Chapter 505: The War of the Iwa Country

The two-tier formation protecting the spirit stone shop shattered under the attack of the Foundation Establishment realm rogue cultivator’s magic weapon. Many rogue cultivators, who had long been poised for attack, immediately rushed in.

The disciples of the Divine Wood Sect, their faces filled with despair, picked up their magic weapons, ready to fight and take down a few enemies before dying, so as not to have cultivated in vain this lifetime.

Zhou Bingyan had already closed her eyes, resigned to death, but was startled awake by a clap of thunder, and witnessed the most beautiful sight of her life.

In a flash of blood-red light, the Foundation Establishment corpse, its head exploded by a bolt of green lightning, fell before the gates of the Divine Wood Sect’s spirit stone shop. This startled the rogue cultivators, who had been full of greed and already fantasizing about plundering the spirit stones, into expressions of horror.

"Who gave you the audacity to besiege my Divine Wood Sect disciples!"

At that moment, a young man, appearing like a true immortal, rode on a five-colored cloud and descended onto the highest rooftop of the spirit stone shop. Accompanied by a cold declaration, a brilliant orange-red light erupted from the gourd at his waist.

"Oh no…"

The rogue cultivators and some opportunist wandering cultivators had already planned to flee the moment they saw the green lightning flash, but Chen Mobai's speed was simply too great.

The brilliant light burst forth, crisscrossing both inside and outside the spirit stone shop in an instant.

The Primal Yang Sword Qi was formless and ethereal. Wherever it passed, blood splattered profusely. One by one, rogue cultivators running suddenly found their perspectives inverted. Unbeknownst to them, their heads had been separated from their bodies.

Their bodies continued to run, but their heads had flown off. In just a single breath's time, all the rogue cultivators and wandering cultivators who had attacked the Divine Wood Sect’s spirit stone shop were turned into corpses by the Primal Yang Sword Qi.

When Chen Mobai flew over, he initially thought the Xuanhuang Market was being invaded and besieged by rogue cultivators. But when he realized the target of the attack was actually a Divine Wood Sect shop, his brows furrowed in a cold expression.

He had arrived just in time. If he had been a step late, the formation would likely have been breached, and the disciples inside, pursued by the overwhelming numbers of rogue cultivators and Foundation Establishment cultivators, would surely not have survived.

After dispatching the Foundation Establishment rogue cultivator with a single bolt of lightning, he showed no mercy to their accomplices either.

"Disciple Zhou Bingyan of the Sword Cultivation Department, greetings to Elder Chen!"

Just as Chen Mobai was clearing the surroundings with his Primal Yang Sword Qi, the Divine Wood Sect disciples inside the shop came forward, led by a beautiful female cultivator with a slightly pale complexion, who bowed deeply to him.

Before Chen Mobai attained Core Formation, he had lectured Qi Condensation cultivators in Divine Wood City, explaining Foundation Establishment. Zhou Bingyan had been among them at that time and recognized him at first sight.

"Rise, all of you. You possess a Divine Wood Sword; are you the new generation's true disciple of the Sword Cultivation Department?" Before Chen Mobai left, the Sword Cultivation Department's true disciple Xi Jinghuo had successfully reached Foundation Establishment. He hadn't paid attention to who would succeed her, and seeing that Zhou Bingyan had a second-tier Divine Wood Sword, he assumed she was the one.

"This Divine Wood Sword was bestowed upon me by my family, Elder. The current true disciple of the Sword Cultivation Department is Senior Brother Feng Hongxue," Zhou Bingyan answered truthfully. She was from the Zhou family and considered the most talented among the younger generation. Although not the top in the Sword Cultivation Department, she was still within the true disciple sequence. To accumulate sufficient sect contributions, she had been assigned to the Xiao Kingdom, where her paternal grand-uncle Zhou Wangshen was stationed, to gain experience.

"Feng Hongxue? It's still that guy?" Chen Mobai had some impression of him; when Chen Mobai became the top true disciple, Feng Hongxue was the top of the Sword Cultivation Department. Back then, Wo You had refined two Foundation Establishment Pills from beast cores, and they each received one. However, Chen Mobai succeeded in Foundation Establishment while Feng Hongxue failed. After that, Xi Jinghuo's talent materialized, and she held the position of true disciple in the Sword Cultivation Department for a long time. He hadn't expected Feng Hongxue to make a comeback even after Xi Jinghuo also reached Foundation Establishment.

"Senior Brother Feng has newly mastered a powerful sword art, and he is now the top true disciple," Zhou Bingyan explained. But Chen Mobai no longer bothered with such trivial matters concerning Qi Condensation. He was now a Core Formation Grand Ancestor. If Feng Hongxue managed to reach Foundation Establishment, Chen Mobai might find it amusing to recall how he suppressed him with two sword strikes back then.

"What has happened to the sect? Why is there no one at Zhou Wangshen's station?" Chen Mobai asked about what concerned him most.

"Reporting to Elder Chen, last year the sect had a conflict with the Southern Xuan Sect in Yan Kingdom. Grand Ancestor Fu personally came to confront the Southern Xuan Sect's Grand Ancestor. Both sides are mobilizing their cultivator armies, and as Xiao Kingdom is close, it was naturally the first to have its cultivators withdrawn," Zhou Bingyan recounted everything she knew in detail.

Although Chen Mobai remained expressionless after listening, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes, making the Divine Wood Sect disciples below feel as if a sharp sword was pressed against them, piercing their very bones. This Elder Chen was already invincible among Foundation Establishment cultivators before he left, known as the second-best sword cultivator in the Eastern Wilderness. Now that he had returned from his travels, what realm had he reached? Perhaps even False Core Formation... Zhou Bingyan, also a sword cultivator, was naturally very familiar with Chen Mobai, the benchmark for sword cultivators in the Divine Wood Sect. Sensing the aura Chen Mobai inadvertently emitted, she couldn't help but speculate about his cultivation level.

At this moment, Chen Mobai had already retracted his Primal Yang Sword Qi. The brilliant orange-red light, unstained by blood, remained as bright and vibrant, returning to the yellow gourd at his waist.

"Where is Tie Qingshan? Come out and see me!" After finishing his conversation with disciple Zhou Bingyan, Chen Mobai's sharp gaze did not diminish as he coldly shouted towards the entire Xuanhuang Market.

This Tie Qingshan was the Foundation Establishment Grand Ancestor of the Tie family. In the past, in Yan Kingdom, he had also fought under Chen Mobai's command. The rogue cultivators' ability to freely rampage through the market meant that Tie Qingshan, who managed this market, was largely to blame. After eliminating the rogue cultivators, Chen Mobai naturally intended to hold him accountable.

No sooner had he spoken than an elderly man in a dark green robe, with a respectful expression, emerged from the tallest building in the center of Xuanhuang Market, leading a group of people.

"Reporting to Grand Ancestor Chen, our Grand Ancestor is not currently in the market. I am Tie Qishan, the third elder of the Tie family..."

"I'll give Tie Qingshan the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn. If he doesn't come to see me within that time, there will be no need for your Tie family to exist." Chen Mobai looked down at Tie Qishan, having no desire to hear his explanations. After speaking coldly, he gestured to Zhou Bingyan below to light a stick of incense.

"Grand Ancestor Chen, please forgive us. There was a traitor in our family, a guest elder who had been lurking for over a decade, who sabotaged the teleportation array. Otherwise, I would have certainly rushed here immediately and wouldn't have allowed this to happen..."

"That's a plausible excuse. However, the incense has already been lit, and I cannot go back on my word. If he doesn't appear when the time is up, then your Tie family must relinquish control of this Xuanhuang Market." In the Eastern Wilderness, Chen Mobai always maintained an unyielding and authoritative demeanor; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to control the people here.

As soon as he finished speaking, he descended from the rooftop. Zhou Bingyan had already instructed people to bring out a table and chairs, and the stick of incense stood burning on the table.

"The rest of the sect disciples can go outside and collect the rogue cultivators' belongings. You, come here and tell me about the war between our sect and the Southern Xuan Sect in Yan Kingdom." As soon as Chen Mobai spoke these words, the Divine Wood Sect disciples, who had been standing in a line, immediately beamed with joy. Zhou Bingyan, who had been singled out, also walked over excitedly and began to recount the events in greater detail.

A year ago, the Southern Xuan Sect used the disappearance of one of their disciples in Beiyuan Market as a pretext, demanding that Yue Zutao lower the formation barriers and allow them to enter and search.

This was naturally not permitted. Both sides began to clash. Finally, a Core Formation Grand Ancestor from the Southern Xuan Sect personally came to apply pressure. Only after Fu Zongjue stepped forward and engaged in a battle with Southern Xuan Jing did both parties finally retreat.

But the matter did not end there. Disciples of the two sects began to harbor mutual hostility in Yan Kingdom, and mysterious disappearances and deaths frequently occurred.

There was even one instance where a Divine Wood Sect Foundation Establishment cultivator was ambushed. Although he escaped by relying on two trump-card secret arts, he was severely wounded and could not advance further in his cultivation for the rest of his life.

Although the culprits were not caught on the spot, the techniques used were from the Xuanxiao Dao Palace. Under widespread indignation, several Divine Wood Sect Foundation Establishment cultivators in Yan Kingdom were on the verge of starting a war with the Southern Xuan Sect.

Fortunately, Yue Zutao was clear-headed, knowing that this was an overt scheme by the Xuanxiao Dao Palace, and that they likely deliberately spared their own Foundation Establishment cultivator's life, precisely to force the Divine Wood Sect to make the first move against the Southern Xuan Sect.

After he reported to Grand Ancestor Fu, he suppressed the internal calls for war, attributing the main culprits of this incident to demonic rogue cultivators.

However, the moment he showed forbearance, the Southern Xuan Sect became even more reckless and began to provoke them frequently.

Late last year, the Southern Xuan Sect's Baose Market auction opened as usual. A former true disciple of the Divine Wood Sect borrowed from various sources and spent his life savings to acquire a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Who knew that after he paid the spirit stones, the Foundation Establishment Pill was not given to him.

The Baose Market's reason was that the Divine Wood Sect disciple's identity was problematic and he might pose a threat to the Southern Xuan Sect in the future, hence, the Foundation Establishment Pill could not be given to him.

Fine, if they wouldn't give it, but then they also refused to refund the spirit stones.

Enraged, the Divine Wood Sect disciple immediately began to curse loudly. In response, the Baose Market representative, who had been coldly smiling while explaining, instantly turned hostile, rebuking him for insulting them, and drew his flying sword, killing the Divine Wood Sect disciple.

This incident, occurring in broad daylight, immediately caused a huge uproar. After it spread, not to mention Yue Zutao, even the sect master Chu Zuochu could no longer suppress the surging public opinion within the sect.

Petitions demanding war with the Southern Xuan Sect could no longer be stopped. Moreover, this concerned the dignity of the Divine Wood Sect as a major faction. If they remained indifferent, they would likely be ridiculed by all cultivators in the Eastern Wilderness and forever be branded as cowards in the hearts of wandering cultivators and low-level cultivators.

"Initially, Commander Yue still wanted to prevent this war. He personally went to the Baose Market, demanding that the Southern Xuan Sect hand over the killer..."

Zhou Bingyan spoke of the initial stages of the war. Yue Zutao, as the commander of Yan Kingdom, was naturally highly capable. He knew that once war broke out, the Divine Wood Sect, which had only just recovered, would suffer immense losses again. Unfortunately, the Southern Xuan Sect was determined to fight the Divine Wood Sect. His visit merely brought humiliation upon himself, and he even almost couldn't leave the Baose Market.

After Yue Zutao narrowly escaped back, war became inevitable. The Divine Wood Sect began to mobilize cultivators from the six kingdoms under its control, who continuously poured into Beiyuan City in Yan Kingdom.

Subsequently, Fu Zongjue's true body left Giant Wood Ridge to personally oversee Yan Kingdom.

Over the past year, the two sects had directly clashed several times. Although the Divine Wood Sect had more cultivators, the Southern Xuan Sect, being from a major Eastern Yi sect, possessed more sophisticated war formations, and remarkably, despite being outnumbered, they were evenly matched with the Divine Wood Sect.

"Qingshan greets Elder Chen!" Just as Chen Mobai and Zhou Bingyan were conversing, a muscular man, slightly out of breath, walked over, surrounded by a group of people.

This person was Tie Qingshan, a body cultivator.

Chen Mobai looked up at the stick of incense on the table. Just then, its last flicker died out. He said lightly, "Time is up."

"Elder Chen, please forgive me. There was a traitor in our family, a guest elder who had been lurking for over a decade, who sabotaged the teleportation array. Otherwise, I would have certainly rushed here immediately and wouldn't have allowed this to happen."

Tie Qingshan walked over somewhat nervously. Although he was quite renowned in Xiao Kingdom, compared to the Divine Wood Sect's top sword cultivator before him, he was simply no match.

"I said, time is up!" Chen Mobai repeated. Tie Qingshan, the towering man, stood rooted to the spot, sweat dripping from his forehead.

"Elder Chen, I've already rushed here at my fastest speed. The time for one stick of incense is almost up, and these are to atone for my failure..."

As Tie Qingshan spoke, he took a storage bag from a family elder and presented it. He dared not give it directly to Chen Mobai, so he handed it to Zhou Bingyan beside him. But she, without Chen Mobai's explicit instruction, dared not accept it.

"I always keep my word," Chen Mobai said indifferently, then stood up, his right hand already resting on the yellow gourd at his waist.

The Tie family disciples, who had seen the headless corpses strewn along the path, immediately turned pale and looked at Tie Qingshan with despair.

"Elder Chen, in the war to destroy Shake Mountain Peak, I led Tie family disciples who shed blood under your command. Are you truly showing no consideration at all?" Tie Qingshan was also a cultivator who had reached Foundation Establishment through life-or-death battles. When truly pushed to the brink, he was no longer the timid figure he had been before. His words held a hint of defiance, his posture straightened, and his eyes showed a slight flicker of anger.

"Oh..." Chen Mobai, seeing this, actually chuckled.

However, he immediately realized that he hadn't revealed his Core Formation cultivation, and in Tie Qingshan's eyes, he should still be the invincible Foundation Establishment cultivator, "Immortal Chen Turtle." Both being at the Foundation Establishment realm, Tie Qingshan, as the foremost cultivator in Xiao Kingdom and a body cultivator in the late Foundation Establishment stage, clearly had some confidence in himself and seemed intent on fighting Chen Mobai.

At this point, Tie Qingshan stopped feigning breathlessness. His spiritual power erupted throughout his body. A dark green armor appeared, and once donned, it subtly exuded an aura reminiscent of Ji Dingjin.

Seeing this scene, the Divine Wood Sect disciples, who had been collecting the rogue cultivators' storage bags, all grew nervous. After all, this was the Tie family's stronghold. But Zhou Bingyan's gaze remained calm, for she knew Chen Mobai's capabilities. In the Foundation Establishment realm, he was invincible.

"Interesting. After a few years away, there are actually Foundation Establishment cultivators who dare to defy me!" Chen Mobai stood up amidst hearty laughter. Subsequently, a powerful aura, disbelieving to Tie Qingshan, emerged, instantly shattering his Iron Tower Body.