The Snow Empress went to the South Sea first. The core of the South Sea was hidden at the bottom of an active volcano, surrounded by scorching lava and toxic sulfurous gases. But the Snow Empress raised the protective barrier of the Power of the Heavenly Dao and rushed directly into the crater. The golden token transformed into a giant sword, and with one slash, the core of the array and the volcano were split in two.
Next was the West Sea. The West Sea's core was hidden in a trench at the deepest part of the seabed, guarded by dozens of deep-sea demonic beasts. Each of these beasts possessed the cultivation of the Dragon Transformation Realm, but they were utterly insignificant before the Snow Empress, who had reached the Heaven and Man as One Realm. With a flash of golden light, the dozens of demonic beasts instantly perished, and the array's core was also destroyed.
Then there's the North Sea. The core of the North Sea's formation is hidden beneath a ten-thousand-year-old glacier, where the surrounding temperature is so low that even spiritual energy is frozen. But the Snow Empress's Power of the Heavenly Dao is an invincible, supreme Yang power. With a single punch, she shattered the glacier, and golden light pulverized the core of the formation.
Finally, there is the Land of Shenzhou, beneath a bottomless abyss. This is the place with the thinnest spiritual energy and the densest Demonic Qi in the entire Land of Shenzhou. Beneath the abyss lies a vast underground space, filled with countless dense demonic runes, and the array's core is hidden in its deepest part.
As soon as the Snow Empress stepped into the underground space, countless monsters formed from Demonic Qi swarmed towards her. Although these monsters were not strong, their numbers were too great, and they were endless. The Snow Empress frowned, activated the Power of the Heavenly Dao, and transformed it into a golden pillar of light that spread out in all directions from her body.
" The Might of the Heavenly Dao—Purification!"
Wherever the golden beam of light passed, the Demonic Qi instantly evaporated, and the monsters vanished into nothingness. The entire underground space was illuminated by the golden light, revealing the array's core hidden deep within.
Snow Empress took a deep breath, and the golden token transformed into a long spear. She gripped the spear and hurled it fiercely towards the center of the formation.
"Boom--!"
The array's core was pierced by the spear, causing an explosion. The entire underground space trembled violently, and countless fragments of rock rained down from the sky. Snow Empress leaped up, broke through the rock layers, and returned to the surface.
All five key points of the formation have been destroyed!
The moment the last key to the array was destroyed, the entire world trembled violently. A black pillar of light shot up from the depths of the East Sea, piercing the sky. Dark clouds filled the sky, lightning flashed and thunder roared, as if the end of the world had arrived.
The Snow Empress's expression changed drastically, " The Demon Venerable has found the Spirit Source Secret Realm!"
She transformed into a golden ray of light and flew towards the East Sea. Her speed far exceeded the speed of sound, tearing the air apart and producing a piercing explosion.
Meanwhile, a great battle has broken out in the East Sea.
In the sea area where the Spirit Source Secret Realm is located, a huge crack appeared in the sky. From the crack, black Demonic Qi continuously poured out, and from within the Demonic Qi, countless demonic taxi soldiers swarmed out. Each of these demonic taxi soldiers possessed considerable strength, with the weakest having the cultivation of the Foundation Establishment Realm and the strongest even reaching the Dragon Transformation Realm.
"Activate the defensive formation!" the Shaolin abbot shouted, and his Buddha Heart Incarnation burst forth with dazzling Buddhist light, activating all the formations on the sea.
The Heavenly Dipper Big Dipper Great Formation was activated first, with golden pillars of light shooting into the sky from the thirty-six array eyes, forming a huge golden light shield that enveloped the Spirit Source Secret Realm. The demon taxi soldiers crashed into the light shield and instantly turned into ashes.
But the demons were too numerous, advancing wave after wave, relentlessly. Under the constant impact, the light shield began to crack.
" Arhat Grand Formation, empower!" the abbot shouted again.
The Shaolin disciples sat cross-legged, chanting Buddhist scriptures. Golden Buddhist light emanated from their bodies, merging into the light barrier and repairing the cracks.
" True Martial Grand Formation, activate!" The Wudang Sect leader also issued the order.
The Wudang disciples set up the True Martial Seven Stars Formation, their true energy transforming into beams of light that poured into the protective barrier. Disciples from the Emei, Qingcheng, and Kunlun sects also joined in, injecting their power into the formation.
The combined power of 100,000 cultivators formed an impenetrable barrier. Although the demon soldiers were numerous, they were unable to break through it for the time being.
However, this was just an appetizer.
The crack in the sky grew wider and wider, and a terrifying aura emanated from it. This aura was a thousand times stronger than the Demon Venerable's previous consciousness, carrying endless evil and destruction, sending chills down one's spine.
" The Demon Venerable's true form... is about to descend!" The abbot's expression changed drastically. He sensed that the Demon Venerable's true form was desperately tearing apart the seal, attempting to descend to the mortal realm through the crack.
"Everyone, maintain the great formation with all your might!" the abbot roared. "We absolutely cannot allow the Demon Venerable to descend before the Holy Maiden returns!"
"Yes!" the 100,000 cultivators responded in unison, pouring their power into the great formation without reservation.
The protective barrier became brighter and more solid, remaining completely unmoved under the impact of the Demon Venerable's aura.
But the Demon Venerable's power was too great. He was the ruler of the Demon Realm, an ancient being who had lived for tens of thousands of years, and his cultivation was unfathomable. Even though the seal weakened most of his power, and even though he only released a portion of his power through the crack, it was still terrifying.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Streams of black Demonic Qi burst forth from the cracks, crashing into the light barrier with deafening roars. With each impact, the light barrier trembled violently, causing the cultivators presiding over the formation to cough up blood, and those with lower cultivation levels even fainted outright.
"Hold on! Hold on, all of you!" the abbot roared, and his Buddha Heart Incarnation ignited, transforming into a massive ball of Buddha-light that merged into the light barrier.
The other sect leaders followed suit, burning their own cultivation to reinforce the great formation. They knew this was the final battle; if they failed, not only would they themselves die, but the entire cultivation world and the entire human realm would be doomed.
Just when everyone was about to give up, a golden light streaked across the sky and landed in the center of the battlefield.
"It's the Holy Maiden! The Holy Maiden has returned!" someone cheered.
The Snow Empress stood on the sea, gazing at the crack in the sky, her eyes gleaming with golden light. She could sense the true form of the Demon Venerable behind the crack—powerful, evil, and filled with a destructive desire.
" Demon Venerable, your end has come!" Snow Empress shouted coldly. The golden token transformed into a giant sword, which she gripped and slashed towards the crack.
" The Sword of the Heavenly Dao—Demon Slaying!"
Golden sword light ripped through the sky and slashed into the crack. The Demonic Qi within the crack was torn apart by the sword light, emitting a shrill scream. Sensing the threat, the Demon Venerable's true form roared, and a gigantic black demonic claw emerged from the crack, reaching out to grab the Snow Empress.
Snow Empress dodged the attack of the demonic claw with a flash, and swung her sword down again. The sword light struck the demonic claw, black blood splattered everywhere, and the demonic claw was cut in half.
"Damn it! You brat, how dare you harm my true form!" The Demon Venerable's voice came from the crack, filled with anger and resentment.
"So what if I hurt you? I'll still drive you back to the Demon Realm!" Snow Empress roared, concentrating all the Power of the Heavenly Dao on the giant sword and slashing fiercely at the crack.