https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-212-Unity-and-Friendship-Bestowing-Allies-with-Opportunities-/12587008/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-214-Lei-Daochang-was-Almost-in-Tears/12587010/
Chapter 213: A Quadruple Opportunity, Heavenly Eye Scorching
Chapter 213: A Quadruple Opportunity, Heavenly Eye Scorching
Lei Jun made his way directly towards Kongliu Mountain.
Time-wise, he had lingered a bit too long in the Zhaojing River Basin and wasn't sure if he could still make it in time for the quadruple opportunity mentioned by the lucky draw, which pertained to Kongliu Mountain.
According to the previous communication between Shangguan Peng and the middle-aged camp commander, everyone except for Shangguan Peng had already set off towards Kongliu Mountain.
Lei Jun didn't insist on joining them and instead embraced the idea of trying his luck. He decided to head towards Kongliu Mountain, thinking that whatever happened would be a gain or a loss, and he would just go with the flow.
After all, he didn't plan to stay in the Zhaojing River Basin to witness Shangguan Peng's outcome.
While on the road, Lei Jun contacted his master, Yuan Mobai, once again.
The main purpose was to remind his master to stay away from places like Yinding Rock and Zhaojing, and to be vigilant against the "concern" of the Shangguan family, who appeared to be very attentive as fellow travelers. This included, but was not limited to, Shangguan Peng.
Yuan Mobai was already aware of Lei Jun's research on the Tianshi Mansion's thousand-mile sound-transmitting talisman.
He also knew that Lei Jun's enlightenment had advanced from Tongming to the Qingjing level.
Although he felt both annoyed and amused by Lei Jun's act of digging into their thousand-mile sound-transmitting talisman, Yuan Mobai didn't doubt that his disciple was capable of achieving this feat.
Regarding Lei Jun's plan for Shangguan Peng and the others, Yuan Mobai didn't seem too surprised after hearing it; he just sighed and said, "A scholarly family and a martial arts family may have different traditions, but... since they already have such a deep foundation, people will naturally hope that their legacy will last for thousands of generations."
Lei Jun silently nodded in agreement.
As the leading family among the founding nobles of the Great Tang Dynasty, the Shangguan family was closely tied to the imperial family. Whether it was the power struggle in the court or the rise of new family forces, they were naturally opposed to traditional aristocratic families like the Five Surnames and Seven Nobles.
However, there was one thing on which both sides agreed.
Both sides valued bloodline succession, which was their fundamental means of standing in the world. As a result, their thoughts on certain issues were surprisingly aligned.
The imperial family of the Tang Dynasty, along with the martial noble families surrounding them, supported the Buddhist and Taoist holy sites to counterbalance the influence of the Five Surnames and Seven Nobles, who were predominantly Confucian scholars.
This was the starting point of their actions.
In return, it was natural that some members of the Shangguan noble family would be unwilling to provide shelter and protection for Buddhism and Taoism.
As for the fact that the Tianshi Mansion was currently in a weak state and needed to recuperate and rebuild...
In the hearts of Shangguan Peng and others, they probably didn't care at all, attributing the current predicament of the Tianshi Mansion to internal strife within Longhushan.
As for the Bodhi Temple, they believed that it was due to the mistakes of Abbot Yuanfang and others that the enemy took advantage of the situation. The temple failed to play its due role and suffered in vain, wasting the court's previous support for them.
Regardless of the correctness of such views and stances, it was clear that they had a significant influence, if not the absolute mainstream, among the noble families.
"Observing Her Majesty's words and deeds, although there are often unexpected surprises, there should be no major problems for the time being. What needs to be paid attention to now is the thinking of General Shangguan," Yuan Mobai said slowly.
Shangguan Peng couldn't represent the Shangguan family.
However, as a leading figure among the younger generation of the Shangguan family, one could speculate about the internal dynamics of the Shangguan family through him.
General Shangguan referred to the commander of the Great Tang Shence Army, Shangguan Yunbo, the current head of the Shangguan family.
Ten years ago, the Western Regions fell into chaos due to a demonic uprising. In that great battle, the previous commander of the Shence Army, who was also the previous head of the Shangguan family, perished. Subsequently, Shangguan Yunbo took over.
Under the rule of the Empress and Shangguan Yunbo, the Great Tang Shence Army gradually regained its strength.
However, due to the consecutive outbreaks of the Wu and Yue Rebellion and the East China Sea Demon Rebellion, their recovery fell short of expectations.
The Shangguan family, leading the noble families, had not yet regained their former glory prior to the Western Regions Demon Rebellion.
It was during this process that the Empress promoted many commoners and members of humble backgrounds.
This naturally included not just Shen Quibing, but Shen Quibing was one of the most outstanding among them.
As the Great Tang Shence Army slowly regained its strength, the influence of the martial noble families within it actually decreased slightly.
It was difficult to predict what thoughts were brewing in the minds of Shangguan Yunbo and the others.
"For now, we are still in the same boat on the surface, but there is some controversy about who should dive into the water to repair the leaking boat."
Lei Jun smiled and said, "Overall, we should still maintain unity and help each other. I can't interfere with how they think, but I firmly believe that this is the right way."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Mobai didn't say much but reminded him, "Be cautious and vigilant in your words and actions."
"Yes, Master," Lei Jun replied.
He brought up another matter, "In Hongyun Dong of Zhaojing, I heard about another matter. The future Maitreya of the White Lotus Sect has also come to the Southern Wilderness."
Lei Jun had exposed his whereabouts in the Zhaojing River Basin by deliberately grouping Zhao Sen and the other gu masters together. This was done to attract Shangguan Peng.
However, whether it was Lei Jun himself or the clues related to the Tian Shi Pao, it was likely to attract more than just Shangguan Peng.
Therefore, Lei Jun was also secretly vigilant, anticipating that other experts would come upon receiving the news.
Hongyun Dong was the territory of Tian Linlong, the elder of Yanshan Dong, an old rival of the Tian Shi Mansion. Zhao Sen was also Tian Linlong's proud disciple.
Lei Jun caused a ruckus near Hongyun Dong, which would naturally attract Tian Linlong first and foremost.
However, Lei Jun waited for a while, long enough for Shangguan Peng to arrive, but Tian Linlong was still nowhere to be seen.
Instead, he hid nearby and, through some of Hongyun Dong's gu masters, heard a rumor.
The future Maitreya of the White Lotus Sect had also arrived in the Southern Wilderness not long ago and ventured into the Zhaojing River Basin.
Such a powerful expert suddenly trespassing into their territory naturally attracted Tian Linlong's attention, which was why he was occupied and couldn't spare any attention towards Lei Jun.
The current sect master of the White Lotus Sect was customarily referred to as the Present Maitreya, the Maitreya Saint, or the White Lotus Saint, while the sect master's successor was called the Future Maitreya.
This generation's Future Maitreya was young in age but possessed extraordinary talent and strength, renowned both within and outside the Great Tang, and was publicly recognized as a formidable foe of the Buddhist sect in the future.
About six or seven years ago, the Future Maitreya entered the world and quelled the Huai Mountain Rebellion, which was instigated by others within the White Lotus Sect, revealing his cultivation of the Upper Third Heaven at that time.
Now, his sudden appearance in the Southern Wilderness and the Zhaojing River Basin naturally couldn't be ignored by Tian Linlong.
"The Future Maitreya?" Yuan Mobai was also slightly surprised upon hearing this.
Although Lei Jun suspected that the Thursday Jupiter in the Celestial Stars was most likely this Future Maitreya, he couldn't be absolutely certain, nor did he know why the latter had also suddenly come to the Southern Wilderness.
Yuan Mobai said, "Although our sect doesn't directly oppose the White Lotus Sect, the situation in the Southern Wilderness is already chaotic, and with the White Lotus Sect sticking their hands into it, the situation will only become more turbulent. We must be on guard."
"Disciple will heed Master's teachings," Lei Jun replied.
As mentioned earlier, although there were some discordant voices within, the Celestial Master's Mansion was, for the most part, on the same side as the Great Tang Dynasty.
On the other hand, the White Lotus Sect was one of the Great Tang's woes.
The Southern Wilderness was currently in turmoil due to the remnants of the Sui Dynasty, and with the White Lotus Sect adding fuel to the fire, the Tang court would undoubtedly face even more headaches.
After ending his communication with Yuan Mobai, Lei Jun continued on his way to Kongliu Mountain.
By the time he arrived at Kongliu Mountain, the battle there was already in full swing, with the intensity of the fight escalating.
The Great Tang Godly Strategy Army that had come to the Southern Wilderness consisted of capable and experienced generals. Although their numbers weren't large, they were a formidable force when concentrated, continuously breaking through the defenses of the Sui remnants.
Especially with Shen Quibing as the vanguard, they had already killed their way into Kongliu Mountain.
Lei Jun calmly and efficiently cast the Night Wind of Wind and Thunder upon himself and drove the spiritual power of the Giant Serpent Bone, silently entering the mountain without a trace.
He evaded both sides of the intense battle and decided to try his luck first to see if the four-star opportunity had been claimed by someone else.
Lei Jun found a concealed spot, erected the Breath Soil Flag to hide himself, and quietly contemplated his spirit.
As he channeled his magic power, two streams of energy, one black and one white, floated out and wandered through the mountain ranges.
After an unknown period, the Nine Abyss Earthfire in the first layer of the True One Law Altar seemed to fluctuate slightly.
At the same time, Lei Jun felt a warmth emanating from his Divine Eye Stone.
His heart stirred, and he took out the Divine Eye Stone, removed the Breath Soil Flag, and quietly used the Divine Eye Stone to observe the surroundings.
After a moment, Lei Jun's attention was drawn to the direction of the back mountain.
There, a small number of people were fleeing from the back mountain.
Shen Quibing and the other Tang soldiers were pressing their attack with increasing ferocity, and the Sui remnants were gradually unable to withstand the onslaught, forcing them to begin their retreat from Kongliu Mountain.
To stall the pursuit of the Tang soldiers, the retreating Sui remnants took out some spiritual objects imbued with fire-attribute essence and set them ablaze.
Instantly, layers of fire rose to the sky and rapidly spread throughout the back mountain.
At this moment, Lei Jun felt the Divine Eye Stone in his hand growing even hotter.
Unfazed, he quietly made his way to the back mountain.
The fire here was fierce, but it couldn't stop him.
Lei Jun carefully inspected the area and suddenly felt that amidst the flames shooting into the sky and the rising heat, the scenery above seemed to distort, and a gigantic eye appeared in the sky, gazing down upon Kongliu Mountain.
And the source of all this seemed to be emanating from the back mountain inferno.
Following his intuition, Lei Jun eventually found a patch of mountain rock in the back mountain inferno that appeared to have melted.
The rock was soft and pliable, like flowing lava, and it seemed scorching hot and heart-pounding.
But Lei Jun sensed a sense of emptiness from it.
Suddenly, a name popped into his mind:
【Heavenly Eye Scorching】
Lei Jun's thoughts turned, and he gained a bit of enlightenment:
The mountain rocks on the back of Kongliu Mountain were rather unique, but under normal circumstances, they wouldn't exhibit anything extraordinary.
Simply burning them with fire wouldn't likely produce such a remarkable effect.
The spiritual objects used by the Sui remnants to start the fire must also be rather peculiar, and it was only after combining with the back mountain rocks of Kongliu Mountain that this coincidence occurred, generating the Heavenly Eye Scorching.
If not for Lei Jun's sensitive senses due to the Yin-Yang Holy Body and the Divine Eye Stone in his possession, he wouldn't have been able to discover this mystery so quickly.
People like Shen Quibing were currently still unaware and were solely focused on breaking through the fire barrier and pursuing the fleeing Sui remnants.
Lei Jun weighed the Divine Eye Stone in his hand.
He had some ideas on how to utilize this object and the Heavenly Eye Scorching, but he needed further experimentation, and time was not on his side. For now, he would collect the Heavenly Eye Scorching and study it at a later time.
Lei Jun waved the Breath Soil Flag, and immediately, a large amount of dusky spiritual light was derived, wrapping and absorbing the Heavenly Eye Scorching, which resembled molten lava.
The blazing lava burned through the earthen rocks created by the dusky spiritual light of the flag, but the light was dense and thick, endless, and eventually succeeded in enveloping the Heavenly Eye Scorching.
The fire subsided.
Some of the Tang soldiers noticed, but their attention remained on the Sui remnants.
Lei Jun's figure had long since disappeared again.
This Heavenly Eye Scorching was most likely the four-star opportunity indicated by the lucky draw at Kongliu Mountain. With it safely in his possession, Lei Jun had no further desires.
He had originally planned to observe the unfolding events from a distance, but one of the retreating Sui elders caught his attention.
This man looked dazed, as if his soul was being suppressed by his opponent.
However, the attackers led by Shen Quibing were all martial artists.
Martial artists refined their souls within their physical bodies, making them resilient and sturdy, impervious to external harm. However, this also meant that they lacked the means to actively injure their opponents' souls.
The only exception was when facing pure Yin spirits without physical bodies, as the robust Yang energy of martial artists could easily injure these Yin spirits.
But the middle-aged man who had caught Lei Jun's attention was a Confucian divine archer with a solid physical foundation and thus was not a pure Yin spirit. He shouldn't have had his soul suppressed.
...To Lei Jun, the man's appearance bore a resemblance to Zhang Yuan, who had been in a dazed state after being possessed by the shadow of the Heavenly Tome.
Lei Jun's heart stirred, and he quietly drew closer.
The Breath Soil Flag was currently being used to seal the Heavenly Eye Scorching, so it was inconvenient to use it to capture a living person. However, Lei Jun had other methods at his disposal.
He took out the Yuan Magnet Entangling Dragon Flag, which he had refined himself, and waved it. Instantly, numerous lights resembling vines flashed, entangling and capturing the dazed middle-aged man. The flag was then rolled up, taking the man with it.
Just then, the entire Kongliu Mountain seemed to tremble.
Violent earth vein energy erupted from beneath the mountain, causing the mountain to shake violently.
Lei Jun, ever vigilant, sprang onto a hilltop to survey the situation from a higher vantage point. He found that the Sui remnants had not had time to remove the ritual instruments that disrupted the mountain's ley line energy, and many of the instruments were still present.
Some of the Tang soldiers stepped forward to dismantle and clear the instruments, but their efforts were in vain, causing the terrestrial energy of Kongliu Mountain to become even more turbulent. The mountainside appeared to be convulsing like a colossal earth dragon, with rocks and soil churning and the ground fissuring, forming deep gorges.
Amidst the surging terrestrial energy, a vertical cutting gale that could cleave through metal and stone formed, slicing through Kongliu Mountain and its surroundings, leaving everything in a state of devastation.
Shen Quibing shouted urgently, "Everyone, head to the left mountain!"
The Tang soldiers didn't have time to think and quickly climbed the mountain. Then they saw the mountain rocks splitting apart as the gale approached.
Shen Quibing transformed into a flash of white light and rushed towards the gale. The next moment, the sound of thunderous explosions filled the air.
The gale was blocked, sparing most of his companions. Even the young martial artist had managed to withstand the gale, displaying his exceptional strength.
However, Shen Quibing had also sustained serious injuries and needed to rest and recover immediately.
The surrounding group of Tang soldiers, mostly comprised of the Shangguan family, looked at Shen Quibing with complex expressions.
"Scatter and use your abilities to stabilize the mountain rocks. Don't let this place collapse further," the middle-aged centurion ordered.
The soldiers hurriedly acknowledged and dispersed.
The middle-aged centurion fixed his gaze on Shen Quibing, who was sitting cross-legged in front of him, without saying a word.
The young guard beside him was startled. "Centurion..."
"Peng's instructions mainly concerned the Celestial Master's Mansion and other matters. However, regarding this person, he also had something to say... He told us to act according to the situation." The middle-aged centurion spoke in a low voice. "Although the root of the problem does not lie with Shen Quibing, there will still be many Han family members emerging even without him. But he is still an extremely special case, and it's better to have one less of them."
The young guard's eyes lit up. "In that case, now is indeed a good opportunity..."
Shen Quibing was injured.
The surging terrestrial energy had created a perilous environment, and the remnants of the Sui were shouldering the blame.
Additionally, due to the chaotic terrestrial pulse energy, this place was temporarily cut off from the outside world, making it difficult to investigate afterward.
"However, he did save us earlier..." The young guard hesitated slightly.
The middle-aged centurion said, "With no other distractions around, this opportunity is rare and fleeting. If we miss it today, we don't know when the next chance will arise. We must be resolute."
Before he could finish his sentence, his voice suddenly cut off as a hand clutched his neck from behind.
The young guard was stunned, his eyes fixed on the tall Taoist priest who had suddenly appeared.
"It's indeed good to have no distractions," Lei Jun said as he twisted the middle-aged centurion's neck.
(End of Chapter)
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