384: see through

A world-ending catastrophe.

These four words seemed to carry the weight of ten thousand jun, slamming heavily into the heart of every Kunlun Student.

Inside the Lake-Center Pavilion, the atmosphere instantly froze to the freezing point.

Even the two Nascent Soul Yao Beasts in the lake, suppressed to the point of being on their last breaths, stopped roaring, their massive beast eyes revealing an instinctive, bone-deep fear.

Tens of thousands of Ancient Demons!

Beings personally suppressed by the Queen Mother of the West!

Once they break the Seal and emerge, let alone these dozens of students, I fear the entire Dragon Kingdom, and even the entire Earth, will face a catastrophe.

The expression of excitement on Han Li's face froze, replaced by a deathly pallor. He subconsciously took half a step back, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

The lightning light on Fang Yuan's body also dimmed slightly. He stared intensely at Xie Wangsheng in the pavilion, then looked at the solemn-faced, assertive "Earth Deity" elder, his heart surging with stormy waves.

This was no longer a question of whether they could leave or not.

This concerned the safety of the entire world!

Everyone's gaze focused on the center of the Lake-Center Pavilion, on that thin figure standing before the blood-colored Formation.

Xie Wangsheng's finger hovered above the core of the Formation, just an inch away from the strange blood-colored patterns.

Time seemed to have stretched at this moment.

Every second became incomparably agonizing.

"Stop!"

"Hurry and stop!"

"Do you want to get everyone killed?!"

The elder who called himself the Earth Deity had an unprecedented urgency and sternness in his voice, his aged body trembling slightly from agitation.

Xie Wangsheng in the pavilion slowly withdrew his finger that was hovering in the air.

Seeing this, the elder and most of the students present involuntarily breathed a sigh of relief.

However, the next second, Xie Wangsheng made a move that no one had expected.

He simply adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, his eyes behind the lenses calm and waveless. Then, he raised his hand and, without the slightest hesitation, pressed it straight towards the core of the blood-colored Formation!

"You're crazy!"

The elder let out a shriek of sheer terror. The gentle appearance of an enlightened Master vanished completely, leaving only twisted fear and anger on his face.

"Xie Wangsheng!"

Fang Yuan also couldn't help but shout in a low voice. He couldn't fathom why Xie Wangsheng, who was always known for being steady and rational, would make such a crazy move!

The rest of the students were in an uproar, almost unable to believe their own eyes.

But at this critical moment, Xie Wangsheng's palm stopped once again, just a finger's width away from the Formation's patterns.

He slowly raised his head. His gaze did not look at the Formation capable of destroying the world, but instead passed through the crowd and landed calmly on the shocked and angry elder.

"Senior."

Xie Wangsheng spoke, his voice not loud, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"Your act is very well performed."

As his words fell, the entire scene fell into dead silence.

Everyone was stunned, completely unable to understand what Xie Wangsheng meant by this sentence.

Even Fang Yuan and Lin Xiao had their brows tightly furrowed.

Only that elder, the moment he heard these words, felt the terror and anger on his face recede like a tide, replaced by a gloomy, cold chill of having his disguise punctured.

He did not speak, only narrowed his murky eyes slightly, staring intently at Xie Wangsheng.

"It's just a pity," Xie Wangsheng pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting a strange light, "that I still managed to spot the flaw."

Once these words were spoken, everyone was shocked!

No matter how slow the students were, they reacted at this moment.

They looked at the calm-faced Xie Wangsheng, then at the elder whose aura had suddenly changed, and a chill shot straight from the soles of their feet to their scalps.

"What does that mean?"

"Could it be... this old man has a problem?"

"No way, right? Isn't he an immortal?"

Discussions arose everywhere. Everyone subconsciously tightened their grip on their Magic Treasures, their gazes towards the elder filled with vigilance and caution.

"Oh?"

The elder finally spoke.

His voice was no longer gentle, nor was it urgent. Instead, it was a cold laugh tinged with a bit of mockery, resounding directly in everyone's minds.

"Interesting little child."

"Then tell me, where did this old man show a flaw?"

He stood there with his hands behind his back, calm and composed. His aura of standing firm like a mountain was even greater than before, yet it also carried an unsettling, sinister chill.

The hearts of the Kunlun Students jumped into their throats.

It was confirmed!

This old guy who called himself the Earth Deity really did have a problem!

Everything he said before, about the Pan Tao Garden, about the great battle, about the Seal... it was all fake!

Or rather, not entirely true!

Fang Yuan, Lin Xiao, Lu Miaomiao, and the others unleashed their spiritual power once again without reservation, locking onto the elder's figure from afar.

The air was filled with the scent of gunpowder, ready to explode at any moment.

"Chief Xie, what exactly is he?" Han Li asked in a low, nervous voice.

However, Xie Wangsheng did not explain immediately.

His attention did not seem to be on the elder at all, but instead, he quickly scanned his companions around him.

"Everyone, come to my side immediately!"

His voice was calm and decisive, carrying an unquestionable command.

"With me as the center, form the Zhou Tian Star Origin Defense Formation!"

Although their hearts were full of doubts, out of absolute trust in Xie Wangsheng, all the students did not hesitate in the slightest and immediately took action.

Fang Yuan, Lin Xiao, Zhang Qiqi, and others flashed, instantly appearing on the shore. Leading dozens of classmates, they turned into streaks of light, crossed the lake, and landed steadily inside the Lake-Center Pavilion.

They quickly stood in their respective positions, surrounding Xie Wangsheng and the blood-colored Formation in front of him in the very center.

"Hum!"

Accompanied by a uniform, low shout, vast spiritual power surged out from each student's body, intertwining and gathering to form a brilliant starlight shield, enveloping the entire Lake-Center Pavilion.

Seeing this, a faint look of difference finally appeared on the elder's face.

He seemed not to have expected that the reaction and execution ability of this group of young people would be so fast.

"Can you say it now?" Fang Yuan stood at the very front of the Formation, lightning flickering around his body, staring directly at the elder. "What exactly is he?"

Xie Wangsheng still did not answer.

He just turned around and pressed his palm towards the blood-colored Formation again. At the same time, his calm voice rang in the ears of every companion.

"This Formation is indeed the passage back."

"I need some time to crack it."

"You just need to..."

He paused, raised his eyes to look outside the Formation at the elder who stood with his hands behind his back, wearing an unfathomable smile on his face.

"...hold him off for me, and hold on for a quarter of an hour."

"After a quarter of an hour, we can leave this damn place."

The moment his words fell, Xie Wangsheng's palm finally pressed heavily onto the eye of the blood-colored Formation!

"Boom—!"

An indescribably terrifying energy fluctuation surged into the sky from the Formation!

"Junior, you are courting death!"

The smile on the elder's face instantly vanished, replaced by monstrous killing intent. His figure flickered, and he was about to rush towards the Lake-Center Pavilion!