388: Chapter 388 Manipulation

"Peak Master Chen, it's a bit too early to say that."

No sooner had the Valley Master's voice fallen than a sudden change occurred! Those seven Integration Realm Cultivators, seizing the opening created by the three great killing moves' distraction, soared into the air like ghosts, each stepping in rhythm with the stars to quickly occupy the Seven-Star positions.

Their hands formed seals as fast as afterimages, their mouths chanting obscure incantations in unison. Seven streaks of condensed black spiritual light surged from their foreheads, intertwining in the air until they finally transformed into a golden pillar of light that spanned heaven and earth.

"Buzz—"

As the light pillar trembled, the illusory image of a dozens-of-meters-long Golden Giant Dragon boomed into existence! The Dragon's eyes were crimson like burning fire, and its entire body was wreathed in a majestic Spiritual Pressure, its aura not inferior to that of a Mahayana Cultivator.

"Oh? A Body Integration Divine Ability?"

Chen Xuan's brow twitched slightly; he was somewhat surprised.

He hadn't expected these seven Integration Cultivators from Yuling Valley to be able to Cultivate such a sophisticated combined secret technique. This method of perfectly fusing the spiritual power of seven people to manifest a Divine Beast's phantom was rare even across the Nine Provinces.

Before he could think further, the Golden Giant Dragon had already launched its attack!

It suddenly opened its bloody maw, and a golden dragon breath containing the essence of the seven people's spiritual power billowed out. Wrapped in a heat that could incinerate all things, it shot furiously toward Chen Xuan. Simultaneously, the Dragon's thick front claws, carrying the power to tear through the Void Realm, clawed fiercely at his vital points.

Chen Xuan's expression hardened. He pressed two fingers together in a sword seal, gave his wrist a light flick, and barked:

"Break!"

In an instant, a dazzling silver Sword Qi erupted from his fingertips. Several meters long and glinting with a chilling light, it struck the Dragon's lunging front claw with unerring precision.

"Crack—!"

The clashing of metal was deafening. The golden dragon claw snapped and dissipated into a shower of golden light, only to reform in the next heartbeat.

Boom!

Purple lightning struck down from the sky without warning, slamming directly into the Dragon's head, as if silently declaring: "I'll see how many times you can Rebirth!"

The Valley Master took the opportunity to strike, an incantation seal instantly forming and slapping toward Chen Xuan as fast as lightning.

Chen Xuan didn't dodge or evade; he flipped his palm and met it head-on. Two massive energies collided with a roar, sending spiritual power surging and scattering over the sea. The auspicious light around Bai Ze flared, firmly shielding Qi Yue and insulating her from the impact of the aftershocks.

Suddenly!

The Elder holding the Blood-Colored Long Saber vanished abruptly, reappearing above Chen Xuan's head in the next second and slashing down! A searing aura exploded, like a dormant volcano suddenly erupting, sending heat waves sweeping in all directions.

"That Blood-Colored Long Saber is quite a good heaven-rank magic treasure, but unfortunately, it doesn't suit that girl Xiao Lingxian."

The thought flashed through Chen Xuan's mind as his figure disappeared from the spot. On the other side of the sky, a rift in the Void Realm quietly appeared, and he stepped out of it composedly.

Although the people of Yuling Valley were secretly amazed by the Man in White Robes' mysterious Divine Ability, they didn't give him a moment to catch his breath.

Another Elder raised his hand, about to sacrifice three golden Talismans. But before he could act, he noticed the Void Realm around him suddenly rippling with subtle, almost imperceptible circles, like a stone thrown into water, spreading silently.

Amidst the flowing light, an invisible barrier quietly rose like a falling curtain, completely isolating him from the outside world.

"It's the God-Tier Divine Ability from within that glazed lamp."

This Elder suddenly snapped awake, only to find he could no longer perceive any information from the outside world; he was as if completely severed from this heaven and earth.

He didn't dare to be negligent. His spiritual power erupted, and a silver-white spiritual light surged like a tide.

With a crisp "crack," a fissure suddenly appeared in the invisible barrier ahead. Following that, spiderweb-like cracks spread rapidly, and the spatial barrier showed signs of imminent collapse.

"Bang—!"

A loud explosion rang out as the isolated space shattered instantly.

Chen Xuan looked up slightly at the Elder, whose aura was disordered but who was protected by a fragmented Golden Body Dharma Idol. A cold light flashed in his eyes: "If you didn't die once, then let's do it again."

Beside him, Qi Yue's pupils shrank, and she suddenly called out: "Sect Master, look at that man's chest!"

Chen Xuan followed her gaze and saw a mysterious mark faintly emerging on the Elder's chest, its light shifting darkly.

This is—a Slave Seal!

Could it be that the actions of the Yuling Valley people were all being controlled by someone?

It wasn't for the so-called desire to reclaim the four heaven-rank magic treasures.

The thought had just flashed through his mind, and before Chen Xuan could think deeply, the sound of wind rose from his left!

The Golden Giant Dragon's phantom, its thick tail carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth, slammed toward Chen Xuan's waist like a massive golden whip, the resulting air pressure carving a deep trench into the sea's surface.

Chen Xuan's right hand made a grasping motion, and a dark radiance suddenly condensed. A pitch-black long sword instantly appeared in his palm.

A streak of Sword Qi slashed out!

Immediately after, his figure closed in on the Dragon like a ghost.

As the Sword Qi swept past, the air seemed to be instantly sliced apart. The Golden Giant Dragon's seemingly indestructible body was split in two like paper. The crimson flames in the Dragon's eyes were suddenly extinguished, and the massive phantom dissipated into a shower of golden light amidst a mournful cry, completely vanishing from the world.

Losing the support of the Divine Ability, the seven Integration Realm Cultivators spat blood and fell from the air. Their auras instantly withered to the extreme, leaving them with no strength left to fight.

Just then, a golden light suddenly attacked from the side!

It was the fragmented Golden Body Dharma Idol behind that Elder. Although only half its body remained, it still carried the majestic power of the Mahayana Stage. Its massive fist, with unstoppable force, smashed toward the back of Chen Xuan's head.

Without even turning his head, Chen Xuan flicked his wrist and swung his long sword backward. A pitch-black Sword Qi struck first, accurately slashing into the forehead of the Golden Body Dharma Idol.

"Crack—Boom!"

The Golden Body Dharma Idol shattered and dissipated into specks of golden light. The Elder's aura was already disordered; now, suffering another heavy blow, his body went limp and he collapsed, completely devoid of life.

Without stopping, Chen Xuan's spiritual power transformed into eight invisible threads from his fingertips, accurately coiling around the waists of the seven Integration Realm Cultivators and this Elder. Eight storage rings of various styles were instantly pulled by the threads and landed in his palm.

Having performed this series of fluid actions, Chen Xuan himself was stunned for a moment. He looked down blankly at the spoils of war clutched in his hand, his lips twitching almost imperceptibly.

Sigh, has it already become a habit?

He shook his head helplessly and tossed the eight storage rings into the System space. Only then did he slowly turn around, his gaze falling on the Valley Master, whose expression remained solemn and showed not a hint of panic. His tone was indifferent:

"Well then, do you still want to keep fighting?"

"To the death!"

The Valley Master's aura suddenly surged, and a Golden Body Dharma Idol dozens of meters tall boomed into existence!

His hands formed seals, radiating a power several times stronger than the previous Elder's. Clearly, he was putting everything on the line.

Meanwhile, the other Elder also reacted, channeling his spiritual power as his Golden Body Dharma Idol gradually took shape.

Two Golden Body Dharma Idols, dozens of meters high, stood side by side on the sea like Heavenly Gods descending to the world. Their towering and majestic auras pressed down, covering the sky and earth, making one feel overwhelmed with awe.

Qi Yue, watching from the side, felt as small as an ant. She couldn't help but feel a shiver in her heart and instinctively shrank behind Bai Ze.

A moment later, even the churning surface of the sea gradually calmed as this ambush finally came to an end.

Chen Xuan flicked his finger, and two streaks of pure spiritual power were shot into the corpses of the Valley Master and the other Elder. As the light shifted, a mysterious Slave Seal, identical to the one on the previous Elder, emerged on both their chests.

Clearly, these three Mahayana Stage experts and seven Integration Realm Cultivators of Yuling Valley were all people who had been enslaved.