Chapter 530: Falling

Hunyuan Immortal City, State of Ming.

After waiting for a month, Zhao Xuankang finally met the person he wished to see here. Kong Shanxu led him into a vast courtyard within the Immortal City. The courtyard even boasted a clear lake where colorful spirit fish swam, their movements shimmering with seven-colored light as they reflected the sun.

By a pavilion on the lake stood an elegant and handsome male cultivator. He wore a dark blue robe, an elaborate cap, and a wide sash, with a white jade pendant at his waist. From time to time, he scattered fish food into the lake, attracting various spirit fish to swarm towards him, competing for the food.

"True Lord Zhou certainly has composure; to still enjoy such leisure now," Zhao Xuankang remarked as he walked over to the male cultivator by the lake. This person was Zhou Ye, the Core Formation Patriarch of the Earth Vein of the Five Elements Sect, and the one who had inherited most of Grand Ancestor Hunyuan's legacy.

"A few days ago, my closed-door cultivation reached a critical point, making True Lord Zhao wait for a long time," Zhou Ye replied, his expression unchanged. He slowly scattered all the fish food in his hand onto the lake surface before turning his head and gesturing for Zhao Xuankang to sit.

"There's no need for pleasantries between us," Zhao Xuankang said, frowning at Zhou Ye. "Zhou Shengqing is undergoing Nascent Soul formation; are you truly doing nothing?"

"Then what should I do?" Zhou Ye asked, calm and unruffled. "Mobilize all Five Elements Sect cultivators to kill their way to Great Wood Ridge?" A beautiful, tall female cultivator in a white dress came to prepare tea for the two Core Formation cultivators, while Kong Shanxu brought another box of fish food.

"Don't forget," Zhao Xuankang pressed, "you personally expelled Zhou Shengqing from the Five Elements Sect. When he forms his Nascent Soul, the first revenge he'll seek is to oust you and reclaim Hunyuan Immortal City."

Zhao Xuankang's words made Zhou Ye chuckle. He took the tea handed to him by the female cultivator, took a small sip, then picked up the fish food from the table again and walked to the lakeside. "True Lord Zhao, you are mistaken. My second senior brother and I merely had a conflict of ideals, which led to the sect's split after our master's passing. If he successfully forms his Nascent Soul, I would willingly give him not just Hunyuan Immortal City, but even the entire Five Elements Sect."

Zhou Ye even smiled slightly as he spoke, continuing to scatter the fish food little by little onto the lake surface. The spirit fish, which had dispersed after eating, were attracted once more and swarmed towards him.

"Do you believe what you're saying?" Zhao Xuankang didn't drink his tea. He also stood up, walked to Zhou Ye's side, and stared at him coldly.

"What does it matter if I believe it or not?" Zhou Ye replied. "Seventy years ago, I already saw it clearly: my third senior brother and fourth senior sister are not truly aligned with me. If it's just me alone, facing the three Core Formation cultivators of the Divine Wood Sect, my first thought is how to preserve our current legacy, not to risk my life with you on some impractical endeavor."

After Zhou Ye finished speaking, Zhao Xuankang knew that it would likely be impossible to incite him to deal with the Divine Wood Sect.

"If you are willing to act, I can gather seven Core Formation cultivators," Zhao Xuankang continued. "We would only need to circle above Great Wood Ridge; even if we can't break through the Myriad Wood Grand Formation, we can still disrupt Zhou Shengqing's Nascent Soul formation."

Hearing this, Zhou Ye's brow furrowed slightly, and he looked at Zhao Xuankang with a hint of surprise. "Which seven?"

"Me, Junior Brother Xuanshu, a rogue Core Formation cultivator from Dongyi, and three unaligned cultivators whose identities need to remain confidential. If you are willing to join, the two of us can together persuade Yan Shaoyin and Kong Lingling, giving us more than a 50% chance." In that case, they could potentially gather up to nine Core Formation cultivators! If Zhou Ye could also command the other two from the Five Elements Sect, then the lineup would be even more formidable. If eleven Core Formation cultivators were willing to attack with full force, even the Tier 4 Myriad Wood Grand Formation might not be able to withstand it!

"Well, are you tempted?" Seeing Zhou Ye's silence, Zhao Xuankang couldn't help but press him again. In the past six months, he had used all the connections he had accumulated over more than three hundred years during his time in the Profound Sky Dao Palace just to barely assemble such a lineup. All for the goal of achieving complete annihilation of the Divine Wood Sect in one decisive blow.

"True Lord Zhao, which spirit fish do you find the most beautiful?" At this moment, Zhou Ye suddenly spoke, but he changed the subject by pointing at the dozen or so colorful fish in the lake below.

"This one, I suppose." Zhao Xuankang didn't know what game he was playing. After a glance, he casually pointed to a spirit fish as clear and transparent as white jade. This one was indeed the most beautiful, surrounded by all the other spirit fish at the center, slowly devouring the food that fell from above. The scales of the surrounding fish of various colors reflected onto it, causing its entire body to glow with seven-colored brilliance, making it dazzling and beautiful.

"This fish will reach its plumpest state in a year," Zhou Ye said, smiling. "True Lord Zhao, how about you come then, and I'll treat you to this spirit fish?" He pointed at the white jade-like transparent spirit fish, marked its back with a golden spiritual energy imprint, and then scattered all the remaining fish food in his hand.

"You may enjoy eating," Zhao Xuankang said coldly, trying to pull the conversation back to the Divine Wood Sect, "but ever since my junior brother Nan Xuanjing died, I've had no appetite at all."

"Life is short. We Core Formation cultivators only live for a maximum of five hundred years," Zhou Ye countered. "We should enjoy ourselves while we can. The taste of this colorful spirit fish is very rare; even my master often praised it when he was alive."

At this point, Zhao Xuankang already understood Zhou Ye's meaning. The two exchanged glances and said nothing more.

"I won't wait a year," Zhao Xuankang said finally. "If you miss this opportunity, don't regret it when we destroy the Divine Wood Sect in the future." After saying this, he turned and left the pavilion.

"Senior Zhao, I'll see you out..." Seeing this, Kong Shanxu immediately followed Zhao Xuankang out. Anti-flight formations were set up within Hunyuan Immortal City, and this courtyard was one of its hubs, so Zhao Xuankang needed to be escorted whenever he entered or left.

***

"My lord, why did you invite him for a year later?" After Zhao Xuankang left, the female cultivator in the white dress, who had been lowering her head making tea, raised her head. She stood up and handed the tea cup, held in her delicate hands, to Zhou Ye, asking with a hint of surprise.

"I understand Zhou Shengqing's foundation," Zhou Ye explained calmly. "By that time, the outcome of his Nascent Soul formation will definitely be clear. If my second senior brother truly succeeds, the two of us will take our master's legacy and leave the Eastern Barren Lands, leaving Hunyuan Immortal City to him. If he fails, then don't blame me for being ruthless and sacrificing family for the greater good."

"In that case, why not ally with Zhao Xuankang now and first eliminate the possibility of Zhou Shengqing forming his Nascent Soul?" the beautiful female cultivator, Luzhu, asked. She had followed Zhou Ye for over a hundred years, and their relationship was of the most intimate kind.

Zhou Ye hailed from an immortal cultivation family in the Eastern Wu territory. Due to his family's decline, he and his maidservant Luzhu hunted demonic beasts and set up stalls in Yunmeng Marsh. One day, by chance, he was noticed by the passing Grand Ancestor Hunyuan, who took him in as a disciple. From then on, he soared, eventually taking charge of the Eastern Barren Lands' foremost Immortal City and commanding the Five Elements. To have reached this point, besides his exceptional talent, Zhou Ye's intellect and wisdom were also top-notch. Otherwise, Grand Ancestor Hunyuan would not have specifically designated him as his successor before his passing.

Zhou Ye replied, "If I were to do that, my third senior brother and fourth senior sister would never have the possibility of fully aligning with me."

Luzhu scoffed, "They're just opportunists; why bother with them?"

"If I want to cultivate the Hunyuan Dao Fruit on my own, I might have to wait until I'm old and frail," Zhou Ye continued. "They will certainly pass away before me. If they willingly transfer their spiritual energy to me before their demise, it would save me at least a century of arduous cultivation."

Luzhu murmured, "They are all ungrateful people. Grand Ancestor clearly designated you, my lord, to inherit the Immortal City, yet they were unwilling and even caused the sect to split."

Zhou Ye listened without commenting. He looked at the spirit fish he had marked in the lake and stated his final reason: "My second senior brother cannot possibly succeed in forming his Nascent Soul. Since he is destined to fail, why should I risk alienating my third senior brother and fourth senior sister by allying with outsiders to attack Great Wood Ridge?"

This statement left Luzhu utterly perplexed. "My lord, why will Zhou Shengqing's Nascent Soul formation fail?"

"If forming a Nascent Soul were that simple," Zhou Ye said meaningfully, "why would I need to strenuously cultivate the Hunyuan Dao Fruit?" He drained the tea in his hand, his gaze deep as he looked at the spirit fish in the lake, each marked at different spots.

***

Great Wood Ridge.

The phenomena accompanying Zhou Shengqing's Nascent Soul formation had reached their final stage. The spiritual energy around the Longevity Wood was now so intense that even Chen Mobai, a Core Formation cultivator, found it difficult to control. The protectors, Fu Zongjue and Mo Douguang, could only leave the area where Zhou Shengqing was in seclusion.

The three of them took turns patrolling the surroundings, constantly sweeping with their divine senses in addition to the Myriad Wood Grand Formation, to prevent any hidden enemies of the same cultivation level. Sure enough, not long after, a dark cloud floated from the distant horizon. It was dispersed by Chen Mobai, revealing a Nether Official with only a head remaining, accompanied by two other shadowy ghost cultivators. Chen Mobai was quite familiar with the other two ghost cultivators; they were the same two who had hovered around when Meng Hong formed his Core. One of them was precisely the ghost cultivator who had occupied Lady Guo's corpse.

Chen Mobai was tempted to try out his Pure Yang Scroll again to see if there was an upper limit to this Soul Transformation Grand Art's effectiveness against demonic characteristics. However, on the other side of the sky, another familiar face reappeared: Xuanshu from the Profound Sky Dao Palace. This was a formidable enemy, and Chen Mobai knew he was no match. To avoid being blocked from returning to the Myriad Wood Grand Formation, he could only temporarily let go of the three ghost cultivators.

Besides Xuanshu, a faint, hidden figure appeared in another part of the sky. This person seemed to have cultivated a secret art that could block divine senses, and the three of them initially did not detect him. Fortunately, Chen Mobai's Spirit Eye of Void Penetration cultivation had reached its peak. On one occasion, he noticed some unusual discord in the cloud qi on the horizon, and upon closer inspection, he indeed discerned a humanoid figure hidden within. To be able to do this, he was undoubtedly also a Core Formation cultivator. It was just unclear who it was.

After Fu Zongjue found out, he speculated it might be Zhao Xuankang. However, he quickly overturned this conclusion, because a few days later, Zhao Xuankang also appeared openly. He stood with Xuanshu, not assaulting Great Wood Ridge, but simply standing there, exerting pressure.

"As long as we don't leave the grand formation, any ambush hidden in the dark will be useless." Chen Mobai and the other two had consistently remained passive, prioritizing the protection of Zhou Shengqing's Nascent Soul formation. After confirming this, the three of them confronted Xuanshu and the others from behind the Myriad Wood Grand Formation. Neither side spoke, simply waiting in silence.

After an unknown number of days and nights, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in Great Wood Ridge had gathered to its extreme, transforming into tangible clusters of spiritual light, like fist-sized hailstones, pelting down towards Zhou Shengqing. A colossal phantom rose from above Zhou Shengqing's head. Its vast, pure light, like a sky-obscuring curtain, engulfed all the spiritual light, turning it into nourishment for itself. The pure light grew increasingly vibrant. From an initial humanoid outline, seven orifices gradually appeared, then facial features emerged, followed by limbs, becoming progressively clearer in Zhou Shengqing's likeness.

"Junior Brother, should we make a move?" Zhao Xuankang, seeing this scene, frowned slightly, fearing that Zhou Shengqing would indeed succeed in forming his Nascent Soul. He asked Xuanshu beside him.

"The time is not yet right," Xuanshu replied, looking at the fully activated Myriad Wood Grand Formation and gently shaking his head.

"When will the time be right?" Zhao Xuankang was anxious, but Xuanshu didn't answer. He narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the phantom above Great Wood Ridge, which was expanding and growing larger as the spiritual energy became richer.

But a quarter of an hour later, this phantom suddenly began to twist and blur. With a sigh! Zhou Shengqing's massive phantom in mid-air completely disintegrated, turning into pure light that rained down from the sky! Nascent Soul formation failed!

"Now!" The moment the words fell, a brilliant, dazzling golden light, like a meteor from outer space, lit up in Xuanshu's palm. In an instant, it traversed half the sky and descended over Great Wood Ridge.

Chen Mobai, who had been watching him, immediately sent out his Six-Yang Divine Fire Mirror to block this Sun-Shooting Divine Halberd Art. With a dull clang! The golden meteor struck the hemispherical light shield, erupting with brilliant sparks above Great Wood Ridge, triggering an explosion of air and roaring currents.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! After Zhou Shengqing's Nascent Soul formation failed, Xuanshu and Zhao Xuankang no longer had any reservations. After one strike, they attacked again, each throwing four golden halberds from their hands.

The Myriad Wood Grand Formation was activated! A vibrant green light shield suddenly lit up, enveloping the entire Great Wood Ridge. The golden halberds struck it, merely causing slight ripples before all their power was neutralized, and they fell to the ground. But their action was merely a signal.

Following the golden halberds, the three ghost cultivators also attacked. Three eerie spiritual energies—scarlet, pitch-black, and dark green—erupted as they each manipulated their artifacts: a red flower, bone beads, and a scimitar, striking towards the Myriad Wood Grand Formation. With a resounding crash, the Myriad Wood Grand Formation shook once more after being struck by the three ghost cultivators. In an instant, Great Wood Ridge was besieged by five Core Formation cultivators!