377: Chapter 377 The Outside World Shocked: The Deathly Aura Has Receded?!

At the same moment Xu Chen laid down a lethal grand Formation in the heart of the forbidden zone, pointing his sword at the Great Emperor's remnant soul with the posture of a Great Saint...

...on the mountain range at the periphery of the Forbidden Zone of Life.

The night wind howled, carrying a bone-chilling cold.

The heroes of the Eastern Wasteland, who had been forced to stay behind out of fear for the Xu Family Grand Elder's martial power and legal decree, were currently wrapping their dharma robes tightly around themselves, bored to death as they meditated and adjusted their breathing in their respective camps.

"They've been in there for several days now, and there's still no movement at all."

Holy Lord of Ziyang sat cross-legged on a flat boulder, looking at the wall of black fog ahead that was like a copper wall or iron bastion, complaining in a low voice to the Pavilion Master of Tianxing beside him.

"Logically speaking, even if the Xu Family's foundation is profound, thirty thousand people charging into such a death trap should at least cause some ripples. Now that it's so deathly silent, I hope they haven't even left a whole corpse behind."

The Pavilion Master of Tianxing stroked his beard, glancing warily toward the Xu Family's war chariot. Once certain the Grand Elder hadn't noticed, he responded with a cautious divine transmission.

"Brother, watch your words. Haven't you seen that Xu Family Grand Butler's expression? It's getting more radiant by the day. I reckon Young Master Xu has likely encountered some Heaven-Defying Opportunity inside."

"Opportunity?" Holy Lord of Ziyang sneered. "In such a land of death, there's nothing but primeval Vicious Beasts and Great Emperor remnant formations. Where would an Opportunity come from? I think the Xu Family is just putting on a brave face. Even if that kid has a extreme dao imperial weapon protecting him, he's definitely having a hard time in there!"

Just as the two were secretly communicating through Divine Thought, exchanging their schadenfreude thoughts...

...an anomaly descended without any warning.

Boom!

An extremely dull, massive sound seemed to travel from the depths of the earth's core, directly penetrating that thick layer of black mist and exploding violently on the mountain range at the periphery of the forbidden zone.

Immediately after.

Under the horrified gazes of all the Eastern Wasteland Cultivators, that black wall of fog that spanned heaven and earth and had churned for tens of thousands of years without stopping suddenly seemed to be pulled by some terrifying suction from the inside out, beginning a frantic and violent reversal!

"It's... it's receding?"

Holy Lord of Ziyang stood up abruptly, and the jade ruyi he had been fiddling with for a long time fell directly to the ground, shattering into two halves.

His eyes widened as he stared fixedly ahead.

He saw that the Death Qi, so dense it had practically materialized, was like a black waterfall flowing backward, collapsing frantically toward the core of the forbidden zone at a hair-raising speed.

In less than half a stick of incense's time, the peripheral area where one couldn't see their own hand in front of their face actually revealed scorched earth and the outlines of desolate mountains!

Even the haze in the sky that hadn't dissipated for years was torn open with a huge gap as the Death Qi receded.

A bright, clear moon, for the first time in tens of thousands of years, cast its silver moonlight upon this cursed land.

The sky returned to clarity.

"This... how is this possible?!"

"The Death Qi is receding! This is a sign that the forbidden zone's Formation eye has been broken and the core Origin has been forcibly drained!"

"Could it be that the Xu Family army has really leveled this Forbidden Zone of Life?!"

The previously deathly silent camp instantly boiled over.

All the Saint Masters, Loose Cultivators, and hidden old monsters cast aside their dignity as experts. One by one, as if seeing an incredible miracle, cries of alarm and the sound of gasping for air rose one after another.

The Forbidden Zone of Life was the Sword of Damocles that had hung over the hearts of Eastern Wasteland Cultivators for tens of thousands of years. Even a small leak of Death Qi could cause widespread devastation.

And now, the core Origin of this forbidden zone had actually been forcibly drained by someone!

Holy Lord of Ziyang felt his legs go weak, and his throat was so dry he couldn't even say a word.

He had just been mocking how Xu Chen had likely died inside, yet in the blink of an eye, the man had pulled off such a world-shaking feat that made the entire Eastern Wasteland tremble!

In stark contrast to the terror and shock of the Eastern Wasteland Heroes was the Xu Family Grand Elder standing atop the bronze war chariot.

The Grand Elder's loose, dark-gold robe flapped in the night wind. He didn't look at those panicked small fry; his cloudy old eyes were fixed intently on the rapidly shrinking Death Qi storm deep within the forbidden zone.

Just at the moment the Death Qi reversed, the life jade tablet belonging to the Young Lord hidden in his sleeve erupted with an unprecedented, blinding golden light!

The pressure contained within that golden light was no longer the Saint King Late Stage, but...

...the Great Saint Realm!

The Grand Elder's hands suddenly gripped the bronze railing of the chariot, leaving deep finger marks in the hard bronze.

"Good! Good! Good!"

The Grand Elder said 'good' three times in a row. His wrinkled old face was now flushed red with extreme ecstasy.

He threw his head back and laughed out loud without restraint. That laughter was filled with the pride of being the Grand Butler of an Ancient Imperial Clan and infinite anticipation for the Xu Family's future reign over the myriad worlds.

"Hahaha! The Young Lord has pulled off something big inside!"

The Grand Elder's voice was like rolling spring thunder, spreading far and wide under the clear night sky, making the eardrums of those Eastern Wasteland Saint Masters ache.

He turned around, facing the thirty thousand Pojun Imperial Guards stationed at the periphery, ready to provide support at any time.

"Pojun Imperial Guards, hear my command!" The Grand Elder drew the sword at his waist, pointing it straight into the depths of the forbidden zone, his voice high and impassioned. "The Young Lord has broken the forbidden zone's Origin and stepped into the Great Saint Realm! The whole army shall strike camp and advance five hundred miles to wave the flags and shout for the Young Lord, showing the prestige of our Xu Family!"

"As you command!"

Thirty thousand black-armored elites roared in unison, their voices shaking the nine heavens.

The uniform sound of long halberds being unsheathed, like a tangible aura of slaughter, instantly gathered into a black pillar of light that pierced heaven and earth.

Before this overwhelming military might, Holy Lord of Ziyang, the Pavilion Master of Tianxing, and the others felt their breath hitch. They retreated repeatedly, fearing they would be crushed into meat paste by this fanatical morale.

Great Saint Realm!

A Great Saint Realm in his twenties!

This news was like a heavy hammer, smashing ruthlessly into the hearts of all the Eastern Wasteland Heroes.

They watched the Xu Family's invincible fleet advancing like a black steel torrent, and that last bit of greed and luck in their hearts was completely crushed at this moment.

As long as that man named Xu Chen walked out of the forbidden zone alive, the sky of the Eastern Wasteland would truly change. From now on, anyone who dared to say a single 'no' to the Xu Family would likely end up worse than the bone fragments in this Forbidden Zone of Life!

Several hours ago, in the heart of the forbidden zone, tens of thousands of miles away from this boiling outside world...

...in the dried-up basin.

The [Nine Dragons Incinerating Heaven Formation] Xu Chen had laid down had already reached its limit.

The crimson earth-fire Yang Qi transformed into nine violent flaming dragons, trapping that heaven-blotting black remnant soul firmly in the center of the basin.

"Roar!"

The remnant soul of the Fallen Great Emperor let out a world-shaking roar.

It frantically waved its giant hands condensed from the Laws of death, trying to tear apart this flaming cage that trapped it. But every time it touched those crimson Formation patterns, the mixed Death Qi it had just swallowed would be ruthlessly stripped away and incinerated by the earth-fire Yang Qi, emitting a sizzling white smoke.

Just as Xu Chen had expected, after this remnant soul left the extreme yin Formation eye of the ancient palace, it was like a whale stranded on a beach—possessing immense power yet having its moisture drained bit by bit.

Xu Chen stood in mid-air holding his sword, his grand red cloak billowing in the heat waves.

He was in no hurry to strike. Although that old fellow's power was damaged, it was still a half-step Quasi-Emperor level remnant soul; its deathbed counterattack would be absolutely terrifying. He wanted to wait until the Formation had ground down the opponent's foundation to its lowest point before dealing the fatal blow.

In the safe zone at the edge of the basin.

Ji Qingyun tightly held Tuoba You's hand, both women nervously watching that tall and straight figure in mid-air.

Tuoba You watched her Big Brother face that monster she had been afraid of since childhood all by himself. Not only did he not retreat, but he had even trapped the monster in a sea of fire. In her simple heart, besides admiration, a strong sense of unwillingness also arose.

"Big Brother is fighting the bad guy all alone."

Tuoba You bit her lip, looking down at her own pair of fair little hands.

She remembered what Big Brother had said just now—as long as one's fists are hard enough, no one will dare to bully them.

Big Brother was willing to give his life to protect her. How could she keep hiding in the back like a coward?

In Tuoba You's pure, deer-like eyes, an unprecedented flame gradually ignited. It was a wild fire of overcoming the deepest fears in one's heart to protect the most important person.

She slowly let go of Ji Qingyun's hand.

"Youyou, what are you doing?" Ji Qingyun sensed something was wrong and was about to reach out to pull her back.

"Sister Qingyun, I'm going to help Big Brother."

Tuoba You did not look back.

Her magnificent Flowing Immortal Dress flapped in the astral winds.

The girl took a deep breath, her legs suddenly bending, and then like a spring compressed to its limit, amidst a sonic boom that shattered the scorched earth, she transformed into a reverse-flying meteor and boldly charged into that violent battlefield that even Quasi-Emperors dared not easily set foot in!