Chapter 1818: Earth Splitting

Who released it? Who unleashed a massive flood at the slightest provocation?

The cultivators each unleashed their unique abilities and scattered to avoid the deluge, but the flood still swept over most of them.

A strange thing happened: despite the immense force of the flood, not a single person was knocked down! In fact, the surging water seemed like a mere illusion to the Phantasm Sect cultivators; they couldn't even feel a hint of spray.

Then, the massive waves rolled forward, passed the Phantasm Sect cultivators, and charged directly towards the Heavenly Palace army on the opposite side! No one believed they would be immune to the flood's damage like the Phantasm Sect.

The silver bowl Xiao Wencheng gave to He Lingchuan was actually a replica of an ancient treasure: the Yin-Yang Separation Bowl. He Lingchuan first went to the coast to fill the silver bowl. When he threw it into the bay, a large, inwardly-collapsing whirlpool appeared on the sea surface. Despite its small size, the bowl seemed impossible to fill. Simply collecting the water took a full fifteen minutes.

After being refined, the water poured from the silver bowl would automatically turn illusory upon contact with allies to prevent friendly fire, while showing no mercy to enemies. If Nian Zanli had obtained the Yin-Yang Separation Bowl instead of a high-quality replica of the Greenery Vase back then, the flood he unleashed would not have drowned his own army. The course of the battle would have been rewritten, and the State of Yuan might not even have survived until He Chunhua's ascension.

Yes, after acquiring the bowl, He Lingchuan had intended to emulate Nian Zanli and flood the enemy army. He had always been very humble. Moreover, the terrain here was highly suitable: a perfectly concave pit, as if molded by pressing a teacup into the ground. He Lingchuan had also previously directed the Phantasm Sect forces to fight and retreat, effectively yielding the lowest point to their opponents.

Thus, the flood released by the Yin-Yang Separation Bowl rushed down the slope directly towards the Heavenly Palace army, gaining momentum like ten thousand galloping horses along the way. The silvery-white waves clearly boded ill. The water poured from this bowl could momentarily cool even scalding, scorching meteorites; imagine what it would do to people?

The Heavenly Palace cultivators at the forefront swiftly unleashed their divine abilities to evade, but a few were too slow and were hit squarely by the massive waves. From his vantage point, He Lingchuan saw these individuals shatter on impact. The moment the silvery waves struck them, they were instantly flash-frozen, turning into ice figures. All their cultivation, primordial energy, and defensive artifacts became utterly useless! Then, the great waves smashed them apart, shattering into fragments like tiles, porcelain, or glazed pottery struck by a club.

The soldiers behind them were horrified by the sight. Although they were elites from the Glimmering Gold Plains, their cultivation was truly insufficient to withstand such a divine ability. Since entering the Inverted Sea, their primordial energy had significantly diminished due to prolonged battles and a sharp reduction in troop numbers, leaving them with very limited resistance against the grand divine abilities specifically enhanced by the Thousand Illusions.

Just as the massive flood was about to overwhelm the Heavenly Palace army, a sudden warning surged in He Lingchuan's heart! Something extremely terrifying and ominous was heading directly for him. He had recently experienced this hair-raising sensation in the secret chamber, but this time it was even more intense!

When facing danger, people instinctively retreat, but He Lingchuan, contrary to convention, surged forward. Charging was faster than retreating. The Haoyuan Golden Mirror was open just half a step ahead, and he entered it with a single stride. After being tempered by the Grand Square Pot, the mirror was now exceptionally docile. He used it with increasing naturalness, as if it were an extension of his own divine ability.

At the same time, he let out a thunderous roar, issuing a concise and clear command to the Phantasm Sect team and all his companions: "Disperse, retreat quickly!"

He Lingchuan moved so fast that he left an afterimage. Nearby, Dong Rui and Ghost Ape, hearing his command, summoned their mirrors without hesitation and leaped inside. There were also quick-witted individuals within the Phantasm Sect team, especially Lei Xie, who was fighting alongside Wanqil Liang. Seeing He Lingchuan suddenly stop his actions and open the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, he too quickly turned and darted into a mirror. The Haoyuan Golden Mirror, now re-embedded in the Inverted Sea's law network, could simultaneously manifest numerous replicas for allied personnel to use.

However, other cultivators were not accustomed to traveling through mirrors. Hearing He Lingchuan's warning, their first instinct was to flee by running or flying. Of course, they were considered quick to react; most cultivators froze in place upon hearing He Lingchuan's shout, their minds bubbling with chaotic thoughts: What happened? Someone's running, so I should run too. But how far should I run?

But before these thoughts could fully form—about two breaths after He Lingchuan's shout—the hillside suddenly exploded! It turned out to be something crashing down from the sky, as fast as light, far exceeding the speed of most people's thoughts. The explosion was particularly peculiar; it didn't expand outwards, but was merely a ball of dazzling, incandescent light accompanied by a muffled "boom."

Influenced by the previous divine fire meteor, there was already a shallow fissure here; but after the white light exploded, the fissure was widened into a chasm over ten meters wide! It was bottomless. The surging flood could not be stopped and could not bypass the chasm, so it simply poured down into it. Over thirty vanguards of the Heavenly Palace army also fell into the chasm, vanishing instantly. However, the main force was safe, as the flood could not reach their feet. The original slope, along with over two hundred Phantasm Sect cultivators who were on it, disappeared, but the ball of white light remained suspended in place.

Only then did both warring sides clearly see that within the white light was a single individual, with a towering physique and a stern, cold expression. True Monarch Zangxi! Bai Ziqi watched from the opposite side, gaining a deeper understanding of the character "Xi" in Zangxi's title. The Heavenly Palace army bowed in unison, loudly proclaiming the might of Myriad Azure Heaven.

The Phantasm Sect forces in the rear, having witnessed two hundred of their comrades instantly vanish without even a chance to scream, and then hearing the enemy utter the name Myriad Azure Heaven, were utterly terrified. They began to retreat and flee before Zangxi even turned around. This had nothing to do with bravery or cowardice; no one would foolishly attempt to stop a chariot with a mantis's arm against an enemy of such magnitude.

True Monarch Zangxi paid them no heed. With a raised hand, two beams of golden light struck through the silver pot suspended in the air. The object did not fall but vanished mid-air. Originally, it was merely the materialized form of the Thousand Illusions Immortal Power, essentially nothing. Deprived of its source, the ground flood ceased its roaring advance. With the bottomless chasm ahead, the surging flood soon drained away, transforming the chasm into a river.

Meanwhile, True Monarch Zangxi extended a finger, and the two golden beams performed a magnificent spinning slash, cutting through the young Dao-Seeking Tree. This sapling, which had not yet had a chance to fully grow, was severed into three pieces at its waist. Without the support of its trunk, the tree roots that had penetrated deep into the meteorite instantly lost their vitality, shrinking and drying up from the heat. They fell to the ground, quickly turning into a small lump of charcoal. With the vampires clinging to it cleared away, the Divine Fire Meteor once again regained its light, heat, and rotation speed, resuming its cheerful movement.