A Grueling Wait

The Great Dao of Darkness was characterized by the unknown, mystery, and intangibility. Practitioners of such Daos were difficult to lock onto or trap, making them the premier choice for stealth and reconnaissance. Yet darkness itself could still be accommodated by space. When the Dark Demon Lord had been at his peak, neither Yaoguang's Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation nor his Heaven-Sealing Stele could do anything to him. At best, Yaoguang could only rely on the light of his true spirit to pinpoint the demon lord's location and launch limited counterattacks. However, as the demon lord's heavenly demon origin was whittled away bit by bit by the Great Dao of Destruction within the Great Annihilation Sword Qi, the power of the Great Dao of Darkness he could channel dwindled to its absolute limit. Now, he was firmly suppressed beneath the Heaven-Sealing Stele. Moreover, unlike those Void Shattering and Void Refining experts who wielded potent offensive Dao arts, the Great Dao of Darkness was ill-suited for frontal assaults. Adding to that, Yaoguang's Heaven-Sealing Stele was bolstered by the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, elevating its sealing power by an entire tier. It pinned down the thoroughly weakened Dark Demon Lord on the spot, rendering him completely immobile. Seeing the Dark Demon Lord suppressed, the remaining Void Refining demon cultivators instantly plunged into despair. "How could this happen?!" "It's over! Even Supreme Elder Darkness has been suppressed! Everything is finished!" "Sect Master Yaoguang, I'm actually an undercover agent sent by the Heavenly Dao Sect into the Shadow Moon Sect! All these years hiding in the Shadow Moon Sect were just to find a chance to wipe them out in one fell swoop! I'm on your side!" Yaoguang paid them no heed. He merely gave an order to Wu Changfeng, Qi Sha, and the others: "Pin them down! Of course, if you have the ability to shatter their demonic bodies and refine their heavenly demon origins, do not hold back." "Yes!" Wu Changfeng, Qi Sha, and the others responded with fervent enthusiasm. Two Void Shattering experts and five Void Refining cultivators! This was an unprecedented, glorious victory! With this triumph, their lineage would establish an unshakeable foothold in the Southern Domain. Furthermore, through the immense merit brought by this victory, once Yaoguang reached the Void Shattering realm in the future, he would be fully qualified to contest Zong Wenxian for the position of sect master. Although Zong Wenxian also held records of slaying Void Shattering figures, every single one had relied on the sect's power, with other supreme elders assisting at his side. Yet Yaoguang... He had suppressed and slain two Void Shattering and five Void Refining experts virtually through his own strength alone. The sheer weight of this feat was a full tier above Zong Wenxian's accomplishments! They could already envision just how lofty Yaoguang's standing would become in the future. Under such circumstances, no one would be foolish enough to actually refine these demon cultivators' heavenly demon origins just to boost their own cultivation. Presenting them to Sect Master Yaoguang to help him attain the Void Shattering realm as quickly as possible—and thus qualify to contend for the sect master seat—was the proper course of action. Yaoguang had no idea what was running through Qi Sha and the others' minds. He directly summoned his grotto-heaven world, focusing all his energy on refining the Void Refining cultivator and the Eight Desolations Demon Lord trapped within. The Void Refining cultivator and the Eight Desolations Demon Lord were still struggling, desperate to break out of the grotto-heaven. Yet, bolstered by the Heart of the Void, the sturdiness and stability of Yaoguang's grotto-heaven were far beyond anything an ordinary Void Refining cultivator's grotto-heaven could match. Rather than a mere grotto-heaven, it was more like a pocket world. Now that the two were suppressed inside, escape was completely out of the question. In the end, it took Yaoguang three days to refine the Void Refining cultivator, and a full ten days to refine the Eight Desolations Demon Lord, a Void Shattering sovereign. At such rapid refining speed, the heavenly demon origin inevitably caused considerable "corrosion" to his grotto-heaven, even impacting his combat prowess to an extent. However, he was confident that with these two Void Shattering and five Void Refining demon cultivators of the Shadow Moon Sect falling in Nandu, things would become tranquil and peaceful—not just within the Heavenly Dao Sect, but across the Southern Domain's borders as well. Thus, he would have ample time to purge the corrosion inflicted by the heavenly demon origin and allow his grotto-heaven to swiftly recover in the coming days. *** The battle between Yaoguang and the Shadow Moon Sect's demon cultivators naturally stirred up a frenzy among all the factions surrounding Nandu. Everyone had clearly witnessed the two Void Shattering and five Void Refining demon cultivators sweeping in aggressively, cloaked in demonic flames. Countless factions and cultivators living near Nandu were plunged into panic. Some even felt as though the heavens were collapsing and the earth was splitting apart, fleeing frantically away from Nandu's vicinity to seek refuge. However, there were also many factions that deliberately stayed behind to gather intelligence on the exact outcome of the battle. Unfortunately, the moment the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation activated, all communications between the inside and outside of Nandu were completely severed. In particular, Yaoguang had modified the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, remedying all of its flaws, which made it entirely impossible for any information to leak out from within. As a result, whether it was the Jing family, factions within the Heavenly Dao Sect harboring alternative motives, or covert agents from the Ten Immortal Sects and Six Demonic Sects, all could only wait outside the array with bated breath, desperately longing for news. "What on earth is happening? How was the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation activated, and so quickly at that? It's as if that Yaoguang... had prepared for this all along..." At that moment, Jing Zhengyang was staring fixedly at the formation, his heart filled with unease. How could such a well-laid plan go so terribly awry? *Buzz! Buzz!* Just as the Jing family head was waiting for news, the message transmission jade talisman on his person vibrated faintly. Jing Zhengyang quickly swept his divine sense outward to blanket the surroundings. Only after confirming that no one was watching him did he take out the jade talisman and send his divine sense into it. Soon, he sensed the divine sense fluctuation of the Jing family ancestor. "Is the battle over?" "An unexpected complication arose." Fine beads of sweat dotted Jing Zhengyang's brow. "The Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation was still activated. What's more... it was brought online faster than we anticipated. Right now, the Shadow Moon Sect's demon cultivators and Yaoguang's faction are locked inside the array, completely cut off from the outside world." This news caused Jing Yuntian to fall silent for a moment. After a long pause, the Void Shattering supreme elder said, "I knew it. The Shadow Moon Sect delaying for so long before acting was bound to put Yaoguang on guard... But there was no helping it. Having lost a Void Refining demon cultivator, the Shadow Moon Sect naturally had to investigate thoroughly and cautiously before formulating their plan. They also feared that Yaoguang was merely bait we deliberately set up to lure their sect's experts into a trap." Jing Zhengyang nodded. Without a foundation of mutual trust, neither side could act decisively, and that was precisely what had given Yaoguang the opportunity to make ample preparations. "However, the Eight Desolations Demon Lord brought along the Dark Demon Lord and deployed five Void Refining cultivators. Even with the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation at his back, Yaoguang might not necessarily hold the upper hand... It will just take some time," Jing Zhengyang relayed based on his understanding of the situation. "Time..." Jing Yuntian sighed. "Nandu has been invaded by Void Shattering demon cultivators, and Yaoguang even sent out a distress call. No matter how much I try to stall, procedural steps must still be followed. A Supreme Elder Council meeting must be convened immediately. Although I can drag things out for an hour or two during the meeting, that... is the absolute limit. Stalling any longer would brand me, the supreme elder on duty, as derelict in my duties, and I would be held fully accountable afterward." "An hour or two..." Jing Zhengyang glanced toward Nandu. "Because Yaoguang was prepared in advance, he seems to have had someone meticulously reinforce the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, making it far sturdier. For the Shadow Moon Sect's two Void Shattering and five Void Refining experts to breach the formation and slay two Void Refining and several Void Piercing cultivators of Yaoguang's lineage in such a short window... I'm afraid it won't be easy." "Then our only option is to tamper with the teleportation formation." Jing Yuntian said, "Once a decision is reached after an hour or two of deliberation, the supreme elders of the council will definitely have to set out immediately to reinforce the Southern Domain. The original plan was to activate the direct teleportation formation to Nandu, which would take at most an hour. But if the teleportation formation malfunctions, they will have no choice but to travel by void flying ship. That will take considerably longer. With a few deliberate delays on the road or other unforeseen incidents, stalling for ten days to half a month won't be an issue at all." "The teleportation formation... malfunctioning at a time like this?" Jing Zhengyang was taken aback. If the teleportation formation failed at such a crucial moment, anyone with eyes would know it was an attempt to borrow a knife to kill. If nothing else, the Void Piercing elder responsible for maintaining the formation would face severe punishment. Even the master of the Immortal Lineage, who oversaw the sect's operations, would be held accountable. "The Shadow Moon Sect's demon cultivators are so inept, yet Sect Master Zong is determined to weed out Yaoguang. This is the only way left. Sacrifices are inevitable." Jing Yuntian sighed as he finished speaking. "Report to me immediately if anything develops." "Understood." Jing Zhengyang hurriedly assented. *** The Jing family's transmission ended abruptly. Yet to outside onlookers, the duration of this great battle far exceeded everyone's expectations. One hour, two hours, three hours, half a day, a full day... The Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation blanketed the skies above Nandu, showing no sign of dissipating. Meanwhile, the energy fluctuations that surged from within the array from time to time confirmed that the battle had not ceased. Although Beihai Star was chaotic and the extermination of sects was a common occurrence, clashes at the Void Shattering level remained quite rare. Particularly because this clash involved Yaoguang, a prominent figure who had recently risen to fame within the Ten Immortal Sects, the spectators were countless. The Taiyi Immortal Sect, Xianwu Sect, Great Shang Celestial Dynasty, True Dragon Celestial Dynasty, Penglai Immortal Sect, Golden Crow Sect... Initially, when these observers learned that the Shadow Moon Sect's two Void Shattering masters had led five Void Refining demon cultivators into Nandu, they had assumed Yaoguang's faction was doomed. Yet as time went on and the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation remained unbroken, with the battle seemingly dragging on, astonishment gradually took hold of the crowd. When half a month had passed, everyone was thoroughly baffled. Whether the Shadow Moon Sect's Eight Desolations Demon Lord and Dark Demon Lord had managed to kill Yaoguang or not, they should have departed long ago. After all, even with the internal feud between Sect Master Zong Wenxian and Yaoguang causing the Heavenly Dao Sect's supreme elders to drag their feet, half a month was more than enough time for them to arrive in the Southern Domain. If the demon lords didn't leave soon, it would be too late. Yet under such circumstances, there was still no trace of the Eight Desolations Demon Lord, the Dark Demon Lord, or the five Shadow Moon Sect Void Refining demon cultivators... Could they have been trapped within the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation? Was Yaoguang's faction about to turn the tables and counter-slay the Shadow Moon Sect? Not only were the onlookers thinking this, but Jing Zhengyang—and even the members of the Heavenly Dao Sect belonging to Zong Wenxian's faction—were harboring the exact same thoughts. *** "Impossible!" Outside Nandu. Having endured half a month of sheer torment, Jing Zhengyang's eyes were bloodshot. He glared venomously at the lingering Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation over Nandu, gnashing his teeth. "No matter how formidable the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation is, it is merely a thirteenth-tier array! There is no way it could trap two Void Shattering and five Void Refining experts!" He said this aloud, but in the deepest recesses of his heart, another suspicion lurked. Could Yaoguang have other forces backing him? For instance, that mysterious Artifact Saint! If there was an Artifact Saint, could there also be a Void Shattering expert? With the strength of a Void Shattering expert combined with the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation... The possibility of Yaoguang turning the tables and achieving a counter-kill was not entirely out of the question. As Jing Zhengyang thought of this, cold sweat broke out relentlessly across his forehead. "Damn it... We underestimated Yaoguang too much." The Jing family head was consumed by dread. If Yaoguang truly had a Void Shattering figure backing him and had trapped the Eight Desolations Demon Lord and the Dark Demon Lord, then once those two demon lords were interrogated and exposed the Jing family... The consequences would be unthinkable.