Chapter 1283: Needle Point Against Wheat Tip

"They all got away? What good are you people!"

"These cultivators are too fast! Their movements are unified and well-trained, nothing like disorganized stragglers."

"It wasn't just speed; they vanished into thin air right in front of us!"

An image spread across the Saint Dynasty's Star Network.

Although the attackers were about to be overtaken by the Saint Dynasty soldiers, at the crucial moment, they dematerialized and dispersed into the air.

The Saint Dynasty soldiers initially thought they had teleported away and tried to continue the pursuit. However, they found no trace of spatial fluctuations.

"Requesting reinforcement. Currently, the number of soldiers in Luoyan Province is at its limit just holding the Heavenly City. We are unable to pursue and clear out the remaining Immortal Alliance forces within our borders."

"On our side, in Shilin Province, we have completely cleared all resistance. We can head over there!"

"We're almost done too! Hang in there, brothers!"

Sun Erlang, monitoring the communications within the Eastern Battlefield, was considering whether to deploy additional forces for a joint encirclement and suppression in Luoyan Province. Suddenly, like a flash of lightning, a thought struck Sun Erlang, and his heart leaped. A wave of suspicion then surged within him. He suddenly recalled something his master had once mentioned.

"No, no. Luoyan Province, Luoyan Province should have been destroyed once already. Although the Myriad Immortal Alliance later rebuilt Luoyan Province, it's impossible for there to be so many cultivators defending it... How could I have forgotten such a crucial detail?"

A sharp glint appeared in Sun Erlang's eyes. Sensing something was amiss, he immediately issued an order to all Saint Dynasty soldiers: "Halt all support to Luoyan Province for now. I will personally send someone to resolve this. The 36th Legion, responsible for guarding Luoyan Province, should also withdraw as quickly as possible."

Military orders were absolute. No one questioned the command; they merely executed it swiftly.

"This is Lan Xiangwen, commander of the 36th Legion, First Army. I have led my troops to complete the evacuation. We are retreating to Lüyin Province as ordered. But... I don't see any of our people here."

"Lan Xiangwen, what nonsense are you talking about? We've been waiting for you at the rendezvous point, and you're nowhere to be seen! Where exactly are you?!"

"No, Lan Xiangwen, your location still shows you within Luoyan Province! What is your 36th Legion doing?!"

A hint of chaos began to emerge in the internal communications of the Eastern Battlefield. Wang Xuanba, the overall commander of the Eastern Battlefield, decisively isolated their communications and then began to question them in detail. At this moment, Sun Erlang's voice also came through.

"Xuanba, this place is strange. I've confirmed that ever since the entire 36th Legion entered Luoyan Province, their location has remained unchanged. It's as if they've fallen into a deep sleep. Therefore, don't believe any information they report. It must be a hallucination from their dreams."

Wang Xuanba was slightly surprised: "I've already sent a phantom beast form to infiltrate, but couldn't find them. I never imagined it would be a mere hallucination?"

"We did indeed breach the newly constructed Luoyan Heavenly City earlier. The first batch of soldiers who transferred out did successfully leave Luoyan Province. This must be some method activated by the Immortal Alliance afterward. Perhaps, even by something other than the Myriad Immortal Alliance..." Sun Erlang stated his conclusion. "One of my puppet bodies has already reached Luoyan Province..."

Before Sun Erlang's eyes, images of Luoyan Province appeared. Wang Xuanba's phantom beast form, sensed by the Sea of Stars, showed no sign of human presence. In fact, not a single battle could be seen throughout Luoyan Province. It was calm and peaceful.

"Even a puppet body can be dragged into an illusion?" Sun Erlang's heart grew heavy. "Unfortunately, what's fake is destined never to become real!"

The automaton, adorned with interwoven black and gold patterns, extended its arm forward. Energy surged within the automaton's body, and a longbow forged from pure golden energy instantly materialized in its grip. The bowstring was drawn taut like a crescent moon, and a silver arrow appeared. After a brief charge, the silver light, like a dragon, pierced the sky. Vast energy shattered the space ahead, on the verge of revealing the reality beneath the illusory facade.

At that very moment, a somewhat pale hand emerged from nothingness without warning. It gently gripped the Sky-Patrolling Arrow. No matter how the arrow's silver light erupted, it remained firmly held, unable to move. Eventually, the light completely vanished, and the arrow became an ordinary one in that hand. The space previously pierced by the Sky-Patrolling Arrow also restored itself. The pale arm that had stopped the Sky-Patrolling Arrow, ignoring the automaton controlled by Sun Erlang, also gradually dimmed and became ethereal.

Sun Erlang snorted coldly. Profound golden energy surged within the automaton's body. A pair of arms extended from the automaton's back. Immediately after, another pair grew from the left side of its torso. Only after a total of eight pairs, sixteen arms, had grown did the automaton's transformation cease. Due to the many additional structures, the automaton's overall size nearly doubled. The golden patterns pulsed as if alive, constantly flowing across its surface.

Boom! Like thunder descending, eight longbows appeared sequentially in the automaton's hands. With bowstrings drawn taut, eight Sky-Patrolling Arrows pointed in different directions, poised for launch.

"Break!" Sun Erlang roared.

Eight silver dragons roared furiously, simultaneously shooting outwards from the central automaton. Gold and silver light contended, even briefly obscuring the moonlight transformed by the Great Qi in the sky. It was as if only this single creation of brute force existed between heaven and earth. Wherever the eight Sky-Patrolling Arrows passed, space shattered layer by layer like a broken mirror. Strangely, however, these fragments did not continue to fly outwards. Instead, they remained frozen in the air. The silver dragons continued to fly rapidly forward, completely pulverizing everything in their path. Yet, the areas they destroyed seemed to be caught in a temporal stasis. The true scene beyond the illusion was thus not truly revealed.

What made Sun Erlang's pupils constrict was the reappearance of the pale arm. This time, however, it did not try to stop the eight Sky-Patrolling Arrows. Instead, it unhurriedly, yet very swiftly, picked up each of the frozen illusion fragments and returned them to their original positions. If this pale arm were allowed to continue its restoration, the Sky-Patrolling Arrow dance, which was powerful enough to severely injure eight Dao Integration cultivators, would likely be like punching cotton – having no effect whatsoever.

Naturally, Sun Erlang would not let his opponent succeed.

"Even though it's just a puppet body, you haven't shown your face from beginning to end... Aren't you underestimating me a bit too much!"

The automaton's eight pairs of arms moved across its body. They writhed and merged, transforming in the blink of an eye into a pair of immensely thick arms, almost the size of the automaton's main body. The automaton instantly flashed, appearing before the pale arm. It gripped it fiercely with all its strength!

However, this seemingly slender arm contained an unimaginably vast power. Not only did the giant automaton arms fail to impede its movement, but they were instead pulled along by the opponent, forcibly continuing in the direction of its original action. The dark golden patterns on the automaton's body were already operating at their peak. Sun Erlang also faintly sensed that during this high-intensity power struggle, the automaton's body had reached its limit of endurance. It was on the verge of disintegrating the next moment.

A cold glint flashed in Sun Erlang's true form's eyes. Remote power support from other dark gold automatons instantly flowed into it. Enveloped in golden light, the automaton's body instantly expanded several times its original size. The surge of immense power yanked the pale arm's movement back. Seizing the advantage, its energy erupted to the extreme, aiming to expose the true culprit lurking in the shadows.

The idea was grand, but just as Sun Erlang felt it was about to be realized, a sudden, inexplicable chill ran through him. Then, he felt... As if another pale, cold arm rested on the automaton's shoulder. With a slight squeeze, the automaton's previous state of extreme power was shattered. Its body stumbled, losing balance awkwardly. Before it could even adjust, Sun Erlang then felt one pale hand after another reaching out from the void, pressing onto the automaton's body. The strength of each hand seemed not to be very great. Yet, they were so steadfast, combining to press down on the automaton like mountains and seas. In an instant, the automaton was engulfed by a pile of pale hands, unable to move.

A trail of blood appeared in Sun Erlang's eyes as he forcefully disconnected from controlling the automaton. He had a premonition that if he continued to control the automaton and allowed those pale arms to drag it into that unknown place, his true form would suffer extremely severe damage.

"Longevity Realm..." At this moment, Sun Erlang had confirmed the opponent's strength. It was no longer something he could handle. A trace of unwillingness flashed in his heart, but Sun Erlang did not force the issue.

"You may retreat now; leave this to me." Fortunately, at this moment, Qiaogong's voice resonated in the automaton's ear.

"This treasure, I painstakingly crafted it myself. I can't just let it go to waste..." Qiaogong mumbled, his figure instantly appearing beside the dark gold automaton. The swirling blade light in his hand simply traced a circle around the pale arms that tightly gripped the automaton. Countless arms, like torn white paper, severed at the point of contact.

"Go!" Qiaogong patted the dark gold automaton's shoulder, and the automaton gradually shrank back to its normal size. Then, with a flicker of light, it teleported away from the spot.

At the last moment, Sun Erlang noticed that the severed pale arms Qiaogong had cut off were actually just segments of willow branches.

"Willow tree?" Qiaogong simultaneously posed the same question. He tried to take hold of the cut willow branches, but his hand met empty air. While he was momentarily stunned, the countless dense pale arms had already re-merged with space and vanished.

"Not even willing to show a hand now? That's really disrespectful to Qiaogong, isn't it?"

There was no anger on Qiaogong's face; he simply pulled a round bronze plate from his robe. On the bronze plate were several small figures in comical poses. The figures had originally been frolicking, but upon being taken out by Qiaogong, they immediately became tense and restless. They pointed in various directions around them. Without any visible action from Qiaogong, a rope-like shadow shot out from beside him. It quickly flew, disappearing invisibly into the air. After a while, as if hitting something, the black rope began to sway. As long as the figures on the plate kept pointing, the black shadows around Qiaogong continuously shot out. Before long, a strange and eerie black giant net was constructed, centered around Qiaogong.

The figures in the bronze plate seemed to have completed their mission, patting their chests in relief. Qiaogong, however, reached out and plucked one of the figures. Though the figure was very reluctant, it had no choice. With a whistle, one figure turned into two. With a flip, two figures turned into four. It didn't take long for a single figure to transform into an army of figures. Each figure, with a grimace, jumped onto the black ropes. Then, to the faint, rhythmic sound of a chant, the figures began to collectively drag the black shadows before them. The massive black net instantly contracted. The surrounding space trembled slightly, and the restored fragments shattered once more. Moreover, something was about to be pulled out from beneath the illusory surface.

Qiaogong squinted, watching expectantly, while muttering to himself: "If I can even pull the Immortal Puppet Ancestor, what makes you think I can't handle you?"

A sigh resonated, without apparent source. Faint zither music seemed to drift from the horizon. The originally energetic figures instantly became sluggish, each stealing a moment of rest. Qiaogong's expression turned wary as he surveyed his surroundings.

"Why fight, indeed..." A mournful, plaintive sound echoed continuously around Qiaogong.

Qiaogong's eyes darted around, then he smiled and said: "Well said! Why must we fight? I, Qiaogong, am not skilled in combat... Since neither of us wishes to engage, why don't we sit down and have a proper talk?" To demonstrate his sincerity, Qiaogong even put away the bronze plate. The figures cheered as they ceased their work, while Qiaogong smiled, looking around: "My humble self is Qiaogong, from the Heavenly Mechanism Realm. May I inquire your esteemed name, fellow Daoist?"

The opponent was indeed a powerful cultivator of the Longevity Realm. However, during his brief skirmish with them, Qiaogong did not detect any traces of the reversed Heavenly and Earthly Principles of the Xuanhuang Realm. He therefore deduced that the opponent, like himself, was a survivor from another shattered cultivation world. After a moment of silence, the gentle, solemn voice spoke again: "I cannot recall. I merely wish to avoid conflict. There is no ill will."

As the other party spoke, Qiaogong saw the cultivators of both the Myriad Immortal Alliance and the Saint Dynasty within the entire Luoyan Heavenly City happily fallen into a deep sleep. Their lives, however, were unharmed. Qiaogong inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. Although he felt no fear, it was generally best not to make an enemy of a Longevity Realm powerful cultivator.

"Actually, we also bear no ill will..." Qiaogong smiled benignly and began to chat with the other party.

On Sun Erlang's side, upon receiving Qiaogong's message, he sighed faintly: "Indeed, there is a vast gulf between the Longevity Realm and Dao Integration, like the heavens and an abyss. However, if all the dark gold automatons had been present at that time... A fight might not have been impossible."

If the Saint Dynasty army's defeat in Luoyan Province was merely an accident, then their encounter in Tianling Province unequivocally proved that the Myriad Immortal Alliance indeed possessed some hidden power. After the Saint Dynasty army expended considerable effort to capture Tianling City, they were astonished to discover that it was, in fact, an empty city. All important cultivators within the city had long since completed their transfer. Only some cultivators with no significant background were left behind, relying on contraptions and magic artifacts to resist. The Saint Dynasty soldiers quickly realized this might be a trap, but before they could retreat, the entire Tianling City exploded with a roar. The massive floating city, along with nearly ten thousand cultivators from both sides, instantly turned to ashes. In the sky, a plethora of falling phenomena erupted simultaneously. Numerous strange sights mingled and distorted, making it impossible to discern anything clearly.

In a hidden valley in Tianling Province.

"Thanks to Brother Sun's timely warning, our Tianling Province was able to turn misfortune into blessing," said Song Mansheng, Lord of Tianling City, stroking his beard with a smile.

Sun Liancheng's gaze remained fixed on the immense blaze in the distant sky: "It still relies on the City Lord's wisdom. If you hadn't been so decisive, even if I had offered advice, the effect on the enemy would certainly not have been so good."

The other cultivators in the valley echoed: "Indeed, according to the observations we left in the city, at least over ten thousand bandits perished in that explosion."

"Haha, fellow Daoist, you miscalculated. It was clearly twenty thousand!"

"...Ah, yes, yes, you're right. I'm getting old and muddled! Twenty thousand, it was indeed twenty thousand! We have video records as proof!" Everyone spoke with an unspoken understanding.

"Speaking of which, what is the origin of these people? They attacked without warning, and most critically, they can even affect teleportation arrays and Sky Profound Mirrors." Sun Liancheng interrupted their celebratory mood.

"They shouldn't be from the Council of Five Elders. I've fought cultivators from the Council of Five Elders, and the aura I sensed from them was completely different."

"No matter their origin, as long as the Immortal Alliance Central acts, they will all perish. They are merely rampant for a moment!"

"Lord Song, should we take advantage of the chaos and strike again to earn more merits?" Someone among the valley cultivators suggested.

Song Mansheng pondered for a moment, not making a decision, but instead looked at Sun Liancheng beside him. Sun Liancheng's eyes narrowed, and he remained silent for a long time. After everyone waited for a long time, Sun Liancheng finally shook his head: "The situation is unclear; your subordinate finds it difficult to judge."

Song Mansheng nodded upon hearing this: "In that case, let's wait a bit longer. When the situation is unclear, it's not wise to act rashly." The people in the valley naturally agreed.

However, Song Mansheng and Sun Liancheng, avoiding the others, held a private conversation.

"Brother Sun, you weren't entirely truthful just now," Song Mansheng said solemnly.

Sun Liancheng gave a wry smile: "I truly didn't dare to speak it aloud in front of them. Otherwise, I feared it would shake the morale of our troops!"

Song Mansheng's expression tightened: "That serious?"

Sun Liancheng replied: "Yes. As you know, Sir, my ability to predict the bandits' sudden attack this time was entirely due to my perception of our Sun family's fortune. That day, I was chatting idly with my nephew when I suddenly felt our family's destiny wavering like a candle in the wind, on the verge of extinction... In extreme fright, it took me quite some effort to determine that the cause was not from the Immortal Alliance but from an external source. I initially thought it would be an attack by the Council of Five Elders, but I never expected it to be an unknown group of bandits. During this period, our family's future fortune has been fluctuating wildly. One moment, it shows signs of immense prosperity, and the next, it's a dire omen of lineage extinction. It truly makes one's heart tremble with fear..." Sun Liancheng sighed.

Song Mansheng's brows furrowed even tighter upon hearing this.

Sun Liancheng advised: "Regardless, with the merit of blowing up that city, when rewards are distributed in the future, your contribution, Sir, will certainly not be overlooked. Your merits are already more than sufficient, so why take further risks? I imagine their reinforcements will arrive soon, and those bandits' combat strength is not to be underestimated. Instead of risking it, it's better to stay hidden deep within this valley. With a natural grand array concealing us, the enemy shouldn't be able to detect us..."

Song Mansheng was finally persuaded, suppressing the burgeoning urge in his heart.

Sun Liancheng's judgment seemed exceptionally accurate. Just a little over half a day later, Song Mansheng saw large numbers of bandits swarming in. Their faces filled with resentment, they meticulously searched every corner of Tianling Province. When they all flew directly over the valley, everyone inside felt their hearts stop. Fortunately, fate was ultimately on their side; they were not exposed.

"How many have come? Did we just stir up a hornet's nest?"

"Why are we only seeing the enemy's reinforcements? Where are our Myriad Immortal Alliance people!"

In the valley, everyone was tense, periodically looking up at the sky and whispering. Gone was their previous sense of ease.

Sun Qi from the Sun family, however, quietly approached Sun Liancheng. "Uncle, something's wrong."

Sun Liancheng's expression froze, then he cautiously scanned his surroundings. Only after ensuring no one was paying attention did he communicate with Sun Qi via spiritual transmission.

"The fluctuating family fortune has begun to stabilize on one side. Continuing to stay here will likely only lead to death."

Sun Liancheng's heart trembled. Sun Liancheng still had great trust in his nephew's words. It was precisely by relying on his uncanny premonitions that they had set up the ambush, detonated the Heavenly City, and eliminated a large wave of bandits. The more a family spreads out and expands within the cosmos, the more its members disperse and its fortune declines. However, Sun Qi's cultivation of the Reverse Cosmos Art could reverse this trend, causing the family's fortune to become more concentrated. The cost was that the more prosperous the family became, the more the various forces of decline accumulated and converged upon the cultivator of the art. Each breakthrough in cultivation realm was as difficult as ascending to heaven. Only individuals of extraordinary talent could achieve it. Sun Qi was precisely such a genius.

"We are relocating immediately." Sun Liancheng was very decisive, making the decision outright.

"Everyone is watching now; how can we leave? And there are so many of us Sun family members," Sun Qi said, uneasy.

"I've made preparations," Sun Liancheng said confidently.

Within the valley, the Sun family members quietly gathered. However, to the others, they did not appear to leave. They remained in place, conversing with them.

"This Golden Cicada Escape Treasure is an artifact I acquired during my youth, on an adventure. I've always been reluctant to use it, but now is the time I have no choice but to bring it out," Sun Liancheng lamented.

Unbeknownst to the other occupants of the valley, all Sun family members had already secretly departed through a hidden passage within the valley that only Sun Liancheng knew.

"Hurry, the secret treasure's concealment won't last much longer. We need to find another place to hide," Sun Liancheng urged.

Just as they were withdrawing, several streaks of white light streaked across the sky, coming from afar. Their target was uniform: the very valley where they had recently been hiding.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The white lights struck their target directly, and an unimaginably terrifying energy erupted from the valley. Amidst the roaring earth, a shockwave swept through immediately after. It sent the fleeing Sun family members tumbling. Fortunately, the secret treasure's concealment ability was still effective, preventing their exposure.

Sun Liancheng and Sun Qi watched in horror as the valley was transformed into a massive, circular void crater, their bodies stiff and minds blank.

"A Dao Integration attack! That explosion just now definitely had the might of a full-power strike from a Dao Integration expert!"

"Was that... an arrow?"

As Sun Liancheng stood dumbfounded, he was horrified to discover several more white arrow-lights whistling through the sky. He instinctively ducked his head, and after realizing the arrow-lights were not aimed at him, he hastily led the Sun family members towards their next planned hiding spot.

"No, the entire Tianling Province is no longer safe. It's not advisable to stay long; we need to find another place for refuge." Trembling as he traveled halfway, Sun Liancheng was suddenly inspired and changed their route at the last minute. They swiftly fled towards Shanteng Province, which bordered Tianling Province.

Just as they were about to reach the white mist barrier at the border, the ground of Tianling Province suddenly shook violently. Immediately after, a terrifying scene unfolded that the Sun family would never forget. In the sky, five interconnected rings materialized from nothingness, descending into the world. From these five rings, countless tentacles extended downwards, reaching towards Tianling Province below. And one of them was flying directly towards the Sun family.

"This is bad!" Sun Qi's expression drastically changed, and he quickly shouted.

Sun Liancheng, however, had already acted a step ahead. He no longer cared about his family. Alone, he transformed into a streak of bloody light, rapidly flying towards the nearby white mist barrier. But this escape art, which involved burning his soul, actually slowed down visibly. It was as if countless tiny tentacles in the air were dragging and obstructing him. The blood-light dissipated, and Sun Liancheng's true form reappeared. He even seemed to have lost the ability to fly, plummeting heavily from the sky.

The black wriggling tentacles from the sky quickly locked onto him. They violently pierced into Sun Liancheng's body. Sun Liancheng frantically tried to cast a spell to resist, but the surrounding spiritual energy seemed to have solidified, completely unresponsive to his command. Unable to resist in the slightest, the black tentacles quickly passed through Sun Liancheng. Amidst the Sun family's screams, they too were captured one by one by the tentacles that branched out from the sky. The wailing lasted only for a moment before Sun Liancheng's body was assimilated into the same black tentacles. There was not even a falling phenomenon appearing in the sky. It was as if Sun Liancheng hadn't died, but had merely transformed into those black tentacles.

The Sun family members were all captured, except for Sun Qi, whose heart turned cold. He dared not move. Yes, of the entire Sun family, only Sun Qi had escaped disaster. Because the moment those terrifying tentacles locked onto him, Sun Qi felt a subtle premonition. Among a myriad of dead ends, he found the only glimmer of a possible path to survival. So, without the slightest hesitation, he used the Dissolution Chapter of the Supreme Primordial True Scripture to disperse all of his cultivation, and he expelled all the spiritual energy stored within his body. Without any reservation, he completely and utterly became a mortal.

A black tentacle, as thick as an arm, slowly drifted past Sun Qi. As if sentient, it circled Sun Qi once. Only by being so close did Sun Qi clearly see that these black tentacles were, in fact, composed of countless densely packed small black insects. Not daring to even breathe, Sun Qi remained completely rigid. Fortunately, after judging Sun Qi to be a mere mortal with no cultivation, the black tentacle let him go. It then whistled away, carrying the entire Sun family, who had also transformed into black flying insects.

Sun Qi, meanwhile, remained in his rigid, frozen posture, daring not to move. It wasn't until a little over half a day later that he finally slumped to the ground, completely exhausted.

"What exactly was that thing..." A myriad of thoughts raced through his mind; it took him a while to compose himself somewhat. Looking at the white mist barrier not far away, and the five rings in the sky that were gradually fading from view, Sun Qi gritted his teeth and resumed his cultivation.

Not long after closing his eyes to cultivate, Sun Qi's eyes opened again. He keenly noticed that the spiritual energy between heaven and earth... was different from before.