340: So be it.

As time quietly passed, the nine brilliant pillars of light grew increasingly intense. The golden light pierced through the heavy dark clouds, illuminating the overhanging eaves and brackets of the nine Demon Suppressing Towers with absolute clarity.

The flow rate of the earth vein's Spiritual Qi, the fluctuations in the concentration of the suppression power, and the alignment precision of the star-track patterns were all captured within Chen Xuan's perception, without the slightest error.

"It is almost time."

Chen Xuan whispered softly, and the hand seal he was forming with his fingertips suddenly changed!

The nine streams of suppression power, which had been flowing gently, seemed to be lashed by an invisible whip. Their speed tripled instantly, and the majestic momentum rising into the sky tore long, narrow slits in the dark clouds. The starlight poured down like scattered silver, bathing the vast land.

Master Qing Xuan felt a suffocating pressure rushing toward him. His internal Spiritual Qi instinctively surged to protect him, forming a faint blue light screen, yet he was still shaken by that grand momentum until his blood boiled and his mind trembled.

He looked up in horror, seeing the star map formed by the nine pillars of light suddenly shrink inward and rotate rapidly. Countless golden runes floated and vanished within it, eventually transforming into dazzling Star-track chains that linked the nine Demon Suppressing Towers together like a spiderweb, making them inseparable.

"This... this..."

"Exactly what kind of Formation is this?"

The world, which had been relatively clear, changed completely. The dark clouds were no longer piled up haphazardly; instead, they were pulled by an invisible force, condensing into a massive black vortex above the nine Demon Suppressing Towers. As it rotated, it emitted a dull, thunderous roar that made one's heart skip a beat.

Such a terrifying celestial phenomenon had already attracted the attention of Cultivators across the southern regions of the Rain God Continent.

Countless people looked up one after another, their expressions filled with shock and suspicion.

But despite watching, none could fathom what was happening. This sight of the sky changing color and starlight falling was definitely not a sign of an ordinary Heaven And Earth Treasure appearing, nor did it resemble any known Secret Realm opening.

"Could this be a method used by someone from the Yao Race?"

"It's over, it's all over. If I had known, I wouldn't have come to this Rain God Continent to train. Now I'm going to lose my life here."

"The positions of those pillars of light... they seem to be where the Demon Suppressing Towers are. Could it be related to the Yao Race inside the towers?"

Faced with the unknown, most people tended to think of the worst-case scenario.

Even more heart-shaking sights followed: atop the first Demon Suppressing Tower, a massive phantom sun slowly solidified, its golden halo spreading outward.

This was the sign that the Nine Luminaries God-Suppressing Formation was about to be completed!

Once all nine phantom suns were suspended high in the sky, the Formation would become its own small world. At that time, its three great powers—slaughter, entrapment, and defense—could be invoked at will with just a single thought from Chen Xuan, offering infinite uses.

Beside him, Chu Haotian felt more than just shock; he felt a sense of relief. If an ancient Formation of such power could truly be completed, then the precarious Rain God Continent would finally be saved.

Furthermore, with this Nine Luminaries God-Suppressing Formation standing guard, there would likely be no need to worry about the Yao Race's invasions and harassment for the next several thousand years.

Who could have imagined that the one achieving such a staggering feat was merely the man in white beside him.

It seemed that anyone who could obtain the Chaos Void Jade was no simple character. Now that he no longer possessed that hot potato, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

It was just... forget it. A heaven-rank magic treasure is precious, but if I have it, it is my luck; if I lose it, it is my fate.

Master Qing Xuan forcibly suppressed the turbulent waves in his heart, and his expression gradually became calm.

Recalling how this Fellow Daoist Chen had easily broken the Formation and led Zhao Jingchen and the others to safety when he was being ambushed by Wei Ling and the others, combined with the setup of this Heaven-Defying Formation today...

He was now certain in his heart—this Fellow Daoist Chen was surely a master of the Dao of Formations.

If he could receive even a little guidance from this Senior, his own cultivation base in the Dao of Formations would surely benefit greatly and reach the next level.

It was just... Master Qing Xuan looked with burning eyes at the white-clad figure suspended in the Nine Heavens, thinking to himself: What method should I use to successfully discuss and ask for advice on Formation knowledge from this Senior? Even... becoming his Disciple wouldn't be unacceptable.

"Haotian, how did you and Senior Chen meet?"

Master Qing Xuan unconsciously changed his way of addressing him to a more appropriate title.

Chu Haotian was somewhat puzzled: "Why are you asking this all of a sudden?"

Master Qing Xuan took a deep breath, as if he had made a certain decision, and said in a heavy voice, "Tell me, if I were to ask to become Senior Chen's Disciple, would he accept me?"

"Become his Disciple?"

Chu Haotian was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood his friend's intentions and laughed involuntarily. "So, you're jealous of his skills in the Dao of Formations and want to ask him for guidance?"

However, to make this friend of his speak of becoming a Disciple, Chu Haotian gained a new appreciation for the profound mystery of this Formation.

Having his thoughts exposed, Master Qing Xuan did not hide them and nodded frankly.

"Haotian, you met the Senior first. Could you say a few good words for me?"

...Within the Five Elders Gate, a heavy scent of blood permeated the ruined walls and broken pillars.

Ghost Book stood with his hands behind his back atop the collapsed main hall, his black robes fluttering gently. With a clatter, he unfurled the Bone Jade Folding Fan in his hand, looking like a wealthy Young Master who frequented the Rouge Pavilion.

With a slight flick of his toe, the head of the still-warm male corpse beneath his feet flew out like a broken kite, hitting a woman's head a few meters away with a thud. The two heads rolled together, facing each other.

"They say that when disaster strikes, everyone fends for themselves," Ghost Book said, lightly waving his folding fan. "I didn't expect that within this Five Elders Gate, there would still be such a pair of devoted lovers who don't know the meaning of death."

"They really are an eyesore."

As he spoke, a subordinate in black rushed before him and knelt on one knee. "My Lord, the remaining Disciples of the Five Elders Gate have all been detained in the central square. How should we deal with them?"

Ghost Book was about to blurt out the order to "leave none alive," but the heroic young girl's instructions suddenly flashed through his mind. He frowned slightly, raised his hand to rub his temple, and said in a deep voice:

"Those who are unruly or dare to resist shall be killed on the spot. For the rest, anyone above the Golden Core stage will have their cultivation base crippled."

"Leave a thousand men here to guard them and prevent any escapes. The rest of the army will follow me to attack the Tianque Sect!"

"As you command, My Lord!"

After the black-clad subordinate bowed, he turned and sped away.

Just as Ghost Book was about to take to the air, another hurried sound of footsteps came. Another subordinate ran over in a panic and knelt on one knee:

"My Lord! Urgent military intelligence! A strange phenomenon has suddenly appeared in the southern sky. Nine Demon Suppressing Towers have simultaneously sent brilliant pillars of light into the sky, piercing the clouds. We do not know which power is behind this!"

"The south?"

Ghost Book paused his fan, turned to look, and fell into deep thought.

He remembered that the largest power in the south was the Chusheng Sect, one of the three great Sects, but that Sect had long since been destroyed. There was no reason for it to be revived.

In the current Rain God Continent, among the remaining powers, only the Tianque Sect could barely be considered to have some strength. The rest were all minor characters that amounted to nothing.

"So be it!"

Ghost Book suddenly chuckled, snapped his folding fan shut, and tapped it lightly against his palm. "They say on the path of cultivation, what one fears most is the word 'if'. Since I've run into it, I'll go see if there truly is a so-called 'if' that can Heaven-Defyingly change the fate of this Rain God Continent."

His gaze darkened: "Pass down the order to postpone the march on the Tianque Sect. Assemble the entire army immediately and follow me to raid the south!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned to the subordinate who had just reported the intelligence:

"You, set off immediately and return to Yaoshi City. Inform them about the phenomena at the southern Demon Suppressing Towers."