Chapter 1234: Surrounding Attack

There were hundreds of these soulless golden figures. Their dark eyes, illuminated by night-pearls, reflected a terrifying red glow, evoking a chilling sense of dread, as if one had suddenly entered a cemetery, surrounded by countless corpses.

"This is bad!"

Everyone felt their minds explode simultaneously. They huddled together, scanning their surroundings with extreme caution.

The cave entrance was sealed by a Dragon-Severing Lock, meaning there was no escape; they could only press forward. But how could they fight so many golden figures?

Whoosh!

Before their shock could subside, one soulless golden figure immediately charged forward. Its figure darted rapidly, and its palm chopped down fiercely.

As the palm force spread and true energy surged, everyone immediately felt an intense oppressive pressure.

"These soulless golden figures are all peak Nascent Divinity realm experts, refined through special methods," Zhang Xuan murmured, "Their physical bodies and true energy are completely intact. Most importantly, they are fearless in death..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes narrowed.

If they didn't enter, they wouldn't find the ruthless individual and couldn't resolve the hidden danger completely.

But now that they were in, he hadn't expected this person to be so deranged as to capture over a hundred Saint 4-realm Master Teachers and refine them into golden figures!

"Hmph!"

Hall Master Wei stepped forward and sent the charging golden figure flying with a single palm strike. Just as he was about to tear it apart, a Master Teacher Elder stood in front of him, saying, "This is Elder Wang from our Master Teacher Pavilion; we are old acquaintances... Could you please not destroy the body? Let me take him back for burial..."

"This..."

As Hall Master Wei was about to speak, the golden figure he had just knocked down immediately charged back, ramming into him. He staggered back several steps, feeling a dull ache in his chest, almost spitting blood.

As a combat master, even though his fighting power far surpassed the opponent's, this fellow felt no pain and perceived no danger. Even he found it somewhat troublesome.

"If we don't kill him, we'll be killed! If you want to die here, don't drag us down with you!" Hall Master Wei roared.

His chest still aching, and seeing other golden figures beginning to stir, ready to charge at any moment, Hall Master Wei couldn't help but bellow.

"This..."

The elder's face turned grim.

He recognized many of the surrounding bodies, many of whom were friends he had known for hundreds of years. He had hoped to at least take their bodies back for proper burial, but under the current circumstances, that was clearly impossible!

Boom!

While he was still conflicted, another soulless golden figure charged over, its five fingers like hooks, tearing towards him.

"Elder Hu..."

Seeing this person, and recalling past times, the elder became emotional, his eyes reddened, and his movements slowed by half a beat. Instantly, his shoulder was gashed, bleeding profusely.

"Elder Zeng, he is no longer Elder Hu," Zhang Xuan said, "His consciousness has dissipated; he is already dead..."

Seeing the elder still immersed in thoughts of his old acquaintance, Zhang Xuan frowned.

Combat Masters have experienced life and death; they know what to do when danger approaches. They can quickly cast aside past emotions and fight with all their might.

Master Teachers, however, were somewhat lacking in this regard; they were too emotional.

"He..."

Elder Zeng's face was filled with conflict. He gritted his teeth and said, "Yes!"

Taking a deep breath, he flipped his palm and met the attack.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

All the surrounding soulless golden figures charged forward at this moment, trapping everyone in the center.

Rumble!

With so many Nascent Divinity realm experts attacking simultaneously, everyone immediately felt immense pressure, on the verge of being overwhelmed at any moment.

"Teacher Zhang, what should we do now?"

After splitting two charging golden figures with two consecutive palm strikes, Hall Master Liao couldn't help but ask.

These fellows felt no pain and knew no death; they wouldn't stop moving unless their heads were chopped off. With a hundred of them attacking simultaneously, even if everyone present was strong, they could be severely injured at any moment.

"These soulless golden figures must be controlled by someone to act," Zhang Xuan said with a frown, "If we find and kill the controller, the danger will naturally be resolved..."

These golden figures must be controlled by someone to attack like this. As long as they found this person, the hidden danger should be resolved.

"Alright, we'll hold them off," Hall Master Wei roared, gritting his teeth, "Teacher Zhang, search as quickly as possible!"

Hall Master Wei gritted his teeth and roared, "Everyone, form a formation! Protect Teacher Zhang, Hall Master Xing, and Master Wu!"

Whoosh!

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone immediately formed a circle, shielding Zhang Xuan, Hall Master Xing, and Master Wu inside. They watched their surroundings vigilantly.

The formation Zhang Xuan had taught them, when combined, was extremely powerful. Even with hundreds of golden figures charging, they couldn't break through in a short time.

"Teacher Zhang, should we intervene...?"

Protected in the center, Master Wu had a conflicted expression as he secretly sent a telepathic message.

His injuries had long since been healed by Teacher Zhang's true energy; his current weakness was merely a disguise.

"Don't rush," Zhang Xuan replied via telepathy, "You two are our trump cards; you cannot be exposed yet..."

"But, I'm afraid they won't be able to hold on..."

"It's fine," Zhang Xuan said, "Although these soulless golden figures are formidable, it will be difficult for them to break through the formation. Let me first see who is controlling them; perhaps I can find the whereabouts of Emperor Qingtian's teacher!"

In fact, with his strength, he could easily break through the siege of a hundred golden figures. The reason he hadn't moved was to follow the clues, find out who was controlling these fellows, and then capture them!

If it was the ruthless individual, it would be even simpler. He could find their location, pinpoint their weaknesses, and then subdue them in one fell swoop.

Once successful, the hidden danger to the Master Teacher Pavilion would be completely resolved.

His Eye of Insight pulsed, and his spiritual perception spread out simultaneously as Zhang Xuan looked towards the golden figures.

They were refined from living Master Teachers. Their souls were obliterated, but their physical bodies were preserved. In each of their eyes, a flickering flame could be seen, which must be a special kind of will.

The reason they could attack the group was precisely because they were being controlled by this will.

"Let's see where these wills are coming from!"

Zhang Xuan randomly chose a golden figure and examined it closely. His eyes glowed, and the intricate patterns within them multiplied. Immediately, a thin thread appeared in the room, connected to the figure.

These thin threads were like a fishing net. Each golden figure was connected to one, like string puppets. All the threads converged and extended straight into the depths of the hall.

"This fellow has such powerful soul energy..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes grew serious.

For one person to control a hundred golden figures to execute different attacks and engage in different battles, this required extremely powerful soul energy; even he would find it difficult to achieve.

"There's a formation blocking the way ahead..." Zhang Xuan frowned.

Looking further inside, before the threads reached their end, a formation blocked his view, preventing him from seeing further.

If he couldn't see the end, he wouldn't be able to pinpoint the ruthless individual's exact location, and they would remain in a passive position.

"Everyone, hold on! I'm going ahead to investigate..."

His body swayed, and he flew out from the group's protection. Zhang Xuan rapidly flew in the direction the thin threads extended.

Only by engaging these golden figures in combat could he ensure the opponent kept controlling them. Otherwise, once all the golden figures were dealt with and control ceased, the threads would break, and he wouldn't be able to find the source.

Whoosh!

Before he had flown far, three golden figures charged over, tearing towards him with brutal force.

"Teacher Zhang, be careful..."

Hall Master Liao hurriedly shouted.

Before his words even fell, he saw Teacher Zhang in mid-air, not even turning his head or glancing at the golden figures, simply tapping his foot lightly in the air.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The three golden figures immediately plummeted from the air, lying flat on the ground, unable to lift their heads.

"Gah! Gah!"

They struggled desperately, but the golden figures were as if pinned down by a great mountain, utterly unable to move.

"So strong..."

Hall Master Liao's mouth twitched.

These golden figures were fearless in death; even he would find it hard to defeat them, yet Teacher Zhang had simply tapped his foot and pinned them to the ground. The power was so immense that probably three of him wouldn't be a match!

"Half a month ago, when I attacked him, I barely escaped with my life; I couldn't resist," he mused. "Such a short time has passed, and he's already this formidable. This talent..."

He shook his head with a bitter smile.

A little over half a month ago, when he first met Teacher Zhang, he, Hall Master Xing, and Hall Master Wei had attacked him simultaneously, almost killing him. Although his combat awareness was strong, his strength and attacks were too weak to withstand their assault.

Now, even if the three of them combined forces, it seemed they wouldn't be his match!

Having lived for several hundred years, he had seen many geniuses. But the speed of this person's progress, even witnessing it firsthand, felt incredible and unheard of.

Unaware of the profound shock his casual move had caused Hall Master Liao, Zhang Xuan, with the three golden figures he had pinned down no longer attacking, continued forward.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

He didn't seem to make any overt movements, but any golden figures that charged towards him were sent flying back, sticking to the ground or walls, unable to detach themselves.

With his cultivation reaching the peak Embryonic Soul realm, his combat power was already comparable to a mid-stage Leaving Aperture realm expert. These Nascent Divinity realm golden figures were simply no match for him.

After walking for a while and batting away over twenty attacking golden figures, Zhang Xuan finally reached the end of the hall.

The fine lines in his eyes disappeared here, seeming to extend deep into the wall, or perhaps ceasing to exist entirely.

"It's a Heaven's Creation mechanism!"

Zhang Xuan glanced at the wall and frowned.

This was no ordinary wall; it was a mechanism. Clearly, the individual controlling the will of these golden figures was hidden behind it.

"These mechanisms might trap others," he muttered, "but to block me..."

He shook his head and lightly touched the surface with his palm.

Whoosh!

Books appeared in his mind. With a mental tap, the knowledge within them became his memories.

"It was actually set up by a peak 7-star Grand Mechanist..." he murmured, "It seems there's also a Grand Mechanist among those golden figures!"

After reading the information, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Qinyuan City might not have a Grand Mechanist Guild, but that didn't mean the entire Qinyuan Empire didn't.

A mechanism set up by a peak 7-star Grand Mechanist would be very difficult for an ordinary person to decipher without knowing its internal structure. But he was different; with the knowledge from the Library of Heaven's Path entering his mind, he already understood this mechanism inside and out.

He formed his fingers into a sword and continuously tapped the wall seven or eight times.

Click! Clack!

A series of whirring mechanical sounds rang out. Immediately, the wall before him split open to both sides, revealing a passage. The thin threads that had disappeared earlier were now extending deeper inside.

Without hesitation, he walked straight in. Zhang Xuan had only taken two steps when he suddenly felt a sword qi bolt directly towards his glabella, shooting fiercely at him.