Again

As soon as Xue Min finished speaking, a loud rumble suddenly came from the largest fragment of the cave in the distance.

"Tread."

A footstep sounded, like a heavy hammer striking the three men's chests.

Then, the three of them looked in the same direction.

Chen Hai, holding a long brown banner, stepped out of the cave and coldly watched the three of them.

Behind him, a small crack appeared in the barrier of the cave, and figures were trying to squeeze out of the crack, with Yao Qi and various spiritual energies surging out like a tide.

Chen Hai's original intention was to first leave the cave, and then release the demons and other strange creatures from the outside so that he could recruit them for his own use.

But as soon as they stepped out of the cave, they saw Su Yao, Yang Xiu, Xue Min.

He paused, his gaze first falling on Su Yao Su Yao, clearly recognizing him. His eyes softened slightly as he spoke:

"It's been over a decade since I last saw you. I never imagined that the troupe leader would also achieve the Purple Mansion."

Upon hearing this, Su Yao and Yang Xiu's expressions changed slightly.

This was different from what they had expected; the other party actually remembered them.

That...

Before he could finish thinking it through, Chen Hai spoke again:

"Would the troupe leader be willing to come and serve me as a benefactor?"

Upon hearing this, Su Yao remained silent, while Yang Xiu frowned deeply.

Seeing this, Xue Min knew that Su Yao would never agree, but she still couldn't help feeling uneasy. She quickly stepped forward and said loudly:

"Nanzhao is a land blessed by the Orthodox God of Soil and Grain; it should not be ravaged by war and suffer immense loss of life. I hope that you, sir, will not cause chaos in Nanzhao."

Upon hearing this, Chen Hai's expression, which had just softened slightly, turned cold again.

He raised the long banner in his hand and pointed downwards to the mortal realm, where over 100,000 miners were shrouded in a brown light curtain, huddled like caged beasts. Only then did he speak:

"You have your own schemes, but you've never taken us mere mortals seriously."

He paused, then rolled up the long banner, his voice growing deeper:

"Since you all dare to stop me today, then let's have a fight."

As soon as he finished speaking, a cloud of sand and stones rose from the Great Void, like a yellow dragon swirling, sweeping towards Su Yao and his companions.

Su Yao and Yang Xiu exchanged a glance, neither of them moving.

The long banner in the opponent's hand is most likely the Proclaiming Earth Law Treasure, the "Great Marsh Banner." Faced with this treasure, no matter how much preparation they make, it will probably be to no avail.

Although the opponent had only just broken through to the Purple Mansion and was only at the first level of Divine Ability power, even if the two of them suddenly reached the Purple Mansion Middle Stage, they might not be a match for the opponent. Moreover, the two of them were only at the Purple Mansion Early Stage, and the opponent also possessed a Proclaiming Earth Law Treasure.

Now, it all depends on whether the Gang Qi bestowed by the Dao Lord can protect them.

In the distance, Xue Min had already put away her scepter and took out a drum.

The drum body is clean and gray, while the drumhead is a deep red like a tide.

His fingertips landed on the drumhead, and he tapped it lightly.

Thump.

As the sound rang out, the drumbeats spread out like ripples, and wherever the crimson sound waves passed, the flying sand and stones froze, as if an invisible hand had pressed down on their spines, and they all sank down, no longer displaying their previous violent state.

This is precisely the "Thanksgiving Chant," Divine Ability technique Sacrificial Earth.

"Bao Sai" is a ritual performed to worship the gods and give thanks to the local deities. When this sound is heard, it is like the spring and autumn festivals when people beat drums to worship the gods and earth spirits in front of the temple. Wherever the drum sounds, the earth and stones will be subdued, and the sand and dust will be calmed. Moreover, at this moment, this supernatural power is being used with a ritual object for worshipping the earth.

Chen Hai remained expressionless upon seeing this and waved the long banner again.

The Divine Ability of Proclaiming Earth, the "Flying Sand Command," is activated!

This time, the flying sand no longer swept across the sky, but suddenly gathered and condensed, transforming into nine sand pillars about ten feet thick, like yellow dragons stirring the sea, Chaoxue Min to strangle her.

Each sand pillar carries the transformative power of the Proclaiming Earth lineage. The old soil is overturned, and the new soil has not yet been established. Those who touch it will have their physical bodies shake and their spiritual energy dissipate.

Seeing this, Xue Min's expression turned serious, and her hand gestures changed again, causing the drumbeats to change as well.

He struck the drum three times with his five fingers, each strike heavier than the last, and the drum sound changed from clear to deep, from scattered to focused, as if the earth was slowly awakening in the sound of the village drum.

The Sacrificial Earth Fate Divine Ability to bestow "Return of Ten Thousand Grains" upon the land!

As soon as Xue Min unleashed her Fate Divine Ability, a phantom image of vast fields suddenly appeared around her. Millet, sorghum, beans, wheat, and rice—the images of the five grains spread out like a tide.

The nine sand pillars crashed into the illusory image of the five grains, but they were like mud oxen entering the sea, enveloped, broken apart, and absorbed by layers of millet waves, eventually turning into dust that fell softly to the ground.

"The Sacrificial Earth gods Return of Ten Thousand Grains," Chen Hai said, a strange glint in his eyes. "They are far superior to those mountain gods who only know how to abuse their divine status."

Xue Min didn't reply, but instead urged the drumbeats on.

The Sacrificial Earth god Divine Ability "Seal the Altar Soil"!

The drumhead blazed with crimson light, and the soil of the land surged from all directions of the Great Void, solidifying into earthen walls before Xue Min.

On that earthen wall, there are plow marks, seedlings, field ridges, and granaries, as if the state itself had been nurtured by the blood and sweat of the people.

Su Yao and Yang Xiu could see it clearly from both sides.

Xue Min's three Divine Ability — Thanksgiving Chant, Return of Ten Thousand Grains, and Seal the Altar Soil— are interconnected, providing peace, receiving aid, and defending against Chen Hai's two waves of attacks.

But they weren't idle either.

"Brother Dao," Yang Xiu said in a low voice, the golden bell already lit.

Su Yao understood, Vermilion Brightness Sword. Nine heat-related patterns lit up, blazing like fire.

The two men, one on the left and one on the right, approached Chen Hai from the flanks.

It's not that Su Yao doesn't use Divine Ability, Law Technique, or Sword Intent, but rather that his Sword Intent is like a severed arm when it encounters the Earth Virtue. The Rainbow Clouds technique deals negligible damage to the Earth Virtue, while his current Spirit Treasure- level immortal sword "Vermilion Radiance" is of the Balmy Wind element and possesses the Balmy Wind Divine Ability "Scorch Metal and Stone," making it his most effective attack against the Earth Virtue.

Seeing this, Chen Hai sneered. Then, he casually waved the long banner in his hand, and a massive wave of earthy yellow energy surged towards the two of them.

Su Yao felt a sudden darkness before his eyes. The shockwave hadn't even touched his body yet, but the aftershocks alone had already made him momentarily stunned. But he didn't retreat. Instead, the veins on his sword-wielding hand bulged, and the Sword Intent, clear as water, slashed forward with all his might along with the Vermilion Brightness Sword.

"Sizzle!"

The sword light slashed into the earthen-yellow airwave, penetrating half a foot as easily as a sharp blade cutting through tofu, before it could go no further. The airwave was as heavy as the earth turning upside down, and although the Sword Intent was sharp, it was like an ant trying to shake a mountain.

Just then, Yang Xiu's golden bell arrived.

"Bite!"

The deep, grayish-purple Profound Qi rippled like waves, rising above the earthy-yellow air currents.

Wherever the Profound Qi passes, calamities arise, and it actually "robbed" a corner of that energy wave, like a section of a dam being hollowed out by an undercurrent.

But that's all.

The shockwave paused only slightly before surging back in.

"Bang!"

Su Yao and Yang Xiu were simultaneously forced back several miles. Their protective Gang Qi surged, and the talismans and gentle breezes flowed together, dissolving the Earth Virtue power that had invaded their bodies layer by layer.

Both of them turned pale, but ultimately they were unharmed.

Su Yao steadied himself, his heart filled with dread.

His sword strike, in all the world, could easily injure a single -Divine Ability cultivator at the Purple Mansion level. Yet, when it struck the energy wave casually unleashed by Chen Hai, it couldn't even penetrate half a foot.

If the Gang Qi had not been bestowed upon him by the Dao Lord, he and Yang Xiu would have been severely injured in that very attack.

Beside him, Yang Xiu was also shaken, but he still gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, let's try again!"