Myriad Daos of the Heaven

As Jiang Jichen ventured deep into the mountain range, he suddenly found that the world around him had changed dramatically.

Among the peaks, Spiritual Mist swirled, making the scenery hazy and enchanting.

However, the peaks were densely packed. Without a guide, finding Luochen Village would be no easy task.

Eventually, the three peculiar bandits led Jiang Jichen to a very unassuming, small mountain peak.

This small peak was almost completely overshadowed by the surrounding giant mountains, making it easy to miss.

But at that moment, a strange glint flashed in Jiang Jichen's eyes.

His Seven-Colored Divine Thought was far from ordinary, and he could sense faint energy fluctuations from an Array circulating around the small peak.

They were very faint; if his Divine Thought hadn't been powerful enough, he would never have detected them.

"Such a sophisticated Illusion Array!"

Jiang Jichen exclaimed in surprise as he looked at the peak, which seemed incredibly small from the outside.

"Ah, hero, you actually saw through our village's Illusion Array? This is..."

Shi San, Big Black, and Little Bai were all stunned.

A sense of unease began to creep into their hearts.

'He's so strong. I wonder if the Village Chief is a match for him!'

'But we only brought him here with the Village Chief's permission. It should be fine!'

The three peculiar bandits were growing anxious.

Jiang Jichen, on the other hand, was far too calm and self-assured.

But they had already brought him this far; there was no turning back now.

They passed through the Illusion Array, and suddenly, the scene before their eyes transformed.

The previously small mountain peak was now incomparably massive.

Waterfalls cascaded down cliffs, rare flowers and exotic trees bloomed, and spiritual monkeys leaped from branch to branch. It was an extraordinary sight.

At the foot of the peak, a beautiful village rested peacefully.

Surrounding it were babbling brooks and small, interwoven lakes. Flowers bloomed in a dreamlike profusion, creating a scene as beautiful as a scroll painting.

This was a... bandit hideout?

Jiang Jichen was dumbfounded.

In his mind, weren't bandit hideouts supposed to be crude and chaotic?

Why did this place look so much like a woman's Traveling Palace?

"Haha... Hero, do you feel like you've walked into a fairytale world?"

"Do you feel as if you've left the world of flashing blades and bloody shadows far behind?

"Do you feel that this is a veritable Immortal Realm?

Shi San, Big Black, and Little Bai said smugly, puffing out their chests beside Jiang Jichen.

"This layout is indeed the work of a master. What's more, powerful killing Restrictions are hidden within this beautiful scenery. Very impressive!"

Jiang Jichen said in admiration.

The moment he said this, the smugness vanished from the faces of the three men beside him. How could they possibly feel proud now?

They were, in fact, utterly shocked.

'This Spirit Infant Realm youth before them is terrifying.'

Their earlier actions had all been a test, but the only thing they'd learned was that this man was unfathomable.

Finally, they followed the ancient path into the beautiful village.

Just inside the village gates lay a massive plaza surrounded by buildings.

A group of people was already standing there, looking as if they had been waiting for Jiang Jichen for some time.

Their leader was a short, wiry old man with a goatee.

Yet, as he stood there, everyone around him regarded him with expressions of deep respect.

Jiang Jichen could see a wise light dancing in the old man's eyes, giving off the impression of a deep and inscrutable strategist.

"A guest from afar is always welcome. I am Lishan, the strategist of Luochen Village. You may call me Elder Li, young friend. And how should we address you?"

Elder Li said, cupping his fist in greeting.

Jiang Jichen could sense that his Cultivation was at the Late-Stage Nascent Soul Realm, which was not particularly strong.

Yet he was clearly held in high esteem, his status in the village considerable.

Clearly, his strength lay not in his Cultivation, but in his strategic mind.

With just a few ploys, he could easily win over the hearts of these people.

All of this flashed through Jiang Jichen's mind in an instant.

He immediately became wary of Elder Li.

"I am Lingchen, and I've come today to eliminate you bandits and seize this village."

Jiang Jichen did not use his real name.

After all, he was now an enemy of the Six Realms.

He had yet to establish his own power base in the Six Paths Illusion Realm and was still in the nascent stages of his plan.

Attracting his enemies' attention now would be extremely disadvantageous to building his own strength.

He had thought all of this through.

Nevertheless, he stated his intentions directly and forcefully.

Eliminate the bandits and seize the village!

Such arrogance from a Spirit Infant Realm youth!

To dare make such a wild boast while standing right in the middle of Luochen Village.

Was he insane?

Or did he just have a death wish?

The bandits of Luochen Village erupted in anger, provoked by Jiang Jichen's words.

"Where did this brat come from? I, Grandpa Li, will smash his head in with my staff!"

Without another word, a bandit lunged forward to attack.

This was a Nascent Soul Middle Realm bandit, one of the more powerful experts in Luochen Village.

However, Jiang Jichen didn't even spare a glance for the massive iron staff crashing down on him.

He spoke calmly, "These aren't just empty words. You'll know soon enough."

As he spoke, Jiang Jichen threw a punch.

BOOM!

His fist of flesh and blood met the incomparably ferocious, heavy staff.

"The kid's dead for sure!"

The bandits roared as they saw Jiang Jichen's move.

BANG!

But in the next moment, the entire plaza fell silent.

They had just witnessed something utterly shocking and unbelievable.

The Spirit Infant Realm youth had actually caught the staff with his bare fist.

Not only that, but the iron staff had been sent flying from the grasp of their village's ninth-strongest expert, Old Li.

Then, an even more shocking scene unfolded.

Jiang Jichen took a single step and appeared right in front of the bandit, Old Li.

He threw a simple punch!

BANG!

The Nascent Soul Middle Realm bandit had no time to react before he was sent flying by the punch. He crashed to the ground, temporarily incapacitated.

"Get him! Together!"

"Kill him!"

Seeing one of their own taken down, the enraged bandits swarmed forward to attack.

Fearless, Jiang Jichen charged forward to meet them head-on.

He used his Ghost Shadow Body Technique in concert with his Body Cultivation Fist Technique.

Seven Stars Sky-Breaking Fist!

Annihilation Fist!

He alternated between the two, unleashing one devastating blow after another.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

At close range, none of them could withstand a single exchange. Jiang Jichen felled each one with a single punch.

The three peculiar bandits—Shi San, Big Black, and Little Bai—stood off to the side.

They never expected that the Middle Spirit Infant Realm Cultivator they'd brought back would be this overwhelmingly powerful.

In that moment, they finally believed it. This Lingchen wasn't bluffing; he really intended to eliminate them and take over the village.

"Should... should we jump in?"

Shi San asked, swallowing hard.

"It would be useless. We'd absolutely end up getting knocked out with a single punch, too."

Big Black replied, his voice trembling.

"Mmm, Lingchen is already holding back. Otherwise, all of these guys would have been blown to bits by his fists."

"That Body Technique, combined with that ferocious Body Cultivation Fist Technique... it's unstoppable!"

Little Bai remarked with a sigh.

"But if the Village Chief doesn't come out soon, I'm afraid Lingchen is going to come over and knock us out, too!"

Big Black suddenly interjected.

But just as the words left Big Black's mouth, a clear, melodious voice rang out, "All of you, stop this at once!"

As the voice faded, a Light of Restriction suddenly flared to life over the plaza.

All the bandits were frozen in place, unable to move a muscle!

Jiang Jichen also felt a powerful Power of Restriction trying to seal him away.