Fellow Guests in the Coffin

Seeing this banner fly away, the others rejoiced, but Xu Ying felt a sudden, inexplicable chill run down his spine. "It feels like luring a turtle into a jar—placing some bait inside to entice the fish into the trap. If they truly didn't want anyone to see Dao Master Ji Cang suppressed inside, four banners forming the formation would be enough to keep him sealed. But now, one has flown away without reason, giving people a chance to enter..." Xu Ying's heart thumped erratically. Earlier, he had intended to activate the chaos lotus and venture into the Banner Gate Formation to investigate, but now he grew hesitant. Before this forbidden zone had even stirred, news had already spread that Ji Cang was about to break free, seeking disciples to impart a Dao Master cultivation technique. It was an obvious ploy to draw people in. *Ji Cang's technique is the bait,* he thought silently. *We Yuanshou folk have played tricks like this far too often. The people of the other shore simply lack worldly experience—they're nowhere near as devious as us Yuanshou natives.* Jiang Huan, Feng Chang, Miao Qi, Wu Xiang, and the others set off one by one, walking toward the forbidden zone. Although one banner had flown off and the Banner Gate Formation lacked a banner—opening up a sliver of vitality—three banners still remained, after all, and it was still perilous. They cautiously probed their way forward, not daring to advance too quickly. In the distance, more powerful and extraordinary auras were rushing in their direction; other subterranean Immortals had likely received word as well. "Dao Ancestor Xu, are we not going in?" Daoist Wukong asked. Xu Ying hesitated. The Holy Venerable, Qingxuan, Daoist Wukong, and Shi Tianyang were all trapped inside, their fates unknown. He had to make the trip. Yet entering meant becoming a fish swimming into the jar; getting back out would be exceedingly difficult. Just then, several more people arrived and headed into the forbidden zone as well. Daoist Wukong remarked, "So many subterranean Immortals have arrived!" Xu Ying gritted his teeth, strode into the forbidden zone, and charged forward, whispering, "I'm only going to find the Holy Venerable, Qingxuan, and the others. Once I find them, I leave immediately. I won't touch a bite of the bait." Speed had to win the day! Guarded by the remaining three banners, the forbidden zone was fraught with peril. Rippling spiritual light frequently surged toward them in undulating waves. Whenever this spiritual light submerged them, bizarre anomalies often occurred—space-time distortions, time reversal, and all manner of uncanny, unpredictable phenomena. Each displayed divine abilities, either evading or forcing their way through; those who failed often perished within the spiritual light. At that moment, the light ahead suddenly swelled into a tidal surge, churning with waves that blocked their path. For a moment, all the subterranean Immortals halted involuntarily, each pondering a countermeasure. "City Lord Wu Xiang, this tide of spiritual light is too wide and too deep. With our strength alone, we cannot break through," City Lord Jiang Huan said. "We must either join hands or wait for the tide to recede. My Shadu is willing to ally with Youdu." Hearing this, City Lord Wu Xiang shook her head. "With the strength of just our two cities, we still won't make it across. What say the other city lords?" City Lord Feng Chang of Daodu said, "I am also willing to join forces with everyone. Let us see who can claim the Dao Master's heritage!" City Lord Huang Qi of Liangdu laughed. "Once we break into the mountain, we can settle who wins..." Several dozen other subterranean Immortals spoke up, expressing their willingness to join hands and brave the tidal surge of spiritual light together. Once their plan was set, everyone moved out immediately. The surge was formidable indeed. City Lord Feng Chang saw the spiritual light shimmering ahead, his expression changing slightly as he shouted, "Everyone, be careful! Ahead is Samsara—" Before he could finish, a figure suddenly swept past them, charging straight in and plunging into the spiritual light. From within the spiritual light came a youth's voice: "A samsara space formed by samsara dao strength? The dao strength contained in innate spiritual treasures is truly bizarre, but fortunately, it cannot stump me." The others hurriedly pressed forward. City Lord Feng Chang called out loudly, "The samsara dao strength is incoming! Everyone, face it together and don't get sucked into samsara! I cultivate the Great Dao of Samsara—follow me, and do not take a single wrong step!" Knowing he had diligently cultivated the Great Dao of Samsara and possessed immense power as an Immortal, they quickly followed him. City Lord Feng Chang gave his all, activating his samsara divine ability. The crowd leaped into the air one after another, landing across the perimeter of his samsara ring. Their magic power surged, reinforcing the samsara ring and unraveling the spiritual light of samsara dao strength. A mere ripple in the spiritual light unleashed bursts of natural samsara divine abilities—exceptionally treacherous! City Lord Feng Chang surged ahead and finally caught up to the youth within the spiritual light. City Lord Jiang Huan's heart stirred. *Xu Ying! He's an expert in the Great Dao of Samsara? No wonder so many Immortals fell by his hand!* Viewing Xu Ying as a formidable rival, City Lord Feng Chang immediately charged forward to strike him down without a word. Xu Ying was breaking through the restrictions to rush ahead; faced with the surprise assault, he gave no second thought, his body shifting as countless phantom figures of the Martial Dao formed a colossal samsara ring hanging behind him. The two collided with full force. Feng Chang was forced back step after step, letting out a muffled groan. The other Immortals immediately channeled their magic power to reinforce him. Having regained his footing, Feng Chang was about to leverage the collective power of the crowd to contest Xu Ying once more, when suddenly the spiritual light surged. The patterns on the three banners shifted abruptly, and the dao strength transformed along with them! "It's the dao strength of the Five Tais! Watch out, everyone!" Feng Chang's face paled. He urgently shouted, "Guan brothers, you counter the Five Tais dao strength!" There were five Guan brothers, each cultivating one of the five Great Daos: Taiyi, Taichu, Taishi, Taisu, and Taiji. Each had their specialty, having cultivated these five Daos to the Immortal Realm. The five brothers joined hands at once, leading the crowd into the torrent of Five Tais dao strength to keep everyone safe. Seeing that Xu Ying was also in the torrent of Five Tais dao strength, executing none other than Five Tais divine abilities, the five brothers were taken aback. They exchanged glances and suddenly lunged at Xu Ying in unison. Though the five brothers did not cultivate the same Dao, with one heart and united strength, their combined efforts faintly trended toward fusing the five into one! By joining forces, they were drawing ever closer to the Great Dao of Wuji! Feng Chang inwardly praised Guan Chuang, Guan Dang, Guan Jiang, Guan Hu, and Guan Lu upon seeing this, yet what Xu Ying executed was precisely the Great Dao of Wuji! Merging the Five Tais into a single primordial unity, Xu Ying drew in the five brothers' divine abilities, absorbed them into Wuji, and turned them back against the five! Taking the brunt of the strike, the blood and vitality of Guan Chuang and his brothers churned, and they stumbled back repeatedly. City Lord Jiang Huan thought, *Xu Ying, the Immortal Slayer—he truly lives up to his name!* Karma dao strength was no trifling matter; becoming tainted by it meant becoming entangled in karma, which often resulted in death or grievous injury. The crowd dared not be careless and had Divine Calculator Zhuang Baitong take the lead. Zhuang Baitong summoned countless abacus beads that flew into the sky, calculating at a furious pace. Each abacus bead pulled upon a karmic thread, shielding the crowd from being touched by karma. He attacked Xu Ying, shouting, "In the Great Dao of Karma, I reign supreme! Xu Ying, let us test our might!" Xu Ying was likewise manipulating causeless dao strength within the spiritual light to keep karma from latching onto him. Zhuang Baitong's assault hindered his progress, stoking his anger, and he struck back immediately. Both had cultivated the Great Dao of Karma to a profound degree, and their manipulation of dao strength was incomprehensible to the other Immortals. All they could see was that neither man's moves carried overt destructive power; they were light and airy, resembling needles threading yarn around one another. In the blink of an eye, their figures fluttered and separated upon contact. Xu Ying spun around and charged into the tidal surge of spiritual light. Divine Calculator Zhuang Baitong sneered, yanking hard on the karmic thread in his grasp. "Fleeing? Can you ever flee from karma?" As the karmic thread was tugged, terrifying power surged from each of the three banners. Jiang Huan, Wu Xiang, Miao Qi, and the others blanched, scattering in panic, only to see the apocalyptic might of the banners crash down instantly upon Zhuang Baitong. The foremost divine calculator of the subterranean realm was reduced to ashes, dying cleanly and without hesitation! A chill ran through everyone. "Zhuang Baitong clashed with Xu Ying in karmic abilities and was utterly vanquished!" "He thought he had seized Xu Ying's karma to control his life and death, but Xu Ying deceived him—what he held was actually his own karma! Pulling on that karma was suicide!" Even so, the crowd continued rushing forward, unwilling to lag behind by half a step. After all, Dao Master Ji Cang's escape from confinement and impartation of his heritage was for a single disciple. If Xu Ying took it, they would have no chance left! "Taiyi dao strength!" The tidal surge shifted again. Despair gripped the crowd as they watched Xu Ying plunge into the spiritual light of Taiyi dao strength, vanishing from their sight. Taiyi dao strength was also extraordinarily potent. It required someone well-versed in the Great Dao of Taiyi to unravel, or else brute force alone. None in the subterranean realm mastered the Great Dao of Taiyi, yet relying on brute force would certainly leave them unable to catch up to Xu Ying. "Join forces..." City Lord Feng Chang of Daodu shouted. The subterranean realm had never been united; cities routinely clashed and butchered one another. This was the first time they had ever banded together, charging into the Taiyi dao strength's spiritual light as one. From further in the distance, Xu Ying's voice drifted back: "Yin-Yang dao strength? Fortunately, I know a thing or two about this!" "God-fiend dao strength? Cannot stump me!" While the crowd fought desperately in the Taiyi spiritual light, the youth's voice grew fainter and fainter until it could no longer be heard. Xu Ying pressed on at full tilt. From time to time, his body would shudder, manifesting five Dao bodies to help him crack the various lights of dao strength. *I must find the Holy Venerable, Qingxuan, and the others and bring them out before these subterranean fellows enter the Banner Gate Formation!* Breaking through restrictions like mad, he drew closer and closer to the celestial mountain in the sinkhole, thinking, *With three banners, the Banner Gate Formation still has a thread of life. If that departed banner returns and anchors into the formation's core, there will be no way out!* *Once those subterranean Immortals enter the range of the three banners and set foot on the celestial mountain, the fourth banner will fly back! The architect behind this trap did all this for these prey!* His window of time was exceedingly narrow; he had to beat everyone else. At last, ahead of all the others, Xu Ying breached the Banner Gate Formation and reached the celestial mountain shrouded beneath the banners. This mountain sat at the center of the sinkhole. Upon arriving, the oppressive pressure abruptly lifted. The celestial mountain was filled with birdsong, fragrant blossoms, and delightful scenery. "Hey, I sense myself!" Daoist Wukong's strand of hair called out. "They're on the mountain!" Xu Ying did not pause for an instant, charging straight up the slopes. Though the Banner Gate Formation was perilous beyond measure, the journey up the mountain was devoid of danger. Xu Ying soon reached the summit, where a grand hall stood before him. Xu Ying burst into the grand hall like a whirlwind. The Holy Venerable, Qingxuan, Daoist Wukong, and Shi Tianyang were inside, covered in wounds and nursing severe injuries. Seeing Xu Ying, relief washed over them all. "Dao Ancestor Xu, you arrived just in time! We discovered a mysterious coffin and were planning to—" Before the Holy Venerable could finish, Xu Ying cut him off with a rapid shout: "Everyone up! Follow me and fight our way out while we can still survive!" Daoist Wukong recalled his strand of hair and smiled. "Dao Ancestor Xu, we were originally trapped in the Banner Gate Formation and thought we were doomed. Who knew that one banner would fly away? Because of that, our lives were spared and we managed to reach this place." Before he could finish speaking, Xu Ying had already activated his Wuji divine ability. The four floated up against their will, landing inside the Wuji cave abyss behind him. Xu Ying had not yet cultivated the Great Dao of Wuji to the Immortality Realm, so it had not merged with his Martial Dao Cave Abyss and remained separate. Having stowed the four away, Xu Ying charged down the mountain. At that very moment, the sky turned blindingly bright. Halfway down the mountain, Xu Ying looked up and saw a banner of spiritual light plunging down from beyond the heavens! "Dammit, one step too late!" Xu Ying looked at the plunging fourth banner, then at the surging tide of spiritual light barring his path. Gritting his teeth, he reversed direction and bolted back toward the celestial hall atop the mountain! The Holy Venerable shouted, "The coffin! We hide in the coffin!" The banner of spiritual light grew ever more dazzling and piercingly bright, stabbing back into its original position at the foot of the mountain. City Lord Jiang Huan, City Lord Wu Xiang, and the others watched blankly as the fourth banner fell and completed the Banner Gate Formation. In an instant, immeasurable power erupted! How terrifying was a great formation composed of innate spiritual treasures? Wherever the Banner Gate Formation's might swept, Jiang Huan, Wu Xiang, Miao Qi, and all forty-two subterranean Immortals were wiped out, reduced to ashes. The horrific dao might engulfed everything, swallowing even the celestial mountain! In the celestial hall at the mountain peak, Xu Ying caught sight of the coffin. Without thinking, he dashed to its side, hoisted open the lid, and leaped inside. *Boom!* An apocalyptic might flattened the mountain. The celestial hall was obliterated, leaving only the coffin—impervious to destruction, steadfast as a mountain. Floating in the void, the coffin appeared modest from the outside, but its interior space was vastly larger. Within, it was pitch black; only the sounds of heaven and earth being torn asunder roared from outside, a cacophony of mingling Dao resonances. Frightened of the dark, Shi Tianyang quietly conjured a plume of divine fire. The flame flickered eerily, illuminating the inside of the coffin. The faces of Xu Ying, Qingxuan, the Holy Venerable, and Daoist Wukong were illuminated one after another by the divine fire. Only then did they realize there was an extra, ghastly pale face among them. *Pfft.* The ghastly face opened its mouth and blew on the divine fire. Instantly, the flame died out, plunging their surroundings back into absolute darkness. Nothing remained but the sound of Shi Tianyang's chattering teeth. "I've been dead for so long," a voice inside the coffin said. "I don't like light."