"Whoosh..."
The wind howled past his ears as his body was plummeting rapidly, yet Chen Kuang felt much calmer inside.
From the first day he transmigrated into this world... no, even before his transmigration, he already knew that most people in this world were nothing more than fish laid upon the chopping block, able only to be slaughtered at the hands of others.
Only those powerful individuals who held strength in their hands were worthy of wielding the butcher's blade.
Back then, the murderer was one of them. The jailer in the prison was one of them. Li Hongling was one of them. Su Yu was one of them. The Martial Saint Pavilion was one of them.
The Saints... were just another group among them.
If these people who held the butcher's blade wanted to treat him as fish for the slaughter, then... he would butcher them instead.
So it was in his past life, and so it shall be in this one.
So what if you are a Saint?
He would still slap you and have you eat dirt.
Chen Kuang understood perfectly well that his slap, to a Saint, didn't really amount to any serious injury. At most, she would spit out a mouthful or two of blood, and after several months of recovery, that would be the end of it.
What truly inflicted actual harm upon this ancient lady Wangshu... was the "National Destiny" summoned by Wen Xian.
That intangible and vast "National Destiny" had actually sealed off her Saint cultivation!
Though it was only temporary and came at great cost, perhaps it would take hundreds, even thousands of years to fully recover, but to be able to directly suppress a Saint was already unimaginably terrifying.
The destiny of a nation, this was the true foundation upon which the imperial court and the emperor relied.
Otherwise, why would cultivators be willing to serve the emperor, to become part of the court, to help build up these nations, to expand their territories?
As long as "National Destiny" existed, the cultivators within that nation would also be influenced to some extent, growing stronger and stronger, mutually reinforcing each other.
Although the effects of "National Destiny" were now far inferior to those in ancient times, it was still more than enough to widen the gap between a prosperous nation and a weak one.
Wen Xian must have been truly infuriated this time to have resolved himself to burn "National Destiny" like that.
After all, a Saint who ought to have supported the legitimate heir had instead chosen to help a rebel, and nearly succeeded in overturning the regime.
To any ruler, that was tantamount to having one's reverse scale touched.
It would have been strange if he hadn't exploded.
Of course, Chen Kuang's "Reasoned and Convincing" passive also played a huge role in persuading the other side.
Choosing to burn national destiny in order to deal with a Saint who, at that time, was still nominally an ally, this was also an extremely difficult decision.
If the chance of persuading the other party at that moment had been fifty-fifty, then that passive might have been the final straw that broke the camel's back, ever so slightly tipping the scale in his favor.
But now that "National Destiny" had been damaged, and the Saint was suppressed, Yang had effectively severed one of its own arms, although internal troubles had been quelled, external threats would surely arise.
How could they stabilize the situation again?
The answer was obvious... only the Elixir of Immortality could do so.
An emperor who could live forever. A regime that could persist eternally. Would they still fear the weakening or disappearance of national destiny?
It might seem illogical, but in truth, it was precisely the kind of idea that tugged at people's hearts.
After all, with each new dynasty came new ministers. In dynasties that changed every few hundred years, cultivators would even have to worry whether the successor would clean house and eliminate them.
It was better to follow someone who would never die than to invest in a new gamble all over again.
Chen Kuang didn't even need to think to know whom his currently still-warning "Blood Premonition" was warning him about.
What came next would be the true main event.
In Chen Kuang's field of vision, the status bar that had not disappeared even when he closed his eyes, popped up with another notification.
[You have obtained 4,655,106 portions of Good Karma, and 507,068 portions of Evil Karma]
An entire province, over five million people in total, Chen Kuang had managed to save 4,655,106 of them!
Had the Saint truly brought down that finger, all five million would have perished!
Now, only one-tenth had died.
Since the cause of the incident was Chen Kuang, the resulting Evil Karma was naturally attributed to him as well.
But that didn't mean Chen Kuang alone bore all of the Evil Karma, rather, he was able to concretize it and make use of it.
For others, karmic virtue and sin made no tangible difference.
Until now, Chen Kuang had only been able to use his Evil Karma to refine the space "Wujian Between." As for Good Karma, it had had no practical use.
But now, as this massive quantity of Good Karma flowed into him, Chen Kuang suddenly felt a subtle change in the air.
When he had just used the "Mountain and River Diagram" copied from lady Wangshu, that wondrous state had been rapidly slipping away.
The profound mysteries of the "Mountain and River Diagram" that Chen Kuang had fully grasped were also vanishing from his mind like flowing sand.
But at the moment he received that karmic virtue, that wondrous state suddenly froze, ever so slightly.
And within that gradually vanishing process, a flash of even deeper inspiration flickered through Chen Kuang's mind.
In the next moment, that profound sense within his mind no longer faded, but instead stayed rooted, becoming a part of Chen Kuang himself.
Yes, in other words, Chen Kuang... had comprehended the Saint Wangshu's Divine Ability: "Mountain and River Diagram"!
This was something that should have been absolutely impossible!
Because the gap between their realms was far too great.
Moreover, the "Mountain and River Diagram" wasn't some cultivation technique or martial skill, it was a Divine Ability. This kind of thing could not be trained, only realized.
In other words, this Divine Ability already went beyond the realms of so-called "martial arts prodigy."
It was like an elementary school student trying to study advanced mathematics, without any of the intervening knowledge, the odds of learning it were one in a billion.
Essentially impossible and utterly reliant on blind luck.
However, this enormous accumulation of 4.65 million portions of Good Karma forcibly unlocked each of those impossible nodes one by one.
By coincidence after coincidence, it allowed Chen Kuang to flow smoothly forward on the path of "enlightenment."
Until he comprehended the "Mountain and River Diagram."
At that moment, Chen Kuang understood clearly.
This so-called "Good Karma," or Karmic Power, could very well influence an individual's fortune!
Could this be the embryonic form of karmic retribution?
Only, for ordinary people, the Karmic Power they accumulated throughout their lives wasn't enough to produce any noticeable effect.
But now, the "Good Karma" on his body had clearly crossed a certain threshold.
Thus, it caused such direct, such explicit impact.
"The 'Mountain and River Diagram'... was created through sensing the mountains and rivers of the earth. It has three stages in total. At the moment, I fear I've barely touched even the first stage, just barely formed the most basic outline."
"I can briefly affect local geomantic veins and can sense the convergence of mountain-and-river Spiritual Energy."
"However... this convergence of mountain-and-river Spiritual Energy seems like it might be extremely useful to me."
A vague idea flashed across Chen Kuang's mind, but now was not the time to think too deeply.
He had fallen to a height close to the buildings below. His once-broken body was now nearly fully restored. Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes once more.
In mid-air, Chen Kuang suddenly twisted around to face the ground below and pointed downward with a single finger.
"Sink!"
The road paved with bluestone had already been shattered entirely under the pressure of the Saint's finger, revealing the earth beneath.
Now, at a single thought from Chen Kuang, that earth and rock instantly softened and sank, turning into loose sand and soil.
Falling from a hundred-zhang height, even for Chen Kuang, was still extremely dangerous and possibly fatal.
Even though he still had many passive skills on him now, they were only barely enough to preserve his life.
So, this layer of buffering was absolutely necessary.
"Boom!"
Chen Kuang crashed directly into the earth. The surrounding buildings were affected and all collapsed under the spreading shockwave, forming a massive crater.
By now, the crowd had already rushed over, surrounding the smoke-filled pit.
"Kui" had reverted to his child form and crouched by the edge of the pit, shouting, "Are you alright?"
Cang Xing immediately waved his hand and said with certainty, "He's definitely fine with the Martial Saint protecting him!"
Huangfu Yan's puppet body slowly walked over, looked at the earth surrounding the pit, and remarked in some surprise:
"So he knows Earth Techniques too? That wasn't listed in the intel..."
Immediately, he looked down into the pit and smiled. "Chen Kuang, it seems we can resume our previous transaction now."
Chen Kuang's voice came from inside the pit, slow and unhurried. "Did I ever agree to any transaction with you people?"
Huangfu Yan said indifferently, "I know this is a bit hard for you to accept."
"But from the moment you said those words, some things are no longer up to you."
Chen Kuang sneered, "So from the very beginning, you people never intended to let me leave the Yang Kingdom, did you?"
Huangfu Yan replied, "It's best that you understand."
"Of course I understand." Chen Kuang's figure slowly emerged from within the dust and smoke.
He nodded and stepped out from behind the veil of smoke.
Only then did the crowd realize, that wasn't Chen Kuang at all.
It was merely a humanoid shape crudely formed from gathered soil, just barely capable of movement!
Suddenly, Chen Kuang's voice rang out from far away, laughing loudly. "So, Chief Censor Huangfu, how come you never understood? Only a fool would sit around waiting for you to make a move!"
Huangfu Yan's pupils contracted sharply as he abruptly looked up.
The smoke dispersed. Chen Kuang's real body was already dozens of li away, racing toward the nearest border of Zangfeng Prefecture.
At this moment, the entire Zangfeng Prefecture was in chaos. The effects of the temporary ban on Spiritual Energy had just now fully erupted.
Some of the cultivators who had previously lost their Spiritual Energy were being taken revenge upon, some were ambushed, and a large portion had been under Wen Chai's command. Now, everything had reversed once again, presenting a scene of all kinds of human drama.
Naturally, these people had nothing to do with Chen Kuang. He didn't dare even glance at them.
He raced forward at his fastest speed, crossing nearly a hundred li toward the nearest prefectural border. But strangely, the premonition from "Blood Premonition" was growing increasingly dangerous.
Then, Chen Kuang saw the firelight flaring up in the woods along the border of Zangfeng Prefecture.
It was already late autumn and nightfall came quickly. Earlier, the sky had been obscured by the Saint's gesture, but now it was truly dark.
In the distance, the sun had already set. Because the clouds had been scattered by Saint Wangshu's shockwave, there wasn't even any afterglow. Only the last trace of light slowly sank beneath the horizon.
The firelight gleamed off layer upon layer of heavy armor, reflecting a blood-red glow like scales.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
An entire regiment of well-trained soldiers marched out of the forest.
Each synchronized step pounded the ground, shaking it, radiating an awe-inspiring momentum.
This wasn't just the result of their steps. Above the army, killing intent surged skyward, condensing into a massive crimson Avatar.
This Avatar gradually became distinct, several dozen zhang tall, armored, with three heads and six arms, each hand wielding a different magical weapon. Towering like a mountain, its gaze was stern as it glared at Chen Kuang.
He walked forward, each step precisely matching the army's advancing pace.
But the Avatar covered far more ground with each stride than the soldiers themselves.
At the very front, leading the formation, was a general named Jiang Wei. His hair and beard were completely white and his cultivation was at the Moon-Embracing Realm, on par with the former Li Hongling.
But in Chen Kuang's view, this man's mastery over formation momentum far surpassed Li Hongling's.
Back then, even as a fake Grandmaster relying on borrowed cultivation, Chen Kuang had easily broken through the Black Armor Army's formation.
Although Li Hongling had not acted as the formation's anchor point at the time, the strength of a formation could still be judged from the quality of the troops themselves.
Now, even though Jiang Wei had not yet unleashed his power, the Avatar formed by the momentum was already displaying the aura of a Grandmaster.
This was the official army of the Yang Kingdom as it stood today.
If the army led by Wen Chai back then had been able to employ a formation like this, the outcome might have been entirely different. But there were no "what ifs" in the world.
Jiang Wei sat atop his horse, his armored body solid and muscular, sinews bulging, completely unlike his aged appearance.
His warhorse galloped forward, charging toward Chen Kuang.
Jiang Wei suddenly raised the military standard, his gaze sharp as lightning, and shouted, "Divine generals like us, invincible in every direction!"
The soldiers behind him shouted in unison, "Divine generals like us, invincible in every direction!"
They immediately split into formation, surrounding Chen Kuang from all sides.
All of these soldiers were cultivators!
And among them were no shortage of mid-tier Third Grade experts.
Chen Kuang took a deep breath. Instead of retreating, he advanced, suddenly accelerating, his figure blurring as he shot like a loosed arrow straight toward Jiang Wei.
The road out of Zangfeng Prefecture was already blocked. Competing in speed with the Avatar formed by the momentum was clearly a losing battle.
There was only one path to survival, charge the formation!
Drawing on his previous experience with formation momentum, Chen Kuang knew that in order to defeat the illusory form produced by such a formation, he had to first break the momentum of the entire army.
To catch a bandit, seize the leader first.
To shoot a man, aim for his horse!
And the "horse" of a formation was the soldiers that composed the army!
But there was no question, the risk was enormous.
Chen Kuang twisted his wrist, grasping the ancient and unadorned killing sword that had now fully materialized. In the blink of an eye, he appeared right in front of Jiang Wei.
"Shua!"
Jiang Wei's expression was grave. His military standard blade swept horizontally, and the technique he used was actually a spear art.
Above them, the massive Avatar swung the six weapons in its six arms, glaring furiously as it slashed down toward the tiny figure of Chen Kuang.
At the same time, cavalry units were circling around behind him.
Chen Kuang was already nearly surrounded by the army.
He moved with a thought, his "Sword Of Intent" had already pierced into Jiang Wei's mind, bringing excruciating pain and terrifying illusions with it.
Jiang Wei grunted, a flicker of vicious resolve flashing in his eyes. He gripped the military standard tightly and still blocked Chen Kuang's sword without the slightest misstep.
At the same moment, the sword in the Avatar's hand descended toward the top of Chen Kuang's head.
"Jingle jingle jingle..."
Suddenly, the sound of a clear bell rang out.
"CLANG!!!!!!"
A tremendous noise echoed across the entire battlefield at the border. The ground shook from the force.
Chen Kuang looked up, astonishment on his face.
A similarly massive phantom stretched out its arm from the side, intercepting the Avatar's sword. It seized the blade with its bare hand, trembling as it forcefully held it back.
Not far away, a little girl, no more than four or five years old, stood atop a rock, holding a bell in her hand.
The little girl took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "Soldiers of the Huo Family Army of Liang, heed my command!!!"
The Huo Family Army?
Chen Kuang froze, and saw behind the little girl, one figure after another appearing in succession, thousands upon thousands, as solid and unyielding as a fortress wall!
He didn't recognize these people, but he did recognize the flag they carried.
Embroidered on it was the character "Huo."
These were the souls of fallen soldiers, summoned from the battlefield ruins of Liang's imperial city by the "Reversal Bell."
Now, they were soldiers of Liang obeying the command of their one and only princess!
"Spirits, return!"
They raised their heads high and responded in unison:
"Here!!!"