Chapter 360: Subduing the Beast
Chapter 360: Subduing the Beast
Zhang Lan's scalp tingled as he witnessed the might of the grand array. He knew it was powerful, but he never imagined that its destructive force would be so terrifying.
Despite being just a first-grade array, it instilled a sense of overwhelming despair in him, a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"Is this array truly that formidable?" Zhang Lan couldn't help but exclaim, and to his surprise, Yang Jiyong voiced the same sentiment at the same time.
Both men paused, then looked at each other with disdain, as if they had swallowed a fly.
Zhang Lan scoffed, "Doesn't the Yang family also have a grand array? Why are you making such a fuss as if you've never seen the world before?"
Yang Jiyong retorted, "What about your Zhang family? You're not any better off."
"My Zhang family has a deep heritage and has no need to activate a grand array," Zhang Lan boasted.
Yang Jiyong replied, "My Yang family has conquered the four directions and holds a formidable reputation. No petty villains dare to provoke us, so naturally, we have no need to activate a grand array either."
Zhang Lan coldly smiled, "Your words are lofty, but the truth is, neither of you has witnessed the activation of a grand array, have you?"
"Of course, the same goes for you," Yang Jiyong shot back.
...
The two men bickered for a while, each trying to one-up the other, but in the end, they were evenly matched, and neither could be ridiculed.
They then turned their attention back to the Five Elements Beast Subduing Grand Array in the center, both of them sighing softly.
It was indeed a rare sight to behold a grand array in action...
While both the Zhang and Yang families possessed grand arrays, they were usually not activated.
Activating a grand array required a massive amount of spirit stones, and even if their families had spirit mines, such wastefulness was unsustainable.
Only when faced with a powerful enemy or a crisis that threatened the clan's existence would they resort to activating the grand array for defense.
Given the Zhang and Yang families' strong foundations and vast influence, no one dared to provoke them, and thus, the grand arrays had not been formally activated for hundreds of years.
As a result, neither Zhang Lan nor Yang Jiyong had ever truly witnessed the might of a fully activated grand array until now.
The Five Elements Beast Subduing Grand Array, depicted by Mo Hua's painting, was the first time they had seen such an array in full force.
While they had always known that grand arrays were powerful, they had never imagined just how formidable they could be. It was only now, experiencing it firsthand, that they truly understood the terror of such arrays.
Moreover, the Five Elements Beast Subduing Grand Array was different from the protective grand arrays of their clans. It was not merely a defensive array or one that focused primarily on defense with some offensive capabilities.
Instead, it was a grand array designed purely for slaughter and destruction.
The might of such an array far exceeded their expectations.
This time, the two men fell silent. After a long while, Yang Jiyong murmured, "Array masters are truly fearsome..."
For once, Zhang Lan did not refute him but quietly agreed, "Yes..."
As Yang Jiyong watched the surging spiritual energy and the overwhelming killing intent of the array, he couldn't help but be astonished.
"If such an array were deployed on the battlefield, it would surely subjugate all enemies and annihilate any powerful foes! Even cultivators at a higher realm would likely perish!"
He glanced towards a distant peak, where the array's core was located, and saw the young Mo Hua sitting there, controlling the entire Five Elements Beast Subduing Grand Array.
Never before had Yang Jiyong felt Mo Hua's unfathomable depth as he did at this moment.
A thirteen-year-old master of the grand array, and one that specialized in slaughter, no less.
"This child will undoubtedly become a formidable weapon in the future."
"He can build an array to save countless lives, but he can also build one to take countless lives..."
Yang Jiyong's heart trembled with fear, and he regarded Mo Hua with even greater seriousness.
At that moment, Mo Hua was wholly focused on controlling the grand array, manipulating the Five Elements Array to trap and kill Feng Wei.
Meanwhile, Feng Wei had escaped from the Quicksand Array and the Golden Light Array within the Earth-based foundational array, moving along the stone wall to reach the Water-based foundational array.
Mo Hua communicated with the array's core, cutting off the Earth-based foundational array's spiritual energy supply and channeling the refined spiritual energy from the array eyes through the core to the Water-based foundational array.
With the infusion of spiritual energy, the Flooding Water Array and the Wood Poison Array were activated, and the ground was instantly covered with water.
Feng Wei struggled to wade through the water, its every step becoming arduous.
All around it, a greenish-black wood poison gas wafted, slowly eroding its exterior and causing paralysis while corroding its vital energy.
Some of the wood poison gas seeped into the water, and through the principle of the Five Elements' generation sequence, where water generates wood, the toxicity became even more potent.
As Feng Wei trudged through the water with its four limbs, its flesh was eroded by the poison gas with every step. Soon, only its white bones remained, and as its vital energy condensed, it was corroded once more...
Feng Wei was trapped in the Flooding Water Array for several hours, and by the time it escaped the entrapping array, its vital energy had noticeably weakened.
However, ahead of it lay more challenges: the Gold Lock Array, Water Sword Array, Wood Prison Array, Fire Rain Array, Red Fire Array, and Earth-Splitting Array, all combining to form layer upon layer of entrapping arrays.
As long as it couldn't escape the grand array, it would forever be trapped in the Five Elements entrapment, slowly worn down by thousands upon thousands of arrays until it perished.
All the cultivators witnessing this scene were deeply shaken, and a glimmer of hope emerged in their hearts.
Perhaps they could truly kill this powerful beast with the might of the grand array!
Everyone's spirits were lifted.
What followed was a lengthy process of subjugation.
The grand array's destructive power was indeed formidable and effective against Feng Wei.
However, Feng Wei's vital energy was too thick, and to completely subjugate it, they had to keep the grand array running continuously, driving it, trapping it, and depleting its vital energy until it eventually died.
This was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
The subjugation process might last for several days, or even more than ten days.
During this period, none of the cultivators could afford to be lax or negligent, for if Feng Wei escaped, it would likely never enter the array again, and they might never get another chance to kill it.
Mo Hua remained at the array's core, controlling the entire grand array.
When Feng Wei tried to ram the walls, he reinforced the stone walls with spiritual energy.
Wherever Feng Wei was trapped, Mo Hua would activate the arrays in that area while also stimulating the nearby killing arrays.
For arrays that were not necessary, he cut off their spiritual energy supply to conserve spirit stones.
Mo Hua's spiritual sense was constantly being depleted.
When Feng Wei was trapped and temporarily unable to escape, he would meditate to restore some of his spiritual sense.
But when Feng Wei managed to break free, Mo Hua would expend his spiritual sense to control the array's core, activating nearby arrays to restrain it.
Feng Wei was constantly manipulated by Mo Hua within the Five Elements entrapment and killing arrays, trapped by the entrapping arrays while being assaulted by the killing arrays.
What a profound spiritual foundation and rapid spiritual recovery this young man possesses...
Master Luo was not surprised that Mo Hua could control the grand array on his own.
But to be able to wield it with such precision, without rest, and with unwavering focus and abundant spiritual energy, is this truly something a Qi Refining cultivator is capable of?
At least, if Master Luo were to attempt this, he would likely be exhausted within a few hours.
Master Luo sighed.
He had initially thought that if Mo Hua got tired, he could take over for a while.
But now that Mo Hua showed no signs of fatigue, Master Luo felt exhausted just from watching.
Moreover, the array core looked complicated, but actually manipulating it was even more complex. One had to be thoroughly familiar with every aspect of the grand array to be able to open, close, transfer, and coordinate it effectively.
Master Luo realized that he had overestimated his own abilities.
This was something he couldn't do, and he could only leave it to the grand array's master array master, Mo Hua.
Master Luo watched Mo Hua with a sense of admiration.
The grand array was intricate, and despite Mo Hua's precise control, there would inevitably be moments of error over the long period of operation.
It could be a mistake in the flow of spiritual power, a compatibility issue with a single array, or a problem with the array medium, array patterns breaking or wearing down, and so on.
There would be moments when the grand array would experience a brief shortage of spiritual power, causing the array to become inactive.
At those times, the Foundation Establishment cultivators within the array and the Dao soldiers stationed there would need to step in to restrain Feng Wei temporarily and prevent it from escaping.
Feng Wei, subjected to this relentless entrapment and killing, was enraged beyond measure.
Intervening at such moments was extremely dangerous.
Therefore, Zhang Lan, Yang Jiyong, Elder Yu, and the others were on high alert, not daring to be the slightest bit careless. Each of them would take turns, striking just once, before retreating and letting another take their place.
This way, they could both restrain Feng Wei and prevent prolonged battles that might expose their weaknesses, giving Feng Wei an opportunity to swallow them and regain its vitality while taking their lives.
Zhang Lan and the others felt immense pressure and acted with utmost caution.
Fortunately, Mo Hua would quickly adjust the array core, reactivating the grand array to trap Feng Wei once more and activate the killing arrays to continue the onslaught...
This process was exceedingly lengthy...
Outside the grand array, in Tongxian City, the moods of all the cultivators shifted from shock to joy and then to anxiety and torment.
They didn't know how long it would take to kill the powerful beast, nor if they would succeed, and so they were left waiting anxiously...
For the next ten days and nights, the five-colored glow in the depths of the mountains never faded, and powerful spiritual power fluctuations continued to emanate.
Feng Wei's roars echoed day and night without ceasing.
Its blood essence gradually faded, but its malevolent aura intensified, staining the sky above the Deep Mountain with a crimson hue, like the slow opening of a hellish gate.
And the Five Elements Beast Subduing Grand Array was like a five-colored chain, tightly binding that hellish gate.
Finally, after more than twenty days, Feng Wei's roars grew weaker and eventually ceased.
The blood-red sky gradually faded.
The evening glow bathed the Great Black Mountain in a golden light, and everyone's hearts were filled with a glimmer of hope.
Within the grand array, after more than twenty days of relentless battle without rest, all the cultivators were exhausted, and the stockpile of spirit stones was nearly depleted.
Working together, they had finally depleted Feng Wei's blood essence, leaving it completely drained.
Feng Wei's body, now devoid of its blood essence, turned ashen and collapsed to the ground.
Elder Yu and the others were pale, breathless, and gritting their teeth, having endured for over twenty days.
At the moment of Feng Wei's collapse, everyone's minds went blank, and it took a while for them to regain their senses, disbelief filling their voices as they asked:
"Is it dead?"
"Did we kill it?"
"The great beast is dead... We killed it..."
...
A wave of joy washed over them, and they couldn't help but cheer.
Mo Hua also breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed to the ground.
But before he could fully relax, Mo Hua's heart suddenly lurched.
He quickly got up and peered down, his pupils shrinking as he saw what was happening.
The fallen Feng Wei, which had been silent, slowly rose to its feet once more...
Just like the pig demon that had died once before, it silently stood up and silently devoured the Qian Family's ancestor.
The cheers died in their throats as everyone witnessed this scene, shock evident in their voices:
"This great beast isn't dead yet?"
"Impossible, its blood essence is clearly depleted..."
"What do we do now?"
At the same time, Feng Wei's aura changed. The crimson blood essence that had surrounded its body was now replaced by a black and gray deathly aura.
Its pig face began to contort, deform, and reconstruct, transforming into a large human face.
This human face resembled that of a bizarre Daoist.
It opened its mouth, lipless and toothless, and spoke in an androgynous voice.
It sounded like one person speaking, yet also like many voices speaking at once, strange and chaotic:
"Who dares to ruin my grand plan?"
"Ruining my grand plan!"
"Who? Who dares?"
"Ruining... my grand plan!"
...
The multitude of confused voices mingled together, sounding both like they were coming from nearby and from within their sea of consciousness.
Zhang Lan and the others' expressions changed as they exclaimed:
"What is this thing?!"
"Is this pig... a human?"
In the instant he saw the human face, Mo Hua had a flash of insight, and he understood why the pig demon had come back to life.
Hidden within its body was another strand of divine sense.
The divine sense of that bizarre Daoist! Feng Wei's demonic consciousness had long been extinguished, and it was this Daoist's divine sense that drove it back to life.
The Daoist that Mister Zhuang had forbidden him from asking about, thinking about, or mentioning... That bizarre Daoist!
As Feng Wei resurrected, its face transformed, revealing the grievances and deathly aura it carried.
Mister Zhuang, residing in the mountain, also had a grave expression as he murmured:
"A demonic heart born from the Dao..."
(End of Chapter)
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