Outside the forbidden area, the formation collapsed and people perished.

After emerging from the Spirit Mist Forest, the scene before his eyes changed abruptly.

The Lingyuan Forbidden Land was not a valley or abyss in the ordinary sense. It was more like a shattered space independent of the Spirit Realm, forcibly 'embedded' into the center of the continent.

Ahead, the earth seemed to have been severed by an invisible giant axe, forming a bottomless chasm over a hundred miles wide. At the edge of the chasm, space appeared abnormally twisted and folded, with light refracting strangely. Below the chasm, it was not dark but filled with a 'Lingyuan Evil Qi' that was deep as ink yet faintly shimmering with dark blue ghostly light. This Evil Qi was more solid and overbearing than the Evil Qi of the Guixu Abyss, filled with the will of Chaos, devouring, and annihilation. Merely sensing it from afar made one's Divine Soul feel stabs of pain and unease.

Above the 'entrance' of this giant chasm, a pale blue light screen covering nearly a hundred miles, like an overturned giant bowl, tightly shrouded the entire Forbidden Ground entrance. On the light screen, countless complex and profound pale golden Heavenly Dao runes flowed like swimming fish, emitting a strong aura of suppression, purification, and blockade. Eight thick pale blue beams of light, like giant pillars supporting the sky, descended from the eight directions of the light screen, connecting to eight giant stele towers over a hundred zhang tall, carved entirely from some dark blue crystal, at the edge of the chasm.

Spirit Realm Demon Suppression Formation!

The Formation light screen flowed, subtly forming a confrontation with the Lingyuan Evil Qi below, yet strangely achieving a balance, preventing the Evil Qi from leaking out to erode the Spirit Realm while completely sealing off any passage trying to enter the Forbidden Ground.

Nightmare stopped on an isolated Peak a few miles away from the Formation light screen, his pitch-black eyes calmly scanning this gigantic Formation. The air was filled with dense Formation power and Heavenly Dao pressure, causing his Nidao Demonic Flame to be slightly suppressed, its operation appearing sluggish.

'Eight Demon Suppression Steles, eight Peak Spirit Transformation guardians...' Nightmare recalled the intelligence he had forced out of Protector Jinchen, his gaze sweeping over those eight stele towers emitting pale blue halos. He could vaguely sense that within each stele tower, a not-weak Peak Spirit Transformation aura was entrenched, closely connected to the stele tower itself and the Formation light screen above, maintaining the operation of the Formation. The most core, and most powerful, array eye of the Formation was located directly above the chasm entrance, in the area where the light screen was thickest and the runes were most dense, personally controlled by the 'Golden Light Great Protector' sitting there.

A frontal assault, given his current strength, was not entirely impossible, but it would inevitably consume a huge amount of energy and would immediately alert that Late Tribulation Crossing stage Great Protector, trapping him in a passive situation of being caught between the Formation and a strong enemy.

'Break them one by one, remove the firewood from under the cauldron.' Nightmare set his plan instantly. A frontal clash was not the act of a wise man; utilizing information advantages and his own abilities to quickly remove the Foundation of the Formation was the superior strategy.

He took a deep breath, restraining his aura to the extreme, the power of the star dao fruit covering his whole body, while simultaneously communicating with the guixu dao reversal key within him. The guixu dao reversal key trembled slightly, emitting chaotic spatial fluctuations, quietly merging with the Dao Reversal Demonic Star Flame around him.

'Dao Reversal Spatial Shuttle... Activate.'

With a thought, his figure, like a drop of ink merging into water, disappeared silently from the Peak of the isolated mountain.

...

The first Demon Suppression Stele was located about thirty miles southeast of the chasm entrance. The stele tower stood on the edge of a cliff, the tower body inscribed with ancient patterns for suppressing demons, and a continuously rotating pale blue crystal floated at the top of the tower, connected to the Formation light screen above. Inside the tower, a cold-faced Peak Spirit Transformation Cultivator wearing a pale blue Dao robe was sitting cross-legged, eyes slightly closed, fully operating his Cultivation Technique, injecting his own Spiritual Qi and Heavenly Dao insights into the stele tower to maintain the stability of this node of the Formation. Outside the tower, there were four Nascent Soul Stage Disciples responsible for guarding and patrolling.

Suddenly, the guardian Cultivator inside the tower opened his tightly closed eyes abruptly! He felt a subtle, yet heart-palpitating spatial fluctuation appear in the tower without warning! Right behind him!

'Who?!' He shouted sharply, not thinking, and backhanded a fierce pale blue palm print toward his back, while his Spiritual Qi exploded, attempting to activate the defensive Restriction inside the stele tower!

However, a palm covered in silent pitch-black flames had already silently pressed against his heart.

The moment the palm print landed, the pale blue palm print he had struck out was silently annihilated like a bubble. A cold, dead, and indescribably overbearing power of destruction instantly invaded his Meridians, Dantian, and Sea of Consciousness!

'Ugh...' He only had time to let out a short, muffled groan before the horror in his eyes completely froze. The next moment, pitch-black flames ignited from within his body, and within half a breath, along with his Divine Soul and body, as well as the Formation node under him that was connected to the stele tower, all were turned into nothingness!

The four Nascent Soul Disciples outside the tower hadn't even reacted to what had happened inside when they felt a terrifying aura that froze the Soul permeate from the tower. Immediately after, they saw the entire hundred-zhang-tall Demon Suppression Stele tower light up with eerie pitch-black light from the inside!

Boom—!

It was not an explosion, but rather as if it had been 'erased' by some force from the inside! The entire stele tower, along with the Foundation, collapsed and dissolved rapidly in the pitch-black light, turning into dark blue dust drifting across the sky! The pale blue beam of light connected to the Formation light screen above also flickered violently a few times, then snapped and dissipated with a boom!

The first Formation base, broken!

Nightmare's figure flashed within the spatial fluctuations remaining at the original site of the stele tower and disappeared again.

...

The second Demon Suppression Stele was located in the due south direction. The guardian Cultivator noticed the abnormal Formation fluctuations in the southeast direction and had just stood up in suspicion to investigate when a pitch-black figure had already appeared before him like a ghost. With a point of his fingertip, a highly condensed Demon Star Spike pierced through the center of his brow.

The stele tower collapsed, and the light beam snapped.

...

The third, fourth, fifth...

Like the deadliest ghost, Nightmare, relying on the eeriness and swiftness of the Dao Reversal Spatial Shuttle and his precise grasp of the locations of the Formation bases, continuously teleported in less than the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn. With thunderous means, he destroyed the Demon Suppression Stele towers and their guardian Cultivators in the southeast, due south, southwest, due west, and northwest directions!

Every appearance, every strike, was clean and neat, never exceeding two breaths! The Peak Spirit Transformation guardian Cultivators had almost no power to resist before him and were instantly killed! And those Nascent Soul Stage guard Disciples hadn't even seen the shadow of the enemy before they were either dead or injured in the aftermath of the Formation's collapse or the escaping Nidao Demonic Flame. Those lucky enough to survive were already scared out of their wits, scattering and fleeing.

Eight Formation bases, five were already gone!

The light screen of the Spirit Realm Demon Suppression Formation began to flicker violently, becoming unstable! Its coverage shrank rapidly, and its power was greatly reduced! The originally balanced Formation structure was severely damaged, and its confrontation with the Lingyuan Evil Qi below became chaotic. The dark blue Evil Qi surging in the chasm began to tentatively impact the weakening light screen!

At this moment, the guardian Cultivator at the sixth Formation base in the due north direction finally realized that something was terribly wrong through the rapidly decaying Formation connection and the abnormal fluctuations coming from afar! His face turned pale, and he frantically sent a top-level alarm Divine Thought to the core area where the Formation eye was located!

'Enemy attack! Formation base destroyed! The five Formation bases in the southeast, due south, southwest, due west, and northwest are lost! Requesting support from the Great Protector!!!'

However, just as his alarm Divine Thought was sent—

A cold voice had already sounded behind him.

'Too late.'

Pfft!

The Demonic Flame pierced through his body, and the sixth Formation base was broken!

Almost at the same instant the sixth Formation base was destroyed—

'What kind of lowlife dares to destroy my Formation?!'

A roar of violent rage, like a thunderclap from the Nine Heavens, exploded from the core area of the Formation directly above the chasm entrance! Accompanied by this roar, a dazzling giant figure, seemingly cast from pure gold, soared into the sky from that thick Formation light screen!

Golden Light Great Protector!

He was three zhang tall, his whole body shrouded in golden light that was as solid as substance. His specific features could not be seen, only a pair of huge golden eyes burning with raging anger, like two small suns, instantly locked onto Nightmare, who had just destroyed the sixth Formation base and had not yet teleported away again!

At the same time, light flashed behind him, and ten figures with powerful auras—all at least at the Late Stage Spirit Transformation, with three of them being Early Tribulation Crossing Stage—appeared simultaneously, spreading out in a fan shape to block Nightmare's possible retreat! These ten people were the core force under the Golden Light Great Protector!

'Reverse Dao Practitioner! You actually dare to destroy my Formation base, you deserve to die!!!' The Golden Light Great Protector was furious. He was sitting here, thinking everything was foolproof, but he didn't expect the opponent to be so cunning, not attacking the Formation eye but specifically targeting the Formation bases, and the speed was unimaginably fast, destroying most of the Formation bases in such a short time! This was simply a great humiliation!

He didn't have any nonsense, raised his hand, and struck with a palm!

A golden giant palm, entirely condensed from pure Heavenly Dao Laws and vast Spiritual Qi, covered the sky, as if carrying the Heavenly Dao will of the entire Spirit Realm, crashing down toward Nightmare! Under the giant palm, space solidified, Spiritual Qi went into Chaos, and even the surging Lingyuan Evil Qi below was temporarily forced back! The power of this palm was far beyond that of the previous Protectors Jinyao and Jinchen, clearly reaching the terrifying level of the Late Tribulation Crossing stage!

Facing this angry strike, Nightmare's eyes narrowed slightly, but he had no fear.

'Finally, someone decent has come.'

He whispered, advancing instead of retreating, and the silent Dao Reversal Demonic Star Flame around him erupted! The pitch-black flames soared into the sky, condensing into a huge, thick Dao Reversal Demon Shield in front of him. On the surface of the shield, countless tiny star phantoms rotated in reverse, emitting a terrifying aura of devouring and reversing all Laws!

'Dao Reversal—Sky Defense!'

The golden giant palm and the pitch-black Demon Shield collided violently!

Boom—!!!!!!

This time, it was a solid, earth-shaking, terrifying loud noise! At the center of the collision, golden and black light, thousands of times more dazzling than the sun, erupted! The terrifying energy shockwave spread crazily in all directions in a spherical shape. Wherever it passed, mountains collapsed, the earth cracked, and space twisted! The remaining two Demon Suppression Stele towers that had not yet been destroyed shook violently in this aftermath, and countless cracks appeared on the tower bodies! The Lingyuan Evil Qi in the chasm below was even more agitated and surged into the sky, like an angry ink-colored dragon!

The momentum of the golden giant palm was forcibly blocked by the pitch-black Demon Shield! The two stalemated in the air, the golden and black energy crazily consuming and annihilating each other, emitting a hair-raising sizzling sound!

A flash of surprise crossed the Golden Light Great Protector's eyes. His angry palm strike was enough to kill an ordinary Middle Tribulation Crossing stage Cultivator, yet it was blocked by the opponent's weird pitch-black shield? This Reverse Dao Power was indeed evil!

But he was, after all, in the Late Tribulation Crossing stage, with rich combat experience, and changed his move instantly.

'Heavenly Punishment—Divine Thunder! Fall!'

He pinched a seal with one hand and pointed at the sky!

Rumble—!!

The sky, which had been stirred up by the Formation light screen and the fierce battle, suddenly condensed boundless golden thunderclouds! Countless golden thunders, as thick as buckets and emitting an aura of destruction, struck down toward Nightmare like a rainstorm! Each thunderbolt contained pure Heavenly Punishment power, specifically restraining demons, and had an extra damage bonus against Reverse Dao auras!

At the same time, the ten core Cultivators behind him also moved! In groups of three, they formed small battle Formations, unleashing various powerful Heavenly Dao Spells and Magic Treasure attacks, assaulting Nightmare from different angles, and together with the golden thunder filling the sky, forming a desperate kill situation!

Facing this violent attack from above and below, a harsh glint flashed in Nightmare's eyes.

He suddenly pushed the Demon Shield in front of him forward, temporarily holding off the golden giant palm, while his thoughts turned rapidly.

'Dao Reversal Ultimate Kill Domain, fully open!'

Hum—!!

With him as the center, a pitch-black Domain, deeper, more solid, and wider than before, bloomed like a death flower in an instant, expanding with a boom! Within the Domain, all Laws were reversed, Spiritual Qi was dead, and the Heavenly Dao did not exist!

The golden thunder striking from the sky, once entering the range of the Domain, had its power drastically reduced, its light rapidly dimming, as if weakened and stripped of the Heavenly Punishment will by an invisible force! And those Heavenly Dao Spells and Magic Treasure attacks that came over were like clay oxen entering the sea, rapidly dissolving and disintegrating within the Domain!

Nightmare was in the center of the Domain, like a grim reaper controlling everything. He ignored the weakened attacks, his gaze locked tightly on the Golden Light Great Protector outside the Domain who was fully maintaining the golden giant palm and the Heavenly Punishment Divine Thunder.

He knew that fighting a war of attrition with a Late Tribulation Crossing stage Great Protector was not a wise move, especially when the opponent had helpers and was in the opponent's home field (Spirit Realm Heavenly Dao blessing). He had to win quickly!

'Demon Star Shattering Heaven—Ninefold Resonance!'

Nightmare roared, and the power in his body erupted without reservation! The Dao Reversal Demonic Star Flame, the power of the star dao fruit, the spatial blessing of the guixu dao reversal key, and the Spirit Realm Heavenly Dao Origin he had previously plundered... All powers merged into one at this moment, gathering on his fists!

He took a step forward, and toward the Golden Light Great Protector outside the Domain, he threw nine punches in succession!

One punch faster than the last, one punch heavier than the last! Each punch condensed a tiny, pitch-black star phantom heading toward annihilation! The nine punch imprints, connected head to tail, turned into a roaring pitch-black angry dragon made of destructive stars, tore through the edge of the Domain, ignored spatial distance, and with the terrifying will to crush everything, slammed into the Golden Light Great Protector!

The Golden Light Great Protector's face finally changed! He felt the destructive power contained in those nine punch imprints that was enough to threaten his life! Especially the extreme restraint of the Reverse Dao Power against the Heavenly Dao Power, making the vast Heavenly Dao Origin in his body feel vaguely sluggish and uneasy!

'Spirit Realm Protection—Holy Light Wall!'

He roared, not hesitating to consume a large amount of Origin, and condensed a golden light wall several zhang thick in front of him, inscribed with countless ancient Heavenly Dao runes! The light wall was solid as substance, emitting an indestructible protective aura!

The next moment, the pitch-black star angry dragon slammed heavily into the golden Holy Light Wall!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud...!!!

Nine muffled impact sounds, like nine heavy hammers, knocked on the heart of every spectator!

The first punch, the Holy Light Wall shook violently, the golden light dimmed by thirty percent!

The second punch, fine cracks appeared on the wall surface!

The third punch, the fourth punch... cracks spread!

The seventh punch! With a loud boom, a large hole was blasted through the Holy Light Wall!

The eighth punch, the ninth punch! Following the hole, they drove straight in, slamming solidly onto the arms of the caught-off-guard Golden Light Great Protector who was crossed in front of his chest!

Crack! Crack!

The sound of teeth-aching bone fractures rang out!

'Ugh ah—!!!'

The Golden Light Great Protector let out a painful groan, his huge golden body shaken backward by this terrifying force, his arms appearing unnaturally twisted, and the brilliant golden light dimmed quite a bit, clearly having suffered no light injury!

And Nightmare, after throwing these Peak nine punches, his aura also showed a clear decline, and the light of the Dao Reversal Ultimate Kill Domain he was maintaining also dimmed a bit.

But his eyes were still cold and sharp. His figure flashed, avoiding the attacks launched by the ten core Cultivators who took the opportunity, and his gaze swept toward the last two precarious Demon Suppression Stele towers.

Break the Formation first! Then kill the enemy!

His figure disappeared again, teleporting toward the seventh Formation base!

The Golden Light Great Protector stabilized his body, looked at the direction where Nightmare disappeared, and then looked at his damaged arms and the almost collapsing Formation, the anger and killing intent in his eyes almost turning into substance!

'Everyone listen to my order! At all costs, stop him! Repair the Formation base! This seat wants to personally... tear him into pieces!!!'

The roar resounded through the outer perimeter of the Lingyuan Forbidden Land.

The final showdown had already reached a white-hot stage.