Chapter 420: The Final Echo in the Darkness
The Great Ruins in the darkness were both quiet and lively. Quiet for those without strength, hiding in villages and ruins; but for those with sufficient power, the night in the Great Ruins was extraordinarily lively.
Walking through the dark Great Ruins, one could witness all kinds of bizarre sights and encounter countless unfathomable events. If fortunate, one might even enter strange worlds—though whether one could return alive was another matter entirely.
That night, the Great Ruins were exceptionally enchanting. The blizzard had just stopped, and in places with light, one could see thick snow clumps hanging from branches and leaves, a silvery white world.
Suddenly, the sky became incredibly bright. Many creatures in the Great Ruins looked up, seeing the dark sky suddenly filled with vivid colors.
These colors were not normal light, but the radiance of magnificent divine abilities erupting, clusters of them illuminating the darkness.
The darkness seemed almost tangible. Though forced back by these lights, it surged forward again each time, filling the empty spaces.
The lights shifted, growing stranger. The creatures of the Great Ruins saw stars moving at tremendous speed, chasing and battling each other across the sky.
The movement of the celestial stars was peculiar. Ahead were eighteen stars, behind were two. The leading stars fled while the two trailing stars harassed them from behind.
Whenever the eighteen stars halted, preparing to encircle, the two stars would flee westward. If the eighteen didn't pursue, the two would chase after them again, continuing their harassment. When the eighteen gave chase, the two would flee with all their might.
This pattern repeated, the eighteen stars held back, unable to truly accelerate.
Beside a campfire in the ruins below, the Guardian Elder looked up at this scene, a glimmer of hope rising in his heart. The Demon Heavenly Venerable and Daoist Lingjing were stalling the gods of the heavens, avoiding direct confrontation. If they kept this up, there might still be a chance of survival.
Suddenly, stars in the sky dimmed one by one, fading from the celestial canopy.
The Guardian Elder's heart sank. The gods of the heavens had hidden their traces, luring the Demon Heavenly Venerable and Daoist Lingjing to seek them out. If they took the bait, they would fall into an encirclement.
"Don't go..."
The Guardian Elder tensed, clutching his collar as if gripping his own heart, staring fixedly at the two moving stars in the sky.
"Don't approach, don't approach! Run—"
The two stars hesitated in their movement, then suddenly dimmed as well, emitting no light at all.
The sky turned pitch black again. All had hidden their traces.
The Guardian Elder's eyelids twitched, his heart pounding, each beat more violent than the last, tense beyond measure.
Everyone was hiding their traces, groping and searching in the darkness. This was the most dangerous moment. The Demon Heavenly Venerable and Daoist Lingjing's patience couldn't match their opponents'. The enemy could wait or leave, but the two couldn't afford to wait too long—they had to confirm whether the enemy had departed!
Finally, a single star lit up, only one emitting light.
The next moment, the sky erupted. All kinds of bizarre divine abilities burst forth, engulfing that star—flying dragons and phoenixes, bell towers and cauldrons, strange shapes, dazzling to behold.
The power of these abilities exploded, adding more color to the dark sky. The surrounding darkness was driven away, revealing eighteen majestic divine figures in the air, their faces either sacred or ferocious, their powerful limbs illuminated by the light of divine abilities, revealing various runic patterns.
Caught in their encirclement was Daoist Lingjing. The Demon Heavenly Venerable was not among them.
"Daoist Lingjing is the bait!"
The Guardian Elder's heart shook violently. As bait, Daoist Lingjing was surely doomed. No one could survive the siege of eighteen divine beings.
Daoist Lingjing's purpose was to sacrifice himself to lure out the eighteen gods of the heavens!
The eighteen gods were drawn out to give the Demon Heavenly Venerable a chance to strike them by surprise!
Daoist Lingjing was extremely powerful, a dominant figure in his era, once daring to contend with the Village Chief for the title of number one under heaven, though he lost and forfeited a finger.
But when it came to ambush skills, he was lacking.
The Demon Sect's teleportation robes and flags were the best tools for ambush. By luring out the eighteen gods, the Demon Heavenly Venerable could strike from behind, potentially gravely wounding them!
"Lingjing Eight Techniques!"
A stirring cry echoed through the sky, shaking hearts: "From this day, silenced forever!"
The Guardian Elder looked up and saw Daoist Lingjing's final moments. His Lingjing Eight Techniques were no less than the Village Chief's Sword Diagram, but against the assault of eighteen gods, it was futile.
He simply unleashed his proudest ultimate technique, like a painter freely splashing ink to display his talent, like a scholar pouring all his skill into writing an essay. He wanted to leave his mark on this world, his shadow.
At the same time, a great banner unfurled. The Demon Heavenly Venerable's figure appeared behind the divine beings, striking at them with lethal intent.
The banner swept, his form seeming to appear beside every god simultaneously, attacking all at once. In an instant, he wounded over a dozen divine beings.
Thunder roared in the sky. By the time the sound of divine abilities reached them, countless attacks had already been exchanged. The fluctuations of divine power made the air alternately warm and bitterly cold. Gale winds blew down from above, melting snow and ice, then freezing the world again.
The Demon Heavenly Venerable's teleportation flag was shattered, destroyed in the terrifying fluctuations of divine power. He still had his teleportation robe.
The Guardian Elder looked up. Blood rain fell from the sky, pattering down, gradually intensifying.
Of the twenty moving stars in the sky, one dimmed. It wavered, then in a violent collision, the star went out and fell from the sky.
Daoist Lingjing was dead.
The Guardian Elder was despondent. Only the Demon Heavenly Venerable remained, still fighting. Even with his mastery of the seven creation chapters of the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture, he couldn't change the outcome.
In the ruins, the Guardian Elder didn't look up at the battle above. Instead, he stared blankly at the campfire, mechanically adding wood to the flames.
The fire grew higher, the blaze larger, but he felt nothing.
"Why is this winter so cold..."
He shivered, adding wood without awareness: "What's wrong with this fire? No matter how I burn it, it's so cold. No matter how much wood I add, it's still so cold..."
In the sky, another star dimmed. Suddenly, it burst forth again, so brilliant it lit up the heavens.
"Creation gathers divine beauty, Yin and Yang cleave dusk and dawn!"
A cry that split the darkness rang out, so stirring and shocking.
Dong—
The distant sound of a bell came from the sky, spreading in all directions. Then the bell's tone grew hoarse. Creation gathering divine beauty had become a final echo.
The sky's light gradually faded. After the burst, darkness slowly seeped back in.
Finally, this star fell.
The Guardian Elder bowed his head, saying nothing more.
He waited for dawn, to collect the bodies of the two old men.
In the sky, the eighteen stars paused for a moment, then headed east.
Great Ruins, God-Breaking Mountain Range.
On the snowy peak, the mountain range was sharp as a blade, covered in white snow. In the sky, dragons were rapidly approaching.
The wind was strong, blowing the whiskers and manes of these dragons backward.
Beside Qin Mu, Si Yunxiang was using her Heart-View Mirror to contact the Young Patriarch. The Demon Sect's Saintess stared blankly, then suddenly said to Qin Mu, "The Patriarch says he won't come back. He says you don't need to think of him."
Qin Mu was stunned. Granny Si turned away, quietly wiping her eyes.
"This old fellow left before us."
The Village Chief sighed, "He was always impatient."
Ahead, the God-Breaking Mountain Range drew closer. Beyond it lay the darkness-shrouded Great Ruins.
There, streaks of starlight moved across the sky, approaching.
"Mu'er, stop on the mountain!" the Village Chief suddenly said.
At Qin Mu's command, the dragons slowed, their claws gripping the blade-like mountain ridges, halting. Their manes flew, their bodies agile, crushing the Xuanji Crossbows on the mountain.
The snow was white, the mountain black. The dragons were some white, some black, others red, sapphire blue, and various colors. Their bodies emitted precious light—the natural runic patterns of the dragon race flowing and glowing, casting the snow in other hues.
"This battle will be here."
The Village Chief looked around, asking, "What do you all think of this place?"
King Kun surveyed the area, saying, "Good, just a bit cold."
Tu Xingfeng jumped off the dragon's back, tightening his clothes, muttering, "This damned place, still so cold. Underground is warmer. Qin Renhuang, if you visit our Earthwalker clan's underground world, your eyes will be opened. Our underground world is full of jade colored glaze, with thick crystals hanging from the cavern ceiling—six-sided, eight-sided, clustered together like flowers. The light of magma shines on them, beautiful. There are also plants growing in the magma, delicious, like fiery wine going down, burning the throat but leaving a long aftertaste..."
"Stop it."
Xuan Shengwu's shoulder-dwelling Teng Snake swallowed hard, saying, "You're making me hungry."
Tu Xingfeng looked up at the rapidly approaching stars, gripping his horned great hammer, murmuring, "I wonder if I'll ever get back underground for another bite. Our underground world also has Fire Raging Fruits, born of geomagnetic power. The taste..."
The Village Chief looked at Qin Mu, saying, "Mu'er, take these dragons and your little wife down the mountain. Your part here is done. Remember to come collect the bodies tomorrow."
Qin Mu nodded, calling the dragons, taking Si Yunxiang, Hu Ling'er, and Yan Jingjing down the mountain. In the sky, the stars drew nearer.
"Are we just going to watch them fight and die for Yan'gang?"
Si Yunxiang was unwilling: "Can't we do something? Is there really nothing we can do?"
"We can go to the Great Ruins!"
Qin Mu's eyes flickered, saying, "We can find the Sun Boat and Moon Boat! The only problem now is this darkness blocking the way! But we still have a big bodyguard. Where is the Yongjiang Dragon King?"
"The Dragon King is here!"
Beneath the God-Breaking Mountain Range, the river churned. In the darkness, a giant dragon rose from the water, coiling on the river's surface, lowering its massive head: "What are your orders, my lord?"
— Xuzhou blizzard. Zhai Zhu is on a high-speed train from Xuzhou to Changsha, participating in VCR filming. Now trapped on the train by the blizzard for two full hours, I took the chance to write this chapter and upload it for everyone. The train is two hours late with no sign of starting. Please vote for monthly tickets! During the double monthly ticket period, if you have tickets, vote quickly!