Four Seasons in Hand!
The dark silver eye that formed after the ninth update of [Ominous Star Shines High] Qi Yun high in the sky.
The entire Lifeless Valley was shrouded in an invisible, oppressive murderous intent.
That Ominous Star is formless and intangible, residing in the heavens, seemingly real yet illusory, impossible to find anywhere.
What's even more deadly is that the arrival of those star pillars is completely unpredictable.
Just moments before, a righteous True Person was locked in a fierce battle with Devil Cultivator from the Northwest, drawing upon the water veins within a hundred miles to transform into countless ice crystal sword dragons, annihilating his opponent.
The next instant, the gray fog overhead suddenly parted.
A dark silver pillar, condensed to the point of being almost tangible and hundreds of feet in diameter, silently descended, carrying with it the Daoist aura of annihilation!
The previously evenly matched situation was completely overturned.
This completely unpredictable yet precise and deadly attack method left all the righteous True Person feeling as if they were in a thicket of thorns covered with invisible spikes.
Every step must be taken with utmost care, and every moment must be taken with utmost caution.
When engaging in magical combat, one must always devote at least 30% of their attention to guarding against the deathly gray mist overhead.
"Damn it! Where is this demon hiding?!"
An elder of the Vast Righteousness Sect, dressed in Chiyang robe and surrounded by nine scorching fire pearls, had just forced back two Northwest True Person with his "Nine Yang Devil-Refining True Fire," a technique capable of burning mountains and boiling seas.
Just as they were about to pursue and expand their gains, darkness fell from above!
He looked up in horror and saw a dark silver beam of light, thicker and more concentrated with star power than any he had seen before, descending directly upon him!
Even before the beam of light arrived, a terrifying pressure had already descended.
"Nine Yangs Lunzhuan, True Fire protects the body!"
Elder Chiyang shouted sharply, daring not to hold back in the slightest. The nine fire pearls suddenly merged into one, transforming into a blazing white sun with a diameter of a hundred feet, firmly protecting his body.
On the surface of the blazing sun, countless fine golden Dao patterns flowed, emanating the supreme Yang Dao charm that could burn away all evil.
However, at the moment the dark silver pillar fell and collided with the blazing white sun...
A teeth-grinding "crunch," like glass being slowly crushed by a heavy hammer.
"Such immense star power?! It's even stronger than the Secret Method of the Heavenly Star Sect!" A storm of shock surged within him.
The stalemate lasted less than three breaths before the protective sun shattered, turning into a shower of fiery flames that scattered across the sky.
Elder Chiyang's robes were charred black, and his aura was weak. He immediately transformed into a streak of crimson light and fled for his life, no longer daring to linger in battle.
Similar scenes played out repeatedly throughout Lifeless Valley.
"Fellow Daoists, guard your minds and spirits, and form the Myriad Phenomena Return to Origin Formation!"
By using this array to sense changes in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, it might be possible to provide early warning of the demonic star's pillar of light!
A master from Formation Art skilled in array formations made a True Person suggestion, his voice spreading far and wide through Secret Method.
Immediately, seven or eight True Person responded, quickly gathering together and taking their positions. Their Law Power powers intertwined, and a light blue light shield covering several miles, with a harmonious and unified energy, quickly took shape.
On the light shield, countless tiny runes flowed, like living things, constantly sensing and analyzing all the spiritual energy fluctuations around them.
This method proved effective.
Just then, a dark silver pillar of starlight descended from the northeastern sky.
The runes in the corresponding area of the pale blue light shield suddenly brightened, emitting a sharp warning light!
The True Person presiding over the Formation Art tensed up and simultaneously activated the Formation Art. The light shield swirled and condensed into layers of azure light barriers, hundreds of feet thick, at the point where the star pillar would fall, forcefully resisting the downward force of the star pillar!
Although the protective barrier trembled violently and its spiritual energy was rapidly depleted, it ultimately managed to block the attack!
"Good! Effective!" The True Person in the formation was invigorated.
"Maintain the Formation Art, expand its range, and cover the other fellow cultivators!" the host shouted, hope rekindling in his eyes.
However, what they didn't know was that Qi Yun, who was hundreds of miles away and hidden deep in the underground array, had seen this whole scene through the [Ominous Star].
"Oh? You want to use Formation Art to sense things in advance and concentrate your defenses?"
Qi Yun's lips curled slightly, and a flash of dark silver starlight appeared in his eyes.
"Good idea, but unfortunately—"
With a slight thought, the trajectory of the stellar energy flowing within the high-hanging [Ominous Star] underwent an extremely subtle deflection in the next instant.
The third pillar of stars still descended from the sky.
However, its landing point was neither the strongest part of the "Myriad Phenomena Return to Origin Formation" nor its weakest edge.
Rather, it is one of the most crucial "anchor points" connecting the Formation Art's light shield to the earth's veins below.
That place is a tiny "stagnation point" in the flow of spiritual energy in the Formation Art, and it is also a gap where the spiritual energy of the earth veins is forcibly drawn out by the Formation Art, creating a slight "disharmony" with the natural flow.
The star pillar fell silently.
Instead of attacking the light shield directly, it precisely penetrated that tiny "gap".
Like molten iron, it was poured into the most vulnerable joint of the glass vessel.
"Click"
A faint, almost inaudible cracking sound simultaneously exploded deep within the Divine Soul the several True Person who were presiding over the Formation Art!
Immediately afterwards, the pale blue light shield of the entire "Myriad Phenomena Return to Origin Formation" twisted and fluctuated violently, as if a curtain had been stripped of its skeleton.
The surface runes were fading and disintegrating in large swaths!
The spiritual energy of the Formation Art backfired and surged, causing the seven or eight True Person within the formation to groan simultaneously, their auras becoming disordered.
"Oh no! The Formation Art has been broken!"
Almost at the same instant the Formation Art collapsed.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth dark silver star pillars, like venomous snakes that had been waiting for a long time, struck from three different directions at almost perfect timing!
The target is the three True Person in the formation whose auras are slightly weaker and Law Power is not flowing smoothly due to the backlash!
"You dare, you devil!"
The gasps and roars abruptly ceased.
Starlight burst forth, and dark silver ripples of destruction spread out, completely engulfing that area.
The three righteous True Person were charred and smoking, looking utterly disheveled. Although they hadn't died, they were seriously injured.
"It's not just simple astrology—that demon is also proficient in Formation Art."
It can even interfere with and utilize the techniques of the earth's veins!
A knowledgeable and experienced True Person shouted loudly...
After this battle, no one dared to easily set up large-scale defensive Formation Art again.
Who knows if that demon will trigger a backlash from the Formation Art again through some unexpected "gap"?
The morale and tactics of the righteous side were completely disrupted.
Everyone was suspicious, and everyone felt that their every move was being watched.
Qi Yun, the one who started all of this, frowned slightly at this moment.
He looked down at his hands, where faint silver stardust drifted from his fingertips.
"Activating the [Ominous Star Shines High] to interfere with the Formation Art's ley lines will consume more mental and Law Power than expected," he silently assessed.
"Moreover, the attacks of the [Ominous Star] are difficult to defend against."
However, against truly skilled and highly proficient True Person, the threat is limited.
The three star pillars that struck earlier were able to severely injure three people mainly because they took advantage of the perfect opportunity presented by the backlash from the Formation Art and the opponent's loss of composure.
If the opponent is fully alert, it is not impossible to dodge or withstand the attack.
"However, that's enough." A glint flashed in Qi Yun's eyes. "What I wanted was precisely the effect of this suspended sword—to distract them and throw them into disarray."
On the other side...
Sensing the changing situation, the Northwest True Person also began to take action.
"Blood Bone Old Ghost, you sensed it too?"
In a ruin shrouded in a dense aura of bloodlust, an old man, emaciated like a skeleton and draped in a tattered, blood-stained robe, licked his lips and whispered to another being shrouded in twisted shadows beside him.
A hoarse laugh came from the shadows, "Heh heh, those righteous gentlemen in the south, they're all like castrated chickens, hesitant and timid when they fight, and they keep looking up at the sky—"
There must be something that frightened them.
"It's Star Power."
In another direction, on a suspended, dark reef, sat a one-eyed old man. In the depths of his pupil, it seemed as if a vortex of stars was swirling.
"Very pure and domineering stellar energy, coming from the heavens."
Someone is helping us.
"Who cares who he is!" A deep, booming voice, like rolling thunder, rang out. The speaker was a figure three zhang tall.
A giant with bluish-gray skin covered in strange stone patterns.
"This is a golden opportunity! These southern barbarians have lost their composure; if we don't kill them now, when will we?!"
"Not bad." The last to speak was a woman dressed in a plain white dress, with stunningly beautiful features but a bloodless face. Her voice was cold and devoid of any emotion.
"Send a message to all fellow cultivators you can contact: switch from defense to offense, form groups of three, and ambush any isolated or weakened Southern Barbarian True Person."
Be careful to avoid those tough opponents who are clearly on guard and have formed a defensive formation.
Use speed to defeat slowness, and numbers to defeat numbers.
Strike and retreat immediately, without prolonging the fight.
These individuals were all notorious and cunning old Old Devil in the Northwest Demonic Path, their cultivation only at the Early Foundation Establishment Stage.
But they are experienced and have a keen eye.
They quickly reached a consensus.
The next moment, a series of secret demonic messages, like ice water thrown into boiling oil, exploded in the shadows and chaos of Lifeless Valley.
The Northwest True Person, who were originally fighting independently and even wary of each other, were now responding to this clear signal of "counter-offensive".
They quickly demonstrated combat skills and teamwork far exceeding those of righteous cultivators.
They did not blindly assemble, but instead broke into smaller groups.
Like a swarm of sharks drawn by the scent of blood, they silently blended into the complex terrain and chaotic spiritual energy of Lifeless Valley.
The Northwest Demonic True Person, like the most cunning and ruthless hunters, fully exploited the weaknesses of the Liaozheng faction—their unsettled minds and inability to effectively coordinate with each other.
Furthermore, they made perfect use of the mysterious "star magic" to interfere and interrupt at just the right time.
They may ambush, lure the enemy, launch a surprise attack, or engage in hit-and-run tactics.
Every move they make is thunderous and powerful, with seamless teamwork, giving their opponents no chance to breathe.
This showcases the exceptional combat skills of the Northwest True Person!
Qi Yun's [Ominous Star] is like a cold and precise archer hidden behind the scenes!
He does not seek widespread destruction.
Instead, they concentrate their power to the extreme for a cold and deadly assassination!
Starlight never appears on the front lines, but it always manages to create fleeting opportunities for the Northwest Demonic Path's assassins at the most crucial moments in the most unexpected ways.
In just two days, three righteous True Person fell one after another, thanks to the planned attacks by the Northwest Demonic Path and the precise assistance of the [Ominous Star].
Above the Lifeless Valley, on the illusory chessboard, three more of the dots representing "white pieces" dimmed.
The gap between the top combat forces of the righteous and demonic factions has begun to narrow.
A strange ball of light, about the size of a fist, bluish-gray in color, with countless tiny threads of cause and effect intertwined and writhing inside, floated in front of him.
The ball of light emanated a profound Daoist aura of "the nascent beginning of all things" and "the initiation of cause and effect."
It was the key he had been searching for, crucial for his advancement to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.
The first of the Four Seasons wondrous objects: [The Origin of Beginnings]!
Over the past two days, using the [Ominous Star] as his eyes, he personally participated in, guided, and amplified the causal vortex of the battle between good and evil in the Lifeless Valley.
Ultimately, they dominated the entire battle!
At this moment, this wisp of [Origin of Beginnings] has finally begun to take shape!
"Although it is still very weak, it is far from enough to support a promotion."
But—at least they grasped the key points and took the first step.
Qi Yun stared at the bluish-gray light before him, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.
He could sense that as long as the karmic calamity within this Lifeless Valley continued to ferment and evolve...
He could continuously draw upon the essence of the Dao from it, gradually strengthening this wisp of [Origin of Beginnings].
Even more, it reveals clues to the subsequent [Four Seasons].
"The scheme of Imperial Weapon, the struggle between good and evil, is indeed a great cause and effect—" he murmured to himself, carefully storing the [Origin of Beginnings] deep within the [Great Luo Heaven] to nurture it.
Then, he looked up again, his gaze seemingly piercing through the thick layers of rock, landing on the Lifeless Valley, where the carnage was even more intense and the blood was even thicker.
"The game is in full swing, and the battle is raging."
"However, the progress is still too slow. The longer it takes, the greater the risk. We're adding fuel to the fire!"
With a soft murmur, Qi Yun flipped his hand and took out a glittering pearl. It seemed as if a hundred stars were orbiting and swimming inside the pearl, emitting a clear radiance.
This bead is named: Hundred Stars King Clasp.
It is another Law Treasure of Xuanhengzi, with formidable power. It accumulates the power of stars in daily life, transforming them into hundreds of stars, which can enhance cultivation, purify the physical body, and has many wonderful uses.
As soon as he grasped the magical Law Treasure, Qi Yun's eyes gleamed.
Refined in an instant!
He intends to use the Daoist essence of this Law Treasure to push [Ominous Star Shines High] to version 10.0, elevating this Law Technique to another level!