Chapter 1042: Collapse!
Chapter 1042: Collapse!
Mo Hua softly muttered the word "Explode."
In that instant, the entire valley, brimming with densely packed arrays, seemed to respond to their master's "summon", trembling and glowing with vivid, even blinding light.
These arrays were all explosives.
They were the result of Mo Hua's continuous efforts, drawing array after array, stacking them up since Lunjian.
A faint glimmer of inversion began to shine.
This was the Semi-Inverse Spirit Array that Mo Hua had pre-embedded.
Like a spark, this Semi-Inverse Spirit Array ignited the entire valley, setting off all the arrays that were primed to explode.
A thread of spiritual energy began to invert, breaking down the five elements into a pitch-black decay force.
This decay force, like the source of a plague, rapidly spread along the spiritual energy pathways that Mo Hua had calculated, sweeping through the valley with the speed of a thunderbolt, blooming like dark poppies across the valley.
Flower by flower, patch by patch, wave after wave, the decay spread, accumulating into a terrifying force, instantly triggering a massive collapse and explosion of arrays.
Above the Fang Tian Painting Shadow, the valley was filled with the pitch-black and terrifying "poppies" formed by the inverted spiritual energy and collapsing arrays.
The entire Lun Dao Mountain trembled.
The sky and earth turned pitch-black.
Yet, there was not a single sound, as if the collapse had even swallowed the sound itself.
All the cultivators present were shocked into silence.
Terror spread across the faces of many cultivators.
Even some Golden Core cultivators were visibly stunned.
This was a horrifying scene that most cultivators had never witnessed in their lives—a large-scale inversion of spiritual energy, the collapse of arrays, and the annihilation of all things.
Even the well-informed patriarchs of the major sects were momentarily stunned by the shock.
On the Sword Observation Tower, some of the nobles who were drinking tea on the upper floors stood up in shock, their eyes filled with disbelief as they looked out the window.
And in the Cave Void Hall,
The Ancestors, who had been sitting still with their eyes closed, were forced to open their eyes and look at the terrifying, pitch-black scene of spiritual energy collapse above the Fang Tian Painting Shadow.
A sense of awe reverberated in the hearts of these Ancestors, who were usually as calm as ancient wells.
In the end, all the eyes of the Cave Void Ancestors turned to Xun Laoshi of Tai Xu Gate.
These gazes were filled with confusion, doubt, shock, inquiry, and indifference.
Xun Laoshi felt immense pressure, his scalp tingling.
His hand, hidden in his sleeve, was trembling slightly.
The scene before him was equally shocking to him.
At that moment, he truly believed that the terrifying "deeds" he had heard about—Mo Hua setting up and collapsing large arrays, and slaying powerful demons back home—were indeed true.
But with so many Cave Void Ancestors silently watching him, Xun Laoshi couldn't show any weakness.
He pretended to be calm, drinking his tea as if everything was just a small matter.
As if this was nothing compared to what they had yet to see, not worth being overly surprised.
...
The arrays collapsed, and the Fang Tian Painting Shadow turned a pitch-black color of inversion.
The world remained silent for a long time.
After a while, the shock that had been weighing on everyone's chests slowly dissipated.
The spectators gradually came to their senses.
Those who had been stunned and forgotten to breathe finally took a deep breath, muttering:
"What... is this thing...?"
"An array explosion?"
"Is this... Mo Hua's doing?"
"Does this mean... Mo Hua used arrays to trigger this terrifying explosion, killing the four Tianjiao of Qian Study, and the fifty-odd top Heavenly Pride of the four major sects and seven major gates, all at once?!"
"All... blown up?!"
"Is this something a human can do?"
"Truly transcendent... terrifying to the extreme."
The crowd drew in sharp breaths.
Some frowned in confusion, asking, "What kind of array did he use? How could it be so powerful?"
This was a high-level question.
Most cultivators looked at each other, unsure.
Among the disciples and elders of Wanzhenmen, most were also frowning.
Only some of the more experienced and knowledgeable elders muttered in disbelief:
"This is the inversion of spiritual energy... the Inverse Spirit Array."
"Inverse Spirit Array?"
"It's a second-rank, twenty-pattern... Ultimate Array."
Upon hearing this, the entire hall was stunned, and the elders' expressions changed dramatically, their voices trembling:
"Twenty patterns?!"
"Has this Mo Hua reached the Divine Perception stage?"
"What are you thinking?" an elderly elder with white hair shook his head, "How can a Divine Perception cultivator reach the Golden Core stage?"
"Then how...?"
"It's not a complete Inverse Spirit Array", the white-haired elder frowned, "You might have forgotten, at the last Array Discussion Conference, the final challenge was a semi-inverse spirit array, a second-rank, nineteen-pattern array that contained the inversion of spiritual energy..."
"If I'm not mistaken, at that time, Mo Hua learned and drew this array on the spot, mastering it and memorizing it..."
"So, this Inverse Spirit Array was obtained from the Array Discussion Conference and used in the Lunjian Arena. In a way, it’s a matter of cause and effect..."
The elders all nodded in agreement upon hearing this.
The elder with the crane-like white hair sighed involuntarily after speaking.
Be it learning the half-step Inverse Spirit Array, which surpasses the nineteen-pattern level, or using this Inverse Spirit Array to trigger the collapse of formations, thereby annihilating over fifty of Qian Study’s strongest Heaven's Pride disciples—these were truly outrageous feats.
He had lived for a long time, teaching array formations for countless years, witnessing countless Heaven's Pride disciples and experiencing numerous Dao Discussion Conferences. He had even seen the birth of many True Dao Supreme masters.
Each True Dao Supreme was, without exception, a standout among Heaven's Pride disciples.
But Mo Hua was the most extraordinary True Dao Supreme he had ever seen.
His divine perception was severely overpowered, and his foundation was incredibly solid.
Using his divine perception to control ink, drawing formations on the ground, and combining it with the inversion of spiritual energy and the collapse of formations...
Others were crowned True Dao Supreme because their strength reached that level.
But Mo Hua was crowned True Dao Supreme because the highest title the Qian Xue Prefecture's Array Discussion Conference could confer was "True Dao Supreme."
He even felt that the title "True Dao Supreme" was somewhat... unworthy of Mo Hua.
These four words could not fully capture the level Mo Hua had reached in array formations...
...
The origin of the "Inverse Spirit Array" was also uncovered by many cultivators.
In the Sword Observation Tower,
in a sealed but luxurious hall,
the array masters of the Tian Shu Pavilion were whispering to each other:
"Is this... an inversion of spiritual energy?"
"Ultimate Inverse Spirit Array?!"
"How is this possible..."
"Qian Xue Prefecture could have a disciple with such heaven-defying talent, capable of learning such a heaven-defying array formation?"
"It was obtained from the previous Array Discussion Conference, but it’s not a complete Inverse Spirit Array."
"I see..."
"Even so, it’s still remarkable."
"You don’t understand. Learning the Inverse Spirit Array isn’t the scary part; what’s scary is how skillfully it was used..."
"His method of collapse was clearly meticulously calculated—the framework of the formation, the number of formations, the connections between spiritual pivots, the points of collapse, the flow of spiritual energy, and the spread of inversion... these are things that a regular array master can’t even grasp..."
"Is it a derivation technique?"
"Exactly... but we don’t know what kind of derivation technique he used."
"Did he calculate it himself, or did someone else do it for him?"
"I think someone of high caliber probably did it for him. If he did it himself, that would be terrifying..."
"Even if someone else calculated it for him, the fact that he could construct all the formations flawlessly in battle is quite impressive."
"He’s a top-notch array talent, worthy of joining our Tian Shu Pavilion..."
...
The array masters were discussing animatedly.
On the high dais, a middle-aged, dignified, and elegant cultivator looked deep in thought.
This person was none other than the Supervisor of the Tian Shu Pavilion.
He looked at Fang Tian Painting Shadow calmly, repeating the name to himself:
"Mo Hua..."
He felt that this name held many intriguing connections, but when he tried to think about it, his mind went blank.
The Supervisor couldn’t help but frown slightly.
...
Outside the Sword Observation Tower, Fang Tian Painting Shadow remained pitch black.
The aftermath of the explosion continued.
The spectators on the viewing stands were still in heated discussion, and the noise on Lun Dao Mountain was deafening. After a long while, someone suddenly paused:
"That’s not right... Why hasn’t the Lunjian ended?"
"Someone... didn’t die?"
Surviving such a terrifying explosion?
Everyone’s hearts tightened suddenly.
All eyes turned to Fang Tian Painting Shadow at the same time, and no one spoke.
After a moment, the explosion finally ceased, the aura of inverted spiritual energy gradually dissipated, and the blackness on Hua Mu began to fade.
The world regained its colors, though they were now dull and gray, with remnants of black residue left behind from the collapse and annihilation of everything.
Occasionally, a few yellow-green patches of trees and rocks remained.
In this desolate landscape, a thin figure remained seated in place.
From start to finish, he had remained seated, unmoved by the Heaven's Pride disciples’ ambush, the collapse of formations, and the destruction of the mountains and rivers.
"It’s... Mo Hua?!"
The expressions of all the cultivators changed dramatically.
The entire Lun Dao Mountain erupted into a cacophony of noise.
"Mo Hua... he’s actually still alive?!"
"Not only is he alive, but he didn’t even move?!"
"How is that possible? How could he survive such an explosion?"
"This is impossible..."
In the Wanzhenmen viewing stands, an elder with a face full of wrinkles and white hair suddenly widened his eyes in disbelief, muttering:
"This is... the Gate of Life?"
Could it be that this boy, Mo Hua, has reached the level where he can calculate the Gate of Life on his own?!
What kind of monster is he?
The elder with the white hair trembled, unable to describe the emotions swirling in his chest.
On the Sword Observation Tower, the array masters of the Tian Shu Pavilion frowned and sighed:
"He even managed to calculate the Gate of Life..."
"Clearly, there must be a high-level expert who helped him plan this in advance."
"He has been sitting still in the valley since he entered, so that position must be the pre-calculated 'Gate of Life.'"
"By sitting on the 'Gate of Life' and setting up the array, he triggered all the arrays, using the Decay Force to annihilate everything. Only he could survive by leveraging the principles of life and death within the array."
"In the universe, where there is destruction, there must also be life."
"Brilliant..."
"Constructing the array step by step, layer by layer, and in an instant, unleashing all the killing intent to slaughter powerful enemies while preserving his own life."
"Who would have thought that we would witness such array skills at the Lunjian Conference. It was worth the trip."
"I wonder which high-level expert planned this."
"Could it be the fifth-rank array master, Mr. Xun, from Tai Xu Gate?"
"Perhaps it's Ancestor of the Cave Void..."
"Indeed, this does seem like the kind of strategy Ancestor would use..."
Everyone was amazed.
Only the Supervisor, seated high above, gazed at the young but inexplicably eerie figure standing amidst the desolate landscape, his pupils narrowing, a look of disbelief in his eyes.
For a moment, he even had the illusion that a young "Mysterious Daoist" was smiling at him.
...
The bigwigs of the Tian Shu Pavilion had various thoughts.
Meanwhile, the entire Lun Dao Mountain was in an uproar, with people discussing the events fervently.
They might not understand what the Inverse Spirit Array or the Gate of Life were, but the facts were clear.
Mo Hua triggered a massive array explosion, wiping out all the Tianjiao except himself.
This meant that Mo Hua was the first in the Asura Battle.
The first in the final round of the Earth Lunjian!
From top to bottom, Tai Xu Gate was completely stunned.
The patriarchs of the three mountains were so excited that their hands were trembling. No words could describe the shock and awe in their hearts.
First!
Not just the first among the eight major sects.
While the exact scores haven't been calculated yet, Mo Hua winning the Asura Battle and earning a massive amount of victory points means that, by rough estimates, Tai Xu Gate is likely to be...
The first among the four major sects!
The first in the Qian Study Lunjian!
This was something they had never dared to dream of before.
Now, this reality was right before their eyes, and the three patriarchs felt a tightness in their chests, almost unable to breathe.
First in the Qian Study!
In the Qian Xue Prefecture, where Tianjiao gather and prestigious families stand, this was something that countless sects, patriarchs, elders, and disciples had longed for but could never achieve.
Even though it was only the first in the Earth Lunjian.
But with a bit more effort in the Heaven Lunjian, this first place might still be secure.
Even if they can't hold onto first place, at least the top four should be secure.
The enormous fame and profit brought by this achievement made the three patriarchs, with hundreds of years of cultivation, almost lose their Dao hearts.
But soon, they all gradually calmed down and began to frown.
Amidst their euphoria, they had momentarily forgotten about other matters. But now, as they calmed down, they realized a problem.
The Lunjian... isn't over yet?
If only Mo Hua had survived, then he would be the first, and the Asura Battle would be over.
But if it's not over, it means... Mo Hua wasn't the only one who survived?
As the euphoria faded, the hearts of the three patriarchs grew cold.
In the crowd of spectators, some people soon realized this as well.
"There are others?"
The noise gradually subsided, and everyone fixed their eyes on the Fang Tian Painting Shadow.
As the dust and smoke cleared, the reverse spiritual energy dissipated, and the view became clearer.
Amidst the ruins of the mountain, covered in ash and debris, several more figures slowly emerged...
Shen Linshu, pale-faced, with his bloodline golden scales shattered.
Du Mu Qing, deathly pale, his protective jade pendant broken, his spiritual energy exhausted, and the Myriad Dawn Spirit Robe Technique completely dissipated.
Xiao Wuchen, eyes filled with rage, his innate Sword Scar shattered, and his Heavenly Sword gradually dimming.
Ao Zhan, face marred by burns, his battle armor shattered, revealing a steel-like upper body, and the Dragon Cauldron Body Tempering Pattern on his back bloody and mangled.
The four Tianjiao of the Qian Study were all alive.
And in the distance, another figure slowly stood up, the one who had suffered the most severe injuries, his aura faint, but his Sword Qi converged, enveloping him, clearly still capable of fighting.
It was Ye Qingfeng, the senior disciple of Daluomeng.
Five people had survived the terrifying explosion.
This revelation caused an even greater uproar in the arena.
"The four Tianjiao of the Qian Study!"
"Ye Qingfeng of the Great Luo Sect!"
"Those people actually survived too, it's unbelievable..."
"Mo Hua survived because he's an array master; the array didn't explode around him. And these few survived purely because they withstood the terrifying blast..."
"Truly, the top prodigies of Qian Xue Prefecture are worthy of their title!"
"Their cultivation is profound, their dao arts unparalleled, truly rare in the world..."
"This changes the situation completely."
Everyone was amazed, lavishing praise without restraint.
Meanwhile, the Tai Xu Sect's people felt as if they had fallen into an ice cellar, their hearts completely chilled.
In the crowd, Zhang Lan, Gu Changhuai, Wenren Wan, Murong Caiyun, and Hua Qianqian, among others, felt regret and sighed slowly.
On the Sword Observation Tower, the three patriarchs from the Three Mountains also sighed with a bitter smile:
"This is... fate..."
"Bloodline prodigies, the very best, are truly so formidable."
"And the four great sects are indeed like four towering mountains, impossible to surpass..."
"To have reached this point in the Lunjian Competition is already the limit of what can be achieved. If there's no way to win, then it really is..."
"Everything is determined by fate, beyond human control..."
The three patriarchs looked despondent.
In the Cave Void Hall.
The Ancestors of the four great sects—Ancestor of the Shen Family, Ancestor of the Duanmu Family, Ancestor of the Ao Family, Ancestor of the Xiao Family, and the Ancestor of the Great Luo Sect—all heaved a sigh of relief.
It was a close call... almost a disaster.
Xun Laozi of the Tai Xu Sect is truly not an easy opponent.
And that Mo Hua from Tai Xu Sect is truly a prodigy.
He managed to force the top prodigies of the four great sects to this point, making even these Ancestors feel anxious...
Fortunately, heaven still favors the four great sects.
The Ancestor of the Great Luo Sect glanced at Xun Laozi and snorted:
"Arrays are ultimately external tools, unreliable."
"The Lunjian Competition must be decided by personal strength."
"Cultivation, physical techniques, dao arts, sword arts—these are the true skills of a cultivator, the foundation of a cultivator's survival, and the essence of the Lunjian Competition."
"Your path, Tai Xu Sect, is wrong. You came to the Lunjian Competition, yet your disciples can't even wield a sword, relying entirely on arrays, which are mere side paths. What kind of message does that send..."
Xun Laozi was mocked but remained silent, his gaze deep and inscrutable.
...
In the Lunjian Arena.
Shen Linshu and the others, though not dead, were clearly severely injured, their faces pale.
They all glared at Mo Hua with murderous intent.
Mo Hua is the only one who has managed to force these top prodigies into such a desperate situation.
The power of the array explosion was terrifying, and they still feel the aftereffects.
If not for their bloodline warnings and high-level dao arts for protection, and the fifty-plus prodigies in the arena who absorbed the destruction force with their bodies, they would all have died in that explosion.
Now, the surroundings are desolate, the mountains and rivers reduced to ruins, the arena empty.
Mo Hua has no arrays left to use.
An array master without arrays is useless.
He is truly in a hopeless situation, certain to die!
Shen Linshu raised his sword at Mo Hua, Xiao Wuchen condensed Sword Qi, Du Mu Qing cast a spell, Ao Zhan gathered Dragon Cauldron power, and Ye Qingfeng activated his Unified Sword Technique.
The five top prodigies joined forces, all their lethal moves aimed at Mo Hua.
All the cultivators outside the arena were stunned by the scene.
These are the five strongest prodigies of Qian Xue Prefecture, five against one.
In the entire four sects and eight gates, perhaps only Mo Hua has this kind of treatment.
Despite being targeted by the five strongest prodigies of Qian Xue Prefecture, Mo Hua remained calm.
He asked lightly:
"Have all five of you been on that ship?"
This question was like a thunderclap, sharp and cutting.
No one answered.
But the faces of Shen Linshu and the others changed dramatically.
Their faces showed coldness, anger, and even more naked killing intent.
They wanted to tear Mo Hua to pieces.
Mo Hua sighed softly.
He had guessed that the "young master" was among these five.
He couldn't determine who it was, but at this point, it didn't matter.
The outcome would be the same...
Mo Hua slowly stood up.
When he was seated, he was a master of arrays, controlling life and death, wielding ink like a serpent, arrays like demons, and subduing powerful enemies with a flick of his hand.
But when he stood up, his aura changed dramatically. His eyes became sharp, his expression cold, like a sealed sword emerging from its sheath, his presence commanding and majestic, like a dragon surveying the world.
Mo Hua spoke with utter disdain and arrogance:
"I have a sword. Once I use it, you will all die."
(End of Chapter)
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