Suddenly, wind and clouds surged in the vast sky above the venue. A black and white Taiji seal rose to cover the heavens, enveloping the fighting crowd below. A completely crimson long sword appeared with a boom, its blood-red light casting dark radiance across heaven and earth. The extremely yang and righteous spiritual energy intertwined with the extremely yin and evil demonic energy. Countless soul-calming incantations seemed to come from all directions, calling back the consciousness of those who had gone berserk, while countless fierce ghosts wailed, struggling restlessly to wreak havoc, shaking everyone’s spirits.
The many cultivators who had deeply gone berserk gradually regained their senses and looked up at the black and white figures in the sky.
“It’s Venerable Jinghe and…Ning Buwei?” some junior disciples said in disbelief.
“Why would the great demon save us?” someone asked what was on everyone’s mind.
“Who was it that said Ning Buwei and that Ning Fan were acting together… would they need to act to this extent?”
“But he’s not a good person to begin with, what’s wrong with us being cautious?” someone was still making excuses.
“But it was indeed him and Venerable Jinghe who saved us.” Bu Qing couldn’t listen anymore and spoke up. “Earlier when my senior brother and I were trapped in the Yumian Mountain Secret Realm, he also saved us—”
“Bu Qing!” Jimo Hongcai called out to stop her.
Bu Qing grumbled indignantly. “But it’s true.”
Those who had regained consciousness were filled with doubt and suspicion.
Ning Fan looked at the towering sword and said admiringly, “The Chiyuan Divine Sword has been lost for many years. I didn’t expect it to end up in your hands.”
The Chiyuan Sword was as thin as a cicada’s wing, its blade a translucent crimson. Its sword energy was fierce, its righteous qi pressing down heavily, actually bending the green banner, seemingly about to break it.
Before absolute power, even a forbidden formation like the Seven Killings Formation could only submit, appearing about to break through its core.
“Hah, Venerable Jinghe truly isn’t afraid of death!” Ning Fan shouted angrily, his hook flying out like a venomous snake to wrap around the Chiyuan Sword, “Have you forgotten about your heart demon!”
Ning Fan was muttering something unknown, and the markings covering half of Chu Jun’s face began spreading rapidly as his movements started becoming slow and stiff.
Ning Buwei struck at the hook with his knife but was blocked by a sword. Xie Jiu gripped his sword in reverse, its radiance surging. The Suzaku knife also raged with black mist, and both men were forced to retreat from the impact.
Chu Jun was clearly stretched thin, using the Taiji Seal to steady the many cultivators below to prevent them from going berserk while using the Chiyuan Sword to deal with Ning Fan and the rampaging heart demon. Meanwhile, Hao Zheng, who had just finished regulating his breath, was held up by Wang Bin, his moves restricted by wariness of the parasitic insects.
Cui Yuanbai, hiding in the shadows, watched anxiously as Ning Buwei and Chu Jun gradually lost ground. He desperately wanted to transform into the Purple Flame Knife to help, but remembered Chu Jun’s instructions and could only worry helplessly.
Ning Xiu, held tightly in his arms, felt squeezed and called out in a milky voice. “Ah~ya~”
I can’t breathe~ Don’t use so much force~
Cui Yuanbai looked down at the baby in his arms and said sternly. “Father told me to watch over you and make sure no one discovers you. Don’t make a sound.”
“Ah~” Ning Xiu blinked his eyes, then turned to watch his father and mother flying back and forth in the sky, “Ah!”
Father, beat them up!
Ning Buwei clearly saw that Chu Jun was hindered by the heart demon, and this Seven Killings Formation was very unfavorable to him. Yet this surnamed Chu still had to go out of his way to help those people below—
He blocked Xie Jiu’s attack with his knife in one hand while using the Soul-Binding Whip in his other hand to wrap around the green banner, suddenly pulling it out. The ground shook violently, and before Xie Jiu could react, the Soul-Calming Flowing Cloud had taken the green banner’s place, instantly turning the entire Seven Killings Formation.
Xie Jiu’s expression changed, “You dare to change formations within a formation!”
Ning Buwei flew up holding the green banner, “Many thanks for your fortune-exchange formation!”
Xie Jiu’s face darkened, “Earlier outside you were deliberate—”
No wonder he hadn’t felt Ning Buwei’s killing intent. Outside he wasn’t really fighting at all, but using the fight to probe the formation!
Xie Jiu was arrogant enough to dare set both the fortune-exchange formation and Seven Killings Formation on the Changsheng Dao Field. Although Ning Buwei couldn’t set up formations within the Seven Killings Formation, he dared to change them.
Cunning and fearless, Ning Buwei had never cared about minor details.
The formation below was slowly changing. Ning Fan naturally noticed this and laughed sinisterly. “Ning Buwei, do you no longer care about Venerable Jinghe’s life?”
Ning Buwei was determined to trap Ning Fan here and naturally wouldn’t let him go easily, but when he looked at Chu Jun, he saw his eyes were crimson red and his black hair was flying wildly – clearly signs of impending demonic possession.
“Chu Jun!” Ning Buwei flew up to help him suppress the overflowing demonic energy, but was repelled by an invisible barrier.
Ning Fan looked up at the sky’s edge, finally seeing the thunder tribulation drawn by this towering demonic energy. The thunder tribulation for Hinayana cultivators was no small matter – Chu Jun would surely die this time!
His eyes flashed with excitement as he prepared to attack when Chu Jun was at his weakest, but was suddenly knocked away by a jade ruler. Ning Buwei stood with his knife in front of Chu Jun, his gaze sinister, “Courting death?”
The modified formation he created rustled and continuously contracted, tightening as Ning Buwei, Ning Fan, and Xie Jiu became entangled in battle again, with Ning Buwei beginning to gain the upper hand.
The crowd watching under the Taiji Seal worried while inexplicably feeling relieved at the same time.
They would fall into obssession if they left the protection of this Taiji Seal, so they couldn’t help even if they wanted to, let alone face powerful beings in battle – that would just be suicide.
“Ning Buwei’s Soul-Devouring Formation and Hundred Bones Thousand Ghosts Formation are useless here… though Ning Fan was previously gravely injured by the Venerable, his power still can’t be underestimated.”
“Now that the Venerable has fallen into possession, this lightning tribulation might reduce Dao Discussion Mountain to ashes…”
“Then wouldn’t this Taiji Seal…” more people worried about their own fate.
“Although Ning Buwei has the upper hand now, observing his cultivation feels like it’s all surface with no substance… if he stays entangled for too long, he might not fare well.”
“Hah, his path is different from orthodox cultivators – even at the Golden Core stage, he can still kill those at God Transformation and Fusion realms… though it’s quite disgraceful-”
“If you disapprove so much then why don’t you go up there? What good does just talking do!” someone retorted.
“He’s a demon-”
“Stop arguing!” someone said in panic. “It seems Venerable Jinghe can’t hold on much longer!”
Under the lightning, demonic energy surged around Chu Jun’s body, causing the tribulation lightning to become more violent, striking his shoulder without mercy and charring half his body black.
A pair of eyes in the crowd narrowed slightly.
In the next instant, a thick stream of demonic energy suddenly flew toward Chu Jun under the lightning tribulation.
“Not good!” Hao Zheng was greatly alarmed and flew to intercept, but Wang Bin pierced his arm with a sword, making him too late.
Ning Buwei suddenly turned around as blinding lightning crashed down. The turbulent energy immediately sent everyone in the air flying. The Changsheng Dao Field was torn apart, and Dao Discussion Mountain, originally floating in the air, was split into pieces by the lightning storm and sank into the sea with a crash.
However, the lightning storm still hadn’t ceased. Ning Buwei stepped on the Suzaku knife to go save someone but was blocked by Xie Jiu, “Ning Buwei! Are you tired of living?!”
Red swirled in Ning Buwei’s eyes, “Get out of my way!”
He then threw them aside with a whip strike, and the Seven Killings Formation suddenly contracted, trapping both Ning Fan and Xie Jiu within.
But at this moment, the earth-shattering lightning storm suddenly stopped.
Everyone was startled.
Above the sea surface, they saw a handsome figure suddenly falling. Ning Buwei flew up to save them, but before he could get close, the falling person suddenly turned to countless specks of ash. The exploding spiritual power surged toward the surrounding sea surface, raising huge waves.
The Taiji Seal that had been protecting everyone slowly disappeared.
Ning Buwei was forced back several dozen feet by the waves, remaining dazed for a long while, not even noticing his whole body was soaked by seawater.
A massive purple mansion radiating spiritual power slowly sank into the sea.
“Venerable Jinghe… perished?” someone asked in disbelief.
“That’s Venerable Jinghe’s purple mansion!?” someone’s eyes flashed with wild joy, “This is a Hinayana cultivator’s purple mansion!”
Before his words faded, many cultivators recklessly plunged into the sea, heading straight for the purple mansion.
Some people, having survived the disaster, couldn’t care about much else and tried to quickly remove the gu worms from their bodies.
Ning Buwei’s head felt stuffed with cotton, or perhaps he had been deafened by the earth-shattering lightning storm – the noisy voices around him seemed to fade in and out.
“Venerable Jinghe actually perished…”
“That purple mansion that sank into the sea was truly massive…”
“How did he perish?”
“That demonic energy clearly…”
Ning Buwei felt somewhat dazed.
Chu Jun was dead?
Just died so easily like that?
He stood dripping wet on the sea surface, trying to find something, but forget about remains – he couldn’t even find a speck of ash.
Life and death were unpredictable in the cultivation world. Even Mahayana cultivators facing tribulation could perish with one misstep, let alone such a massive lightning storm – with Chu Jun possessed by a heart demon, being blasted to ash was… normal.
Ning Buwei’s hand, hidden in his sleeve, clenched into a fist as he coldly swept his gaze across the crowd and those who dove into the sea looking for Chu Jun’s purple mansion… the red in his eyes suddenly exploded.
The invisible modified Seven Killings Formation subtly tightened.
“Father!” Feng Zizhang and Jiang Yizheng, lying on Big Yellow’s back, swam over to him, holding Cui Yuanbai and Ning Xiu in their arms, who looked bewilderedly at their surroundings.
Jiang Yizheng cried uncontrollably, while Feng Zizhang held back his grief and said to Ning Buwei. “Father, the Venerable he…”
He choked up after just one sentence and couldn’t continue.
“Father, your hand is bleeding.” Cui Yuanbai tugged at his sleeve, gesturing for him to look.
Ning Buwei expressionlessly looked down – the seawater had already turned red in a large area.
“Ah~” Ning Xiu looked at him timidly, reaching out to be held.
Ning Buwei reached out to hold him, saying hoarsely. “Father is fine.”
“Father, what’s that?” Cui Yuanbai pointed at a piece of white cloth fragment at his feet.
Ning Buwei bent down to pick up the cloth fragment, discovering it was wrapped around something. He opened the cloth to find a piece of the Suzaku knife lying inside.
His eyes suddenly narrowed.
