Chapter 857: Stubborn Resistance
"What is this sinister miasma?" Grand Elder Yun Waitian said through gritted teeth. "The Fallen Flame Demon Art of the Huai Wang Manor is already fierce and oppressive, but compared to this aura... it's like the difference between heaven and earth."
"At this point, overthinking is useless. Prepare yourselves, defend the city with all your might. If we survive today, we can think about other things. If we can't hold... none of us will have a tomorrow!" Yun Qinghong said harshly.
Yun Qinghong rarely spoke pessimistically, and had never uttered such despairing words before. Yun family's Second Elder Yun Duanshui shook his head, unwilling to believe it: "Has Xuanyuan Wentian really become this terrifying now?"
Yun Qinghong didn't answer. He gazed ahead and said coldly, "Xuanyuan Wentian, show yourself. Playing tricks will only invite ridicule."
"Heh heh heh... hahahaha!!"
Dark clouds rolled in the distance, and a low laugh rumbled like thunder overhead. Suddenly, the dark clouds swept from afar in an instant, covering most of Yao Huang City, plunging the light into sudden dimness. In particular, the areas where the Yun family and Tianxia Clan were located grew as dark as if night had suddenly fallen, and the laughter from above turned into unrestrained mania.
"Yun Qinghong, so it's you who came to greet me. Could it be that little demon empress has already tucked her tail and fled?"
Beneath the dark clouds, a figure slowly descended. Black aura swirled around him, and his eyes emitted an eerie black light. As he appeared, an indescribably chill and gloomy aura swept over everyone, making them shudder involuntarily.
Although he appeared north of Yao Huang City, his chilling aura and voice covered the entire city.
Most of Yao Huang City's inhabitants had doubted whether Xuanyuan Wentian was as powerful as Yun Qinghong thought, and also considered this whole affair ridiculously exaggerated. But as this aura descended, even those as strong as Emperor Sovereigns found themselves trembling uncontrollably, with immense fear sprouting and spreading like a plague in their hearts.
Only at this moment did they truly understand how terrifying an enemy they were about to face.
The figure emerging from the darkness caused Yun Qinghong's pupils to contract slightly... because this person's appearance was not the Xuanyuan Wentian he knew, and his aura was completely different.
"Could it be... could it really be possession!?" Tianxia Xiongtu had not only seen Xuanyuan Wentian before but had even briefly fought with him a century ago. He recognized Xuanyuan Wentian's voice, but the face before him was completely unfamiliar.
"You want to see the little demon empress? That depends on whether you have the ability!" Yun Qinghong extended his hand, pressing it against the city protection barrier before him. With Xuanyuan Wentian right before his eyes, he had, based on the descriptions of Tianxia Diyi and Xiao Yun, estimated Xuanyuan Wentian's strength to the greatest extent possible, never daring to underestimate him, and had ultimately made his current choice... but now that Xuanyuan Wentian was before him, he was shocked to discover that the enemy's terror still exceeded his expectations.
And exceeded them by far.
Moreover, the words of Xiao Yun and Tianxia Diyi earlier clearly indicated that Xuanyuan Wentian, three months ago, was only slightly stronger than the little demon empress—nothing like this overwhelming power.
He couldn't imagine how Xuanyuan Wentian had surpassed the little demon empress in strength over the past century, let alone what method he had used to achieve such an absurdly rapid increase in just three months.
"Hehehe," Xuanyuan Wentian laughed contemptuously. Before him weren't just Yun Qinghong but also hundreds of thousands of Xuan adepts, yet his gaze was full of pity: "Yun Qinghong, it seems you still have no idea what's going on. That idiot Ming Wang always praised you highly, even regarding you as his greatest obstacle. I thought you were clever, but you're just a contemptible fool, still dreaming of putting up this futile resistance. Tsk tsk tsk tsk, could it be you want me to have a little more fun?"
Yun Qinghong had never heard such an arrogant tone in his life. This arrogance wasn't deliberate but rather born of absolute power, a contempt for the entire world and all living beings.
"Xuanyuan Wentian, what exactly... do you want!?" Tianxia Xiongtu roared.
"What do I want?" Xuanyuan Wentian narrowed his eyes. "Of course, to kill those I want to kill and take what I want to take. All I've ever wanted is the Lunhui Jing. I had no interest whatsoever in your Illusion Demon Realm. Unfortunately, that little demon empress not only disobeyed but also injured my demonic body, costing me a full month to recover. What an unforgivable sin."
Xuanyuan Wentian slowly extended his hand, palm facing down, his eyes as sinister as a ghost's: "Today, I will not only tear her apart but also turn Yao Huang City into eternal ruins! Let that foolish woman know the consequence of angering me! After you descend to hell, don't forget that it was that foolish woman who sent you there!"
"You..."
"Enough nonsense with him!" Yun Qinghong said in a low voice. Now, he had no fear left: "He has completely become a madman... no, he has been a madman from the very beginning! We must stake our lives on this and defend Yao Huang City to the death!"
"With you? With this laughable barrier? Hahahahaha..." Xuanyuan Wentian laughed wildly. "Tsk, you pitiful creatures. You will be nothing but wretches your entire lives. You think mere Emperor Sovereign is the pinnacle, never knowing what true power is. What a pity, what a pity! Whether you so-called strongmen of the Illusion Demon Realm or your self-proclaimed powerful barrier—in front of me, you're nothing but a pile of fragile garbage!"
"Take a good look at what real power is!"
Black light flared on Xuanyuan Wentian's body, and a jet-black sword beam descended from the sky with a piercing screech that tore through the void, aiming straight at Yun Qinghong.
Crack!!
The black sword beam struck the city protection grand formation. Instantly, the semi-transparent barrier erupted with dense black light. At the point of impact, hundreds of tiny cracks began to spread rapidly, but the barrier didn't shatter. The sword beam dispersed under the recoil, and the fine cracks on the barrier slowly began to heal.
"Oh?" Xuanyuan Wentian's eyes slanted, clearly somewhat surprised.
But Yun Qinghong and the others were greatly shocked.
This city protection grand formation, which had been forcibly awakened by the entire Yao Huang City at great cost, had cracks formed on it by just a casual sword beam from Xuanyuan Wentian!
"Clan leader..." several elders behind Yun Qinghong began to tremble as they spoke.
"Be prepared," Yun Qinghong said coldly. "Stop harboring illusions. He is this powerful. Either we hold the line, or we die!"
"I say it again: the city protection barrier allows exit only, not entry. Do not mistakenly rush outside the barrier!"
"A mere barrier, and you think it can stop me?" Although that sword beam from Xuanyuan Wentian had been casual, it carried the power of a half-step Divine Xuan. The fact that it didn't shatter the barrier in one blow seemingly wounded his pride slightly. His killing aura surged, and his voice carried a suffocating depth.
"Soon you will see how laughable your struggle is!"
With a low growl, Xuanyuan Wentian's black mist surged. A shadow flashed, and he channeled Dark Profound Force into his right hand, grabbing at the city protection barrier.
"DEFEND THE BARRIER!!!"
At Yun Qinghong's roar, the Yun family disciples, who had been ready and waiting, shot into the sky like a flock of eagles. They released all their profound force without restraint, transforming it into sky-filling thunderbolts. Amidst hoarse, frantic shouts, they slammed their power into the barrier.
All the power they struck onto the barrier became its instantaneous defense, causing the city protection barrier to glow a bright purple like Purple Crystal.
Boom!!!
Xuanyuan Wentian's right hand crashed into the barrier. A mass of black light exploded, and the barrier sank slightly, but it didn't break, not even a single crack appearing. Instead, a recoil force far beyond Xuanyuan Wentian's expectations struck him, throwing him back hundreds of feet.
"We... we succeeded!" Xiao Yun shouted excitedly.
"Hmph..." Xuanyuan Wentian, thrown back, suddenly raised his head. His black-glowing eyes locked onto the barrier he had previously dismissed entirely. "A defensive barrier that can concentrate internal profound force? The small Illusion Demon Realm actually has such a thing!"
"Hmph! This is the crystallization of the wisdom and power of my Illusion Demon ancestors, and now it also embodies the strength and will of all of us," Yun Qinghong said coldly. "There's no way a raving lunatic like you can break through it."
"Oh, is that so?" Xuanyuan Wentian revealed a dangerously sinister smile. "My power has long exceeded the limits of this world. There is nothing in this world that can stop me, let alone a mere barrier!!"
Xuanyuan Wentian waved his hands. The black mist behind him roiled and then transformed into dozens of dark tentacles, all converging to strike the barrier before Yun Qinghong.
Yun Qinghong's Purple Cloud Art had already been pushed to its limit. Both his palms had turned deep purple, and he slammed them directly against the barrier to meet Xuanyuan Wentian's dark force. The Yun family elders and disciples followed Yun Qinghong's lead, shouting loudly as they blasted their power into the barrier.
The most exquisite aspect of Yao Huang City's city protection grand formation was its ability to absorb and concentrate the profound force within the formation and convert it into defensive power. The grand formation was divided into eight formation domains. Any force that struck it within the formation would be converted into defensive profound force for that domain, and the conversion rate was extremely high.
This city protection grand formation had existed for thousands of years but was being genuinely used for the first time. Its strength brought everyone surprise and hope.
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang...
Like meteorites crashing, the booming was deafening. Xuanyuan Wentian's power was terrifying, but the purple barrier held firm, showing no sign of being breached. Occasionally, cracks appeared, but they vanished immediately.
Although the Yun family was powerful, facing Xuanyuan Wentian, who had half a foot in the Divine Path, even if all Yun family elders and disciples joined forces, they would only end up being annihilated.
However, the defensive power formed by concentrating everyone's profound force together was something even Xuanyuan Wentian couldn't easily break through!
Seeing the barrier still intact under his assault, the black light in Xuanyuan Wentian's pupils turned somewhat savage. His eyes widened as he let out a low roar, summoning thousands of black sword beams across the sky.
"Futile struggle... all of you, die!!"
The thousands of sword beams rained down like apocalyptic downpour.
"DEFEND WITH ALL YOUR MIGHT!!" Yun Qinghong's Purple Cloud Art, already at its peak, somehow pushed even higher, and he roared, "BROTHER TIANXIA!!"
Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch...
The black sword beams stabbed viciously into the purple barrier like hellish blades. Even with the barrier between them, all Yun family disciples still felt an unprecedented pressure of death. Their eyes turned bloodshot as they crazily launched their Purple Cloud Art, desperately sustaining the barrier that would decide the fate of Yao Huang City.
Crack, crack...
But under the storm of dark sword beams, the barrier's purple light began to scatter layer by layer, emitting harsh screeches. Cracks appeared and gradually spread.
Just then, with a roar from Tianxia Xiongtu, the Tianxia Clan, which had been holding back, also leaped into the air. Tens of thousands of pale green profound lights shimmered gently.
Clang!!
The purple city protection barrier suddenly emitted a green radiance. Under the fusion of deep purple and emerald green, the cracks on the barrier rapidly disappeared. The dark sword beams continued to fall wildly but could no longer damage the barrier in the slightest.