Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension Chapter 1524 - 825: Test Subject

"Crunch, crunch!!"

Nearby, the lovely features of Master Ming Yue contorted in fury, her teeth grinding audibly as she spat out bitterly, "That spineless wretch! The moment trouble strikes, he bolts alone, utterly lacking any backbone!"

Even without naming him directly, all present understood exactly who Master Ming Yue targeted with her wrath.

A dark scowl marred Zhao Yongxian's visage, but he ignored Master Ming Yue's taunts entirely.

Spotting this, Master Ming Yue prepared to unleash more words, yet a glimpse from the corner of her eye of a towering silhouette left her utterly mute.

Zhao Sheng descended gracefully to the earth, clutching in his right grip a bird with azure plumage that initially resembled a commonplace barnyard goose.

Yet Zhao Yongxian and Master Ming Yue found their eyes nearly overwhelmed by the sight.

"This... it's a Green-winged Roc?!" Zhao Yongxian stared at the azure avian, his shock profound and complete.

Zhao Sheng stroked the creature's crown and abruptly snapped his finger.

A resounding bang echoed as the azure Roc thrashed wildly, letting out a piercing screech, while a tremendous aura burst from its form, forcing the pair of Golden Core Masters to tremble and stagger back multiple paces.

In that instant, more than a dozen chains of five hues materialized, binding the Green-winged Roc securely.

The fiercer its resistance grew, the more the chains constricted, ultimately digging profoundly into its very flesh.

Exhaustion overtook the Green-winged Roc, leaving it gasping faintly, its neck drooping limply and form still as though lifeless.

With effortless nonchalance, Zhao Sheng flung the Green-winged Roc aside, his countenance serene as he declared, "I'm placing this creature in your temporary custody. When Taoist Zhao comes back, he can handle it himself."

Zhao Yongxian's eyelid spasmed, having instantly seized upon the phrase "Taoist Zhao."

"Does this mean... precisely when...?" Shock and terror churned within him, as he pondered in deep silence.

Abruptly, Master Ming Yue surged ahead, lifting the Green-winged Roc aloft, her tone now obsequious, "Fear not, esteemed senior! I'll guard this beast with utmost vigilance."

Despite her words, profound remorse gnawed at Master Ming Yue's core, yearning to slice her own tongue for perpetually drawing calamity upon herself.

Far from dim-witted, she perceived the individual's unfathomable might plainly—a Nascent Soul Cultivator without question, for who else could seize a living Nascent Soul Mirror Demon Peng?

Unbeknownst to Zhao Yongxian and Master Ming Yue, Zhao Sheng had not merely ensnared a Nascent Soul Demon Peng but had also confined the son of the Demon Country's sovereign inside the Five Directions Treasure Mirror.

One might say they already viewed Zhao Sheng's prowess as extraordinarily lofty, though they still vastly underrated his actual capabilities.

"This assault by the demon clan struck not just the Zhao Family's encampment, but also brought ruin to the He and Wei Families. I'll be back soon; handle this in the meantime."

After a concise directive, Zhao Sheng morphed into a streak of piercing light, hurtling toward the southern reaches of the Heavenly Rift Valley.

Over the ensuing half-day, he traversed south and then north to the allied family bastions, slaying two Nascent Soul Mirror demon beasts in succession and preventing the total destruction of those forces.

The He and Wei Families endured heavy losses in the chaos, with the He Family Ancestor gravely wounded and compelled to withdraw to their ancestral grounds for recovery.

Out of four Golden Core Masters, three met their end, while countless young Foundation Establishment cultivators fell, painting a scene of utter devastation.

In the end, this catastrophe wiped out all previous achievements of the three clans, forcing them nearly to begin anew from nothing.

Forty days flew by in an instant.

In that span, the Zhao, He, and Wei Families consolidated at one spot, managing to erect a fresh outpost with difficulty, as minorly injured Foundation Establishment youths mended and graver wounds eased.

That particular day, Lord Zhao Zhuanggong arrived at the locale upon a massive vessel of gleaming silver-white.

Hearing of the catastrophe from more than a month prior, Lord Zhao Zhuanggong brimmed with astonishment and rage, unable to restrain his denunciation of the demon clan's brazen audacity.

Witnessing this, Zhao Yongxian hastened to present the Nascent Soul Realm Green-winged Roc and shared his doubts.

As Lord Zhao Zhuanggong absorbed the account, his features quivered, a shocking hypothesis forming in his thoughts.

In truth, during his journey back to the Heavenly Rift Valley, he had beheld that enormous, fathomless chasm spanning thousands of feet across, realizing full well that even at full power, he could never forge such an immense depression.

Such power to reshape the landscape with one blow was usually the domain of a Divinity Transformation True Monarch or a peak cultivator at Half-step Divinity Transformation.

With this realization, Lord Zhao Zhuanggong grew restless, urgently commanding, "Yongxian, lead me at once to honor Master Shaoling!"

Zhao Yongxian noted the ancestor's urgent demeanor and respectfully replied, shaking his head forthwith, "To report to ancestor, after emerging a month past and entrusting the Demon Peng to me, Senior Shao Ling appeared merely once or twice more before disappearing. At present, Senior Shao Ling's location remains unknown to me."

Upon hearing this, Lord Zhao Zhuanggong's face froze, and following a brief pause, he let out a heavy sigh, easing back into his seat.

"Alas, the ways of a true expert are ever mysterious. It appears our Zhao Family falls short in merit and ability, failing to keep such a powerhouse. This meeting marks a destined close. If only I'd realized sooner, I'd have regarded him as a Dao companion. Regret avails nothing now!"

At his side, Zhao Yongxian seemed on the verge of speaking yet held back, his expression bearing a peculiar hue.

Detecting this anomaly, Lord Zhao Zhuanggong questioned mildly, "Yongxian, what is it you want to mention?"

Zhao Yongxian spoke candidly, "Ancestor, Senior Shao Ling never mentioned departing... He surely wouldn't vanish without a word!"

"Hmm?" Lord Zhao Zhuanggong's look shifted, his gaze sharpening intensely.

...

Five thousand miles southward from the Sky-splitting Valley sprawls a barren marshland.

At present, thick mists of white drifted over the marsh, churning and twisting, now and then revealing bursts of vivid, prismatic glows.

In the fog's heart, the Central Earth Mirror hovered aloft, pouring forth vast quantities of lustrous golden radiance.

The other four Treasure Mirrors claimed the cardinal points, each beaming forth dazzling illumination.

Arrayed in a majestic ring, the Five Directions Treasure Mirrors enclosed a space where Jun Tianxing bolted erratically, unleashing a barrage of Divine Secret Skills time and again, desperate to break free from this ethereal prison.

Regrettably, whenever he breached the edge, a multicolored glow arose, swallowing him entirely.

In the blink of an eye, Jun Tianxing rematerialized at the starting point, the sequence mimicking teleportation.

Arms folded across his torso, Zhao Sheng perched atop the Central Earth Mirror, scrutinizing every event unfolding beneath with keen attention.

As time dragged on, Jun Tianxing buzzed about like a fly sans direction, whirling ceaselessly within the ring, sometimes briefly slipping beyond only to snap back to the center.

While it appeared comical on the surface, peril simmered beneath.

Jun Tianxing's might neared that of a Divinity Transformation True Monarch, capable of evading Human Clan God Transformation experts with ease.

Yet ensnared in the Mirage Cloud Formation drawing from Five Directions and Five Elements, even this mighty Transformed Demon proved helpless against the deceptive array, unable to unravel its mysteries.

Hours later, Zhao Sheng dispatched a thread of Divine Thought into the Central Earth Mirror.

At once, the Central Earth Mirror hummed vibrantly, projecting a ray from its face that shrouded Jun Tianxing.

Jun Tianxing's expression twisted in horror, his frame abruptly growing leaden, wracked by excruciating torment as though crushed under an immense peak.

Soon thereafter, azure luminescence from the Eastern Kongsang Mirror struck Jun Tianxing, sending his body into spasms while thick tendrils sprouted over his arms, legs, and torso.

When the Southern Haoyang Mirror's gleam activated, the tendrils blazed up, flushing Jun Tianxing's cheeks crimson and soaking him in perspiration, as if engulfed in a blazing inferno.

Over the subsequent four hours, the Western Dandelion Light Mirror and Northern Mirage Cloud Mirror took turns unleashing their fury, pushing Jun Tianxing to the brink of demise.