Chapter Sixty-One: The World Declares War on Jiang

As soon as the words fell, everyone was stunned.

"Brother Jiang, what do you mean?" Yan Feng frowned. "Beyond the heavens? Are you saying you're not from this world?"

In fact, she had always been curious about Jiang Ming's origins, had investigated, but found nothing.

"You once mentioned at Blackwind Fortress that you came from beyond the heavens," Lu Yuan recalled, his expression strange. "You said you wanted to see what lay beyond the Grandmaster realm, to witness the world outside. It seems you already knew there were realms beyond Grandmaster, and that worlds existed outside ours. Is your rapid growth due to your origins from beyond? What exactly is 'beyond the heavens'? Is it the Immortal Realm, or a world like ours?"

A barrage of questions left the crowd bewildered.

"A grain of sand contains a world; the number of worlds is like the stars in the sky," Jiang Ming explained simply. "Beyond Grandmaster, there are even more profound realms. Some experts can pluck stars and moons, carve out new worlds."

"So many worlds, like stars?"

"Mighty ones plucking stars and moons?"

"Creating worlds?"

The crowd was utterly shocked.

For a long time, they could not recover; these revelations shattered their established beliefs, overturning all common sense.

Jiang Ming also knew that in this world, no one from outside had ever arrived before—he had checked ancient records himself, and asked Bai Yunfei and others if their sects had any accounts of invasions by foreign demons.

There was none.

He was convinced that he was the first arrival from beyond.

"Brother Jiang, when we first met, your strength was only at the Master level. How did you arrive in our world?" Lu Yuan seized the key point.

"I come from a vast world, which in your terms, is a place where immortals and gods exist. I’m a member of a great power, and coming here was a kind of trial," Jiang Ming offered a simple analogy.

"Immortals and gods? Can those behind you traverse worlds?" Lu Yuan was astounded.

The others were equally shaken.

Yan Feng suddenly understood why Jiang Ming had promised to help her suppress the imperial court, why he had provided so many strategies for ruling the country.

Jiang Ming nodded, not elaborating further, just briefly explaining a few things.

Time drifted by in their shock.

Suddenly, Jiang Ming’s gaze sharpened. Before his eyes, a curtain of light appeared with lines of text: You have been in this world for two years. Now, you will be rejected by the world’s will. Martial artists above the innate level will be guided by fate, realizing an otherworldly demon has arrived. Killing the demon will earn the favor of Heaven and Earth, allowing easy breakthroughs.

You have fulfilled the necessary conditions; you may leave at any time.

You can stay in this world for at most one more year. If you do not leave, you will be forcibly expelled by the world’s will.

“There’s even a prompt!” Jiang Ming was a little surprised.

But at that moment, he noticed everyone around him stiffen, and their gazes toward him grew stranger.

“Master, I received a sense from fate. In our world, an otherworldly demon has arrived. After purging evil, great fortune and destiny will descend, and breaking through will be effortless.” Xiao Lan moved next to him, clutching his arm, speaking first. “I sense the demon is in the palace. Master, is it you? No matter who it is, you are my master, always and forever!”

“Brother Jiang, did you summon us for this?” Yan Feng smiled, then grew serious. “Anyone who opposes you opposes me, opposes the entire Yan Empire. Fate? Heaven’s will? If Heaven has a will, what does that make us?”

“Heaven’s will is like a blade.” Wang Invincible lifted his head, frowning. “If Heaven and Earth have consciousness and thought, what does that make us?”

“Heaven’s will, otherworldly demons, immortals, realms beyond Grandmaster…” Lu Yuan scratched his head. “Brother Jiang, will you take care of the wine in the future?”

“Haha, I will!”

“As long as there’s wine, all is well!”

Their questions and answers made their stance clear.

“To oppose Brother Jiang is to oppose the Six Gates!” Commander Jin’s sword intent erupted, killing intent blazing.

“I will always be a guest official of the Yan Empire!” Chen Yu declared.

“I’m a guest official now too!” Wang Invincible added.

Bai Yunfei and others exchanged glances. They truly dared not declare their allegiance.

“Brother Jiang, do you know why this is happening? Why did you know in advance?” Lu Yuan pressed on, voicing everyone’s confusion.

“Perhaps the world has consciousness, perhaps it doesn’t. But there are certainly rules,” Jiang Ming explained simply. “I am not native to this world. The longer I stay, the more the rules reject me. Because my power is strong, I could suppress the rejection for two years, giving me a grace period. Now, the suppression fades, and the world’s defense mechanism activates against me, the outsider.”

This was his understanding.

“What will happen next?” Xiao Lan was anxious, clutching Jiang Ming’s arm tightly. To her, he was everything.

“No matter what happens, I will give you all an answer.”

Jiang Ming looked up at the sky.

In truth, since he reached the Grandmaster realm, he had begun to suspect this. As his strength grew, the restraints intensified, and his conviction deepened.

But now was not the time to test it.

“Brother Bai, Brother He, return to your sects and relay what I’ve said today.” Jiang Ming looked at the talented disciples. “If you wish to eradicate this otherworldly demon, come alone or united. But remember, do not target those at my side, or else… heh.”

“In the near future, armies will surely come to crusade against me. I will face a world of enemies. If your sects wish to stay out of it, remember not to join. Once you join, you are my enemy.”

“You know how I treat enemies.”

His words made their faces change again.

Bai Yunfei stood and cupped his hands. “Brother Jiang, no matter what, I could never…” He paused, forced a bitter smile.

If his sect joined,

If his senior brother was slain,

If his master was cut down,

What would he do?

Not become an enemy? Any promise would be meaningless.

“I’ll try to persuade my sect!” Bai Yunfei saluted and left.

He Qianshan and the others also took their leave.

“Brother Jiang, I’ll mobilize the army now!” Yan Feng turned to go, but Jiang Ming stopped her, smiling. “Let them all jump out. Then I can give you, give all of you, an era of peace.”

A simple sentence sent chills down Lu Yuan and the others’ spines.

For a moment, they seemed to see mountains of corpses and rivers of blood.

“What about afterwards?” Commander Jin’s eyes misted. “Can you take me with you?”

“And me!” Xiao Lan trembled.

“When the court is stable, I wish to see your world as well.” Yan Feng’s gaze was gentle.

“I’ll give you all an answer,” Jiang Ming said.

True Martial Sect.

“Otherworldly demon, Heaven’s will?” At the cliff’s edge, Elder Zhang looked up. “If Heaven has a will, is our fate already decided? Are we just birds in a cage? Purge evil, gain Heaven’s favor—heh, all I see are Heaven’s shackles. No future, no path, trapped at Grandmaster.”

“Master!” The middle-aged man beside him spoke softly. “It is Heaven’s will. If you purge the demon, you’ll gain Heaven’s favor and surely break through.”

“According to the guidance, the demon is in the imperial capital. It can only be Jiang Ming.” Elder Zhang said calmly. “Heaven’s path is shackles, cutting off the road ahead. But Brother Jiang is broad-minded and ambitious, sharing all his techniques, even developing the Nine Yin Nine Yang. Some methods astonish even me. He wants martial arts to flourish, to gather wisdom from all, and carve out new paths. Yet now, Heaven seeks to strike him. Heaven—what nonsense!”

“But he has killed too many. Dalin Temple was wiped out.”

“He shouldn’t have killed? Shouldn’t have destroyed? Tai Xu, you’ve been stuck on the mountain too long; your vision and spirit are lacking.”

Soon after,

The martial world surged, the nation roiled. All proclaimed Jiang Ming as the otherworldly demon, seeking to destroy the world, shatter the universe.

Pure Yang Sect, Divine Fist Gate, Divine Sword Manor, the remnants of Demon Sect, Cold Moon Palace—all joined forces.

The hidden royal relatives rallied, armies gathered.

North Barbarian lands mobilized five hundred thousand troops.

The world was shaken, converging on the imperial capital.

All under heaven crusade against Jiang Ming!