The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu

"Damn it! This self-serving bastard is only making things worse for everyone! Now we're in serious trouble!"

Lei Shun's face turned grim as he suddenly shouted, "I'll go grab that old emperor right now. We'll take him hostage and escape the city. Maybe there's still a slim chance for us!"

With that, he turned to leave in search of the old emperor.

Long Dan shook his head and let out a bitter laugh. "It's no use. The old emperor is already dead. I don't even know how he died."

"What terrible luck! It seems like the heavens are determined to wipe us out!"

Lei Shun stopped in his tracks, his face darkening even more.

Suddenly, Long Dan's expression hardened as he yelled, "All the cities nearby are already mobilizing their forces to support the royal capital. If we stay here, more troops will keep coming, and our only fate will be death."

"The only path left to us now is to fight our way through the sea of people and break out of the encirclement of the 200,000-strong army. The longer we wait, the worse it gets for us."

"Let's split up and escape now. If even one of us can make it out, that's something. There's no other choice."

Fighting through 200,000 soldiers to escape? Easier said than done.

After all, there are still 10,000 Gu cultivators and body refiners outside.

Not to mention, the royal city is protected by a formation barrier. No matter how fast you are, you can’t break out without taking the time to destroy the barrier.

If you don’t create a mountain of corpses here, don’t even think about getting out.

No matter how strong they were, they were still just human. Even if they could fight, they'd eventually be worn down and killed. Even if some of them did manage to break through, only a few would survive.

Despair began to show on the faces of the crowd, fear of death flooding their hearts.

Bai Youran's destruction of the Sou Gu’s hut had driven them to a dead end. They had no way out now.

Just as everyone stood there dazed, the Five Ghosts Mountain Shifting Formation could no longer withstand the attacks of the 200,000-strong army and shattered with a deafening crash.

With the barrier broken, the 200,000 imperial guards surged into the palace like a flood, their dense footsteps echoing everywhere.

The sound of their footsteps grew louder and louder, hammering the hearts of everyone present.

“Hahaha… Losing your head is just a scar the size of a bowl! What’s there to fear? Brothers, follow me into battle!”

Suddenly, Shi Kun let out a mad laugh and charged at the approaching army.

“Damn it! We’ll fight! Even if I die, I’ll take ten thousand of them with me! Anyone who wants to die, come at me! Even if I die, I’ll kill as many as I can!” ṟ

Lei Shun laughed bitterly, lightning erupting from his body as he frantically rushed towards the massive army of 200,000!

“Brothers! In our next lives, we’ll be brothers again! Follow me into battle!”

With a furious roar, Long Dan transformed into a half-dragon humanoid, crashing heavily into the army. People were thrown into the air, their screams filling the sky. Wherever the monstrous figure passed, the ground turned into a hellish battlefield.

The others, inspired by their comrades, roared and charged towards the army coming from all directions.

In an instant, chaos erupted within the army. The ferocity of over 20 geniuses turned the tide of battle.

The mortal army was slaughtered like wheat before a scythe, with corpses piling up in the blink of an eye.

Despite the overwhelming numbers of the 200,000-strong army, the group of geniuses carved out several long paths through the soldiers, rapidly closing in on the city's protective formation.

“Kill! Keep killing!”

Under the orders of various mortal nobles, the recruited Gu cultivators and body refiners joined the battle, mingling with the army and launching an attack against the twenty or so geniuses.

These cultivators were far superior to the mortal imperial guards. As they joined the fray, the pressure on the geniuses multiplied.

Long Xuan threw a punch at a peak-grade Marrow Cleansing body cultivator, the dark force within him instantly shattering the cultivator's heart. The body was sent flying, knocking over dozens of imperial guards and clearing a path in front of him.

At that moment, a long sword struck his shoulder from behind. However, protected by his Soul Armor, the attack couldn’t penetrate his defense. Instead, Long Xuan turned and snapped the attacker's neck, sending him crashing to the ground.

The Gu cultivators and body refiners mingling among the mortals were simply too weak. Not a single one could withstand even one of Long Xuan’s strikes.

In just a few breaths, Long Xuan had easily killed over ten Gu and body cultivators, their corpses scattered across the ground.

“Heavenly Demon Soul-Devouring Technique! Die, all of you!”

Long Xuan roared as his split souls flew out of his body, instantly seizing control of the souls of several early-stage Marrow Cleansing Gu cultivators, forcing them to charge into the crowd and self-destruct. With more than ten deafening explosions, most of the Gu cultivator and body refiners attacking him were killed.

The few survivors turned pale with fear and froze in their tracks, too terrified to continue attacking.

They had never seen someone as ruthless as Long Xuan, who killed those of the same rank as easily as slicing vegetables. Panic-stricken, they turned and fled.

Long Xuan, eager to break out of the encirclement, decided to reveal his true strength. He planned to intimidate the Gu cultivators and body refiners with overwhelming force, then break through the imperial guard’s encirclement and destroy the city’s protective formation to escape.

This was not difficult for him. Breaking out of the encirclement was easy, and under the guidance of his 'Eye Of Heavenly Secret', destroying the city's protective formation was also simple. This situation posed no real threat to him.

However, his expression remained tense. What was easy for him, might not be for Long Dan.

In his half-dragon form, Long Dan could withstand all damage and forcibly break through the encirclement. With the Evil Dragon Emperor’s Eye, he could also easily find the formation’s weak points and break it.

If not for him, this could have become Long Dan’s death trap.

Long Xuan’s face grew serious. He didn’t dare underestimate the combat prowess of this genius from the Western Lands. This twist of fate wouldn’t become Long Dan’s death sentence.

So, the great crisis foreseen by Li Laodao was likely not caused by this twist. Worse dangers were yet to come. The events that followed would be the truly life-threatening ones.

Long Xuan’s tension grew as he kept his eyes peeled for any looming threats.

Just as he was about to break through the encirclement, the unexpected happened.

An exceptionally handsome young man suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his path. The young man smiled, completely unfazed by Long Xuan’s fearsome power, and instead, he exuded an intense battle aura.

"Hehe! Impressive! Impressive! Is this the third-ranked genius on the Demonic List of the Western Lands? Truly lives up to the reputation."

"Your move is strong, but it can only scare those Gu practitioners in the mortal world."

"Your Soul Division Technique can only take over the bodies of people whose soul power is much weaker than yours, and your clone's strength is at best at the mid-stage of Marrow Cleansing. Even taking over someone at the same stage would be difficult."

"The Gu cultivators in the mortal world, however, have the weakest willpower. Their soul power is much weaker than Gu cultivators of the same level, so you can rampage through this world, killing as many as you want without resistance."

"Your Soul Division Technique is completely ineffective against me. If this is your strongest technique, then today will be your last."

Long Xuan squinted slightly, looking at the person blocking his way, and asked, "Who are you? You don’t seem like a Gu cultivator from this country."

"If you are unrelated to this country, then please step aside."

Judging from the person’s luxurious attire and ethereal aura, Long Xuan already guessed that this individual was not some common Gu cultivator being driven by mortal nobles. His combat strength was entirely different from the Gu cultivator Long Xuan had just fought, and he would probably be difficult to deal with.

"I am Jun Zaitian, from Zhongchuan in the Central Region. I am traveling to defeat the top geniuses of the thirty-six territories in the Western Regions."

"My current record is thirty-five wins and zero losses. The Western Lands will be my final battle."

"It’s just that the major teleportation formation around here suddenly stopped functioning, so I had to walk through this area."

"But since the top geniuses of the Western Lands are all gathered here, I don’t need to go further."

"My original goal was to find Long Dan, the top genius of the Western Lands, but judging by your level, you seem stronger than him. So, I’ll deal with you first."

After scanning the surroundings, he arrogantly laughed and said, "It seems there’s no need for a life-and-death contract. You can attack first! Otherwise, you might not get a chance."

Upon hearing this, Long Xuan’s face darkened. What bad luck. Could such a thing really happen to him? And at this critical moment, was he really taking the fall for Long Dan?

This guy had traveled across all regions and defeated the top geniuses. Just how strong was he? Was Long Xuan destined to encounter such a terrifying opponent out of nowhere?

At this moment, Long Dan snapped the neck of a peak-stage Marrow Cleansing Gu cultivator, turned, and shouted anxiously, "Be careful! This guy is ruthless in battle. Most of the geniuses who fought him ended up crippled."

"Do not hold back against him. Use your strongest trump card and kill him. Don’t worry about his clan seeking revenge!"

"The Jun Clan’s rule is that every genius, after reaching adulthood, must travel and challenge the top geniuses of various regions. The one with the most victories will become the core talent of the family. If they die, they die! It’s their own fault for being weak! Many of their geniuses die in these challenges every year."

"If you hesitate against this fierce opponent, you will definitely die! Don’t say I didn’t warn you!"

Upon hearing this, Long Xuan couldn’t help but curse in his heart. This guy wanted to challenge him just for the sake of sparring? He sure knew how to pick his moments.

Right now, Long Xuan was in a life-or-death crisis. Where was the time for sparring?

But could this guy really be the threat to Long Dan's life? Could he really overpower the complete version of the Evil Dragon Emperor’s Eye? After all, Long Dan possessed Limit-Breaking Gu, and there was no telling how many Gu's had already broken through their limits.

Could this be another false alarm, with an even greater threat lurking behind?

Long Xuan took a deep breath. There were too many variables, and it seemed endless.

"You’ve seen my current situation. I don’t have time for a duel. How about we find a quiet place to fight properly once I get out of this mess?" Long Xuan tentatively suggested.

Jun Zaitian’s face showed impatience as he replied, "There’s no need for that. Whether you leave or not, you’re dead today. There’s no point in wasting time."

"If you want to get out of here, you’ll have to kill me first."

"I gave you the chance to attack first, but you’re useless. If I strike first, you won’t get the chance! Kneel!"

Suddenly, a black eye appeared at Jun Zaitian's brow, radiating an eerie light. Under its gaze, Long Xuan felt as though a mountain was pressing down on him. His knees buckled, almost forcing him to kneel.

It was only because of his Purgatory True Demon Art, which involved jumping into lava and nearly killing himself, that his physical body had grown so strong. He barely managed to resist the sudden increase in gravity with his sheer physical strength. Otherwise, he would have been utterly humiliated today.

Long Xuan was now truly enraged. He immediately activated the divine power of his Purgatory True Demon Art. As the power erupted, two giant manifestations, a Divine Dragon and a Golden Crow, appeared in the sky.

The Divine Dragon exuded endless pressure, and the Golden Crow shone with dazzling golden light.

The Golden Crow spread its wings and soared into the sky, causing the temperature to rise rapidly. The surrounding Imperial Guards immediately shielded their eyes and retreated in panic under the scorching heat.

The area around Long Xuan instantly cleared.

With the two manifestations empowering him, Long Xuan felt two enormous forces surge into his body, making his strength rise continuously.

The overwhelming gravity that had been suffocating him moments ago suddenly felt like nothing. It now seemed like a mere drizzle, having no effect on him at all.

Looking at the Divine Dragon and Golden Crow dharma forms in the sky, exuding boundless might, Long Dan was visibly shocked.

Wasn’t the Long Clan's ultimate technique, the Dragon Inverse Art, only capable of summoning one manifestation? How could Long Xuan have two? How did he manage it?

Jun Zaitian was also slightly surprised. The range of his Gravity Eye would alter the gravity of everything in its sight, with the force intensifying the closer someone was to him.

Long Xuan had been so close to him that the fact he could resist the gravity with just his physical strength had already been impressive. But to now summon two dharma forms and render the gravity meaningless was beyond belief.

"Interesting! Interesting! Whenever I open the Gravity Eye, most geniuses are crushed under the pressure."

"Even those few who focus on body cultivation can barely move under the gravity, left at my mercy."

"But you’re the first genius to completely ignore the effects of my Gravity Eye!"

"In terms of physical strength, among all Gu cultivators at our level, no one can match you. I acknowledge you as the strongest!"

"Now, let’s see how many moves you can withstand!"

Jun Zaitian’s expression grew increasingly excited, his gaze turning more frenzied. With a wild laugh, he charged at Long Xuan…