Breaking the Formation

“Spirit of Wisdom.” Yaoguang quietly sensed this newly sprouted branch. A brand-new cultivation system. From the looks of it, this system seemed geared toward strengthening mental and soul power. As for what form it would ultimately take, its tier was currently too low for him to tell. “Can it be upgraded with other experience?” With a thought, Yaoguang drew small portions of energy from the [Demon Hunting] and [Merchant] branches, attempting to channel them in. The result… “It doesn't work.” This did not surprise him. Different worlds had different rules. Even beings from the Hunyuan Realm had to walk the path of the Ancient Immortal Realm once they arrived here. “It seems… I’ll have to target other immortal spirits. If all goes well, a single immortal spirit might be enough to push me to Tier 16, or even Tier 17.” He shifted his gaze toward the Yongsheng Sect. Taking a step into the void, he set off straight for the Yongsheng Sect headquarters. In that previous battle, the Yongsheng Sect had not only lost Daoist Po Suo, one of its three Hall Masters, but had also lost an immortal spirit with the potential to reach Immortal Venerable in the future. As for the remaining seventeen Dao Lords, they were hardly worth mentioning by comparison. In total, forty-six Dao Lords had lost contact, including an invincible figure of Hall Master stature who claimed the title of “Dao Sovereign.” Even though Yaoguang had used the power of time to warp that pocket of starry space so that no external observer could perceive any internal changes, the loss still put the entire Yongsheng Sect on high alert from top to bottom. The Yongsheng Sect had only a hundred and thirty-six Dao Lords on the books. Even if there were others hidden away, their numbers could not be large. Many of those Dao Lords were stationed at the two other Star Gates and throughout the surrounding star regions; those who could actually be mobilized at a moment's notice numbered fewer than a hundred. Forty-six was nearly half of all the Dao Lords they could deploy immediately. As contact was severed with every single one of them, the sect master of the Yongsheng Sect, Dao Sovereign Changqing, immediately convened every Dao Lord the sect could muster. In an instant, thirty-four Dao Lords had gathered at the headquarters. More than twenty others were rushing over at full speed. Yet Dao Sovereign Changqing could no longer afford to wait. He immediately ordered all defensive formations at the Yongsheng Sect headquarters activated, and the brilliant glow of a Tier 16 immortal formation bathed the sect's home planet. When Yaoguang finally arrived at the perimeter of the Yongsheng Sect headquarters, what met his eyes was a fortress braced for a cataclysmic war. Compared to the Xingri Sect and Beihai Star, the Yongsheng Sect’s planet was far larger. This was because the sect, in building its headquarters, had relentlessly transferred mass and matter from across the cosmos to reinforce this home world. It was also why the Yongsheng Sect had been able to lay down a Tier 16 immortal formation around it. An immortal formation, presided over by a “Dao Sovereign” powerhouse and supported by dozens of Dao Lords… Such a lineup… Even when confronting a genuine Dao Sovereign, it would not yield an inch. Perhaps a genuine Dao Sovereign going all out could tear the Yongsheng Sect's protective formation to shreds, but the price would be unleashing power that exceeded the cosmic ceiling, forcing an unavoidable ascension to the Immortal Realm. Furthermore, the very concept of a “Dao Sovereign” had been invented by Immortal King-tier immortal spirits, and with the Yongsheng Sect backed by the Changsheng Group, no Immortal King would openly tear off all pretenses to strike at the Changsheng Group's lower-realm assets. Because of this, the moment Dao Lord Changqing sensed Yaoguang's appearance outside the Yongsheng Sect, he showed himself at once, bowing respectfully. “Greetings, Your Highness. I know not which blind fool from my Yongsheng Sect has offended Your Highness to incur your thunderous wrath. As long as Your Highness speaks the word, no matter who it is, our Yongsheng Sect is willing to surrender them to Your Highness's judgment.” Yaoguang looked at the Yongsheng Sect master. He was not surprised that the man mistook him for a Tier 18 immortal spirit. Only a Tier 18 immortal spirit, having achieved the rank of Immortal King, could harness their mastery over the Grand Daos of the Ancient Immortal Realm alongside the power of Lord Yuanxi to project an avatar, reincarnate back into the lower realm, and traverse the galaxy in the guise of a Dao Sovereign to accomplish feats ordinary Dao Lords could never dream of. “There is no need for you to know who I am,” Yaoguang said calmly. “I need a sufficient share of the Grand Daos, but I doubt the Yongsheng Sect would willingly surrender it. Therefore, I will take it myself.” “A share of the Grand Daos?” Dao Lord Changqing's expression changed abruptly. He knew that the Nine Great Groups in the Immortal Realm were employing increasingly blatant measures to seize larger shares of the Grand Daos, but he had never imagined that an Immortal King would set their sights on the lower-realm cosmos. The rules of the lower starry universe were not yet completely overwritten by the Hunyuan Realm. If an Immortal King's projected avatar died here, that portion of the immortal spirit would dissipate completely—a grievous wound to the Immortal King's true self. At best, their cultivation would plummet; at worst, they would return to the Hunyuan. Moreover, while a so-called Dao Sovereign could fight a hundred foes at once and dominate an era, if the opposing side deployed an army formation meticulously crafted by immortal spirits like themselves and besieged the target with a hundred Dao Lords, slaying a “Dao Sovereign” avatar of an Immortal King was by no means impossible. Under such risks, no Immortal King had ever extended their reach into the lower universe. Yet now… An Immortal King was actually setting their sights on the lower cosmos!? Had the strife above escalated to the point where Immortal Kings had to engage in life-and-death struggle? Would the great Supreme Wisdom, Lord Yuanxi, permit such a thing to occur before the war against the Ancient Immortal Realm had even concluded? “Just who is Your Highness? In doing this, are you not afraid of incurring the wrath of the great Lord Yuanxi?” Dao Lord Changqing barked in a heavy voice. His only reply was a Spacetime Collapse Art conjured by Yaoguang’s command of the Grand Dao. As the powers of void, destruction, time, the Five Elements, and Yin-Yang swirled into being at the inception of the art, Dao Lord Changqing’s face drained of color. “A composite immortal art!” He flashed back inside the Yongsheng Sect without hesitation, his powerful divine sense erupting like a tempest throughout the sect. “High-level immortal art incoming! Everyone channel the Grand Daos! Full defense!” At his command, the numerous Dao Lords within the Yongsheng Sect pushed their Grand Dao powers to the absolute limit, resonating with the sect's Tier 16 formation. Immortal light soared into the sky, woven from countless strands of Grand Dao brilliance, forming an enormous web that enveloped the starry space housing the Yongsheng Sect headquarters. The Grand Dao light directly facing Yaoguang blazed with blinding intensity. *Buzz! Buzz!* The Spacetime Collapse Art crashed down with deafening force. The endless cycle and inexhaustible vitality of the five Grand Daos shook the sect-protecting grand formation violently. The dazzling Grand Dao radiance dimmed at a visible rate as waves of force bled into the planet below. The tremendous shockwaves triggered terrifying tsunamis, tempests, and earthquakes across the massive world, a world so solid it rivaled the Immortal Realm itself. Yet after a brief moment, the turbulence subsided. Dao Lord Changqing, marshaling the sect-protecting grand formation and the combined might of over thirty Dao Lords, had forcefully withstood the impact of Yaoguang’s composite immortal art. The sight allowed the sect master to let out a small breath of relief. Still, he dared not let his guard down in the slightest. The battle had only just begun. His only hope was that in the ensuing clash, he could force this Dao Sovereign to unleash power exceeding the universe's limits, triggering an involuntary ascension. Failing that, he hoped to make him realize the futility of the assault and withdraw from the Yongsheng Sect. As for what came after… He would find a way to report this to the Immortal Realm, where the high-ranking leadership of the Changsheng Group could contact Lord Yuanxi to deliver personal punishment. While these thoughts raced through his mind, Yaoguang was already mobilizing the power of the Grand Dao once more outside the formation. Dao Lord Changqing watched helplessly, powerless to stop him. The moment they stepped outside the formation, the opponent's genuine Dao Sovereign-tier combat strength would slaughter them with minimal effort. After all, as an immortal spirit, he understood the true meaning of a “Dao Sovereign” far better than native Dao Lords. Their own claim to the title of Dao Sovereign… It was merely putting gold on their own faces, borrowing the prestige of a Dao Sovereign to deter neighboring factions from making reckless moves. No titled “Dao Sovereign” who knew the truth was arrogant enough to believe they could genuinely contend with an avatar of an Immortal King. *Rumble! Boom!* A second Spacetime Collapse Art slammed down immediately after. Shockwaves and deafening roars swept through the entire Yongsheng Sect. For a time, countless Golden Core outer disciples and their families residing on the planet suffered endlessly amid the cataclysms born of the violent tremors. And this was merely the beginning. Shortly after the second Spacetime Collapse Art landed, a third took shape and fell. Dao Lord Changqing felt his scalp tingle with dread, but he still projected his divine sense outward: “Your Highness, stay your hand! The Yongsheng Sect was built with defenses specifically designed to withstand Dao Sovereign-level attacks! Unless you unleash power beyond the level of an immortal, you cannot break our sect-protecting grand formation!” “Cannot break it?” As Yaoguang brought down several strikes of the Spacetime Collapse Art in succession, he scrutinized every movement and shift in the Yongsheng Sect's grand formation. In those few moments, he had already “discerned” part of the formation's operating principles. While forcing it open right now was still slightly out of reach, don't forget, as of now… He had not yet summoned the Grand Dao Pagoda. To prevent the Yongsheng Sect from being reduced to absolute nothingness, he had refrained from using this supreme sacred artifact to amplify his strikes. Otherwise, he would have wiped out the Yongsheng Sect and its protective formation all at once. Even so… This was enough. Having mapped out the patterns of the formation's flow, he now possessed the ability to shatter the mountain-protecting grand formation without obliterating the Yongsheng Sect itself. With a thought, the Grand Dao Pagoda manifested. Instantly, vast and majestic Grand Dao power radiated from the supreme sacred artifact, flooding the starry expanse. More than a dozen Grand Daos wove together, triggering resonance across even more Daos. Faintly, atop the Grand Dao Pagoda, a phantom projection of the entire Ancient Immortal Realm seemed to emerge. A suffocating pressure rolled downward alongside this illusory world. The sight made Dao Lord Changqing's already anxious eyes go wide, his breath catching in his throat. “Take another of my Spacetime Collapse Arts!” As Yaoguang unleashed his fourth Spacetime Collapse Art, the Grand Dao powers of time, space, destruction, Yin-Yang, and the Five Elements surged from the Grand Dao Pagoda simultaneously, blending into the technique to produce a cosmic spectacle reminiscent of decaying spacetime that crashed against the Yongsheng Sect's defensive formation. Under the violent resonance and eruption of these five Grand Daos, the sect-protecting grand formation cracked like a shattered egg. Fractures spread instantly across its surface, and in the very next breath… *Crack!* It shattered.