Chapter 397: Leaked Secret of the Heavenly Mechanism Holy Land

The pupils of the Reed Flame Valley cultivators shrank sharply; before their bodies could react, a washbasin‑sized fireball, like an arrow released from a bow, instantly smashed into their faces, blasting and igniting the clothes on their bodies.

The second wave of sect members tightly supporting the Reed Flame Valley cultivators, already braced with tense mental focus, mistook the sudden fireball for an enemy ambush ahead; instinctively they waved their treasures, channeling their entire Cultivation Level and surged forward to attack.

In their view, unleashing all their combat power to the utmost when they did not know the opponent's strength was the safest and wisest course for them.

However.

When they leapt forward, however, they found the space ahead empty; in an instant they were pulled ten‑plus zhang away from their comrades behind, and the Reed Flame Valley cultivators who had lunged to kill instantly fell into disarray.

All of them, like great fools clutching treasures, cautiously guarded their surroundings, fearing that in a moment they would be attacked just like their comrades.

Ah ah ah ah

A strange scene appeared.

The Reed Flame Valley disciples hit in the face by the fireball let out shrill cries; endless air waves exploded behind them, and in an instant the air filled with a heavy Blood Smell.

The Reed Flame Valley disciples who had lunged empty‑handed shuddered in their souls at the words; the sight that then met their eyes would haunt them forever, and they all stood trembling violently, cold sweat pouring from their foreheads.

The Reed Flame Valley sect members struck by the fireball, whose clothes had been ignited by spiritual fire and whose flames were about to consume them in pain, suddenly protruded strangely; their bodies split in two from the crotch upward in the blink of an eye.

The entire sky was filled with ferocious, shattered soul bodies; their blood was blasted by violent shockwaves into blood mist that drifted throughout the space, turning what had been transparent air into a blood‑red hue, terrifying and lethal.

"Save me."

In the damaged soul bodies, some Reed Flame Valley sect members not yet fully unconscious reached out a hand in pain, waving to their fellow sect members, longing to be rescued.

Yet not a single Reed Flame Valley disciple dared to approach; the places where the fallen soul bodies lay seemed to harbor life‑binding fiends, and stepping there could at any moment cost them their lives.

"Who is it? Who is it? Come out."

The remaining Reed Flame Valley cultivators, terrified into incoherence, wildly screamed to the heavens, shrieked shrilly in the air, their bodies trembling uncontrollably and reflexively retreating backward.

He wanted to flee the battlefield, but his companions held him back.

"What ghostly howling? No one knows what danger lies ahead."

"Anyone who dares to flee forward is courting death."

"Don't move recklessly; your fellow sect members are here."

"This place is relatively safer." said a Reed Flame Valley sect member.

He then summoned his nearby sect comrades; in groups of eight they stood back‑to‑back, holding treasures in midair, guarding the eight directions, daring not to leave their original positions.

"Which fellow cultivator opposes Reed Flame Valley? Reed Flame Valley is one of the ten major righteous forces of Huanyu."

"Do not underestimate yourself."

"If we fall, the Huanyu headquarters of Reed Flame Valley will surely summon the senior brothers training in the second layer of Giant Spirit Realm, Tianji Shengyu, to descend into the Primitive Spirit Realm."

"Even if you have strange methods, you may not be able to hide your identity; death and the loss of your Dao would also implicate your clan."

Among the surviving Reed Flame Valley cultivators, those with background knew some sect secrets; frightened by the Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators' methods, they blurted everything out, hoping to make the Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators wary.

However, as his words fell, the eight Reed Flame Valley cultivators standing back‑to‑back all felt a sudden chill in their spines; a strong sense of danger permeated their whole bodies, even their souls trembling.

Some Reed Flame Valley sect members, unable to react in time, were suddenly split apart by a terrifying force; the back‑to‑back cultivators were hit by the terrifying shockwave, thrown to the ground, and coughed up blood profusely.

"Haha, a good opportunity."

Among Huanyu cultivators, Earth cultivators were hidden; they immediately produced a black sack and flew it toward the injured Reed Flame Valley disciples.

A pitch‑black vortex appeared in midair, unleashing an unmatched terrifying suction; black runes on it spewed forth, emitting a fearsome power capable of binding cultivators' every action.

The injured Reed Flame Valley cultivator, like a kite with its string cut, was swallowed by the hovering massive vortex and then vanished.

"How is that possible!"

The remaining Reed Flame Valley cultivators could no longer restrain themselves.

From the moment they formed a V‑shaped formation and set foot here, the first wave of sect members were burned and split in two by the fireball; the second wave of Reed Flame Valley cultivators who counterattacked, though they failed to catch the enemy, nevertheless escaped death thanks to this. Originally, groups of eight stood back‑to‑back for defense, but they did not expect to also be shattered by the hidden terrifying enemy's thunderous means.

Now another eerie black vortex appeared in the air, swallowing all the injured Reed Flame Valley disciples whole; after entering the Silver Break City Alliance, Reed Flame Valley originally had 40,000 sect members, but after all these hardships it now has fewer than 5,000 cultivators left.

"Seniors, should we surrender?"

"We are willing to surrender and follow you to the death; we only ask that you spare our lives."

"Please, seniors, please."

The surviving Reed Flame Valley cultivators, seeing their companions' miserable state, could no longer contain their fear; they fell to the ground, faces full of terror, howling and bowing their heads to the earth in pleas for mercy.

"What do the three Alliance Lords think?"

Fei Zhu came to Song Ze's side and asked.

Song Ze, Zhao Zhenhua, and Wu Zhenghao exchanged a glance; each knew what the others were thinking.

They fixed their gaze on a cultivator in the crowd, the one who had just spoken of the next layer of Giant Spirit Realm, Tianji Shengyu.

Although Earth cultivators blessed by the demon master knew that Giant Spirit Realm is a mysterious space where soul bodies can train, limited by their Cultivation Level they had only reached its first layer, the Primitive Spirit Realm.

The taboo law of the Primitive Spirit Realm forbids the existence of Heavenly Spirit cultivators; as Tianji Shengyu is the next training layer of the Primitive Spirit Realm, according to the words of the cultivator who leaked the secret just now, anyone who could enter this place must at least be a Heavenly Spirit cultivator.

After entering the Primitive Spirit Realm, Earth cultivators relied on the bases of the Great Mercy Stronghold, Slaughter Ghost Sect, and Supreme Clarity Sect; thanks to the Primitive Spirit Realm's abundant Spiritual Power and heavenly treasures, their Cultivation Level advanced swiftly, with many already reaching the Golden Core Great Completion.

Song Ze, Zhao Zhenhua, and Wu Zhenghao considered that if they could capture the cultivator who had just leaked the news of Tianji Shengyu from Reed Flame Valley, they might learn something different, preparing for future Earth cultivators to enter Tianji Shengyu.

"Within three breaths, hand over your Life Soul and you will not be killed."

One

After Song Ze finished consulting with Wu Zhenghao and Zhao Zhenhua, his booming voice exploded across the space, making all the surviving Reed Flame Valley cultivators' hearts and souls shudder.

The Life Soul resides within the soul body, nurturing the three souls and seven spirits; it governs everything about a cultivator, and once controlled by the opponent, even across countless star‑spaces the enemy can thereby take that person's life.

Furthermore, with the Life Soul the enemy can become intimately aware of that cultivator's every thought and secret.

Upon hearing this, the surviving Reed Flame Valley cultivators many began to hesitate, while many others, without a second thought, forcibly pulled their Life Souls from their soul bodies and let them drift into the air.

The timid cultivators, in order to survive, abandoned their free and decisive will.

Two

Song Ze's voice was utterly cold, continuing to echo through the space.

This caused, among the group of cultivators hesitating whether to surrender their Life Soul, that instantly another three‑tenths of them gritted their teeth, made a firm decision, and likewise threw their Life Souls into the air. Whoosh whoosh whoosh.

The soul hovering in the air was drawn in one by one by Song Ze's Ten Thousand Souls Banner, which turned into a mighty suction; then the banner's dreadful killing aura fell onto the battlefield, cleaving the surviving Lu Yan Valley cultivators in half.

The cultivators who surrendered and those who refused each stood in a line in the air.

"Your chance has run out."

"Kill."

Song Ze's voice rang out in the air.

The Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators hiding in the void, wearing invisibility anti‑scouting gear, directly deactivated their concealment and appeared one by one in the air, numbering over forty thousand.

"We surrender, we surrender."

The Lu Yan Valley cultivators who did not surrender were utterly terrified; they never imagined that so many cultivators lay hidden in the transparent void—if they had come out earlier, who would dare hesitate to surrender?

Hearing this, the Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators' mouths curled into cold smiles; their spiritual power surged as they charged straight into the unsubdued Lu Yan Valley cultivators, unleashing their full strength to slaughter in all directions.

In less than the time to finish a cup of tea, all the Lu Yan Valley cultivators who had not surrendered were completely slain; only the terrified surrendering Lu Yan Valley cultivators remained standing in the field, legs trembling, urine dripping from their crotches.

Where did these murderous stars come from? They certainly aren't wearing the garb of the Sha Gui Sect or the Shang Qing Sect.

Their methods are damnably vicious.

Fortunately we surrendered early, or we'd end up like those fellow disciples who refused—body and soul chopped into minced meat.

The surrendering Lu Yan Valley cultivators stared at the scene before them, too frightened to lift their heads to meet Song Ze and the other cultivators' gazes; they knelt honestly on the ground, awaiting the Misty Hidden Alliance's judgment.

Zhao Jianhua flicked his hand, and the Human Seed Bag unfurled in the wind.

The bag's mouth gaped wide, spewing strange runes; with powerful suction it enveloped the surrendering Lu Yan Valley cultivators, who felt their five senses bound as they slowly shrank and flew into the bag.

"Gentlemen,"

"The surrendering Lu Yan Valley cultivators are of great use to us."

"We'll take care of them first."

"After the war ends, you may enter the Shang Qing Sect directly by presenting proof of having recorded the slaughter of alliance cultivators, and exchange it for the designated heavenly essence."

Zhao Zhenhua's voice rang out in the air, and all the Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators who heard it joyfully agreed.

The three alliance chiefs, personally selected, handled everything themselves to procure resources for the Misty Hidden Alliance brothers—whether it was earlier opportunistic concealment, picking up storage rings from fallen cultivators, or just now slaying the Lu Yan Valley cultivators who could be exchanged for heavenly essence; the three chiefs merely held the battlefield, not competing with the alliance cultivators for spoils.

The Misty Hidden Alliance disciples are all Huanyu loose cultivators, aware of the importance of resources for cultivation; the three chiefs labored heart and soul, yet had no desire for personal gain—they only needed to ask a few things of the surrendering Lu Yan Valley cultivators, and no one in the alliance objected.

"Affairs here are settled; I will lead you back to Silver Break City to make a fortune."

Song Ze's voice rang out in the air; this instantly caused an uproar, and the Misty Hidden Alliance cultivators immediately followed him, flying toward the battlefield at Silver Break City.

On the Silver Break City battlefield, after Zhang Bozhang hunted down the fleeing Purple Mansion cultivators, he returned to the field and stood opposite Song Ze, Wu Zhenghao, and Zhao Zhenhua.

"Alliance Chief, that old man in the purple robe possesses terrifying, boundless power—he even shattered the Taiyin Holy Land's chief, Xi Yuan."

"Soon the brothers will go down to make a fortune; you must keep a firm watch on that fellow."

Fei Zhu stood behind Song Ze, glanced sharply at Zhang Bozhang, recalling how terrifying his method of forcing Xi Yuan to self‑destruct was, and nervously reminded Song Ze from his side.

Zhao Zhenhua and Wu Zhenghao, hearing this, were genuinely delighted.

Fei Zhu is the Misty Hidden Alliance's true die‑hard fan, ever watchful and attentive; wherever he goes he is the first to sense danger, constantly reminding Song Ze and his two companions to prevent any oversight.

However, Zhang Bozhang is a Purple Yang True Person, an earthly cultivator and one of the ancient sages of Earth; not long ago he entered the Primordial Spirit Realm with Qin Shi Huang to aid earthly cultivators—being an earthly person, how could the three of them fail to know the power of Earth's ancient sages?

"Don't spout nonsense—that Purple Mansion True Person is our ally."

Song Ze nodded at Zhang Bozhang while responding to Fei Zhu's words, and Fei Zhu instantly became excited.

"Oh dear mother."

So it's a Purple Mansion True Person after all; that must be an unsurpassed expert of the Purple Mansion in the grand scheme of Huanyu.

I hope the three alliance leaders will make a recommendation.

If I go to the Purple Mansion again, I will announce the name of the Purple Mansion True Person; let's see who dares to stop me.

Fei Zhu spoke excitedly, laughing with swaying blossoms.

Upon hearing this, Song Ze and the two others were all somewhat speechless.

If Fei Zhu personally goes to the Purple Mansion and announces the name of the Purple Mansion True Person, he certainly won't be able to enter; he might even not make it back alive.

Zhang Bozhen entered the Primordial Spirit Realm to confuse Huanyu cultivators, and besides, the might displayed by his own cultivation method was the same as the Purple Mansion's Divine Ability and techniques, so he self-proclaimed himself as the Purple Mansion True Person; in fact he is the ancient sage Ziyang True Person from Earth.

Fei Zhu, using the Purple Mansion True Person's name to intimidate others in the Purple Mansion headquarters, is basically asking for trouble; he's just giving himself away.

Boom.

The entire battlefield suddenly erupted with a heaven-shaking thunderclap; the vast rumble of thunder ravaged the whole space, and the originally gray sky instantly turned gold-red.

Within those gold-red clouds, a pair of ferocious fiery claws tore open the gold-red thunderclouds; a strange five-headed fire lizard head sprouted twin horns, waving eight huge red wings that clung to the sky as it let out an earth-shaking roar.

With each of its roars, countless gold-red flames turned into fire rain that fell downwards.

"Five-Headed Eight-Winged Ox-Horned Fire Lizard.

"Elder Lei Ze and the others' Blazing Heaven Grand Formation has finally been completed.

Upon seeing this, the elder Wan Zhushi of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion had his pupils suddenly brighten.

Originally, seeing the alliance's righteous cultivators, as the cultivators of Lu Yan Valley and Taiyin Shengdi withdrew, the battlefield situation was about to tilt toward the Shangqing Sect, and he was fuming inside.

The Blazing Heaven Fire Spirit within the Blazing Heaven Grand Formation, the birth of the Five-Headed Eight-Winged Ox-Horned Fire Lizard, gave him hope for victory in the war once again.

"I ask the five elders to use the might of the Blazing Heaven Grand Formation to eradicate treachery.

"and restore clear skies to the Primordial Spirit Realm.

The Wan Zhushi of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion spoke excitedly.

At that moment, in the forehead of each of the five heads of the Five-Headed Eight-Winged Ox-Horned Fire Lizard, brilliant light flickered; seated there was a figure—none other than the five controllers of the Blazing Heaven Grand Formation: Feng Youxiang, Chu Mengji, Zi Tian Du, Long Zhan Tian, and Lei Ze.