Battle Through the Heavens

Two years was not a short amount of time, but no one had expected Xiao Yan’s retreat to last this long…

Based on the expectations of Yao Lao and the others, it should not be difficult for Xiao Yan to breakthrough to the Ban Sheng class since he had the Bodhisattva Heart and Bodhisattva Pill helping him. The legend about refining the Bodhisattva Heart to immediately enter the Sheng class was a little exaggerated. After all, one must be given time to absorb an enormous amount of pure energy.

One could also prove just how powerful the Bodhisattva Heart was from another point of view. Although it did not allow one to enter the Sheng class immediately, Xiao Yan, who was already a nine change peak Dou Zun, would, at the very most, need one year to successfully complete his retreat.

However, reality did not match everyone’s expectations. Time slowly flowed by while everyone waited. Autumn replaced summer as wild grass covered the area in front the the large rock door where Xiao Yan hid. Green moss had started to cover the stone door.

The area around this door had become a forbidden ground for the Falling Star Pavilion during this one year. With the exception of a few, even some of the Guest Elders were prohibited from entering.

Everyone could only suppress the anxiety in their hearts after one year passed. It was pointless to be anxious when it came advancing. Fortunately, the most reassuring thing was that Yao Lao could sense an extremely obscure aura through the mountain. This aura was extremely faint, but it was not weak. Instead, it was as though that aura was in a transformation state…

Being able to sense Xiao Yan’s lingering aura had undoubtedly reduced the worry of everyone. They were unable to disturb Xiao Yan at this moment. Hence, all of them could only helpless worry as they quietly waited.

While Xiao Yan was in his retreat, the Central Plains experienced a great disturbance, but the revenge of the Hall of Souls had not arrived early. Hence, the Falling Star Pavilion made full use of their remaining time to become stronger under the management of Yao Lao and Feng zun-zhe.

Many experts had joined upon hearing their names, especially after news spread from the Falling Star Pavilion that Yao Lao could refine the Bodhisattva Pill. Some of the elite peak Dou Zuns, who usually kept an extremely low profile, could not resist the temptation as they secretly became Falling Star Pavilion Guest Elders.

The temptation of the Bodhisattva Seed was really too great. Experts would even sacrifice some time and freedom for it.

Of course, it was naturally impossible to give the Bodhisattva Seed to these Guest Elders, who had come seeking it, the moment they joined. These experts were not foolish either. They also understood that there were no free lunches in this world. Hence, they thought of ways to contribute to the Falling Star Pavilion so that there would come a time when they were trusted by Yao Lao and then could be blessed with a Bodhisattva Pill, which they could use to breakthrough to the level they had only dreamed of.

In the face of this positive influence, the strength of the Falling Star Pavilion undoubtedly soared. It had become a powerful existence in the Central Plains that was not inferior to an old faction like the Profound Sky Sect.

However, as the Falling Star Pavilion’s strength and reputation grew, the Profound Sky Sect, which had formed a grudge with Xiao Yan and the Falling Star Pavilion, was unable to remain still. In the past, the territory of the Falling Star Pavilion had not been very large. Therefore, there was little conflict between the two, but the Falling Star Pavilion’s territory gradually began to intersect with the Profound Sky Sect. It was inevitable that conflict would erupt.

One was an old faction while the other was a rising faction. The clash between the two would indeed be intense.

Both parties had experienced their own respective victories and defeats after fighting for a period of time. Neither party was able to do anything about the other, but this situation did not last for long before it underwent a change. The Profound Sky Sect had announced that it would form an alliance with the Ice River Valley, the Wind Lightning Pavilion, and some other renowned sects in the Central Plains. They publicly announced that the alliance would be named “Profound River Alliance.”

This alliance had undoubtedly allowed the strength of the Profound Sky Sect to soar. This gathering of experts from multiple parties had caught the Falling Star Pavilion off guard, but Yao Lao and the rest did not panic. The Falling Star Pavilion had expanded too quickly. Although the territory under its influence was vast, it was a little superficial. By experiencing this big battle, they were able to use it as an opportunity to reorganize themselves. An obese faction was not something that Yao Lao desired. Instead, he wanted a balanced elite group that could deliver a fatal blow to any enemy.

Hence, Yao Lao and the rest did not organize a major retaliation as the Falling Star Pavilion shrank. They continued to withdraw. As the Falling Star Pavilion withdrew and the length of their defensive line shrank, the defensive strength of those cities near the center increased. Additionally, many guest Elders personally built wormholes to be directly connected all of these important cities together.

Therefore, any city could be reinforced quickly. This caused the territory of the Falling Star Pavilion to be impenetrable. Some of the attacks of the “Profound River Alliance” had difficulty achieving any obvious results. Instead, they had ended up suffering quite great losses after many battles.

This stalemate continued for a couple of months before the “Profound River Alliance” had no choice but to give up attacking. They gradually withdrew. In any case, they had achieved the effect of displaying their might. They did not wish to truly become enemies with the Falling Star Pavilion and engage in a bloody battle. After all, everyone knew that it would be difficult to predict the victor.

After this big war came to an temporary halt, the reputation of the Falling Star Pavilion once again exploded. It was able to rely on its own strength to fight the alliance consisting of the Profound Sky Sect, Ice River Valley, and some other factions. This was extremely rare in the Central Plains. The “Profound River Alliance” was quite depressed by this. Although they had managed to snatch some territories, it seemed that they had ended up promoting the Falling Star Pavilion…

…

After a temporary peace was formed, the Central Plains became calm for a period of time. However, this peace did not last for long before a great storm was stirred from some information that had been transmitted from an unknown source.

The main character of this news was one of the eight ancient clans, the Ling clan. Back when Xiao Yan had come out of the Heavenly Tomb, he had learned that the Ling clan’s realm had suddenly been shut. However, the news back then was only privy to some large factions, and none of the knew what had happened. Hence, the news did not spread.

Not long ago, some experts discovered that the realm of the Ling clan had opened once again. When these experts entered it and probed around, they discovered that the Ling realm was completely empty. There was not a single person in it. Even the descendant citizens of the Ling clan had completely vanished…

Those experts were stunned as they looked through the realm, which was void of life. A chill immediately surged from their feet to their heads. This matter was too mysterious. If one added the descendant citizens of the Ling clan, there had been millions of people in the Ling realm, yet this many people had vanished into thin air?

This matter undoubtedly stirred a great commotion when it reached the ears of the other few ancient clans. Each of those clans dispatched some strong individuals to the Ling realm. Regardless of how they searched, they were unable to even find a single member of the Ling clan. It was as though the Ling clan had completely vanished when their realm was sealed…

The Ling clan was also one of the eight ancient clans. Although they had gradually shown signs of declining, it should be known that even a dying ancient faction was still more powerful than an ordinary one. Regardless of how much it declined, it could still be ranked among the super factions within the Central Plains. Even if their clan was massacred, even factions like the Gu clan would find it difficult to kill all the members of the clan without notifying anyone…

Of course, other than the possibility that the Ling clan was exterminated, some individuals guessed that it was very possible that the Ling clan could have moved their entire clan into another self-created realm, but it was obvious that this massive shifting could not be hidden from the peak experts in the Central Plains, yet even these people had not sensed a thing. Given the strength of the Ling clan, how could they possibly have shifted millions of descendant citizens?

Regardless of what happened, the matter of the Ling clan’s disappearance had undoubtedly stirred a great storm throughout the Central Plains. Various factions guessed the reason for this disappearance.

While the outside world was randomly guessing what had happened, a great disagreement had also occurred within the ancient clans over this matter. These ancient clans understood each other very well, but they were not allies. They could only be described as part enemy and part friend. After all, these ancient clans had attacked each other when they were powerful. Hence, they could not be considered united.

While the outsiders were feeling at a loss because of this matter, all of these clans had made their own guesses. A very long time ago, a big war had once erupted between the eight ancient clans. The reason for that war was the Tou She Ancient God Jade!

That object that had been left behind by the last elite Dou Di and was rumored to possess the secret to reach the Dou Di class. The eight ancient clans had once fought because of this secret. Finally, the complete Tou She Ancient God Jade was split into eight pieces. In other words, whoever wish to obtained what was left behind by the Tou She Ancient God would have to gather eight pieces of jade. Each of the clans regarded the ancient jade as more important than their lives. They would definitely not give it away without reason. Hence… there were those who had guessed that the disappearance of the Ling clan this time around might be related to the other ancient clans. Their aim was to obtain the Tou She Ancient God Jade in the hands of the Ling clan!

However, another round of doubt appeared after this guess was voiced. Although the Ling clan had declined, its foundation hadn’t disappeared. Among the six remaining ancient clans, it was likely that only two clans had the ability to exterminate the entire Ling clan without anyone knowing.

They were the Gu clan and the Hun clan!