The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS

The matter of the Silent Annihilation Evil Qi contention has concluded, but the affair of Mingyang City is not yet over.

Mingyang City, as a major city in Ling Province, housed forty thousand people including residents, traveling merchants, and people from the worldly society.

Out of these forty thousand, at least ten thousand died overnight, with innumerable others suffering from severe and minor injuries.

This is the first time in decades that a Divinity Realm battle in the Central Plains has resulted in the devastation of tens of thousands. Mingyang City is not Kartim of the Western Regions, nor is it Ji Province of the past.

In the Western Regions, no one in the Central Plains cared how many died. Although the casualties in Ji Province were far more tragic than those in Mingyang City, that was the result of battles between the Blood Demon Sect and others including Daqian, a wartime casualty.

But in Mingyang City, it was a fight between several Divinity Realm powerhouses, resulting in over half of the city being destroyed and more than ten thousand deaths.

Such a situation, the survivors cannot accept, nor can some righteous warriors.

"Xiao Qianxiu, the Manor Master of Yu Jian Manor, has allied with the Lian family of Hong Province and the Haqi Alliance of Xuanzhou, calling upon righteous warriors in the worldly society, sending out invitations to loose cultivators in the Divinity Realm, claiming to negotiate with those reckless forces to set constraints for this chaotic martial world." Xuanzhen said to Qing Yu, holding a newly received invitation.

"Is Xiao Qianxiu joking?" Qing Yu chuckled.

There are righteous warriors in this world, but this Manor Master of Yu Jian Manor is definitely not one of them. He is solely dedicated to reviving the glory of Sword God Lake, yet unlike Buried Sword Peak, Xiao Qianxiu wants to revive the Sword God Lake that belongs to his Xiao family.

As the descendant of the last Master of Sword God Lake, Xiao Qianxiu dreams of restoring the power of the Xiao family. For this purpose, he will do anything.

Just like when he once cooperated with the Daqian Court, it was for this.

But now it seems Xiao Qianxiu wants to break away from the Daqian Court and go solo.

"Xiao Qianxiu may not be a good man, but the alliance he proposes has attracted responses from many forces and experts. Like the Lian family of Hong Province, though the leader among the families of Hong Province, has always had no bad records, now they are also part of this alliance. As for the Haqi Alliance, they are purely out of a sense of justice." Xuanzhen said.

The Lian family of Hong Province is actually quite pitiful. When the Heavenly Demon Palace emerged in Hong Province, it squeezed the survival space of the Hong Province families. However, because the Demon Lord was in seclusion recovering, it did not have much impact.

But recently, the situation dramatically changed. First, the Nine Heavens combined forces split the world, allowing the Shadow King to seize Hong Province. Then the Heavenly Demon Palace went all out, stirring up turmoil in the world.

The pressure from both sides has made the Lian family quite miserable.

Though the current patriarch of the Lian family is a woman, her resilience and tenacity do not lose to any man. Faced with two massive forces, the Lian family stubbornly refuses to join either side.

"The Lian family has always had no ambition, focusing only on family affairs, which is very good. But in today's world, staying out of it is no longer viable. The Lian family either joins a force for protection or gets torn apart." Qing Yu laughed softly.

"Are you interested in the Lian family?" Xuanzhen smiled at Qing Yu and asked.

Having spent a lot of time with Qing Yu, Xuanzhen was familiar with some of Qing Yu's habits. Aside from the occasional fake smile, every expression Qing Yu showed in private had its own purpose.

This soft laugh indicated Qing Yu was interested in the Lian family.

"The Lian family is divided into two branches, men named Lian, skilled in forging, and women named Lian, skilled in weaving. Of course, I'm interested!"

Qing Yu looked at the invitation in Xuanzhen's hand and said, "See, they also invited our Zhenwu Sect, which means, in their view, we are not one of those reckless forces."

"That's because they don't know what you've done." Xuanzhen teased with a smile.

Though unaware of what Qing Yu did in secret, just from daily interactions, Xuanzhen knew Qing Yu's heart was harder than iron.

Such a person, whatever they did in the shadows, hmm, certainly wasn't anything good.

"Ha," Qing Yu chuckled, "Perhaps my demeanor and kindness were too obvious. Though I'm called a demon path in Northern Zhou, everyone there knows this demon path's contributions. With the relationship between the Haqi Alliance and Northern Zhou, it's natural to have a good impression of me."

The leader of the Haqi Alliance, "Haqi Heaven Monarch" Mu Xiuji, once studied at the Northern Zhou Mountain River Academy, where he cultivated a vast righteous qi. He didn't stay in Northern Zhou but returned to Daqian, where he began spreading Confucianism.

He once entered Jixia Academy as a sacrificial officer but returned to the wilderness due to differences in ideas. He later established an academy and is now the Haqi Academy's principal, in addition to being the Haqi Alliance's leader.

Involved in the martial world for sixty years, Mu Xiuji's unity of knowledge and action is profound, and he's quite capable of fighting.

These days, to meddle in affairs, being able to fight is the first requisite. The numerous meddling affairs of Mu Xiuji over sixty years and his previous opposition to Jixia Academy's Confucianism theories, yet still alive, is due to his ability to fight.

"I hope you don't end up fighting with Mu Xiuji." Xuanzhen joked, undisturbed.

Just as they were talking, a subtle tremor occurred, very faint but impossible to hide from the two Divinity Realm experts Qing Yu and Xuanzhen.

"What's happening?" Xuanzhen's beautiful brows knitted.

"Nothing, just a minor accident," whispered Qing Yu, "a little... pleasant surprise..."

In a secret chamber, another form of Qing Yu sat cross-legged, suspended three feet off the ground, enveloped in a layer of pitch-black Buddha Light.

The Silent Annihilation Evil Qi had reached its final refinement. Around Qing Yu, various large and small pitch-black reverse swastikas slowly emerged. Within his Heart Lake, a silhouette on a black lotus seat exuded the essence of Great Annihilation and Great Void, slowly appearing.

"Tathagata's Unrighteousness, rather the Silent Annihilation."

The silhouette murmured, the pitch-black Buddha Light began to spread over the Heart Lake.

"Humph, whether Tathagata or Silent Annihilation, all must yield before me."

In the sky over the Heart Lake, a massive face formed in the Heavenly Vault, its eyes as large as the sun and moon, radiating the light of Saint and Demon.

Saint and Demon Together in Heaven.

This ultimate spectacle appeared in Qing Yu's Heart Lake; wherever the light reached, the Silent Annihilation Buddha Light retreated.

"Merely a leftover shadow of the Silent Annihilation Sky Demon, how dare you be presumptuous. You want Tathagata, then I shall give you Tathagata—"

A gigantic palm that covered the entire Heart Lake descended from above, manifesting the form of a decree in its palm, which is the Buddha's Artifact Heart Light Decree.

Reaching God Divine Palm, First Move: Buddha Light First Appearance.

Buddha light ten thousand feet tall. In Qing Yu's mental world, he is the master here. As the myriad paths of Buddha light followed the giant palm's descent, even the Silent Annihilation Buddha Light, restrictive to Buddhist Martial Arts, was but shadows under the light, gradually vanishing.

Finally, the Buddha palm crushed the shadow; suddenly the once calm lake surface stirred, forming a vortex that completely engulfed it.