Volume 1 Volume 7 Chapter 107

Volume 7 Chapter 107: Zhang Xusheng’s Decision

When the noise finally faded away, and calm returned, the world became a chessboard, with cultivators as the pieces. The players realized that, whether they wanted to or not, the game they were playing had become chaotic.

Chaotic, everything was chaotic.

All events had strayed from the paths they had planned, from what they could control, and from what they could bear, rushing towards an unknown direction.

The players always thought that with their close thoughts and clever designs, they could control everything, including the actions, thoughts, and ideas of people around the world.

To the pieces, the players are like gods.

However, outside the chessboard, the players are not all-powerful. By some twist of fate, the board suddenly became chaotic, and the outcome was determined by destiny. The players themselves became pieces under heaven’s design.

Yet, after being used to controlling everything on the board, all the players fail to realize they have become pieces, with their fate decided by the heavens. Or perhaps, this is the greatest sorrow of those who pride themselves on controlling everything.

Or, in this regard, stronger chess players are often more ignorant.

Three years…

Because during the "Azure Crystal Treasure House" period, the Shura Clans left on the Shenzhou Continent suffered heavy losses. When Grand Tantian returned, he was extremely angry, especially since he thought all the top experts from the Human Alliance were absent. So after resting from the fierce battle with the Zhong family, he took the opportunity to lead a large number of Shura Clan members towards Ronghua Mountain in Yongzhou State, the stronghold of the Human Alliance, planning to strike decisively against humanity.

If they win this battle, then all the opposing forces in the world would be eliminated by the Shura Clan, and it would only be a matter of time before the Shura Clan dominated the Shenzhou Continent again.

However, after the battle with the Zhong family, although they were indeed heavily damaged and extremely exhausted, they should not waste time resting.

Opportunities in the world are just so cleverly timed.

The Shura Clan did not expect that when they launched their attack on Ronghua Mountain, they would astonishingly find that those masters who were supposed to be trapped in the "Azure Crystal Treasure House" had actually returned.

Originally, although nearly one-third of the Shura Clan’s top experts had died over the years, and most of the newly bred Shura Clan members had also suffered heavy losses due to various upheavals, the strength of the Shura Clan still far surpassed that of humanity. After all, the Shura Clan had far more top experts, and in battles within the cultivation world, it is the confrontations of these expert masters that determine the outcome.

However, Yongzhou State had been managed by the Human Alliance for hundreds of years, with countless traps and formations. Numerous ordinary cultivators could form the "All Immortals Formation." Although the top experts of the Shura Clan were not even half as many, and lacked the unmatched strength of Grand Tantian and Asura, they still fought to a standstill.

For a moment, the situation that neither humans nor the Shura Clan wanted to see appeared.

Over the years, humans and the Shura Clan have maintained an unspoken understanding. The Shura Clan has more top experts than humans. Although many humans have been lost, their numbers are still much greater than those of the Shura Clan. The Shura Clan fears the various formations of the humans, while the humans fear the Shura Clan’s unbeatable warriors.

Therefore, for many years, the Shura Clan hunted humans all over the Shenzhou Continent, while humans concentrated their strength in Yongzhou State. The Shura Clan reduced the living space of humans and quickly multiplied, while humans secretly gathered their strength.

Before both sides had gathered enough strength, their deep seated hatred still existed. Small-scale battles occurred every day, but there would never be a final battle. After years of calamity, humans could no longer afford losses, and the Shura Clan was too few-losing one was losing one. Thus, they refrained from fighting each other, knowing that once a great battle began, the losses would be too much for them all to bear.

However, fate had other plans, and a decisive battle erupted unexpectedly. The moment they clashed, no one could control it.

This great battle lasted for three whole years from start to finish.

The battlefield felt like an enormous meat grinder, pushing the limited strength of both sides into it, only for it to vanish in an instant.

Over these three years, the humans, desperate and starving, had trained a million cultivators. Although their skills varied, their numbers were significant. However, after the battle, fewer than four hundred thousand remained. The death rate among elite cultivators above the Condensed Core Stage was even higher; six out of twenty-one masters had died, and even Immortal Zizhen was seriously injured in this great battle. Furthermore, the arrangements in Yongzhou State were nearly destroyed. Over the years, the humans gathered in Yongzhou State suffered the least casualties, merely dropping from forty million to thirty million.

Thirty million…

At its peak, the number of humans in the prosperous Middle-earth was four million.

The Shura Clan also suffered greatly; after years of bringing forth new members, only about a thousand remained after the fierce battle with the Zhong family. All of them died within a month from the start of the war. Among the thirty top experts who claimed to have "Immortal Bodies," seven died. They were injured and could not recover in time before being crushed into dust by countless powerful spells. Even with Immortal Bodies, one cannot expect a pile of invisible bits of flesh to come back to life.

Finally, when the initial hatred and wild bloodlust were exhausted after the long battle, everyone suddenly realized that this moment of release, this unexpected showdown, had caused such severe damage-damage so great that they could not even imagine it.

In the end, the Shura Clan left in a grand procession.

In fact, only twenty-five Shura Clan members remained; they left grandly because they had broken through the Human Alliance’s defenses, taking many low-level human cultivators and ordinary people hostage, and no one knew what they planned to do.

After the Shura Clan departed, they left behind a shattered Yongzhou State, a human society in grave distress, and a group of exhausted human cultivators.

Though only twenty-five Shura Clan members remained when they left, no human cultivator dared to pursue them. After all, these twenty-five were at least as strong as the human Astral Projection Stage masters, with six of them being top-level experts on par with Zhang Xusheng, Immortal Zizhen, and Mr. Liu. Among these six were the feared Grand Tantian and Asura.

This battle was barely held back by the combined efforts of Zhang Xusheng, Immortal Zizhen, and Mr. Liu. In the end, Grand Tantian left easily, while Immortal Zizhen was severely injured, and the other two were also extremely tired.

Asura, on the other hand, repeatedly broke through the "All Immortals Formation" and countless human traps. Half of the damage done to the top human cultivators this time was directly caused by him.

So, the humans, who were too weak to continue the war, could only watch as the masters of the Shura Clan used their powers to lead a large group of humans away, turning around to see the broken world revealed before them.

Then, three years passed.

After three years of battle, the Human Alliance was busy for another three years.

Comforting everyone, burying the dead, treating the wounded, rebuilding defenses, and creating homes… all these tasks took a total of three years!

This shows the destruction caused by the great war.

Three years later, when everyone had grown accustomed to peace, no longer hearing the loud sounds of battle, and could sleep as the earth shook, Zhang Xusheng finally had time to take care of his own matters.

For these three years, Zhang Xusheng was always pulled by Mr. Liu to deal with various issues of the Human Alliance, and he didn’t even have a chance to meet with his own subordinates. Immortal Zizhen, wounded and weak, managed to endure for three years; what excuse do you have?

So, Zhang Xusheng was busy for three whole years, while Mr. Liu intentionally or unintentionally stayed close by his side.

…

"This guy Zizhen, although he is a bit rigid and old-fashioned, as a leader of the righteous path, he is still worthy of respect."

After Zhang Xusheng returned to his home, the members of the "An" organization had been waiting for a long time. They all bowed respectfully to Zhang Xusheng, but he ignored them, thinking about how Immortal Zizhen had been too busy helping all of humanity for three years to take care of his own wounds. He softly spoke about the times Zizhen had coughed up blood.

His tone was calm, and though his lips held a slightly sarcastic smile, a hint of admiration crossed his eyes.

Zhang Xusheng did not believe there was anything in the world that could surpass him, but he never overlooked others’ strengths. He would sincerely appreciate the good qualities in others, even if he thought those qualities were unnecessary.

Those who always ignore the strengths of others do not last long in this world, especially if that person is your rival.

"What is there to admire? Zizhen is just foolish…"

Mingluo shrugged, speaking in a calm manner.

He had known Zhang Xusheng for over a thousand years, and he was not a monster created by Zhang Xusheng, so his tone when talking to Zhang Xusheng was naturally not as fearful as Jiluo’s.

Although at that moment Jiluo was glaring at him with anger, and Anluo, who was even more powerful than him, was radiating killing intent.

Zhang Xusheng waved his hand slightly, and Anluo Jiluo immediately returned to normal.

"Are you silly? Do you think I would waste three years just being with him while he acts foolish? Didn’t you notice how people have looked at Zizhen for the past three years? Zizhen’s actions not only calmed everyone’s hearts but also brought them together. We work through trickery, while he walks the path of a true king. If I don’t support him in this, the Human Alliance we have built over the years will fall apart."

Mingluo smiled but said nothing; his knowledge couldn’t match Zhang Xusheng’s, but that was not a shameful thing.

But another member of the "An" organization asked, "Leader, the Human Alliance powers we have gathered over the years are just to mislead Zizhen and Liu Ji, making them think we are competing for the Human Alliance while hiding our true plans. So why does it matter?"

"Because the plan failed, and I have returned."

At this point, Zhang Xusheng’s expression suddenly became serious. Although he still smiled, his eyes turned extremely dark. He turned to Jiluo and asked, "Did you feed ‘Xuan’ to the ‘Spirit Eater’?"

"Yes."

Zhang Xusheng looked far out the window and murmured, "For the first time, I hoped you would fail to carry out my plan, but sadly, you succeeded."

"Are you worried about the ‘Spirit Eater’ coming back, Leader? Didn’t you have a way to kill that ‘Spirit Eater’?"

Mingluo asked.

"I do know how to kill the ‘Spirit Eater’, but I cannot find a way to kill Grand Tantian and Asura," Zhang Xusheng smiled again and said softly. "My original plan was to use Xu Qingfan’s scheme to eliminate the Zhong family, weaken the Shura Clan and the Human Alliance, and then release the ‘Spirit Eater’. After six hundred years, when I emerged from the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’, all obstacles would be removed, and the Shenzhou Continent would become a blank canvas for me to create a new world… Unfortunately, I have come out now."

"We can still carry on with this plan, chief. Isn’t it true that you created a place where the ‘Spirit Eater’ would never go for Anluo and the new humans you created? We can hide there and let the ‘Spirit Eater’ kill them."

Mingluo wondered.

"Now, I will tell you all my plans, since they are all useless anyway. First of all, I haven’t found a way to kill the ‘Spirit Eater’. In fact, the ‘Spirit Eater’ cannot be killed at all. I only discovered the cause of death of the last ‘Spirit Eater’ from hundreds of thousands of years ago. Do you know how that ‘Spirit Eater’ died?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"It ate too much and died from overeating." His words sounded like a joke, but Zhang Xusheng’s face showed no sign of humor, "Everything has a limit to its evolution. If it exceeds that limit, its body will collapse, just like that ‘Spirit Eater’ from long ago that consumed too much. The evolution limit of a ‘Spirit Eater’, based on my judgment, is determined by the concentration of Spirit Qi in the world during its growth and the quality of the ‘Swelling Earth’ that promotes its evolution. The concentration of Spirit Qi at the birth of this ‘Spirit Eater’ and the quality of the ‘Swelling Earth’ that aided its evolution are much lower than that of the previous one. This also determines that its evolution limit is far less. When I left the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’, it had already consumed all living beings in the world and nearly reached its limit. After I provide it with the things I gathered in the last six hundred years, it will quickly collapse."

After a pause, Zhang Xusheng continued, "Also, do you think I chose to be trapped in the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’ for six hundred years for no reason? Besides killing all the masters in the Human Alliance to prevent future troubles and collecting spiritual items that would cause the ‘Spirit Eater’ to collapse, the main reason is that the ‘Spirit Eater’ is extremely sensitive to items rich in Spirit Qi, like cultivators such as myself. The place I prepared can hide your Spirit Qi fluctuations, but it cannot hide those of masters and above. Therefore, I must take you, Mingluo, and Anluo to hide in the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’."

Upon hearing Zhang Xusheng’s words, everyone’s expressions changed.

With this happening, when the ‘Spirit Eater’ appears in this world again, won’t Zhang Xusheng and the others have nowhere to escape?

Zhang Xusheng wanted to destroy this world, but in the end, he found himself on the edge of destruction.

"What should we do?"

Jiluo asked anxiously; Zhang Xusheng’s safety was the most important thing to him, just like how a fanatic would rather die than let their god be insulted.

"There is still time for the ‘Spirit Eater’ matter, and we can think of a solution slowly. What I am focused on right now is something else."

Zhang Xusheng’s smile remained on his face, the seriousness in his eyes faded, replaced by a look of anticipation, as if he saw a delicious fruit hanging high on a tree.

"What is it?"

"Xu Qingfan!" Zhang Xusheng said with a smile. "Xu Qingfan has a good heart, but after all, he is just an ordinary person. From what I know about him, he won’t refuse to do good deeds, but only if he won’t get hurt. He is not someone who easily risks his life to save others. What I am thinking about now is, Xu Qingfan, is he really dead? If he is not dead, how did he reopen the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’? This little friend continues to surprise me."

Just when there is impending doom, Zhang Xusheng remains unconcerned about it all and thinks about other things, leaving the members of the "An" organization at a loss for words.

Indeed, they also do not know if Xu Qingfan is alive or dead.

"We will have our undercover agent in Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands investigate carefully…"

Jiluo’s words were only half-finished when Zhang Xusheng interrupted.

"Those people have long been under Xu Qingfan’s control. The information they reported over the years is what we already know or can expect. We need to place a new group in there."

"Yes."

"However, if this little friend is not dead, with his mind, he should take action soon. If we wait a little longer, I will understand everything. If he really has a way to open the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’, then things will get very interesting."

He waved his hand to send away the members of the ‘An’ organization, lost in thought for a moment.

"It’s a pity; even though the tendency for self-destruction affects me at any moment, it is not easy to destroy me, even if the world ends…"

Zhang Xusheng suddenly laughed, as if he had thought of something very interesting. That little bit of anticipation was like a child waiting for a gift.

He reached out his finger, put it in his mouth and bit it, then squeezed out a drop of blood.

This drop of blood was surprisingly golden!

Original Life Essence Blood!

While ordinary people cannot control the Original Life Essence Blood, Zhang Xusheng could freely release it from his body.

He dripped this drop of Original Life Essence Blood into a jade bottle, tucked it into his clothes, smiled slightly, then looked up at the view outside the window, lost in thought.

Meanwhile, Liu Ziqing secretly visited Mr. Liu and Master Zhang Yuhan of the Tianzuo Camp members.

The operation of Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands finally began.