High Priest Dies in Battle

"Is this the place? It seems there are still people who dare to divine my whereabouts—and two of them, at that."

In the Inner Earth World, above the Blood Cloud over Blue Village, a figure appeared. The High Priest at the village entrance also noticed the sight.

The High Priest rose to her feet, holding the Wood Staff as she stood within the formation's circle, her eyes fixed intently on the Blood Cloud ahead.

"The Great Calamity has appeared!"

Before she could finish speaking, the Blood Cloud suddenly began to writhe. Several tentacles, resembling those of an octopus, extended from its center, twisting and surging toward the village.

The High Priest stared blankly at them, her expression changing as terror seeped from her eyes.

Although the villagers remained inside their homes, they crowded near the windows to look at the High Priest outside the village. When they saw several red clouds flying through the sky, they were so frightened they could not speak. "Ancestors above, protect our clan and keep us safe." The High Priest murmured the words. Though they were useless, they still offered a little comfort to her heart.

The Blood Cloud descended and gathered into a mass before the High Priest. Then a man appeared within it! Under the High Priest's dumbstruck gaze, he slowly walked down.

"You have a scent on you that is both familiar to me and disgusting." The man stared at the High Priest as he spoke.

The High Priest did not dare reply. She was far too weak; her entire body was suppressed by the aura radiating from the man before her, and her grip on the Wood Staff tightened.

"Who are you? What have you come here for?" the High Priest asked nervously.

The man was completely surrounded by the Blood Cloud, making his face impossible to see. The only clear detail was the three eyes atop his head.

He had a tall, sturdy frame. Even after walking down until he stood on level ground with the High Priest, he was still two or three heads taller than her.

The man lowered his head and leaned toward the High Priest. "Your eyes look very much like theirs. That unyielding spirit of yours truly irritates me."

The High Priest felt her blood run cold and did not dare breathe too loudly.

The man then swept his gaze around and continued, "This is the place of his hope, then. Your ancestor once set foot here and planted the seed of hope."

Those words startled the High Priest, and her expression changed drastically!

This man before her actually knew about her ancestor, as well as the matter her ancestor had entrusted to them! Could it be that her ancestor's enemy from long ago had found them? Was this man the Great Calamity?!

After a while, the High Priest raised her head and said firmly, "I am the High Priest of Blue Village, responsible for every matter here, great or small. Who are you?"

The man suddenly moved closer, his face only a few millimeters from the High Priest's. Frightened, she staggered backward several steps, her breathing quickening as the hand gripping the Wood Staff had already reddened from the strain.

The instant the man drew near, the High Priest understood. Even his breathing carried killing intent; every movement and every breath concealed murderous purpose, as though he meant to swallow her whole! "When your ancestor came here, he brought along a young girl sealed inside the Gu Yuan Stone." The man spoke indifferently. "Hand her over."

His tone was calm, but every word carried an authority no one could resist!

After hearing this, the High Priest backed away repeatedly, staring at the man in horror. The young girl he spoke of was a secret buried at the deepest level!

"You! You! How could you know?!"

The man chuckled lightly. "How could I know?"

The High Priest could not believe it. The matter of the young girl was of immense importance. She had never even told Chen Tian, yet the man who had suddenly appeared knew the truth even more clearly than she did! "As their descendant, it is normal that you do not understand. Your ancestor was a wanted criminal among us, after all," the man said.

The High Priest felt as if heavenly thunder had struck her. Her ancestor was a wanted criminal in this man's eyes?! Such an absurd thing—how could it possibly be true?

The High Priest refused to believe it and immediately rebuked him sharply. "Silence! Do not insult my ancestor!"

She raised the Wood Staff horizontally and pointed it at the man in warning.

The Blood Cloud around the man grew denser, its color nearly turning bright red. He laughed arrogantly several times. "I never expected their descendants to be just as foolish!"

"Hand over the girl, or I will raze this place to the ground and make your hope vanish completely!" The man's voice and gaze turned cold. The atmosphere instantly fell, and the air seemed ready to freeze into ice.

"Impossible!" The High Priest refused outright. The ancestors and High Priests of every generation had instructed them that no matter what happened, they could never reveal the secret!

"Putting aside whether I can hand her over, even if I did, would you really not destroy this place?!"

The man gently shook his head, deeply disappointed by the High Priest's answer. "Ignorant."

He raised a hand. A force pressed down over the village, suppressing every living creature below until none could move. The livestock's screams echoed throughout the village, while Da Huang barked madly! Seeing this, the High Priest also unleashed all her strength. No one knew what incantation she recited, but faint azure starlight began to flow through her body and slowly climb onto the wooden stakes.

She then chanted, "Azure Sky Grand Array, open!"

Swish, swish—swish—

With the High Priest at its center, a canopy rose within the village. The power of the grand array began to counteract the man's force.

The man was somewhat surprised. "It is the Azure Sky Grand Array. How long has it been since anyone used it?"

Watching the High Priest resist with her life, he could not help but mock her. "A mayfly trying to shake a tree, unable to judge its own strength. Why struggle so desperately? Hand over the young girl, and I will let you leave without pain."

Before long, a trail of blood appeared at the corner of the High Priest's mouth. With her strength, she could not sustain the grand array for long. If this continued, the grand array would instead drain her life!

"Heh heh."

When her strength was insufficient, she would make up for it with her life! The High Priest had long known she could not hold out. As long as this man applied the slightest pressure, she would die from having too much power siphoned away by the grand array.

She had already divined it: her path had reached its end long ago. At the moment of her finale, she had waited for Chen Tian and fulfilled the mission entrusted to her by her ancestor. What did death matter? "My ancestor went to such lengths to flee here precisely to escape you. In the end, it is still we who will emerge victorious, not you!" the High Priest shouted.

Upon hearing this, the man clenched his five fingers. A giant hand suddenly appeared above the grand array. "Then you can die carrying your so-called victory with you!"

Crack!

Boom!!!

In an instant, the giant hand crushed the protective barrier to pieces! The High Priest stood there, her expression calm, as still and unperturbed as an old monk in meditation. She left behind one sentence and an inscrutable smile. "Soon, you too will meet your death. This is my final divination for you."

After she finished speaking, the High Priest vanished with a bang. She, the grand array, and the village were reduced to dust within the giant hand, scattering into the skies of Blue Village. The man frowned, displeased by the High Priest's final words.

Within a mysterious space, Chen Tian appeared, accompanied by a stone as tall as an adult. Looking closer, he saw that a young woman was actually lying inside it!

Before he could examine it carefully, the young woman suddenly opened her eyes, meeting Chen Tian's gaze directly.