Just as the old patriarch forced me to my death, I achieved the unity of Dao and fruition.

"Should I also rise up in rebellion to slay the snake?"

Sitting on the chariot, Gu Changjin recalled the famous anecdote from his previous life, and a look of great interest appeared on his face.

He didn't rush to give any orders, but simply nodded slightly.

"Continue the advance."

Upon receiving the order, four large armies led the way, followed closely by the 50,000-strong allied forces from Beishuo and Hanchuan.

The army advanced along the official road, its dark, imposing formation resembling a long river of steel, its banners fluttering and its menacing aura soaring into the sky.

Between the two mountains, a colossal creature lay across the official road.

It was a giant snake that was entirely white.

It was over a thousand feet long, its massive body coiling around the mountain several times. Its scales were like carved pieces of cold jade, gleaming with a cool, ethereal light in the sunlight.

The snake's head was raised high, almost reaching into the clouds halfway up the mountain. Its golden vertical pupils, however, showed no ferocity, but rather a profound depth that had been shaped by countless years.

Even more strangely, it held a blue jade book in its mouth.

Cloud patterns flowed across the jade book, and wisps of rosy light fell down, intertwining with the auspicious aura surrounding the white snake.

From a distance, it didn't look like a ferocious demon blocking the road at all, but rather more like a special procession set up by some immortal sect to welcome distinguished guests.

The army slowly came to a stop.

The warhorses of the Northern Shuo Xuanjia Army pawed the ground restlessly, and the ordinary soldiers subconsciously held their breath.

Only the four armies of plants remained standing in neat rows, their eyes, glowing with a pale blue light, all fixed on the white snake.

Gu Changjin raised his hand to suppress the commotion in the army and stepped out from the chariot.

"Wait here."

As soon as he finished speaking, he had already passed the army and walked alone towards the white snake.

As the distance closed, a strange light flashed in Gu Changjin's eyes.

A terrestrial deity!

The white snake before them was none other than a great demon who had stepped into the realm of terrestrial immortals.

Although there are also demons in this world, those demons who can truly awaken their intelligence and achieve success in cultivation are extremely rare.

Occasionally, one or two spirit beasts with extraordinary bloodlines would appear, and they would be taken into the mountains by the major immortal sects early on, either as guardian spirit beasts or as extraordinary disciples under their tutelage.

As for the demon race that has reached the realm of terrestrial immortals, they are extremely rare, numbering only a handful in the entire world.

Now, such a being stands before him, holding a book in its hand.

interesting.

Gu Changjin stopped a hundred feet away from the white snake. The white snake slowly lowered its head, and the cyan jade book in its mouth flew out on its own, hovering between the man and the snake.

"Bai Li, the guardian spirit of the Yunmeng Immortal Sect, is here to await the arrival of the Azure Heaven Dao Master on the orders of the Immortal Master."

A clear, cold female voice came from the white snake's mouth, echoing throughout the mountains and fields.

Yunmeng Immortal Sect?

Gu Changjin's eyes flickered slightly, but he did not take the scroll of jade; he simply stood with his hands behind his back.

"It seems that I have never had any dealings with the Yunmeng Immortal Sect."

Bai Li was not surprised by this, and her tone even carried a bit of the usual reserve of an immortal sect envoy.

"It is quite common for a Dao Lord to have risen to power in just a few months and be unaware of the overall structure of the immortal sects in the world."

"In the world today, the Taicang Immortal Sect is the most illustrious. Its mountain gate is not located in the mortal mountains and rivers, but within the Taicang Grotto Heaven. In the past, when the Great Yin Dynasty was established, the Taicang Immortal Sect worked with the Great Yin royal family to manage the world's fortune and jointly forge the heavens. To this day, it still holds the top position among all the immortal sects in the world."

"Outside of Taicang, my Yunmeng Immortal Sect is the most respected."

As Bai Li finished speaking, she slightly raised the snake's head.

"Our sect is located in Yunmeng Tianze, isolated from the world. Our Immortal Lord has long since broken through the limitations of terrestrial immortals and entered the realm of the unimaginable. Now, the Immortal Lord senses that the Azure Heaven is about to rise and pities that the Daoist Lord is unable to support it alone, so he sent me here to deliver a great fortune."

Gu Changjin raised an eyebrow slightly.

good fortune?

Could it be that I'm actually getting the same treatment as the protagonists in historical novels this time?

As the army marched out to war, auspicious omens blocked their path.

Immediately afterwards, a wise and discerning person recognized their talent and sent them strategists and generals.

Upon seeing him, the other party was immediately overwhelmed by his domineering aura and bowed down, crying and begging to assist him in establishing his rule over the world.

He had only ever seen such treatment in novels before.

Thinking of this, Gu Changjin's smile became more genuine.

"Oh?"

"I wonder what kind of fortune your immortal lord intends to bestow upon me?"

Bai Li did not answer directly. Instead, she carefully examined Gu Changjin for a moment with her golden vertical pupils, and then sighed softly.

"Lord of the Azure Heaven, please forgive my bluntness."

"I observe that your forehead is dark and your life palace is stained with blood; you may soon face a bloody disaster!"

Gu Changjin's smile froze for a moment.

That opening line sounds so familiar.

"continue."

"The Dao Lord killed the Prince of Dayin, beheaded the Princess of the Heavenly Family, occupied two states, and changed the sky. These are not the real calamities," Bai Li said in a low voice. "The real calamity comes from the Taicang Immortal Sect."

"The Wenren clan of Taicang has already seen some people leave the Taicang Grotto-Heaven. Of the two people who have come, at least one of them has crossed the threshold you are currently standing on. Moreover, the Wenren clan also possesses a powerful treasure that can trace bloodlines and lock down cause and effect."

"No matter where you hide, you can't escape their pursuit."

"Those few terrestrial immortals behind you, and this still-unformed Azure Heaven, are not enough to stop them."

Bai Li's voice was calm, as if she could already see Gu Changjin's desperate end.

"However, as long as the Yunmeng Immortal Sect is willing to step in, the Wenren Clan will naturally be unable to touch you."

The cyan jade book suspended in mid-air then unfolded.

Ancient seal script characters lit up on the jade book, containing not only the Yunmeng Immortal Sect's promise to send powerful experts to protect the Azure Heaven Path and acknowledge Gu Changjin's status as the ruler of the two states, but also a series of "prices" that Gu Changjin needed to pay.

He handed over the complete text of the method for condensing the blue sky.

The Azure Emperor's Heavenly Register was sent to the Yunmeng Heavenly Marsh, where the Yunmeng Immortal Lord studied it for a hundred years.

In the future, whenever Qingtian gains control of a new prefecture, it must allocate 30% of its fortune to the Yunmeng Immortal Sect.

The Qingtian Dao will regard the Yunmeng Immortal Sect as its superior sect, allowing the Yunmeng Immortal Sect to establish its own sects and recruit disciples in various states.

In addition, the Immortal Lord of Yunmeng also left a mark in the origin of the Azure Sky, euphemistically called "guarding the Azure Sky" to prevent foreign enemies from taking advantage of the situation.

Gu Changjin watched from beginning to end, and the smile on his face grew wider and wider.

Bai Li, however, seemed oblivious to anything amiss, and continued calmly, "The Dao Lord should understand just how precious the Azure Heaven Method you created truly is."

"The Huangting Dao Palace has planned for generations, poring over the secret texts of the old dynasties and comprehending the principles of the heavens' operation, before finally deducing the current Huangtian Law. Even so, they can only gather the hearts of the people from the bottom up, forging Huangtian state by state."

"But the Daoist Master's method can parasitize the heavens, block their hearing, and devour their authority to strengthen himself. This method is far superior to the Yellow Court Daoist Palace."

"It would be such a pity if such a supreme and wonderful method were left in the hands of the Dao Master alone, and were to perish at the hands of Wenren Clan along with the Dao Master."

"Entrusting it to our clan for safekeeping is the safest option."

Gu Changjin finally understood.

This is hardly an advance investment.

Clearly, they had come ahead of time to block the road, intending to seize his cultivation techniques, celestial register, and future auspicious fortune in one gulp during this calamity.

Before the covenant was even written, he had already set his sights on its foundation.

Before he had even exerted a single ounce of effort, they had already planned out how he should serve the Yunmeng Immortal Sect like a slave in the future.

Their behavior is no better than that of the Tai Cang Immortal Sect.

Where is the wise hermit who could recognize talent?

What happened to the promise that fierce generals and strategists would bow down in reverence?

Before he could even utter a single plea for help from the immortal sect, these people had already divided up all his assets.

Gu Changjin gazed at the azure jade book before him, remained silent for a moment, and then suddenly asked, "What if I refuse?"

Bai Li's golden vertical pupils narrowed slightly.

"The Immortal Lord has always cherished talent, which is why he is willing to give the Dao Lord a way out."

"But opportunity lies in a single thought. If the Daoist Master remains obstinate, when the Wenren clan arrives, the Yunmeng Immortal Sect will naturally have no reason to shield an outsider from calamity."

"At that time, not only will the Dao Lord's life be in danger, but the Qingtian (the ruler) of these two states will also have to choose another master."

As soon as he finished speaking, the clouds in the mountains seemed to freeze for a moment.

Bai Li continued to look down at Gu Changjin, quietly awaiting his answer. It didn't believe that the person before it had any other choice.

Gu Changjin raised his hand and slowly gripped the long sword at his waist.

They've given me face.

They really dared to be so arrogant!

He had originally thought that the white snake bringing him the book would at least give him something good.

Instead of anything good, they delivered a bill for dividing up the spoils of the heavens.

Well then, a white snake at the level of a terrestrial immortal is a treasure trove.

Snake bones can be used to forge weapons, snake blood can be used in medicine, and even this body of scales would be suitable for making armor for the Northern Shuo Xuanjia Army.

We can't have come all this way for nothing.

Gu Changjin slowly drew his sword, a gentle smile returning to his face.

"It seems that today, I really have to learn from a certain Emperor Liu who started a rebellion by slaying a white snake."