Compared to their last encounter inside the Cloud Forest World, the Qiong Qi Grand Sage was a lot stronger than before as well. This was effect of the Celestial Spirit Snow Dew that the Golden Roc Grand Sage gifted him back in the Cloud Forest World. He was originally in the peak of the second-level undying demonic soul stage, and he managed to break through to the next level and was now in the third-level undying demonic soul stage.
The Golden Roc Grand Sage had been in the third-level undying demonic soul stage all along. The Syncretic Star Soul great demon was rippling with mana and power with a strength far more terrifying than before.
Liang Pan opened his mouth first. "Lei Yuan, are you following the orders of the Golden Cicada Master now? Seems like you"ve given up your ambitions of becoming the demon emperor."
The gigantic golden roc"s pair of ice-cold guys started to sparkle with golden light, and had a sharpness that resembled flashes of lightning.
"My ambitions have never wavered. However, that doesn"t mean I won"t find allies along the way."
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage guffawed and said, "Don"t even try to sow discord amongst us. It"s like the Yingzhou Celestial Mountain - you, the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders and that b.a.s.t.a.r.d s.h.i.+ Yu are holding down the fort together and forbid demons like us from getting near."
"It"s the same with the Penglai Celestial Mountain. You humans don"t even have to think about trying. Seems like now it"s not just the Penglai Celestial Mountain - you don"t seem to be able to hold your grasp on the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain either. Yet, you still want to swallow all three mountains for yourself. Let"s see if you have the ability to do so."
"Even if I do wish to have a showdown with the Golden Cicada Master, it will be after I clean the lot of you up."
Liang Pan laughed as he shook his head. "You can"t count yourself lucky when I let you escape with your life back in the Cloud Forest World. And here you are, buzzing like a mosquito."
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage grinded his teeth and smiled wryly but said nothing more. The Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation was completely released at this point as gashes started to appear in the heavens and the Nine Luminaries...o...b..ted the universe with an increasingly crus.h.i.+ng pressure.
Now that the Qiong Qi Grand Sage was in the third-level Undying Demonic Soul Stage, the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation was a lot more powerful than before. Even though the magic treasures required for a perfect set-up was still incomplete, the raw power of the magic formation was far greater than it was back in the Cloud Forest World.
Under the support of the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation, he was practically able to sweep all third-level immortal soul stage cultivators. His battle prowess was not that far from the Golden Roc Grand Sage beside him.
However, Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu still paid more attention to the Golden Roc Grand Sage.
Zhu Hongwu"s eyebrows twitched as he spoke. "You"ve already made that step, haven"t you, Lei Yuan?"
Liang Pan eyed the Golden Roc Grand Sage and said after a moment of thought. "You need to act now, Hongwu."
Zhu Hongwu nodded his head in acknowledgement and said, "Yes, your majesty."
With that, Zhu Hongwu directly stepped out from the protection of the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain and stood in midair in front of the Golden Cicada Master, the Golden Roc Grand Sage and the Qiong Qi Grand Sage.
The meaning of his entire lifetime of martial ways seemed to be on full display in images as they started to materialize.
A dozen independent microcosms seemed to appear in the layers of void above his head and connected to form a wheel-shaped figure. There was a statue of a divine Buddha within every tiny world and they were all chanting Buddhist scriptures; a thousand worlds, a thousand divine Buddhas.
The wheel started to rotate and was charged with an unstoppable concept of power. It felt as if this wheel represented natural law itself and anch.o.r.ed down the heavens, and everything that stood in its way would be crushed into pulp.
There was no room for retaliation, no room for doubt.
The Golden Cicada Master shook his head as he witnessed the scene. "You are indeed impressive, Zhu Hongwu. You have incorporated the teachings of the ancient Heaven"s Gate Sect, and taken after the lineage of the Emperor Tai. I can even see the Buddhist teachings from the Great Thunderclap Temple. You have taken all three powerful lineages and combined them into one."
"Even though you are still in the second-level immortal soul stage, many third-level immortal soul stage cultivators over the course of history would have been no match for you." The Golden Cicada Master"s tone was calm as his eyes remained trained upon Zhu Hongwu.
On the other side, the Qiong Qi Grand Sage looked a lot more solemn. The Qiong Qi was one of the Four Immemorial Evil Beasts, and their existence was also typically superior to most of the other demonic races. He had just ascended to the third-level Undying Demonic Soul Stage not too long ago and his battle prowess was truly formidable.
However, when he looked Zhu Hongwu, he began to develop a feeling that he would have been no match for this second-level immortal soul stage cultivator in front of him if he did not channel the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation.
"It"s a pity. If you wish to actually make an impact in this battle, it"s not enough - unless you can make the step into the Way Of The Virtual Ent.i.ty in one step, right here and right now." The Golden Cicada Master was straightforward with his words as he continued, "If you wish to engage into combat with me or the Golden Roc Grand Sage, then I shall take this opportunity to test a theory. In the War of Buddha Annihilation all those years ago, there was a powerful magic treasure in play - I want to see if it"s the legendary Great Heavenly Wheels!"
Zhu Hongwu surveyed his adversaries as his eyes s.h.i.+fted from the Golden Cicada Master, to the Golden Roc Grand Sage and finally to the Qiong Qi Grand Sage before he started to laugh.
"The reason why we had to expend so much effort to destroy the Great Thunderclap Temple was because we wanted to save our strength to defeat you. If not, we wouldn"t have needed the Formation Bursting Drum from the Great Void Sect to overcome the Vairocana Formation."
Zhu Hongwu began to extend his hands forward. His hands were pale and smooth, but it seemed to contain unimaginable strength. He clenched his right hand into a fist as he raised it into the sky.
This movement seemed nimble and agile, but gave people a dense feeling as if he bore the weight of the world with just one hand.
The void began to twist out of proportion as the power of Zhu Hongwu"s fist integrated with the lights that flashed out from the void.
"All beings are born to die, and even Heaven and Earth cannot escape from this insufferable fate. I control the destinies of all things with the celestial wheel in the sky, and I push on forward, I cannot turn back and I cannot be stopped!"
His expressionless voice was like the divine songs of the G.o.ds in the sky as it resonated between the heavens.
There was a dense concentration of light within his palms but nothing material could be seen. However, one could feel that there was a formless light wheel rotating inside.
A concept of power that was so formidable it felt as if it could blanket the skies and control the destinies of all beings. The worlds in existence would tremble at its feet as this overwhelming aura started to permeate the heavens.
The Greater World suddenly seemed to have a will of its own and wanted to change the fates and the life and death of everything.
The destiny-level magic treasure of the ancient Heaven"s Gate Sect, the magic treasure that ended the Antiquity Age along with the powerful Heaven"s Gate Sect cultivators, and the magic treasure that overthrew the last human emperor from his divine throne - the Great Heavenly Wheels!
Lin Feng nodded his head softly. "Seems like my guesses are right. The Great Heavenly Wheels ended up in the hands of the Great Zhou Empire, into the hands of Zhu Hongwu."
He looked a little closer at the formless light wheel that seemed to incorporate the existence of all the worlds in existence and realized that the statues of divine Buddhas were slowly rising into the air.
"The Great Heavenly Wheels had been heavily damaged before. It appears that Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu have expended a great many treasures and relics from the Great Thunderclap Temple to aid in its recovery. The multiple Buddha statues are all material representations of these relics."
"The relics have been used not just to repair the Imperial Palace - they have been used on the Great Heavenly Wheels as well."
This formidable aura made even the Golden Cicada Master and the Golden Roc Grand Sage look a little more wary and anxious. Even though this magic treasure was wielded by a second-level immortal soul stage cultivator, it was the Great Heavenly Wheels after all and they could not possibly underestimate its power.
The Great Heavenly Wheels was not like the Imperial Palace, which was still a step away from returning to its former glory. The Great Heavenly Wheels was already back in its peak condition.
This magic treasure was dissimilar to the other magic treasures such as the Imperial Palace and the Immortal Dragon City. Those magic treasures had other capabilities and could even fit people inside; the Great Heavenly Wheels was a weapon of pure destruction.
It was hard to say whether the Great Heavenly Wheels could withstand the pressure of the Power-Destroying Catastrophe. However, its offensive capabilities were far superior to that of most other destiny-level magic treasures.
"What"s with all the self-praise?" The Golden Roc Grand Sage chided coldly, "During the Battle of Buddha Annihilation, the Great Heavenly Wheels was not channeled to its maximum possible power to reserve its strength to face the Golden Cicada Master. However, was it not also because you couldn"t truly control this magic treasure as well? Was it not also because the magic treasure had not been fully repaired and completed? I"m not blind - I can see that the fact that Great Zhou Empire used a great many resources from the Great Thunderclap Temple to repair your two great destiny-level magic treasures."
"Even so, and even if it"s the Great Heavenly Wheels - so what?"
The Golden Roc Grand Sage opened his eyes a little wider as streams of purple light burst out in all directions with an equally violent aura. The spectacle rivaled the powers of the Golden Cicada Master, the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain and even the Great Heavenly Wheels.
Zhu Hongwu nodded his head in approval. "So that"s it. Not only have you managed to a.s.similate the Hades" Dark Mantra, you have also obtained the Hunyuan Demonic Code from Long Ye and the Sirius Grand Sage. This is the reason why you"ve been able to recover and recuperate from the Five Decays of Heaven and Man so quickly after incurring the Power-Destroying Catastrophe. You"re back in your peak condition now with increased strength and power."
"However, no matter how fast you are, how many times have you experienced the Power-Destroying Catastrophe? Once, or twice?"
"Even though you are in the Cardinal Tribulations Beginning Stage, I won"t even need the Great Heavenly Wheels to defeat you if I were in the third-level immortal soul stage. With the Great Heavenly Wheels, you don"t stand a chance at all." Zhu Hongwu raised the Great Heavenly Wheels into the sky as he stood in midair like a G.o.d before he turned towards the Qiong Qi Grand Sage.
Liang Pan heaved a heavy sigh on top of Fangzhang Celestial Mountain. "I intended to reserve this for the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders. However, the Golden Cicada Master and the Golden Roc Grand Sage are indeed powerful adversaries and I cannot hold back any longer."
As he spoke, two human shadows flew out from inside the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain.
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage gawked as he recognized one of them who was dressed in priestly clothes and had a long black beard. "So you"re officially on board with the Great Zhou Empire, Luofu?"
The Luofu Holy Man smiled and answered, "I will only act when I encounter demons like you."
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage garbled, "Our last encounter at the border between the worlds was just a skirmish. Do you really think you can defeat my Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation?"
The middle-aged sword cultivator, who was dressed in a seblue robe beside the Luofu Holy Man, laughed coldly and interrupted the Qiong Qi"s exclamations. "You think you"re the only one with a magic formation?"
"We have always intended to ambush you right here. Do you really think you can turn the tables just because you "took us by surprise"? This spot was chosen by us - why do you think we chose this location?"
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage glanced at the middle-aged sword cultivator. "The Vast Sea Swordmaster…"
The person standing beside the Luofu Holy Man was the leader of the Vast Sea Sword Sect - the Vast Sea Swordmaster. His right hand began to cast a spell as he said, "I may not have the same confidence to battle against the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation on land, but here… we are inside the endless oceans."
The tides and waters of the oceans beneath him started to flash a radiant blue as streams of sword Qi shot up into the sky.
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage cackled and said, "Yes, even the most powerful formation of the Vast Sea Sword Sect is being used. Aren"t you afraid of losing everything you have? It"s going to be very problematic for you to set up your mountain defense formation all over again from scratch."
The Vast Sea Swordmaster answered, "It may not be as mobile as the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation, but the Sword Formation of the Endless Oceans can be set up anywhere without much effort as long as there is a sea nearby."
The Qiong Qi Grand Sage"s smile turned sinister. "And? This formation can"t outmatch the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation in the first place, and you"re only in the second-level immortal soul stage. How many times do you think you can withstand the a.s.saults of the Nine Luminaries Heaven-Crus.h.i.+ng Formation?"
The Luofu Holy Man was calm as he said, "With the help of the Vast Sea Swordmaster and his formation, I may be able to take you on. Even though I can"t say I will easily emerge victorious, I can confidently say that you will be unable to aid the Golden Roc Grand Sage or the Golden Cicada Master within this period of time."