Chapter 1714
Chapter 1714. He Is the Current Master of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, the Grand Sacrificial Ritual
The Heaven-Slaying Token was incomparably precious. Even within the present Heaven-Slaying Alliance, there were only a few in existence. The one in Ling Yuling’s possession had very likely been personally handed to her by the alliance master, Gu Changge.
Now that she had given it to Zhuo Fengxie, it was obvious that she intended for him to take charge of mobilizing and commanding the experts of all races stationed here.
This caused the expressions of quite a few Ancestor-Dao Realm beings to darken slightly. Although Zhuo Fengxie’s cultivation was profound, he was ultimately not an Ancestor-Dao Realm existence. Being required to obey his orders inevitably made them somewhat uncomfortable.
However, in the presence of the Heaven-Slaying Token, no one dared to act presumptuously.
Clearly, Ling Yuling had anticipated this reaction, which was precisely why she had deliberately handed the Heaven-Slaying Token to Zhuo Fengxie in front of everyone.
After passing the token to him, Ling Yuling transformed into a streak of divine light and departed from the area.
Most of the palaces, towers, immortal mountains, and floating islands of the Immortal-Controlling Palace had already been relocated from the surrounding starfields, yet many of its forces were still stationed here.
Ling Yuling did not have the leisure to reminisce with them. After leaving this place, she went to reunite with the elders and ancestral elders of the Immortal-Controlling Palace.
The elders of the various Dao grounds had long since received decrees and hurried back from all directions.
Within the grand council hall of the Immortal-Controlling Palace, Palace Master Ling Qiuchang was already discussing the matter with many elders.
Meanwhile, after being settled, the people of Floating Continent also arrived here, hoping to request an audience with the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s founding ancestor, Ling Yuling.
Several elders of the palace informed them of the recent developments within the Xiyuan Civilization, including the whereabouts of Ancestor Ling Yuling.
Ling Yuxian was also present in the hall. From the many experts of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, she had already learned of everything that had happened on Floating Continent and understood the origins of this group of people.
She felt deep admiration for Nan Qing’s act of sacrificing herself to cover the retreat, and her emotions became even more complicated.
She had always suspected that Nan Qing was the mastermind who instigated her elder sister into formulating the Xiyuan Covenant. Yet from what the people of Floating Continent described, Nan Qing could not possibly have been such a person.
In short, she felt that she had misunderstood Nan Qing—and also misunderstood her own sister.
How could the descendants of the ancient sages who once resisted the Black Calamity possibly sabotage the Xiyuan Covenant?
While Ling Yuxian and the others were lost in thought and discussing how to deal with the dark beings, Ling Yuling arrived from outside the hall, appearing before everyone.
“Elder Sister…”
“Ancestor…”
The elders and ancestral elders of the Immortal-Controlling Palace were naturally overjoyed and deeply shaken. Ling Yuxian, in particular, was filled with joy, her eyes also carrying a trace of guilt.
After all, it had been she who, behind her sister’s back, had informed Gu Changge about the chaotic spacetime sea, which led to the Heaven-Slaying Alliance dispatching experts there.
“Senior…”
The people of Floating Continent were not unfamiliar with Ling Yuling.
She had previously gone to Sacred Ancestor Mountain on Floating Continent many times to discuss matters with Fairy Qing, and many of them had seen her before.
Zhu Xuan looked at Ling Yuling with great urgency. He had many things he wished to say to her and hoped to ask for her help in saving his grandfather.
From the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s people, he had learned that this founding ancestor had once been trapped in a dark space and had even suffered erosion by dark matter.
Yet now she stood here unharmed, having successfully cleansed herself of the dark matter.
This meant that she must have had a method to remove dark matter that had already taken hold.
“I already know about Nan Qing,” Ling Yuling said as she looked at the few remaining people from Floating Continent, sighing softly. “She gave her life to send all of you away. I was unable to help her in the end, but I will do everything I can to protect your safety.”
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Qing and the others from the Six Great Families all expressed their gratitude. “Thank you, Senior.”
Although dark beings were still invading, the Immortal-Controlling Palace was indeed a place of shelter and peace for them now.
“Senior, please save my grandfather. When he resisted the dark beings on Floating Continent, he was eroded by dark matter and fell into a coma. If not for the Soul-Stabilizing Pearl left behind by Fairy Qing, my grandfather would have already transformed into a dark being…”
Suddenly, with a thud, Zhu Xuan knelt before Ling Yuling, speaking with sincerity and urgency.
The others from Floating Continent also looked at her with hopeful, pleading gazes, and many of them knelt down as well, asking her to intervene.
“Eroded by dark matter?” Ling Yuling frowned slightly, a hint of difficulty appearing on her face.
She sighed softly and looked at Zhu Xuan and the others. “Get up first. If I have a way, I will certainly try to save Elder Zhu. But dark matter is extremely strange. Over the years, I’ve hardly heard of anyone who could truly resist and expel it. Even when your Sacred Ancestor Nan Zun was alive, it was something she could scarcely accomplish…”
“What?”
Zhu Xuan and the others were stunned, disbelief filling their faces.
The faint hope they held gradually dimmed.
“But… but I heard that you were once eroded by dark matter too, and yet you managed to cleanse it afterward, didn’t you?” Zhu Xuan asked unwillingly, staring at Ling Yuling with desperate urgency.
Ling Yuling shook her head. “All I could do was find ways to resist it, preventing the dark matter from eroding my true spirit. I did not have the ability to resolve it completely.”
“The one who helped cleanse the dark matter from me… was someone else.”
She did not know what kind of price had been paid to remove the dark matter, nor whether Gu Changge would be willing to help Zhu Xuan and the others.
Ling Yuxian and the others also realized that this referred to what had happened when they went to the Jing Clan forbidden land to rescue Ling Yuling.
It had been Gu Changge who intervened back then, allowing her to escape that dark space.
“Senior, who exactly was it that helped you? No matter what price is required, I am willing to pay it,” Zhu Xuan said, hope rising once more in his eyes.
The journey to the Pool of Creation was still distant. He did not know whether his grandfather could endure until that day arrived.
“He… he is the current master of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance. But I cannot guarantee that he will definitely help you,” Ling Yuling said after a moment of silence, her expression complicated.
Zhu Xuan and the others were shocked.
Although they had only just arrived in the Xiyuan Civilization, they had already heard of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance while still on Floating Continent.
Whenever that mysterious and powerful alliance master was mentioned, people were filled with reverence and awe.
To dare establish an organization named “Heaven-Slaying” — such boldness was truly shocking.
“Senior, could you introduce me to him? I want to meet the alliance master. No matter what price I must pay, I want to ask him to save my grandfather,” Zhu Xuan said, striving to steady his emotions as he looked at Ling Yuling with sincere entreaty.
“I will do my best to help you,” Ling Yuling nodded, agreeing to his request.
Whether out of respect for her past friendship with Nan Zun or out of regard for Nan Qing, she would do everything she could to help them.
With Ling Yuling’s consent, Zhu Xuan and the others were overjoyed. Not wanting to disturb the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s discussions, they soon took their leave.
Ling Yuling then began discussing with the elders the many potential crises the Xiyuan Civilization might face, the foremost issue being how to resist the invasion of the dark beings.
She also wished to recreate the methods once used by the ancient sages to combat the Black Calamity, to restrain the spread of the black mist.
The Imperial Dao Ancient Formation was one possible solution, but the method of setting it up had long been lost.
The Dragon-Suppressing Pillars she had left behind had been refined by others, and the formations engraved upon them had been drawn by Nan Zun herself.
“I wonder whether Floating Continent still preserves records of the Imperial Dao Formation. Nan Qing read countless ancient texts — perhaps something was left behind…”
Thinking of this, Ling Yuling planned to ask the people of Floating Continent whether they had brought those ancient records with them during their escape. There might be clues within them to counter the spread of the black mist.
At the same time, Zhu Xuan, having returned to his residence and intending to share the good news, noticed A-Li sitting atop a nearby low mountain, wearing a bamboo hat.
She leaned against the snow-white True Hou as if spacing out — or perhaps dozing lightly. Her face was entirely hidden beneath the hat, her features and gaze unseen, only a few playful strands of green hair spilling from its edge, smooth and soft.
After some thought, Zhu Xuan walked over to tell her what had happened today.
Their safe escape and arrival in the Xiyuan Civilization owed much to A-Li.
Though her personality was aloof and distant, and many from Floating Continent did not trust her, Zhu Xuan always felt she would not deceive or harm them.
“Miss A-Li…”
As he spoke, the snow-white True Hou suddenly opened its eyes and looked toward him.
In that instant, Zhu Xuan felt icy dread surge through his body, his limbs turning cold, completely unable to move.
It was as if the gates of hell had opened — boundless, abyssal darkness flooded toward him like a tide. Countless demons and fiends roared and danced, threatening to shatter his mind and devour his spirit.
“So it’s this kid…”
The snow-white True Hou muttered lazily, then lowered its eyelids again and resumed dozing.
Zhu Xuan stood there pale, drenched in cold sweat, his clothes clinging to his back as if he had just been pulled from an ice cellar.
He almost thought he had hallucinated — but the terrifying realism of the sensation told him otherwise.
“Spirit-warding beasts are like that. Don’t look it in the eyes,” A-Li’s indifferent voice said casually.
Zhu Xuan glanced at the snow-white True Hou with lingering fear.
He had thought it was merely a mount. He never imagined that a single glance could carry such terrifying power.
But… a spirit-warding beast? Wasn’t it a True Hou?
“Miss A-Li, I’ve found a way to save my grandfather. The day after tomorrow, I’ll go with the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s ancestor to meet the master of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance. He has a way to cleanse dark matter.”
Zhu Xuan refrained from asking further questions and instead recounted the events of the day.
Fearing A-Li might think he had broken their agreement, he quickly added, “But I promise you — whether or not it succeeds, I will still go with you to search for the Pool of Creation.”
“I know.”
To Zhu Xuan’s surprise, A-Li showed little emotional reaction, speaking calmly as if she did not care.
Instead, the snow-white True Hou let out what sounded like a mocking laugh.
“Haha, cleansing dark matter? Are you trying to laugh me to death…”
Zhu Xuan could not understand their indifference, as if his words were nothing more than a joke.
Was dark matter truly impossible to cleanse?
But he had delivered the message — how they interpreted it was no longer his concern.
Just as he turned to leave, A-Li’s calm voice suddenly drifted over.
“The day after tomorrow, I’ll go with you. I’d also like to see what kind of person this Heaven-Slaying Alliance master really is.”
Zhu Xuan paused, nodded, and left without another word.
“A-Li, do you really want to go?” the snow-white True Hou asked, rolling its eyes toward her.
“I just find it strange. Even the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s ancestor — a former sage — would obey someone so completely…” A-Li shook her head lightly, falling into contemplation.
On the morning of the third day, a cloud vessel carrying Zhu Xuan and the others tore through the cosmos and departed from the Immortal-Controlling Palace’s domain.
After giving all necessary instructions, Ling Yuling left together with them. Besides the people of Floating Continent, several elders of the Immortal-Controlling Palace accompanied them.
The cloud vessel streaked like radiant light through the heavens, stars retreating rapidly behind them as they traversed billions of li in the blink of an eye.
Zhu Xuan and the others were filled with excitement and anticipation, eager to reach the Heaven-Slaying Alliance.
At the entrance of the chaotic spacetime sea, the dark beings had remained stationed for the past two days without movement.
But today, eerie chanting and prayer suddenly echoed from deep within the darkness.
Dense black mist continued to erode the surrounding void. Vast regions resembling bottomless abysses emerged, with areas spanning tens of millions of li transforming into near-celestial chasms.
From afar, it looked as though heaven and earth themselves had been dissolved — as if the sky had been torn open by a terrifying wound.
Endless energy surged in from all directions, then reversed and poured inward, forming a waterfall like a black galactic river, its momentum earth-shaking.
Outside the formation barrier, the experts of the Xiyuan Civilization watched from afar, their minds trembling, even feeling an overwhelming urge to kneel and worship.
Boom!
A thunderous震动 rang out, like ancient war drums being struck, heralding cataclysmic slaughter.
The black mist suddenly swelled, overwhelming the heavens and ancient ages alike, surging to the very limits of the cosmos. Countless beings witnessed this horrifying scene.
Dark energy of extreme density erupted like boiling fog, crashing upward endlessly.
A vague altar began to manifest — condensed from infinite blood-red radiance. Heaven and earth shook violently, roaring like collapsing mountains and raging seas.
Countless dark beings knelt devoutly below, welcoming the altar’s descent. Within the hazy void, a blood-filled path seemed to form, solidifying the altar’s manifestation.
This scene reflected all the way to the depths of the Immortal-Controlling Palace, staining its skies crimson.
Throughout the Xiyuan Civilization, innumerable cultivators and beings stared in terror.
Across all races and Dao lineages, countless existences were alarmed, rising in shock and gazing from afar.
“This is the dark beings’ grand sacrificial ritual. They are welcoming the descent of a sacrificer to preside over it…”
“They intend to sacrifice the entire Xiyuan Civilization.”
Aboard the inter-domain cloud vessel, the elder figures of Floating Continent trembled violently, their voices shaking.
The accompanying Immortal-Controlling Palace elders and disciples were utterly pale, as though the end of days had arrived.
“So fast?” Ling Yuling frowned deeply, leaping into the void. Armor pieces appeared around her, ready for battle at any moment.
And just as the entire Xiyuan Civilization was shaken by this horrifying sight—
A dazzling radiance suddenly erupted from a region within the Xiyuan Civilization, illuminating the once pitch-black heavens.
A gigantic hand emerged, trailing brilliant light rain, instantly spanning endless cosmic distances and slamming toward the depths of the Immortal-Controlling Palace.
Where its palm passed, dim starfields regained light, darkened stars shone once more, and all worlds seemed bathed in sacred brilliance.