Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 296: Chapter 197: Devil’s Mark_1

An earthshaking change swept across the world.

Total mobilization, intense war preparations.

Under the rule of the Scholar’s Palace, people who had known peace for so long finally felt the terrifying power of the changing times.

Even a speck of dust, falling upon an individual’s shoulders, was akin to Mount Tai, so heavy it could alter one’s life path, leading to either prosperity or decline, rise or fall, life or death. Regardless, everything would be turned upside down.

As for the future, who could say for certain?In the Wandao School on Golden Turtle Island.

Inside one laboratory, many cultivators were busy.

“External Demon Qi, the three thousand six hundred and eighty-first official experiment!”

“Demonic Qi quality: Three parts per breath.”

“Experiment procedure: Nature Analysis.”

“Method of use: Admiring Eye of Heaven, Mysterious Mirror, Tiangong Dissolution Method…”

The cultivators cast spells, extracted a strand of Demonic Qi, and began to analyze its nature.

This Qi was pitch-black, with a dark red sheen, exuding ill omen throughout. It possessed a malevolent force, seeking to devour anyone in reach.

The cultivators invested materials and used Taoist methods along with various tools, studying for a long time before exhausting the Demonic Qi, concluding this analysis experiment.

“Experiment data collection complete!”

“Uploading the data…”

Moments later, within the Cave Mansion.

Upon a grand couch made from a top-grade Spirit Stone, akin to beautiful jade, Xu Yang sat alone, silent, quietly reviewing the latest uploaded experimental data.

“Name: Demon Qi.”

“Attribute: Demon attribute mana.”

“Nature one: Demon attribute, fears lightning and thunder, dreads light and fire, representing negative, unclean forces; belonging to demons and the deceitful, opposing the positive and masculine forces of Taoism and Buddhist Law.”

“Nature two, spirit consuming: flesh and blood of sentient beings, divine souls; all contribute to its growth. It is conjectured to be from a demon that consumes human flesh and blood, hence possessing vile, filthy, and harmful traits that promote growth and deceit.”

“Level: Using Spirit-Treasure Mech Armor as a benchmark for comparison, the level quality of this Demonic Qi is Eight Realms Deity Transformation level, with a five percent chance of being Nine Realms Return to Void, and less than one in a thousand chance of being Ten Realms Integration (data insufficient, largely an estimate).”

“Summary: A strand of demon Qi, judged to originate from a demon of Eight Realms Divinity Transformation level, with a slight chance of being the power of Nine Realms Return to Void. Its nature is deceitful, belonging to demons, which are countered by righteous techniques, particularly fearful of thunder. When used in various evil skills, it can significantly enhance potency and effectiveness, and can invade the hearts and minds of people…”

Looking at the data in his hand, Xu Yang said nothing, stood up, and stepped out of the Cave Mansion.

On the shore of the East Sea, which had now become a battleground.

Mighty arrays layered upon each other, the four directions sealed off, the air permeated with a tense atmosphere.

At that moment, auspicious clouds drifted over, arriving high above the firmament.

In the high sky, Spirit Light shone like pillars, propping up the vault of heaven and suppressing the waves of the Four Seas.

These were Spirit-Treasure Mech Armor, each standing ten thousand zhang tall.

Duotian Supervisor Spirit Officer!

Pure Yang Wonderful Dao Ten Thousand Sword Immortal!

Southern Dipper Anti-devil Mysterious Marshal!

Tiangong!

The Four Great Spirit-Treasure Mech Armor, each standing ten thousand zhang tall, majestic as mountains, occupied the four corners of the world, like four pillars supporting the heavens, beyond the full view of mortals.

Being ten thousand zhang tall is generally a metaphor.

But for these Four Great Spirit Treasures, it was a concrete description.

The ace mech armor at the Ten million artifacts level, in their unrestrained physical forms, were indeed that massive.

The Four Great Spirit-Treasure Mech Armor defended the four corners of the world, and together with the layers of arrays in all directions…

This place had become an impregnable domain, where even ghosts and gods would find passage impossible.

When the auspicious clouds arrived, however, they passed through unobstructed.

“Taoist Master!”

Upon the clouds, Xu Yang arrived with his hands clasped behind his back. From within the Four Great Mech Armor, beams of Spirit Light shot out, landing in front of him as figures materialized to greet him.

Xu Yang shook his head, and with an open-handed gesture helped up his subordinates, the “Four Great Celestial Masters,” and inquired, “How goes it, any anomalies?”

“Under the Taoist Master’s grace, all is well!”

“Ha!”

Xu Yang smiled, took a step across the clouds, and ascended to the high heavens.

Amidst the dome of the sky, between the seas of clouds, a crimson streak like blood drew the eye.

It was the Demon’s Mark and Sky’s Wound, the Demon’s Mark and Sky’s Wound created by Xu Yang’s own hand.

Indeed, Xu Yang’s own hand!

The fall of the Red Star, the Demon’s Mark and Sky’s Wound, it was all a ruse he orchestrated; in reality, no demonic star had broken through the realm.

Although it was a ruse, not everything was false.

A century ago, a disturbance did indeed occur in the space here, an extraordinarily violent one.

Xu Yang, sensing the workings of fate, came upon hearing the news and discovered a small spatial rift.

From within the rift surged Demonic Qi, its destination unknown.

At that time, Xu Yang was preoccupied with matters of the present world and could not attend to much else. He only managed to forcibly extract a strand of Demonic Qi and brought it back to the Wandao School for research, then sealed up the small rift.

Thus, there was no such event where a demonic star descended and left a trail of blood.

If there was no such event, why fabricate one?

Because he needed it!

The Wandao School had governed the world for three thousand years, and the population had frighteningly grown to three hundred billion.

Three hundred billion, what concept is that?

A normal world simply could not elevate its population to such an extent.

Because as a society develops to a certain stage, various contradictions and conflicts are bound to arise.

Not just the problem of survival resources, racial cultures, and regional beliefs are all like time bombs.

Fortunately, the environment of this world is special. Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, Yellow, vast and ancient, not an expanse of stars and galaxies, but rather a state where heaven is round and earth is square.

Heaven resembles an overhanging canopy, round in form.

Earth is like a chessboard, square in form.

In such a world, there are no distinctions between eastern and western races; regardless of the location, people share the same kind and appearance.

The size of the world, the land area, is also much vaster than imagined.

Moreover, with the formidable governance of the Wandao School, laws as firm as iron suppressing all directions, coupled with Agricultural Methods to produce, satisfying the survival and even the cultivation needs of billions, the nation’s position has been stable. For three thousand years, it stood tall and unyielding, even reaching new heights.

Even so, over time, numerous contradictions still emerged from friction and collisions.

It was unavoidable because human nature has always been so.

For people, having nothing to do once full is a terrifying thing. Because they would create various issues to occupy themselves, and eventually everything would turn upside down, beyond control, leading only to starting over by pushing everything down.

To alleviate these contradictions and stimulate demand, Xu Yang made a lot of effort.

But the effect…

It wasn’t that there was no effect, but it wasn’t enough to effect a fundamental change, the burden was too heavy to shift.

Thus, in the past century, the trend of “letting go” that swept through the common folk, he did not suppress it, because he couldn’t.

After such a long period of peace, the passion slowly faded, like a stagnant pool, which naturally could not inspire people to strive, especially those at the bottom, with limited talents and mediocre abilities. It was inevitable to indulge in the comfort zone.

To solve this problem, the best method is… to shift the contradictions outward.

He needed an enemy, an opponent, to create external conflict and stimulate internal development.

So, after sealing the rift, he created the rumors of the Red Star falling and the Demon’s Mark and Sky’s Wound.

It sounds a bit like the work of a mysterious mastermind, an evil antagonist.

The methods weren’t exactly noble, and the motives weren’t exactly pure.

But governing the world is like this; you have to employ some extraordinary methods to achieve your goals.

The nature of the methods doesn’t matter; what’s important is whether the direction is correct, and whether the result is worth it.

Now, there is no doubt that Xu Yang’s direction is the right one.

Although the story of a demonic star descending and leaving behind a trail of blood is false, there are indeed demons causing havoc on the other side.

The strand of demonic energy he forcefully extracted likely comes from a Deity Transformation demon head, it might even be a Return to Void level great demon head.

With such beings as neighbors, what else to do but prepare for war?

Should one wait for them to attack before hastily calling for a mobilization?

That’s not Xu Yang’s style.

He is someone who likes to take the initiative, accustomed to controlling the situation at hand.

Now, he will not only fully mobilize and conduct a massive war preparation, but he also intends to investigate the situation and even the foundation of the other side.

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