Hidden Mysteries: Grace and Might Applied Together, Turning Intent into an Invisible Reliance

However, before the idea could take shape, the Hundred Schools Aura pressed down upon him.

This force, originating from all sides of Human Path, is far too powerful and domineering in its ability to suppress Divine Ability. When combined with the Ceremonial Staff in Qiu Yan's hand, the combined power increases exponentially.

These figures were originally wisps of consciousness, and their footing was inherently unstable. In reality, after a wisp of their consciousness was extracted, their true forms moved and converged from all directions. However, after the Great Khan appeared, they all stopped in their tracks.

The situation developed too quickly afterward. By the time they reacted, the Hundred Schools Aura had already flowed back through a single point of consciousness connection and reached their physical bodies!

This included Flying Tiger Daoist and three members of Golden Crow Dao. At this moment, they all paused and their expressions changed!

"Qiu Yan really dares to make a move; he's essentially provoking numerous Daoist Sect at once!"

The development of events had completely exceeded their expectations. It was already unexpected that a wisp of consciousness had been captured, and it was one thing for Qiu Yan to take Fortune at the edge of the sect, but now he was using the Hundred Schools Aura to suppress that wisp of consciousness, which was difficult for the cultivators to understand. Moreover, they had just seen the scene of Ding Chunzi and others being sealed in the scriptures.

"Ding Chunzi and the others have all gone their separate ways in the Central Plains. They were sealed away by Qiu Yan, which has made enemies of many sects. Now, is he going to seal away a wisp of our consciousness as well? Forcibly stripping away our consciousness will have a huge impact on our State of Mind and may leave a crack in our hearts that will take a long time to repair. This is no small grudge. Is Qiu Yan really so unwise?"

The group from Golden Crow Dao were also hurrying along, and they had similar questions in their minds.

"Even if he's an official appointed by the imperial court, favored by the Dragon Qi, making so many enemies makes it impossible for him to have a good end. Besides, he himself is a cultivator..." That's what she said, but there was a clear sense of apprehension, even a hint of fear, in her words.

Although Qiu Yan's battle with the Great Chanyu took place in Illusory World and was a calculated move, the methods, scheming, and plans revealed during the battle sent chills down their spines. Their perception and attitude towards Qiu Yan had already subtly changed.

As they moved forward, the cultivators gradually noticed that their movements were becoming increasingly sluggish!

"What's going on? Even if someone unintentionally took a wisp of my thought by taking advantage of the terrain, as long as I wasn't Curse, they shouldn't be able to interfere with my main body!" The Flying Tiger, riding on its escape light, stopped in mid-air, its eyes sweeping across the Grasslands below, and it immediately understood.

"So that's how it is. This entire Grasslands has become a formation, and Qiu Yan's location is the core of the formation. The closer you get, the greater the power of this formation becomes. Your physical body will gradually be suppressed. If you don't want him to interfere, you should get away from the Grasslands as soon as possible, instead of continuing to venture deeper..."

With that thought in mind, he activated his escape technique and landed on the ground.

The incident happened suddenly, and the cultivators who were following behind rushed over immediately. It took them a few moments to react before they returned in their escape lights and Law Treasure.

"Senior? What's wrong? If we don't hurry over, Qiu Yan will suppress a wisp of our consciousness. Even without Evil Method like the 'Seven-Arrows Head-Nailing Book,' leaving it in his hands will still be a hidden danger..."

"Even if you get there, are you confident you can wrest consciousness back from him?" Flying Tiger countered. "Compared to the Great Chanyu who was powerful and influential across the Great Desert hundreds of years ago, besieging the Central Plains emperor for seven days, who is stronger?"

Upon hearing his question, everyone else instinctively fell silent. Although their consciousness had been suppressed by the oppressive force during the previous battle, they could still sense the changes on the battlefield and knew the outcome of that battle.

Following that, Flying Tiger, without holding back, told them about his discoveries and conjectures.

Upon hearing this, everyone was troubled, seemingly unable to make a decision. "The formation? Actually, we've also noticed something. The further north we go, the heavier we feel and the slower our limbs become. However, we can't just leave that wisp of consciousness unattended. This is truly a difficult decision... Hmm?"

However, before they could make a choice, Qiu Yan made another move. Then, through their mental connection, all the cultivators could clearly see that in that illusory world of consciousness, Qiu Yan suddenly used his Ceremonial Staff to stabilize their thoughts. Then, with a flick of his wrist, a surge of Human Path power burst forth from the scroll and landed on strands of consciousness!

Then, consciousness shattered one after another!

"Hmm!"

In an instant, countless cultivators on the vast Grasslands reacted. Those with shallow cultivation directly spat out blood, while those with deeper cultivation groaned and turned pale.

They really did it!

Master Flying Tiger's expression also changed slightly, then became serious. "Offending so many cultivators in one go, and thus provoking the sects behind them, even if some individuals are insignificant within their sects and have little influence, their combined power is still considerable. Qiu Yan is merely an official of the imperial court, not the court itself..."

Even with Flying Tiger Daoist's temperament and cultivation, having a wisp of his consciousness suddenly destroyed would inevitably ignite some anger. After all, although he came to the Grasslands with the intention of using and uniting with Qiu Yan, he ultimately did not intend to compete for anything. As a result, he was caught in the crossfire, so how could he not be angry?

Moreover, there were quite a few cultivators like him present.

"Those who make enemies for no reason and become the target of everyone's criticism will not have a good ending. Could it be that Qiu Yan has become arrogant and complacent after suddenly gaining power?"

Thinking this, Flying Tiger Hu suddenly trembled and flew backward into the air, while Jing'en regained her footing, but her face showed a look of surprise and uncertainty, and her eyes were filled with all sorts of changing light and shadow!

Not only him, but the other cultivators around him also had their expressions change drastically. Their figures swayed, as if they had been hit by something invisible, and they were sent flying backward through the air!

"What are these...?" Dodging the two rapidly approaching figures, Flying Tiger's expression turned grave as he analyzed the sudden influx of information, growing increasingly puzzled. "Knowledge directly transmitted through a wisp of consciousness connection?"

He quickly figured out the reason, but his doubts didn't disappear; instead, they intensified.

What bumped into those people just now was not something of the Five Elements, but a massive amount of information. It came in an instant through the connection of consciousness, almost like a thought or Fortune. Because it was not mixed with supernatural Divine Ability and contained no hostility, it smoothly merged into their Fortune, and finally flowed into their souls.

Then, it immediately exploded, sweeping outwards and leaving information in everyone's hearts and memories, causing their thoughts to become chaotic and their grasp of Spiritual Qi to be confused, which is why they flew out into the air.

However, before they could even express their surprise, they were all stunned by the information that had seeped into their hearts.

"Among this knowledge, the main focus is on Human Path texts—no, not simply Human Path texts, but rather something akin to divine offerings, which is why they so easily seep into our memories. These offerings, imbued with divine Fortune, can invisibly influence us; otherwise, even with a wisp of consciousness guiding us, it wouldn't be possible to transmit information so easily. At first glance, these texts seem like mortal writings, but they actually conceal cultivation methods, subtly pointing towards Transcendence..."

Master Flying Tiger made a discovery, and the other cultivators, after calming their turbulent Qi and Blood, also realized the method from their memories, and immediately showed joy.

"This... this is telling a story of a master and his disciples' journey to the West, but many of the things involved are clearly describing the essentials of spiritual cultivation!"

"This passage discusses the principles of Li Zhen, Li, and Zhen from the Book of Changes. It is truly profound yet simple. Heng refers to refining essence, Li to transforming into Qi, and Zhen to returning to the spirit. In just a few words, it has made clear the key points that I had been pondering for so long!"

"The phrase 'Heaven-Man Union, Gathering the Medicine into the Crucible' —I've heard my grand-uncle mention this before, but he only gave me a brief introduction before sending us non- True Disciple away, as it was a closely guarded secret of the sect. I never expected to find its complete explanation here..."

They gleaned a deeper meaning from the simple words, and the cultivators couldn't help but express their surprise. They then looked at each other, their expressions somewhat complicated.

"Trading a wisp of consciousness for these methods isn't a bad deal."

"Indeed, within a sect, one doesn't know how much price and time would be required to obtain such a legacy..."

"Destroying a wisp of consciousness requires a considerable amount of time to recover, but if that time can be used to comprehend these methods, it may not necessarily be a bad thing."

"That's right. Moreover, even the Great Chanyu couldn't subdue Qiu Yan, which shows his ability. What use would we be if we went?"

"Judging from the information we've received, Qiu Yan intends to spread Human Path. He truly possesses the heart and character of Grand Confucian. His writings resonate with the ultimate truths of heaven and earth and are even helpful for cultivation. Although we cultivate the Dao, we cannot help but admire him..."

Soon, their tone and manner of conversation shifted.

Master Flying Tiger Hu merely observed from the sidelines, remaining silent as he silently comprehended the information within his mind, marveling at its profound depths. However, he also noticed the shifts in the thoughts of the others.

"Capturing the thoughts of the masses, engaging in a fierce battle with the Sixth Realm Chanyu, then shattering their will, and finally transmitting the Dharma—what a series of twists and turns! This combination of kindness and power will mold those who harbor intentions towards him into almost devout followers. It's far more effective than killing, since killing creates enmity and incurs karmic Karma, while right now..."

He narrowed his eyes as he observed the reactions of the people in front of him.

"These people have no memory of the hatred caused by the destruction of a wisp of their consciousness. Instead, they all look like they owe a favor, even to the Karma of condensing karma. If they don't repay this favor when they reach the Fortune and destiny in the future, their cultivation will stagnate! In this way, Qiu Yan has gained many more helpers!"

Thinking about this, Flying Tiger felt a sense of absurdity. However, although he saw the situation clearly, there were still some hidden things on another level—

As the cultivators contemplated the Dharma, wisps of strange, ethereal thoughts drifted up and converged into the Void...

At the same time, the three members of the Golden Crow Dao's expressions changed drastically, their bodies becoming increasingly heavy, even their escape light was crushed, and they fell to the ground, turning into three stubborn rocks. (To be continued...)

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