Chapter 151: Lack of Skill

As Ba Shan Jijiu roared, a wall of light, tens of meters tall and almost without thickness, appeared before them.

This formidable wall radiated an orange-yellow glow and stretched for about half a kilometer. It was covered with many strange patterns, each containing a burning star at its center. The entire wall featured thirty-six such patterns and thirty-six flaming stars, resembling a star map.

Just as Ba Shan Jijiu had cast his divine ability, the Heaven-Shielding Wall, sounds of battle suddenly erupted in front of them, as a battlefield shifted in their direction.

Hundreds of divine practitioners, riding on roaring beasts, charged towards them, coming face-to-face with the colossal wall that stood between heaven and earth.

The barbarian divine practitioners paled. A burly, white-haired barbarian old general bellowed, "Quick, smash it!"

Countless divine abilities whistled forth, hurtling straight towards the formidable wall. The resounding crashes were incessant.

Screeching flying swords pierced into the wall with sharp thuds. However, typically only their tips managed to penetrate before they became stuck within the vast wall, unable to advance or be retrieved.

The Heaven-Shielding Wall vibrated continuously, humming from the assault. Hundreds of flying swords also became embedded in the wall. Behind them, divine abilities continued to explode and blast against the wall.

The hundreds of barbarian divine practitioners charged forward, and with their unleashed divine abilities, caused continuous cracks to appear on the wall. Ba Shan Jijiu roared, pushing his hands forward. With another hum, a second Heaven-Shielding Wall materialized, merging with the cracked wall in front.

He endured unimaginable pressure, being forced to retreat continuously. The combined force of these hundreds of divine practitioners was immense; among them were formidable experts at the Seven Stars, Celestial, and even Life and Death realms. His ability to resist them with the Heaven-Shielding Wall and prevent the wall from being shattered was already terrifyingly impressive.

"Sacrifice the Blade Pellets!" the old general bellowed.

*Whoosh—*

Blade pellets streaked across the sky, spinning rapidly before the wall. Instantly, countless blade lights shot towards the wall. The clanging sounds were continuous and sharp. In a flash, tens of thousands of precious blades were embedded in the wall.

Ba Shan Jijiu's expression changed dramatically. He was forced back dozens of steps by the pressure emanating from the wall, his Heaven-Shielding Wall continuously shrinking under the terrifying force.

"Junior brother, Princess, we've entered the barbarian battlefield!" Ba Shan Jijiu shouted, "Be careful!"

Qin Mu's heart trembled slightly. He suddenly heard the blare of horns from deep within the grassland; another army was pursuing them.

The barbarian old general, resigned, bellowed, "Engage the enemy!"

A large army charged forward, consisting entirely of barbarian divine practitioners and warriors. The warriors served as infantry, and the divine practitioners as cavalry, riding tall exotic beasts. In addition, giant birds soared in the sky. On their backs stood barbarian soldiers from the Man Di Kingdom, adorned with colorful bird feathers on their heads. They were, surprisingly, women, who unleashed various spells and sharp swords downwards.

Qin Mu peered through the wall. He saw a dignified-looking barbarian general seated on a white elephant within the army. That white elephant was noticeably taller than the other exotic beasts and no less imposing than the green ox beneath their feet.

The young barbarian general's gaze swept towards them, landing on the Heaven-Shielding Wall and revealing a hint of surprise. He quickly regained his composure and shouted, "Wind!"

A division of the army immediately rushed forward. They took down large gourds from their backs, placed them heavily in front of them, and opened their mouths. Instantly, black mists surged out of the gourds, transforming into tornadoes. They grew larger and larger, like flood dragons, with one end reaching the sky and the other touching the ground, sweeping across and wreaking havoc.

Meanwhile, the soldiers who unleashed the wind immediately leaped up, stepping on the wind currents to ascend into the air. They charged towards the old general's army, sweeping an unknown number of divine practitioners into the sky.

As these barbarian soldiers were swept into the air, they saw the enemy soldiers attacking them within the wind, swinging their blades to cut them down, slaughtering barbarian soldiers one by one.

The general on the white elephant calmly said, "Rain!"

Another division of the army rushed forward, carrying ceramic urns on their backs. These barbarian soldiers set down their urns and opened the lids. Instantly, masses of cloud vapor flew out of the urns. These barbarian soldiers stepped on the cloud vapor, ascending into the air, and then heavy rain poured down.

These soldiers performed their arts within the clouds. Rain lines, sharp as swords, pierced downwards. The barbarian soldiers below, unable to dodge in time, were pierced through their skulls by the rain lines, turning them into sieves!

The young general then shouted, "Thunder!"

The barbarian female soldiers on the backs of the giant birds in the air each beat their drums. The drumbeats unleashed bursts of thunderous sound, crashing down from above. They stunned the barbarian soldiers who were attempting to counter the wind and rain, causing them to lose focus. Their defenses unconsciously loosened, and many more were swept into the wind and rain, dying on the spot.

With the three divisions of wind, rain, and thunder enacting their arts, few barbarian soldiers remained alive. However, those who survived were all strong experts, whom ordinary spells could not easily harm.

The barbarian old general, knowing he was outmatched and unable to escape, hastily fell to his knees with a thud and cried out loudly, "General Tuolimu, this old one surrenders, surrenders! I beg General Tuolimu to grant us a path to life!"

Seeing this, the other two dozen barbarian experts, though unwilling, prioritized their lives. They too knelt and prostrated themselves, saying, "We are willing to surrender!"

General Tuolimu's eyes flashed with a cold light. He coldly said, "You Tie'er Mu tribe have rebelled and caused chaos. Do you still wish to live? The Great Khan has commanded that no surrender be accepted!"

The old general's expression changed drastically. Just as he was about to erupt, General Tuolimu pointed a finger. A sword column, as thick as a thumb, pierced through the air. Although they were hundreds of meters apart, the sword column arrived instantly, giving the old general no time to get up and dodge. It directly pierced through his skull.

The sword column, with a 'ding', embedded itself into the light wall formed by the Heaven-Shielding Wall, piercing a small hole through Ba Shan Jijiu's divine ability.

Ba Shan Jijiu raised an eyebrow. He dispersed the Heaven-Shielding Wall and watched as General Tuolimu's army swept in, slaughtering every last one of the remaining barbarian rebels, leaving none alive.

Many barbarian soldiers cut off heads, hung them from their waists, and cheered loudly.

Some were even fighting over heads, arguing whether it was 'your kill' or 'my kill'.

Qin Mu frowned. Even in the Great Ruins, there was no custom of snatching heads.

"Collect their souls and offer them to the Golden Palace!"

General Tuolimu urged his white elephant forward. From atop the elephant, he saluted Ba Shan Jijiu, "Could it be Wukhan?"

Ba Shan Jijiu nodded.

General Tuolimu's eyes gleamed with eagerness. "Wukhan," he said, "to block eight hundred grassland divine practitioners alone, your skill is indeed extraordinary. But you are not as powerful as the legends claim. It seems you won't be able to keep the title of Wukhan."

Ba Shan Jijiu chuckled, standing steadily on the ox.

General Tuolimu's eyes blazed with light. He suddenly rose from the elephant's back, the sword light in his hand flaring dramatically. Sword energy rent the air, thrusting towards Ba Shan Jijiu. In an instant, sword light filled the sky!

Ba Shan Jijiu reached out and drew his blade. With a single slash, the sword light suddenly vanished. Only a single blade remained, spanning heaven and earth. With a mighty roar, the blade light disappeared, and General Tuolimu, who had been on the elephant's back, vanished without a trace.

"Not bad skill," Ba Shan Jijiu remarked. "Just poor judgment."

Ba Shan Jijiu sheathed his blade. A moment later, General Tuolimu returned. His armor was split into two halves. When he looked at Ba Shan Jijiu again, his eyes held a newfound respect.

"Wukhan," Tuolimu said, "your prestige still echoes throughout the grassland."

Tuolimu knelt on one knee, hand pressed to his chest, and said, "Is Wukhan heading to the Golden Palace? The Shaman Sovereign has issued orders for us to treat Wukhan with great courtesy."

Ba Shan Jijiu nodded. "I understand. Rise. The Shaman Sovereign bestowed the title of Wukhan upon me back then. Now, it seems that if he personally granted it, he naturally wishes to reclaim it himself. There must be more heroes on your grassland now, otherwise, why would the Shaman Sovereign be so eager for me to go to the Loulan Golden Palace?"

Tuolimu rose and said, "The heroes of our grassland are as numerous as the stars in the sky. There are naturally those who can defeat Wukhan."

Fox Spirit merrily chuckled, "General, I really like how you boast."

"Boasting? Who dares boast about me?" The green ox sneered. Suddenly seeing the white elephant, it quickly trotted forward, rubbing against the elephant's body, and chuckled, "White elephant, are you male or female?"

The white elephant swung its trunk, hitting the green ox in the face and making its nose bleed profusely.

"She's female," Fox Spirit whispered, leaning into the green ox's ear.

The green ox perked up. It chuckled at the white elephant, "Your skin is so white, I like you. Do you eat peonies? I have some here, so tender you can squeeze water from them..."

Tuolimu led his army, escorting them to the Loulan Golden Palace. Qin Mu repeatedly observed this army, feeling a sense of curiosity.

The tactics used by this army to wipe out the rebels were quite peculiar. They bore a strong resemblance to the tactics of the Eternal Peace Kingdom's army. It was unclear whether Eternal Peace had learned barbarian tactics, or if the barbarians had learned Eternal Peace's tactics.

After their brief confrontation, Tuolimu showed them immense respect. Along the way, he offered them food and drink with utmost reverence.

Ba Shan Jijiu did not avoid him when teaching Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu the ability to merge battle formations, though he had to transmit sound for key techniques.

After six or seven days, they arrived at the deepest part of the grassland. They were no longer far from the Loulan Golden Palace. Tuolimu stopped escorting them and instead led his army away with a whoop, returning to his tribe.

Ba Shan Jijiu frowned, exhaled a murky breath, and whispered, "It seems the Shaman Sovereign is quite keen on my arrival. This time, he is determined to reclaim the title of Wukhan. I fear that once we reach the Golden Palace, I will be the one challenged. If that's the case, I won't have time to retrieve my mentor's lower body..."

Qin Mu, eager to try, said, "Senior brother, I once learned methods of thievery."

Ba Shan Jijiu glanced at him and shook his head. "The Loulan Golden Palace is a sacred place on the grassland, comparable to sacred sites like the Dao Sect or Great Thunderclap Monastery. It is filled with numerous mechanisms, dense restrictions, and various seals. Your methods of thievery will be useless there; you won't be able to break their seals and mechanisms."

"The person who taught me thievery was very skilled," Qin Mu said earnestly. "He was our village's Crippled Grandfather. Even though he had one leg missing, he was still..."

Ba Shan Jijiu waved his hand, his spirits invigorated. "If his leg was chopped off, it only means his skills weren't good enough," he said. "You don't need to worry about how to steal back my mentor's lower body; I will handle that. The two of you just focus on blocking the Golden Palace's gate! Leave the rest to me."