Chapter 267: Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus Is Rejected
Very few normal humans lived in the vast Eastern Wilderness.
In this cultivation world, there was no issue of overpopulation.
This was because all sorts of demons often appeared in the deep mountains and ancient forests. There was no way normal humans would be able to multiply and expand rampantly.
Leaving the human kingdom was akin to ending up as food for those demons.
As a result, one could go for hundreds of miles in the Eastern Wilderness without seeing another person. Those hidden cave abodes out in the wilderness were also far and few in between.
Under such circ.u.mstances, the various sub-sects of the Evil Spirit Sect were able to stay hidden.
After all, even if one was a Sage, their divine consciousness couldn’t scan the entire Eastern Wilderness.
But it was an entirely different matter if they were informed of a certain location beforehand.
...
The Divine Firmament Flying Vessel sped through the s.p.a.ce-time tunnel, causing only the slightest ripples in the fabric of s.p.a.ce. No one noticed it at all.
Several hours later, in an unknown location of Eastern Wilderness...
An opening in the fabric of s.p.a.ce appeared and gradually enlarged to form a huge doorway.
The immense Divine Firmament Flying Vessel shot out of the doorway, enshrouded by a misty barrier.
This mist-like barrier completely masked all auras emitted by the vessel to prevent nearby cultivators from detecting it.
Rows of powerful cultivators were standing upon the vessel’s deck. Their faces were stern and alert.
The ambush mission on those Evil Spirit sect members was no laughing matter.
They were all obsessed, crazed followers who were not at all afraid to die fighting the sacred grounds.
On top of that, many of their weapons had highly lethal poisons.
If one was somehow tricked by an Evil Spirit sect member and infected by the poison, they would die a horrible, painful death!
Even if one managed to survive, they would probably suffer some terrible long-term side effects.
For example, malaise, kidney failure, impotency, and so on.
Once infected, it would be a fate worse than death!
After all, not every cultivator had treasures like the Pure Reincarnation Earth that could cleanse this kind of poison or give them immunity.
They had no choice but to be highly vigilant when facing the Evil Spirit Sect.
...
“According to reports, the Evil Spirit Sect’s Seven Kill sub-sect is in the wastelands of the Immeasurable Ancient State.”
The Divine Firmament Sacred Leader spoke as he stood regally at the flying vessel’s head, gazing afar into the lands covered by miasma.
The Immeasurable Ancient State used to be one of the most powerful states in the entire Eastern Wilderness. It was once as powerful as many of the blessed-lands.
During ancient times, a number of the royal house members had reached the Soul Formation stage. If pitted against the Eastern Wilderness’ current top pract.i.tioners, they could easily be Heavenly Venerables.
But 10,000 years ago, the Evil Spirits had invaded, and the cultivators had fallen one by one.
They had just been early-stage Soul Formation cultivators, completely defenseless against those Evil Spirits.
In that battle, an Evil Spirit well-versed in venoms had engulfed the entire state in a poisonous fog.
Although the Evil Spirit had eventually died in the hands of a Perfected Immortal, the Immeasurable Ancient State remained a complete wasteland with barren soil.
After that Evil Spirit’s demise, the poisons from its body had spread across the entire state, making the area a fertile ground for venomous lifeforms to breed.
Countless poisonous plants and insects had multiplied and spread across this wasteland.
Slowly, even the remaining cultivators had chosen to leave this state.
No one expected the Seven Kill Sect to make this place their hidden headquarters.
...
“The thick miasma covering the Immeasurable Ancient State is poisonous. Everyone, please take care not to breathe it in.”
Heavenly Venerable White Lotus took bottles of elixirs out of her storage ring and distributed them to the group. “These are Anti-Venom Spirit Pills. They can ensure that you won’t get infected by the miasma.”
Free medicine. Of course, one should take as much as one could!
Moreover, Heavenly Venerable White Lotus’ elixir cultivation skills were highly reputable.
It was always better to have an extra bottle of spirit pills in such a poisonous place like the Immeasurable Ancient State.
At that moment, everyone was full of grat.i.tude and respect for Heavenly Venerable White Lotus.
“Saint Shen Tian, you are not going to take the Anti-Venom Spirit Pills?” Heavenly Venerable Scarlet Dance asked in a concerned voice as she approached Shen Tian. “No need to worry. You just need to acc.u.mulate experience in this ambush mission against the Evil Spirit Sect. No need to take any risks.
“The Divine Firmament Sacred Leader, Senior Brother Chu, Senior Sister White Lotus, and I will protect you. We will not let you meet with any danger.”
Shen Tian looked at the “kind, motherly smile” on Heavenly Venerable Scarlet Dance’s face. He nodded. “Thank you, Aunt-Master Scarlet Dance, for your concern. I understand.”
Actually, he really felt like telling Heavenly Venerable Scarlet Dance that he didn’t care about the poison at all. But never mind!
After all, the Pure Reincarnation Earth was ranked third on the Mystic Earth List. His Six Paths of Reincarnation Disk was an even more formidable weapon.
Nonetheless, it wouldn’t do to tell everyone about them. Stay modest and never flaunt one’s wealth.
In this kind of large-scale sect battle, it was best to keep a low profile. Stay in the shadows and only step in when help was needed.
Shen Tian took an Anti-Venom Pill out of his Archeon Sea Ring and swallowed it. He then adjusted his Longyuan Divine Armor to its most low-profile settings.
The glow of the five divine beasts disappeared and even the originally majestic-looking armor plates transformed into a simple design.
Of course, the protective capabilities of the Longyuan Divine Armor remained just as powerful. It just looked plainer now.
...
The powerful cultivators all leaped off the flying vessel, carefully concealing their auras.
The Divine Firmament Sacred Leader and Jade Lake Sacred Leader slipped into the void. From there, they could support the group and also create an array to seal off the entire state.
If any Evil Spirit Sect Sage appeared, they would immediately step in.
“The Immeasurable Ancient State has countless poisonous insects and plants. Some of them might have developed consciousness and harbor evil intentions. Everyone, please be very careful.”
The Divine Firmament Sacred Leader’s voice rang out. “If you meet with any danger, please put your own safety first.”
As they approached the Immeasurable Ancient State, the group could already feel something was off.
They could feel the detective abilities of their divine consciousness being affected, such that they were unable to freely probe the area for enemy activity.
This meant that there was an array formation nearby, created by cultivators to conceal something.
If they didn’t break the array formation, they would not be able to survey the area with their divine consciousness. But if they broke the array, they would be alerting the enemy to their presence.
The amount of time needed to completely break through the array formation would allow their targets to escape.
The Immeasurable Ancient State was a complete wasteland. Why was there such an array formation here?
This was completely illogical!
The group now more or less believed in the reports that the Seven Kill Sect was hiding here.
12 Heavenly Venerables each led 9 Supremacies and 30 Perfected Ones. They marched toward the Immeasurable Ancient State.
Every one of them had a flare gun custom-made by the Divine Firmament Sacred Ground. It would shoot a flare signal across hundreds of miles straight toward the Divine Firmament Sacred Ground when activated.
Under such circ.u.mstances, with their divine consciousness curbed, this kind of signaling method was the most effective to call for reinforcements.
With the signal from one flare gun, tens of thousands of troops would come charging to help!
...
“Tian’er, come and be on my team!”
Shen Tian had already intended to be on the same team as Heavenly Venerable White Lotus so that he could hang back and not do anything.
At that moment, a loud, bossy voice rang out. “If you have me protecting you, no one will ever be able to harm you!”
Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus had walked over with his golden staff. Nine Supremacies from the Divine Firmament Sacred Ground tagged behind him.
Shen Tian was taken aback. “Martial Uncle Azure Lotus, why do you only have Nascent Soul cultivators in your team? You don’t even have a single Golden Core Perfected One?”
Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus looked very haughty. “I am the best at my level and can even beat a Sage. A mere Golden Core Perfected One is not worthy enough to be in my team.”
Cold sweat dripped down the foreheads of those Supremacies standing behind Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus.
Is he for real?
Is he really that shameless?
Are you sure it’s because you rejected them?
It’s clearly because none of the Golden Core cultivators were willing to join you.
Wrong!
Strictly speaking, no one is willing to join you at all!
After all, when faced with the Evil Spirit Sect, who would dare to join the team of this unreliable leader?
Even the nine Supremacies behind Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus had been coerced into joining him.
After all, they were from the same sect. If they rejected this scoundrel, who knew how he would seek revenge in the future!
As for the Golden Core cultivators, Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus really had no way of making any one of them join him. This was because the Divine Firmament Sacred Ground hadn’t sent out any Golden Core stage Perfected Ones.
He didn’t dare to force the Perfected Ones from the other grotto-heavens and blessed-lands to join him!
It would be too huge of a responsibility if anything happened to those Perfected Ones, especially if they hadn’t been willing to join him in the first place but were forced.
...
Shen Tian felt rather helpless when he noticed the grievous looks of those Supremacies standing behind Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus.
He had a high EQ and could already guess the reason behind those expressions.
Martial Uncle Azure Lotus must have felt that an ordinary Golden Core cultivator would be useless. They would be a burden, and he would still have to share any spoils with them.
He would rather not have to drag along some useless Golden Core cultivators but instead form an elite attack force. In this way, he might even be able to gather a bit more fortuitous opportunities.
Tsk, tsk, it’s indeed like Martial Uncle Azure Lotus to think this way. Scheming and calculative.
A pity...
After looking at the white and black halo above Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus’ head, Shen Tian quietly grieved for him.
A pity that Martial Uncle Azure Lotus’ providence was just too low now. Shen Tian could see the fortuitous opportunities on the heads of all the other Heavenly Venerables, Supremacies, and even the Golden Core cultivators.
This meant that they would likely reap quite a bit of benefits from this attack against the Evil Spirit Sect.
But he couldn’t see any fortuitous opportunity above Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus’ head. The halos atop the heads of those Supremacies behind him were also completely bare.
You want me to join in under such circ.u.mstances?
No way!
Shen Tian broke into a cold sweat.
“It’s alright! I am just at the Golden Body First Refinement Stage and will be a burden to Martial Uncle.
“It is better for everyone if I follow Aunt-Master White Lotus! After all, there are more Golden Core Senior and Junior Sisters here in Aunt-Master’s team.”
With that, Shen Tian quietly shifted behind Heavenly Venerable White Lotus.
Heavenly Venerable White Lotus had a very special status in the entire group.
Her team had three Heavenly Venerables presiding over it.
This was because Heavenly Venerable White Lotus was great at healing and not that good at actual fighting.
As a result, the two sacred grounds had specially arranged for Heavenly Venerable Red Lotus and Heavenly Venerable Scarlet Dance to be on the same team as her.
These three Heavenly Venerables led 27 Nascent Soul Supremacies and 120 Golden Core Perfected Ones.
Their formation looked magnificent and extremely dominant.
It was an all-star team!
Whether it was to hide behind a powerful protector or to benefit from the best fortuitous opportunities, Shen Tian knew very well that this was the optimum choice!
Meanwhile, Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus’ heart ached at letting a lucky charm like Shen Tian slip from his fingers.
As Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus watched Shen Tian leave, he felt like he was watching a big pile of great fortuitous opportunities walk off.
His heart shattered into pieces.
So sad, I feel like crying!
...
Of course, no one else understood Heavenly Venerable Azure Lotus’ pain. This was because all three Heavenly Venerables in Heavenly Venerable White Lotus’ team were females. As a result, most of the cultivators in her team were also ladies.
Every single team member welcomed Shen Tian with fervent open arms.
After all, Shen Tian was the well-known Son of Providence.
More importantly, he was also very handsome!
With him around, they would have some eye candy to admire...
The originally dull yet dangerous ambush mission had now turned rather interesting!