An Imposed Calamity

A strike of the sword fell, cleaving the pure from the turbid. At once, the howling storm across the sky lost another thirty percent of its fury. Wherever the sword Huihao swept through the pale Domain, a thick, spreading trace of ink suddenly appeared. The dark ink traveled along with the broad, sweeping swings of the blade, leaving behind strokes of wildly unrestrained cursive across the void. In an instant, the roving ink settled as if upon paper, forming two glyphs that writhed restlessly like living creatures: [Xun] and [Dui]. Xun below, Dui above. The two winding glyphs overlapped within the Domain, growing clearer until, amidst the collision of history and the evolutionary layering of the past, they formed a brand-new phenomenon. Or rather, a calamity that had transpired countless times before... —[Great Exceeding]! Instantly, the pale Domain hummed. The pale hue bearing the ink stretched outward without end, blending into reality and enveloping the wilderness surrounding Tacheng. In the blink of an eye, fresh gales and downpours surged up from within the tempest, overlapping with the existing storm to shroud Tacheng. Huihao's blessing chain, [Heaven and Earth Are Ruthless], combined blessings of Tianyuan, Aether, Mirror, and Desolate Ruins. It drew upon Tianyuan's control, Aether's insight and recording, Mirror's illusion and reality, and Desolate Ruins' stability and brutality... Its core was creating something from nothing: drawing on Tong Shan's comprehension of natural disasters to recreate, suppress, and even control them! According to the codices of the Heavenly Hearing lineage within Aether, Xun was Wind and Dui was Lake; storm and flood overlapping yielded the tempest and vast inundation before them. The recorded phenomena were inscribed upon the Domain and brought to bear on reality. Using the Domain as a fulcrum, his own blessings and Huihao as a lever, and relying on the external environment, the calamity Tong Shan unleashed easily exceeded his personal limits by a hundredfold. In an instant, it encompassed hundreds of li around Tacheng. It was as though he had caught the multi-thousand-kilometer storm off guard and forcibly ripped away command over this vast expanse... Then, pouring fuel on the fire, he further catalyzed its savagery! In a flash, torrents rampaged and gales wailed mournfully. Amid earthshaking roars, endless lightning flashed. The tempest, which had only just begun to subside, suddenly worsened and took a sharp turn downward... The only difference was that the rampaging calamity—the gales and floods—fell entirely upon the uninhabited wilderness! Consequently, even as conditions outside deteriorated rapidly, the interior surrounding Tacheng began improving at a visible rate. Countless dead branches and clumps of mud swept into the sky tumbled fruitlessly; the boundless deluge and rainfall were deliberately channeled by Tong Shan toward the barren plains and the ocean, unable to touch Tacheng at all. It was just like fighting fire with fire during disaster relief. Compared to a calamity that could effortlessly span thousands of li, even a Celestial Chosen was insignificant. Trying to confront such majestic, sweeping destruction head-on would have exceeded the strength of ten Tong Shans combined. Yet by guiding the forces along their momentum, he could prevent the disaster's spread to the greatest extent possible and sustain the slum's precarious situation. The only drawback was that all the pressure now bore down on Tong Shan alone! When a depression forms in water, the surrounding water will endlessly converge upon it. When an outlet opens within a cruel, raging calamity, the internal pressure naturally bursts forth like a breached dam. What was more, erecting a Tianyuan domain inside a typhoon saturated with the aura of White Stag naturally provoked violent repulsion due to their opposing natures. Even if he leveraged momentum, he was still maneuvering forces far beyond his own limits. A sharp, ear-piercing creak erupted from the void. Formless telekinesis collided with the storm, sending out wave after wave of mournful howls. The vast Domain was now like the hull of a ship plunging into the deep sea, subjected to relentless pounding and testing under the monstrous water pressure outside. Fissures repeatedly surfaced, only to be resealed under Tong Shan's control. The moment he resolved to go all out, he cast aside all concern for his own safety. He had wagered everything upon the Domain: his consciousness, soul, blessings, spiritus... He had not held back the slightest reserve of strength to protect himself. He simply let that sliver of fine lightning—capable of scorching him to ash with ease—dart around him, hovering and jabbing repeatedly near his vitals... Like a man glancing at a roommate's clumsy prank, he merely offered an impassive smile. *Flinch and I lose!* The wisp of lightning swayed helplessly in response. *Fine, you win.* "Too much trust isn't a good thing either, Brother Plant," Ji Jue sighed. Turning his fingers, the unsheathed Zhanlu spiritus shot forth like a darting fish, plunging into the cloud cover and rocketing away. Only then did sharp sonic booms and fierce light burst out in its wake. Lightning crisscrossed like swords, casually reducing every calamity beast that approached Tong Shan to ash. Although it was barely more than a faint flicker of electricity, it moved through the disaster and thunderstorm like a fish in water, astonishingly fast. Ji Jue didn't even need to deliberately steer it. The moment it sensed any living creature, it would pounce without hesitation, ruthlessly ravaging and incinerating it to cinder. The only thing Ji Jue actually needed to control was keeping the spiritus's vicious nature in check, preventing it from slicing up the very person it was meant to protect. As for the rest, anything went. *Time for an all-you-can-eat buffet!* In the dark clouds, calamity beasts rained down. The countless eerie silhouettes drawn by Tianyuan and spiritus were transformed into charred husks one after another by the dancing lightning. Falling from the clouds, they disintegrated completely into ash midair, vanishing without a trace. Revealing its edge for the first time since emerging from the furnace, Zhanlu transformed into thunder, sweeping back and forth and chiming continuously. The spirituality that had metamorphosed from a barren scourge grew increasingly thrilled and exalted. Flickering electric light suddenly burst, then shot away. All one could see was a flash of deep violet before it zipped back. It grew faster and faster until its trajectory became completely imperceptible, leaving only the wisp of lightning suspended in midair, quivering minutely and shedding countless afterimages. At speeds too blinding for the naked eye to track, not a single calamity beast could come within several li of Tong Shan. No screams were heard, no blood was seen; all that could be felt was a fierce, savage aura gradually emerging as it was tempered by the storm. Even Tong Shan could not turn a blind eye. His eyes trembled slightly. Though he had witnessed similar sights from Ji Jue countless times, Tong Shan couldn't help but sigh softly in marvel: *The creations of Embers truly are wicked...* That said, it did not stop him from flicking his fingers to draw a swath of cloud and mist around Zhanlu, concealing its final traces. Within his Domain, amid the surging sea of Aether phenomena and the chaotic aura of the disaster, Zhanlu's presence was shielded flawlessly. He let it gorge to its heart's content! After repeatedly turning beasts to ashes, the thread of lightning was no longer satisfied with ordinary prey. During brief intervals before other calamity beasts could arrive, it broke through the air on its own, riding the turbulent winds toward the borderline where Tong Shan's Domain met the disaster! Two completely different calamities collided there. The auras of Tianyuan and White Stag ground against each other incessantly, sparking countless shrieking bolts of electricity. As the outlet Tong Shan had created by hand, this was precisely where the calamity raged most fiercely. Endless flashes of lightning burst continuously from the clouds, growing increasingly intense. Tainted by the aura of Sovereign Virtue, even the generated thunder moved like living things, snaking around, instinctively probing for gaps in the Tianyuan domain, eroding inward at every opening. Yet amid those blistering bolts of lightning, an insignificant thread of violet electricity suddenly darted out, severing a lightning strike as thick as a water barrel at the waist before swallowing it whole like a whirlpool. In a flash, it devoured the vicious gleams radiating from the collision of the two calamities, then slipped away slickly before drawing any counterattack, returning to Tong Shan's side. The azure radiance over the violet lightning crackled as it digested the meal swiftly. Then, like lightning, it shot out once more, returning in the blink of an eye. It stretched, digested, and went back and forth again... *I'm in! I'm out! I'm back in! I'm out again!* "..." Tong Shan sighed, completely helpless. No wonder people said possessions took after their masters! How had a perfectly good Entropy creation turned so thoroughly shameless and dog-like? It looked wicked no matter how one sliced it, and its appetite was absurdly voracious... Still, a big appetite was fine. It was just disaster aftershocks, not anything that harmed innocents. Tong Shan adjusted the Domain's boundaries, half-intentionally. A sharp corner silently protruded from the drifting edge of the Domain into the surging typhoon, intensifying their clash once more and carving out an unlimited buffet zone specifically for Zhanlu. It was all to help that wicked little violet spark sneak bites like a hungry hound. Now it was Ji Jue's turn to hum with satisfaction. *Yes, yes, yes! Spot on, big brother, absolutely spot on!* There was no need to worry about colliding head-on with the disaster, damaging Zhanlu's spirituality, or contaminating its nature. All it took was a few minutes to recharge, and it could rush out, take a massive bite, and return to digest. Ever since becoming a Celestial Chosen, he had played support countless times. Experiencing being supported for the first time nearly brought tears to his eyes. Brother Plant really was an honest, generous man! *Then I won't hold back.* Thus, under Tong Shan's shelter and assistance, the Zhanlu spiritus went from bad to worse. Dropping all pretense, it slaughtered ruthlessly, gorging furiously! *Kill kill kill kill, eat eat eat eat!* Zhanlu streaked across the interior and exterior of the Domain, killing until calamity beasts were virtually extinct in the area and gorging until even the Domain's collisions could barely keep up with its appetite. Utter madness! In the end, what had started as a slender, threadlike wisp of spiritus lightning swelled almost into a sphere, wobbling as it floated, trembling and expanding continuously. Seeing this, Tong Shan's eyelids twitched uncontrollably. It wasn't a matter of trust; having a bomb that could detonate at any moment squirming right under one's nose was enough to give anyone chills. Only when it truly couldn't swallow another "bite" did the bloated spiritus wobble twice toward Tong Shan. *[Don't go away, we'll be right back!]* Then, like a boulder weighing ten thousand jin, it plunged toward the ground under the cover of clouds and rain. Laden with a harvest so bountiful it was ready to burst, it hurtled toward Ji Jue. By the time the lightning illuminated Ji Jue's stunned face and he finally sensed the magnitude of disaster carried within the Zhanlu spiritus, it was already too late. With a joyful whoosh, Zhanlu sheathed itself instantly! *Here I come!* BOOM! Inside the newly sealed workshop of the unfinished building, countless jumping bolts of lightning erupted, swallowing everything. Amid the deafening roar, the entire building shuddered violently. Amid Yan Fei's terrified shriek, alarming cracks spread across the structure... As for Ji Jue, his heart pounded violently. And quite literally, it felt like it was about to jump out of his mouth! With every beat, visible waves surged from the scorching red heart like a fountain, engulfing it. Echoing between Zhanlu and the disaster, dazzling lightning struck down from the sky one after another within seconds, blasting the building. It left onlookers utterly dumbfounded. *Oh no, did his wicked deeds finally invite heavenly wrath?!* —*Look, everyone, that bastard Ji is finally getting struck by lightning!* *Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!* His heart hammered. With each beat, immense calamity essence rose from the lightning pool; with each contraction, boundless blinding light compressed toward the center. It was like an invisible hammer striking an anvil, sending out sparks of violet lightning and black embers. Until finally, the swollen heart contracted inward once more. Ji Jue's consciousness was completely swallowed by the deafening roar erupting from his soul. Darkness fell before his eyes. Yet amid the darkness and stupor, a faint, flickering glimmer rose once again. It illuminated his eyes. Zhanlu! Zhanlu flew out once more, circling around to effortlessly scatter the negligible aftershocks and reveal a brand-new form. Relying on the limitless external supply, it had completed its first metamorphosis overnight, changing its substance and shape! Soon, in less than half a minute, the Zhanlu that had just vanished ascended into the sky once more, arriving before Tong Shan... It wobbled its body smugly. —*I'm back from having fun, let's keep going!* This time, Tong Shan was left dumbfounded. All he could feel was a bone-chilling dread, as if a sword point were pressed against his soul! Unlike its earlier brilliance and agitation, the wandering wisp of lightning had become exceedingly covert. Even its dark violet shine had dimmed into near transparency. All its mania was thoroughly restrained. Without careful attention, it was nearly impossible to distinguish it from the darkness and storm clouds. Yet as it drifted, clouds parted along its path as though cut by a blade, leaving a straight fissure that lingered, unable to close. Hiding beneath the disaster and storm, it was like a man-eating shark lurking in the ocean depths, watching for any living creature foolish enough to draw near. A drop of cold sweat slid slowly down Tong Shan's forehead. It wasn't out of fear or anxiety, but sheer regret and exasperation: *Ji Jue, that little bastard, is beyond saving!* Such a terrifyingly powerful Entropy creation possessed not an ounce of grand spectacle; instead, it preferred camping in the bushes to ambush people... Underhanded—it was too underhanded! At first, it hadn't seemed used to it; whenever it struck, its sharp aura would send shivers down Tong Shan's spine. But gradually, even that spine-chilling sharpness vanished without a trace. Were it not for the Domain's reflection, he would scarcely have been able to tell where the lightning was going. Lurking like an insect, striking like a rabid dog. Biting without a bark. The calamity beasts that pounced were left without even ashes! "Could there really be something wrong with Yacheng's feng shui?" Tong Shan sighed numbly, at a loss for words. With Haizhou's fine mountains and rivers, and Yacheng being a fairly distinguished place, how had they finally produced a Heaven's Choice with Sovereign Advent only for him to turn out to be such a menace? He was already starting to pity Ji Jue's opponents. Yet that didn't stop his smile from growing increasingly cheerful. He gazed at the approaching storm and disaster. Without backing down in the least. The sword Huihao stood fixed in the firmament as if nailed into the void. Its scorching red hilt sizzled against his fingers, evaporating rainwater that drifted upward only to fall back toward the earth in the gale. Carrying wisps of crimson. No matter how the storm raged, the Domain remained rock-steady. Like a towering, silent mountain enduring the tempest, it hovered over countless shacks and ruins, holding up their final shelter... How long had passed? One hour? Two hours? Three hours? In the end, amid the falling rain, the gazes cast toward him from Tacheng underwent an uncontrollable change... No matter their earlier ridicule or contempt, none could overlook this resolve and tenacity. Unshakeable! Even those who genuinely believed the man in the sky was a fool overestimating his strength had to acknowledge this unyielding might. Through the long night, he weathered the storm's most violent onslaught upon landfall. From beginning to end, the Domain remained as steady as ever. That seemingly precarious state had persisted for at least four hours, yet showed no sign of collapse or losing control. It was as though he felt neither exhaustion nor torment. Such unbelievable resilience and stability were straight out of a horror story! And judging by his calm, effortless appearance, who knew how much longer he could hold out... Was he truly someone who had only recently advanced to Exaltation? It was simply absurd. So much so that even those witnessing it firsthand found it incredible, impossible to fathom... Tong Shan remained silent. Speaking nothing, wavering not. Whether those gazes held admiration or doubt, ridicule or apathy, he paid them no mind. Only Ji Jue's brow gradually furrowed. *Something's wrong!* *Something is getting more and more wrong...* Over the course of the night, through every agonizing second, even with the workshop's spiritus reserves backing him, Ji Jue had grown dizzy and bleary-eyed, his movements beginning to lose their precision. Yet though the entire night had passed, why was the sky still dark? No matter how massive a typhoon was, it should have gradually crossed and moved away by now! Why hadn't the tempest slowed at all? In fact, it was growing more violent! He looked at his phone screen again, at the satellite map, and fell silent. The two comparison images overlapped without the slightest difference... An entire night had passed, yet the eye of Typhoon White Stag was still hovering in place, without moving at all! In fact, it had subtly shifted toward Tacheng. As if changing course, it had made a bizarre turn and was gradually closing in on Tacheng! At that instant, an unprecedented, terrifying roar detonated in the sky! The Domain trembled, unprecedentedly massive fractures appearing as it bordered on collapse. High in the firmament, Tong Shan finally sensed the colossal entity emerging from the endless thunderclouds and storm at the tempest's edge. Nurtured and catalyzed through the night, a monstrosity spawned by natural disaster, a genuine calamity beast whose terrifying silhouette resembled a soaring mountain range, had finally completed its birth, delivered from the storm! Countless calamity beasts had slaughtered and cannibalized one another in the storm to form this bizarre creature, which now revealed its true countenance. Like a giant whale bristling with spider legs, hundreds of slender limbs descended from the clouds into the sea and mudflats. Hollow eyes all across its body opened and closed as it gaped its maw and screeched in voracious hunger! BANG! Spurred by the bizarre beast, the storm—at the end of its tether—suddenly unleashed its dying strength, blasting in every direction. It effortlessly shattered the Domain that had endured all night, nearly blowing Tong Shan right out of the sky. "So that's how it is...?" Beneath the fractured thunderclouds, Tong Shan stared blankly at the terrifying calamity beast a thousand li away. After a long time, as if in sudden realization, he raised his hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, saying nothing. He only tightened his grip on Huihao. And gave a silent, self-deprecating smile. And in that very instant, at the edge of the distant Mid-Continent, between sea and land, the freshly born, raging calamity beast froze in place—nurtured and transformed through the night, a monstrosity that stood at the pinnacle of [Extinction] rank from birth. Given enough time, it might well have grown into another great scourge roaming the mortal realm. With enough luck—if green smoke rose from its nonexistent ancestral graves—it might even have stepped into the [Final] rank in its lifetime. Unfortunately, it had no luck. Nor did it have time. At the very moment it was delivered from calamity, descended upon the mortal world, and let out its first cry, someone at the highest vantage point of the Federation garrison base at Yuanshan Port in Tacheng stretched out a hand.