Chapter 100

The other martial emperors were even more astonished; everyone's peak divine abilities erupted together, yet they could not handle this mere fourth-rank grand martial artist boy before them.

"Seal the void? Your cheek is thick enough to say such a thing!" Lu Fan shook his head, looking disdainful: "If the void were truly sealed by you, how did my Heavenly Abyss Wheel get here? And how could you not stir up spatial turbulence?"

Nalan Zhenghong heard this, paused, his old face flushing; however, at such a juncture he would certainly not lower his head, giving a cold snort to hide his embarrassment, then he roared at Lu Fan:

"Hmph! No matter what tricks you employ, with merely a grand martial artist's cultivation, even if this divine artifact is truly related to you, how much divine ability could you possibly display? Capturing you this time, this old man will draw out your soul and refine your spirit to see what secrets you, an alien demon, truly hold!"

His tone and expression were fierce, appearing extremely ruthless, but once he finished speaking, he made no move at all, nor did he order those around him to act; he merely stared coldly at Lu Fan, his face doubtful and wavering.

Lu Fan glanced at him indifferently and sighed softly: "What you say is not wrong; even if I once stood at the pinnacle of martial arts, supreme under heaven, I am now merely a youth with this grand martial artist cultivation, enhanced only by secret arts—it cannot be counted as my true strength."

Though his face seemed youthful, it suddenly bore a trace of vicissitude. Having once witnessed all worldly prosperity, perceived the mysteries of martial arts, with the world in his grasp, now it had turned to nothing, like a fleeting dream, and he must start anew.

Everyone was stunned; even Nalan Zhenghong could not help but feel a mixture of shame and admiration, and faintly a sense of reverent worship arose.

Lu Fan smiled carelessly, pursing his lips: "Forget it; since you can glimpse my existence from the dark mysteries, we must be fated. I'll temporarily leave this Heavenly Abyss Wheel in your Qiankun Pavilion; when my strength recovers, I'll come to retrieve it."

As his voice fell, he flipped his palm, suddenly bent forward, and slapped toward the remaining blood wheel.

"Boom!"

A tremendous roar burst forth; light and radiance flowed across the Heavenly Abyss Blood Wheel, and illusory visions of mountains, rivers, strange birds and beasts shot out, winding around Lu Fan's body.

At the same moment, Lu Fan's form grew hazy; the body condensed from his volition gradually thinned, actually transforming into primordial power that poured onto the blood-colored wheel.

"This…… Is he performing a sacrificial refinement of the divine artifact?"

Nalan Zhenghong's face changed drastically; on the Heavenly Abyss Blood Wheel a distinct aura had appeared, as if the soul imprint of an unparalleled expert refining a treasure.

The other party clearly stated they would leave this divine artifact; given his former realm, he is certainly not the type to go back on his word. Moreover, his earlier words were sincere, and he would not be mistaken about that.

The other martial emperors stood frozen, mouths agape, unable to utter a word. Their hearts filled with anxiety; if the other party refined this divine artifact, everyone here would likely die without a burial place.

In that very moment, Lu Fan's original form had dissipated, replaced by a blood-colored figure whose aura bore a striking resemblance to that of the distant Heavenly Abyss Blood Wheel.

Meanwhile, the Heavenly Abyss Blood Wheel was devoid of killing intent, shrouded in a cyan light. Its sigils flowed, mysterious light flickering, captivating the heart and mind.

"I once placed a divine soul seal on this Heavenly Abyss Blood Wheel, using killing to stop killing, boundless and domineering, pushing the artifact's lethal qi to its extreme. You likely cannot subdue it, so I have withdrawn this divine soul seal and instead laid down a Dao formation to seal off the Heavenly Abyss's own torrential killing intent!"

Nalan Zhenghong wore an expression of sudden realization; beneath Lu Fan's palm, the surrounding qi and the Seven Slaughter Blood Wheel exchanged places. Though he had thought it extremely strange, upon hearing this, he now understood.

The other martial emperors also came to understand, their expressions slightly easing.

Lu Fan swept his gaze over everyone, his eyes turning sharp as he said: "However, this formation has many restrictions and likely won't hold for long. Remember, the Heavenly Abyss Wheel can only be used three times. After that, the formation will instantly shatter, the killing intent of the Heavenly Abyss Blood Disk will surface, and unless it slaughters the Three Sects and Five Nations, this lethal artifact will surely not submit to anyone's command!"

Upon hearing this, Nalan Zhenghong's face darkened. The so-called Three Sects and Five Nations the other party mentioned were likely far more complex than they imagined. This artifact had previously been violent and ferocious, bloodthirsty and chilling; without a peak expert, it could not be subdued.

"You needn't worry; we will meet soon, and by then you may still not have lightly used the three chances to employ the Heavenly Abyss!"

Lu Fan lightly waved his hand, assuming a soothing posture; before his words even faded, the blood-colored phantom grew hazy, transforming into an unfathomable mystery that slowly drifted away.

At the same moment, before the Bright Moon Empire's Symbol Cultivators' Guild, the proud figure condensed in the void slowly blinked, the surrounding light and shadow dissipating, returning to its original state.

"Condense essence and form, go!"

Lu Fan gave a clear shout, pointing a single hand into the void; a wisp of blood light shot out, forming a blood shadow that was exactly his likeness.

The shadow gave a faint smile, then shot toward the condensed void's original body dharma image. Unimpeded, it immediately plunged in; blood light flashed, the dharma image's mysterious light and blood light intertwined, shifting and transforming, soon becoming a misty rosy glow, warm and auspicious, coalescing into one.

Lu Fan's gaze, however, instantly turned solemn; his body shifted, his hands sweeping, a series of seal signs surged forth, drifting toward the original body dharma image.

In the blink of an eye, a faint talisman formation gradually coalesced, rotating around the original body dharma image, its mysteries shifting, unfathomable.

His gaze grew slightly distant, as if he had thought of something, yet he halted his form, eyes fixed on the dharma image's mysterious light, and he began to feel a bit dazed.

That faint blood shadow was the divine soul seal extracted from the Heavenly Abyss artifact, formed from a portion of his former life's essence and spirit. In a sense, it could be considered part of his past self. Now, by being accommodated within the original body dharma image, it would dispel the remnants of his former life, which left him feeling reluctant.

"Although I now inhabit this body and have acknowledged the identity of Lu Fan, the eldest son of the Divine Wind Ye family, destroying the remnants of my past life like this leaves me truly unwilling in my heart!"

"Given my cultivation and insight, as soon as I regain even a little strength, I can certainly reunite my soul through law, reclaim the Daoist palaces and mansions of my past life, and even re-summon my subordinates' strong warriors. Compared to starting anew in this life, this would be far easier, and I could soon seek out that old villain Yuwen Pojun for revenge!"

His gaze was deep and wavering; usually decisive and resolute, he now could not make up his mind. Although from any angle, reuniting his soul would be a suitable choice, after seeing the people of the Qiankun Pavilion today, he harbored a hidden worry and delayed making a decision.

"Even a mere seventh-rank Symbol Emperor could, through the power of blood sacrifice, divine my information. Given that old villain Yuwen's divine abilities, if he catches even a hint of a trace, he could likely cross space to find me at once, which would be disastrous!"

Upon thinking this, Lu Fan's face turned cold. Although the Daoist palaces and mansions, along with his subordinates' strong warriors, could briefly bolster his power, it would be too risky; he must not lightly undertake it.

"Enough! Let this trace of divine soul imprint be refined away! Let the past imprint remain here, using the mental source power of the Bright Moon Empire's symbol cultivators, condensing it into faith, which will also help me lay the foundation of the Great Dao sooner!"

As his voice fell, he suddenly waved his hand, a tremendous force striking into the dharma image talisman formation. In an instant, the talismans flowed, their radiance surged, and the dharma image blazed with light; the broken six-pointed star array could not withstand it, instantly becoming riddled with holes.

Outside the formation, several deep gazes peered in, sweeping toward the original body dharma image in the void and the area around Lu Fan.

"Hmph! Hiding your head and showing your tail, you petty wretch, dare to spy on Lu Fan's methods? You're asking for death!"

Lu Fan gave a cold snort, his gaze sweeping as his spiritual power condensed into substance and probed outward. With a few 'ah' cries, several people nearby strained in surprise, having suffered a minor loss.

"What's with this kid? Merely his mental power can condense into substance—even that old coot Huang Haoming probably couldn't manage that!"

"Hmph! How strange; this is due to the support of faith's source power. I really can't fathom how that old fogey of the Sacred Martial Hall would allow the Symbol Cultivators' Guild to run rampant!"

"Hehe, that old fogey has no choice. With Wei Kuangdao dead, his mere bluster amounts to nothing but embarrassment when he shows up. You didn't see? Even the Yin Sha Sect's Lei Di died miserably, so that old fogey can only pretend to be dead!"

Several faint, drifting voices came through—clearly the onlookers from before, now speaking wantonly, as if they didn't regard Lu Fan at all.

Lu Fan furrowed his brows; he had naturally sensed the onlookers all around. He had thought that Lei Di's tragic death in service would make this lot behave a bit better, but it seemed they had little effect. Evidently, their methods and insight were not simple; they had seen through his true depths.

"Hmph! You lot must have come for the Dragon Pagoda! Acting so wantonly at my Bright Moon Empire's Dao Propagation Assembly—you clearly don't hold my empire in high regard!"

He gave a cold snort, then without hesitation, the technique-refining crucible swung out, smashing toward the symbol war chariot.

"Clang," the technique-refining crucible swayed slightly, then its halo flowed and merged with the radiance of its own instrumental patterns, as if it were originally a single entity.

"Open!"

At Lu Fan's clear shout, the crucible's lid opened on its own, flashes of fire appearing and then condensing into symbols that spread to envelop the war chariot all around.

"What is he doing? Could it be that this brat still has tricks up his sleeve?"

The few onlookers around all changed expression, instinctively sensing something. Though Lu Fan's strength might be insignificant, none dare underestimate the symbol war chariot. Given the methods he had previously displayed, if he truly combined it with the chariot, aided by the surrounding faith's source power, they would likely face a threat to their lives!

Just as that thought arose, Lu Fan had already executed his hand seals; the radiant glow emanating from the original body dharma image condensed into a torrent, pouring into the technique-refining crucible.

With a booming resonance, the symbol war chariot's might surged to its peak, far stronger than its earlier appearance, its aura rapidly rising, and an unimaginable lethal pressure pressed down over the eastern sky of Yunyang City.

"Hmph! Since you refuse the toast and will drink the penalty, you needn't bother going for the Dragon Pagoda—just stay right here!"

Lu Fan gave a violent shout, striking the technique-refining crucible with his palm; bells rang and tripods sounded, and the symbol war chariot beneath it immediately swayed, as six shafts of light-and-shadow crystal bolts suddenly condensed around it.

Also in the instant of condensing form, the Six Paths Crystal Bow already shot out, breaking through space, at an unimaginable angle, it had already reached six inconspicuous corners. In an instant it transformed into a seal gesture, condensed into a talisman formation, encircling the Six Paths' form.

"The true meaning of Talisman Dao, original phase separation! This is the most shocking method of talisman cultivators; once struck, one will instantly vanish like smoke and clouds, turning to flying ash!"

A startled cry rang out, followed by several furious shouts. Each one, as if facing a great enemy, brandished their mystic artifacts, unleashing all means.

Space trembled, booming explosions rang out.

Lu Fan didn't even glance, pacing back and forth beside the technique-refining crystal furnace; the seal gesture in his hand constantly surged. Talisman seals scattered, faintly visible, around the crystal furnace a six-pointed star array appeared.

If the people around were to awaken now, they would surely notice that this six-pointed star array looks dim and shadowy, but compared to the formation mobilized by Zhao Zu and another, it is unknown how many times stronger it is.

Lu Fan took a slight breath, then with a big wave of his hand, the light flowing over the entire talisman-script war chariot gathered like a liquid flow, condensing and converging onto the six-pointed star array.