Chapter 2049: Throwing Oneself Fearlessly

“Ah Zu!” Seeing Zu’an disregard the danger to rescue her, Qiu Honglei’s eyes immediately reddened.

Zu’an had no time to reply; he immediately activated “Great Wind” to teleport.

Unfortunately, perhaps influenced by the grand formation, his teleportation range was significantly reduced, and he could only teleport within the formation’s confines. Each time he appeared, the terrifying suction of the vortex immediately pulled him backward.

After repeatedly using “Great Wind” several times, he only managed to move a tiny bit away from the vortex, unable to advance even half an inch further.

The “Great Wind” skill has a cooldown period. With his current cultivation, continuously using it so many times without pause was already his limit.

Although the interval between uses of “Great Wind” wasn’t long, in this critical situation, that small amount of time was enough for both of them to be pulled into the vortex multiple times.

Yet, the moment he stopped using “Great Wind,” he was almost instantly pulled backward.

Without hesitation, he immediately activated “Steps of Lotus Blossom.” Lotuses bloomed beneath his feet as he slowly moved outward, seemingly struggling forward against a fierce storm.

It was well-known that the “Steps of Lotus Blossom” was an incredibly miraculous movement technique, even capable of escaping certain seals. However, this grand formation had been meticulously planned and built by the Libationer over decades, harnessing the power of Purple Mountain’s myriad ranges. Now that the spatial collapse had formed, even powerful individuals like Zhao Hao and the Libationer himself had been sucked in. No matter how miraculous this technique was, it was merely a desperate struggle.

Zu’an struggled to take several steps but found that not only did he fail to advance, he had actually moved backward slightly, causing his heart to sink.

In a hurry, he could only pull out the Tai’a Sword and stab it into the ground. The Tai’a Sword barely held firm, but both of them were almost instantly pulled horizontally in the air, like fluttering flags.

Tears, like pearls, rolled down Qiu Honglei’s face. “Ah Zu, it’s all my fault for dragging you into this. You shouldn’t have saved me.”

Zu’an tightly embraced her waist. There was nothing more he could do. Hearing her words, he sighed, “How could I stand by and watch you face danger without helping?”

With a determined expression, he channeled his cultivation and threw her outward. “Catch!”

His cultivation was extraordinary; with that full-force push, Qiu Honglei flew a considerable distance outward like a cannonball.

Due to the recoil, he could no longer hold on. The ground where the Tai’a Sword was embedded completely shattered, and he spun as he was pulled into the abyss.

Qiu Honglei cried out in alarm. She understood perfectly that he knew his own survival was hopeless and had chosen to save her.

Without time to wipe away her tears, she flicked her wrist, and a pink silk ribbon shot out, coiling around his waist.

At the same time, a white silk ribbon wrapped around her hand. It turned out that Yan Xuehen, from a distance, had not wasted this opportunity.

Her and Yun Jianyue’s cultivation was exceptional, and they had been on the outer perimeter. Moreover, as the grand formation continuously collapsed, its impact on the outside gradually diminished. After rescuing Xie Daoyun, the two barely managed to stabilize themselves.

They had just witnessed Zu’an desperately trying to save Qiu Honglei and then throwing her out.

“This brat is truly reckless when it comes to chasing girls!” Yan Xuehen had no time for complaints; she instinctively shot out a ribbon to catch Qiu Honglei.

An enormous force immediately pulled on the ribbon. She lost her footing and stumbled, staggering towards the collapsing grand formation.

Fortunately, Yun Jianyue was quick-witted and grabbed her waist.

The suction force was too terrifying at this moment; the two lost their grandmaster demeanor and relied purely on instinct.

Xie Daoyun, who had been thrown further away, also quickly formed hand seals. A phantom hand pulled the two women, barely stabilizing them.

However, the powerful suction still caused everyone to be pulled step by step towards the collapsing vortex.

Seeing this, Zu’an urgently shouted, “Let go quickly, or you’ll all lose your lives!”

Qiu Honglei pursed her lips and desperately shook her head, reaching out to wrap the silk ribbon tightly around her hand several more times.

Yan Xuehen, with a serene expression, naturally didn’t let go. Instead, she exerted all her lifelong knowledge, attempting to pull the two inside out.

However, a crisp tearing sound soon echoed. The white silk ribbon, unable to withstand the weight of the two and the terrifying suction, had snapped.

From the appearance of a tiny crack to its complete rupture, there was almost no time to react, catching everyone off guard.

Yan Xuehen was filled with regret; if she had known this, she wouldn’t have given the Hun Tian Ling (Chaos-Mixing Ribbon) to Chu Yan.

However, she didn’t hesitate. She instinctively leaped forward, directly grabbing the broken half of the ribbon.

But she, too, was dragged along into the grand formation.

Yun Jianyue was greatly startled and, without time to think, quickly lunged forward and grabbed her ankle.

Xie Daoyun’s face turned pale, but she also had no time to think. She directly leaped forward, grabbing Yun Jianyue, while her other ethereal hand clasped tightly onto the ground.

“Ice Stone Woman, you’re actually risking your life to save my apprentice this time. If we survive, I’ll definitely repay this favor.” Yun Jianyue felt awkward thanking her for saving Zu’an, so she used Qiu Honglei as a shield.

Yan Xuehen was similarly too embarrassed to admit she didn’t want to see anything happen to Zu’an. Biting her lip, she said, “I’m afraid there won’t be such an opportunity.”

At that moment, the space within the grand formation rapidly collapsed, its speed and suction force increasing by untold multiples compared to before.

With Xie Daoyun’s cultivation, she could no longer hold on. The ethereal hand generated by her talisman shattered, and then the entire group, crying out, was sucked into the vortex.

Just then, in another range of Purple Mountain, at the temporary encampment of the Azure Palace, disciples from the Nine Sects had not emerged from the Daoist Sect’s secret realm as expected. However, the Emperor was due to perform the Heaven-Worshipping and Feng Chan ceremonies, so they couldn’t stay at the Golden Summit. Thus, they had temporarily settled in a nearby mountain range, waiting for the secret realm to reopen and for the disciples of various sects to emerge.

From the very beginning, Wan Tongtian and Abbess Huoling had been observing the anomalies on Purple Mountain from afar, their expressions constantly shifting. Even from such a distance, they could feel the terrifying might of heaven and earth. Fortunately, they had decided to stay out of it earlier; otherwise, they would likely be like ants on the Golden Summit now.

Suddenly, a disciple exclaimed, “The Wordless Heavenly Book! The Wordless Heavenly Book!”

The two sensed a series of unusual movements and were startled. They quickly followed the sound, only to see the Wordless Heavenly Book, which had been resting peacefully there, suddenly vibrate violently, emitting a unique radiance from its entire form.

Their expressions changed drastically. They knew that the Wordless Heavenly Book was connected to the Daoist Sect’s secret realm. If anything happened to it, wouldn’t all the most outstanding disciples from various sects be trapped inside?

Just as they were about to cast spells to stabilize the Wordless Heavenly Book, it suddenly shot skyward, directly smashing through the roof and disappearing into the clouds. Its pages opened, facing the direction of the Golden Summit. On what were originally blank pages, ancient and profound characters seemed to appear, and images flashed by.

At that moment, above the Golden Summit, the originally vast formation had shrunk into a basketball-sized black hole. Immediately afterward, the entire Golden Summit was sucked directly into the black hole. A flash of black light later, the black hole completely closed and vanished.

At this point, the civil and military officials, who had been on the verge of breaching the Zheng Yang Sect’s mountain-protecting formation, were utterly dumbfounded. The very formation they had so detested had vanished.

However, they felt no joy, for what had vanished was not just the mountain-protecting formation, but half of Purple Mountain’s main peak, from the Reception Hall upwards, had disappeared into thin air!