Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 469 The Emperor's Banner, One Seat

Huo Liancheng fainted, but he didn't die. His bones were shattered and his meridians were severed, much like Huo Lu, who had become a living dead.

Lu Xingzhou glanced at his condition calmly, but didn't kill him. He simply sighed softly and remained silent.

Shen Tang walked to his side and gently grasped his hand with her slender fingers. She could feel a slight tremor in his hand, which showed that Lu Xingzhou was not at peace at the moment.

Shen Tang understood this feeling very well.

The hatred for the massacre of his entire family was the driving force that kept Lu Xingzhou alive, both when he was used as a medicine man and after he was banished from the underworld. Lu Xingzhou was able to remain strong and resilient because of two things: the companionship of A Nuo and his unwavering desire for revenge.

Recalling the time when Ah Nuo was suspected of being "critically ill," Lu Xingzhou, who was usually calm and collected, suddenly lost his composure, as if the world was about to collapse.

Now that Lu Xingzhou's lifelong goal has been achieved, the emptiness he feels after accomplishing this major life event and temporarily losing his purpose is enough to leave him feeling lost for a short time.

For practitioners, this is also a purification of the soul, a complete cycle of setting goals and putting them into practice, which may lead to a breakthrough.

Everyone could see that after a moment of silence, Lu Xingzhou's aura began to subtly increase, rising steadily and linearly from the middle stage of the second rank all the way to the first rank. He then encountered slight resistance at the first rank barrier before breaking through it in one fell swoop.

People understand this concept well: achieving a spiritual fulfillment through the attainment of a long-term, fundamental goal can indeed lead to a breakthrough in a major stage. Using Lu Xingzhou to break through to the first rank was theoretically a waste; it would have been more worthwhile to use it to break through to the super-rank.

Of course, he's so young, he's still a long way from being a top-tier performer.

In fact, all the previous assessments, such as "the youngest in the world," will have to be changed this time.

Lu Xingzhou was twenty-one years old when he broke through to the first rank, making him the youngest first rank holder since the nine-rank system was established.

If we're talking about when his cultivation truly began to surge, it was only a little over a year ago, which is even more terrifying. Before that, due to his severed meridians, he was stuck at the seventh rank and couldn't make any progress. However, that was a case of accumulating strength before unleashing it; it wasn't just a year of cultivation, otherwise people would probably have questioned the meaning of life.

But this also means that if his broken leg problem had been resolved earlier, he might have reached the first rank even sooner, and might already be aiming for the super rank by now...

Thinking this, several people turned their gazes to Yuan Muyu.

Yuan Muyu was initially quite pleased, feeling that she had participated in the "battle of the family" and achieved an important interception, but at this moment, several eyes were looking at her, and her heart skipped a beat as she suddenly realized what everyone was looking at.

So the joy froze on his face, and his complexion grew even paler.

Lu Xingzhou also looked at her at this moment. Yuan Muyu took a half step back, her eyes pleading.

Lu Xingzhou smiled gently and said, "Thank you, sister."

Yuan Muyu breathed a slight sigh of relief, but her shoulders slumped slightly, and she wanted to say something but didn't.

He seems to not care anymore... but sometimes I feel like I'd rather he did care.

It seems that some things, no matter how hard you try, can never be made up for.

Lu Xingzhou looked up at the sky and whispered, "Can we get involved in the Qian Yuan War?"

In theory, it's very difficult.

Huo Liancheng's superior grade is problematic, so he can only take over with grades one and two.

Gu Zhanting's Qian Yuan should be fine. At such a crucial breakthrough, the difference in combat power will be extremely large, which is probably beyond the reach of Huiyang, let alone those of the first and second ranks.

Especially since everyone lacks information and doesn't know the exact difference between Qian Yuan and Hui Yang, they can't even make an estimate. If they rashly get involved, they might get injured by the energy that just barely touches the edge.

The only knowledgeable person here is Jiang Duxu, who is himself a Qian Yuan level expert and knows the strength of Qian Yuan better than anyone else.

At this moment, Jiang Duxu, in coordination with Feng Ziliu, defeated Gu Shaoli. Gu Shaoli, quite straightforward, immediately threw down his sword and surrendered: "The victor is king, the loser is villain. Losing is losing. I, Gu, only sought to prolong my life and have not participated in anything other than this battle. However, even if your victory here is perfect, if you lose the Qian Yuan Battle, everything will still be reversed. Have you made contingency plans?"

When it comes to pure strength, there are no plans. No matter how much planning there is, it all comes down to strength. If you can win, you can win; if you can't, you can't.

Jiang Duxu looked towards Lu Xingzhou, who and the others were also eagerly awaiting his answer.

Jiang Duxu said, “Every individual’s cultivation is different… Some people at the peak of Huiyang can indeed hold their own against Qian Yuan for a few moves, while others are only fit to be blown away by the wind. Some people’s Qian Yuan is incredibly strong, while others are just so-so. I don’t know Gu Zhanting’s specific abilities, so I don’t want to get involved recklessly, and I don’t recommend that you try. After all, not all interventions count as helping; they might just be doing more harm than good, and could distract the Holy Master of Tianyao.”

Lu Xingzhou nodded. His decision not to rush in to help wasn't out of fear of death, but rather because he was worried about making things worse: "Does Mr. Jiang have any other suggestions?"

“The safest approach is to rely on powerful magical artifacts for help, rather than getting involved ourselves.” Jiang Duxu suddenly pulled out a small mechanical figure: “Like this.”

The little figure transformed into a streak of light and shot straight into the sky, its purpose unknown.

Yuan Muyu suddenly handed Lu Xingzhou a crystal core: "Here you go."

Lu Xingzhou took it, sensing the peak aura of the Radiant Sun contained within. His first reaction was that it was extremely compatible with the Myriad Souls Banner: "This is... that Netherworld Ghost Fire from earlier?" "Yes." Yuan Muyu looked at him expectantly: "Give me the Myriad Souls Banner, and I'll help you refine it again, how about it?"

Lu Xingzhou turned his head and glanced around, then took out the Myriad Soul Banner amidst the watchful eyes of numerous high-ranking officials and ministers.

Sheng Qingfeng: "..."

A year ago, if you had pulled this thing out in front of me, you'd probably be in jail by now. Now you think you're so great for tricking my daughter away? You're going to accuse me of practicing evil magic in front of all the officials?
You wait, I'll level up a new account and then I'll talk to you again.

A small, dark flame demon emerged from the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls, its mouth practically watering as it stared at the crystal core in Lu Xingzhou's hand: "My beloved master, your loyal Black Flame is willing to give everything for you! Just let me eat a tiny bit of this crystal core, just a tiny bit..."

Heaven knows how a Flame Demon could drool like that; Yuan Muyu was somewhat stunned.

Why is this Ten Thousand Soul Banner different from the one I know? Where did this little Flame Demon come from?
Although this Flame Demon is weak, its potential is by no means weak. This is a forbidden magic demon, a boundless black flame that devours everything!
Lu Xingzhou was asking for her opinion: "Can we feed it?"

Yuan Muyu said woodenly, "What's given to you is yours. Feed it to whoever you want."

The fire demon was overjoyed and swept down, engulfing the crystal core in flames.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the crystal core shrank smaller and smaller, and within it, the phantom of the previous fire demon flickered in the flames, slowly being merged and devoured.

The aura of the boundless black flames grew increasingly ferocious and violent, and even those standing far away could feel a sense of dread, as if the heavens and earth were about to be annihilated.

The crystal core was quickly devoured, leaving only a few remnants. The Flame Demon smiled ingratiatingly, "I understand, I understand. I am now a mature main soul and can refine the soul banner myself. Please wait a moment, Master."

Then the crystal core residue was rolled onto the pole, and the black flames attached themselves and burned. Before long, the soul banner pole became as clear as black jade, as if the entire material had been upgraded.

Yuan Muyu: "..."

The Soul Banner instantly transformed into a Radiant Sun-level magic weapon, and its soul-burning effect likely has significant potential for further development, though this remains to be seen.

Lu Xingzhou looked down at the unconscious Huo Liancheng and grinned.

Many civil and military officials took a half step back.

The soul banner fluttered gently, and Huo Liancheng's wandering spirit was drawn into the banner.

The biggest difference between Huiyang's soul and the previous ones is that the previous spirits were basically devoid of consciousness, completely at the mercy of their masters. However, Huo Liancheng's spirit, while not entirely Huiyang, still retained a sliver of consciousness, gritting its teeth and cursing: "Lu Xingzhou, you use evil methods to nurture your soul; you will surely offend the world, and you will die a horrible death!"

Lu Xingzhou said "Oh": "You think you can offend the world by targeting a treacherous official like him? Maybe the world will praise you. You're still being stubborn at a time like this. Xiao Hei, burn him."

Black flames grinned as they enveloped Huo Liancheng's ghostly spirit, and the soul's screams of agony rose up.

Lu Xingzhou said with a smile, "No matter how you curse, once you enter my Human Emperor Banner, what autonomy do you expect? Now get on top of me and bite your former master."

Huo Liancheng's twisted and angry expression suddenly became somewhat confused, and he became dazed.

Then anger arose again, but it was no longer anger towards the "current master". Instead, it was anger towards the "former master" for not treating him like a human being. He had taken the blame for him his whole life, but he was not even given a path in life.

The owner of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner can easily interfere with the consciousness of all the spirits within it, amplify the thoughts in a certain corner of their minds, and effortlessly take over them all.

Huo Liancheng's ghostly spirit suddenly roared and soared into the sky.

Lu Xingzhou gently unfurled his soul banner, and Hei Yan quietly followed.

The arena fell silent. Everyone stared blankly as Lu Xingzhou, who had always given the impression of being gentle and refined, a "gentleman like jade," revealed an unprecedented demonic nature.

Looking at Shen Tang, who didn't seem to care at all, she was still holding his hand, as if she was comforting him.

You're insane! This kind of cultist needs your comforting...

Yuan Muyu looked at their tightly clasped hands, and the light in her eyes dimmed even more.

Suddenly, Gu Zhanting's furious roar echoed from beyond the heavens: "Huo Liancheng, you have also betrayed me!!"

Huo Liancheng's voice echoed for miles: "Gu Zhanting! You son of a bitch, back then when you killed Minister Zhang, I framed him for you; when you killed General Xie, I poisoned him for you; you raised demons, and I took the blame; you amassed wealth and treasures by stealing the birthday gifts, you built grand altars, you placed demons as officials in various places, and I did it all! My whole family was wiped out, and you told me not to act rashly! I bore your infamy for a lifetime and endured the hatred of my family, and in the end, you even misled me on the path of cultivation! You die!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: Sorry, my sleep has been acting up again lately. It's okay, it's always been on and off. I'll adjust for a few days and see.

(End of this chapter)