Chapter 297: Those the Ten Thousand Souls Banner Can't Reform, We'll Reform Physically! |
"Gah—"
The fused soul-forms of the Three Grand Venerables smashed into it, and from the twisted body of the Formless came a piercing sonic roar.
Inside the Formless it seemed like something wanted to burst out, its body bulging forward at times, then bulging backward at others.
It grew increasingly grotesque, swelling until its size reached a thousand meters!
"Shh—"
As white mists sprayed from the Formless's surface, its warped body finally stabilized.
Now it had an overall humanoid shape, its surface covered with a hardened metallic layer, as if clad in full armor.
Sharp horns crowned its head, a tail trailed behind, and its eyes and face resembled those of the Dragon-Men.
"Zeng—"
Then the left hand regrew by itself.
It glanced at the left hand, apparently dissatisfied, and with a thought it reshaped the left hand into a set of razor-sharp claws, cold light flashing fiercely.
You have arrived beside Shen Qingshan.
Shen Qingshan sighed.
"Those Dragon-Man Venerables have gone mad. To win, they've sacrificed themselves!"
Before your towering form, Shen Qingshan looks like a mere speck.
Shen Qingshan proposed continuing the earlier plan, luring the Formless into the Overseas Sea to temporarily seal it.
Seeing the Formless now looking like a person, you said with some worry.
"This move probably won't work…"
The Formless spoke in a chorus of the Three Grand Venerables' voices.
"Chen Yi!! Though we died!! We have given the Formless consciousness!! I'll see how you stop the Formless from destroying the human world!!"
As it spoke, the Formless brandished the war halberd.
The halberd blade projected a chilling radiance, slicing from the coastline through thousands of miles to distant mountains. The earth split, the ground collapsed, and the sea receded!
Floodwaters roared in, waves dozens of meters high!
With unfathomable might, the Formless kept striking and sinking land—it meant to drown the continent!
Remember, the ocean area in the human world far exceeds the land area.
Do you recall that idle, overly curious Martial King from the Free and Unfettered Holy Land?
He had flown for many years and still hadn't reached the edge of the sea!
Shen Qingshan discerned the Formless's intent.
"It intends to flood the continent! Block the floodwaters!"
Shen Qingshan led the Martial Saints to the front of the flood, using their own cultivation to stir the natural forces and hold back the invading waters.
The Formless laughed arrogantly, shifted its form, teleporting thousands of miles away, and continued cleaving the land.
"I want to see how much you can stop!!"
The halberd struck a suit of armor.
You made no attacking moves. Instead, you used your Mountain River Armor body to absorb the Formless's strikes head-on.
"Hahaha! Chen Yi!! You're out of moves now, aren't you!!"
Hearing the Three Grand Venerables' voices makes you furious.
You know the Three Grand Venerables were already thoroughly dead.
This strange thing is essentially the Formless.
The Formless swallowed the Three Grand Venerables and is imitating them.
On top of that, their obsessions and resentments affect the Formless, creating the current state of affairs.
"Damn it! Can't strike back, how can I fight!"
The Formless's earth-shattering power descended, cutting you and your halberd into the ground below.
"Rumble!!"
Lush forests were split apart, the earth sank, the crust ruptured, and debris hurled thousands of meters high!
Sea water surged through this breach again.
The flood rushed roaring, beginning from the continent's western shore, crashing toward the nearest Xiliang borders.
Living beings were submerged as the land turned into a white ocean.
Xiliang people's homes were swept away, countless lives claimed by the flood.
Martial artists could protect themselves temporarily, but the flood ran faster than they could travel; sooner or later they'd be soaked and trapped.
Only Martial Kings could fly through the air to temporarily escape the deluge.
Watching the endless water flow eastward, boundless and unstoppable.
Some Martial Kings who could have fled chose to stay and fight the flood!
They plunged into the water, using their skills to resist the towering waves, until each was completely drowned.
After entering the Unity of Heaven and Man state, your divine sense expanded manyfold, enough to cover all of Xiliang.
Seeing those tragic and heroic scenes fills you with burning anxiety.
"Seven Luminaries Immortal Array!!"
You have to play this final trump card.
"Great Demon! Wake at once, help me form the array!"
Using the mark the Great Demon left on you, you awakened him.
"Old Shen, forget the flood, return to the Starry Domains!!"
Shen Qingshan glanced at the many Martial Saints still resisting the flood; with a hard heart, he left and charged toward the Starry Domains.
You left as well.
Remaining here, you cannot deal with the Formless; you must go activate the Seven Luminaries Immortal Array.
Soon you flew to Cangqiong Ridge.
Beneath these mountains are buried the Dragon Corpse and the Phoenix Corpse.
On the way, passing through the Great Qian capital, you notified Li Chengqian, asking him to awaken Li Wentian's power.
"Hǔ Tiangong, awaken the dragon and phoenix!!"
Hu Tiangong drifted out from the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
He already knew everything happening outside.
For Hu Tiangong, this moment is painful.
To awaken the Martial God-level power of the dragon and phoenix again requires sacrifices beyond the demon souls stored inside the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
As the Formation Core, that amount is insufficient.
There must be living bodies added.
Moreover, as the Formation Core, those living bodies might be consumed.
In other words, after this battle, if they win, the balance between humans and demons in the human world will tilt.
The Demon Tribe will pose no further threat to humanity.
Still, Hu Tiangong hesitated only briefly, then began casting the Ten Thousand Demon Power ritual.
All those pros and cons depend on the human world still existing.
If the Formless destroys the human world completely, discussing the Demon Tribe's future is meaningless.
Thus, the seven Martial God array cores will be Shen Qingshan, Li Wentian, the Great Demon, Dragon God, Phoenix God—still two short.
Li Lingyue?
She is still in seclusion, breaking through to Martial God.
Where find two more Martial Gods?
You shook the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and released two souls.
Moss!
Broken Star!
These two Dragon-Man Earth Venerables, the earliest to fall in battle, had souls the banner couldn't reform and had been sealed inside.
"Old Wan! Reform them!"
The Ten Thousand Souls Banner chuckled bitterly.
"Brother, didn't you try many times? You even had Old Shen try, and couldn't reform them. Their soul strength is too high."
Moss gloated.
"Damn humans! You think getting this big makes you awesome, damn it? Want to refine me? Try again in your next life! Hahaha!"
You slammed a fist down!
"Bang!!"
"Reform!!"
"Bang!!"
"Reform them for me!!"
"Bang!!"
"Hurry up and reform!!!"
Reformation succeeded.