Chapter 1082
Arrival?
"What is that?"
Shi Potian and the others below also discovered the enormous figure hidden behind the billowing demonic energy within the spatial rift.
Roughly estimated, its height should be over a hundred feet. Even with only a single scarlet horn showing and emitting wisps of aura, the impact it brought to everyone was indescribable.
Everyone present came from the Southwest Nine Realms, so the legends about the abyss were naturally familiar to them, and they would inevitably come into contact with them after cultivating to a certain level.
In their widespread understanding, the abyss is a desolate and dangerous place, where countless people have gone throughout history and never returned.
The existence of living beings in such a place, and such powerful creatures at that, was beyond their comprehension.
"click click"
The ring formed by the array emitted a cracking sound as it succumbed to its strain, and the tremors in space grew increasingly violent.
The ring, which should have been constantly shrinking, began to expand under the influence of the enormous creature, and the narrow spatial rift in the air was gradually stretched open in the horrified gazes of the crowd.
The arc was small, but the lowest cultivation level present was a Golden Core cultivator, whose senses were extremely sharp. Even the slightest change could not escape their eyes.
This spatial rift has existed to this day and has never changed.
It was only because that figure was about to emerge that it was forced open, and it was also subjected to the sealing power exerted by so many of them.
Moreover, they did not sense any fluctuations of magic or law power from that creature; it was using pure physical strength.
They simply couldn't imagine how powerful that force was.
Not only them, but even Song Changsheng and Yi Tianzheng felt a great threat.
Even the fifth-tier high-grade Kongsang Baijue did not give them this feeling, so this is very likely an opponent comparable to or even stronger than the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage.
After a series of fierce battles, they had almost exhausted their trump cards, and it was simply wishful thinking to think they could deal with an opponent of this level.
Once the enemy breaks through the seal and descends upon the Purple Imperial Realm, even escaping will be a pipe dream for them.
"Don't panic, continue to reinforce the seal. If he dares to come out, then kill him!" Yi Tianzheng shouted fiercely.
Anyone can panic, anyone can be chaotic, but he cannot, because he represents the Palace of Myriad Phenomena.
In this situation, only by demonstrating absolute confidence can he stabilize the situation and boost morale.
As long as morale doesn't drop, there's still a chance.
The name "Wanxiang Palace" represents absolute authority in this border region. As soon as Yi Tianzheng spoke, the crowd, who were initially at a loss, quickly calmed down and began to assist Yi Tianzheng and Ji Shinian in strengthening the seal in an orderly manner.
"Roar--"
A deafening roar of rage erupted from the spatial rift, causing the space to tremble violently. Rolling demonic energy blotted out the sky, turning the heavens into darkness, so dark that one could not see their own hand in front of their face.
All the cultivators who participated in the sealing clearly felt a strong backlash, their blood flowed backward, and their internal organs shifted.
Two of the weaker early-stage Golden Core cultivators nearly fainted.
The other cultivators in the early and middle stages of the Golden Core realm suffered internal injuries of varying degrees, while only those in the late stage of the Golden Core realm and above remained unharmed.
"click click"
The ear-piercing sound crackled incessantly as the scarlet horn almost completely emerged from the spatial rift, revealing half of its pitch-black head. Beneath the horn was a huge, half-hidden vertical eye, exuding a savage aura.
Its scarlet eyes darted around incessantly.
They saw a complex shift in emotions—excitement, shock, and doubt—in that vertical eye, as if they had discovered a new continent.
The ring encircling the spatial rift had reached its limit, and everyone felt an extreme strain.
Just when they thought the giant object was about to break through the seal, Song Changsheng took a step forward and stood above them, facing the huge vertical eye.
With a wave of his sleeve, he released hundreds of triangular banners.
These banners surrounded him, their auras blending seamlessly, even the trembling of the banners was perfectly synchronized.
"buzz"
He opened his right hand, and the array diagram that Yi Tianzheng had given him quickly unfolded, radiating a dazzling golden light. Golden runes resembling earthworms surged out from the light, seemingly endless, filling the entire sky.
As the last rune flew out, the array diagram in Song Changsheng's hand also turned into a blank space.
His eyes were closed, and his vast divine sense spread out, connecting all the runes.
Under his divine control, tens of thousands of runes rapidly changed positions in the air, gathering around the triangular array flags.
"fall!"
With a soft shout from Song Changsheng, all the array flags and golden runes lined up in a long dragon and filed out, following the trajectory of the five-colored ring, and merged into the void.
These banners, like steel nails, stabilized the previously trembling spatial barrier.
"Pass the flag!"
With a loud shout, Song Changsheng threw out dozens more flags, which transformed into streaks of light and landed precisely in the hands of everyone below.
"Everyone, listen to my command, raise the flag!"
As if by reflex, everyone raised their flags, and immediately felt an invisible force connecting all their strengths.
"Reinforce the seal!"
Song Changsheng also held a flag, which fluttered in the wind. He used himself as the core of the formation, with Yi Tianzheng and Ji Shinian as the secondary cores, and released the full power of this fifth-order low-grade formation.
He was well aware that the power of a low-grade fifth-order array was insufficient to seal the abyss, so he cleverly combined the array with the original seal of the abyss.
"boom--"
The sealing array completely merged with the original seal of the abyss.
The spatial rifts that had been continuously expanding finally stopped growing.
As the seal stabilized, the colossal entity behind the spatial rift felt a powerful repulsive force, pushing it back into the "abyss."
"Roar--"
"Roar--"
The colossal creature roared in anger, but even with all its might, it could only watch helplessly as it drifted further and further away from the spatial rift.
Gradually, the vertical eye disappeared from everyone's sight, and then the unicorn began to retreat.
"Our race will surely descend!" With everyone's full effort, accompanied by a roar filled with resentment and anger, the spatial rift gradually returned to calm, but it still could not stop the problem of demonic energy leaking out. If this continued, this demonic energy would sooner or later engulf the entire cultivation world of Lu Kingdom and even further places.
This was caused by the original seal becoming loose. Although they had just applied a patch, the effect was still slightly lacking.
In any case, the crisis has been resolved for the time being.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They were all drenched in sweat, as if they had just been pulled out of the water. Many of the weaker cultivators were even exhausted and sat down to meditate and regulate their breathing amidst the piles of dried corpses without any regard for their image.
"How long can this seal last?" Yi Tianzheng frowned.
The alien races in the abyss are definitely not just this powerful. If they all come out and attack the seal together, can they still stop them?
Song Changsheng cautiously said, "If nothing unexpected happens, a few days should still be no problem. The most urgent thing is to contact the Supreme Elder and Ancestor Xuanlei as soon as possible to further strengthen the seal."
Lei Xiang Zhenjun is a fifth-tier top-grade array master, and Xuan Lei Zushi's strength is comparable to a Nascent Soul Supreme. If the two of them work together to reinforce the seal, the effect will definitely be dozens of times better than if they did alone.
"Logically speaking, they should have returned long ago. Could it be that they encountered some kind of accident?" Ji Shinian took the initiative to ask a question that no one wanted to face.
The atmosphere at the scene immediately fell silent.
After a long silence, Yi Tianzheng slowly spoke, "With Ancestor Xuanlei's strength, there are few people in the world who can threaten him. Perhaps some unexpected situation has delayed the journey. Don't overthink it."
After saying that, he turned to Song Changsheng and said, "You've seen the current situation. There's no need to keep the Abyss's secrets hidden any longer. Rather than letting them guess, we might as well make things clear."
Even if this seal is reinforced later, its effectiveness will be greatly reduced. Unless a top expert of the era steps in to reseal it, those alien races will eventually descend upon the Purple Imperial Realm.
The Southwest region is the first to be affected. Let them know the truth, break their wishful thinking, and make preparations in advance.
"Everyone here is from your Southwest Alliance, so this matter still needs to be handled by you."
Upon hearing this, Song Changsheng couldn't help but smile wryly and said, "I don't actually know much more than they do."
"I feel the same way. All I can tell you is that what you just saw was a 'demon,' a real 'demon.'"
If I'm not mistaken, it's highly likely that this is the same group that wreaked havoc in ancient times, referred to in ancient texts as the "Ancient Demon Clan," originating from another realm, and this abyss is the passage connecting them.
“So that’s how it is. No wonder he used our common language.” Ji Shinian nodded thoughtfully.
Yi Tianzheng shook his head and said, "The last time the Ancient Demon Clan invaded was in ancient times. The common language at that time was completely different from now. It was definitely not passed down from that time. It is highly likely that the cultivators who were exploring the Abyss fell into their hands."
Since the other side is able to master the common language, they must also have basic information about the Purple Imperial Realm, and have probably already formulated an invasion plan.
In contrast, our understanding of them relies entirely on ancient records from several centuries ago, which are of almost no reference value.
Upon hearing this, Ji Shinian subconsciously looked at Song Changsheng.
Song Changsheng felt incredibly heavy-hearted at that moment.
With the ancient demon race's uprising, Xu Yunhe and his wife, with their cultivation levels, were no different from ants; if they encountered them, they would have absolutely no chance of survival.
Even if they manage to avoid all the ancient demons, they will most likely be unable to withstand the surging demonic energy.
Their chances of survival are now virtually zero.
Seeing his solemn expression, Yi Tianzheng warned him in a deep voice: "The abyss is no longer suitable for further exploration. There are many powerful ancient demons, whose strength is no less than that of the human race. I advise you to think twice before proceeding."
Song Changsheng raised his head and said with a firm expression, "I was born in the southwest, so how could I not know the risks involved? But I do have reasons why I have to go."
Consider it a scouting mission. As the Palace Master said, we know far too little about the ancient demon race. Only by knowing ourselves and our enemy can we win every battle.
If we don't find a way to gather intelligence now, it will be too late when they actually arrive.
Don't worry, I value my life and wouldn't risk it.
Ji Shinian and Yi Tianzheng exchanged a glance and nodded, saying, "In that case, we'll go with you. That way, we can look out for each other on the way."
Song Changsheng was touched, but still shook his head and declined his offer.
He was confident he could escape unscathed, but he couldn't guarantee the safety of others.
Even if he were to unfortunately perish there, this would still be the least damaging outcome.
Yi Tianzheng stopped Ji Shinian, who still wanted to fight for it, and made the final decision: "Alright, let Changsheng decide for himself."
We can't just sit here and wait.
The members of Changsheng and the Southwest Alliance stayed behind to maintain the formation, while Shi Nian went to eliminate the demonic calamity.
I will try to contact the Shadow Pavilion and inform them of the demonic disaster.
Furthermore, news of the weakening of the Abyss Seal must also be spread. This is a fatal threat that could endanger the entire Purple Imperial Realm, and we should not be the ones to face it.
They may disregard the demon race and the sea race, but I refuse to believe they can disregard even the ancient demon race!
A rare hint of ferocity appeared on Yi Tianzheng's face.
If it weren't for those people's indifference, they definitely wouldn't have had such a difficult battle.
Those people have enjoyed peace for so long that they take it for granted, completely forgetting who stood in their way, shedding blood and sacrificing themselves to bring about this bloody peace.
If the ancient demons continue to treat him the same way, he will absolutely not tolerate it any longer. At worst, he will abandon the borderlands and flee overseas.
When the ancient demons descend, we'll all be finished off together!
As they were talking, Shi Potian, Wang Changqing, and Mu Guibai came over together.
Two of the three are vice leaders of the alliance, and one is Song Changsheng's master; their purpose is self-evident.
Song Changsheng called them aside and told them everything he knew.
"So those rumors were true after all." Shi Potian's face turned ugly.
He increasingly felt that he could no longer stay in the southwest region.
They are both demons and ancient monsters, each more powerful than the last. How much sacrifice and bloodshed will they have to shed before they can achieve true peace?
Song Changsheng wholeheartedly agreed with this, and he also felt it was time to prepare to abandon the cultivation world of the Great Qi if necessary.
After much thought, going overseas is indeed the best option.
However, he didn't say these words aloud yet. After all, they hadn't really reached that point yet, and bringing it up now would be too demoralizing. At least they needed to get through the current difficulties first...
After the three went their separate ways, five days passed in the blink of an eye. During this time, the seal was shaken a few times, but all of them were without serious danger.
During their anxious wait, Yi Tianzheng, who was in charge of external liaison, brought them some good news.
After being out of contact for many days, Lei Xiang Zhenjun and Xuan Lei Zushi have finally made contact!
...(End of this chapter)