Clang—!
Spiritual energy flowed backward.
The wounded, wailing across the plaza fell silent in an instant.
Some had broken bones reconnect on their own; others had chronic ailments of years unblocked.
This was the Great Dao Baptism.
Before the crowd could recover from that wave of comfort.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The bell chimes melded into one continuous line.
At that moment, the cloud layer above the First Saint Sect scattered completely.
For ten thousand miles, there was not a cloud in sight; the blue sky was washed clean.
The mountain-protecting grand formation was forced into tangible form by the surging spiritual power, casting an enormous golden semicircular radiance.
The fifth chime.
Outer sect elder Gu Yanwu's knees went weak, his fingers digging fiercely into the stone railing until his knuckles turned blue-white.
The sixth chime.
Across the inner sect's seventy-two peaks, countless flying swords lost control. As though answering some summons, they clattered to the ground.
The seventh chime.
The eighth chime.
Ye Qingxian stood at the exit of the eighth level.
Her Phoenix bloodline, the pride of her life, was trembling at this moment.
She looked up.
The golden light was too dazzling. That figure was clearly within arm's reach, yet it seemed separated from her by an entire age.
"So... there truly were always people beyond people, skies beyond skies?"
She gave a bitter laugh, her delicate fist clenching tight.
Clang—!!!
The ninth chime.
This chime was exceedingly soft.
Soft as a lover's whisper beside one's ear, and like the rustle of wind through withered leaves.
Yet the entire First Saint Sect seemed to freeze.
The tower's body turned from black to white, then from white to transparent.
Above the firmament, Purple Qi from the East swept in, vast and mighty for three thousand miles, gilding every inch