Chapter 1072: Washing Vegetables

On the transparent sea, inside the terrifying purplish-red growth, as a voice emanated and an aura spread, the entire transparent sea erupted into a storm, transforming into a tsunami.

The howling sound was earth-shattering, forming towering waves that swept across, seemingly intending to overturn heaven and earth. Meanwhile, the sky, composed of flesh and blood, also writhed. Countless fleshy tentacles on it swayed in unison, and the gap in the flesh where everyone had entered suddenly closed and healed. This turned the place into a trap.

Only the voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, echoed within this trap, lingering on as an aftersound. As it reached the ears of the various Rulers, their faces darkened one by one, and regret stirred within their hearts. They shouldn't have come here.

However, often, greed does not diminish with increased cultivation; everything depends on whether the perceived value is sufficient. For these powerful Rulers, they inherently possessed a fighting spirit and were not cowards; otherwise, they would not have been able to reach their current positions. Thus, finding themselves in such a predicament after believing they could take a gamble was only to be expected.

So, one by one, they instinctively retreated, deploying their most potent defenses. While searching for a way out, they also placed their hopes on Great Emperor Moyu. Among them, only the Fifth Ruler, in his incarnation as Lin Kun, had decided to come on his own; the others had ultimately chosen to embark on this journey after being persuaded by Great Emperor Moyu and assured by his oaths.

And nothing was yet decided, especially with the Empress and Moyu working together. It was not impossible for them to successfully obtain the legacies of authority and Great Emperor treasures they each sought.

As for Xu Qing and Er Niu, they also had their own objectives. Xu Qing's goal was relatively simple: he wished to break through the limitations of his cultivation. The power emanating from this transparent sea, though neither spiritual nor divine energy, contained vitality that gave him hope.

"This place is extremely suitable for cultivation advancement!"

As for Er Niu, his gaze was fixed on the growth. Seeing the figure within, he couldn't help but lick his lips. His initial goal in coming here was to control a Great Emperor's corpse. But clearly, that goal would be difficult to achieve. However, he had a second objective: to activate his previous life's bone cauldron and find the memories of his third life. He was missing the memories of his third, second, and first lives. Yet, he had a premonition that only by mastering the memories of his third life could he possibly pursue those of his second life and, ultimately, his first life, the original source.

Just as all parties, driven by their own objectives, were contemplating their retreat, the Empress and Great Emperor Moyu simultaneously charged directly towards the growth.

On the transparent sea, inside the giant growth, Great Emperor Mingyan, who was seated cross-legged, raised his right hand. The sky trembled, then crashed downwards with a roar. This sight shook their very souls. It was heaven intending to destroy the earth! It was an overwhelming force, crushing everything. Its terrifying momentum shattered all.

Simultaneously, the void in all eight directions rippled in unison, solidifying as it abruptly converged inward with immense power. The sea below did the same, rising to meet the sky and the converging void. The entire world seemed to rapidly contract, forming a seal.

In Xu Qing's perception, the heavens and earth blurred, and infinite pressure surged as all directions recoiled. Yet, after the initial shock to his mind, everything he saw remained as it was. The sky was still the fleshy sky. The ground was still the transparent sea. Around them, most things hadn't changed much. Only the Empress and Great Emperor Moyu were enveloped by a layer of purplish-red flesh, forming a sphere. It was composed of the sky, the sea, and the void, because in that instant, the focal point where the heavens, the earth, and the eight directions converged was precisely the Empress and Great Emperor Moyu!

Xu Qing found it difficult to clearly articulate this scene. He simply had a strong feeling that this world was like a fruit. And their location was the hollow core of this fruit. In that instant, Great Emperor Mingyan, with unimaginable power, had carved out a section from within this "fruit." He then molded the excavated part into a sphere! The Empress and Great Emperor Moyu were sealed inside.

Before Xu Qing could fully grasp what was happening, the heavens and earth rumbled, and the same scene repeated. This continued for a total of twenty-three times before finally ceasing! All eight directions were normal, and the heavens and earth were normal. Only, it seemed... a little thinner. All parties were shocked.

Great Emperor Mingyan's voice, however, still echoed. "This scheme, I have laid out for a thousand years, waiting only for Moyu to arrive at the crucial moment so I could seize his body and become my new vessel." Inside the growth, Great Emperor Mingyan spoke indifferently. "And you all are the nourishment for my rebirth." He continued, "As for the appearance of a Divine Platform, it was unexpected, but... also a pleasant surprise."

As Mingyan spoke, his gaze fell upon the growth sealing the Empress and Great Emperor Moyu. After a brief glance, he looked at the cultivators whose expressions had drastically changed. "My world has thirty-three layers. I have stripped away twenty-three of them to form this seal. Now, there are ten more layers, which I shall leave for you."

Having finished speaking, Mingyan slightly lowered his raised right hand. The next instant, no matter how they struggled, resisted, or dodged, it was all futile. In a flash, the heavens and earth rumbled. One layer of heaven became flesh and blood, enveloping the woman in the palace dress. Another layer of heaven transformed into a cage, sealing the Fifth Ruler. The scholar, the young man, and the old man who had an old grudge with Xu Qing—none could escape their fate. They were all enveloped by the layers of heaven and earth stripped away by Mingyan, each becoming a separate fleshy growth floating in mid-air. Within another growth, Xu Qing and Er Niu were sealed together.

Having done all this, Mingyan closed his eyes, his chest rising and falling with steady breaths. With one inhalation, all the fleshy spheres floating in mid-air trembled in unison and began to contract. With one exhalation, all the growths trembled again, expanding. And between these inhalations and exhalations, the occupants within the growths experienced the dissipation of their life force and cultivation. A strong sense of crisis descended at this moment.

Just at this critical juncture, the growth sealing the Empress and Great Emperor Moyu, formed by the twenty-three layers of heaven and earth, suddenly trembled. A muffled roar erupted from within, and the growth itself began to reverse its state. When Mingyan inhaled, the growth, influenced from within, resisted contraction and expanded with full force instead. When he exhaled, it acted in reverse, effectively borrowing Mingyan's own power to create a contradictory impact force. This caused the massive growth sealing the Empress and Moyu to continuously rumble, and cracks began to appear.

Mingyan's brows furrowed slightly. The next instant, more cracks appeared in the growth sealing the Empress and Moyu. Streaks of divine light burst forth from within, accompanied by the power of Moyu's authority, aiding the eruption. Thus, in just three breaths' time, the sealed growth formed by the twenty-three layers of the world burst open with an earth-shattering roar.

The Empress's figure shot out from within, heading directly towards the growth where Mingyan resided. Wherever she passed, the void shattered, and heaven and earth collapsed. Great Emperor Moyu, beside her, radiated immense killing intent as he charged alongside her. They were unstoppable. In the blink of an eye, the two of them broke directly into the growth where Mingyan was, stepping inside to battle him.

The entire growth immediately swelled, and its interior became a chaotic mess of flesh and blood. Outsiders couldn't see the specifics clearly. Moreover, no one had the inclination to pay attention there now. All the Rulers were seizing this opportunity to unleash all their trump cards, intent on breaking free from the growths sealing them. Their methods varied: some used secret techniques, others deployed hidden Great Emperor treasures. They spared no expense.

Xu Qing and Er Niu, too, were attacking with all their might. While resisting the oppressive force with the Empress's token, Xu Qing slashed with his carving knife. But this growth was astonishingly strange, as if intertwined with the fabric of fate. After slicing through one layer, another appeared, endless and boundless. Er Niu even opened his mouth to try and swallow it in reverse, but to no avail.

All other parties were in the same predicament; no matter what methods they used, they found it impossible to break through even slightly. Even if they did break through, they would find that a seal still existed outside. This scene gave everyone an illusion.

"Is this seal truly formed by only one layer of heaven?" Er Niu gasped. "It's one thing for us not to be able to break it, but I've seen those Rulers use their trump cards, some even deploying Great Emperor treasures, and none of them have succeeded in breaking through."

Xu Qing's eyes flashed. "But why would Mingyan say all that... Perhaps these seals aren't formed by just one layer of heaven!"

Er Niu hesitated at his words. "If that's the case, I don't understand why Mingyan would do this. What's the point of deceiving us? Or rather, imposing multiple seals on us clearly isn't as effective as concentrating them on the Empress and Moyu. After all, we're not the greatest threat to him."

Similar doubts were not only pondered by Xu Qing and Er Niu but were also emerging in the minds of the other Rulers. As Er Niu was speaking, a sudden drastic change occurred! Almost all of the growths violently writhed in that instant, rapidly contracting, then abruptly expanding. This motion generated immense pressure that bore down on every Ruler. The intensity of this pressure surpassed the limits Rulers could endure. Thus, the next instant, agonizing wails emanated shrilly from the mouths of the Rulers.

Their bodies were collapsing, then being refined, their life force forcibly drained away. Their cultivation, too, was cruelly stripped away by this absorbing pressure. Even their souls and authority were being taken. Not even their magic treasures could escape. Under this pressure, everything continuously collapsed and was absorbed, as if being transformed into spiritual stones! Absolute power rendered them unable to resist; they could only wail in agony amidst despair and helplessness.

The reason for saying "almost all" was that, among these growths, the one containing Xu Qing and Er Niu was different from the others! Their growth did not contract; it only expanded, increasing its internal space. This change caused Er Niu's breathing to quicken, and Xu Qing also felt an infinite sense of crisis.

Until the next instant, boundless vitality surged forth from all directions, directly pouring into the growth where Xu Qing and Er Niu were! This vitality was precisely what had been stripped from the other Rulers. Under the manipulation of some mysterious hand, all of it was sent to the growth containing Xu Qing and Er Niu. And the previous expansion was clearly meant to accommodate it.

In the blink of an eye, all the life essence drained from the Rulers gathered into a liquid, rising past Xu Qing's ankles and nourishing his entire body through his flesh. The primary focus of this nourishment was his pure physical body. This scene made Er Niu gasp. Meanwhile, Xu Qing's mind buzzed intensely; he remembered something: something he had encountered in the world of the Creation Remnant Heavenly Clan.

"Someone is forcefully advancing the growth of my physical body!"

Xu Qing's heart sank. Recalling his past, he suddenly felt that the cleansing by the Creation Remnant Heavenly Clan, while seemingly a fortune, might have had a more fundamental reason: it was like washing vegetables, cleaning them thoroughly before eating.