I Can Extract Divine Power

"I can also use the White Bone Saint Official technique. I used it to strip him of his physical body."

"These skeletons before you are what he’s using to attack that physical body."

"Every time new members enter the Celestial Pride Hall, I draw upon their power to wear him down. By the time the Celestial Pride Hall opens again, he will be completely eroded. Then, I will journey with him to the Yellow Springs."

As he said this, the Apocalypse King’s expression was impassive, showing neither joy nor sorrow.

Shen Bai mulled it over for a moment before asking, "Then why have we appeared here?"

From Shen Bai’s understanding, no prodigies who entered the Celestial Pride Hall previously knew about this place. The looks on everyone’s faces made that clear.

’If the Apocalypse King was secretly using the power of the prodigies to suppress and wear down Emperor Tianyun, why would he have us appear here?’

The Apocalypse King glanced at Shen Bai. "Because of you."

Shen Bai frowned. "Because of me? Why?"

’The way he said it made it sound like I was the one who’d ruined his plan.’

’But I don’t think that’s possible. I’ve only met Emperor Tianyun once and haven’t caused any trouble.’

The Apocalypse King said slowly, "Everything in this world is in a state of flux. Even the smallest action by a single person can trigger immense change."

"Your arrival sent him into a crisis. Like a cornered beast, he’s become desperate and will now stop at nothing."

"Either he dies, or I do."

"These skeletons are infused with his power, and I... I currently have no means to fight them."

At this, the Apocalypse King’s spectral form began to fade.

"I must go suppress his true self. Everyone, I have already weakened the skeletons to a manageable level. I hope you can help me hold them off."

With those final words, the Apocalypse King vanished completely.

Where the Apocalypse King had been, a single, dazzling Bead remained.

The Bead gave off a soft, gentle glow.

An echo of his voice lingered: "Do not let them break the Bead, or all will be lost."

The horde of terrifying skeletons had already broken into a run, surging toward the Bead.

Nan Huang looked to Shen Bai and asked, "Lord Shen, do you have a plan?"

Honestly, everyone was simply stunned by what had just happened.

’To think they’d stumbled upon such an ancient secret... it was simply unbelievable.’

’Once they got out, they would probably have to report this to their respective countries. After all, the secret was too immense for them to keep to themselves.’

Shen Bai drew Cold Moon. "We fight."

"Fight?" Nan Huang blinked, taken aback.

Shen Bai nodded. "What other choice do we have? Whether he was telling the truth or not, one thing is certain: those skeletons are about to attack us."

Nan Huang considered this. ’Shen Bai has a point.’

’When that tide of skeletons washes over us, we’ll be the first to be attacked. Fighting seems to be our only option.’

’We can worry about what’s true and what’s not later. First, we need to survive.’

Fortunately, the Apocalypse King truly did seem to have weakened the skeletons significantly. Their individual power level wasn’t high.

But... there were so many of them.

Enough to form an entire army.

"Old Zhou, you all be careful,"

Shen Bai called out, then executed Divine Thousand Miles, transforming into a blur of afterimages as he plunged into the sea of skeletons.

Instantly, the skeletons swarmed toward Shen Bai, lashing out.

Crimson Sword Qi and golden Buddha’s Light intertwined. With Shen Bai at the epicenter, a hundred-zhang radius around him was reduced to rubble.

But more skeletons surged toward him. The number he had just destroyed wasn’t even one ten-thousandth of their total.

"Kill!"

Nan Huang activated his Hundred Truths Technique, ignoring the side effects, and led the members of the Celestial Pride Salvation Society in a charge against the skeletons.

Behind him, the auras of a hundred different Cultivation Techniques intertwined. Nan Huang’s own pace of slaughter was impressively fast.

The other members of the Celestial Pride Salvation Society also launched their own attacks.

Each attack was a dazzling, extraordinary display of power.

Zhou Qing scanned his surroundings and called out, "Everyone, the Battle Array Technique!"

A ray of light emerged from his hand.

The light formed a Battle Array on the ground, indicating where everyone should stand.

Qin Shuang and the others didn’t hesitate, quickly moving to their designated positions.

Zhou Qing took a deep breath and began to circulate the Qi in his body.

The light from the Battle Array vanished, but everyone could feel a new power surging through them—the blessing of the array.

"Kill!"

Zhou Qing cleaved through several skeletons with a single slash and charged into the fray, his Battlefield Qi erupting from him.

He was quite formidable himself; it was just that Shen Bai’s brilliance tended to overshadow everyone else.

Qin Shuang brandished a calligraphy brush, writing line after line of text in the air.

Each character manifested like a mountaintop storm, sweeping through the enemy ranks.

Ouyang Sword wielded his Longsword, and with the boost from the Battle Array Technique, he unleashed a torrent of Sword Qi as if it were free.

The other prodigies from the Great Zhou Country also unleashed their own diverse abilities.

There were simply too many skeletons. They had been relying on Shen Bai’s protection until now, but the time had come to fight for their lives.

The ocean of skeletons before them swarmed in, enveloping the group as they charged.

Every one of Shen Bai’s sword strikes felled a hundred skeletons.

But his expression showed no hint of relief.

"There are too many of them," Shen Bai said with a frown.

Traces of exhaustion were already showing on the faces of several prodigies.

Quantity has a quality all its own.

"Lord Shen, if this keeps up, we’ll be worn down to death," Nan Huang said, coughing.

The phantoms of the hundred Cultivation Techniques behind him had already dimmed considerably.

Aside from Shen Bai, Nan Huang had killed the most. But he couldn’t maintain this pace for long.

"Nothing is inexhaustible,"

Shen Bai said. "Look after the wounded. Hold on a little longer. We need to find the source of the problem."

With that, Shen Bai focused his gaze, activating his Void-breaking Red Eye to scan the area ahead.