Chapter 163 Turning Defeat into Victory
The two brothers looked exactly alike, as if cast from the same mold, making it impossible to tell who was elder or younger. Each donned identical Jiaolong armor, exuding a formidable and aggressive aura. One of them laughed raucously and said, “Qin Chuchu, my little beauty, you truly have an eye for quality. This formation is indeed the renowned Supreme Killing Formation of the Xuanwu Continent, having slain countless Infant Transformation cultivators, growing ever more powerful! By a fortunate coincidence, it has fallen into our hands. Looks like you’re out of luck—do you wish to become our dual cultivation partner?”
Qin Chuchu’s eyes gleamed enticingly, stirring desire even in the Infant Transformation cultivators present, who swallowed hard before she said, “If I’m not mistaken, you two are the Twin Land Dragons—Qiu Long and Qiu Hu. Though this formation is formidable, do you really think it can trap so many of us?”
Qiu Hu smiled slightly and spoke loudly, “Fellow cultivators of Zhao Kingdom, listen well. We brothers have no desire to be your enemies. Today, we come to settle old scores with the Heavenly Star Sect. Their Supreme Elder, Xie Jiu, once slew our dual cultivation partner, Hong Yan. That debt ends here. As long as you swear not to meddle in our affairs, I will let you go. Otherwise, we’ll slaughter your disciples clean.”
The Infant Transformation cultivators from the other four sects and the scattered cultivator alliance paled. They had brought their sect’s elites and could not afford to fall here. Yet, as fellow people of Zhao Kingdom, it was hard to justify disunity. They found themselves torn.
Po Zhan suppressed the smile rising within him. Qin Chuchu surely did not expect that the Beast Taming Sect had gone to great lengths to capture her alive, even presenting such a powerful formation to the Twin Land Dragons. Once she was captured, Po Zhan intended to be the first to savor the prize. Being a lecher by nature, facing such a beauty as Qin Chuchu made him utterly unable to resist.
His expression turned grave as he cleared his throat and said, “Great Priest Qin, you’ve heard their words. Although our Beast Taming Sect is willing to stand united with you, our numbers are few and we cannot bear heavy losses. We can only withdraw from your quarrel. By the heart demon’s oath, the Beast Taming Sect will not involve itself in your feud with the Heavenly Star Sect.”
No sooner had he spoken than outside, Qiu Long, holding a formation talisman, cast several hand seals. The scene of the formation shifted mysteriously, and in an instant, all of the Beast Taming Sect’s people were teleported away.
Zuo Long of the scattered cultivator alliance was the first to speak. “Great Priest Qin, our alliance is weak and cannot endure such losses. I also withdraw from your feud.” After swearing the heart demon’s oath, he too was teleported away. The other three sects followed suit, reluctantly swearing the oath and vanishing. The losses were simply too great this time; none of the major sects could bear it. Moreover, none felt it worthwhile to suffer for the Heavenly Star Sect.
Outside, the Beast Taming Sect, Wind and Moon Gate, Xiuyuan Temple, Tianru Sect, and the scattered cultivator alliance stood side by side, watching to see how Qin Chuchu would respond. All agreed that with the Twin Land Dragons wielding the Nine Nether Soul Refining Supreme Killing Formation, Qin Chuchu’s prospects looked grim.
Po Zhan’s heart blossomed with joy. Soon he would embrace the beauty and enjoy the long-awaited pleasure, and just the thought made him flush with heat.
Qin Chuchu smiled faintly and asked, “Are you afraid?”
Dai Yue and the others, though fearful inside, dared not lose face now. They shouted loudly, “We are not afraid! We will eradicate these reckless fools!”
Ge Qian licked his lips and said, “Once I break this formation, the Great Priest can take two Infant Transformation cultivators with her, and I’ll send the rest on their way.”
A smile appeared on Qin Chuchu’s face. If she broke the formation by brute force, her vitality would be injured. Having Ge Qian do it preserved her strength. She nodded and said, “Give me a fierce break-out!”
Suddenly, Ge Qian let out a long roar, performing hand seals as he cast “Scattered Sand” and “Swap Pillars.”
“Scattered Sand” dispersed the power of the once-impenetrable formation. “Swap Pillars” scrambled and exchanged the hidden formation flags and devices.
The greater the power of a formation, the stricter the requirements during its setup. Even the slightest deviation would cause the entire effort to fail and might even backfire.
The Nine Nether Soul Refining Supreme Killing Formation trapped the souls of those it killed, preventing reincarnation and executing absolute annihilation with even greater power. Now, with the formation flags in disorder, the formation’s yin energy surged wildly, triggering a massive explosion that sent shockwaves sweeping outward.
Qin Chuchu had anticipated this. She formed hand seals and cast a spell. Fierce gales whirled around them, swallowing everyone into the void, leaving no trace behind.
The Twin Land Dragons were stunned; they never expected their supreme killing formation to be broken in such a strange manner, causing a backlash.
The eight mid-stage Core Formation cultivators responsible for activating the formation coughed up blood, were thrown into the sky, and crashed heavily to the ground, barely alive and unable to move.
Qiu Hu and Qiu Long’s expressions changed. Shaking their hands, they formed a shield of energy to block the shockwave.
The Infant Transformation cultivators from the four sects and the scattered alliance also unleashed their Dao arts to repel the blast.
Everyone was stunned by the Heavenly Star Sect’s instant disruption of the formation. Though Qin Chuchu seemed to bring few people, her group was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers—especially that young man who always smiled mysteriously, exuding an eerie aura.
At that moment, a gust of wind erupted in the air, and Qin Chuchu appeared, leading her disciples.
Qiu Hu howled furiously, “You, Qin Chuchu, destroyed my Nine Nether Soul Refining Supreme Killing Formation and gravely injured my eight disciples. You dare return? Perfect! We brothers will capture you and hand you over to our subordinates for... punishment.”
Qiu Long waved his hand, and fifteen mid-stage Core Formation cultivators and over a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators sprang up from the ground, all with fierce expressions, bristling with killing intent, snarling wildly, revealing their ugly ferocity.
Qiu Long glanced at his subordinates and said, “I advise you to surrender quietly. Otherwise, my disciples have been holding back and are eager to serve you well. As for you, breaker of formations, perhaps if you kneel and beg for mercy, I might spare your life.”
He pointed at Ge Qian.
Ge Qian smiled faintly. “You two land worms, facing death and still babbling nonsense! Today, you all die!”
Great Priest Qin Chuchu’s eyes flashed with killing intent. Her aura surged mightily as the winds whipped her skirt and flowing hair with a fierce roar.
Her slender, fair hands, as smooth and flawless as creamy jade, lifted a crystal orb about the size of a bowl, dazzling and pure.
She chanted a spell: “May all who hope for beauty and love the future pursue their most cherished wishes. I borrow the faith of all unfulfilled desires wandering the world, using my sincere heart as a medium to sever shameless obstacles and expand the brilliant light!”
As Qin Chuchu’s incantation echoed, heaven and earth trembled. Countless light particles, incomprehensible to ordinary people, converged here, forming an endless white band of light. It twined and wrapped around the Twin Land Dragons, slashing down mercilessly.
The dragons instinctively tightened, their magic flow slowing. A force capable of destroying them a hundred times over pressed down. The white light, like blades and swords, was unstoppable. If struck, they would be beheaded and left without burial.
The two, hardened in countless battles and steeped in villainy, would not surrender. With a ghostly howl, their demonic aura surged skyward. Horns sprouted from their heads, their faces covered with coin-sized scales, their arms swelling into sharp, unmatched dragon claws. Their transformation completed in an instant, their aura growing even stronger.