Lighting Lanterns in the Mountains and Seas

Chapter 962 - 81000: Suddenly, Day Broke

Meanwhile, trapped within the Qiankun Sect's array, Shi Chun felt as if he had entered another world. Holding the Blood Soul Blade, he cautiously observed the surrounding darkness. The howling winds whipped through, with visible black tornadoes everywhere, as if he was a small ant caught in a forest of tornadoes, while bolts of lightning occasionally raged fiercely within the 'forest'.

The sky was obscured above, and the ground was invisible below. Initially, nothing seemed out of place, but gradually, a chaotic pulling force emerged from all directions. Wherever the lightning passed, the void twisted like waves, threatening to distort everything in its path.

Shi Chun had no idea what this array was called. He grabbed a spear from thin air, seized an opportunity, and threw it into the twisted void. Instantly, the spear emitted a piercing creaking sound, easily stretched into fine threads like dough.

Once the distorted wave vanished, the elongated threads were whisked away by a nearby tornado.

The terrifying twisting force, coupled with the unpredictable lightning that could create distortion power without warning, was undoubtedly the killer move of this grand array.

However, this killer move was useless against him. He glanced upwards, and with his right eye superpower, he saw a rapidly expanding cyan-blue light and shadow, quickly dodging it in a flash.

Just moments after he moved, the spot where he had been hovering was immediately struck by a bolt of lightning, twisting the void.

Although he could avoid the array's attacks, Shi Chun still frowned, not because he was trapped inside the array.

He did not understand any arrays, but he had previously broken the Qiankun Sect's 'Immortal Trapping Array' and Luo Que's 'Fan Sleeve Heaven', so he felt confident facing so-called arrays.

What truly made him frown was that he didn't know if people outside could see inside, forcing him to continue pretending to be weak. After dodging another attack, he once again feigned shakiness and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Growing impatient with the act, he didn't want to continue pretending. This place lacked a killing aura, and staying here further only wasted his opportunity to absorb the external killing aura.

So, he decisively retrieved the 'Beidou Rejection Spirit Umbrella'...

Outside the Array, six disciples of the Qiankun Sect collectively operated the grand array. Someone looked back in surprise, this 'Soul Extraction Array' was the strongest killing array they had brought on this trip; the more people driving it collectively, the greater its power.

If the leader Zhe Yuren were alive, there would be seven people wielding seven compasses, and the array's killing power within would become even more intense and dense.

Despite having only six people, the power of their strongest killing array was still formidable, easily capable of annihilating those trapped within.

However, they felt that the Life Soul inside the array remained intact, with their target still alive even after repeated attacks.

The frowning Huang Yuhuan was one of those controlling the array.

Just then, someone flew over to them, shouting, "Huang Xianggu, the Commander has ordered not to kill, there's a great use for capturing alive!"

Upon hearing the title 'Xianggu', Huang Yuhuan turned her head coldly, unsure of the meaning behind calling her 'Xianggu'. Did she look old and unworthy of the title 'fairy'?

She coldly snorted, "Trapped in this array, life and death are by fate, and I can't guarantee survival."

"You..." The visitor was about to reprimand her when he met her unfriendly gaze. Remembering she was a disciple of a major sect specializing in arrays, he swallowed his words and quickly took out a Mother-child Talisman to report to the command center.

Almost simultaneously as he took out the Mother-child Talisman, several screams were heard. Opposite him, Huang Yuhuan also let out an "Ah" of anguish. He looked up sharply to see six Silver Radiance Assassins emerging in hazy humanoid forms, their six swords stabbing Huang Yuhuan in unison from different angles, bloodying her thoroughly.

Huang Yuhuan struggled to turn her head, seeking the true perpetrator, her face filled with pain and rage.

Not only was she stabbed, but her five fellow sect siblings faced the same fate in a sudden assault.

All present turned their eyes towards the solemnly hovering Yan Zhili. Although none could see him make a move, they all knew it was his doing.

Indeed, Yan Zhili was the one who acted ruthlessly. He actually didn't want to do this, but after contacting Wei Mo, the reply was straightforward: as long as they could capture Shi Chun, there was no need to worry about falling out with Nanshan, the alliance wasn't genuine.

Yan Zhili didn't intend to kill those six as they were Qiankun Sect disciples. All major sects inevitably had dealings with Qiankun Sect, and he didn't want to sever ties completely. He planned to snatch Shi Chun after the Qiankun Sect captured him.

Unexpectedly, when Huang Yuhuan said she couldn't guarantee Shi Chun's survival, Wei Mo's demand was for a living capture, so he couldn't let Shi Chun be killed. Persuading Huang Yuhuan and her cohort to cease was unlikely, as they ignored even their own Commander Ming Chaofeng's orders in a defiant manner, so why would they listen to him?

Understandably, he had heard that Zhe Yuren was killed by Shi Chun.

Hence, he decided to eliminate the troublemakers directly.

Of course, the main reason for daring to strike so ruthlessly was because Luo Que was dead. Had Luo Que been alive, and potentially not being able to capture Shi Chun, he wouldn't have so swiftly offended Qiankun Sect.

With Luo Que's death, he immediately executed the six of Qiankun Sect to establish his authority.

With a bang, the six compasses, now uncontrolled by mana, exploded. The chaotic powerful energy spread wildly, shocking all the dumbfounded onlookers awake.

The Silver Radiance Assassins vanished into thin air, and the six injured Qiankun Sect members, powerless, fell towards the ground. However, they were quickly caught by nearby Nanshan personnel to assess their injuries.

This was the treatment befitting a major sect disciple. For ordinary people, there might not have been anyone willing to lend a hand at this moment, likely resulting in a destiny of hitting the ground.

Suddenly, the sky brightened. Holding the umbrella, Shi Chun was about to open it, looking bewildered. All illusions disappeared as if in a dream, and the scene of being surrounded returned.

He hadn't even started breaking the array before he came out.

Released?

The reaction of the surrounding people seemed a bit abnormal, as if they were frozen in place, completely different from the previous scene of fierce encirclement and pursuit.

Could it be an illusion within the great array?

The reason for his misjudgment was that the six people who had surrounded him to form the array were missing.

Afraid of seeing wrongly, he first closed his left eye and then his right, while pretending to be exceptionally weak.

As a result, his seemingly dying appearance immediately provoked someone nearby to point at Yan Zhili and shout, "Go, stop them!"

It was the same person who had previously conveyed the decree from the Nanshan Commander to Huang Yuhuan.

But no one from the Nanshan army dared to take the lead; instead, they quietly observed each other, all intimidated by Yan Zhili.

Everyone knew Luo Que was dead, and that few could stop Yan Zhili, having just witnessed the horror of the Su Yuan Sect's Soldier Resolution Technique.

The one who gave the order got no results, so he directly pointed at the leader of Nanshan's team, shouting fiercely: "Lu Yang, do you dare disobey orders?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Yang's face changed dramatically, looking at the order-giver with venomous eyes, because being named in such a way in public was tantamount to pushing him into a corner. If he didn't comply, he might end up being blamed for the defeat, and Nanshan Command Center wouldn't let him off afterward.

Though he was resentful, he had no choice but to comply, unless he rebelled openly. With no other options, he suddenly swung his sword and roared, "Kill!"

He led the charge towards Yan Zhili, his figure repeatedly changing as he advanced towards the target in an unpredictable path.

The ironclad among his subordinates also roared and rushed out, finally leading a scale of hundreds to charge, all mimicking Lu Yang's fast-moving style to avoid being killed by Yan Zhili's Magic Soldier.

With more people rushing out, the rest couldn't stand aside and disobey publicly, and so over a thousand people gradually followed.

Seeing Yan Zhili's Shi Chun, he realized it wasn't an illusion after all, and upon witnessing the thousand-person charge, he foresaw their impending doom, because his right eye superpower had seen Yan Zhili deploying a flowing light grid, innumerable light waves outputting through the grid.

Watching his companions charge desperately, the one who commanded Lu Yang again waved his hand to summon the rear army, pointing fiercely at Shi Chun and shouting, "Capture him."

He led the charge towards Shi Chun, intending to capture him quickly while Lu Yang held off the East Victory Army.

Shi Chun cursed his ancestors in his heart, as the killing aura had dissipated completely. Meanwhile, he hesitated whether to continue his act.

Based on his previous cultivation progress, a bit more time absorbed in that dense killing aura might elevate him to the Earth Immortal Upper Realm, promising an incredibly tempting prospect.

It's known that at his current realm, such a time absorbing the killing aura would equal decades of cultivation with Spirit Pills and Demonic Qi. Comparing this to using the Thunder Sword to strike, he couldn't even calculate what amount of demon path capture would be equivalent.

In comparison, the allure of absorbing more was palpable.

Thus, he continued to stagger and feign.

On the other side, Yan Zhili glanced at Shi Chun, feeling reassured upon witnessing his terrible state, raised his lone arm, stopping the impulsive East Victory Army behind him, facing the charging thousand troops alone.

Countless Silver Radiance Assassins suddenly emerged from the ground like scattered beans, appearing amidst the charging soldiers.

The thousand troops tried to be evasive but to no avail, as there were thousands of Silver Radiance Assassins, turning the attackers into the minority, besieged from all sides.

Explosive sounds of battle erupted, mixed with roars and screams.

"Yan Zhili…"

The next moment, ragged and bloodstained, Lu Yang, with a hideous expression, shouted and charged close to Yan Zhili. He knew he couldn't reach him, yet hysterically pushed through this last segment.

Knowing he wouldn't get there and he couldn't turn back, he had no choice but to fight desperately.

Behind him were only one or two hundred scattered individuals, like trapped beasts, failing to find direction, gradually falling amid the flickering ghost-like silhouettes of the Silver Radiance people.

Just several feet away from Yan Zhili, Lu Yang was finally pierced by the long swords of several Silver Radiance Knights, uttering a despairing and unwilling cry. These few short feet clarified for him what the gap truly meant.

This small distance was a gap he and many sects couldn't reach in their whole lives—this was the strength of a Great Sect towering above innumerable cultivation sects.

As the last person fell beneath chaotic blades, the thousand-person charge died out in an instant. Meanwhile, Yan Zhili remained at the original spot, without moving an inch, leaving the watching Nanshan troops trembling.

Looking at his severed arm in shocked disbelief, it was unimaginable what kind of power had severed a limb from such a figure.

Yan Zhili turned his head towards a direction where a commotion was rising, as Feng Yin's laughter echoed from the approaching troops, "Brother Yan, impressive skill. Out of the three-party alliance we agreed upon, Brother Yan's actions seem rather unscrupulous. Nanshan gentlemen, Feng Yin has arrived late, wishing to join you in facing the enemy!"