Promise!

Chapter 314, Hunyuan

'Things perceived by me, the Creator, have awakened.'

Zhuang Jin's heart stirred, and with the help of the array, he peered out.

"Sure enough, it's here!"

The five Yang Gods—Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng—were already mentally prepared. At this moment, while they were shocked, they were also relieved that the shoe had finally dropped. Their expressions were solemn as they locked onto their targets.

What kind of strange beast was that?

It has two horns on its head, like forked coral, thicker in the front and thinner in the back, spiraling upwards. It has vertical, reddish-gold pupils, four claws, each with five toes, and the tips of the claws are curved like scimitars. The claws are dark gold in color, and when it walks on clouds, golden clouds condense beneath its claws.

Its entire body is covered with rhomboid golden scales, each scale about the size of a pot lid, with a dark gold base color. The overlapping scales are seamless, and under sunlight, they reflect a rainbow of colors: gold, red, orange, purple, cyan, blue, and white. When it flies, the refracted light is like a cascading galaxy.

This is the ancient mythical beast, the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, at the third level of the Great Vajra Realm, possessing the ultimate combat power of the Great Qian Dynasty, comparable to the third level of the Pure Yang Realm of the Martial Arts Yang God!

Notice:

The first level of the Great Vajra Realm of Mythical Beasts is called 'Indestructible'. Under this characteristic, the physical body is immortal, the defense is greatly enhanced, and under a certain level of power, it is difficult to be harmed by any magic.

This 'certain level of power' means that even ordinary Yang God and Great Vajra Realm cultivators cannot harm the indestructible body of a Great Vajra Realm beast. Attacks exceeding this limit are also greatly immune.

The second level of the Great Vajra Realm of the Mythical Beast is called 'Indestructible'. With this characteristic, even if the internal organs are destroyed, or even if the head explodes and the body is mostly missing, the beast will not die and can even recover and grow back.

Some even speculate that if it weren't in the Great Qian Dynasty, but in an environment with spiritual energy, a beast of this level would be close to being able to be reborn from a drop of blood!

The third level of the Great Vajra Realm of Mythical Beasts is called Hunyuan. With this characteristic, the essence, energy and spirit are extremely condensed and unified. The physical body can directly interfere with and influence the world, forcibly distort space, and achieve the effect of short-distance void teleportation.

This world is of extremely high rank and extremely stable. It only forcibly distorts space and shifts through the void. If it were just a world of such formations, it could directly shatter the void and form a Primordial Chaos Body!

"Yan!"

A five-clawed golden dragon burst in, soaring through the heavens, trailing rings of golden light. Its scales rubbed together, producing a clanging metallic sound and unleashing endless golden runes. With each breath, the surrounding air formed golden vortexes, exploding into golden mushroom clouds that shook the array world.

Suddenly, it ripped open the air with its claws, creating endless golden lightning. The space of the array world shattered instantly, and the surrounding天地元气 (heaven and earth energy) surged in, turning into a shower of golden rain.

boom!
With this tear, the 'Heaven-Sealing and Earth-Locking Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation' shattered, and the power of the formation's world leaked out, transforming into a circular shockwave. The ground within a radius of several miles was scraped up like tofu, and plants and strange beasts were condensed and annihilated under the terrifying energy, resembling sand and gravel.

Even with a layer of separation in the formation, the 100,000 martial artists who formed the formation all suffered backlash.

The five Yang God Ancestors were still manageable; the thirty-six Yin Gods all turned pale; the one thousand and ninety-six Innate Realm cultivators were all coughing up blood and severely injured; and nearly half of the one hundred and twenty-nine thousand six hundred Qi Condensation Realm warriors died instantly.

'wrong! ’

The five Yang Gods—Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng—exchanged glances, all sensing something amiss.

This "Heaven-Sealing and Earth-Locking Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation" is formed by the gathering of five Yang Gods, thirty-six Yin Gods, one thousand and ninety-six Innate Gods, and one hundred and twenty-nine thousand six hundred Qi-gathering martial artists. Furthermore, it is based on the Suspended Heaven Mirror Master Realm. Even this five-clawed golden dragon of the Hunyuan Realm at the third level of the Great Vajra Realm should not be broken so easily.

And that's exactly what happened.

In particular, they had just sensed the subtle fluctuations within the main realm of the Suspended Sky Mirror.

Clearly, the Mirror of Heaven contains a spirit, and it is indeed biased, favoring the five-clawed golden dragon!
Even more malicious speculation suggests that this sleeping five-clawed golden dragon might be one of the means left behind by the immortals to interfere.

"seal up!"

The five powerful clans' Yang Gods—Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng—were filled with shock and anger. Following their pre-planned decision, they directly activated the main realm's authority over the Suspended Sky Mirror, forcing it into hibernation, and then initiated another contingency plan.

Yes, how could they not be on guard after Emperor Qian Yuan's sudden death and their own suspicions?

"Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Formation, activate!"

In an instant, divine objects appeared in the east, south, west, north, and center, triggering their combination to form an array once more.

The East is a sword, its body as solid as a mountain, interwoven with black and dark gold. At this moment, the sword light shines brightly, and wherever it touches, the world becomes clear and bright, as if it were a manifestation of the rules of humanity and the way of heaven.

The south is a mirror, with black jade as its base, silver stars as its patterns, and gold symbols as its decorations. In the center is a relief of the 'Tai Chi Yin Yang Fish', with the Yin fish being black and the Yang fish being gold. There are a total of twenty-eight runes engraved on the outside, corresponding to the constellations of the heavens, exuding a mysterious and unpredictable power, and shimmering with light.

The West is a diagram, made of neither gold nor jade. The eight trigrams, Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui, float and sink within it, mysterious and profound.

In the north is a beast, a lifelike Azure Dragon, with crimson eyes and two beams of crimson light that cause the sky to change color.

At the center is a stone, which is silvery-white in color. Streams of silvery-white runes flow around it, creating a connection with the space and acting as the central hub to direct the four directions.

This is precisely: the Imperial Xuanyuan Sword, the Shi Family Kunlun Mirror, the Mu Family Eight Trigrams Formation, the Gongshu Family Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast, and the Yuwen Family Jiekong Stone—these five great clans have unleashed their full potential to form the Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Formation!
Once this formation is complete, the array world reappears, and compared to the previous 'Sealing Heaven and Locking Earth Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Array', the array world space is more stable, instantly sealing the four beasts—the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, Phoenix, Qilin, and Xuanwu—within it.

—The higher one progresses in martial arts, the greater the gap in realms becomes, with quality far outweighing quantity. Just take the Gongshu family's Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast at its peak state, for example; it is comparable to the Great Vajra Realm, Level 3, Hunyuan Realm of a mythical beast. The foundations of the other four clans are also at the same level. When they form the ultimate foundation, the Five Elements Array, even the five-clawed golden dragon at the Great Vajra Realm, Level 3, Hunyuan Realm can be temporarily sealed within it.

Furthermore, this formation is somewhat special, possessing unique offensive methods against this five-clawed golden dragon.

"Although this five-clawed golden dragon is strong, it has an aura of decline. It has probably lived for countless years and has been sleeping in some way to preserve its life. Its lifespan is its fatal weakness."

"This five-clawed golden dragon is special. If we seize its dragon essence, we may be able to break through our cultivation level and extend our lifespan."

"Excellent! Slay the dragon and seize its essence today!"

"Fellow Daoist Shi, we'll have to rely on you for this."

"Fellow Daoists, please help me!"

...The five Yang Gods, Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng, rapidly exchanged their divine thoughts and reached a consensus.

In an instant, the Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Array rotated, and the power of the three divine objects—the Imperial Xuanyuan Sword, the Mu Family's Eight Trigrams Formation, and the Yuwen Family's Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast—all converged on the Kunlun Mirror under the manipulation of the Central Realm Void Stone, making it even more radiant.

As Shi Yongnian circulated his cultivation technique, and with the bloodline of the clan members from the collateral branches who had been prepared beforehand, the 'Tai Chi Yin Yang Fish' relief on the Kunlun Mirror seemed to come alive. The black Yin Fish and the golden Yang Fish chased and spun around each other, and the twenty-eight runes engraved on the outside also swam around as fast as tadpoles. Finally, the mirror flashed and burst out with an indescribable beam of light.

This light is mysterious and indescribable; it seems to transcend time and space to lock onto the five-clawed golden dragon, and has the power to shorten one's lifespan!

Normally, even if this five-clawed golden dragon, at the third level of the Vajra Realm and the Primordial Chaos Realm, were trapped by the Five Elements Formation, it would still be a formidable opponent. The five great clans might not be able to defeat it in the end. However, because this ancient beast has lived for countless years and extended itself through slumber, its lifespan is its fatal weakness.

This move was a fatal blow to him.

No matter how fierce and powerful you are, or how invincible your supernatural abilities are, I will only shorten your lifespan. Once your lifespan is gone, everything will be in vain!
"Yan!"

The roar of the five-clawed golden dragon resounded throughout the entire array world. Its four claws, which were dark gold in color and curved like scimitars, tore through space in an attempt to escape the Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Array. However, this time it only caused the array world to tremble and create ripples.

Unable to leave, it could only twist and traverse space to avoid the light of the Kunlun Mirror, but it had already been locked on and was destined for destruction under the pursuit.

Just when this five-clawed golden dragon had nowhere to go, nowhere to go, and was on the verge of death—

The Imperial Xuanyuan Sword, the Shi Family Kunlun Mirror, the Mu Family Eight Trigrams Formation, the Gongshu Family Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast, and the Yuwen Family Jiekong Stone suddenly experienced a slight stagnation during their resonance, causing a flaw in the beam of light from the Kunlun Mirror, which was then evaded by the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon through a void teleportation.

hum!
Moreover, the moment the resonance of the five divine objects became stagnant, a crack appeared in the east direction of the Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Array, which rotated as desired.

"Wow!"

Of the four beasts, the phoenix was closest. With a clear cry, it burst through the broken formation, carrying endless flames.

This dramatic change was too fast and too sudden, catching the five Yang Gods—Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng—off guard. Their hearts skipped a beat. Previously, when the immortals' methods left in the Suspended Mirror were exposed, they still held onto a sliver of hope, thinking that their own bestowed resources might not contain such methods. But now, their illusions were shattered.

The treasures left to them by that immortal—the Xuanyuan Sword, the Kunlun Mirror, the Eight Trigrams Formation of Gods and Demons, the Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast, and the Boundary Stone—along with the main mirror of the Suspended Sky Mirror, all have problems!

However, while it's true that the five divine objects had problems, the method left behind by that immortal didn't seem to be aimed at killing them. Therefore, the stagnation was merely a temporary setback before they were restored.

With things having come to this point, the five Yang Gods—Xuanyuan Nanshan, Yuwen Shentong, Shi Yongnian, Mu Tianyuan, and Gongshu Yuheng—had no way to retreat. Suppressing all their thoughts, they instantly closed the great formation, blocking the remaining five-clawed golden dragons, unicorns, and black tortoises that wanted to escape.

This time, they were wary, knowing that if they tried to shorten lifespans again, they might repeat what happened before. They had no choice but to rely on their strength to wage a major war.

……

The timeline is slightly earlier, returning to the moment when the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon awakens and is born. The main realm of the Suspended Sky Mirror fluctuates, the 'Sealing Heaven and Locking Earth Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation' is shattered, and the 100,000 martial artists who formed the formation suffer a backlash.

"Cough cough!"

Meng Duangui's face was pale, his blood surging. Recalling the five-clawed golden dragon he had seen through the 'Heaven-Sealing and Earth-Locking Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation', his expression was filled with shock and terror: 'That five-clawed golden dragon destroyed the great formation with a single strike. It's definitely not a beast of the first level of the Great Vajra Realm. Is it the second level of the Undying Realm? Or even the third level of the Primordial Chaos Realm?'

'This must be the "interesting little gadget" the Spirit Lord was referring to. Since the Spirit Lord mentioned it, it's highly likely to be a legendary beast at the third level of the Great Vajra Realm, a Primordial Chaos Realm.'

Thinking of this, he realized that the appearance of the five-clawed golden dragon meant that the five major clans were in big trouble, and their land reclamation plans might be ruined. However, these were secondary now; the most important thing was to leave this place and save his life.

Swish!
Meng Duangui unleashed his power, using the Overdraft Secret Technique, his figure transforming into a streak of light.

Yang Shiji, Lu Sizhe, Mou Zonglun, and others also suffered from the backlash of the formation. At this moment, they were not much better off than Meng Duangui. However, they were all old foxes and could not care about anything else. They abandoned the martial artists below and left decisively.

Zhuang Jin and Shangguan Yunchang were in the southeast position of the 'Sealing Heaven and Locking Earth Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation'. When the formation broke, the backlash was easily absorbed by Zhuang Jin, who even took a share of the damage from Shangguan Yunchang. For a Yin God, this backlash was significant, but for him, a true Yang God, it was nothing.

However, to complete the act, the two of them simultaneously pretended to be pale-faced and then summoned their mounts, the Mirage Dragon.

“Husband, just now…” Shangguan Yunchang still looked shocked as she recalled the five-clawed golden dragon she had seen earlier.

"Yun Chang, let's leave first."

Zhuang Jin was also shocked and quite puzzled. As the sixth Yang God Grandmaster outside of the five major clans present, he had also sensed something amiss with the Suspended Sky Mirror.

But this is not the time to think it over. A wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall; it is best to leave first.

Just as the two of them flew a short distance on the mirage dragon, the Five Elements and Five Directions Formation appeared behind them. The terrifying aura within it caused Zhuang Jin's spiritual senses to sting faintly, and he sensed danger.

'As expected, the powerful clans had other plans!'

Zhuang Jin recalled that during the mysterious gathering, Xuan Yuan Nihuang revealed in the transaction that the royal family possessed the Xuan Yuan Sword, the Shi Clan possessed the Kunlun Mirror, and the Gongshu Clan possessed the Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast. This time, it was even more different, with the aura of two more divine objects. He knew that this time, the five great clans were going all out to eliminate the last hard nut to crack in the Songling reclamation, preparing to finish the job in one fell swoop.

'That five-clawed golden dragon is a Grand Vajra Realm Level 3 Mixed Origin cultivator. The combined might of the five great clans, unleashing their full power, is equally terrifying. What will the final outcome be? Will both sides suffer heavy losses?'

'No, the five major clans anticipated this. If no further surprises occur, they should be able to successfully slay the dragon.'

Of course, this is assuming there are no further surprises. Zhuang Jin has not forgotten the hidden methods of the immortals. If the dragon slaying is successful and Songling is fully developed, then it will probably be the turn of the other states' wonders to disappear, disrupting that immortal's balance plan. This is probably not what the other party wants to see, and it may not be successful.

In the next few breaths, Zhuang Jin and Shangguan Yunchang rode the mirage dragon and had already traveled more than ten miles away. This speed was among the best of all the Yin Gods.

But then, something unexpected happened behind them.

"Wow!"

Because the resonance of the Xuanyuan Sword, Kunlun Mirror, Eight Trigrams Formation, Azure Dragon Mechanical Beast, and Boundary Stone was sluggish, a gap appeared in the Five Elements and Five Directions Grand Formation, and the phoenix flew out from it, heading straight towards this side.

……

(End of this chapter)