Chapter 838: The Most Ancient Martial Dao

Sea of Malice.

The pitch-black chaos surged like thick ink, viscous malice condensing into tangible waves, twisting and writhing in the void.

The surface of the sea had no reflections, only eerie ripples constantly depressing and bulging, as if countless invisible things were tearing at it from beneath the water.

Above a Jing Tu that had already been rendered unrecognizable, there were traces of explosions everywhere.

A group of over a dozen people stepped across the shattered earth, their expressions grave.

"This is already the fifth one; there is no telling how many Executioner settlements have been destroyed like this."

"Who exactly is the person behind this? To be able to achieve this level in such a short time is simply inconceivable."

"Eighth-rank, it is definitely eighth-rank."

They spoke continuously, occasionally crouching down to scoop the scorched soil from the Jing Tu into a silver glass bottle.

"Indeed!"

A low voice rang out, and everyone looked toward the person who had spoken.

"My Lord, what is it?" someone asked.

The man in purple robes crouched on the ground, his breathing rapid, his eyes wide:

"It is the aura of a Divine Array!"

As the purple-robed man's voice fell, everyone's breathing hitched.

It was the first time they had seen the purple-robed man display such a shocked expression.

This was only because the purple-robed man was named Ma Zhiyao, the Deputy Envoy to the Lord of Zhiyang Prefecture, a man of noble status.

Ma Zhiyao carefully packed a large chunk of soil engraved with blurred array patterns from the ground into his Origin Space, exclaiming:

"In the previous four destroyed Pure Lands, I only faintly sensed the aura of annihilation.

Only in this place are there partial remnants of an Annihilation Grand Array preserved."

Ma Zhiyao stood up, full of pleasant surprise:

"I must return to the prefecture to present this array remnant to the Prefecture Lord in person.

I never expected that such a figure would appear under the jurisdiction of my Zhiyang Prefecture."

A subordinate spoke up:

"But My Lord, we still have to hold a meeting for the three towns of Chen Town, Bai Town, and Luo Town."

Ma Zhiyao waved his hand:

"You do not understand the value of the appearance of a Divine Array creator.

Besides, my intentions have already been conveyed; those three towns can deliberate among themselves."

The dozen or so subordinates hurriedly bowed:

"Yes!"

…………

At the same time.

Luo Town, Divine Array Hall.

Jiang Guanxin was somewhat distracted, even pacing back and forth in the main hall repeatedly.

Wen Jianjian and the other Array Pivot Envoys all noticed Jiang Guanxin's unusual behavior.

"Guanxin, what is wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?"

Wen Jianjian walked over and asked.

Jiang Guanxin glanced at Wen Jianjian, his eyes calm as he said:

"It is nothing."

Over these past few days, Wen Jianjian had privately given Jiang Guanxin quite a few resources, which had improved Jiang Guanxin's attitude toward her significantly.

Although he could see through Wen Jianjian's true colors, who could refuse benefits delivered to their doorstep?

However, Jiang Guanxin's attitude toward Wen Jianjian was still far from good.

This was only because Jiang Guanxin himself knew clearly that he had now cultivated all eighteen auxiliary arrays to the Morning Star level, though he had not yet revealed it.

His own personal value could already be considered that of a Deputy Array Master.

Every generation of Array Masters in Luo Town had come up this way.

It was precisely at this moment.

The sound of light footsteps approached, and Jiang Guanxin looked toward the door.

It was Chen Yan.

Seeing Chen Yan arrive, Wen Jianjian frowned and, without saying a word, continued to contemplate her auxiliary array.

Her dissatisfaction with Chen Yan was not just slight; it was extreme.

If not for Chen Yan, she would not have given up on Jiang Guanxin, which had led to her spending quite a lot to try and close the distance with him again.

In the main hall, the other Array Pivot Envoys also noticed the change in Wen Jianjian's attitude toward Chen Yan, and their thoughts varied.

After all, the previous Wen Jianjian had been nothing short of a sycophant.

Chen Yan sat down cross-legged by himself, about to activate the golden light array on his meditation cushion.

Behind him, a series of exclamations suddenly erupted.

"Brother Jiang, you!"

"All eighteen auxiliary arrays have been cultivated to the Morning Star level!"

"Brother Jiang is truly a prodigy!"

"Congratulations, congratulations!"

"Quick... quickly go and invite the Array Master!"

Cries of surprise rang out, and everyone looked toward Jiang Guanxin.

They saw that Jiang Guanxin had deployed eighteen auxiliary arrays, which swirled around him like twinkling stars.

Wen Jianjian looked at Jiang Guanxin in astonishment, her heart filled with disbelief.

Immediately following this, an incomparable sense of relief welled up within her.

Fortunately, she had won Jiang Guanxin over in advance; otherwise, things would have been truly difficult later on.

Many Array Pivot Envoys looked at Jiang Guanxin with complex expressions.

"Brother Jiang, you really know how to hide your light..." someone said with a bitter smile and a shake of their head, regretting that they hadn't befriended Jiang Guanxin earlier.

Now, Jiang Guanxin's status had suddenly surpassed that of all the other Array Pivot Envoys.

"Just a stroke of luck," Jiang Guanxin said with a faint smile, shaking his head slightly:

"I had a sudden epiphany just now, and I didn't expect... didn't expect that I would actually break through."

He bowed to the crowd.

The crowd's attitude toward his bow was even more respectful than before.

Facing the congratulations of the crowd, Jiang Guanxin responded to each one.

However, the corner of his eye inadvertently swept over Chen Yan in front, and the next moment, Jiang Guanxin's brows furrowed imperceptibly.

Because Chen Yan had not turned back at all; instead, he had directly activated the golden light array of his meditation cushion and was enveloped by the golden light.

In an instant, Jiang Guanxin's expression became as if he had eaten excrement.

He roared inwardly.

He had endured for so long, endured for so long!

He thought about it day and night, thinking about it every single moment.

He wanted to see what kind of expression Chen Yan would have when he revealed his brilliance.

Just thinking about it was wonderful.

But what about now?

Jiang Guanxin felt that his display of brilliance had been in vain.

It was unbearable.

So unbearable!

Who could understand his misery?

Wen Jianjian glanced at Jiang Guanxin's expression, then looked at Chen Yan's position, her eyes flickering as she sent a voice transmission to Jiang Guanxin:

"Brother Jiang, why bother with a Chen Yan? This person is too good at pretending; he must be absolutely shocked within the golden light right now."

Jiang Guanxin was slightly stunned and looked at Wen Jianjian, only to see her smiling at him.

Vixen!

She could actually guess my thoughts?

The vixen deserves to die!

Jiang Guanxin raised his brows slightly and replied with a faint smile via voice transmission:

"What do the affairs of others have to do with me? In one's life, if one is always concerned with the thoughts of others, then one is merely a slave to them."

Wen Jianjian looked at Jiang Guanxin in surprise and bowed slightly.

Soon.

Array Master Xu Zhifan arrived.

It was different from how Xu Zhifan usually treated the Array Pivot Envoys.

At this moment, the look in Xu Zhifan's eyes as he gazed at Jiang Guanxin was full of appreciation:

"Jiang Guanxin, I didn't expect you to be so good at hiding your light."

"Just a stroke of luck."

"Not bad!" Xu Zhifan patted Jiang Guanxin on the shoulder:

"Excellent temperament; only with this can one accomplish great things!"

Xu Zhifan looked at Jiang Guanxin, becoming more satisfied the more he looked:

"Today, I announce that Jiang Guanxin is not only an Array Pivot Envoy but also the Deputy Array Master of Luo Town!"

As Xu Zhifan's voice fell, everyone was stunned, and they all looked at Jiang Guanxin with envy.

Deputy Array Master—that meant he was the next Array Master.

They hadn't expected Xu Zhifan to value Jiang Guanxin so highly.

Soon, Jiang Guanxin was taken directly to the Array Master Hall by Xu Zhifan.

"Array Master, there is one thing I have always wanted to ask," Jiang Guanxin said, looking at Xu Zhifan.

"What is it?"

"It is that Chen Yan; what is that Chen Yan's background?" Jiang Guanxin asked what he had been wanting to ask all along.

"Why would you care about a cripple?" Xu Zhifan frowned.

"A cripple?" Jiang Guanxin displayed an expression of extreme surprise.

"You don't know," Xu Zhifan shook his head slightly:

"The malice within that Chen Yan has already seeped into his bone marrow; his aptitude was ruined long ago.

Even his sanity..."

Xu Zhifan pointed to his head:

"Perhaps it has also gone wrong."

In an instant, Jiang Guanxin felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

His eyes widened, as if his brain had crashed.

So, all his forbearance all this time had been performed for a fool to see?

In an instant, Jiang Guanxin felt that everything he had done had lost its meaning.

His Dao Heart shattered.

After a long while, he finally regained his composure.

…………

"It's at the Bright Moon level."

Within the golden light, Chen Yan revealed a smile.

Because of the two Statuses within his mind, this time Chen Yan once again visualized the Divine Array and naturally cultivated the Divine Array to the Bright Moon level.

"Once I cultivate to the Sun-Dazzling level, combined with my Destruction Will, I can even kill an Eighth-Rank."

Chen Yan whispered, a wisp of red light appearing at his fingertip.

Destruction Will.

This was the powerful means brought about by Li Zhiyi after breaking through to the Breaking Realm.

Just a single wisp could break through all Eighth-Rank rule-based means.

Chen Yan was at the same Will realm as Li Zhiyi, only he did not have a Will Domain of his own.

This wisp of Destruction Will, Chen Yan naturally possessed as well.

The 【Annihilation】 Array was fundamentally different from ordinary arrays.

This was an ultimate offensive array; even though Chen Yan had only cultivated it to the Bright Moon level, it was still stronger than other Sun-Dazzling level offensive arrays.

And the difficulty was also unimaginably high.

It was like comparing a five-story building; other buildings were just ordinary ones.

But the 【Annihilation】 Array building gathered all the most complex, exquisite, and effective structures in the world.

Otherwise, with the Divine Array sitting right here, why did so many Array Pivot Envoys not even have the thought of visualizing the Divine Array?

Because it was simply impossible to visualize it successfully.

Perhaps they could spend their whole lives visualizing the Divine Array and only be able to condense a Martial-grade 【Annihilation】 Array, which had no lethality at all.

Chen Yan could be so fast, on one hand, because Chen Yan was a Divine Array Venerable himself, and on the other hand, he had the enhancement of Status energy.

Chen Yan narrowed his eyes.

In another twenty days, the Minor Tide would arrive.

According to what Bai Ling said, once the Minor Tide occurred, the aura of Ancient Gods would emerge.

And the duty of the Array Master and Array Pivot Envoys was to resist the Minor Tide.

Ancient God aura...

Chen Yan had a conjecture in his heart.

Ancient God Beasts had their own unique way of cultivation.

And the Ancient God aura might be similar to the Life-Death aura of Eighth-Rank martial artists.

But the Ancient God aura was something only Ancient Gods possessed, and it was of a high rank.

Perhaps, the Ancient God aura could also be condensed into a Status, just like the Life-Death aura.

That would be...

A sharp light appeared in Chen Yan's eyes.

Ancient God Status!

Ancient Gods, perhaps, also had Statuses.

"Perhaps, I shouldn't treat Ancient Gods as alien existences, but rather treat Ancient Gods as other creatures that have cultivated a different, strange martial path..."

Chen Yan whispered, shocked by this conjecture himself.

"The malice of this martial path is just like the blood-Qi of a blood-Qi martial artist.

Devouring, corrosion, and infection are the attributes of this energy called malice.

Just as annihilation is an attribute of blood-Qi!"

The more he understood the profound mysteries of the Ninth-Rank martial path.

The bolder Chen Yan's guesses about the Ancient Gods became.

"The reason I was able to simulate the Eternal Calamity Counter-Blood based on the Ancient God aura is that, in essence, the Ancient God aura comes from the Ancient God Status."

Chen Yan whispered aloud.

In the past, he had devoured the 【Break】 character Saint-Breaking Fruit, causing the effect of the 【Array】 character Saint-Breaking Fruit to increase a hundredfold.

And within the memories brought by the 【Array】 character Saint-Breaking Fruit.

Chen Yan had constantly studied the Ancient God aura, even becoming tainted by ominousness and becoming an Ancient God Beast, only creating the 【Eternal Calamity Counter-Blood】 right before he died.

That memory was profound to the extreme.

Chen Yan experienced everything from being unaware and ignorant to realizing it when it was already too late, and then later relying on willpower to stay clear-headed and not devour the human race.

He suffered endless hardships before creating such a heaven-defying means as the 【Eternal Calamity Counter-Blood】.

"Perhaps..."

Chen Yan's expression changed, his demeanor unprecedentedly solemn:

"According to what the Array Master said, the human race can truly become Ancient Gods, it is just that the human race cannot resist the corrosion and pollution brought by the Ancient God aura.

However, when a person's will is strong to a certain degree, they can maintain their own state.

Then the path to achieving an Ancient God is the strongest martial path in history!"