A thunderous explosion shook the sky as the enormous palm collided with Yun Lie’s embryonic Minor Cosmos. Violent power burst outward like countless storms.
The shock waves swept in every direction with unstoppable force. One mountain peak was reduced to rubble.
Xu Ziqing raised a hand to shield his face. Despite the protection of his vines, the impact struck him so hard that his chest tightened and blood almost rose in his throat.
He hurriedly circulated his true essence and barely suppressed it.
Yun Lie was already standing. His white robes billowed as his embryonic Minor Cosmos remained firmly in front of him. But a faint crack had appeared in that embryonic realm.
What sort of strength could damage even his Minor Cosmos?
Within it, the great inverted spiral of starlight began turning. It set the traces of the Dao into motion, drawing forth a profound power.
That power slowly repaired the damage to the embryonic realm.
Xu Ziqing was astonished. He and his senior brother had faced many dangers over the years, but never one quite like this.
The enormous palm had carried enough force to kill them outright.
Who had stopped them?
When the residual energy dispersed, Xu Ziqing could finally see their opponents.
Two men stood suspended in the air ahead.
Both were strangers to him.
The man on the left wore an exceptionally loose robe. His long hair hung nearly to the opening of his collar, and his pale, delicately shaped features gave him an eerie appearance.
The one on the right was broad-shouldered and handsome, with extremely pale skin and wickedness in his eyes. His shoulder-length hair was the red of fire.
Xu Ziqing had seen countless people, yet neither had ever inspired such a powerful sense of impending disaster.
A deep unease rose within him.
The pale man brushed back his long hair. He spoke slowly, drawing out his words with a peculiarly unsettling cadence. “Little brats. You actually survived? How fortunate for you.” He continued calmly, “You were lucky that time. The next palm won’t be so easy to withstand.”
The handsome man smiled at him. “Rest a while, darling. Why should you bother yourself with them? I’ll kill them for you.”
The two spoke as though the martial brothers were not even worth considering.
And perhaps they had reason to be confident, for the auras escaping their bodies clearly belonged to Nascent Soul ancestors.
Yun Lie stood at the front, cold and unmoving, shielding those behind him like a high mountain against a storm.
But Xu Ziqing rose, gave the twins a reassuring smile, and stepped forward to stand beside him.
The enemies were too dangerous, and the tension too great.
No one noticed that the Jin brothers, who supposedly had only Foundation Establishment cultivation, appeared more at ease under the pressure than the martial brothers themselves.
Yun Lie did not attack first, which was unusual. Xu Ziqing could see that his senior brother’s feet were planted firmly, his back drawn taut, as though he were resisting some invisible weight. And that pressure continued increasing.
Only when Xu Ziqing reached a point three or five steps from Yun Lie did he realize he could go no farther.
The surrounding space seemed compressed, refusing him even another inch.
…Senior Brother!
Xu Ziqing wanted to call out but restrained himself.
He knew he lacked the strength to endure the pressure.
If he could not even withstand that, how could he possibly fight the enemy?
As he stared at the pale, sinister man, someone came to mind.
A Nascent Soul ancestor with such an eerie presence and a grudge against them… Apart from someone dispatched by Myriad Swords Immortal Sect, there was only…
But the previous attack by Myriad Swords Immortal Sect had already attracted the attention of Wuling’s sect master. They were unlikely to repeat it so soon.
In that case, the man could only be…
“Ancestor Bliss.” Xu Ziqing drew a deep breath. “Senior, may I ask whether you’re Ancestor Bliss?”
He was the only other person with whom they had a serious grievance.
The pale man raised his brows. “You’re not entirely stupid. Unfortunately, the more you know, the sooner you die.”
He pushed aside his companion, who had offered to take over, and raised his right hand, striking out lightly.
Another enormous palm formed in the air. It was larger and more solid than the first.
Before Yun Lie could move, Chonghua gave a cry and began falling, unable to withstand the pressure.
Yun Lie’s embryonic Minor Cosmos surged toward the palm again, showing no fear.
Amid the resulting smoke and violent currents, the four travelers disappeared from where they had been.
Xu Ziqing felt Chonghua lurch beneath him. The eagle had been badly injured. He hurriedly summoned the beast-control token and recalled him.
All four people began falling.
Xu Ziqing threw out vines to catch the Jin brothers, while Yun Lie summoned his black-gold greatsword with a thought. The blade swept underneath and caught them all.
Then the sword retreated in a desperate rush, almost as though fleeing for their lives.
Perhaps that was exactly what they were doing.
The enormous palm was blocked again by Yun Lie’s embryonic Minor Cosmos, but this time the domain was left badly destabilized.
All the sword intent stored inside it had been expended in resisting the attack, until not a single sword remained.
Only the spiral of starlight survived. In every other respect, the embryonic realm looked as faint and fragile as it had when Yun Lie first comprehended it.
Only two attacks had damaged it so severely.
Standing on the black-gold sword, Xu Ziqing felt despair gathering in his heart.
A short time earlier, he had been rejoicing that he would soon marry his senior brother. His lifelong wish was coming true; they would walk the immortal path together. Now they had encountered a deadly enemy and might not even survive.
Things in the world so rarely turned out as one wished. Xu Ziqing could not help feeling hopeless.
Their escape angered Ancestor Bliss. “Half my strength didn’t kill you. Seven-tenths didn’t kill you either.” He laughed coldly and struck another palm. “Then what about my full strength? Will you live… or die?”
An enormous palm descended from the sky. It was so vast that it covered half the heavens, as though it would blot out the sun and moon.
Boundless pressure poured downward, carrying the ancestor’s fury and threatening to pulverize everything around them.
Yun Lie abruptly knocked Xu Ziqing and the two boys off the sword. Then he raised the black-gold greatsword in both hands and, instead of retreating, rushed upward to meet the attack.
Above his head, the embryonic Minor Cosmos erupted with every trace of its remaining power. Yun Lie moved alongside the greatsword as though he himself had become an incomparable blade, determined to measure himself against the giant palm. He would triumph or die.
As Xu Ziqing fell, his pupils contracted.
No! Senior Brother!
True essence surged wildly within him. He abandoned every thought of careful accumulation. He would attempt to break through now! He would form his Golden Core!
Sixty-four demonic vines burst from him like countless claws reaching for the one he loved.
The vines extended upward, farther and farther, stretching beyond their previous limits.
At the same time, great power erupted around Xu Ziqing, and signs of impending Golden Core formation appeared in the sky.
He bit his lip and endured the pain racking his body.
He should never have tried to form his Golden Core at such a moment. But if his senior brother died, what meaning would there be in surviving alone?
Once he formed his Golden Core, he could have Rong Jin immediately consume Golden Blood Grass. Rong Jin might then mature fully. Even against a Nascent Soul ancestor, it might be able to struggle for a little while.
Even if he destroyed his own foundations, Xu Ziqing had to help his senior brother!
Many people noticed his abnormal condition.
But Ancestor Bliss and his companion merely smiled in contempt.
So what if he formed a Golden Core? To them, an early Golden Core cultivator was nothing.
Xu Ziqing was wagering his entire immortal future on this desperate attempt. To the Nascent Soul ancestors, it was a joke.
By then, Yun Lie had launched himself toward the enormous palm like a flying sword.
Yet compared with the great hand, even his manifested sword intent looked insignificant.
His embryonic Minor Cosmos collided with the palm first.
This time the palm closed upon it, tearing away a corner. The fragile realm seemed to groan in pain.
And Yun Lie’s body was close behind.
Watching, Xu Ziqing’s eyes almost split with anguish. Yet forming a Golden Core was not something he could accomplish by wishing it.
He hardened his heart and took out several bottles of pills. He would swallow them all and force the breakthrough!
But just then, a small hand caught his.
Xu Ziqing’s heart lurched.
In the next instant, a small figure shot skyward. In the blink of an eye, he had almost caught up to Yun Lie.
Nearby, a delicate-looking youth spoke with a grin. “You can’t help with a battle like this. Leave it to us brothers.”
Xu Ziqing whipped around. Jin Shi was speaking. Then the figure soaring upward must be Jin Cheng!
Only now did he realize that the Jin brothers, whom he had tried to send out of danger with his vines, had somehow returned to his side.
He had not sensed their approach at all.
Who were they really? Why had they disguised themselves?
His mind filled with questions he could not answer.
Jin Shi did not wait. Having delivered his message, he sprang upward after his brother.
Both moved with extraordinary speed and raised their palms simultaneously.
Two enormous palm impressions appeared and struck opposite sides of the giant hand.
At the same moment, Yun Lie drove straight into the palm with his sword and burst through it.
Attacked from three directions at once, the enormous hand dissolved into nothing. For the first time, genuine astonishment appeared on Ancestor Bliss’s face.
Then his eyes blazed with anger. “Good! Very good! I underestimated you. Two Nascent Soul cultivators actually managed to sneak in!”
His handsome companion immediately moved to his side. “Don’t be angry, darling. They’re just two early Nascent Soul cultivators. What are they worth? I’ll avenge this for you!”
Ancestor Bliss panted twice, then shrieked, “Kill them! Kill them all! I want every last one of them dead!”