Ascension Day

Chapter 268: Chapter 127: The Ancestral Dragon’s Grand Resurrection Ritual

A deafening BOOM echoed out. Xu Ying dodged the descending palm, but he couldn’t escape the shockwave from its impact. Fortunately, he had the dented and battered Da Zhong. He skillfully hid inside the bell, avoiding the brunt of the aftershock.

The bell was sent clanging and ringing from the impact. It tumbled and rolled along the Divine Bridge, skipping across the surface of the Jasper Pool’s water as it crashed downward. It then slammed into the Twelve-Storey Tower, plummeting all the way from the twelfth floor before getting snagged on the upturned eaves of the fourth.

Xu Ying slid out from inside the bell, suppressing the urge to vomit blood. He shouted, “All who are still alive, listen to the Immortal’s command! Attack this place! Smash every building and the Jasper Pool in the Golden Man’s Mysterious Domain! Sever the Celestial River, flatten the Celestial Mountain, shatter the Profound Gates! And throw out the Five Peaks Immortal Mountain!”

In just a few moments of battle, Feng Xian’er, Hua Xianchen, and the others had already suffered heavy casualties. The remaining Qi Refiners took heart upon hearing his words, and one by one, they flew into the Golden Man’s Mysterious Domain.

They summoned their respective Magical Treasures and unleashed them upon the Celestial River, the Celestial Mountain, the Three Profound Gates, and the Five Immortal Mountains, wreaking havoc.

Feng Xian’er, in particular, directly channeled her Phoenix Fire, taking the lead in boiling the Jasper Pool’s water dry!

The Imperial Mausoleum Golden Man’s Magical Power plummeted. The hand reaching behind it moved slower and slower, its might dwindling.

But it was simply too massive. The slightest touch meant certain death or grievous injury, even for a Qi Refiner who had formed a Golden Core!

Finally, the Celestial River was severed, the Celestial Mountain was razed, the three Profound Gates were toppled and shattered, the five Immortal Mountains were leveled, and even the bottom of the Furnace Cauldron was smashed through!

The Golden Man at last grew still, freezing in place.

Its Magical Power came from two sources: one was the Incense Smoke Qi from the Shen Kan, and the other was its Mysterious Domain, which was its primary source. Previously, Xu Ying had used its own power against it to destroy the Incense Smoke Qi from the Shen Kan. Now that its Mysterious Domain was also destroyed, it had lost its source of power.

Zhu Chanchan raised her hand and gave a push. Yuan Qi’s mouth opened involuntarily, and his head grew immense. The young girl stood inside the big snake’s mouth, her eyes gleaming as she looked at the destroyed Magical Treasures. She immediately tapped on Yuan Qi’s tongue.

Yuan Qi involuntarily slithered down from Xu Ying’s shoulder, revealing his true form. Then, just as involuntarily, he activated his Ba Snake Cultivator technique, transforming into a hundred-zhang-long giant serpent.

He slithered forward, swallowing the broken pieces of the Profound Gates, Divine Bridge, Multi-Storey Tower, and other structures one by one.

Xu Ying, who had also been wreaking havoc just moments before, could finally breathe a sigh of relief, feeling like he had just survived a catastrophe.

Controlled by Zhu Chanchan, Yuan Qi slithered along, swallowing everything in his path. He ate so much that he grew fat and bloated, unable to even coil his body.

Seeing him slither over, Xu Ying quickly moved away. ‘If he tried to coil around my neck now,’ he thought, ‘I’d probably die.’

He leaped up and landed in the palm of the Imperial Mausoleum Golden Man, gazing toward the seven beams of Ascension Radiance.

He saw that the other Golden Men and Nuo Immortals had already reached the beams and were fighting amidst the radiance. Xu Ying looked higher and saw that above the light, Fangzhang Immortal Mountain had shrunk to a tiny, barely perceptible dot.

Near Fangzhang Immortal Mountain, there was an altar, countless times larger than the mountain itself.

Xu Fu was performing a ritual on the Immortal Mountain outside the altar. In the domain of Fangzhang, his feet moved in a profound and mysterious pattern, but he was too far away for Xu Ying to tell what he was trying to do.

Suddenly, Xu Fu stopped and pointed a hand toward the altar.

Xu Ying saw the space in the center of the altar suddenly seem to tremble. An invisible force, accompanied by this tremor, surged out in all directions!

Xu Ying’s expression changed drastically. “Everyone, get out of here now!” he roared.

Before the words had even left his mouth, clouds of Qi Blood began to rise near the Ascension Radiance. Some Nuo Masters were fleeing in this direction, but as they ran, Qi Blood started seeping from their Grotto Heavens. Their bodies grew thinner and thinner, quickly shriveling up like firewood!

After a few more steps, the Nuo Masters’ Grotto Heavens would explode, and their bodies would crumble into a pile of dry bones, disintegrating as they ran!

It wasn’t just ordinary Nuo Masters; even the Grand Nuo were losing their Qi Blood, and the Immortal Elixirs within their bodies were draining away with it!

Even the Nuo Immortals fighting the Imperial Mausoleum Golden Men couldn’t control the loss of their own Immortal Elixirs!

On top of that, they still had to fight the Imperial Mausoleum Golden Men, making it even harder to resist the effects of the great ritual!

This resurrection ritual of Xu Fu’s was truly ferocious!

He intended to capture every single person who had opened a Secret Treasury, regardless of whether they identified as a Nuo Master or a Qi Refiner, all in one fell swoop!

However, among the Qi Refiners he had brought with him, some had also opened Secret Treasuries and cultivated Nuo Techniques. They too were among those being sacrificed!

Even Xu Ying felt the four Secret Treasuries he had already opened stirring restlessly within him. He found them difficult to suppress, and they were on the verge of being ripped from his body by the great ritual!

In particular, since he lacked a Cultivation Technique for the Jade Pool but had drawn upon the power of his Jade Pool Grotto Heaven, he could feel the unrefined Primordial Qi Immortal Elixir about to fly out of his body!

The Qi Refiners who had not opened any Secret Treasuries, however, had no such worries. They were completely unaffected.

Xu Ying activated his Sword Qi and used Sword Control to fly, desperately trying to break out. “Lord Qi, let’s go!” he yelled.

Yuan Qi hurriedly propelled his body forward. Glancing back in his haste, he saw the Grotto Heavens behind the Grand Nuo rushing this way begin to fall apart and continuously disintegrate!

Yuan Qi’s heart pounded with fear. He too had opened several Grotto Heavens, and they were now also showing signs of collapse. He quickly activated his Sword Qi, took to the air, and followed single-mindedly after Xu Ying.

It was the same for Zhu Chanchan, hiding in Yuan Qi’s mouth. She felt the Immortal Elixir she had accumulated over six thousand years stirring restlessly, on the verge of flying away!

Everyone was fleeing outward, except for the Nuo Immortals, who suddenly abandoned the Imperial Mausoleum Golden Men. Instead of retreating, they advanced, charging toward the altar in the sky.

Yet the closer they got to the altar, the faster the “Immortal Elixir” in their bodies drained away. Despite this, these men surged bravely forward, fighting their way onto Fangzhang Immortal Mountain!

On Fangzhang Immortal Mountain, Xu Fu was completely unafraid. With a serene smile, he said, “Gentlemen, rather than becoming a meal for others, why not contribute your strength to my grand plan?”

An elderly, white-haired Nuo Immortal from the Cui Family charged forward, bringing his Hidden Scenery with him. The Hidden Scenery was a field of radiant light, within which a Flying Immortal seemed to dwell. It swept toward Xu Fu!

Xu Fu smiled faintly, raised his palm, and met the radiant light.

A faint ripple spread out. The Nuo Immortal’s Hidden Scenery seemed to slam into an invisible wall, suddenly collapsing and shattering. The Immortal Elixir that formed the Hidden Scenery howled as it flowed away, pouring into the Golden Coffin within the Ascension Radiance!

The other Nuo Immortals charged, but in the next moment, they were all wounded, each one spitting blood!

At that very moment, a tall man in archaic clothing used his finger as a sword, stabbing at the center of Xu Fu’s palm!

Xu Fu’s aura wavered, and a look of surprise crossed his face. He chuckled. “So you’re the Qi Refiner from the Great Zhou Period? You must be the one who goes around killing people with a suspended Bronze Sword. You do have some skill!”

‘My Sword Pointing attack was both a sneak attack and part of a pincer move with the other Nuo Immortals,’ the tall man thought, shocked, ‘yet it still failed to pierce his palm!’

Xu Fu said, “You still have unrefined Immortal Elixir in your body. You might as well stay!”

He formed the Fist Mother Seal and threw a punch. The Great Zhou Qi Refiner took the blow head-on, spat blood, and revealed a look of terror. “You’re an Immortal?”

Wounded, the Immortal Elixir in his body was also triggered by the blood sacrifice, flowing out of him even faster than it had from the other Nuo Immortals!

Just then, a voice spoke calmly, “On the Immortal Mountain, he is. Off the Immortal Mountain, he’s nothing!”

Xu Fu felt a terrifying power surge toward him and hastily flipped his hand to meet it, striking behind him.

His body swayed, and he stumbled two steps forward before he could dissipate the force from the blow.

Xu Fu turned, a look of surprise on his face. He saw that the newcomer was a handsome and distinguished-looking old man. His clothes were neat and clean, his hair, beard, and eyebrows were impeccably groomed, and there wasn’t even a speck of dirt on his shoes.

It was Yuan Wuji of the Yuan Family.

Xu Fu was puzzled. “You are a Nuo Immortal. Why is there no Immortal Elixir in your body?”

“Guess!” Yuan Wuji smiled faintly and attacked him, calling out, “You all go destroy the altar first!”

Xu Ying and the others had already reached the Mercury River. The farther they got from the altar, the weaker the effect became. However, the influence of the great ritual was growing stronger and stronger. Xu Ying estimated that his four Secret Treasuries would be destroyed before he could even reach the entrance to the Lishan Mausoleum!

Xu Ying looked back. The sky above Emperor Shi’s Ancestral Dragon’s Golden Coffin had turned crimson, and a torrent was pouring into the coffin!

Just then, the altar suddenly shattered, and the horrifying sensation from the blood sacrifice finally vanished.

‘What’s happening?’ Xu Ying was bewildered. ‘Did Xu Fu meet his match? No, that can’t be right. He has the Physique and power of an Immortal, and he has even refined Immortal Fire. How could he have an opponent?’

Suddenly, a THUMPING pulse emanated from the Ancestral Dragon’s Golden Coffin, like a great drum pounding in one’s chest, making hearts feel as if they were about to explode.

THUMP!

A second pulse followed, even louder than the first.

Xu Ying grunted and continued rushing outward with Yuan Qi. A deep, somewhat familiar voice echoed, “We, who trod upon the Divine Land, who commanded the state, who swept aside the Six Nations and dominated the world, slumbered here. Who has awakened Us?”