Chapter 358 - 150: Sacrifice! Jin Yun Great World! Earth God Dao Talisman
"What do you think, Daoist?"
"This..."
Huaisheng Daoist composed himself, his gaze sweeping over the grim-faced Confucian Daoist Venerable and his three companions before he slowly nodded as well.
"I have no objections..."
Su Bai nodded.
Then, he turned to the four of them, which included White Lotus Daoist and Confucian Daoist Venerable:
"What are your thoughts?"
"I..."
Their expressions were dreadful, and their smiles looked more pained than if they were weeping.
"Everything... everything is as you command, Senior. We have no objections..."
The four of them, left with no choice, had to force themselves to agree.
’Besides, who would dare object?’
Confucian Daoist Venerable and his three companions gritted their teeth, their hearts filled with frustration and regret.
’They knew that once they agreed, there would be no turning back.’
’With his methods, it would be all too easy for this Great Feathered Transformation True Master to deal with them.’
"I’m not an unreasonable person..."
Su Bai watched the four of them, his gaze faint and profound, as if he could see straight into their hearts.
"This undertaking will be fraught with difficulty, but there will be rewards for you once it’s complete..."
"It is my honor to serve you, Senior. How could I dare ask for anything more?"
At this point, they had no choice. Chen Qin’Yin even bowed, seemingly having accepted the situation, which made Confucian Daoist Venerable and the others give her a sidelong glance before they too hurriedly agreed.
But even though the matter was settled, they each harbored their own thoughts.
’They simply didn’t believe there would truly be any rewards.’
The four of them were lost in their own schemes, but Su Bai paid them no mind.
He reached into the air and closed his hand.
WHOOSH!
Visible streams of light gathered from all around, flowing between his fingers and slowly coalescing into a small candlestick.
"If you run into trouble during your mission, you can light these candlesticks..."
The Summoning Technique, passed down by the Netherworld Venerable Master, was unlike ordinary Cultivation Techniques. The crucial aspect of its practice lay in the various "conditions," or mediums, for Invoking Gods.
Only by relying on these mediums could one succeed in Inviting the Gods’ Descent.
OMM!
As he reached out and took the candlestick, Huaisheng Daoist’s expression grew dazed. It was as if a flood of information was pouring from the object into his mind.
After a long moment, he bowed his head in awe and admiration.
"I shall not fail this mission..."
Su Bai gave them no further instructions.
Among the five, even the youngest—White Lotus Daoist—was over a century old. They hardly needed any hand-holding.
But as soon as they stepped out of the Gui Chen Sect Headquarters, the four of them began to worry, their faces clouded with anxiety.
’The white-robed young man didn’t seem to have left any measures in place to control them.’
’But none of them were naive enough to believe that. They merely assumed his methods were beyond their ability to perceive.’
’In any case, none of them dared to harbor any disloyal thoughts for now.’
"Senior, about this Divine Enthronement..."
After the group had left, Cui Yanliang, filled with questions, couldn’t help but ask.
He had heard that this senior of his had recruited many Daoists, stationing them to guard mountains and Earth Veins and suppress countless Demon Fiends and other evils.
’But isn’t that for maintaining order and protecting the common folk?’
’What does that have to do with Divine Enthronement?’
"It is not yet time for you to know the truth."
Su Bai answered dismissively, then waved his hand to dismiss them.
Riddled with questions, Cui Yanliang could only retreat.
WHOOSH!
Once everyone had withdrawn, the back courtyard of the Gui Chen Sect fell silent.
Only a cool breeze rustled past, lifting the long strands of hair at Su Bai’s temples.
He sat alone amidst it all, gazing up at the sky with a profound look in his eyes.
Ever since acquiring another Immortal Grade Technique, his connection to the world had grown deeper, more acute.
He could faintly sense an intangible, terrifying crisis on the verge of arrival.
This crisis felt like the midnight sky, a canopy of endless darkness descending to envelop his Heart Spirit.
And this crisis originated from the Heaven Beyond Heaven.
From that vast world.
’Beyond the heavens...’
Su Bai stared into the distant sky and let out a long, slow breath.
He had never faced such an enemy—formless, without intent, and utterly untraceable.
Formless and without intent, its location unknown, its movements untraceable, its strength and weakness a mystery.
’How could he possibly defeat it from across an infinite distance?’
Everything he was doing now was part of what his deductions suggested was the most promising path.
To replace the heavens through Divine Enthronement!
By establishing new divine principles and a new Celestial Law, he would slowly supplant the rules of the Celestial Dao that governed this world. He would seize absolute control, making the world as impregnable as a fortress.
’But as for whether this Divine Enthronement would succeed... to be honest, he didn’t have much confidence at the moment.’
WHOOSH!
Drawing back his gaze, Su Bai cleared his mind of its myriad thoughts. With a flip of his palm, he produced a mysterious, ancient altar.
This was an Exchange Altar, also known as a Wish-fulfilling Altar.
The altar was wondrously strange, but its method of exploitation was simply too ruthless.
Su Bai had deduced that the price he paid and the price paid by the one on the other side of the altar must be equivalent.
However, by the time the exchange was complete, not even one percent of the value remained.
This mysterious altar essentially devoured ninety-nine percent of the offerings from both sides...
’The mysterious figure who crafted this altar was truly black-hearted.’
’Even the most inhuman capitalists from his past life couldn’t compare to the blatant greed of this altar.’
AHH!
A faint yet sharp scream accompanied the altar’s appearance.
Upon the altar, a multitude of blood-red chains tightly bound a mass of golden radiance, from which the screams continuously issued.