Chapter 217: 217: Launch
Three days later, under Taihao Peak in the Demon-Suppression Cavern.
On the square-shaped altar, Bai Susu supported her chin in her hands, her beautiful eyes distant as if lost in a trance.
Behind this Great Monster, a young maid with rosy lips, white teeth, and hair tied in twin buns stood cautiously massaging her back.
Bai Susu suddenly hummed, "Gentler."
Startled, the young maid promptly applied more force, her little fists hammering away swiftly, yet inside she was silently weeping.
She felt like her mouse life had plunged into endless darkness.
"Lord, Lord, where have you gone, sniffle sniffle~"
As if Bai Susu had heard the quiet cry of her heart, she suddenly turned sideways and extended her slender fingers to pinch the maid's tender cheek.
"Little mouse, are you badmouthing me?"
The maid immediately shook her head like a rattle-drum, blinking her large eyes on the verge of tears.
Bai Susu let out a chuckle: "Stop thinking about that guy."
Stretching languorously, she said, "We're about to leave this place."
"Isn't that right, Sect Leader Ji!"
Sect Leader Ji Guantao of the Cloud Sun Sect was standing right beside the altar.
He bowed to Bai Susu: "White Fairy, the time has come."
"Rest assured."
Bai Susu shook the golden lock binding her wrists and said, "As long as you keep your promise, I will do my part."
"Good!"
Ji Guantao smiled faintly, took a step back, and his figure vanished without a trace.
"The time has come!"
Meanwhile, an old man in plain clothes, holding a dried vine staff, stood at the center of an array, his eyes sparkling with a captivating brilliance, three enormous fox tail phantoms appearing behind him.
The interior of Taihao Peak had been hollowed out into a massive cavern centuries ago.
After Ji Guantao took over as Sect Leader, he set up a special array here and invested countless resources to enhance its tier.
Today, the array had finally taken shape, needing only one last step for activation.
Around the central position of the array, eight young cultivators sat cross-legged in the eight directions of the array.
Zhao Huaian, Xiao Hongyi, Lin Feng, Ye Junhao, Qin Ge...
They were the most exceptional True Disciples of the Cloud Sun Sect, including several newly appointed Sect Leader's Disciples!
Each one of them radiated a strange and colorful light.
These lights originated from the items they carried with them: small green bottles, white jade beads, dark gold rings, and so on.
The gaze of the old man in plain clothes swept over the eight True Disciples.
He looked like an experienced Spiritual Plant Farmer, filled with joy at the sight of the Spiritual Rice about to ripen!
In the vision of this Golden Core True Person, the destiny that swirled around these young cultivators was being continuously extracted by the array, silently drawing upon the vast and powerful force of nature.
Sons of destiny, a full eight sons of destiny!
For this very moment, he had planned for a hundred years. The seeds sown in days gone by, after being nurtured with endless sweat and toil, were finally ripe for harvest.
Without warning, the old man in plain clothes raised the dried vine staff, and its tip emitted thousands of dazzling golden rays.
Enshrouding both himself and the eight disciples.
Cloud Sun Pillar Stone of Taihao Peak suddenly quivered.
Numerous birds flew off in alarm!
At the entrance of the Inner Mountain Gate, a Mysterious Turtle lying next to a stela suddenly lifted its head, muttering, "Is it starting now?"
All the cultivators and creatures of the Monster Race, within a radius of tens of thousands of miles, felt an inexplicable palpitation.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
The Fixed Sun bells in the cities of Cloud Mountain, Cloud Lake, and Cloud Sea resonated simultaneously, each toll capturing the soul.
Various Evil Wraiths lurking in the Outer Sect area, no matter how deeply hidden, were like snow under scalding water, vanishing in an instant!
And the tens of thousands of Cloud Sun Outer Gate Disciples, as well as the hundreds of thousands of people affiliated with the Cloud Sun Sect, were all terrified, in a constant state of agitation.
They had no idea what was happening, only an instinctual sense of fear.
What had been a peaceful and serene life was now like a bubble, about to burst.
Now, it was ruthlessly burst!
The cultivators discovered in horror that the spiritual energy of nature was rapidly disappearing around them.
Actually, "disappearing" isn't quite accurate.
It would be more correct to say that the spiritual energy was converging towards Taihao Peak.
The latter was like a huge vortex, attracting all the spiritual energy within a thousand-mile radius!
The most affected were the Supreme Mysterious, Mingxiu, Changyang, Lonely Sword, Flying Feather, Lingyuan, Green Wood, and Sunset peaks.
These mountains trembled violently, with trees snapping and countless rocks splitting and rolling down, as the birds and beasts inhabiting them fled in a panic as if the end of days had arrived.
Streams of light fled from these peaks, zipping chaotically through the air like headless flies.
All of them were Inner Sect Disciples of the Cloud Sun Sect.
When some disciples tried to fly to Taihao Peak on their magic artifacts seeking refuge, they hit an invisible barrier before they could get close and couldn't advance even half an inch further.
Taihao Peak was also shaking.
Giant cracks appeared at its base.
From within the cracks, a dragon's chant could be faintly heard.
And the sky that had been clear was now covered with dark clouds, with thunder continuously roaring.
It seemed as if heaven and earth were enraged!
Inside the Cloud Dragon Grand Hall, Ji Guantao was sitting cross-legged on a cushion, with Mu Qingqiu holding a long sword at his side, protecting the law.
A gleaming Golden Core floated above the Sect Leader's forehead, radiating an aura of golden light.
An infinite amount of nature's spiritual power was crazily pouring into his body.
After being transformed, it continued to flow incessantly into the Golden Core above his head.
This Golden Core astonishingly manifested the phenomenon of nascent soul formation!
If others saw this scene, their jaws would definitely drop.
For decades, Ji Guantao had been stuck at the seventh tier of Golden Core without any breakthrough, giving people the impression that he had reached his limit.
Who would have thought that the Sect Leader of the Cloud Sun Sect had long since reached the level of Golden Core Completion!
After this phenomenon had persisted for half a day, Ji Guantao suddenly opened his eyes.
He said, "They're here."
"Ji Guantao!"
A furious shout descended from above the clouds, booming in every direction, clearly audible thousands of miles away.
"Daring to extract the spiritual veins from Heaven Cloud Mountain, your crimes are unforgivable!"
"Die!"
Before the words faded, a giant palm broke through the clouds and fiercely slapped towards Taihao Peak.
Bang!
With one strike, the Array barrier enclosing Taihao Peak burst into pieces.
However, at that moment, an extremely fierce Sword Light pierced through the roof of the Cloud Dragon Grand Hall, shooting straight into the sky, piercing through the giant palm and without losing any momentum, stabbing towards the Nine Heavens!
"Ah!"
A sudden scream rose, followed by a voice full of fury and desperation: "Mu Qingqiu!"
A Nascent Soul True Person, actually getting injured by a mere Golden Core Sword Qi.
Stay with us on m-vl-em-py-r
It was a humiliation beyond belief!
Inside the grand hall, Ji Guantao opened his eyes once more, his eyes seemingly filled with countless stars being born and dying.
The Golden Core above his head instantly shattered, and immediately, a Nascent Soul identical to his appearance formed!
Ji Guantao raised his hand and struck his forehead, opening his own heavenly orifice.
The newly-formed Nascent Soul leaped into it!
In the high heavens, countless thunders exploded simultaneously, with bolts of lightning striking towards the earth.
As the Nascent Soul formed, the lightning tribulation began!
------------
The second update is here.