The pupils in the Clear Sky Sword King’s eye sockets spread outward with black colour, filling the entire eyeball.
Three different laughs rang out in the space near the Clear Sky Sword King.
One was childish, one was deep and resonant, and one was hoarse.
From within the Clear Sky Sword King’s divine realm world emerged three figures radiating astonishing baleful aura. Each one possessed an extremely powerful presence. The fluctuations they emitted pierced countless holes through the surrounding array light barriers.
One of these figures was a large-headed embroidered cloth doll. It let out a piercing laugh. “Wind and Cloud Overlord, Xuan Yuan Qing, Shang Hong, your doomsday has arrived. Submit to the Dark Shrine, and there may yet be a path to survival! Haha!”
It was extremely eerie. When it laughed, it sounded as though thousands upon thousands of voices overlapped.
The voice contained powerful mental power fluctuations. All cultivators on the divine ship below the great saint realm collapsed to the ground, clutching their heads and wailing in extreme agony.
Even great saints had to expend all their strength to resist.
“Devour Earth!”
“Human Skin Lantern!”
“Zhao Wu Yan!”
Xuan Yuan Qing uttered three names in succession. Her gaze turned utterly cold, and her heart sank into an abyss.
The three before her were all top-tier evil entities of the Dark Shrine. The appearance of any single one could shock an entire star region. Now all three had arrived together, plus the Clear Sky Sword King controlled by Wu Yue. Today truly marked the descent of doomsday.
It was the twilight of Heaven Court’s gods!
The only remaining chance lay in the attack divine array of the Xu Wind Divine Ship. If they could fully activate the attack divine array, there might still be an opportunity to turn the tables from desperate straits.
“Submit to the Dark Shrine? You must be dreaming.”
Xuan Yuan Qing grasped the Bright Divine Sword with both hands. Divine energy surged madly within her body as she thrust the sword toward the ground.
“Swish! Swish! Swish…”
Countless white light swords erupted from the ground. All the heavenly rules in the surrounding space transformed into rules of light and sword dao, condensing into a Bright Sword Domain that spread toward the three gods of the Dark Shrine and the Clear Sky Sword King.
Zhao Wu Yan rode atop a five-zhang-tall crimson ghost beast, clad in dark armour. He let out a deep laugh. “Xuan Yuan Qing, circulating divine energy like this, are you seeking death?”
The large-headed cloth doll named “Devour Earth” laughed. “She is merely stalling for time, trying to trap us.”
“I will hold her back. You two go and destroy the array core on the Xu Wind Divine Ship.”
The Human Skin Lantern radiated dazzling light all over its body. Long black hair draped down, its skin covered entirely in stitched needle marks. It wielded a battle-axe suffused with thick dark aura, shattering rows of white light swords as it advanced to attack Xuan Yuan Qing.
“Xuan Yuan Qing, your cultivation is merely at the early Tai Bai Realm. You are far from matching your elder brother!”
“Nether Kill Nine Styles.”
“Boom!”
The Human Skin Lantern swung its axe.
All the light swords between it and Xuan Yuan Qing shattered instantly. The overwhelming divine power spread outward, sending the cultivators standing outside the sword domain flying. Those with slightly weaker cultivation directly turned into pools of blood and flesh.
“So strong! Even Xuan Yuan Qing at her peak might not be a match for this Human Skin Lantern.” Zhang Ruochen’s gaze shifted toward the Clear Sky Sword King, Devour Earth, and Zhao Wu Yan.
He saw them transform into three streaks of divine light, rushing rapidly toward the array core of the Xu Wind Divine Ship.
The ship’s minor arrays and divine patterns could not stop them at all. They could only delay them for a brief moment.
“We cannot let them destroy the array core. Otherwise, everyone here will die today.”
The gods of the Wind Clan, along with all the gods of the Bright Shrine including Shang Hong and Jia Lin Nan, understood the dire situation. Ignoring the Yellow Spring Flower toxin in their bodies, they transformed into streaks of divine light to intercept the three gods.
Zhao Wu Yan halted. He wielded a strange crescent-shaped ancient weapon and laughed loudly as he swung it through the air.
“Bang bang!”
Three gods in succession were cleaved apart and exploded into blood mist and bone fragments.
Of course, they were false gods!
“This seat will hold them back.”
The Clear Sky Sword King pointed with one finger. A giant sword as bright as the blazing sun flew from his fingertip straight toward Shang Hong.
Shang Hong pressed forward with his right arm, unleashing a divine ability. Endless rosy clouds appeared before him.
“Bang!”
The rosy clouds were torn apart by sword qi. Shang Hong’s divine body was pierced through, and large amounts of divine blood sprayed out.
Strangely, Shang Hong’s shattered body split into three identical divine forms. Each unleashed divine abilities and actually managed to block the Clear Sky Sword King’s subsequent attacks.
Zhang Ruochen felt conflicted inside. The current situation was extremely unfavourable for Heaven Court. Defeat and death were only a matter of time. He very much wanted to take advantage of the chaos to rescue Little Black and Blood Slaughter, then escape.
But Wind Rock, Wind Xi, Lian Xi, and even Wind Suspended. Their connections with him varied in depth. How could he simply abandon them and leave?
If he fled like this, how deep would the regret and sorrow be in the future?
Yet if he stayed, he would surely pay a tremendous price. At the least, his identity and hidden secrets would be exposed. At worst, he would lose his life.
This was a true life-or-death crisis!
At that moment, Zhang Ruochen saw Wind Xi taking advantage of the gods’ chaotic battle to pursue the Dark Shrine’s Devour Earth god alone. He inwardly cursed. She really was throwing her life away!
Zhang Ruochen could no longer afford to care about anything else. He took out a wolf-head talisman seal, crushed it, then gripped the Qing Ping Sword and charged toward the area where the gods were fighting.
Zhao Wu Yan, riding on the ghost beast’s back, spotted him. Even under the siege of the gods, he remained completely at ease. He swung his weapon and struck toward Zhang Ruochen from afar.
“Swish swish!”
Zhang Ruochen hurled out over a thousand defensive talismans, but they were all reduced to dust.
The crescent-shaped divine light broke through the talisman patterns and cleaved straight toward him.
“Sword Fourteen!”
The Qing Ping Sword slashed out.
A green lotus bloomed before Zhang Ruochen. Its light shone brilliantly, and sword qi soared to the heavens.
“Boom!”
The green lotus exploded into countless sword qi.
Zhang Ruochen was sent flying hundreds of zhang away. Each step he took cracked the ground beneath him. The skin on his sword-wielding arm burst open, divine blood flowing out. Yet he seized the momentum to break free from Zhao Wu Yan’s divine realm world and pursued Wind Xi ahead.
A strange glint flashed in Zhao Wu Yan’s eyes. Though that strike had been casual, it was not something a Mending Heaven Realm god could block.
Yet that daoist not only blocked it but appeared barely injured. It was simply unbelievable.
When Zhao Wu Yan saw the daoist chasing toward Devour Earth, a cruel smile appeared in his eyes, as if he were looking at a dead man.
…
Wind Rock knew that his cultivation meant nothing before gods. It was no different from an ant. Yet seeing one Heaven Court god after another fall in pools of blood, and familiar saint realm cultivators dying in droves, his eyes filled with blood threads. He only wanted to charge out and fight the Dark Shrine gods to the death.
He possessed this blood courage and fearless heart toward death.
Wind and Cloud Overlord opened his eyes. “You stay here!”
Wind Rock showed great joy. “Father, have you already refined the Yellow Spring Flower toxin?”
Wind and Cloud Overlord slowly stood up. His face remained extremely pale, but his gaze was sharp and cold, his figure as firm as a mountain.
When he looked at Wind Rock, a trace of tenderness appeared in his eyes. “This tribulation, your father cannot overcome! But you still have a chance. You have awakened the bloodline of the Pure Yang Heavenly Venerate’s three heads and six arms. There is hope to awaken the sword spirit of the Pure Yang Divine Sword. However, you are currently only in the saint realm. Your bloodline is not yet strong enough. You need to undergo the divine tribulation’s baptism. The sword spirit can help you kill the enemy!”
“In your current state, you cannot survive the divine tribulation. Let your father assist you.”
Wind and Cloud Overlord’s face was full of exhaustion. He placed his palm on Wind Rock’s shoulder. A stream of supremely pure and supreme yang power flowed continuously into his body.
Wind Rock could not move. Tears surged like fountains from his eyes.
“Do not cry. Look at this battlefield. Look at the fallen Wind Clan cultivators. Etch the blood and hatred firmly in your heart. Turn it into unyielding motivation for cultivation. If you do not break through to the divine realm and avenge them, you are unworthy to be a son of the Wind Clan.” Wind and Cloud Overlord shouted loudly.
Wind Rock gritted his teeth and forced his eyes wide open, watching the tragic scenes unfolding before him.
…
Zhang Ruochen advanced all the way. All arrays had already been destroyed. All divine patterns had been torn apart.
The ground was covered in bloody corpses. Most could not even retain intact bodies. Shattered bones, severed arms, and severed heads lay everywhere. The sight was too horrific to bear.
Just a quarter of an hour earlier, they had been iron-blooded saint armies.
A god had fallen. His divine body had been sliced into over a hundred pieces by an extremely sharp weapon. Even his divine soul had been disintegrated.
The more Zhang Ruochen looked, the more shocked he became. He recognised this god. It was not a false god but a powerful true god of the Wind Clan named Wind Void.
Just how strong was that doll-like existence?
A true god of such calibre had no power to resist before it. Moreover, it had extinguished Wind Void’s mental will and divine soul at astonishing speed.
Eerie. Terrifying.
If he had not already seen Wind Xi standing ahead, he would have fled immediately and absolutely refused to provoke that cloth doll.
Wind Xi stood rigidly in place. Her eyes stared straight ahead at a seventy-two-storey array tower.
That was the array core of the Xu Wind Divine Ship. Lightning densely covered the area around the array tower, interwoven with divine patterns. These were ancient heavenly-grade divine patterns containing god-slaying power. Even a Great God would not find it easy to force their way in.
The large-headed cloth doll stood below the array tower. It pointed upward with one finger. A thread of mental power shot from its fingertip, wrapping around Wind Suspended’s neck and hoisting him into mid-air.
The scene resembled lifting a fish from water without reeling in the line.
The key was that it held no rod in its hand, only the thread.
Wind Suspended possessed peak superior god cultivation. Even with his neck bound, he should have had the power to resist. Yet now, the strength within his body seemed completely locked. No matter how he struggled, it was useless.
The large-headed cloth doll’s eyes glowed red. It opened its bloody maw and laughed toward Mister Mo, who stood at the tower gate. “Open the arrays and divine patterns, and I will release him.”
Mister Mo had long since sobered from the alcohol. He snorted coldly. “You are dreaming.”
“Very well, then there is no other way!”
The large-headed cloth doll appeared disappointed. It tightened its finger.
The mental power thread around Wind Suspended’s neck constricted fiercely. With a “pfft” sound, divine blood sprayed. Wind Suspended’s head separated from his body and fell from mid-air.
Mister Mo roared in fury. He summoned a divine lightning bolt that fell from the sky.
The large-headed cloth doll pressed its palm toward the void, forming a mental power dark cloud that blocked the divine lightning. “The attack divine array of the Xu Wind Divine Ship requires several gods to support it before it can fully activate. Mo Mo, with the little power you have summoned now, how could you possibly harm me? Why has your mental power still not broken through to the eightieth level?”
“This old man alone can also activate the attack divine array.”
Mister Mo’s peach-shaped head began to burn. Clearly, he was prepared to go all out. He split off twelve mental power clones in succession, positioning them at various points around the array tower. With hand seals formed, under the control of mental power, the array tower slowly began to rotate.
But…
“Rumble rumble!”
The divine ship shook violently. Cracks appeared across its hull.
Mister Mo looked up and saw a divine talisman stretching ten thousand miles descending from above. On the talisman, billions of talisman patterns flowed like rivers, converging into a skull pattern.
Wu Yue’s figure stood atop the divine talisman.
“Good heavens, the Shang Tu Divine Talisman! How could it be the Shang Tu Divine Talisman? Heaven itself wants to destroy our Wind Clan!” Mister Mo cried out in extreme indignation, roaring toward the sky in grief.
