I conquer the immortal with my strength.

Chapter 606 Besieged
Half a day later, the five local deities took their leave and returned to their respective temples to gather their local elites. They prepared to meet at the Chichuan Local Deity Temple a month later and jointly launch an attack to wipe out the Corpse Refining Sect of Iron Bone Ridge.

The palace fell silent once more.

Xingyi returned to the back hall and bowed to Xia Daoming.

Xia Daoming stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm, and slowly said, "You have done very well. However, those five people each have their own thoughts. When we clear out Iron Bone Ridge a month from now, I'm afraid most of them will initially be hesitant and only contribute manpower. Only if you show enough strength can you truly subdue them and make them work for you."

Xingyi's expression was solemn as she said softly, "My current strength is insufficient to completely subdue them. Especially those two local deities, Lütan and Qiongzhi, who have both reached the peak of the Ninth Tribulation and are only one step away from breaking through to the Void Immortal realm. Their true essence is extremely abundant. The fact that I was able to force them to submit today was merely due to the intimidation of Lord Xia's reputation. Moreover, that 'White Bone Granny' has astonishing cultivation and her corpse-refining evil arts are bizarre, comparable to a Void Immortal and far surpassing Jiaoting. If the five local deities do not sincerely help, even with Lord Xia bestowing a thunder talisman, I am afraid I will be unable to kill her."

Xia Daoming smiled faintly, his eyes deep: "'White Bone Granny' is merely a heretical sect, relying on external objects to maintain her status. She has not grasped the true meaning of the Great Dao, and in the end, she is only comparable to a nascent immortal, not a true nascent immortal. You, on the other hand, are the true nascent immortal in the making, and your position as a nascent immortal is just around the corner. What is there to fear! However, now that your fame has spread far and wide, those demonic lairs and evil dens will not sit idly by and wait for you to wipe them out one by one. They will most likely join forces to deal with you. Whether you can use the power of a nascent immortal to turn the tide unexpectedly is a difficult test!"

Xingyi was slightly taken aback, a question arising in her mind: "Is the position of a Void Immortal just around the corner?"

Xia Daoming slowly turned around, his gaze falling on her, his tone suddenly becoming solemn: "Temporarily entrust the temple's affairs to Hongxia, Taoyao, and the others, and quietly accompany me to the Evil Swamp to undergo the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation and attain the position of a Void Immortal!"

Xingyi was greatly shocked and quickly bowed her head: "Master Xia, although I have been nurtured by you and my cultivation has improved very quickly, I feel that my foundation is still shallow. It will take some time before I can attain the position of Void Immortal. I am afraid that I will fail to live up to your expectations!"

Xia Daoming reached out and helped her up, his eyes gentle yet resolute: "Your progress has far exceeded my initial expectations. I originally thought you would need some time to bear the opportunity I bestowed upon you and face the Heavenly Tribulation. But your potential is beyond imagination, and now is the perfect opportunity."

Xingyi was shocked again and knelt down solemnly: "This concubine will obey Lord Xia's decree!"

-

The following morning, a dark cloud slowly rose from the Jade Stream Temple and drifted toward the Evil Swamp.

Amidst the dark clouds, Xingyi sat cross-legged, surrounded by shimmering water. Above her head floated an ancient scepter, the very same Water God Scepter that Xia Daoming had acquired years ago.

This scepter was once a prized possession of Xia Daoming, nurtured for thousands of years, its incense pure and innocent, and it also contained his insights into the Dao of Incense. Now that he already possessed several other immortal artifacts, this scepter was of limited use to him, so he erased the divine imprint on it and bestowed it upon Xingyi.

The ancient scepter slowly merged into the Starry Sky Niwan Palace. In an instant, her entire body burst forth with radiant light, exuding the fragrance of sandalwood, as if she had transformed into a water-light deity. Fortunately, the dark clouds formed by the Myriad Immortal Banner concealed her form, making it impossible for outsiders to detect anything.

Xingyi's mind was clear and bright, her state of mind was clearer than ever before, and it seemed that even the pulse of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth was within reach.

-

Several days later, tribulation clouds suddenly rolled in over the Miasma Swamp. Eighty-one bolts of tribulation lightning crashed down with astonishing force.

The power of that thunder and fire was enough to turn an ordinary Ninth Tribulation Nascent Soul cultivator into ashes. Yet Xingyi remained calm in the face of danger, her body surging with water and intertwining with the thunder, as if swallowing lightning in a surging tide.

She calmly dealt with each of the lightning strikes.

Soon after, the heavenly tribulation dissipated.

The great calamity has passed!

Achieve Immortal Status!

-

Several days later, a dark cloud quietly returned to the Jade Stream Goddess Palace.

Before long, the agreed-upon date with the five landowners arrived.

On this day, the Yujian army set out on their expedition, marching in a grand procession towards the Chichuan region. Xingyi did not ride the Snow-Treading Spirit Steed, but instead traveled in a carriage shrouded in rosy light and fragrant with sandalwood incense, flanked by guards such as Cui Baisong. The entourage was imposing and awe-inspiring.

Day two.

Outside the land god temple in Akagawa, banners blotted out the sun, and the armies of the land gods from the six directions had already joined forces.

Nearly a thousand local soldiers stood in formation, their armor gleaming, exuding a murderous aura and a formidable presence. However, the five local rulers secretly harbored different thoughts: some were filled with fear, some were uneasy, and many more were calculating their own options—preserving their strength and remaining uninvolved would be the best course of action.

Xingyi sat upright in the carriage without getting off. She appeared calm and composed, but in her heart she was thinking about Xia Daoming's instructions before she left: "This trip involves the joint efforts of the six local deities. The news will not be kept from the evil demons and cultivators of the five places including Chichuan. They will definitely join forces in secret and will not wait for you to wipe them out one by one."

Therefore, you should not reveal that you have attained the status of a Void Immortal. Otherwise, if those vicious demons and evil cultivators find out, they will not sit idly by and wait for their doom. They will surely seek help from the forces behind the scenes and invite powerful figures to take charge. In that case, I will have no choice but to take action, which would cause the situation to escalate.

As evening fell, the army marched to Iron Bone Ridge, when suddenly a strong wind arose on the ridge, and a fog of corpses filled the air.

Akagawa Land God shouted sternly, "Form ranks!"

With the sound of drums and horns shaking the heavens, nearly a thousand soldiers slowly spread out.

However, the next moment, the mountains trembled, the dark mist rolled, and flames suddenly shot into the sky from all directions. Ghosts howled and wolves howled, and dark, ferocious demons and evil cultivators emerged from the mountains, as if a horde of demons had been born.

The first to appear was the sect leader of the Corpse Refining Sect of Iron Bone Ridge—White Bone Granny, clad in bone armor and wearing a skull crown, surrounded by hundreds of blood-soaked corpses, her presence accompanied by a stench that filled the air.

Immediately afterwards, a deafening roar echoed from the depths of the Black Ridge to the north. Amidst the shattering of rocks, a figure resembling a ferocious beast emerged, with fangs like blades, thick arms, and a black mane growing on its back—it was none other than the Demon Chief of the Fang Cave in Black Fang Mountain, Fang Ni! Its voice was like thunder, making the soldiers' ears ring.

In the western valley, a crimson light soared into the sky, and an old man shrouded in blood mist floated in mid-air, his eyes vacant and a smile playing on his lips. This man was none other than Blood Soul Child, the leader of the Blood Soul Sect of Xuan Sha Valley. Behind him, hundreds of blood-robed evil cultivators sat cross-legged, summoning a Blood Soul Banner, from which howling winds arose.

The three infamous and wicked forces that Qingliu had mentioned to Xia Daoming were all present.

In addition, seven other slightly weaker and more malevolent forces were also present.

These ten forces, scattered across five different locations including Chichuan and Green Pond, usually committed their crimes in their own territories, keeping to themselves. Yet today, they have all gathered together.

Clearly, they had been waiting for the six armies of landmen to come to their door.

Ten forces appeared simultaneously, and in the blink of an eye, they completely sealed off the area around Ironbone Ridge.

Corpse aura, blood mist, demonic wind, and vengeful ghosts surged together, and the world was filled with murderous intent.

Looking around, the Green Pool Land God muttered to himself, "Oh no! I told you not to act rashly. Now look what's happened, these old bones of mine are going to perish here today!"

Qiongzhi's expression was cold, but her voice trembled: "How could our thousand soldiers possibly withstand such a force? It's clearly an ambush set up long ago to wipe us out in one fell swoop!"

The White Stone Land God had lost his usual kind smile; his expression was unusually gloomy, and his eyes kept darting around, as if he were thinking about something.

The once-solemn and seemingly burly and valiant land deity of Chichuan, who had vowed to eradicate the demon's lair, now looked flustered and hurriedly ran to the carriage, saying, "Lord Si Tu, what should we do now? Perhaps we should try to make peace with them!"

Of the five local deities, only Heiling remained expressionless, his voice icy as he said, "Judging from today's situation, they have been planning this all along. Do you think we can make peace with them? We should break out as soon as possible. Once we return to the local temple, with the power of incense and the protection of the formation, they shouldn't be able to do anything to us."

　There will be another update this afternoon.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)