https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-422-The-Fall-of-the-Heaven-Human/13027773/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-424-The-Heavenly-Realm-Within-and-Without/13027775/
Chapter 423: The Core Forbidden Ground
Chapter 423: The Core Forbidden Ground
Seekwood Heavenly Domain.
Central.
A massive trunk stood between heaven and earth, seemingly supporting the sky and bridging the world.
Encircling this majestic tree was an architecturally unique structure, with some parts appearing ancient, some even with a history of thousands of years. The closer to the tree, the more ancient and spectacular the architecture became.
This was the core region of Seekwood Heavenly Domain and also the ancestral land of the Spiritrace.
The ancestral land spanned a vast area, covering tens of miles, and those who lived here were not just the upper echelon of the Spiritrace with their emerald skin, but also the nobility and the most talented among them.
At this moment, almost every household in the entire Spiritrace ancestral land was closed off, and patrols were constantly carried out along the outer edges of the settlement. The outermost part of the settlement was protected by a gigantic formation array resembling an umbrella, covering the entire settlement. The power of this array was far more formidable than any large settlement's defenses.
"It's been so long, and we still don't know the situation with the Ancestor," said the leader of the patrol team, gazing into the distance with a whisper.
"With the Ancestor and the new Ancestor present, what are you worried about? The ones we should be concerned about are those foreign tribes from beyond. I wonder how many of them will make it back alive under the Ancestor's hands," replied another patrol member with a smile.
Their differing attitudes were not without reason. The first speaker was from a family that had lived in the core region under the tree for generations, and in over a thousand years of battles, the core region had never faced any threats. No matter how intense the fighting was outside, this place remained as stable as Mount Tai. Moreover, with the recent emergence of a new Ancestor, he naturally felt relaxed and at ease.
The other speaker, however, had relied on his own abilities to live in the core region, and he was the only one from his family and clan to do so. His family and relatives still lived in the outer settlement, so it was natural for him to feel anxious during this critical battle.
The patrol team didn't stop and continued their conversation as they proceeded.
Suddenly, one of the team members with sharp eyes noticed something in the distance. He saw figures approaching, and as time passed, more and more figures emerged, all of them fellow tribesmen.
When this group of tribesmen drew near, the leader among them, with a pale face and traces of blood at the corner of his mouth, his aura unstable, turned out to be the new Ancestor, Ling Ji!
"Cough... Cough..."
Ling Ji coughed twice, and a strand of fresh blood appeared at the corner of his mouth. But at this moment, he couldn't afford to pay too much attention to it. He forcefully suppressed the bleeding and led the group behind him through the formation array.
Seeing the state of Ling Ji and his group, the patrol team members all looked at each other in surprise.
"Anc... Ancestor, this is..." The leader of the patrol team approached and asked in a low voice, his face turning grim.
Ling Ji didn't say much. After entering the inner side of the formation, he quickly headed towards the core forbidden ground and spoke in a deep voice, "Everyone, be on high alert. Prepare for battle."
As his voice trailed off, his entire person had already disappeared into the depths of the forbidden ground.
Ling Ji was well aware of the secret technique used by Ling Huan. The act of forcibly drawing upon the power of Seekwood and transforming oneself into the tree was irreversible, and Ling Huan himself was already of advanced age. After using that technique, there was no chance of survival.
He didn't know how long Ling Huan could hold off Chen Mu and the others with this taboo method, or whether he could even defeat them. Although he might be able to hold them off with the help of enough foreign tribe Grandmasters, he knew that as soon as Ling Huan perished, as long as Chen Mu and the other foreign invaders recovered slightly, they would undoubtedly rush towards the core region to attack their forbidden ground!
The formation array in the forbidden ground was much more powerful than those in large settlements, but that was also the problem. If Ling Ji hadn't been injured, he might still be able to control and deploy the array. However, with his severe injuries, manipulating the formation array would be an extremely challenging task.
If he couldn't control and deploy the array himself, even though the array's power was stronger than those in large settlements, the dispersed might would still be insufficient to withstand Chen Mu. Therefore, he must heal his injuries as quickly as possible and mobilize all the forces and people of the Spiritrace to block the offensive and buy time.
"This..."
Seeing Ling Ji disappear into the depths of the forbidden ground, the patrol team of the Spiritrace was left in shock.
After a brief moment, the patrol team finally snapped out of their daze. One of them, with a grim expression, took out a wooden horn emitting an emerald light and blew it, sending a desolate horn sound echoing throughout the Spiritrace's core settlement.
Soon.
The Spirit People began to gather en masse.
Within the core settlement, there were numerous Spirit People of the Five Viscera and Six Bowels Realm, numbering nearly a thousand. They formed an impressive procession, but most of them were still in shock, unaware of what had transpired.
"What's going on?"
"Something's happened."
As more people gathered, they called out to each other in confusion.
Before Ling Ji could give further instructions, a sudden change in the atmosphere silenced the entire crowd. A formless sense of sorrow spread across the sky, enveloping the entire firmament.
"This..."
Some of the older Spirit People, sensing the shift in the cosmic forces, momentarily froze before their faces contorted in shock, their bodies trembling slightly.
According to the ancient records of the Spirit People, the fall of a Spirit Ancestor would bring grief to both heaven and earth. Looking at the entire Seekwood realm, only two individuals had reached the Spirit Ancestor Realm: Ling Huan, the thousand-year-old leader of the Spirit People, and the newly ascended Ling Ji. Ling Ji had recently returned, heavily injured, and now, with the atmosphere of grief, it was clear that something terrible had happened—Ling Huan had fallen!
The death of their thousand-year-old leader!
Many of the Spirit People, after realizing what had happened, showed disbelief on their faces. Some couldn't help but cry out, "Impossible! This can't be! How could our Spirit Ancestor..."
Ling Huan.
He was their thousand-year-old leader, an invincible existence. How could he possibly fall? Even if a powerful force from beyond their realm had attacked, it wouldn't surpass the Spirit Ancestor Realm. No matter the siege, it shouldn't have led to their leader's fall!
For a moment, countless people struggled to accept this reality.
But not long after, the chaotic atmosphere suddenly quieted as a sudden surge of energy appeared, rapidly spreading towards them. This force tore through the oppressive atmosphere.
In the vast wilderness, a figure approached, each step resonating with a clear, resounding footfall, pounding in everyone's hearts and accompanied by a sense of terror and oppression.
Step, step, step...
Chen Mu walked with his hands behind his back, each stride covering hundreds of zhang. In just a short while, he reached the outskirts of the Spirit People's core settlement, less than ten zhang away from the grand formation light curtain.
On the inner side of the formation light curtain, nearly a thousand mid-tier Spirit People stared at Chen Mu, their numbers creating a chilling atmosphere that made everyone's hearts tremble, leaving them feeling suffocated.
"He... He..."
Someone spoke with a trembling voice.
Even though their cultivation realms weren't exceptionally high, not yet reaching the Bone Washing Realm, their long residence in the core settlement had given them some experience. They could clearly sense the energy and oppression emanating from Chen Mu, which far exceeded what the Bone Washing Realm could achieve.
This was the pressure of the Spirit Ancestor Realm!
Had their Spirit Ancestor fallen at the hands of this person before them?
Some of them already had this thought in mind, but before they could confirm their suspicions, Chen Mu took action.
Standing in front of the formation light curtain, Chen Mu observed the core settlement's formation for a brief moment. Then, he took a step forward, instantly appearing in the sky above and stomping his foot on the formation light curtain!
This step was simple, devoid of any overwhelming aura, but as it landed, it caused the thick light curtain covering the core settlement, spanning hundreds of li, to tremble violently! It was like dropping a pebble into a calm pond, creating thousands of ripples.
Even though the terrifying power was blocked by the formation light curtain, the numerous Spirit People below still felt suffocated, as if that step had trampled on their bodies, ready to crush them.
Chen Mu, with a single stomp, pressured the entire formation.
A thousand troops couldn't withstand this!
"Don't panic! Form the formation, form the formation!"
Finally, someone, witnessing the terrifying pressure that distorted the formation light curtain, managed to calm their mind and shouted. A thousand elite Spirit People, led by a few Spirit Ancestors, quickly connected their energy, forming a formation.
"Attack!"
At the lead's command, a massive amount of spirit energy surged towards the sky where Chen Mu stood.
The combined might of the thousands of Spirit Folk, along with the gathered Spirit Energy, was not a significant threat to Chen Mu in its current state of refinement. However, the seamless integration of the Spirit Energy and the Formation Array's light curtain was remarkable, allowing it to directly penetrate and even merge with the Array.
"..."
Chen Mu's expression remained unchanged as he calmly turned back, avoiding the gathered energy and the impact of the merging Array. He then swiftly struck again with another finger! This simple-looking finger strike, upon landing, seemed like an ancient deity emerging from the vastness to point, causing the thick Formation Array's light curtain to distort and indent as if about to be torn apart!
The numerous Spirit Folk felt a chill.
However, at this moment, they all knew they couldn't retreat. They had to continue gathering their strength to counter Chen Mu's assault.
Meanwhile, at the core forbidden ground of the Spirit Folk.
Here, at the very bottom of the Seekwood Holy Tree, there was a tree hole leading to the tree's center. Deep within this tree hole, a pool of emerald-colored water sat, permeated with spirit light, and it was all Seekwood Spirit Liquid!
Ling Ji, with a somewhat pale face, was currently seated cross-legged beside the pool of Seekwood Spirit Liquid. He absorbed the strands of light emanating from the liquid, healing his injuries. The healing process wasn't slow, but his wounds were severe, and the previous strike from Chen Mu had even injured his viscera.
Flesh and muscle injuries were easy to heal, and the recovery was visible to the naked eye. Bone and sinew injuries weren't much of a concern either, but the visceral injury was more serious. Even with the abundant Seekwood Spirit Liquid supporting him, it couldn't be healed in a short time.
Just as Ling Ji started to heal, the entire Seekwood tree heart suddenly lit up with dazzling spirit light and intense vibrations.
"So, they've arrived."
Ling Ji's pale face showed a look of difficulty.
With his abilities, he had already sensed the world's sorrow and knew that Spirit Ancestor Ling Huan had perished. Now, the one attacking the Formation was undoubtedly Chen Mu. He had launched the assault right after Ling Huan's fall.
He had been too careless.
Far too careless.
If he hadn't taken the initiative to confront Chen Mu and instead retreated to the rear, letting Ling Huan engage Chen Mu, he wouldn't have been struck so severely by Chen Mu's move, injuring his viscera.
And if he hadn't been injured in the viscera and was in his prime state, he could have harnessed and commanded the Formation right now. Even with Ling Huan's death, with the power of the core region's Formation and his leadership, he could still hold off Chen Mu. At the very least, the Formation wouldn't be breached in a short time. This place was abundant with Seekwood Spirit Liquid, and the power of Seekwood was inexhaustible. They could hold out for a couple of months without any issues.
Chen Mu and his group could only stay in this world for a limited time. When the time came, they would have no choice but to retreat.
But now, Chen Mu didn't seem to intend to give Ling Ji time to heal.
"..."
Ling Ji took a deep breath, slowly closed his eyes, and temporarily set aside the impact on the Formation. He continued healing his injuries, hoping that the core settlement's forces could temporarily hold off Chen Mu and buy him some time.
However, this idea was overly optimistic.
After a short while, the spirit light and patterns in the Seekwood tree heart suddenly vibrated intensely, indicating that the Formation was starting to withstand even stronger attacks than before.
Yan Hong, Jiang Han, and many other grandmasters had arrived!
Ling Ji opened his eyes again, looking at the now-strained Formation, where every inch of the spirit patterns seemed to be forcibly supporting the Array, almost unable to bear the burden. He sighed and raised his hand, allowing his spirit energy to spread out and seamlessly connect with the surrounding spirit patterns, linking the energy flow with the Formation.
Block!
This was his sole thought at the moment.
Based on past wars, Chen Mu and the others could stay in this world for no more than half a month. If they could hold out for that long, Chen Mu's group would have to retreat. By then, they would have successfully defended against the attack!
As long as they could withstand this assault, it would be enough.
A figure like Chen Mu, upon returning to the outside world, would undoubtedly break through to the Ancestor Realm. In a hundred years, he wouldn't be able to step into their world again. And in a little over a hundred years, he might even advance further, reaching Ling Huan's realm and achieving unity with Heaven and Earth. By then, they would no longer fear external adversaries and could continue resisting the outside world's invasions.
(End of Chapter)
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