Inside the inner chamber of the tomb.
“Quick! The restriction only stays closed for fifteen minutes. Whether we get the Moon Soul Arrow or not, we must leave the inner chamber once that time is up.”
Bai Jinshui sat closest to the coffin, her hands forming seals. An array of complex inscriptions hummed beneath her. Her delicate hands trembled slightly as if she were straining against its power.
The elders, who had already unraveled the nine arrays, along with Wangquan Gusui, immediately flew toward the coffin. Six elders formed a circle, chanting incantations as their magical artifacts appeared, manifesting a defensive array.
Under their protection, Wangquan Gusui soared forward. He couldn't see what lay inside the bronze coffin; his eyes were fixed entirely on the Moon Soul Arrow floating above it. He bit his finger and drew a talisman in the air.
“Open!”
He thrust the talisman toward the Moon Soul Arrow. As he clapped his hands and then pulled them apart, a blinding light quickly enveloped the arrow, and the talisman adhered to it.
Everyone held their breath, waiting in tense anticipation.
It didn't resist!
The Moon Soul Arrow actually didn't attack Wangquan Gusui.
The Moon Soul Arrow emitted a faint, ghostly blue glow. It stopped spinning and wobbled slightly, sending out ripples of spiritual energy. Under Wangquan Gusui’s control, it began to move slowly away from the coffin.
Wangquan Gusui’s eyes lit up with joy. He maneuvered cautiously, watching as the arrow was about to clear the coffin’s area, when the Moon Soul Arrow suddenly jolted violently.
Boom—
“Not good!”
His expression shifted drastically, and he recoiled instantly.
The others immediately raised their hands to defend themselves.
As if awakening, the Moon Soul Arrow vibrated and began to release waves of ghostly, bone-chilling cold that spread rapidly throughout the inner chamber. This energy crashed directly into the six elders, including Luo Yuntian.
Their bodies shook as they desperately resisted the impact of this chilling Yin energy.
Wangquan Gusui was a step too slow, and the pulse of light struck him square in the back.
“Pfft!”
He instantly spat out a mouthful of blood, but he didn't dare delay his escape. Forcing himself to endure the pain, he retreated back into the defensive array.
In the next instant, without anyone controlling it, the Moon Soul Arrow automatically manifested a long arrow, notched itself on a phantom bow, and drew the string taut.
“Quick, stop it!” Wangquan Gusui’s pupils shrank as he barked the command.
Bai Jinshui frowned in anger. “You said the Moon Soul Arrow was dormant and wouldn't awaken as long as someone of the royal bloodline touched it!”
Wangquan Gusui snapped, “How was I supposed to know it would do this? Just move!”
Luo Yuntian, Helian Zhou, and the others felt their hearts tremble. They could sense the terrifying aura accumulating in that arrow. It was the residual spiritual energy of a Mahayana cultivator; once fired, it would kill Golden Core cultivators like them instantly!
However, if anything happened to Wangquan Gusui, the Heir of the royal family, neither they nor their sects would survive!
As expected of something refined by a Peak Mahayana cultivator; its power was such that even an ordinary Nascent Soul might not be able to wield it. Wangquan Gusui was only at the Foundation Establishment Great Perfection, yet he dared to take it? He was courting death!
He had even lied to them, saying it was damaged and dormant so there would be no danger. He clearly wanted them to use their lives to exhaust the arrow's attacks.
Everyone cursed him inwardly but had no choice but to brace themselves. They performed hand seals and summoned their magical artifacts to charge at the Moon Soul Arrow.
The Moon Soul Arrow had finished gathering its strength and suddenly loosed the shot at the crowd.
Whoosh—
“Form the array!”
Except for Bai Jinshui, who was busy controlling the restrictions, everyone immediately converged to create a collective defensive shield, using their artifacts to intercept the arrow.
BOOM!!!
A massive explosion sent a tidal wave of force surging through the room. The long arrow unleashed an even more powerful energy, and the ghostly blue flames around it burned more intensely. It instantly shattered their shield, and the moment it pierced through their magical artifacts, they were incinerated!
Massive flames erupted before their eyes. The artifacts of all six people were destroyed by the toxic blue flames of the Moon Soul Arrow!
“Ah! My Clear Sound Sword!!”
Luo Yuntian was the first to cry out in despair.
“My Frost-Congealing Needles!”
The Deputy Hall Master of Wind-Thunder Hall stared with wide eyes, heart-wrenched.
Helian Zhou also watched his precious sword burn until not even dust remained. His face was grim, and before he could mourn, he immediately retreated.
Because the long arrow hadn't stopped; after consuming the artifacts, it continued to fly toward them.
The six of them hurriedly scattered, using other artifacts to attack.
The arrow was temporarily held back, but Wangquan Gusui refused to give up. He actually cut a long wound across his palm and drew another talisman with his blood. He flew forward, continuing to perform hand seals in an attempt to subdue it.
“I am a descendant of Wangquan Wuho! You have been silent here for too long; why not submit to me? I will lead you back into the light to once again display the prestige of the number one person below the Soul Formation realm!”
The Moon Soul Arrow vibrated as if considering his words. Then, in the next second...
A figure of a woman materialized from within the Moon Soul Arrow. She opened her eyes, releasing a frigid chill, her voice full of disdain.
“A mere Golden Core is not worthy of speaking to me.” In the past, Wangquan Wuho was the strongest person below the Soul Formation realm. No matter how fallen she was now, she would not be coveted by a Golden Core junior.
Seeing that the Moon Soul Arrow actually had an artifact soul, everyone’s expressions changed drastically.
Not good.
Luo Yuntian and the others frowned. Driven by their survival instinct, they no longer cared about royal threats. The thought of giving up and leaving entered their minds.
Wangquan Gusui sensed their wavering defense and immediately threatened, “Don't you dare leave! If anything happens to me, my father will not forgive you, and your entire sects will be wiped out! The tokens for this tomb only allow entry, not exit. If I don't leave, the tomb remains sealed forever, and you will die anyway!”
Luo Yuntian and the other five paused. They could only sharpen their gazes and channel all their spiritual energy toward the Moon Soul Arrow.
Boom—
Driven by their stubborn will to live, they actually managed to push the loosed arrow back a couple of inches.
Seeing this, the woman who was the artifact soul of the Moon Soul Arrow vanished. She transformed directly into a new long arrow. The bow was drawn, the string pulled.
One arrow instantly became eight!
Everyone’s pupils dilated. It took six Golden Cores just to resist one arrow; now there were eight.
They were going to die!
Wangquan Gusui hadn't expected her to still possess such power even after being damaged and dormant. His expression turned fearful as he pulled out a token.
“You dare kill me?! I am the descendant of Wangquan Wuho! If you kill me, it is a betrayal of your master!”
As soon as those words were spoken, the arrows that were about to launch actually stopped.
Whether it was to save a final shred of face or for some other reason, the woman's voice drifted out again.
“You leave. The others die.”
Cold sweat broke out on Wangquan Gusui’s back. He looked at the others with a mixture of surprise and hesitation.
Li Yan, the butler of the City Lord's Estate, frowned slightly and inconspicuously moved to block the exit.
Luo Yuntian cursed, “Wangquan Gusui! We all came here to help you seize the arrow. If you dare to leave, we'll be the first to kill you!”
The elders from the other sects remained silent, but their sharp glares fixed on him, demanding he take a stand.
Li Yan, who had always followed Wangquan Gusui, remained silent and kept his head bowed.
Wangquan Gusui sneered and made up his mind. “Everyone, since we’re all going to die anyway, why not give it one more try? She was heavily damaged six hundred years ago; right now, she’s just trying to break us!”
Everyone looked at each other. Luo Yuntian said, “Fine! We'll trust you one more time!”
“Fellow Daoists, if you keep holding back, we really will perish here!”
This time, everyone brought out their trump cards, putting everything they had into dealing with the Moon Soul Arrow.
...
Zongzheng Huangyue raised both hands to perform a seal, reigning in her aura. The fluorescent green Yin energy that filled the air gradually dispersed. A thin black mist shrouded her body, and her skeletal form regained its flesh.
A surging aura expanded from her dantian, vibrating through her. Zongzheng Huangyue focused her mind and channeled all her spiritual energy into a single breakthrough. The gas within her Foundation Establishment dantian turned to liquid, and the increasingly concentrated spiritual energy was nurtured within a turbulent sea of power.
The spiritual energy around her weakened as it was rapidly consumed. Then, in the next instant, it surged violently, producing a thunderous boom around her body. A spiritual light enveloped her entirely.
She had advanced again.
Zongzheng Huangyue calmly shifted her hand positions, slowly lowering them to her lap. The spiritual energy from her advancement gradually settled. She opened her eyes.
“Master, I’ve reached the Foundation Establishment Great Perfection!”
Though she was still far from her Master’s true strength, she was one step closer.
Zongzheng Huangyue rose impatiently and opened the barrier, searching for Wen Li on the empty city wall. But her eager gaze froze.
“...” A trace of killing intent flickered in her dark eyes.
It wasn't directed at Wen Li, though.
She saw Wen Li, but her gaze couldn't help but fall on the small figure her Master was personally leading by the hand. Seeing the two sharp demon horns on Hua Cishu’s head, she immediately associated him with that annoying little black orb that followed Wangquan Sheng.
He was that orb.
Those words Master said when parting with Wangquan Sheng really were meant to lure him in with gluttony.
Master would never get close to someone irrelevant. So, this little black orb was the fifth disciple...
Gu Linshu was one thing; he had joined before her and was both respectful and useful to Master. But what was this black nugget? He was disrespectful and had even fought her Master. She had finally gotten rid of Gu Linshu, only for someone related to Wangquan Sheng to arrive and steal Master’s attention.
Is he even worthy?
Rate on N.U.
