Chapter 707: Eternal Green Pine

The journey from Liucheng to [***] City was neither too far nor too close. For ordinary Nascent Soul stage cultivators, it would take at least a month to get there. After all, the Dayu Dynasty only had these two notable cities, the rest being small towns inhabited by mortals. These two cities were ancient, remnants from former imperial or heavenly dynasties.

What took Nascent Soul cultivators a month, Zhong Shan covered in just a few hours.

Upon their arrival, both Zhong Shan and Di Xuan Sha halted, frowning at the sight before them.

The original Liucheng had vanished without a trace.

The sky was a verdant expanse, seemingly endless. It was as if they had stepped into another world, filled with countless green clouds and swirling green mist. The city had disappeared, replaced by a vast prairie.

It was as if a different world had been forcibly pieced together here. In front of them was an eerie green world, one step in and one step out.

Amidst the swirling green mist, they could vaguely see a massive tree in the distance—a green pine tree, towering millions of feet high.

A colossal ancient pine. Shrouded in mist, its vastness was awe-inspiring at a single glance.

"What is this?" Zhong Shan frowned.

"Eternal Green Pine?" Di Xuan Sha said gravely.

"Eternal Green Pine? What's that?" Zhong Shan asked.

"It's a root divine sense, the root divine sense of a celestial being. His root divine sense is an Eternal Green Pine, refined from a plant in the great thousand world," Di Xuan Sha explained with a frown.

"Root divine sense?" Zhong Shan's pupils contracted.

This was the first time Zhong Shan had seen someone's root divine sense—a towering Eternal Green Pine. A celestial being's root divine sense? Sima Ce's root divine sense?

"What is the purpose of this Eternal Green Pine?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Each root divine sense has different uses. I don't know the specific function of the Eternal Green Pine, but with it supporting him, Sima Ce can maximize the power of his 'world'," Di Xuan Sha explained.

"World? This green space before us is Sima Ce's 'world'?" Zhong Shan frowned.

A 'world' is an evolved form of 'heaven', something only immortals can possess.

"This world is open to us, clearly by Sima Ce's design, inviting us in," Di Xuan Sha said in a deep voice.

"Eternal Green Pine?" Zhong Shan looked ahead thoughtfully.

What was the power of this root divine sense Eternal Green Pine? How would it compare to his own Eight Extremities Heavenly Tail?

"Sima Ce setting the venue for the 'Luntian Conference' in his own 'world' indicates no good intentions," Di Xuan Sha frowned.

"Good intentions? That's impossible," Zhong Shan stated firmly.

"Indeed," Di Xuan Sha nodded.

"What exactly is the function of this 'world'? Or its potency?" Zhong Shan asked.

"An Emperor Extreme realm cultivator can use their spirit to form a spiritual world. You should be able to do this too," Di Xuan Sha said.

"Yes, but how is that related?" Zhong Shan frowned.

"Your Heavenly Thunder Transformation should have given you some insight into what 'heaven' is, right?" Di Xuan Sha asked.

"Heaven is also formed by the spirit?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Yes. Heaven is essentially bringing the spiritual world into reality. Unfortunately, 'heaven' is still just a prototype and cannot change as flexibly as a spiritual world," Di Xuan Sha explained in a deep voice.

Zhong Shan's mind stirred as he quickly grasped Di Xuan Sha's meaning.

"A world, the 'world' controlled by immortals, is essentially bringing the spiritual world into reality? Within this world, the immortal can manipulate the forces of heaven and earth like a creator, and perhaps even alter the world at will?" Zhong Shan asked, amazed.

"You're half right," Di Xuan Sha responded.

"Oh?"

"An immortal can indeed manipulate the forces of heaven and earth within their 'world.' However, altering the world at will is not possible. Transferring the spiritual world to the real world is an incredibly difficult task. Changes can't be made on a whim, unless one is a sage. Generally, each immortal cultivates only one 'world,' continuously perfecting it," Di Xuan Sha explained.

Taking a deep breath, Zhong Shan nodded.

"Should we enter?" Di Xuan Sha asked.

Staring at the Eternal Green Pine, Zhong Shan fell silent. Just as he was about to speak, Di Xuan Sha frowned and looked into the distance. Zhong Shan also turned to look.

In the distance, two figures swiftly approached—Shenya Daojun and Kong Lietian.

The two glanced at the Eternal Green Pine before turning their attention to Zhong Shan and Di Xuan Sha.

Shenya Daojun gave a cold look to the Eternal Green Pine, then expressionlessly looked at Di Xuan Sha and finally at Zhong Shan, his eyelids twitching slightly. The enmity between the two sides was irreconcilable. Last time, Shenya Daojun led a group to attack Lingxiao Heavenly Court, resulting in significant casualties. Kong Lietian's plan to reclaim the Phoenix clan was thwarted by Zhong Shan.

Both parties stared coldly at each other.

Finally, Kong Lietian sneered, "I didn't expect a mere imperial dynasty to qualify for the Luntian Conference."

Since overcoming his inner demons, Zhong Shan enjoyed seeing Kong Lietian's irritation. From that remark, Zhong Shan sensed Kong Lietian's annoyance and decided to fan the flames further. "I came here on my own!"

Kong Lietian: "…"

Shenya Daojun's face twitched. Di Xuan Sha had a peculiar smile in his eyes.

"Of course, if you're talking about invitations, I have one as well," Zhong Shan added casually.

Hearing Zhong Shan's second comment, the two were even more frustrated, realizing they had been played.

A flash of murderous intent crossed Shenya Daojun's eyes, while Kong Lietian's face turned extremely dark.

Under Kong Lietian's gloomy aura, the surrounding temperature plummeted, freezing the moisture in the air into ice crystals. But Zhong Shan was no longer afraid. With his current strength and Di Xuan Sha by his side, he had the ability to protect himself. He relished seeing his enemies' exasperation. For confirmed enemies like these, there was no need to show any kindness.

After stewing in his emotions for a moment, Kong Lietian suddenly burst into laughter, seemingly using it to vent his anger.

"Hahaha…!"

Zhong Shan watched coldly.

When the laughter ceased, Kong Lietian sneered, "The world is divided into four parts, with the Dazheng Imperial Dynasty ruling the southern lands. An imperial dynasty challenging the might of a heavenly dynasty, sharing the world's stage—I've never understood how Dazheng manages to stand equal with us."

"Precisely because you don't understand, Dazheng can stand as an equal," Zhong Shan retorted sharply.

"Then I shall test it—whether my Taishui Dynasty is firm or your Dazheng Dynasty is stronger!" Kong Lietian said darkly.

With a flip of his hand, Kong Lietian produced a large seal, radiant with multicolored light—the imperial seal of the Taishui Heavenly Dynasty.

Upon seeing the imperial seal, Di Xuan Sha's pupils contracted, Shenya Daojun smirked, but Zhong Shan remained coldly focused on the seal.

The imperial seal, a national treasure, symbolized the beginning of a dynasty's destiny, the authority over the land, and the supreme treasure of a ruler. When rulers of dynasties did not engage in direct warfare, they often compared their seals. The imperial seal bore the weight of an entire dynasty, with the force of a thousand mountains. A single clash would instantly reveal the stronger party to both rulers, without harming their relationship or causing public scandal.

However, Kong Lietian clearly intended to humiliate Zhong Shan. An imperial seal clash? Zhong Shan's seal was merely that of an imperial dynasty, while Kong Lietian's was that of a heavenly dynasty—clearly not on the same level. The most likely outcome was the total destruction of the imperial dynasty seal.

"Let's see then!" Zhong Shan said coldly.

An emperor's heart never yields. There was no way Zhong Shan would back down now. Moreover, he did not fear the clash of the seals. His greatest trump card wasn't the Eight Extremities Heavenly Tail or the Red Luan Heavenly Scripture, but his own Fangtian Imperial Seal.

Hearing Zhong Shan's response, Di Xuan Sha frowned with slight concern, while Shenya Daojun's eyes flashed with a strange light—was Zhong Shan inviting humiliation upon himself?

Kong Lietian didn't think much of it. Zhong Shan's agreement meant Di Xuan Sha wouldn't intervene, making it an opportunity too good to miss.

Kong Lietian tossed his multicolored imperial seal into the sky, and it expanded to a size of ten thousand feet, descending like a vast mountain.

The Taishui Heavenly Dynasty's imperial seal, carrying the might of the Taishui Heavenly Dynasty, descended with overwhelming force, as if the sky itself was falling, aimed directly at Zhong Shan.

As the multicolored seal passed through the space, ripples spread outwards. The immense "force" pressed down on Zhong Shan, locking him in place, with Kong Lietian's eyes flashing with murderous intent, as if he wanted to crush Zhong Shan with this seal.

Di Xuan Sha did not intervene because Zhong Shan showed no signs of panic.

With a flip of his hand, Zhong Shan brought out the Fangtian Imperial Seal. Feeling the pressure of the multicolored seal, the red gem on the Fangtian Imperial Seal briefly flashed with a faint red light.

With a swift movement, Zhong Shan sent the Fangtian Imperial Seal upward. Despite being only a tenth the size of the multicolored seal, it exuded an overwhelming aura similar to that of the multicolored seal, causing a powerful spatial disturbance.

Sensing something amiss, Kong Lietian's feeling of unease was quickly replaced by ferocity.

"Crush!" Kong Lietian shouted.

"Boom—!"

The two seals collided with a tremendous crash, generating a vast spatial shockwave. At the point of collision, a pitch-black plane appeared, where the space itself was shattered. The tops of the two seals emitted golden light, and the boundless glow of destiny illuminated the surroundings with dazzling brilliance.

Both seals recoiled from the impact, shrinking back to their original sizes and returning to the hands of Zhong Shan and Kong Lietian.

Zhong Shan's face flushed red, indicating the internal upheaval caused by the collision, while Kong Lietian stared at Zhong Shan in disbelief.

Looking at his multicolored seal, Kong Lietian noticed a crack in one corner.

A crack? The heavenly dynasty's imperial seal had cracked after clashing with an imperial dynasty's seal?

"Impossible!" Kong Lietian muttered, eyes wide with shock.

Zhong Shan, recovering from the internal impact, stood firm, his cold gaze unwavering. He was no longer the ruler who could be easily underestimated.

Kong Lietian's expression turned from shock to anger. The clash, which should have demonstrated the superiority of his heavenly dynasty, had backfired, leaving his imperial seal damaged and his prestige questioned. This unexpected outcome left both Shenya Daojun and Di Xuan Sha momentarily speechless.

Di Xuan Sha, finally breaking the silence, said, "It seems the strength of a dynasty isn't solely determined by its title. There's more to Dazheng than meets the eye."

Shenya Daojun, masking his surprise, responded, "Indeed. It appears we have underestimated Dazheng and its emperor."

The tension in the air was palpable, but Zhong Shan remained resolute. This encounter had shifted the dynamics, proving that the strength of one's spirit and resolve could defy even the most established powers.