After Han Li settled the price, he finally agreed to participate in the gambling battle.
At the border, both Heavenly South and Mulan dispatched many people to set up the Great Array these past few days, taking five or six days before they each dispersed.
Both sides sent large armies to guard against each other, standing by in full battle array.
On Mulan's side, the Three Great Divine Priests and the Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect were all Nascent Soul Cultivators, and with them was Master Le, who had once fought Han Li but was defeated by him.
Among the Three Great Divine Priests, one looked like a Scholar, surnamed Zhong, and had previously fought Li Feiyu on Huanglong Mountain.
"Everyone, let's discuss. After trapping the ten top Cultivators of Heavenly South, how should we deal with the rest?"
The Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect said, "Divine Priest Zhong is talking about Li Feiyu, right? As I said, if he were trapped in my Blood Luo Shield, wouldn't it be simpler?"
Divine Priest Zhong angrily said, "Sect Leader Fang, how would you know his methods if you haven't fought him?"
"I also originally thought that Heavenly South was deliberately exaggerating, but after truly fighting him, I realized he is unfathomable."
"Sect Leader Fang, if you don't rely on the power of Magic Treasures, but only on Divine Ability and magical power, do you dare to take a full-strength blow from this Divine Master?"
"Divine Priest Zhong, you also said that his defense is strong, but you haven't seen his offense."
"What if he just specializes in defense?"
"After all, no matter what, he is only a Nascent Soul Middle Stage Cultivator."
The Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect smiled and said, "Divine Priest Zhong, you are being too cautious."
Divine Priest Zhong's eyes were full of anger, but his tone shifted, saying, "Since Sect Leader Fang doesn't trust this Divine Master, then this strongly defensive fellow, Li Feiyu, will be handed over to you. I'm sure Sect Leader's Divine Ability is vast and will not disappoint us."
As long as the plan succeeds, the remaining matters will be much easier. The only troublesome ones are the three Great Cultivators and Li Feiyu.
"Hmph, don't provoke me. I have no problem making a move, but since Divine Priest Zhong's heaven-reaching spiritual technique couldn't seriously injure him, I alone might not be enough. Why don't you send one more person to assist me?"
"Combining the power of two Nascent Soul Cultivators, we should be able to seriously injure or even kill him more quickly, and then we can free up our hands to help others."
Divine Master Bi said, "The three Great Cultivators of Heavenly South are all formidable. We might not even win in a one-on-one fight, so there are no extra people to spare."
Sect Leader Fang said, "Isn't there also Divine Priest Tian? Although he has only been a Great Cultivator for a few years, he is still a Great Cultivator. Assisting me to entangle Li Feiyu for a moment while I use my Divine Ability and Magic Treasure should not be a problem, right?"
"If not, then you yourselves go solve it."
Divine Priest Zhong had faced Li Feiyu directly and knew the immense pressure he would endure.
He had a premonition that if he hadn't been decisive last time, it wouldn't have been as simple as losing a Magic Treasure or getting injured.
"Then so be it."
....
In the south of Heavenly South, they were also discussing countermeasures.
They didn't believe that a gambling battle alone could make the Mulan people retreat obediently.
The Mulan people were now facing a critical moment of life and death, the potential destruction of their race, and would absolutely go all out, using any means necessary to secure victory.
If the Cultivators of Heavenly South didn't want to lose a large amount of land, they also had to fight with all their might.
"Brother Li, tomorrow's great battle, you will make a move, right?" Master Zhiyang said.
Li Feiyu smiled slightly, looked over, "Taking people's money and doing their bidding, I still have that much sense."
To persuade Li Feiyu to move, the three of them had indeed put in a lot of effort.
Compared to Li Feiyu, their three Sects had existed in Heavenly South for a long time, so their emotional attachment was certainly deeper than his.
Li Feiyu rose suddenly, came from behind, and had a bright and brilliant future, but he controlled the Ancient Teleportation Array in the Chaotic Star Sea. He could always abandon Heavenly South and go to the Chaotic Star Sea.
Even if not, with Li Feiyu's strength, and only occupying a corner, only holding a medium-sized country, even if Mulan won, it would be impossible to invade Yueguo, and there would be no conflict with Li Feiyu over such a small matter later on.
Therefore, the three of them were initially afraid that Li Feiyu wouldn't want to participate in the battle.
But fortunately, he agreed.
This gave the three of them a sense of reassurance.
They deeply felt Li Feiyu's power. Although their three-on-one attack at that time didn't truly unleash their full strength, Li Feiyu was also the same.
According to their estimation, fighting two opponents alone would definitely not be a problem.
If it were one-on-one, any of the three of them would certainly be in danger of falling.
"Don't worry, all three of you. If I'm not mistaken, they should at least send two Divine Masters to deal with me. If they are two experienced ones, I might not be able to do anything for a while, but if they send the Mulan Divine Master rumored to have just been promoted..."
"Then I'm sorry, they've underestimated me too much!"
Wei Wuya said, "It's also unlikely they'd send a newly promoted Divine Master to deal with any of us three. Most likely, they'll either assist another to deal with Fellow Daoist Li, or go hunt down other Nascent Soul Cultivators."
"Regardless, Fellow Daoist, thank you for your efforts tomorrow."
"No problem."
...
The next day.
A flash of light appeared in the Dharma Idol camp, followed by a rumbling sound of earth-shattering drums. Teams of Dharma Idols flew out of the camp unhurriedly, controlling their Magical Artifacts, and flew towards the border.
The patrolling Cultivators on Heavenly South's side immediately activated their sound transmission talismans to report back upon discovery.
A moment later, a long bell rang from the Heavenly South camp, and numerous Cultivators, controlling colorful escape lights, transformed into streaks of dazzling light and likewise flew towards the border.
For a time, Aura filled the sky, with clear cries and long roars rising and falling.
It was as if two huge tides were coming head-on.
But when they were ten li apart, both sides stopped abruptly and simultaneously.
Both sides had reasons to fight, to fight to the death. Before they even made a move, an astonishing Killing Intent permeated both camps.
Li Feiyu's eyes flickered with Aura, and a brief sweep of his Divine Sense revealed that over sixty to seventy thousand Cultivators had gathered here.
Compared to the strength of both sides, one could say they were evenly matched.
Heavenly South was rich in resources, with countless Materials and various Sects, so Magical Artifacts and Magic Treasures were diverse, including swords, spears, halberds, round beads, Wu hooks, Ma lance (a type of spear), bronze bells, and so on.
On the Dharma Idol side, most were relatively similar and singular.
However, in terms of discipline, the Dharma Idols frequently engaged in large-scale battles with various tribes and the Tu'er people, so their formations were neat and their military discipline unified, clearly well-trained. In contrast, Heavenly South's side only barely maintained their ranks, yet they were chaotic and disorderly, with constant whispers among the Cultivators.
Within the Dharma Idol army, there were over a dozen enormous savage beasts, which were very eye-catching.
Many in the Nine Nations Union had witnessed the power of these giant beasts, and a hint of fear appeared in their eyes.
Li Feiyu's expression was calm, not showing any displeasure due to the Heavenly South team. With him present, Heavenly South couldn't possibly lose.
He alone could fully hold back three Great Cultivators, his subordinate Crimson Crow, when given longevity liquid, could effectively resist one, and his newly acquired Spirit Beast, the Three-Tailed Scorching Sun Poison Scorpion, was also extremely terrifying, capable of dealing with one Great Cultivator without issue.
Li Feiyu had been feeding the Three-Tailed Scorching Sun Poison Scorpion a qi activation pill every half a month for years, and now, it was indeed slowly developing sentience, with most of its transverse bone refined, capable of making sounds like "ooh" and "aah".
In a few more years, it might truly have hope of Undergoing Tribulation and transforming into human form.
If he also called upon Jin Yuan, who was far away in Yueguo, his side, in terms of top Cultivators, could completely rival either Heavenly South or Mulan's forces.
However, due to the difference in the number of Nascent Soul Cultivators, Li Feiyu's side would definitely be the weakest.
Of course, this time he wouldn't foolishly expose his full strength.
His presence alone would be enough to tilt the battle.
While the discipline of the various Sects' Cultivators was lacking, many Sects had brought out their foundational strength.
Old and top-tier Sects like Joyful Union Sect, Tai Zhen Sect, and Huayi Sect possessed diverse methods, and their hidden treasures were extraordinarily powerful, capable of unleashing power no less than the peak of the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, and it was even possible for them to hold off a Nascent Soul Cultivator for a period of time.
Soon after, three figures flew out from the opposing Dharma Idol army: a gaunt old man, a short man, and a middle-aged Scholar. They were the Three Great Divine Priests of Mulan, surnamed Zhu, Bi, and Zhong, respectively.
Master Zhiyang glanced at Li Feiyu and said, "Fellow Daoist Li, are you interested in going forward?"
"I'll pass. You can talk; I'm only responsible for taking action."
Master Zhiyang smiled, then flew forward with Fellow Daoist Hehuan and Wei Wuya.
Both sides stopped when they were several tens of feet apart.
Mostly, it was a battle of words and negotiation of terms.
The final result was that the gambling battle would continue, but the Dharma Idol side had to release half of their captives first, with the rest depending on the outcome of the gambling battle.
The Mulan Divine Masters went to great lengths to gain Heavenly South's trust, and after much deliberation, they finally agreed to this condition.
Thus, the few people returned to their respective camps and began to arrange subsequent matters.
After hundreds of captured Cultivators returned to the Heavenly South camp, all the Sects meticulously inspected them, confirming there were no spies or tricks before allowing them to join the Cultivator ranks.
Soon after, once the gambling battle array was set up, ten people from each side flew into the array.
Heavenly South's side was normal, with each person being carefully selected, but on the opposite side were ten Demonic Path Cultivators, each only at the Nascent Soul Early Stage.
Several people felt a surge of joy. They were already at the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, and the power of their Divine Abilities had almost reached the peak of the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, which was why they dared to come and fight. Facing the opposing Demonic Path Cultivators, they were confident that even if the other side had something strange, they would definitely be able to handle it.
After all, not everyone was Han Li or Li Feiyu, possessing such powerful ability to kill opponents across cultivation stages.
Han Li recalled Li Feiyu's speculation, and a sense of vigilance arose in his heart. He planned to activate the Divine Devilbane Lightning with maximum power to kill them as soon as the match began.
The ten people's cultivation and appearance were so similar, it was likely due to some mysterious connecting method.
As long as one person was killed first, it might be possible to break this situation.
However, who would have thought that right from the start, the ten Demonic Path Cultivators almost all retreated to the barrier. Several exploded under the attacks of the Heavenly South Cultivators, and several others actively self-destructed.
The blood and flesh of the Demonic Path Cultivators splattered on the barrier, began to writhe, and then merged into the barrier. In the blink of an eye, the barrier turned blood-red, and a bloody mist began to permeate the array, looking extremely eerie.
The Cultivators in the gambling battle all frowned deeply and successively used forbidden-breaking beads to try and leave, but when they encountered this barrier integrated with the Demonic Path Cultivators' blood and flesh, the forbidden-breaking beads became ineffective.
Then they launched attacks, but even with the power of their Divine Abilities, it only caused the blood-red barrier to tremble slightly, recovering instantly as if nothing had happened.
Their faces all changed dramatically.
Breaking it open in a short time was almost impossible.
They were clearly trapped.
Master Zhiyang drew the long sword from his back and immediately unleashed a sword light. The sword light struck the barrier, causing it to vibrate violently, but it quickly recovered, showing no sign of being broken by this attack.
The three Great Cultivators' expressions were not good.
They had been tricked!
Suddenly losing ten top-tier Divine Ability Cultivators was a huge loss for Heavenly South.
Fellow Daoist Hehuan said, "They really spared no expense. They were willing to sacrifice ten Cultivators with peak Nascent Soul Early Stage strength."
Li Feiyu smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Yi, you've misjudged. They are not Cultivators at all, but some kind of refined corpses from the Yin Luo Sect. However, these refined corpses must have cost them a great deal of time and resources to Cultivate to this extent."
"With such a large investment, just to trap them for a period of time, it seems they have great confidence in the subsequent battles."
"Refined corpses? How is that possible? I clearly checked them."
Fellow Daoist Hehuan was somewhat incredulous.
"That's naturally because they used special methods and had ten people with Divided Soul possession, simply controlling them, which is how they managed to deceive you."
Wei Wuya asked doubtfully, "Fellow Daoist Li, if you discovered it early, why didn't you warn us in advance?"
Li Feiyu chuckled, "I just discovered it as well."
The three of them looked unconvinced, but they were helpless.
Things had come to this. Even if their Great Cultivators could break this strange blood shield, it would undoubtedly require a considerable amount of magical power and time.
And looking at the four Mulan Divine Masters and one black-robed man approaching from the opposite side, it was clear they wouldn't be given that opportunity.
Li Feiyu calmly said, "Each of you pick someone; the rest are mine."
Master Zhiyang and the others nodded, each finding a Mulan Divine Master to confront.
As for the black-robed man and a Mulan Divine Master with a weaker aura, they faced Li Feiyu directly.
"Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect? Newly promoted Mulan Divine Master?"
Li Feiyu smiled, "Didn't the one surnamed Zhong tell you my strength? A newly promoted Mulan Divine Master dares to face me. It seems there's a great feud between you."
The Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect gave two sinister laughs and said, "Don't bluff. At most, you've Cultivated some rare defensive Divine Ability, making your defense a bit stronger. Given your age, reaching this stage, even in the history of Great Jin, not many can compare to you."
"Defense, offense, speed—it's impossible for you to reach such a level of cross-stage capability in all areas!"
Li Feiyu clapped his hands, "As expected of the Sect Master of one of the Ten Great Demonic Sects of Great Jin. This analytical ability is indeed astonishing."
"But unfortunately, you're a bit arrogant, a bit blind, and a bit foolish!"
Li Feiyu's smile gradually froze, "Just because you don't know, doesn't mean it doesn't exist!"
"Great Jin is a good place. I'll make time to go there in the future. As for you, I'm afraid you won't be able to return!"
The next moment, a blood-red pillar of light erupted from Li Feiyu's body, soaring into the sky, reaching the highest heavens.
The sky itself seemed to be stained blood-red.
The Sect Leader of Yin Luo Sect's expression changed. The Evil Qi coming at him made even him, a Demonic Sect Sect Master, tremble with fear. How many Cultivators must one have personally killed to form such dense blood Evil Qi?
And there were probably not a few high-level Cultivators among them.