Chapter 621: Innate Spiritual Root

On Qii Mountain Peak, the Celestial Principle Sect had launched yet another attack.

As always, the assault began with the War Magical Artifacts aboard the Floating Battleships. Adapting to the shifts in the Holy Lotus Sect’s Array, the Divine Thunder Pagoda, Cold Flame Cannon, and Demon Slaying Crossbow roared in succession, leaving the Grand Array’s protective barrier shimmering on the verge of collapse.

The Cultivators of the Holy Lotus Sect had grown numb to it. Whether it was after a month or as long as half a year, the Celestial Principle Sect would invariably launch an attack.

This time was no different, except that the offensive seemed even more ferocious—they had brought out the expensive Demon Slaying Crossbows.

Each Demon Slaying Arrow consumed enough Spiritual Materials to refine a Magical Treasure, and required a Tier Four Talisman Master to painstakingly inscribe intricate Runes upon its tip.

They were single-use weapons. Even a Nascent Soul Major Sect would only use them at critical moments; otherwise, the cost of Demon Slaying Arrows alone in a single battle could reach millions of Spirit Stones.

BOOM!

Smoke filled the air as several nodes of the Mountain Protection Array were shattered, blasting roots and chunks of earth into the sky.

It was as if an earth dragon had stirred on Qii Mountain Peak. The entire ridge shuddered, and massive boulders tumbled down the cliffs with a great RUMBLE.

Just as the disciples of the Holy Lotus Sect braced for the next ferocious assault, the Floating Battleships ceased fire, and the expected charge of Puppet Warriors never came.

A brief stillness descended upon the battlefield, leaving only the mournful shriek of the wind.

“One man and one sword to level the enemy’s lair… If he can really pull it off, he’ll be no different than a Great True Monarch.”

Le Zheng’s gaze traveled to the distance, where he could just make out a white-robed Cultivator rising from the high platform on the battleship’s prow.

“Be ready to make a move. I’ve crossed blades with Qu Yang many times, but I’ve never truly made contact with that Demonized Spirit Plant. My Spiritual Sense isn’t detailed enough, but I can’t shake the feeling that there’s more to it than meets the eye.”

Shi Chengdong’s face was grim. He swiped with his fingers, and a Cloud Mirror condensed before him, pulling the image of Qii Mountain Peak so close it felt as if they were there.

The mountain’s buildings, the expressions on the Cultivators’ faces—every last detail was perfectly clear.

“If he can win without any complications, that would be ideal… But I fear there will be an unexpected turn, and we’ll have to enter the fray.”

“A perfect opportunity to test the Divine Techniques I’ve derived from the Three Tombs and Five Classics!”

Le Zheng was eager for a fight. His Cultivation Technique was different from that of his sect brothers, hailing from the long-lost Antiquarian Branch of the Confucian Sect.

Shi Chengdong and the others, in contrast, followed the Idealist branch.

…

“The five-foot sword in this box serves Heaven and is shown to the unjust.”

Bai Zichen rose slowly. A streak of Sword Light flew from the Supreme Qingwei Sword Box and landed in his palm. His gaze seemed to pierce through the layers of tangled vines and roots, settling on Qu Yang.

His eyes could not see him, but his Divine Sense could.

It was a menacing Spirit Plant, its lotus leaves fanning out in majestic yet chaotic layers, completely fused with the entire mountain peak.

To fight it was to fight not just the Ten Thousand Years Snow Lotus, but also the profound, immense Power of the Earth Veins, accumulated over millions of years. To stand before such a force as a single man truly felt like an ant trying to shake a giant tree.

Having learned from Tiann Yangsheng about the recent plight of the lesser Cultivators in the Central Province, Bai Zichen now had one more reason that Qu Yang deserved to die.

It was he who had abducted a large number of Core Formation True Men to refine into Human Puppets, instantly creating a vacuum in the Central Province’s core strength.

The vast majority of Sects and Cultivation Families relied on a single Core Formation True Man to be their pillar of support.

With so many Core Formation Cultivators disappearing at once, panic instantly gripped the Central Province. The remaining Core Formation Sects were powerless to stop the Tribulation Cultivators who now ran rampant.

Qu Yang’s actions had, in effect, shattered the very backbone of the Central Province’s Cultivation Realm.

Otherwise, the Central Province could have at least maintained basic order. It wouldn’t have become a land of displaced refugees where the starved littered the countryside.

Even the Southern Domain, where Demon Path Sects were most prevalent, wasn’t this chaotic and disorderly. If it were, who would be left to provide resources for the great Demon Path Major Sects?

He flew into the air and slashed down. His blade descended with the force of a massive thunderclap, splitting into a thousand copies mid-air.

The obstructing vines didn’t last for a single breath. They were all reduced to ash, leaving the ground covered in their sundered remains.

“Bai Zichen of the Qingfeng Sect? Why is it you, and not Old Ghost Shi from the Celestial Principle Sect?”

A vine suddenly shot high into the air and formed into a lotus flower with a human face. A voice emerged as its petals opened and closed.

“So you have truly succumbed to Demonic Possession. You’ve lost all self-control and become a puppet of the Demonized Spirit Plant.”

Bai Zichen felt a hint of pity. With his Fire Element Celestial Spiritual Root, Qu Yang had once been the most dazzling Core Formation True Man in Liang Country, a guaranteed Nascent Soul Seed.

But Senior Brother Ge Cang had once commented that his character was wanting, and that he was not fit for great responsibility.

Sure enough, soon after becoming the Sect Leader of the Holy Lotus Sect, he had resorted to merging with the Ten Thousand Years Snow Lotus.

Logically, True Monarch Jiulian, having suffered a loss from it once before, would certainly have left behind warnings and methods to cope.

But Qu Yang had still fallen completely. True Monarch Jiulian had only been fettered, his lifespan to be drained away should he ever leave Qii Mountain.

Qu Yang, on the other hand, had completely lost his sense of self, becoming a walking corpse without even being aware of it.

“Puppet? What puppet! I know! You’re jealous! You’re jealous that I can merge with the Snow Lotus and am about to become an Innate Spiritual Root! I will become the Jiuhua Snow Lotus, shed this mortal coil, and possess true Immortal Skin and Jade Bone! A Jiuhua Snow Lotus—one bite grants immortality, one sniff extends life! I will guard the foundation of the Holy Lotus Sect for all eternity!”

Hundreds of thick vines all over the mountain sprouted human-faced lotuses, all speaking in unison as their voices echoed back and forth.

The so-called Innate Spiritual Root mentioned here had nothing to do with a Cultivator’s aptitude. It referred to a rare few Spirit Plants that had seized the very powers of Creation from heaven and earth.

The development of Spiritual Wisdom in plants is naturally slow, to say nothing of achieving Transformation like a Demon Beast.

Even a Tier Five Spirit Plant cannot transcend its nature to become truly free; it can never leave the soil where it is rooted.

Innate Spiritual Roots, however, were different. After reaching Tier Five, they could begin to condense a human form.