Great Upheaval

"Be careful!" The Nine Lives Black Tortoise remained on high alert. The seal here shared the same origin as the one on the stone doors, forming an interconnected whole. The Flood Dragon King advanced slowly, exhausting every means at his disposal to penetrate layer after layer of restrictions. The closer he drew to the crystal, the more terrifying the True Dragon's oppressive might became. The flood dragon race possessed the bloodline of the True Dragon. Channeling a secret blood-essence technique, the Flood Dragon King smeared blood restrictions across his body to stave off any backlash from the seal. Forcing his way through the restrictions, he approached the crystal. Lightly touching it, he found the crystal icy cold and extraordinarily hard. He did not act rashly. Sensing it carefully and confirming there was nothing amiss with either the seal or the crystal, he retreated to the entrance of the ancient hall. Exchanging a glance with the Nine Lives Black Tortoise, he summoned his golden spear. Clang! The golden spear thrust into the crystal. The crystal remained completely unharmed. In an instant, an abrupt mutation occurred. The ancient hall shuddered violently as a fracture opened in the ground beneath the crystal pillar, widening at blinding speed and threatening to spread beneath their feet in the blink of an eye. Within the chasm, the ancient restriction formed a vast screen, faintly displaying fine fractures. A violent tremor erupted; the crystal quivered. Just as the two demons prepared to attack the crystal pillar again, the crystal flared with blinding brilliance, and a peerless draconic pressure crashed down upon them. Simultaneously, an immense suction erupted from within the ancient restriction. This sudden upheaval caught both demons utterly off guard. Rumble! The suction surged out of the stone hall as the poisonous lake rushed in reverse, sweeping out in all directions in an instant. Overawed by the draconic pressure, they had no time to employ any countermeasures—they did not even have the chance to unleash the Heavenly Phoenix Feather before being sucked into the fissure in the screen. *** At another poisonous lake. The Grand Shaman and Old Devil Fang joined hands to unravel the divine rune ancient restrictions. Beneath the stone platform lay a subterranean passage. Reaching the end of the passage, they were greeted by an astonishing sight. A fiery-red divine furnace hovered midair. Densely covered in divine rune ancient restrictions, it was clearly an ancient treasure of the Witch Clan. Inside the divine furnace, a dying ember of flame flickered faintly, giving off a wisp of warmth. The moment they laid eyes upon the divine furnace, the Grand Shaman and Old Devil Fang were transfixed. These were divine rune ancient restrictions unlike any they had ever seen, harmonizing with the natural order of heaven and earth and inspiring instinctive awe. Generations of Witch Clan cultivators had searched for countless years, scouring virtually every corner of the Boundless Ocean and the nearby storm belts, only to come up empty-handed as the path of divine runes remained broken. They had no choice but to cultivate human techniques. The only legacy they had managed to preserve was perhaps their art of spirit worms and gu, and even much of that secret heritage had been lost. Now, at long last, they saw a glimmer of hope! After their initial ecstasy, the two noticed that the divine runes on the furnace were incomplete. It was very likely that the furnace's waning power prevented the runes from fully manifesting. Old Devil Fang flickered forward, lunging toward the divine furnace, but the Grand Shaman barred his path. "A divine rune ancient restriction would not appear here for no reason; it is most likely some manner of seal. Although we and the humans share an irreconcilable enmity, our foundations both lie within the inner sea. We rise and fall together. If an ancient demon is released, we will not be spared either. Countless commoners cannot leave the Witch God Continent; if a great calamity is triggered, blood will flow like rivers!" The Grand Shaman warned in a heavy voice, "We must not be reckless!" Old Devil Fang snorted coldly, visibly impatient. The Grand Shaman fixed him with an unyielding glare. In the end, Old Devil Fang yielded. They worked together to unravel the divine rune ancient restrictions. Their progress was slow; before every move, they meticulously observed the fluctuations of the ancient restriction, proceeding only after ensuring nothing was amiss. With every restriction broken, the divine furnace reacted, exuding terrifying pressure. Channeling divine runes and secret Witch Clan arts, the Grand Shaman used his Witch Clan bloodline to soothe the furnace's hostility. To their delight, each time the divine furnace stirred, divine runes were activated. The two watched, enchanted, etching every single divine rune restriction deep into their minds so they could contemplate the Great Dao of divine runes in the future. Right then, a hum suddenly vibrated from the furnace, and the flame within flared dramatically, blazing crimson. Crack! The earth fractured. A great screen of ancient restrictions materialized, followed by an identical eruption of tremendous suction. Still expending all their strength to resist the might of the divine furnace, the two were swept inside without the slightest power to resist. *** Atop Yitian Peak. Three masters at the level of great cultivators besieged the ancient demon. The old man from the Four Sages Palace readied the Demon-Suppressing Stele while darting toward the chasm. Qingzhu remained motionless, seemingly calm, yet a fierce struggle raged within his body. The demonic soul's resistance was extraordinarily fierce, leaving Qingzhu unable to spare any attention. The ancient demon charged frantically toward the fissure. No matter how he urged the demonic restriction he had placed on Demonic Qingzhu, there was no response. Either his main body had tampered with it, or Qingzhu's true soul had suppressed it through some technique. Outmaneuvered by his own main body, he had no choice but to swallow his frustration. The ancient demon knew full well that the power he had reclaimed by devouring the three Nascent Souls could not last forever. Once the Demon-Suppressing Stele was restored, or once Madame Li and her companions repaired the sacrificial altar, his fate would be dire. "Stop him!" The Demon Lord and the others struck with all their might. Boom! Boom! The clash was devastatingly fierce. The sky darkened, blocking out the auroral light, and the ground was pulverized. Within the chasm: The fissure in the screen held the sacrificial altar and seals established by the Four Sages. Upon the altar lay an exceptionally complex grand formation—one that Demonic Qingzhu had infiltrated and set up when the Four Sages Palace removed the Demon-Suppressing Stele and weakened the ancient restriction. The grand formation was in motion, grinding against the sacrificial altar like a pair of iron shears. The old man flew to the formation's side, dismantling it according to Qingzhu's guidance. The sacrificial altar shook and rubble flew, but it was not yet destroyed. It required the ancient demon and Demonic Qingzhu working in tandem to unleash its full might. Yet Demonic Qingzhu was suppressed by Qingzhu's main body, leaving the ancient demon alone. Braving the relentless barrage of attacks, the ancient demon executed a secret art to forcefully drive the unrefined Nascent Soul energies within him. He even burned his origin essence, roaring toward the heavens as he gathered all his true demonic qi and slammed it ruthlessly into the grand formation. The old man startled and darted aside to evade. The true demonic qi poured into the formation. Simultaneously, a powerful surge erupted from within the screen, acting in concert with the ancient demon's split soul. Astonishing shockwaves exploded outward. The sacrificial altar cracked. The seal, pushed beyond its limit, dimmed and gave way, exposing a flaw. The ancient demon laughed wild with triumph. The next instant, another sudden mutation occurred. Once the seal was breached, an immense suction suddenly burst forth from within. Caught unprepared, the Demon Lord and the others were sucked directly into the screen. The ancient demon's split soul, the old man, and Qingzhu were not spared either. In a flash, the fierce battle ceased entirely. Moreover, the suction did not appear only here; the entire fissure across the screen was affected. Inside the ancient hall on the precipice: Before leaving, the old man had sealed the ancient hall, leaving the two descendants of the Four Sages Palace behind, not daring to step outside. A fissure opened, the cliff cracked apart, and boulders crashed down. This was the source. With their grandmaster failing to return, the two were burning with anxiety. The youth went to alert their grandmaster while the young woman remained behind to watch over the ancient restriction. Both of them were swept into the suction as well. A great upheaval was at hand. Rumble! Yitian Peak actually dropped an entire section! Deep within the Secluded Valley, a thunderous roar suddenly echoed, and the entire valley trembled violently. Outside the Spirit-Suppressing Domain, the various demon kings and Nascent Soul Patriarchs looked at one another in bewilderment, having no idea what had happened inside. The Nine Phoenix King had assumed the undercurrents in the poison pool were normal. Only now did she realize that an unforeseen change had occurred on Yitian Peak. Flying out of the Spirit-Suppressing Domain, she turned to look back at Yitian Peak, her expression shifting indeterminately.