Chapter 2498: Formation Heavenly Master
Bai Qinger completely absorbed the great world that had manifested after Tianxu Sha's fall into the Chaos First Opening Sacred Intent, turning it into a continent within the chaos, and her aura surged dramatically as a result.
She was slightly disappointed: "So it was only a corner of a great world. No wonder Tianxu Sha could carry it with his body. Hmm? That is?"
Her beautiful eyes pierced through the chaos.
She saw that the ten suspended Gates of Destiny had all receded, leaving only a mass of blazing flame flying toward her at an unparalleled speed, bringing an unprecedented sense of danger.
Within the flame, Wuyue Minghuang's body had burned to a red-gold color, his hair scattering as sparks, his skin cracking into golden flakes, and the sacred source in his Qi Sea releasing a destructive fluctuation that shook the entire starry sky.
This was the final brilliance of his life!
He had no choice but to choose mutual destruction with Bai Qinger, because her strength far exceeded their estimates. If no one made a sacrifice, they would all die here.
And it had to be him.
Other Supreme Realm Great Saints, even if they wanted to die together by self-destructing their sacred source, Bai Qinger would not give them the chance.
As for Xing Luo, he was the former Divine Son of the Destiny Temple and the only pillar below the divine realm within the temple. With Wuma Jiuxing, Xue Lingxian, and "Ji Fanxin" emerging one after another, Xing Luo absolutely could not die. Only he could uphold the final dignity of the Destiny Temple.
At this moment, Wuyue Minghuang's speed was no weaker than a god's, so Bai Qinger naturally could not avoid it.
Flying within a thousand miles of Bai Qinger, Wuyue Minghuang felt greatly relieved and laughed heartily: "If Yuqiu Divine Son had not died, how could the Destiny Temple be so humiliated? Enough, today, I will take your life, jade and stone perish together."
"You have some integrity, but unfortunately, even if you die today, you cannot stop me, and no one can escape."
Bai Qinger did not flee; instead, she turned into a white light and charged toward Wuyue Minghuang.
Sixty-five bronze chimes revolved around her delicate body, and chaotic qi formed a cocoon of light, like a nascent universe.
Still six hundred miles away, Bai Qinger struck out with a palm across the void.
Wuyue Minghuang also struck out a palm, its power not inferior to Bai Qinger's, and even slightly stronger.
"Boom!"
The two palms clashed, creating a bright and dazzling wave of light.
Xing Luo, holding the Heavenly Fate Halberd in one hand and the Extreme Fierce Blade in the other, looked back, his eyes showing a complex expression—grief, humiliation, ruthlessness, admiration...
"Boom!"
Immediately after, a wave of light ten times more terrifying than the previous palm clash erupted, its might overwhelming. Where it passed, space collapsed like paper.
Ten Supreme Realm Great Saints stood in the void, all solemn and dignified.
Before coming, no one had expected the enemy to be so terrifying, forcing Wuyue Minghuang to self-destruct his sacred source.
After a long silence, a Supreme Realm Great Saint with four eyes said, "Ji Fanxin's aura has disappeared! She should have perished together with Wuyue."
"Wuyue was the strongest Minghuang of the Heavenly Fate Department, the top existence below the divine realm. His self-destruction of the sacred source could threaten the life of a false god. Even if Ji Fanxin is an Eon-level genius, at such a close distance, she must have been reduced to ashes."
A Supreme Realm Great Saint with a dark moon halo behind him, named Cang Sheng, said, "Actually, Wuyue didn't have to choose to self-destruct his sacred source. If we all used secret techniques and burned our lifespan to fight, we might still have had a chance to win."
Several other Supreme Realm Great Saints nodded in agreement, feeling that Wuyue Minghuang should not have made such a hasty decision.
After all, with Wuyue Minghuang's talent and cultivation, he had a high probability of breaking through to become a god.
His self-destruction meant the Destiny Temple lost half a true god.
Xing Luo was not as optimistic as them, knowing well that if there was even a ten percent chance of escape, Wuyue Minghuang would never have chosen to self-destruct his sacred source.
If he had not seen Zhang Ruochen and Gong Nanfeng in the Seven Star Emperor Palace and realized that the Celestial Pivot Needle had likely fallen into Ji Fanxin's hands, he would not have lingered here but would have taken the ten Supreme Realm Great Saints and fled immediately.
Xing Luo ordered the ten Supreme Realm Great Saints, "You go first. I will investigate."
"Divine Son, do we need to be so cautious? Could such terrifying destructive energy not kill her?" Cang Sheng said.
He knew the reason Xing Luo wanted them to leave first—he was worried that Ji Fanxin had not died.
"The Celestial Pivot Needle must be with Ji Fanxin. It has likely fallen into the void space with her death. We must go immediately to find it."
"Indeed, once lost in the void space, it will be very hard to retrieve."
...
Xing Luo looked at the shattered space caused by Wuyue Minghuang's self-destruction, hesitating slightly.
Relying on himself alone to find the Celestial Pivot Needle in the void space was indeed too difficult. If the other ten Supreme Realm Great Saints helped, the chances of recovering the divine artifact would greatly increase.
But he feared Ji Fanxin was not dead and was hiding in the void space, waiting for them to take the bait.
Cang Sheng saw Xing Luo's concern and said, "If the Divine Son has worries, let everyone stay here first. I will go into that void space to investigate. If it is confirmed that Ji Fanxin is dead, we can all enter together. If Ji Fanxin is not dead, heh, then I will self-destruct my sacred source and see if she can withstand it again."
Everyone agreed that this was the best plan.
Suddenly, Xing Luo's whole body tensed, and he looked up.
Above their heads, a space rift dozens of feet long split open, and "Ji Fanxin," dressed in white, floated out from within. Sixty-five bronze chimes slowly revolved around her, automatically playing a high-pitched and ear-shattering battle tune.
The ten Supreme Realm Great Saints were all horrified.
She said, "No need for such trouble. Killing you requires no schemes or tricks."
Bai Qinger spread her arms, urging all the bronze chimes to fly out, forming a circle with a radius of three hundred miles.
Originally sixty-five chimes, they now produced four thousand two hundred twenty-five bell-shaped light shadows. As all the chimes rotated and operated, the number of light shadows increased, turning into seventeen million eight hundred fifty thousand.
Including Xing Luo, all the cultivators of the Destiny Temple were enveloped by the bell-shaped light shadows.
The rising and falling chime sounds entered their ears, rushing into their minds and shaking their sacred souls.
Even the Supreme Realm Great Saints, whose sacred souls had been tempered countless times and were extremely powerful, found their heads splitting with pain under the attack of the chime sounds. Their soul power was hard to gather, let alone activate their strength.
"So, she is also a Formation Heavenly Master."
Under the ghostly mask, a bitter smile appeared on Xing Luo's face.
Wuyue Minghuang had clearly bought them a chance to escape by self-destructing his sacred source. But because of his wishful thinking, he had not chosen to take the ten Supreme Realm Great Saints and flee at the first moment. Now, suffering this fate, he deserved it.
How many lucky breaks could there be in the world?
The sixty-five bronze chimes were engraved with formation inscriptions.
Bai Qinger, with her spiritual power at the sixty-ninth level and a half, mobilized an endless stream of heavenly and earthly power to activate them.
"This ancient formation is called the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation. Using it to kill you, Xing Luo, are you convinced?" Bai Qinger stood proudly, looking down at the masked Xing Luo at the center of the formation, her tone extremely calm.
"Fight!"
Xing Luo gritted his teeth, and starlight burst from his body. He directly activated a secret technique, burning his lifespan.
Only by doing this could he possibly break through the formation.
"It's useless! If you were not in the formation, you might have a chance to fight. But now, you have only one path: break through to become a god. Otherwise, you will surely die."
Bai Qinger summoned a sea of void flowers beneath her feet, her tone as if victory was assured, yet also as if deliberately trying to crush Xing Luo's confidence.
Xing Luo's state of mind remained unaffected. He swung the Extreme Fierce Blade and attacked.
Break through to become a god?
This was Bai Qinger's psychological tactic!
Breaking through to become a god required a quiet, stable, and undisturbed environment. Even under such circumstances, Xing Luo's chance of successfully breaking through was no more than fifty percent.
In the current environment, choosing to break through would surely fail, and he would die.
It was better to fight to the death; there might still be a chance.
A bronze chime flew out from the formation and collided with the Extreme Fierce Blade.
"Clang!"
A powerful sound wave echoed within the formation.
The ten Supreme Realm Great Saints had their internal organs shattered and spat out large mouthfuls of blood.
Trapped in the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation, the Supreme Realm Great Saints became like mortals, utterly powerless to resist. At this moment, they deeply regretted not fleeing at the fastest speed when Wuyue Minghuang had held off Ji Fanxin.
The fault lay in never having encountered a Supreme Realm Eon-level genius before, and not understanding the enemy's strength well enough.
Regret was too late.
...
The Seven Star Emperor Palace flew to a nearby location.
Fei Zhong stood on the steps, gazing at the battlefield, utterly stunned.
When Wuyue Minghuang self-destructed his sacred source, he immediately fled into the Seven Star Emperor Palace, relying on the palace's defensive formation to withstand the destructive aftermath. He had thought Bai Qinger was dead and was considering whether to immediately make a move against Zhang Ruochen.
How could he have expected such a situation?
"Too strong, she must be invincible below the divine realm. Once she breaks through to become a god, she will also be a powerhouse among gods." Fei Zhong was deeply shocked, gaining a new understanding of the strongest power below the divine realm.
Gong Nanfeng's eyes were vacant, like a wooden puppet, as he muttered, "It's over, completely over. The Destiny Temple will suffer an unprecedented heavy blow. This era is too monstrous; it cannot be calculated, absolutely cannot be calculated."
Zhang Ruochen stood upright, walking out of the palace gate, carefully observing the formation composed of sixty-five bronze chimes, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
Earlier, he had been paying attention to the battlefield, feeling deeply moved.
Especially Wuyue Minghuang's decisive self-destruction of his sacred source had a great impact on his heart.
Would any other cultivator choose to self-destruct unless driven to a dead end?
"Is this faith in fate, allowing them to disregard life and death?" Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly and sighed.
The reason Bai Qinger survived Wuyue Minghuang's self-destruction was not because she had truly reached a level where she could ignore him, but because when she struck the first palm, she had torn space and hidden in the void space, leaving only a false body outside.
Of course, even hiding in the void space, she could not have completely avoided death.
She relied on the world she had absorbed into the Chaos First Opening Sacred Intent to block the destructive energy. That world, belonging to Tianxu Sha, had been destroyed by Wuyue Minghuang's self-destruction, breaking into continental plates floating in the void space.
To withstand Wuyue Minghuang's self-destruction, Bai Qinger had used at least five defensive methods, revealing many of her trump cards to Zhang Ruochen.
...
Within the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation, three Supreme Realm Great Saints had already been killed.
Their Supreme Dharma Bodies were shattered, all their sacred dao rules were refined by the formation, and even their sacred souls were dispersed by the sound waves, leaving only their sacred sources floating in the void, still indestructible.
The remaining seven Supreme Realm Great Saints gradually adapted to the environment within the formation, secretly activating their internal power.
The seven stood in seven mysterious positions, forming a combined attack formation. Over ten trillion sacred dao rules flowed around them, turning into a river of rules that crashed into the southeast corner of the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation.
They had calculated that this was the weakest point of the formation.
Bai Qinger moved her finger slightly, and immediately thirteen bronze chimes in a row shot out from the formation, continuously crashing into the river of rules.
"Bang! Bang! Bang..."
When the tenth bronze chime struck, the river of rules was shattered, and the seven Supreme Realm Great Saints were sent flying in all directions.
The remaining three bronze chimes hit three Supreme Realm Great Saints respectively, smashing them into three clouds of blood mist, annihilating their divine forms.
The bronze chimes were treasures of an unknown level. Even with the vitality of Supreme Realm Great Saints, once touched, they died instantly, unable to reform their dharma bodies.
The remaining four Supreme Realm Great Saints were in utter despair, their eyes red with rage.
Xing Luo alone bore the brunt of the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation's attacks, his Supreme Dharma Body having been crippled several times. But his dharma body was powerful, and his physique extraordinary, so he still held on.
Fei Zhong was both excited and emotional, saying, "Every Supreme Realm Great Saint is a giant of a realm, capable of deciding the outcome of a small-scale Great Saint merit battle. Yet before Miss Bai, they are like chickens and dogs, killed with a raise of the hand."
Gong Nanfeng trembled with anger, arguing, "If I were Bai Qinger, I would not drive them into a dead end with no escape. That way, they would have no choice but to self-destruct their sacred sources. If Xing Luo Divine Son and the four Supreme Realm Great Saints self-destruct, no formation, no matter how powerful, could withstand it, and Bai Qinger would surely die."
Zhang Ruochen's voice sounded behind Gong Nanfeng: "No, Bai Qinger will not die. Haven't you calculated and realized that Bai Qinger's true body is not near the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation at all? That is just a false body condensed from source power, meant to lull the Destiny Temple cultivators into complacency. In reality, Bai Qinger is far away in space, ten thousand miles distant."
Gong Nanfeng showed no goodwill toward Zhang Ruochen, feeling that today's defeat of the Destiny Temple was all his fault.
If he had not stood idly by, how could the Destiny Temple have lost so miserably?
The Divine Son and Minghuang had fallen, and the ten Supreme Realm Great Saints were completely wiped out. Today was destined to shake both the Heavenly Court and Hell, causing an unimaginable uproar.
Zhang Ruochen ignored Gong Nanfeng's glare, instead summoning the Black Gold Battle Heaven Pillar. His body erupted with burial gold light, and divine power surged outward.
"Zhang Ruochen, what are you trying to do?" Fei Zhong shouted coldly.
"Don't block the way. Get out of here."
Zhang Ruochen swung his staff, breaking through Fei Zhong's protective dao domain, striking his abdomen and sending him flying, slamming heavily into a sacred pillar of the Seven Star Emperor Palace.
Then, Zhang Ruochen grew twelve blood wings on his back, a tiger shadow following behind him, his battle intent surging as he flew toward the direction of the Ten Thousand Sounds Heavenly Rotation Grand Formation.
At this moment, he had to act.
No matter what, Xing Luo could not die.