Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery
Chapter 1059 - 1028: The Flame Stone Great Emperor of the Horned Ming Realm

"Cultivators of the same order and those of higher orders are not my enemies, but the nourishment for my Dao."

The green-clothed youth before him looked innocent and cute, behaving obediently with a slightly introverted smile, as he spoke such words.

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch felt a sudden jolt in his heart, followed by a shock.

The surrounding Heavenly Earth Spiritual Qi was faintly agitated.

At this moment, Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch could barely control himself; instinctively wanting to command the Void Refining Army Formation to strike at the green-clothed youth before him, utterly destroying his Divine Soul and Sword Intent.

So similar.

Too similar!

He was too much like the Great Sun Sword Master Xi Yuan of the past, identical in every way — the same madness, the same bloodthirstiness.

Xi Yuan regarded all living beings as nourishment, deliberately allowing opponents to grow, just to temper the strongest and sharpest sword; for this, he watched his own death draw nearer, completely ignoring the warning signs within his Divine Soul.

Now, the Swordsman of Xianmen Sect is also walking this path of madness.

Many worries surfaced in Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch's mind.

"Good, submit your request, and I will report to the citizen assembly. Then, I will modify the Dharma-Ending City Imprint so it cannot be activated by any power below Void Refinement, no matter what."

But in the end, he said nothing and agreed.

"Thank you, senior."

Jiang Ding was somewhat moved.

He could see that Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch was just on guard.

It was understandable. At such a close range, even though he was a Sixth Order Array Master from Xianmen Sect, facing a Great Sun Sword Cultivator posed a danger; Xianmen is not known for individual prowess.

Jiang Ding thought that Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch might offer some advice, but in the end, he did not and chose to trust him instead.

Just as he trusted the other person's expertise in Formation Dao, Army Formation, and shipbuilding, the other person also trusted his own expertise in Sword Dao and did not, as an outsider, express any suspicion or advisement.

The barriers between different Immortal Path specializations are stringent; even the most erudite cultivators dare not claim they are experts in all aspects.

"Thank me for what? It's your own path, after all. Would Xianmen even dare to refuse your request?"

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch shook his head.

"Senior, how do I solve this formation..."

With the official matter addressed, Jiang Ding brought out many Formation Dao problems to Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch, challenging issues he had encountered in his decades of cultivation, saving them up to ask all at once.

He had always come up like this, consulting Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch, consulting the far-reaching, consulting authoritative figures in various disciplines.

At the same time, he also accepted inquiries from various cultivators, including many Heavenly Monarchs, about the Sword Dao in daily life.

This is a cycle; every Xianmen cultivator is accustomed to this way of life.

Even if a Xianmen cultivator is approached by another unfamiliar Xianmen cultivator with questions, there would be no surprise, and if there were no urgent matters, generally, they would provide answers if they could.

"The approach should be like this..."

An elder and a junior quietly discussed Formation Dao knowledge.

One taught, the other listened.

The young one occasionally asked questions, showing an embarrassed look, while the elder tried to explain from various angles, striving to make the other party understand, demonstrating a high level of teaching.

The teaching went on for several months before ending.

"If you don't understand this, put it aside."

Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch spoke with some disdain, "Many things, if you don't understand them now, might become clearer as time goes by, after gaining more experience, or when your realm advances."

"Oh."

"Understood, senior."

Jiang Ding blushed slightly, honestly responding.

Truth be told, in terms of talent for Formation Dao, he was a junior before Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch, Heavenly Monarch Wan Ji, and others, the same with those of his own order.

When they taught Formation Dao knowledge, they often unconsciously showed the look of a super genius in Formation Dao looking at someone mentally challenged, which could be somewhat damaging to one's pride.

"Wait."

Jiang Ding put away his notebook jade slip, and as he was about to leave, his footsteps halted.

"The situation in the Horned Ming Realm has shown some results lately, which are somewhat related to you."

"You should look into it."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch stopped him.

"Horned Ming Realm?"

Jiang Ding's expression turned grim.

This was a foreign Immortal Path civilization that had the potential to annihilate all human Immortal Path civilizations within this domain and reduce the Nine Great Immortal Sects to ruins, massacring all humans. He had no choice but to take it very seriously.

"Yes, the Shadow Demon Abyss espionage cultivators have still not been exposed and have obtained a lot of crucial intelligence."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch recalled and said, "At the other end of the domain passage, a place called Cangyan Star Sea exists in the Horned Ming Realm. It is a star domain ruled by one of the nine ancient emperors of the Horned Ming Realm, the Ancient Emperor Cangyan."

"The ancient emperors of the Horned Demon Imperial Clan are equivalent to our Refining Emptiness Peak Cultivators, it seems."

"However, we will not be facing Ancient Emperor Cangyan first. He rules over a vast expanse of star domains and is not limited to a small star domain encompassing the domain passage."

"The direct ruler of the dozen or so Minor Thousand Worlds around us is named the Flame Stone Great Emperor."

"The Flame Stone Great Emperor swears allegiance or cooperates with Ancient Emperor Cangyan, thus gaining control over the surrounding dozen or so Minor Thousand Worlds. He is the Horned Demon Tribe's Refining Emptiness Cultivator we will first encounter."

"The Horned Demon Tribe refer to Refining Emptiness Cultivators as Great Emperors."

"So, does that mean we're going to war?"

Jiang Ding took a deep breath.

This seemed too hasty to him. With a lifespan of thirty thousand years for Refining Emptiness Great Experts, even if there was urgency, it shouldn't be this grave—preparations were typically made for thousands of years.

"I don't know."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch said gravely, "Xianmen Sect has always been against it, which goes without saying. Those eight old ones actually also have enough patience to not instigate an attack out of impatience in just a few hundred years."

"However, things have changed."

"Changed?"

"Yes, changed."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch sighed, "The space passage of the domain has been fluctuating more and more intensely with the relative movement between the Nine Spirits Realm and the Horned Ming Realm. We have been trying our best to suppress it, and over these years, the eight Great Experts and the Central Array Spirit Computer have all been busy dealing with it."

"But no one knows when the space passage of the domain may reveal itself."

"Therefore, these past few years, the eight Great Experts have become somewhat impatient. Desiring to take advantage of the current opportunity while the passage has not yet been exposed, they hope for a sudden surprise attack to annihilate a number of Horned Demon Great Emperors right from the start."

Currently, within the Nine Great Immortal Sects, there are two opinions."

"One is from sects like the Xuanwu Heavenly Palace, who are inclined to dispatch troops immediately, kill a certain number of Horned Demon Great Emperors, and seize the Horned Ming Realm."

"If the Horned Demon Tribe has existences above Refining Emptiness, then we will fight to the death, or face death."

"The other is from the Heavenly Mechanism Immortal Palace, Xianmen Sect, Green Wood Immortal Sect, and several other Immortal Sects, who prefer a sudden strike, subdue the Flame Stone Great Emperor, and then use Divine Soul techniques to control him. With his cooperation, reinforce the passage on the opposite side of the domain passage, coordinate on both sides, and reseal the fluctuations of the domain passage, delaying the time of exposure and gaining more preparation time."

"The final conclusion of the Nine Immortal Sects is to carry out both plans simultaneously. Start with the sealing plan, and if it fails, immediately invade the Horned Ming Realm in a desperate fight."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch conveyed a lot of information into Jiang Ding's Divine Sense, introducing the current situation of the domain to him.

"What does this have to do with me?"

Jiang Ding asked, puzzled.

Currently, he was not qualified to set foot on the battlefield of Void Refinement—the aftermath of a Void Refinement attack was something he could not withstand.

"It does, and it's significant."

"Just like the Shadow Demon."

The Divine Mechanism Heavenly Monarch sighed, "The eight Great Experts hope that you and the Nine Great Daoists go to the Horned Ming Realm first and, under the cover of numerous Refining Emptiness magic, stir up chaos in the surrounding worlds. Set up an unfinished Refining Void Great Formation in advance and eliminate a part of the power of the Horned Demon Imperial Clan's Emperors, who are their Nascent Soul Cultivators."

"The reason you are chosen is that with your Nascent Soul Realm, passing through the domain passage will not cause any fluctuations, and the Horned Demon Imperial Clan will not detect it in advance."

"You'd best make some disturbances near the space passage to attract the Flame Stone Great Emperor, so that the Nine Immortal Sects can subdue and control him instantly."

"This task is difficult. We must ensure that the Flame Stone Great Emperor cannot send out any information, capture him instantly; otherwise, it will all be for naught, and we can only launch a head-on attack against the Horned Demon Imperial Clan, fighting a battle of life and death."

"What the consequences of such a course would be, we do not know."