After guarding the gates for a hundred years, I drove the Heavenly Saint to madness.

The central command tent of the Xiqi camp.

The recent series of defeats and frustrations made the atmosphere inside the tent so heavy it seemed like it could drip water.

Yuanshi Tianzun sat in the main seat, his face ashen, and remained silent.

He knew that the light barrier outside Jiepai Pass could perfectly deflect even the counterforce of the Pangu Banner. If he were to launch a reckless attack, the land of Kyushu would surely shatter, and no one could bear such world-destroying karma.

It's not that they can't break through, but rather that they're hesitant and afraid to take the plunge.

"Fellow Daoist Yuanshi, is it true that even the Pangu Banner cannot break through the light barrier of Jiepai Pass?" Daoist Zhunti frowned and broke the suffocating silence first.

"snort!"

Yuanshi Tianzun snorted coldly, his eyes filled with extreme resentment and frustration.

"If this were in the chaotic void, a single wave of my banner would reduce them, along with their formation, to dust!"

"But this is the primordial wilderness! The rules of that light barrier are extremely strange, capable of reflecting back even the might of a saint. If I were to exert my full power, whether the boundary pass would even break is another matter, but the ley lines in the eastern part of this primordial wilderness would surely shatter completely!"

"When billions of people perish, will the West bear this immense karmic burden for me?"

Zhunti Daoist awkwardly shut his mouth. The backlash of human destiny was a calamity that would shake the foundation of a sage; the Western Sect was trying to avoid it as quickly as possible.

The Taoist priest, his face filled with sorrow, slowly turned the prayer beads in his hand and suggested, "Since a direct attack is not feasible, why don't we devise a plan to feign weakness, lure them out of the pass, and then kill them?"

The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning's face darkened further, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "That wicked creature is as cunning as a fox, and has no bottom line in his actions."

"Now that he has the advantage of terrain, his retreat into hiding leaves us helpless. What reason would he have to venture out and risk his life?"

"Then we can use great supernatural powers to sneak in from underground, or use the technique of karmic curse to kill..." Zhunti spoke again.

"None of these methods will work."

The Primordial Celestial Venerable immediately raised his hand to interrupt: "That light screen extends from the heavens to the earth, forming a seamless whole, without any flaws to be found."

"As for curse killing, it's probably unlikely. In the primordial world, the strongest curse killing technique is the Seven Arrows of Nailhead. But we've already tried this method before, and that monstrous creature seems to have a way to evade it."

Silence fell once again inside the tent.

This won't work, that won't work. Four dignified Heavenly Dao Saints gathered together, yet they were driven into a dead end by a third-generation disciple of the Jie Sect.

Just as the stalemate was at its peak, Taiqing Laozi, who had been lost in thought with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.

At this moment, a deep and unfathomable calculation was revealed in those eyes that were as calm as still water.

"A direct assault is not advisable; the consequences of destroying the primordial world are something we cannot bear."

Taiqing Laozi's voice was calm, yet every word he uttered pointed directly to the core of breaking the deadlock.

"But since the backlash from that light barrier will bring disaster to the entire land, we will set up a supreme array to isolate the area around Jiepai Pass from the primordial world."

"As long as we use the grand formation to block the aftershocks of the Sage's attack and seal them within the formation's space, we can then unleash our full power without any reservations and crush that light barrier along with the boundary barrier!"

These words were like the sun breaking through the clouds.

The three saints inside the tent all had their eyes light up.

The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning's tightly furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and he clapped his hands in praise, "Senior Brother's plan is brilliant!"

"Once we isolate ourselves from heaven and earth, and eliminate the worry of karmic backlash, with our saintly abilities, a mere light barrier can be shattered with a flick of our finger!"

Zhunti and Jieyin nodded in agreement, finally seeing a glimmer of hope for breaking the deadlock.

With the strategy set, the next question is who will set up the formation.

It can perfectly withstand and isolate the aftershocks of several Heavenly Saints' full-force attacks, something ordinary formations simply cannot do.

Yuanshi Tianzun primarily cultivates the exposition of the Heavenly Dao, and his Pangu Banner is mainly used for offense; he is not proficient in such a heaven-locking and earth-sealing isolation formation.

The two Western Saints, being of slightly lesser spiritual foundation, were somewhat lacking in both skill and magical artifacts when used to seal off the destructive impact of a Saint-level being.

After a brief deduction, the four sages finally focused their attention on Laozi, the Supreme Purity One.

"This kind of ultimate formation that isolates heaven and earth..."

"Only my senior brother's Yin-Yang Dust Array can handle this," Yuanshi Tianzun said in a deep voice.

The Two Elements Dust Array is one of Laozi Taiqing's signature techniques.

This formation, once reduced to a speck of dust, can evolve into a universe. Within this speck of dust, creation and destruction are determined by the mind, and it excels at reversing yin and yang and imprisoning heaven and earth.

If this formation is used to cover Jiepai Pass, even if there is a huge battle going on inside, the outside world will not be able to sense it at all.

"good."

Taiqing Laozi did not refuse. He stood up and flicked his whisk lightly.

"To set up this formidable formation, we still need a core treasure to suppress its core. Without further ado, I will return to the Eight Views Palace on Shouyang Mountain to retrieve the Yin-Yang Emerald Light Lamp."

"Once the array's core is retrieved, it will be time for Xiao Wuji to be executed."

Having said that, Taiqing Laozi transformed into a wisp of pure energy and vanished into the void, heading straight for Shouyang Mountain.

……

Late at night, at Jiepai Pass.

All was silent; even the wind on the city walls seemed to have stopped.

In a secret chamber deep underground in the General's Mansion, Xiao Wuji was sitting cross-legged, stabilizing the power of the Twenty-Four Heavenly Realms that had just been integrated into his body.

Suddenly, he snapped his eyes open, his gaze piercing the void above him like lightning.

He keenly sensed that a strange aura had silently descended outside the absolutely isolated light barrier of the Primordial Pure Land.

This aura is extremely gentle, exuding a profound sense of encompassing all things.

Most importantly, the newcomer did not exude the slightest hostility or murderous intent. He simply stood quietly outside the light screen, as if waiting for his master's invitation.

Before Xiao Wuji could even activate the Great Causal Technique to investigate...

A faint yet supremely majestic female voice rang out in Xiao Wuji's mind, ignoring the barriers of space.

"I, Pingxin of the Netherworld, have taken the liberty of visiting you and humbly request General Xiao to open the formation for an audience."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wuji's heart skipped a beat, and a look of undisguised astonishment flashed in his eyes.

Empress Pingxin?

Houtu, one of the twelve ancestral witches of the ancient witch clan, transformed herself into the six realms of reincarnation to give all living beings in the primordial world a way to survive. She gained supreme merit from the Heavenly Dao and took the name Pingxin.

In this Netherworld, her status and strength are comparable to that of a Heavenly Saint, and to some extent, even the Dao Ancestor Hongjun has to give her some face.

This Lord of the Underworld, who never steps out of the Nine Netherworlds, has actually come to our door in person tonight?

The words spoken by the Ancestral Witch Xuanming when she left flashed through Xiao Wuji's mind.

It seems that Xuanming did indeed tell Pingxin what had happened here after returning to the underworld.

"How could we not welcome such an honored guest?"

Xiao Wuji did not hesitate. Facing such a powerful figure with immeasurable merit, it would have been a sign of his unease to refuse him entry.

With a thought, the Primordial Pure Land light curtain enveloping Jiepai Pass silently cracked open with an extremely hidden gap.

call.

A gentle breeze carrying a faint sense of reincarnation swept by.

Inside the secret chamber, a woman dressed in a plain-colored long dress seemed to have traversed countless ages, gracefully appearing before Xiao Wuji.

Although it is only a hidden incarnation, the compassionate aura that makes people want to worship it is genuine.

Xiao Wuji stood up and bowed respectfully with his hands clasped.

"Junior Xiao Wuji greets Empress Pingxin."

Empress Pingxin did not reply immediately.

Her eyes, which seemed to have seen through the cycle of life and death, quietly fell on Xiao Wuji.

When her gaze fell upon Xiao Wuji's physical body, a look of astonishment and shock suddenly erupted from Consort Pingxin's usually calm face.

In her perception, this seemingly ordinary human youth actually possessed a vast world power within him that was enough to crush the stars!

"What Xuanming said is true..."

Empress Pingxin took a deep breath, her voice carrying a rare hint of emotion.

"You truly created something extraordinary within my body!"