Shen Gongbao vs. Jiang Ziya

The moment Shen Gongbao's icy voice rang out.

The three Chan Sect Disciples all narrowed their eyes in unison.

A look of terror flashed in each of their eyes!

Bury them alive!?

Isn't this more painful than killing them!?

Shen Gongbao used to be so timid and submissive, how come he's so vicious now!?

Senior Brother Chen and the other two disciples of the Chan Sect thought this to themselves.

Before they could say anything...

The next moment.

Shen Gongbao then suddenly struck the soil beside them with his palm!

Boom!

A loud bang was heard.

Above the heads of the three of them.

It was filled with countless black mud and sand.

It's coming head-on!

In an instant.

The black mud and sand buried them!

Mud and sand pelted them.

It felt as if countless silver needles were piercing their flesh.

Soon.

Then the light around them went out.

It felt like being in a dark, sunless prison!

Their bodies could clearly feel the surrounding soil constantly squeezing their skin and muscles.

The dampness, the putrid stench, and the unique poisonous gas of the Misty Mountain Range constantly tainted their very being!

Over time.

Their physical pain intensified, prompting them to scream out loud!

"You bastard! You beast!!"

Shen Gongbao, you are worse than a pig or a dog! How dare you insult us like this!

"A scholar can be killed but not humiliated!"

"How dare you defile Chan Sect Disciple like this!"

"We can break through this mere mud!"

"Even if I have to burn my very essence to nourish my soul, I will not tolerate your humiliation!!"

Senior Brother Chen could not bear such an insult.

Although his hand was unable to move.

However, the power of the soul can still be used.

Burning one's primordial energy is also a piece of cake!

Thinking about this...

Senior Brother Chen gritted his teeth and made a decision!

Gently bite the tip of your tongue.

The lips split open.

Fresh blood gushed out!

Accompanied by the unique primordial energy of the Profound Immortal realm released from Senior Brother Chen's body.

After circling his physical body once.

A powerful force immediately erupted from Senior Brother Chen's body!

A surge of blood energy rose and fell.

His strength also increased at a visible rate.

"Break!"

Senior Brother Chen gave a low shout!

Gather your strength!

It longs to break free from the constraints of the soil surrounding its body!

But.

Just as he unleashed his primordial energy...

But then, something unexpected happened!

His primordial energy.

Not only were they not recruited by him, but they were also not put to his own use.

Even.

It even spread outwards along the soil!

He could clearly sense that the powerful force that had just gathered within his body was gradually dissipating.

My body is getting weaker and weaker.

Upon realizing this, Senior Brother Chen was immediately filled with horror!

What happened!?

"Where did my primordial energy go!?"

"Not good!"

"The primordial energy is gone!"

"Your cultivation level will decrease, and the spiritual energy within your body will also decline!"

"Without the Earth Escape Technique, it's difficult to resist the binding force of the soil!"

"I might suffocate before long!!"

For a moment, Senior Brother Chen felt powerless, fearful, and uneasy.

Moreover, the surrounding soil became increasingly hard, like a solid wall.

Clinging tightly to its body!

I don't know what Shen Gongbao did.

His body began to tighten, and a needle-like pain spread throughout his body!

The pain was almost unbearable!

They simply cannot break free from the soil's embrace!

"Wow, that's amazing!"

What kind of evil magic did Shen Gongbao use?!

"Not only can it devour my primordial energy, but it can also control the flow and hardness of the soil, and then solidify me!"

Just as Senior Brother Chen was feeling shocked and astonished.

Shen Gongbao's voice followed!

"Stop struggling!"

"The moment I buried you in the earth, the seal was also established by me!!!"

"Unless your cultivation surpasses that of Grand Unity Profound Immortal!"

Otherwise, you will all be buried in the earth forever!

As he spoke, Shen Gongbao, sitting cross-legged on the soil, looked at the three disciples of the Chan Sect that he had buried.

A murderous intent flashed in his sharp eyes.

They buried them in the ground and then set a seal.

The great task of burying the dead is now complete.

The remaining task was to find other Chan Sect Disciple...

Shen Gongbao thought to himself.

He was about to stand up.

But in that very instant...

A booming sound suddenly resounded in Shen Gongbao's mind!

The sound made Shen Gongbao's eardrums ring loudly!

It was as if countless messages had exploded from his divine consciousness.

It instantly seized his consciousness!

Shen Gongbao's physical body also froze on the spot.

His eyes gleamed with mysterious runes and Dao characters.

A thick black mist swirled around its body.

It was as if he had suddenly realized something!

However, this state only lasted for a few breaths.

In the blink of an eye, Shen Gongbao came to his senses.

At this moment, Shen Gongbao's heart was filled with horror!

"The Daoist technique that Senior Lin Tian gifted me is so powerful!"

"The power wielded by this strongman named Duan De is truly unbelievable!!"

"No wonder Duan De in the story was either burying people, or on his way to bury people!"

"So, the person he buried there could not only be sealed away, preventing them from ever escaping, but also turn the underground space into a prison!"

"It can also directly absorb the spiritual energy of the buried person into its own body!"

"Make them lose all their cultivation!"

"Then he breathed his last and died!"

"This is practically cheating!!"

"Even though it can only devour beings weaker than itself, that's enough!!"

Just now, Shen Gongbao's act of burying people led him to suddenly understand Duan De's cultivation path.

They also directly learned Duan De's experience and magic in burying people!

It instantly taught him the method of devouring!

As soon as Shen Gongbao had a thought, his hands would automatically generate a devouring power!

And this has something in common with the soil on the ground!

As long as you stick your hand into the soil where you buried the person, you will definitely be able to absorb the spirit of the buried person!

Be aware of this.

Shen Gongbao was shocked, but also filled with ecstatic joy!

"Hahaha, this is truly a stroke of luck!"

"My cultivation has just hit a bottleneck!"

"Then we'll start with you hypocritical Chan Sect Disciple!"

"Since you've delivered yourself to our doorstep..."

"For now, I'll hand over all the spiritual power I've cultivated throughout my life."

"This humble Daoist priest gladly accepts it!"

Shen Gongbao's voice, filled with murderous intent and a touch of madness, reverberated from the void.

The news quickly reached the ears of the three of them.

The Chan Sect Disciple who were buried in the ground by him were all dumbfounded!

What's the meaning!?

Not only will they never be able to get out, but they will also have their spiritual energy devoured?

This...

What kind of evil magic is this?

What is Shen Gongbao up to!?

The three Chan Sect Disciple completely misunderstood what Shen Gongbao meant!

Before they could even react.

Something terrifying happened to the three Chan Sect Disciples who were buried in the soil!

The surrounding soil clung tightly to their bodies.

Then, a terrifying devouring power emanated from it.

Immediately afterwards.

All the spiritual energy and primordial spirit power within their bodies.

They were all devoured by the devouring power emanating from the area surrounding their bodies.

In the blink of an eye.

Their imposing aura had completely vanished!

In the blink of an eye.

The three of them became emaciated, their auras extremely weak!

Pfft!

All three disciples coughed up a mouthful of thick blood.

The blood didn't spurt out; instead, it flowed into the soil.

This time, all their spiritual energy was devoured, severely damaging their foundation!

Especially Senior Brother Chen.

He just rashly used his own primordial energy.

It consumed a great deal of divine soul.

Already weak!

Now its spiritual energy has been swallowed up by the surrounding soil!

This caused Senior Brother Chen to faint from endless pain!

The other two Chan Sect Disciples were only at the True Immortal level.

They simply couldn't resist the pain caused by the constant draining of their spiritual energy.

Not only that, the surrounding soil also made them feel like they were being pricked by needles!

In the blink of an eye, he fainted!

Above ground.

Shen Gongbao stuck his hands into the soil.

His body was filled with layers of black mist.

While enveloping the body.

It can also block the detection of the Heavenly Dao's aura!

This prevented Shen Gongbao from releasing the aura he intended to use to perform his extraordinary technique!

Over time.

The layer of black mist began to gradually dissipate.

Shen Gongbao's physical body was also fully revealed.

The moment the black mist dissipated.

Shen Gongbao withdrew his palm and sat cross-legged on the ground.

The moment when the five hearts (palms, soles, and chest) face upwards.

Three different powers coalesced in his palm!

It was the power that Shen Gongbao had absorbed from those three Chan Sect Disciples!

At this moment, Shen Gongbao's eyes gleamed with excitement!

Even his body trembled slightly from the excitement in his heart.

"Just as I thought!"

"It really can absorb spiritual energy!"

"All things considered, Duan De's methods are truly monstrous!"

"If I hadn't had the thought of burying them in the ground, and then suddenly realized something, I wouldn't have known that Duan De possessed such abilities."

"It seems that I have inherited all of Duan De's cultivation experience and memories."

"There are some things that can't necessarily be mastered! We still need to try different approaches!"

"It wasn't in vain that Duan De spent his entire life learning!"

Shen Gongbao murmured to himself.

While feeling fortunate and relieved, their respect for Lin Tian surged like a mighty river, unstoppable!

Without his predecessors, he would never have been able to inherit Duan De's unique skills!

There is absolutely no way they could have such strength!

It's also impossible for them to possess strength far exceeding the Peak Profound Immortal realm!

Without that strength, if he encountered these Chan Sect Disciples, he would only end up being ganged up on!

Now, he can finally Yang Mei!

And they were given a good beating!

And this is just the beginning!

Having now grasped Duan De's Great Human-Burying Art, it's natural to continue absorbing the spiritual energy of the Chan Sect Disciple!

At that time.

His strength will also increase accordingly!

Thinking about this...

Shen Gongbao no longer hesitated!

With a casual wave of his hand.

He then absorbed the three streams of spiritual energy from his hands into his body!

Although those three Chan Sect Disciples were not particularly powerful!

However, the spiritual energy from the two True Immortal and one Profound Immortal was like a powerful tonic to Shen Gongbao in his current state.

This completely replenished all of Shen Gongbao's energy reserves from the past few days.

This further enhanced his abilities.

The aura emanating from him became increasingly mysterious.

Some of the power of the rules is already faintly visible.

That's certainly not the real rule.

Rather, it is a manifestation of the power of Taiyi.

In other words, Shen Gongbao is now only one step away from reaching the Taiyi realm.

I felt my body brimming with spiritual energy.

Shen Gongbao suddenly opened his eyes, which shimmered with a mysterious spiritual energy.

But instead of feeling excited, I felt a little regretful!

"We waited here to ambush them, but all we got were three Chan Sect Disciples!"

"What a disappointment!"

"If only we had a few more!"

"It will only take me a day or two to advance to the Grand Unity Profound Immortal realm!"

"After all, Duan De's skill involved burying people to cultivate!"

"That's really outrageous!"

"I must hurry and bury as many Chan Sect Disciple as possible before my master calls me back to increase our strength!"

Shen Gongbao muttered to himself for a moment.

He then decided to go elsewhere to see if he could find any other Chan Sect Disciple.

Let's bury them and then continue absorbing spiritual energy!

But just then...

Shen Gongbao suddenly remembered what the three Chan Sect Disciples had said earlier.

My eyes lit up immediately!

"Um!?"

"They just said that Jiang Ziya will meet with them here?!"

"Jiang Ziya..."

Upon hearing Jiang Ziya, Shen Gongbao's eyes flickered, a sinister glint flashing within them!

A chilling killing intent instantly surged forth!

"Alright!"

"That saves us the trouble of finding Jiang Ziya."

"This humble Daoist priest will wait here for Jiang Ziya to arrive!"

"Bury him in this desolate wilderness too!!"

"Perhaps, it can even indefinitely postpone the outbreak of the Investiture of the Gods Calamity!"

Shen Gongbao murmured to himself.

His figure leaped back and forth through the Misty Mountain Range.

Soon, they disappeared into the jungle mist...

Night.

Early morning.

The mountains, shrouded in the darkness of night, were utterly still.

There were almost no cries of birds or beasts.

It appeared eerie and deserted.

Through the hazy fog, a faint, indistinct full moon could be seen on the horizon, hanging obliquely in the sky.

A cold, pale moonlight enveloped the surface of the mountains.

However, the moonlight could not penetrate the mountains.

This makes the interior of the mountain extremely gloomy.

It was so deep you couldn't see your hand in front of your face; it was pitch black.

Every now and then, a few figures would fall into it.

Before long, several extremely tragic roars will echo from within the vast mountain.

The earthquake shook the mountains and forests.

Then it gradually dissipated.

This situation occurs almost every few minutes.

Until the early hours of the morning.

The commotion gradually subsided.

The hour of Chou (1-3 AM).

It is about three or four miles away from the mountains.

In a forest.

A giant black beast suddenly appeared.

The giant beast resembled a dragon but was not a dragon, a tiger but was not a tiger, a dog but was not a dog, and a deer but was not a deer.

On its majestic back, an elderly and frail man was also carried.

It was Jiang Ziya, who had come all the way from the North Sea, and the sacred beast Sibuxiang!

At this moment, they reached the highest point of the forest.

Looking out at the distant mountains!

The Sibuxiang was very spirited, its emerald green eyes gleaming with an eerie light.

Full of energy.

Jiang Ziya, on the other hand, looked exhausted, and his face was covered in more wrinkles.

He looked travel-worn!

It only took a few days to get here from the North Sea.

Its speed is extremely exaggerated!

Jiang Ziya was just an ordinary person who only had a slight understanding of Daoist arts and his cultivation level was not high.

If you were to calculate it, it wouldn't even reach the level of Human Immortal.

Long journeys through mountains and rivers, high-speed travel.

This left Jiang Ziya extremely exhausted!

After the Sibuxiang creature stopped moving.

Jiang Ziya wearily opened his eyes, looked around, and felt an overwhelming sense of oppression in the environment before him. A look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"Where... are we?"

Upon hearing this...

The Sibuxiang shook its enormous head and answered in a muffled voice.

"This is the mountain range where you and the disciples of the Chan Sect made your promise."

We're half a day late.

They must all be waiting for you in the mountains.

"Cheer up, let's go see them quickly."

"Then we'll travel together to Xiqi, the Human Clan, to plan the investiture of Investiture of the Gods!"

"We must not waste any more time!"

Upon hearing this...

Jiang Ziya was taken aback.

He quickly shook his head, trying to stay alert, and said.

"Good!"

"Uncle-Master, let's enter the mountains!"

"Take me to the location where the brothers of the Chan Sect gave the signal."

The Sibuxiang nodded and, carrying Jiang Ziya, disappeared into the Misty Mountain Range.

The mountain range has ended.

A brown spiritual energy shield then emanated from the body of the Sibuxiang.

It protected its physical body, as well as Jiang Ziya, within it.

It resisted the surrounding poisonous gas.

And it flew forward at high speed!

They quickly arrived above the area where the Chan Sect Disciple had released the signal!

"Nephew Ziya, this is the location where the last signal stopped."

"You may leave now. I just received word that Manjushri, the Twelve Golden Immortals, is waiting for me in the distance, and seems to have something important to tell me."

"I will go and meet him. You may go on your own. I will return in half an incense stick's time."

"Although this area is fraught with danger, plagued by poisonous gas, and very close to the Misty Mountain Range Interception Sect grounds..."

"But the Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner will protect your safety, so I am at ease."

"Focus on your work, and be mindful of your dignity! Don't lose face!"

Upon hearing this...

Jiang Ziya nodded in agreement and said.

He bowed respectfully to the Sibuxiang and said...

"Thank you for the reminder, Uncle-Master."

"Don't worry, Ziya will handle things on his own!"

The words had barely left his mouth.

Jiang Ziya then took out the Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner.

It was placed in his own hands.

A soft yellow light then appeared around his body.

While illuminating the surroundings, it also swept away Jiang Ziya's fatigue.

Jiang Ziya said no more.

He jumped off the back of the Sibuxiang.

It landed steadily on the ground.

He has a magical treasure protecting him.

Jiang Ziya felt no sense of crisis whatsoever.

Even if he is just an ordinary person with little cultivation.

At this moment, he also put on the airs of a wise and knowledgeable person.

His milky-white Daoist robe, with a faint golden hue surrounding him, gave him an exceptional air.

His hair and beard were both white, giving him an air of otherworldly elegance.

He knew that many Chan Sect Disciples had sent him messages.

After he returns from the North Sea, he should meet up at the Misty Mountain Range.

There were at least twenty Chan Sect Disciple.

Moreover, they were all former mid-level members of the Chan Sect.

Therefore, Jiang Ziya naturally had to maintain appearances.

If the first impression is one of authority, these Chan Sect Disciples will be more obedient in the future.

Jiang Ziya thought to himself.

After landing on the ground, it walked forward while shouting loudly.

"I, Jiang Ziya, have arranged to meet you all here."

"Aren't you going to come out and show yourself?!"

Jiang Ziya spoke slowly and deliberately in a profound tone.

In the empty mountain forest, only his slightly aged echo resounded.

Then there were no other sounds.

Jiang Ziya waited patiently for a while, but none of his disciples came forward.

His brows furrowed instantly, and a hint of impatience flashed in his eyes.

The location where the message was just delivered was clearly right here.

In other words, the Chan Sect Disciple were waiting for him right here.

He's already here, so why isn't anyone here to greet him?

Are you suggesting he go find it himself?!

"Hmph! How rude! Is this some kind of attempt to intimidate me?!"

"Even if I am but a mortal, I am still the chosen representative of the Investiture of the Gods, appointed by the Sage. How dare you disobey my orders!"

"I'd like to see where you all are!"

"If you dare to ignore me, and I discover you, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Jiang Ziya snorted coldly and waved his hand casually.

A simple hand seal was formed on the palm.

The rudimentary Daoist arts that ordinary people can use.

It can directly control the light, illuminating a distance of hundreds of feet.

The light slowly rose and paused in mid-air.

Jiang Ziya also got a clear look at the surrounding situation!

When he saw dozens of grave mounds on the ground, with more than twenty tombstones standing upright on them.

I was immediately startled!

"My goodness!"

Jiang Ziya was so frightened that he almost dropped the Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner and ran away!

There were more than twenty graves in the area he was facing!

As mortals, we naturally know about graves.

Those were all dead people!

Why are there so many graves and tombstones here!?

"Who died here... huh!?"

Jiang Ziya thought to himself that there might be other Chan Sect Disciple present.

Are they deliberately trying to make him look foolish?

Thinking of this, he quickly composed himself.

I focused my gaze and looked ahead.

After all, he had been cultivating Daoism for over forty years.

With the light shield in place, the situation in front of me was immediately clear...

On those tombstones, he saw several characters that he could understand, which he could decipher.

"The first hypocrite of the Chan Sect... the second fool of the Chan Sect..."

"???"

"These are the tombstones of the Chan Sect... What's going on here!?"

"Are all the Chan Sect Disciple dead?!"

"Even if you're dead, you shouldn't erect a tombstone that curses you! Isn't that just cursing yourself?"

"I've never seen anyone put on such a show of force before!"

As Jiang Ziya muttered these thoughts to himself, a sense of foreboding suddenly welled up within him, a feeling that was always keenly felt.

Just as he was about to say something...

Da da da!

The sound of light, quick footsteps suddenly approached from the side.

Under the light, a figure in a black robe was revealed.

The light shone down on him.

Jiang Ziya saw the face beneath the black-robed figure, a face so cold it was almost icy, radiating murderous intent.

"Shen... Shen Gongbao!?"

"You... how did you get here!?"