316: This is trouble!

Murong Jingyang showed no reaction to this eerie scene, as if he had expected it long ago.

However, he immediately restrained all his outward Aura. His straight back leaned forward slightly as he turned around and respectfully performed a Daoist salute toward the young Daoist.

"Exalted One!"

"Mm."

The young Daoist was the dharma body Lu Ming had left behind to oversee this place.

He waved his hand lightly. His gaze didn't linger on Murong Jingyang for long, but instead turned toward the two newcomers with a look of satisfaction.

"Your actions were quite efficient, much faster than I anticipated," the dharma body whispered to himself.

He had originally thought that for Murong Jingyang to integrate the Black Sha Marsh, there would be at least some setbacks, perhaps dealing with the remnants of the Liu and Teng families, as well as responding to the probes of other surrounding forces.

He hadn't expected this man's methods to be so ruthless, directly using others to incite internal strife and then acting as the oriole behind and the fisherman who profits.

With this series of schemes, everything was settled in just three short years.

Compared to the other chess pieces the original body had arranged throughout the Northern Territory, Murong Jingyang's progress was far ahead. The efficiency was so high that even he was slightly surprised.

The dharma body was quite satisfied with this.

"However..." The dharma body's gaze narrowed, and the satisfaction in his eyes quickly faded.

"This is still far from enough!"

What was the Black Sha Marsh? It was merely a gathering area for bottom-tier forces in a remote corner.

With this size, even second-rate forces with slightly longer legacies and a Mid-stage Golden Core Cultivator overseeing them might not even look at it, let alone provide substantial help to Lu Ming's original body.

This harvest from the Black Sha Marsh was probably not even enough to fill the gaps between his teeth.

Only by sweeping through the surrounding regions, until the power structure of the entire Northern Territory was affected, and even eventually alarming those high-and-mighty Seven Grotto-Heavens that looked down upon the outer domains, could he truly help Lu Ming.

Thinking of this, the dharma body cast his gaze further north of the Black Sha Marsh, to a place also famous as a dangerous and forbidden land in the Northern Territory—Wan Hai Valley!

As long as they could crack this hard nut, they could continue to expand outward and search for more "resources" and "talents."

There were two purposes for his dharma body to remain here.

First, naturally, was to supervise Murong Jingyang's progress, ensuring the plan didn't deviate from its course, and providing support or correction when necessary to prevent unexpected variables.

Second, it was to leave a crucial "backup path" for himself.

After all, the Profound Spirit Domain was vast and boundless, filled with hidden talents, countless miraculous techniques, and dangerous forbidden lands.

Although Lu Ming's original body had reached the Mid-stage Golden Core and his raw strength was no weaker than the Late Golden Core Stage, making his power unfathomable, he had never been so arrogant as to think he was invincible.

So while he was confident in his strength, he never underestimated the world's Cultivators.

On the path of cultivation, accidents and risks are everywhere; even he could potentially fall.

By linking this technique closely to the original body, it could serve as a "resurrection anchor."

Even if the original body met with misfortune outside, as long as this dharma body remained, he could revive through it.

Although this was just planning for a rainy day, it happened to coincide with his destiny in the dark.

The dharma body's gaze suddenly became profound, as if piercing through infinite space and numerous barriers to look toward the location where the original body was currently situated, his brow furrowing slightly.

"The original body is in trouble!"

...Northern Territory, outskirts of the Lancang River Mountains

High in the sky, the astral winds were like knives, slicing through the clouds.

Below was a mountain range of endless emerald green and overlapping peaks, but now, the peace of this place was broken by three streaks of light coming from across the horizon, emitting terrifying pressure!

At the very front was a somewhat disheveled figure. His speed was extremely fast, and his trajectory was erratic, sometimes diving into the sea of clouds and sometimes racing close to the mountain ridges, attempting to use the complex terrain to shake off the pursuit.

Over a hundred miles behind, two equally aggressive streaks of light followed closely.

The one on the left was fiery red, blazing and overbearing. Wherever it passed, the air distorted, and the trees below showed signs of scorching.

The one on the right was earthy yellow, heavy and dense. Where the light passed, even the air seemed to become viscous and sluggish.

Further back, there was a pale golden figure that seemed slow but actually covered dozens of miles with every step.

He walked through the air unhurriedly, without any dazzling light around him. However, with every step he took, ripples appeared in the void beneath his feet, and his figure would suddenly blur, appearing dozens of miles away in the next instant.

The Aura he emitted had surprisingly reached the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage; he was a true Golden Core Great True Person!

Within the leading streak of light, Lu Ming's brow was locked in a frown. Although his Aura wasn't chaotic, his expression was quite grim.

Especially upon feeling a Divine Sense as vast as the ocean firmly locking onto him, Lu Ming's expression turned even worse.

However, the pursuers behind didn't care what he thought. From within the fiery red light, an old man with a crimson face wearing a blazing Daoist robe snorted coldly and raised his hand to unleash a Sky Burning Great Mudra!

"Boom—"

A giant crimson palm covering a hundred zhang of the sky, formed entirely from condensed mana and carrying the power to burn mountains and boil seas, ignored the mountain obstacles below and slammed down directly toward the airspace several miles ahead of Lu Ming!

This was to block Lu Ming's path and force him to stop and face it head-on.

Almost simultaneously, the middle-aged Cultivator in the earthy yellow light also formed hand seals and shouted.

"Imprison!"

Several mountain peaks below shook violently as the vast earth-attribute Spiritual Qi was forcibly extracted, transforming into several massive Wutu Dragons.

They emerged from the ground, entwined with rocks and soil, and fiercely lunged toward Lu Ming's light from different directions!

With a pincer attack from front and back, the momentum sealed the heavens and locked the earth!

Facing this, Lu Ming's eyes suddenly sharpened, but his figure didn't slow down.

He pointed his fingers like a sword and slashed toward the void ahead!

"Clang!"

Suddenly, a green sword light flew out from Lu Ming's Dantian and grew in the wind, transforming into a sword about a zhang long.

It was the azure profound sword that hadn't been used for a long time!

This Magic Treasure had been refined by him for over ten years using the Blood Nurturing Soul Merging Artifact Sacrificial Method supplemented by the Yuanchen Sea Convergence Art, a unique third-rank treasure-controlling secret technique. Its power was now incomparable to before.

Not to mention, at this moment, there were a full ten Dharma Rings floating around the azure profound sword!

This was a sign of the Major Achievement of the Yuanchen Sea Convergence Art. For every Dharma Ring a Magic Treasure formed, the stored power became more terrifying.

Once triggered, the power it erupted could even instantly break through the limits of the practitioner's own cultivation.

And now, there were ten rings on it, which was already the realm of Perfection!

But Lu Ming didn't hesitate at all. He pinched a hand seal and quickly chanted a mantra.

"Command!"

Bang, bang, bang—

The ten Dharma Rings all shattered at this moment.

Suddenly, a sharp Sword Intent instantly filled the sky and earth, then quickly condensed, finally transforming into a hundred-zhang-long azure Sword Qi.

Then, carrying a domineering and peerless Sword Aura, it slashed directly toward the crimson giant palm and the Wutu Dragons.