Stray Attacks.
—
Chatting with Curie on a variety of topics, and appearing to outsiders like two lovebirds, Tian Xing suddenly felt his intuition blaring with danger, causing all his hairs to stand on end. Realizing he could die from the attack that happened in the blink of an eye, he saw it all dissipate and was replaced by tranquility, as if someone had already dealt with whatever triggered his alarm.
Unable to calculate or even check the instant log from the Golden Branch due to his delayed reaction, Tian Xing noticed the sky outside turning dark, accompanied by an oppressive feeling of trepidation, as if meeting his creators. Knowing this was an illusion granted by the passive higher levels of the Wuxing Phase—or the aura of higher cultivators—he was able to calculate and use the Golden Branch by the time he heard his neighbors' second "tsk."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… A bunch of naive fools easily swayed by such a small display."
Walking outside to look up at the sky, while hugging Curie and his other beloveds to keep them close, Tian Xing saw his neighbors riding enormous flying swords that nearly covered the vast Celestial Phoenix Kingdom.
"Calling all creations… As if having the strength to leap two realms higher is impressive. My young master has also had a great deal of luck, but he did not flaunt his cultivation. What a bunch of useless dogs, unaware of the vastness of heaven and earth."
Even though someone among the crowd of ants could hold the sky for him, Tian Xing waved his Golden Branch non-stop to alter fate, aiming to prevent this from escalating into a full-blown fight that could kill him. He also ensured that subsequent events unfolded to his advantage and the benefit of the citizens, avoiding a butterfly effect that could sow karma and trouble for the future, by directly addressing the leader who holds the sky for him.
"It is true what Asura said. Each world has its own Heaven's Favored, but only seven of them seek to change the status quo for the good of all creations or for their own selfish desires. The rest, like your young master, are just useless pigs indulging in the luck granted by the heavens without using it to help others."
"SHUT UP, YOU ANT! Leave that filthy tongue of yours out of the young master's presence! Mortals like you do not have the right or even the worth to speak of or think about our young master's sovereign presence! If not for your master Asura, you would still be a lowly insect that I could crush at will!"
"Hahahaha! True, true, I am just a lowly insect without my master Asura. Ah… Just thinking of that outstretched hand in that hopeless moment in the rain, it brings tears to my eyes again. Sigh, I can't believe it has only been two decades—such a short yet exciting moment in my life."
"MORTAL DOG! DON'T YOU DARE IGNORE ME! OR I WILL RAZE THIS CITY TO THE GROUND!"
"Is that all your useless brain can come up with? Dog, insect, bug, ant. Tsk, you are truly stubborn in your old ways. No wonder your brain rots despite the abundance of Qi granted by the Dao. What a helpless fool—such exciting cursing words are completely ignored. No wonder the Divine Raccoon Sage and the main branch of the Wang Family cultivate in your world and ascend to the next heavens instantly, without leaving their legacy behind. Because, you blockheads are not worthy of this comprehension. Too stupid to modify or use it."
"ARGH! SHUT UP! I WILL KILL YOU RIGHT NOW! ALONG WITH—"
"What a pity, what a pity. A rotten brain loses arguments and throws tantrums at easy prey mortals. Aiah, I am suddenly reminded of what my master's master, Sacred Luminary Moiraine, said about us cultivators—spoiled grown-up babies using the nearby environment as an outlet for our anger. Fortunately, my eyes have been opened unlike you green, callow—"
BOOM!
SLASH!
ROAR!
CLING!
THUD!
Seeing one of the generals in the Asura army employ psychological tactics to provoke this immortal's anger to their advantage, Tian Xing nodded to himself, reassured that his election votes were not in vain.
Turning to his three beloveds and ignoring the tumultuous fight in the sky—where punches and slashes created natural disasters—he said, "Come. Let's leave this kingdom and head to the Saintess Elixir territory. Although my Tian Ming Dao is powerful and capable of calculating our escape from subconscious stray attacks, my body still can't keep up with such rapid reactions."
As they jogged away from the chaos, with some of the crowd already kowtowing to the heavens to ask for their neighbors' forgiveness, Tian Xing arrived at his flying boat, which had been wrecked beyond recognition, leaving only splintered wood as evidence of its former identity. Seeing the damage and the attacks from stray subconscious forces that periodically descended to kill mortals, he felt uneasy and anxious for the first time in a long while.
Realizing his calculations were flawed because he wasn't a true higher-level being and could only simulate their attacks without personal experience, Tian Xing felt the limitations of his calculations and subsequently his Tian Ming Dao. While his Dao could affect higher-level beings, it required numerous repeated actions with Butterfly Echoes until one attempt succeeded. Given the current situation, where he needed to focus all his efforts just to survive the encounter, he didn't have time to influence his neighbors to avoid destroying his ship.
So, wanting to find a different solution, Tian Xing was advised by Curie to go to the Blessed Land of the kingdom first, as it was an entirely different dimension. Nodding in agreement and following Curie's lead, he couldn't help but reflect on his own shortcomings and his tendency to be easily afraid. Sighing, he recognized the need for improvement and decided to embrace the uniqueness of this era, which sought to refine the Dao Heart of the chosen ones.
BOOM!
Pulling Ying Yue away from a stray subconscious attack aimed at a nearby wine house, Tian Xing said, while ignoring the wails of agony from the destroyed building, "Yue, remember. You no longer have Heavenly Tribulation power. The Wuxing Cycles in this area are insufficient for you to defeat our neighbors or even deflect stray attacks from second or third realm cultivators. So, don't be careless."
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