"More than three hundred heads."
Kelān's voice fell into the Great Hall, and Nezha's fingers rubbed against the barrel of the gun, making a thin sound.
The three days of preparation went by faster than anyone imagined.
Ruined Temple's yard could no longer accommodate people on the second day.
All seventeen of Immortal Emperor Level have arrived.
The latest one rushed back from the depths of the Firmament Realm 39 Star Domain's ore veins, and was still covered in powder from the ore.
The first thing you do when you enter the yard is not to salute, but to look for water.
In the early morning of the third day, the Firmament Realm was the first Star Domain void anchor point.
Fifty million Heavenly Soldier are arranged into one hundred and eight Battle Formation, and the area spread out by the array covers the void of three million miles around the anchor point.
The center of the array is Immortal Slaying Formation Battleship.
Tongtian stands in the position of Formation Ship Main Battle Core, with the soles of his feet stepping on the center Runes of Immortal Slaying Formation Diagram.
Runes's light spread in all directions from the soles of his feet, penetrating the entire thousand-mile-long hull.
The shape of Formation Ship is not like any known spaceship or warship, but more like a giant sword lying across the void.
The sword body is translucent, and you can see the densely packed Formation circuits inside pulsating like blood vessels.
Yang Jian stood on the left wing, with a circle of Heavenly Eye patterns carved on the deck beneath his feet.
The center of his right eyebrow shone slightly, indicating that Heavenly Eye's detection range had been expanded.
Nezha is stepping on Wind-Fire Wheels and hanging above the right wing. Fire-Tipped Spear is carrying it on his shoulder, and the tassel of the gun is floating in the void like a flag.
There is an empty groove in the middle of the hull.
In the groove squatted a large, colorful bird.
Kong Xuan.
His human form didn't come out, he just squatted there in his original body.
Five-Colored Divine Light spread out from the tail feathers in circles, covering a range of three hundred miles in the middle of the hull.
Zhao Gongming stands at the forefront of Formation Ship, at the bow of the ship.
Each of his hands held a black box.
All the seals were torn off and the lid of the box was open.
What gushes out from it is neither liquid nor gas, but a black substance in between, like thick ink and flowing night.
Twenty-Four Universe Sea of Bitterness.
The black substance spread out from the box and spread along the edge of the ship's bow, forming a black passage with a width of five hundred miles in front of Formation Ship.
The two walls of the passage are constantly squirming, like the inner wall of the digestive tract of some living creature.
Zhao Gongming's dark brown face showed no expression, and the black pupils in the whites of his yellow eyes stared at the invisible Abyss in the void ahead.
Boundary Sea.
Looking out from the edge of the Firmament Realm, Boundary Sea is not a sea, but a layer.
A thin film covering the outside of Myriad Worlds.
The thickness of the film is infinite and the color is constantly Transformation.
From gray this second to pitch black the next, to some color that cannot be named by the human eye the next.
"Master, the entire army is in position."
The voice of Tongtian came from Main Battle Core, with the amplified echo of Formation.
Gu Changqing stood on the command podium at the tail of Formation Ship. He was higher than everyone else and could see the entire hull and the 108 Battle Formation behind him.
White clothes are flying in the sky.
Xiaotian Dog squatted at his feet, sniffed in the direction of the Boundary Sea, and snorted in his throat.
"Let's go."
Zhao Gongming moved his hands forward, and the black substance in the two boxes poured out like a flood.
The main body of Twenty-Four Universe Sea of Bitterness unfolds in front of Formation Ship, forming a channel that is large enough to accommodate the passage of the entire Expeditionary Army.
The power of Sea of Bitterness pressed on the film of the Boundary Sea, and the film ripped open to both sides with a hissing sound, revealing the real space inside.
Not space.
It's Chaos.
There is no up, down, left or right, no distance, no depth.
Throwing your sight out is like throwing it into a pot of thick soup that cannot be stirred. You can't see anything, and you can't distinguish anything.
The Zhao Gongming and Sea of Bitterness channels are like a thick pipe inserted into this pot of thick soup.
The inside of the tube wall is a stable, directional, normal space where you can breathe.
Outside the tube wall is Chaos that swallows all reference objects.
Formation Ship moved.
All Runes on the soles of Tongtian's feet were activated, and Immortal Slaying Formation Battleship's hull began to push forward.
The speed is not fast but steady, like a giant whale swimming slowly in the deep sea.
One hundred and eight Battle Formation followed and filed into the Sea of Bitterness passage. Fifty million Heavenly Soldier armors glowed coldly in the dim light of Chaos.
Yang Jian and Heavenly Eye sweep across the outer wall of the channel.
"The pressure in the space on both sides of the channel is increasing. Every time you advance ten thousand miles, the pressure rises by one level."
Zhao Gongming snorted from the bow of the ship.
"Nonsense, Boundary Sea, the deeper you go, the greater the pressure. Do you think this is a visit to the market?"
He pushed forward with his palm, and the wall of the Sea of Bitterness channel thickened by 20%. The black substance rolled back and pushed back the Chaos energy that was pouring in from the outside.
Sailed three Shichen.
The channel coordinates provided by Kelān are very accurate. The Sea of Bitterness channel bypasses two permanent space faults along the marked route.
When passing by from the side, the edge of the fault can be seen on the outer wall of the channel.
It was a crack that extended infinitely.
The inside of the crack is not black or any color, it is blank.
A blank space with nothing.
Nezha glanced out from the right wing at the crack, and the hairs on his neck stood up.
"What will happen if we encounter this thing?"
The voice of Kelān came from Communication Array. She was placed in a cubicle in the middle of Formation Ship, and Magic Formation connected to the channel of the podium.
"It will disappear if it touches it. It will not die, but will change from existence to non-existence. Even Karma Thread will be erased."
Nezha took his eyes back from the crack and stopped looking.
At the fourth Shichen, Heavenly Eye of Yang Jian captured the abnormal movement.
"Twenty thousand miles ahead, there is a large-scale biological signal moving on the outer wall of the channel."
Zhao Gongming's Sea of Bitterness channel is still pushing forward, his footsteps have not stopped, and the sound floats back from the bow of the ship.
"How big is it?"
Yang Jian's Heavenly Eye's light was strengthened by a notch, and the brightness between the brows made Heavenly Soldier next to him turn his head.
"I counted forty-seven signal sources. The smallest one is estimated to be over three hundred miles in size. The largest one..."
Yang Jian's voice was interrupted for a beat.
"I can't measure the largest one. The range measurement of Heavenly Eye is interfered by its surface reflection."
Zhao Gongming's palm stopped in mid-air.
Forty-seven heads.
Kelān said that the largest encounter was more than 300 animals. Forty-seven animals is not the worst situation, but it is still enough.
Tongtian adjusted the advancing direction of Formation Ship at the position of Main Battle Core, trying to avoid it.
"Can't get around it."
The voice of Yang Jian came again.
"They are moving closer to the passage, coming from three directions, as if they are attracted by the breath of Sea of Bitterness."
Zhao Gongming's mouth pulled down a bit.
"Beasts who have suffered losses from Sea of Bitterness will not come near. These guys have either never seen Sea of Bitterness, or they are crazy from hunger."
The first impact point appeared on the outer wall of the channel.
The entire passage shook, and the group of people near the outer wall in Fifty Million Heavenly Soldier all staggered a step.
The wall of the Sea of Bitterness tube at the impact point was dented, and then bounced back, leaving a dent as big as a washbasin.
At the center of the dent, the pipe wall becomes thinner.
So thin that you can see what's outside.
That's an eye.
It's not the one in the crack of the door in Kelān's memory, it's a gray-white turbid eyeball.
Occupying half of the entire indentation area, the pupils are horizontal, like a goat's eyes magnified ten thousand times.
The eyeball is pressed against the wall of the tube and looking inside, looking at Formation Ship and Heavenly Soldier in the Sea of Bitterness channel.
The second impact came.
This time, not one point was hit at the same time, but seven points.
The passage shook violently, and the array of the thirty-sixth Battle Formation at the rear was tilted half way, and the array flag of Heavenly Soldier fell on both sides.
Zhao Gongming's robes rustled on the bow of the ship. He pushed the two boxes forward and pressed his hands on the box openings.
Sea of Bitterness The wall of the channel began to expand outward, and the black substance ejected spikes in all directions like an exploding hedgehog.
The spikes pierced the shell of Abyssal Beast, the end closest to the pipe wall.
Didn't penetrate it.
Slippery.
The sharp thorns of Sea of Bitterness scratched the gray-white crystal shell on the surface of Abyssal Beast, like fingernails scratching glass, making a sharp and tooth-piercing sound without leaving even a scratch.
Zhao Gongming's black pupils shrank.
"Hard."
More impacts came from all directions, and the passage was like a bone that had been torn apart by a group of hungry dogs, denting and shaking everywhere.
Kong Xuan's Five-Colored Divine Light is spread out from the middle of the hull. The light curtain is attached to the inner wall of the Sea of Bitterness channel to act as a second buffer. The vibration transmitted from the impact is cut off Thirty Percent.
But there are more and more Abyssal Beasts gathering outside.
Yang Jian and Heavenly Eye are counting continuously.
"Fifty-one, fifty-eight, sixty-three... They are still coming up from the deep layers."
Nezha couldn't stand on the right wing, and Wind-Fire Wheels's flames jumped three feet high.
"Master, will you let me go out and fight?"
The voice of Gu Changqing on the podium passed through the entire passage.
"If you don't go out, the entire army will maintain the array, Zhao Gongming accelerate the advance, and use the pressure of Sea of Bitterness to scrape them off the channel wall."
Zhao Gongming roared, as rough as an old iron chain dragging across a stone slab.
He pressed his hands into the box up to his elbows, and the black substance Twenty-Four Universe Sea of Bitterness surged.
The wall of the channel pipe was squeezed from the inside out, and the seven or eight heads Abyssal Beast attached to it were pushed open for half a mile.
After Abyssal Beast was pushed away, it rolled inside Chaos, and not even a piece of the gray-white crystal shell was rubbed off.
They turned around and bumped back again.
Zhao Gongming's teeth gritted loudly.
"This bunch of bitches."
The voice of Kelān in Communication Array suddenly intervened.
"Senior Zhao Gongming, the properties of Sea of Bitterness cannot defeat the shell of Abyssal Beast, but Abyssal Beast has a weakness."
"Say."
"Their mouths."
Zhao Gongming's movements didn't stop, and his ears stood up.
"The shell of Abyssal Beast is Boundary Sea Origin Crystal, and its hardness is close to Law level, but they must open their mouths when eating. The tissues in the mouth are not protected by the shell and are soft."
The black pupils in the whites of Zhao Gongming's yellow eyes turned in a circle.
"You mean, wait for them to bite and pour it into your mouth?"
"Yes."
The first smile in nine thousand years appeared on Zhao Gongming's face, and the wrinkles piled together made the face even more ugly.
"Good idea."
He took his hands out of the box, and his ten fingers were dripping with black Sea of Bitterness residue.
"Tongtian, Formation Ship slow down and let them catch up."
Tongtian was stunned for a moment at the position of Main Battle Core.
"Slow down?"
"I want to fish."
Another round of impacts hit the outer wall of the channel. The largest one, Abyssal Beast, rushed over from the front. The gray-white crystal surface looked like an out-of-control meteorite against the black of Sea of Bitterness.
Its mouth opened.
The width of the mouth is about the same as a city gate. The inside is dark red, has no teeth, and is a sucker-like structure in circles.
Zhao Gongming is waiting for this bite.
He pushed forward with both hands, and the remaining Sea of Bitterness main bodies in the two boxes poured out.
Instead of being paved into a passage, it was condensed into a black pillar that was thicker than the mountain peak.
The pillar penetrated straight into the open mouth of the Abyssal Beast.
Abyssal Beast's body twitched.
The power of Sea of Bitterness poured into its internal tissues without shell protection, and the black substance drilled deep along its esophagus.
The sucker-shaped oral structure fell off in circles under the corrosion of Sea of Bitterness.
Abyssal Beast made a low-frequency vibration.
The sound waves came in through the wall of the Sea of Bitterness channel, and everyone's internal organs trembled.
Its body began to retreat.
Zhao Gongming did not let it retreat. The black pillar of Sea of Bitterness tied it like an anchor chain, and the black substance was still pouring in.
Ten breaths later, the body of the largest Abyssal Beast started to turn outwards from its mouth, and the inside of the crystal shell was soaked into soft gray fragments by Sea of Bitterness, like a fruit with the core hollowed out.
Its gray-white eyeballs turned for the last time and lost focus.
The other Abyssal Beast outside stopped banging.
Forty-seven heads, no, it has now increased to more than seventy.
More than seventy Abyssal Beast are hanging outside the Sea of Bitterness channel, and the gray-white crystal surfaces are lined up in the Chaos, like a moving city wall.
They did not leave, nor did they collide again. Hengtong stared at the black substance in the passage that had just killed their kind.
Zhao Gongming pulled the Sea of Bitterness pillar out of the dead Abyssal Beast's mouth, recovered the black substance into the box, and wiped his hands on the bow of the ship.
"Who's coming next?"
The seventy bulls Abyssal Beast were motionless.
The confrontation lasted for thirty breaths.
Then the outermost ones began to retreat, retreated for a while, turned around, and got into the deeper Chaos.
The rest retreated, one after another, like wild dogs being driven away.
The last one to retreat, Abyssal Beast, was ranked third. Before it retreated, it rubbed against the outer wall of the Sea of Bitterness channel.
The location of the rub happens to be the section of pipe wall corresponding to the podium where Gu Changqing is located.
Its horizontal pupils peered inside through the thinned tube wall.
He glanced at the white figure sitting on the podium.
Then it left too.
Zhao Gongming's robe was covered with stains from Sea of Bitterness, and black liquid dripped on the bow deck and seeped into the gaps.
"Tongtian, speed up."
Formation Ship speeds up again, Sea of Bitterness channel advances faster than before Thirty Percent.
One hundred and eight Battle Formation restored the array, and the breathing sounds of fifty million Heavenly Soldier merged into a low buzz in the passage.
Yang Jian's Heavenly Eye retracted the detection range, and the light between his eyebrows dimmed.
"The Master and Abyssal Beast groups retreated, but Heavenly Eye detected a second group of signal sources 120,000 miles ahead."
Nezha cursed on the right wing.
"Again?"
Yang Jian's voice paused for a moment, and his tone dropped for half a minute.
"It's not Abyssal Beast. The signal characteristics are completely different from Abyssal Beast. There are not many, there are only three, but the energy intensity of each one exceeds the sum of the Abyssal Beast just now."
Zhao Gongming put his hand on the box mouth again.
Kelān's voice came out of Communication Array, with the tiredness of reliving the past that Gu Changqing had heard once.
"That's not Abyssal Beast."
"What is that?"
Kelān's silver-gray pupils turned around in the dark light of the cubicle.
"They are the aborigines deep in the Boundary Sea. They were named in the channel log of Thief Race."
"What's it called?"
Kelān's lips touched, and the sound reached the lowest threshold of Magic Formation's transmission.
"Road Watchers."