Chapter 596: The Crisis of Moon Gazing
Translator: StackThatCoin Editor: Hitesh_
When he had flown far enough, Wu Qi gave a quick glance over his shoulder at the battlefield. He saw a colossal wheel of blades glinting with a dazzling purple-and-gold light while hovering in the air, on top of which stood a thin, short Daoist, who was clad in white clothes. The man was looking up at the sky and grumbling angrily.
'It seems Reverend Yao Yue's misfortune doesn't end here!' Wu Qi thought as he nodded.
It was clear that the Gold Immortal item, which Reverend Yao Yue used to seriously injure the Green Dome Shark, was rented through the internal channel of the Myriad Immortal Alliance. Wu Qi could not help but wonder how much it cost the unlucky fellow to exchange for a full powered blow of the fearsome weapon. After unleashing the attack, the wheel had sped away in the blink of an eye. Maybe the transaction was completed and it was withdrawn by its true master.
Apparently, this white-clothed Daoist must have smelled the aura of the Green Dome Shark from the wheel. Knowing that it was a rare ancient species whose body was full of treasures, he quickly rushed here to see if he could take a fair share of the loot. But, it was a pity that Reverend Yao Yue had fled in a hurry, and the shark's soul, which was the most precious part of the Green Dome Shark, was taken away by Wu Qi. What was left for him were only some fragments of the flesh.
'Well, the shark had burned off all of its blood essence, and even its inner core is almost completely destroyed. It did not leave behind anything of value but a heap of ashes. If this Gold Immortal of the Myriad Immortal Alliance is interested, he can always bring the ashes back and worship them on an altar!'
With a malicious smile, Wu Qi quickly sped away. Now, he had a greater understanding of the Myriad Immortal Alliance. So long as one was willing to pay a certain price, not only could he hire formidable immortals to kill people, he could even rent some Gold Immortal items! 'Could there be Primordial Immortal items which one could rent in Myriad Immortal Alliance? Maybe… But, I don't think anyone can afford the price!'
His mind was filled with various strange thoughts as he pierced through the sky, his body shrouded in a faint layer of Shen energy. Before long, he had returned to Mount Moon Gazing.
The bustling Yao Yue Immortal Market had turned into a sea of flames, and the sandy beach was dotted with thousands of corpses that belonged to Immortals and cultivators. All the buildings were aflame; vague cries of pain seeking help could be heard coming out of them, the distress calls issued by the common people hired by the market. Dozens of soldiers were prowling outside the market, waving their hands every so often to supply fireballs for the buildings which did not seem to be burning strongly enough.
The soldiers had killed all the Immortals and cultivators in the market, leaving only tens of thousands of common people who were either managers of the shops, the servants of the taverns, or the girls of the brothels. In the face of the flames produced by the spells, these people had no resistance at all, and they were burned to ashes after letting out a few miserable howls amidst the raging flames.
Their bodies were gradually melted down into grease by the flame and mixed with the pillars of the collapsed buildings, causing the flame to burn even more fiercely. Amidst the plumes of dark smoke, the souls of the deceased could be seen helplessly flying up into the air, all staring blankly at the void that twisted violently because of the heat. Before long, dozens of whirlpool-like black gateways suddenly appeared in the void, where powerful suction force spewed out and drew these souls over.
Those were the emissaries of Hell who came to collect the souls of the deceased. Wu Qi glanced curiously at the black gateways. This was the first time he saw what it was like after people died on Pangu Continent. Although he had gone through quite a number of slaughters and battles here, never once did he have the chance to see so many souls being preserved.
He was surprised to see a few of these black gateways actually emitting a faint golden Buddhist gleam, and he could even hear a deep chanting coming out of them. When he looked into these gateways with the Chaotic Divine Eyes, he could see some vague figures shrouded in a Buddhist gleam. Amidst the deep chanting, hundreds of souls were happily drifting over to them.
Several other gateways suddenly blocked the way of these souls who were chanting some Buddhist mantra, their color pitch black, with sharp ghost howls echoing out through them as they tried to suck them in. But, tiny beams of light immediately shot out of the few Buddhist gateways and smashed into these black gateways. The void rang with faint reproaches and cries of pain as the black gateways shattered along with a deafening boom. The hundreds of souls flew safely into the Buddhist gateways.
"Eh? There is actually the presence of Buddhist League in hell?" Wu Qi looked at the scene in astonishment, and thought that he needed to figure this out at a later time. If cultivators of the Buddhist League were really so powerful, he would have to be more careful. After all, he had once offended a disciple of some great Bodhisattva, and even killed quite a few of them.
The unusual scene lasted for less than the time to finish a pot of tea. After tens of thousands of souls were sucked into those gateways, they gradually disappeared, and the last standing building in the market collapsed. Is huge pillar smashed onto the ground along with the flame, sending countless sparks in all directions.
The swirling flame lit up the side of Mount Moon Gazing, where colorful thunderbolts could be seen and deep explosions could be heard. Led by dozens of captains, whose cultivation bases were as strong as Heaven Immortals, hundreds of heavily armored soldiers hovered in the sky as they attacked the defensive barrier that protected a few buildings on the peak of the mountain. A few hundred Oracles floated around them while they showered the barrier with offensive spells such as thunderbolts, flames, and strong winds.
In addition to the strange and unpredictable curse spells, the Oracles were also proficient in all kinds of natural five-element spells. Hundreds of Oracles were equivalent to hundreds of mobile forts; with just a wave of their hands, thunderbolts would fall like rain, and with just a cough, dozens of fireballs would fall down from the sky. And, if three or five Oracles were to attack together, they could easily make meteorites shrouded in a glowing flame rain from the sky.
Each wave of attack by the Oracles might not be as powerful as the immortal spells of the Immortals, but the frequency of their attacks was just too high. Immortals often had to perform hand incantation gestures and intone spells for a while to release an immortal thunder, but the Oracles could attack like a raging storm with each wave of their hands. The frequency of the attacks compensated for the qualitative gap. With hundreds of Oracles attacking at the same time, the peak of Mount Moon Gazing was fully blanketed with flame, and the solid defensive barrier was trembling fiercely.
Hundreds of armored soldiers, all armed with heavy spears, swords, or halberds, hovered in mid-air while messily attacking the defensive barrier. Occasionally, thunderbolts repelled by the barrier would land on their bodies, but couldn't even hurt a single hair of theirs. Each heavy strike of these soldiers would make the barrier boom, and its foundation was showing sign of collapse.
The pavilion at the top of the mountain was packed with frightened people, both cultivators and mortals, although the number of cultivators accounted for more than eighty percent of the total. About three thousand men sheltered themselves under this last layer of the defensive barrier. The man who sat in the center of the pavilion and presided over the barrier with a few Heaven Immortals and dozens of Nascent Divinity cultivators was none other than Reverend Yao Yue, who had fled in a hurry after being seriously injured by Wu Qi.
He looked ferocious and was covered in pale golden blood. His body trembled violently, and with each seal he cast, the wounds on his body spurted a flood of golden blood, which accumulated into a thick layer on the ground. It was strange how he had so much blood in his body.
Reverend Yao Yue, who had been so handsome and elegant, looked like a ghost at the moment. As he kept unleashing seals to stabilize the formation, he looked up at the army of Oracles and soldiers who had besieged him, and shouted, "Have your Prefecture Overseer gone mad? I swear I'll slaughter the entire Hai Province when I have recovered fully!"
The soldiers and Oracles smiled grimly and just kept attacking the barrier, not wasting their time to respond.
If Reverend Yao Yue had not come back suddenly, the Oracles and soldiers would have been broken into the barrier, and his three thousand clan members would have been captured alive as per Wu Qi's orders. It was a pity that he came back a little too fast, unexpectedly fast, which allowed him to charge into the barrier and hold on till now.
Wu Qi smiled satisfactorily. The energy that he blew into Reverend Yao Yue's body previously was to speed up his return and help him travel with the fastest speed. Otherwise, if these Oracles and soldiers had breached Mount Moon Gazing and secretly hidden some of the loot, wouldn't that be a loss for him? These Oracles and soldiers were Yu Clan's private guards, and they only obeyed Yu He's orders. It was only natural that they should hide away some of the richest loot.
But, Reverend Yao Yue came back in time and presided over the barrier till now; and when Wu Qi arrived, it was impossible for the Oracles and soldiers to hide away the loot. At most, they had taken away some of the insignificant loots from the market. But, the richest loot of all, which was to be found in Mount Moon Gazing, would have to wait for Wu Qi to come back and make the decision!
Laughing loudly, Wu Qi emerged from the void. He hovered over the many Oracles and soldiers, pointing a finger at Reverend Yao Yue as he shouted, "The former Prefecture Overseer of Hai Province has already fled for his crimes of corruption and mischief. His Excellency Yu He is the current Prefecture Overseer, who is the lineage son of Yu Clan in Zhong Province. I am Tan Lang, the new Military Minister of Hai Province. Surrender now before it's too late, Reverend Yao Yue!"
As his voice echoed out, Wu Qi clenched his right palm into a fist and smashed it down.
A loud boom rang out as the southwest foundation of the barrier collapsed, and a tall tower constructed with gold bricks cracked. A few descendants of Reverend Yao Yue, who were supplying immortal stones and energy stones to the core of the formation inside the tower, shrieked miserably as gold bricks fell and crushed them to death.
The collapse of the foundation caused a chain reaction that brought the entire formation down, revealing the three thousand clan members of Reverend Yao Yue. He cried out in shock; a dazzling light immediately burst out of him as he shot up into the sky, and the pearl above his head sprayed out a large sheet of cold air that rushed towards Wu Qi. The pearl was a precious treasure he had cultivated with his own life, so when the powerful cold air swept across the sky, the Oracles and soldiers quickly retreated in all direction.
Wu Qi shook his head and mocked, "You are nothing but a spent arrow!"
Shen energy sprayed out of his body, and suddenly, Wu Qi was surrounded by dozens of figures who looked exactly like him. A small village with countless pedestrians and shops emerged in the air and dragged Reverend Yao Yue into it. Hiding in the illusion, Wu Qi stealthily approached him, then suddenly landed his fist on his forehead.
Exhausted and with his immortal energy almost depleted, the punch instantly brought Reverend Yao Yue down and threw him off the sky.
With one swift move, Wu Qi took the spirit pearl and put it away. Then, he pointed at the folks who were weeping and crying below while a cold grin emerged on his face and he shouted, "Capture them alive!"
The Oracles and soldiers responded with a thunderous roar and leaped towards the folks like a pack of fierce wolves.