Chapter 139: The Senran Grand Formation
Tens of thousands of Zhou Dynasty cavalry were still on the roads from various prefectures and commanderies to the capital, far from the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. But Infinite Green's expression had already undergone a drastic change. As a Sacred Domain powerhouse, one of the Eight Winds and Rains, her cultivation realm was profound beyond measure. She could easily see the terrifying military force on the distant plains, as well as the red eagles and red geese flying like lightning through the rain clouds.
"So this is Heavenly Sea's scheme. We must leave." She turned to look at her husband, her face pale.
The rain-soaked horsetail whisk hung limply from the crook of her elbow, much like her spirits at this moment.
From the start of the night until now, neither side had formally engaged in battle, making it impossible to determine the situation. But Heavenly Sea Saintess's calm and confidence had already drained away all of Infinite Green's own confidence.
She could not forget how, back in the capital, Heavenly Sea Saintess had struck at her from afar atop the Sweet Dew Terrace. Deep in her heart, she simply lacked the courage to face her opponent head-on.
Courage—something that might require over a decade or even longer of humiliation and sleepless nights to accumulate—could be lost in the blink of an eye.
Gazing at that powerful figure atop the Heavenly Book Mausoleum peak, the princes and nobles from the various prefectures also changed color. Some, like Infinite Green, felt the impulse to retreat.
The situation was indeed not yet clear. But one thing was certain: this night, which should have been a scheme orchestrated by the Daoist Calculator, had now become Heavenly Sea Saintess's game.
Since Heavenly Sea Saintess had known everything all along, who could still defeat her?
Yet, at this point, even if they wanted to leave, they could no longer do so.
With an eagle's cry piercing the night sky over the capital, reactions erupted across the city.
Boom! In the autumn groves of the Capital Harmony Garden, the wet, muddy ground sank as a whole, revealing a massive pit. Sand and stone tumbled down, and an underground spring surged forth.
Along with the spring water emerged a statue of a former sage, carved from black obsidian. The statue's surface was covered in mud, gradually washed clean by the spring, revealing its true form and beginning to emanate a majestic power.
In the middle of Red Residence South Street, a crack appeared, about three feet wide, bottomless and profoundly deep. Yet what emerged from the depths of the earth fissure was not a cold aura, but rather an intense heat, as if an eternal bronze furnace blazed at the very bottom. Rainwater flowing into the crack evaporated instantly, turning into mist.
Within a few breaths, this street, famous for its tranquility, transformed into a mist-shrouded fairyland, beautiful as if not of this world. Yet the scorching aura within the mist proclaimed its hidden danger.
In the third residence north of White Paper Lane, with a crackling sound, all the beams of the buildings seemed struck by a thousand years of erosion, worm-eaten and wind-worn, visibly rotting and collapsing into dust and gravel, leaving only the foundations—an ancient, shallow path built of brick and stone.
The only well in the courtyard also collapsed. Amid the broken well and ruined walls, the well water surged up and backwashed into the shallow paths of the building's foundations, turning them into channels.
A chilling, murderous aura dispersed from the channels into the night sky.
North of Establish Merit Lane, there was an earthen mound like a small hill. Over centuries of weathering, it had become covered in pines and green grass, looking quite picturesque. Many capital residents often chose to visit this spot for leisure, long forgetting that centuries ago, it had been a great tomb.
Crack! A bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking the small hill.
The thickest green pine, hit by the lightning, emitted wisps of green smoke and then slowly toppled.
The pine fell onto the hill, splashing mud and crushing autumn grass.
Then, the small hill gradually split open, revealing the true scene within.
Inside, there were no coffins or burial goods, only countless white bones.
These bones belonged to the palace maids who had voluntarily been buried alive upon the death of Emperor Taizong.
Yet, sensing the venomous, cold aura within the great tomb, the word "voluntary" might warrant further discussion.
Those venomous, cold auras did not affect the capital residents around Establish Merit Lane.
Because a powerful aura rose from the deepest underground river beneath the hill, like a gentle breeze easily washing away the resentment and purifying the bones.
That aura shot into the sky, straight into the night dome, radiating a faint golden luster—majestic, awe-inspiring, supremely dignified and sacred!
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All across the capital, such phenomena occurred. Some were based on stone carvings, some on earth fissures igniting fire, some on underground springs reversing into boiling waters, and some on imperial qi manifesting in grandeur.
Countless powerful auras surged into the sky, some piercing through layers of leaden clouds into the night dome, others dazzlingly bright, overwhelming the light of the stars. Gradually, they formed a towering and magnificent grand formation.
This formation could not be seen, but cultivators could clearly sense it, instantly feeling as insignificant as dust and filled with boundless awe.
The spring water backwashing into the foundations north of White Paper Lane transformed into the famous Golden Soup of the seven realms of the National Religion, yet it was only an insignificant part of this grand formation.
The imperial qi north of Establish Merit Lane, breaking through the tomb and purifying the bones, ascended to the nine heavens and then suddenly fell upon the imperial palace.
The Lingyan Pavilion, sealed for centuries like eternal night, overflowed with milky white light.
At the same time, an overwhelmingly domineering, majestic, and righteous aura appeared in everyone's perception.
It was the number one weapon among the Hundred Weapons, long unseen in the mortal world—the Frost-Leftover Divine Spear!
Sensing the aura of the Frost-Leftover Divine Spear and the changes in the Lingyan Pavilion, Bieyang Hong's expression finally turned stern. The little red flower hanging from his pinky finger suddenly stopped swaying, suspended in the wind.
A river encircled the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. Suddenly, all the water in the river vanished without a trace—not dried up, but as if absorbed by the earth.
Over seventy Heavenly Book Stele, which should have been illusions, appeared at the riverbed, like a stone forest, radiating a solemn aura.
The rain clouds that had been dispersing across the heavens and earth, summoned by the grand formation in the capital, gradually flowed back. Though they did not completely block the starlight, they dimmed the stars by several degrees.
An extremely Senran formation intent, like countless sharp swords, seemed ready to sever the very principles of heaven and earth. The power hidden within was enough to slay Sacred Domain powerhouses!
Infinite Green's face had turned deathly pale. The fierce aura between her brows had long been replaced by terror.
The Stargazer remained silent, his bamboo hat concealing his plain, unremarkable features, as well as his true feelings at this moment.
"Is this the Imperial Chariot Diagram?"
Zhu Luo's expression shifted dramatically. He looked toward the peak of the Heavenly Book Mausoleum and asked in disbelief: "You are not of the imperial clan. By what right?"
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(Another chapter tonight)