Land Immortal

Yunzhou, the hidden dragon city nestled deep in the mountains, is a vast expanse of clouds above which a massive ship slowly lowers its body.

Boom!

The ship suddenly jolted, as if it had struck a reef.

Above Qianlong City, a "shell" appeared, blocking the uninvited guests who were about to fall from the sky.

The moment the Wind-Riding Boat encountered the defensive formation, a white-clad figure wearing a hood flew up from the boat and looked down at the entire Hidden Dragon City.

"This formation consists of seventy-six Earthly Fiend Formations; even a fourth-rank martial artist cannot break it. This is somewhat troublesome."

Yang Qianhuan said calmly.

At the edge of the Wind-Riding Boat, Nangong Qianrou frowned and said:

"Can you do it?"

Yang Qianhuan stood with her hands behind her back, speaking in an invincible tone:

"Easy peasy!"

Just because a fourth-rank martial artist can't break through it doesn't mean a fourth-rank Warlock can't. He deliberately emphasized this to highlight his uniqueness.

As soon as she finished speaking, Yang Qianhuan gently placed her feet on the defensive array, and circular arrays lit up beneath her feet.

To outsiders, these circular formations appear no different; they are all based on the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), outlining crisscrossing lines and twisted, mysterious symbols.

However, when the circular array that Yang Qianhuan spread out merged into the defensive array, the protective array that covered Qianlong City began to shake violently. It seemed that there was a problem with the structure of the array, and the seventy-six smaller arrays that made up the entire array quickly disintegrated.

In the realm of formations, this kind of fixed formation is the easiest to break because its structure is fixed; you can simply find its weakness and break it directly.

This has nothing to do with the rank of the person setting up the formation. A fire formation is a fire formation, and a water formation is a water formation. Even a high-ranking Warlock cannot turn a fire formation into a water formation.

It's just that the structure is a bit more complex.

Every formation has a corresponding method to break it.

Just as Xu Pingfeng was able to break the formation left behind by the supervisor, Yang Qianhuan was able to break the formation he set up as well.

Chen Ying, standing shoulder to shoulder with Nangong Qianrou, breathed a sigh of relief. If Yang Qianhuan hadn't accompanied them, this protective array alone would have been enough to give them a headache.

Duke Wei's blitzkrieg tactics are unlikely to be effective.

Chen Ying then realized that his idea was wrong. There would be no surprises in a blitzkrieg. Yang Qianhuan was specifically requested by Duke Wei to accompany the army in the surprise attack on Yunzhou.

This indicates that Duke Wei had anticipated the existence of a defensive formation.

"Hey, if Duke Wei had been resurrected sooner, Qingzhou wouldn't have fallen," Chen Ying muttered.

As they were speaking, the defensive array below shattered with a deafening roar.

Drums thundered within Qianlong City. After a brief period of panic, the garrison quickly restored order, using the drums as a warning to assemble within the city.

The soldiers on the city wall adjusted the cannons, pointing them towards the sky.

"A bunch of turtles in a barrel!"

Chen Ying chuckled and was about to order a landing when he suddenly saw a figure in white appear outside the Wind-Riding Boat.

The man in white, wearing an iron mask and without facial features, silently stared at them, then stretched out his palm and pushed it outwards with a jolt!

The circular formation expanded instantly, crashing into the Wind-Riding Boat.

Within the circular formation, the elements of earth, wind, water, and fire lit up one by one, emanating a terrifying aura.

Chen Ying, Nangong Qianrou, and other fourth-rank martial artists simultaneously received a crisis warning, their expressions changed slightly, and their hearts sank.

It wasn't that the formation's attack power could threaten them, but rather that the Wind-Riding Boat beneath their feet couldn't withstand an attack of that level.

Once the Wind-Riding Boat is destroyed, the armored soldiers on board will fall to their deaths.

At this point, the weaknesses of martial artists become apparent. They are not afraid of the formation's destructive power, but their limited methods leave them with no way to break the formation, let alone use Law Technique to protect the Wind-Riding Boat.

At the critical moment, the man who plucks stars from the sky every day arrived.

Yang Qianhuan appeared at the ship's side, extended her palm, and gently placed it on the circular array. The array that was being pushed towards the Wind-Riding Boat collapsed and disintegrated silently.

The teleportation array beneath Yang Qianhuan's feet lit up, and in an instant he was in front of the white-robed puppet. Then, he reached out his palm and grabbed at the puppet's head.

The puppet tried to teleport away to avoid the attack, but after Yang Qianhuan grabbed its face in his palm, all the formations became ineffective.

"Xu Pingfeng?"

From beneath the veil came Yang Qianhuan's deep voice:

"I heard you sealed away that old scoundrel, the Supervisor. Well done."

A fire array condensed in his palm, and flames erupted, forming a tongue of fire that was over ten meters long.

Once the flames died down, the metal puppet in his hand was glowing red-hot, its head melted into bright molten iron.

This puppet is only at the initial fourth-grade level, and the arrays it can use are those that Xu Pingfeng carved into it when it was first created, and their number and power are not great.

Yang Qianhuan is a senior Warlock capable of challenging the third-rank Heavenly Mystery Master, and there is also a rank suppression within the same system.

Nangong Qianrou immediately issued the order to land. The four thousand armored soldiers on the ship were ready to go. The cavalry also had the advantage in the fierce battle inside the city. As for street fighting, they could simply abandon their horses if necessary.

Even without their warhorses, they remain invincible heavily armored infantry.

At the mountaintop, amidst a grand courtyard dotted with pavilions and towers, a middle-aged man in purple robes climbed to the top of a pavilion and, under the protection of his shadow guards, gazed at the giant ship slowly descending from the sky.

"Immediately send a message to the surrounding villages, urging them to return and reinforce Qianlong City."

The middle-aged man in purple had a solemn expression and said in a deep voice.

He was not too alarmed. Yesterday, news of victory came from the front lines: the Yunzhou army had captured Yongzhou City without bloodshed and completely occupied Yongzhou.

The army can immediately advance to the capital, fight a decisive battle with the Great Feng, and end this struggle for supremacy.

Although Qianlong City is currently facing an enemy invasion, it may be the last gasp of the Great Feng Dynasty.

In the past year, Great Feng experienced the Battle of Jingshan City during the autumn harvest, in which 100,000 elite troops died in the north. Before he could recover, he was hit by a cold disaster. Then he declared himself emperor in Yunzhou and sent troops north to attack the imperial court.

How many powerful soldiers and generals does the Great Feng still have today?

There are still 5,000 elite troops in Qianlong City, and together with the troops in the surrounding mountain strongholds, the total number of soldiers exceeds 10,000.

It is sufficient to defend against enemies.

"Madam, Madam"

In the quiet courtyard, a maidservant hurried in and pushed open the door to the quiet room.

Inside the room was only a beautiful woman meditating, with an elegant demeanor and fair skin.

"Madam, come with me to the basement to hide! The enemy has broken in!"

The maid cried out in alarm.

The beautiful woman was stunned for a moment, then her expression became complicated, making it difficult to tell whether she was happy or sad.

She lived a secluded life, confined to this place and forbidden from going out. She could only learn about the war in the Central Plains through the maids around her.

When the news came back yesterday, Qianlong City was in an uproar. From the highest officials to the common people, everyone celebrated until dawn, looking forward to leaving Qianlong City and taking over the capital.

The Lord of Qianlong City once promised the people of the city that after he conquered the world, every citizen of Qianlong City could be relocated to the capital and become nobles under the emperor's rule.

"Do you know who the leader is?" the beautiful woman asked urgently.

"Is it Xu Qi'an?!"

The maid looked alarmed.

"How would I know? Quickly hide, or those soldiers will rush in and slaughter you without caring who you are."

As she spoke, she pulled her master and hurried towards the basement.

At this moment, fierce battles are raging in the various mountain strongholds outside Qianlong City.

Groups of heavily armored infantrymen climbed up, braving arrows and musket fire. The bullets and arrows struck them, sending sparks flying, but they were powerless against these armored warriors who were virtually invulnerable once they put on their faceplates.

After observing the location of Qianlong City, Yang Qianhuan drew a simple map based on the feedback from his Qi-Watching Technique, marking the locations of Qianlong City and the surrounding villages.

After discussing it, Nangong Qianrou and her generals divided their heavy cavalry into two groups. One group was secretly deployed to the outer perimeter and then lay in ambush. Once the war started, they immediately attacked and captured the various villages around Qianlong City.

The other group traveled with the Wind-Riding Ship and parachuted directly into Hidden Dragon City.

This is also because the Wind-Riding Boat has limited carrying capacity, making it impossible to deploy a single heavy cavalryman along with his horse to Qianlong City. In fact, even the vanguard force that was airdropped had to be transported in two batches.

The North.

The calamity clouds formed magnificent fiery clouds, and the fire spirits in the air condensed at an alarming speed. The temperature rose rapidly, entering the sweltering summer, and continued to climb, turning this world into a giant furnace.

The most violent and terrifying tribulation of thunder and fire is coming.

The water on the ground evaporated quickly with a hissing sound; one moment it was all mud, the next it was dry and cracked.

The White Emperor squinted and took a small step back, feeling somewhat uncomfortable in the high temperature.

The water element in the air was almost completely dispelled, making it impossible to cast water element Law Technique in such an environment. Fortunately, it could still control lightning.

In the corner, a ball of lightning, collapsing inward, took shape, poised to strike.

Luo Yuheng raised her head, her black pearl-like pupils reflecting the crimson clouds, and a trace of melancholy and sadness flashed in her eyes.

The previous generation's leader of the Human Sect, her father, died in the final tribulation of thunder and fire.

Among the Four Tribulations, the Thunder and Fire Tribulation is the most domineering and terrifying. Unlike the Golden Core Tribulation, which has eighty-one stages, it is not like the other three tribulations in the Four Tribulations, which are weak at first and then become stronger, with each stage intensifying.

It has only one.

If you survive, you become a terrestrial immortal; if you don't, all your cultivation will dissipate, and your soul will be scattered.

"It hurts so much!"

The carbon ash on Xu Qi'an's body peeled off, revealing his tender white skin.

The waterspout and lightning strike from Baidi nearly killed him on the spot, causing him to ascend to heaven.

Fortunately, the warrior's endurance was remarkable; the dead cells were replaced by new ones, and the injury healed quickly, with no major problems.

However, this kind of repair consumed his physical strength and vital energy, thus weakening his aura.

Nearly a third of the spiritual energy collected through flower arranging remains hidden within the body and has not been fully activated.

His power has reached the peak of the second rank, and the next step is the threshold of the first rank, which is obviously beyond the ability of the Flower Goddess's spiritual essence.

Xu Qi'an wiped the dust from his hands onto Luo Yuheng's feather robe, then took her small hands in his and smiled:

"Don't be afraid. After we overcome this tribulation, we'll be a carefree couple, living like immortals in the heavens."

Feeling the warmth from his palm and seeing his bright smile, Luo Yuheng decided not to pursue the matter of him soiling her robe, and said softly:

What if we fail?

She had some psychological trauma from the Thunderfire Calamity, having witnessed her father turn to ashes in the flames.

"Then let's be dao companion in the next life," Xu Qi'an said with a smile.

If it's one dead and one injured, then he'll become an undead knight... In critical moments, his mindset remains surprisingly calm.

Their eyes met.

Luo Yuheng's flawless, otherworldly beauty was no longer aloof; it had gained a touch of tenderness.

Just then, from within the layers of tribulation clouds, a massive pillar of fiery light, as thick as a water vat, shot down from the sky.

It was so powerful that it distorted the surrounding air, and the heatwave it generated ignited the clothes and hair of the extraordinary experts present.

It instantly engulfed Luo Yuheng and Xu Qi'an, the two "lovestruck lovers," turning the ground beneath their feet into churning, turbulent lava.

Right now, between the horns of Baidi, that lightning ball that had been gathering momentum suddenly shot out.

With a flash of lightning, the bright ball of lightning shot off, leaving trails of electric arcs in its wake.

Boom!

The lightning ball dispersed the pillar of fire, and tongues of fire shot out in all directions. In the gaps where the pillar of fire was dispersed, Bai Di did not see Xu Qi'an and Luo Yuheng; the two had disappeared.

The next moment, the pillar of fire returned to its original state, scorching the earth.

At that moment, a high-pitched dragon roar echoed in the sky. The extraordinary experts present looked up and vaguely saw a huge golden dragon rising straight up against the heavenly flames within the pillar of fire.

Above?

What is he trying to do?

Bai Di and Jia Luo Shu frowned. The latter stopped and temporarily spared Asuluo, who was beaten so badly that even his own mother wouldn't recognize him.

Amidst the flames, Xu Qi'an embraced Luo Yuheng, charging higher and higher against the pillar of fire.

Luo Yuheng already possessed an indestructible body, and her physical form remained intact within the pillar of fire. However, this did not mean she was unharmed. In fact, she was enduring unspeakable pain, and her four phases and physical body were on the verge of collapse.

If you can't hold on any longer, you'll turn to ashes.

So painful, so painful. Luo Yuheng's fair skin became even paler, no, not paler, but transparent, her whole body was like a statue cast in glass.

If things continue like this, she will completely burn out of life and then turn to ashes, just like her father.

Don't be afraid, I'm here!

Xu Qi'an's whisper reached her ears.

Luo Yuheng's heart immediately calmed down, like a small boat in a raging ocean entering a safe harbor.

She turned her head and saw a charred human figure.

Xu Qi'an's skin quickly charred, the outer layer of ash peeled off, revealing tender flesh reddish-bloody. The tender flesh charred again, turned into ash and peeled off again. After this process repeated several times, Luo Yuheng saw his red-hot skull.

Next came the burning of his Primordial Spirit. Just as she was about to raise her Dharma form to shield him from the tribulation fire, she suddenly sensed a vigorous life force rising from within his body.

This vast and pure life force, like a clear spring, flowed into the withered bodies of Luo Yuheng and Xu Qi'an.

Xu Qi'an closed his eyes and began to focus on refining his physical body, Qi and Blood, and spirit.

His flesh and blood were constantly burned and regenerated. In this process, his essence, energy and spirit were tempered and rapidly integrated. In just a dozen breaths, he completed the journey that others would take decades to complete.

This tribulation battle was a matter of life and death, no, a matter of life and death. This was the opinion of the Yunzhou Transcendents, and the same was true of the Great Feng Transcendents. And as it turned out, this was indeed the case.

Without a backup plan, the Thunderfire Tribulation would have been the end of Xu Qi'an's life. If Luo Yuheng hadn't brought him into the area covered by the Heavenly Tribulation, Xu Qi'an would already be dead at the hands of the White Emperor.

Luo Yuheng had no chance to consolidate his cultivation. After passing the Golden Core Tribulation, he would either help Xu Qi'an resist the enemy and then wait for the next Heavenly Tribulation to arrive, or fail to pass the tribulation due to excessive depletion of his Law Power.

They could either disregard the lives of Xu Qi'an and the others, hide away to consolidate their cultivation, at the cost of the deaths of Xu Qi'an and the other extraordinary beings, and the destruction of the Great Feng Kingdom.

Luo Yuheng himself, on the other hand, might survive.

Luo Yuheng chose the former, but the former was still a dead end.

Therefore, we must embrace life even in the face of death.

But how to give birth?

Xu Qi'an's idea was to use the tribulation to advance to the first rank.

He was promoted to the first rank.

When Asuluo, Jinlian, and Zhao Shou heard his suggestion, they almost thought the boy had lost his mind.

He's only been promoted to the second rank for half a month, and he's already thinking of entering the ranks of first-rank martial artists?

This shows disrespect for cultivation, disrespect for the extraordinary and powerful beings of the world, and disrespect for Kouyang Prefecture.

But Xu Qi'an's next words convinced them, leading them to decide to take a gamble and risk everything to be with Xu Qi'an.

Xu Qi'an's inspiration for advancing to the first rank came from Luo Yuheng's detailed description of the Heavenly Tribulation during the discussion among the extraordinary beings that night. When she mentioned the Thunderfire Tribulation, Xu Qi'an had a bold idea in his mind.

Before the tribulation battle, he went to the Southern Frontier to ask Shen Shu how to advance to the first rank, and got the answer from him.

Normally, using one's body as a furnace to temper and integrate essence, energy, and spirit into one to achieve a first-grade physique is a long process. This path is inevitably fraught with danger and limited by talent; not every first-grade martial artist can become a half-step martial god.

As someone blessed with the nation's destiny, Xu Qi'an certainly doesn't lack talent; what he lacks is time.

Whether it's advancing from the early stage of Rank 2 to the peak of Rank 2, or refining one's essence, energy, and spirit, it all takes time.

But through his diligent flower arranging, he received a gift from the Flower Goddess, possessing spiritual essence and comprehending the "Dao" of growing stronger with each battle, which perfectly compensated for his lack of cultivation.

Although the peak of the second rank is not the norm, it will eventually fall back to the normal level.

He planned to seize this brief period of opportunity to temper his physical body with the tribulation of thunder and fire, allowing his essence, energy, and spirit to merge and successfully advance to the first rank.

Such an operation is tantamount to taking the slow tempering process directly into one step, which is essentially suicide.

At this point, the benefits of diligent flower arranging become apparent. As long as he conserves his spiritual energy and retains a portion within his body, the spiritual energy of the Flower Goddess will be his greatest reliance during the Thunder and Fire Tribulation tempering.

This is the spiritual essence of the immortal tree.

In addition, he possesses dragon energy, all the dragon energy he acquired during his travels in the martial world.

The dragon's energy enters the body, bringing abundant blessings!

Adding to the fact that he already possessed half of the nation's fortune, Xu Qi'an felt it was entirely worth taking a gamble!

The reason Asuro and the other two agreed was that they felt it was worth taking a gamble.

As the lightning and fire repeatedly scorched him, a golden dragon, as if it were a tangible form, rushed into Xu Qi'an's body. He gradually carbonized, and his body, which had been unable to continue, regained its vitality and continued to endure the tempering of the lightning and fire.

Luo Yuheng held Xu Qi'an's hand tightly, never letting go even in the most painful moments.

After another dozen or so breaths, the terrifying thunder and fire began to weaken. The thick pillar of fire in the water vat slowly shrank to the size of a bowl, then to the size of a fist, then to the size of chopsticks, and finally dissipated completely.

High in the sky, Luo Yuheng was dressed in a feathered robe formed by Law Technique, her hair and robes fluttering wildly, holding in her hand a charred humanoid figure devoid of any life force.

"I've ascended to the status of a terrestrial immortal," she murmured to herself.

Crack! The coke cracked open and peeled away, revealing a flawless, pure white body to everyone.

Xu Qi'an looked down at the Garuda tree, Xu Pingfeng's puppet, and the White Emperor, a smirk playing on his lips, his gaze chilling:

I've reached the first rank!

P. S.: This chapter is 5000 words, making up for the shortness of the previous chapter. Well, actually, 3000 words isn't short either. By the way, it's been a long time since I asked for monthly tickets. Please do! (Thank you, everyone!)

Summer has begun, don't forget to eat eggs!