The world was dark, smoke rising and dust flying.

Jiang Youyue struck decisively, his magic pouring towards the group. He stood in place, shadowy root-like tendrils sprouting beneath his feet. The magic in his hands was like an immortal descending to earth, truly otherworldly. The two deformed giant hands beside him moved slowly, the root shadows trembling and spreading out as if pulled by puppet strings.

The National Teacher seemed to stand within a semi-transparent black chrysanthemum, the eerie scene making one's hair stand on end, the sticky hostility making it difficult to breathe.

Monk Juehui and Hua Jingchun, both seasoned masters, knew at a glance they couldn't withstand this. The two dragged the Yueshui Bureau disciple left and right, retreating swiftly. They had only come to be witnesses - if they ended up dead with no one to testify, that would be quite the predicament.

Yin Ci and Shi Jingzhi clearly understood this as well. The two cautiously retreated, firmly protecting the other three.

Jiang Youyue looked at Shi Jingzhi, his gaze revealing a hint of admiration. But that admiration didn't seem directed at a person; the National Teacher appeared to be looking at a particularly fine fruit.

"Able to resist the fear of death, able to maintain uncertainty. Even at death's door, still maintaining vigilance - truly excellent material. General Yin, you've done us a great favor by tempering him to this state."

As he spoke, green strands of light like gentle spring rain intertwined with Shi Jingzhi's golden fire. The golden fire, as if truly doused by rain, immediately weakened significantly. Yin Ci charged forward with his sword, a set of sword techniques whipping up a dragon-like whirlwind. However, Jiang Youyue merely raised one hand, and countless soft roots gathered into a ball, stopping the sword energy.

"But General Yin doesn't seem like a reckless person... This time, did you intend to provoke Duanyun to lure me here, then destroy Shi Jingzhi in front of us?"

Amidst the vortex of sword energy and golden fire, Jiang Youyue's tone was leisurely and self-assured, even carrying a hint of amusement.

...It did sound quite reasonable.

Shi Jingzhi's heart was steady, but his body instinctively broke out in a cold sweat, causing the golden fire in his hands to tremble three times. If he truly had no deep connection with Yin Ci, he would definitely have been swayed at this moment, turning to join the Immortal Gathering. But the act had to be convincing. Sect Leader Shi wiped his lips with his sleeve and dramatically spat out another large mouthful of blood.

Yin Ci stood in front of Shi Jingzhi, his entire body trembling imperceptibly, looking as if he was suppressing the urge to turn around. Then he took a deep breath, raising his Hanging Shadow Sword once more: "I'll destroy you first!"

However, this time, "destiny" seemed not to stand on Ku Mountain Sect's side.

If dealing with Qu Duanyun was still like facing a "human," now before them was Jiang Youyue borrowing the power of the Suspended Tree - as the will of the Suspended Tree, the True Immortal didn't need to appear. Just lending a fraction of its power was enough to leave the master and disciple pair with no countermeasures.

Jiang Youyue's long sleeves fluttered, layers of root shadows surrounding him, exuding an air of calm leisure. The master and disciple pair were like old grannies trying to crack walnuts, unable to find any opportunity to exploit. In terms of magical experience, Shi Jingzhi was no match for him. In terms of abundant energy, Yin Ci was no match for him. Even in martial arts, his weak point, the roots of the Suspended Tree protected him well.

Yin Ci didn't lose heart, his sword techniques becoming faster and faster. Shi Jingzhi stood behind him, golden fire dancing with the sword wind. Those semi-transparent root shadows broke and regrew, recovering again and again. Just one small mistake, and several thin roots would form into weapons, instantly piercing through his body. If the reaction was a bit slower, they would thrust upwards violently, trying to tear Yin Ci in half.

Magic flew all around, and Shi Jingzhi didn't dare to be careless for a moment. As Jiang Youyue's attacks became increasingly fierce, he had no choice but to switch from offense to defense, using golden fire as a shield, barely covering the two of them. Seeing this defensive stance, the "root system giant hands" surrounding Jiang Youyue immediately twitched and moved. Tiny roots spread rapidly on the ground, the air becoming increasingly cold and sticky. Soon, a sense of powerlessness rose from beneath everyone's feet.

The wasteland was gradually submerged by fine roots, as if covered by a layer of semi-transparent sewage. They silently engulfed everyone's hands and feet, turning this place into a swamp of death.

Essence and energy were constantly draining away. This technique wasn't as cruel as the Deity Summoning Formation, but it was enough to disrupt the battle situation.

Even with Ku Mountain Sect's protection, Monk Juehui and Hua Jingchun couldn't prevent the influence of the Suspended Tree. Before they could run far, they were entangled by fully armed soldiers and dragged back into the fray of swords and blades.

In the distance, the sounds of battle between Taiheng and the imperial troops were grating. Nearby, golden fire and ashes were swept up by sword winds, the wild grass completely dyed the color of blood.

Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, or an ephemera trying to shake a great tree. The situation became increasingly desperate, yet the master and disciple pair still couldn't harm the National Teacher in the slightest.

Unlike Qu Duanyun, Jiang Youyue was a troublesome opponent. He didn't deliberately toy with them, nor did he unnecessarily drag out the time. Seeing that Shi Jingzhi still harbored thoughts of resistance, he instantly decided to cut the Gordian knot, without a shred of mercy.

Even if the opponent was their carefully nurtured Desire Child.

The absorption of the root system grew stronger and stronger. Affected by the Suspended Tree, Shi Jingzhi's hands trembled for a moment. With this lapse in defense, a deep bloody gash opened on his right shoulder. The cheap sect robe on his body instantly tore in a large patch, revealing the scarred skin beneath.

It was as if someone had carved out several chunks of skin from his shoulder and chest.

Shi Jingzhi gasped in pain, hurriedly pulling up his clothes to cover those large patches of scars. Yin Ci finally turned his head, giving Shi Jingzhi a particularly sharp look. The sharpness in the sword wind became even more pronounced, clearly tinged with a taste of misplaced anger.

Jiang Youyue smiled without speaking, his actions becoming increasingly vicious.

Subconscious reactions couldn't deceive anyone; the relationship between these two was clearly not so good. As long as there was a crack in their hearts, it would be simple to exploit. Either way, Shi Jingzhi's "quality" no longer needed to be tested. This time, they just needed to tie him up and take him back to feed him the Shi Rou, and the grand plan of a hundred years would be complete.

Just one final push.

Qu Duanyun was entangled in battle with Yan Qing and Shi Zhongyu. With the National Teacher unleashing his power borrowed from the Suspended Tree, both Yan Qing and Shi Zhongyu were heavily affected, their bodies covered in numerous wounds. The situation in the distance wasn't optimistic either - the Taiheng disciples were all law-abiding righteous people, not daring to use heavy-handed tactics against the imperial troops. In the chaos of battle, Ku Mountain Sect and Taiheng Sect were already showing signs of defeat.

Left with no choice, Shi Zhongyu had to intercept the imperial troops attempting to sneak attack, while Yan Qing continued to struggle against Qu Duanyun, the situation momentarily at a stalemate.

"You've all been fooled by the Ku Mountain Sect," Qu Duanyun said, his Guanwu sword sweeping horizontally, the sword wind nearly slicing open Yan Qing's throat. Surrounded by the faint shadows of the root system, those crimson demon eyes looked particularly piercing.

"Yin Zizhu is an immortal monster. Even if Shi Jingzhi dies by sword and blade, there is a True Immortal who can save his life... Only you will surely perish here. How can the power of mortals possibly match that of True Immortals?"

These people were always like this, their eyes unable to see the big picture.

Once upon a time, Qu Duanyun also harbored such naive thoughts. But his parents didn't want him to only know gold and jade, unaware of the five grains of summer, so they sent him to remote places to see the various aspects of mortal life.

Unfortunately, he didn't learn compassion, only nurturing a belly full of cold anger - Dayun was blessed with favorable weather, simply scattering some seeds on the ground would yield crops in autumn. Simply raising livestock in the back mountains would yield offspring after some time. Yet month after month, those people would only do the lowest and simplest tasks, without a bit of progress.

Not only that, when someone gritted their teeth and struggled to get ahead, there would always be people spreading rumors to poison livestock, finding ways to drag people back into the quagmire.

...They were nothing but beast-like people, only wasting good places.

"Whether we can match True Immortals or not is one thing," Yan Qing finally caught his breath, gently adding fuel to the fire. "Sitting idly waiting for death is another matter entirely."

"Sitting idly waiting for death?"

With a sense of frustration still present, Qu Duanyun's sword techniques were exceptionally vicious. He single-mindedly pursued Yan Qing, his voice as cold as if it had been stored in an ice cellar.

"People are naturally divided into different classes. For Dayun, between the vigorous youth striving upwards and the decaying lazy ones, isn't it obvious which is more valuable? Since you're not the latter, how can you talk about sitting idly waiting for death?"

"Mortals will always grow old."

"So what? Even the likes of Sun Huaijin, once they've accumulated enough silver, can still live to a hundred years old with the help of medicines," Qu Duanyun said word by word. "Not striving when young, having no money to extend life when old, that's just the way of the world!"

Yan Qing remained silent, his movements slowing down, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on Qu Duanyun.

Yan Qing rarely showed anger on his face, and even now his expression remained blank, only the Compassion Stone Sword gradually emitting a heavy hum. He took a breath, blood droplets oozing from the wounds all over his body.

"Young Master Qu, you are truly even more useless than I thought."

"Useless?"

"On one side, wealthy beyond measure, every step a path of retreat. On the other, hands stop, mouth stops, seeing through this life in a glance... Doing the same work doesn't mean 'doing the same thing'."

Yan Qing's voice turned cold, his aura as heavy as a stubborn stone, even the wildly swaying root tendrils behaved a bit. He used his sword as a shield, blocking the rain-like assault of the Guanwu sword, his voice not even trembling.

"You don't worry about your parents above, nor your future path below, naturally daring to take risks and fight for your life... Forgive my frankness, you've only seen things superficially, you can't talk about putting yourself in others' shoes, much less have the right to criticize."

Qu Duanyun coldly smiled, his sword techniques subtly revealing a desperate air: "You speak so high and mighty, aren't you the perfect example? Even in the worst circumstances, you could struggle out of the mire yourself-"

Before he could finish speaking, Yan Qing laughed instead. It wasn't a laugh of extreme anger, but one of particular bitterness.

"I am indeed the perfect example."

The aura gathered around him, pushing away the misty fine roots of the Suspended Tree. With Yan Qing at the center, a clear circular space opened up in the wasteland.

"If my father hadn't happened to die, I would surely still be struggling in Xizhuang, working daily to care for him. After he passed, I would be nearing forty, penniless... According to your logic, with no support in old age, being consumed completely by that Suspended Tree would also be justified."

"Yet you lost to me."

Yan Qing's voice grew increasingly calm.

"Young Master Qu, I'm afraid your standard relies half on luck."

The whites of Qu Duanyun's eyes were stained with blood: "Luck? I've been self-reliant since childhood-"

"It doesn't matter," Yan Qing sighed, glancing at the dim sun. "When we uproot the Immortal Gathering, and the Qu family's reputation is in tatters because of you, you will understand."

Qu Duanyun had just thought of a retort, but now it was all stuck in his chest. He shouted in anger, his surrounding aura exploding recklessly.

"You all keep harping on about righteousness and loyalty, do you intend to continue rebelling? The imperial troops are here, I'd like to see how you, the Martial Arts Alliance Leader, plan to win!"

Counting the time, several hours had already passed. The anomalies here were conspicuous, and the originally scattered imperial troops were slowly gathering back. Ku Mountain Sect was just aiming for the toughest fight; now what the Immortal Gathering had to worry about was not defeat, but how to win more decisively.

While Qu Duanyun's thoughts raced, Yan Qing raised the Compassion Stone Sword high.

Yan Qing had gathered his energy to the extreme, but he neither attacked Qu Duanyun nor struck at the imperial troops. The Compassion Stone Sword's blade pointed downward, its dim and heavy body deeply thrust into the wasteland. The tombstone-like great sword exploded with a wave of energy, the energy shaking the earth along with it.

"Sect Leader, the time has come!" Yan Qing took a deep breath and raised his voice.

Qu Duanyun hadn't yet recovered from his angry frustration and was startled and confused: "What time..."

Before he could finish speaking, the earth shook again incessantly, as if responding to the earlier heavy sword strike. A troop rushed in from the distance, their silhouettes not yet clear, but a thick killing intent swept over first. Judging by the crooked charging formation, the newcomers were clearly from the Demonic Sect.

At the same time, a familiar wave of magical energy rippled from Jiang Youyue, as if someone had sent an urgent message via a Word Cloth—

The Word Cloth ignited without fire, and an anxious voice exploded from Jiang Youyue's chest. The voice was thin and shrill, clearly that of the eunuch Lu Fu.

"Lord, Lord Jiang," Lu Fu cried out in panic, "The Emperor, he, he, he—"

Dead?

Qu Duanyun stopped his sword.

Even if he's dead, it doesn't matter. If they fail on Shi Jingzhi's side, they'll put that useless Xu Jingming on the throne, with the National Teacher's faction acting as regents. Nurturing another generation of Desire Children would only take ten or twenty years, there's no need to be so panicked.

There were many creatures and minerals harmful to the Suspended Tree, but over three hundred years, they had all been eradicated or eliminated by the Immortal Gathering. The only remaining "Disastrous Root", Yin Zizhu, was also waiting to be dealt with right under their noses. Under heaven, there was nothing left that could threaten the Suspended Tree, unless...

"The Emperor has surrendered to that Luojiu! He surrendered behind our backs!!!"

The old eunuch cried out hoarsely, his voice filled with tears.