Chapter 210: A Life for a Life, It Is Only Right and Proper

Beside Bai Qianfeng, Qin Ruoning swept her divine sense across the city districts below, and could not help but knit her brows:

"Fellow Daoist Bai, this heavy snow has already brewed into a great disaster; is it not about time to put away the Snow Cloud Smoke Gauze?"

Bai Qianfeng sat cross-legged on the clouds and laughed dismissively:

"It is too early to put it away now. That Lu Yuan is somewhere in the ends of the earth and perhaps does not even know of this matter; it will not be too late to put it away after a few more days."

This blizzard, which had lasted for half a month, was not a spell, but rather caused by a special Dharma Artifact he possessed called the Snow Cloud Smoke Gauze.

This Dharma Artifact had no offensive capabilities, but it could release vast amounts of cloud and mist to confuse and trap enemies, while also bringing down wind, frost, rain, and snow to create an environment suitable for the growth of spiritual plants in a Lingzhi Garden.

It was precisely this Dharma Artifact, which had almost no combat power, that Bai Qianfeng used to cause Tianjing City to suffer half a month of continuous blizzards, forming a natural disaster that enveloped the entire city.

Of course, the use of this Dharma Artifact required the cooperation of the seasons, and only by deploying it in the dead of winter could it achieve such a great effect.

Qin Ruoning stared at the frozen world below, her gaze deep and dim:

"This disaster has already caused many deaths and injuries within the city; if it continues, the casualties will inevitably surge. Now that we have finally connected to the Lower Realm, we must not act too wantonly. If we cause the wrath of Heaven and the resentment of the people, leading to a loss of hearts and minds, it will surely affect our future operations in the Lower Realm."

Bai Qianfeng laughed:

"Fellow Daoist Qin, you worry too much. These mortals below, though they possess some intelligence, are still just mortals. We will not repeat the mistakes made by those Ancient Cultivators seven thousand years ago; as long as we do not pass down the path of cultivation, they will never be able to stir up any trouble again.

Moreover, it is not that I am cruel or unbenevolent; it is truly that we cannot stay in this Absolute Spirit Land for too long, and using this method is a last resort. Let us do this: I will let this heavy snow fall for another seven days. If after seven days that Lu Yuan is still... hmm?"

Before he could finish his sentence, he seemed to suddenly sense something, turned his head abruptly, and swept his divine sense out.

Beneath the boundless dark clouds, Bai Qianfeng and Qin Ruoning immediately discovered a figure, wrapped in immortal light, breaking through the sky-filling snow and arriving above Tianjing City.

This person wore a Daoist robe and looked incredibly young. Their aura was ethereal and transcendent, like an immortal or a god. Just as they flew above Tianjing City, they formed hand seals, and their voice shook the void:

"Heaven and Earth are natural, filth and Qi disperse. Within the cave is profound emptiness, bright and vast is the Great Origin. The mighty spirits of the eight directions, make me natural!"

This voice seemed to span time and space, ringing not only in the ears of Bai Qianfeng and Qin Ruoning but also across the entire sky of Tianjing City. Countless commoners, government clerks, soldiers, Heavenly Master Mansion disciples, and so on, who were gritting their teeth and fighting against the natural disaster outdoors, suddenly raised their heads and saw a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

They saw that figure flick a finger, and a piercingly bright ball of light rose up. A giant hole was suddenly torn into the thick, lid-like dark clouds amidst the wind and snow. Immediately, the scorching radiance of the great sun poured down from the giant hole, and all of it projected and gathered onto that ball of light, causing it to expand continuously and bloom with an incomparably magnificent, vast, and scorching radiance that bathed the earth!

Above Tianjing City, it was as if a second sun had appeared, rolling with heat waves that scorched the earth.

Under the scorching light, the dark clouds covering the firmament began to melt continuously, and the violent wind and snow also drastically reduced in intensity, beginning to melt into rain while still in mid-air.

On the ground, the thousands upon thousands of people whose limbs were frozen stiff suddenly felt as if they had been transported from the bitter cold of midwinter to the sweltering heat of summer, and sweat even began to flow beneath their thick cotton-padded coats!

What?

At the same time, seeing this shocking scene of two suns descending from the sky, even Bai Qianfeng and Qin Ruoning, who were covered by the dark clouds, had their expressions change repeatedly, their eyes flashing with immense suspicion and disbelief.

It was not just that the spell cast by the figure above Tianjing City was one they had never seen before.

It was even more because the Dharma Power aura on the opponent was vast and mighty, like a mountain or a sea, completely unlike anything a Foundation Establishment cultivator could possess!

"This person is their Supreme Heavenly Master Lu Yuan?"

Bai Qianfeng stood up abruptly from the clouds, his eyes fixed on the opponent:

"He actually broke through to the Golden Core realm in this Absolute Spirit World!? How is this possible!?"

Qin Ruoning's cold and beautiful eyes also rippled with huge waves:

"This aura and power are indeed at the level of a Golden Core cultivator, and it seems he just broke through recently. Without Spirit Pulses, without Spiritual Machine of Heaven and Earth, and without a Spirit-Gathering Array, even a cultivator with a Heavenly Spirit Root cannot condense a True Core. How did he do it?!"

No words could describe the shock, or rather, the terror in their hearts.

In the Yuanling Heaven of the Upper Realm, Golden Core cultivators were also considered high-level combatants, relatively rare, the backbone of major forces, and were Golden Core Real Persons revered by countless low-level cultivators.

This realm was extremely difficult even for cultivators with superior Spirit Roots; after normally reaching the perfection of Foundation Establishment, the probability of breaking through without the aid of other means was only about thirty percent.

To successfully break through and improve the quality of the Golden Core, one needed a Spirit Pulse dojo with abundant Spiritual Machine, high-quality Condensing Crystal Pills or other Golden Core spiritual objects, and thirdly, high-level cultivation techniques assisted by other secret methods.

Bai Qianfeng and Qin Ruoning were each the pride of their respective families, both possessing superior Spirit Roots and extraordinary talent, but when they broke through to the Golden Core realm, they had also rented Spirit Pulses, spent a vast amount of time, energy, and resources, and spent over ten years before they luckily broke through.

Yet in this Lower Realm where Spiritual Machine was extinct, with neither Spirit Pulses nor spiritual objects, let alone reaching the Golden Core, even being able to reach Foundation Establishment was already a stroke of extreme luck. Being able to break through to the Golden Core realm was like a seedling growing into a towering tree in the desert without absorbing any water—it was inconceivable and utterly absurd!

Regardless of what the two were thinking internally.

At this moment, between Heaven and Earth, the second great sun hung above Tianjing City, illuminating the earth. In just a moment, the boundless dark clouds were shattered and melted away in large patches, and even the sky-filling wind and snow nearly ceased.

Millions of commoners who had been hiding from the bitter cold in their homes walked out, ecstatic and excited. Meanwhile, the thousands of Council high-level officials, government clerks, commoners, and so on who had witnessed the whole process outside, without needing anyone's reminder, all bowed in gratitude and tears toward the figure in the sky, shouting wildly:

"It is the Supreme Heavenly Master, the Heavenly Master has returned!"

"The Heavenly Master has saved us again, saved this Tianjing City, wonderful, wonderful!"

"If not for the Heavenly Master, who knows how many tragedies this blizzard disaster would have caused; we thank the Heavenly Master for his great kindness!"

The shouts and the voices of the entire city's commoners were like a surging sea, the sound waves shaking the sky. Lu Yuan, who had already broken through to Refining Qi into Spirit, swept his divine sense across and frowned slightly.

As early as three months ago, he had actually successfully broken through in the northwestern desert, officially condensing his Pill Embryo and stepping into the realm of Refining Qi into Spirit.

After his realm breakthrough, he did not rush back to Tianjing, but continued to travel to consolidate his cultivation, visiting the inaccessible dangerous and forbidden lands of the world to appreciate Heaven and Earth.

It was not until the previous day that he heard by chance that Tianjing was suffering from a once-in-a-millennium snow disaster and was in a critical situation, so he rushed back to Tianjing from the ends of the earth.

And what he had just used to resolve the snow disaster was naturally the 【Violent Sun】 from the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Arts.

【Earthly Fiend - Violent Sun】: Can make the summer sun scorching, with intense sunlight, resolving disasters such as wind, frost, rain, and snow.

This art was specifically for resolving water and flood disasters, and it was also exceptionally applicable to this continuous blizzard. After breaking through to Refining Qi into Spirit, his Dharma Power and cultivation had undergone earth-shaking changes. Even though this art was only at the Earth Tier, it exerted astonishing power and effect, easily eliminating the blizzard disaster that had left the New Nation's high-level officials and even millions of people helpless.

Seeing that Lu Yuan had finished casting the spell, Chen Zhantang, who had been waiting not far away, flew over excitedly at the first moment and respectfully performed the disciple's salute: "Master, it is fortunate that you returned, otherwise..."

Meeting again after four years, Lu Yuan had no time for pleasantries, his eyes cold:

"This blizzard is clearly abnormal. Has anything happened in Tianjing during these days?"

Chen Zhantang vigilantly scanned his surroundings, then gathered his voice into a line:

"Master, I was just about to report to you. Just over half a month ago, two mysterious figures suddenly came to Xiantai Mountain to find you, saying they came from the same place as you and had important matters to discuss.

These two, a man and a woman, could fly through the air, clearly also cultivators of Qi, and their cultivation was unfathomable, far surpassing mine. Disciple did not know their intentions, so I arranged for them to stay in the guest rooms at the foot of the mountain.

However, after a few days, the two left under the pretext of sightseeing, and immediately after, Tianjing City experienced this unprecedented heavy snow. Disciple suspects..."

"Came from the same place as me?"

At this moment, most of the gloomy clouds above Tianjing City had melted, with only layers of surging clouds remaining in the distance. Lu Yuan swept his divine sense around, then looked toward a certain spot and sneered:

"How bold!"

Whoosh!

Before the words had even faded, his figure instantly transformed into a gale, dissipating into nothingness, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared before a bank of dark clouds several miles away:

"Who are you people, daring to act so recklessly here in Tianjing?"

Rumble.

As his voice vibrated, it instantly caused the cloud currents to shake and shatter, as if Heaven itself were enraged.

Bai Qianfeng, who had not expected Lu Yuan to have already reached Golden Core, nor that the other party would discover the two of them so quickly, simply stopped pretending; with a wave of his sleeve, the cloud currents around him dispersed, revealing his form.

He stood tall in the void, facing Lu Yuan, his posture still arrogant as he said:

"What an ignorant lower-realm cultivator, daring to be so presumptuous before us true cultivators of the Upper Realm?"

Qin Ruoning, however, gave a graceful bow to Lu Yuan with a solemn expression and said:

"I am Qin Ruoning, titled Real Person Yue Ning, and this is Bai Qianfeng, Real Person Tianfeng. We greet you, Fellow Daoist Lu."

"True cultivators of the Upper Realm?"

Although he had already guessed it in his heart, at this moment Lu Yuan still frowned in surprise, his gaze shifting between the two:

"Did you descend from the Upper Realm via the Ladder to Heaven? But the great array I set up should normally take at least a hundred years to repair the passage; it shouldn't have connected so quickly."

Bai Qianfeng laughed:

"How could the methods of Upper Realm true cultivators be fathomed by this barren and desolate lower realm? However, the great array you set up helped connect the two realms, so your contribution is not insignificant. As long as we send word to the Upper Realm, you will certainly be granted rewards—Dharma Treasures, true techniques, and spiritual objects, all yours to choose from."

Qin Ruoning also said: "Indeed, the two realms have been cut off for seven thousand years. Now that they are reconnected, it is a joyous occasion. The Upper Realm highly commends this and will surely send down rewards later. May I ask what the origin of the array you used is?"

The two of them aimed their purpose directly at the Great Evolution Mending Heaven Array. Lu Yuan did not answer, but said expressionlessly:

"Are you two the only Upper Realm cultivators to have descended? What is your cultivation level, and what is your standing in the Upper Realm?"

This question had a deeper meaning. Bai Qianfeng narrowed his eyes and said arrogantly:

"What if there are only the two of us? We are Golden Core Real Persons in the Upper Realm, already qualified to establish a sect. However, above us are Nascent Soul True Monarchs and Transformation Spirit Giants; compared to them, Golden Core is nothing."

"Is that so?"

Lu Yuan's tone grew increasingly calm, and he asked again:

"Since you are Upper Realm cultivators, why must you wreak havoc on the mortal world and cause natural disasters?"

Seeing that the atmosphere was wrong, Qin Ruoning spoke first to apologize:

"Fellow Daoist Lu, please calm your anger. This world is devoid of spiritual energy, and we did not have much time to waste after descending. Your disciples did not know your whereabouts, so we had no choice but to use some methods to invite you back to meet us. And Fellow Daoist Bai was also acting out of impatience and failed to control his methods, which led to the current situation. I apologize to you on his behalf."

Bai Qianfeng's brow twitched upon hearing this, but seeing the look Qin Ruoning cast his way, he still said with a forced smile:

"I was indeed acting out of impatience; please forgive me. Besides, it is only a few insignificant mortals who suffered; surely Fellow Daoist Lu will not hold it against me, right?"

In reality, if Lu Yuan's cultivation had not exceeded his expectations, his temperament and methods would have led him to capture and control the other party upon their first meeting, and then slowly interrogate him for his secrets.

However, the cultivation and methods Lu Yuan had just displayed forced him to abandon that plan.

Although the other party seemed to have only recently broken through to the Golden Core level, the two of them were only at the early stage of Golden Core themselves; if they were to truly fight, capturing the other party alive would likely come at a significant cost.

Especially since this world was devoid of spiritual energy, and the fact that the other party could reach Golden Core in such an environment meant he must have extraordinary methods; he did not want to take such a big risk.

Their current mission was to obtain the method for setting up the repair of the Ladder to Heaven. Once that goal was achieved and the two realms were reinforced to allow stronger cultivators to descend, dealing with the other party would be easy.

However, facing Bai Qianfeng's airy words.

Lu Yuan's voice sounded exceptionally calm, even carrying a hint of a sigh:

"No wonder the ancient Human Emperor led the early people seven thousand years ago to seal Heaven and Earth at any cost, completely driving away the Ancient Qi Practitioners. In this half-month, thousands in Tianjing City have been frozen to death or injured because of your spellcasting, yet in your mouth, it is described so lightly. How is such conduct any different from a beast?"

"So-called Qi Refiners are merely people who are powerful and live longer. Since we are all human, then a life for a life is only right and proper."

Then, before the word 'proper' had even finished falling, he opened his mouth, and a beam of incomparably sharp, brilliant white light shot out like thunder tearing through the firmament!

The moment the white light appeared, Heaven and Earth lost their color.

Like the sun rising and the moon setting, alternating as they ascended, the world was divided into black and white, distinct and clear. Hidden beneath the boundless light was infinite killing intent. Bai Qianfeng, who bore the brunt of it, felt alarm bells ringing wildly in his heart at that instant, and every hair on his body stood on end!