Chapter 1164: The Saint Ancestor Tian's Scheme

On the ravaged ground, the forces from the five great heavens silently watched Zhou Yuan, their gazes, as if he were a wild beast, making him feel utterly helpless.

"Would you be willing to listen to my explanation?" Zhou Yuan sighed.

Bai Xiaolu's physical body was incredibly resilient. If he didn't go all out, hitting her would have no effect at all. Furthermore, even a slight relaxation on his part could lead to her counterattacking.

And don't be fooled by her little girl's body!

That was merely a deceptive illusion!

The power contained within that seemingly delicate body was something even Zhou Yuan dared not underestimate.

Bai Xiaolu, however, seemed somewhat amused by Zhou Yuan's discomfited expression. While maintaining her childlike form, her disposition also appeared to be influenced. She gave a little shake, and the swirling dust around her could not touch her; her skin remained perfectly clean, without a single mark.

"You're truly brutal, hitting even a little girl," Bai Xiaolu said.

Zhou Yuan pursed his lips and, with a forced smile, retorted, "Stop acting so childish."

Bai Xiaolu ignored his sarcasm. With a grab of her small hand, she retrieved the golden great hammer and casually put it away. Then, with her dark, wide eyes, she looked at Zhou Yuan and said, "While you certainly lack any grace, your strength is undeniably formidable."

"I had originally thought Guan Qinglong would be my opponent this time, but I was mistaken..."

She shook her head and said, "I, Bai Xiaolu, acknowledge your position as Grand Commander of All Heavens."

She made no excuses, magnanimously and decisively admitting defeat, which made Zhou Yuan view her a little more favorably.

As Bai Xiaolu conceded, the forces from the three heavens behind them immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Bai Xiaolu represented Qiankun Heaven, after all, and if she had truly refused to acknowledge the outcome, it would have been a very troublesome matter. After all, they couldn't possibly attack the main forces of Qiankun Heaven; that would only benefit the Sacred Race.

Guan Qinglong, Jiang Jinlin, and others stepped forward. Guan Qinglong cupped his fist towards Bai Xiaolu and said, "Thank you, Captain Bai, for your profound understanding."

Behind Bai Xiaolu, Li Fu and other top experts from Qiankun Heaven and Five Elements Heaven also gathered. Judging by Li Fu's demeanor and the others', it was clear that Bai Xiaolu was the leader of the entire Five Elements Heaven contingent.

Bai Xiaolu said indifferently, "My earlier refusal was not simply being difficult. It's just that I'm fully aware of the immense crisis we are about to face, and I couldn't possibly allow someone not capable enough to hold the position of Grand Commander. That's why I had to personally test his strength."

"From what you're saying, it seems you know about the coming crisis?" Zhou Yuan said thoughtfully.

"Have you encountered anyone from the Sacred Ancestor Heaven?"

A conflicted expression appeared on Bai Xiaolu's fair face. She then took a deep breath and said, "I have indeed encountered someone from the Sacred Ancestor Heaven. To be precise, it was the strongest Sacred Scion from there. I couldn't even last ten rounds against him before being defeated."

"If he hadn't had other urgent matters at the time, and if my physical defense hadn't been so strong, perhaps... I would have already been killed by him."

As soon as these words were spoken, not only Zhou Yuan and the others, but even Li Fu and the top experts from Qiankun Heaven looked at Bai Xiaolu with drastically changed expressions. Judging by their reactions, it seemed none of them had known about this!

"Was that when Captain returned from a patrol earlier?" a top expert from Qiankun Heaven suddenly exclaimed in surprise. "No wonder your condition looked so poor then!"

The others also showed expressions of sudden realization, apparently having recalled something similar.

"The strongest Sacred Scion of Sacred Ancestor Heaven..." Zhou Yuan's expression grew solemn. He had fought Bai Xiaolu earlier and clearly understood how difficult she was to deal with. Facing her level of physical body, Zhou Yuan felt that unless he unleashed the Seven-Colored Sky-Cleaving Sword Light, it would be very difficult to inflict substantial damage on her.

Yet now, Bai Xiaolu claimed she hadn't lasted ten rounds against that strongest Sacred Scion of Sacred Ancestor Heaven.

What terrifying strength that must be!

Bai Xiaolu said with a somber look in her eyes, "That person is named Jiatu."

"Jiatu..."

Zhou Yuan also committed this name to memory. Perhaps this person would be their greatest obstacle.

"Furthermore... the Sacred Ancestor Heaven must be plotting something immense," Bai Xiaolu continued. "My encounter with Jiatu earlier happened because I discovered a mysterious ruin, and at that time, Jiatu was forcibly moving that entire mountain-sized ruin."

"The people of Sacred Ancestor Heaven have not participated in any of the previous conflicts with our five great heavens, because all their efforts have been focused on finding these mysterious ruins."

"The other heavens of the Sacred Race, however, were merely trying to stall our progress."

"Although I don't know why they want to move those mysterious ruins," Bai Xiaolu said, "I believe they are definitely plotting a conspiracy against our five great heavens."

Silence fell around them; everyone was clearly stunned by the information Bai Xiaolu had revealed.

Li Fu from Five Elements Heaven also spoke with some difficulty, "Why wasn't this information shared earlier?"

"Because it would have been useless even if I had," Bai Xiaolu said slowly. "Our strength isn't enough."

Li Fu was speechless. Indeed, even if they had known earlier, would their two heavens have dared to confront the Sacred Ancestor Heaven?

"What exactly do they want to do?" Guan Qinglong frowned deeply, his face etched with worry. He felt uneasy about the Sacred Ancestor Heaven's actions.

All eyes turned to Zhou Yuan. As the current nominal Grand Commander of All Heavens, he was clearly the pillar of strength in everyone's hearts.

Looking at those apprehensive gazes, Zhou Yuan's expression remained relatively calm, for he knew that if even he were to panic, the morale of the five great heavens would likely suffer a severe blow.

"No matter what the Sacred Ancestor Heaven intends to do, we have no retreat," Zhou Yuan declared. "The nine Ancestral Qi main veins are right ahead. Whatever the Sacred Race's conspiracy, we will know everything once we get there."

"We bear a part of the future of our respective heavens. The Sacred Race is insidious and ruthless. If we allow them to grow stronger because of this, perhaps in the future, there will be no place for our races in the entire Tianyuan World."

Zhou Yuan's eyes gradually sharpened. He scanned the crowd and slowly said, "This battle can be said to be a critical one that might influence the future. For our heavens, for our sects, and for those we must protect, no matter what we face..."

"We can only fight to the death!"

His voice echoed in the ears of every person from the five great heavens.

Countless faces gradually flushed red, as if a fire was burning in their hearts, and their blood was boiling.

"Fight to the death!"

"To the death!"

Low roars resonated, eventually converging into a unified cry that pierced the sky.

"Five great heavens, prepare to move out!"

Seeing this, Zhou Yuan no longer hesitated and let out a long cry.

The next moment, the forces from the five great heavens began to converge. Led by Zhou Yuan, Bai Xiaolu, Guan Qinglong, Jiang Jinlin, and others, they surged out powerfully, heading swiftly towards the central region.

They could already sense the nine main veins, radiating infinite power, blossoming in that central region.

Currently, they were in the outer perimeter of the central area.

However, after traveling for half a day, they were already nearing the core area.

On a ten-thousand-foot cliff in the core region, sudden ripples of Genesis Qi appeared, and several figures flashed into view.

It was Zhou Yuan and his companions. In the mountains behind them, the main forces of the five great heavens were majestically advancing.

"Ahead lies the core region of Guyuan Heaven..." one figure stated.

Zhou Yuan, Bai Xiaolu, Guan Qinglong, and the others also raised their heads, looking towards the distant horizon.

Then, their pupils all suddenly constricted.

"What is this...?!"

They saw an incredibly massive light formation suspended in the distant sky and earth. The formation was profoundly mysterious, directly connecting heaven and earth, and then extending into the far distance, beyond sight.

The space there appeared warped and fragmented, making it impossible to see what lay beyond.

An indescribable immense power surged through the heavens and earth.

That light formation was like a heavenly barrier, stretched across their path, completely separating the core region of Guyuan Heaven from the outside world.

And within that incomparably majestic light formation, ancient mountains, stone tablets, and colossal pillars could faintly be seen standing.

These mountains, stone tablets, and colossal pillars all emitted surging Ancestral Qi, evidently transformed from mysterious ruins!

And deep within this unimaginable grand formation, nine faintly visible Ancestral Qi main veins could be seen across heaven and earth, inhaling and exhaling the essence of the world, causing the entire Guyuan Heaven to faintly tremble.

"I know what they're trying to do now..."

Bai Xiaolu clenched her hands tightly, blue veins throbbing on her fair little fists. Her eyes were filled with furious flames and a sense of dread.

"They..."

"They want to swallow all nine Ancestral Qi main veins, so that our five heavens get nothing at all!"