178: Chapter 178 To prevent the matter from being exposed, Xiao Nianyin went so far as to erase all her disciples' memories.

In the next moment, three zhang above the Law Execution Platform, space rippled slightly, and a figure dressed in an ice-blue gown with a cold, immortal-like aura emerged from thin air.

She stepped on the air barefooted; with every step, a phantom ice lotus bloomed beneath her feet, supporting her figure as if the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady had descended to the mortal realm.

However, the coldness in this "Mysterious Lady's" eyes was enough to freeze the Soul.

"Sect Master!"

All the Disciples and Elders below the platform, including argumentos a own and the others on the platform, bowed in unison, their voices carrying reverence and a hint of imperceptible trembling.

Xiao Nianyin ignored the bows.

She hovered in the air, her ice-blue eyes looking down, her gaze finally landing on Xu Ruyu.

"Xu Ruyu." Her voice was calm and without ripples, yet it clearly reached the ears of everyone present. "The sword technique you used just now—where did it come from?"

Xu Ruyu raised his head and met that cold gaze.

He saw the killing intent hidden deep within those eyes, and beneath that killing intent, a layer of even colder greed.

"Revered Master," Xu Ruyu cupped his hands, his tone calm. "This Disciple does not know the name of this sword technique. It was merely a sudden realization, performed at will."

"Performed at will?" A faint curve appeared at the corner of Xiao Nianyin's lips, one without any mirth, only a bone-chilling cold. "A sword technique that can break argumentos a own's full-strength strike when 'performed at will' is something this Seat has never heard of."

She stopped looking at Xu Ruyu and turned to the Grand Elder in front of the Law Execution Platform. "Grand Elder."

The Grand Elder's withered body shook slightly as he bowed. "This old man is here."

"Today's events involve our Sect's core Legacy and concern many secrets that should not be leaked to outsiders."

Xiao Nianyin's voice remained calm, yet it carried an unquestionable authority. "There are many Disciples present, and news travels fast."

"To prevent our Sect's secret arts from leaking and to avoid baseless speculation disturbing the Sect's order—this Seat orders you to activate the 'Spirit-Locking Great Array' and the 'Memory-Cleansing Divine Light' to cover the entire Law Execution Platform area."

As soon as these words were spoken, an uproar broke out below the platform!

"Spirit-Locking Great Array?! That's a simplified version of the Sect's Mountain Protection Array that locks down all spiritual energy and isolates the inside from the outside!"

"Memory-Cleansing Divine Light... Isn't that a secret technique used to clear Disciples' Heart Demons and wash their memories? The Sect Master is going to..."

"Is she going to clear our memories of today?!"

Panic began to spread among the Disciples.

Clearing memories, even if only partially, was a major taboo for Cultivators—memories are linked to the Divine Soul, and any slight error could damage one's Dao Foundation and affect future cultivation!

The Grand Elder raised his head, a flash of complexity in his cloudy old eyes.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, when he met Xiao Nianyin's cold and heartless eyes, all his words were swallowed back.

"Sect Master," the Grand Elder's voice was somewhat dry. "The scope of the Memory-Cleansing Divine Light is so large that it might cause irreversible damage to the Divine Souls of low-level Disciples. Should we..."

"Damage can be compensated for." Xiao Nianyin interrupted him, her voice resolute. "But if today's events leak out, it will shake the several-hundred-year Foundation of our Hehuan Sect."

"The Grand Elder should be clear on which is more important."

She paused and added, "All Elders and above are exempt from the Memory-Cleansing Divine Light."

"The rest of the Disciples present must undergo memory washing."

"Afterward, all Disciples involved in today's Law Execution Platform events will be punished with three years of seclusion in the 'Cave of Tranquility' to temper their Heart-Nature and consolidate their Dao Foundation."

Three years of seclusion!

The faces of the Disciples below the platform instantly turned pale.

Although three years is not too long for a Cultivator, it is a critical period for progress. Being sentenced to seclusion is no different from cutting off three golden years of cultivation!

Not to mention having their memories forcibly cleared!

"Sect Master! This is unfair!" a bold Inner Sect Disciple couldn't help but shout. "We were just watching the battle; what did we do wrong?!"

Xiao Nianyin's gaze swept indifferently over that Disciple.

No pressure, no killing intent, just a plain glance.

But that Disciple felt as if he had been struck heavily; his face turned pale, he stumbled back three steps, and spat out a mouthful of blood!

The power of the Saint Realm—a single glance can wound a person's Divine Soul!

"Does my decision require an explanation to you?"

Xiao Nianyin's voice remained calm, but it sent a chill through everyone's hearts.

She ignored the commotion below and turned to the Grand Elder. "Execute."

The Grand Elder closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

When he opened them again, they were filled with a calm, deathly silence.

He slowly raised his withered right hand, and a palm-sized, blood-red token emerged.

The surface of the token was covered with dense ancient runes, and it was currently emitting a faint blood-red light, pulsing slowly as if it were alive.

"The Immortal-Slaying Token is out; all laws are locked!"

The Grand Elder shouted low and slammed the blood-red token hard into the ground!

"Boom—!!!"

Thirty-six spots on the ground around the Law Execution Platform exploded simultaneously!

Thirty-six blood-red pillars of light, each about a zhang in diameter, shot up into the sky!

Between the pillars, countless blood-colored chains appeared out of thin air, intertwining and clashing with an ear-piercing metallic sound. In the blink of an eye, they formed a massive hemispherical cage, completely enveloping the entire Law Execution Platform area!

Spirit-Locking Great Array—Activated!

The moment the Formation was formed, Xu Ruyu's expression changed drastically!

He felt the spiritual energy in the surrounding air being frantically extracted and imprisoned by an invisible giant hand!

The Taixu True Qi, which had been as easy to control as his own limbs under the operation of the True Explanation of Taixu Source Energy, now slowed down more than tenfold, as if trapped in a thick mire!

Even more terrifyingly, the free-floating 'ground-state spiritons' in the air became extremely difficult to induce and transform under the influence of this Formation!

"So this is the Spirit-Locking Great Array..." Xu Ruyu thought grimly. "A sealing array specifically targeting the spiritual energy systems of traditional Cultivators."

"If not for my cultivation of the True Explanation of Taixu Source Energy, which can draw energy from a deeper level, I would probably be no different from a cripple right now."

However, it wasn't over yet.

After finishing this, the Grand Elder did not stop.

He formed hand seals and chanted. The blood-red token slowly floated up, hovering in the very center of the Spirit-Locking Great Array.

"With my essence blood, I summon the Memory-Cleansing Divine Light—Shine!"

The Grand Elder bit his tongue and spat a mouthful of essence blood onto the token!

The blood-red token suddenly burst with a blinding white light!

That white light was pure and holy, as if it could wash away all the filth in the world, yet it also carried a heart-palpitating coldness and ruthlessness.

The white light poured down like mercury, instantly filling the entire area covered by the Spirit-Locking Great Array!

"No! I don't want my memory cleared!"

"Sect Master, have mercy! This Disciple will never leak it!"

"Let me go! Let me out!"

The terrified screams and cries of the Disciples below the platform rose and fell.

Some tried to rush to the edge of the array, only to be ruthlessly bounced back by the blood-colored chains; some knelt and kowtowed, their foreheads bleeding; many more were pale-faced, their eyes full of despair.

Under the shroud of white light, everyone's movements slowed down.

Their eyes gradually became confused and hollow...

The screams and cries also gradually subsided, replaced by an eerie silence.