Chapter 1774: Miaozhan Tian Takes Action

The spider-scorpion had just entered the lighthouse barrier and was enjoying its rampage when the large eye on the lakeside lighthouse blinked rapidly twice, and a concentrated red beam of light shot straight onto it.

On the grand stage by the lake, the spider-scorpion instantly became the focus of everyone's attention.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, its long tail hook and flattened body dissolved in the red light, like a shattered sugar shell. In their place, a furry, plump body appeared, still with eight legs and a dark, shadowy appearance.

"Cave Spider Queen!" Bai Ziqi recognized its true form and could not help but grit his teeth as he uttered the name.

Although the Spider Queen had previously entered the jurisdiction of the Eye of Truth, its disguise from the Hao Yuan Golden Mirror had prevented anyone from identifying it.

However, once the Miaozhantian focused its special attention on it, and the Eye of Truth stared intently, the Spider Queen's true form was revealed.

"It's the spider demon beside He Xiao!" Granny Zhu's characteristics were very distinct; no one who had seen her would easily forget her. Although Bai Ziqi had not seen her in person before, the intelligence he received mentioned a giant spider demon appearing in the Yangshan Archipelago, which had assassinated Frost Leaf's subordinates, and even luminous spores had become a specialty of Yangshan.

As soon as he saw the Spider Queen, he naturally first thought of He Xiao. Were all these deployments by the Illusion Sect arranged by He Xiao?

This desperate fighting style didn't seem right.

But he had no time to ponder, because the Miaozhantian was about to unleash its power. All forces from both sides were to be committed to Companion Hill, which was about to become the main battlefield for the war between immortals and demons!

"Order the entire army to retreat into the barrier and move closer to the lighthouse!"

After the Miaozhantian made its move, regardless of the consequences, the battle situation was bound to change.

In short, it was too fast, too fast. Bai Ziqi took a deep breath. According to his original plan, the Illusion Sect's immortals should have been effectively worn down, a slow and meticulous process, like boiling a frog slowly. It should have taken at least two days of intense fighting to reach the current situation.

The war's progression was too rapid, especially its uncontrollable speed, which was by no means a good thing. Bai Ziqi excelled at calmly planning strategies, but disliked improvising, and hated being pushed around. "I've always disliked being so passive!" Where had he heard that phrase before?

Bai Ziqi's gaze narrowed slightly, and he suddenly remembered that Qingyang had expressed similar sentiments before he left the capital of Yao Nation.

She had been tasked with overseeing Yao Nation and originally had no intention of directly killing the Yao King. However, ever since the Yao King's birthday banquet, unexpected events multiplied, and the progression of events accelerated, exceeding her control.

Although the Yao Palace incident she spearheaded was ultimately successful, Qingyang reflected that there was still a hidden mastermind behind the entire process, constantly urging, or rather, pushing all the characters within the events onto the stage, regardless of their willingness.

She realized that this person was very likely He Xiao.

Qingyang had also specifically warned Bai Ziqi that He Xiao was adept at controlling processes and disrupting others' rhythm.

Bai Ziqi also believed that the Inverted Sea operation he was directing was progressing too quickly, reaching its current state in no time.

Where did the acceleration begin?

One instance was when the Illusion Sect suddenly changed its strategy, forcing the Heavenly Palace to abandon its plan of erecting lighthouses everywhere and instead focus on defending only three.

Another was the battle of the mining cave and Companion Hill, where the Heavenly Palace lost three master experts, leading to a reversal of the situation and the lighthouse defense becoming passive.

Now, the Miaozhantian's intervention was about to become the third acceleration. If this was also pushed by He Xiao, what was his objective? Before this thought could fully form, an anomaly arose in the north.

The illusory projection of the Eye of Truth on the lighthouse flashed one last time, then vanished.

All bird demons of the Heavenly Palace had been ordered to return to the barrier, so Bai Ziqi lost an aerial perspective and could not overlook the Companion Hill battlefield from above.

But he knew very well what was happening:

The Miaozhantian had finally made its appearance, and its first move was a killing blow.

The Companion Hill Lighthouse was gone. In its place, a massive rift silently tore open in the deep night sky, like an entire tarpaulin violently ripped apart.

Along with the Companion Hill Lighthouse, many other things had vanished. Bai Ziqi let out a heavy sigh.

Immediately after, everything on the ground was sucked in: trees, flowers, buildings, Yakshas, the water of the Inverted Lake, and even the "surface" itself!

Bai Shi saw several Illusion Sect cultivators running from outside the barrier; in a second, they were swept away without any power to resist.

These were elites within the Illusion Sect, each with at least a century of cultivation, yet faced with this irresistible external force, they could not hold on longer than a blade of grass.

The Heavenly Palace forces, remaining within the barrier, watched as rocks larger than houses were pried from the ground and scraped towards Companion Hill. Mud, sand, and solid rock flew through the air, obscuring the sky and moon; outside the barrier, it was like the apocalypse had arrived.

The black hole that suddenly appeared at Companion Hill had such strong suction that it seemed capable of swallowing the entire Inverted Sea.

Granny Zhu was originally not far from the edge of the lighthouse barrier. Seeing this, she spread her eight long legs and scurried inwards, fearing that the Miaozhantian would shrink the barrier again.

She had never witnessed such power, but instinctively feared it.

***

Companion Hill Lighthouse Barrier

Elders Xu and Liu, along with others, arrived on the wind and attacked together, severely battering the three Heavenly Demons guarding the lighthouse.

Last time, it was five against three, and the Goddess Fenghuo was killed.

This time, it was again five against three, and Elder Xu himself had arrived. His strength was significantly greater than that of the late Elder Du, and this time he entered the battle full of fury. He immediately launched two lightning flashes, one at a Heavenly Demon and one at the lighthouse, striking the Eye of Truth on the lighthouse multiple times, making it flicker repeatedly.

The Companion Hill Lighthouse had been directly attacked several times; if not for the profound crystals Wu Shidao had stolen from the Illusion Sect's Immortal Light Cave and forcibly infused into the defensive formation, it would have been shattered long ago.

How could the power of Immortals be easily withstood? If the Heavenly Palace did not send more support, this lighthouse, built with countless profound crystals, would soon collapse.

Another Heavenly Demon had an arm severed by Elder Xu. No blood gushed from the wound as it turned and darted towards the tower. Elder Liu threw his demon-subduing staff, intending to shatter its skull, but at that moment, the Eye of Truth at the top of the tower suddenly blinked.

The immortals were deeply wary of it, knowing that every blink heralded trouble, and thus dared not approach.

As expected, after that blink, a person appeared on the top of the tower.

He was tall and slender, with a long beard and black hair, wearing a loose robe with wide sleeves, and an expressionless face.

These features were not unlike an immortal's, but the man's face was somewhat peculiar: half of it was perfectly normal, while the other half was covered in white spots, looking like he had vitiligo.

The light from the Eye of Truth illuminated his face perfectly, revealing the white patches on his skin with stark clarity. Elder Liu, looking up, witnessed this scene and his pupils suddenly constricted.

"Zang..."

A name surfaced from the depths of his memory, and he gasped, "True Monarch Zangxi!" No, it couldn't be!

The era was too ancient; had it not been for that highly distinctive face, he would have almost forgotten this person.

An ancient True Immortal, True Monarch Zangxi!