Chapter 530

Chapter 530: Declaration of War

Yan Lu sent Li Hui far away with a flick of her sleeve. When he regained his footing, he realized he had entered the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave, deeply embedded in the mountains and seas, with only three incense sticks’ distance remaining to the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion.

“Incredible! When will I reach the Traveling Realm? At that point, I can freely travel the world, venture into the most dangerous regions to collect the Dai Character Stele, as well as explore the rare relics in the Nine-Mystic Continent that hold extraordinary treasures. Just thinking about Old Li’s descriptions makes my mouth water.”

Li Hui smacked his lips, suddenly puffed out his chest, and looked skyward, declaring, “Tan Tiandi, you must be able to guess what I’m saying right now, and for those cultivators friendly with the Nine-Mystic Continent, I, Li Hui Li Yingjun, await you all at the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion. If you do not arrive within three days, it proves you are all cowardly rodents and must take an oath never to step onto Wutu soil again. Anyway, I have already sent this declaration of war; whether you come or not is up to you!”

At that moment, Dai Qingtian and Jian Wujie’s sect were calculating his location using divination tools that clanged noisily, transcribing the declaration of war word for word, which instantly attracted a wave of furious curses.

Tan Tiandi had been recuperating for a few days and took the time to deduce Li Hui’s position, feeling that the other party was still within his control. However, just a moment ago, it seemed Li Hui’s speed had increased so much that he had entered the Golden Luan Cave and approached the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion, explicitly issuing a challenge.

“What is your reliance this time? Is it that Jade Turtle that draws down vast heavenly tribulations?”

Everyone aiming to eliminate Li Hui sprang into action, hastening to the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion. Some among them were already present, devising plans to probe and resolve the obstacles.

Li Hui moved forward and saw a large group of cultivators setting up camp. Without waiting for the high-level beings to trace his whereabouts, he slipped into a narrow path leading towards the woods near the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion.

The Mysterious Pearl trembled as Yao’er took a step forward and joyfully said, “Father, we did it! The ancient heavenly vessel is amazing! It forms a pathway when arranged into formations, and we can enter and exit freely!”

“Shh, my little ancestor, lower your voice! I’m trying to use a secret path,” Li Hui waved his hand to suppress her voice, frowning as he said, “Now that I think about it, this secret path is not safe; Tan Tiandi will definitely be able to follow my tracks here.”

“Sorry, Father!” Yao’er stuck out her tongue.

“It’s fine, how is everyone?” Li Hui looked closely at Yao’er, seeing that she had grown into a slender beauty, but her body was covered in a myriad of talismans, resembling someone wrapped in a large raincoat, a rather comical sight.

“We’re all fine. We’ve been suppressing our cultivation. Zhong Yuan and the others’ tree demons and insect demons are at a crucial moment; they need to face tribulation to complete their transformations and promotions. Hehe, this is my idea, but I’m not sure if it’s unrealistic. Father, help me plan—can we use the heavenly monster tribulation to cover the growth of the Celestial Tree?” Yao’er looked at her father with hopeful eyes.

“Using the heavenly monster tribulation to mask the growth of the Celestial Tree?” Li Hui didn’t find Yao’er’s idea unrealistic. Instead, he thought it was crafty and very promising.

Yao’er hurriedly said, “Father, don’t worry about the spiritual energy! Zhong Yuan and the others have worked day and night, gathering thirty-six thousand sets of Gathering Spirit Formations.”

Li Hui laughed, “You folks are acting like you’ve already figured everything out before consulting me! The Ball must have contributed a lot to your plans; no wonder he exhausted all his accumulations from the Kunpeng Decree to assist you.”

“Uncle Yu is very supportive of us,” Yao’er pouted. “Come on, Father, just help us! Once the heavenly monster tribulation arrives, if anything goes wrong and the Celestial Tree’s aura isn’t hidden, we little ones won’t be able to hold on.”

“Are you saying that if you can’t hold on, I can?” Li Hui shook his head, feeling that these little demons and disciples had grown increasingly bold, even daring to deceive the heavens. Yet again, he reflected that he had done similar things himself.

Yao’er shielded her eyes from the sun, standing on tiptoe to look into the distance, “Is this the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave? The spiritual energy is so abundant; it’s perfect for Gathering Spirit to help the Celestial Tree’s growth.”

“Alright! You all hurry up and prepare; we will face tribulation in half an hour!” Li Hui believed he could utilize the monster tribulation to venture deeper into the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion and, while obscuring the heavenly secrets, make it so Tan Tiandi would struggle to grasp the situation—this was a high-risk but potentially fruitful endeavor.

“What? So soon?” Yao’er clapped her forehead and hurried back to the Xuancha Cave Heaven to notify everyone to prepare for the tribulation; Father had approved their request.

Li Hui entered the secret path and used all his skills to navigate the perilous route toward the spiritual herb garden of the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion. Not far off, he suddenly stopped and cautiously began to retreat.

Red light flickered in three directions ahead, vanishing after a few flashes, making him break out in a cold sweat.

“I can’t go any further; moving forward means certain death!”

At this moment, Li Hui stood in the center of an abandoned garden, surrounded by remnants of ancient formations that shimmered faintly in the air. His original plan was to immediately switch paths if this route was blocked, but since Yao’er and the others needed to face tribulation, he surveyed the area and decided it was quite suitable.

“Zhong Yuan, Jin Feng, gather everyone and set up!”

“Yes, Master!”

These disciples had been cooped up in the Mysterious Pearl for a long time, eager to see the world. Hearing the message, they quickly prepared their tools and rushed out in a flurry.

“Greetings to the Master!” Wuchun and Sanxiang were younger and regarded their Master as a father and brother, feeling most at home in the Heavenly Talisman Sect. Li Hui often reflected that it was best to start teaching disciples from a young age.

“Salutations, Master!” the other disciples hurriedly bowed.

“No need for excessive formalities; quickly set things up. Soon I will oversee the talisman formation against the heavenly tribulation; treat it as a practice run,” Li Hui took out the Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique and handed it to the Ball to place in the center of the talisman formation, then took out the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demonic Talisman, passing it to Ao Chonglin to lead and absorb the lightning.

After half an hour, they had everything prepared, constructing ritual altars using various spiritual woods, totaling twelve placed accordingly within the formation. Zhong Yuan, Jin Feng, and other disciples climbed onto the altars, their appearance reflecting a sizable enterprise.

Yao’er brandished the talisman flag and declared, “Unseal the seal; the monsters shall ascend!”

Xie Xuan had long wanted to advance; he shed layer upon layer of raincoat and transformed into a Big Crab, waving his pincers at the sky, shouting, “Come on! Let me bathe in the thunder and wind to become a great demon!”

Simultaneously, the Mysterious Pearl floated high, and all the demon plants within the Xuancha Cave swayed and glowed. The demon eggs buried in the tribulation soil exuded tremendous energy, preparing to face the monster tribulation and emerge into the world.

The heavens responded, but it wasn’t the atmosphere of the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave; it was the external heavens that quickly gathered calamity clouds.

Even though Li Hui was accustomed to big scenes, he couldn’t help but take a deep breath upon looking at the calamity clouds, feeling a pang of bitterness in his heart, “These disciples seem to have nothing else to do, thinking their master enjoys raising demons, so they want to cultivate them too. The Ball is pushing them along by drawing up monster-conjuring talismans. Are we turning the Mysterious Pearl into a demon domain? If outsiders saw, they would think we were part of the Heavenly Demon Sect—what a mess!”

“Hahaha, the tribulation has arrived! It’s the tribulation I have eagerly anticipated!” Xie Xuan was the first to be struck by lightning, so excited he acted like a monkey. This monster tribulation immediately attracted the attention of various high-level cultivators; however, as the heavenly secrets ran into chaos, there seemed to be indications of some kind of upheaval occurring.