Chapter 926
Chapter 926
Fu Shaoping had nowhere to hide! The void around him was locked by the oppressive force of the chains, rendering him unable to move!
A matter of life and death!
At this critical moment—
"Amitabha!"
A resounding Buddhist chant, accompanied by dazzling golden Buddhist light, suddenly bloomed before Fu Shaoping! A golden barrier of Buddhist light forcefully blocked the dark chains!
"Boom!"
The Buddha's light collided with the chains, causing the light to tremble violently, yet it did not shatter! A dignified figure holding a staff stood in front of Fu Shaoping—it was the old monk from the Great Bright Temple!
"Although I am no match for this fiend, I can hold it off for a while." Blood trickled from the corner of the old monk's mouth, but his expression remained calm. "Gentlemen, why don't you make your move?"
The white-robed elder from the Tianyan Sect, the swordsman from the Taixu Sword Palace, the burly man from the Jiuxiao Thunder Mansion, and the scholar from the Zaohua Academy exchanged glances, their eyes flashing with determination.
"Amitabha," the old monk said, "I possess a technique called the 'Five Directions Exorcising Array,' which requires five Nascent Soul cultivators to suppress the central evil spirit in five directions. However, this array requires one person to act as the 'array guide,' bearing the greatest backlash and risk, almost certainly resulting in death... and one must possess the pure power of a contract that can restrain evil spirits." The old monk looked at Fu Shaoping, "This benefactor, are you willing?"
Fu Shaoping answered without hesitation: "Yes!"
"Alright!" the old monk nodded. "Everyone, let's set up the formation!"
The five Nascent Soul cultivators, along with Fu Shaoping, instantly took their positions according to the five directions! Fu Shaoping stood in the center, precisely in the "array guide" position!
"The Five Directions Exorcising Formation, activate!"
The old monk, the white-robed elder, the swordsman, the burly man, and the scholar simultaneously unleashed their strongest powers! Five dazzling beams of light—Buddha's light, starlight, sword energy, thunder, and the righteous energy of Confucianism and Taoism—shot towards Fu Shaoping in the center from five directions, then converged and fused within his body!
Fu Shaoping felt as if his body was about to explode! Five completely different, yet all immense, forces surged into his body, intertwining and merging with his own contractual origin, forming an unprecedented Primordial Evil-Suppressing Power capable of suppressing all evil spirits!
His aura surged wildly, and in a short period of time it was forcibly raised to a level comparable to the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage!
"Evil spirit, die!"
Fu Shaoping pushed with both hands, and a Primordial Evil-Suppressing Light Pillar with a diameter of more than ten feet, containing the five powers, the origin of the contract, and the power of purification, shot out from his palms and struck the "Seed of Evil Contract" head-on!
"Roar--!!!"
The "Seed of Evil Pact" let out a shrill scream, its body trembling violently within the pillar of light, the black runes on its surface flashing, melting, and collapsing wildly! Countless black evil energies evaporated and dissipated from its body!
It struggled frantically, with countless chains retaliating, but all of them were defeated and purified by the power of Hunyuan Zhenxie!
The beam of light lasted for a full ten breaths.
When the pillar of light dissipated, the "Seed of Evil Contract" had become extremely weak, its aura had fallen back to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, its body had shrunk to the size of an ordinary person, the dark runes on its surface had become dull and lifeless, and its two eerie green soul flames were also teetering on the verge of being extinguished at any moment.
But it is not dead yet.
“Damn... humans…” it hissed weakly, its eyes filled with resentment.
Fu Shaoping, the instant the pillar of light dissipated, coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground. Forcibly bearing the power of five forces had placed an immense strain on his body, causing multiple ruptures in his meridians and weakening his nascent soul. The old monk and the others were also pale, their bodies ravaged by the immense energy expenditure.
"Strike while the iron is hot!" The swordsman from Taixu Sword Palace mustered his strength and slashed at the weakened "Seed of Evil Contract" with his sword!
However, just as the sword light was about to strike, a dark figure suddenly darted out from the side and blocked the "Seed of Evil Contract"!
It is none other than the leader of the Myriad Alliance!
He was disheveled and weak, clearly seriously injured. But he desperately protected the "Seed of Evil Contract" behind him, his eyes flashing with a crazed light.
"It... is the hope of our Wanqi Alliance... the foundation of the 'New Contract'... no one can... destroy it!"
He roared and suddenly took out a fist-sized, pitch-black crystal covered with strange runes from his pocket, and crushed it!
The crystal shattered, and an extremely dense spatial fluctuation instantly enveloped him and the "Seed of Evil Contract"!
"Oh no! He's trying to escape!" the white-robed old man exclaimed.
But it was too late. A spatial fluctuation flashed, and the leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance and the weakened "Seed of Evil Contracts" vanished simultaneously, leaving behind only a curse filled with resentment:
"Lu Ping... and all five of you... I will remember this grudge! When the 'Seed of Evil Contract' is restored, when I return with renewed force, that will be the day you are all destroyed!"
The spatial fluctuations completely dissipated, and the auras of the leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance and the "Seed of Evil Contracts" had completely vanished from the ancient contract battlefield.
They escaped.
At the edge of the Source Pool, chaos reigned. The Myriad Contracts Alliance's arrangements were completely destroyed; its Nascent Soul cultivators were almost entirely wiped out, and its Golden Core cultivators were nearly all killed or wounded. However, the cost was extremely high—all the Nascent Soul cultivators from the five major forces were injured, countless Golden Core disciples were killed or wounded, and Fu Shaoping was critically injured.
More importantly, the most dangerous "seed of evil contract" was not completely eliminated, but was rescued by the leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance, leaving behind endless troubles.
Fu Shaoping forced himself to look in the direction where the leader had disappeared, a deep sense of resentment and worry welling up inside him.
But he didn't even have the strength to move at the moment, so he could only let Elder Tianquan and the others come over, help him up, and feed him pills.
“Fellow Daoist Lu, you have done enough. If it weren’t for you, we would probably have been wiped out long ago.” Elder Tianquan’s expression was complicated. “Although the ‘Seed of Evil Contract’ escaped, it was severely injured by us and it will probably take several hundred years to recover. The leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance is also greatly weakened. We still have time to prepare.”
Fu Shaoping nodded slowly, but the shadow in his heart lingered.
A tragic victory.
The threat posed by the Myriad Contracts Alliance has not truly been eliminated. That mad leader and that twisted "Seed of Evil Contracts" remain the sword of Damocles hanging over the cultivation world.
But he also understood that thinking too much at this moment was pointless. The most urgent tasks were healing, improving strength, and contacting all parties to make thorough preparations for the final battle.
The journey to the ancient battlefield, while thwarting the biggest conspiracy of the Myriad Contracts Alliance, also unveiled a deeper darkness.
But Fu Shaoping felt no fear.
The way of contracts is to uphold responsibility.
As long as he has a breath left, he will not stop.
As he was helped away from the Source Pool by Elder Tianquan and the others, Fu Shaoping took one last look at the dried-up, no longer boiling, Source Pool of the Fallen Contract, and silently swore an oath in his heart:
"Next time, no matter where you are, no matter how strong you become, I will personally end it all."
In the dim sky above the battlefield, a faint golden light seemed to flash and disappear in an instant, as if in response to him.
Aftermath and Undercurrents
The dramatic turn of events on the ancient battlefield of contracts was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, unleashing a massive wave across the entire Central Plains. Although the leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance and the "Seed of Evil Contracts" escaped, their painstakingly built power suffered a devastating blow in this battle. Post-battle statistics showed that the Myriad Contracts Alliance lost all its high-level combat power, including two mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators and one early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator; almost all of its Golden Core cultivators were wiped out; and its peripheral forces scattered and vanished without a trace.
At least on the surface, this evil organization that had been entrenched for many years has collapsed.
However, those who truly know the inside story are well aware that the most dangerous enemy is still alive.
The enigmatic leader of the Myriad Contracts Alliance, and the "Evil Contract Seed" that was severely injured upon its birth but possesses unlimited potential for growth, are like two time bombs hanging over the cultivation world, waiting to explode again at any moment.
After the battlefield closed, the five major forces and top forces such as the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion held a "Suppressing Evil Conference" in Wendao City that lasted for a whole month to discuss subsequent countermeasures.
Fu Shaoping was unable to attend the entire event due to injury, but his performance on the battlefield, especially his heroic act of severely injuring the "Evil Pact Seed" with the power of five Nascent Soul cultivators while using his "Array Guide" form, had already spread throughout the Central Plains.
The name "Contract Venerable Lu Ping" resounded throughout the cultivation world from that moment on.
At the meeting, the five major forces jointly announced the establishment of the "Evil Suppression Alliance," led by the Tianyan Sect, with the five major forces taking turns in charge. Together with neutral forces such as the Tianji Pavilion, they will jointly investigate the whereabouts of the leader of the Wanqi Alliance and the "Seed of Evil Contracts," and establish "Evil Suppression Outposts" in various regions to prevent the resurgence of the Evil Contract forces.
Fu Shaoping was granted the prestigious title of "Guest Elder of Evil Suppression" by the Alliance. Although he did not participate in daily affairs, he enjoyed the highest level of intelligence sharing and decision-making advice. This was partly a recognition of his strength and contributions, and partly because the Alliance valued his possession of the Origin of Contracts, making him a crucial force in the future fight against the "Seed of Evil Contracts."
Six months later, at the main building of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, in a private cave dwelling brimming with spiritual energy.
Fu Shaoping sat cross-legged, his body radiating a warm, pale golden light. After half a year of recuperation, his injuries had basically healed, and his cultivation had even benefited from the misfortune, advancing further in the trials of life and death, steadily stepping into the peak of the early Nascent Soul stage, only a thin veil away from the middle stage.
But at this moment, he did not rush to break through the bottleneck, but fell into deep thought.
Over the past six months, he has repeatedly recalled every detail of his battle with the "Seed of Evil Contract." That twisted being, though a product of the corruption of the contract path, has also given Fu Shaoping a deeper understanding of the "other side" of contracts.
The principles of contracts are meant to maintain balance and order. However, any rule can be distorted and exploited. Fairness can become exploitation, protection can become confinement, and trade can become plunder. This is not the fault of the contract itself, but rather the evil in people's hearts and the loopholes in the rules.
“To completely eradicate the ‘seed of evil pact’, perhaps we cannot rely solely on purification and judgment,” Fu Shaoping muttered to himself. “We need to find the root cause of its existence at the level of rules, and then… fill the loopholes and correct the distortions.”
He took out the half-scroll of the "Ancient Contract Fragment," along with all the books he had collected over the years about ancient contracts and the origins of evil contracts. Perhaps the answer lay hidden in the dust of history.
Just as he was lost in thought, the restrictions outside the cave were triggered.
The visitor was Guan Xingzi, and his expression was more solemn than ever before.
"Fellow Daoist Lu, urgent news from the Northern Territory." Guan Xingzi handed over an emergency communication jade talisman that was flashing red.
Fu Shaoping felt a chill and took the divine sense to probe it.
The voice that came from the jade talisman was that of Xing Yanzi, filled with deep worry:
"Junior Brother Lu, something has happened in the Northern Territory! A month ago, a large-scale spatial tremor suddenly occurred in the depths of the Endless Ice Plains, near the permafrost. We sent people to investigate and found that most of the Ice Peak Maze where the Ice Soul Mystic Palace is located has collapsed, and the Ice Soul Mystic Palace itself has also been severely damaged! What's even stranger is that the ruins of the Mystic Palace still contain extremely dense evil energy fluctuations that are of the same origin as the 'Seed of Evil Contract'!"
"The Frost Soul Mystic Palace has been destroyed?!" Fu Shaoping suddenly stood up.
That place is not only the place of Frost Soul Venerable's inheritance, but also the "beacon" that connects him to the Origin Stone space! Although he established an independent resonance channel with the fragments of the "Origin Order" and the Origin Core, the existence of the Mystic Palace has always been an important coordinate and auxiliary.
More importantly, some of the Frost Soul Venerable's relics and records remain there. If the "Seed of Evil Contract" were to obtain them...
"Are Xingyanzi and the others still investigating further?" Fu Shaoping asked urgently.
Guan Xingzi shook his head: "Junior Brother Xingyan has personally led the team there, but the space deep within the Xuan Palace is extremely unstable, and the remaining evil energy has the effect of corroding the soul, so they can only move around on the periphery. He sent this message, firstly to remind you, and secondly to ask you if there is anything in the Xuan Palace that is worth the 'Seed of Evil Contract' taking so seriously?"
Fu Shaoping's mind raced.
Within the Ice Soul Mystic Palace, the most important things are naturally the inheritance of the Frost Soul Venerable and the rewards from the three trials. But he has already obtained those. Of the remaining items, while there are some valuable ancient books and materials, only those worthy of the "Seed of Evil Contract" personally intervening (judging from the residual evil energy, that monstrous creature likely descended upon them personally)...
and many more!
Fu Shaoping suddenly recalled that when he received the inheritance at the Ice Soul Mystic Palace, the illusory figure of the Frost Soul Venerable had mentioned that in his later years, he had studied the evil energy of the "Pillar of Contract" and attempted to find a way to completely purify or seal it. Besides leaving behind fragments of the "Purification Heavenly Stele" and the "Ice Soul Purification Array," he also vaguely mentioned that he had discovered some kind of "ancient secret related to the origin of the evil contract," but because it was too dangerous, it was not recorded in the inheritance jade slip, but rather…
Instead, it is hidden somewhere in the Xuan Palace, and can only be opened under specific conditions!
"Could it be that the 'Seed of Evil Contract' has sensed that hidden existence? Or perhaps... it is itself a part of that 'ancient secret,' wanting to find some kind of 'origin'?" A chill ran through Fu Shaoping's heart.
"Fellow Daoist Lu?" Guan Xingzi asked worriedly when he saw the change in Lu's expression.
Fu Shaoping took a deep breath and briefly told Guan Xingzi his guess.
Upon hearing this, Guan Xingzi's expression also turned solemn: "If that's the case, then the schemes of the 'Seed of Evil Contract' are probably far more profound than we imagined. Their goal may not have been simply destruction or devouring from the very beginning, but rather... to trace back to the origin and completely control the entire Dao of Contracts!"
The two looked at each other and saw the heaviness in each other's eyes.
“I must return to the Northern Territory immediately,” Fu Shaoping decided. “There may still be clues left in the Xuan Palace. Even if it’s just ruins, we must investigate carefully. Moreover… if that wretch really obtained something, I need to find out as soon as possible so I can deal with it.”
“I will go with you,” said Guan Xingzi. “The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion also needs to understand the specific situation. I will immediately request permission from the Pavilion Master to mobilize the fastest large-scale teleportation array.”
"it is good!"
Three days later, in the North, on the endless ice plains.
When Fu Shaoping and Guan Xingzi arrived at the area where the Ice Soul Mystic Palace was located, the scene before them caused him a pang of sorrow. (End of Chapter)