Forty millenniums of cul.., p.974
Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 974
After being enhanced by the crystal suits, they boasted combat ability at least in the beginning level of the Nascent Soul Stage, and their remote firepower could not have been fiercer!
Furthermore, he had twenty-eight high-level Cultivators who had knelt and surrendered to him. The traitors had no choice but to follow him to the end now!
Even many of the Cultivators who were standing had other plans like that snitch. They were suddenly attacking their companions, trying to impress their new master with their contributions!
"Protect the deity!"
"Shoot down Qi Zhongdao and the rest of them, and buy more time for the deity!"
"It is not a deity but a devil that must be eliminated!"
"Idiots! Take down this so-called Deity Raincloud, and we can draw more benefits out of him. Chances are that more Cloud Qin Gold Statues are waiting for us!"
"Surrender now!"
"Repent now!"
"Ahh!"
The Cultivators who had been mixed up previously were completely lost. Everybody's spiritual energy was surging out like flames, their eyes bloodshot and their killing intent raging!
The ten or so Fiery Phoenix imperial guards marched toward Qi Zhongdao and the other super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators without considering the cost, trying to stall the enemy even at the cost of their own lives so that Deity Raincloud would have more time to catch his breath and organize a counterattack.
The Cultivators who were loyal to the court, Cloud Qin, the Heaven Battering Army, the White Lotus Cult… or in general, the Ancient Sages Sector, were marching toward those Fiery Phoenix imperial guards!
The 'pre-Immortal Cultivators' who had just pledged loyalty to their new master and were obsessed with the idea of ascending to the deities' realm and embarking on the path of immortality, naturally, harassed those Cultivators without letting go of them!
They were like a bunch of vipers who were biting each other's tails. There was no telling who was going to be torn apart by the enemy!
When everybody was mired in a hellish slaughterhouse, only two people remained calm as if they were not involved in the issue.
Li Yao and Long Yangjun!
Li Yao watched Long Yangjun approach a Colossus stealthily and crawl into it without alarming anyone. He could not help but feel overjoyed!
However, after only several seconds, Long Yangjun crawled out again and made a gesture of confusion toward Li Yao. She simply leapt out and joined Qi Zhongdao, Han Baling, and the rest of them to attack Deity Raincloud together!
Are you serious? You don't know how to pilot a Colossus? You are a shame for the elite warriors of the Nuwa Clan's army!
Li Yao gritted his teeth so hard that smoke was almost popping out from his mouth.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As Long Yangjun joined the battle, of the ten top experts of the Ancient Sages Sector who were close to or even beyond the peak of the Nascent Soul Stage, Li Yao and Emperor Phoenix were the only two who had not launched attacks yet!
Faced with such a luxury lineup, even Deity Raincloud in the black-skeleton-like Colossus felt overwhelming pressure. As the blade auras and the primeval treasures exploded around him nonstop, the black-skeleton-like Colossus was drowned in a series of dazzling blasts!
Chapter 1500: The Last Choice! |
Li Yao had been lurking on the dome the whole time and moving weirdly both like an ape and a venomous spider while he searched for a fatal weakness of the black-skeleton-like Colossus.
The sparks of the blasts and explosions blinked inside his eyes that were as dark as the night sky.
When the black-skeleton-like Colossus extended both its arms and almost all the whips to attack the other super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators, Li Yao took action!
He stomped on the dome so hard that it nearly broke. With the counterforce, he lunged out and avoided the jabs of two crystal clusters at a dangerously close distance. Finally, he landed on the back of the black-skeleton-like Colossus softly.
Hiss!
Li Yao's skin immediately burnt into a series of blisters because of the surging flames of spiritual energy on the Colossus. Blackened, he seemed to have fallen into magma!
It was because the anti-infiltration system of the Colossus had been fully activated.
The Colossi were large magical equipment whose height varied from ten meters to dozens of meters. Although they were suitable for the super large targets such as starships, star fortresses, and planetary strongholds, they could be a bit clumsy when they were faced with crystal suits that were usually two to three meters tall or even the Cultivators without the crystal suits who were extremely nimble, especially when such small targets drew close.
The anti-infiltration system was deployed to address such an issue.
It could be compared to a layer of invisible thorns and strings made of spiritual energy that enveloped the Colossi.
Li Yao had dashed to the back of the black-skeleton-like Colossus without the protection of the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit and been pierced brutally by the thorns of spiritual energy. He immediately felt ten thousand arrows piercing through his heart, and he almost fell off the Colossus involuntarily!
He gritted his teeth and dealt with it, not planning to summon the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit.
Furthermore, the situation was too chaotic. Qi Zhongdao and the other super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators were launching their most powerful magical equipment toward the black-skeleton-like Colossus without any reserve.
His Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, like the crystal suits from the Imperium of True Human Beings worn by the 'Fiery Phoenix imperial guards', was a product of the modern Cultivation civilization. Although they were of apparently different styles, the locals of the Ancient Sages Sector who had no knowledge of crystal suits might not be able to tell the difference at all.
If he put on his crystal suit recklessly, and the super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators mistook him for another enemy and attack… it would be quite awkward!
More importantly, Li Yao was still not sure about everything. He felt that there was still more to the Divine Palace.
Right now, the issues with Long Yangjun and Emperor Phoenix had mostly been explained, and the special agent of the Imperium of True Human Beings had revealed his hideous face, too. However, Li Yao still felt that there was more to uncover.
He did not have any proof. It was just his intuition.
Although his intuition could prove to be quite unrealizable at times, it had also saved his life many times!
Therefore, Li Yao decided to believe in his not-so-reliable intuition one more time. He would not expose his identity unless he was forced to before the last anomaly was found out!
He moaned feebly. Blood was flowing out of his nostrils and his gums, and his hair was standing up and emitting the burnt smell because of the electric shock. His fingernails were exploding before they darted out of the fingers!
Li Yao gritted his teeth and competed with the thorns of spiritual energy of the black-skeleton-like Colossus with his own greenish spiritual energy. Grabbing the uneven plate armor on the surface of the Colossus, he crawled into its neck one step after another!
Shua!
Suddenly, a few whips rushed close, trying to blow away the little bug that had crawled onto the body of the Colossus!
Li Yao reacted quickly enough to dash to the side. The whips slapped the back of the black-skeleton-like Colossus brutally, raising a large cluster of black and red sparks!
It was obvious that 'Deity Raincloud' had not gained full control over the black-skeleton-like Colossus yet. Otherwise, he would not have made such a clumsy mistake!
However, the overall situation was not necessarily in Li Yao's favor, because the ten or so Fiery Phoenix imperial guards wearing crystal suits had lunged close!
The Cultivators loyal to the Ancient Sages Sector who were chasing after them were stalled by the 'pre-Immortal Cultivators' who had surrendered to Deity Raincloud!
The Cultivators and the 'pre-Immortal Cultivators' had been the closest brothers and comrades a moment ago. They were most familiar with each other's attack patterns and the features of each other's magical equipment. Now that they were engaged in a fierce battle, it was impossible for the battle to end quickly. Nobody could break free from it!
Therefore, Li Yao, Qi Zhongdao, and other super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators were faced with not just a powerful Colossus but also ten or so Fiery Phoenix imperial guards who were extremely tricky to deal with in their crystal suits!
"The monk and I will stop them! You go and dig open the iron shell quickly!" Ba Xiaoyu shouted at the top of his voice. He and Master Bitter Cicada charged at the Fiery Phoenix imperial guards, only to be caught in an interconnected net of fire that was almost like a boiling swamp. They were not able to break free from it at all!
Qi Changsheng and Wan Mingzhu looked at each other. The Heaven Battering King's body turned translucent again and looked like an iron statue that had been heated to thousands of degrees. Mother White Lotus was unleashing flames of spiritual energy that looked like blossoming lotus flowers, too!
The two of them charged at the Fiery Phoenix imperial guards. The four super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators worked together and finally managed to block the charge of the Fiery Phoenix imperial guards!
As a result, Li Yao, Qi Zhongdao, Han Baling, Yan Liren, and Long Yangjun were the only five top experts attacking the black-skeleton-like Colossus.
The pressure on them immediately soared.
Li Yao felt particularly overwhelmed. The invisible thorns seemed to have pierced deeply into his nerves and bones. With every step that he took, he would feel excruciating pain from every cell in his body!
The five of them all felt that their spiritual energy was going to run out.
Even though they were burning their life and soul to unleash their spiritual energy to the most brilliant maximum in order to compete with the Colossus, such a state certainly could not last long.
After fighting for such a long time, Deity Raincloud might not have consumed much of his spiritual energy and physical strength, but their breathing was becoming more and more haggard.
Pa!
Qi Zhongdao had to manipulate the Heaven Flipping Seal and dodge Deity Raincloud's attacks at the same time. Finally, he was caught by the fiendish claws of the black-skeleton-like Colossus in his sluggishness and was blown away!
Boom!
Deity Raincloud seemed to be getting more and more experienced with the black-skeleton-like Colossus as the fight continued. Faced with only four super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators, his agility was greatly improved. Having just blown away Qi Zhongdao, he had a head-on clash with Han Baling. Naturally, Han Baling was no match for the Colossus that was more than thirty meters tall. He vomited blood and retreated quickly like a dry leaf in a storm.
Hoooo!
After Deity Raincloud blew back two super Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators with two hands, the hole that looked like a mouth below the cross on the face suddenly opened. A pillar of light around one meter in diameter suddenly erupted out toward Long Yangjun. Although it did not hit Long Yangjun, it caught Long Yangjun in the turbulence of spiritual energy. She suddenly lost all her speed and fell to the ground as if she were being snatched by an invisible hand!
Crack!
Yan Liren was the only one who was still slashing his sword as calmly as ever!
His every attack hit exactly the same spot on the black-skeleton-like Colossus' breastplate, where Deity Raincloud crawled in, without the slightest error. The seemingly indestructible plate armor of the Colossus had been cut with a tiny crack by the terrifying Sword Maniac!
It was a pity that, before he had the chance to further expand the crack, he did not have the support of any powerful companions around him except for Li Yao!
"Hehehehehehe…" Deity Raincloud's low laughter was echoing from the crack. "Not even wearing divine armor and with just an ordinary sword, you can deal damage to the Clos… Cloud Qin Gold Statue. Yan Liren, you truly deserved the title of best sword Cultivator of the Ancient Sages Sector!
"Killing such a talented swordsman who has a good chance to break into the Divinity Transformation Stage will be too wasteful!
"Stop now! Don't act foolishly like a moth that is darting into a fire! I can make an exception for you and pardon you for your impertinence. You will be granted with the most abundant reward!"
Yan Liren was not moved at all. Even his eyebrows, should there have been any, would not have furrowed. He was still focused on shooting his sword auras at the crack on the breastplate of the black-skeleton-like Colossus!
There was neither sadness nor delight on his face. He did not seem to be in the middle of a fierce fight but simply having some fun!
"And you!"
Having gradually assumed the advantage, Deity Raincloud grew more and more at ease in his tone and his posture. He turned the enormous skull head toward Li Yao, who had just crawled to the Colossus' shoulder.
"Master Spiritual Vulture, you are truly a pleasant surprise for me. I didn't know that you would be resolute enough to crawl on the surface of the Cloud Qin Gold Statue for so long while holding back the excruciating pain!
"But it's useless. All your struggles are futile in front of the powerful treasures of the deities' realm. Just give up!"
With his mockery, dozens of whips rose up from various directions. The sharp crystal clusters at their front ends opened slowly like bloody mouths, and redness—signifying intense spiritual energy—was blazing!
They gazed at Li Yao like countless crimson eyes!
Li Yao's heart fell to the bottomless valley.
But a crazy fighting will was rising slowly from that valley.
With everything proceeding so far, it was meaningless to conceal his identity.
He did not know why this special agent of the Imperium had not established star beacons and summoned the main troops of the expedition army to the Ancient Sages Sector in the past years.
However, he would apparently do so after he occupied the Nuwa warship.
Once the Nuwa warship and the Ancient Sages Sector fell to the expedition army of the Imperium, and the Core Formation Stage Cultivators and the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators here ended up as the mercenaries of the Imperium, the federation would be doomed to failure!
Li Yao would rather die before he allowed such a thing to happen.
Thus, he had only one option!
Summon the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit and have one last attempt to see if he could break through the crack caused by Yan Liren's sword in order to have a head-on clash with Deity Raincloud!
Come on!
Let's see which of us is braver. This Colossus is mine!
Li Yao roared in his heart. His Cosmos Rings almost turned into exploding supernovas. His telepathic thoughts had already flooded into them and found the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, ready to retrieve it.
Yan Liren launched the last attack with perfect timing, piercing through the crack into the spiritual residence of the black-skeleton-like Colossus!
Right then, abrupt changes took place inside the Colossus!
Chapter 1501: Crazy Spiritual Vulture! |
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
A series of weird fracturing sounds were echoing from the breastplate of the black-skeleton-like Colossus, whose arms and legs were suddenly uncoordinated. It could barely keep its balance and shook like a drunk giant. The magical equipment that it used to perceive the surroundings seemed to be malfunctioning. It nearly tripped itself over on the maintenance platform behind it. Stomping on the ground hard, it left an enormous footprint.
It was a sign that the Colossus' spiritual energy was running out of control and overflowing crazily!
No. It was not the fracture of certain internal structures. Some sort of 'being' seemed to be struggling over the command of the black-skeleton-like Colossus with Deity Raincloud!
"This is—" Deity Raincloud's astonished moan echoed deep inside the spiritual residence of the black-skeleton-like Colossus. The moan was soon replaced by a shriek. "No!"
All the crimson veins around the Colossus were waving crazily like spellbound vipers. They were not attacking Li Yao and Yan Liren but aiming at the Colossus' own joints and critical parts!
After dozens of explosions, they had truly cut into the Colossus' own joints. It had essentially tied itself up!
That was rather weird!
"What's going on?" Li Yao was greatly surprised, too.
In light of the unexpected change, he contained the urge to summon his crystal suit. He sensed that the thorns of spiritual energy and the shield on the surface of the black-skeleton-like Colossus had entirely vanished!
Whatever had happened, this was their best opportunity!
Li Yao and Yan Liren looked at each other.
Over the past three months, the two of them had spent almost every day practicing and discussing sword arts. There was a tacit understanding between them!
Without saying anything, Yan Liren jumped into the sky like a rotating meatball and opened his short, thick fingers. The four Cosmos Rings on his fingers shone brilliantly, and he retrieved almost a hundred flying swords in a row!
Although Yan Liren's favorite sword was the unique 'fourth sword', he certainly had access to a lot of other secret swords in various shapes and models as an elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect and the strongest sword Cultivator of the Ancient Sages Sector. The hundred flying swords were all his collections, some of which had even been adjusted and polished by Li Yao. Long, short, and in a myriad of colors—they unleashed infinite brightness and glowed into a waterfall of light!
The waterfall of light turned into a furious river and ran toward the crack in the breastplate of the black-skeleton-like Colossus.
