I Am OverlordI Am Overlord
The victories of Guo Po and Tuoba Lingtian lifted the Ziling Sect's morale. Unfortunately, their fights weren't the deciding fight of the battle. The true decisive fights would be those between the Nine Revolutions Realm experts.
The Ziling Sect members were unaware that their enemies had sent such powerful combatants after them. They all believed that Xiang Yangzhan would be able to deal with them. If they knew that Nine Revolutions Realm experts had actually been deployed against them, they would probably feel despair.
On the battlefield, there were Ziling Sect members who had fallen under their enemies' hands. However, there were also some who carried the sect's flag and fought as though they welcomed death, such as Chen Zilong, Tian Ji, Gong Qinyin, Yao Qian, and some other people.
Chen Zilong was not as remarkable as Guo Po and Tuoba Lingtian, but he was tough and unyielding. His Qilin Arms were known for their strength, and he could face even pseudo-god weapons without trouble.
He fought viciously, and each punch of his was accompanied by the phantom of a qilin, subjecting his opponent to massive pressure. If it wasn't for his opponent's much higher cultivation level, he would have emerged victorious as well.
Tian Ji was also an incredible cultivator. He was someone who had only started growing late in his life. If his potential hadn't caught Xiang Shaoyun's eyes, he would probably still remain an obscure cultivator even now.
Riding on his demonic chicken, Tian Ji released an odd cluck. In his opponents' ears, the cluck was akin to a countdown to one's death. The many Saints failed to stop the cluck, and the ear-piercing cluck prevented them from focusing on the fight. Ultimately, they were all killed by Tian Ji.
Gong Qinyin was like a foundation maintaining their stability on the battlefield. She was already a pseudo-God. Not only was her zither destructive, but it could also sink her opponents into illusions and increase the morale of her allies, allowing them to perform beyond their strength.
However, she was also their enemies' main target. Without the two Devil Gods protecting her, she would have had a much harder time. It was obvious where she had gotten the two Devil Gods.
As for Yao Qian, this was the first time she had publicly shown herself. Everyone knew that Old Yao had a granddaughter, but that granddaughter was extremely mysterious and rarely seen. It was rumored that she spent the majority of her time in secluded cultivation.
During her first appearance, she shocked the world. After working hard, she had reached the Great Saint Realm. She had also cultivated a powerful secret soul technique, making her almost undefeatable among her peers. Despite this being her first battle, she showed no quarter and killed all her opponents mercilessly.
These people were the Ziling Sect's new generation of elites, the sect's important foundation. There were also some other young sect members with remarkable strength, but unfortunately, their enemies were too numerous and also did not lack talented individuals. Both sides suffered casualties from the battle.
Xiang Shaoyun and company were in no rush to act. Staying high in the sky, they observed, allowing the battle to progress. It wasn't that he was unfeeling, but the Ziling Sect had suffered numerous attacks. This attack, in particular, was much more dangerous than the previous attacks. He wanted to see for himself if the others could truly stand on their own. After all, he couldn't protect them all the time. They needed to grow strong and gain the ability to protect themselves.
After a while, he found himself rather pleased with their overall performance. If he hadn't brought some of the Ziling Sect members away, the sect would have been able to counterattack even when facing so many enemies.
Xiang Shaoyun did not wait for the sect to suffer more casualties. He released the people in his astral cosmos sea, such as Scarlet Flame Monarch, Devouring Ghost, and Green Ghost. With their return, the invaders were utterly defeated.
Xiang Shaoyun did not intend to spare the invaders. Without destroying the invaders, how could they spread the Ziling Sect's fame?
Xiang Shaoyun descended from the sky, his boundless aura spreading over the entire area. All the Ziling Sect members dropped onto their knees and greeted, "Welcome back, sect master!" They all idolized Xiang Shaoyun. They believed that so long as he stood, the Ziling Sect would not fall. He was the creator of miracles.
"Rise, everyone," said Xiang Shaoyun calmly. He smiled and continued, "All of you did well. You did not bring shame to our Ziling Sect."
Everyone smiled joyfully upon being praised by Xiang Shaoyun. After having the people clean up the battlefield, he brought his inner circle to the Ziling Sect's main peak. The moment he arrived, the Ziling Sect's incorporeal power gathered around the main peak. A noble purple aura rose from the sect, granting the sect an aura surpassing that of tier-8 organizations, reaching the level of a tier-9 organization.
All the Ziling Sect members sensed the appearance of the incorporeal power, and they all benefited from it. Some instantly understood the profundity of powers they hadn't been able to comprehend previously, while some who had been stuck for a long time managed to overcome their bottlenecks.
That was the unstoppable power of destiny! After all, Xiang Shaoyun had broken through into the One Revolution Realm. Purple Lightning Marquis, Yu Caidie, and Devil Concubine had become ninth-stage Gods. Many of his other followers had also reached the God Realm. It would be weird if the Ziling Sect still remained in the same tier after that.
This advancement would happen naturally without the Guardians Guild's acknowledgment, as the incorporeal power would descend upon the sect by itself. After all, the entire world was in chaos. The Guardians Guild was too busy to care about the advancement of organizations.
Xiang Shaoyun was in no rush to seek the Guardians Guild's acknowledgment either. Since the Zombie God was attempting to conquer the Western Desert, he would instead take the Western Desert for himself.
He convened a meeting and arranged for the Gods in his inner circle to take charge of the sect's offensive and defensive affairs. Then, he brought a new group of his trusted followers into his astral cosmos sea to help them improve their strength.
For example, people like Tuoba Wan'er, Gong Qinyin, Hu Meihui, Yao Qian, Tuoba Lingtian, Guo Po, Chen Zilong, Tian Ji, and so on were brought inside. During this chaotic age, Xiang Shaoyun hoped that all of them would gain more strength to protect themselves.
Xiang Shaoyun then headed toward the Nine Star Pagodas.
The Nine Star Pagodas had become the Ziling Sect's holy land of cultivation. Any disciple who had met the requirements or who had completed the required missions would be allowed entry every now and then.
Not only did the place have the thickest concentration of astral energy in the sect, but it was also the place where one could resonate with astral energy most easily. One would be able to comprehend the profundity of powers and the intent of many other powers there. Those were the inheritances Xiang Shaoyun had personally left for the sect.
The Nine Star Pagodas were why generation after generation of Ziling Sect members grew rapidly. Using his incredible strength, Xiang Shaoyun modified the Nine Star Pagodas and made the place even more extraordinary, building it up to become a place that could benefit even Gods. It was at that moment that Xiang Shaoyun smelled a faint stench of corpses outside the sect.