<b>Chapter 1078: Threat</b>
The bystanders stared at the pool of blood on the ground in silence. They wondered what law or technique Li Qiye just used right now. The strangest part was that no one was able to understand the Mortal King's death.
For many, a powerful opponent was not particularly frightening. No matter how strong they might be, there would always be a chance to surpass them by exploiting their flaws and openings.
The scariest thing was not knowing why an opponent was so strong, a lack of knowledge regarding his arts.
“A hero of a generation, only to become a pile of bones on the imperial path.” An older paragon lamented.
All had to admit that the Mortal King was a great genius. With the sacred school's capabilities, the Mortal King was still able to reach this height and stand shoulder to shoulder with Jikong Wudi's group. This was indeed a praiseworthy feat.
Many thought that he had great potential with his relentless determination. This was his most precious and best characteristic. But in the end, he still miserably died while vying for the throne.
Some also felt that the king was too complacent this time. If he took a step back, perhaps he would have had another chance to raise his head once more.
“The imperial path has always been merciless like this.” An experienced spectator commented with emotion: “The success of just one general is built upon thousands of corpses. Everyone knows about the glory of an Immortal Emperor, but who would remember the countless supreme geniuses that fell in the process?”
A lot of people became silent. As for the younger generation, some felt like retreating after seeing this scene. Even a powerful and resolute person like the Mortal King had fallen on this path — this left a shadow in their hearts. Some suddenly realized that although becoming an Immortal Emperor was a tempting endeavor full of glory, too many had died trying, and they didn't wish to add to the count.
Li Qiye turned towards Shen Menghui and insipidly asked: “Who else can protect you now?”
Shen Menghui was ashen. The Mortal King died a tragic death and was definitely not a match for Li Qiye. Although his talents and accomplishments were quite high, he was too far off from the Mortal King.
He had to look towards Jikong Wudi for help. On the field right now, his relationship with Zhan Shi and Heavenly Emperor Lin was only that of acquaintances, but Jikong Wudi was his friend.
Jikong Wudi began to contemplate quietly in the face of this situation. He didn't know of Li Qiye's weakness or even how he had attacked. Everything was unknown. Without complete confidence, he would not rashly attack Li Qiye.
This was not a spar or a learning experience. Someone as fierce as Li Qiye would fight to the death, especially given the feud between them!
Thus, without absolute certainty and an absolute advantage, he wouldn't rush into a fight with Li Qiye. Losing his own life for an outsider was not worth it at all.
Seeing Jikong Wudi's indifference, Shen Menghui became desperate for he knew that he couldn't count on him.
In fact, no one would blame Jikong Wudi for not taking action. Everyone could see that going against Li Qiye right now was courting death! Moreover, Shen Menghui was only an outsider. Who would be willing to risk their life for an outsider?
In the end, Shen Menghui shouted: “I'll take you down with me!” His most powerful art erupted as he lunged for Li Qiye.
Li Qiye stood there motionlessly. A black light surfaced as Shen Menghui entered the Stagnation Domain. One could hear a poof; he was instantly crushed into a bloody mist. His end was even more pitiful than the Mortal King's. No one was surprised to see this after the Mortal King's death.
Li Qiye glanced over at Jikong Wudi's group of three and revealed a faint smile to say: “I'm actually waiting for you all to come, how long will I have to wait?”
The crowd held their breaths and watched Jikong Wudi, Zhan Shi, and Heavenly Emperor Lin. They understood that a fight between these four was unavoidable.
If this group wanted to become the Immortal Emperor, then they must challenge Li Qiye. If they couldn't even defeat Li Qiye, wanting to become the Immortal Emperor would only be empty talk.
Jikong Wudi stood there silently with a cold presence. With an aptitude of three saint attributes, he had always been confident and arrogant. However, he had to pick inaction with no choice but to avoid Li Qiye's sharp momentum.
On the other side, Lin and Zhan Shi looked at each other real quick. Eventually, Lin smiled and slowly spoke: “I do want to see Brother Li's supreme arts. However, with my current strength, I'm afraid I would be overreaching and not knowing my own limits. If Brother Li doesn't mind, Brother Zhan and I will join hands and try your supreme arts at a later date.”
The crowd became excited after hearing this. Without a doubt, he and Zhan Shi had reached a tacit understanding of working together to challenge Li Qiye's divine might.
Perhaps in their eyes, working together gave them their best chance to defeat him. This was because Zhan Shi was rock-solid as an expert in defense. Meanwhile, Lin was swift and extremely gifted at offense. The two of them together would create a miracle.
Li Qiye glimpsed at the two of them and couldn't help but smile leisurely: “Very good, I'll be waiting.”
Lin cupped his hands in response: “Thank you, Brother Li. Wait until Brother Shi and I are mentally prepared, we will issue the challenge then.”
Li Qiye only smiled and didn't say anything else to Lin while boarding his carriage. He ordered the girls: “Let us go.”
The girls lifted up the palanquin and immediately disappeared into the horizon.
The crowd watched him leave. After Li Qiye's departure, someone murmured: “I really am looking forward to that day. Two heroes fighting against Fiercest together, that battle will certainly be brilliant.”
Lin and Zhan Shi didn't say anything else and left together. The only thing in their minds right now was to come up with a joint plan to emphasize their strong points to the extreme. They needed time to mesh together. Only through good teamwork would they have a chance of defeating Li Qiye. Otherwise, just attacking together was simply hopeless.
Jikong Wudi didn't say anything; he left with a cold expression. In his eyes, Li Qiye was a thorn that had to be removed or else he would forever be restless.
Li Qiye and the girls went back to the thick forest and entered its depths. At this place was a huge cave with a pond inside.
The pond was filled with a liquid the color of amber. This liquid emitted the fragrance of wine, making others salivate as if it was an immortal brew.
Li Qiye stepped inside the pond and comfortably soaked in it. He couldn't help but take a deep breath due to the comfort before turning to the girls and smiling: “All of you, come in. This will greatly benefit everyone.”
Chen Baojiao glanced at the nectar in the pond and asked: “What is it?”
While soaking in the pond, Li Qiye replied: “You can call it Devil Wine. When soaking in it, let your dao heart out and it will wash away the evil energy within.”
“But we don't have any evil energy there.” Chen Baojiao faintly chuckled.
Li Qiye gently shook his head: “The evil energy I'm referring to is not the energy found in the Devil World. To put it more accurately, it is the evil thoughts looming in your mind. Every cultivator will always have anger from defeat or pride from success… All of these negative emotions will accumulate in your dao heart.”
“No one can claim to have a truly pure and innocent dao heart. After all, we live for so long that no one can maintain their innocence. Thus, everyone will have this 'evil energy' inside them.” Li Qiye explained: “At the same time, this Devil Wine can cleanse your dao heart. Even though it cannot cleanse all the negative emotions, it can make your dao heart even purer, resulting in great benefits.”
An inner demon was something all cultivators had to face. For some people, once their cultivation reached a certain extent, they would have to suffer the backlash from this inner demon. This was especially true for those who made an oath with their true fate. Once they violated this oath, they would easily be attacked by this inner demon. Once bitten, the majority would be killed.
“Pure and innocent like the heart of a newborn child, does such a thing really not exist in the world of cultivators?” Mei Suyao slowly asked.
“In the strictest sense, we really don't have such a thing.” Li Qiye slowly spoke: “But to be more lenient, perhaps there have been some across the ages, not many though.”
Having said that, Li Qiye entered a daze while recalling the past. If an innocent heart really existed in this world, then Magu would be counted as one of the few.
After a while, his mind returned. He patted the nectar in the pond and smiled: “Okay, everyone, come in.”
Chen Baojiao and Li Shuangyan were fine with it. They only slightly blushed and entered the pond to soak in the nectar.
Mei Suyao's flawless face also had a faint pink shade, but she still coolly entered the pond. Bai Jianzhen hesitated for a moment. In the end, she still stepped inside with a cold demeanor.
Once the nectar soaked their clothing, it revealed all of their charming curves and valleys. In an instant, spring was blooming in this cave with all of its allurement.
This scene would absolutely let people's blood boil and cause their hearts to beat rapidly.