Day of Ascension

Zhu Chanchan leaped in front of Dazhong and punched him twice, but he remained deflated. Blushing out of shame, she said, “I spent all my mystical power dragging the Flying Peak all the way here and activating it once. Give me two days. I’ll heal your injuries when my cultivation recovers.”

“By then, Ah Ying’s corpse would have gone cold.”

Dazhong immediately flew right up to the back of Xu Ying’s head and muttered, “Ah Ying, let me go in and take a few mouthfuls. That way, I can still protect you when we flee later.”

Now that Xu Ying’s cultivation had risen, he was no longer the same youth as before. Injured, Dazhong would have no way to force his way inside if Xu Ying sealed his ethereal void. So, he had no choice but to swallow his pride and ask Xu Ying.

Xu Ying nodded. Dazhong quickly slipped into his ethereal void and absorbed a few mouthfuls of vital energy to stabilize his injuries. Only then did he feel at ease.

He called out, “Ah Ying, there’s no time to delay. Let’s get out of here!”

Baffled, Zhu Chanchan asked, “Didn’t you just say you wanted to fight to the end?”

Dazhong replied matter-of-factly, “If you could heal my injuries and Ah Ying gave me enough vital energy, of course I’d fight to the end. But now that you’re useless, of course running is the best course of action! Hurry! Hurry!”

As they spoke, the golden statue lifted the Flying Peak from its head and hurled it at them with all its might.

Xu Ying quickly swept up Zhu Chanchan and dodged sideways. The Flying Peak was truly massive. Even sprinting at full speed, he was still blasted into the air by the wind pressure trailing behind the peak.

Fiery light shone in the golden statue’s eyes once more. Seeing its eyes turn crimson, Xu Ying immediately used the Cloud-Ladder Heavenly Bound and leaped into the air with Zhu Chanchan in his arms to dodge the fiery light.

The golden statue pressed its palms against the ground and strained to pull its legs free. Just then, Xu Ying dropped toward the back of its head.

Zhu Chanchan cried out, “Weren’t we supposed to escape?”

At the same time, Yuanqi regained consciousness. When he saw the enormous golden statue rising beneath them, he couldn’t help but shriek.

Xu Ying called out, “Master Qi, open your mouth wide!”

Yuanqi had been coiled around Xu Ying’s shoulder the whole time. He instinctively opened wide, his head swelling to the size of a hill. Xu Ying hoisted Zhu Chanchan backward and stuffed her into Yuanqi’s mouth. He reminded, “Don’t bite!”

Yuanqi subconsciously wanted to bite down, but quickly withdrew his venomous fangs.

Xu Ying came crashing down with a thunderous boom and slammed onto the golden statue’s Divine Bridge. The Divine Bridge was forged entirely with black gold and was incredibly tough, with patterns of Dao avatars flowing on its surface. Even when Xu Ying crashed into it from a great height, it didn’t suffer any damage.

“As expected, the phenomena behind the golden statue are all artifacts, and not a real ethereal void!”

Xu Ying whipped out the stone ax and channeled the Grand Unity Guiding Method with all his strength, circulating the power of the Mud Pill, Yellow Court, Crimson Palace, and Jade Pool to the limit. He silently chanted the Eight Sounds of Primordial Nurturing. Immediately, his vital energy boiled over and surged violently.

The stone axe’s malevolent power erupted in full. A sea of blood rose behind Xu Ying, and the countless corpses within it stood as though they were about to return to life.

Boom!

Xu Ying swung the stone axe in a wide, sweeping arc and chopped downward at the Divine Bridge. In an instant, countless patterns bearing Dao avatars emerged, glowing with rosy light as they flowed forward to block the strike.

His gaze flickered as he activated his Third Eye, discerning the patterns formed by the Dao avatars and identifying their weak spots. Like cutting through vegetables, the stone ax split apart every Dao avatar in its path!

The stone ax finally made contact with the Divine Bridge, only to be met with a terrifying recoil. All ten of Xu Ying’s fingers instantly shattered from the impact, exploding with loud cracks. His arms were drenched in fresh blood as his flesh tore away from his bones.

His arm bones also cracked from the recoil and burst apart.

Suddenly, two new arms erupted from under Xu Ying’s armpits. It was a physical technique from the Mud-Pill Radiant Vestige Longevity Mantra.

Grabbing the stone ax with his new arms, he swung the ax once more and chopped down. Immediately, the new arms also exploded from the impact. But at the same time, new arms grew from under his armpits, and he swung down once more!

This was the first time he made use of the Mud-Pill Secret Trove’s undying body, using his physique’s powerful regenerative powers to clash with the Divine Bridge!

Just like this, his arms were destroyed dozens of times in succession. With a final thunderous roar, the stone ax in his hand suddenly exploded!

Even though Zhu Chanchan had repaired this stone axe, it had become much weaker than before due to its use in suppressing the female immortal.

Earlier, Xu Ying had used it to clash with the Twelve Golden Statues head-on and was already damaged; now, he activated it and slashed dozens of times in succession. It finally couldn’t withstand the impact and exploded.

“Master Zhong, come out!” Xu Ying shouted, staring at the Divine Bridge ahead. Hidden above the sea of primordial chaos in Xu Ying’s mind, Dazhong had slipped into Xu Ying’s grotto heaven to absorb vital energy. He shuddered when he heard the call.

He cried out, “I’m not coming out!”

Though he said that, he still flew out, swaying. He knew very well which mattered more: one full meal or a lifetime of being well fed.

As expected, as soon as he flew out, Xu Ying, who now had four arms, grabbed Dazhong by his loop. The bell quickly pleaded, “Master Ying, go easy on me!”

Clang!

Xu Ying’s vital energy surged as he swung the great bell, smashing it violently into the Divine Bridge ahead. The stone ax had already chopped halfway through it, and the heavy blow from the great bell made the bridge crack sharply.

Simultaneously, the golden statue pulled its legs out of the ground. However, its head was still sunk into its chest, so it couldn’t see what was happening behind it.

Even so, it knew the situation was bad, and it immediately reached back, flailing about frantically.

Dazhong’s terror spiked as the huge hand swept past their heads with a fierce roar. “Master Ying!”

Xu Ying ignored him and swung the great bell down once more!

Clang!

“Master Ying!”

Clang!

“Screw you!”

Clang!

Finally, the golden statue sensed Xu Ying’s position and reached out with its hand. But before its hand could close in, a resounding bell chime rang out, and the Divine Bridge shattered.

The golden statue’s aura plunged, becoming far weaker than before. Naturally, the huge hand descending toward them also lost much of its power.

A thunderous crash rang out. Xu Ying dodged the descending palm, but he couldn’t avoid the shockwaves produced by it hitting the ground. Fortunately, the dented great bell was around. With practiced ease, he ducked beneath it and shielded himself.

The great bell clanged loudly from the impact, tumbling along the Divine Bridge. Like a stone, the bell skipped across the Jasper Pool and smashed downward, slamming into the twelve-layered Pagoda. He crashed down and ended up hooked on an upturned corner of the fourth level’s eaves.

Xu Ying slid out of the bell and forcibly endured his urge to spew blood. He bellowed, “Anyone still alive, hear the command of the Ageless Immortal! Attack this place, smash the Pagoda and Jasper Pool of the golden statue’s ethereal void!

“Sever the flow of its Heavenly River, flatten the Heavenly Mountain, shatter the mystic gateways! Throw out the five immortal mountains!”

In the short clash, Feng Xian’er, Hua Xianchen, and the others were either dead or injured. Hearing the order, the surviving Qi Cultivators rallied their spirits and flew into the golden statue’s ethereal void one by one.

They activated their artifacts and blasted at the Heavenly River, Heavenly Mountain, three mystic gateways, and five immortal mountains, wreaking havoc.

Feng Xian’er, in particular, took the lead and unleashed her Phoenix Flame to boil away the Jasper Pool’s waters.

The golden statue’s mystical power plummeted. Its hands’ movement when reaching backward grew slower and slower, and its power also dwindled with every moment.

Even so, the statue was enormous. For any Qi Cultivator who had refined their Golden Core, the slightest contact would still mean death or grievous injury.

Finally, the Heavenly River was severed, the Heavenly Mountain was flattened, and the three mystic gateways were toppled and shattered. The five immortal mountains were leveled too, and the cauldron’s bottom was punched through!

The golden statue slowly stopped moving and froze in place.

Its mystical power came from two sources: the incense qi from the shrine and its ethereal void, with the latter serving as its main source. Earlier, Xu Ying had used the statue’s own power to sever the shrine’s incense qi, and now that its ethereal void had shattered, it had completely lost its source of power.

Zhu Chanchan pushed her hand up, forcing Yuanqi’s mouth open, causing his head to balloon in size. Standing inside the giant snake’s mouth, the young girl’s eyes lit up brightly as she looked at the shattered artifact. She immediately knocked on Yuanqi’s tongue.

Involuntarily, Yuanqi slithered down from Xu Ying’s shoulder and reverted to his true form, then channeled the True Cultivation of Ba Snake to turn into a hundred-zhang giant snake.

As he slithered forward, he swallowed all the shattered mystic gateway, Divine Bridge, Pagoda, and so on.

Xu Ying had also been rampaging moments earlier. Now, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief, feeling as if he had survived a calamity.

Controlled by Zhu Chanchan, Yuanqi swallowed up everything as he went, growing increasingly fat to the point that it became impossible for him to coil up.

Seeing him approach, Xu Ying quickly distanced himself. I’ll probably die if he coils around my neck.

Xu Ying leaped onto the golden statue’s palm and looked toward the seven rosy lights of ascension.

The other golden statues and Exorcist Immortals had already fought their way to that area, clashing within the rosy light. Xu Ying looked upward and saw that the Fangzhang Immortal Mountain had shrunk down to a dot above the light, barely visible to the naked eye.

Near the Fangzhang Immortal Mountain was an altar, countless times larger than the mountain.

Xu Fu stood on the immortal mountain outside the altar, performing a ritual. He shifted around Fangzhang Immortal Mountain with a profound footwork technique, but the distance was too great for Xu Ying to see what he was trying to do.

Suddenly, Xu Fu came to a halt and pointed his finger at the altar.

Xu Ying saw the space at the center of the altar tremble for an instant. In the next moment, an invisible force surged out in all directions. His expression instantly darkened. “Everyone, get out of here, fast!”

Before his voice faded, bloody qi drifted up near the rosy light of ascension. A group of Exorcists was running toward them. As they ran, wisps of bloody qi rose from someone’s grotto heavens, and he grew visibly thinner, quickly withering away like firewood.

After a few more steps, the Exorcist’s grotto heavens exploded. He was reduced to a pile of withered bones that crumbled away as he ran.

Even Great Exorcists suffered so horribly, let alone the ordinary Exorcists. They, too, were losing vital energy rapidly, and the immortal herbs within them were being drained away as well.

Even the Exorcist Immortals, fighting the golden statues, struggled to stop the loss of their immortal herbs. Worse still, they had to continue clashing with the golden statues, making it even harder for them to resist the effects of the grand ritual!

Xu Fu’s grand resurrection ritual was truly ferocious!

He intended to wipe out everyone who had unlocked their Secret Troves in one fell swoop, regardless of whether they identified as Exorcists or Qi Cultivators! Some Qi Cultivators he had brought with him had also unlocked their Secret Troves and practiced exorcism arts. They, too, were being sacrificed.

Even Xu Ying could feel his four Secret Troves stirring restlessly. He could barely suppress them. They were on the verge of being sucked out of him by the grand ritual.

He had no cultivation techniques for the Jade Pool, yet he had drawn upon its power before. Now, he could feel its primeval qi and the immortal herb he had yet to refine on the verge of flying out of him.

As for the Qi Cultivators who had never unlocked their Secret Troves, they had no such worries; they weren’t affected at all.

Xu Ying channeled his sword qi to fly, charging outward with all his might. “Master Qi, let’s go!”

Yuanqi frantically slithered away. He glanced back and saw the grotto heavens behind the Great Exorcists running away like them, beginning to collapse, disintegrating one after another.

Yuanqi was absolutely terrified. He had opened a few grotto heavens, and they were also showing signs of falling apart. He frantically channeled his sword qi and took to the skies, following Xu Ying.

Even Zhu Chanchan, who was hiding inside Yuanqi’s mouth, was in the same situation. She felt like the immortal herbs she had accumulated over six thousand years were stirring restlessly, as if desperate to fly out.

Everyone was fleeing outward, except for the Exorcist Immortals. They suddenly abandoned the golden statues and advanced instead of retreating, charging toward the altar in the sky.

Yet the closer they drew to the altar, the faster the “immortal herbs” inside them drained away. Even so, they pressed forward courageously and charged onto Fangzhang Immortal Mountain.

On the immortal mountain, Xu Fu showed no signs of fear. Wearing a calm, faint smile, he said, “Everyone, instead of becoming someone else’s meal, why not contribute your strength to my grand plan?”

An elderly, white-haired Exorcist Immortal from the Cui clan charged in with his Radiant Vestige unleashed. It was an expanse of rosy light, as if an ascended immortal lived in seclusion within, sweeping toward Xu Fu.

Xu Fu smiled faintly and raised his palm to meet the rosy light.

A faint shockwave rippled out. That Exorcist Immortal’s Radiant Vestige seemed to have slammed into an invisible wall. It instantly collapsed and shattered. The immortal herbs that had formed the Radiant Vestige rapidly drained away and poured into the golden coffin within the rosy light of ascension.

The other Exorcist Immortals charged into the fray; in the next moment, each of them sustained injuries and coughed up blood.

Just then, using his fingers as a sword, a burly man dressed in ancient clothing stabbed Xu Fu’s palm.

Xu Fu’s aura wavered for a moment. Revealing a look of surprise, he smiled. “You’re a Qi Cultivator from the Great Zhou dynasty? You must be the one who hung the bronze sword to kill. Indeed, you have some skills!”

The burly man’s heart skipped a beat. His strike was both an ambush and a combined assault with the other Exorcist Immortals. Yet, he had failed to pierce through Xu Fu’s palm!

Xu Fu said, “You still have unrefined immortal herbs within you. You’d better stay here!”

Forming the origin fist seal, Xu Fu threw a punch. The Great Zhou Dynasty Qi Cultivator received it head-on and coughed up blood. With a look of horror, he blurted out, “You’re an immortal?”

His injury triggered the blood sacrifice, stirring the immortal herbs within him and causing them to drain away even faster than those of the other Exorcist Immortals.

Just then, a voice rang out indifferently. “Standing on the immortal mountain, he is. Once he steps off, he’s nothing!”

Xu Fu sensed a terrifying power directed at him. Xu Fu hurriedly flipped his hand to meet it, attacking backward.

He swayed for a moment and took two steps forward involuntarily before dispersing the force of the attack.

Xu Fu turned around in shock. Before him stood a refined, handsome elder in perfectly clean clothes. His hair, beard, and eyebrows were groomed immaculately. Even his shoes were spotless.

He was Yuan Wuji of the Yuan clan.

Puzzled, Xu Fu said, “You’re an Exorcist. Why are there no immortal herbs inside you?”

“Take a guess!” Yuan Wuji smiled faintly as he struck. He called out, “You guys, break the altar!”

At this point, Xu Ying’s group had already raced onto the mercury river. The farther they got from the altar, the weaker its influence became. However, the grand ritual’s power was still growing stronger. Xu Ying guessed they might not reach the entrance of Mount Li’s grand tomb before his four Secret Troves were destroyed.

Looking back, the sky above the First Emperor Ancestral Dragon’s golden coffin had turned crimson, with a torrent surging into the coffin!

Just then, the altar suddenly shattered. The sense of dread brought by the blood ritual also vanished without a trace.

Baffled, Xu Ying muttered, “What happened? Did Xu Fu meet his match? No, that can’t be. He possesses the physique and strength of an immortal, and he has even refined immortal fire. How could anyone be his match?”

A spine-chilling thud came from Ancestral Dragon’s golden coffin, like a drum pounding in one’s chest, shaking the people’s heart as if it were about to burst.

Thud!

A second thud rang out, even louder than the first.

Xu Ying grunted and charged outward frantically with Yuanqi. He heard a heavy, yet somewhat familiar voice echo.

“I, who stood upon the Divine Land and held the fate of the empire in my hands, crushed the six states and ruled the world, have been slumbering here. Who is it that has awakened me?”