Pacify Starspace Region? Lu Yun was naturally confident of doing so.
The ghost nest needed mammoth quantities of qi if it wanted to be truly established. What existed in the Hongmeng wasn’t enough, which was why the Moon King had to conquer Redbud Region and access the boundless trove of purple crystal mines beneath it.
The ghosts in Starspace had never thought of expanding elsewhere—it would be a completely meaningless undertaking. Their only goal was to complete the ghost nest, and they needed to devour the greatest dragon of the Hongmeng to do so!
Thus, there was no other way forward for the ghosts other than to fight Cloudruin Region to the bitter end. However, skirmishing with nearby regions or cities would be useful in the meantime. Destroying their defenders meant converting more ghosts and an inexhaustible source of soldiers.
As numerous as the ghosts in Starspace were, they weren’t truly infinite.
……
“Champion Duke, so this is where you’re hiding out, you brat! A real man should be meeting the enemy in combat, shedding blood and sweat on the battlefield, but you’ve huddled in here like a turtle!” Li Zhen found Lu Yun as soon as the latter walked out of the inn’s cultivation room and swooped in to level a vicious glare.
“Um…” Lu Yun blinked. He’d cultivated for a month in the inn’s seclusion chamber, proving impossible to find during this time. Thus, Li Zhen had thought that he’d run away.
Li Zhen’s aura was more dense than before and a violent air shot through it. He’d obviously entered Starspace Region multiple times over the past month to fight the ghosts. There were more treasures among his equipment now, clearly a result of collecting numerous ghost crystals and increasing his wealth.
“Do you know that a large army attacked us seven days ago—there were even high level ghost kings among them! It it wasn’t for His Reverence the Immortal King coming in person and beating back the ghost kings, they would’ve overrun Cloudexit!” The exasperated Li Zhen fired off at a rapid pace. “How could you hide from such an important battle?! You’re the scum of our generation and the definition of dishonor!” Spit flew from his mouth in fervent denouncement and he nearly sprayed it over Lu Yun’s face.
“Huh? His Reverence… the Immortal King?” Lu Yun paused. “His Reverence?”
“Ain’t that right?!” A worshipful expression smoothed out Li Zhen’s features. “Well, we generally use that honorific for the elderly, so it’s not quite right here—the Immortal King is a gallant young man! His commanding presence emphasizes his lionhearted poise, and on that day, he only needed to wave a hand to lay down a formation that vaporized all of the ghosts that rushed into the city!
“His Reverence then waved another hand to annihilate the incredible high level kings!
“His third gesture exterminated the army that’d attacked us!” Nearly tangible hearts and stars beamed out of Li Zhen’s eyes. Others in the inn corroborated his account.
“W-what?” Lu Yun was completely lost. He’d focused on refining the ghost crystals over the past month and deducing the way to cultivate the hell of order. He didn’t know about the great battle seven days ago.
Most people staffing the Immortal Pagoda were his Infernum and wouldn’t disturb him when his cultivation reached a critical point. But… what was this about the Immortal King appearing in person?
How come I don’t know that I’ve gone out to meet the enemy?
Destroying all of the attackers with three moves… he could do that if he deployed supplemental arts with all of his strength. But if he did so, he’d become a public target. Not only would the ghosts seek to destroy him, but so would some of his own kind ambush him from the shadows.
Those like the Haotian Tower, for instance.
Is it the little fox? Or is it Little Yu? Lu Yun shook his head gently, rather confused. It wasn’t until he contacted Jinse that he understood what’d taken place.
Qing Yu had given orders to enhance the Immortal Pagoda and Immortal King’s reputation. They were to build up his renown and esteem until he became what he was in the world of immortals— master of the sacred land of all!
Therefore, the little fox had projected Lu Yun’s image through her own formations of illusion and thrown out three king grade offensive formations in a row, shattering the ghosts’ major offensive.
After refining fifteen hundred kilograms of Mirage Sand, her illusory skills could no longer be described as simply magical. She was already stronger than Shenyu—he wouldn’t be able to see through her illusions now even if he was here in person.
Not to mention, she’d stayed safely in Multitude City throughout the commotion, controlling her formations from afar!
Those two little girls have collected a small army of new fans for me, no wonder the Karmic Tree’s gotten taller. Lu Yun smacked his lips. “I didn’t join the battle because I’d reached a critical stage in my cultivation. Ah, yes, where’s the little lass? Why don’t I see her?”
He looked around, but didn’t see Qing Ting. She’d followed him like his shadow during this time in Cloudexit City; Li Zhen hadn’t known that he was cultivating here, but she had. So where was she now that he was out?
“Qing Ting… she’s injured, very seriously. She almost died!” Li Zhen responded in a muffled voice. “His Lordship the Azureclad Duke’s taken her back to his faction’s camp to recover.”
Lu Yun read a trace of something different from his tone. “Does this have something to do with your brother, Li Quan?”
“…yes.” Li Zhen nodded. “Qing Ting was fighting a ghost king that day when Li Quan ambushed her.”
“Hahahaha,” Lu Yun chuckled. “Qing Ting is the little princess of Coiling Dragon City, which happens to be the overlord of your Li Clan, no? Li Quan dared ambush her and the city didn’t exterminate your entire clan?”
Li Zhen’s hand clenched tightly around the hilt of his ghost-headed blade.
“Ambush Qing Ting?” rose a jeering voice. “If it wasn’t for me extending a helping hand, little princess Qing Ting would’ve died to the ghost king. Now you two twist things around and say that I ambushed her?”
It was Li Quan, and his eyes were firmly fixed on Li Zhen’s weapon. Greed wafted off of him at every moment. His move had been concealed very well that day—apart from the few who noticed his actions, everyone thought he’d saved the girl.
As furious as the heavyweights of Coiling Dragon City were, they weren’t at liberty to openly take him to task. They were in special circumstances, and the great battle seven days ago with a dozen high level kings had terrified them all.
……
“Skyfall, go to the Coiling Dragon City camp and give them a creation grade healing pill for the little princess,” Lu Yun transmitted to the Skyfall King.
“Understood.” Skyfall started, then quickly carried out his orders.
After Lu Yun returned to the Immortal Pagoda from Hopeless Major, he’d used that ephemeral flame of order to refine a few more creation grade pills. Most of them were healing focused, and he carried a few of them on him.
Qing Ting and Li Zhen had put their lives on the line to protect him when the third step Li king attacked. Though Lu Yun wasn’t afraid of third step kings, he committed the display of friendship to memory.
“Li Quan, is it? Son of the Li patriarch, huh?”
Whoosh!
A cerulean blue flying sword appeared in Lu Yun’s hand—the Stellar Sword.
“Don’t! You’re no match for him!” Li Zhen shouted with alarm to see Lu Yun draw his sword. Though the Champion Duke had some skills to his name, he was far weaker than Li Quan! Li Quan was the clan’s greatest expert beneath titled kinghood and a notable genius of Coiling Dragon City.
Azureclad wouldn’t have silently swallowed the matter of his sister’s injury otherwise.
“Hahahaha!!” Li Quan threw his head back with laughter. “You see that, everyone? He drew his sword on me first, he has only himself to blame now that I kill him and take his sword!”
Whoosh!
Li Quan’s battle blade flew out of its sheath—king grade, refined by the Prime Weapon King of Haotian Tower. Before anyone could react, he brought it down on Lu Yun’s head. Dragonslay! The ultimate move of the Li Clan!
“Li Zhen!” Lu Yun roared. “Look closely at the true essence of your clan’s Dragonslay technique!”
Hummmm.
The Stellar Sword transformed into a ray of cerulean sword light as he took a step forward and slashed outward.
“A dragon bloodline runs through the Li Clan’s veins and the dragons view you as traitors because of this technique. If you want to slay a dragon, you must become a dragon!
“Slay!”
Aouuuuuu!
A piercing dragon croon echoed in the air alongside Lu Yun’s stroke.
