Chapter 123: Reunion

In just a dozen or so breaths, only six demon beasts remained on the battlefield.

However, due to the close-quarter nature of the fighting, a few of the demon beasts had managed to push through with their brute strength and crash into the Qi Condensation cultivators. In such melee skirmishes, beasts held the advantage, and in this sudden assault, three cultivators were slain.

The remaining beasts were inherently venomous creatures, naturally resistant to other poisons. Now with bloodshot eyes, they charged the crowd in a frenzy, unleashing attacks with fangs and claws in rapid succession.

For a moment, the Wraith Sect disciples were forced into retreat once more. Two of the demon beasts abruptly unleashed long-concealed innate abilities, instantly killing another three cultivators before their strength waned and their movements slowed.

They were promptly hacked into pulp by the enraged Wraith Sect cultivators.

Li Yan and several others were encircling another beast. The sudden turn of events caught them off guard, leaving them unable to assist.

The outburst and deaths of those two beasts triggered a final berserker frenzy from the remaining four. Knowing this was their last chance, they lunged forward in a suicidal charge. The cultivators, fully aware this would be their final stand, prepared themselves for the onslaught.

At that moment, the second-rank Earthspike Lizard suddenly tossed aside the blue prism crystal in its hand and flashed forward, appearing right before the group of Qi Condensation disciples.

This move shocked everyone.

Even Gong Chenying, who had been on guard all this time, was caught off-guard. In that brief moment of distraction, the Earthspike Lizard had already reached the unprepared disciples.

With power equivalent to a peak Foundation Establishment human cultivator, he struck with deadly efficiency. With a single sweep of his arm, one person was instantly slain.

Before he could strike again, Gong Chenying, burning with fury, launched her counterattack. Her long halberd slashed forward like a shooting star, a wave of dazzling blue light cleaving through two first-rank beasts blocking her path. At the same time, a golden hatchet streaked through the air toward the Earthspike Lizard’s throat.

But just then, the enormous black shadow in the sky had grown so dense it seemed ready to drip downward.

The first-rank beasts standing before Gong Chenying were instantly cleaved into quarters under her wrathful strike.

The second-rank Earthspike Lizard, preparing for more slaughter, suddenly felt a chilling terror of imminent death. He crossed his twin cleavers behind him in a frantic block.

Clang! Clang!

The gold hatchet pierced through the cleavers directly. In a desperate roll, the beast barely dodged death.

But before he could regain his footing, Gong Chenying was already upon him. Her body surged like thunder, and with a sideways step, she drove her halberd toward his neck in a blazing arc.

“Ahhh!”

Even the ferocious Earthspike Lizard hadn’t expected the human cultivators to be so ruthless, ignoring the looming black death in the sky. He had assumed, as most demons did, that humans clung to life above all else, which was why he dared to gamble everything in a final attack.

He hadn’t anticipated she would abandon the blue crystal prism too and fight back just as fiercely.

He hurriedly raised his now-damaged blades to block, but a sharp pain suddenly tore through his abdomen. His consciousness began to waver.

Still, he managed to intercept the halberd strike.

Yet in the next instant, Gong Chenying twisted mid-strike and drove her elbow straight into his head with a sickening crack.

Her face had gone pale, and her hand holding the golden axe was trembling, it was clear the effort to wield such a weapon was immense.

That golden hatchet was incredibly powerful, but Gong Chenying clearly wouldn’t use it unless it was a matter of life or death. She was nearing exhaustion. If she couldn’t kill her opponent now, she would fall into true danger.

She recalled the golden hatchet, cast a glance toward the two demon beasts that had just been turned to paste, then at the bodies strewn across the ground, and sighed inwardly.

...

Outside the Wheel of Life and Death.

Around the mountaintop surrounding the spherical formation, the cultivators of each sect sat with eyes closed in meditation. A few, however, were fixated on the sphere at the center of the mountain range.

The twenty entrances into the sphere had already vanished, but faint beams of light still flickered faintly, appearing and disappearing among the jungle-covered peaks.

"Another one just vanished," Zhao Min of the Wraith Sect murmured.

"We can't tell which cultivator or beast each beam corresponds to, so all we can do is count how many are left," said a sultry voice. Li Changting flipped her hair, her expression exasperated.

She glanced at Zhao Min, then over at Li Wuyi. Ever since Li Yan and the others had entered the Wheel, these two had barely taken their eyes off the center. They had been staring at the lights for what felt like ages without boredom.

None of them knew who the remaining lights represented, or what trials those inside were facing.

"It doesn't look good for Sixth Senior Sister and Little Junior Brother," Li Wuyi said gravely, his gaze sweeping across the peaks of the Ten-Step Court, Grand Profound Sect, and the Pure Land Sect. His heart grew heavier with each glance. Those sects had initially looked as anxious as they had but now, after the disappearance of several beams of light, their expressions were increasingly gleeful.

"The more paths that vanish, the more confident they seem."

Zhao Min frowned as well. Her delicate black brows drew together, and she didn’t even notice the beads of sweat forming in her pale hands tucked within her sleeves.

"Eight beams are gone now. If we remove the early casualties from clashes with beasts and our Wraith Sect, at least half of them must have already regrouped by now."

At the peak of the Ten-Step Court’s mountain, a graceful, elegant woman finally broke the silence. She spoke in a low voice to Xiahua Sword King and several other Core Formation elders, though her words remained deliberately vague.

"Heh... it would seem so."

The Sword King Xiahua responded with a calm nod. He said no more, but a glimmer of sharp light flashed across his eyes as he turned back toward the central sphere.

"Among the three sects, the Ten-Step Court is strongest in offense, the Pure Land Sect excels in defense. If our sect joins them, we’ll likely be the ones to suffer in the end."

Atop the Grand Profound Sect's mountain peak, Hang Wu Immortal gazed into the distance, where layers of white clouds rolled like an immortal paradise. He spoke as if to himself.

"Still, being able to sever the Wraith Sect's immortal root after decades is well worth it. Over the years, they've reached too far, their hands have already swallowed up many border regions."

Behind him, another rugged elder with a steely expression, also a Core Formation cultivator, growled with resentment as he too stared at the endless sea of clouds.

"Look at the monks from the Pure Land Sect, they don’t care about any of that. What they care about is whether, after all this is over, they can squeeze more benefits from the Ten-Step Court and our sect.

If not, those bald donkeys might very well spill the secret in the end and join hands with the Wraith Sect to come after us again. The Pure Land Sect’s monks are the most ruthless of all Buddhists."

Hang Wu sneered faintly. It was unclear whether he was mocking himself or mocking the Pure Land Sect’s calculations.

"This secret was originally discovered by one of our sect’s predecessors thousands of years ago, during a trial in the Wheel of Life and Death. If it weren’t to increase our chances against the Wraith Sect, we would’ve allied only with the Ten-Step Court back then."

At this moment, a Daoist nun behind Hang Wu spoke up with displeasure. Her once-elegant jade-like face now twisted with barely contained venom.

"Hang Zhi, I know your disciple was killed fifteen years ago during the secret realm harvesting by Master Zhi Wei of the Pure Land Sect, but we cannot ally with beasts. As for your disciple’s grudge, I suggest you take your revenge in a future harvesting trial."

Hang Wu didn’t turn around, but his tone grew firmer.

Compared to personal grudges, sect matters were of greater importance. He wouldn’t allow a Core Formation cultivator to jeopardize their sect’s grand plan over personal hatred. If that happened, not even he could save her.

...

Inside the massive yellow sphere within the Wheel of Life and Death.

Wang Lang narrowed his eyes as he stared across at Quan Jiuxing.

"Didn’t expect it’d be you. Who’s going to lead the team next?"

His voice was cold as he glanced behind Quan Jiuxing. There were twenty-five cultivators remaining, so apart from losses during the trial, it was clear their group hadn’t encountered the other two sects.

Quan Jiuxing stood upright a few zhang away, twin swords crossed on his back. His bright eyes flickered slightly as he swept his gaze over Wang Lang’s side, thirty-one Ten-Step Court cultivators in total. He let out a sigh in his heart.

As expected, sword cultivators were strong. Despite forming the Seven-Star Lock Formation, his group had still lost nine people and injured three after crossing checkpoints and engaging a demonic beast squad.

He understood Wang Lang’s implication, after their merger, one of them would lead the team through the next trial. But due to the sphere's internal structure, at the convergence point ten li ahead, only one Foundation Establishment cultivator could enter the next sphere, while Qi Condensation cultivators could number up to seventy-two per route.

So only one of the two would be permitted to lead the squad inside. If the next sphere still held only their three allied sects, they could rely on secret techniques to bypass the system and avoid conflict, separating once more afterward.

But Qi Condensation cultivators were still restricted by the system and couldn’t switch teams freely.

Even though their current combined number didn’t exceed seventy-two, the third group likely wouldn’t agree to send any of their own to join. That would only weaken their own formation.

If the sphere contained Wraith Sect members or demonic beasts, then whoever entered Wang Lang or Quan Jiuxing, would have to command all Qi Condensation cultivators. The other would be forced to wait outside, able to enter only if the Foundation Establishment leader inside died.

And that was a death sentence. If the battle wasn't resolved before the looming black shadow descended, even with secret protection techniques, it was said one could only survive five breaths beneath it. No one dared test that.

There was also the risk that whoever stayed outside could be used as bait by the other side once inside, another real danger to consider.

"Then what’s Brother Wang’s suggestion?"

Quan Jiuxing met his eyes.

"Whoever’s stronger, goes in."

Wang Lang didn’t mince words.

"Oh? So we’re going to fight here and now?"

Quan Jiuxing’s expression cooled. Fighting now would waste the precious time they had left under the shadow’s pressure, utterly counterproductive.

"No need for that. We’ll head out now, down the same path, guarding one side each. Whoever reaches the ten-li point first wins. If more than ten percent of enemy attacks leak through to the other side, they lose as well."

Clearly, Wang Lang had already thought this through. He glanced upward at the sphere’s surface, now veiled in shadow.

"Very well. Then by Brother Wang’s proposal, let’s begin!"

With that, both men lifted the blue prism crystals in their hands and focused their divine senses, attuning to something within the crystals.

Moments later, they simultaneously opened their eyes, tossed the blue prisms into the air, and each carefully produced a green gourd from their robes.

One hand supported the bottom, the other pulled the stopper loose.

As they channeled their spiritual power into the gourds, fine beams of colored light emerged, two from Wang Lang’s gourd were black and green, and three from Quan Jiuxing’s side were black, white, and yellow.

These filaments, some long and others short, twisted upward and touched the suspended blue prisms. Upon contact, they vanished with a flash.

The surface of the blue prisms shimmered with five-colored brilliance, then quickly returned to normal.

Seeing this, both men quickly recapped their gourds and stored them away. Yet as Quan Jiuxing noted that Wang Lang had released only two strands of light, a flash of cold intent flickered across his eyes.

At that moment, both suspended blue prisms began to rotate like compass needles.

One of the facets pointed toward a section of the sphere wall. Two beams of blue light shot out toward it, striking the sphere’s surface without a sound.

Ripples spread instantly across the impact site.

"Let’s go!"

Wang Lang and Quan Jiuxing grabbed their blue prisms and shouted to their followers. In a flash, they darted toward the rippling sphere wall.

(Chapter End)