Chapter 664

Under heaven, Xiongba reigns supreme; countless hidden experts and Yinshizong Sects in Yunzhou dare not show their faces.

The reason is that fate favors Xiongba.

Who could have known that a simple act to force Xiongba out and verify if he still lived?

Would escalate into this earth-shattering battle!

At first, only the heavenly qi within a hundred li around Tianshan was drawn away.

Later, nearly a thousand li, then ten thousand li.

The dark clouds above Tianshan grew ever denser.

As Emperor Wuchang pondered who was fighting atop Tianshan, a royal eunuch entered.

"Your Majesty! The diviner just sent word—the heavens' fate in that realm has been obscured; he cannot divine it."

"He also warns Your Majesty: this matter is beyond the control of our Yunzhou imperial clan!"

Emperor Wuchang fell silent—he knew even a fool understood the Yunzhou imperial clan couldn't handle this.

Even his own brother, Emperor Wenlong, might…

"Wuchang…"

Just as he thought of Emperor Wenlong, a figure suddenly appeared in the imperial study.

Wu Wu immediately bowed in greeting.

"Big brother…"

Emperor Wuchang rose at once, face alight with joy.

"Since our last parting, ten years have passed—why has Big Brother returned so suddenly?"

The newcomer was, of course, Emperor Wenlong, whom Emperor Wuchang had just been thinking of.

He wore a grim face, gazing toward Tianshan, where winds stirred and clouds churned in chaotic swirls, and said:

"The battle there—one of the combatants is him…"

The "him" Emperor Wenlong referred to was naturally Wu Wudi, the Ten Strong Warriors.

Years ago, Wu Wudi had favored him and taught him the Tenfold Invincible Defense, laying the foundation for his status as a top-tier powerhouse.

Though he never formally became a disciple, in Emperor Wenlong's eyes, Wu Wudi was his master.

"What? Could it be that one…?"

Emperor Wuchang's face turned pale—he knew full well who his brother meant.

"Then who is the other? Few in this world can match him in combat…"

Even Di Shitian at his peak was wounded by Wu Wudi.

In Emperor Wuchang's mind, only Ximen Wudi could stand against Wu Wudi!

"I don't know…"

Emperor Wenlong let out a bitter laugh—only now did he realize how vast the gap between himself and Wu Wudi was, more terrifying than a chasm.

Only then did he realize that the gap between himself and Wu Wudi was more terrifying than a chasm!

Though Wu Wudi belonged to no faction, Emperor Wuchang, because of Emperor Wenlong, still harbored hopes of winning him over.

Whether he could succeed was uncertain, but at least Wu Wudi counted as half their own.

Hence, Emperor Wuchang cared whether he would prevail.

"I don't know…"

Emperor Wenlong gave another bitter laugh—judging the outcome of a battle at this level was too much to ask.

"But I came here to warn you not to use forbidden methods."

Every great power possesses a last-resort survival technique.

The Great Qin, the Great Tang, the Great Yuan—all have them; so does the Yunzhou imperial clan.

The battle atop Tianshan seems not to reach Yunzhou's imperial capital.

But as the conflict escalates, the churning heavenly qi may trigger unforeseen changes.

Then Emperor Wuchang might be tempted to use forbidden methods to calm Yunzhou's heavenly qi and interfere in the battle.

This was precisely why Emperor Wenlong had come.

This was the true purpose of Emperor Wenlong's visit here.

Emperor Wuchang asked, puzzled.

He hadn't thought so far ahead, nor had he considered using forbidden methods—he simply didn't understand why his brother was so tense.

"Nothing! The battle may be ending soon…"

Emperor Wenlong muttered cryptically, his gaze fixed on the direction of Bai Long Creek.

He had not seen the colossal figure Xue Xue had glimpsed at the Sword Realm's entrance.

But he had seen Lu Xueqi summoning the blazing heavenly thunder!

A single Four Seasons Guardian could summon blazing heavenly thunder and strike down a Heaven's Dao Golden List-level expert with one sword.

Then if heavenly qi erupted and tore open space—how could the Qinglong Society or that one remain idle?

Qinglong Peak, Qinglong Shanzhuang.

Di Shitian, who had been calmly sipping tea with Senior Xiaoyaozi and Zhang Daoling, discussing martial arts, suddenly turned pale.

He stared toward Tianshan in Yunzhou, a flicker of barely perceptible dread crossing his face.

He looked toward Tianshan in Yunzhou, and a flash of imperceptible dread crossed his face.

Senior Xiaoyaozi and Zhang Daoling also noticed the changes at Tianshan—and saw Di Shitian's expression.

Their hearts stirred; they understood the general situation atop Tianshan.

A thought stirred in his mind; he already understood the general situation on the other side of Tianshan.

"Mr. Xu, do you think that the current you, if you were to fight him, would have any chance of victory?"

Senior Xiaoyaozi naturally wasn't the type to mention the one pot that wouldn't boil.

For any martial artist, before the Earthly Immortal Realm, what matters is converting internal force into true Qi, and then converting true Qi into true essence.

When all true Qi is converted into true essence, one has stepped into the Earthly Immortal Realm.

But after entering the Earthly Immortal Realm, although cultivation is indeed important, what matters more is the state of mind, battle intent, battle heart, and so on.

Among these, the state of mind is especially important!

Back then, Di Shitian, with nearly two thousand years of cultivation, was left pale and drained at the hands of Wu Wudi precisely because his battle intent and battle heart were not blazing.

He looked down on Wu Wudi, who was only twenty years old, and thus brought upon himself a crushing defeat.

If that battle had involved an ordinary martial artist, there wouldn't have been much of a problem.

But Di Shitian had roamed the martial world for nearly two thousand years, secretly manipulating countless major affairs in Yunzhou.

He had long been toying with the mortal world, regarding himself as the god of the mortal realm.

That battle with Wu Wudi was when his divine status shattered and he fell from the altar.

That battle severely affected Di Shitian's state of mind.

At his level, if his state of mind were unstable, before his cultivation could break through, he might be invaded by inner demons or outer demons, leading to the dissolution of body and Dao.

Although there are divine pills and divine objects like the Bodhi Clear-Heart Pill that can assist martial artists in resisting inner demons.

But the best way to overcome inner demons and outer demons is not to rely on external forces like divine pills and divine objects.

Rather, it is to see through them oneself, and only then can one reach the perfect realm.

For example, that Ghost Valley Master who was once broken through his Dao heart by a single sword strike from Ximen Wudi, faked his death, hid his name, and lingered on in the world.

Although he ultimately relied on the Bodhi Clear-Heart Pill to suppress his inner demons.

His cultivation, after all, could never grow by much; the limitation was right there.

So when Senior Xiaoyaozi said those words, he was actually helping Di Shitian to see through his inner demons.

That battle back then that caused him to lose his status was the inner demon deep within Di Shitian's heart!

Di Shitian listened to his words, and a flash of fear, resentment, loss, and many other emotions crossed his face.

In the end, it gradually became somewhat serene, and only then did he say,

"No one knows without fighting!

I obtained the Great Dragon Head, and with the aid of the Qinglong Society, not only have I completely recovered my former cultivation.

I have even pushed the Holy Heart Art to a higher level.

Fighting him again is not out of the question.