Chapter 1119: Purple Bamboo Grove of the South Sea

“Fellow Daoist, I shall assist you!”

With these words, a colossal figure, its form brimming with the might of starry rivers, raised its index fingers together like a sword. With a flick of its right hand, it unleashed a blinding sword beam of pure white.

At the same moment, the swordsman, the monk, and the ancient, towering divine figure each unleashed their own attacks—spewing sword energy, wielding Li Xian swords, or transforming their Nirvana traits into blades of time—all striking in unison.

Crimson, azure, yellow, and white—four beams of sword qi slashed across the cosmos, innumerable and indescribable, forming a sword formation that displayed countless scenes of destruction. Some were so chaotic they collapsed into ultimate stillness; others expanded endlessly, only to eventually halt and grow cold.

All these scenes were enacted by the four beams of sword light, layer upon layer, closing in on the Great King of Inspiration, just a hair’s breadth away from dragging it into annihilation or chaos.

This ultimate peril surged into the Great King of Inspiration’s heart. Every muscle in its body trembled, as if it had truly seen its own doomsday, feeling utterly incapable of resisting the sword formation’s onslaught.

Perhaps it could hold off the formation for a time, but if it couldn’t escape, its eventual demise was inevitable.

Even more crucially, the sword formation blurred all causal connections, seemingly shattering everything around it, leaving no time or space, no cause or effect—only chaos approaching the edge of nothingness, eventually returning to the Primordial Unity. Many of its life-saving secret techniques became ineffective as a result.

If this sword formation reached the legendary realm, even a true expert caught within would perish, their Dao fading. For each time one died, the reborn body formed from projection would reappear only within the sword formation, unable to escape. It would be endlessly worn down until completely extinguished.

Chilled to the bone and facing imminent death, a sudden thought flashed through the Great King of Inspiration’s mind:

The Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals!

Only the greatest killing formation of the ancient era could display such might!

Understanding this, it found no countermeasure, only deeper fear. Its limbs weakened, and it could not even unleash six parts of its full strength.

Reputation precedes a person, and the very name “Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals” was enough to terrify enemies. The Infinite Seal, the Dao-One Seal, and the Heaven-Sundering Seal from the Nine Primordial Seals could also achieve such an effect, but they lacked the same renown, so the Great King of Inspiration failed to recognize them.

Suddenly, the sword qi enveloping its body halted mid-strike. The Great King of Inspiration blinked in confusion. As a giant hammer struck its chest, it sensed a glimmer of life and hurriedly cried, “Friend, what is it you seek in Yunmeng Marsh?”

It had named the vast marsh it created after the famous ancient Yunmeng Marsh, and now it deeply regretted its actions—falling into such a desperate situation over a mere visit. If it had known this would happen, when the Crab General had reported a Daoist’s arrival, why had it acted so pridefully, putting on airs like an old demon lord of many years?

The Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals temporarily halted, and Meng Qi’s manifested Primordial Divine Figure spoke in a mighty voice:

“Poor Dao seeks only to ask the Great King one question: how many years ago did the Celestial Court fall, and at what time?”

Just to ask such a question? The Great King of Inspiration grew even more frustrated. It took a deep breath and said, “If only you would withdraw the sword formation, I shall answer all questions truthfully and without reservation.”

Now that the opponent had a demand, it had room to negotiate!

Meng Qi, holding ancient artifacts like blades, swords, and seals, smiled faintly, his voice vast and mighty:

“Great King, you still do not understand? You now have only two choices: either say nothing, and be ground to dust by the Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals, your True Spirit utterly extinguished, all future paths severed. Or, answer honestly, and after I slay you, I shall show mercy, allowing your True Spirit a chance at reincarnation.”

Left is death. Right is death. The Great King of Inspiration felt Meng Qi’s firm resolve, and a surge of shock, fury, fear, and dread overtook it.

“Fine! Then let us perish together!” it roared furiously.

Once in a while, even Inspiration, the pet of Guanyin, could produce a powerful declaration.

The Primordial Divine Figure, the monk, the swordsman, and the giant figure spoke together, their voices echoing endlessly:

“The question Dao seeks has many others in the world who can answer it. One more or one less makes no difference.”

“But for the Great King, is it not vastly different to either perish utterly or retain hope of rebirth?”

Hearing this, a mix of bitterness, anger, and helplessness surged through the Great King of Inspiration. Its thoughts swirled, its speech slowing as it finally said, “Fine, today I admit defeat.”

“The fall of the Celestial Court was six hundred and eighty-nine years ago, on the second day of the second lunar month, at the third watch of noon…”

Though it had still been a fish in the bamboo grove pond of Mount Putuo at that time, the terrifying tremors of the heavens collapsing had left an indelible mark. Such an event could differ only slightly in timing from the actual fall of the Celestial Court.

“Good. Dao shall confirm this with other friends. If the Great King deceives me, I shall shatter the cycle of rebirth itself, reducing you to oblivion,” Meng Qi declared like a divine punisher of Heaven. “Then, when did the Demon King attack the Celestial Court?”

“Six hundred and ninety-five years ago…” the Great King of Inspiration recalled.

Before its words had fully faded, two beams of lapis lazuli golden light suddenly shot from its eyes. Its body swelled rapidly, transforming into a colossal golden carp.

The golden carp instantly expanded like a balloon, its immense, surging aura turning chaotic and uncontrollable.

It had chosen self-destruction—striking at the moment Meng Qi was distracted by its answer!

Its bulging eyes gleamed with menace, before being swallowed by a sudden burst of blinding white light.

An endless torrent of radiant beams erupted, melting away layers upon layers of sword qi, surging into the world-ending Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals.

Boom!

The thunderous roar followed shortly after. The self-destruction of a Celestial Immortal nearing the legendary realm was terrifying indeed. Meng Qi felt the sword formation waver, nearly shattering. He withdrew the Triform Unity of Primordial Qi technique and, using its connection, returned remotely to the “Yunmeng Marsh.”

Then, he looked up and saw a single point of enduring light deep within the starry sea.

Could the Great King of Inspiration have been so resolute?

Then why hadn’t it self-destructed before answering?

Doubt arose, and Meng Qi quickly sensed something amiss.

This was likely its final life-saving technique—

To blast open the Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals and seize a sliver of survival?

…

Deep within the Southern Sea, in a remote and elusive place, lay a pure land beyond the mortal world.

Purple bamboo groves stood tall, and mountains loomed high—this was the former abode of Bodhisattva Guanyin, the Putuo Pure Land.

Within a pond of Eightfold Merit Water, golden fish flickered in and out of view, their forms shifting and reforming. Suddenly, they contracted violently, coalescing into a solid golden carp.

The golden carp leapt from the water, gazing toward the Southern Jambudvipa, its eyes brimming with hatred.

Though the Eightfold Merit Pond within Guanyin’s Reward Body Pure Land could not fully restore a Dharmakaya, combined with its “Other Self” projection, it could allow the Great King of Inspiration to be reborn.

The only issue was that full recovery to its peak would take a long time, and its mighty hammer weapon was lost.

But without self-destructing its Celestial Immortal body, how could it break through the Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals? And without breaking through the formation, even with the Eightfold Merit Pond and the “Other Self” projection within the Reward Body Pure Land, it could not be reborn elsewhere—it would reappear within the formation.

“Damn Daoist!” the golden koi hissed through clenched teeth.

…

Back at the battlefield among the stars, Meng Qi saw only a shattered golden hammer floating in the void. A brief calculation revealed that the Great King of Inspiration had not been completely annihilated, though it was gravely wounded and had fled to some unknown, mysterious location, making it difficult to track.

“Truly an old demon king, a being near the legendary realm. To survive such a fate…”

“This battle has surely given it a full understanding of my techniques. Next time we meet, it will be prepared. Victory may not come so easily,” Meng Qi mused. At present, their levels and strengths were evenly matched, though his techniques, martial arts, and weapons gave him an edge.

Of course, with his rapid progress, by the time the Great King of Inspiration recovered, Meng Qi might be able to crush it with a single finger.

He collected the broken hammer, entered Yunmeng Marsh, and reached out with both hands, lifting the space as if causing an earthquake, forcibly extracting a crystal palace from within. This was where the Great King of Inspiration had stored its treasures over countless years.

While forming the Sword Formation of Slaying Immortals with the Primordial Unity of Qi, Meng Qi had only one Li Xian sword at his disposal. The rest were either replaced with sword qi or mimicked with the peerless saber. He still lacked three Celestial Immortal swords, leaving gaps and vulnerabilities. He hoped to find replacements in the Great King of Inspiration’s treasure trove.

If not, he would take the accumulated treasures and the hammer and trade them with the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea, who was known for his vast collection.

With the crystal palace secured, Meng Qi soared toward the Eastern Sea.