Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 682: Chapter 436: Tan Mountain

East, west, south, north, and center—as one of the five capitals of the Federation, the prosperity of the Eastern Capital goes without saying.

But compared to its apparent prosperity, its inner significance is even more important.

For instance…

“Brother, are you serious?”

“This is the Eastern Capital we’re talking about!”

“Is it really necessary to make such a big fuss?”

“I could get checked just for watching a live stream?”

“It’s only been a few hours, and you’ve gone from Longhai to the Eastern Capital; what flight were you on?”

Inside the live stream, the viewers also started to sense something, and the atmosphere grew subtly tense.

Meanwhile, Nie Hailong’s brows were deeply furrowed.

He had really come, determined to fight to the death with the Ye Family!

How would this incident end?

Nie Hailong didn’t know, all he could do was…

“Order teams one and two to keep an eye on that bastard from the Ye Family and Chen Mingshan!”

Nie Hailong turned his head and commanded his assistant.

“This… Yes!”

The assistant hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Nie Hailong said nothing more, turning his gaze back to the live stream.

At this point, although there wasn’t much he could do, one thing was crystal clear to him.

This Martial Frenzied Rascal never acted without assurance!

If he dared to come to the Eastern Capital, then he must have something to rely on.

Even without any reliance, considering the strength he had just displayed, an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator, even with a magical treasure, would hardly last three moves against him.

The Ye Family only had Foundation Establishment cultivators, and now that two had fallen, how could they possibly be his match?

Unless those few Great Cavern Heavens successors intervened, the Ye Family would likely not escape catastrophe today.

The life or death of the Ye Family had nothing to do with him, and he had no power to interfere.

All he could do was mend the pen after the sheep had fled, trying his best to clean up the situation.

So…

Inside the streaming room, the camera angled downwards, sweeping across the bustling city and moving towards the cold suburban area.

Tan Mountain!

This was a famous mountain in the Eastern Capital, located in the northwestern suburbs, not open to the general public.

But that only applied to the general public.

“Tan Mountain!”

“Are we really doing this?”

“Fulong Mountain’s unsealing is imminent; if he annihilates the Ye Family now, then Fulong Mountain will surely be at odds with him to the death.”

“At odds to the death, that’s long been the case, or else why would he climb up Tan Mountain?”

“He might be able to wipe out the Ye Family, but could he also destroy Fulong Mountain?”

“That’s an ancient Sect of the Blessed land, with the presence of Deity Transformation.”

“Deity Transformation, huh, let’s see if he can survive the Mundane Tribulation first!”

“Wasn’t Tan Mountain a Blessed land with an ancient Sect in the past? What became of it?”

As the camera reached Tan Mountain, overlooking this scenic spot of the Eastern Capital, many cultivators in the streaming room began to whisper among themselves.

Those within the circle all knew that the heart of the Eastern Capital was not within the city, but outside of it, within the magnificent scenery of Tan Mountain.

Tan Mountain, Tan Mountain, was originally a Blessed land. It couldn’t withstand the pressure of Heavenly Dao and collapsed, the ancestors within perished under the Heavenly Punishment and their Blessed land’s Spiritual Energy returned to the world, creating this mountain that, while not a Blessed land, had its own spiritual charm.

The major families of the Eastern Capital, including those reclusive Cave Heaven Successors who focused only on their cultivation, all resided here.

The Ye Family was no exception, having its own place, or else it wouldn’t have been able to foster four Foundation Establishment cultivators.

But now…

The camera panned downwards; on the stone steps, a figure walked steadily.

“Brother, you’re really serious, huh?”

“Is this… Tan Mountain?”

“Didn’t they say this place is not open to the public?”

“They don’t open it to ordinary people, but if you had the capability, you could come here too.”

“Why aren’t there any guards? Usually, there are a bunch of people standing guard here.”

As Xu Yang ascended Tan Mountain, there were many comments once again.

On the other side, Nie Hailong seeing this, also heaved a sigh of relief.

Good, good, there wasn’t a large force with heavy arms.

This indicated that the Eastern Capital’s side was also not willing to escalate the situation, and it was very likely that the matter would be concluded as a personal grudge of the Ye Family, not something involving the entire Federation.

This was undoubtedly good news, the only question was… would he accept it?

Thinking this, Nie Hailong’s heart, which had just eased, tensed up again.

While everyone had different thoughts, the Martial Artist paid no heed and continued to stride up the stone staircase, heading into the heart of the mountain.

Tan Mountain, Tan Mountain, although named ‘mountain’, was in fact much more than just one mountain or stone, but an expansive and deep region, with numerous gardens, temples, palaces, and residences; a vista full of historical sites.

Xu Yang advanced steadily, appearing unhurried, but in reality, he was moving a hundred paces in the blink of an eye, reaching midway up the mountain in no time.

Reaching the mid-mountain stairs, an overbearing presence could be felt!

Xu Yang stopped, looked up, and saw ahead two figures standing side by side—a strikingly handsome young man and a beautiful young woman, both dressed in ancient attire, as white as snow, floating as if about to ascend to immortality, each carrying a sword on their back that subtly hinted at their spiritual nature. Together, they were the epitome of an attractive couple—perfectly matched in talent and appearance, a pair of swordsmen seemingly made for each other!

Of course, the viewers saw it differently.

“This…”

“Cosplay?”

“Where did this soppy couple come from?”

“How dare they show off in front of the Mad God?”

“Show off your love, die faster—the more you flaunt it, the quicker your demise.”

“Are these two going to give our boss a hard time standing here?”

Although the cause and context of the matter were unclear, the stance of the two men revealed some clues.

The crowd felt somewhat resentful towards this.

Only a group of cultivators felt slightly relieved.

“It’s those two from the Mysterious Heaven Sword Sect!”

“Cave Heaven Successors, Immortal Sect Descendants!”

“Did the Ye Family really manage to request their help?”

“Does Fulong Mountain have such deep resources?”

“Hmph, those individuals are Cave Heaven Successors, Immortal Sect Descendants, how could they be interested in the Ye Family’s trinkets.”

“Their intervention this time is, one, to give face to Fulong Mountain, and two, to maintain order in Eastern Capital and ensure the peace of Tan Mountain.”

“After all, they are also from Eastern Capital, and now leading figures of the Federation, if they allow this Martial Frenzied Rascal to storm Tan Mountain and annihilate the entire Ye Family, where will the dignity of Eastern Capital and the Mysterious Heaven Sword Sect stand?”

“I heard that together, their dual swords are comparable to a Golden Core!”

“The question is whether they’ll be able to subdue that Martial Frenzied Rascal?”

“This man slaughters Foundation Establishment cultivators like butchering dogs, has a Protective Aura that even magical treasures can’t break, without a Golden Core coming forward, who can be an opponent?”

Observing the sword couple standing halfway up the mountain, the expressions of the cultivators were mixed, with an underlying sense of anticipation.

Looking at Xu Yang, his expression was calm, and he remained silent.

He knew the identity of these two.

Cave Heaven Successors!

Immortal Sect Descendants!

Cultivators in this world can be divided into three tiers, Immortal Realm, Cave Heaven, and Blessed Land!

No need to elaborate on the Immortal Realm, for it is the dwelling place of Immortal Gods, with Heavenly Immortals possessing great and revered power, standing alone like stars outside of the world, able to withstand the force of Heavenly Dao with their extraordinary status, seal off endless years, absorb massive amounts of Yuan Spirit without suffering Heavenly Tribulation, facing the peril of decay and fall from the world.

Therefore, the Immortal Realm remains sealed, untainted by the mortal dust.

But the Cave Heavens and Blessed Lands below the Immortal Realm don’t have this ability.

Cave Heavens are generally established by True Immortals, Calamity Immortals, or Mahayana cultivators. True Immortals are better off, having weathered nine magnitudes of tribulations and refined into Dao Xuanzhen, they can counteract certain karma with their status and are not too fearful of the Heavenly Dao’s reprimands.

But for Calamity Immortals and Mahayana cultivators, the Cave Heavens they establish are like a huge debt to be repaid during their Crossing the Tribulation, the longer it is delayed, the greater the debt, the heavier the karma, and in the end, it might be difficult to survive the tribulation.

Therefore, all the major Cave Heaven Cultivators will send their successors into the world to accumulate merit and diminish the impact of their tribulation.

This is where Cave Heaven Successors, Immortal Sect Descendants come from.

Even the makeshift Blue Star Federation was a result they strongly facilitated.

Establishing the Blue Star Federation, erasing national identities, promoting peaceful development – this undoubtedly contributes to their merit, especially under the watchful eyes of the Desire Realm Demons.

Apart from establishing the Blue Star Federation, these Cave Heaven Successors did many other things, like combating the Black Lotus Sect and other heretical forces of Claws and Fangs of the Heavenly Demon. Although it was to accumulate merit, overall, it was positive.

But that’s just overall.

Accumulating merit was their main, if not sole, purpose.

Aside from this, they didn’t bother with other matters, retreating to the mountains for secluded cultivation.

So why did they jump out now?

Obviously, it was to uphold the greater good!

Although they usually didn’t handle affairs, they could not tolerate anyone barging into Tan Mountain and creating a massacre.

Behind the Ye Family stood Fulong Mountain; while only a Blessed Land Sect, once engaged in worldly affairs, it was a considerable power worth courting.

So for the sake of their own dignity and the stability of the big picture, they made a stand, wanting to get to the bottom of the matter.

But as far as Xu Yang was concerned, what is the big picture?

He is the big picture!

If you don’t believe, ask Heavenly Dao – is it expecting this group of people or bank on him?

So…

“This matter, ends here!”

The man in white glared coldly and said in a heavy tone, “The Ye Family will be punished accordingly. Nowadays, with wars and Evil Demons causing calamity and harming the masses, how can we, Righteous Daoist cultivators, kill each other…”

Before he could finish, the Martial Artist made a move, stepping forward to meet him.

“Hmm!?”

The man in white’s gaze sharpened, and his expression turned grim.

He knew that by stepping forward now, his footing was somewhat unstable,

But just because his footing was unstable, didn’t mean the other party could take advantage and push further!

He was a Cave Heaven Successor, an Immortal Sect Descendant, representing the dignity of the Mysterious Heaven Sword Sect.

With this status, he came to negotiate, and Fulong Mountain had to step back and accept the punishment without complaint, yet you persist stubbornly and refuse to give in?

Are you a person from the Immortal Realm or another Cave Heaven Descendant?

The man in white’s eyes grew severe, his sword fingers came together, and he channeled the accompanying technique.

Instantly…

“Clang!”

With a resonant clash, a chill sword light flashed from its sheath, slicing toward the stone steps.

“Boom!”

With a loud noise, dust and smoke filled the air, the Martial Artist halted his steps only to see a sword slash across the stone steps, a chilling gash severing the path.

“I’ll say it one more time.”

The man sheathed his sword and glared coldly, with a heavy tone, “This matter, ends here!”

“Holy shit!?”

“What the hell are you trying to pull?”

“End here? End here my ass!”

“Where were you when the fight was happening earlier to put an end to it?”

“Now you come out to put an end to things, isn’t this just blatantly taking sides?”

“Mad God, go get him!”

Before Xu Yang could react, the live streaming audience exploded with comments.

Though they didn’t quite understand the situation, from the man’s words, it seemed the Ye Family was at fault to begin with.

Knowing this was enough; the subtle influence had made the audience unconditionally support Xu Yang.

Seeing this, Xu Yang said nothing more and restarted his steps, moving toward the sword slash.