Chapter 128: Survival Rules in the Cultivation World

After Liu Junhuai reached a consensus with the Sect Alliance and the Juechen Palace, Palace Master Fang took the lead in convening the various sects of the Mojue Kingdom that had arrived at the Wanxiang Sect.

The Sect Alliance also gathered its members to provide a detailed explanation to the Mojue Kingdom sects. The participating sects were highly enthusiastic, and in an atmosphere of harmony and unity, communication flowed smoothly. The resolve of Ren Yinhuai and the others grew even firmer.

After a brief discussion with Wu Yaohan and Wan Xingyun, Liu Junhuai took Mo Sitong to the Wanxiang Tower. Before the grand ceremony began, Liu Junhuai wanted to hear the old steward’s suggestions on how to handle Liangqiu Tuochu, the Lord of the Western Region. After all, the old steward had come from the Immortal Realm and had seen far more than Liu Junhuai.

Not having seen the old steward for several days, Mo Sitong felt an extra sense of warmth when she saw him waiting in front of the Wanxiang Tower. She stepped forward to support his arm as they entered the building together.

Liu Junhuai gave the old steward a detailed account of everything regarding the Blood-Slaying Alliance and the Western Region’s Chu family. The old steward replied almost without hesitation, "Sect Master, why worry? The path of cultivation is incomparably arduous. Countless powerful forces and schemes will stand in your way as you advance; this is something you must face. Furthermore, you have the ability to teleport—if you cannot win, you can always flee! In your world of cultivation, Liangqiu Tuochu’s cultivation level is indeed terrifyingly powerful, but what if he joins forces with the Blood-Slaying Alliance and the Western Region’s Chu family?"

"The cultivation world is vast and boundless, filled with talented and extraordinary people everywhere. Even the Blood-Slaying Alliance, no matter how powerful, cannot stand against the entire cultivation world. Every living environment is supported by a balance of different forces; mutual restraint is the natural rule of survival. Even if this rule is temporarily broken, it will not last. Any force standing at the pinnacle of this realm will not ignore the violation of such rules, for these rules are the laws of nature. Violating the laws of nature invites divine retribution!"

Liu Junhuai said, "I understand these principles, but the urgent matter is how to timely establish relationships with high-level cultivators and how to reach a consensus with powerful forces as quickly as possible."

The old steward smiled. "The Western Region Domain Office’s request to participate is the beginning. Although the person sent by the Domain Office is likely influenced by Liangqiu Tuochu’s will, the Domain Office does not belong to him alone. There are forces within it that stand in opposition to him. What you and the Sect Alliance must do now is to excise Liangqiu Tuochu’s influence from the Domain Office; those who exist outside his sphere of influence will be your allies."

"Of course, this will be quite difficult, and discerning them is a great challenge. Your Heavenly Eye has already reached a small level of mastery. While you cannot yet observe the world as if looking at the lines on your palm, nor hear the sounds of the ten directions as if they were beside your ear, nor recall the past as if it were before your eyes, you have already seen initial success in predicting the future and seeing through walls. If you combine this with careful observation, you should see results."

"Sect Master, please remember: the myriad changes of the world, whether grand or infinitesimal, are interconnected. Only when the heart and intent are in harmony can you gain insight into the subtle. Being adept at observing the minute and capturing the subtle changes in speech and expression is the shortcut and the opportunity to master the Heavenly Eye."

Listening to the old steward’s thorough analysis of the Heavenly Eye, Liu Junhuai felt a flash of enlightenment in his consciousness, yet it was intangible and fleeting, vanishing in an instant. It seemed his understanding of the Heavenly Eye was still somewhat superficial; he would need to pay more attention to the minute details of daily life to fully elevate the Heavenly Eye from a quantitative change to a qualitative one.

The old steward continued, "While bullying the weak is a shameful act, from the perspective of an onlooker in the cultivation world, few will stand up for the weak if their own interests are not at stake, because the world of cultivators is inherently a world of the strong. Those with low cultivation are naturally targets for the strong."

"However, once a strong person wraps such bullying in a cloak of conspiracy, it creates a hidden danger to the stable order of the cultivation world. It causes those weaker than him to feel resentment and those stronger than him to perceive a threat. How much longer do you think such a person can live?"

"Killing is also a means of survival in the cultivation world. As long as this killing does not exceed the framework of the laws of survival, it will not provoke a backlash. But once this killing becomes the vanguard of a conspiracy, all cultivators will believe they are the next victim, and resistance will naturally arise."

"Even if a cultivator’s strength far exceeds the peak of this realm, stronger beings will emerge to ensure the balance and stability of the region. This is the natural law of survival for cultivators: follow the path of heaven, coexist with heaven and earth, turn disasters into fortune, and endure as long as the sun and moon!"

Mo Sitong blinked her large eyes and asked with a spark of realization, "Does this mean that 'a just cause enjoys abundant support, while an unjust cause finds little' comes from this?"

The old steward looked at Mo Sitong with approval and smiled, nodding. "The Sect Master’s wife is truly clever and insightful; a few words summarize my long-winded explanation!"

Liu Junhuai’s eyes brightened, as if his mind had been suddenly opened. "Through endless tribulations and the turning of fate, everything is subject to the cycle of destiny. The Blood-Slaying Alliance will also eventually be controlled by fate, simply because its existence has exceeded what the Heavenly Dao can tolerate and runs counter to the common principles of heaven and earth!"

The old steward said, "Sect Master, you have caught a glimpse of the secrets of heaven and destiny. The members of the Blood-Slaying Alliance and the Chu family are all created by delusion and evil deeds; their end is ordained by heaven and cannot be defied!"

Liu Junhuai said, "But there must be a way to prevent them. Surely, we cannot wait until the entire cultivation world has been ravaged before the cycle of fate descends—wouldn't that be too late?"

Mo Sitong smiled. "I thought you had just understood. You and the Sect Alliance were born in accordance with the Heavenly Dao and are part of the cycle of fate. How could it be 'too late'? Even if the Blood-Slaying Alliance is to end through fate, it must endure various hardships. Do you expect to just sit and wait for the cycle of fate to descend?"

Liu Junhuai thought carefully about what the old steward said and felt his face flush. His inner expectations were indeed too attached to outcomes; he had foolishly hoped the Blood-Slaying Alliance would simply fall into the cycle of fate—what would be the point of cultivators training then! He had not expected his own comprehension to be inferior to a young woman like Mo Sitong, yet he had dared to claim himself the creator of the Sect Alliance.

Seeming to notice Liu Junhuai’s embarrassment, the old steward smiled. "Sect Master, you are 'trapped in the game and cannot see it clearly,' while your wife is the 'onlooker who sees clearly.' Right and wrong cannot be summarized in a single word; a momentary confusion is understandable."

Liu Junhuai still could not shake off the embarrassment. "I was just momentarily intimidated by Liangqiu Tuochu’s late-stage Mahayana cultivation. After all, apart from Han Jiang, there is no one else in the Star Heaven Continent with a higher cultivation than him."

The old steward shook his head and smiled. "Sect Master, you are worrying unnecessarily. That 'Tyrant Fist' of yours is powerful enough to make even ordinary immortals look on with awe. If he is driven to a desperate situation, he might even perish at your hands; you need not lose heart!"

Hearing this from the old steward, Liu Junhuai’s confidence began to return. Suddenly feeling bold, he dragged the old steward and Mo Sitong into the training space. Finding a giant boulder the size of a small hill, Liu Junhuai focused his mental energy and silently recited the incantations of the Tyrant Fist. A sea of characters immediately floated in his consciousness.

As the sea of characters churned, he felt his body rapidly expand. Primitive energy flooded his mind, and a massive suction force lifted him into the air. With a sudden, thunderous roar from within his mind, his body transformed into a giant fist, which he slammed into the boulder.

The force of the fist was powerful and as swift as lightning. In one strike, the heavens crumbled, the earth cracked, and the spiritual energy collapsed. With a deafening explosion, the hill-sized boulder turned into powder. The momentum of the fist only slightly diminished, and after piercing through several more boulders, the fist-wind vanished into the pile of rocks.

The old steward and Mo Sitong stared in terror at the shocking dust where the first boulder had been. It was hard to imagine the sheer power required to reduce a small hill to ashes. The old steward, in particular, had already overestimated the power of the Tyrant Fist, but he had not expected Liu Junhuai’s execution to far exceed his imagination. This was no mere strike from a cultivator; it was the full-force blow of an immortal.

However, the mental energy and true essence required for this move were equally shocking. The current Liu Junhuai could be easily killed by an ordinary mortal. This desperate, life-risking move was enough to instantly kill any cultivator below the immortal level. But the prerequisite was ensuring Liu Junhuai’s own safety after the blow.

Mo Sitong ran over and poured a drop of spiritual liquid into Liu Junhuai’s mouth. Liu Junhuai, who had been completely drained, slowly opened his eyes. Not wishing to disturb him as he silently circulated his true essence, Mo Sitong sifted through the powder of the first boulder. Looking at the fine, talc-like stone powder in her palm, her heart grew even more horrified.

She walked back, clutching the powder, and handed it to the old steward. The old steward took a deep breath and said, "The power of the Sect Master’s punch has reached the level of collapsing the heavens and sinking the earth. While it might not be enough to destroy the world, it is not far off from turning rivers and overturning seas."

"How does it compare to Liangqiu Tuochu’s late-stage Mahayana cultivation?" Mo Sitong asked, full of anticipation.

The old steward smiled. "As long as Liangqiu Tuochu does not deliberately flee, he would not be able to withstand this punch even with his full defensive power."

Mo Sitong finally got the answer she wanted and was overjoyed. After two full hours, fueled by another drop of spiritual liquid, Liu Junhuai finally replenished his true essence. Reflecting on the life-and-death strike of the Tyrant Fist and looking at the destructive power he had unleashed, Liu Junhuai was beaming.

The old steward looked at the satisfied Liu Junhuai and said, "Actually, you could expand this power even further, but it would be redundant for the Tyrant Fist. You could try to draw out a strand of the 'Time Dao' and weave it into your Cutting Technique, the Nine Transformations Mental Method, or the Heaven-Covering Seal; it would have unexpected effects!"

Upon hearing this, a brilliant light flashed in Liu Junhuai’s eyes, and an impulse to practice immediately made him restless. The old steward smiled. "No need to rush. Your true essence has just been replenished; consolidating and refining it is the right path."

Liu Junhuai agreed. Tomorrow was the day of the grand ceremony, and staying in the Wanxiang Tower for too long would delay the preparations.