Witch Wind

Chapter 417 Emerging from the Cocoon (Part 2)

Xing Tianli wanted to hit someone.

'Didn't you have much formal education?'

This assessment is a bit harsh... Although his grades weren't great, back then he was a typical liberal arts student.

If he weren't outmatched by Guan Yu, Xing Tianli would have loved to roll up his sleeves and give him a good look at the massive fist from the pure-blooded witch clan, imbued with the Daoist aura of Pangu.

Liu Bei and Guan Yu both looked up.

In the air, the three women, using witchcraft, transformed into nature, merging into wisps of breeze, and quietly arrived above everyone's heads. Without warning, strands of extremely terrifying Flowing Sorrow Poison fell.

Guan Yu narrowed his eyes, and wisps of blue light surged around him.

Xing Tianli hurriedly waved his sleeve, and wisps of white mist rose into the air, clashing with the witch poison released by the three women. With a hissing sound, the witch poison in the void, which was powerful enough to destroy a country and a clan, was completely purified.

"Ahem, he's a friend, not an enemy. Liu Jing, you two come down quickly. This is Emperor Liu Xuande, the Zhaolie Emperor of Shu Han... Tsk, do you still remember the story of 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'?"

Back on the planet Tailan, the three girls, including Liujing, used to love going to teahouses to listen to storytellers.

Upon hearing Xing Tianli's words, the three women exclaimed in unison, revealing themselves and gracefully descending on the wind. They bowed to Liu Bei and his companion, then began chattering excitedly. They wanted to see Zhao Zilong, who was fearless, and Zhuge Liang, whose wisdom bordered on the supernatural…

Liu Bei and his companion had strange expressions.

The three women had just unleashed such a terrifying voodoo poison without warning. Although the poison was essentially harmless to them, they instinctively sensed that the Flowing Sorrow Voodoo poison the women had unleashed was devastatingly lethal.

It is likely that apart from quasi-saint level beings whose physical bodies and immortal souls have already transcended the mundane and are not affected by the normal laws of the Great Dao, they can hardly suffer any damage even if you suffer countless calamities... Others, even those at the peak of the Great Luo or even those at the half-step quasi-saint level, will suffer greatly when faced with the witchcraft poison sprinkled by the three women, and may even suffer the disaster of their souls being scattered and their Dao foundations being destroyed.

Terrible!
Seeing how delicate and beautiful they are, I never expected them to be so decisive, so ruthless and merciless. It's really... Guan Yu looked up at the sky and thought, "Forget it, forget it, I won't argue with my youngest daughter."

Liu Bei glanced at Xing Tianli thoughtfully.

No wonder Xing Tianli was able to support three little natives and raise the banner of the Yellow Turban Army—indeed, he was a decisive, ruthless, and unscrupulous person. With his hands in his sleeves, he said gently, "Young friend, your actions are indeed a bit too ruthless. Do you know how many innocent people will die in this great battle?"

As he spoke, wisps of auspicious light surged around Liu Bei, and a faint sandalwood fragrance permeated the air. Beneath his skin, a golden, shimmering halo rippled, and his entire being transformed into a spherical, chaotic mass of golden glass.

Xing Tianli and the three women, including Ran Min, all stared at Liu Bei in shock.

His condition...

Completely confused.

Suddenly, I realized what was happening.

Confused and bewildered, in a state of confusion.

No external factor can help it.

Not a single trace of vital energy can be allowed to leak out.

It was as if he himself had transformed into a world, containing endless possibilities... a completely independent world, transcendent and detached from the world where Xing Tianli and the others lived, a world without any causal ties.

Liu Bei's physical appearance, his golden shell, is like an incredibly thick dimensional barrier, a resilient diaphragm that completely isolates his thoughts, his words and actions, all his internal and external causes, his past and present lives, his future, all his causes and effects, from the present moment, the time and space to which everyone belongs.

In this isolation, Xing Tianli was terrified—he didn't even know if Liu Xuande was really right in front of him.
Was it really Liu Bei, standing just a few feet away from him, with his hands in his sleeves, questioning him?

Xing Tianli took a deep, deep breath.

His immortal soul sat cross-legged on the Purple Palace of the Spirit Platform, with millions of Great Dao flowers from more than a hundred small and medium worlds blooming slowly behind him. Each Great Dao lotus, large and small, and colorful, shimmered with a mesmerizing light. The profound Dao charm solidified into a vast and boundless ocean, supporting the nine Heavenly Cauldrons in mid-air.

On the Tongtian Cauldron, ancient immortal scripts from the Tongtian Sage surged with chaotic immortal light, continuously refining the infinite Dao charm emanating from the millions of Great Dao Lotuses, removing the dross and retaining the essence, transforming them into strands of extremely refined immortal light that rolled down and continuously merged into the immortal soul of Xing Tian Li.

Xing Tianli's immortal soul loudly chanted the Bodhi Sutra mantra taught by two Buddhist saints. With each recitation, his immortal soul expanded by one size. With each recitation, the total amount of his immortal soul increased by the equivalent of an ordinary Great Luo Perfection True Immortal.

The immense power of the immortal soul was enhanced by the blessings of many saints.

A ray of spiritual light flashed, and Xing Tianli looked at Liu Bei before him, at his golden body, and in that unpredictable chaos, he captured a wisp of profound heavenly secret—well, it wasn't actually his own ability.

An immeasurable power, from beyond the infinite distance of time and space, sensed the strange state of Xing Tian Li at this moment. Following the mysterious connection between Xing Tian Li and the Heavenly Dao created by Xing Tian Li's previous melting of various worlds to offer sacrifices, it casually cast a glance at Xing Tian Li's physical body as a coordinate.

The saint who held a seven-colored tree branch and was creating a terrifying temporal turbulence with a wave of his hand, shattering a giant beast 30,000 light-years tall with a single blow, had a wisp of his gaze merge with Xing Tianli's gaze and fall on Liu Bei.

The strange sense of alienation in Liu Bei, that feeling of being detached from the world, out of step with it, as if he were imprisoned in some extremely distant and lonely dimension, vanished the moment the sage's gaze fell upon him.

Liu Bei truly appeared before Xing Tianli.

"You... are you about to take that step?" Xing Tianli looked at Liu Bei with utter horror—with the help of the sage's power, Xing Tianli could roughly see what was happening to Liu Bei.

He has already stood on the threshold of sainthood.

He had no way out. His own path to retreat had been shattered by his immense perseverance and unwavering determination.

He can only move forward.

He only needs to take one step forward to become a saint.

However, he was imprisoned by certain 'obstacles of perception' within himself... The golden layer on his skin, like chaos, like a dimensional barrier, like the golden glass of the world wall, trapped him.

"You, sir, practice Buddhism?" Xing Tianli grinned at Liu Bei.

How can you practice Buddhism?
Guan Yu sighed, “Don’t blame my elder brother, it’s our incompetence… Chaos is extremely dangerous. We have been tossed about in several great worlds and narrowly escaped death… My elder brother obtained the remains of a Buddha who had died in battle. Just when we were in dire straits, my elder brother used his body to merge with the Buddha’s golden body.”

"Afterwards, we tossed and turned, and came to this world." Guan Yu said in a deep voice, "Since then, my elder brother's cultivation has become increasingly unpredictable, but also... increasingly unpredictable... in terms of his temperament..."

Guan Yu sighed: "Take the Dali Holy Dynasty for example. There are so many corrupt, dark and shameful things about it. We could change the world with a wave of our hand, give the whole Holy Dynasty a new look, and let those scoundrels live in peace and prosperity... But alas, my elder brother is unwilling."

Liu Bei smiled as he looked at Xing Tianli, seemingly oblivious to Guan Yu's words. His eyes shone with a golden light, their gaze distant and unfathomable, like an ancient god seated on a cloud, looking down upon countless beings. His eyes revealed immense compassion, mercy, benevolence, and virtue.

But all these compassion, mercy, benevolence, and virtue are high above.

It's just looking down on one's entire life.

However, it did not benefit the masses.

This is not the behavior expected of Liu Bei, the Imperial Uncle Liu Xuande.

He was, in fact, a man of action. Even in his most destitute, most turbulent, and most haggard moments, he always practiced his own way. He led his brothers, his comrades, his officials, and his followers, raising their arms and taking action time and time again, from the south to the north...

He shouldn't be perched high in the clouds, looking down upon all living beings like this.

At this moment, Liu Xuande was separated from all living beings by a thick, distant, unpredictable, and hazy barrier... not just the world, but the 'Dao'... He was trapped in the thick shell woven from his own 'benevolence'. He could not break free, so he could not understand himself, and could not become the 'he' who, even when fleeing, would lead countless people with him.

Liu Bei's self-imposed confinement also restricted the actions of those around him.

Therefore, it is clear that Shu Han could easily have wiped out the Dali Holy Dynasty.

They could clearly replace them with ease.

However, they were confined to a small territory. They used their own bodies as shields to help the people of the Dali Holy Dynasty resist the attacks from Sima Jin, Cao Wei and Sun Wu, while also enduring the open and covert attacks from the high-ranking officials of the Dali Holy Dynasty behind them!

Seven-colored Buddhist light surged in Xing Tianli's eyes.

Through a glimpse of the sage's gaze, Xing Tianli roughly discerned the problem Liu Bei faced. He was trapped by himself.

His path was 'benevolence'... There is nothing wrong with benevolence, but when his path of benevolence intersected with the golden body of that unknown fallen Buddha, he went astray!

That's right, a Liu Bei who has gone mad from practicing qi cultivation!
Xing Tianli sighed softly: "So, Uncle Liu, what brings you to see me this time?"

Liu Bei said softly, "Young friend, please cease the fighting. The Yellow Turban Army has unleashed a raging war that has spread across thousands of planets. Look at how many innocent people they have slaughtered? And how many people have perished because of the war they started?"

Guan Yu stood silently to the side, his arms crossed over his chest, his head raised, staring intently at the blazing sun in the sky.

His blade could shatter almost everything in this world.

His sword, however, could not break through the casual remark of his elder brother Liu Bei – Liu Bei forbade him to wield his sword. Thus, Guan Yu's sword had not been stained with blood for many, many years.

Yes, today he slashed Ran Min dozens of times. This was the first time his Green Dragon Crescent Blade had been stained with blood since he came to this world.

Lord Guan took a deep, deep, deep breath.

A subtle, sharp energy brewed and settled within him. Beside him, the Green Dragon Crescent Blade roared into the sky, only to quickly subside.

Liu Bei waved his hand lightly, and a bright light appeared.

At the edge of the Tianma Nebula, the Yellow Turban Army and the Dali Holy Dynasty's pacification fleet were locked in fierce combat.

The Yellow Turban Army's million warships were all golden, with visible streaks of light intertwining between them, forging them into a single entity.

This is the method of the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation.

The battleships, whose weakest combat power was comparable to that of a Golden Immortal, were arranged in formation. Compared to the proper Intercepting Sect's Ten Thousand Immortals Formation, these battleships were too sluggish and rigid when changing formations... However, they were sufficient to deal with the Dali Holy Dynasty's orderly and uniform pacification fleet, which was simply arranged together for battle line bombardment.

In the void, countless streaks of light crisscrossed and shuttled.

The main cannons of the Dali Holy Dynasty's fleet unleashed a million streaks of light that continuously struck the Yellow Turban Army's fleet.

A dense, misty light, and auspicious clouds.

Despite the onslaught of the main cannons, the Yellow Turban Army's fleet, forming a seamless "Ten Thousand Immortals Formation," remained perfectly integrated. Despite the relentless bombardment by the Dali Holy Dynasty's fleet, the warships, gleaming with light, remained unscathed, not even a single layer of tanned armor was scratched.

On the contrary, as long as the Yellow Turban Army's warships fired a salvo, thousands or even tens of thousands of enemy warships would have their thick energy shields shattered and explode into brilliant fireworks in the void.

As Liu Xuande gazed at the destroyed Dali Holy Dynasty warship amidst the bright light, two tears silently streamed down his face.

With two 'ding-ding' sounds, the tears that fell to the ground transformed into two golden relics the size of a thumb.

Xing Tianli was dumbfounded.

What level has your Buddhist practice reached?
"Stop now. The people of the Great Li Holy Dynasty cannot be wasted in this war..." Liu Xuande's eyes flashed. Beneath the thick golden glazed skin, it seemed as if a mad dragon was struggling to awaken, but it was firmly imprisoned within the skin and could not move.

'Benevolence', 'Benevolence', 'Benevolence'...

A strange, ethereal Daoist aura emanated from Liu Xuande's body, spreading in all directions, and a peaceful and auspicious energy arose spontaneously within his heart. Under the influence of the Daoist aura emanating from Liu Xuande, the entire Tianma Star became tranquil, and all living beings were immersed in this strange Daoist aura, all killing intent, all evil thoughts, and all desires in their hearts were completely erased.

Xing Tianli groaned, finally managing to break free from Liu Xuande's Daoist influence.

He staggered back two steps in shock, looked at Guan Yu with a wry smile, and said, "How have you all managed to get through these years?"

Guan Yu's face twitched, and after a long while, he murmured, "Fortunately, there is a grand hall specially made by the Prime Minister, where my elder brother resides year-round in the core, and we all accompany him, so we can barely control him to some extent."

Xing Tianli shook his head.

In the bright light, the Ninth Prince of the Great Li Holy Dynasty, like a mad dog, led countless Great Li Holy Dynasty cultivators in a chaotic bombardment of the Yellow Turban Army's fleet. Powerful immortal techniques rained down, causing the Yellow Turban Army fleet, which formed the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation, to spray light and many of its outer warships to be shaken and roll backward.

The attack power of these cultivators from the Great Li Holy Dynasty far surpasses that of their warships.

Even if the Yellow Turban Army formed the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation, if they did not send out cultivators of the corresponding level to fight against the Great Li Holy Dynasty's army of cultivators led by more than fifty quasi-saint level cultivators, their fleet formation would surely be breached after a long period of defense.

Liu Bei extended his hand to Xing Tianli: "Young friend, let them cease fighting. Let these kind people lay down their arms and return to their fields."

The sage withdrew his gaze.

He left a "Well said" in Xing Tianli's mind, and a ray of seven-colored Buddhist light quietly landed on the nine Tongtian Cauldrons floating on the sea of ​​Xing Tianli's mind. With a "boom", the Tongtian Sword Canon on the Tongtian Cauldrons, with its countless immortal characters and Dao patterns, shone brightly.

Xing Tianli laughed.

So, the solution to the problem was that simple?
"Uncle Liu, I have nine great cauldrons here, you may take a look." Xing Tianli let out a long roar, and the nine Heaven-Reaching Cauldrons spewed out from the top of his head at the same time. Auspicious light swirled around the cauldrons, and auspicious energy swept through the void. Strands of terrifying Heaven-Reaching Sword Intent shot straight into the void. As a result, the entire Pegasus Nebula, thousands of habitable planets, countless natural celestial bodies, and vast areas of floating stardust were all shrouded in the terrifying sword intent.

Even the battlefields where the Yellow Turban Army and the pacification army were fighting suddenly fell silent.

All living beings felt as if a sharp sword was hanging high above their heads, as if it could fall at any moment and pierce them through the heart.

Just as Liu Bei was about to imprison Xing Tianli and force him to order the disbandment of the Yellow Turban Army, so that the Great Li Holy Dynasty could once again enjoy peace and prosperity, his eyes were fixed on the densely packed sword manuals and profound mysteries on the nine Tongtian Cauldrons when his body suddenly trembled.

Nine towering cauldrons unleashed nine dazzling, seven-colored sword beams that stretched across the heavens and earth.

This was a combined attack from that Buddhist saint, along with the Tongtian Saint whose whereabouts were unknown... The nine sword lights did not sever the flesh or the soul, but instead ruthlessly struck down at the thick layer of 'confusion,' 'bewilderment,' and 'obstacles of knowledge' that had imprisoned Liu Bei for millions of years.

There was a crisp sound.

The thick golden glass-like skin covering Liu Bei's body quietly crumbled.

“I…” Wisps of golden mist slowly flowed down from Liu Bei’s seven orifices, and his golden eyes suddenly regained their clear black and white. As if all the bones in his body had been shattered in an instant, he sat down on the ground with a 'plop,' frowning and quietly watching the golden dust that kept crumbling and falling around him.

In that instant, Liu Bei's aura plummeted to its lowest point, suddenly dropping from the terrifyingly unfathomable realm of Xing Tianli to the level of a mortal. This was true for both his physical body and his soul.

And yet, it was only for a fleeting moment.

The golden glass-like skin that disintegrated from Liu Bei's body transformed into countless glittering golden flowers, resembling bright jewels and jade. With a deep rumble, they flew back into Liu Bei's body as he took a deep breath.

Liu Bei's aura began to surge rapidly, expanding terrifyingly.

Qi Refining.

Climb to immortality.

The realms of Human Immortal, Earth Immortal, and Celestial Immortal all flash by in an instant.

The levels of Golden Immortal, Taiyi, and Daluo can be reached in the blink of an eye.

He quietly broke through to the Quasi-Saint realm, and his aura surged upwards with almost endless power, progressing from the early, middle, late, and perfect Quasi-Saint stages...

There was no bottleneck or stagnation whatsoever.

A 'click' sound.

The sound of shackles breaking came from Liu Bei's body. In the next instant, Xing Tianli could no longer perceive what level his cultivation had reached... He slowly stood up and smiled as he cupped his hands in greeting to Xing Tianli.

"I owe a huge favor."

(End of this chapter)