Chapter 356

Chapter 356: Immortal Artifact

Facing the united attack of the ten great sages, Jin Shengtian was filled with fury, but not a trace of fear.

He roared, "You seek your own demise, this emperor shall grant it to you!"

Without making a visible move, he felt the blood in his veins boil and surge like a raging torrent. That energy infused the already shattered and chaotic forbidden law patterns that protected the Taixu Palace.

Buzz!

A hazy figure materialized.

“Supreme Emperor!”

The saints cried out in shock.

Jin Shengtian then collided with the figure of the Supreme Emperor, intending to transform into a saint and unleash a massacre.

This action completely provoked the saints.

Bang! Bang! Bang…

The ten great sages launched a furious assault.

At the same time, the thirty or so saints who had been attacking the bloodied saints recklessly unleashed their Saint laws and holy weapons. They concentrated their power within a set range to maximize the impact.

Boom! Boom! Boom…

A series of massive explosions erupted.

Some saints screamed in agony.

Several holy weapons were shattered by the overwhelming force, resulting in even greater destruction.

More than forty additional saints joined together, unleashing a violent attack on the illusory space.

They held nothing back.

Everyone knew this space had been created by the Supreme Emperor, a sacred place where the saints of the Taixu Dynasty cultivated. It was a foundation accumulated over thousands of years.

Its contents remained unknown to outsiders.

They only vaguely understood that while the inner space appeared small, it was actually a miniature world filled with countless mysteries. Just entering it could elevate many Great Boundless cultivators to sainthood.

Therefore, no one could truly determine how many saints the Taixu Dynasty possessed.

At this moment, their sole objective was to destroy it, or if possible, annihilate it completely.

With over forty saints launching a devastating combined assault, the result was overwhelming, especially since many among them were immensely powerful saints, fighting with unrestrained ferocity.

The illusory space instantly showed signs of collapse, cracks spreading and tremors intensifying. Agonized cries echoed from within, as countless individuals suffered heavy blows, some even facing death.

Above the entire Taixu Palace, chaos reigned. The air reverberated only with the dirge of death.

The citizens of the Taixu Imperial Capital were paralyzed with fear, not daring to utter a sound. The overwhelming Holy Might was terrifying, those too close had already been crushed to death.

Death continued its march.

Saints began to fall.

These were the saints of the Taixu Dynasty.

Their numerical disadvantage rendered them incapable of withstanding the onslaught.

Yet, Jin Shengtian protected by the forbidden law patterns of the Taixu Palace and the fully awakened wonders of his ancestral bloodline managed to endure the attacks of the ten great sages.

He was merely in the Opening the Sky realm.

Such a feat enraged the ten great sages even further, prompting them to intensify their assault. If word of this spread, it would become a tremendous disgrace for them.

For a mere cultivator in the Opening the Sky realm to achieve such resilience, regardless of the external powers he drew upon—could only be described as unparalleled, invincible, and astonishingly remarkable.

At that moment, even the ten great sages began to wonder whether Jin Shengtian was, in fact, the true focal point of this era.

He seemed simply invincible.

However, no matter how peerless he appeared, he could only endure for three breaths longer.

The wrath of the ten great sages was utterly terrifying.

Crack! Crack! Crack…

The figure of the Supreme Emperor surrounding Jin Shengtian began to shatter.

Three or four more bloodied saints fell from the sky, already beyond salvation.

The illusory space teetered on the brink of destruction. Once it collapsed, no matter how many saints or how much foundation lay within, it would all be buried alongside it.

The might of the Taixu Dynasty, which had dominated the Western Desert for millennia seemed poised to vanish in an instant.

At the edge of life and death, a sorrowful roar suddenly echoed from within the illusory space.

“Ancestral one, I call upon your return with holy blood!”

“Ancestral one, I summon your return with the soul of a saint!”

“Ancestral one, return now!”

A series of heart-wrenching cries rang out.

Saints transformed into brilliant bursts of divine light, their blood scattering across the illusory space like crimson fireworks.

Then, an unparalleled and violent aura surged from within.

"Immortal Artifact!"

That radiant power clearly surpassed the might of a holy weapon. It could only be—an Immortal Artifact.

The key lay in the terrifying strength of the one wielding the Immortal Artifact.

He directly unleashed its power, causing the illusory space to solidify. The countless cracks radiated a mighty aura, forcefully resisting most of the saints’ attacks.

From within the illusory space, a figure suddenly stepped out.

His Holy Might was boundless. Though clearly a saint, he seemed to have transcended sainthood in certain aspects. In his hand, he held an Immortal Gourd radiating Immortal Light and pulsing with heavenly might.

As soon as he appeared, the power of the Immortal Gourd burst forth.

The saints’ attacks halted immediately as he softly uttered a single word:

"Break!"

In an instant, the terrifying power unleashed by the saints evaporated into nothingness.

The bloodthirsty saints felt as if they had fallen from a scorching furnace into a cavern of ice.

No one dared to act rashly.

The other fiercely attacking saints also ceased their assault.

The power of the Immortal Gourd was so immense that the very fabric of space trembled, as if it could not contain its might.

"My name is Jin Xunxian," the wielder of the Immortal Gourd said calmly.

The living within the Taixu Palace weakly knelt to the ground. Even the fierce new emperor, Jin Shengtian, bowed low, his voice trembling as he declared, “I pay my respects to the Second Generation Ancestor!”

That title alone drew shocked expressions from the eighty or so saints who had come to attack.

Second Generation Ancestor?

Wasn’t that the son of the Supreme Emperor, the founder of the Taixu Dynasty?

Jin Xunxian?

A saint, digging through the depths of memory, finally recalled the name and was utterly shocked.

Jin Xunxian had been a powerful ruler ten thousand years ago, one who had perfectly inherited the Supreme Emperor’s legacy. Under his reign, the Taixu Dynasty had not only withstood the mysterious disappearance of its founding emperor but had become even stronger. His deeds were etched into the long history of the Western Desert like a blazing mark.

The issue being that he was still alive!

Many saints felt a chill down their spines at the realization.

Was this the true foundation of the Taixu Dynasty?

After ten thousand years, it still endured.

Even more shocking was that, despite his age, Jin Xunxian did not appear frail. He radiated vitality, completely defying their understanding of lifespan and mortality.

The saints couldn’t help but turn their gazes toward the illusory space.

Now, with Jin Xunxian suppressing them using the Immortal Gourd, the saints dared not act recklessly. This gave those inside the illusory space a chance to breathe and recover. They exerted themselves fully, and their strength began to return rapidly.

The critical question now was: Should they continue to fight or retreat?

If they hesitated too long, the foundation of the Taixu Dynasty, the very symbol of its might would recover. But attacking meant facing Jin Xunxian in a life-or-death struggle. With the Immortal Artifact in hand, he could even rally the recovering saints inside to join the battle, throwing the outcome into uncertainty.

It was at that moment that the true weight of Jin Xunxian’s presence became clear.

He spoke calmly:

“If you choose to withdraw now, I will treat everything that has happened here as if it never occurred, and the Taixu Dynasty will not retaliate. But if you insist on fighting, the Taixu Dynasty will accompany you to the end. You must be prepared for at least ninety percent of your saints to perish. Even then, completely annihilating us will not be easy. Consider the consequences.”

As soon as he finished speaking, one saint immediately turned and fled.

Whether Jin Xunxian had exaggerated or not, his presence paired with the Immortal Gourd, made it certain that even if they won, it would be a pyrrhic victory. Most of the invaders had never fought against the Taixu Dynasty before and had no desire to risk everything now, especially when the Dynasty had already sustained significant losses. Replicating the earlier damage would be nearly impossible.

One left, then more followed.

Even the saints from the Cold Moon Dynasty, though reluctant, were forced to grit their teeth and withdraw. They had the fewest saints among them and lacked the strength to decisively affect the outcome.

Thus, the calamity facing the Taixu Dynasty came to an end.

What remained was a scene of devastation, corpses strewn across the ground, pools of blood everywhere, and the bitter humiliation of a nearly fatal loss.

“Deliver my order,” Jin Xunxian said.

All the living knelt.

Jin Xunxian continued,

“Halt all outward expansion. Gather all remaining forces. Endure the hardships necessary to recover our strength. During this period, one task must be carried out at all costs: eliminate the world-destroying demons, the root of chaos!”

Jin Shengtian declared,

“If we fail to eliminate the chaos, I shall step down!”