Chapter 165: The Fall of the Divine City
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
Under the cover of night, the Divine City was bustling with fierce activity. Along its many paths, disciples from prestigious sects gathered, vying for the divine energy contained in the blue Fire Spring. These were no ordinary participants; they were some of the most brilliant talents from various traditions.
It didn’t take long for the streets paved with blue stones to be stained with blood. This time, it wasn’t just shadowy spirits; flesh-and-blood geniuses were either grievously wounded or outright killed.
Earlier, several factions had journeyed together from Red Glow City. Now, their alliances were shattered as they clashed violently over the potent divinity emanating from the colossal centipede.
Reality, Qin Ming mused, was brutally harsh. Friendships crumbled, trust eroded, and former allies now turned against one another. Even a pool of divine energy as abundant as this wasn’t nearly enough to satisfy everyone. The air was filled with the sounds of battle, cries echoing through the city.
Nearby, a severed head rolled to a stop at Qin Ming’s feet. Without even a flicker of emotion, he sidestepped it and continued walking.
Above, a fiery red bird five meters long streaked through the air, engulfed in flames as it dived toward its opponent. But its head exploded mid-flight, struck by an arrow crafted from Thunderstrike Wood. Blood-soaked feathers fluttered to the ground, and the massive, headless carcass crashed near Qin Ming, close enough that the rush of wind lifted his hair.
Unperturbed, Qin Ming brushed a strand of black hair back into place and continued strolling through the battlefield, calm and composed. There was no trace of restlessness in his demeanor.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Hurry up and get in there!” Yu Zhuo Han shouted, frustration evident in his tone.
“Destiny gives what it wills; forcing it gains nothing,” Qin Ming replied with serene indifference, his tone devoid of any fervor or ambition.
Yu Zhuo Han looked as though he might slap Qin Ming. During their sparring matches, Qin Ming had been ruthless. Now he was acting like some philosopher, cultivating inner peace in the midst of chaos.
“That’s concentrated divinity!” Yu Zhuo Han exclaimed, exasperated. “Do you even understand its worth? It can nourish spiritual artifacts, enhance rare treasures, awaken divine wisdom, and serves as a rare main ingredient for refining extraordinary elixirs. It’s useful in countless ways!”
Despite the explanation, Qin Ming remained unmoved. He strolled near the battlefield as if taking a leisurely walk in a garden, indifferent to the surrounding bloodshed.
Annoyed by his lack of urgency, Yu Zhuo Han eventually gave up on persuading him. However, when an arrow infused with spiritual light flew toward Yu Zhuo Han’s back, Qin Ming acted without hesitation, intercepting it before it could harm him.
“Thanks!” Yu Zhuo Han said gratefully.
“No need to thank me—we’re brothers,” Qin Ming replied with a small smile.
The young man who had fired the arrow narrowed his eyes and immediately drew his bow again. A volley of over a dozen arrows streaked toward Qin Ming, sealing off every possible escape route.
Clearly, the archer had picked the wrong target.
What happened next left the crowd stunned. The previously serene “Leisure Brother” erupted with fury, charging forward like a raging humanoid bear. Sparks and lightning crackled around him as he bulldozed his way through enemies, leaving them convulsing on the ground with scorched faces.
“Are you out of your mind? Why provoke him?” someone from the Pure Land Beyond scolded the young archer.
The youth looked defiant at first, but his expression soon changed. Qin Ming was terrifying when he stopped holding back. His mastery of lightning left no chance for resistance. Within moments, the boy was incapacitated and finished off by a Secret Sect disciple, his head rolling away.
Word quickly spread: among the Secret Sect’s ranks was a natural-born ability user who controlled lightning—a force to be reckoned with.
“Yu Zhuo Han, your friend is impressive,” one of the Secret Sect’s core disciples remarked. “He’s as gifted as you.”
Yu Zhuo Han, also a rare natural talent, was known for the silver fire moon phenomenon that shrouded his body, a spectacle that appeared even before he reached the appropriate cultivation stage.
The presence of the Divine City, tied to the “Great Being,” made this place a hub of activity. Many surged toward the level-four Fire Spring pool.
Qin Ming accompanied Yu Zhuo Han to the pool’s edge, where he once again adopted his leisurely pace, lazily refining his iron arrows. Only when he saw the Talking Sparrow struggling and nearly killed did he step in.
Meanwhile, the Four-Tusked White Elephant clashed ferociously with Li Qing Xu, igniting a brutal melee that spread chaos across the battlefield.
“Thanks, little brother! You’re such a good person. I can tell you’re destined for greatness!” the Talking Sparrow exclaimed after escaping, its words pouring out in a relentless stream of flattery.
A massive explosion shook the area. After a brief exchange with the Four-Tusked White Elephant, Li Qing Xu hurled six short spears toward the battlefield. Each spear struck with deadly precision, instantly killing five young talents. Their bodies shattered or exploded on impact, splattering blood and fragments of bone everywhere.
Qin Ming avoided the spears, using his lightning to alter their trajectories. His expression grew serious as he watched Li Qing Xu. This old acquaintance had grown frighteningly powerful, his cultivation clearly bolstered by the foundation of the immortal path. It was clear Qin Ming couldn’t face him without advancing to the next major realm.
The Four-Tusked White Elephant remarked, “Your master is determined to elevate you to the status of an ‘Immortal Seed.’ Has he found a secret mountain nest or acquired dragon blood from the Dragon-Water Technique to grant you another rebirth?”
As it spoke, radiant light surged from the elephant’s body. Its four tusks glowed white as jade, emitting beams that swept through the battlefield, claiming the lives of multiple Pure Land disciples. The attacks pierced hearts, decapitated heads, and shattered bodies with unstoppable force.
The carnage reached a point where all sides hesitated, wary of the powerhouses present.
Observing the chaos, Qin Ming realized that practitioners of the New Awakening Path were conspicuously absent, himself being the sole exception. Quietly, he assisted the Talking Sparrow in fighting its way to the pool. There, he noticed the bird’s audacity—it was using divine energy to temper its claws, beak, and feathers.
“Be careful not to overdo it, or you’ll be harmed by the backlash,” Qin Ming cautioned.
The Talking Sparrow reassured him, its voice steady, “Don’t worry, my friend. As long as you don’t merge it with your own divinity, it won’t be a big problem.”
Indeed, the sparrow was extraordinary. Even back at Black and White Mountain, it had claimed to have developed divinity.
Now, the sparrow began transforming visibly, its feathers shimmering with radiant light, while its beak and claws gleamed with brilliance.
“What are you doing?” someone demanded, noticing Li Qing Xu throwing six flags into the air. These flags began to draw the divine essence from the pool, gathering it toward him.
In his hand, a crystal bottle glowing with seven-colored light started absorbing the refined, concentrated divine essence.
“Brother Tang, help me fend them off for a moment, and I’ll share some divinity with you later!” Li Qing Xu called to Tang Xu Mi, fully aware of his companion’s formidable strength, which rivaled his own.
“That’s a treasure crafted by his master, Cao Qian Qiu,” someone from the Secret Sect remarked bitterly. “He’s not just stealing some divinity—he’s planning to drain the whole pool! We need to stop him!”
Chaos erupted as furious cries filled the air. Every faction was enraged at the thought of Li Qing Xu monopolizing the divine pool. Qin Ming, initially planning to stay out of it, found himself in danger when the flags unleashed a wave of spiritual brilliance that spread across the area.
As magical tools and rare treasures flew about, their dazzling light filling the sky, Qin Ming could no longer tolerate the situation. He joined the fray, determined to bring balance.
For a moment, he considered using his pendant made of exotic metal to puncture the colorful crystal bottle. However, remembering that Cao Qian Qiu was nearby, he suppressed his impulse.
Crack!
Unexpectedly, the Purple Lightning Beast, in human form, wielded a lethal weapon—a small purple hammer—and shattered the crystal bottle.
“Madam, Old Cao is nearby!” exclaimed the white owl guarding her, nearly tumbling into the divine pool in fright.
In the distance, four suns appeared on the horizon, moving swiftly toward Red Glow City. They had successfully slain a colossal blue centipede, which had nearly reached the threshold of godhood, and reaped great rewards.
“Hmm!” At that moment, Cao Qian Qiu sensed something amiss. His expression darkened when he realized someone had destroyed the divine bottle he had crafted with his own hands.
From atop the crimson sun, he extended a finger toward the city, unleashing a terrifying beam of light aimed at its heart.
But with a single sweep of its trunk, the Six-Tusked Dragon Elephant dispersed the blinding beam.
“That’s my brother’s descendant. What are you trying to do?” the Dragon Elephant demanded.
“Hmph!” Cao Qian Qiu snorted coldly.
Then, his gaze shifted, landing on someone new. “And who’s this fresh-faced one, using Wind and Thunder Force?”
Over a century ago, someone had combined Wind Force and Dominating Force with a special spiritual field, altering the heavens and earth, and pierced his right hand, leaving it bloodied.
Standing within the searing red sun, Cao Qian Qiu extended a finger once more, pointing downward.
Boom!
Again, his attack was thwarted as the divine light radiating from his fingertip shattered midair.
Meng Xing Hai’s martial uncle, blazing with divine wisdom like a sun, spoke sternly, “You need to curb that nasty temper of yours. You’re a senior. Those disciples have barely begun their cultivation journey. Are you seriously targeting them? I’m telling you now—they’re under my protection.”
“I, Cao Qian Qiu, have always acted as I see fit. Whether it’s a junior or a god-seeking creature, if they displease me, I will act!” he declared unapologetically.
The young disciples within the divine city remained unaware of how dangerous these capricious seniors were. A mere gesture from them could obliterate someone entirely.
Not long after, the disciples left the divine city. Meng Xing Hai and his group began dismantling the structures, as they were composed of essence and vitality, brimming with creation.