Deploying the Banners

Xu Ying's heart gave a sudden jolt. Whirling around, he bolted, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye and leaving only Zhangsun Shenghai standing frozen where he was, utterly bewildered by what had just occurred! Zhangsun Shenghai was a gentleman, gentle and warm as jade. Although he had endured considerable hardship in his early years, compared to Xu Ying, he still lagged far behind in adaptability and uninhibited pragmatism. Suddenly, Xu Ying came howling back, grabbed his hand, and surged outward at breakneck speed, barking, "Run—!" Within the two coffins, the two corpses—one old and one young—parted their jaws to whale-gulp the heaven-and-earth origin energy. In an instant, countless stars flew toward them and detonated in succession, transforming into pure energy that plummeted into their maws! Zhangsun Shenghai glanced back over his shoulder, only to see that the river of stars they had summoned moments ago was already more than half consumed! At the same time, the starry sky itself was collapsing and compressing, as if the two corpses were immense black holes, tearing space-time to shreds, crumpling it into a ball, and swallowing it into their bellies! Space-time was also a Great Dao, and it too was being devoured by them! "Dao Masters!" Zhangsun Shenghai realized what was happening and cried out in shock, "What escaped from the pagoda are the corpses of Dao Masters!" Xu Ying set him down and said, "Who cares if they're Dao Masters or Buddha Masters? They're out for our lives—keep moving!" Zhangsun Shenghai immediately accelerated. Running one after the other, the two fled with all their might. Their speed was astonishing. With every stride they took, space-time contracted; chasing the sun and moon was a matter of mere inches, crossed with effortless ease. Yet behind them, space-time was continuously compressing, preventing them from rapidly widening the distance between themselves and the Heaven and Earth Elegance Pagoda. Xu Ying's heart sank, and he quickly said, "Let's find the other junior brothers!" Hearing this, Zhangsun Shenghai kept pace and asked, "Is there a Dao Master with those four junior brothers? I once saw him from afar, slaying the Heavenly Emperor of the Zhao Realm!" He was referring to Dao Master Ji Cang. If Dao Master Ji Cang intervened, he could surely eliminate these two Dao Master corpses! Little did either of them know, Dao Master Ji Cang had been terrified of the calamitous destiny. The moment the calamity erupted, he had fled the Zhao Realm on a ship into the Chaos Sea and was no longer here. Suddenly, the two corpses flew flat out of their coffins, flanking left and right as they gave chase after Xu Ying and Zhangsun Shenghai! A cold glint flickered in Dao Master Tongtian's eyes as his gaze swept across the faces of Dao Master Hua, Dao Master Lin, and Dao Master Luo one by one. Earlier, they had claimed this was not their doing, but that was a mere pretext. It might fool others, but it could not fool him. The Heaven and Earth Elegance Pagoda was Dao Master Luo's supreme treasure, and the corpses of the two Zhao Realm Dao Masters had been housed within it. With only the power of those two corpses, there was no way they could have broken free of the treasure's suppression on their own! Furthermore, if these two Dao Master corpses had truly broken free because they sensed the aura of their homeland, why hadn't they escaped when entering the Zhao Realm? Why hadn't they escaped when Ji Cang slew Emperor Zhao He? Why had they broken free right when Xu Ying and Zhangsun Shenghai were locked in their duel? It was nothing more than seeing how brilliantly talented these two were and refusing to let them grow, thus giving rise to murderous intent! However, as to which of the three harbored murderous intent—or whether all three shared it—that was beyond Dao Master Tongtian's knowledge. Suddenly, Dao Master Tongtian shook his sleeves and turned to leave. Sensing his fury, Dao Master Hua shook his head and said, "Still too young." Dao Master Lin sighed, "He thinks we deliberately unleashed those two Dao Master corpses to kill Xu Ying and Zhangsun Shenghai, believes us to be petty and narrow-minded, and refuses to associate with us. That is why he left. Then again, doing this really was a bit petty of us." Dao Master Luo's eyes flickered, and he said, "If those two were merely outstanding—as outstanding as we are—we could still tolerate and accommodate them. But they are even more outstanding than us. It is only natural that murderous intent was stirred." Dao Master Hua said, "Tongtian's departure proves he is still not of one mind with us." Dao Master Luo chuckled, "He is of a foreign race, while we belong to the sacred race. Those not of our kind are bound to harbor different intentions." Right then, Dao Master Tongtian suddenly wheeled around and came hurtling back! In an instant, sword light flashed. Even before the blade arrived, a surging torrent of killing intent swept in, filling the eyes of the three Dao Masters with a blinding expanse of crimson—and nothing else! The three Dao Masters were startled and hastily dodged in different directions. Dao Master Hua flipped around and grabbed the Falling Petals Divine Axe in his hand. As Dao Master Lin retreated, the Imprisoning Dao Divine Spear was already in his grasp. Dao Master Luo's Heaven and Earth Elegance Pagoda was positioned between the two universes to maintain the passage, leaving him with no magical treasure at hand. His heart thudded violently, and he was on the verge of deploying the innate numinous treasures and Chaos spirit roots he had amassed! But he immediately realized that Dao Master Hua and Dao Master Lin were both present and would never tolerate Tongtian's presumption, so he held back. The sword light surged. In the next instant, a long sword pierced through the passage between the two universes and struck the Heaven and Earth Elegance Pagoda! The Heaven and Earth Elegance Pagoda shook violently, and fresh blood began trickling out from within! Dao Master Tongtian retrieved the Immortal Slaying Sword, turned around, and walked away, remarking flatly, "Just as I thought. Hidden inside the pagoda must have been an avatar, Dao body, or something of the sort. Harming my disciples incurs interest first. If you dare do this again, do not blame me for being merciless and sending you to assimilate into the Dao." Hua, Lin, and Luo were furious, watching him walk away into the distance. "Tongtian hasn't left us a shred of face! How utterly arrogant!" Dao Master Luo raged. The one who had just perished was his avatar, and several disciples of his were also inside the pagoda. Unleashing the two Dao Master corpses earlier had indeed been the doing of his avatar and disciples. Earlier, Dao Master Tongtian's sword strike between Luo and the Elegance Pagoda had not touched Luo or the pagoda itself, but Tongtian had detected no direct transmission of magic power or divine sense between them. He therefore suspected that Luo had an avatar or Dao body stationed inside the pagoda. Thus, he had departed only to return, striking the pagoda with a single blow that shattered the avatar and disciples into powder! In the Zhao Realm, Xu Ying and Zhangsun Shenghai moved like lightning, racing toward the Zhao Realm's mortal realm below. The Heavenly Court of the Zhao Realm had already been destroyed in this nirvanic catastrophe. The Immortals of the Zhao Realm were slaughtering people everywhere, attempting to exterminate the mortal realm to delay the arrival of the calamitous destiny. Qingxuan, the Holy Venerable, Wukong, and Shi Tianyang were hunting down these Immortals, likewise attempting to stall the calamity. The lower realm was already in complete chaos. Qingxuan, the Holy Venerable, and Daoist Wukong were already Immortals. Their Dao patterns were stronger, and their techniques had been completed. After arriving at the other shore, they had also studied the various classical texts in Taiyi's collection, rectifying their deficiencies long ago. Their cultivation and power far surpassed what they had possessed in the Three Realms. As for Shi Tianyang, although he was not an Immortal, the Stone Clan was born mighty; with a thousand arms wielding a thousand kinds of treasures, his strength was formidable. Meanwhile, the Immortals of the Zhao Realm practiced flawed techniques passed down from the other shore, possessing power comparable only to Emperor Mingdao of back then, far inferior to Qingxuan and the others. When the two sides clashed, a Zhao Realm Immortal was often defeated and slain within a single exchange. They fought separately, battling to prolong the destiny of the Zhao Realm's sentient beings. Shi Tianyang was currently engaged in fierce combat with a Zhao Realm Immortal. That Immortal was no weakling, having cultivated Daoshengzi's method of Samsara. Though Daoshengzi had died, this Immortal had survived, and his cultivation had grown even stronger than before. Channeling his Samsara cave abyss and driving the Great Dao of Samsara, he had put Shi Tianyang in a disheveled state, rendering Shi Tianyang unable to take him down for the moment. Right at that moment, Xu Ying and Zhangsun Shenghai descended from the heavens. Without a word of explanation, they hoisted Shi Tianyang up between them and sped away. Shi Tianyang hurriedly protested, "I can kill him! I don't need your help!" He had barely finished speaking when a crimson glow rushed at their faces. Two grotesque figures reeking of thick corpse qi pounced forward at blinding speed. Wherever they passed, stars collapsed inward and disintegrated, transforming into pure energy that surged toward the two! Not only that, but even the expert among the Zhao Realm Immortals who had just been dueling him lost his footing, sliding uncontrollably toward them. *Bang!* The Immortal burst apart on the spot, his flesh and primordial spirit dissolving into rolling waves of energy that fell toward the two corpses! "A sacrifice?" Shi Tianyang's voice cracked in shock. "Are these two corpses dead Dao Masters? Where did they come from?!" "No idea!" Xu Ying replied rapidly. "They escaped from a pagoda! The ancient corpses in the pagoda need to conduct a blood sacrifice before they can revive! They haven't revived yet, so we still have a chance to get rid of them!" Hearing this, Shi Tianyang fell silent, thinking, *Shouldn't it be that since they haven't revived yet, we still have a chance to run away?* As they spoke, they found Qingxuan, swept him along, and flew onward. Behind them, the cultivation of the two Dao Master corpses steadily rose, yet because the blood sacrifice remained incomplete, they could not fully revive. Qingxuan looked back, his heart leaping into his throat. He was no stranger to reviving through blood sacrifices. Back when he had followed Xu Ying to the other shore and reached Tongtian's place of demise, he discovered that although Daoist Tongtian was dead, a sinister blood sacrifice was underway. In the end, Xu Ying used the Xuanhuang Dao Realm Scripture to lure numerous Immortals, True Kings, and Dao Sovereigns to complete the sacrifice, allowing Tongtian to revive as a Dao Master. Ji Cang had been the same. *These two Dao Master corpses also need the sacrifice of vast numbers of experts to revive!* he thought to himself. Xu Ying and the others swiftly located Daoist Wukong and then went in search of the Holy Venerable. Behind them, the two Dao Master corpses rampaged along the way, devouring world after world and slaughtering Zhao Realm Immortals to sacrifice to themselves. Their cultivation and power grew stronger by the moment, and they drew closer and closer to Xu Ying and the others. The space-time collapse they caused even pulled at Xu Ying and his companions, slowing their speed considerably. Suddenly, Daoist Wukong spotted the Holy Venerable and called out hurriedly, "Dao Ancestor Xu, the Holy Venerable is over there!" Xu Ying strained to rush toward the Holy Venerable, but found the distance between them widening instead. Sensing disaster, he threw all his magic power into hurling Daoist Wukong far ahead, shouting, "Have the Holy Venerable deploy his banner!" Daoist Wukong shot whistling out of the domain encompassed by the two Dao Master corpses' magic power, racing straight toward the Holy Venerable while bellowing, "Holy Venerable, deploy your banner!" Hearing this, the Holy Venerable did not hesitate for a second. He immediately raised his Ground-Leaving Flame Radiance Banner, and roaring flames instantly filled the void! At the same time, Daoist Wukong also unfurled his Plain-Colored Cloud Realm Banner, sending seas of clouds churning! Meanwhile, Xu Ying, Zhangsun Shenghai, and the others were already plummeting toward the two Dao Master corpses. In their field of vision, the distant space-time warped into circular folds, while nearby space-time continuously collapsed and disintegrated, shattering into pure energy! The Great Daos of heaven and earth were crumbling as well; even the Daos within powerful beings such as themselves were fracturing! "Deploy the banners!" Xu Ying roared, deploying the Dao-Blending Apricot Yellow Banner. Its fluttering banner face tore through the twisted space-time, leaving behind trails of black and yellow. Qingxuan also activated the Azure Lotus Treasure Color Banner. As the banner unfurled, a twelve-petaled azure lotus emerged amidst the Dao radiance. As the four great banners were deployed, they instantly formed the Four-Banner Gate Array, tearing open the shattered space-time created by the two Dao Master corpses! The great banners snapped in the cosmic wind, spanning millions of miles across the void, their numinous light born of Chaos dazzling beyond measure. The two Dao Master corpses charged forward. Suddenly, Xu Ying swept his banner to open a gateway, and both corpses plunged straight into it, trapped inside the Four-Banner Gate Array! Xu Ying sat cross-legged. Qingxuan, the Holy Venerable, and Daoist Wukong sat down as well, solemn and dignified. Each invoked their primordial spirit to drive the Four-Banner Gate Array, doing everything in their power to trap the two Dao Master corpses. Zhangsun Shenghai and Shi Tianyang held the line from the flanks, channeling their magic power to empower each banner and aid in refining the demons. The six sat motionless in vigil. Within the Four-Banner Gate Array, earth-shaking roars reverberated as the two Dao Master corpses charged repeatedly, trying to break through the formation. At times, enormous, distorted faces bulged against the banner fabric, straining to burst free. Fortunately, innate numinous treasures were extraordinary, repelling the Dao Master corpses time and time again. They refined them for six or seven days, yet the two Dao Master corpses remained as vigorous as ever. In contrast, the six defenders were panting heavily from exhaustion, their cultivation and magic power failing to keep up. Activating innate numinous treasures exacted far too great a toll; even Immortals could not sustain it for long. Gritting their teeth, the group continued to drive the Four-Banner Gate Array. Another day passed. The strength of the two Dao Master corpses began to wane, and a foul, putrid stench drifted out from the formation. Suspicious, Xu Ying had Shi Tianyang take control of the Apricot Yellow Banner in his stead, rose to his feet, walked over to the banner, and stepped inside. A gateway manifested upon the banner's surface, swinging open of its own accord as he approached. Xu Ying passed through the gateway and stepped through the banner. Before long, he found the two corpses. To his astonishment, the Dao Master corpses, which had remained uncorrupted in the pagoda for tens of millions of years, were now rotting and festering, completely shorn of their earlier ferocious menace! "Calamitous destiny... It's calamitous destiny..." Witnessing the wretched state of the two corpses, Xu Ying suddenly had an epiphany. "They are the Masters of the Great Dao of the Zhao Realm. Even though reduced to corpses, their Dao legacy still originated from the Zhao Realm. With the eruption of the Zhao Realm's calamitous destiny and the arrival of the slaughter calamity, even as deceased Dao Masters, they must settle their karmic debts to heaven and earth." Behind Xu Ying's head, the Karma Golden Wheel surfaced, and the Eye of Karma opened, quietly gazing upon the two Dao Master corpses. Sure enough, mysterious threads of karma bound them. Dao Masters appeared untouched by karma, but in truth, they remained trapped within the greater karma of heaven and earth, unable to escape. These two corpses had attempted to revive by draining the heavenly and earthly Daos of the Zhao Realm, sacrificing and absorbing its Immortals to cling to life. In doing so, however, they had simultaneously drawn in all the calamitous destiny of the Zhao Realm. Xu Ying watched in silence as they decayed, collapsed, and dissolved without a bone left behind. He thought, *The speed at which the calamitous destiny erupted within them was far faster than in anyone else. They were not destroyed by the Four-Banner Gate Array; rather, they were seized upon by calamitous destiny, slain by the Dao of Slaughter, and annihilated by the Dao of Nirvanic Extinction.* He walked back out. The moment Xu Ying stepped out of the Four-Banner Gate Array, the calamitous destiny shrouding the entire Zhao Realm suddenly dispersed, as if it had never existed. Sensing the calamity recede, Xu Ying cast his gaze over the devastated Zhao Realm, seeing only scattered, dying stars and a desolate world. "Everyone is caught within this karma between heaven and earth; no one can break free. Not Immortals, and not even Lords of Great Dao! If so, is there such a thing as true transcendence?" He murmured under his breath, "Can the other shore truly pass on its calamitous destiny forever and remain untouched by calamity?"