Chapter 4124: Each Has Their Own Opponent
"It's not just this suit of armor and this battle-axe!"
Er Juntian stood tall and imposing, his spirit and energy vigorous. He said, "More importantly, this is the Gray Sea, the place where I have cultivated since birth. The operation of the world's rules, the power of curses in the space, the changes of all things—I understand them all clearly. But you, you are a newcomer. The terrain is in my favor!"
The reason for his disastrous defeat in the battle outside the River of Forgetfulness, Er Juntian believed, was a tactical error on his part.
He had used the "Three Bodies Separation" technique.
Facing Hao Tian, all three bodies had been powerless to resist.
When fighting a peerless powerhouse like Hao Tian, whose combat style was fierce and overwhelming, one should not divide one's strength.
A myriad of swords dancing together is inferior to a single sword in hand.
The so-called "softness overcoming hardness" and "many overcoming few" did not work against Hao Tian.
This time, Er Juntian had come again, merging his three bodies into one. He had retrieved the Ten Thousand Star Burning Gold Armor from Tianque and summoned the Heaven-Opening Axe from the depths of the Gray Sea. In his most peak state, with the momentum of seeking revenge, cutting off all retreat by revealing secrets, and burning his boats, he was determined to settle the score with Hao Tian.
At this moment, he was at his strongest.
Gandharva sat in her seat, speaking coldly, "You are being somewhat impulsive! In a situation like today, Xuan Yuan Tai Hao had no other way out, but you have given him the best possible path. The army surrounds the mountain, all gods have arrived, formations are as numerous as rain, and divine artifacts fill the sky. Wouldn't it be better if we all attacked together and killed him?"
"Can we really kill him?"
Er Juntian questioned.
Hao Tian stood up, looking at the golden-glowing Er Juntian, his eyes gradually deepening. He said, "Meng Weiyang, you are wrong! Er Juntian is by no means an impulsive person. This move of his is the true open conspiracy, making me know it's a trap but forcing me to enter it."
Gandharva thought for a moment and immediately understood!
To simultaneously kill Hao Tian and the Fourth Confucian Ancestor, even with the full force of the Eight Divisions Followers, might not be possible.
Even if it were achieved, the price paid would be something they could never bear.
But as long as Hao Tian accepted Er Juntian's challenge, everything would be easy!
Because then Gandharva could unite the Eight Divisions Followers army and, at the fastest speed, first severely wound the Fourth Confucian Ancestor to the point of losing combat capability.
Then, they could use all their strength to deal with Hao Tian.
The possibility of burying both the Fourth Confucian Ancestor and Hao Tian in the Gray Sea would then exist!
The most important part of this strategy was getting Hao Tian to agree to a duel with Er Juntian.
Er Juntian dangled the answer Hao Tian most wanted to know as bait. It seemed impulsive, but in reality, it exploited Hao Tian's weakness—his need to find out the truth.
Hao Tian saw through Er Juntian's scheme at a glance but could not refuse.
Because that answer, in the entire Gray Sea, was likely known only to Er Juntian and Gandharva. Making them speak might be the only chance.
Hao Tian said, "You, Er Juntian, are definitely a man of your word. I believe you. But for me to accept this battle, one more condition must be added. If I win, I want to take the Saha World, the Ultimate Bliss World, and the masters of these two worlds away."
"And if you lose?" Er Juntian said.
Hao Tian pointed to the Refining God Tower and the Three Reflections Heaven outside the door.
Gandharva said, "Even if Er Juntian agrees, this old woman will not."
"Bore and the Compassionate Navigation Venerable can be taken away, but the Saha World and the Ultimate Bliss World absolutely cannot," the Soul Mother changed her voice and said.
"If I lose, I will not leave the Gray Sea!"
Hao Tian exuded an unparalleled confidence and a commanding presence.
No one would doubt that this was a lie.
Just as no one would doubt Zhang Ruochen's promises, this was based on an understanding of their many years of conduct and respect for their cultivation realms.
Hearing this, Gandharva and the Soul Mother were both inwardly shaken.
Even the Fourth Confucian Ancestor cast a look of admiration.
It must be known that for a figure like Hao Tian, even if he lost, if he wanted to leave, even if the Eight Divisions Followers all attacked together, they most likely could not stop him.
Not leaving meant he was staking his life!
Er Juntian stared at Hao Tian for a long time, digesting the weight of his words. "Good! I trust you, and you trust me. If you truly can win, the Saha World and the Ultimate Bliss World are yours to take. Since I have said this, I will certainly do it."
Gandharva and the Soul Mother said no more.
Er Juntian's face was more than enough to bear the weight of his words.
Everyone knew this battle was extremely unfair.
What Hao Tian had to do was not just defeat Er Juntian.
He had to defeat Er Juntian before the Fourth Confucian Ancestor was suppressed.
Once the Fourth Confucian Ancestor was suppressed first, then Gandharva, the Soul Mother, and the Eight Divisions Followers army, who had not promised Hao Tian anything, could fully join in and hunt him down.
At that time, if Er Juntian was at an advantage, he might stop them to complete his revenge battle.
If he was at a disadvantage, he would certainly not stop them.
Because he also could not bear the consequences of defeat.
Er Juntian understood this very well, and Hao Tian understood it very well too.
Er Juntian raised the Heaven-Opening Axe and split open a spatial gate, shouting, "Come, let's fight in a different space!"
"Haha! No need!"
Hao Tian laughed heartily, raised his hand and grasped the void, the Xuan Huang Halberd appearing in his hand. His spirit and energy changed again, becoming sharp and unstoppable. His battle intent condensed into a tangible Xuan Huang battle aura flowing over his body.
At this moment, all his scholarly elegance dissipated, and he looked like a war god of infinite power.
Not giving Er Juntian time to escape into a different space battlefield, the Xuan Huang Halberd thrust out, thousands of times faster than a meteor.
This thrust, in both speed and power, broke through the limits of heaven and earth's rules, destroying all worldly laws. Even the ancestral order interwoven in the hall could not block it, shattering one after another.
"So fast!"
The Soul Mother, also a Half-Ancestor, felt that even if she were fully prepared, it would be difficult to retreat unscathed from this thrust.
This was perhaps the strongest power below the Ancestor level!
"Fight!"
Er Juntian's tiger-like eyes shone with light, and the Heaven-Opening Axe struck heavily.
The Xuan Huang Halberd and the Heaven-Opening Axe clashed together, like the collision of two worlds, causing the void where the Gray Sea was located to tremble.
Every spark that flew from the two divine artifacts was like a burning star flying out, smashing the "golden heavenly rivers" into pieces.
The unparalleled impact force, transmitted through the Xuan Huang Halberd and the Heaven-Opening Axe, struck Er Juntian.
Er Juntian was sent flying backward, his body crashing into the wall.
"Boom!"
Er Juntian and Hao Tian, one after the other, smashed through the Love Mountain Inn and flew into the gray mist-filled void.
In an instant, the Eight Divisions Followers army in that direction fell like rain, turning into clouds of blood mist before they even hit the ground.
No one could withstand the aftermath of their battle.
From the beginning, when Er Juntian spoke of his terrain advantage, his understanding of the Gray Sea's rules, and his use of curse power, he was subtly trying to guide Hao Tian into a different space battlefield.
Because entering a different space battlefield would negate Er Juntian's terrain advantage!
What Er Juntian wanted was not the terrain advantage at all.
He wanted to completely take Hao Tian away, to remove him from this world, making him lose his influence on the Love Mountain battlefield.
Unfortunately, all of Er Juntian's thoughts were seen through by Hao Tian, so Hao Tian struck with lightning speed.
Now, Er Juntian had to settle for the next best thing, leading the battlefield to the Gray Sea, as far away from the Eight Divisions Followers army as possible.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Er Juntian fought while retreating, crossing millions of miles with a single thought.
The gray mist remained, but the land turned into a sea.
The Gray Sea was viscous, filled with killing curse power.
"Boom!"
Hao Tian chased after him like a mountain god, his body tall and radiant. The halberd's tip fell first, striking a large depression in the sea, as if one thrust could pierce the Gray Sea.
The Heaven-Opening Axe swept out horizontally like a heavy world, clashing with the Xuan Huang Halberd again.
The clanging sound was as deafening as divine thunder.
The energy storm was so intense it was like two star regions colliding.
"Xuan Yuan Tai Hao, fighting me in the Gray Sea, you will definitely lose."
Er Juntian's eyes were firm, his spirit soaring into the sky. The golden armor on his body ignited, and the area around him turned into a sea of fire.
In the flames, a vast starry sky appeared.
A burning starry sky.
"Your combat power is undeniably strong, comparable to any cultivator below the Ancestor level, but you have too many distractions in your heart. You dare not let me and the Fourth Confucian Ancestor leave the Gray Sea, and you are full of concerns (gu lü). This is the fundamental reason why you will fall into my hands today!"
Hao Tian was not psychologically affected by the "terrain advantage" and turned the tables, directly targeting Er Juntian's Dao heart and battle intent.
The two clashed again, countless rule divine patterns and orders evolving, swallowing the entire sea area, as if the Gray Sea was about to flip over.
"Is this their peak combat power?"
The Green Deer God King watched the Gray Sea from afar, his mood somewhat heavy.
The auras of these two were stronger than the other, and their divine power fluctuations seemed to have exceeded the scope of Half-Ancestors, being majestic and domineering.
"The ancestors in history, at this level of cultivation, probably had combat power like this!" the Decayed Stone God sighed.
Other Half-Ancestors were also strong, with profound Dao techniques and divine abilities, but the Decayed Stone God simply did not believe they dared to challenge an Ancestor.
However, at this moment, the Decayed Stone God believed that Hao Tian and Er Juntian dared to face an Ancestor and could even exchange a few moves.
Gandharva glanced at the wall of the Love Mountain Inn that had been broken through by Hao Tian and Er Juntian.
Light shone in from outside, casting interlaced shadows on the ground.
"Whoosh!"
The Fourth Confucian Ancestor's body was covered in a vast Dao light, transforming into a beam of light, trying to break free from the ancestral order and rush out of the Love Mountain Inn.
Undoubtedly, the most dangerous place on Love Mountain was here. As long as he left the inn and Love Mountain, the Fourth Confucian Ancestor was confident he could escape.
Gandharva was indeed worried that the Fourth Confucian Ancestor carried some Ancestor-level means, but she was only worried about not being able to keep him, not about not being able to withstand him.
Now, with the Eight Divisions Followers army surrounding the mountain, she had no more concerns.
What Gandharva did not know was that the Fourth Confucian Ancestor had not come on the orders of the Eternal True Ruler, so he had not brought any Ancestor-level means.
"Whoosh!"
A circular formation plate rose from the ground, expanding outward in rings.
No matter how fast the Fourth Confucian Ancestor was, he could not escape the formation plate.
The entire time and space changed, and all the outside scenes disappeared.
Gandharva appeared at the center of the formation plate, saying, "Where are you going? Your strength is not weak, how about we two have a fight?"
In terms of age, Gandharva was the Fourth Confucian Ancestor's senior.
She was of the same generation as the Third Confucian Ancestor.
How could the Fourth Confucian Ancestor believe that Gandharva wanted to duel him alone?
He was about to smile bitterly and decline when he sensed that outside the formation plate, the door of the Ghost One Residence at the Love Mountain Inn had been opened, and he saw Zhang Ruochen's figure. Immediately, he changed his mind and said, "Very well! It just so happens that I have been recently trying to break through to the peak of the ninety-fourth step. Please enlighten me."
The Fourth Confucian Ancestor's hair and beard flew, and he raised one hand.
"Rustle!"
Behind him, the sound of water waves arose.
The boundless Nether Sea appeared behind the Fourth Confucian Ancestor, with waves rising one after another, sea areas connecting one after another.
Soon, the Nether Sea filled the formation plate, dissolving the formation's power. At the same time, pillars of water, like dragons and flood dragons, surged toward Gandharva at the center.
In the battle at the North Marsh Great Wall, the Nether Sea Spirit had perished, and this Nether Sea was the Fourth Confucian Ancestor's spoils of war.
Gandharva's brow furrowed slightly. She had not expected Meng Huang'e to lose so quickly, nor had she expected those little ghosts in the Ghost One Residence to break through her ancestral order and escape so quickly.
Originally, she had planned to trap the Fourth Confucian Ancestor in the formation, then, with the help of the Soul Mother and the Eight Divisions Followers army, suppress him as quickly as possible, and then go to the Gray Sea to fight Hao Tian.
The escape of the cultivators from the Ghost One Residence undoubtedly introduced a variable into a situation that had seemed certain.
The Fourth Confucian Ancestor was no weakling. He cultivated both divine power and spiritual power, both reaching the Half-Ancestor level. Such a figure was as rare from ancient times to the present as an Ancestor.
Although she was fully confident she could defeat the Fourth Confucian Ancestor, suppressing him was by no means something that could be done quickly.
"Boom!"
Gandharva struck the formation plate heavily with her wooden staff, and all the surging Nether Sea water rolled back.
"Silent Night!"
As she uttered these words, dense time imprint light spots appeared above the formation plate and the Nether Sea.
These light spots burned, emitting black flames.
The waves of the Nether Sea gradually slowed.
The entire world darkened, sealing the five senses.
Time tended toward stillness, but it was not as powerful as the absolute self-time master seal. Gandharva controlled it more easily.
Time under the Silent Night was more like a swamp, making all cultivators sluggish.
The lower the cultivation, the greater the effect.
She wanted to extend the influence of time outside the formation to suppress the cultivators who had escaped from the Ghost One Residence.
The door of the Ghost One Residence was broken open by Zhang Ruochen.
When he opened the door, Gandharva and the Fourth Confucian Ancestor had already disappeared from the inn's main hall, having entered a subtle formation world.
Zhang Ruochen stood on the second floor, looking down.
At the main entrance of the Love Mountain Inn, a large section of the wall had been knocked down, tiles had fallen, and wood chips were everywhere. The peerless divine formation integrated into the wall had also been torn, with inscriptions flowing at the damaged areas.
"This power, this aura, it's Hao Tian!"
The Compassionate Navigation Venerable's voice sounded behind Zhang Ruochen.
"Great, Hao Tian is here. All crises will be resolved."
Mortal Dust had somehow found a jug of wine, leaning against a pillar, drinking freely, truly relaxed.
Desolate Heaven looked at the Soul Mother, who wore a purple gauze hat in the main hall, and then outside the inn, hearing the deafening war drums and horns.
Divine might auras came from all directions.
"I'm afraid it's not that simple."
Desolate Heaven sensed the subtle fluctuations of the formation in the space, like countless strings interwoven in the world of Love Mountain, vibrating endlessly.
Invisible, intangible.
But no one knew when they might touch those strings, be drawn into the formation, and die without a burial place.
The Soul Mother noticed the cultivators emerging from the Ghost One Residence one after another. She had no intention of fighting them. Taking Bore, she was about to leave.
The Saha World, the Ultimate Bliss World, and the Lamp of Life and Death were all on her.
Moreover, she could not reveal her identity. If she attacked, she would have many concerns.
Therefore, she had to leave as quickly as possible.
As for the cultivators who had come out of the Ghost One Residence, Gandharva's formation was enough to trap them to death. Even if they managed to escape the formation, once they left Love Mountain, there was still the Eight Divisions Followers army.
"Attack together, stop her!" Zhang Ruochen said.
Desolate Heaven had come to the Gray Sea to seize the Lamp of Life and Death, so he did not hesitate. He leaped down from the second floor, his arm like a blade, slashing at the Soul Mother.
But as soon as he jumped over the railing, the scene before Desolate Heaven's eyes suddenly changed.
He appeared in a cosmic void interwoven with countless golden heavenly rivers. The Soul Mother and Bore, who had been only a few zhang away, were now billions of miles away.
Far apart.
His stone arm gradually transformed into a companion stone axe, its power further enhanced.
But he could only watch helplessly as the Soul Mother and Bore drifted away, unable to deliver his attack.
"Is this the gap? With my current cultivation, I can't even touch the hem of a Half-Ancestor's robe, can't get close." This thought arose in Desolate Heaven's mind.
In the eyes of those outside the Ghost One Residence, after Desolate Heaven leaped out, his body became extremely slow, as if frozen in mid-air.
From start to finish, the Soul Mother only turned her head and glanced at him, without even making a move.
The Compassionate Navigation Venerable transmitted a message to Zhang Ruochen: "You all go all out. I will save Bore."
She already knew why this "Saint Si Daoist" had to come to the Gray Sea.
What followed would undoubtedly be a clash at the Indestructible Infinite level. To escape Love Mountain, the Eight Divisions Followers would not care about Bore's life or death. If Zhang Ruochen showed too much concern, his identity would be exposed.
Zhang Ruochen waved his hand, and eight golden threads shot out from the Binding Dragon Rope.
"Whoosh!"
The eight golden threads spread out rapidly, like eight bolts of lightning, shuttling through the void between him and the Soul Mother.
"Bang!"
Mortal Dust threw out his wine jug, struck out with a palm, and the golden Buddhist halo on the back of his head flashed briefly.
His palm force was vast and unparalleled, forcing Gandharva's ancestral order and the Soul Mother's space order to manifest, showing signs of loosening.
The Jewel Earth Bodhisattva struck out with his silver-white tin staff, taking the opportunity to sink a large area of the ancestral order.
"Buddhist Dharma Myriad Forms!"
The Sandalwood Bodhisattva used a basic fist technique, but with his Indestructible Infinite peak cultivation, it shook the space order.
"Xu Yu Pan!"
"Red Dust All Living Beings!"
The Jewel Seal Bodhisattva swung his war weapon, and the Compassionate Navigation Venerable used a divine ability.
Under the attack of six top experts, the Soul Mother's space order collapsed with a boom, and another section of the Love Mountain Inn collapsed. The eight golden threads of the Binding Dragon Rope instantly reached behind her, possessing both the penetrating power of lightning and the lingering softness of entanglement (chan rao).
The Soul Mother had already reached the door, but she was forced to use the power of space distortion to divert the eight golden threads.
Without the obstruction of space order, Desolate Heaven only needed to take one step to appear above and behind the Soul Mother, his companion stone axe slashing straight down.
The Soul Mother was too lazy to turn around and struck out with a backhand palm.
Before the palm print even landed on Desolate Heaven, it sent him flying, cracks appearing on his entire arm.
Zhang Ruochen saw that the Soul Mother did not dare to reveal her identity, and his heart was greatly relieved.
Even if she was a Half-Ancestor, under these circumstances, she could not be a match for their group of Indestructible Infinite experts.
Just as Desolate Heaven was sent flying, the Saint Si Daoist, holding a Human Head Banner in one hand and a Merciless Demon Subduing Staff in the other, took his place, colliding with the protective divine light released by the Soul Mother.
Feeling the power fluctuation at the Heavenly Venerable level, the Soul Mother's brow furrowed slightly beneath the purple gauze.
"Where did so many top experts come from?"
She tapped the ground with her toe, and a purple nether fire surged out in the space.
The flames were vigorous, evolving into various forms: strange flowers, whirlpools, lions, tigers...
One thought, myriad laws born!
"Bang!"
The Merciless Demon Subduing Staff scattered all the abnormal nether fires.
That Saint Si Daoist was completely unafraid of the Half-Ancestor, charging out of the flames, raising the Human Head Banner, and swinging it wildly.
"My nether fire, even a Heavenly Venerable level expert would not dare to touch it easily. What is the origin of this old fellow?"
As this thought arose in the Soul Mother's mind, she glanced at the other three directions.
She saw the Sandalwood Bodhisattva, the Jewel Earth Bodhisattva, and the Jewel Seal Bodhisattva attacking from three completely different directions.
One Indestructible Infinite peak, two Indestructible Infinite mid-stage.
Clearly, the Saint Si Daoist was still the greater threat.
The Soul Mother did not dare to use the Eternal Spear, the Ghost Seal, or the Abyssal Divine Sword. She could only form a hand seal, simultaneously using the Soul Devouring Curse and the Soul Suppressing Sound.
The Soul Devouring Curse was aimed at Zhang Ruochen.
The Soul Suppressing Sound came from her mouth, not harsh or loud, but silent.
The Jewel Seal Bodhisattva's divine soul had been repeatedly severely wounded and was inherently unstable. When the Soul Suppressing Sound landed on him, he immediately groaned, his face turning pale, as if all his power had been dissolved in an instant.
Although the Jewel Earth Bodhisattva was at the Indestructible Infinite mid-stage, her divine soul was strong and firm as a rock. It was for this reason that there were many rumors that the souls of men who died at her hands were all taken by her.
She barely withstood the Soul Suppressing Sound and, together with the Sandalwood Bodhisattva, struck the Soul Mother's protective divine light.
But their power, compared to their peak state, was soft and weak, leaving less than sixty percent.
As soon as they touched the protective divine light, they were sent flying by the recoil force, spitting blood.
"Boom!"
On the other side, Zhang Ruochen used the Human Head Banner to strike the protective divine light, causing it to tremble incessantly. The Soul Mother inside the divine light even took a small step back.
"The Soul Devouring Curse has no effect on him... This is, the Withering Death Art!"
The Soul Mother was surprised to find that the power of the Withering Death Art curse was emanating from the Human Head Banner.
"Daoist, this humble monk will assist you. Ten Thousand Buddhas Illuminate the Universe!"
In an instant, the inn's main hall was filled with golden Buddha shadows, some sitting in meditation, some sleeping, some raising their fists...
The ten thousand Buddha light shadows attacked together, like piercing a bubble, piercing through the Soul Mother's protective divine light.
These light shadows overlapped and merged into Mortal Dust's body.
His body was like a bow, his fist like an arrow, striking directly at the Soul Mother's face.
The Human Head Banner was swung from another direction.
"A Buddhist Half-Ancestor?"
The Soul Mother formed a seal with one hand to strike the Human Head Banner.
With the other hand, she released nether light, evolving three thousand Dao techniques, meeting Mortal Dust's fist.
"Great Expansion of the Universe!"
Desolate Heaven, who had returned, leaped out from behind Zhang Ruochen and Mortal Dust, striking out a peerless dharma seal containing the mysteries of heaven and earth.
"Bang!"
The Soul Mother was sent flying, landing outside the door. Both sleeves were shattered, revealing two snow-white, lotus-root-like forearms.
"Nether Envoy! This seat also wants to learn a thing or two from you!"
Shang Tian stood on the millstone, with radiant light behind him, his red beard as if soaked in blood. In the light stood three tall dharma forms.
And at that moment, the power of time from the Silent Night spread out from the formation world, enveloping the entire Love Mountain.