72: Tell me to praise Zhou Tianzun

Outside Jiangzhou, dawn breaks.

On the ground, a group of Cultivators were tied up and collapsed on the ground. Not far away, a blood-colored meat egg floated silently, without any movement.

Zhou Yan stood in the center of the crowd, his voice clear and resonant, piercing through the morning mist.

"Everyone, your cultivation power is stagnant, and you must have sensed the abnormality in your Dantian. Do not waste effort trying to circulate your energy; your power has been sealed by me."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the panicked Faces of the crowd.

"However, I am a kind-hearted person, and I cannot bear to see others suffer. I can give you a chance, which is to choose to submit to me."

As his voice fell, the crowd finally recovered from the panic of being instantly tied up.

"No need to rush, consider it slowly. A true choice should not be made in panic."

"The world always says that I, Zhou Yan, act eccentrically, but they do not know that I cherish talent above all else."

"You have Cultivated for decades, trapped by resources, stuck at the Bottleneck of your Aptitude, working hard day and night, just wanting to take another step forward and touch the edge of the immortal path."

"But look at yourselves now. With your cultivation power sealed, you are as panicked as stray dogs. Is this the Dao you have spent half your lives pursuing?"

"I never force 'allegiance', I only speak of 'win-win'. If you are willing to walk with me, I will immediately lift the restrictions and even teach you a 'Supreme Cultivation Technique'."

"That is a method that can broaden your immortal path and make your Realm advance by leaps and bounds. It is an Opportunity you were never qualified to even hear about in the past."

"No need to kneel, no need to swear an oath, just nod and agree."

"From now on, you will no longer be weak Cultivators living under others' thumbs, but fellow travelers who will tread upon the Nine Heavens and control the universe with me."

"The Breakthrough, honor, and the confidence to look down upon all living beings that you crave, I can give you all."

The tone of his voice shifted abruptly, and Zhou Yan's tone turned a bit colder.

"As for resisting? Having your Meridians shattered, your cultivation lost, becoming a Mortal, watching your former peers step on your heads."

"Is this the ending you want?"

"Now, tell me!"

"Are you going to seize this only Opportunity and ascend to the peak of the Dao with me! Or remain trapped here, crushing half a lifetime of your own Cultivation with your own hands?"

The people present looked at each other. They were not tough bones to begin with; if they hadn't been afraid that Zhou Yan would kill them all, they wouldn't have been forced to resist.

Now seeing that Zhou Yan not only wouldn't kill them but also gave them a choice, they all started to consider their options.

Zhou Yan was young but already at Foundation Establishment, possessed Magic Treasures, and had abundant resources. Following him might actually yield benefits; even without talking about these, at least they could keep their cultivation.

"I am willing to pledge allegiance to Lord Zhou!"

Before the first person who spoke could finish his sentence, the ropes on his body snapped, and a brand-new aura spread out. He shouted excitedly.

"It… it's actually real! I've become a Single Spiritual Root!" The man was ecstatic, almost dancing with joy.

This scene shocked the others, and they immediately shouted one after another.

"Lord Zhou—no, Heavenly Venerable Zhou!"

"Lord Tianzun has immense Divine Ability, unheard of! We are willing to die for you!"

Several more people had their ropes untied. They truly felt the changes in their Spiritual Root improvement. That unprecedented sense of clarity meant that there was finally hope for further progress on the immortal path.

The instinct to survive and the desire for a Breakthrough spread through the crowd. Some even struggled to kowtow while still tied up.

"Merciful Lord Tianzun! It was our hearts that were clouded by greed, daring to intercept an immortal like you."

"And you not only spared us but also bestowed upon us an immortal Opportunity; you are truly too great!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the ropes on his body also snapped, and his Spiritual Root was likewise improved.

More and more people chose to pledge allegiance, rejoicing. Not long after, only one person remained tied on the ground, and that was Ah Da.

Zhou Yan walked up to Ah Da and asked.

"Do you not want to live?"

Ah Da's mask had already been removed. He looked haggard, clearly having damaged his Foundation by burning his blood essence earlier.

He just looked at Zhou Yan, silent, without answering.

"You are quite loyal; I admire that," Zhou Yan said calmly.

"I don't need you to do anything; just say from your heart that you are willing to pledge allegiance to me, and then tell me one piece of information, and I will let you go."

"Whether to drag your damaged body back to Li Zhe or follow me to advance further, you can think about it slowly after you go back."

"You should understand that although I cherish talent and don't want to see you lose your cultivation and become a Mortal for nothing."

"But with my Foundation Establishment cultivation, talking this much to a Qi Refining junior like you is already giving you plenty of Face. I only want two sentences from you, that's not too much, right?"

Ah Da's underlings, who had already chosen to follow Zhou Yan, also chimed in one after another, starting to persuade Ah Da.

After listening, Ah Da turned even paler and finally let out a long sigh.

"If I pledge allegiance, will you really let me go?"

"Yes," Zhou Yan said firmly.

Ah Da looked at him, seemingly deciding to trust him once.

"Sigh... I, Ah Da, am willing to follow you."

Zhou Yan saw his reluctance but didn't care, going straight to the point.

"Where did you get this Silver Edge?"

Ah Da looked at the Silver Edge, which had already had its mark erased, and a flash of heartache crossed his eyes.

"I exchanged it from the Lianxing Pavilion using contribution points."

Zhou Yan nodded and asked again: "Do you know the 'Flying Immortal Art'?"

"What is the 'Flying Immortal Art'?"

Zhou Yan shook his head and didn't ask further, feeling a bit disappointed inside.

Finally, he looked at the blood egg and changed the "Time Stop" enveloping it to "Time Acceleration".

"Bang!"

In just a few seconds, the blood egg suddenly shattered. The original old man had actually turned into a middle-aged man. He was covered in blue and purple, with fleshy wings growing from his ribs, looking just like a giant bat.

【Zeng Ze】

【Rank: Foundation Establishment Initial Stage (Pseudo)】

【Health: 8000 / 8000】

"Kid, prepare to die... huh?" The newly hatched Zeng Ze had reached Pseudo Foundation Establishment and was about to display his Divine Might, but he noticed the strange atmosphere.

Why had everyone stood on the opposite side?

Before he could recover, Zhou Yan signaled behind him. The leader of the Masked Men, who had surrendered first, immediately understood and turned to shout at the crowd.

"Say it with me, praise Heavenly Venerable Zhou!"

After giving the instruction, he turned to Zhou Yan and nodded, then led everyone to shout in unison.

"Praise Heavenly Venerable Zhou!"

"Praise Heavenly Venerable Zhou!!"

"Praise Heavenly Venerable Zhou!!!"

Some people even started retching while shouting because they were shouting too hard.

Zeng Ze was completely stunned.

Did I accidentally eat the drunken immortal mushroom again?

No wonder the Garrison Commander suddenly found me and said there was some Foundation Establishment Opportunity.

After arriving, I heard there were Magic Treasures and Spirit Stones, and even flood dragon eggs and Enlightenment Foundation Establishment appeared.

Right! It must be that I ate the drunken immortal mushroom!

A moment later, the leader of the Masked Men explained the situation to Zeng Ze.

As soon as Zeng Ze heard that Zhou Yan could cleanse Spiritual Roots and improve Aptitude, he was immediately tempted. He had been stuck before Foundation Establishment for a long time precisely because his Aptitude was insufficient.

Zeng Ze originally had five Spiritual Roots. Although he was lucky enough to reach Qi Refining Perfection, he was already old and lacked potential, unable to Break Through using ordinary foundation establishment pills. That was why he practiced secret techniques to increase his combat power, hoping to join the Night Roaming Ruins to seek an Opportunity.

Now that he didn't have to take risks and could also improve his Aptitude and successfully reach Foundation Establishment, why not?

"Zeng Ze is willing to pledge his life to serve Lord Tianzun!"

【Ding, detectable recruitable Family member "Zeng Ze", recruit?】

【Ding, acquired Family member "Zeng Ze"】

"Ha... Hahahaha—!"

Zhou Yan suddenly burst into loud laughter, the laughter filled with a bit of cunning, and the more he laughed, the less he looked like a "good person".

"Lord Tianzun, what is this... is there some happy event? Uh! My... my cultivation!"

Zeng Ze just wanted to remind him about his Aptitude improvement, but suddenly discovered that his cultivation was completely lost, and his Spiritual Root had been forcibly stripped away.

Although his perception was blurred, he clearly realized.

The Spiritual Root, it was gone!

"Uh! Lord Tianzun, what is going on!"

"It's you! You stole our Aptitude! You devil! Give it back to us!"

"Lord Tianzun, stop! We swore an oath to pledge allegiance to you!"

"You... didn't you promise to let me go?"

Wails, anger, and confusion erupted in the crowd.

Zhou Yan stopped laughing, turned back to look at them, his tone carrying a bit of mockery.

"You believe whatever I say? Aren't you just pure fools?"

"You can't even act as a hype squad, wasting my acting skills. To be a villain to your extent, what a failure."

He opened the System panel, confirmed that the Spiritual Roots of all the new "Family members" had been extracted, without any omissions, and only then took out the golden bow.

In the morning light, Zhou Yan held the golden bow, his eyes shining brightly. It should have been an air of an immortal, but in the eyes of the crowd at this moment, he was like a devil claiming lives.

"Although the sun has already risen, it might be a bit late to say this now."

Zhou Yan paused, the corners of his mouth curling into a cold sneer.

"However."

"Sweet dreams, everyone."