Aspiring to the Immortal Path
chapter-499

A Cloudpiercer Shuttle was rapidly flying through the skies of southwestern Nadir Hill.

Tang Jie sat in the shuttle boat, stroking his chin as he considered countermeasures.

The Spirit-Boiling Powder had put him in a passive position. Tang Jie had considered entering the Nine Executions Immortal Formation to avoid danger, but he ultimately decided not to take the risk. While the Nine Executions Immortal Formation was outside the domain, that didn't mean that Tang Jie's position was obscured. If Godhead Palace found out, it was possible that they might find a way to get into the formation, which would be a disaster.

In truth, Tang Jie had another choice: hiding in the diagram.

The Mountain River State Diagram was currently its own little world, so hiding in the map was even safer than hiding in the Nine Executions Immortal Formation. But once he hid in the map, he needed someone to carry and protect the diagram, which remained a problem. The ghost guard's actual body had to remain a secret, and the flesh disguise wasn't of a very high level. While he could protect the diagram for a time, a mishap was bound to occur at some point. It was much better to have the original body protect him, but this would delay the original body's cultivation. Most importantly, perhaps because the power of the world within the diagram was too weak, whenever Tang Jie went inside, he would feel a faint sense of repulsion that prevented him from staying too long in that little world. It was like trying to fit a large Buddha statue inside a small temple.

Of course, hiding in there for a short time wasn't a problem. This was exactly why Tang Jie didn't fear the Spirit-Boiling Powder, only admitting that it did make things more problematic for him. Whenever he was outside, Godhead Palace would know where he was… and they would constantly hunt him down.

Three people abruptly appeared in the sky, riding the winds and clouds toward him.

Upon seeing that small boat, the three of them rejoiced. "Tang Jie! We finally found you!"

Raising his head, Tang Jie saw that one of them was at the peak of Mortal Shedding, one was at Cognitive Creation, and there was even someone who had the guts to come over while in the Three Withering Tribulations.

But there appeared to be a larger group behind the trio. These three were only the vanguard of a larger force, which was why they were so bold.

"Godhead Palace?" Tang Jie asked, cocking his head.

The peak Mortal Shedding cultivator said, "Zhu Jing of the Divine Controller Sect has come to take you in!"

He took out a small bag and threw it into the air, upon which numerous flying ants flew out of it toward Tang Jie.

This cultivator seemed very confident in the ants he had raised, laughing as he said, "Tang Jie, hurry up and die!"

In truth, he didn't actually think he could defeat Tang Jie, but he knew that there were many reinforcements behind him, so he wanted to show off a little before those people caught up. While his full might probably couldn't defeat Tang Jie, it might catch him off guard, and he could use this opportunity to raise his reputation.

In the future, he could boast that he was the one who intercepted Tang Jie.

Tang Jie slightly frowned as he looked at the ants. "Skytread Insects?"

He had heard of this insect. Skytread Insects loved to eat brains, and they were extremely poisonous. They were differentiated by color: black, white, red, blue, gold, and rainbow. The brighter the color, the stronger the insect.

The Skytread Insects that that cultivator had released were mostly white, with a few reds mixed in. This was a sign that they had been nurtured to a rather mature level, so it was hard to blame him for being so confident.

Tang Jie shook his head at the insects. "Just how many lives did you have to sacrifice to raise these vicious things? They should all be eliminated."

He threw out ten-some talismans, all of them middle-grade Storm Talismans.

The skies exploded with raging gales, the air turning into sharp blades that madly tore away at everything in the area.

Those three hadn't expected Tang Jie's response to be so simple and vicious. Ten-some Storm Talismans cost tens of thousands of spirit coins, but Tang Jie had thrown them out without even looking at them.

They didn't know about all the miscellaneous knick-knacks Tang Jie had collected in his looting of Cloudscrape City and other areas, nor that he had also turned Ninebind City upside-down. While he had smelted all those things that couldn't be used, he had kept all the good stuff for himself. In talismans alone, he had more than could be put into a Mustard Seed Bag.

After throwing out the ten-some Storm Talismans, Tang Jie also threw three Celestial Wildfire Talismans.

These were all upper-grade art talismans, and their immense might instantly engulfed the skies in Celestial Fire.

There was no way the Skytread Insects could endure the combined might of wind and fire, and they fell from the sky like a meteor shower.

"My babies!" Seeing those Skytread Insects that he had wasted so many years raising being easily destroyed by Tang Jie, that Zhu Jing cried out in grief.

He glared at Tang Jie and shouted, "I'm taking you down even if it costs me my life!"

He took an item out of his Mustard Seed Bag and threw it at Tang Jie, and the two people next to him also cast their spell arts.

Tang Jie didn't even look at them as he slapped his boat.

The boat radiated a brilliant light that blocked the attacks of the trio.

He had stolen this Cloudpiercer Shuttle from Cloudscrape City. It had been made by the sect master of the Jade Ocean Gate from Heavensea Stone, Jellyfish Essence, Violet Cloud Sand, and ninety-some other materials, taking a total of 360 days to refine. Its incredible speed saved the cultivator a lot of spiritual energy, and it had a defensive barrier that made the boat able to block attacks. It had been intended as an offering to Godhead Palace, but after Tang Jie had stolen it, he had decided to use it for himself.

The defensive barrier of the Cloudpiercer Shuttle easily blocked the attacks of the trio. Tang Jie snorted and said, "Even scoundrels like these dare to stroke the whiskers of a tiger."

As he spoke, lightning erupted out of the clouds.

Amid the blinding lightning, a giant curved blade descended, dragging two thick chains behind it.

The Heavenly Cloud Blade!

The three instantly knew that they were in trouble.

Tang Jie's Heavenly Cloud Blade was no secret, and everyone knew of its power. The moment the blade appeared, the three activated their defensive barriers.

But the current Heavenly Cloud Blade was far beyond their ability to block.

The giant crescent blade horizontally sliced through the barriers like they were paper and turned those three people into six chunks.

As the others screamed, Zhu Jing roared, and the halves of his body linked back together.

During the Three Witherings, one would attain a spiritual body. So long as one had enough life force, one could be reborn even if one's body were cut into several pieces. Of course, if one were blasted into tiny bits like Chang Mingxin, then there was nothing that could be done.

But while he managed to survive, his two junior brothers were not so fortunate.

The sweeping strike of the Heavenly Blade had killed that Cognitive Creation cultivator and that Three Witherings cultivator on the spot.

"Junior Brothers!" Zhu Jing cried out in rage and sorrow.

He had never imagined Tang Jie to be this powerful, killing two of his juniors in a single blow and leaving him injured.

"I'll kill you!" Zhu Jing shouted, once more reaching for his Mustard Seed Bag.

Tang Jie sneered and snapped his fingers. "Fixate!"

Zhu Jing trembled and froze.

The Four-Nine True Words!

This was a spell art that Tang Jie had developed to deal with a situation in the Nine Executions Immortal Formation. It was too weak, so Tang Jie hadn't used it in some time.

But as Tang Jie cultivated more and deepened his understanding of various Immortal arts, the Four-Nine True Words gradually began to exhibit their might.

This was understandable.

When he was a student, he had encountered the Parting Classic, the Violet Jade Mantra, the codices of the Five Gods Faith, and the Ninedark Mantra. But rather than swiftly making Tang Jie stronger, these four Immortal manuals had only served to divide his focus and slow him down. For a very long time, Tang Jie was unable to use the full power of these four techniques, and when it came to proficiency in these techniques, he was inferior to the likes of Cai Junyang and Qi Shaoming, who only cultivated a single mantra.

His power relied mostly on his understanding of battle rather than his overwhelming strength. It was a rare situation where he could come out onto the battlefield and immediately flatten his opponent with pure force.

This was the key reason he was never able to be acknowledged as a "Great Brother" of the Basking Moon Sect.

But after ten-some years of cultivation and progress in the sect, the slowing caused by cultivating four mantras was slowly resolved, and they began to reveal their true power. Tang Jie was no longer the same as he was in the past.

The first to benefit was the Four-Nine True Words, and their effects were no longer so weak. Although they couldn't compare to the majesty of the Heavenly Cloud Blade, they were effective against people of the same cultivation realm as him.

As he spoke, Zhu Jing froze. Even if it was only for a moment, it was still lethal.

The Heavenly Cloud Blade curved back around like a coiling dragon.

In the past, the Heavenly Cloud Blade would dissipate after a single strike, but through Tang Jie's will, it could now attack repeatedly.

Fear appeared in Zhu Jing's eyes as the Heavenly Cloud Blade returned.

At this moment, someone roared, "Scoundrel, you dare!? Break!"

There was a rumble of thunder, and the Heavenly Cloud Blade shuddered before exploding into countless bits.

The reinforcements had finally arrived. There were several dozen of them, led by a blue-faced man with a stocky constitution. The Heavenly Cloud Blade had shattered because of his roar.

"Breaking my art?" Tang Jie grunted, his eyes flashing with lightning.

Rather than dissolving into spiritual energy, the Heavenly Blade instantly reformed, this time into 49 Heavenly Blades of much reduced size which shot at the newcomers.

This sudden reversal caught even that blue-faced man off-guard.

At the same time, a saber flew out from the boat, an eagle phantom appearing on the blade. This was the Heartbreak Saber, flying straight at Zhu Jing's chest.

Zhu Jing had just regained mobility and hastened to dodge.

At this time, Tang Jie had just finished using Fixate and couldn't use it again for some time, but he didn't mind, shouting, "Slow!"

Zhu Jing felt his body slow down, and he wasn't able to pick up speed and could only watch as the Heartbreak Saber drew close.

"Noooo!" he cried out in despair.

A moment later, the saber sliced through his head, which exploded into little chunks that not even his greater-attainment spiritual body could restore.

"Jing'er!" The blue-faced man almost went crazy upon seeing this.

He pointed at Tang Jie and said, "Tang Jie, for daring to kill my son, my Divine Controller Sect will kill you, even if everyone in the sect has to die for it!"

Tang Jie smiled. "Then I'll fulfill your wish… and exterminate your sect!"

He slowly stood up.

Four hours later.

Around a hundred meters above the ground, Nan Ningjiang floated in the air, holding his hands behind his back as he looked down below.

There was a field down there.

A field covered in corpses.

Those corpses strewn about all had faces that were stricken with fear. It was as if they had been dealing with not just some troublesome opponent, but a terrifying devil, and their bodies were covered in all kinds of wounds.

It was a gruesome sight, more than a hundred corpses carpeting the field. Even Nan Ningjiang couldn't help but sigh, "The Divine Controller Sect is finished."

With so many dead, even if the sect master was still fine, the sect's decline was inevitable.

This wasn't even the first sect that Tang Jie had destroyed in Nadir Hill.

A few moments later, the other Hawks returned.

Second Brother Tian Zhong spoke first. "We did not find Zhu Shangwu's body, so we cannot confirm his status at the moment. But we found the bodies of his three junior brothers. All of them died because their Celestial Hearts were seized and shattered, so it was probably the work of that True Person Gui. Given that this True Person Gui was able to go one versus three, it seems like he has gotten stronger in the last ten years."

"There are 112 bodies in all," Zhou Fanghua said. "Based on the state of the corpses, eighty percent were killed by Tang Jie, and the remainder were killed by the sprite. The traces of energy indicate that they fought high in the sky, and there is no fissure on the ground, so Black Sin was not used. But this is the problem. This is more than a hundred people, but Tang Jie and a sprite managed to easily kill them all, with almost half of them dying in a single strike, without even the chance to counter. Although these people were on the weaker side, there was still more than a hundred of them, and they were led by one Heart Demon and three Spirit Ring True Persons. They should not have lost so thoroughly."

The fifth brother nodded. "Indeed. In the end, Divine Controller Sect Master Zhu Shangwu was still a Heart Demon True Person. Even if his three junior brothers were being held down by True Person Gui, he should have been free himself, so why is it that even his body can't be found?"

The sixth sister said, "That is because Tang Jie captured Zhu Shangwu's son and used him as a hostage to force Zhu Shangwu into committing suicide."

Everyone asked, "How did you find that out?"

"I interrogated some people in the area, and someone saw it."

Nan Ningjiang looked up at the sky and asked, "Second Brother, at what altitude did the battle take place?"

Second Brother Tian Zhong blinked, his eyes flashing with spiritual light. "Based on the traces of spiritual energy, it should have taken place ten thousand meters in the sky."

Nan Ningjiang casually said, "Can a mortal see a battle taking place so high up in the sky?"

Everyone was speechless, and the sixth sister blushed. "This was my mistake. Tang Jie must have used an illusion spell to deceive those mortals, using their mouths to deceive us."

Third Sister Zhou Fanghua pensively said, "Since he wanted to deceive us, he must have something he wants to hide. It can't be that he already has the power to fight against a Heart Demon True Person, right?"

"This can't be. He hasn't even entered Celestial Heart, so how could he do this?" someone immediately objected.

"I'm talking about strength, not cultivation level. Don't forget that he has the power to contend against a Spirit Ring True Person because he has True Person Gui. So if he has a Heart Demon True Person helping him, wouldn't that mean he has the power of a Heart Demon True Person?"

Everyone recalled that mysterious figure they had seen outside of Celestial Flower Pavilion.

Yes, Tang Jie truly did have someone else behind him.

Someone said, "This person talked big, but he fled when True Person He came. From this, we can see that he might be stronger than Spirit Ring, but he would still lose to a Heart Demon cultivator."

Nan Ningjiang indifferently said, "Or it could also mean that he would lose to True Person He plus the rest of us."

Everyone fell silent once more.

Even though Tang Jie was trying his best to hide it, under the pressure from Godhead Palace, he was slowly starting to reveal his true power.

"It's a pity that Fourth Brother isn't here, or else we would know who that person is and what methods he has," the seventh brother sighed.

The ninth Hawk commented, "Right, has the new fourth Hawk not been selected yet?"

Zhou Fanghua shook her head. "The Recall art is extremely difficult, and it requires someone to comprehend the Dao of Time first. There are countless candidates for the fourth Hawk, but only a few can reach this level. We've already sent a letter urging them to hurry up, but there is no sign of movement from our superiors. It's probably because they can't find a suitable candidate."

"We don't have to rely on Fourth Brother for everything. Even without the fourth Hawk, we have our own ways," Nan Ningjiang indifferently said. "We can't see the past, so let's take a look at the future."

He took out the incense burner, took a deep sniff of it, and then waved his hand, summoning his map.

This time, there was a clear purple mark on the map that was blinking.

Nan Ningjiang pointed at that purple mark, and the region expanded to reveal greater detail of the area.

Second Brother Tian Zhong said, "He's flying toward the southwest and not stopping. He's currently at the southern end of the Thousand Fog Mountains."

"What sects are located in the Thousand Fog Mountains?" Nan Ningjiang asked.

"The Fog Reflection Sect and the Celestial Foothill Sect," Zhou Fanghua replied.

Nan Ningjiang considered this answer and said, "The Fog Reflection Sect is on rather good terms with our Hawk Hall. Isn't Hall Master Long's new concubine the second daughter of the Fog Reflection Sect Master?"

"Yes. As for the Celestial Foothill Sect, it is on closer terms with the Bright Path Hall and has always been neutral toward our Hawk Hall."

Nan Ningjiang went on, "Since that's the case, order the Celestial Foothill Sect to gather all the people it can and intercept Tang Jie."

Zhou Fanghua frowned. "If they capture Tang Jie, won't they get all the credit?"

"They won't. If Tang Jie were that incompetent, he wouldn't be Tang Jie. Look at how the Divine Controller Sect ended up. This guy… is already on a killing spree." Nan Ningjiang had a profound look in his eyes as he spoke. "He is currently in his prime, brimming with physical and spiritual energy. Unless it's a Soul Transformation True Person, he will kill anyone who gets in his way. In this condition, Tang Jie isn't easy to deal with, so we need to avoid his edge, and when he arrives at his destination and relaxes, we deliver the fatal blow."

"And what is his destination?"

Drawing a straight line on the map, Nan Ningjiang said, "Here!"

Looking at where Nan Ningjiang was pointing, Zhou Fanghua narrowed her eyes and blurted out, "The Spirit Mountains… yes, he must be going there, because only there will he have a chance to fight back against the Spirit-Boiling Powder."

Nan Ningjiang drew back his finger and said, "Before then, we don't need to be in a rush. Let's have those small sects deal with Tang Jie. They can help us tire Tang Jie out and understand him more, and they will also fatten him up so that we can finally sweep in and take all the credit."

Everyone chuckled at these words.

Nan Ningjiang paused a moment before saying, "Right, have the Hawk Hall send two more Heart Demon True Persons."

"Another two?"

"There's no harm in being safe. It's better to overestimate your enemy rather than underestimate," Nan Ningjiang casually replied. He suddenly laughed and said, "Otherwise, wouldn't Sect Master Zhu and the others have died for nothing? We can't let our own people bleed in vain."