It’s perfectly normal for the Golden-Haired Ape and the others to think this way. Not just them—even the Rulers outside the Chaos Flying Ship, or the colossal statue ‘Gugan Luo’ silently observing nearby—all couldn’t help but wonder: *Why didn’t he unleash the Black Gourd at the critical moment? Could it be that he can’t use it again?* Such a treasure might indeed be too much for a mere Paragon to wield multiple times in quick succession.
*Pop!*
Without warning, Dongbo Xueying pulled the stopper from the Black Gourd.
***BOOM!!!***
A dark, mist-like ripple surged forth once more.
It brought death and annihilation. The Golden-Haired Ape and the other three top-tier Protectors had no time to react before the dark mist invaded their bodies. The other three Protectors, whose physiques were slightly weaker, instantly disintegrated—their eyes barely registering shock and agony before they crumbled into nothingness.
*He could still use it… but why didn’t he wait to force more of us out before attacking?* The Golden-Haired Ape felt destruction seeping into the deepest layers of his body, the approach of death undeniable. Amidst his sorrow, confusion gnawed at him. *Could it be… he can wield it even more times?*
The Golden-Haired Ape had lingered in the red-light zone for nearly nine breaths. Though the gathered Paragons might have eventually forced him out, more of the Sacred Mother Cult’s top-tier Protectors could have emerged to assist. If they surpassed ten breaths, their side would lose.
So Dongbo Xueying struck without hesitation.
One more use? He didn’t care. The Black Gourd no longer rebelled against him.
*This feeling…* Gripping the gourd, Xueying sensed the terrifying power within, yet the Voidless Array obeyed perfectly, controlling every wisp of energy without harming him. Now, he could even manipulate the dark ripples freely—whereas before, he could only clumsily unleash them in a single direction.
Now, if he wished, he could split the ripples into eighteen streams, attacking in all directions effortlessly. Or wrap them into a sphere, shielding himself completely.
Such were the benefits of mastery.
*But this is inside the Chaos Flying Ship. That mysterious Gugan Luo is its master. Best not to draw his attention to the Black Gourd.* Xueying remained cautious.
—
***BOOM—***
The Golden-Haired Ape’s body tore apart, his furious roar swallowed by the void.
Rage. Despair.
Yet in the end, his form dissolved into nothingness.
One Sacred Protector and three top-tier Protectors—gone. With a thought, Xueying halted the dark ripples surging from the gourd’s mouth. “Now,” he commanded, “force the rest out.”
“Understood.”
“Drive them into the open!”
The gathered Paragons surged with battle fervor. After struggling so long within the Chaos Flying Ship, this moment was their sweetest. The Sacred Mother Cult’s Protectors *had* to emerge—because if they didn’t, their hidden treasures would fall into the cultivators’ hands, sealing their doom.
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
Nine more top-tier Protectors materialized, led by a staff-wielding giant, their faces twisted in fury and anguish. As the likes of the Annihilation Monarch and the White Monarch pressed the assault, even more Protectors were forced into the open. Staying hidden would only invite their swift annihilation.
“Are we… losing?”
“Can Dongbo Xueying really use that gourd again?”
“How did it come to this?”
Though they fought on, the Protectors’ hearts were heavy with despair. Death loomed ever closer.
Xueying stood apart, the Black Gourd in hand, its stopper still removed—ready to strike at any moment.
—
The battling Protectors suffered.
Far away, in the vast hall of the Sacred Mother Cult, the Sect Masters radiated oppressive auras, yet their eyes betrayed sorrow and rage. Their Protectors—many their own disciples, nurtured over eons—were now facing mass extinction. True death.
A chilling dread gripped the Sect Masters.
“We have no retreat.”
“Once they entered the Chaos Flying Ship, victory was their only path. The Bloodblade Thearch has already sealed the ship’s surroundings. If they lose, escape is impossible,” the Tusked Sect Master growled. “No retreat—only victory! Our only hope is that Dongbo Xueying’s uses of that gourd are limited. That’s their sole chance!”
“But he used it once just to kill four Protectors. He must be confident,” a gaunt elder muttered.
Silence.
The other Sect Masters watched the projection in the air, where Xueying unleashed the Black Gourd once more.
The despairing dark ripples blotted the sky.
The cultivator Paragons vanished abruptly, leaving the remaining eighteen Protectors no time to flee. The ripples *scoured* over them—seventeen top-tier Protectors disintegrated like dust in an instant. The staff-wielding giant lasted mere moments longer before vanishing with a silent roar.
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
This time, without needing coercion, the final ten Protectors emerged.
Led by the woman with a venomous tail, they stood defiantly, staring at Xueying.
—
Xueying met their gazes.
“If you can use it again, then do it,” the tailed woman said coldly. Struggle was futile.
“Come.”
The other nine stood firm.
Some were kind, others cruel, cold, or savage—yet now, they faced death with eerie calm. With no retreat, they disdained begging.
Xueying sensed their resolve. “Your kind seeks survival,” he said, “but your survival demands the annihilation of our entire cosmos. *Our* kind must live too. So… you must die.”
***BOOM.***
Once more, the Black Gourd unleashed its power.
The tailed woman and the nine clung to a sliver of hope—that Xueying might be spent. But as the dark mist enveloped them, despair took hold. The nine vanished instantly. The tailed woman’s body began fracturing—
*Halt.*
Xueying suddenly stopped the gourd’s array, corked it, and stowed it away.
Bleeding and broken, the woman stared in disbelief.
“Capture her,” Xueying ordered.
“Alive!” The Annihilation Monarch laughed, charging forth.
“Move!” The Wuying Monarch, the Waterfiend King, and others surged with battle intent. The Northmystic Palace Master activated a formation, and the Paragons attacked in unison.
The tailed woman sneered, her wounds sealing as she let out a piercing cry: “Our deaths don’t mean defeat! This universe… will still be ours!”
***BOOM!***
Her body detonated.
The Wuying Monarch and the Annihilation Monarch shielded their allies from the blast.
Xueying, illusory and untouchable, watched silently. The Sacred Mother Cult’s Protectors were gone—but the war wasn’t over. Their cosmos, too, had to survive.
“Bravo, bravo,” Gugan Luo’s voice boomed across the heavens, laced with mockery. “One side victorious, the other annihilated.”
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