Chapter 1724: Out-of-Body Experience of the Primordial Spirit

Zhao Hao's face was cold. He raised his hand, seeing faint black runes occasionally appear in his palm. "These dark arts of the Witch Sect are indeed formidable," he mused. "It seems I underestimated them before. But if you think this is enough to deal with me, you are far too naive."

The moment he finished speaking, two golden rays shot from his eyes with such incredible speed that no one could react in time.

Wu Wuyan was instantly enveloped by the golden light, letting out a painful scream. His entire body visibly combusted, his flesh and blood burning away almost instantly until only a skeleton remained. Then, with a mere gust of wind, the skeleton turned entirely into dust and vanished without a trace.

A chill went through the hearts of everyone on the Golden Summit. However, the Imperial Guards led by Right Guard General Guo Zhi and the remaining Embroidered Uniform Emissaries were greatly encouraged. Just moments before, Eunuch Wen and Zhu Xie Chixin had both suddenly perished, causing their confidence to plummet. For the first time, they had even questioned the invincible emperor. But in this instant, everyone understood: the Emperor was still the Emperor. He was invincible, and as long as they followed him, final victory was assured.

With their morale soaring, Daoist masters like Elder Xuandu suddenly felt immense pressure. Although individually stronger than the Imperial Guards and Embroidered Uniform Emissaries, this group excelled in combined attack techniques and incredibly intricate formation coordination. In battle, they were truly evenly matched, but now with their opponents' high morale, they found themselves at a disadvantage.

"Amitabha!" Master Jianhuang, both shocked and enraged, launched a massive swastika symbol towards Zhao Hao. He had actually acted the moment Zhao Hao attacked Wu Wuyan, but his move was too slow, making it appear as if their attacks were sequential. The swastika symbol grew with the wind, instantly pressing down on Zhao Hao like a small mountain.

Even the officials in the Reception Hall halfway up the mountain instinctively looked towards the Golden Summit. Although the mountain protection array obscured their view of what was happening, they could still feel the terrifying pressure. It felt as if the entire Purple Mountain was about to be crushed by that terrifying pressure.

Zhao Hao snorted coldly. Suddenly, a golden figure flew out from above his head. The golden figure's appearance was identical to his own, but significantly larger. The golden figure rapidly expanded, becoming even larger than the swastika symbol almost instantly. With a casual wave, it shattered the terrifying swastika.

"Divine Soul Projection!" Master Jianhuang coughed up a mouthful of blood, his white beard stained crimson. Just then, the enormous golden figure pressed a palm down towards him. The hand was so vast it blotted out the sky; he could no longer see anything else, only the gigantic palm filling his vision, as if everything else in the world had vanished. As a leader of the Buddhist sect, his cultivation was extraordinary. Yet, at this moment, he was astonished to find himself completely unable to resist, able only to watch helplessly as the golden palm crushed down on him. A realization dawned on him: battles at the Divine Soul level completely transcended the rules of the mortal realm. Unless he also cultivated a Divine Soul, he had no means of resistance. He felt greatly aggrieved. He possessed a plethora of trump cards and had believed himself only slightly weaker than the Emperor. Yet, that slight difference was like an unbridgeable chasm, condemning him to death before he could even unleash any of his moves.

Just then, King Qi roared, and a golden figure similarly flew out from above his head. An enlarged phantom of King Qi swung a fist, attacking Zhao Hao from the side. Zhao Hao's Divine Soul frowned, having no choice but to turn and meet the attack.

A terrifying wave of energy radiated outwards, as if directly annihilating everything in its path. The nearest Pure Yang Palace was struck by the wave and instantly reduced to dust. It was well known that Pure Yang Palace was the most revered place in the Pure Yang Sect, the spiritual symbol of the entire sect, and undoubtedly protected by the most sophisticated defensive array formations. Furthermore, it was Wang Wuxie's long-term secluded cultivation place, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, the sun and moon, and nurtured by ethereal purple qi. It was even rated by Daoist sects as the most indestructible building. Yet, under the aftershocks of the battle between two Earth Immortals, it didn't last even a moment.

Grandmasters like Li Changsheng all drastically changed their expressions, successively unleashing their magical treasures to prepare for defense. But at such close proximity, they weren't confident they could withstand the aftershocks of a battle between Earth Immortals.

Just then, a long, profound bell chime echoed. Immediately after, the phantom of an ancient bronze giant bell descended from the sky, enveloping everyone else on the Golden Summit. The terrifying aftershocks of the battle struck the bell's body, causing the giant bell to vibrate furiously and massive chimes to ring out one after another. The entire Purple Mountain immediately shook violently. In the distance, countless birds were startled from the forests. The civil and military officials halfway up the mountain all turned pale; those with higher cultivation felt nauseous, while those with lower cultivation vomited blood and fainted. The entire Reception Hall rattled, with many bricks, tiles, and beams falling. No one dared to remain in the hall.

On the other side, Zu An and his group, who were studying how to penetrate the mountain protection array, also changed their expressions. Xie Daoyun, who had the lowest cultivation among them, turned pale. Her body swayed, and she was about to collapse to the ground. Zu An quickly grabbed her hand and infused a large amount of primeval qi into her body, protecting her from injury.

After a long while, the bell chime, which could shatter one's heart meridian, gradually faded. Zu An's expression was extremely grave. "What kind of bell chime is this?" he wondered. "How can it be so powerful?" To his surprise, he received no answer. Instead, he felt a faint killing intent. Zu An instinctively looked up, discovering the gazes of the other women fixed on his hand holding Xie Daoyun's.

[Rage value from Yan Xuehen: 111111111...][Rage value from Yun Jianyue: 111111111...][Rage value from Qiu Honglei: 111111111...]

Xie Daoyun suddenly realized something and quickly retracted her hand, her pretty face turning crimson. However, this attempt to cover up only made Zu An feel more awkward. Mi Li almost laughed out loud. "Interesting, interesting," she murmured. "Such a blessing of having multiple women is never easy to enjoy."

Fortunately, Yan Xuehen spoke, alleviating his awkwardness. "This must be the Pure Brahma Bell, a divine-grade weapon from Wuyou Temple," she said. "The plan to deal with the Emperor is no small matter; once exposed, it will lead to enormous disaster. The fact that they are using the Pure Brahma Bell now suggests they have reached a point where they have no other choice."

Yun Jianyue also looked towards the Golden Summit. "It seems two Earth Immortal-level figures just clashed," she observed. "The battle on the Golden Summit should be nearing its climax now."

Qiu Honglei weakly suggested, "I don't think it's a good idea to go up right now. We might easily get caught in the crossfire." No one laughed at her, for what she said was indeed the truth.

At this moment, Yun Jianyue said gravely, "Ice Stone Woman, how much longer until you can break it open?"

"To fully dismantle this mountain protection array in a short time is unlikely," Yan Xuehen replied, "but if we just open a small passage wide enough for us to pass through, it should take about the time it takes an incense stick to burn." She couldn't help but glance at Xie Daoyun again. This young girl is truly a genius in array formations; without her help, this wouldn't have been so easy.

"Go ahead and open it first," Zu An said. "We'll find a suitable opportunity to go up then."

The women all nodded, agreeing to this plan. After all, if a good opportunity arose above, and they missed it because the passage wasn't opened, they might not get another chance.

On the Golden Summit, a miniature bell in Master Jianhuang's hand spun furiously. Clearly, the giant bell enveloping the summit was its projection. With the protection of this bell, everyone on the Golden Summit had just saved their lives. Even the Imperial Guards and Embroidered Uniform Emissaries were included. This was unavoidable; they were entangled in battle with the Daoists and couldn't be separated quickly, so they had to be saved together.

At this point, King Qi's phantom swayed a few times, clearly no match for Zhao Hao. Seeing this, Master Jianhuang uttered a Buddhist chant, and a phantom of a Buddha suddenly rose from behind him, soaring into the sky and striking towards Zhao Hao.