103: Chapter 102 Teleportation Array Activated

On the other side, Yuan Zhenzi was forming hand signs, his forehead drenched in sweat.

He heard that scream.

Ming Huazi's scream traveled from hundreds of miles away, so shrill it made one's scalp tingle.

Yuan Zhenzi's hand paused for a moment.

He looked up at the distorted sky in the distance, his brow furrowed.

Had Cang Xuanzi gone mad?

Why would he kill Ming Huazi? Weren't the two of them on the same side?

Yuan Zhenzi couldn't understand, nor did he have the time to. He only knew that he was certainly no match for someone at the Late Nascent Soul Stage. Every step in the Nascent Soul Stage was like a heavenly chasm; although he was also a Nascent Soul, he was only at the Early Stage, a full two minor Realms behind. If they truly came to blows, he feared he wouldn't even be able to escape.

"Faster, just a little faster..."

He gritted his teeth, and his fingers moved even more rapidly to form the hand signs.

A hundred feet in front of him was a massive Formation.

The Formation covered a vast area, spanning several miles. Intricate Formation patterns were layered upon each other, spreading across the ground, each line glowing with a faint spiritual light. At the center of the Formation, twelve crystal-clear stone pillars stood tall, carved with cloud patterns and Talismans, with the power of space faintly flowing through them.

A Teleportation Array.

This was the greatest secret of the Cangxuan Immortal Sect and the thing he had been plotting for day and night over the past few decades.

Cold sweat broke out on Yuan Zhenzi's forehead.

He had been preparing since he first infiltrated the Cangxuan Immortal Sect, from bribing internal moles to investigating the structure of the Secret Realm, and from studying the construction of the Formation to waiting for the optimal moment. He had been cautious every step of the way, as if walking on thin ice. Now, he had finally reached the final stage; as long as he could refine and take away this space along with the Teleportation Array, his decades of hard work would not be in vain.

But Cang Xuanzi just had to go mad at this very moment.

"I don't know how long that Loose Cultivator can stall him..."

Yuan Zhenzi muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the slowly shrinking Formation. The Spatial Refinement had reached its final phase; he just needed another stick of incense's time—

The space fluctuated.

Yuan Zhenzi's pupils constricted.

A crack was torn open in the Void Realm, and Cang Xuanzi stepped out from within.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his black Daoist robes fluttering slightly in the wind, his aura as calm as a windless lake. But it was precisely this calmness that caused Yuan Zhenzi's back to be instantly drenched in cold sweat.

In the next instant, an irresistible force descended.

Yuan Zhenzi felt his body stiffen, and he was pinned to the spot, unable to move. He desperately tried to circulate his Qi, only to find that the Nascent Soul in his Dantian seemed to be frozen, completely motionless.

The gap.

This was the gap between the Late Nascent Soul Stage and the Early Nascent Soul Stage.

Yuan Zhenzi forced a smile onto his face. "Sect Leader... let me explain..."

Cang Xuanzi said nothing, merely watching him quietly.

Yuan Zhenzi felt a chill in his heart, yet he continued, "Sect Leader, I admit my background is somewhat problematic, but I harbor absolutely no ill will toward the Cangxuan Immortal Sect. If I take this Teleportation Array back, the Xuanhuang Pill Mansion will surely offer a heavy reward. At that time, whatever resources or Cultivation Techniques you desire, Sect Leader, will not be a problem..."

"Xuanhuang Pill Mansion."

Cang Xuanzi spoke, his tone as flat as if he were discussing the weather.

"I know you are from the Xuanhuang Pill Mansion."

Yuan Zhenzi was stunned.

Cang Xuanzi continued, "I know about you bribing internal moles, infiltrating the Secret Realm, and investigating the Teleportation Array. And that Loose Cultivator you hired at a great price to stall me—I have just refined him as well."

Yuan Zhenzi's face turned pale.

"I also know that Ming Huazi was from the Shenduan Sect." A mocking smile curled at the corner of Cang Xuanzi's mouth. "Did you truly think I was blind? Deaf? That I knew nothing at all?"

Yuan Zhenzi opened his mouth but could not find any words.

Cang Xuanzi sighed, his tone carrying a hint of emotion. "You people from great Sects always assume that we Cultivators from small Sects are short-sighted and can't see through anything. In truth, I knew about many of these things; I simply didn't care to address them."

"I only wanted to Cultivate in peace and reach the Soul Transformation Realm as soon as possible. Whatever you wanted, I gave to you. The Sect's power, I gave to you. The Secret Realm's resources, I gave to you. I turned a blind eye and let you do as you pleased."

He paused, and his voice suddenly turned cold.

"But you should never, ever have targeted the Teleportation Array."

"That is my property."

"It is something I have kept for my own future use."

Cang Xuanzi looked at Yuan Zhenzi, his eyes filled with undisguised killing intent. "Stealing another's Opportunity is like killing their parents. You have crossed the line."

Yuan Zhenzi felt chilled to the bone, but he made one last struggle. "Sect Leader, I am from the Xuanhuang Pill Mansion! If you kill me, the Xuanhuang Pill Mansion will not let this matter rest! Even if you flee to the ends of the earth, they will find you! By then, you won't be able to keep anything!"

Cang Xuanzi laughed.

There was no anger or mockery in that smile, only a faint sense of fatigue and relief.

"Xuanhuang Pill Mansion?" He shook his head gently. "Yuan Zhenzi, remember one thing in your next life—only one's own strength is real. Everything else is an illusion."

He raised his hand.

Yuan Zhenzi's body jolted violently.

Blood sprayed from his seven orifices simultaneously, and his entire being seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, beginning to crumble from the inside out. He opened his mouth wide to scream, but no sound came out. His body cracked inch by inch, flesh flying and bones shattering—

Boom!

A muffled explosion.

Yuan Zhenzi's Physical Body exploded into a mist of blood that filled the air.

However, at that very instant, a streak of golden light shot out from the blood mist at an incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, it tore through the Void Realm and vanished into the distance.

Cang Xuanzi's brow furrowed.

A Nascent Soul.

Yuan Zhenzi's Nascent Soul had actually managed to flee.

He struck out with a palm, his power penetrating the Void Realm to chase that golden light. The golden light let out a shrill scream, but it still struggled desperately and disappeared into the spatial crack.

Cang Xuanzi withdrew his hand and sighed softly.

"One miscalculation."

He shook his head and did not give chase. A damaged Nascent Soul would not live long even if it escaped. Even if it survived, it wouldn't be able to cause any significant trouble.

Ming Huazi was dead, the Loose Cultivator was dead, and Yuan Zhenzi was finished.

Was there one more person?

That Golden Core junior.

Cang Xuanzi's Divine Sense swept through every corner of the Secret Realm, but he found no trace of Yun Ming. He frowned slightly and swept again, but there was still nothing.

Had he escaped the Secret Realm?

He thought about it and felt it was possible.

Cang Xuanzi retracted his Divine Sense and paid it no more mind.

He was just a Golden Core; it didn't matter if he ran. Never mind a Golden Core, he wouldn't even care about a Nascent Soul. He was about to leave the East Xuan Region, and everything in this world would soon have nothing to do with him.

He took one last look at this Secret Realm.

Lingze Cave-Heaven had once been one of his most prized possessions. It was filled with Spirit Medicine and teeming with Yao Beasts, making it an excellent place to nurture Disciples. Unfortunately, all of this was about to end.

Once the Teleportation Array was activated, the entire Secret Realm would collapse.

Those Disciples still in the Secret Realm—at least several thousand of them—would all vanish into nothingness along with the Secret Realm.

Cang Xuanzi was silent for a moment.

He knew there were still many people in the Secret Realm. Although the previous chaotic battle had scared some off, there were still many who were bold or far away, continuing to explore various parts of the Secret Realm.

He didn't care.

He had already emptied the Sect's treasury. Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, Cultivation Techniques, and Magical Artifacts—not a single thing was left behind; all were in his Storage Magic Treasure. Establishing the Cangxuan Immortal Sect had originally been for the purpose of serving his path of Cultivation. Now that things had reached this point, what needed to be abandoned had to be abandoned.

At worst, he could simply find another place and rebuild a Sect in the future.

Cang Xuanzi no longer hesitated.

He raised his hands to form signs, sending streams of spiritual power into the Teleportation Array. The Formation began to glow, becoming brighter and more intense, illuminating the entire world.

The twelve stone pillars hummed and vibrated as space began to warp.

The entire Secret Realm also began to tremble.

A rumbling sound came from the distance; it was the sound of mountains splitting apart. The soft bluish-gray light of the sky flickered violently, turning bright and dim as if it could go out at any moment. Countless cracks spread from all directions, swallowing everything in their path.

Cang Xuanzi stood at the center of the Teleportation Array, his black Daoist robes snapping in the wind.

The light grew brighter and more incandescent.

Finally—

A pillar of light shot into the sky, and Cang Xuanzi's figure vanished within it.