Striking First

"Heavenly Dao, Immortal Arts".

Looking at Tian Qingzi from Gu Jinlai, this Longevity Pavilion...

The research they're doing is actually so advanced?

However, he then thought of the rumors about the Longevity Pavilion.

This faction has a history that is even longer than that of the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect.

As they said, they have always been an institution specializing in alchemy, researching Divine Ability, Technique Method, the Heavenly Dao, and even studying the Great Dao.

Because of their indifference to worldly affairs, their consistently decent strength, and their skill in currying favor with the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect, the ruler of the Xuan Immortal Realm, the many upheavals that have occurred in the Xuan Immortal Realm have not affected their development.

Their claim that they can restrain and break the Mohist school's Heavenly Dao and Immortal Arts is most likely not just empty talk.

"If the information provided by the Longevity Pavilion is truly useful, and the Creation Sect takes control of the Northern Region in the future, the Longevity Pavilion's Xuanxian advancement will not be suppressed or hindered in any way. In fact, as long as you have the ability, we will never interfere if you want to cultivate into a Great Dao Golden Immortal."

Gu Jinlai, everyone has known what he was waiting for, and he calmly gave his promise.

He was confident that his growth rate would far surpass that of the Longevity Pavilion, and that he would naturally be able to make this force willingly submit.

Having received the promise from Gu Jinlai, Tian Qingzi smiled and said, "Thank you for your understanding, Divine Sage Jiang."

He then asked, "Does the Holy Spirit Jiang have any blank Jade Slip?"

A Jade Slip was handed to him by Gu Jinlai.

Tian Qingzi's divine sense surged, quickly injecting a large amount of information into the Jade Slip, which he then handed to Gu Jinlai: "The Mo family inherited from the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect. Like the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect, they follow the Great Dao of Destruction, composed of five main Heavenly Dao from the Five Elements Great Daos of Geng Metal, Yi Wood, Xuanming, Li Fire, and Hou Earth, as well as four Heavenly Dao of Thunder, Annihilation, Disintegration, and Dissolution..."

Tian Qingzi watched as Gu Jinlai consulted the Jade Slip slips and explained the information to him.

"The Great Dao of Destruction is renowned among the three thousand Great Daos, ranking among the top. Back then, the founder of the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect relied on the power of the Great Dao of Destruction to form the Xuanhuang Alliance against the evil gods. At the same level, no one could rival him. However, the stronger the Great Dao, the more difficult it is to forge. Since the fall of the Xuan Yuan founder, coupled with the dramatic changes in the environment of the Xuanxian Realm, it has been difficult for the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect to have anyone who can master the Great Dao of Destruction and reproduce the prestige of the Xuan Yuan founder in the past tens of thousands of years."

As Tian Qingzi spoke, he emphasized the key points. "The Mo family mainly focuses on three Heavenly Dao: Xuanming, Thunder, and Annihilation. Since Annihilation is a major Heavenly Dao within the Great Dao of Destruction, they can still barely activate the Dao techniques derived from the Great Dao of Destruction, which is what we often call immortal techniques—the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi."

The same Gu Jinlai.

Showing off, huh?

The commonly mentioned magic arts?

He really didn't know.

Even the Creation Sect has no records of immortal techniques.

However, considering that the Creation Sect was ultimately just a medium-sized force, and its strongest in history was only a top-tier Dao Lord, he did not ask for much more.

How many immortal techniques does the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect have?

"Immortal arts are precious. The Xuan Yuan Sword Sect only has immortal arts derived from the Great Dao of Destruction, namely the main Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi, the Great Disintegration Technique for divine weapons, the Five Elements Annihilation Divine Light for defeating the weak with the strong and the many with the few, and an auxiliary immortal art obtained from the Xuanhuang Alliance, which is based on the Heavenly Dao of Thunder - the Eye of Thunder Punishment! This immortal art is the foundation for the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect's rule over the Xuanxian Realm."

Tian Qingzi had a very detailed understanding of this intelligence.

Finally, he added, "However, what we mainly need to understand is the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi. This is an incredibly powerful immortal technique. Back when Ancestor Xuan Yuan unified the Xuanxian Realm, countless brilliant immortals perished under the sword of this technique."

Gu Jinlai nodded.

"Since no one in the Mohist school has mastered the Great Dao of Destruction, simply using the Annihilation Heavenly Dao to unleash the power of the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi will inevitably be insufficient. At the same time, because the Heavenly Dao is incomplete, this immortal technique also has flaws that can be exploited. Based on our research over the years, the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi has three flaws..."

Tian Qingzi patiently explained.

Gu Jinlai, there has never been a time for humility, attentive listening, and immediate questioning of anything one does not understand.

It took him a long time to finally grasp the power of the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi.

"Looks like the enemy's rating will have to be raised again."

Gu Jinlai.

"Immortal arts are derived from the true Dao techniques, and their power is extremely great. In particular, the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi itself is a simplification of the Great Destruction Technique, which is the ultimate and most brilliant interpretation of the Dao of Destruction. Its power is so great that it is said to be able to destroy a world."

At this point, Tian Qingzi seemed to find it hard to imagine how powerful the Great Dao technique that could destroy a world could be.

It took him a while to come to his senses, as if he felt that his statement had boosted the morale of others while diminishing his own.

He then said, "Saint Jiang walks the path of the Innate Saint. The Innate Saint is actually the embodiment of the Great Dao. Judging from the methods used by Saint Jiang... your path leans towards high temperature, raging flames, and intense light. I wonder if you are Bifang, Huodou, Phoenix, or the Sacred Vermilion Bird or the Great Sun Golden Crow? The Great Dao contained in these Innate Saints may not be much inferior to the Great Dao of Destruction."

"Thank you for your kind words."

Gu Jinlai.

Only...

He knows his own situation; he is not a purely innate, divine being.

I have no idea what kind of power of the Great Dao I will eventually comprehend.

But...

Evolving stars!

It should lean more towards the Great Sun Golden Crow among the innate sacred beings.

But his achievements should not be limited to the Great Sun Crow.

After pondering for a moment, he glanced at Tian Qingzi again. "Your Changsheng Pavilion has always wanted to break free from the shackles of the Mo family, so you should know the Mo family very well, right? There must be more than just Mo Ziya among the Xuanxian of the Mo family, right? And how many Immortal Lords and Dao Lords are there?"

"There is indeed more than one Xuanxian in the Mo family, Mo Ziya. If we are not mistaken, Mo Longfei, who disappeared three hundred years ago and was said to have gone to explore other worlds, should also have cultivated into a Xuanxian and is hiding in the Mo family."

Tian Qingzi paused as he spoke, then added, "Of course, it's also possible that with the closure of the Xuanxian Realm, they were kept outside of it."

"Just Mo Longfei?"

This has surprised people Gu Jinlai.

"Shouldn't it be one?"

Tian Qingzi was somewhat taken aback.

"Aren't there more reclusive old monsters lurking in the shadows?"

"An ancient monster who has never been seen in the world..."

Tian Qingzi quickly understood what he meant by "from Gu Jinlai present," and immediately smiled bitterly, "The environment of the Xuanxian Realm is not what it used to be. If it were ten thousand years ago, with the support of the grotto-heavens and the Heavenly Dao, the Celestial Immortals and Xuanxians might have been able to live for three to five thousand years. But now... the grotto- Heavenly Dao and the Heavenly Dao are already a burden for the Celestial Immortals and Xuanxians. Maintaining their normal operation requires a lot of spirit crystals. How can they share the pressure for the Celestial Immortals and Xuanxians? Looking at the past ten thousand years, the longest-lived Immortal Lord did not even live for three thousand years."

Gu Jinlai, people have understood the implied meaning behind Tian Qingzi's words.

The so-called Mysterious Immortal Ancestor couldn't possibly have lived that long.

"As for the remaining Immortal Lords, Dao Lords, and Celestial Immortals, I do have some information here. Please take a look, Divine Sage Jiang."

Tian Qingzi once again condensed a Divine Sense: "As for those below the Heavenly Immortal level, I don't need to say more."

Gu Jinlai nodded and quickly accepted the Divine Sense.

"I accept the goodwill of the Longevity Pavilion. As for the rest... there's no point in saying more. Let's wait until our Creation Sect wins this war before we talk about it."

"Then I wish Jiang Shengsheng and the Creation Sect a great victory."

Tian Qingzi cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.

After saying that, his avatar vanished.

After Tian Qingzi left, Gu Jinlai continued to digest the newly acquired information.

After a long while, he slowly exhaled.

"Although the intelligence from the Longevity Pavilion indicates that the Mo family only has two Xuan Immortals, the intelligence from the Longevity Pavilion may not be entirely reliable. I still have to consider the enemy as having three Xuan Immortals, and... their combat strength level also needs to be raised. Three high-level Xuan Immortals, and perhaps one or two of them have even reached the level of top-level Xuan Immortals."

From Gu Jinlai, they have murmured to themselves.

But then, his brows furrowed.

If this is indeed the lineup, with his current abilities, he probably wouldn't be able to contend with the Mo family's Xuanxian.

They couldn't even handle the Mo family's Xuanxian, let alone the large number of Celestial Immortals, True Immortals, and Void Immortals in their ranks.

"The situation is very serious."

Gu Jinlai slowly said, "Non-Self can obtain another five hundred beams of pure light and raise the Great Sun Eternal Law to the fourth level... even the fourth level might not be enough! This level can only give me some advantage when facing the three great Xuanxian of the Mo family, but it's still a bit short of defeating the Northern Region Allied Army on my own. If things go wrong, it might end up being a lose-lose situation..."

The only way to break this deadlock is to raise the Great Sun Eternal Law to the fifth level.

That is, one thousand five hundred beams of clear light were obtained.

"Even if the Northern Alliance launches another attack in two months, I will at most gain another one or two hundred Streams of Clear Light. After all, almost all the truly Karma high-level cultivators in the Flame River Path have fled the Flame River Path and escaped into the Storm Mountain Range, just waiting for the Northern Alliance to counterattack and lead the way for them..."

Gu Jinlai, we continue to look towards the Storm Mountains.

"The True Immortals of the Flame River Sect number more than a hundred, and the Void Immortals number in the thousands. If these Void Immortals and True Immortals hadn't fled, and there were enough of them, gathering 500 Pure Lights within a month wouldn't be difficult, let alone 1,500 Pure Lights..."

After he had this idea, a flash of inspiration suddenly appeared in his mind.

Sufficient illusory immortals and true immortals!?

There aren't enough Void Immortals or True Immortals in the Flame River Path, but there are in the Storm Mountain Range.

After more than two months of gathering, a large number of True Immortals and Void Immortals from the Northern Region have gathered in the Stormy Mountains.

Not to mention the hundreds of True Immortals and thousands of Virtual Immortals, conservatively speaking, there are already more than five hundred True Immortals and tens of thousands of Virtual Immortals who have arrived at Storm Mountain Range.

It would be a bit biased to say that all five hundred True Immortals and tens of thousands of Virtual Immortals were evil people, but killing one out of the two would not be a single injustice.

In other words...

If he can defeat these True Immortals and Virtual Immortals, let alone 1,500 beams of light, even 2,500 beams would be quite possible.

"As an innate deity, or rather, as a Xuanxian, the greatest advantage is speed and agility. If it comes to positional warfare, how much better can a Xuanxian be than a Xianzhu? I can take advantage of the fact that the Northern Region Alliance has not yet fully assembled to launch a counterattack and try to gather 1,500 Qingguang. If I can make those small and medium-sized forces in the Northern Region Alliance realize that the price of annexing my Creation Sect may be their lives, they might collapse on their own."

Without the vast number of True Immortals and Virtual Immortals...

The balance of power shifted instantly.

When used for attacks, the Creation Gate's more than two hundred Shadow Carrier mechs can be put to use immediately.

At that time, the balance of war will tilt toward the Gate of Creation at an extremely rapid pace.

"I should have thought of this earlier. Sitting and waiting for death is not my style. Only by taking the initiative can we seize the opportunity."

Gu Jinlai of this, he took a step and his figure moved like light, quickly returning to the Smoke Moon Sect.

After quickly locating Zhang Yukun with his powerful divine sense, he directly transmitted his voice. "Have Elder Ye Yan and Sect Master Jiang prepare. Perhaps... the final battle will be brought forward."

"The decisive battle is being brought forward?"

Zhang Yukun was slightly taken aback.

"We hold the initiative in the battle. Why should we wait for them to assemble before we launch a counterattack? When to start the war is up to us, the Creation Sect."

Gu Jinlai said, "I will launch a surprise attack on Storm Mountain. Based on the results of the attack, I will give you further instructions. Be prepared."

"A surprise attack on Storm Mountain Range?"

Zhang Yukun's expression changed. "This... is too dangerous! Although the Mo family patriarch, Mo Ziya, has not yet appeared in the Stormy Mountains, it is said that the Mo family patriarch, Mo Longxuan, has already arrived in the Stormy Mountains to take charge of the overall situation. Also in the Stormy Mountains with him are the two Immortal Lords, Mo Longjian and Ning Yu, as well as the Myriad Manifestations Immortal Lord of the Myriad Stars Sword Sect. As for Dao Lords, there are as many as ten..."

"It's alright, I know what I'm doing. I won't force myself if things can't be done."

He calmly said something Gu Jinlai.

Zhang Yukun glanced at his own Supreme Elder, recalling the many miracles he had created along the way, and finally solemnly said, "Yes, I will begin preparations for war immediately."

Gu Jinlai nodded.

After giving Zhang Yukun a little time to prepare, he once again considered how to deal with the Great Limitless Annihilation Sword Qi. Then, he took a step and headed straight for the Storm Mountain Range, tens of thousands of miles away.

At this time, the Storm Mountain Range was teeming with powerful individuals.

Just as Zhang Yukun said, there were more than ten Immortal Lords and Dao Lords in total, and there were dozens of Celestial Immortals who descended in avatar form.

Almost every one of these people possesses various secret techniques and treasures. They have at least eight or ten rare and exquisite Dao artifacts that are seldom seen in ordinary times.

Although it couldn't compare to the complete sets of top-grade Dao artifacts possessed by the true immortals of the Immortal Kingdom, Gu Jinlai, who had never cultivated any concealment Cultivation Method, had no way of silently approaching the Storm Mountain Range thanks to these secret techniques and treasures.

In reality...

There has never been any intention to hide one's identity, either in Gu Jinlai.

In this situation, even when he was still tens of thousands of miles away from the Stormy Mountains, Mo Longxuan, Wanxiang Immortal Lord, Mo Longjian, Ningyu Immortal Lord, and others in the mountains had already received the news.

Immediately, their faces were filled with strange expressions.

"Does Jiang Yufeng really think we're completely unprepared during the gathering phase? Instead of causing trouble in other parts of the Northern Region and attacking the mountain ranges of some small and medium-sized forces while their main forces were away, he's heading straight for the Storm Mountain Range? What is he trying to do? Wipe us all out?"

Mo Longxuan found it somewhat unbelievable.

"Jiang Yufeng has always been arrogant and has great confidence in his own strength. He is going straight for the heart of the enemy, intending to take advantage of the absence of Ancestor Mo Ziya to crush us with overwhelming force. This behavior is very much in line with his style."

The Immortal Lord of All Things solemnly declared.

"They are really so arrogant, they simply treat us immortal lords and Dao lords as nothing."

Mo Longjian's expression was indifferent.

"Although our Immortal Lord possesses power no less than that of a Profound Immortal, he ultimately cannot rely on a grotto-heaven like a Profound Immortal. His combat strength is difficult to sustain. If he can exhaust our power after a period of entanglement, we may not even be able to maintain the operation of the Heavenly Dao within our bodies. It is only reasonable that Jiang Yufeng does not take us seriously."

Ning Yuxian, on the other hand, appeared quite calm.

She is also the only female immortal lord among the four great immortal lords.

In addition, she has another identity: the dao companion of Mo Longfei, another Xuanxian of the Mo family.

"However, despite his meticulous planning, he ultimately failed to anticipate that, to ensure the success of this battle, our Mo family not only dispatched Uncle Mozi, but also Long Fei, who had ended his seclusion early and was now lurking around the Stormy Mountains. This was partly to support the forces from various regions who responded to the call, and partly to defend against his sneak attack before we had completed our assembly."

Ning Yuxian said directly, "I will send a message to Long Fei right away. He will arrive at the scene at most a few dozen breaths later than Jiang Yufeng."

"It only took a few dozen breaths. The four of us took turns attacking, and we didn't even have to worry about completely exhausting our strength."

Mo Longxuan smiled and said, "Once Long Fei arrives and keeps Jiang Yufeng occupied, Ancestor Mo Ziya will also rush to reinforce us at full speed. If all goes well, we won't even need to spend the money to ask Ancestor Chi to help us, and we can kill this so-called innate saint in the Stormy Mountains ahead of schedule."

The others smiled and nodded.

Yes.

The Mo family not only had two Xuanxian (mysterious immortals), but they also contacted the Chi family, the overlord of the Southern Region, with whom they had been married for generations, and paid a price to have the Chi family patriarch personally take action a month later.

Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit.

When the Mohists realized that their pressure had not subsided in Gu Jinlai face of their power, they understood that they must have something to rely Gu Jinlai.

Therefore, they will mobilize three great immortals and more than a dozen immortal lords and Dao lords to ensure that nothing goes wrong.

"Alright everyone, the person has arrived. Gather all Dao Lords and let us see what kind of methods Jiang Yufeng, who has embarked on the path of innate divinity, has."

After saying that, Mo Longxuan took to the air.

The other three immortal masters followed closely behind.

Before long, dozens of streaks of light shot into the sky below, reaching tens of thousands of meters in the air in an instant, and looking straight to the horizon amidst the mighty winds.

These are all Dao Lords and Celestial Immortals in the Northern Allied Forces.

As for true immortals...

Clearly, they were not qualified to stand alongside these top figures and could only look up at the battlefield at the edge of the sky from the Storm Mountains.

Who will make the first move?

Mo Longxuan said something.

"I'll do it."

The Immortal Lord of Myriad Manifestations stepped forward. "Last time, I wasn't prepared enough, and he managed to break free from my suppression by the Heavenly Dao of Houtu. This time, I want to see if he can really easily defeat my Heavenly Dao power."

By striking first, he naturally has more time to recover from his losses when his strength wanes.

"For safety's sake, it's best if Wanxiang and I work together, one suppressing and weakening, the other attacking and restraining."

Despite his cold demeanor and arrogant pronouncements, Mo Longjian showed no contempt when facing this innate Gu Jinlai: "After all, the opponent is a being whose combat power is comparable to a Xuanxian. The sustained combat ability he displayed when breaking through the Tianhuo Sect was not much inferior to that of a top Xuanxian. The two of us attacking together is not only a sign of respect for our opponent, but also a responsibility for our own safety."

Mo Longxuan and Ning Yuxian nodded in agreement. "Then it will depend on the two of you to start the first battle."

"With the Dragon Sword Immortal Lord taking action, the two of us should be able to hold out until Dragon Flying Immortal arrives."

The Immortal Lord of Myriad Phenomena said with a smile.

At that moment, the four of them took to the air again, heading straight for the figure that was rapidly approaching from the horizon.

When the two sides were hundreds of miles apart, Mo Longxuan shouted angrily, "Jiang Yufeng, your Creation Sect is acting against the natural order. Because of a small conflict, you brazenly destroyed the Heavenly Fire Sect and wiped out the entire sect. Such behavior is like that of a demon..."

Before he could finish speaking, the figure that had been rushing within hundreds of miles of each other grew larger in the wind, transforming with incredible speed into a terrifying giant over 1,300 meters tall.

This terrifying form of a true immortal caused everyone present to change color drastically.

"As expected, he is a Primordial Saint who has reached the Nine Heavens Mystic Immortal Realm..."

Meanwhile, the Myriad Manifestations Immortal Lord and the Ink Dragon Sword, who were in charge of the first batch of attacks, immediately manifested their True Immortal burst state, their figures rising and growing larger, transforming into two terrifying figures over eight hundred meters tall.

Only...

Over 800 meters compared to over 1300 meters...

The difference between the two is clearly more than just a little bit.

It's almost equivalent to a 1.2-meter-tall child who just needs to buy a half-price ticket for a bus versus a 1.95-meter-tall strong man.

However...

This is not the end.

After its size expanded to 1,300 meters, this towering giant increased in size again, reaching a terrifying 1,800 meters at an extremely rapid pace.

This time, the size difference between the two sides has been amplified to its extreme.

Standing before Gu Jinlai, the Myriad Manifestations Immortal Lord and the Ink Dragon Sword looked less than children, at best like kindergarteners.

It's still the kind of class where students are in small groups.

"How could this be..."

Even Mo Longxuan, who had been so confident of victory just moments before, felt immense pressure at this scene.

A dazzling radiance, like that of the blazing sun, emanated from his body throughout the Gu Jinlai, and golden flames seemed to flow continuously within his skin.

As the golden flames continued to condense, a huge halo with a diameter of over two thousand meters began to take shape before him. At the same time, a terrifying energy was brewing within his body, making the radiance emanating from him even more intense. From a distance, it looked like a great sun radiating blinding light.

"This Jiang Yufeng... did he hide his strength when he attacked the Heavenly Fire Sect?!"

"Damn it! Don't hold back, let's all attack together!"

"Activate the Heavenly Dao and strike first!"

Mo Longxuan, Ning Yuxianzhu, and Wanxiangxianzhu shouted simultaneously, without any distinction between them.

The next moment, a vast and powerful force surged out from their bodies, manifesting as many strange phenomena.

A majestic divine mountain appeared above the head of the Immortal Lord of Myriad Phenomena, seemingly capable of suppressing heaven and earth.

Like the Suspended Sword Dao Master, the Ink Dragon Sword condensed into a Geng Metal Heavenly Dao.

Ning Yuxian transformed into Xuanming, giving rise to a dark and turbulent river.

Behind Mo Longxuan, a huge vortex appeared, containing a deep sense of destruction. It seemed that any matter that went deep into it would be crushed into dust.

The moment the strange phenomena appeared on them, the halo with a diameter of two thousand meters, which Gu Jinlai, took shape. With his four fingers pointing in succession, four terrifying beams of light with a diameter of more than five hundred meters, carrying the high temperature of burning the void, bombarded the four immortal masters.