Chapter 1010: Changes at Ash Mountain (III)

“Then come with us,” said Li Hao. “Once we collect five of you, I’ll take you to the Skystar Town ruins. Does the senior know what ruins can be found nearby?”

“I do, I do. There’s a dojo about two hundred and fifty kilometers to the east with a fellow daoist inside. It's a similar level of strength to me and we’ve fought over the energy in these surroundings. That’s how I learned of its existence...”

“Very good, then I ask the senior to lead the way and discuss matters of cooperation with this senior!”

“As I should do!” The little tree promptly turned into a guide. As a plant spirit, it could not leave the ruins. However, they were all absorbing energy to hasten their recovery. Hence, any other plant spirit within a close range would be known to them since the other would also be devouring energy.

Discovering one plant spirit often meant finding two or even more. Increasing numbers of plant spirits would be located in the days to come.

The central region was a vast place. There had been more than Skystar Town on Skystar Island. This was where the mine was, which meant countless heavyweights had been willing to come here and train, start a family, establish a sect, or found a martial university.

......

On this day, Li Hao personally led his team through ruins across the central region. Some plant spirits were willing to surrender, whereas some weren’t and let loose with a barrage of insults. Those who set aside all pretense of civility were ultimately met with their own death and dispersion of core origin dao. Not even the Ninth Division leader could say anything about that.

The Gold Armor once personally tried to convince an Immortal plant spirit to surrender. Not only did the plant spirit ignore his entreaties, but it even cursed Battle Heaven.

In the end, Li Hao’s divine replica descended with a boom. The young man personally severed its core origin dao, collected the core origin energy, stowed the Immortal trunk, and cowed the other plant spirits that had surrendered.

......

While Li Hao cleared out the ruins in the central region.

Silver Moon, north of Silver City. Ash Mountain.

Four major monster spirits sped through the air—a ferocious tiger, a giant snake, a massive ape, and a golden eagle. They traveled at an extremely fast pace, particularly the golden eagle.

“Hurry! Those Great Li savages are catching up to us, we’re doomed!” They’d spent some time in Great Li and fought some of their powerhouses when the savages trespassed in Ash Mountain. These monster spirits were bigger than when Li Hao last saw them, but they were quite worried at the moment.

The giant ape jumped to and fro, immensely agitated. “Damn it!” Its mental strength hurtled through their minds. “How come those Great Li savages have suddenly sent out so many powerhouses??”

“Can’t you tell?” roared the tiger. “They probably want to set foot over the mountain and enter Silver Moon...”

“No way!”

“What no way? That’s completely it! I see an army even further away and can’t tell where it ends. They want to invade Silver Moon!”

“Silver Moon martial masters aren’t people to annoy.”

“That was then, how many powerhouses do they have now? They’re a bunch of weaklings now. We’re beyond Nova—if that Earthturner Sword comes again, we’ll beat him silly! That guy’s a peak Silver Moon powerhouse!”

“Not even we dare provoke those savages... I think Silver Moon’s doomed!”

“That’s right!” The monster spirits frantically ran for their lives. Figures appeared behind them and sounds of fighting broke out. In the distance, a spear illuminated the world.

“Retreat!” came a loud shout. “Return to Silver Moon and share the news that Great Li is invading! You go first, Golden Spear!”

Yells rose and fell, intermixed with an unintelligible language. Crashes and collisions abounded. Up ahead, the major monster spirits fled without a look back.

There had been a group of Skystar martial masters training in Great Li. With the enemy nation’s invasion, this group became the vanguard and Great Li’s primary target. The martial masters were strong enough that some of them made it out of the foray.

“Golden Spear... one of the thirty-five pieces of trash?” transmitted the giant ape. “He’s with Earthturner Sword. Do we save him?”

“Save what? Save how?”

“No, I mean we can pass it off as bringing a message to Silver Moon. Otherwise, their martial masters won’t let us pass. What will we do then? There’s still danger in that area. It’s better if we leave Ash Mountain and head to the four seas... We’ll be kings there!”

“That makes sense!”

“The guys coming after us don’t seem to be

that

strong. Eagle, do we save him or not?”

“Let’s wait and see first!” The monster spirits were fast and possessed some wits. Saving some people might serve as their toll to pass through Silver Moon. The province still seemed a bit dangerous.

Behind them, fighting intensified and killing intent soared into the sky. Numerous martial dao powerhouses scattered across the ground. A spear shot through the air, thrown by the long-vanished Golden Spear. He and some other martial masters were jointly withstanding the enemy and constantly retreating.

Golden Spear looked around with an unpleasant expression—they were in grave trouble! Great Li had invaded! If the nation passed through Ash Mountain, Silver Moon would become the primary battlefield. He had to send word back no matter what. There were no communication stations in Ash Mountain so transmission pendants did not work here.

He had to escape and bring word to Silver Moon powerhouses as soon as possible. Only then could they gather their strength and stop the enemy within the mountains. If not, a storm of blood and violence would blow once they marched into the province.

“Kill!”

“Retreat!”

“I’ll cover your withdrawal! Now is not the time to act tough. We need to spread the word as soon as possible, Silver Moon is in danger!”

There hadn’t been word of Great Li for one hundred years, but they’d suddenly chosen to invade Skystar Dynasty. This was a completely unexpected move to the martial masters. They’d traveled through the nation for a while and knew of its might. Although its population was small, they had numerous heavyweights and a very strong army.

Their cultivators were formidable and had inherited the ancient civilization’s daunting bodies. There were even powerhouses with golden bodies...

Golden Spear looked on gravely. He’d encountered some old friends in Great Li, but would they be making it home today? More experts were breaking through the void and coming for them. Just their presence alone was suffocating!

The incoming enemy was beyond Nova and might even be stronger than Arcanus. At the very least, Golden Spear was aware of the Arcanus level.

His companions who’d entered Great Li earlier than him also despaired. The enemy was so strong! Could Silver Moon stand against these existences? They might not be able to hold off the invaders even if they broke all of their supernatural locks!

“I’ll break my locks to stop them. The others should leave, now!” someone yelled and swung an ax through the air. His locks snapped in succession as he cleaved their pursuers.

Golden Spear roared with fury and jabbed with his spear, shattering his locks as well. He would fight! Golden Spear of Silver Moon did not fear death!

......

Battle erupted in the depths of Ash Mountain. Supernatural lock after supernatural lock snapped. Mysterious power surged and the organs crumbled.

Silver Moon was the first battlefield in this invasion. Golden Spear and the others didn’t intend to annihilate the enemy. They just wanted to flee as soon as possible and return home with this information so that the province could be prepared.

There had been no war with Great Li for one hundred years. Most of the Silver Moon martial masters that’d once fought against this northern neighbor were no longer in the province. Silver Moon was also a shadow of its former glory after being suppressed by the dynasty for two hundred years.

Doom seemed to open its maw over the province.

The combatants knew that they likely wouldn’t be getting away. Arcanus had appeared on the battlefield. Or rather, powerhouses that were its equivalent. There were even those of two elements or stronger sniffing around the edges.

The martial masters were strong and regular two element Arcanus might not be able to keep them here. However, even more powerful existences shot out of the depths of Ash Mountain. They looked to be four or five elements...

For Golden Spear and the rest, they could fight two or three elements if they snapped their supernatural locks. But four or five elements? How did they fight that?

Bam!

One of the Great Li martial masters brought down a bone club on a Silver Moon martial master’s head and smashed it open. The rest of the Silver Moon contingent howled with fury and erupted with killing intent!

BOOM!

Explosions ripped through the air and filled the void with light.

“Retreat as we fight! I’ll bring up the rear!” Golden Spear shouted, his spear piercing through the void. He’d traveled to Great Li by himself in order to break Hou Xiaochen’s spear intent and to prove himself. No longer would the name of Golden Spear be equated to humiliation!

He had improved greatly since then. His supernatural locks hadn’t been saturated before, now they were saturated and could even be broken. He was now at the level that Earthturner Sword and the others had been before he left.

Golden Spear had killed people in Great Li and fought heavyweights, particularly a group of monster spirits in Ash Mountain. But today, the Great Li authorities sent out their army. These elites were much stronger than the civilian martial masters.

“Kill them all, don’t leave a single one!” projected a powerhouse’s voice, exciting the Great Li heavyweights in the field. They gestured wildly as blood qi shot into the sky.

Rumble!

Golden Spear and the others backed away, unable to fight their enemy.

......

On the other side of Ash Mountain.

An army one million strong covered the ground, their combined blood qi scattering the thunderclouds. Terrifying existences hovered in the void. Their leader wore black robes and resembled an ancient priest. He held a staff of power in his hands and was unperturbed by the escape of a few Silver Moon martial masters.

He ignored everything happening and sang forth, “Advance! Exterminate Silver Moon and Skystar Dynasty! Great Li will dominate this world!”

“Kill!”

“Kill!”

“Kill!” chorused the army. There wasn’t much armor to go around, most upper bodies were naked like they were barbarians. Each battalion held one thousand or ten thousand people and each was led by a powerhouse. They either rode a beast spirit or wielded a special weapon that enabled them to fly. Their presences billowed around them, as if primordial demons from a savage period in history.