I Am the Fated Villain

Chapter 1777. Only the Alliance Leader Can Personally Take Action—I’m Unable to Hold Them Back

Within the void, black flames coiled around the chains like a blossoming flower of death. They took root in the darkness and spread outward, continuously dragging Ling Yuling toward that indistinct gateway.

After her initial shock, she gradually calmed down. She stopped struggling, allowing the black chains to wrap around her limbs, allowing the black flames to engulf and submerge her.

Around the blurred gateway, boundless killing intent surged forth. Strands of destructive aura intertwined and collided, as if the heavens themselves were about to annihilate all living beings, to reforge earth, water, wind, and fire, and reshape the world anew.

The Fourth Killing Formation of ancient times—each time it had appeared in history, it brought endless bloodshed and boundless slaughter.

It could slay immortals and gods alike; those who heard of it turned pale, and those who spoke of it trembled in fear.

From the beginning, Ling Yuling had felt that the aura of this mysterious figure in white robes was somewhat familiar, very likely someone she knew.

She had tried to make connections in her mind, but came to no conclusion.

But as the Fourth Killing Formation of ancient times appeared, she was finally able to determine which person this mysterious white-robed figure was connected to.

I truly didn’t expect this…

Ling Yuling let out a soft sigh, unable to hide her surprise. However, that sigh was quickly swallowed by the endless black flames. Her figure was gradually consumed by darkness, disappearing into that indistinct gateway.

The white-robed figure watched everything from afar, his expression unchanged.

“Even the Fourth Killing Formation cannot kill her in a short time. At most, it can exile her into the endless void of spacetime, concealing her coordinates and delaying her return…”

He shook his head slightly, paying it no further mind. As he stepped forward, ripples spread through spacetime, and he departed from this isolated realm.

At that moment, on the boundless battlefield where the Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the Zhengyi Alliance clashed, the instant the white-robed figure reappeared, the fiercely raging battlefield suddenly fell silent.

Almost all cultivators and living beings turned their gaze toward him—whether Dao-realm existences or ordinary beings alike.

The upper echelons of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance had originally been full of morale, their fighting spirit surging, but suddenly they felt something was off.

Many people’s expressions changed slightly, their brows furrowing tightly—they could no longer sense the aura of the Vice Alliance Leader, Ling Yuling.

“What’s going on?”

“Why has the Vice Alliance Leader’s aura disappeared?”

“Could it be…?”

Even figures like Zhuo Fengxie, Hun Yuanjun, and the others had their expressions change. They knew full well how powerful Ling Yuling was—aside from Gu Changge, there were hardly any in the current Heaven-Slaying Alliance who could steadily defeat her.

Even those beings from the Forbidden Zones were no exception.

In the vast expanse today, how many people could still threaten her life?

“Something’s wrong. That senior’s aura has disappeared. With her strength, could it be that she was no match for that mysterious white-robed figure?”

Mu Fuguang frowned. The casual disdain in her gaze from before had now turned serious.

The other Forbidden Zone beings beside her were no different—their eyes were fixed tightly on that white-robed figure, wanting to know what method he had used to make Ling Yuling disappear.

“Senior Yuling is immensely powerful. Even if she were defeated, she wouldn’t perish so easily. I suspect she was ambushed and plotted against, and has been trapped in some void outside the world,” Chu Heng said. Sword-like light surged in his eyes, and a terrifying killing intent flowed within them.

His words caused Zhuo Fengxie and the others to feel their hearts sink.

Now it seemed that something had indeed happened to Ling Yuling.

At the crucial moment of the clash between the two armies, Ling Yuling—the core commander—had suddenly disappeared during her confrontation with that mysterious white-robed figure.

The blow to morale and fighting spirit was undoubtedly severe.

At the same time, it wasn’t just the higher-ups and powerful figures of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance who noticed the anomaly—many ordinary cultivators and living beings also became aware of it.

After confronting that mysterious white-robed figure, the former senior Ling Yuling had vanished and did not reappear.

What did this mean?

Within the Heaven-Slaying Alliance’s army, many were startled, and soon became uneasy and panicked.

Could it be that the Vice Alliance Leader had met with misfortune? Had she perished at the hands of that mysterious white-robed figure?

In other universes and spacetime regions, many Dao-realm beings who were battling the Zhengyi Alliance’s experts also felt their minds grow unsettled.

“Hahaha, as expected of Senior! Once he takes action, there will be no accidents. Even the Vice Alliance Leader of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance—a former senior—so what? She was still no match for Senior and won’t be able to return!”

On the Zhengyi Alliance’s side, many powerful figures also noticed that Ling Yuling’s aura had disappeared and that she had not returned from the outer realm with the white-robed figure.

Many experts burst into laughter, extremely delighted, their voices echoing across various universes, sweeping away their previous frustration.

In their battles against the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, the Zhengyi Alliance had repeatedly suffered setbacks, retreating step by step and unable to prevail.

This had left them with pent-up frustration and unwillingness.

To them, Ling Yuling’s disappearance was the key turning point that could reverse the tide of this battle.

“How unexpected… Who exactly is this mysterious white-robed figure, to have caused even a former senior to suffer such a great loss and encounter misfortune?”

“Could it be that this battle between the Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the Zhengyi Alliance will take an unexpected turn?”

Across the vast expanse, many ancient beings observing the battle were equally shocked and shaken.

Although they couldn’t directly observe the great battle between Ling Yuling and the mysterious white-robed figure, they could roughly guess what had happened in the end.

If Ling Yuling had truly perished, there wouldn’t have been so little disturbance. So it was very likely that the mysterious white-robed figure had used some method to trap her in a certain void beyond the world.

Such methods were the most troublesome, because that outer void was lawless and unbound. Once one lost their coordinates, it meant that cultivators would find it extremely difficult to return through normal means.

Even if someone wished to guide her back, they would first need to know which void she was in.

But the boundless expanse contained endless spacetime and countless universes. The nameless, disorderly voids beyond the world were even more numerous—trying to retrieve her would be like searching for a needle in the ocean.

“The Vice Alliance Leader of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance has already been defeated by Senior. Everyone, charge with me! The Heaven-Slaying Alliance is no longer to be feared!”

“Kill!”

Endless battle cries once again resounded across the universes. The morale of the Zhengyi Alliance surged, their killing intent boiling—they were no longer as hesitant as before, but instead charged forward fearlessly, as if injected with adrenaline.

The many experts of the Zhengyi Alliance were greatly encouraged as well. Leading from the front, they rushed forward, and an even fiercer battle than before erupted once again.

“Senior Yuling has only encountered some trouble—she will soon break free. There is no need for us to worry.”

“A mere pack of rats dares to act so arrogantly? Even without Senior Yuling holding the line, we can still sweep everything aside.”

Chu Heng’s eyes were icy cold. With a sharp shout, he reignited the slightly waning morale of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance’s army, causing their fighting spirit to surge once more.

He charged forward first, clad in battle armor. His blood-colored long blade slashed down, a streak of blade-light like a flowing galaxy sweeping across the universe, cutting through spacetime with overwhelming force.

The other experts of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance also took action, casting aside hesitation. In an instant, tens of millions of chaotic sword lights collided across the cosmos—blood splattered, corpses flew.

“The Alliance Leader of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance still refuses to act? Do you intend to let all your experts perish here?”

“Well then, I’ll push you a bit further. Let’s see whether you will act or not—I refuse to believe you are not watching this battle.”

The mysterious white-robed figure stood calmly in the universe, quietly observing the slaughter.

As his soft voice fell, a brilliant stream of light flew out from beneath his wide sleeves—it was an array diagram. Ancient and vast in aura, it unfolded like a painting of heaven and earth, as if sealing the entire universe.

The diagram shot into the high reaches of the cosmos and expanded boundlessly in an instant, slowly rotating as it covered everything.

Chaos energy surged, hazy and indistinct, as if it had obscured all spacetime. Within it, the laws of the Great Dao permeated, and terrifying killing intent condensed.

Every cultivator and living being on the battlefield felt a chill run through them, their bodies going cold, their eyes filled with shock and horror.

“Could this be the legendary Killing Array Diagram?”

The Dao-realm beings locked in battle felt a chill down their backs, as if enveloped by dreadful killing intent. Some looked up—and their expressions changed drastically, unable to believe what they saw.

In the universe, after releasing the array diagram, the white-robed figure did not stop. With a flick of his finger, dazzling sword light appeared in the void. Behind him, phantoms condensed—one divine sword after another, indistinct yet unmistakable. There were four in total, embedded in a radiant, rays of light -woven mountain rock.

“Arise!”

The white-robed figure spoke coldly, his eyes utterly emotionless.

The four divine swords trembled and rang as they shot out from the mountain rock. The moment they appeared, the entire universe seemed to be filled with endless sword cries.

The four swords hung across the sky, their sword intent bone-piercing. All living beings and cultivators felt as if their bodies were about to explode, their souls on the verge of annihilation under that intent.

In an instant, countless sword phantoms crisscrossed the heavens and the cosmos—dense and endless—like they were slashing forth from spacetime itself, or bursting out of the void…

This was true world-destroying intent, capable of exterminating all immortals and gods.

Only with the Killing Array Diagram and the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords did the Fourth Killing Formation possess its awe-inspiring, ghost-and-god-fearing might. When he dealt with Ling Yuling earlier, he had only borrowed a trace of its power.

“Just what is this person’s origin? Why is even this array diagram in his possession?”

Within the Heaven-Slaying Alliance’s army, Mu Fuguang and the other Forbidden Zone beings all had slight changes in expression.

Many of them had ancient origins and vast knowledge—they recognized the white-robed figure’s methods immediately.

This was precisely the legendary Fourth Killing Formation, said to possess the power to slay immortals and annihilate gods.

“And this is the complete Fourth Killing Formation, supported by the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords and the Killing Array Diagram…”

“Troublesome. It seems only the Alliance Leader personally taking action can deal with this person.”

Tong Xian and the others frowned deeply, unwilling to prolong the fight. Under the coverage of the Fourth Killing Formation, even they would be suppressed.

It was said that the origins of the Fourth Killing Formation could even be traced back to the primordial era before the vast expanse was born. In the many eras after creation, it had appeared repeatedly.

Each appearance brought endless bloodshed. Countless powerful beings had perished beneath it.

The last time it appeared was during the era of the Black Calamity, controlled by a certain ancient senior.

They were certain that once such a killing formation fully manifested, let alone the armies before them—even Ancestor Dao-level beings would perish, pierced and shredded within it.

“We should withdraw. This mysterious white-robed figure is too strange. Even if we act, we might not be able to break this formation—and may instead encounter misfortune. Moreover, many hidden forces of the Zhengyi Alliance have yet to act, watching us like tigers…”

“Unless the Alliance Leader personally intervenes—but who knows whether he is even watching this battle right now.” Tong Xian sighed, somewhat helpless.

These Forbidden Zone beings—when had they ever felt so stifled? Yet ever since emerging into the world, they had suffered repeated setbacks.

This vast expanse was truly terrifying.

After hearing the voice transmissions of Tong Xian and the others, Zhuo Fengxie, Hun Yuanjun, Chu Heng, and the rest all turned solemn, taking the situation extremely seriously.

With Ling Yuling gone, they could only rely on these Forbidden Zone beings—but if even they spoke this way, it was enough to show how terrifying this killing formation was.

At this point, the only option seemed to be a temporary retreat, to decide on a strategy later.

“Retreat.”

Though unwilling, Chu Heng could only sound the horn for withdrawal. The Heaven-Slaying Alliance’s vast fleet of ancient warships began to turn back along the path they had come.

At the same time, with visible reluctance, he crushed an ancient talisman in his hand. It was simple in appearance, but at its center was inscribed a single casual character— (Soldier)—as if written offhand.

The moment the talisman shattered, a terrifying beam of light shot into the sky.

The character “Soldier” seemed to come alive, evolving as it opened a treasury of weaponry within the void. Boundless and vast aura spread outward, chaos light spilling forth. One divine weapon after another emerged—green lamps, ancient towers, divine mirrors, battle-axes, bronze bells, Bagua mirrors…

All kinds of Dao-weapon prototypes condensed into being, dazzling and awe-inspiring.

Those weapons flew out, their divine might equally terrifying. They charged toward the endless sword radiance, colliding across the universe and erupting with boundless energy.

This was the military talisman bestowed upon him by Gu Changge. At critical moments, it possessed unfathomable power and could preserve his life.

But at this moment, Chu Heng could not afford to care about such things. In order to ensure the army’s safe retreat, he activated the talisman and used it to hold the rear.

“Senior…”

“We can’t just let them retreat like this.”

Watching that vast treasury of weapons—though it was continuously dimming, becoming indistinct, even beginning to crack—it still managed to block the slowly descending Fourth Killing Formation. The expressions of many experts from the Zhengyi Alliance changed, turning rather unsightly.

Some even approached the mysterious white-robed figure, hoping to have him take action.

“I cannot hold them back…”

However, to their surprise, this white-robed senior—who had appeared so cold and indifferent just moments ago—now seemed to slightly furrow his brows and shook his head.

“One can only say… as expected of the Alliance Leader of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance. Was this method intentional?”

He looked at that treasury of weapons and let out a sigh.

The experts of the Zhengyi Alliance were all utterly shocked and shaken.

What did this mean?

Could it be that the Alliance Leader of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance had already made a move? Even this mysterious senior of unfathomable strength did not dare to act rashly?