As the chaotic celebration clouds and the ancient banners appeared, Chen Zhao instantly felt the world turn dim and dark. He could no longer sense anything, including the two dharma bodies and the wall made of black ice. It was as if he had become a living corpse, deprived of sight, hearing, touch, and spiritual perception.
Just as panic arose in him, the scene suddenly brightened. A blade of light, indescribably brilliant, surged from the depths of the darkness, like thunder splitting the sky. With a graceful motion, it tore through the darkness and shattered the eternal silence.
His vision returned, his hearing returned, his sense of touch returned, and his spiritual perception returned. Yet, the image of that blade still lingered in Chen Zhao’s eyes. At this moment, he heard a dull crack, as if some ancient and towering entity had suddenly collapsed.
His spiritual perception spread outward, and he “saw” the black ice wall that had blocked the path of countless generations in the far north split down the middle. Cracks spread rapidly across its surface, forming a dense network of fissures, and pieces began to fall away, inch by inch.
At this moment, the black ice wall seemed to come alive, writhing as if each inch were a creeping insect, desperately trying to restore itself, repairing the cuts and cracks. The scene was horrifying, enough to make one’s scalp tingle.
A pure beam of sword light flared up, instantly splitting into countless fine rays so subtle that even Chen Zhao could barely sense them. With precision and thoroughness, each ray struck a “bug.”
Dang! Dang! Dang! Dang!
The collision sounds came simultaneously, merging into a torrent. The black “ice worms” were completely obliterated. The path to the core of the Ice and Snow Immortal Palace finally appeared before Chen Zhao’s eyes. Inside, pillars were made of ice, tiles of frost, perpetually shrouded in terrifying blizzards. Each snowflake was like a sword, each piece of ice like a blade.
Witnessing this scene, Chen Zhao suddenly gained a profound realization: if he were to touch even a bit of it, his entire body would instantly freeze and then disintegrate into dust, with absolutely no chance of survival.
The painstaking efforts of generations were nothing more than the work of another’s single slash or thrust… Suppressing a bitter smile of realization, Chen Zhao resolved firmly:
Stagnation is unacceptable!
“Thank you, Brother Chen,” Meng Qi said. “There may be a great battle here soon. You should leave quickly.”
Deeply aware of his own shortcomings, Chen Zhao said nothing more. He turned and headed back, planning to take his junior apprenticeess and flee from the Ice and Snow Immortal Palace, then reorganize his disciples and send them in batches to travel south.
After Chen Zhao left, Master Lu said, “The ice wall was composed of thousands of insect-like creatures, capable of self-repair. This technique is quite sinister, vastly different from the previous display of the ice wall’s solid and righteous power.”
“This place may be the abode of the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage, but since we’ve encountered the coffin of the Demon Lord here, it’s only natural we face such dark techniques. The problem is, the insects and the ice wall are seamlessly integrated, not appearing to be altered later but planned from the very beginning. Therefore, it seems the Demon Lord didn’t just take over after the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage’s demise, but was involved in the establishment of the Ice and Snow Immortal Palace from the start. His relationship with the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage is much closer than we previously imagined,” Meng Qi explained his judgment as he slowly walked toward the open passage.
Master Lu hesitated for a moment before saying, “We should still find many clues inside the Immortal Palace. We must not only stop the Demon Cultivator and others from carrying out their plans, but also not overlook the secrets of the Palace itself, so as not to be exploited by others.”
Meng Qi’s right hand hung his long saber low, giving the impression it was dragging behind him due to its weight. He nodded slightly and said, “The formation at the core of the Immortal Palace is the ‘Ten Directions Frozen Absolute Ice Soul Immortal Formation.’ The coldness can freeze dharma bodies and solidify true spirits. The wind is the Xuanming Divine Wind, similar to the Samadhi Divine Wind. Once it enters the acupoints, even a dharma body would turn to dust instantly. The snowflakes and ice fragments are as powerful as strikes from heavenly immortal-grade divine weapons. Even though it has weakened over the millennia, it still cannot be taken lightly.”
At that time, Lu Ya had compared it to the “Cold Ice Formation” among the Ten Ultimate Formations, but in the real world where the story of Fengshen had not yet spread, Meng Qi could only describe it in detail. After all, Master Lu certainly wouldn’t know about the “Cold Ice Formation,” and explaining related matters would only waste time.
Upon hearing this, Master Lu nodded, focusing his gaze on the blizzard ahead. He shook his right hand down from the sword hilt, and the sword light scattered, transforming into countless tiny rays of light that moved subtly to the level of material structure, covering the surroundings, swirling and forming an invisible barrier of sword light.
At the same time, the illusory image of the Pangu Banner above Meng Qi’s head vanished, while the chaotic celebratory clouds slightly contracted, emitting a series of dark and profound rays of light. Within these rays, faint golden lotuses and golden lamps floated and sank, creating the overall impression that his entire body was enveloped in a black cloth capable of absorbing and containing all things.
He took one step forward, and immediately the Xuanming Divine Wind, along with snowflakes and ice fragments, blew toward him, howling and roaring, while the coldness silently seeped in from all around.
The fierce wind swept into the beams of light descending from Meng Qi’s “Taishang Wujie Yuanshi Qingyun,” penetrating that layer of “black cloth,” yet from that point onward, it fell into silence. Wave after wave surged inward, yet remained tranquil and undisturbed, not stirring the slightest ripple—as if dissolving into the profound darkness of chaos.
Snowflakes drifted in one by one, and chunks of ice sliced through the air, striking the eerie light and piercing into it—yet again, no reaction was provoked. The chaotic beams of light hung motionless, silently absorbing and devouring an endless torrent of frost and snowflakes, showing no hint of reaching their limit, as though this could go on indefinitely.
The silent coldness seeped in, and silently vanished, absorbed.
This was the “Wuji Seal”!
This marked the inception of the nameless universe, and if cultivated to its utmost limit, it could encompass all possibilities—including the past, present, and future of the eight directions and six realms!
The celebratory cloud formation above Meng Qi’s head was primarily transformed from the Wuji Seal. Prior to inheriting the Wuji Seal, it had been incomplete. Now, the boundless Wuji enveloped him, and deep within it, the Kaitian Seal was gestating—revealing the true path of Yuanshi!
Master Lu advanced alongside him, and immediately, the sound of sword light striking objects began to echo continuously around them.
Brilliant and sparkling sword flowers bloomed at every point around him, beautiful to the point of being dreamlike.
“Be careful,” suddenly, Master Lu warned, his tone more serious.
At this moment, within the blizzard, the moment Meng Qi’s vision and spiritual perception extended beyond the range of the Wuji Chaos Light, they were instantly frozen and shattered—just like an ordinary person trapped in a snowstorm, surrounded by a blinding white haze, able to see only what was nearby.
Upon hearing Master Lu’s voice transmitted through the sword light, Meng Qi raised his Overlord’s Ultimate Saber. Countless dazzling purple bolts of lightning erupted, twisting into the form of a dragon as they surged into the blizzard, dispersing the nearby white haze. With his will and spirit, he “saw” the fluctuations around Master Lu.
Those pure and radiant sword blossoms were tainted with a ghastly and sinister shade of green—a menacing hue that reeked of malevolence!
If it weren’t for Master Lu’s usual focus and caution, even the slightest negligence would have allowed this sinister force to slip in unnoticed, leading to unknown and terrifying consequences.
The dark and chaotic radiance surrounding Meng Qi resembled cascading eaves’ waterfalls, instantly disintegrating anything that entered into primordial chaos, stripping it of its original form. Thus, that eerie azure chill was silently absorbed and vanished without a trace.
“Under the ‘Ten Directions Frozen Absolute Ice Soul Immortal Formation,’ there lurks a sinister and toxic malevolence. The relationship between the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage and the Demon Lord becomes increasingly intriguing,” Meng Qi condensed his voice into electricity, piercing through the blizzard to reach Master Lu.
This was something Lu Ya had never mentioned. If not for his mastery of the Wuji Seal, when dealing with the changes of the ‘Ten Directions Frozen Absolute Ice Soul Immortal Formation,’ he would likely have fallen victim to it!
Both of them became more alert. After Meng Qi identified the workings of the formation, they moved toward the pivotal location of the Jade Pond entrance, while remaining vigilant against encountering the Demon Cultivator and the Dharma King along the way.
After walking for a while, a windless and snowless zone suddenly appeared ahead. It was a half-collapsed palace, and facing Meng Qi and Master Lu was a relatively intact meditation chamber.
“The restrictions and formations here are in a state of damage, slowly repairing themselves. I wonder if this was the site of a battle between the elders like Su or Han Guang and their enemies, or if they encountered each other here?” Meng Qi stepped out of the blizzard, taking one step to reach the door of the meditation chamber, intending to investigate first.
As for the latter scenario, Meng Qi thought it was unlikely. If he were Han Guang or others, he would obviously prefer someone else to take the lead in exploration. Of course, Su Wuming’s techniques were mysterious and omnipresent, making it not too strange if he had discovered Han Guang and others. But similarly, there was no need for a direct confrontation.
Therefore, the most likely scenario was an encounter with ice soul puppets or similar entities within the Immortal Palace.
Master Lu held his long sword, gazing at the half-closed meditation chamber. He extended his aura, causing the door to open on its own without wind.
Inside the room was empty, with only a dark-colored meditation cushion.
Suddenly, the cushion emitted a slight chill capable of freezing the heavens and earth, transforming into a streak of light that shot toward Meng Qi and Master Lu like an ice soul.
Underneath the freezing chill, however, was a twisting and undulating malevolence!
Meng Qi’s figure flickered as he stepped forward, intercepting the streak of light. Whether it was freezing the heavens or defiling all things, everything was engulfed by the eerie radiance, while the primordial chaos remained profound and undisturbed, showing no signs of disruption.
“Even the aura is hiding demonic intent beneath the ice soul technique. Perhaps…” Meng Qi had a bold thought, but hesitated to voice it.
Master Lu continued, “Perhaps the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage is the Demon Lord’s incarnation.”
The Ice and Snow Immortal Sage is the Demon Lord’s incarnation! This was also Meng Qi’s suspicion.
There were traces of the Demon Lord’s birth and growth, but records of the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage were relatively scarce. Therefore, it wasn’t that the Demon Lord was the incarnation of the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage, but rather the opposite.
This suspicion startled Meng Qi himself, and he slightly furrowed his brows: “If that’s the case, what about the Ice and Snow Immortal Sage’s remains that are deeply suppressing a monster in the Snow Mountains?”
Could it be that the nine Immortal Sages’ suppression and sealing of the monster had unknown loopholes?
Was the Demon Lord involved in the events of those years?
The deeper Meng Qi ventured into the Ice and Snow Immortal Palace, the more he felt the thickening fog of mystery.
Master Lu did not answer his question, for it was impossible to guess. The two exchanged a glance and moved to a nearby half-collapsed hall, which was nearly in ruins but had stood for millennia without collapsing.
Meng Qi simply took a glance and illuminated it with the Dao Yi Glazed Lamp, sensing its energy. He instantly realized who had fought here.
“The Demon Cultivator, the Dharma King, the Blood Sea Rakshasa… Hmm, there are also traces of Gourdo’s involvement. Their enemy… their enemy seems to have vanished…”
Yet, judging from the ruins, it was not a case of the four evil dharma bodies fighting among themselves.
Master Lu took a step forward, suddenly directing his gaze to the farthest corner. His figure flickered, appearing there, and he murmured softly, “Someone was injured.”
Meng Qi followed him there and, beyond his previous range of perception, saw a trail of golden blood droplets. They contained sacred and powerful energy, but no vitality remained, making them unusable.
“A divine spirit sustained by worship… Gourdo’s aura…” Meng Qi concluded, his heart suddenly filled with shock.
Who was it?
Who could have wounded Gourdo, who wielded the Tian Zhu Axe?
Who could have wounded Gourdo, who wielded the Tian Zhu Axe, amidst the combined efforts of four evil dharma bodies?
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