Mount Shu in Peril

Mount Shu, Questioning Platform.

The purple Thunder Light of the Mountain Protection Array had dwindled to a thin layer.

At the heart of the formation, Daoist Chen Yuan sat cross-legged, his Whisk inserted in front of him, his hands forming a hand seal, the blood at the corner of his mouth drying and then wetting again.

We must hold on! We absolutely cannot let the great formation collapse at this moment! Once the formation breaks, none of the thousands of disciples in the mountain gate who haven't even grown up yet will survive today!

"Sect Master! The eastern array base has cracked!" A disciple in charge of the formation rushed over, his robe riddled with black holes corroded by the Ruin Qi.

"Replenish." Chen Yuan didn't even lift his eyelids, uttering a single word.

"The west side is cracked too! Five of the eight Purple Firmament Thunder Seal were used to suppress the formation are shattered, and the Spirit Veins have been drained!"

"Repair!"

Chen Yuan suddenly opened his eyes and spat out a mouthful of Essence Blood onto the array's core.

Without the Spirit Veins, they'll drain the old Daoist's Essence Blood! Once the Essence Blood is burned away, they'll burn the old Daoist's Primordial Spirit! As long as the old Daoist has a breath left, this formation must remain in place for him!

The purple Thunder Light blazed brightly, barely managing to cover the two cracks.

But his own aura visibly weakened, his once meticulously combed topknot came undone, and his gray hair hung down over his blood-stained face.

"Master."

Jian Zhenzi stood at the front of the formation, sword in hand, covered in blood; his Daoist robe could be wrung out and drip blood. "You can't hold on any longer. If you do, your heart meridians will be completely shattered!"

"I am dead, but Mount Shu still stands."

Chen Yuan wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve.

"If I withdraw, Mount Shu will cease to exist."

He looked at his trembling fingers. It seemed he could only cough up two more mouthfuls of blood at most; after the third, even Daluo Golden Immortal couldn't save this old man. He had to conserve it for the most critical moment.

"Boom!"

A loud bang echoed in the sky.

A gray-armored creature, hundreds of feet tall, stepped onto the Mountain Protection Array.

The light barrier of the great formation caved in, creating a pit more than ten feet deep, and spiderweb-like cracks spread outwards from the soles of its feet.

It has three faces and six arms, each holding a bone blade. Grayish-black Ruin Qi surges from its armor seams, falling onto the great formation and sizzling as it corrodes the Thunder Light.

The Ruin Clan's Tribulation Immortals, the Three Tribulations.

"How much longer can these ants from Mount Shu hold out?"

It opened its mouth, three mouths opening and closing simultaneously, the sound of which was enough to make your teeth ache.

"It's been three days. Your swords have become dull."

Within the formation, a silver spear shot into the sky.

"Damn you!"

Bai Wuya, his white robes stained with blood, thrust out his spear. The Eight Desolations Spear Intent condensed into a silver dragon, which slammed fiercely into the chest of that Void Ruin Clan Tribulation Immortal.

I don't care about your Three Tribulations or four tribulations! If you dare to shit on Mount Shu, I'll risk everything to pierce your guts!

"Boom!"

The silver dragon shattered.

The Three Tribulations Ruin Clan remained motionless, and slapped the tip of the spear with their backhand.

Bai Wuya was thrown back by the recoil, his spear breaking in half. He crashed into the rock wall behind the mountain, burying half of himself in the rubble. He didn't get up for a long time.

"Uncle-Master!"

Jian Zhenzi widened in fury, and he raised his sword to dig at the stone.

"Don't worry about me! Hold your ground!"

Bai Wuya pushed away the boulder that was pressing down on him, laughing as he spat out blood, "I can still fight!"

He stood up, propped up by the broken half of his gun. His right kneecap was completely shattered, and blood and mud were seeping from his trouser leg, but he still limped towards the front lines.

It seems this Three Tribulations's hide is exceptionally thick; a direct confrontation will definitely not end well. We need to find an opportunity to poke its three mouths; they're protected by gray armor there!

"The spear from Mount Shu isn't broken." Bai Wuya slammed the broken spear shaft onto the bluestone slab and spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva.

On the other side, at the gap in the mountain gate on the east side.

Luo Futian led three hundred inner disciples in Sword Formation, enduring the onslaught of thousands of Ruin Soldiers. His left arm hung limply, his shoulder blade shattered by a bone hammer, yet his right hand continued to wield the sword.

We can't retreat! The Scripture Library and disciples' quarters are right behind us. If we take a step back, those newly initiated Qi Refining stage kids will be torn to shreds!

"Luo Futian! Your left arm is broken! Step back and let someone else take your place!" The Deputy Peak Master beside him roared as he parried the bone blades.

"If it's ruined, it's ruined."

Luo Futian flicked his wrist, the blade slicing past the neck of one of the Ruin Soldiers, and then slicing off the heads of three more Ruin Soldiers in one swift motion.

"I still have my right hand."

He stared at the dark Ruin Soldiers ahead. The centurion with bone spikes on his left was directing the charge. He had to chop those bastards down first, or the Sword Formation would be worn down sooner or later!

At the edge of the precipice ten zhang away, Ji Changkong had lost an arm, the cut tightly bound with a strip of cloth. With his remaining hand, he manipulated three flying swords to protect a group of the Outer Sect disciples behind him, forming a sword incantation.

"Everyone hide behind me! Anyone who runs off or disrupts the formation, I'll chop them down first!"

He roared until his throat cracked, and he spat out blood.

These brats always slack off when practicing swordsmanship, and when it comes to fighting for their lives, they can't even hold their swords properly! But since I'm standing here, I can't let an Outer Sect disciple die before me!

"I, Ji Changkong, fought against Chen Changqing back then, and I didn't die!"

He kicked away a Ruin Beast, and his flying sword pierced its eye socket.

"We can't die today! Everyone, hold your swords steady!"

On the Outer Sect mountain path, Liu Mu and Ran Hua stood guard at the end of the stone steps, surrounded by their fellow disciples lying on the ground, black blood mixed with red blood flowing down the steps.

Liu Mu's Shadow-Bearing Sword, had long been broken, so he picked up an ordinary iron sword from the dead disciple's hand Sword One to hack at it. The iron sword was chipped, and sparks flew as it struck the Ruin Beast, causing his hand to split open and blood to drip down the hilt.

Ran Hua's face was covered in blood, his left eye was covered in blood and he couldn't open it, he was still holding a comatose junior brother tightly in his arms, and he was stabbing wildly forward with a short sword in his right hand.

How many monsters are left? We kill one wave, and another comes; I can barely lift my hands! Am I really going to die here today?

"Elder Liu, we can't hold on any longer! We can't possibly kill all these beasts!" Ran Hua cried out, her voice trembling with tears.

"We have to hold on, even if we can't!"

With a single sword stroke, Liu Mu cleaved open the skull of a Ruin Beast, then kicked the corpse down the mountain path, crushing a group of Ruin Soldiers behind it.

Your senior brother will be back soon.

"Senior brother?"

Ran Hua raised her head and looked at the blood-red sky with her only remaining right eye.

Yes, I just crushed the Communication Jade Talisman my senior brother gave me! My senior brother is so powerful, he can even kill Tribulation Immortal with a single sword strike, he'll definitely come after receiving the message! I have to survive, I must live until my senior brother returns!

"Will he really come back?" Ran Hua asked, panting.

"Meeting."

Liu Mu coughed up a mouthful of blood, which splattered onto the iron sword.

"That kid keeps his word. Let's buy him another incense stick's worth of time!"

Higher up in the distance, three terrifying energies were colliding, churning the clouds into dust.

The First Ancestor unleashed a sword strike, the Sword Light stretching a thousand feet, forcing the Five Tribulations Ruin Clan back a hundred feet.

"Old man, your lifespan is almost over, how many more swords can you wield?"

The Ruin Clan grinned coldly, simultaneously forming hand seals with all six arms. The gray-black Ruin Qi condensed into a massive mountain, pressing down upon them.

"I'll swing you until you die, that's enough."

The First Ancestor coughed up blood, then turned his sword and cleaved the mountain in two.

But his hand holding the sword had begun to tremble.

My life force is almost depleted; I can only unleash ten more sword strikes at most. This beast of the Five Tribulations has seen through my true Qi and Blood and has been constantly maneuvering to wear me down. I need to find a way to force it close, even if it means self-destructing my Primordial Spirit, I must take it down with me!

On the other side, True Lord Qingxiao was struck in the chest by a claw from the Ruin Clan at the peak of the Three Tribulations. Most of his protective azure light shattered, four of his ribs broke, and he was sent flying backward, crashing into a mountain peak.

"Qingxiao!"

Heavenly Origin Patriarch tried to save him, but his ankle was entangled by another whip of Ruin Qi, and he was suddenly pulled back.

"Take care of yourself!" The Void Ruin Clan grinned and pounced forward, simultaneously thrusting six bone knives toward the back of the Heavenly Origin Patriarch.

Three Void Ruin Clan Tribulation Immortals were suppressing the three patriarchs of Mount Shu.

It's not that the Nine Elders can't beat them.

Only three returned.

The First Ancestor's white hair danced wildly in the wind, and he unleashed the full pressure of Tribulation Immortal of the Ninth Layer, slashing with his Sword One at the Five Tribulations Ruin Clan opposite him.

True Lord Qingxiao rushed out of the pile of rubble, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and stood back to back with Heavenly Origin Patriarch. They were tightly entangled by the two peak- Three Tribulations Ruin Clan and could not break free at all.

"First Ancestor! The great formation below is about to collapse!" True Lord Qingxiao caught a glimpse of the purple light below and shouted anxiously.

"We have to hold on, even if we can't! No one is allowed to back down!"

The First Ancestor coughed up another mouthful of blood.

He was nearing the end of his lifespan and should have been in seclusion in his Ancestral Land. However, with Mount Shu facing a life-or-death crisis, he had no choice but to emerge.

Of the Nine Elders of Mount Shu, only three have emerged.

He looked up at the countless Ruin Soldiers, a trace of sorrow in his eyes.

"The remaining six old comrades are still holding out against the Heavenly Rift in various parts of Central Province. Mount Shu can only rely on ourselves now."

"Boom!"

The eastern base below finally shattered completely.

The Mountain Protection Array cracked open, creating a gap a hundred feet long.

Pieces of purple Thunder Light fell downwards, dissipating mid-air.

On the Questioning Platform), thousands of disciples raised their heads, staring at the ever-growing gap in the wall, their faces gradually draining of color.

It's over. Even the Purple Empyrean Divine Lightning Formation has been broken. So many Ruin Soldiers are rushing in. How are we going to stop them?

"The formation has been broken!"

A very young Outer Sect disciple dropped his sword to the ground with a clang and collapsed.

Are we all going to die?

"Pick it up."

Jian Zhenzi walked over, bent down to pick up the sword, put it back in the disciple's hand, and then wrapped his own hand around the disciple's hand to help him tighten the hilt.

"Disciples of Mount Shu must never be without their swords."

"But I'm afraid, Senior Brother Sect Leader, my hands are shaking so much I can't hold the sword!" The disciple cried, tears streaming down his face.

"Being afraid is the right thing to do."

Jian Zhenzi wiped the blood from his face, revealing a smile that was more like a grimace.

"I'm scared too. Just looking at those monsters that are dozens of meters tall makes my legs go weak."

"It's scary, but we have to stand still. Behind us is the ancestral hall; if we take a step back, the ancestral master's tablet will be crushed."

The disciple looked at him, tears welling up in his eyes. He bit his lip until it bled, but he really gripped the sword tightly and stood up unsteadily.

Chen Yuan sat cross-legged at the center of the formation, watching this scene, and closed his eyes.

He recalled many years ago, when he had just taken over as Sect Master, the First Ancestor summoned him to the Sword Graveyard on the back mountain and pointed to the broken swords covering the mountain, saying these words to him.

"The Mount Shu lineage doesn't pass down swordsmanship; it passes down the very essence of life."

"A sword can be reforged if it breaks, but if your bones break, you can't stand up again."

Chen Yuan opened his eyes.

Blood was seeping from all seven orifices of his body, his heart vessels had ruptured in three places, and every breath felt like a knife cutting into his lungs.

We can't just fall apart like this! Even if the great formation breaks, we must connect everyone's Sword Qi together to form the Myriad Sword Formation. We'll exchange every single one of them!

He raised his hand and pressed the last bit of True Essence he had squeezed out of his body into the cracked array eye stone beneath him.

"Disciples of Mount Shu, heed my command!"

His voice wasn't loud, and was even a little hoarse, but it traveled along the array base and spread throughout the entire mountain gate.

"Form the Sword Formation."

As long as the people are here, the formation remains.

"The formation stands, the mountain stands."

On the Questioning Platform), thousands of disciples drew their swords in unison, the tips pointing diagonally towards the Firmament.

"As long as we are here, the battle stands!"

"The formation stands, the mountain stands!"

The sound crashed between the peaks, echoing endlessly, shaking the rocks so much that dust fell to the ground.

Those disciples who had already given up hope gripped their swords tightly.

Some people's legs were shaking, some people's hands were shaking, and some people were crying while forming hand seals, desperately pouring the last bit of Spiritual Power in their bodies into the sword.

Not a single person retreated an inch.

Liu Mu stood on the Outer Sect mountain path, listening to the shouts coming from the mountaintop, and looking at the group of children around him with their innocent faces but fighting to the death. He smiled.

"Decent."

He turned around, holding his chipped, broken sword horizontally in front of him, as if blocking the way.

"Mount Shu has not fallen yet."

This statement was like throwing a stone into stagnant water.

On the mountain path, a disciple covered in wounds raised his head.

Two.

Ten.

Finally, all the survivors along the mountain path raised their heads and roared with all their might.

"Mount Shu hasn't fallen yet!"

Someone else shouted along.

Then comes the second tone, and then the third tone.

The message travels from the Outer Sect mountain path to the Inner Sect peaks, and then to the Questioning Platform.

The sound grew louder and louder, eventually merging into a single chord that drowned out the howling of the desolate Ruin Qi.

Chen Yuan sat at the core of the formation, listening to the roars, and laughed.

"Good."

"These are the true disciples of Mount Shu."

He raised his head and looked at the churning blood-red clouds on the horizon; his vision was already somewhat blurred.

That child is usually very protective of his own; if he knew his family had been bullied like this, he'd probably go crazy. I just don't know where he's trapped now, or if he'll be able to get there in time to collect the body.

"Changqing."

"If you don't come back soon, your master really won't be able to hold on much longer."

Before he finished speaking, another crack appeared in the eastern base of the array.

Then, the entire Mountain Protection Array shattered completely.

"Kill them! Eat them all!"

Countless Ruin Soldier ruins surged in through the breach like a tide.

The three-faced Ruin Clan Tribulation Immortal laughed wildly, stepped into the formation, and six bone blades fell simultaneously, carrying a hundred-foot-long black aura, directly slashing at the disciples on the Questioning Platform.

"Evil creature!"

Chen Yuan suddenly stood up, flicked his Whisk, and three thousand white threads swelled in the wind, wrapping around the six bone blades.

"Puff!"

The bone blade easily severed the white silk threads, its momentum undiminished.

Chen Yuan took a step forward and stood in front of the dozen or so disciples at the very front.

"Master!"

"Sect Master!"

Jian Zhenzi and Bai Wuya rushed over simultaneously, their eyes Earth Splitter, but they couldn't catch up at all.

The bone blade sliced through Chen Yuan's protective Gang Qi, leaving a deep, bone-revealing blood groove on his chest, the blood splattering onto the bluestone of the Questioning Platform.

Chen Yuan swayed, breaking two of the bluestone stones beneath his feet, but he did not fall.

He spread his arms wide, completely shielding the dozen or so terrified low-level disciples behind him.

"Chen Yuan, the Sect Master the Mount Shu Sect."

He raised his head, looking at the hundred-foot-tall Ruin Clan, his voice soft yet steady.

"If you want to kill my disciple, you'll have to step over my dead body first."

"Then I'll grant your wish!" The Three Tribulations Ruin Clan grinned simultaneously.

"Boom!"

Six bone blades fell again, and the black energy completely blocked all of Chen Yuan's escape routes.

Just as that blade of light was about to strike Chen Yuan's head!

A Sword Light appeared in the sky.

The Sword Light was so bright that it blinded people, and it cleaved the blood-red clouds in two.

Immediately afterwards, a voice so cold it could shatter ice reverberated from outside the mountain gate all the way to the Questioning Platform:

"I'd like to see who dares to lay a finger on my master today!"