Nine Star Hegemon Body Art

That furious shout caused countless powers within Qingzhou City to shudder. Was an immense battle finally about to start?

Although there were countless powers within Qing Prefecture and there was an unending struggle, it was unknown just how many years had passed since such a large battle had been held.

“You shameful thing, even you dare be so arrogant? Then let this old man see just who has such guts.”

Mo Yi sneered, his voice shaking the heavens, incredibly domineering. With a wave of his hand, the Mo family’s experts all strode out of Mo Gate.

A battle on this scale could not be held in the city. That would completely destroy all of Qingzhou City and implicate countless innocents.

Long Chen and Mo Nian followed behind Mo Yi. Mo Yi now seemed like a divine weapon that had finally been unsheathed, his sharpness shaking the world.

Mo Yunshan and the others were following him. Close to five hundred Xiantian experts were releasing a soaring battle intent. They were all experts amongst experts.

These people were only the Mo family’s experts. Mu Xue had originally been planning on joining, but she had been stopped by Long Chen.

Mu Xue’s cultivation base wasn’t bad, but she hadn’t experienced true slaughter. She wasn’t suited to such a battle.

This battle was something only those on the Xiantian level had the qualifications to participate in. So the majority of the Mo family’s disciples were all left within Mo Gate.

Seeing these people go straight out of the city, the city’s hidden spectators were all shocked.

“So Mo Yi was actually really alive this entire time. Heavens, that’s an expert that reached the peak of Sea Expansion a millennia ago. This time there really will be a show to watch,” exclaimed one of them.

In the past few centuries, Mo Yi had never revealed himself outside Mo Gate. Everything in Mo Gate had been handed over to Mo Yunshan to handle. Later, people had assumed he was no longer present.

There were also people who had intentionally fanned the flames to say that he was gone. That had brought on a huge controversy.

But Mo Gate had always remained silent in regards to those rumors, and no one was aware of what was true and what was false. Even without Mo Yi present, Mo Gate had still been a supreme existence above the other sects.

Now that he had appeared, it alarmed everyone. This time there really would be an unprecedented battle.

Mo Yi was leading people, and he wasn’t going fast. The spectators all hid and watched.

“Long Chen, a great battle’s about to start. Aren’t you excited?” Mo Nian suddenly laughed. He was incomparably excited, and he felt like his blood was boiling.

“I don’t feel anything.” Long Chen shook his head.

“What? Could it be you’re afraid?” asked Mo Nain.

“No. The main thing is that I’ve experienced too many battles like this. Ever since I started rising in Phoenix Cry, I killed out my own path. Despite knowing a glorious battle is about to start, even though I want to get excited, regretfully, I just can’t,” said Long Chen helplessly.

“Hahaha, this act of yours gets full points.” Mo Nian laughed disdainfully.

Long Chen bitterly smiled. He himself felt that he was acting less and less like a youngster. Back when he had left on his journey toward the Xuantian Monastery all alone, he had been filled with yearning and anticipation toward the outside world.

However, once he left Phoenix Cry, he entered an even bloodier world. In truth, he was a bit tired of these struggles.

But this was the reality. If he didn’t fight, he would die. If he didn’t kill, others would kill him. There was nothing else to do.

“Long Chen, young people should be full of energy. What is known as life and death is just a game. A game full of gambles.

“Your life and what you obtain in your life are your gambling chips. Each one of us cultivators is a gambler. We are gambling against the heavens. We are gambling against this chaotic world.

“As the stakes get higher, as they win more chips, there are many people who start to get afraid.

“There is a phrase that is circulated throughout the secular world: a barefoot person is not afraid of fighting someone with shoes^[1]. In truth, cultivation is the same.

“We have to remember, we are always barefoot gamblers. Don’t think that just because you’ve won a lot of chips that you have so much capital and can retreat.

“The rules of the heavens are just like that. Once you start gambling, you can’t leave; of course, the exception is if you manage to win the entire world, becoming this world’s master.

“Otherwise, once you decide to stop betting, the heavens will seize every chip in your hands, as well as your life!” said Mo Yi.

Long Chen’s heart shook. Mo Yi’s thoughts were very similar to his own. This was precisely a chaotic world.

He was like a gambler, and through constant work, he obtained more chips to make himself stronger.

But as he got stronger, his opponents also got stronger. The bets always became bigger, and the gambling grew fiercer and fiercer.

Once you sat down at this gambling table, you couldn’t leave. Either you won the entire world, or you lost everything you had.

Of course, this was much crueler than gambling with just chips. That was because what you were gambling with were the things most precious to you. For example, your family, your lover, your friends. Each time you lost, you lost some of them.

Most hateful of all, even if you could flip the tables and win back your chips, you wouldn’t necessarily be able to win back the chips you had originally lost.

Long Chen thought of those core disciples from the 108th monastery that had died. They had fought shoulder to shoulder with him, but in the Jiuli secret realm, they had died to Yin Wushuang’s sinister schemes.

He had then killed Yin Wushuang and Han Tianyu. In fact, he had undergone a slaughter of both the Righteous and Corrupt paths.

According to this gambling theory, he had already won. He had won resources, he had won wealth, and he had also won some new friends.

But those fallen brothers were forever gone. Each time Long Chen recalled the scene of Lu Fang-er’s death, he was filled with indescribable pain.

What he had felt for Lu Fang-er had not been a romantic love. And Lu Fang-er had always been joking when she said she was an extra for when he married Meng Qi, a so-called buy one get one free.

Although it was just a joke that they were together, Long Chen was truly unable to accept the fact that she had died just like that.

He had killed Feng Xiao-zi. He had destroyed the Wind Spirit Pavilion. But so what? Would that revive Lu Fang-er? What was lost was lost. Even if you won back your chips, they wouldn’t be your original chips. Those would be forever lost.

“The higher your accomplishments become, the more chips you’ll have. Then, because you worry about how much you’ve gained, you’ll lose the courage to gamble any more. As a result, you’ll slowly find your chips slipping out of your grasp while you stay hesitant on what to do. So if you want to win more, you have to maintain the heart of a barefoot gambler. You have to be able to take out your chips to gamble, because only this attitude will allow you to keep more chips.” Mo Yi looked at Mo Nian.

“Grandfather, I understand,” said Mo Nian.

“Your life is your own. You can bet it as you want to. The Heavenly Daos are emotionless. There are countless Daos. There are many types of gambles, many types of games. You shouldn’t care whether or not you will be the final winner or loser. What you should cherish are the emotions that you feel while you gamble. Hehe, that’s what’s truly stimulating!”

Mo Yi laughed and seemed as if he had become many years younger. His eyes shone like an obsessive gambler who had held back for millennia and finally had a chance to gamble.

“Ten years I wandered with my bow, my arrows causing heaven and earth to shake. The nine heavens, ten lands, and all the universe will revolve around me. Only I, Mo Nian, will rise to glory. Hehe, the battle today will mark the day that I, Mo Nian, begin my rise!” exclaimed Mo Nian high-spiritedly.

Obviously, in this particular situation, Mo Yi’s words had been exceptionally stirring to Mo Nian. They had allowed him to clearly see his path forward.

If even Mo Yi, the leader of the huge existence known as Mo Gate, could keep the mindset of a barefoot gambler when facing all predicaments, then in comparison, Mo Nian’s worries were as groundless as being worried the sky would fall.

“Old man, you really are wise,” praised Long Chen.

“Hehe, I’m not wise at all. Our Mo family has countless ancestral teachings, but there is one kind of teaching that is not passed down: how to keep Mo Gate alive forever.

“Isn’t that very curious? It was our Mo Gate’s ancestors that were the truly wise ones. They were the ones who said to live freely, repaying kindness and enmity. Their goal was for us to maintain our core heart.

“As for whether or not Mo Gate can continue surviving, it is not something up to man. It is up to destiny. Whether or not Mo Gate’s inheritance is cut off has nothing to do with us.

“What we need to do is to continue passing on the essence of the Mo family to our descendants. In the future, even if the Mo family is eradicated, we will still have the face to see our ancestors.

“But if we were to have our essence destroyed by this chaotic world in order to maintain our inheritance, then there would be no need for Mo Gate to exist. We’d have no way to face our ancestors.

“So Mo Nian, remember, maintaining the inheritance of Mo Gate isn’t important. What’s important is that even if you have only one breath left to you, you still have to use that breath to show your spine,” said Mo Yi.

Mo Yi had only just finished speaking when a large mass of people appeared ahead. They had arrived at the Scorched Earth Forest.

The Scorched Earth Forest was south of Qingzhou City. According to legend, a fire attribute divine beast had undergone nirvanic rebirth here in the immortal era, causing all the ground here to be scorched black.

But what was inconceivable was that this scorched ground possessed limitless life energy and had given birth to a flourishing forest.

In front of the forest was an open space. Since ancient times, this area had been a sacred battleground for decisive battles near Qingzhou City.

Over countless years, many experts and powers would choose to have their decisive battles here, battles that determined life or death.

Today, there were thousands of experts present. They were standing there, icily looking at Mo Yi’s group.

Long Chen examined them and his heart sank. There were over two thousand Xiantian experts, several times what Mo Gate had.

Of those experts, there were over two hundred that were wearing violet robes; the Yin character embroidered on their chest.

As for the remaining ones, their robes had the ‘Lin’ character on them. There were two elders with extremely powerful auras at the front, and at the same time, Long Chen noticed another familiar person: Yin Wushang.

Yin Wushang’s expression was exceedingly gloomy, killing intent surging in his eyes. He stood at the front, glaring at Long Chen with hatred.

“Mo Yi, you were actually still alive?” asked one of the elders at the front.

^[1] This expression means that someone with nothing, not even shoes, is not afraid of fighting someone else, because they have nothing to lose.

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