荔枝影院

Edited by: Michyrr

Everyone in the hall was dumbstruck by the Demonic Emperor Old Man’s words. Even Gao Xianzhi was shocked at the theory that had been proposed. The energy system of the Central Plains had been passed down for hundreds of years and was already essentially fixed. Thus, even Gao Xianzhi had believed that he had reached the peak of the martial path.

Not even someone as powerful as Gao Xianzhi knew how to cultivate past the peak of the Saint Martial realm. That invisible barrier was as unbreakable as the heavens themselves. But the Demonic Emperor Old Man’s words had opened a new door for him, revealing a higher realm above the Saint Martial realm.

Cheng Qianli couldn’t help but ask, “So that Qutaybah has already reached that level? If that’s the case, isn’t it basically impossible for us to defeat him?”

“It’s not so bad as that. Based on what I’ve seen, that Qutaybah only managed to accidentally and barely reach the Subtle realm. If he had managed to completely grasp the abilities of the Subtle realm, his attacks would be of a completely different nature. The Sword Qi would not be as grand and magnificent, but the power would be even more frightening!”

The Wushang Village Chief ambled forward on his cane and suddenly spoke.

“Brother Wenfu and I discussed this topic for a very long time back in the valley. The Subtle realm is vast and also pertains to the mysteries of space. It’s no easy feat to master it. That Qutaybah might be strong, but he is still within the realm of martial artists.”

Ever since the conclusion of the battle of the triangular gap on the Tibetan Plateau, the Wushang Village Chief and the Demonic Emperor Old Man had remained at Wushang Village. One reason was to search for that mysterious object that had made the Central Plains quake for nearly one thousand years. The other reason was to exchange their learnings and theories on the principles of the world so that they could seek an even higher realm of martial arts.

The ‘Subtle realm’ was the realm that the two had perceived in this exchange, an even more exquisite realm that resided above the peak of the Saint Martial realm.

“Master and Senior have both touched upon that realm now?”

Wang Chong voiced the question that burned in everyone’s mind.

The war still hung over everyone’s heads and the Arabs still had four Great Generals who had not entered the field. In this decisive conflict, two terrifying existences of the ‘Subtle realm’ would completely alter the course of this battle, with the Great Tang’s chances of victory greatly increasing. It would also have a completely different meaning for Wang Chong.

His maser cultivated the Myriad Spirit Sea Art. In the battle against Qutaybah, when he had gathered the Origin Energy of the world into a storm, Wang Chong had already sensed that his master had followed the alternative path presented by that supreme technique to reach another lofty summit, perhaps even reaching an even higher realm of strength.

To his surprise, a hint of gloom flitted through the eyes of the Demonic Emperor Old Man and Wushang Village Chief, and the mood became depressed.

“No!” the Demonic Emperor Old Man said with a deep sigh.

“Brother Wenfu’s talent and attainments in the martial path are truly something this old man has never seen before in his life. With his qualities, if his dantian had not been broken, he would have already reached the exquisite and profound realm!” the Wushang Village Chief said.

Wang Chong instantly felt his heart sink as he inadvertently shot a glance at his master. The Demonic Emperor Old Man gave a comforting smile, but Wang Chong’s heart remained dejected. He had known that his master’s cultivation had been limited by the condition of his dantian, but never that its effects would still be so significant. Based on what the Wushang Village Chief had said, the destruction of his master’s dantian might have made it impossible for him to ever reach that Subtle realm.

“Master, can not even the Myriad Spirit Sea Art resolve this problem?” Wang Chong reluctantly asked.

A teacher for a day, a father for a lifetime. No matter what, Wang Chong did not want his master to feel regretful and held back by the state of his dantian for the rest of his life.

“Chong-er, your master understands what you are thinking. But your master has already experienced everything this life has to offer. The happiest moment of your master’s life was taking you and Xiaoyao as his disciples. As for the rest, your master does not care.”

The Demonic Emperor Old Man gently chuckled. In this aspect, he was abnormally openminded.

He had lived a life of arrogance and pride, looked up to by vast multitudes. He had also been pursued and hunted down by countless people. But no matter how disappointing or satisfying his life had been, at the very end of it, he had still managed to climb back up and even take on two disciples that he could be proud of, experiencing a rare moment of warmth.

He had nothing to regret about his life.

The powerful realms of martial arts were naturally something that everyone wanted to pursue, but this was no longer the sole desire for the Demonic Emperor Old Man.

“Haha, the vast sea is all-accepting and all-encompassing. This is one of the aspects that this humble self admires Brother Wenfu for,” the Wushang Village Chief said. “As for the problem of Brother Wenfu’s dantian, we discussed it back in the valley, but there aren’t many good solutions. There is no question about the profundity of the Myriad Spirit Sea Art. If I had not seen it for myself, I would have found it difficult to imagine that someone with a broken dantian could rise to an even higher level of strength.

“There are fifty paths of the Great Dao, but the heavens use only forty-nine while the last is unused¹. There is nothing that is perfect in this world, and this is a flaw that cannot be filled. With Brother Wenfu’s blessing, this old man has managed to touch upon that threshold, but given my age, this old man also has little hope of reaching that exquisite realm.”

The Wushang Village Chief gave a warm and genial smile. It was truly a great regret to touch upon that realm yet be unable to enter it, but the Wushang Village Chief was also rather openminded about it.

Everyone in the hall had dejected looks on their faces. When they had heard about this ‘Subtle realm’, they had all believed that the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief had reached it, little imagining that they were both only a sliver away.

“Regardless of how it is, the assistance of these two seniors is a fortuitous event for the Great Tang. At the very least, we can now fight a battle with Qutaybah.”

Gao Xianzhi’s words brought everyone back to the battlefield. The four hundred thousand Arab soldiers were still hungrily eyeing the city and still presented an enormous threat.

“I just want to mention one thing.” A young and aloof voice, lacking any sort of courtesy, suddenly spoke. “Dalun Ruozan and Duwu Sili led their army through Ü-Tsang’s northwest, passing through Greater and Lesser Balur. If all goes as expected, they should arrive on the battlefield soon. Once the two armies merge, we will be at an even greater disadvantage.”

Everyone immediately focused their eyes on the speaker. They were greeted by the fearless gaze of a young commander next to Wang Chong, his lips tightly pursed and his face cold and proud.

No one said anything, but the officers of the Anxi Protectorate army couldn’t help but slightly frown. From the armor this officer was wearing, he clearly wasn’t of a very high rank. There were many commanders present, even Vice Protector-Generals, but everyone spoke politely and courteously. No one dared to speak like this person had.

Gao Xianzhi faintly smiled as he asked, “Wang Chong, this young brother is...?”

He cared little about this young officer’s rashness. Although he had never met him before, those who had come with the reinforcements to this place were basically Wang Chong’s people.

“Su Hanshan!”

Su Hanshan directly met Gao Xianzhi’s gaze. Even in front of the illustrious Protector-General of the Western Regions, Su Hanshan showed no sign of backing down.

Your personality is just as bad as ever.

Wang Chong mentally gave a bitter laugh. This was not his first time interacting with Su Hanshan, and he knew that Su Hanshan’s personality was foul and stubborn, as it always had been since their first meeting.

“Protector-General Gao, please do not take offense. This is just how he is. He played a great part in the army’s timely arrival,” Wang Chong explained.

Wang Chong had long ago learned about how Su Hanshan had defeated Dalun Ruozan and Duwu Sili en route. Su Hanshan was born with little talent for socializing and working with the norms of the world. This was his greatest flaw in his last life. Wang Chong could only support and assist him from the side.

“Heh, there’s no need for Protector-General Wang to explain. Those with ability all have a little temper, and what he says is true. We’ve seen nothing of Dalun Ruozan and Duwu Sili ever since they disappeared. Both of them are cunning old foxes. In addition to the Arabs, we also need to guard against the Tibetans and Western Turks.”

In a flash, the hall fell silent. One Qutaybah was vexing enough. Dalun Ruozan and Duwu Sili along with their armies only made the situation worse.

“The number of soldiers the Arabs and Tibetans have left is no longer very important to the outcome of this war!”

Wang Chong’s sudden outburst drew the attention of everyone in the hall.

“Quality is better than quantity when it comes to soldiers. Although the Arabs and Tibetans have more than four hundred thousand elites, we have an army of one hundred and ten thousand of the finest elites of the Great Tang. The Divine Prison Army, the Xuanwu Army, the Dragon Stallion Army, the Roaring Tiger Army... these are all the strongest soldiers of the Great Tang. Not all of them have entered the field yet. Besides that, Su Hanshan also brought five thousand Great Tang ballistae, giving us more than six thousand ballistae at Talas... This sort of army is unparalleled in the Great Tang!”

Wang Chong’s gaze slowly scanned the crowd, his eyes determined and his expression confident.

The Divine Prison Army, the Xuanwu Army, the Dragon Stallion Army, the Divine Martial Army... An army consisting of the most elite units of the Great Tang was one that all empires could only dream of, an extravagance that was extremely difficult to realize. These soldiers had all been honed and tempered over ten-some years, picked from the elite of the elite. Each of them was a powerful and experienced force on the battlefield.

Together with more than six thousand unstoppable Tang ballistae, they could truly tear down any opposition they might face. The power of this army was definitely not inferior to the Arab army, and even surpassed it in some aspects.

“Arabia might be strong! But the Great Tang is definitely not weak! In this battle, we will let the Arabs experience the true soul of the dragon! What it truly means to be a man!”

Wang Chong’s deafening cry was almost infectiously persuasive.

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1. This line is a reference to the Book of Changes and Chinese divination, particularly when using yarrow stalks. In this method of divination, one takes fifty yarrow stalks but then deliberately sets one aside, with the divination method then performed using the remaining forty-nine.↩