Granted

In the void beyond the celestial realm, Witch Xian and Zhu Fengdan were watching the battle.

At this moment, Li Qi and Zhang Zong's physical bodies had just collapsed, and they were instantly plunged into a life-or-death crisis.

"Sigh, it's a pity we can't go in and remind them," Zhu Fengdan sighed.

"You've done a good job. You're quite creative in recruiting other fighters this way. You've put in a lot of effort for your apprentice," Witch Xian said with a smile.

"... Witch God, aren't you afraid he'll lose? If he loses, the celestial realm will side with Human Path." Zhu Fengdan looked at Witch Xian.

"If your master isn't worried, why are you? Since we've entrusted you with this task, you must be confident. We all trust you, just as you trust your disciple. Even I have no complaints about choosing him for the Immortal Heaven. Although he may not be the best choice, he's definitely one of the best." Witch Xian's tone was calm and composed, inspiring an irresistible sense of trust. It was as if listening to him calmed one down.

In contrast, he also placed his trust in Zhu Fengdan's choice, even though Zhu Fengdan herself began to have some self-doubt.

Zhu Fengdan, as a high-ranking official, knew about the affairs of the Immortal Heaven from the very beginning.

This was an important task passed down from his master, another sorcerer god, who specifically assigned it to Zhu Fengdan.

Zhu Fengdan then began making intensive arrangements. He used a grand sacrifice to communicate with the immortals and persuaded them to accept a mediocre observation, promising to show them a concrete comparison between the Human Path and the Shaman Path.

Then he went to the Daoist sect and, with the help of Lady Luofu's connections and information, contacted that 'Celestial Master' and obtained permission to mobilize the Little Heavenly Master.

Otherwise, if he were to cause trouble for the Little Heavenly Master, the other party would probably just appear right behind Zhu Fengdan.

This series of journeys was extremely complicated, involving various relationships, various difficulties, and the need to find ways to circumvent Human Path, engage in a verbal battle with a group of scholars in front of the Celestial Master, and persuade the Lady Luofu, among other things.

Fortunately, the results were not bad, and the basic objectives were achieved, despite the considerable effort required.

However, there were also areas where they lost. For example, Zhu Fengdan had already guessed what would happen in this battle, but Zhu Fengdan had mistaken the agent. He had spent a lot of effort intercepting the Human Path envoys who were heading to the Immortal Heaven. You see, the Human Path envoys had never even been to the Immortal Heaven.

Zhu Fengdan was framed. His killing of that third-rank official was a conspiracy in itself. The third-rank official within Li Qi was actually a setup for this day.

Zhu Fengdan prevented the fifth- Human Path envoy from coming, hoping to allow Li Qi to win without a fight. However, to be on the safe side, he also arranged for the Little Heavenly Master to take his place. But the Human Path also had a backup plan: they did not intend to send the fifth-rank envoy at all, but instead sacrificed a third-rank envoy in advance. The fifth-rank envoy was just bait.

The elaborate arrangements made by both sides were all aimed at securing the Celestial Realm.

However, now that the preliminary work has been completed, the pressure has fallen on Li Qi. He was worried that Li Qi could not bear it, so he used the substitution method to make the Little Heavenly Master overlap with him.

It seems these methods have been effective, but... as expected, this kind of opponent is still too difficult for young people.

Li Qi and Zhang Zong's physical bodies were collapsing without their awareness, but in fact, it had already happened long ago. After realizing that there were two enemies, that Perfected Person began to induce them to self-destruct. Their repeated tactical changes were all aimed at destroying the causal connection between the two sides.

For the two of them, they were completely unaware of this destruction, just as they were unaware that the crisis they were in was far more than one. The current physical collapse was merely a backlash caused by the split soul manipulating the body.

The Perfected Person had woven a complete trap, and Zhu Fengdan could only watch helplessly as Li Qi and Zhang Zong unknowingly stepped into it.

Having already fallen into the first trap, how many more can it withstand?

"Sigh." Zhu Fengdan shook her head again, watching the young man fall into a trap, and she couldn't even say anything. This was really something.

"There's no need to worry. Li Qi is an excellent child, and Zhang Zong is no worse than him. In comparison, that Vice Minister has already lost his Dao Path. The third rank is his limit, and he is far from the upper limit of the other two," Witch Xian said.

"Does the Witch God think that the two of them can win?" Zhu Fengdan looked at Witch Xian.

"I didn't say that," Witch Xian said with a slight smile.

Zhu Fengdan stopped asking questions and looked at Xian Tian, who was sitting there watching the battle intently.

The Savage Beast born according to the Dao possesses extraordinary wisdom and power, but it has no desire to pursue the Dao. It is merely a puppet of the Great Dao from which it was born, just like all other Savage Beasts. It is far inferior to Haotian, the ruler of the Spirit Way Heavenly Court, the Vast Heaven Emperor.

However, it cannot be denied that this Savage Beast is extremely powerful and a tremendous asset. Beast fighting is the easiest way to attract the opponent's attention, and this opportunity... can also bring Li Qi a great deal of benefit.

That is, if he survives.

It's difficult. These traps are too tricky for the two who were previously only fifth-rank cultivators. Although that Perfected Person has severed his Dao Path, he is still a genuine third-rank cultivator, without any deception.

Even in the Tang Kingdom, those were figures of the highest rank High Officials.

Keep it up, apprentice.

In the center of the battlefield, Li Qi and the Little Heavenly Master were having an urgent conversation.

Their minds raced, exchanging and processing vast amounts of information in an extremely short time.

Most of this information consists of battlefield intelligence and specific analytical data. Every second, several library-level documents are packaged and sent to the other party, who processes them within seconds. Through this method of communication, the two work together seamlessly to handle the terrifyingly immense pressure.

However, these exchanges of information are occasionally interspersed with a few words of conversation.

The Little Heavenly Master said angrily, "Hey! What happened! How did you get injured again? Haven't you figured out where the injury came from? Aren't you supposed to have sharp eyes?"

Li Qi quickly replied, "If you can't see it, you can't see it. Stop complaining. It's as if you can see it. First, heal your wounds and prepare for the grand sacrifice. Use the grand sacrifice to try and observe the disturbance."

The Little Heavenly Master asked in confusion, "Can rituals be used to observe disturbances? How do you do it?"

Li Qi said, "Setting up a Di Sacrifice that is easy to fail is extremely easy to be disturbed. If it fails, we will know where the problem is, and then we can focus on checking it."

The Little Heavenly Master immediately rejected the proposal. "It's unrealistic. I don't have the time. If we're distracted by setting up a large number of these rituals, we won't be able to focus on the inspections."

Another fierce exchange ensued, leaving the Little Heavenly Master feeling utterly exhausted, while the Perfected Person opposite him remained as calm as ever.

The power of the Thunder Method remained unchanged, but the opponent had become increasingly adept at dealing with it.

Not only were Li Qi and Zhang Zong making progress, but this Perfected Person also did not stop.

It's like everyone's a genius. How could someone who can advance to the third rank be lacking in talent?

His output and performance were consistent; he had no special moves or strange bursts of energy, just calm, composed, and steady attacks.

Victory was thus steadily approaching him.

Just like a road roller, it moved forward steadily and calmly, flattening everything in its path. Li Qi and Zhang Zong were now blocking the road roller, trying to find a way to make it stop.

"It has to be this way, otherwise we'll be dying a slow death," Li Qi said.

The Little Heavenly Master gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I'll give you fifteen seconds, at most fifteen seconds."

"That's enough," Li Qi replied.

The two reached a consensus, and in the next instant, the Little Heavenly Master's protective Thunder Method suddenly reversed, combining with the offensive, completely abandoning defense, and bursting out with double the power!

This power could not last, so the Perfected Person decisively retreated to avoid its sharp edge.

Once this period passes, the Little Heavenly Master will naturally enter a period of weakened defense, at which point he can take the opportunity to once again destroy the opponent's physical body.

"Hmm? Di Sacrifice? Interesting." The Perfected Person chuckled and immediately discerned the intentions of Li Qi and the others.

The Di Sacrifice, the word Di means heaven and ancestors. The object of this sacrifice is the earliest ancestor, or the Vast Heaven Emperor.

Now it seems that it was a sacrifice to Haotian.

The ritual of offering sacrifices to Haotian is extremely easy to be interrupted. It is a very precise ritual method. Choosing this method means either hoping that Haotian will bestow power upon you, since Haotian has indeed done so before.

But that's a low-probability event, so they probably wouldn't gamble on it. Therefore, they wanted to take advantage of the fact that it was "easily interfered with" to find out what caused their collapse.

Hmph, they still don't understand. Everything originated from within themselves. He didn't actually do anything; he just took ordinary actions.

It's not time to use our Trump Cards yet.

The two, who were once third-ranked and were just fifth-ranked, are now both fourth-ranked, but the difference between them is still too great.

He casually stepped back, giving Li Qi fifteen seconds of space.

It doesn't matter. What can fifteen seconds do? It will only weaken the one who used the Thunder Method, and then they will find in vain that they didn't see anything, because the trick they thought they had didn't exist at all. These priests won't find anything useful.

As for Haotian replying personally? Don't even think about it.

Sure enough, fifteen seconds later, Li Qi's sacrificial ceremony was completed.

The sacrificial ceremony proceeded as scheduled.

Very well, as expected... Haotian did not respond. After all, he was a first-rank deity, the progenitor of all 'heavens,' the Heavenly Emperor of the Spirit Way Heavenly Court. If he responded to everyone's calls, then—

Just as he was thinking this, the Perfected Person's pupils suddenly dilated.

A single word echoed from the heavens, "Accurate."

Allow!

This is a kind of approval, a kind of permission, authorizing someone to perform a certain task in a certain place, representing that the task and action have been approved by Haotian!

Why? Why would Haotian personally reply to these two people?!

Moreover, what kind of thing did Haotian permit?

What exactly were they offering sacrifices to and requesting from the heavens? It shouldn't have anything to do with the battle itself, otherwise they would surely have been intercepted by the celestial beings.

The Perfected Person's heart leaped into his throat; things had taken an unexpected turn.

Meanwhile, in the void outside, Witch Xian suddenly burst out laughing. The old man threw his head back and laughed heartily, then looked at Zhu Fengdan: "You little rascal, you're really cunning. How did you manage to get to see Haotian?"

"Sigh, I can't just take the beating for nothing." Zhu Fengdan touched her face.

That really hurts.

A person of the third rank wouldn't act without a purpose... Well, we can't say that for now, because Zhu Fengdan has indeed done many things without a purpose, things that were just on a whim. But it's clear that he's quite reliable when it comes to important matters.

For example, right now.

On the other side, Yao Ji, who had been captured by Witch Xian and escaped the battlefield, couldn't help but look up at the sky and then at Zhu Fengdan.

It seems that the beating I received was due to this great shaman 'knocking on the door'.

So be it.

That mortal Li Qi must have already seen his own Dao aura. At that time... did he already have a decision in his heart?

These mortals... are so cunning.

However, if the other party truly understands his Daoist principles, then what kind of permission does he want—?

While Yao Ji was pondering, Li Qi breathed a long sigh of relief in the center of the battlefield.

He was genuinely nervous beforehand, because he had even kept it a secret from the Little Heavenly Master, fearing that the other party might be able to eavesdrop on their conversation. But to his surprise, the Little Heavenly Master actually bought him fifteen seconds. During those fifteen seconds, for some unknown reason, the other party did not attack but instead obediently chose to dodge.

Thus, the sacrificial ceremony was successful.

Li Qi quickly deduced two results.

If you say that the other party couldn't see the purpose of the divination, Li Qi would absolutely not believe it; that would be deceiving himself. The eyesight of a third-rank official is absolutely trustworthy.

So, in other words, he is not afraid of his own investigation. The frequent physical breakdowns that occurred before... may not necessarily be the work of the other party, but may very well be problems originating from within the body.

The good news is that because the other party didn't care, Li Qi's second plan succeeded, allowing him to deceive everyone and successfully communicate with Haotian.

When communicating with Haotian, Li Qi wrote the following eulogy:

"We respectfully offer sacrifices to the Vast Heaven Emperor, and with the help of the shamans and the music of the gods, we express our gratitude to the Supreme God's divine power. We two have both prepared ourselves and rushed to the capital. Although we lack the delicacies of the sacrificial animals and the fine gifts of the gods, in these difficult times, we have used simple and elegant utensils, served fragrant wine, and performed music and dance. The Emperor's heart is filled with both simplicity and refinement. However, the times are not auspicious, the heavens and earth are in conflict, and the great cosmos is not functioning properly. Therefore, we offer sacrifices to the spirit of the Emperor to pray for blessings and good fortune. We hope that the Supreme God will accept our report."

This is the opening statement, which is to say that the current situation is not good, but I still managed to put together a ritual for you. Please accept it as it is. The matter is really urgent. I think you probably know about this. Figure it out yourself. By the way, the rules and music of my ritual were directly stolen from the shaman's writing. If there are any mistakes or shortcomings, please don't blame me. I don't know anything about it either.

These are not the main points; the main points are what follows.

"Human Path is in chaos, law and order are broken, the military and civilians are tyrannical, and all the world is filled with resentment. It is said that only virtue can move Heaven, and only sincerity can move the gods. Sincerity within will inevitably manifest itself without, and cannot be concealed. When Heaven descends, the resentment and anger are revealed, which leads to fighting and killing, and is provoked into disaster. The people below are effective, and the people above respond to Heaven. Who is to blame? Alas!"

"He has been a tyrannical and ruthless man, harboring widespread hatred and ruthless slaughter in the region. He has clashed with us many times, leaving countless dead in the fields. For over a hundred years, he has disrupted the harmony of heaven and earth, causing corpses to flow and bones to form mountains. The pain of his cruelty is a cry for the innocent. He has wiped out all living beings. The calamities of the world may well have originated from this. He has repeatedly relied on his power to invade and seize, and the people dare not disobey him. This is a great scourge."

"Humans have become so tyrannical, which is the result of God's taming. If the law is not established soon, I fear that Human Path and the preaching of the word will become arrogant and conceited. If this is not dealt with in time, it will be a great fault."

Li Qi was somewhat apprehensive when he said this, but he still did it anyway.