Chapter 737: 305. Not having signing luck might also be deadly (Chapter combining two into one)_3

Apart from its limited coverage and inability to capture sound, another issue was its poor penetration when faced with actual physical obstructions like mountains and oceans.

It could be used to observe formidable beings from the Ninth Heavenly Layer, such as Chu Xiuyuan and Ye Yan.

However, it was best if the target was preoccupied, with their focus on a Heavenly Principle expert opposite them.

If used during leisure time, the Great Celestial Mirror’s intense scrutiny of a Ninth Heavenly Layer expert could still risk detection.

This was especially true for Martial Tao experts or cultivators renowned for their extremely keen perception and sensory abilities.

If a Ninth Heavenly Layer expert was particularly adept at concealing their tracks and deliberately hid, the Great Celestial Mirror would also have difficulty finding them.

These are all areas for future improvement... Lei Jun silently noted.

If combined with Lei Jun’s own Heaven-piercing Earth-penetrating Taliscript or Heaven’s Sight Earth’s Hearing Talisman, one could obtain clearer and more discreet visuals and sounds from a greater distance.

Lei Jun had previously scattered some Heaven’s Sight Earth’s Hearing Talismans.

Most had drifted with the waves or were even damaged by chaotic Spiritual Energy; only a few remained.

He now connected these scattered Heaven’s Sight Earth’s Hearing Talismans through the Great Celestial Mirror.

Some Spirit Talismans had no one around them.

Around others, people were active within a certain range.

Their voices now intermittently reached Lei Jun’s ears:

"To the north of Daheng Island in the west, a large number of False Ming rebels are resisting stubbornly! Assemble quickly to eliminate them!"

Lei Jun turned the light of the Great Celestial Mirror in that direction and indeed saw a rarely seen, large-scale battle unfolding on a stretch of the sea.

A considerable number of Heavenly Order cultivators had not dispersed but were holding their ground in groups.

Therefore, they attracted a large number of Great Tang Cultivators to carry out the final siege and elimination.

Lei Jun glanced over and saw that most of them were Martial Arts Practitioners and Confucian Scholars from the Confucian Divine Archery Lineage.

From what he remembered, they had served as the vanguard, charging ahead.

Among them, an armored general with Upper Three Heavens cultivation looked familiar to Lei Jun—it seemed to be Qin Wu, whom he had seen before.

Contrary to the humility he had shown before Gu Hai, this Martial Tao master from the Soldier Attack Lineage was currently trapped in a heavy encirclement but fought fiercely, leading his soldiers in staunch resistance.

His martial path differed from that of the Great Tang Warriors. He did not advance and retreat like lightning but instead adopted a more steady and secure approach, prioritizing the stabilization of his own defenses first.

He appeared more like a Zen Martial Arts practitioner from the Buddhist Sect or a cultivator from the Taoist Dan Ding faction.

Lei Jun observed briefly and realized this was not because Qin Wu had to maintain the overall formation.

His Great Ming soldiers, whether in Body Refinement or weapon handling, shared a martial path similar to his, suggesting a collective style.

Different histories and different eras had ultimately led to various evolutions and developments. Apart from the newly risen Confucian Rationalism, other Taoist Inheritances from the Mortal World of that particular domain had also diverged.

And now, in the current era, the Great Ming’s Martial Tao appeared as rigid and orderly as Confucian Rationalism. It seemed that all their cultivators were either taught by the same master or at least hailed from the same school.

There had been changes and developments, but they were becoming increasingly fixed. New variations occasionally appeared, continuing to delve deeper vertically and hardly concerning themselves with breadth anymore.

At that moment, the uniformity of the Heavenly Principle’s soldiers was quite impressive in such a large-scale battle.

But these remnants were isolated, without internal or external support, and their outcome was already determined.

Indeed, because Qin Wu and his group were a larger target, they attracted the Tang Army to dispatch troops for their suppression. This, in turn, enabled other, more scattered Heavenly Order cultivators to escape.

On the Great Tang side, Lei Jun saw the Royal Family Commandery Princess Zhang Ziyin, who had previously been with Chu Yu.

Zhang Ziyin began to persuade Qin Wu and the others to surrender.

Those Ming Army officers began to waver.

Lei Jun listened for a bit and learned that their stand was not voluntary, intended to draw the attention of the Great Tang Cultivators; they had been abandoned by Shangguan.

The latter had not joined forces with them to break out as promised but had instead used them as sacrificial pawns to attract the Tang Army.

... Lei Jun was speechless.

Zhang Ziyin’s efforts to persuade them were not going smoothly.

The minds of those Heavenly Order cultivators were divided.

Some resented Shangguan.

Some shared thoughts similar to Nie Fang’s; since this was another Mortal World where, in the truest sense, "heaven is high and the emperor is far away," their minds grew restless with ambition.

Yet others remained unwaveringly loyal to the Heavenly Principle’s Ming Emperor, glaring at those who showed an inclination to surrender.

And some were concerned about family members still under Heavenly Principle rule.

The collective will to stand together in a do-or-die defense had completely shattered and crumbled.

Regardless of their individual choices, nothing would alter the final outcome of this battle.

Lei Jun shook his head slightly and moved the Great Celestial Mirror away.

He then scanned other areas.

As his view shifted, Lei Jun suddenly felt a stir in his heart, almost thinking he had seen incorrectly.

The light from the Great Celestial Mirror quietly shifted, returning to its previous position.

A figure, hidden in a particularly secretive place, came into Lei Jun’s view.

It was a young-looking monk with handsome features, wearing a black kasaya, his eyes sharp and defiant.

Although Lei Jun had not met this person face to face, he was well acquainted with his portrait.

It was none other than the young Abbot of the Great Void Temple, Yuanmie.

Nearly ten years ago, full of youthful vigor, he had gone to challenge the Vajra Temple’s gates.

The outcome was harsh: Sumi returned, and Jiasheng Upper Master, along with numerous Vajra Division experts, descended to the Mortal World. Yuanmie had truly hit a steel plate.

After this setback, before the monks of the Great Void Temple could even react, they suffered a purge led by Shangguan Yunbo and Xiao Xueting, who wielded the Expelling Invaders Halberd and the Mountain and River Sword, respectively.