"Moreover, seeing how composed the other party is, I even suspect that he may have already set foot on the Path of the True Immortal," the Divine Temple Master speculated in his heart.
If it had been said before that no True Immortal had ever appeared between Heaven and Earth, even if His Highness's power was terrifying, he would have just thought the other's strength was simply terrifying.
But now that there is a Martial Arts True Immortal, then the possibility of His Highness stepping into the True Immortal Realm is not impossible, especially given the way he quelled the Mad Saber Guest, which already seemed to be a display of power beyond the ordinary.
As a Martial Arts Powerhouse, for the Divine Temple Master who had reached the limits of Martial Arts, although they had yet to touch the domain of Immortal Path, they could still recognize what the ultimate realm of Martial Arts could be. Even if there was a difference, it shouldn't be an overwhelmingly crushing power.
It wasn't just him making such conjectures; there were also other powerhouses who had reached the limits of Martial Arts speculating.
One could say that his current inquiry towards Pei Xuanjing also contained a slight probe. Of course, if the other party was not willing to answer, he had no way of forcing it, as with the power displayed by His Highness now, no one could compel him to do anything he didn't wish to.
However, Pei Xuanjing, although seeing through their probes, did not stop them. Or rather, there was an intention behind his actions, for his purpose of gathering these people today was exactly this.
"I indeed have a Taoist Skill that can sever all this," Pei Xuanjing nodded, but then he asked in return, "But you must think carefully, are you really willing to do so, and can you bear the consequences?"
"May I ask Your Highness, what are those consequences?" the Divine Temple Master and the others, eyes lighting up, quickly asked.
No one was willing to be controlled by others, especially these strong individuals. So, hearing Pei Xuanjing's response, their hearts leapt with joy.
However, hearing about the so-called consequences, some of them frowned; they concluded that since His Highness mentioned it so seriously, it must not be something simple.
Pei Xuanjing said, "This True Immortal of Martial Arts is in slumber, healing his injuries by harvesting the life force of the martial artists of the world. Thus, if you sever the intake of this life force, it will inevitably awaken the Martial Arts True Immortal, and by then, you won't only lose life force—you might even be directly hunted by the awakened to plunder your life force."
For this Martial Lunatic's act of harvesting the life force of martial artists across the world, Pei Xuanjing could have previously done it with his own realm and power, and now he could easily do so, even more, managing the Qi Luck of Martial Arts.
Afvallen na je 50ste komt neer op één simpel ding!Ouvert
But as he said, the other party was relying on harvesting the life force of martial artists to heal, and cutting off this connection meant no more life force for healing, signaling the awakening of the foe.
If the Martial Lunatic awakened before fully recovering, he would inevitably plunder more life force to survive, opting to hunt down these Martial Arts powerhouses.
Hiss!
Many Martial Artists also changed their expressions upon hearing this; after catching these words, they too felt caught between a rock and a hard place.
True Immortals, even if unseen, they knew just how terrifying they could be. Facing such opponents, no one felt confident in surviving.
But could they really resign themselves to being someone else's fattened pigs and sheep, continuously drained of their life force with no freedom? This outcome didn't seem to be any better.
Would they fight to the death, or live in compromise? They found it hard to decide at that moment.
"I absolutely refuse to be bound in such a way!"
"Better to die than to submit!"
"We martial artists have fought against Heaven and Earth all our lives, how could we allow ourselves to be controlled by others! I would rather fight to the death than live as pigs and dogs."
Some Martial Artists said indignantly. In the past, they believed they could control their emotions, but at this moment, they were truly angered.
All their lives, Martial Arts Powerhouses fought against Heaven and Earth, refusing to submit to anyone. Now a celestial being plotted to take their lives, were they to offer no resistance, to be hunted just because they refused to compromise?
Is this fair?
This is not fair at all!
They would rather die than live such a humiliating life.
"All decisions are for you to make on your own," Pei Xuanjing said, not rushing them or encouraging them, but allowing them to make their own choices.
"Cutting off the extraction of life force by the opponent is easy; any martial artist just needs to continue their cultivation to block the loss of life force," Pei Xuanjing said with a smile: "I will make this method public, whether or not to practice it, I leave it entirely up to you."
Having said that, Pei Xuanjing then had the guard commander bring a huge stone slab, placing it at the edge of the high platform. With his fingers as the pen, he flicked his fingers lightly, countless sword energies flew out, and began carving a skill into the huge stone slab that was intended to prevent the loss of life force.
After all this, Pei Xuanjing took his seat again. His guard brought him freshly brewed tea, and there he sat, teacup in hand, observing the choices of these people.
The skill etched upon the huge stone slab was imbued with Pei Xuanjing's Martial Arts will, also making the slab incredibly durable. Unless someone could overcome the Martial Arts will Pei Xuanjing left on it, neither the slab nor its content could be destroyed—a precautionary measure taken by Pei Xuanjing to prevent any malicious intent.
This Martial Lunatic in his sleep was plundering the life force of all martial artists in the world who followed the Martial Arts he pioneered, but with the spread of Martial Classics, the number of martial artists had multiplied several times, and the life force he received far exceeded the past.
In such circumstances, if a portion of Martial Artists were to practice a skill that severed the flow of their life force from being plundered, and then return to the stone slab, that would be tantamount to exploiting a loophole, thus avoiding any cost.
Pei Xuanjing naturally blocked this path directly, for though the choice could be theirs to make, they could not employ such selfish tactics of propping up their own umbrella while tearing apart another's.
"Your Highness, will they cultivate?" inquired the captain of the guards in a low voice at Pei Xuanjing's ear.
These men had resolutely begun their cultivation of the skill to halt the drain on their life force after Pei Xuanjing discovered the reason.
However, the reason these guards dared to do so was not because of anything else but their trust in their own lord. They believed that if their lord acted in such a way, it must be with assurance and confidence.
"No one will give up. Perhaps they will hesitate at the beginning, but the final outcome will inevitably be that all Martial Artists will cultivate," Pei Xuanjing said confidently, "No one is willing to be a sacrifice for others."
If the skill were to circulate only among a portion of people, it would certainly not leak out. But since it had already spread, even if some people did not react at first and chose not to cultivate, when the end came, they would inevitably choose to practice.
The logic is actually quite simple, not the scarcity, but the uneven distribution is the concern.
If everyone chose not to practice, then well and good, but with the skill laid out there and one's fear possibly calling forth the awakening of a Martial Human Immortal, thus sacrificing life span for peace,
what about others? No one can guarantee that if one is willing to make sacrifices for peace, others will share the same sentiment.
If anyone is clever enough to think, since everyone is sacrificing to prevent the emergence of a Martial Human Immortal for peace, perhaps I can secretly practice the skill. After all, with or without me, there won't be much difference; this would be most advantageous to me.
There's no guarantee for this; never overestimate the greed and selfishness of human nature, and with so many Martial Artists in this world, it is certain that a considerable number will have such a thought.
Therefore, to avoid loss and avoid becoming a sacrifice for others, the best option is to cultivate this skill. After all, if you do not cultivate, you might become a sacrifice for others, but if you do cultivate, even if it awakens the Martial Human Immortal, it won't just be you who bears the burden—the calamity would be shouldered by everyone. So, in such a case, only a fool would not cultivate.
Arts uit Antwerp: 's Ochtends komen er wormen uit je lichaam. Probeer hetOpen
"Human nature!" upon hearing this, the captain of the guards showed a complexity in his expression.
As the captain of the Royal Mansion's guards, starting from an obscure guard in the Royal Capital to his current position, he had seen much and thus knew the complexity of human nature all too well.
He understood that under such circumstances, it was indeed the best choice, akin to placing a group of people in dire straits, laying out weapons, telling them that either everyone forgoes the weapons and stays for three full days or killing one person would allow them to leave. Most likely, to protect themselves, no one would choose to forsake the weapons.
Just as Pei Xuanjing had said, when the colossal stone slab was erected and the skill was displayed for all to see, there were some who hesitated at first. But when they saw the powerhouses decisively memorizing the skill, no one hesitated any longer.
"Everything is ready now. The only question is whether you can awaken!" A smile formed at the corner of Pei Xuanjing's mouth.
As long as all Martial Artists practiced the skill to cut off the harvesting of their life force, it meant that the Martial Lunatic, that Martial True Immortal, would awaken from his slumber.
It should be known that although Pei Xuanjing was of the Complete True Immortal Realm, he had used the Life Simulator to reincarnate in this realm and was not the most powerful force here. Hence, even though he knew that Burial Immortal Valley was the resting place of the Martial Lunatic, he did not immediately consider awakening him.
First was to cut off the sustenance of life force to the other party, then to act; this was the best course of action for Pei Xuanjing.
The skill he had created to block the flow of life force was actually very simple, akin to the Turtle Breathing Skill, enhancing the Martial Artists' control over their own vitality to thwart the leakage of their life force.
The skill had no high threshold; indeed, any Martial Artist who had set foot even in the first level of Martial Arts could easily begin to cultivate it. Even if they were not proficient enough to achieve the best state, it still had a noticeable effect.
For those at the peak of the Martial Arts in the Twelve-Floor Tower, it was even simpler—they mastered the skill in just one glance.
"The loss of life force has indeed decreased!"
"Indeed, even though it is not yet complete, we can clearly feel that the loss of life force has diminished a lot compared to before."
"Wudao Zhenxian, could there really be True Immortals plundering our life force, treating us like pigs and cattle…"
"With so many people practicing this skill, what we are about to face next is the awakening of the Wudao Zhenxian."
"Wudao Zhenxian, I wonder how terrifying he could be, whether we, joining forces, can withstand him!"
"Hmph, those top Qi cultivators in the Immortal Path managed to injure and put him into a slumber at first, we are not a bit inferior in power to those top Qi cultivators, what is there to fear?"
"Right, when the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. Would Your Highness really stand by and watch? Even if he does not take action, would the Wudao Zhenxian leave him alone?"
"Your Highness is so calm and composed, could it be that he has also stepped into the True Immortal Realm?"
"I don't know, but judging from the terrifying power he displayed just now, even if he is not there yet, it's probably not far off, and he may have even touched that domain."
…
After practicing the skill and feeling that the speed of their life force's depletion slowed down, these Martial Artists finally fully believed in Pei Xuanjing's words, that there was a Wudao Zhenxian behind the scenes, treating them like livestock and harvesting their lives.
Otherwise, with their firm conviction, they would not have believed this matter simply because of what Pei Xuanjing said.
At the same time, since they confirmed that there really was a Wudao Zhenxian in slumber, covertly farming them like leeks, these powerhouses finally knew what they were going to face next.
They quickly exchanged information and judgments, hoping to gain greater odds in the upcoming scenario.
At this time, they naturally also turned their attention to Pei Xuanjing, because as far as they were concerned, regardless of the past, at the moment, Your Highness should be on the same side as them.
After all, everything they had done was under the guidance of Pei Xuanjing, and if the Wudao Zhenxian really woke up and wanted to hunt them for their life force to heal, Your Highness would certainly not be an exception.
As for the possibility that Your Highness was on the same side as the Wudao Zhenxian, they did not believe it at all. If that were the case, why would he reveal this truth and have them act as such? Wouldn't it have been the best choice to let everything continue as it was?
So, they decided that no matter what, if they truly had to face the thunderous strike of the Wudao Zhenxian, they would pull Your Highness into it and not allow him to remain aloof.
And for powerhouses like the Temple Master, they were even more curious whether Pei Xuanjing had touched or even stepped into the True Immortal Realm. They wondered if Pei Xuanjing's meticulous planning had a goal of his own, was it to provoke the awakening of the Wudao Zhenxian?
"Your Highness, now that the situation is as such, might I ask if you know when the Wudao Zhenxian will awaken, and how should we respond to it?" the voice of the Temple Master rang out again.
His words represented not just himself but also the will of many top Martial Artists surrounding him; their meaning was clear, since you have plotted all along, you must reveal your true purpose.
Pei Xuanjing understood this well but had no intention of giving them an answer, he simply stated, "Gentlemen, everything is about to be revealed, please wait and see."
Explanation was no longer necessary, nor was clarification needed, for no words could match the reality of what was about to unfold.