Advent of Immortal Truth

Actually, this excuse was also far-fetched.

But having it was better than not, and much better at that.

This layer of cover-up, everyone knew what the essence of it was. But with this layer, it could improve the Meng family’s situation significantly, at least they wouldn’t become the target of public criticism, with everyone calling for their downfall.

“Alright.” Meng Hu wasn’t entirely unaware of the situation, but he was just hoping Meng Kui had a good idea.

Meng Kui carefully informed Meng Hu, explaining the situation, including his previous actions and future plans.

Meng Hu was puzzled: “Brother, if it were me, I would have already taken action. But you’ve been stationed on the mountain peak, rarely taking action. You’re a Nascent Soul-level cultivator, the top of Huoshi Immortal City. If you had acted repeatedly, you would’ve already quelled the internal strife, right?”

Meng Kui smiled slightly and shook his head slowly: “Not long after I emerged from the Immortal Palace, I used a Divine Calculation Incense and, with divine abilities, divined a prophetic poem.”

“According to the revelation of the prophecy, although I am at Nascent Soul-level, the strongest in the city, frequent action wouldn’t significantly impact the ownership of the Lava Immortal Palace.”

Meng Hu stretched out his hand: “Brother, what kind of prophecy is it? Let me take a good look.”

With that, he began to chant aloud—

"The Immortal Palace favors the Meng family,  

True and false foes are hard to discern.  

The changing winds and clouds are all illusions,  

Only with immortal potential in hand is it real.  

Golden Core falls to nothing but sighs,  

When the volcano erupts, no harm is done.  

The great ones chase after the moon in the water,  

The younger generation competes to determine the world’s fate.  

Benefiting from both sides, advantages naturally show,  

Patience with a tired enemy, one leap to ascend.  

Good and evil, gains and losses are all one thought,  

The new master calms the people and fills the old pit."

After Meng Hu heard the prophetic poem, he suddenly understood Meng Kui's behavior.

He was somewhat dissatisfied and muttered, “Brother, can you be sure of this prophecy? I remember that the secret strategy of the Tian Gui Mansion said very clearly—”

“Relying on fortune too much will inevitably be confused by it.”

“As I listen to this prophecy, many parts are ambiguous, and they could be interpreted in any way.”

“The last line is the only one that’s interesting.”

“'The new master calms the people and fills the old pit'... Calms the people... I’ve seen the intel, doesn’t that Zhu Xuanji call himself 'the one who pacifies the hidden and calms the people'?”

“Does that mean he will be the master of the Immortal Palace? So, he’s the enemy we need to watch out for the most?”

“But the first line of the prophecy says the Immortal Palace leans towards our family. I’m getting confused.”

Meng Kui smiled slightly: “You don’t need to figure it out, just follow my orders. Watch.”

As he spoke, Meng Kui pointed a finger.

A small, exquisite flying stone at the level of a magical treasure, barely noticeable, shot through the clouds at lightning speed, piercing the lava and heading downward, eventually striking the Demon Ape King’s court, injuring an old sleeping ape.

The old ape looked at its pierced hand in shock and rage, unleashing its Nascent Soul-level aura, rushing out of the court and heading straight for the volcano's mouth.

Upon hearing the commotion from the old ape, the two Nascent Soul-level Fire Serpent and Flaming Lizard that had been quiet also began to stir restlessly.

Roars, like thunderclaps, echoed as the Nascent Soul-level Demon Ape charged forward, throwing its fists at the spherical barrier.

At the same time, the Fire Serpent and Flaming Lizard also appeared from two other directions, joining forces to attack the Lava Immortal Palace!

Meng Kui once again unleashed his great hand seal, roaming everywhere.

With the addition of another Nascent Soul-level beast, his previous strength was clearly insufficient, falling short by a large margin.

The remaining spherical barrier of the Lava Immortal Palace was soon riddled with cracks from the punches of the Demon Ape.

Zhou Nongying, having been eliminated, was in a room actively healing his injuries.

“The Three Sect Lords, merciful as always, transmitted me out in time, saving me from death. But with my departure, there’s no hope left for the Zhou family to win.”

As Zhou Nongying sighed, he heard the commotion of the Nascent Soul-level battle.

He walked out of the house, looked up, and was immediately pale with shock.

He just happened to witness the scene of the Fire Fusion Demon Ape’s fists flying, shattering the spherical barrier.

“It’s over, the Nascent Soul-level demon beasts are about to break into the city!” Zhou Nongying’s face was filled with despair.

The next moment, a magical treasure-level seal flew out and smashed down, knocking back the Fire Fusion Demon Ape.

Meng Kui’s voice roared out: “Don’t even think about laying a finger on the Lava Immortal Palace! I, Meng Kui, am here! If you want to succeed, you’ll have to step over my dead body.”

His roar immediately stabilized some people's hearts, but it wasn’t enough.

The Nascent Soul-level Fire Serpent opened its mouth and spewed out a river of flames. The river of fire spread, burning down all the mechanical buildings along the way.

The Flaming Lizard lowered its head and slammed into the Lava Immortal Palace.

As a result, the Lava Immortal Palace tilted violently, like an iceberg being lifted on one side. The raised part of the palace crashed down heavily, sending towering waves of magma surging.

As the giant waves crashed down, a large portion of the palace’s foundation immediately collapsed, along with some incomplete mechanical structures on top, which were buried in the lava.

Following closely behind was an army of tens of thousands of Scarlet Flame beasts, landing from the now fully breached outer perimeter of the Lava Immortal Palace and charging toward the inner circle.

The command platform, the Five Elements Towers, and the army of mechanical creations all operated at full capacity, trying to block as many Scarlet Flame beasts as possible.

Fortunately, there were a large number of Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators who had migrated from Huoshi Immortal City earlier.

These people filled the lines, forming small formations that acted like fortresses, blocking the tides of Scarlet Flame beasts.

A fierce battle of offense and defense broke out!

Zhu Zhen, with his heart pounding, fought desperately but couldn’t help but notice the ruins of the golden furnace.

Zhu Xuanji had previously assigned him a task, and at this moment, its difficulty suddenly dropped drastically, allowing him to see a great possibility of success.

The Lava Immortal Palace shook violently, but in the Secret Pavilion of Change, it was still calm.

Ning Zhuo had used spirit stones, surrounding himself with a squad of mechanical troops, breaking through several secret pavilions in succession.

Bang.  

He pushed open a door and encountered the second cultivator he had seen.

It was none other than Zheng Jianlian!

Zheng Jianlian was dodging a massive wooden mallet, trying to get closer to the central area to deactivate the traps and retrieve the pills hidden deep within.

Seeing Ning Zhuo appear, Zheng Jianlian’s face lit up with joy: “Ning Zhuo! You came at the right time...”

Bang.

Ning Zhuo immediately shut the door again.

Zheng Jianlian’s words were stuck in his throat, and his face instantly darkened.

“With such a grand opportunity, the chances of me running into other cultivators have increased dramatically.”

“Given this situation, I’d better meet up with Old Sun.”

Zheng Jianlian wasn’t the optimal choice, nor did he have to go through the secret pavilion room in front of him. He had plenty of routes to choose from.

So, Ning Zhuo decisively withdrew and chose another door to go through.

Shortly after.

Three cultivators entered the Secret Pavilion.

They were none other than Booklord, Song Fuli, and the trio from Zixiao Pavilion’s Golden Core lineage.

The Zixiao Pavilion Golden Core maintained a tracking spell, scanning the area, and immediately frowned: “Why are there two paths? He opened one door, then retreated and left through another.”

Song Fuli also frowned: “Could it be that he detected our tracking and laid a false trail?”

The Zixiao Pavilion Golden Core snorted coldly: “Simple! Let’s open both doors and take a look, won’t we?”

Thus, the Zixiao Pavilion Golden Core and Song Fuli each opened a door.

They easily found traces of Ning Zhuo’s departure, and…

Zheng Jianlian, who was still struggling through the mechanical traps!

Of course, as soon as they opened the door, Zheng Jianlian noticed them too.

“Forget about Ning Zhuo, kill him first!” Booklord made a decisive call, charging into the secret pavilion first.

The Zixiao Pavilion Golden Core was somewhat reluctant, but knowing it was the best choice, snorted coldly and followed closely behind.

Song Fuli was the third to follow.

Zheng Jianlian’s eyes widened.

Dealing with Booklord alone was already enough to make him wary. Now, with the addition of two others from Zixiao Pavilion and Song Fuli, how could he have any chance of winning?

Zheng Jianlian immediately thought

of retreating.

But the problem was, he was stuck in the middle of mechanical traps, making movement difficult and escape nearly impossible.

By the time he reached the outer perimeter of the trap, Booklord and the others had already surrounded him from the front and back.

“If you want to eliminate me, I’ll make sure to take one of you down with me!” Zheng Jianlian roared, issuing a threat.

Booklord smiled faintly: “I don’t believe you. Attack!”

A three-on-one battle ensued.

Zheng Jianlian quickly fell into a disadvantage.

With no other choice, he had to abandon his plan of retreat and kept falling back into the layers of mechanical traps.

He had been here for quite a while and was close to deactivating the traps.

On the other hand, Booklord and the others had just arrived and were unfamiliar with the place.

Using his slight advantage, Zheng Jianlian managed to stabilize the situation temporarily.

But clearly, his situation remained perilous.

...

Sun Lingtong and Yang Chanyu ran side by side.

Yang Chanyu occasionally glanced at Sun Lingtong: “You don’t show such a serious and focused expression often.”

Sun Lingtong rolled his eyes at her: “We’ve worked hard to get this far, and we’re just one step away from success. Please give it your all. We won’t treat you poorly once we seize the Immortal Palace.”

Yang Chanyu: “I’m curious, even if we get the Immortal Palace, how do we deal with Meng Kui and the city’s protective array, not to mention the surrounding beast horde?”

“We have a plan!” Sun Lingtong didn’t want to say more.

If he could replace Yang Chanyu with Ning Zhuo, he wouldn’t hesitate at all.

“With such a grand opportunity, I’ve successfully met up with Yang Chanyu.”

“But if Xiao Zhuo is still alone, then things will be quite dangerous.”

“Sigh, if only during the second round of the imperial exam, I had the chance to return the Golden-Blooded Battle Ape, Dasheng, to him, I’d feel more at ease now.”

“Someone’s here!”

Sun Lingtong pushed open the door and saw a figure sitting in meditation.

After his initial disappointment, his eyes lit up again.

Yang Chanyu crossed the threshold afterward, also showing a hint of interest: “Oh? So, it’s Meng Chong.”

Meng Chong had defeated Zhou Nongying but at a great cost.

Fortunately, he had previously acquired healing pills, and after taking them, his injuries were mostly healed, though his face was still pale.

What troubled him was that, unlike Ning Zhuo, he hadn’t obtained any spirit crystals. This left him with only the option of using meditation to quickly restore his Five Elements Mana.

(End of this chapter)