Chapter 1640: Pure Folk of Changde Town, Crossing the Sea to Recite and Invoke the Eight Honored Ones

Central Domain. Qingyuan Mountain, Changde Town. The sky was clear, and a gentle breeze blew pleasantly. This day was no different from any other.

News of the immensely popular new Seven Sword Immortals across the five domains did not reach this small town. Nor did the continent-wide anticipated heaviest rainfall at Guiqiu Holy Mountain fall here.

In this town of simple folk, residents lived orderly lives, working from sunrise to sunset.

Amidst these peaceful and comfortable days, a sudden clap of thunder split the clear sky, purple lightning flashing through the town's streets before vanishing into the heavens.

"Clatter, clatter, clatter!" In response, wooden windows in houses across the town were pushed open, and keen eyes peered out.

"Swish, swish, swish!" Pedestrians on the street also stopped, turning in unison to stare at the same spot.

Yang Tieniu, the butcher, rushed to his meat stall, whetstone and knife in hand, craning his neck. Aunt Zhang Xiuhua, who sold tofu pudding, hopped over her doorstep, half a bowl of savory tofu pudding in hand, stretching her neck. Li Zhenniang, who had been embroidering on a small stool, sprang up, fabric in one hand and needlework in the other, and craned her head back to look towards the town's center.

The town's true center was no longer its nominal one, but rather the "Cao's Blacksmith Shop," which lay in ruins, collapsed and unrebuilt, now the focus of all attention.

"Boom!" From the long-still ruins of the blacksmith shop, a burly figure clad in a great cloak suddenly shot into the sky.

But before he could act, all the town's residents simultaneously raised their right hands towards the sky. "We are one in mind."

"Buzz!" All around Changde Town, seemingly randomly placed buildings, stone pillars, streets, scenery, ornamental rocks, and trees—all differing in height and location—without exception, simultaneously glowed with intricate Heaven's Will Dao patterns.

In that moment, their respective positions, heights, densities, and even the actions and standing points of every individual present became anything but ordinary. Everything acquired meaning.

An inscrutable Heaven's Will Array, in harmony with heaven, aligned with earth, concurrent with the Dao, and at peace with the world! Light converged, interwoven and assembled, drawing a hazy water curtain across the sky—a barrier!

"Boom!" The purple lightning struck the water curtain barrier, instantly forming a spiderweb of cracks. The town residents all looked up in unison, only to groan and take a step back. Quickly, they stepped forward again, returning to their previous positions, still holding their hands up.

"We are one in mind, forever united."

"Break!" A furious roar echoed from the sky. Invisible thought waves spread, instantly engulfing the entire town, and muffled thunder boomed from above as if tribulation clouds were gathering.

"Puff, puff, puff..." This time, the townspeople were collectively lifted into the air, their hair standing on end, countless purple lightning snakes erupting on their bodies, twitching uncontrollably as they thumped onto the ground. The high-altitude water curtain finally shattered.

Kuailei Han, cloaked and holding a wine barrel, stopped mid-air, allowing the nine Martial Restriction Tokens on the iron collar around his neck to clank. Having revealed himself, he surprisingly made no further move.

Indeed. Kuailei Han had broken the grand array. But he had also been delayed.

In that mere instant, no matter what he did, he could no longer pinpoint the location of his illusionary form. He recalled the hazy world his illusionary form had just seen, and after a moment of silence, he whispered, "Ranming."

"Chant my true name, welcome reincarnation. Divine Official of Fate, all beings are equal." This time, however, the words seemed pointless; no power came to guide him after he chanted them.

Kuailei Han's thick, dark eyebrows were tightly furrowed, his eyelids twitching repeatedly. Finally unable to contain his rage, he roared skyward, "Dao Qiongcang! Do you believe I'll kill you?!"

After this outburst of extreme fury, the fallen townspeople sprang up one by one. Though still twitching from electric shocks, they knelt uncontrollably, heads bowed, murmuring, "I, awaken from chaos..." "I, am born from ruin..."

Across the entire ground of Changde Town, Heaven's Will Dao patterns lit up with their murmurs, forming nested Heaven's Will arrays in concentric circles. Kuailei Han clenched his jaw, his cheek muscles subtly trembling.

Yet, he did not erupt. Instead, he took a deep breath and descended back to the ruins of Cao's Blacksmith Shop.

The town's chanting ceased abruptly. All residents quickly recovered from their electric tremors, glanced at the blacksmith shop once more, and returned to their daily lives.

Those who bought vegetables continued home... those who chopped meat resumed cooking... The grand array vanished. Windows closed. All anomalies ceased. Peace and beauty returned to this lovely town.

In the ruins of the blacksmith shop, Kuailei Han leaned against a large wine barrel, his face dark, lost in thought.

After a long while, he slowly lifted his eyelids.

"Clatter, clatter, clatter..." From all directions came the sound of windows opening, and dark heads curiously peered out.

This time, however, Kuailei Han made no grand move, only emitting a faint purple glow from his pupils. This wasn't even a display of power; it was merely a thought.

A Half-Saint can project a thought avatar, as can a Holy Emperor or an Ancestral God. But what effect could a mere thought from someone in the Void realm, especially under the Martial Restriction Tokens, possibly have?

The purple light passed through the ground, surprisingly without triggering any Heaven's Will array, and quickly vanished outside the town.

"Clatter, clatter, clatter..." Windows in each household closed. Kuailei Han's ears, however, were keen enough to hear the rustle of turning pages and the sound of pen tips writing and calculating from all directions.

He took another deep breath, finally scoffed, and ignored it all, throwing himself into the underground wine barrel.

"Go ahead and learn!" he scoffed. "Even ten thousand of you can't catch up to my speed of enlightenment!"

Central Domain, Kirin Realm. The bustling city was as usual. Within a certain hidden grand array, someone suddenly looked up in surprise: "What's going on? I feel like I've been spied on."

"Spied on?" a person nearby asked, puzzled. "Yes." "Did you find the source?" "No, it was just a flash, as if it merely passed by."

"Sect Master, you are in the Void realm. If someone could spy on you without detection, wouldn't that mean they are..." "Shush, silence! I hope it truly was just passing by. Let's not discuss it further, lest we invite trouble." "Understood!"

Central Domain, Zhongyuan Realm. In a private room at a bustling underground auction, an old man suddenly looked up: "Who's there!"

"Elder?" The female attendant was startled. The old man pointed to the mask on his face: "You've all put on these things, yet your people still dare to pry? Are you truly not afraid of death?"

"Elder, you've wronged us!" The female attendant knelt in fright: "Our Golden Broom Auction House has a reputation! We absolutely do not peep into private rooms. We have... we have Saints as guarantors above us!"

Saints... Half-Saints? Or perhaps even beyond Half-Saints? The old man himself was a Half-Saint. If even he couldn't trace the source of the gaze, pursuing it further would likely be fruitless and unrewarding...

"It was me!" Reaching Half-Saint meant he was adaptable. After much thought, the old man sighed, clutching his chest. "I've suddenly fallen ill today. I must return home. Please open the teleportation array..." "No! Just open a back door. You can continue the auction. I'll leave alone first." "My wife is waiting for me at home. If I don't return by Youshi, she'll go mad. She knows I came to your auction house today..." The female attendant understood the hint, and though she didn't grasp the full reason, she could only nod repeatedly: "Understood!"

From the Central Domain southwards, all the way down. Almost simultaneously, those above the Void realm with sensitive spiritual perceptions sensed something. Yet, upon closer inspection, they found nothing.

A storm stirred in the Southern Abyss. This vast ocean, which separated the Central and Southern Domains, and extended the world south of the Southern Domain's land of sin, was one of the Seven Forbidden Lands. It was rumored that the Kunpeng Divine Emissary of the Holy Divine Temple was born here. The Southern Abyss was also known as the Heavenly Pond.

The ocean depths had always been beyond the limits of exploration for Spirit Refiners, more mysterious even than the Sky Ladder. Countless fierce beasts resided here, and it was rumored—no, it was a fact—that many ancient exotic beasts' bloodlines had been passed down here. Crossing the Southern Abyss was something one could dream of, but few could achieve in reality. Even Half-Saints could be disoriented and lost by the various strange phenomena within the Southern Abyss.

Today, a storm arose in the Southern Abyss. Ferocious beasts leaped from the ocean surface for unknown reasons. From a distance, a straight line was drawn southward.

The line originated from the north of the Southern Abyss, pierced straight through the ocean's depths, and finally landed on the coastline at the very south of the Southern Abyss.

At various strongholds of the Heaven's Will Divine Cult, people rose in alarm. Within the Forbidden Zone of the Xuyue Grey Palace, whistling sounds suddenly arose, followed by a dragon's roar.

Half-Moon Bay Flower and Grass Pavilion. A black-clad elder burst forth from underground, directly entering the third floor of the pavilion, where he found two figures, one black and one white, amidst a throng of beautiful women, and let out a long sigh of relief.

Pavilion Masters Heiyezi and Baiyezi exchanged confused glances: "Grand Elder, what happened?" The black-clad elder shook his head, saying little: "Nothing." He paused, then seemed to mumble to himself, "It's good that nothing happened." He silently added in his mind: *It's also good that I didn't sense it; at least there's nothing to worry about.*

In a hidden cave, the Storyteller was watering flowers, humming an unknown opera tune, in a rather good mood. Suddenly, he let out a startled cry of "Ah!"

He dropped the watering can, his long, slender, high-slit legs clamped together, instinctively hunching over, covering his groin with delicate hands to stop his skirt from flying up, and complained playfully, "Who's the rascal, making my skirt fly up like that?"

Tap, tap, tap. With quick, graceful steps, the Storyteller hurried to a stone wall and gently knocked a few times: "Brother, brother! Who just came by? Was it my imagination, or did Old Cao come? Isn't he trapped by Old Dao? Answer me quickly, I'm dying of curiosity! Oh, if you don't speak, I'm going to force my way in, alright?"

A sound seemed to come from inside the stone door. The Storyteller quickly hushed, pressing his ear to the wall to listen. There was no need to eavesdrop, as the event was already over, and a weak, breathy reply soon came from within, from Bazun An: "It was Cao Yihan, cough, cough, *splutter*!"

The Storyteller's pupils constricted. Among the Ten Revered Ones, was the "Sleeping Lion," renowned as the greatest Spirit Refiner, about to awaken? No, why are you spitting blood again? Anyone would think you were being assassinated inside that stone room, under my protection!

"Brother, brother," "Are you okay? Cao Yihan's matter shouldn't be a big deal, should it?" If it wasn't, then something was certainly amiss! But this didn't deter the Storyteller from probing. He was too curious; he wanted to share secrets with his brother.

The weak voice from behind the stone door paused, then quickly replied, "I'm fine." "He's not in any serious trouble either." "He just asked me for a small favor."

"Don't help him!" the Storyteller pouted, reminding, "You! Are! In! Seclusion!" "A small favor." "A small favor is still a favor!" The Storyteller puffed out his chest, declaring proudly, "You don't need to move. What needs to be done? I'll do it!"

No sooner had he spoken than his waterfall-like hair transformed into black needles, each strand bristling angrily towards the sky, and his beautiful red dress quickly turned charred and smoking. He himself fell stiffly to the ground like a plank, thrashing and convulsing like a live fish in a frying pan, constantly flapping his head and tail: "Ugh, gack, ugh, ugh..."

Inside the stone cave, a deep sigh resonated: "Ning Honghong, I thought you only *looked* like you were in the Void realm; I didn't realize you *actually* were just in the Void realm." "With such meager achievements after all these years, why don't you go back to your hometown and continue singing opera?"

"Ugh, ugh..." The Storyteller's beautiful eyes rolled back, and he foamed at the mouth, struggling to speak: "The Void realm... is very powerful... ugh, okay?" "Useless." "Ugh, ugh... Void... *hiccup*, cannot... be insulted..."

"This is bad!" In the Divine Relics. The moment Dao Qiongcang saw Cao Erzhu summon his father's illusionary form, he was delighted. This was part of the plan.

After all, relying solely on himself and Xu Xiaoshou wouldn't work. They needed someone who wasn't too clever, but purely focused on output, and fully mature, to find an opportunity in this situation. There was no hope for the God either; he had already abandoned his physical body. For an ancient martial artist to voluntarily abandon their body was even more "severely injured" than being half-crippled. Kuailei Han himself had to come for this situation to have a chance of turning around!

But in an instant, when he saw the illusionary Kuailei Han's eyes dim, turning into an ordinary, unintelligent illusion, Dao Qiongcang's heart sank, and he realized something. "Terrible! It's over! Heaven's wrongs may be forgiven, but self-inflicted wounds lead to death... I calculated a thousand steps, but missed this one!"

"What's wrong?" Xu Xiaoshou transmitted telepathically. "It seems Kuailei Han can't make it?" "Yes," Dao Qiongcang replied, his eyes filled with bitterness.

"Why? His roar just now definitely suppressed the Cursed Yin temporarily. Even if he were far away, all he had to do was shout 'Ranming,' and he could instantly arrive!" The Divine Relics could only be entered, not exited. Before this great battle, people had continuously entered, though very few. And as soon as they entered, they were like food swallowed by a stomach, quickly digested by the Cursed Yin, so no one was seen. Kuailei Han's roar just now surely meant he knew his son's current predicament and couldn't possibly stand by. "Training?" What father would let his son truly fight an evil god right after debuting? A living father indeed!

Dao Qiongcang responded with difficulty: "Yes, he controlled the evil god, but I also controlled him, from the outside... Once the Cursed Yin reacted, it must have blocked the entry passage..." Xu Xiaoshou: "You living Daoist! And you, my Daoist, why don't you go die?!"

"My fault." He was too clever for his own good. Dao Qiongcang slapped himself hard, then quickly rubbed his cheek, muttering, "My apologies..." He'd slapped the wrong person. *It's bad enough to trick his father, but to hit his son too? I am truly inhuman.*

Xu Xiaoshou no longer had time to waste with Dao Qiongcang. He flashed forward abruptly, charging towards the Cursed Yin as if a brave warrior: "You attack the front, I'll save Erzhu!" "Once we save him, women and children run first, the elders cover our retreat. Let's leave some seeds for the Holy Divine Continent!"