A Scroll of Infinite Glory

Chapter 145 Flying Shadow, Who Says It Cannot Be Moved by the Eight Winds?

The enormous eight-legged monster, constructed from activated earth and stone, weighs nearly a hundred tons, even with a few fluid cavities inside.

If it weren't for the superpower of activating the contract, which allows these rocks to move on their own, one leading ten, it would be impossible to control such a substance remotely with true energy detached from the body and keep it moving in a beast-like form unless one is at the Grandmaster level.

After clearing the path in front of the canyon, Anfeiyu raised one hand to the side, and its thick sucker tentacles attached themselves to the right side of the mountain wall. The tentacles attached to and moved along the steep mountain wall, moving the entire huge body upwards.

This action cleared a path for the people rushing out of the canyon.

Dust billowed, hooves thundered, and figures using light-footed skills swiftly traversed the distance.

On the sheer cliff, amidst a muffled roar, several tentacles clung to the edge, pulling their heavy bodies upwards.

Just as Qiu Ruzui was about to sever the tentacles with her sword, she suddenly heard the cry of cranes. Two cranes, their bodies enveloped in highly poisonous red smoke, soared into the sky from the canyon, swooping down and flying over the monster's head, trailing long red smoke tails as they attacked.

when!

The tip of the short sword caught the crane's sharp beak and swung it to the side. The thick, sticky true energy on Qiu Ruzui's sword pulled the first crane and crashed into the second crane. Then the sword flipped and spun.

The two cranes were involuntarily pressed together, spinning violently as the blade danced, their forms torn apart, leaving only the poisonous smoke.

Qiu Ruzui, seemingly oblivious, brandished the knife around her, the poisonous red smoke surrounding her. To her, the deadly poison was the perfect medium for transmitting her inner energy.

Tentacles thicker than a person's waist slammed heavily onto the protective layer of poisonous smoke, bounced high into the air, and left behind many intricate and deep knife marks.

The eight-legged monster had climbed up the cliff, its tentacles rising into the air and whipping at Bu Suanzi and Qiu Ruzui on the cliff.

Meanwhile, in the center of the eight-person formation, an incredibly powerful aura was rising.

Xu Miyuan, who witnessed the formation being broken and the group passing through the canyon, let out a low shout.

"Get out of here!!"

In Central Plains martial arts, any formation involving a majority of people surrounding a minority is mostly inseparable from the concept of the Eight Trigrams.

With the Kan trigram representing due north and the Li trigram representing due south, the other six trigrams also correspond to each other and occupy a direction.

Therefore, the Eight Trigrams represent eight fixed directions, and the combination of the trigrams represents the routes of movement and retreat between different directions.

The eight trigrams also represent the eight directions of the human body: Qian represents the head, Kun represents the abdomen, Zhen represents the feet, Xun represents the thighs, Kan represents the ears, Li represents the eyes, Gen represents the hands, and Dui represents the mouth.

The changes in the hexagrams also indicate to the person deploying the formation which direction to attack the enemy from and which part of their own body to defend.

Countless complex actions and confusing route choices are summarized into concise nouns.

Therefore, for top-notch masters, even without much practice, once they understand the underlying principles, as long as one person in the formation makes a slight change in their movement, it represents a change in the hexagram. The others will then know what kind of hexagram change should occur in their position and make the corresponding actions based on the change in the hexagram.

This is the only way to bring many formation participants into the same order and form a close-knit whole.

The sixty-four hexagrams can be derived in endless ways. Each school and sect only needs to extract a part of them and fit it with their own martial arts style to make their formation unique.

However, everything in the world has its advantages and disadvantages. Once you enjoy the convenience brought by the theory of the Eight Trigrams, you cannot escape the drawbacks.

Once a complete, sound, and powerful theoretical system is established, it can be better understood by the person who sets up the formation. Relatively speaking, it is also easier for those trapped in the formation to grasp the patterns.

The problem is, when a person is trapped in the formation, facing eight top-notch experts who are empowered by the formation, does he still have the energy to observe, think, and counterattack?

The answer is, of course!

From the very beginning, even though Wu Pingqiang and his group set up this formation, and even though everyone used all their martial arts skills, they were not the ones who had the upper hand or were putting pressure on the other side. Instead, they were the ones who were bearing the pressure and were playing a role in delaying the enemy.

When Xu Miyuan resorted to some slightly risky methods, this delaying tactic immediately became precarious.

His first target in his offensive was the spear of Guilong Jiao Gai.

The spearhead was bluish-gold, while the shaft was made by soaking old vines from Zhongnan Mountain in medicinal oil, repeatedly hammering them to remove impurities, and then pressing them into fine threads and weaving them together. The texture of the strange vines was like the meridians of a top-notch master's body, making it extremely easy to transmit internal energy.

Jiao Gai usually keeps this spear wrapped around his waist. Once he draws it out and uses his internal energy, it immediately transforms into a nine-foot-long spear, combining both strength and flexibility, writhing and striking. Centered on his palm and wrist, it can reach any angle or direction within nine feet, regardless of length or distance, at will and without limit.

As Xu Miyuan made his move, in the blink of an eye, two fingers pinched the spear tip that was rapidly retracting and dodging. After the spear tip was pinched by his fingers, the vibration sound caused by the collision of the two internal forces made the entire spearhead blur.

At first glance, it seems as if the fingers and the spearhead are not actually touching, but then, a scene that almost makes one doubt their eyes appears.

Xu Miyuan suddenly manifested eight arms, each an afterimage left by extreme high speed, yet so clear, as if they were real.

At the ends of the arms, eight hands formed eight different hand seals, transforming the entire old vine spear into an angry and slender dragon-snake. Starting from the initial seal that held the spear tip, the dragon-snake swam and flew, remaining consistent throughout, weaving and traversing between the eight hand seals.

The Western Region people's appearance and light gold clothing made this scene resemble the majestic eight-armed Buddha Bodhisattva in the Dunhuang Ten Thousand Buddha Caves, with its vast light, deep features, and inviolable splendor.

The guardian deities who control dragons and snakes.

The tip of the spear still retained a slight tinge of touch on Jiao Gai's hand, but the slender old vine spear had been stretched even longer, winding around Xu Miyuan's back. Under the influence of the eight hand seals, it left behind sections that flew up and down, bending and straightening in arcs, perfectly blocking all the other six people's swords and sabers.

The spearhead pierced Qian Wanliang's gold bead.

When the figure of this eight-armed deity from the Western Regions began to spin and dance, everyone's weapons and hidden weapons deviated from their original trajectory. The entire formation was fundamentally distorted and deformed, and all subsequent changes were immediately extinguished.

Eight figures were involuntarily thrown into the air, collided with each other, and finally crashed out in the same direction.

"Get out of here—"

The echo of that rebuke still reverberated through the canyon.

The Eight Directions Annihilation Formation has been completely destroyed.

The eight arms disappeared, but the rotating bronze drum still hovered above Xu Miyuan's head. With a flick of his left hand, a spear flew out, its tip tipped with a golden bead, aiming straight for Wu Pingqiang's throat.

Xu Miyuan had no intention of watching the spear being launched. His toes were already slightly off the ground as he was about to leap out and chase after the carriage. Yu Tu inside the carriage was his most important target.

At that moment, a slender circle of blue light rippled outwards.

The source of the blue light was the blue and white music player in Anfeiyu's hand.

Creating such a monster not only took a long time to cast, but also shared all the vitality that Anfei had accumulated by soaking in water with the Feather Bead.

His hat was nowhere to be found, his disheveled hair even covered his right eye, the fine lines at the corner of his eye, and the stubble on his chin all showed how listless and weak he was.

But he did not leave with the others as previously agreed.

As galloping horses and figures of light-footed kung fu sped out of the canyon, he turned around and, against the flow of the crowd, drew his "weapon."

Fortunately, his second combat ability is only indirectly related to physical vitality, while it is directly related to the tenacity of his will.

The blue and white summoner emitted a blue light the moment the switch was pressed, and the belt around the waist and the rousing music from the headphones appeared almost simultaneously.

With a thought, a crystal card was condensed in the card box on the right side of the belt. With a flick of the right hand, the card tilted forward and popped out. The summoner in the left hand moved to that trajectory, allowing the card to be accurately shot into the card slot.

"Flying Shadow Armor, Combine!"

Black leather instantly covered his entire body from the neck down, followed by white combat boots, blue knee pads, waist protection, gauntlets, arm armor, chest armor, shoulder armor, and finally a full-coverage helmet.

Anfeiyu's eyes were hidden behind red goggles.

Within the summoner's consciousness, the steps of armor fusion were presented in a clear and orderly manner.

In reality, in the instant that slender blue light spread out, the armor that had completed its combination arrived through the air with a gust of wind and lightning, stomping down the spear with one foot and kicking Xu Miyuan in the heart with the other.

Xu Miyuan blocked with his arm, and a large ball of electric smoke exploded in front of his arm. The azure arc of electricity expanded and crackled wildly. He was already airborne and had no contact with the ground. After taking such a kick, his upper body immediately tilted backward and he was thrown backward.

Anfeiyu landed, raised his right hand, and his voice came from inside the sealed armor: "You all go too, I'll cover the rear."

The Flying Shadow Armor, an alien armor from the world of "Armor Hero Xingtian," is a device that amplifies the summoner's own abilities.

If a summoner's will has not been tempered enough, even in the armored fusion state, they may be forced out of the fusion state by a one-star reincarnator who fights bare-handed.

However, if a reincarnator has already obtained a three-star rating, they will receive a very considerable boost in combat power after the armor is combined.

In terms of attack power alone, when Anfeiyu kicks out in this state, the force and speed are more than twice as strong as the earth and stone monster tentacles he created after casting for so long.

As for attack frequency, it's like comparing heaven and earth, there's no point in comparing them.

After forcing Xu Miyuan back with a kick, lightning flowed out from the surface of An Feiyu's armor like silk threads, fluttering backward.

The armored figure suddenly disappeared from Xu Miyuan's sight, leaving only streaks of lightning drifting and moving towards the left edge of his field of vision.

Xu Miyuan swung his left hand to block a kick aimed at his left waist. His body trembled slightly, and he turned his neck to the left, his eyes following the figure of the person, but only more strands of lightning were caught by his gaze.

The Flying Shadow Armor moved faster than his field of vision, circling his body from the left and launching four attacks. Although he blocked them all, the armor made his body dart left and right, swaying forward and backward within a small area, unable to land.

The moment Xu Miyuan's gaze finally turned to his left, the Flying Shadow Armor was already in front of him, sweeping a kick toward his throat.

Xu Miyuan's neck wasn't fast enough to turn, but his limbs were just as fast as the Flying Shadow Armor. He swept his hand over his head, grabbed the bronze drum, and met the kick from the Flying Shadow Armor.

Boom! ! !

Lightning exploded, and the sound of drums echoed.

Anfeiyu felt a strong shockwave emanating from the surface of the armor and spreading throughout his body, causing him to be thrown back and land on the ground spinning.

"Such speed! Is there really anyone in this world who can forge divine weapons in the shape of armor?"

Xu Miyuan landed from the sky, cracked his neck, looked over with surprise, then his eyes turned somewhat disgusted. "But this is too strange. It doesn't fit the style of the Sui and Tang dynasties, nor does it resemble the style of the desert kingdoms that worship gods and Buddhas and have gold and jade inlays."

"Very well, Shao Lingxiao probably didn't expect that there would be such a strange divine weapon among you. Yu Tu's shameless escape is unlikely to be caught. So let's take you back."

An Feiyu snapped his fingers, his listless tone tinged with a hint of amusement, and said, "Say more. Generally speaking, the more you talk, the safer I am."

From one side of the cliff came a series of muffled rolling sounds, and large, irregularly shaped boulders fell from the precipice.

Although the eight-legged earth and stone monster was enormous, it was still too slow in its movements. Qiu Ruzui shaved it into pieces, cut it in half, and finally, Bu Suanzi used a burst of true energy to smash the monster's head with a palm strike, causing all the remains to slide off the cliff.

As the clods of earth rolled, they rubbed against the cliff face and broke apart, like a muddy, gray hailstorm falling in the canyon.

Anfeiyu looked up and suddenly soared into the air, facing the hailstones that were tinged with a yellowish hue.

He leaned forward, first kicking the left cliff face, then using the momentum to kick the right cliff face, continuously ricocheting upwards, his body moving as fast as a long, winding bolt of lightning.

If the opponent is just a newly promoted Grandmaster with the Flying Shadow Armor, An Feiyu might consider fighting back and seeing if he can push the progress bar for "defeating a Grandmaster" in the mission objectives forward.

However, the Western Region man opposite him was already a Grandmaster, and he clearly possessed a divine weapon.

Learning from Guan Luoyang's experience, An Feiyu was unwilling to try it rashly. If he were hit on the belt, he wouldn't be able to withstand the damage like his teammates once he was out of the combined form.

If you can cover the rear and retreat safely, that's considered a success!

He kicked large cracks into the cliff face from bottom to top, and the cracks, which were then affected by subsequent heavy kicks, caused it to collapse and disintegrate.

The crack suddenly widened, and large swathes of earth and rocks on both sides of the mountain wall crashed down with a thunderous roar.

There were even huge rocks, about a foot thick and as tall as houses, that were peeled off the mountainside.

Bu Suanzi and Qiu Ruzui stood on the cliff, feeling their feet tremble uncontrollably. Looking into the canyon, they could see nothing at all.

If you were still in the canyon at this time, looking up you would see a sky full of dim yellow shadows, with heavy objects falling down, the force of which was extremely terrifying.

Anfeiyu had already risen above these shadows and was about to escape from the cliff opposite Qiu Ruzui and the others.

"Such a trick! Do you really think that speed is enough to save your life?"

Xu Miyuan looked disdainfully at the heavy shadows crashing down on him. At this point, he suddenly switched to a different language, his voice thick with nasal resonance, his chest resonating, and his pronunciation archaic and difficult.

This is the language of his hometown—a place he left when he was ten years old, fifty years ago.

If Anfeiyu understood the language of the Western Regions kingdom of Kucha, he would understand that what he was saying meant: "Who can escape the influence of the eight winds?"

The so-called Eight Winds have different interpretations in ancient books such as Lüshi Chunqiu in the Central Plains, and their related history can even be traced back to the ancient times before Yu the Great controlled the floods.

But in places like the kingdoms of Kucha in the Western Regions.

The Buddha statues there, large and small, are scattered around houses and inside and outside the city, some exquisite and some rough, some weathered and some cracked. There are more Buddha statues than living people.

Their eight winds naturally follow the Buddhist interpretation.

It is also called the "Eight Worldly Laws".

These refer to eight things in the world that sway people's hearts: gain, loss, destruction, praise, honor, ridicule, suffering, and pleasure.

The bronze drum floated into the air, and Xu Mingyuan punched the downward-facing side of the drum.

Boom! !

The Flying Shadow Armor, which was much faster than sound, suddenly trembled all over its body the moment it jumped onto the cliff, and knelt down on one knee.

Within the bronze drum, something struck him faster than sound.

It was supposed to be a combination of eight emotions, but when mixed together, it made it impossible to feel any emotions at all.

There was only a deafening roar that seemed to shatter one's spirit layer by layer from the very outside.

Intense, vast, and fierce!

At this moment, the true internal force sonic waves erupted from the upward side of the bronze drum, shattering the stones that were falling towards Xu Miyuan and blasting a passage through the dim, yellowish shadows.

Xu Miyuan bent his knees, held the bronze drum in his hands, and leaped up, passing straight through the passage.

When he took a step forward and caught up with Anfeiyu on the cliff, the ground beneath his feet still trembled slightly.

Behind us, many rocks, dust, and ash continued to fall into the canyon.

Feiying Armor knelt on the ground, his left hand pressing against the ground. The surface of the armor was vibrating continuously, giving the impression that it was about to disappear from its combined state.

Xu Miyuan had already taken control of the life and death of the person in front of him. Just as he was about to raise his hand, a section of the ground beneath his feet suddenly collapsed.

The collapse of the earth and rocks caused him to fall backward, and a python that seemed to have come alive from the loess soil opened its mouth to bite him.

"They've resorted to the same old tricks; they've run out of ideas!"

Xu Miyuan's eyes revealed a hint of smugness. He didn't take the python seriously at all. He twisted his body in the air, raised one foot high, crushed the python's head, and used the force to fly up the cliff.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blue and white figure, seemingly waiting for this moment, brushing past him from the opposite direction.

Anfeiyu flipped over and plummeted, disappearing into the rolling, yellowish dust below the cliff.

This is his escape route!

Xu Miyuan held the bronze drum in his hand, turned around, and gazed at the dusty, rocky canyon, remaining silent for a moment.

A long, drawn-out breath filled the air, as if it were tearing the wind apart, expelling the dust, and drawing in the clean, turbulent airflow.

"you……"

He raised his right arm high, and the soft, pale gold sleeve turned to ashes inch by inch from the pleated cuff, revealing an arm beneath which the true energy of the "Human Heaven Evolution" surged, resembling the arm of a Buddha.

"Shao Lingxiao is one thing, but you—you dare to fool this leader of the sect?!"

boom!!!

The bronze drum was smashed into the dust, rumbling and booming, before its trajectory became parallel as it approached the ground.

A figure above, closely following his divine weapon, chased after Xiushuo City.

All thoughts of "contributing with the same level of cultivation as ten years ago," "keeping a low profile," and "reserving oneself" were thrown to the back of one's mind.

The martial arts world is full of talented people. If we can't even kill one of these suddenly appearing nobodys, how can we talk about the future?

"Even if you manage to escape into Xiushuo City before sunrise, you will all die!!"

(End of this chapter)