Top-Tier Perception Starts From Basic Fist Techniques

Chapter 179.3: Lu Changsheng Enters Immortal Dao Territory For Spirit Flowers! (III)

Lu Changsheng thought about Zhang Kong's proposal. If they managed to secure more than fifteen Spirit Flowers, Zhang Kong would take only five, leaving at least ten for Lu Changsheng. That alone would allow Lu Changsheng's Mind Space to expand by another ten li, bringing him significantly closer to the hundred-li requirement to begin forging his Dao Foundation.

As for venturing into Immortal Dao territory and facing those Immortal Masters, Lu Changsheng was not particularly worried. Ordinary Immortal Masters were no threat to him at all. If an opponent possessed strength equivalent to a hundred layers of Domains, he might spare them some concern. If they had a hundred and fifty layers of Domains, he would become somewhat cautious.

Even so, Lu Changsheng's confidence did not waver. Immortal Masters might have many tricks at their disposal, but before the overwhelming power of his fused Domains, those tricks could only do so much.

Furthermore, few people truly knew the extent of Lu Changsheng's strength. Most still measured him by the battle in which he had killed Lei Tiandu, where he had shown a Domain force that was equivalent to a hundred and fifty layers of ordinary Domains. However, that measure of strength was already outdated, as his power had already reached the equivalent of two hundred and fifty layers of Domains.

With that in mind, Lu Changsheng made his decision. "Senior Brother Zhang, I find your terms acceptable. We'll go to Spirit Gathering Mountain together."

Although Zhang Kong's contribution came down just to information, that information alone was already worth five Spirit Flowers. Beyond that, Zhang Kong himself had earned Lu Changsheng's respect. Among the true inheritor disciples of the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect, there were indeed some remarkable individuals, and Lu Changsheng now considered Zhang Kong one of them.

Zhang Kong's strength was not inferior to Xu Haotian's. He was likely comparable to someone possessing sixty to eighty layers of Domains, which already placed him among the top Divine Treasury martial artists. More importantly, Lu Changsheng could see that Zhang Kong was a man who knew when to press and when to hold back, and he was willing to take risks. These qualities naturally earned Lu Changsheng's approval.

Zhang Kong's eyes brightened. "Excellent! With you, Junior Brother Lu, this trip to Spirit Gathering Mountain may truly bring us tremendous rewards. There's no time to waste. The Spirit Flowers are about to mature, so many Immortal Masters must've already gathered at Spirit Gathering Mountain. We cannot afford to delay any longer."

Lu Changsheng nodded. "Then we set out at once."

And so two martial artists left the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect together and headed straight for Spirit Gathering Mountain.

Spirit Gathering Mountain was nowhere near the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect. It lay within territory primarily controlled by the Immortal Dao, which meant that even if Lu Changsheng and Zhang Kong traveled at full speed the entire journey, it would still take them ten full days to reach it.

As they drew closer to Spirit Gathering Mountain, they encountered more and more Immortal Masters along the way. Those they passed were visibly surprised to see martial artists in this part of the Ancient Region, but they only spared the two of them brief glances before moving on.

Immortal Masters had always been arrogant and generally looked down on martial artists. In their eyes, practitioners of the Immortal Dao were inherently superior. Even Divine Treasury martial artists rarely earned their respect.

Regardless, neither Lu Changsheng nor Zhang Kong took offense. In fact, they actually preferred to be ignored. The less attention they drew, the more quickly they could get to the Spirit Flowers.

About two hours later, Zhang Kong halted. "We're here! The Spirit Flowers are growing inside that valley."

He gestured in the direction ahead of them, then his expression quickly darkened. "But it seems we were too late... There are far more Immortal Masters here than I expected. I thought there would only be thirty to fifty Immortal Masters at most, with perhaps around a dozen from the Foundation Establishment Candidate List. But now it looks like several hundred Immortal Masters have gathered here. Some of those from Foundation Establishment Candidate List here may even rank within the top ten."

The more Zhang Kong took in the situation, the more disappointed he seemed. The Spirit Flower was one of the primary ingredients used to refine the Foundation Establishment Pill, making it an extraordinarily rare treasure. Normally, anyone who discovered such a treasure would keep the information secret. The fewer competitors there were, the greater their chances of obtaining the flowers.

But somehow, news had spread completely out of control, and now several hundred Immortal Masters had gathered in the valley. Under ordinary circumstances, it would not matter much, However, if two martial artists dared to compete with this many Immortal Masters in their own territory, they would certainly incur their collective wrath. Hundreds of Immortal Masters would attack them at once, with the intent to kill.

"Junior Brother Lu, the situation has changed." Zhang Kong took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "Trying to compete for the Spirit Flowers now is far too dangerous. Perhaps we should retreat instead. No matter how precious the Spirit Flowers are, they are not worth risking our lives for."

To Zhang Kong, it no longer mattered whether Lu Changsheng ranked first on the Dao Foundation Candidate List or was the top Divine Treasury martial artist in the Ancient Region. No matter how powerful Lu Changsheng was, there was simply no way he could withstand the combined assault of hundreds of Immortal Masters.

"Retreat?" Lu Changsheng shook his head, unfazed, despite the presence of hundreds of Immortal Masters. "Senior Brother Zhang, we've already come this far. How can we leave without even trying?"

As he spoke, Lu Changsheng looked toward the valley below. "It would be such a shame, wouldn't it? The Spirit Flowers are ready for harvest..."

Zhang Kong followed Lu Changsheng's gaze. The flowers, which had been tight buds only moments ago, were now slowly blooming, with one petal unfurling after another.

At almost the exact same moment, the Immortal Masters seated throughout the valley suddenly opened their eyes, and chaos instantly broke out across the valley.

"The Spirit Flowers have matured! Pick them immediately!"

"Anyone who dares take another step forward will be killed without mercy!"

"I've already laid down the Spirit-Sealing Formation. Let's see who still dares compete with me for the Spirit Flowers!"

"Xuan Zhen, how dare you use Talisman Treasure to break my formation!"

Previously, the Immortal Masters had appeared calm, serene even, but now, at the sight of the blooming flowers, they shed all restraint at once. The air was filled with a murderous aura as powerful techniques erupted one after another throughout the valley.

Battles between Immortal Masters were entirely different from battles between martial artists. Formations, enchanted artifacts, talismans, spells, and talisman treasures filled the skies in a chaotic storm, each unleashing terrifying destructive power. Even a stray attack was enough to instantly reduce someone to ashes.

Among them, the most frightening were the talisman treasures. These were single-use items possessing power far greater than that of ordinary talismans. In essence, they were equivalent to enchanted treasures, which in turn were on a level above enchanted artifacts, with only Dao Lords typically possessing the ability to refine and wield them.

Even though talisman treasures could only be used once, Immortal Masters would still use them to rival certain techniques of a Dao Lord—but that was the extent of it. At the end of the day, Immortal Masters were still far inferior to a Dao Lord.

Watching the scene unfold before him, Zhang Kong's face had gone somewhat pale. For all his experience in countless battles, the methods of the Immortal Masters still filled him with dread.

"Junior Brother Lu, perhaps we should give up on this after all," Zhang Kong pressed, his voice shaking slightly.

Lu Changsheng, however, remained completely calm. In fact, his lips curled into a faint smile as he gazed at the valley below.

"Senior Brother Zhang, it's time for us to make our move. Don't leave behind a single stalk of Spirit Flower behind, got it? Pick every one of them."

His gaze swept across the Immortal Masters fighting below. "As for these Immortal Masters, leave them to me. I'll handle them personally."

With that, Lu Changsheng stepped forward, and his figure blurred and vanished. The next moment, he was in the valley. He walked forward, and with each step he took, a different Domain manifested.

The Immortal Masters immediately sensed the sudden intrusion and flew into a rage.

"A Divine Treasury martial artist? A Divine Treasury martial artist has come to Spirit Gathering Mountain to compete for Spirit Flowers?"

"The audacity! How dare a martial artist step foot in Spirit Gathering Mountain?"

"Since when did Divine Treasury martial artists become so cocky?"

"These martial artists have become more and more arrogant over the years! How dare a mere Divine Treasury martial artist act like this! Even those in the top ten of the Dao Foundation Candidate List are nothing before us Immortal Masters."

"We can't just let him waltz into our territory like that! He has no right to be here and compete with us over the Spirit Flowers."

"Hmph! Watch as I cut him down in one strike."

One after another, the Immortal Masters moved toward Lu Changsheng, their eyes burning with fury. None of them knew who he was, nor did they care to find out. All they saw was a martial artist trying to compete with them over the Spirit Flowers. To them, this was completely unacceptable.