My version of Heavenly Dao is too old, so it's full of bugs.

Chapter 253 A way to leave the forbidden area with a massive amount of willpower.

Although the power of the Heavenly Court has faded away, its glory has never disappeared!

After countless years of propaganda and education, the outside world has long become the spiritual home of the Rust People, and the Heavenly Court, which rules the Three Realms, is the spiritual belief of all Rust People!
In Rust City,

There are definitely not few people like peddlers. In their eyes, the outside environment is the best, and the cultivators outside are the strongest. If the other party is also a heavenly official, then their status is even more noble.

That's why Chu Zeng, a Nascent Soul cultivator, lowered himself and bowed to the mirror image that only had a mid-Nascent Soul cultivation level.

Li Wei waved his hand and said, "Lord of the City, there's no need for such formalities! My previous actions were merely to force you to appear, so please don't take offense."

"Hahaha!"

Chu once laughed heartily: "With the Inspector's cultivation level, these guys would have been dead long ago if he hadn't held back! It's good to teach them a lesson this time, so they won't sit here like frogs in a well, arrogant and ignorant!"

Saying,

Chu Zeng suddenly stepped forward and tightly grasped Li Wei's hand: "After ten thousand years, the radiance of the Heavenly Court has finally shone upon us once again! The arrival of the Thunder Department's envoy, could it be that the Thunder Department is finally coming to reclaim this forbidden land?"

The eyes of the Nascent Soul university students nearby, as well as the Rust Citizens who had been watching this place from afar, immediately lit up.
In the ancient legends they heard, the Thunder Gods were the administrators of the human world, and could even receive offerings from mortal cultivators just like the gods. Even in the human world, where the immortal civilization was more advanced, they were considered superior beings and cultivators among cultivators.

Moreover, Li Wei is an inspector, which should be considered a big shot among the officials in charge of thunder, right? Why would someone like him need to risk coming to the forbidden area?

So, apart from Lei's desire to reclaim the Bewitching Forbidden Land, they really couldn't think of any other reason for Li Wei to come in.

For a time,

All the citizens of Rust City couldn't help but look at Li Wei with hopeful eyes.

"Inspector Li! Is the Heavenly Court really coming to save us?"

For over 20,000 years, the monks of Rust City never gave up hope. They regarded the neon lights as their heavens, persisting from two versions ago until now, hoping that one day they could escape this corrupt land and return to the normal human world.

Their hope was like a vast expanse of dry grass, needing only a spark to ignite it.

And Li Wei's appearance is this spark!
In that instant,

Boundless hope ignited in the hearts of these Rust Monks, instantly forming an unprecedented and terrifying power of faith and will—the accumulated expectations and desires of all the Rust people over countless years!

Even though Li Wei had not made any promises or given any answers, golden crystals of willpower were condensing around him, giving him a greater chance of becoming a god.

Xiao Zi, who vaguely sensed this scene through the internet cable, gasped in shock: "These people have so much wish power! If you can really rescue them, you'll have at least a 30% chance of becoming an immortal, right?!"

"Moreover, there are two more cities like Rust City within the Bewitching Forbidden Zone."

"hiss!!"

"Whoever can end this immortal killing move and rescue all the cultivators here, wouldn't they be able to ascend to immortality on the spot?"

Originally, there were only tens of thousands of cultivators in the Forbidden Land of Bewilderment. However, over a long period of 20,000 years, they overcame the harsh environment, the mutation of blood-related reproduction, and the wars started by the greed and struggle among humans. They gradually grew and developed to their current size.

There are nearly two million registered cultivators in Rust City alone, and nearly three million cultivators in the entire Bewitching Forbidden Land. If we could rescue these people, it would be an immense act of merit!

But Li Wei wasn't blinded by the promise of merit. After all, everything in this world comes at a price. If he wanted to gain this merit, he first had to find a way to rescue these people.

But this place is a forbidden zone created by the immortal's deadly technique, the Bewitching Smoke!

It has existed in Zhongzhou for so many years and has been studied countless times by those super powers. Do those powers not know about the situation here?

impossible!
Otherwise, the Great Dao Divine Weapon [Seven-Colored Ball] of Zhongzhou Bocai Group would not have possessed a certain formation targeting the Bewitching Forbidden Land, nor would it have promised to find a way to take Li Wei away from here.

Therefore, those super powers must know some information about the Bewitching Forbidden Land. With their resources and methods, it would be no problem for them to further deduce the various situations inside the Bewitching Forbidden Land.

Those super powers and divine blood families are so desperate for godhood that it is said they spend a lot of money every year to find cultivators who are good at divination to search for the possibility of becoming a god in the human world!
The reserves of willpower in the Bewitching Forbidden Land could not escape their notice.

Moreover, if the people in the Bewitching Forbidden Land can be rescued, the gains will not only be a massive amount of willpower, but also a huge market with at least three million people and a value of at least tens of trillions. It might even be possible to create a behemoth like the Central Plains Pharmaceutical Group on the spot!

Can those large corporations and big capital resist such temptation?
But after all these years, the Forbidden Land of Bewitching Souls is still here, which is enough to show that the cultivators in this forbidden land are not so easy to save!

So Li Wei firmly shook his head, pouring cold water on everyone's hopes:
"This time, I may have to disappoint the city lord! Now that the Heavenly Court and the Great Sage are at war, those evil demons and heretics have taken the opportunity to establish a paradise demon land in the Central Plains. Our Thunder Department has used all its strength to fight against the demons. Even I myself only escaped here because I was being chased by demons."

"So, no one will come to rescue us anytime soon."

Some merits and vows can be faked, but others cannot.

Li Wei has just arrived at the Bewitching Forbidden Land and knows nothing. If he lies, he will be easily exposed. Moreover, he is currently trapped inside the Bewitching Forbidden Land. Once exposed, he will not be able to escape, and the cultivators here will definitely devour him alive.

The cultivators of Rusty City stood frozen in place, the expectant expressions on their faces gradually fading, and the flames that had just ignited in their eyes dimmed.

"I see. We also saw the announcement of the Heavenly Dao 7.19 version update and learned about the war between the Heavenly Court and the Great Sage, but we didn't expect it to be this serious."

It seems that after two versions, the Heavenly Court is also showing signs of decline. Chu Zeng sighed heavily, his face showing some disappointment, but he quickly rallied and returned the Inspector's token to Li Wei, saying:
"In any case, Inspector Li's arrival is a good thing for us! The Forbidden Land of Bewitching Souls is currently in a turbulent period, and with your formidable combat power, joining us would undoubtedly greatly enhance our city's strength!"

"If you are willing to settle here, I am willing to give you the status of deputy city lord and open up all resources to you, giving you the maximum authority!"

"If you have any advanced immortal cultivation techniques, I am willing to buy them at a high price, and I guarantee you will be satisfied."

Over the years in the Bewitching Forbidden Land, Chu has experienced countless life-or-death crises, and has long since developed a calm and composed personality with a strong personal charisma. Cooperating with him would indeed be a good choice.

It's a pity.

Rusty City is just another cage.

Li Wei's ambition lies in the heavens; he wants to become an immortal god, a great sage, in order to truly control his own destiny!
But the Rust City is too small. It's impossible to attain godhood here, and it's impossible to accumulate enough foundation for ascension!
Li Wei's eyes had already revealed his thoughts.

Chu once chuckled and couldn't help but say enviously, "Inspector Li is not very old, and it is indeed a waste of his talents to keep him here. Since that's the case, I won't force him! However, I will still allow you to move freely in Rust City. Please do as you please."

"Lord, wait! Do you know how to leave this forbidden area?"

Just as Chu Zeng was about to leave, he suddenly stopped, and then disappeared without a word.

Upon seeing this, Li Wei suddenly seemed to understand something—it seems he knows something, but he doesn't seem very willing to say it. Could there be some taboo involved?
At this moment, Zheng Youlan walked over and said with a complicated expression, "If Inspector Li wants to know how to leave, perhaps I can answer your question."

One minute later.

Li Wei arrived at a villa in the Rust University.

After Zheng Youlan invited him to sit at the head of the table, she handed him a cup of green herbal tea: "The plants here don't grow very well, so the tea is very simple. This little bit of herbal tea is from my collection from years ago. I'm afraid you can't buy it anywhere else now."

Li Wei took a sip. The tea was bitter and astringent, without any fragrance or spiritual energy. It was far inferior to any other teas available outside. Even a few blades of grass picked from any greenbelt would taste better than this.

However, for the people of Rust City, this is already considered a rare treasure.

"So, you know a way to leave here?"

Zheng Youlan held the tea in her mouth, carefully savoring the bitter taste, but her expression was even more bitter than the tea: "Actually, it's not just me; many people know how to leave, but none of these methods are practical."

There are actually multiple methods?

"Fellow Daoist Zheng, why don't you explain in detail?"

"The first method is to ask a deity of ministerial rank in the Heavenly Court to take action. Over several decades, they should be able to gradually wear away the illusion! However, such beings would not waste time on a group of mortals like us, so this method is practically useless."

"The second method is to use a boundary-breaking formation to gather the cultivation of countless cultivators and unleash a power comparable to that of a god to open a misty passage from within."

"However, the Bewitching Forbidden Zone is a world unto itself, so when setting up an array, you must have accurate external location information; otherwise, you will be killed by the chaotic spatial currents!"

"But the problem is that all the cultivators who fall into the Bewitching Forbidden Land are mortals. How can they break through the shield of the Bewitching Smoke Killing Technique and connect with the outside world from inside the forbidden land?"

"Therefore, the use of formations has the greatest limitations. Not only does it require the cooperation of all the cultivators in the Bewitching Forbidden Land, but it also requires a way to communicate with the outside world. Furthermore, each teleportation can only transport one person at a time, which is why it has only appeared a handful of times in history."

Hear this,

Li Wei suddenly had a thought. The Seven-Colored Ball must have used the second method before. It wanted to use the power of the Great Dao Divine Weapon to break through the fog and then take Li Wei out.

Although Li Wei did not possess a divine weapon, he had a dark web connection, which allowed him to easily obtain coordinates from the outside world.

Therefore, if he can win over the cultivators in the forbidden area and get them to help him set up an array, there is a high probability that he can leave this place.

Therefore, the least feasible method for Zheng Youlan is actually the easiest for Li Wei.

After Zheng Youlan offered two suggestions, her expression became somewhat hesitant.

"Now that we've come this far, is there anything you'd rather not say, Fellow Daoist Zheng?"

"Well, it's just that the last method is a little disrespectful to the teacher..."

Zheng Youlan sighed and suddenly pointed to the sky, saying, "Although the Forbidden Land of Bewitching Souls is vast, it is no greater than the Heavenly Dao. Therefore, we will be passively updated and suppressed by the lightning tribulation."

"And sometimes, certain lightning tribulations can break through the illusionary smoke."

Li Wei's eyes flickered: "You mean... the tribulation of ascension?"

“That’s right! If someone ascends to immortality within the forbidden area, then we can break its seal and reconnect with the outside world in a short time.”

"However, as you know, the situation in our Bewitching Forbidden Land is such that, given the resource level of this area, it is almost impossible to accumulate enough foundation for ascension. Therefore, ascension means suicide!"

"My teacher, along with the city lords of the other two cities, are all Nascent Soul stage experts stuck at the last step, afraid to ascend! If they were willing to commit suicide, they could give us a chance to escape!"

(End of this chapter)