Chapter 75 - On the Moon
“Ey? There seems to be a silhouette looming in the array!”
When the Lord of Jinxiu Island, Xiutian Chen, was closely watching the battle in the seals, all of a sudden, his face slightly changed as he could vaguely see a figure dashing into the slaughtering arrays and disappearing from his sights.
“What is it Brother Xiutian?” Sulphur Island Lord, Yan Yunsheng quickly asked.
“Nothing, it seems like my injuries are messing with my senses, I'm having some giddiness and my vision is showing me illusions.”
Xiutian Chen laughed and shook his head, How is it possible for someone to ever leisurely amble into such an incredibly powerful seal? It must be that I'm ... Ey?
He exclaimed in shock, faintly he could see the same shadowy figure looming in the seal, he rubbed his eyes and gazed at it again, but there was nothing, it disappeared as if it was never there.
“If someone ever enters the slaughtering array, there will be more fiery dragons emerging out, but the numbers of fiery dragons are still the same; so clearly, no one is entering it.”
However, the monster magnate's heart was still palpitating rapidly, he was engulfed in unease, Furthermore, no one can ever walk so freely in the seals. My wounds are so severe that I'm suffering from hallucinations and illusions ... Oh god, I can see it again! Illusions, it must be the misperceptions of my senses!’
Zhong Yue dashed across over a hundred slaughtering arrays, and finally, he broke through the eighth array formation and arrived at the ninth.
“This is the ninth layer, and I've set it up as a spatial array formation.”
Xin Huo was proud to introduce his creation, “When the array formation is triggered, the 108 spatial arrays in it will unceasingly disrupt the dimensional space order, the intruder will never be able to break through nor retreat, he will be stuck here for the rest of his life, either to die of hunger or old age. Not only that, but I've also placed three slaughtering arrays for every spatial array, they are strong enough to slay a cultivator magnate. Ey, weird....”
Zhong Yue was anxious, he quickly asked, “What is it?”
Xin Huo leaped out from Zhong Yue's psyche ocean and stood on Zhong Yue's shoulder; he examined carefully at the arrays and mumbled, “Weren’t there 108 spatial arrays? Why is there an extra array making it 109 spatial arrays ... Could it be that I’d inattentively placed an extra array?”
Zhong Yue his face darkened as he said, “Xin Huo, can you be any less reliable? An extra array and you had no idea at all?”
“I must have accidentally placing down an extra array in excitement back then....”
The little flame's face turned bitterly sour, he crouched down on Zhong Yue's shoulder and said, “Now this is a big issue. The ninth layer seal consisted of 108 spatial arrays, I've specifically arranged them in such a way so that there will be a lifeline left behind. But now, with the extra spatial array, the lifeline is no more.”
Zhong Yue furrowed his brows and said, “So that means, this is a death array? A guaranteed death to those that enter?”
The little flame nodded in confirmation.
Sighing, Zhong Yue heaved a deep breath, “Is there any other way we can slip past it?”
“None at all, the only option we have now is to destroy it, obliterate the whole ninth array formation.”
Xin Huo contemplated the solutions and answered, “It's not difficult to break the seal, but the problem lies in the consequences of doing so. After we destroy the ninth layer, all layers in the seal right here will also collapse. I've arranged the seal layers to superimpose each other just like a building; it'd be hard to demolish it from the top as we would have to do it layer by layer, but if we were to demolish it at the foundation, the whole building would collapse right away.”
The monster ace cultivators entered the seal all the way into the eighth layer array formation, but the seals were not actually broken off, they had only been neutralized and cracked a safe passage in the layers of the seal.
Whereas Xin Huo's suggestion was to completely obliterate all nine layers of array formations in the seal.
Zhong Yue ran the thought in his mind for a moment and asked, “If all the array formations are destroyed, does it mean that everyone can enter the teleportation portal?”
”The teleportation portal can only teleport one person.”
Xin Huo shook and answered his question, “Teleportation will require a tremendous amount of energy, the portal will siphon all of the energy in the volcano in an instant, magma and lava across a thousand miles will congeal into rocks! Even if you don't destroy the array formations, right at the moment you commence the teleportation, the portal will expend all of the energy, and the nine layers of array formations will also lose their effectiveness.
Zhong Yue then nodded and asked, “How do I do it?”
“Simple. I say, you do.”
Xin Huo then instructed, “Right there, behind the magma cataract, there is a hidden jade flask, take it out.”
Zhong Yue moved forward, he burst his psyche to materialize a dragon claw and reached out into the magma. he groped around for the jade flask, and indeed, it was there.
It was tens of feet tall, crafted by an unknown type of jade and engraved with exquisite and elegant carvings. Zhong Yue barely managed to catch a glimpse of it before it broke into tiny shards right after he extracted it, the shattered jade fragments splintered across the ground.
“This jade flask was in fact, a god's treasure. But sadly, the strain of tens of thousands of years acting as the core of the sealing array has gravely eroded it; it is normal for it to shatter into shards the moment you've relieved it of the burden.”
Xin Huo smiled and said, “The ninth layer of array formations in the seal will destroy itself, young tribesman of Fuxi god race, prepare to enter the teleportation portal, you are going to the moon!”
Zhong Yue was startled and his mind went utterly blank, he shouted out at Xin Huo, “This jade flask is the array formation's core? You've placed the core right behind the magma waterfall? Did not even the slightest fear of the others breaking your array formation cross your mind?”
Before he could finish his words, the 109 spatial arrays started crumbling, the space in front of Zhong Yue was twisted and distorted, one after another, the spatial arrays whirled and disappeared in thin air.
“The core of the ninth array formation is also the core of the whole seal, who would ever know that I would place the seal's core behind the magma cataract?”
Xin Huo said proudly, “Even if they've arrived at the ninth layer, they would only be thinking about going further and deeper into the seal, none of them would ever realize that the key would be right in front of them!"
Zhong Yue mustered his strength and sprinted down, he could hear the sounds of rocks crumbling above him, the eighth layer of the seal was starting to collapse; the volcano was getting sultrier, the once refreshing air turned an inhospitably burning hot!
The seal siphoned away the energy from the volcano to operate itself, but as the seal was disintegrating, the immense volcanic power was released!
The cultivators in the eighth array formation were watching the battle when all of a sudden, the surroundings started to quake. Their faces changed drastically and the mighty fiery dragons in their eyes suddenly dispersed into thin air!
The totem carvings around in the air and the magma cataract were also disintegrating!
“What is happening?” Someone shouted.
Totem carvings on the volcanic rock pillars were also starting to disappear, the cliff crumbled and lava splashed down from the sky, blazing heat glutted the surrounding air!
The young aces that were locked in combat immediately sensed the drastic change in atmosphere and realized that the pressure of the seal was expunged. They quickly stopped and pulled back and to look down at which their countenance contorted in shock.
The seal, it self-destructed.
Gu Hongzi was the first to realize the circumstances, he released an overbearing whistle as he unveiled his true beast form – a big black bird flitting amidst gale and lightning, and hastily, he fluttered downwards!
The god's treasure!
Qiu Qingshan, Lang Qingyun and the like quickly realized it too, they immediately left Feng Wuji, Lei Hong and the others followed behind Gu Hongzi down to the ninth array formation.
At the same time, the monster ace cultivators were exhilarated, one after another, the monsters leaped down from mid-air into the base of the volcano.
Even the Sulphur Island Lord Yan Yunsheng and Jinxiu Island Lord Xiutian Chen could not restrain themselves. They dashed towards the bottom of the volcano in the midst of the ensuing chaos.
The god's treasure.
The monsters had sacrificed way more than what could be described in words; tens of thousands of arduous years spent, the death of innumerable peak figures, and the lifetimes of analysis and research done – all for the sole purpose of breaking through the seal.
But now, right before their eyes, the seal was disintegrating on its own, did it mean that an unimpeded path to the god's treasures would be exposed to them?
“Senior Martial Brother Feng?” Jun Sixie placed her palm on her zither, she gazed at Feng Wuji and asked.
Feng Wuji hesitated for a second and he turned to Lei Hong and Fang Jiange, “What do the two senior martial brothers think?”
“Fu Shan, let's go.”
Fang Jiange said, “We will wait for them at the volcanic crater, and we will slay whoever comes out alive.”
“Good idea!”
Lei Hong's eyes shined with excitement, he guffawed and said, “As long as we control the crater, it is impossible for them to run away!”
The four of them then turned and flew up towards the volcanic crater.
At the same time, Zhong Yue had reached to the teleportation portal; it was an array formed from many stone tablets, they were arranged to surround the array in concentric circles extending out to at least a few hundred layers!
In the middle of the array, where the smallest circle was, the ground was as crystal clear as a mirror, reflecting the pristine image of a moon on it, paradoxically seemingly close at hand and yet, further than one can imagine.
The mirror was around three feet in diameter, just the right size to fit one person on it.
Zhong Yue carried the Fang Blade on his back and stood on it, he asked. “Xin Huo, how long will it take to reach to the moon ... En?”
Zhong Yue stumbled upon the surroundings, without him realizing anything at all, he had left the volcano and arrived at a devastated palace.
He was standing on a teleportation portal made of stone, one which was even grander and larger than the one under the volcano!
Zhong Yue looked down, and he could see a sky-blue planet floating in his eyes as the Sun shone and illuminated half of it – the astonishing scene was utterly breathtaking.
“I'm already on the moon?”
He recollected his thoughts and examined the palace, the plaque on it wrote two words.
‘Moon Palace.’
Zhong Yue was baffled, “This Moon Palace, is there someone staying here?”
“Once there was a goddess that stayed here, but she had died of age before I went into slumber, leaving behind only this palace.”
Xin Huo stood atop Zhong Yue's shoulder and said, “Don't leave the perimeter, the air only exists within the radius of three miles around the palace, any further than that and the lack of air will suffocate you. Your prowess is still far from allowing you to roam the galaxy without the need to breathe. Right here, you can reach out your senses to the fullest extent and manifest the strongest moon spirit ... NO!”
The little flame suddenly hopped into the air, visibly distressed as he cried out in panic, “The moon ... No, no, it can't be! Who stole the moon, and simply left the crust behind?”