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

High in the sky.

The elder from the Purple Cloud Sword Sect and the female Taoist priest from the Nine Mountains Immortal Sect looked at each other without speaking for a long time.

A guardian spirit of the mountain, a terrestrial immortal, was killed without hesitation.

The mark left by the Immortal Lord of Yunmeng was also severed by a single sword strike.

Immediately afterwards, the 50,000 miscellaneous troops, who should have been harboring their own thoughts and had only been reorganized for a few days, actually condensed into a military spirit that was close to the extreme realm of terrestrial immortals under Gu Changjin's few words.

This scene far exceeded their expectations when they arrived.

They originally intended to use the resources of their immortal sect as leverage to exchange for the method of condensing the Azure Sky from Gu Changjin.

Even if they don't make exorbitant demands like the Yunmeng Immortal Sect, they certainly won't be without any requests.

But now, the two of them suddenly hesitated.

Is Gu Changjin really a pawn they can subdue and support?

Or perhaps, by some mishap, the immortal sect itself could become the very resources he uses to forge the heavens?

The female Taoist priest of the Nine Peaks Immortal Sect looked down at the 50,000 soldiers raising their arms and shouting in the valley, her eyes filled with complex emotions, and she finally couldn't help but murmur a sentence.

"Are you advocating for the people?"

"No wonder the weather is like this..."

She didn't say anything more.

The thoughts of all people are an integral part of Heaven.

The immortal sects of the world always felt that they stood above all living beings, able to use all living beings as chess pieces and dynasties as tools.

But when someone actually brings these billions of lives together, who can say for sure that the roles of the player and the pieces will be reversed?

The old man carrying the sword remained silent for a moment, then turned and walked away into the distance.

"Let's go back to the mountain."

"Gu Changjin has already given the answer to all the immortal sects in the world. Whether we continue to sit high on our laurels or enter the fray to compete is a decision that our sects must make again."

The female Taoist priest nodded slightly.

The Mountain and River Array rotated, and the two figures disappeared along with the clouds.

In times of great contention, outstanding talents emerge in great numbers.

Lu Cheng'an rose from humble beginnings to amass great power.

Gu Changjin, once a pawn abandoned by the state, rose to power in two provinces and established his own rule.

And how should these immortal sects, which have been passed down for countless years, conduct themselves next?

No one can answer this question for them.

……

After killing Bai Li, Gu Changjin did not linger between the two mountains for long.

After finishing their snake soup meal, the 50,000-strong army set off again, officially entering the territory of Hexi Prefecture.

The army advanced faster than anyone had anticipated.

Before the spirit of the grass and trees could even appear, the governor of the first prefecture along the way opened the city gates with the city officials and personally knelt outside the city with his official seal.

The second county town originally intended to resist.

The city's defenders boasted that they would rely on the heavens and the city's protective formation to hold out for three months.

As a result, the four grass and wood armies only took one step forward, and the four sword-wielding army spirits simultaneously dropped their swords.

The city's protective formation couldn't even hold for half a quarter of an hour before the city gate, along with half of the city wall, collapsed.

The guard was quickly bound by his men and brought before Gu Changjin.

As for the subsequent cities, they were even simpler.

The news of Bai Li's execution and Yunmeng Yushu's destruction had already spread throughout Hexi.

Gu Changjin's words, "Under the blue sky, I will not serve any family or sect," were repeatedly recited by the cultivators and refugees along the way.

In addition, he set rules in advance: those who opened the city gates would not be killed, surrendered soldiers would not be punished, and anyone who dared to take advantage of the chaos to plunder the people, whether they were government troops or Qingtian Army soldiers, would be beheaded.

The local officials, who had originally planned to hold their ground, suddenly had a change of heart.

Serving the Great Yin Dynasty in guarding the city makes one a loyal subject.

Opening the gates to welcome the clear sky and sparing the people of the city from war seems to be in line with the will of the people.

Since both sides can find a moral high ground, then naturally they should do whatever it takes to survive.

In just three days, the army traversed the northern part of Hexi Prefecture, its advance pointing directly at the prefecture's capital!

Few people knew that the intelligence received by Hexi Prefecture was already a whole level behind.

The last message successfully delivered by the scouts hidden in the mountain god temple stopped when Bai Li, with a jade book in her mouth, confronted Gu Changjin.

Later, Gu Changjin slew the snake with his sword, and the 50,000-strong army rallied their military spirit. The blue sky resonated with the army's momentum, and the Cangtian Post Road, which stretched for thousands of miles, was briefly disrupted.

Before the scouts could send out a second secret report, the Grass and Wood Warriors found their hiding place by following the roots in the mountains.

Therefore, the city of Hexi knew that Bai Li was dead.

The three elders of the Yunmeng Immortal Sect sensed it through their soul lamps and knew that Gu Changjin had rejected the conditions.

But no one witnessed the complete events surrounding Bai Li's death or the fate of the 50,000-strong army.

What they possessed was still the old intelligence from when Gu Changjin attacked Hanchuan.

Gu Changjin himself is at the pinnacle of the terrestrial immortal realm.

Aoki, possibly a mid-stage terrestrial immortal.

Each of the four grass and wood armies can condense a military soul at the initial stage of a terrestrial immortal.

As for Qingsong Daoren, Hanlian Xianzi, Leihuai Daoren, and Chiteng Tongzi, they all integrated their own aura into the grass and wood formation from beginning to end.

To outsiders, they would only be seen as ordinary commanders of the four grass and wood armies.

This is the assessment of Gu Changjin's full strength by the city of Hexi.

That's why no one in the city thought they would lose this battle.

The council hall in Hexi Prefecture.

The three elders of the Yunmeng Immortal Sect sat cross-legged at the head of the table.

The leader, True Person Yunxiu, was also a powerful terrestrial immortal at the pinnacle of cultivation.

The other two were slightly inferior, but both had already entered the late stage of the Land Immortal realm.

On the other side of the main hall sat three prefectural officials from Hexi Prefecture.

The weakest of the three was still a mid-stage Land Immortal.

The white-haired old general sitting next to the main seat was the true pillar of stability for Hexi Prefecture.

Qin Muye.

He was once the Great General of the Western Garrison of the Great Yin Dynasty, who commanded 800,000 troops to sweep across the seventy-two tribes in the Northwest. He enjoyed great prestige in both the court and the army.

Three hundred years ago, he resigned from his official post due to an old injury and returned to his ancestral home in Hexi to live out his retirement. However, his cultivation level had already reached the ultimate realm of a terrestrial immortal!

Two terrestrial immortals at the pinnacle of their realm.

Two are in the late stage, and three are in the middle stage.

A total of seven terrestrial deities!

This is not all of Hexi Prefecture's trump cards.

In the center of the main hall, a golden imperial edict floated above the eye of the Heavenly Array.

That was the Pingqing Edict, personally stamped with the imperial seal by Emperor Yin.

Once activated, it can bypass the ordinary governor's celestial register and directly mobilize a portion of the power of the heavens to suppress all those who possess the celestial register of the Great Yin Dynasty but rebel against the court.

"Gu Changjin is in Beishuo and Hanchuan, with the Azure Heaven protecting him, so we really don't dare to enter easily."

Master Yunxiu looked out of the hall, his tone indifferent.

"But he was too proud."

"They actually dared to leave the two states and step into Hexi, which is still under the control of the heavens."

An elder from Yunmeng sneered.

"Does he really think that reaching the pinnacle of terrestrial immortality means he can roam the world freely?"

"The four early-stage military spirits are cumbersome and slow; we only need one person from each to hold them off. We'll leave Qingmu to the three elders, and as for Gu Changjin…"

His gaze shifted to Master Yunxiu and Qin Muye.

The two experts at the pinnacle of their abilities nodded simultaneously.

The two joined forces, along with the edict of Pingqing, the Azure Heaven of Hexi, and the grand formation of the state city.

How can Gu Changjin possibly withstand this?

Qin Muye slowly stood up and put on the black battle armor that had been hanging for three hundred years.

"Send the order to the entire city."

"Raise the formation, seal the gate."

"Today, I will use this very city of Hexi to bury the heavens!"

Rumble!

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, a black torrent appeared on the distant horizon.

The 50,000-strong army arrived much faster than anyone had anticipated!

The sound of war drums rose from within the city.

Layer upon layer of array patterns climbed all over the city wall, and the golden imperial edict slowly rose into the sky. The originally calm blue sky suddenly sank down, like an endless ocean pressing down on the city.

Seven figures simultaneously ascended the city wall.

Seven streams of divine aura from the land surged into the sky!

Two of them have already reached the very pinnacle of this realm!

Master Yunxiu looked down at the distant armored chariot, his voice carrying the overwhelming pressure of the heavens across the land.

"Gu Changjin!"

"You killed my Immortal Sect's Spirit Envoy and betrayed the Great Yin Divine Dynasty. Now that you dare to set foot in Hexi, you have no reason to return!"

The armored chariot slowly came to a stop.

Gu Changjin looked up, his gaze sweeping over the seven people on the city wall in turn.

One.

two.

……

Seven.

He suddenly laughed.

"Indeed, this saves me the trouble of searching for them one by one."