Chapter 869: Return with Full Force

Hundreds of cultivators were gathered in this scattered Ghost Carriage territory. Each possessed their own unique methods, some relying on cultivation techniques, others on external artifacts. They were all exceptional among their peers, which allowed them to distinguish themselves, remain hidden here until now, and await an opportunity to acquire a Ghost Carriage cub.

If Xu Qing had not appeared, the casualties among them would have been minimal, and someone would undoubtedly have succeeded in acquiring a cub. Now, with Xu Qing's arrival, all the Ghost Carriages they coveted had flown away. A mere wave of his hand was akin to abruptly drawing back curtains in a dark room, instantly revealing everyone's concealed positions. Even that description wasn't entirely accurate. More precisely, with a wave of Xu Qing's hand, it wasn't just the curtains that were drawn; the entire structure of the "house" instantly disintegrated, as if its components grew legs and scattered.

The sheer horror brought forth by this scene caused every Flame Moon cultivator present to feel an immense shock, as if thunder raged within their hearts. The sudden transparency, the instantaneous shift from obscurity to illumination, left them all gasping for breath.

Jidongzi's shock was the most profound. Having previously sensed that the source of the Mountain Sea transformation was Jiuli, he had already harbored suspicions regarding Xu Qing. He had considered that Xu Qing might still be alive and that they might meet again in the future, but he had never in his wildest dreams anticipated that their next encounter would unfold in such an unbelievable way.

As he watched hundreds of Ghost Carriages in the distance prostrating as if before a monarch, and the three terrifying, ancient Great Ghost Carriages in the sky, Jidongzi's body trembled, a rare occurrence for him. A powerful sense of crisis erupted within his mind. Fan Shishuang, a thousand zhang away, who had been confronting Jidongzi, was equally affected; witnessing this sight, his mind was rocked by monumental waves.

For a moment, everyone was stunned by this spectacle, daring not to make a single move.

Only Xu Qing stood outside the scattered dense forest. His gaze was not immediately directed at Jidongzi in the distance; instead, he looked up at the Divine Essence Ghost Carriages in the sky. Unlike all the fierce beasts he had encountered along his journey, they neither wailed nor prostrated themselves. Instead, they fixed their gaze upon him from the sky. Their gaze subtly held a hint of doubt and scrutiny.

“Fierce beasts in the Mountain and Sea Great Domain, upon reaching the Divine Essence stage, might awaken certain memories hidden within their bloodline,” Xu Qing mused. This was the only explanation that could account for the gazes of the three Divine Essence Ghost Carriages. This gaze also made Xu Qing realize the extent of his Jiuli aura's influence.

“Unless I can manifest the ancestral witch form of a True King, I cannot control Divine Essence fierce beasts,” Xu Qing thought. His gaze then retracted, sweeping past the cultivators now visible in the dense forest, finally landing on Jidongzi.

They were far apart, a distance that would render them invisible to ordinary mortals. However, as cultivators of such high combat prowess and cultivation, as long as the distance wasn't excessively far, they could perceive and observe each other, augmented by their innate divine sense.

Under this mutual gaze, as the sense of crisis surged within Jidongzi, Xu Qing raised his foot and took a step forward. As his foot landed, a sound like celestial thunder emanated from his body. Vast quantities of crimson soul threads erupted from within him, swirling to form a blood-colored storm. They swiftly merged, manifesting his divine form directly at its fourth layer: the Scarlet Mother form, also known as the Purple Lord!

A hundred zhang tall, his entire body was covered in purple flesh and feathers, with two massive wings spreading from his back. Whispers resonated from within him, echoing in all directions. Behind him, a slowly ascending purple moon glowed, upon which countless figures were prostrating in worship. Before him stood two colossal sundials, their pointers ceaselessly turning, generating the power of time that warped the void and blurred all perception. Beneath him was a colossal lotus platform, each petal representing one of Xu Qing's abilities. These petals manifested as purple tentacles that extended in all directions, resembling a startling purple *Biyan* flower.

The divine presence descended upon the world, causing the souls of many cultivators to tremble. Even the Ghost Carriage beasts stirred restlessly, and the three colossal ones high in the sky radiated immense pressure from their entire beings.

Xu Qing, however, paid no mind. In this formidable divine state, he took a second step forward. The next moment, nine flesh-and-blood lanterns burst forth from his body, encircling him. Nine Jiuli heads formed upon them, emanating a shocking aura and roaring as they swiftly converged upon Xu Qing. Instantly, they merged with Xu Qing's divine form, transforming into the Witch Armor, which exuded an aura of ancient vicissitude.

The nine Jiuli heads manifested simultaneously, providing an all-encompassing, earth-shattering enhancement to Xu Qing's combat power. The instant the mask, formed from Ya Zi, settled upon Xu Qing's face, the heavens and earth changed hue, and winds surged. What manifested in this world was an entity unprecedented in history. Appearing as both a god and a witch simultaneously within a single individual, an indescribably potent aura erupted from Xu Qing, shaking the very heavens.

The ground-bound Ghost Carriages prostrated and trembled, while the sky-borne Ghost Carriages silently lowered their heads. The surrounding rainforest vegetation collectively bent, and crimson lightning in the sky erupted. The cultivators from Yanzhou could no longer bear the pressure, spewing blood and forced to retreat, their hearts now consumed by terror and dread. Even Fan Shishuang and Jidongzi felt their minds explode with a thunderous impact. They could clearly perceive Xu Qing's overwhelming power at this moment without him needing to make a single move.

In the distance, Tian Mozi's breathing quickened. Like the others, it was his first time witnessing Xu Qing in this form, and a feeling of worship involuntarily arose within him due to his bloodline connection.

As everyone stood awestruck by Xu Qing, he, in his divine-witch form, took a third step, instantly traversing the distance to appear a thousand zhang from Jidongzi. The moment he appeared, the earth rumbled, and the sky threatened to crack. The ferocious aura and the unparalleled killing intent emanating from him caused purple snowflakes to fall upon this world.

Fan Shishuang abruptly retreated. Based on Xu Qing's gaze and what he had previously heard about Xu Qing being slain by Jidongzi, he immediately deduced that Xu Qing was here specifically for Jidongzi, and his presence was unrelated to himself. As Fan Shishuang retreated, a roar also emanated from Jidongzi; he, too, had moved. His hands swiftly formed incantations as he retreated with large strides, and the formidable combat power of Great Perfection Returning to Void surged from his being.

As a grand heaven's chosen of the second sequence of the Flame Moon Xuan Heaven Clan, even with the immense pressure Xu Qing exerted, Jidongzi would not yield without a fight. Furthermore, he knew full well that since Xu Qing had found this place, this battle was inevitably a fight to the death. Thus, in an instant, the sky, already showing cracks in its very fabric, violently shattered as a colossal finger abruptly descended from within, swiftly approaching Xu Qing.

This finger exuded an imposing aura, seemingly possessing the power to obliterate heaven and earth. It contained Jidongzi's full combat prowess, countless rules and laws, and his unique Dao mark. It warped the void, hurtling directly towards Xu Qing with an overwhelming, mountain-toppling momentum.

Xu Qing's expression remained composed. Facing the incoming finger, he raised his right hand, lightly pressed, and with a thunderous impact, halted the colossal finger directly before him. Then, with an upward flick, a cracking sound, louder than thunder, reverberated through the air. This terrifying finger twisted and was snapped clean in half by Xu Qing!

The next moment, the second, third, fourth, and fifth fingers appeared, filling the sky and approaching in succession. Jidongzi had previously used this very technique against Xu Qing. Back then, Xu Qing had to pay a tremendous price, employing all his divine abilities to barely counter each finger, yet he still suffered significant injuries and was forced to unleash his "Fishing the Moon from the Well" technique.

But now, things were different. The same divine ability, yet a different response. Xu Qing took his fourth step. As cracking sounds continued to echo, the four approaching fingers failed to impede Xu Qing's advance in the slightest. All of them were broken by a mere raise of his hand.

Facing this sight, Jidongzi's expression grew solemn. As he retreated, he once again formed incantations. Immediately after the five twisted fingers, the sky darkened, and a colossal palm, blotting out the sun, slammed down towards Xu Qing.

Xu Qing looked up at the vast palm, and a gray mist emerged in his eyes. This mist rapidly thickened, rising from him in an instant and forming a powerful surge that shot directly towards the palm. With a resounding boom, the two forces collided. The palm could not descend and was repelled by the impact. The next moment, the mist rapidly condensed, transforming into a gray nail that pierced directly through the palm, dragging it down towards the earth. The ground trembled violently as the colossal palm was impaled to the earth by the gray mist nail. No matter how Jidongzi cast spells, he could not make the palm break free.

Xu Qing withdrew his gaze, observing the changing expression on Jidongzi's face. Without a word, he took his fifth step. Upon reappearing, he was already a hundred zhang directly in front of Jidongzi.

Jidongzi's breath quickened, his entire body instantly turning crimson. Streams of blood-colored shadows erupted from him, swirling to form a blood lake. The shadows within it continuously collapsed, causing the blood lake's expanse to rapidly swell as it roared towards Xu Qing. He himself swiftly ascended into the sky, his expression twisted amidst the heavens and earth, his eyes burning with intense killing intent. He suddenly spread his raised hands. Immediately, an even greater volume of blood and blood shadows erupted from his body, creating a vast, boundless sea of blood around him. Its astonishing expanse covered the sky, rendering the entire world crimson.

“Suppress!”

At the center of the blood sea, the nearly invisible Jidongzi let out a low roar and brought his hands down. Immediately, the terrifying blood sea surrounding him descended to suppress the earth. Previously, Xu Qing had been defeated by this very technique, as it surpassed the limits of his blood authority. Even though he eventually escaped, his injuries had been severe.

Now, Xu Qing once again raised his head, gazing at the descending red sea in the sky. He raised his right hand and, from a distance, clawed at the crimson expanse. His cultivation surged throughout his body at that instant, his divine essence spreading in all directions. The nine Jiuli heads even burst forth from him, roaring and howling across the heavens and earth.

With this extreme augmentation, Xu Qing's blood authority immediately transcended its previous limits, reaching a significantly higher level. The vast, sky-obscuring sea of blood instantly churned, forming a colossal vortex whose origin was precisely Xu Qing's raised palm! The churning blood sea continued to spin, ceaselessly gathering towards Xu Qing's palm, shrinking in size. From a distance, the sight was utterly shocking, causing a renewed thunderous impact within the minds of all observing cultivators.

Until finally, under everyone's watchful eyes, the boundless, colossal sea that had filled the sky transformed into a rotating blood sphere within Xu Qing's palm. Dazzling crimson light emanated from within it, painting the heavens and earth. Merely looking upon it evoked a sensation of soul-piercing agony, as if countless wails could be heard. Even more terrifying was its internal rotation, which hinted at instability, as if it could explode at any moment and unleash a catastrophe!

This sight caused Jidongzi's mind to explode with thunder, his body and spirit to tremble. The horror in his heart could no longer be concealed and was plainly visible in his eyes. At that moment, Xu Qing flicked his index finger against the terrifying blood sphere. In an instant, this blood sphere, imbued with an aura of utter annihilation, surged forth. As it moved, it carved corrosive bloodstains through the void, resembling scars across the sky, as it hurtled directly towards Jidongzi!