579: Chapter 579 Trial Unexpected Changes: Siege of Meigu

The second match between Zhutian Hall and Chitian Hall featured Biting versus Chen Yue.

At the start, Biting's steps were hesitant and her eyes wandered, clearly having made up her mind to use some sort of tactic—but once the fight truly began, she pulled back; afterwards, she remained hesitant and indecisive, until finally, she simply abandoned her preparations and fought solely according to her own heart.

That desire for victory was too real, too intense—so intense that she could neither hide it nor suppress it.

In this battle, eagles soared through the sky and butterflies danced, with hardness and softness colliding to create a unique weight.

Although Biting won narrowly, it was a fair and square victory; Chen Yue accepted the loss gracefully, without sighing or complaining, and instead genuinely cheered for her opponent—this was a true contest.

The duels of the other halls, especially the match between Yangtian Hall and Luantian Hall, made people frown and shake their heads, feeling both ashamed and stifled.

Only Guihai stood to the side, smiling in a relaxed and carefree manner, as if he had already foreseen the outcome. When others saw this, they simply assumed he was confident.

After one day of rest, the final promotion match officially began: Zhanchi versus Guihai.

"Guihai, this time I will definitely win—you might as well surrender now." Zhanchi said loudly, his tone firm.

Guihai just smiled slightly without saying a word. With a flip of his wrist, his attack arrived. It was absurdly fast; before Zhanchi could even think of lifting his foot, he collided head-on, and without even seeing how his opponent exerted force, he was knocked to the ground.

The spectators turned in unison to look at Ranglong—the look in their eyes was self-evident: Another trump card?

Ranglong himself was stunned. Logically speaking, it was impossible! Where did this power come from?

"Guihai, you really have been hiding your true strength—then take my move 'Huoli · Yaoyue'!"

Zhanchi activated his Guardian technique, and flames soared into the air. Guihai did not even lift an eyelid, his expression remaining normal, as he effortlessly neutralized the attack, followed by a heavy blow that struck Zhanchi directly in the chest. He collapsed on the spot, unable to stand up for a moment. A buzzing sound immediately arose from below the stage—

"This... how did Guihai suddenly become this strong? It's simply unbelievable!"

"Right! It's too strange! It doesn't make sense by any normal logic!"

Each exclamation of shock rained down, and even the Disciples of Zhutian Hall looked embarrassed—they themselves couldn't understand what was going on.

The divine pendant sensed Zhanchi's severe injury and quietly appeared to offer treatment. Unexpectedly, Guihai looked up and laughed, reached out, and actually snatched the divine pendant into his palm! Everyone was dumbfounded, completely unable to make sense of it.

"Hahaha—you bunch of fools, Lord Jiaye has arrived!"

Before the words had faded, Guihai let out a low roar, and a teleportation array suddenly opened. Zero Power, like ink in water, instantly permeated every inch of Jiugong Ridge. Beams of eerie light lit up, and shadows of Zero appeared one after another. But at this moment, no one noticed—these Zeros were somewhat different from the ones in the past.

"Guihai! Are you crazy?!" Ranglong, enraged, shouted sternly.

"Guihai?" The person laughed wildly, "Ha—I am one of the Seven Souls, Zhou! What Guihai? It's just a skin bag! Hahaha! Jiugong Ridge, today is the end; if you kneel and beg for mercy, Lord Jiaye might... leave you a way to live!"

"Seven Souls? Zhou?"

These two words pierced the air like ice picks, and the entire venue fell into a deathly silence. Everyone's expressions changed drastically—Guihai had actually been possessed?

"What's so strange about that?" Zhou scanned the crowd coldly, "No matter how strict the Guardians' mental defenses are, they cannot stop the thorns that grow from within their own hearts. I infiltrated the Seven Star Tomb, took the Soil of Darkness, and refined the Lure of Zero—as long as the human heart is in chaos, the Zero will break through the door. How about it? This body, is it easy to use?"

"Scoundrel!!"

Before the voice had faded, a black shadow erupted and lunged, slamming fiercely into Zhou! He was caught off guard and sent flying sideways, his face full of astonishment—wasn't Zhanchi down?

It turned out he was only dizzy for a moment and had not lost his senses; upon hearing that "Guihai was possessed," anger surged to his head, and a strange, violent power exploded within him—Zero Power surged out from his Bloodline, striking straight into Zhou!

Zhou flipped and stood steady, his pupils constricting violently. He had never expected that a Guardian could burst forth with Zero Power! Even more horrifying was—he couldn't dodge it!

Just as the thought arose, a few strands of pitch-black silk had already wrapped around his limbs. The sensation, the aura... it was clearly the method of Lord Jiaye.

Fortunately, although Zhanchi's Zero Power was strong, his control was far from proficient. After some struggling, he finally broke free and immediately counterattacked. But Guihai was already prepared; how could he allow him to succeed so easily?

Spotting a flaw, Zhanchi suddenly activated his Zero Power, driving it straight into Guihai's body—in an instant, Guihai's whole body stiffened, unable to move even his fingertips.

The crowd outside the arena was thrown into chaos by this sudden turn of events, with no heart to carefully watch the stage. Especially that pure yet violent Zero Power, which made their hearts sink: this was definitely not an ordinary Zero, could it be... a mutated Zero?

Just as the thought arose, a blinding burst of energy exploded in the center of the arena, and then a halo of light slowly expanded. A figure stepped out from the Void Realm, his form gradually appearing until he stood before everyone—everyone's complexion instantly turned ashen.

"Long time no see, still so 'enthusiastic'. No need for formalities, just bring it on—hahaha..."

Commander Pozhen and the others furrowed their brows, their expressions grave to the extreme. No one had expected that Jiaye would personally appear. Now, something big was really going to happen.

"Four Symbols Barrier, activate!"

Several low shouts fell, and the barrier formed instantly. The entire Jiugong Ridge was suddenly wrapped in a pale cyan light curtain, making it difficult for outsiders to enter. Unless the four Primordial Qi gates were forcibly destroyed, this place would be impenetrable.

With the barrier established, Commander Pozhen immediately assigned tasks: several Taiji Guardians rushed to the other three Primordial Qi gates to stand guard and prevent any accidents.

"Do you think you can stop me with just this barrier? Naive." Jiaye sneered, "This layout has been in the works for a long time; how could it be blocked by you in such a rush? Don't dream. Later, you will learn the power of these Zeros—by the way, I'll remind you, these are 'Heavy Zeros' prepared specifically for today. Feel the difference? Of course it's different. They are not the same goods as before—hahaha..."

Everyone's breath hitched, their hearts sinking. It turned out the opponent had already laid the trap. Upon reflection, it was not surprising.

Although the sudden change was caught off guard, were Commander Pozhen and his group mediocre? They immediately stood in front of Jiaye.

The others split up to reinforce the various Primordial Qi gates—they must not let the Zero destroy a single gate!

On the arena, Guihai was now moving again. Because Zhanchi's defeat was certain, he was finally pressed into the Soil of Darkness. That place was easy to enter but hard to leave. Zhou watched this scene, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, his smile containing a hint of surprise, but no panic.

"Go and stop them, don't let the plan be ruined."

"Yes, Lord Jiaye." The divine pendant had already been handed over, so he didn't say much, turned, and sped towards the direction of the Guardian reinforcements.

"Hahaha—after today, Jiugong Ridge will become a torn page in history, and I, Jiaye, will step on it to reach the Peak! Hahaha..."

The war immediately reached a white-hot stage. Every Primordial Qi gate became a battlefield, with the sounds of slaughter endless. Even with strict defense, loopholes were inevitable—especially at the White Tiger Gate next to the canteen, where a person suddenly appeared, causing everyone to freeze on the spot.

"Teacher Xiang Li? You... how could you be here?" Instructor Yi Hengxi's voice trembled, her gaze locked tightly on that person.

"Grandpa! It's really Grandpa! I am Chen Yue, your most beloved Chen Yue!" Chen Yue choked out, almost rushing forward, but was grabbed by Instructor Yi Hengxi. She forced herself to calm down, and when she looked up again, her heart suddenly sank—the person in front of her had no movement in his chest.

Chen Yue gritted her teeth and activated her perception, her spiritual sense touching and immediately recoiling. In that instant, she felt like she had fallen into an ice cellar: the reunion she had longed for had resulted in this outcome—Grandpa not only didn't recognize her but also raised his blade against her. Her heart felt as if it had been gouged out, hurting so much she couldn't stand. Why? Why on earth? She couldn't figure it out no matter what.

"Chen Yue, don't go over there!" Instructor Yi Hengxi said at a very fast pace, "Teacher's body has been eroded by Zero Power, his consciousness is lost, and now he is only driven by instinct." Before the words had faded, she had concluded without a doubt—but this answer was more suffocating than the unknown.

"No... it can't be! Grandpa must still be able to come back! He must be able to!" Chen Yue cried out hoarsely, her whole body seeming to have had its bones and tendons drained, leaving only a withered shell.

But the war allowed no time for grief. Xiang Li's attacks became increasingly fierce, and after a few rounds of hard fighting, Chen Yue was also injured and fell to the ground. Forced, she had to use Xuanhuo Guixin to temporarily restrain her teacher's movements. But this technique consumed a lot of mental energy; she had to stabilize Xiang Li while also distracting herself to self-heal, resulting in dangerous situations. Fortunately, Qianjun was still there, using his fierce courage to tightly entangle Xiang Li, which bought Instructor Yi Hengxi a breath of respite.

After her injuries were slightly stabilized and with Youren guarding her side, Instructor Yi Hengxi was finally able to provide full rescue efforts.

"Instructor Yi Hengxi, did you notice?" She suddenly lowered her voice, "Inside Teacher Xiang Li's body, there is still a trace of Metal Primordial Qi... not yet completely swallowed by Zero Power. Although the hope is slim, as long as a glimmer remains, there is still a possibility for Teacher to return."

"It is indeed possible, but where can we gather so much Metal-attribute Primordial Qi? The world is so chaotic right now, and there are dangers everywhere."

"No, the White Tiger Primordial Qi gate stores a large amount of Metal-attribute Primordial Qi—as long as we are gentle and don't disturb the internal balance of the Qi mechanism, it will be fine to use it. This gate was originally set up by Teacher Xiang Li himself."

Instructor Yi Hengxi was stunned, clearly not expecting this background. After a moment of thought, she nodded and said: "Okay, let's try it. Maybe it can really work. Start immediately, and be very careful." Before the words had faded, she turned to look at Biting and the others, her tone calm but unquestionable: "You all stand guard on the perimeter and protect Teacher Xiang Li. Once the Zero approaches, you must not let a single one in, understand?"

"Yes! Teacher, we will definitely hold them off!"

Chen Yue had just woken up, and upon hearing that her grandfather still had a chance of survival, she didn't hesitate for half a second and agreed immediately. Her eyes were burning with fire—those damn Zeros, don't even think about getting half a step closer to Grandpa! The sword in her hand was thirty percent faster than usual, each strike ruthless and accurate, forcing the lunging Zeros back several meters.

Xiang Li was helped into the canteen, and the White Tiger Primordial Qi gate stood quietly before them. Instructor Yi Hengxi took a deep breath and said to Youren: "The Primordial Qi gate is in your hands."

"Rest assured, I know the limits. I will absolutely not touch its Foundation." Youren's expression was solemn, every word hitting the ground.

Everyone knew clearly: if the Primordial Qi gate collapsed, the entire Jiugong Ridge would likely collapse by half as well.

Youren held his breath to investigate, and Instructor Yi Hengxi immediately took action—her fingertips guided the Qi like silk, slowly extracting the Metal-attribute Primordial Qi from the gate, strand by strand, steadily injecting it into Xiang Li's body. That Primordial Qi was like a needle and thread, gently tapping and awakening his dormant Hidden Promise Primordial Qi, bit by bit, pushing the Zero Power entrenched in his Meridians outward.