After sheltering cultivators in Phoenix City for countless years, the miniature Eight Trigrams Formation Diagram was retrieved by the city lord today. It was clearly more imposing than its miniature counterpart, circulating above the city lord's head before slowly disappearing into the map.
A golden light shone from the center once more, but its luster was noticeably dimmer, as if it had consumed too much energy within the map.
After all the cultivators entered the map, the city lord put away the Eight Trigrams Formation Diagram, took one last look at the vast city, and felt a touch of sorrow in his eyes.
This is where the ancient ancestors settled in the Land of Exile, and also where the cultivator civilization continued in the Land of Exile.
It is a piece of order in the wild land, and also a microcosm of the cultivation world beyond the heavens.
The City Lord's Manor has been responsible for protecting this land since ancient times, but today, forced by the tide of Mist Beast and the Heaven Patroler, the City Lord's Manor has no choice but to personally remove the defenses of this land, leaving the vast city to face the surging tide of Mist Beast alone.
Phoenix City, which has been suppressed in the Land of Exile for countless years, is destined to fall today.
The civilized order in the Land of Exile is destined to be destroyed today.
The journey to find the forbidden land will be fruitful if things go smoothly, but if not...
All the cultivators in Phoenix City will become history, like a grain of sand in a vast sea of sand.
No one mentions anymore the brilliant civilization and stable order that this place once possessed.
Perhaps only the north wind still carries the ancient lament, telling the story of the choices made by those ancient ancestors!
The city lord finally turned his gaze to the golden light at the center of the map, and the sorrow in his eyes turned into determination.
He has drawn all the cultivators and resources in Phoenix City into the earth's crust, and now it can be considered a do-or-die battle.
Whether cultivators can escape the Land of Exile depends not on Phoenix City, but on the Ancestral Spirit.
Despite knowing that the road ahead was fraught with danger, the city lord withdrew his gaze, turned around, and entered the map.
Mysterious runes pulsed along the edge of the map, a profound aura condensing within them, and an energy that flowed through the map as space shifted.
The city lord's lonely figure gradually became blurred until it finally disappeared completely from the map.
There was no longer a trace of energy flowing in Phoenix City. The Laws of the Heavens, the Reincarnation Temple of Heavenly Dao, and the rules of the world all vanished within Phoenix City.
The past prosperity and glory originated from a single array diagram, and now they are all hidden within that same diagram.
Perhaps the Ancestral Spirit at the Center sensed something, for the golden light gradually disappeared into the map as it shone.
The vast city exuded an aura of desolation; the divine bird totem that soared high had lost its spirituality, and there was no longer any trace of cultivators in the world.
Perhaps this place will soon become a desolate wasteland, just like its original world, devoid of life.
After the city lord disappeared from the map, a rustling sound came from all directions of Phoenix City. The scales rubbed against the solid ground, as if a torrent was coming towards the center of Phoenix City.
A thin layer of blue mist hung in the sky, and a blue river surged across the land, with countless Mist Beast flicking their tongues at Phoenix City.
Hissing sounds filled the air as the retreating tide of Mist Beast rapidly regrouped.
Urged on by the Higher Mist Beast, countless Mist Beast surged over the walls of Phoenix City, and the city, which originally housed cultivators, was now occupied by the Mist Beast horde.
The gathered Mist Beast surged like a tide, instantly filling the interior of Phoenix City.
All living beings are permanently frozen in the Eternity Ice Mist, and a thin mist fills the sky.
Without the protection of the City Heart, the Winged Mist Beast Wuji blocked the sky.
Phoenix City and its surroundings were now a world of green, with the sound of scales rubbing against each other constantly emanating from the flowing river.
Beneath the wide expanse of water within the city, there were also unusual disturbances.
The Two-Headed Mist Beast emerged from a corner of the city, its thick waist still submerged beneath the water, while two human figures were already visible in the air.
Taking advantage of the momentum of the Mist Beast tide entering the city, Pavilion Master Xu had transformed into Mist Beast, reappeared outside the City Lord's Manor.
A commotion began beneath the once calm surface of the water, as countless eyes opened in the deep depths.
The flickering forked tongues of the snakes created ripples on the water's surface, and beneath the jade-like surface, countless long snake bodies were already floating.
roar!
The Higher Mist Beast roared angrily throughout the city, their emerald eyes flashing with fury as they faced the direction of the City Lord's Manor.
They had been driven back by the Earth Immortal, their strength greatly diminished, and they had no choice but to retreat to the outskirts of the city.
But they had been observing in secret, and once the Earth Immortal and cultivators disappeared, countless hordes of Mist Beast surged over the city walls and engulfed the city.
The shadows cast by the youth and Xu Long were undeniably deep, but now, as if they had someone backing them up, they were no longer afraid of the fierce sword light and the swift blood dragon.
As their scales rustled against each other, they advanced towards the rear of the City Lord's Manor. Countless hordes of Mist Beast were already spreading from the place where the cultivators had disappeared.
They gathered around the huge map like a tide, and several upright human figures stood amidst the layers of encirclement.
The Phoenix City, a kingdom of a thousand chariots in the Land of Exile, has fallen!
The Higher Mist Beast stood upright, their appearances transformed into those of cultivators. As they stood at the edge of the map, a hint of anxiety flickered in their emerald eyes.
After the city lord collected the Eight Trigrams Formation Diagram, Phoenix City was left without city defenses, and the city lord entered the huge map.
Although the tide of Mist Beast arrived quickly, the enormous map was still disappearing. By the time the few Higher Mist Beast reached the edge of the map, only a rough outline remained of what was once a huge map.
The straight golden beam of light at its center had also vanished without a trace.
Several Mist Beast with emerald eyes gazed into the distance Phoenix City, their eyes gleaming with anxiety. They crouched low, patrolling the area around the map, seemingly waiting for someone.
The map beneath them was almost disappearing, which made them somewhat anxious.
Hiss!
Pavilion Master Xu withdrew his blue eyes from the map, unable to resist gazing at the enormous Nine Palaces Yin-Yang Map.
It seemed that its remaining humanity made it particularly wary of this array diagram, even though only an outline remained, the energy hidden within it was beyond its comprehension.
Where the two-color map leads is also unknown, but now is not the time to hesitate.
Since the Mist Beast tide has gathered in Phoenix City on such a large scale, there must be someone organizing it. These Higher Mist Beast may seem to be the leaders, but in reality, they are just pawns, and they have to act under the arrangement of others.
A flicker of confusion crossed Pavilion Master Xu Xu's emerald eyes. As if recalling something, a clearer light swept through his mind as he gazed at the Yin-Yang Map of the City Lord's Manor.
However, this glimmer of clarity vanished from the beast's body in an instant, and the sharp-faced female cultivator beside him gave him a gloomy look.
It then flicked its forked tongue for a moment, the hissing sound causing the mysterious light in Pavilion Master Xu's eyes to return.
Then, as if sensing something, the pointed-face female cultivator suddenly raised her head and looked into the distance.
The anxiety in her emerald eyes turned into fear, and as if stimulated by something, her standing body suddenly arched.
Its head was facing the distant horizon Phoenix City, as if welcoming someone's arrival.
At this moment, all the Winged Mist Beast present bowed their heads, while the Higher Mist Beast that stood upright formed a circle around the map.
The surging tide of Mist Beast around them automatically parted, opening a straight passage inside and outside Phoenix City.
Then, not a sound came from the dense horde of Mist Beast; only countless blue rivers flowed within them.
Time seemed to stand still in Phoenix City; the vast City Lord's Manor was eerily quiet behind it.
Before the Mist Beast Tide could wait long, a will as powerful as the heavens swept in from the distance of Phoenix City.
This will was extremely ancient, and when it spread, it even exuded an aura of decay.
He seemed to have stepped out of history, awakened in a forgotten land, carrying those lingering memories, and wandering between heaven and earth on instinct.
Although this will was ancient, it was filled with immense power, giving the formless will a sense of boundlessness.
Their casual sweeping attack caused tension among the Mist Beast horde.
The once Wuji horde of Mist Beast now bowed their heads in submission. Phoenix City, already frozen by mist, became utterly silent when the ancient will swept in.
The boundless will descended like the might of heaven. At first, it felt like being in a distant otherworld, but when the mind returned, it had already arrived before them with an imposing aura.
When the ancient will took hold in Phoenix City, it caused a tremendous upheaval. Under this immense power, Pavilion Master Xu felt as if his heart had stopped beating.
The cyan Mist Beast tide was a nightmare in the eyes of cultivators, but under this will, it was as fragile as ants. The Higher Mist Beast all tensed up, and the atmosphere in the arena suddenly became somewhat tense.
A powerful will swept across the entire Phoenix City before lingering on the Yin-Yang Map.
However, the Yin-Yang Map had already vanished completely, leaving only a barely discernible outline behind the City Lord's Manor.
Only the faint glimmer of light within the outline hinted that something extraordinary had once happened here.
After carefully examining the faint outline, the invisible will did not stop there, but fell within the outline.
A powerful tremor suddenly erupted behind the City Lord's Manor. As the invisible will fell into the map, it caused a huge uproar among the Mist Beast tide.
At this moment, the horde of Mist Beast was all focused on the rear of the City Lord's Manor, and the Phoenix City was already beginning to shake uncontrollably.
However, the Higher Mist Beast in the Mist Beast tide did not make any unusual movements, but instead kept their eyes fixed on that faint outline.
After the invisible will descended, the outline indeed stopped disappearing.
Then, through an invisible force, the earth's original appearance began to crack open from within its outline, causing the intense tremors within Phoenix City.
Before the Mist Beast could react, they felt that vast power was getting closer and closer, as if it had crossed space and arrived Phoenix City with an ancient aura.
The Mist Beast only felt a cold glint flash before their eyes, followed by the deafening clang of a sword!
Clang!
The long-forgotten sword was drawn today, its cold gleam sweeping across the heavens and earth, accompanied by a faint streak of light that trailed across the sky.
The moment the cold light was drawn, it shook the heavens and earth. The Origin Will instinctively reached out above Phoenix City, while the will below ignored the Origin Will's probing and remained only within Phoenix City.
The sharp, cold light seemed to have been snatched from beyond the heavens to Land of Exile. It transcended the barriers of space, arriving in an instant from tens of thousands of miles away, carrying an aura of Heaven-Slaying, and stopped at the center of Phoenix City.
"Imperial Edict!"
A cold, authoritative voice came from afar, seemingly from nothingness, its tone devoid of any emotion.
As this decree was proclaimed, and a cold glint hovered above the city's outline, the tremors within the city intensified.
As if something was being drawn from beneath the ground, the once seamless city began to crack open from its center.
Only then did the Mist Beast realize that the cold light emanating from it was a bronze sword!
The blade still radiated wisps of scorching energy, as if the heat generated when it was shot at extremely high speed still lingered on the blade.
For some reason, when the female cultivator beside Pavilion Master Xu saw the sword, her emerald eyes narrowed sharply, as if she had a very deep impression of the sword, and a deep fear appeared in her eyes.
As the tremors intensified, the sword at the center began to twist.
The crack behind the City Lord's Manor widened as it was looked, revealing a jagged gash in what was once a flat surface.
From the air, it looks as if Phoenix City has opened its dark, gaping maw to the sky.
The sword merely twisted for a moment, unleashing a burst of sword energy that pierced through the layers of earth.
In the eyes of the Mist Beast, this hideous rift was constantly widening and enlarging, as if the deep underground was chasing after the cultivator.
Although the enormous map had disappeared, the powerful sword still managed to track them down.
A hissing sound rang out, and beneath the map behind the City Lord's Manor, a dark, gaping maw had now opened.
A scorching aura erupted from it, and countless hordes of Mist Beast gathered around the rift.
As they circled the deep crevice, it seemed as if a giant eye was watching them from within.
After opening the rift leading to the earth, the sword in the map flashed out in an instant, its cold light gleaming before it spiraled straight back towards the sky.
The entire exchange took only two or three breaths, and the Mist Beast never really took a close look at the bronze sword.
It was as if this precious sword was never easily revealed in the world, but would only be shown when the dynasty was established.
For the small crack at hand, it's just a matter of a blink of an eye.
Clang!
After a metallic clang, all the Mist Beast at the edge of the massive rift shuddered in unison.
Several Higher Mist Beast seemed to awaken from a dream, turning their heads to look behind them.
Their eyes were filled with shock and doubt, and several pairs of emerald pupils reflected the image of a cultivator dressed in a moonlit robe.
He wore a Buddhist crown and a white robe with flowing sleeves and waist, and three golden arrow ornaments hanging from the hem of his robe.
His face had two deep nasolabial folds, and his eyes exuded an imposing aura. His aged eyes trembled with star-like patterns, but his gaze was devoid of any emotion.
The magnificent bronze sword that had shattered the stone earlier was now slung over his back.