Ambush

As he retreated, Qin Sang's gaze swept swiftly across the surrounding chamber, yet he detected not the slightest abnormality. That was only natural—if Old Man Dique intended to ambush Daoist Xuan Yu, he certainly would not show any flaw; once he struck, it would be a thunderous blow. By now, provoked by the saber qi, the restrictions on the green stone blazed with brilliance, forming a wall of light. The Tiangang Saber Talisman cut into the wall of light, seemingly meeting immense resistance. Not only did it fail to cleave the wall of light apart, but its speed grew slower and slower. This showed just how formidable the stone hall's restrictions were. Daoist Xuan Yu wore a solemn expression, driving the Tiangang Saber Talisman with all his might, not daring to slacken in the least. Should the stone hall's restriction gain the upper hand and turn the tables, not only would there be no hope of breaching it, but he might even suffer a backlash from the restriction. Though he was confident he could dodge it, caution was always the better choice. Catching sight of Daoist Xuan Yu's actions from the corner of his eye, Qin Sang felt increasingly uneasy. He retrieved his ghost banner, concealed it within his palm, and quietly channeled it. Then, shifting his gaze, he looked down at the turbulent, rolling magma below. Two Core Formation stage cultivators, plus an enigmatic ancient hall heavily laden with restrictions—every single one made Qin Sang's heart pound with dread. Before them, he was no different from an ant. If a great battle broke out, it would be fine if one party swiftly finished off the other, as the fallout would not spread too far. But once they fell into a stalemate, it was hard to say what would happen. Should he be caught by the aftershocks of a battle between Golden Core Masters, he would be severely wounded if not killed outright. Worse still, if he was exposed to the sight of a Golden Core Master, all his previous efforts would go to waste. The space within the volcano was simply not large enough. Unfortunately, there were no firebirds in the magma; if he left the flock now, he would have nowhere to hide and would be noticed by them just the same. Just as this thought crossed his mind, Qin Sang's gaze suddenly froze. Behind Daoist Xuan Yu, the phantasmal silhouette of the Tianyin Conch abruptly appeared! The moment the Tianyin Conch manifested, it flickered and, as if teleporting, appeared directly above Daoist Xuan Yu's head. The power of the Thousand Illusions Divine Sound surged out from the shell's opening like a swarm. This power of the Thousand Illusions Divine Sound actually condensed into a crescent scimitar. It looked light and ethereal, seemingly without much lethal might. Yet from so far away, Qin Sang's hairs stood on end with just a single glance, struck by immense dread. In an instant, the crescent scimitar bore down upon Daoist Xuan Yu! By this point, Daoist Xuan Yu had also sensed the danger. But the Tianyin Conch had appeared too fast, too bizarrely, and the timing chosen was precisely when he was locked in a bitter stalemate with the ancient hall's restrictions. Warning bells rang wildly in Daoist Xuan Yu's heart. He had not seen the crescent scimitar with his own eyes, but he could clearly feel the aura radiating from it—an aura that spelled death! It made his scalp tingle as if it might burst. If he could not block this strike, he would very likely die. Daoist Xuan Yu let out an enraged roar. With no time to think, he could only hurriedly wrench the Tiangang Saber Talisman, which was still contending with the ancient hall's restrictions, out of the wall of light. Swoosh! Boom! The Tiangang Saber Talisman shot back like a shooting star, stubbornly blocking the crescent scimitar in the nick of time. As the two "weapons," both imbued with the full power of Core Formation cultivators, collided, ripples visible to the naked eye rippled outward, shaking the chamber incessantly and sending towering waves surging through the magma. Smack! A monstrous wave slapped violently against the stone platform, spattering scalding magma all over Daoist Xuan Yu. He could not spare the slightest attention to care about this. Though he had made the Tiangang Saber Talisman block the crescent scimitar's initial sneak attack, the crisis was far from over. Buzz... The Tiangang Saber Talisman trembled ceaselessly, its light dimming rapidly, its humming blade sounding like sorrowful wails. The Tianyin Conch had been prepared for a long time, whereas the Tiangang Saber Talisman had only parried in haste; which was stronger and which was weaker was plain to see. What horrified Daoist Xuan Yu even more was that the stone hall's restriction had been provoked by the Tiangang Saber Talisman. With the talisman abruptly withdrawn, the restriction immediately launched a counterattack. The wall of light swelled rapidly, its blinding brilliance like a scorching sun, whipping up a terrifying gale as it crashed outward, draining the color from Daoist Xuan Yu's face in sheer shock. With the stone hall's restriction in front and the crescent scimitar behind, caught in a pincer attack from front and rear, this was a true dead end! "Ah!" Daoist Xuan Yu roared at the top of his lungs. His hair had come undone from its topknot, making him look utterly mad. Suddenly, he made an appalling move—striking his palm against his own dantian! In the next instant, the spiritual power within Daoist Xuan Yu erupted wildly, entirely absorbed by the Tiangang Saber Talisman. The saber's radiance flared exponentially, cleaving the crescent scimitar straight down the middle before slashing onto the true form of the Tianyin Conch with thunderous speed. With a crisp clang, the Tianyin Conch was struck, knocked flying several dozen zhang away before barely steadying itself, a clearly visible fissure marring its shell! Yet after being cleaved in two, the crescent scimitar did not dissipate. Instead, it swayed in midair, reverting to the origin power of the Thousand Illusions Divine Sound and regathering as one. Paying no heed to the heavily damaged Tianyin Conch, it continued surging toward Daoist Xuan Yu to kill him. At the same time, the gale conjured by the stone hall's restriction swept in head-on. A wisp of green light shone at Daoist Xuan Yu's dantian, and an emerald jade plate rose slowly into the air. Qin Sang knew at a glance that this item had to be Daoist Xuan Yu's life magic treasure. Yet what Qin Sang never expected was that after flying out from the dantian, the emerald jade plate shattered with a thunderous roar! Detonating his own magic treasure! Qin Sang knew Daoist Xuan Yu had been forced into this with no other choice, but he was still amazed by the man's sheer decisiveness. Following the treasure's self-destruction, part of the green light surged forward to block the menacing gale, while the other part turned back to hold off the Thousand Illusions Divine Sound. Only then did Daoist Xuan Yu finally extricate himself from the peril. With a flicker of his figure, he reappeared outside the stone platform. Disheveled and exceedingly battered, he glared viciously at the ceaselessly trembling Tianyin Conch. The Tiangang Saber Talisman also flew back before Daoist Xuan Yu, covered in cracks. Just moments ago, he had been forced to overdraw the secret talisman's power to slice through the crescent scimitar and buy himself the chance to detonate his magic treasure. Unless this talisman was refined anew, it was no longer of much use. From the Tianyin Conch's appearance until now, only a few breaths had passed, yet Daoist Xuan Yu had lost two major treasures in succession. Once again, Qin Sang experienced the sinister cunning of Old Man Dique. At this moment, amidst the chaotic flock of firebirds, one firebird behaved quite abruptly. It flew straight out of the flock, passed through the barrier without any hindrance, entered the chamber, and finally transformed into a ball of flame. A figure stepped forth, and the flames slowly extinguished. It was none other than Old Man Dique. "It's you!" Daoist Xuan Yu's eyes nearly split with rage! "Old bull-nose, how did a taste of the Tianyin Conch feel?" Old Man Dique gave a sinister laugh, casting a glance over the crack on the Tianyin Conch, a wince of heartache flashing through his eyes. "I never imagined that in such dire straits, an old bull-nose like you could still damage my magic treasure. Your sect's Four Great Secret Talismans truly live up to their reputation! However, now that your secret talisman is on the verge of shattering and your life magic treasure is destroyed, just how much capability do you have left?" "You dare ambush me!" Daoist Xuan Yu's voice was shrill and screeching like a vengeful ghost. "Shangyuan Qingjing Palace will surely execute you!" "Shangyuan Qingjing Palace is tens of thousands of li away. Pulling out your sect's name might be enough to scare little children, but even if that old fossil in your sect could divine all secrets under heaven, it would be too late to save you now," Old Man Dique retorted mockingly, completely devoid of fear.