Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 94

Volume 6 Chapter 94: Fate and Choice (2)

Meanwhile, as Xu Qingfan was desperately hiding from the monster’s chase, far away in "Black Glory Valley," Zhang Xusheng and fourteen masters were engaged in an intense battle.

The time they had gained from the "Four Spirit Sky Map" was still too short; even though it was powerful, it was still broken through by the combined efforts of Immortal Zizhen, Mr. Liu, and Li Fulu. However, Zhang Xusheng did not expect to defeat Immortal Zizhen and the others with the "Four Spirit Sky Map" at that moment; he just wanted to use it to draw their attention.

Just as expected, once the projections of the four Mythical Beasts were defeated by Immortal Zizhen and the others, at the moment their guard was slightly lowered, Zhang Xusheng, who had been hiding in the shadows, finally appeared.

"Ghost Void!"

With this shout, Zhang Xusheng’s usually calm and gentle expression suddenly turned very fierce.

"Ghost Void," the top of Zhang Xusheng’s three ultimate skills, had never been used in battle before, and no one knew how powerful this move was; perhaps Zhang Xusheng himself did not know.

Seeing Zhang Xusheng boldly appear right in front of them, Immortal Zizhen, Mr. Liu, and Li Fugui were momentarily taken aback, but they wasted no time and attempted to unleash their powers to strike him down.

However, before the three of them could begin their attack, they felt an inexplicable wave of energy behind them. Their expressions changed slightly as they turned to look, but the strange wave simply spun around them, and they could not detect what it was behind them.

The other eleven Grandmasters could clearly see that behind the three Grandmasters, the space shimmered, and three black holes slowly appeared, moving with the Grandmasters, three feet behind them, like shadows. Inside the black holes, there was a heavy, sinister aura, and the faint sound of ghostly cries echoed.

The three Grandmasters reacted quickly and coordinated skillfully; since they could not see what was behind them, they decided to attack.

Suddenly, Li Fulu lifted his hands, and three sharp water curtains appeared around the three Grandmasters as protection. At the same time, Immortal Zizhen’s mighty purple energy and Mr. Liu’s "Demon-Slaying Blade" aimed at Zhang Xusheng in front of them.

Perhaps the "Ghost Void" technique could only be effective near the opponent. Faced with the combined attack of the two Grandmasters, Zhang Xusheng had no way to dodge because they were too close. He was struck by the purple energy and the "Demon-Slaying Blade." Both had the power to restrain evil forces, and for a moment, the evil energy inside Zhang Xusheng was relentlessly crushed by the purple energy and the "Demon-Slaying Blade." Even he showed a look of pain on his face.

However, Zhang Xusheng did not panic; he had experience dealing with such situations.

Suddenly, the space around Zhang Xusheng shimmered, and in the next moment, his body shattered into countless drops of blood, falling into the sea of blood below, escaping the invasion of purple energy and the piercing "Demon-Slaying Blade."

The seemingly ordinary blood carried unimaginable heat and quickly melted the frozen sea of blood. As the blood sea thawed, surging waves of blood rose up to fiercely strike at the Grandmasters in the sky.

Seeing their attacks hit Zhang Xusheng yet still not effectively harming him, the three Grandmasters furrowed their brows. Although they knew Zhang Xusheng’s "Immortal Body" was hard to deal with, they did not expect it to be this difficult.

However, the Grandmasters were not discouraged. They knew that Zhang Xusheng’s "Immortal Body" was not truly indestructible. He became "Immortal" because his body contained countless wronged souls and essence. Whenever he was injured, he transferred the injury to the wronged souls and essence within him. As long as his essence remained, and the souls did not perish, Zhang Xusheng would not truly be harmed and would not die.

The Immortal Zizhens’ way to deal with Zhang Xusheng’s method was simple: they just needed to exhaust all of his vital energy and lost souls.

From the previous battles, Zhang Xusheng’s lost souls and vital energy must have been used up quite a bit.

However, just when the three Immortal Zizhens were ready to strike again and continue fighting Zhang Xusheng, his "Ghost Void" technique finally activated.

"Boom… Boom… Boom…"

Three loud explosions suddenly erupted behind the three masters, as black holes behind them exploded. The force of the explosion was immense, but the affected area was very small. However, such powerful explosions compressed into a small space became even more terrifying, creating chaotic energy flows. The water curtain that Li Fulu had previously created around the three was one of the rare defensive techniques in the cultivation world. The Water Spirit Qi could absorb most of the attack’s power, yet it was still shattered by these three explosions.

The explosions not only shattered the water curtain but also sent the three masters flying a distance, leaving them in a rather messy state.

However, just when the three masters thought Zhang Xusheng’s "Ghost Void" technique was finally over and breathed a sigh of relief, they felt a jolt in their bodies and showed expressions of disbelief.

Other eleven masters also displayed similar expressions.

It turned out that after the explosions, behind the three masters, there was another strange wave of energy, and three new black holes appeared again, rapidly expanding.

This time, the three Grandmasters finally sensed the unusual nature of these three black holes. After the appearance of these black holes, they continuously absorbed the wandering energy between heaven and earth. Because they were closest to the Grandmasters, the energy emitted by the Grandmasters was absorbed the most.

When the energy absorbed by the black holes reached its peak, it would create a very strong explosion. In the explosion, the space twisted due to the intense Spirit Qi fluctuations, creating new black holes that continued to absorb the Spirit Qi of heaven and earth while exploding one after another.

At the same time, these three black holes seemed to have a mysterious connection with the three Grandmasters, not only constantly following behind them but also absorbing their Spirit Qi the most intensely.

While the three Grandmasters were assessing the properties of these black holes in their minds, they did not pause for a moment. Each of them displayed their abilities, putting up defensive treasures and barriers around themselves.

Just as the defenses were formed, there were three loud booms, and the three black holes exploded once more.

This time, the time from the appearance of the black holes to the explosion was shorter than the first, yet the power was even stronger.

Meanwhile, three new black holes formed behind the three Grandmasters.

Sensing this, the Grandmasters quickly reinforced their defenses, their faces showing signs of trouble and seriousness. The "Ghost Void" technique was indeed very difficult to deal with.

While the Grandmasters racked their brains to find a way to counter Zhang Xusheng’s "Ghost Void" technique, the sea of blood beneath their feet did not remain still. Instead, it constantly surged, unleashing towering waves of blood that crashed towards the Grandmasters. Numerous Blood Sea Puppets emerged from the depths of the blood sea, including cultivators, humans, and many unknown monsters, relentlessly attacking the Grandmasters. Although each explosion from the black holes would kill many of these Blood Sea Puppets, they fearlessly pressed on, doing everything possible to create trouble for the three Grandmasters.

The other eleven masters could only struggle against Zhang Xusheng’s "Blood River Technique" and were unable to help the three Grandmasters; with their abilities, they truly could not assist.

In this way, the three Grandmasters not only had to resist the crashing waves of blood and the attacks of the Blood Sea Puppet, but they also needed to focus all their strength on defending against the explosion of the black hole behind them. The explosion of the black hole grew faster and more powerful, eventually becoming a series of continuous explosions that never stopped, echoing through the heavens and the earth. As the force of the black hole’s explosion reached its peak, the very sky and ground began to tremble slightly.

The three Grandmasters found themselves wrapped in the smoke and light created by the explosions, and for a moment, they could only defend themselves.

What frustrated the three Grandmasters even more was that half of the power behind the black hole’s explosion actually came from their own Spirit Qi. As the power of the black hole’s explosion increased and accelerated, the Spirit Qi within their bodies also drained more swiftly.

The "Ghost Void" technique truly deserved to be the top of Zhang Xusheng’s three great skills; even in a seemingly advantageous situation, it was reversed by a single magical technique from Zhang Xusheng, and for a long time, there was no way to counter it.

Time passed as the three Grandmasters focused solely on defense. Although they flew quickly through the world to escape Zhang Xusheng’s "Ghost Void" technique, it still followed just three feet behind them, and no matter what they did, they could not shake it off, as if they had become one with it.

The world was shrouded in the night created by Zhang Xusheng’s "Overflowing Night" technique, and the people inside had no sense of the day and night passing by. Estimating the time, the three Grandmasters endured this relentless and desperate defense for three or four days.

The Spirit Qi within the Mahayana Stage masters was boundless, but as it was consumed so quickly, they suddenly found that only a little more than half remained without even realizing it.

What made the three Grandmasters even more anxious was that as the speed of the black hole’s explosion increased, the blood waves and Blood Sea Puppet became unable to threaten them. Thus, Zhang Xusheng unleashed all his power and directed the "Blood River Method" against the other eleven masters. Although one fought against eleven, the difference in strength allowed Zhang Xusheng to easily gain the upper hand. The eleven masters struggled to resist together, but the situation was becoming increasingly precarious. The explosive power behind the three Grandmasters was too great, and to avoid collateral damage, they were helpless to provide support.

After the purple energy shield created by the purple mist was shattered again by the explosion of the black hole, Immortal Zizhen did not hesitate. He raised his hand and conjured another purple mist to protect himself. Turning to look at the other two, he discovered that the defensive treasure shielding Mr. Liu was on the brink of collapse, while Li Fulu, like him, had just had his shield broken and had only recently restored it.

"How are you two, my Taoist friends?"

Immortal Zizhen asked in a low voice. Though they had been in a difficult situation for the past few days, they were not just passively enduring; instead, they had quietly explored the mysteries of this "Ghost Void" and thought about how to deal with it.

"I don’t know how to break this. If this continues, with our cultivation, we can probably only last seven or eight more days before being harmed by this ‘Ghost Void’ technique. As for the other eleven Taoist friends, under Zhang Xusheng’s full attack, they probably won’t last even seven or eight days."

Li Fulu had tried every possible way in the past few days to break the lingering "Ghost Void" technique behind him, but none had worked. At that moment, when responding to Zizhen’s question, there was a hint of frustration in his tone.

Immortal Zizhen turned to watch the battle between Zhang Xusheng and the other eleven masters. He suddenly snorted coldly and said, "The greater the power of a spell, the greater the backlash when it is broken. If we manage to break it, we will have won half the battle. There is no doctrine in this world that cannot be understood; I refuse to believe that this ‘Ghost Void’ technique cannot be resolved. Besides, with such power, there’s no way Zhang Xusheng could use it easily—he must be paying a heavy price."

As he spoke, under the appearance and quick explosion of more than ten black holes, the previous purple mist was shattered. Immortal Zizhen raised his hand again and cast another purple mist to shield himself.

"Substitute for Heaven! Word Defying Great Law!"

Mr. Liu, who had remained silent for three days, suddenly spoke up, his voice filled with admiration.

"Taoist Friend Liu, what did you say?"

Immortal Zizhen quickly asked, Mr. Liu’s voice was unclear due to the series of explosions, and even he couldn’t hear it clearly.

"These three black holes are, simply put, caused by space distortion. When space is twisted to a certain extent, an explosion occurs, creating new distortions in a powerful but very small range explosion. As far as I know, the only way to twist space to such an extent is by combining the two completely opposite methods, ‘Substitute for Heaven’ and ‘Word Defying Great Law.’ Only these two cultivation methods can change the laws of nature and forcibly connect those three black holes with us."

"What?!"

Hearing Mr. Liu’s words, the other two masters were greatly shocked. Although Mr. Liu’s explanation had no flaws, both felt it was unbelievable.

‘Substitute for Heaven’ is indeed the highest cultivation method of the Jiuhua school, focusing on becoming one with the universe within a certain time and range, acting on behalf of heaven and becoming the ruler within that time. ‘Word Defying Great Law,’ on the other hand, is one of the highest cultivation methods of the demonic path, similar in function to ‘Substitute for Heaven,’ but its principle is to disrupt the laws of the universe within a certain time and range using one’s own cultivation, serving the practitioner.

These two cultivation methods represent the differences in understanding the laws of nature between the right and the demonic side. It is no wonder that Immortal Zizhen and Li Fulu instinctively found it hard to believe that Zhang Xusheng could wield these two completely different supreme cultivation methods at the same time.

But thinking again, the fact that space can be twisted to such an extent in such a small area can only be achieved by simultaneously using these two cultivation methods, with their opposing laws of nature clashing against each other.

After understanding this, Immortal Zizhen asked, "Taoist Friend Liu, since you thought of this, do you have a solution?"

"Two. It just depends on which one of me or the other eleven Taoist friends you want to sacrifice," Mr. Liu said coldly.

"The first method is to wait! Zhang Xusheng is using two opposing supreme cultivation methods at the same time. He cannot maintain them for too long. If we can hold on for two or three more days, Zhang Xusheng will be too weak to continue. By then, although our Spirit Qi will be greatly reduced, Zhang Xusheng will use even more, making it easier for us to deal with him. However, in the next couple of days, it’s likely that some of the other eleven Taoist friends will sacrifice themselves under Zhang Xusheng’s attack."

Saying this, Mr. Liu turned to look at the other eleven masters, who were becoming increasingly precarious due to Zhang Xusheng’s attacks.

"What about the second method?"

Immortal Zizhen asked.

Mr. Liu snorted and said, "I knew you would say that. The second method is to break this ‘Ghost Void’ technique right now, but it will mean sacrificing me."

"How so?" Immortal Zizhen asked urgently, his expression tense.

"Don’t worry, I won’t die. I have a way to break this ‘Ghost Void’ technique, but it will drain a lot of my mind and Spirit Qi, causing me to faint for a while. By then, it will only be the two of us left, and the ‘Three Talent Formation’ will collapse. Our strength advantage will no longer be obvious, and you two will have to take care of me, which will make you hesitant and further weaken our strength, greatly increasing the chance of Zhang Xusheng escaping. It’s truly a clever plan."

Hearing Mr. Liu’s words, Immortal Zizhen thought for a moment and then grit his teeth, saying, "It would be better to choose the second method, but it will trouble Taoist Friend Liu. How long do you think Taoist Friend Liu might be unconscious?"

"How would I know?"

Mr. Liu rolled his eyes and said.

Immortal Zizhen gritted his teeth again and said to Li Fulu, "Taoist friend Li, once Taoist Friend Liu breaks the ‘Ghost Void’ technique, please use all your strength to hold Zhang Xusheng so he can’t escape. During this time, I will do my best to wake up Taoist Friend Liu and help him regain his strength."

Mr. Liu snorted coldly and said, "Waking up is one thing, but once my Spirit Qi is completely drained, it won’t be easy to recover."

Immortal Zizhen said, "When our ancestral master passed away, he left me a ‘Nine Turn Azura Pill’."

Upon hearing Immortal Zizhen’s words, Mr. Liu let out a strange cry, his expression more disturbed than when Zhang Xusheng took the ‘Four Spirit Sky Map.’ He said, "’Nine Turn Azura Pill’? Does such a thing really exist? Are you the Immortal Many Treasures or am I the Immortal Many Treasures?"

Immortal Zizhen ignored Mr. Liu’s strange cry, glanced at the increasingly desperate masters in the distance, and said, "There’s no time to waste, let’s get started, Taoist Friend Liu. I know what you’re thinking. Don’t worry, after you faint, even if it costs me my life, I will never let Zhang Xusheng hurt you."

Hearing Immortal Zizhen’s promise, Mr. Liu’s expression became serious, and he slowly nodded.

However, as the three rushed to counter Zhang Xusheng’s ‘Ghost Void’ technique, they did not notice that a strange face was slowly appearing beneath the swirling sea of blood at their feet.

This face was hidden behind long, straight black hair, making it impossible to see the features, only faintly revealing two green lights flickering through the dark strands.

He was indeed the top warrior under Zhang Xusheng, the mysterious Anluo.

The real crisis was only just beginning.