Wei Yuan's trump card

As the carving knife pierced his heart, Salun Agu let out an uncontrollable roar, as if he were enduring the torment of hellfire, his voice mournful and desolate.

"Given the Grand Wizard's meticulousness, he must have consulted the oracle before the battle to see if it would bring him great fortune. If it weren't for the Supervisor protecting me from the carving knife and concealing the secrets of heaven, it would have been almost impossible to assassinate the Grand Wizard."

"Warlock evolved from wizards, and only Warlock can counter the divination techniques of wizards. Without the help of the supervisor, it would be too difficult to defeat you."

Wei Yuan's carving knife slowly penetrated Salen Agu's heart, causing his spiritual power to surge wildly and his bodily functions to rapidly dissipate under the erosion of the carving knife.

In just two or three seconds, Salen Agu aged twenty years, becoming withered and emaciated, seemingly on the verge of death.

The situation suddenly reversed, and the two third-grade Spiritual Masters' expressions changed drastically. They tacitly made the same response, pointing their palms at Salun Agu and Wei Yuan respectively.

A burst of crimson light emanated from his left palm, stimulating Salun Agu's vitality and resisting the corrosive power of the Confucian Sage's carving knife. His right palm unleashed a curse-killing technique on Wei Yuan from a distance.

"Snort!"

Wei Yuan extended his left palm and gripped the high priest's neck, while his right hand drew a carving knife and stabbed it at Salen Agu's head from the side.

First, use the power of the carving knife to wear down the body's functions, rendering it unable to resist. Then, use the carving knife to destroy the opponent's Primordial Spirit, completely annihilating this first-rank great wizard.

At that moment, a flash of sword light appeared.

Puff!

Blood splattered everywhere. Wei Yuan stared in astonishment as his arm was severed, blood gushing out like a fountain.

The severed arm, along with the Confucian sage's carving knife, was held in one hand.

This is an arm with intertwined golden and dark light; an arm that extends from between Salun Agu's eyebrows.

Wei Yuan frowned, retreated without hesitation, and stood far away, staring intently at Salun Agu.

With a series of cracking sounds, flesh and blood intertwined and writhed, bones regenerated, and a brand new arm coalesced.

Huff! Wei Yuan exhaled, and the protective divine light once again covered his body, solidifying into a body of bronze and iron.

The reason his arm was severed was not because his defense was weak. He had feigned weakness and was then killed by three high-ranking wizards who used their blood as a medium to cast a curse. Wei Yuan was seriously injured on the spot, and his physique, which he was so proud of as a martial artist, was broken.

He then seized the opportunity and, unexpectedly, attacked the great shaman Salun Agu with the Confucian sage's carving knife.

This series of actions required both feigning weakness and seizing fleeting opportunities, leaving no room for Wei Yuan to regain his invincible spirit.

However, unexpectedly, the other side also had a backup plan.

From inside Salun Agu, a man dressed in a dragon robe slowly emerged. He had regular features, slightly thick eyebrows, and his eyes were filled with deep malice.

Upon closer inspection, the man in the dragon robe had a flawless, jade-like body, with golden and dark light intertwined on his skin, making him appear both sacred and malevolent.

Yang Shen!

The late Emperor Zhende!

"Knowing that you, Wei Yuan, are skilled in strategy and dared to attack Jingshan City, you must have something to rely on. You've played along with me for so long, and I've played along with you for so long. We're just trying to see what cards the other has up their sleeve."

Salun Agu smiled and said, "The Confucian Sage's Carving Knife, I didn't expect you could also use it. Tsk tsk, you, Wei Yuan, are actually a person who cares about the common people."

His body shimmered with crimson light, his chest flesh writhed, and in an instant he returned to normal, his skin wrinkles fading away.

However, the aura of this first-rank great wizard had ultimately weakened considerably.

Just like Wei Yuan's Qi and Blood, it has now fallen below the peak of the third rank.

Click, click.

Bones shattered, flesh collapsed and contracted, and the man in the dragon robe refined Wei Yuan's arm into pure Qi and Blood, which he then ingested.

"The taste is quite good; I imagine your Qi and Blood are in excellent condition as well."

The man in the dragon robe laughed as he held the Confucian Sage Carving Knife in his palm. Thick, filthy, and decadent liquid gushed out, slowly corroding the knife and erasing its spiritual essence.

Just like how the leader of the Earth Sect briefly corrupted the spirit of the National Sword.

Wei Yuan looked at him intently, a mixture of sadness and disappointment in his eyes, and sighed deeply, "So it was you, it really was you!"

Joan of Arc chuckled, a cruel and sinister smile curling at the corner of her lips. She glanced at the Confucian scholar's carving knife, which was gradually being covered by a thick, black liquid, and said:

"I need some time to seal it, and you need some time to recover. For the sake of our more than twenty years of friendship, please ask me anything you wish."

Salun Agu did not object; his injuries were no less severe than Wei Yuan's.

"The human trafficking organization controlled by the Earl of Pingyuan is working for you, isn't it?" Wei Yuan said.

Emperor Joan of Arc nodded and sneered, "You claim to be acting for the country and its people, but if you hadn't relentlessly pressured the Earl of Pingyuan, I wouldn't have tried to eliminate him, and the massacre of Chuzhou might never have happened."

"And then you'll tolerate your continued consumption of innocent lives?"

Wei Yuan casually took out a porcelain bottle, popped the cork off with a "pop," and drank all the qi-replenishing pills.

A few seconds later, his complexion returned to normal, and he sighed, "When did you become like this?"

The man in the dragon robe grinned menacingly and said, "In the 26th year of Joan of Arc's reign, the leader of the Earth Sect defiled me."

He paused, gazing at the distant, raging flames of war, and slowly said:

"My health has always been poor, and those miraculous medicines that can bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded have little effect on me. As for a monarch, with his great fortune, how long he can live is actually predetermined."

"I didn't think there was anything good about immortality before; birth, aging, sickness, and death are the natural order. But as I've grown older, I've begun to fear death and yearn for immortality. But even Confucian sages couldn't defy the laws of nature, let alone me?"

"Until the 26th year of Joan of Arc, the head of the Earth Sect corrupted me. He told me that earthly kings cannot live forever, and even those of the highest rank cannot change this fate. But he could make me live much longer, far longer than a normal king."

"At that time, my health was deteriorating, and I couldn't resist his persuasion, so I agreed."

Wei Yuan narrowed his eyes and said, "So, in the 26th year of Zhen De's reign, you ate the Prince of Huai."

Joan of Arc's face contorted with extreme wickedness as she shook her head:

"No, it's assimilation. I refined his soul and received his memories. He is me, and I am him. This is one of the secrets of the One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones."

"If it were merely a matter of possession, the physical body and the Primordial Spirit would not be in harmony, leading to endless troubles and essentially cutting off the path of cultivation. How could I do something like that that would cut off my own escape route?"

"Unfortunately, I am not a member of the orthodox Daoist School. Even with the help of the leader of the Earth Sect, who forcibly refined the Primordial Spirit of the Prince of Huai, my main soul still remains incomplete."

Without the help of the second-rank Daoist leader of the Earth Sect, he would not have been able to perform the One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones technique.

Wei Yuan pondered for a moment, "What about Yuan Jing? Was Yuan Jing also devoured by you around that time?"

Joan of Arc shook her head and chuckled:

"The two brothers should have assimilated with me at that time, but as I said, after refining the soul of the Prince of Huai, my main soul was unable to repair the part of the soul that had been separated, and it became incomplete."

"Under such circumstances, how could I possibly devour Yuan Jing again? I had no choice but to change my plan and have the leader of the Earth Sect use the Daoist School Bewitching Technique to erase Yuan Jing's memory of this period. Then, he planted the seed of demonic thoughts in his sea of consciousness."

"And I, having made all the preparations, faked my death and abdicated, hiding in the underground dragon vein that had been opened up, the only place where I could avoid the watchful eyes of the supervisor. I lay low quietly, waiting for an opportunity, waiting for the chance to refine the Yuanjing."

"To my surprise, Yuan Jing learned from my experience and stopped relinquishing power to the chief minister. He focused on governing diligently while balancing the various factions. With the Great Feng's power growing and its fortunes rising, I had no chance to devour it until you appeared."

Wei Yuan was taken aback.

"You forgot?"

Empress Joan of Arc stared at Wei Yuan, the curve of her lips widening little by little:

"In the sixth year of Yuanjing, General Dugu of the north passed away. You personally led troops into battle, repelled the barbarian army, and made a name for yourself. Perhaps you should think again about why you went into battle in the first place?"

Wei Yuan's pupils dilated instantly, as if struck by lightning.

"Hahaha!" Joan of Arc burst into wild laughter.

"The dignified Empress of the Great Feng, the mother of the nation, was actually having an affair with a palace eunuch—who was also her childhood sweetheart before she entered the palace. What man could bear such a blow, let alone a stubborn and self-willed emperor like Yuan Jing?"

He laughed wildly, laughed unrestrainedly, laughed so hard he bent over backwards.

"From that time on, the demonic thoughts in Yuan Jing's mind finally revived, slowly eroding and corrupting him. The reason why Yuan Jing did not kill you and the Empress at that time was because he was influenced by the demonic thoughts, became cold and cunning, and after learning about your past with the Empress, he changed his mindset and wanted to use the Empress to control you."

"Then came the Battle of Shanhai Pass, a war that shook the fate of the Great Feng Kingdom. At the end of the Battle of Shanhai Pass, I took the opportunity to refine Yuan Jing and take his place."

"After replacing Yuan Jing, I learned my lesson and stopped indulging in women, focusing solely on cultivation. While refining elixirs and consuming medicinal pills, I allowed the Earl of Pingyuan to continue plundering people. After more than forty years, I finally cultivated a Yang Spirit and entered the second-grade Tribulation Transcending stage. Wei Yuan, tell me, should I thank you?"

The real Yuan Jing passed away twenty years ago.

"By the way, I can tell you an extra secret. The person who secretly informed Yuan Jing about your relationship with the Empress was the Crown Prince's birth mother, Consort Chen." Emperor Zhende dropped another bombshell.

Consort Chen. Wei Yuan remained silent for a long time, "What is the purpose of the Earth Sect Master's painstaking efforts to help you?"

Emperor Joan of Arc sneered, "At that time, the leader of the Earth Sect already showed signs of demonic possession, but his good intentions were stronger than his evil intentions, and he suppressed them. In order to prevent himself from being refined and eliminated, his evil intentions came up with a plan."

"When we were discussing the Dao, evil thoughts sensed my desire for immortality and secretly corrupted me, amplifying my craving for immortality. Then, taking advantage of a brief opportunity to control my body, it seduced me and conspired with me to do all this."

"Afterwards, the leader of the Earth Sect returned to his sect for seclusion. His thoughts of good and evil were entangled for forty years. Forty years later, the leader of the Earth Sect fell into demonic possession, his Primordial Spirit split apart, and his good thoughts managed to escape with a lingering breath. Think about it."

Wei Yuan took out another porcelain bottle, swallowed the pill, pondered for a moment, and said:

"Bewitching the monarch for immortality, devouring one's own children. For forty years, the people have suffered, the nation's strength has declined, and the consequences will inevitably follow. Therefore, forty years later, the leader of the Earth Sect has completely fallen into demonic possession. But there is still one thing I don't understand. Even if you achieve the One Qi Transformation into Three Pure Ones and possess your current cultivation, living longer and longer, you are still an emperor of the mortal realm. How can you achieve immortality?"

Empress Joan of Arc glanced at the Confucian scholar's carving knife with a malicious look in her eyes, and said in a low voice:

"Later, someone taught me how to achieve immortality as an emperor. His words truly enlightened me. For the past twenty years, all my schemes have stemmed from that person. Including today, using the sorcerer as bait to lure you in is the most crucial step in my plan."

The carving knife was completely contaminated, losing all its spirit.

"Although it can only pollute it for half a quarter of an hour, that's enough." Empress Joan of Arc casually tossed it off the cliff, then turned to Wei Yuan and sneered:

"How do you plan to bypass us and seal the Witch God?"

Present were a great wizard, two spiritual masters, and a powerful expert at the Tribulation Transcending stage.

Wei Yuan was just one person, a military man who could barely be considered a second-rank official.

Joan of Arc raised her hand, as if she had conjured something from the air, pinched it between her fingertips, and flicked it.

A Sword Qi aura roared out, multiplying from one to two, from two to three, and from three to countless others.

The dense Sword Qi, like a school of fish in the ocean or a surging torrent, shot towards Wei Yuan head-on.

Each Sword Qi could easily kill a fourth-rank cultivator; in addition, the Sword Qi contained attacks targeting the Primordial Spirit.

The Human Sect's Qi Sword and Heart Sword are combined into one.

Wei Yuan crossed his arms in front of his chest, advancing through the dense rain of swords, each strike accompanied by a dazzling, magnificent burst of light.

At one moment, the Sword Qi tore Wei Yuan apart, causing him to vanish like a dream.

Empress Joan of Arc retreated abruptly, riding on a golden light.

Wei Yuan reappeared, only to find himself missing.

Apart from Buddhist School monks, no other high-ranking martial artist from any other system would dare to let a martial artist get close.

The two chased each other through the mountains, their energy exploding layer upon layer, causing the mountain to collapse and boulders to roll down continuously. At one moment, a large patch of dense forest suddenly "slipped" down, leaving a clean break.

Sometimes, the sound of explosions could be heard from the sea, causing raging waves and tsunamis.

No matter how hard others tried, they could not make out the figures of the two top masters.

In this battle, even third-rank experts like Irbu and Wudabaota could only play a supporting role, occasionally seizing opportunities to use curse techniques to interfere with Wei Yuan.

Alternatively, one could utilize the core abilities of a Spirit Master to imbue Empress Joan of Arc's Sword Qi energy with spirituality, ensuring it wouldn't miss its mark, thereby slowly eroding Wei Yuan's Qi and Blood.

Aside from grinding, almost no major systems have a way to quickly kill a martial artist of rank three or above.

Salen Agu, who did not participate in the battle, sighed, "A warrior capable of breaking through formations is truly a headache."

His figure blurred again, as if separated from the real world by an invisible curtain.

Salun Agu shouted, "Joan of Arc, I lend you the power of this world. Do you have the confidence to kill Wei Yuan?"

Joan of Arc paused high in the air, laughing wildly, "Then I thank the great sorcerer for helping me kill this traitorous minister."

Salun Agu stomped his foot, "The earth gave me spirit."

Rocks weathered, soil turned into yellow sand, and streams of earth and metal spirits, mediated by Salun Agu, vanished into the void and poured upon Joan of Arc.

"Plants and trees give me spirit."

The flowers, plants, and trees withered at a visible rate. The vibrant, verdant power of the wood spirit nourished Empress Joan of Arc.

"The ocean gave me spirit."

The shimmering sea and the dark, watery power poured over Joan of Arc.

"The flames of war have given me my spirit."

As streams of heaven and earth's power were drawn in, Emperor Joan of Arc's aura surged. At this moment, he seemed to have become the master of this place, coldly looking down upon the treacherous officials.

Joan of Arc slowly drew her sword. She pulled a sword from the void that was interwoven with the five colors of "metal, wood, water, fire, and earth," the power of the five elements, the foundation of all things.

Irbu, Uda Pagoda, and Salun Agu simultaneously reached out, imbuing the sword with spiritual power through the core abilities of the Spirit Masters.

After doing all this, Salen Agu, the great shaman of the Witch God Cult, a top-ranking figure in the world, rapidly lost his aura.

Even a first-rank official like himself is nearing exhaustion.

For the next century, the area surrounding Jingshan was reduced to wasteland.

The sword's power surged once more.

This sword strike subtly surpassed its grade.

So much so that Joan of Arc's hand holding the sword trembled slightly, as if she could not control it.

This sword strike combined the power of two Rank 3 experts, one Rank 1 expert, and one Rank 2 expert.

In this era where superb products are constantly emerging, it will be invincible.

On the battlefield in the far distance, whether it was the Great Feng or the Northeast Army, every soldier felt the overwhelming power of the heavens and felt a great fear in their hearts. Some fled in panic, some urinated and defecated, and some died on the spot from heart palpitations.

Zhang Kaitai and other experts felt their scalps tingle instantly. They suppressed their fear and looked towards the source of the majesty, towards the five-colored sword light that seemed capable of cleaving the heavens and earth.

Beneath the flashing swords stood Wei Yuan, dressed in tattered blue robes.

"Duke Wei."

The eyes of the gong players instantly reddened, and their faces turned deathly pale.

This sword strike left them with no thought of resistance or escape.

The battle has progressed in ways that have surprised these high-ranking military officials, with one layer upon another, one scene after another, leaving them both terrified and bewildered.

The wizards, led by Nalan Yan, looked up at the Sword Qi in the sky, their hearts pounding.

"Kill him, kill Wei Yuan." Nalan Yan's eyes were bloodshot.

The hatred for my father's murder can be avenged today.

"Kill Wei Yuan!" a wizard shouted.

"Kill Wei Yuan."

"Kill Wei Yuan."

Shouts rose and fell, growing louder and louder, as those who still had energy, or those who had closed their eyes and dared not look, responded one after another.

All voices converged: Kill Wei Yuan!

Wei Yuan stood on the sea, head held high, gazing at the invincible sword light and the invincible Empress Joan of Arc.

Involuntarily, the image of that boy riding a horse on a hillside, singing a farewell song, echoed in his mind before the expedition.

His singing voice seemed to echo in my ears again:

Smoke rises as I gaze northward across the land; dragons surge and horses neigh, their Sword Qi like frost!

My heart is like the vast Yellow River, boundless and untamed; in these twenty years of turmoil, who can stand against me!

"Who can rival me after twenty years of dominance?" Wei Yuan laughed. "Then I shall prove myself invincible."

He pulled a scholar's cap from his tattered blue robe and slowly put it on.

The second treasure of the Cloud Deer Academy: The Confucian cap of the Second Sage!

"Come!"

He waved gently.

The Confucian sage's carving knife revived, dispelling the filth and transforming into a stream of light, sending itself into Wei Yuan's hands.

He looked up at the sky and shouted, "Come!"

A beam of clear light descended from the azure sky and shone upon Wei Yuan.

This radiant light came from Dean Zhao Shou, a blessing from a third-rank Confucian scholar who nearly perished.

The scholar's cap and the carving knife gleamed with a dazzling, clear light.

Finally, a page was pulled from his sleeve, on which was written a very common Law Technique, Law Technique that wizards were very familiar with!

The core ability of the ritual is to summon heroic spirits.

Looking here, the three wizards, including Salen Agu, felt a sudden unease creeping into their brows.

"Laugh!"

As the paper burned, Wei Yuan, full of vigor, proclaimed in a resounding voice, "Please—the—Sage—"

In an instant, pure energy filled the universe!

P. S.: This chapter has been revised several times, plus I had some writer's block. Well, not really writer's block, I was just being a bit cautious with my writing, so it was very slow.

The next chapter is expected to be a long one, so there will be no update at 9 AM; it will be updated in the evening. Note: There will be no update at 9 AM; it will be updated in the evening.