; in any case, this temple and this Youming Dijun were his cash cow.

Therefore, the Youming Dijun must exist!

At this moment, the burly man and the thin man stood before the gate of the Youming Dijun Miao, watching the endless stream of believers entering and exiting the temple with expressions devoid of fluctuation.

"General, does this Youming Dijun really exist?"

"We've asked so many humans, and not one of them has ever seen this so-called Youming Dijun." The thin man shook his head and said.

"Hmph, I don't care whether this Youming Dijun exists or not. Since he dares to snatch souls from this General, this temple must be torn down. We will come again tonight."

"We'll have a meeting with this so-called Youming Dijun!"

The burly man sneered, feeling disdain in his heart.

Even his Majesty dared not claim the title of Emperor Lord. A tiny Incense Divine Spirit whose existence was unknown dared to call himself Emperor Lord? And he even dared to snatch souls from his Xianzhen Army—he was courting death!

The thin man nodded upon hearing this.

The two took a step back, and their figures gradually disappeared. Yet, strangely, the believers coming to burn incense around them did not notice at all.

Suddenly, laughter rang out.

"Guests from afar, why be in such a hurry to leave?"

The two, who were about to leave the level of the Present World and return to another plane, were bounced out, their figures becoming solid once more. The two were shocked, only to see the surrounding scenery and crowd become blurry, and a human figure condensed from golden light appeared before their eyes.

"Aren't you looking for me? I'm here."

Li Heng looked at the two and said calmly.

The two were even more shocked upon hearing this. The burly man stepped forward, his face fearless, and spoke sternly.

"You are that so-called Youming Dijun?"

"There shouldn't be a second Youming Dijun in this Heaven and Earth, should there?"

Li Heng chuckled and said.

"Speak, you two ghosts, or should I say, Yin soldiers—what are you looking for me for?" His Heavenly Eye had already pierced through the essence and seen the true appearance of these two people.

The two were shocked in their hearts. What was going on?

Could this tiny Incense Divine Spirit see through their disguise?

Or was this Incense Divine Spirit actually very strong?

But that made no sense.

In this Great Li Dynasty, with the existence of the Wang Family, the divine path was not prosperous; where could such a strong Incense Divine Spirit come from?

The burly man steadied his mind again.

He bowed to Li Heng.

"My previous words were offensive; please forgive me."

The man's expression was calm; he knew when to yield and when to stand tall.

He had indeed intended to tear down this dilapidated temple earlier, and if a so-called Emperor Lord of the Underworld truly existed, he would have killed him while he was at it. But looking at it now, this Emperor Lord of the Underworld was clearly not someone to be trifled with.

So, rather than being hostile toward him, it would be better to befriend him.

Perhaps he could even become a part of their grand plan.

The thin man beside him was even more astonished at the sight.

He understood his general's temperament well; aside from His Majesty and those few great figures, he feared neither Heaven nor Earth and was full of fire, yet now his attitude was so soft?

Didn't he just say he was going to tear down someone's temple?

Could it be that this Incense Divine Spirit was very strong?

Strong to the point that even the general had to treat him with importance?

He gasped in his heart.

Although his general had recovered from death, lost most of his strength, and his realm had fallen—currently being only at the Dharma Aspect Realm—he was still not someone an ordinary person could compare to.

Li Heng raised an eyebrow slightly.

This Yin Soldier Weird was quite sensible; he had originally wanted to strike him down to earn some Source Power, but he hadn't expected him to yield so easily.

Although he didn't have the habit of not hitting a smiling face, he could still take action if he wanted to; after all, it was this Yin Soldier Weird who had spoken rudely first and even wanted to tear down his temple.

But now, he was more curious about what was behind this Yin Soldier Weird. Could it be related to that troop of Xianzhen Army Yin Soldiers he had seen in the Ghost Domain of Bei'an City before?

It wouldn't be too late to decide whether to kill them after finding these things out.

"Who are you people? Where do you come from? What faction do you belong to? Why have you come?" Li Heng asked.

"I am a general of the Xianzhen Army, Gao Jue, and he is my deputy general, Ding Yi. As for where we come from, forgive us for not being able to disclose that. As for the faction we belong to, it is naturally the Great Ming Dynasty!"

Gao Jue said proudly.

Li Heng's mind shifted, but he remained calm on the surface.

He continued, "But the Great Ming has already fallen."

"Now it is the world of the Great Li."

"Hmph, the Great Li is nothing but a group of rebellious subjects who took advantage of the Great Ming during the time of Disaster and human calamity. But it doesn't matter; given the current situation, they will be finished sooner or later."

Gao Jue crossed his arms and said disdainfully.

Li Heng became interested.

"The Great Li replaced your Great Ming, which shows that the Great Li is, to a certain extent, stronger than you. On what grounds do you believe the Great Li will also be finished?"

"We naturally know the secrets, but it is not convenient to disclose them."

"Unless Your Excellency chooses to join our grand plan."

Gao Jue began to act mysterious and speak in riddles, then changed the subject and directly extended an olive branch to Li Heng.

"So what is your grand plan, and why have you come?" Li Heng asked, not feeling surprised.

"Naturally, it is because Your Excellency has collected too many souls."

Gao Jue said calmly.

"Currently, Beijun is suffering from a catastrophe, and the human race has suffered many casualties, so there are millions of human souls stranded on the land of Beijun."

"Human souls are extremely important to us, so we have been collecting them. This can prevent them from completely dissipating into Heaven and Earth, or sinking into the earth and entering a Reincarnation that we don't even know exists. Yet we discovered that a considerable portion of the souls were gathering toward Your Excellency and then disappearing."

Li Heng suddenly realized upon hearing this. He had thought he possessed some kind of taunt aura that could attract the hatred of mobs like a protagonist, but he hadn't expected it to be a dispute between peers?

He smiled faintly and then spoke.

"Is there a problem with that?"

"These souls were ownerless to begin with, or if they had owners, they belonged to the individuals themselves. You have come to my door to hold me accountable for collecting souls, so can I also hold you accountable?"

Li Heng narrowed his eyes and looked at the two.

Gao Jue smiled faintly at his words.

"Since ancient times, resources have belonged to the strong; why must Your Excellency be angry? Now that we know of Your Excellency's strength, we intend to turn hostility into friendship."

"However, these souls are very important to us. So, I ask Your Excellency to show mercy; we are willing to pay resources in exchange, how about that? Of course, it would be even better if you could join our plan."

In his words, he was still trying to recruit Li Heng.

"Then what is this so-called grand plan? You want others to join an incomprehensible plan while keeping them in the dark?"

Li Heng said calmly.

He couldn't help but recall the scenes he had seen before. Yin Soldier Borrowing Path, gathering Yin Soldiers from all directions—such a major move was not for a small goal.

"This..."

Gao Jue fell into deep thought; this was indeed a problem.

He thought for a moment and spoke again.

"How about this, we will show our sincerity. The use of the human souls we collect is actually to replenish our troops. For this grand plan, we have lost too many soldiers."

"As for what our ultimate goal is."

"I can only tell Your Excellency two words."

"Breaking the Boundary!"